by user
Damian stood up with a face full of blood and the three beasts immediately jumped on him, so they covered him completely.
«You will feed the Demons! Like a gazelle succumbing to a lion!» Igor said.
Damian closed his eyes, he felt the power flow in him. The Power of the Dragon awoke, he reopened them and with an unprecedented power he emitted a great blue energy that was fatal for the Demons. They screamed in pain and because of that intense light they had to let go. With the sword he pierced them all three. They disintegrated and disappeared forever. The young man grabbed his sword even harder, first backed away, then pushed forward to better hit the enemy. At one stretch, it was blocked by a strange force. With his sword, Igor had engraved that symbol on his right hand. He took his blade and speared Damian to the abdomen, where the liver was. The sword crossed it from side to side. The young hero spat blood, but at that very moment with his right hand he pointed at Igor’s heart. His right arm turned into a blue-colored dragon’s arm, with sparkling scales and large sharp claws. He first destroyed the blade of the sword that pierced his body and then again with the the dragon’s hand pierced the man in the chest, shook his heart and pulled it out. Igor died instantly. Damian was about to turn into a monstrous creature, the dark power was about to infect his right half. His mind was almost gone, when Diosmed shouted from the stands: «Stop! Come back to you! You are not a Demon! You are a human!»
Damian looked at him, resumed his human form and fell to the ground. Everything became black before his eyes and fainted. The man with the lion’s mane had been defeated. The crowd cheered the winner, even though the two bodies were lying on the ground. Some were horrified by the event, others couldn’t understand what had happened.
«The Son of the Dragon wins! He is the first finalist» the presenter said.
Diosmed ran to his wounded friend and when he reached the arena, he removed the fragments of the sword from Damian’s abdomen. The roman doctors arrived quickly. There was nothing for Igor to do, his heart had been ripped from his body. The strange symbol disappeared and his body was covered with black flames, burned intensely and became dust. This is the destiny that belongs to those who make agreements with the Devil.
His companions did not intervene.
«Save him soon!» Diosmed said to the roman doctors.
They took Damian’s body, almost lifeless. They took him to the infirmary, a rough room where the doctors healed the wounded with simple care. After all, they were destined to die and no one gave them so much importance. The doctors uselessly sprinkled the patience dock on the wound. When Tanya appeared from nothing, the vestal wrapped in white.
«Wait! Use this! It is an ointment created with the Flower of Nirvàh. It gives life to those who are one step away from death» the girl explained.
She picked up the ointment that was inside of a small green pot and sprinkled on the wound, both behind and both forward. The wound healed, but Damian did not open his eyes.
«I’ll take care of him. You go, your fight is about to begin» Tanya said to Diosmed.
«Who are you? Why do you help him?» Diosmed asked surprised.
«I’m just a simple girl. I came here to return the favor» she replied, smiling.
Diosmed went to the arena, it was his turn. As soon as he crossed the threshold, the sun shone like never before. Igor’s right-hand man, called Dauzier, was already there waiting for him. He seemed to be happy.
«How can you be happy if your boss is dead?» Diosmed asked.
«He was never my boss. He was just a powerful man who I used to achieve my goals. I can finally get out of here!» Dauzier replied.
It was a ruthless murderer, known for killing eight men simultaneously. He was there because the roman soldiers had arrested him and taken him by surprise during a theft. He had long blond hair, a parrot nose and green eyes. He was as tall as Diosmed and had a wicked look. He wore only a white subligaculum and the caligae.
«Finally I will abandon this fetid city!» the man continued.
While Dauzier spoke, Diosmed quickly positioned himself behind him and hit him with the Dragalòs, but the enemy’s body disappeared. He had vanished into nothingness. After a few seconds, Dauzier reappeared behind him.
«Scary?» He whispered in his ear and instantly Diosmed brandished his sword and tried to hit him, but the enemy disappeared again.
Diosmed found himself surrounded by ten copies of that man. It was hard to tell which of them was the original. He began to hit them one after the other, but they vanished like smoke in the air.
«Where are you? Show yourself, coward!» Diosmed said and then he was struck in the left calf.
«I’m here!» Dauzier replied with his rough tone.
It was a superficial wound, after which Dauzier, using the same technique, hit Diosmed in the back and wounded him again. In this battle, the fighters did not have the armor to protect themselves.
The wound was deeper and Diosmed screamed in pain.
«You’ll perish by my hand!» Dauzier threatened him.
His copies began to spin around him quickly. Diosmed tried to figure out what the original was, but he couldn’t. Dauzier wounded him in the calf and forced Diosmed to kneel, then punched his jaw so hard that he severely injured him. Diosmed spit out blood, he had suffered so many injuries in his life that this blow to him, although very powerful, meant nothing. He closed his eyes and listened to the voice of his sword. In his mind the image of the true Dauzier became lucid.
«It’s there, in the middle of those four copies! He said to himself.
