Chapter 14 - Chapter 14- Blood Moon

The four of them had narrowly survived a disaster that came without warning. Shaken but alive, they pressed deeper into the jungle, searching for a place to rest. In their exhaustion, they forgot a simple truth, nightfall in these woods was more dangerous than any battle they had faced. The forest of Astrath was feared for two reasons. The first was the Blood Moon. When it rose, the crimson light twisted the balance of nature itself. Creatures grew restless, their instincts sharpened, their hunger magnified. The second reason was the creatures themselves. They were unlike anything found in ordinary lands. These beasts learned, adapted, and evolved from every encounter. Each clash made them stronger, sharper, deadlier. The oldest survivors of the jungle weren't just predators, they were monsters forged from centuries of watching humans fight, mimicking tactics and killing with terrifying precision. And tonight, under the glow of the blood moon, Helios and his companions were trespassers in their domain. The trees above them shook violently, branches snapping as something moved in the canopy. Suddenly, a small silver monkey dropped down in front of them. "Aww, so cute," Shidan muttered, crouching down and reaching out. But before anyone could react, the "cute" monkey sliced through his wrist with razor-sharp claws. Shidan stared at his severed hand, his expression darkening. "What a cute monkey." With a single backhand, his palm slamming into the creature's head. The monkey's body was sent flying, crashing into a tree with a wet crack. Helios's eyes widened. The hand Shidan had just lost was already reforming, muscle and skin weaving together. "So that's what Malvek meant… healing with mana. No wonder Shidan wasn't panicking, his mastery made him fearless." Helios thought to himself. Bow whistled. "Well, that's freaky." "Don't get comfortable," Malvek growled, his gaze snapping upward. "They're coming." Five elder silver monkeys revealed themselves, crouched high above with massive boulders in their hands. With screeches, they hurled the stones down. Malvek leapt into the air, tracing a cursed mark across one boulder. He swung his arm to backhand an elder like Shidan had, but the monkey anticipated the move. It snatched a younger monkey beside it and hurled it straight at Malvek mid-air. With a roar, Malvek tore the sacrifice in two and landed atop the boulder, commanding it to freeze in place beneath him with his curse mark. Meanwhile, chaos erupted below. Bow's amplified strikes cracked the air itself, each blow shaking the ground as he tore through the swarm. Shidan was a whirlwind of destruction, ripping monkeys apart with brutal efficiency. Shidan slammed another monkey into the dirt, blood spraying across the roots. "You two, follow the river downstream! We'll meet you there!" "Alright!" Bow answered, grabbing Helios by the shoulder. Together they broke away, sprinting through the undergrowth, branches whipping against their faces as the sounds of battle thundered behind them. "Helios, we gotta be a duo again, like last time in the desert!" Bow shouted. "Sounds good to me!" Helios replied, his breath steadying as they tore through the jungle. Helios calmed his mind, but then the familiar heat roared inside him. His blood boiled, his eyes burned, shifting from emerald green to a piercing yellow. His muscles swelled with power. The two bolted through the forest, weaving through roots and brush as monkeys lunged from every angle. Bow roared, "POWER!" He stopped just long enough to rip a tree from the ground and hurl it like a spear. The trunk crashed through the swarm ahead, crushing beasts into the dirt. But then, they were surrounded. Helios gripped his sword. "Bow… I'm going to get serious. Try and keep up." Bow smirked, cracking his knuckles. "You should be the one catching up to me, Helios." Together, they charged. Helios unsheathed his blade in one smooth motion, slicing two monkeys in half as he leapt high. Mid-air, he funneled mana into his fist, slamming it into the ground on impact. The earth split apart, shockwaves flinging dirt and roots. The swarm surged all at once, dozens of claws and fangs flashing. Helios spun low, his body a blur as his legs whipped out, smashing three creatures back like broken dolls. The others leapt aside, chittering. Pushing off the ground, Helios rose smoothly and sheathed his sword. His stance shifted, forearms raised, fists clenched. Mana crackled