"Even from the depths of hell… my fangs will still reach you"- Cain
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**A year and a half ago, after Jason's resurrection inside Asura's pocket dimension**
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It had been only a year and a half since Jason had been resurrected from his death caused by the grand elder manipulating Aaliyah's body and forcing her to take his life. Inside this pocket dimension, was a space with an infinitely expanding surface and empty sky…
The sky was purple with streaks of blue, and on the ground was black sand and a small wooden hut with a campfire on the outside… there were wooden dummies which had been cut in half and six purple rune symbols around the area forming a circle with one of the six in the sky… CLING, CLASH…
The sounds of a blade clashing begun to sound across the area, two streaks of black and red swirled around inside the purple colored circle of rune symbols, they were Jason who was shirtless and bruised, his hair both messy and down to his eyes. While asura untouched and in his limit breaker state with four arms and two extra heads clashed his fists against Jason's blade…
"There'll come a time where you'll need to use Malum's power… if you didn't even realize that, then for what purpose were you so quick to accept training from me?" Asura shouted out as he clashed his arms against Jason's blade…
Jason grunted, then kicked Asura away from him. With sweat and blood dripping down his face and mouth, he replied "in case you forgot that quickly, last time I used Malum's power he killed a whole city's worth of people and kids… I'd rather get stronger with my own power instead of with his power… just for him to possess my body again and kill more people, that's bullshit!!!"
Jason sprinted toward Asura, and thrusted his blade right toward Asura's chest… Asura had caught the blade before it reached him and pulled it, swinging Jason into a tree behind them.
Jason struggled to get up while Asura threw his fists forward in a blur, crushing the tree and slamming Jason deeper into the ground. The impact of his punch sent a shockwave through the ground and space.
Jason coughed out blood, his body ached… he then kicked Asura back as the purple colored rune symbols in the air pulsed, reacting to the wrath growing in Jason's mind…
Asura stood straight up after stumbling back, looking at Jason's tensed face he said "Don't think I don't already understand what your saying kid, but lemme give you a reality check… even if you did manage to get stronger with your own power, it still would never be enough to even put you in the same league of power as the ones you wish to protect your dear mother and sister from…
Jason's expression softened a little, "…"- Jason
Asura walked toward Jason and continued, "But at the rate you're going, you can't even consider yourself close in power with your mother or sister… you'll just be dragging them down as dead-weight." The glow on Jason's curse marks flickered red, spreading even more.
And in a sharper voice, Asura said up close to Jason's ear. "Even that girl Aria who you love is far stronger than you… she's bound to be a target by the old man, and even Malum himself… and if you're stupid enough to think that love is what's going to help you protect them, then you'll always be nothing more than a damned child playing in a world of monsters!"
Jason's grip on his sword tightened as he clenched his teeth, the ground beneath his feet began to crack in response to the progression of his curse marks spreading…
Jason's hands had started trembling, one of his eyes turned bloodshot red… then a shockwave of chaos energy exploded from Jason's body. The output of power had split the ground, destroying the wooden hut nearby while blowing away the cut up practice dummies.
Asura looked around to see the space around the dimension cracking like glass, fixing his gaze back in front of him, Jason had already disappeared…
"?!"
Before fully turning his head Jason was already behind Asura swinging his blade right at Asura's neck, but the rough surface of his skin had shielded Asura from the sharp blade. Right as a Malum's voice resonated with Jason's as he said, "still trying to toy with my power even after a hundred years eh boy?"
Asura gritted his teeth, red sparks had shot out from the blade scratching at his neck… he then used his three arms to punch into Jason's stomach knocking him back…
As he slid on his feet, Malum threw Jason's blade to the ground. He held his right arm out while black and red aura swirled around it and made its way to his hand forming a scythe. "let's get one thing straight boy… that borrowed power of yours came from me, and if you think I'm going to sit around and play passenger while you attempt to teach my power to an immature brat like this punk-ass kid, you don't know the first thing about me!" Malum said as he lunged at Asura while sending a flying slash attack with his scythe.
("The runes should be weakening his power… but Jason's soul was what was stopping Malum from completely possessing his body. And what's worse, just recently his soul was shattered into fragments to revive him.")-Asura
Asura held his hand out toward the incoming red and black slash, which had been distorting the space around it… but a chill ran down his spine when he had sensed Malum already behind him sending another flying slash. "Well damn!"- Asura
Having no time to dodge, both slashes hit Asura. Cutting through his muscles as blood sprayed in the air. Asura dropped to his knees while holding his shoulder as he grunted and looked up at Malum who had begun slowly walking toward him while looking down at him with Distain in his eyes.
