Chapter 261 - Against You, It Must Be Endless

"Cold…!"

Fai hugged himself as he tucked himself into the boundaries of the trees, standing just outside of the perimeter of frost. 

He nearly jumped as a hand suddenly grabbed his trousers, tugging on them as he looked down to see a familiar head of vermillion hair. For a moment, he thought his exhaustion was providing him with hallucinations as he scrubbed his eyes with his forearm before checking again. 

"Charlotte…?! What're you doing here?"

"Donatien told me...I'm going to help you recover."

"Still, you shouldn't be--"

"Sit down, there isn't time for this!"

Charlotte's forward words were so unlike her that Fai found himself at a loss, hesitantly sitting down with his back against the tree--still holding his doubts. 

"...Planning to dull my movements with this harsh weather? Not a bad plan."

Though he spoke, his quietly spoken words were overthrown by the raging, howling winds of the manifested storm of frost as he ruffled his head of jet-black, bunned locks. 

Looking up towards the sky, it was blatant where the boundaries of the spell-conjured storm lied--like a tube walled in by frost that didn't dare set out an inch from its designated path, reaching high up into the sky. 

Avdima's aloof discernment of the spell was punished as spikes of solid ice suddenly protruded from the ground around him, jutting out towards him with vicious intent. A simple knock of the back of his hand shattered one of the approaching spikes while he lifted his knee; the durability of his reinforcement overpowered the material of the steel-like frost, breaking it down into bits and pieces of hail. 

"Impressive utility, but it isn't exactly much to write home about in offensive power."

Commenting to himself as he dealt with the spikes without stepping from his spot, Avdima brushed a gathered mound of snow from the shoulder of his somber robes. 

"There is a simple counter-strategy to territorial spells like this…"

Avdima muttered as he brought his hands together, looking blankly forward at the blinding scenery of raging white as darkness manifested around him. 

This gathering, potent mana was felt as clear as day by Donatien as he remained cautious within the obscuring nature of his territory. The aura exertion of mana that was normal for mages when gathering the proper magical energy for a spell was suffocating as if the air tightened around Donatien's chest; such a simple concept was transcended by the boundless reservoir within Avdima. 

"Erebus: Between Gaia and Hades." 

With those quietly spoken words, their meaning was found in the screaming, wailing curtains of darkness that swallowed the domain of frost in its entirety; all seemed indifferent to the walls of rapidly stretching darkness, enclosing both Avdima and Donatien in the harrowing, abyssal domain. 

What is this? I can't see anything, or feel anything for that matter--the constant particles of snow pelting against me, the softness of the white snow beneath my step...it's gone, Donatien thought. 

It was complete and utter darkness, all around him. The sounds of powerful winds were completely absent from one moment to the next, only a daunting hum filling his ears. 

"This is the pinnacle of territorial spells; rather than the manifestation of elements into the open world, this is the innate world of the spell's nature. What you're standing in is unequivocal darkness; an isolated abyss offset from the real world."

Avdima's emotionless, dull voice met Donatien's ears as if spoken right next to him, but he could see no sign of the dreary-eyed man. 

What the glasses-wearing man didn't know is that Avdima's hand was right on his shoulder and his lips close to his ear. 

"This domain inhabits the concept of sensory deprivation. In it, you'll feel nothing, smell nothing, taste nothing, see nothing, and--hear nothing. The only reason my voice meets your ears right now is because I allow it to. By now, you've realized it, haven't you? You can't move."

It was correct; as Donatien tried anything, just the most minute action such as twitching his pinky--no sensation was met. All he could do was stand there, existing amongst the abundant darkness. 

He's a smart guy, so I can't disclose everything about this territory to him, but still, Avdima thought. 

"It's not just that...your sense of time will slow to a snail's pace, your ears will ring and ring until you're driven mad. It's regrettable to have to subject one to this, I respect your strength; wielding territory magic is something that usually takes decades of grueling work, but you've achieved it. I hope that fact comforts you within the hold of this abyss, Donatien."

The Argonaut with tired, black bags beneath his eyes seemed almost disappointed to be using such magecraft. 

From outside, Fai could see it as his body was being mended by the touch of Charlotte's gentle water magic; an enormous sphere occupied the center of the field, encased in a still, pure darkness. 

"A territory spell…? This guy is always full of surprises--YAUGH!"

Fai suddenly winced as a sharp pain came to the shoulder that the vermillion-haired girl kept her hands over, utilizing a gentle water that caressed his compromised section. 

"Keep still...it's only going to take longer if you move so much."