over his skin, glowing black and red, hardening like armor. The canopy split. From above, the largest and most fearsome monkey dropped into the clearing with a heavy thud. Its frame matched Helios in height, but its muscles were more defined, its presence radiating raw brutality. The beast's lips curled into a mocking smirk. Helios' face didn't change, emotionless, calm, his eyes locked on the creature. Inside, though, something clicked. He couldn't describe it, not with words. His breathing slowed, his pulse sharpened. His mana, his body, his mind, everything aligned as one. This was what warriors whispered about. The Zone. In this state, there was no hesitation, no wasted motion. Helios was giving it more than he'd ever tapped into before, 120% of his current ability. Every muscle in his body coiled like a drawn bowstring, ready to snap. The battlefield, the trees, even the wind seemed to slow. All that existed now was him and the beast before him. The beast struck first. Its fist came like a cannonball. Helios blocked, but the force rattled his bones, sent pain lancing through his arm. Yet as the shock ran through him, his body learned. His stance adjusted, muscles recalibrated. The next punch came, and he absorbed it with half the strain. From the sidelines, Bow muttered, "He's changing mid-fight…" Helios ducked under a wild swing, driving an uppercut into the beast's gut. The impact made the monster stumble, but it roared and lashed out with a backhand that split Helios's lip. He spat blood, then straightened, grin faintly tugging at his mouth. Already, the pain was dulling. His body was knitting tighter, faster. The exchange accelerated. Fist against fist, elbow against jaw, shin against shin. At first, the monkey overwhelmed with brute power, battering Helios into the dirt. But with every clash, Helios's body recalibrated, his guard sharper, his counters swifter. The monkey threw a savage knee to his ribs, Helios's body tensed just right, dispersing the force. It hurled a hook toward his temple, Helios weaved inside and answered with a perfect short elbow, snapping the beast's head back. A minute ago, Helios had been defending. Now, the tide shifted. His strikes landed heavier, sharper. Every block became a counter. Every dodge became a punish. The monkey roared in frustration, leaping high and crashing down with both fists. Helios caught the blow head-on, arms locked, dust billowed around them. Muscles screamed, but then… adapted. With a sudden twist, he redirected the force, flinging the beast into the ground with its own momentum. "Unreal," Bow whispered, wide-eyed. "He's adapting?!" The monster scrambled up, bellowing. Helios was already there, driving a knee into its ribs, then chaining strikes, hook, elbow, backfist, straight, each flowing smoother, faster, deadlier. The rhythm was brutal, mechanical. The monkey couldn't keep up. It swung one last desperate strike, Helios slipped past, coiled low, and unleashed a crushing overhand fist to its skull. Bone cracked like stone under hammer. The beast staggered, dazed, powerless before the fighter it had unknowingly forged. Helios straightened, eyes glowing faintly. His body buzzed, not from exhaustion, but from his body learning. The monkey collapsed. Silent. The undead monkey's breath came ragged, its chest heaving, its silver fur matted with blood and dirt. Every strike it had landed only seemed to sharpen the human before it. Now, Helios was relentless, his eyes empty, cold, movements surgical. The beast swung in desperation, claws flashing. Helios slipped inside, caught its wrist, and snapped the arm with a violent twist. The howl tore through the night. Without pause, Helios buried his fist into the monkey's ribs, once, twice, thrice, each blow like a piledriver until bone caved inward. The monster collapsed to its knees, gagging, blood frothing from its mouth. Helios grabbed it by the throat, lifting the massive body off the ground with one arm. The creature thrashed, claws tearing at his skin, but his grip never wavered. He slammed it down headfirst into the dirt with such force the earth cratered. The monkey twitched. Broken. Helios straddled its chest, pinning it, and began hammering his fists down, again and again and again. Flesh tore, bone split, the ground beneath them shaking with the rhythm of his fury. By the time Helios stopped, the undead beast's skull was pulp, its body motionless. His fists dripped red, his chest heaving with controlled breaths.