Holding the scythe in one hand, he looked down and scoffed. "I'm sure you sensed my consciousness returning eight months ago right when caelirach woke me and sealed my consciousness inside this child's body… so why is it that when he dies that you came out of nowhere to revive him?" Malum said while his hand began shaking, while he put his free hand in his hip.
He Continued, "would your reason be to stop caelirach from using my power? Or is it that you intend to use this boy for your own moti-" before Malum finished speaking, the rune symbols in the sky flared purple. Sprouting tapes out which wrapped around Jason's body.
Asura had got up and dug his fingers into Jason's chest, chaos energy began swirling around Asura's fingers, glaring into Jason's bloodshot eyes as Malum said. "I'd advise you to give up on this child Asura… I'm sure you know as well as his dumbass mother does, that it doesn't matter how much you try… This child will die. His fate was decided when caelirach decided to seal me inside a boy like him."
The small fragments of Jason's soul had begun to come closer together encasing the dark red and black flame in his core, just as Malum finished his last words. "And whatever your planning to do with this kid I'm-"
Malum's voice had been cut off by a rupture of light bursting from Jason's chest, Asura had used the soul purge technique. However he did it in reverse… using the technique amplified by the surrounding barrier to pour spirit energy into his soul to suppress Malum's power over the vessel…
Jason opened his dark grey eyes, and was met by the wide wound across Asura's torso. Asura backed up, panting as he held his chest and said "you saw what just happened didn't you? What just happened as a result of you being too stingy to realize that if you don't hurry up and even try and control his power, he'll kill everybody you hold close to your heart."
Jason felt his heart drop at Asura's words, he looked down at the ground as his chest rapidly rose and dropped, uncontrolled breaths left his mouth… he had rushed over to the hut and shut the door behind him, and sat down on the ground with his back against the wall. His breaths came out fast, the words of Asura kept replaying in his head…
Jason had then reached at his chest and grabbed on to the locket around his neck, showing Aria's picture on it… the smile on her face put his heart at ease, helping his fast paced breaths slow down as he closed his eyes and leaned his head back.
————————————————————————**Back to present day, at the center of the southern tribe underneath the cloudy and rainy sky**
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Inside the grey smoke blanketing the surrounding area, Jason was down on one knee holding his arm and broken hand with his free hand, and his katana down in front of him on the concrete ground.
"Bout time we met, brother!" The arrogant voice came from Ikari who had walked through the smoke toward Jason on his right side. A wide grin on his face with his hands in his pockets… Jason had stared into Ikari's crimson eyes as he grunted while struggling to stand up while picking up his blade.
To Jason's left, Then a light blue circle had formed surrounding one long black haired woman, with four sorcerers surrounding her.
Jason had thought, ("Kaida") until he saw the scar going down the right side of her face from her forehead to her cheek. The supreme war general of the northern tribe Asami…
("What the hell's Miss Asami doing here?!"), Jason thought to himself while gazing at both Ikari and Asami. Ikari looked over to his right at Asami, who had her sights set on Jason… he called out to her and said "HEY, Who the Hell're you?". Asami only answered his question with a quick cold gaze.
The female sorcerer next to Asami, spoke timidly "General… what should we do?" Her hands shook feeling the crushing weight of the three monsters around her. The middle aged sorcerer next to her patted her shoulder and said, "our orders were to stay still and observe Malum's vessel… you're a Lieutenant of the general's personal special division now, so start acting like it."
The girl looked at the swearing face of her senior, staying silent as she thought. ("I know but… how can you genuinely tell me to stay calm, with three powerhouses in front of us?"). The senior officer of the special division glanced at Asami's dark eyes as she unsheathed her black blade, he thought to himself as he sweated. ("General Asami's deemed the situation in the southern tribe a political matter and decided to get directly involved… now between Malum's vessel, General Asami, and this new enemy…
("We're looking at a damn three-way deadlock between monsters"). The concrete beneath Asami's heels cracked, as the three all simultaneously in a blur dashed toward each other. Jason and Asami's blades clashed with each other topped with Ikari's hardened arm. The three faces were inches away from each other.
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**3,000 meters above the boarder surrounding the southern tribe village**
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Aria's white divine seals of Heaven had spread across her body, as she levitated in front of Devoro who just stared at her. He spoke out, "seem's Ikari's now battling against your friend down there… so, that's the power used during the blood war a thousand years ago which clashed against my father."
Aria just glared at Devoro, and then flew toward him and threw a punch which had went into the mouth on Devoro's chest. "I was told by our brother not to engage in combat with you if possible… so I would like to ask that you do not provoke me into fighting you, I'd rather not die."
