Chapter 24: "Divine Cataclysm"

The creature withdrew its beak from my stomach. I fell over the undergrowth, defeated. Insects and roots penetrated my chest.

I stopped perceiving my surroundings.

I see blurred.

My ears deafened, my eyes blinded, and my mouth sealed.

Maybe I will reincarnate, is my comfort.

The concerns stopped and I abandoned myself on the death threshold.

Perhaps I will meet Milo. The peach will come to the end, finally…

***************

The bird attacked unbridled Jix, Sovereign of the Vastness. When both collided, a shadow appeared from the inside of the cavern. It passed its depths until reaching the battlefield: it was the Eternal Whisper.

It used The Silence to annul Jix’s powers, preventing us from turning into dying plants, just like the material that conformed it.

From Darek’s chest sprang seas of blood.

The vines and branches stopped, relieving my limbs and clearing my mind. Nevertheless, it continued absorbing the corruption around me, corroding my organs.

What just happened? Wasn’t I just buried beneath Jix’s amalgam?

“I’m in charge of neutralizing his powers. You heal Darek.” The Eternal Whisper ordered me.

He is in a critical state, he won’t live much longer. I must help him. But how? Using a Pact? I am terrified of having to keep depending on the Intermediaries after what they did to Kui’s mother.

The temperature left his body.

Nevertheless, if that is the only option…

Instead of his self-suffering, my bravery didn’t falter: I carried his faint body to the little cavity in the walls of the cavern and left him near a pool of acid.

The bird and Jix continued fighting, charging at each other with ferocity while the Eternal Whisper concentrated all its strength to annul Jix’s abilities. Nevertheless, they were not rivals for him.

Both are on another level, completely superior to us: their battle is devastating.

On my knees, I invoked an Intermediary.

I don’t care what you have to do, just make him recover, I beg you. He is my only friend, I would never forgive myself if I see him die.

“Make him be reborn, I don’t mind whether the price is my life.”

“Your last Pact is still not being settled: giving you another wish without having paid the previous before profanes the order that controls our designs.” The Intermediary responded.

Darek’s skin turned pale.

“This time will not be enough with equal suffering. This time there will be repercussions. This time, your ability will not be sufficient to stop the consequence: They will not save you. Eternity will not be enough to expire the price.”

His heart stopped.

“I accept.”

“Then, I will revive his body, bring him back from Death.”

******************

The world shook again in violent gusts.

Am I still alive? Have I died? Or maybe I’ve been reincarnated?

“………..”

I felt my body shake. Tiny drops touched my skin and incinerated it, causing me incomparable pain.

Yes, I am alive: this suffering is worthy of a living person!

“………. ………..”

I started listening again. I opened my eyes and saw a shadow in front of me. It was shaking me violently.

It’s just like that time at the mansion…

“Wake up, damn it! We don’t have time for you to sleep, you idiot!” Zera sobbed.

The rumblings didn’t stop. They were sharp blows, so loud they damaged the walls and ceiling, causing the acid to seep in everywhere. One after another, the structure wore away.

“Am I still… alive?”

What happened…?

“I'll explain later. For now, we have to take care of that thing.”

The bird tore apart parts of the amalgam, while the creature grew in size, trying to drown it.

“Jix, Sovereign of Vastness, a World God. If he found out my real body had awakened, then the other Gods must know as well.” The Eternal Whisper explained, risking his life in desperation to contain Jix’s powers.

Swipes, swipes, pecks. Kicks, flapping wings, and squeals — lots of squeals.

Blades with sharp edges, mutant insects, deformed animals. Explosions of black liquid, endless mushrooms, devouring bushes.

The cave walls were suffering from the atrocities of combat, releasing waves of acid. The heat increased exponentially, and the smell of sulfur fried our heads.

If Jix doesn't kill us, that bird will, and if that bird doesn't, the Nether Hollows will.

“The Eternal Whisper won’t be able to keep Jix at bay for long. We must take advantage of the fact that I’m absorbing the corruption and the creature is distracting him,” Zera explained as I sat up.

“That bastard almost killed us: I will have no mercy.”

The bird began to enter the acid streams in the walls. Then, it appeared from multiple directions, attacking both the Eternal Whisper and Jix.

Compared to them, we are insignificant insects: they ignore our presence.

We ran into the tide of animals and bushes, weaving through rock pillars, acid waterfalls, and the creature's shed feathers.

Mushrooms grew like defensive towers that penetrated the cavern ceiling. The bones floating in the black liquid transformed into abominable creatures whose sole purpose was to tear the bird's wings apart.

Jix is distracted. We won't get another chance like this.

“Zera, if we split up, I won’t be able to finish Jix off. I need you to purify the life around him even if it hurts.”

“Don't leave my side, you idiot. Do you think I can't take on a World God alone? With one of my punches, I'd send him flying to the other side of the continent.” She replied in a haughty tone, as if I underestimated her.

The bird lashed out at Jix's flying platform with its wings, knocking him into a pool of acid.

Is he dead?

The tide of plants and animals lost their consciousness, turning into statues.

“We defeated him? Is this how a World God dies?” I asked disappointedly.

Part of me wants to continue the fight, I want to endure an epic battle. But on the other hand, I feel tired: I wasn't trained for this.

“His presence has vanished.” He answered austerely.

“See, I told you: even I alone could have defeated that deity,” Zera said, shuffling her feet in joy.

I've been through so much today that I can't process it all. A good nap wouldn't hurt.

The bird continued attacking the Eternal Whisper with euphoria. However, its body was made of cryptic, intangible smoke.

It looks like a hen trying to peck a fox.

I lay down on the floor, exhausted. Zera was jumping up and down in happiness around me, celebrating in the most annoying way possible.

It's over. Who would have thought a bunch of trees and crooked roots would cause us so much trouble?

Then, suddenly, the tide regained vitality.

One second of silence, calm, harmony.

From the pool emerged Jix's body, growing with inconceivable fury. The amalgam took over the entire space, until it finally gave way to the voracious pressure. The brutality of its fury, in the blink of an eye, caused the Nether Hollows to explode.

We were thrown into the air in a blast that shook the planet.