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The earth quaked with unnatural precision as if obeying a command, and in a blink, Rowe was entombed—his body constricted by a surge of compacted rock and soil, leaving only his head exposed. It was as though he had been nearly buried alive.
Simultaneously, the terrain around him warped, collapsing inward and pressurizing the makeshift prison encasing him. The sheer density of the binding earth made escape momentarily impossible. The horned entity facing him—a subterranean demon with mutant-level geokinetic abilities—grinned menacingly.
He raised a gauntleted hand, fingers twitching with seismic influence. The rocky mass near Rowe began to shift, reshaping into a jagged stone blade, its edge glimmering with latent energy—an executioner's weapon born of the earth.
King's Blessing!
Rowe invoked one of his Asgardian enchantments, his body pulsing with divine energy. His skin flushed as white flame surged violently around him—pure Aesir fire, channeled through his pact with Odin's temple relics.
The sacred fire began melting the rock imprisoning him, transmuting it into semi-molten slag. Steam hissed upward as the hardened earth softened, giving Rowe precious freedom of motion.
But the blade was already in descent, aiming for his exposed throat.
"Bang—crash!"
Reacting on pure instinct, Rowe summoned the blood-red Commander's Shield, deflecting the strike mid-swing. The impact exploded with force, shattering part of the blade and pelting the surroundings with stone shrapnel.
With a roar, he pushed off the melting stone beneath his feet and vaulted free, brandishing his enchanted warhammer in both hands.
Judgment!
The Hammer of Judgment—infused with the dual forces of Holy Light and flame—arced through the air and struck the demon's shoulder with a concussive explosion.
"Boom!"
The demon snarled in agony, his shoulder splintered, flakes of earthen armor crumbling off. Though his rock armor had absorbed some of the blast, the divine energy burned through, leaving fissures and dripping molten blood.
Rowe didn't give him time to recover. He lunged, his gauntlet blazing.
Hammer of Justice!
"Boom!"
But the ground suddenly rose, throwing off the momentum. A stone pillar surged upward beneath the hammer's path, redirecting the blow skyward. The terrain shifted wildly—geokinetic manipulation on a battlefield scale.
Taking advantage, the one-horned demon soared forward, his legs coated in armored stone. His spinning kick connected squarely with Rowe's chest.
Pain shot through Rowe's entire body as he was launched backward, the force enough to blur his vision.
"You're stronger than I expected," the demon sneered, rotating his dislocated shoulder. "But your luck ends here."
With that, the demon began absorbing more of the terrain, coating himself in a second layer of rock—not merely armor, but a living stone exoskeleton. It sealed across his form seamlessly, enlarging his frame, and making him nearly invulnerable.
Rowe tensed. He readied his stance and kept his hammer and shield raised.
Then the horned demon vanished—phased through the earth like a ghost, using his powers to tunnel at high velocity.
Rowe's heart pounded. He turned in every direction, scanning for any vibration or chakra pulse.
"Behind you!" Fairwind's voice rang out in alarm.
Rowe spun reflexively and unleashed a burst of holy light.
"Boom!" The ground exploded, but nothing was hit.
"Left foot!" Fairwind called again.
A rocky hand erupted from the ground and clamped toward Rowe's ankle. Reacting with pinpoint precision, Rowe brought the warhammer down, smashing the stone limb with righteous force.
"Ahhh, don't come after me!" Fairwind screamed comically, bolting for safety.
As he darted past a fellow warrior, another massive stone hand burst from beneath, dragging the unfortunate soldier underground in a flash of screams and rubble.
Fairwind dashed toward Skorch. Behind him, the ground rippled ominously.
A water whip shot out just as the earth surged. Amora, the Enchantress of Asgard, had acted just in time.
"Oof!" Fairwind was yanked toward her by the whip, crashing into her frame.
He paused, blushing, nose twitching from her scent. "Amora, you smell like moonlight and roses…"
"Crack!" Amora slapped him mercilessly and shoved him away. "Get serious or get buried!"
Meanwhile, Skorch seized the opportunity and brought his battle-axe down with full strength on the newly exposed stone limb.
"Boom!" The axe shattered debris, but the demon's main body remained untouched, impervious beneath layers of enchanted stone.
The demon's hand didn't flinch. It wrapped around Skorch.
Skorch panicked, swinging wildly, but his strikes failed to do real damage.
Then came salvation—a hammer wrapped in divine fire and judgment. Rowe descended, his weapon connecting cleanly with the stone hand.
"BOOM!" Holy light radiated, tearing through rock and burning a searing path into the creature's skin. The stone hand recoiled, broken and charred.
"Rowe, he's coming for you!" Fairwind shouted again.
Rowe retreated cautiously, slipping the warhammer into a temporary sling and pulling a staff from his Sanctuary-linked belt pouch. His eyes scanned the terrain, judging the next strike zone.
He leapt to the top of a massive boulder.
The enemy reacted—stone fingers erupted from the boulder's side, reaching for him.
Rock Mark!
Rowe pointed the staff, and a glyph of Asgardian design lit up. The spell activated instantly, and the boulder pulsed with divine command, holding the demon's hand fast.
Taking his chance, Rowe threw the staff.
"Haldo!" he barked.
Haldo caught the staff in midair. As the son of the Sanctuary's chief artificer, Haldo's affinity for mystic weaponry was unmatched.
Without orders, he synchronized with the rest of the team and began casting defensive glyphs to suppress the demon's tunnel paths.
Rowe, now freed from the burden of magic channeling, drew back Verrigan's Fist, and again brought the hammer down.
"Boom!"
The Hammer of Justice cracked through the already-damaged hand. A sickening crunch followed—the fingers twisted grotesquely, blood seeping through the seams.
"AHHH!" The demon howled in agony, his arm vanishing back into the dirt.
"Right side!" Fairwind yelled. "No, wait—he turned around! He's coming back!"
It was clear: aside from Rowe, Fairwind's precognition and sensory gifts were now the demon's biggest threat.
The demon surged underground, closing in on Fairwind and the others.
"AHHHH!" Fairwind wailed, sprinting away.
"Fairwind, stop squealing like a Midgardian hen!" Valkyrie barked. "Where is he now?"
Fairwind pointed frantically. "There!"
At that exact moment, Haldo planted the staff and unleashed another Rock Mark. When the demon's hand emerged, it was once again locked in place.
Two warriors pounced—blades in motion, striking in perfect tandem.
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