Aria responded, "if that's so, then why attack me and Jason?… even your boss is confident his comrades can't beat me, so why?" She said as she gazed up at Devoro's lazy eyes. "I've come to the conclusion that between you and your boyfriend down there you were the smartest of both of you… not to mention your boundless power that's in a realm he could never dream of reaching…
"And yet what's holding you back, is your unwillingness to get humans involved in divine warfare… you limit yourself to protect them, and your desire to protect that boy down there, that you hold the closes to the thing of yours you call "heart".
He continued, "power is what you need to protect him, yet releasing the limit of your power puts those powerless humans in danger… you create these conflicts within your heart and soul and allow love to cloud your judgement. And that is why you'll never be strong enough to protect anything or anyone."
Dark purple tendrils had swirled out of Devoro's chest mouth and around Aria's arm. Aria attempted to kick him as he caught her leg on contact… as her Iris's glowed whiter she commanded, "Don't touch me". Looking right into Aria's eyes as she spoke her commandment, he did as told and released her leg as she flew back while cupping her hands together…
Three divine white halo formed around devoro's body, with white flames encasing Devoro's body… "Erupt" Aria Commanded the flames to explode.
Devoro sidestepped out of the smoke, and extended his hand which transformed into a mouth and fired at Aria… she then grabbed his forearm and yanked on it, pulling Devoro closer in as she cocked her fist back before landing a punch drilling into Devoro's face which sent him further into the sky.
Aria had teleported behind Devoro… "can't beat her myself… everyone else besides Tengu is busy with their targets." Devoro thought while sending divine energy building up in Aria's body. The lightning striking the earth through the dark clouds had struck Aria's back… her eyes glowed light blue as she pointed her finger up.
She then swiped her finger down, sending a lightning strike right at Devoro which he ate with his chest mouth… though still inflicting damage.
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**back at the center of the village**
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Flying flares of black and red energy sparked in the air, each time Jason, Asami, and Ikari clashed against each other. Ikari grinned as he knocked them both back…
Jason let out heavy breaths, struggling to stand up straight he thought to himself… ("damn. I can't beat the two of them in my condition… Aria's busy dealing with that dude above the wall!")
Asami had used her blade to cut her arms, blood spilled out and stuck on to the blade… ("What the F**k?") Ikari thought to himself.
Asami spoke out, her voice sounded as if she had to clear it but was still loud enough for her subordinates to hear. "Cadet Sidra! Keep your focus on the vessel… the moment my blade comes in contact with him, do it…
The rest of you, make sure you keep the seal up when it happens" Asami instructed of the special division unit… they all nodded, as she slide the sharp end of her blade against the ground toward Jason, sending a straight line of blood toward Jason.
Jason instinctively boosted himself backwards with his katana, turning his head over his shoulder to see Ikari behind him already and kicking him directly into the oncoming blood trail.
"Gah!"-Jason
The blood stained Jason's hands, as then the black haired woman clapped her hands together. She chanted, "Blooming Lotus"
Jason's body trembled as he tried to move. Then black lotus marks formed on his arms, torso and face. ("It's a sealing technique"), Jason thought while Asami and Ikari from both sides rushed toward him.
Jason managed to move his arms enough to block both of them, holding them in place… Asami's eyes slightly widened, noticing the crimson red color forming like a vortex in Jason's eyes. Jason let out heavy breaths, closing his left eye.
He spoke his thoughts in his head, however his inner voice overlapped with a heavy toned voice. ("This sealing technique, its…").
"His soul fragments holding father's influence over his body back… that technique the black haired woman over there used, their trying to force him into fighting off father's power so they can end this quicker" Ikari had caught on to Asami's clear aim.
Rain drops spill on everyone on the battlefield, excluding the special division… but the rain had turned red.
Asami's hair began extending and wrapped around Jason's body. A spirit grenade had then materialized in her hair, exploding right on Jason which sent him flying back into Ikari.
Ikari stopped Jason with his palm, but then Asami had immediately sidestepped behind him and sent a flying blood slash toward Ikari, Her eyes remained dark as she made eye contact with Ikari who was grinning.
"Yer holding out on me aren't you lady? Why the hell haven't you used your soul space yet?" Ikari said. The grin on his face quickly turned to a frown…
He threw Jason to the side, and clasped his hands together while he said. "This won't be enough to be considered a death-match if we're all holding back… from here on out, full power.
Ikari slowly moved both his hands away from each other, showing a black void-like sphere which had begun expanding… but before he could finish summoning his realm, he looked up to see hundreds of flaming arrows raining down upon the area.
He blew them all away with a swipe of his hand, and looked up a a nearly collapsed construct to see Kaida standing atop it.
The timid looking special division lieutenant looked up and said, "That's General Masayoshi's daughter… the current General of the southern tribe, Kaida Masayoshi"
To be continued in chapter 86…