"Easy for you to say…"

A countless number of black dots scoured the man's tanned, sweat-layered body like chickenpox; it was clear to be the result of Avdima's great magic, but the nature of the dots was something Charlotte couldn't figure out. 

Just a gentle poke of her slender finger against one of the freckle-like dots shot a visible jolt of pain through Fai as he grimaced. Though, that brief pain was quickly replaced by a harrowing sight--both Fai and the girl healing him looked at the sphere of perfect darkness as a single boot of a black leather stepped out. 

As if leaving the boundaries of unseen water, Avdima stepped out from the holds of the spherical abyss with his usual stoic, tired look, not so much as lifting his gaze to look at the other two as he slowly approached them. 

"It's my turn again already, is it…? Heh…"

Standing himself up slowly with his body still scaled in bruises, Fai chuckled as he cracked his shoulders. His return to his feet wasn't approved by Charlotte, who reached out to him--to no effect. 

"But you're still--"

"I'm fine. It's not like this guy is going to sit around and wait for me to be fresh for him. It's your turn to get some rest."

"Huh…?"

Charlotte was perplexed by those words that came with a smile from the man, who chuckled a bit as his ponytail swayed in the wind. His hand descended on her head softly, giving her a single pat before he stepped forward. 

"You did good, Charlotte. I feel ready to rumble again! So, sit back and let me handle this!"

Saying this, Fai stared down Avdima, who walked slowly with no urgency to his step, looking down towards the frosted grass below. 

Putting his hands together, Fai stood tall as a lake of stretching, abyssal liquid formed around and beneath his feet, keeping his eyes locked on the Argonaut. Without having to tell the girl a word, Fai could sense Charlotte distance herself from the reach of the pool of shadows. 

Good girl; just sit back and watch me handle this! He thought. 

"I know damn well if I just throw a simple beast at you, you'll send it back to me in five times as many pieces! That's why...I'll do this!"

Fau gritted his teeth as sweat evacuated his pores in droves; rumbling came from the lake of darkness around him as Avdima came to a stop, halting just at the edge of the abrasive pool of abyssal fluids as tremors pushed through the forest. 

"Humbaba!"

What rose from the depths of the darkness was anything but a simple beast; the face of a lion, baring horns and obsidian scales across its body with claws that more so resembled viscous, refined talons. Standing on all four of its feet, the beast stood taller than its summoner, with a length that resembled an elephant--the thunderous stomps of its casual steps further cemented this size. Its tail was unmistakably sentient; baring fangs of its own at the end as it slithered like a serpent. 

The growl that left its fiery maw reverberated through the forest like a roar, leaving the trees applauding its overwhelming presence. 

"Interesting."

Avdima muttered as he raised his gaze towards the malevolent beast of a lion waiting at Fai's side, keeping its emerald, sharpened, feline irises on the Argonaut as growls continued to release from its daunting maw. 

"I'm not done yet…! Rise, Cath Palug!"

This second call brought on a devastating tremor throughout the pool of shadows as another beast slowly rose from its depths; the sable goo cascaded down its snow-white fur like rain slicking down the back of a coat. 

Its beady eyes carried a blood-red shade, glistening with malice as it set its hungering gaze on the Argonaut as it slowly stepped forward with its massive paws, exhibiting a size similar to the Humbaba. 

You didn't give me the chance earlier to show you so much as a hint of my true strength--I'll give you that honor now, Avdima! He thought. 

In complete honesty, Fai felt he had a bone to pick with the Argonaut now--for a more personal, petty reason. Being nearly done in by the spell he deemed in his mind as "cheap", he felt there was a lot he had to prove at this point. 

I'm really feeling it by now; summoning all of these creatures...it feels like my muscles are set on fire. I owe you one, Wukong...you really saved my ass--no, all of our asses back there. I don't know what kind of enemy drove you to those lengths, but you were strong enough to get it done. Now--we'll handle things from here, Fai thought. 

"Fai Meng."

Without so much as a reaction to the enormous behemoths of feline creatures encircling him now, Avdima calmly spoke out the name of the man who faced him down. All Fai could do was raise a questioning eyebrow at the call from the dreary-looking, youthful man. 

"Don't dull the memory of the strong warrior I have in my mind; fighting meaninglessly despite the odds...isn't graceful. Show me that you subverting the death I planned to give you was the right choice." 

"You're pretty cocky, you know that? Fighting meaninglessly, with only a miracle fueling my chances, that's when I do my best! Let's go---!"

The last words yelled energetically from the shirtless martial artist's mouth weren't for Avdima, but for the mythical felines that patiently encircled the Argonaut with their salivating, hungering maws as they finally began to charge at the pale-skinned man.