Chapter 47: The battle of Invictus (11)
Beneath the bridge, if one descended the winding stairs to the bottom of the crater, just by the edge of an underground stream, one could spot an opening in the rocky wall.
Inside that chamber, the young soldier was dazzled by what stood before his remaining eye: a small wooden chest, the size of a basketball, rested on a stone altar, upon which was engraved a message:
"With great power comes great responsibility."
He didn’t bother to read it, hastily opening the chest, expecting to behold the legendary star. But something went wrong.
The wooden box wouldn’t open. He tried again, this time with more force, but it was in vain. No matter how hard he pushed, the chest wouldn’t move an inch from its stone pedestal.
Frustrated, he turned toward the major—the one who had accompanied him and remained oddly silent. But to his surprise, the major was no longer there.
He shouted, but no silhouette reappeared.
Just as he was thinking of a way to open the chest, a violent migraine seized him, knocking him unconscious on the spot.
Inside his mind, the parasite began to swell, devouring his brain. The poor enforcer died from the sheer intensity of the pain, while the parasite continued growing inside him, taking the shape of a larva.
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On the surface
The battle had already raged on for more than four hours.