He heard the voice of the Dragalòs, the sword lit up with a very intense green light and with a lightning strike struck the man in the stomach. Dauzier fell to the ground. Black blood came out of his belly and someone came out of the wound. Dauzier revealed his true form, he was a green midget, a mountain demon to be precise, with small curved white horns, square protruding teeth and a large head with a prominent jaw. He had black eyes and wore a simple gray rag. He had abandoned the body, but due to the wound received, the demon disappeared forever in the form of ash. At that precise moment a new vortex appeared in the sky. It was white, gradually assumed the shape of a white door with two doors and became as large as the black door. This time it was engraved on the top:
“Od Sruwad Ghò Sadudagilovir”
“The Gate of Paradise”
It emanated a very strong white light, so that he could not understand how it was done. Only the two clappers could be seen, circular and golden, used to open it. A white soul came out of that lifeless body, the door opened, let it in and then quickly disappeared.
«That poor man had been possessed by this miserable demon. Now it’s free» Diosmed whispered with the little strength he had.
«The winner is the Demon Slayer» Gravis said.
The crowd honored him and threw roses and garlands for Diosmed into the arena. He could barely stand up. He thought about Damian and walked in the direction of the infirmary.
Meanwhile the match between the mysterious man with the mantle and Giagar, Igor’s left hand-man, was about to begin in the arena. The arena was quickly cleaned up. A strange air surrounded those two. Giagar was sure of winning, but the man with the black mantle seemed as powerful as a mountain. No dark energy emanated, but it was immediately clear that he was not an ordinary man.
As the battle progressed, Damian had a very peculiar nightmare.
«It’s all dark here, I can’t see anything. He took a lamp from the ground and lit the way. He saw with his own eyes a blue dragon wrapped in black flames. He screamed in pain, then the Dragon looked at him and smiled at him. Damian looked at his face and suddenly realized that he had turned into that blue dragon wrapped in black flames, while his body began to move away.
He woke up screaming.
«Calm down, it was just a bad dream» Tanya said, trying to keep him still.
«Who are you? Where is Diosmed?» Damian said, and ju
st then he entered in the room, wounded in the legs and back.
«You’re fine, finally!» Diosmed said and then he fell to the floor.
«It’s hard, isn’t it?» Damian said, smiling.
«I heard you» Diosmed said as he lay on the ground.
Tanya helped the young man to rise and made him lie down on the stone bed next to his friend.
«You have a thick skin my dear!» Damian said.
« I couldn’t die in that arena!» Diosmed said.
The two laughed. Then they realized the presence of that red-haired girl, who takes care of them as if they were two children.
«But who are you?» the two in chorus asked to her.
«I just came here to return the favor. Remember, you told to the Romans the wrong way» Tanya said, looking at Damian.
«Thank you for your help» the young man replied. His wounds were healing.
«But you are the one who chose the matches! You could have chosen simpler pairs!» Diosmed exclaimed.
«Who says that I chose?» Tanya replied, smiling, like when someone wants to hide the truth.
After a while two guards entered.
«The participants will have to go to the arena. The third match is over» one of the two said and then they left.
«Wait, but if you’re so close to the Emperor, it means we have a chance! We can defeat him! Diosmed you will have to follow she, so you will enter in the emperor’s tribune and there the battle will begin!» Damian said.
«But I can’t, I’m wounded. I can’t stand up!» Diosmed answered.
«She is our salvation!» Damian replied.
«Why should I help you?» Tanya asked.
«So, tell me why you escape!» Damian said, rising from the bed and looking into her eyes.
«All right. I will help you and bring you to a better place, the bedroom of the Emperor. I will do what I can, even at the cost of living!» Tanya said with conviction.
«Bedroom? We must face him here!» Damian replied.
«Here? Among guards and demons? Don’t be silly, a demon like him has great power. In his room he hides something important. Furthermore, he is no longer found in the Colosseum. When you defeated the Leviathan, he also suffered a damage. The Gods have blessed you!» the girl replied.
«Do you also know about the Demons?» Diosmed asked.
«Yes, I know a lot about them. Ordinary men can see Demons only when they are in their true form, but they do not recognize a human possessed by a demon. He evoked the Leviathan, surely it was a huge undertaking. This means that he is a powerful subordinate of the “Demon King”» Tanya explained.
«The Demon King? What do you know about him?» Damian asked, bewildered.
«Will you not believe that all this chaos has been generated only by the Emperor? There is also his hand. He is the King of Evil, only his name brings devastation on Earth. Now we must move» Tanya explained.
Shortly thereafter, the girl handed them a strange pink heart-shaped fruit.
«Eat it, it will restore your strength!»
The two ate it and felt like they were reborn.
«What is this fruit?» Diosmed asked.
«It is a fruit of the Tree of the Love. It returns the strength to those who have lost it. They are very rare, you don’t make me repent of what I did, giving you my help!» Tanya said.
«Come with me, Damian, I can’t win by myself!» Diosmed pleaded.
«I can not, I feel that I must meet that man. He will have the answers to my questions, I can feel it!» Damian answered.
«Now you will have to pretend to be really sick, we will trick the doctors so they will disqualify you and then we will enter in the secret passage that leads to the palace of the Emperor» Tanya explained to him, but Diosmed still couldn’t trust her.
