Chapter 56: Zephyr vs. Pyraxis continuation
The land itself screamed.
When Pyraxis shed his humanoid form, the transformation shook the scorched plain like an earthquake. His molten armor shattered outward, melting into rivers of lava. Firestorms erupted into the sky, dyeing the clouds crimson. What rose in his place was not a man — it was a colossus. A titan of living fire, hundreds of feet tall, his chest glowing like the heart of a volcano.
"Behold!" the giant roared, voice echoing like thunder in a burning canyon. "I am Pyraxis Unbound, Flame Sovereign of the Legion!"
The ground split, rivers of magma cutting off Zephyr’s companions from one another. Each was trapped in their own trial. The air itself became suffocating heat, every breath searing their lungs.
Zephyr stood firm, sword gripped in trembling hands, lightning storming around his body. His cloak was ash, his armor cracked, but his gaze burned brighter than ever. "Then I’ll strike you down as you are. Storms don’t fear fire."
Pyraxis’ laughter rumbled across the world like an erupting volcano. His molten fist slammed down, sending a shockwave that flattened an entire swathe of battlefield. Zephyr blurred aside in the last instant, shadows and lightning carrying him across the broken plain.
But this was only the beginning.
The Molten Brute had matched Darius blow for blow, but now the battlefield’s shift gave the monster new strength. Lava surged into his wounds, reforging cracked stone with fresh magma.
"You’ve got to be kidding me," Darius spat, blood on his lip. "You’re patching yourself mid-fight?"
The brute roared and brought its hammer down again. The impact cracked Darius’ gauntlets, forcing him to his knees. Pain lanced up his arms, but he clenched his fists tighter.
"I didn’t come this far to lose to a lump of rock." His eyes blazed, and he let out a guttural yell. His gauntlets flared with primal energy, runes pulsing. Each strike he unleashed now shook harder, cracked deeper.
But still, the brute fought back, unrelenting. It was a war of attrition, and Darius knew the first one to falter would be the first to die.