The two roman doctors entered, looked at him and did not take much notice of him. They went away saying that they decreed the exit from the tournament of Diosmed for serious wounds.
«How did you trick them? I only pretended to sleep!» Diosmed asked.
«A drop in the ear of the exauditor and everyone does what you want. Now come on, before the guards come to check!» Tanya urged him.
«Win for us, Damian! I’ll wait you from the other side. Good luck!» Diosmed encouraged him.
«Yes, I must win. I’m counting on you guys!» Damian replied.
The two ran away and Damian, left alone, changed his clothes and put on a blue tunic present in that simple infirmary, a room with four walls, beds and tables with some instruments and various scrolls with unknown writings on them.
Shortly before, the third match had ended in a second. Giagar, that big man who compared the mystery man looked like a dwarf, had issued a fireball from his mouth and had launched against the enemy. The man with the mantle disintegrated it just looking at it. He gave off so much energy that he almost seemed like a human calamity. On contact with that yellow light, Giagar suddenly fainted and he too burned in the black flames. The winner was that man who wanted to meet Damian earnestly. The people understood nothing of all that was happening, they always considered it part of the show.
Meanwhile, Diosmed and Tanya were able to evade the guards thanks to Tanya’s ploys. In the hypogeum the guards saw a woman with a red dress, black hair and a beautiful face. They approached her and meanwhile the two slipped away.
«How did you do it?» Diosmed asked.
«Magic arts of my native country. Come on this way» Tanya said.
While they entered in that long underground corridor that would lead them to the palace of the Emperor, the brunette woman disappeared and the soldiers found themselves in front of an old wooden broom, remaining stunned.
Meanwhile Damian braced himself and got out of bed. He took a simple sword from that room and reached the door.
«It’s my turn. The dagger is here in the bag, the statue and the old man’s treasure are safe in the cell. Mum give me the strength to discover the truth!» then he crossed the threshold.
The public was enthusiastic about the last match.
«Ladies and gentlemen! The final is about to begin! The Demon Slayer is unable to fight so the final will be held between the Son of the Dragon and the Nameless Beast!»
While the audience rejoiced, some realized the absence of the Emperor.
«Who knows why the Emperor is not present at the final. Strange» some murmured.
Damian entered the arena and saw his enemy.
«Finally you have come this far. I was waiting for you» the man said as he took off his mantle. He was tall and powerful, with a long brown hair. He had a very thick beard and a mustache that fitted into the context harmoniously. He had black eyes, a not very large nose and particular features. He had no armor, just a red tunic that left his arms and legs uncovered. He had muscles so powerful that they weren’t typical of human ones, but they came closer to something divine. Damian was awed by that meeting, but also felt a sense of security and harmony. The man did not emanate the dark demonic energy indeed, emitted a radiant force equal to that of the Sun. The young man gripped the Dragon’s Claw with his left hand and the gladius with the other. He was ready to fight with all his strength, but what he most wanted to know was the secrets about the Demons.
«What do the Demons want from me? what was that door?» Damian asked to the man.
The enemy brandished his sword, he was ready to attack. Damian so decided to anticipate him and with the sword he attacked him first, but the other blocked the blow with his sword. He thought he had hit a mountain, the man was so powerful that his thrust came back and he threw him in the opposite direction of the attack, so strong that Damian fell to the ground. In a short time he got up and began to study the enemy carefully.
«A frontal attack has no effect against him, I must try to distract him and attack him to the hips», Damian thought, when he realized he could no longer see him. «Where is he?»
«Here I am» replied the ene
my with his massive voice in the Language of the Gods.
And after that answer, the man with a fist hit him in the jaw, with a blow that started from below, and threw him into the air at a height of at least two meters, but the valiant Damian fell back to his feet. The damage suffered caused him a terrible pain, the blow had made him fall two lower teeth and made him spit blood like he had never done before. The enemy was inhuman, so Damian decided to use the Dragon’s Claw with all his power. He recalled the blue power and gripped the dagger with his right hand. The enemy, when he saw that power, was shocked.
«So, are you able to use this power now? Show me your full power!»
Damian was ready to launch the attack. He approached the two blades, the blue energy enveloped him all and attacked the enemy again, who avoided direct contact with the dagger and with his fists struck Damian in the arms, at the height of the biceps, and for the strong pain the young man dropped his weapons. The enemy took the sword of the young hero and with his hands broke it into two parts. He did not dare to touch the dagger.
«Who are you? A demon? That’s why you avoid the dagger!» Damian said.
«You’re wrong, I’m not a demon and I’m not afraid of that dagger, I don’t want to destroy it» the mysterious man answered.
«Why do you not want to destroy this dagger? If you’re not a demon, who are you?» Damian asked him.
«That dagger allows its owner to be able to defeat the Evil. Not for my will, I must be here in the land of the living for the eternity, under the control of the King of the Hell. In that dagger lies the soul of your mother, Damian» the man explained in the Language of the Gods.