Chapter 17: Worship X Whisper
Heavens Arena, 200th Floor Arena
"Ladies and gentlemen, it's the moment we've all been waiting for!" The 200th Floor announcer lady shouted into the mic. She leaned onto her desk filled with excitement and the rest of the arena shared her ecstasy as they shouted and screamed for the main event. "In only two months, the great Gilgamesh has secured ten straight overwhelming victories and will challenge a Floor Master! Today, he will fight another renowned fighter who has also never suffered defeat on the 200th Floor, Adam!"
The crowd rumbled from the growing anticipation but once Adam's name was introduced, a section of the crowd boo'd once Adam's name was mentioned. Due to Gilgamesh's influence and ancient esque style, a group of hundreds of people dressed in similar fashion. They wore vests and exposed their hairy chests, some devoted fans even dyed their hair blonde to match.
In the crowd, there were a few onlookers who had been waiting to see if Gilgamesh was the real deal or not. They sat together but the pink haired lady refused to acknowledge the makeup wearing clown next to her.
A man wearing black rimmed glasses in a white buttoned t-shirt which always managed to not remain tucked in leaned over, placing his elbows onto his knees, waiting for the match to begin.
"First to come out of the tunnel will be our challenger! Gilgamesh!" the announcer lady shouted into the mic.
Casually, Gilgamesh climbed the elevated steps to reach the fighting arena. In his demeanor, there wasn't any theatrics or boasting, strictly business as he reached his designated spot.
For the audience, his arrival sent the audience into a frenzy. The flashing of lights and cameras, the high pitched screams of swooned women, and the roars of enthusiastic men as they laid the red carpet of praise for Gilgamesh. In this short period of time, he conquered the hearts of Heaven's Arena and brought attention from all over the continent.
"Now, let's give it up for our Floor Master! Adam!" The announcer lady, in similar fashion, introduced the second heavy weight of this important event.
On the opposite side of the arena, Adam confidently marched up the rising steps and claimed his spot on the arena. He wore a loose loincloth around his midsection and an added protective layer to hide his private region. Adam's exposed chest and body wasn't as dignified and structured like Gilgamesh's, just the standard slightly athletic build. He flashed a perfect smile at Gilgamesh as the crowd once again boo'd the man. Adam had short black hair and black eyes matched with a prominent sharp nose.
Unfamiliar with this reception, Adam stepped closer to the man responsible for the illmanner treatment. "You stole their love from me and now they see me as the villain. What is your secret?"
"There is no secret," Gilgamesh answered, shrugging his shoulders. "Every creature with the ability to think will worship, love, or revere me above all beings once I've graced their presence. It is truth."
Adam ran a hand through his hair. "Is that so?"
Gilgamesh didn't feel the necessary desire to respond so the back and forth ended there. The referee responsible to score their match arrived onto the tile platform and raised his hand into the air, readying the signal to start the match.
The restless crowd's cheers peaked at the sight, excited for the next show Gilgamesh was about to display. As Adam previously mentioned before, his love within the Heaven's Arena was all too correct. The man after losing three matches straight then went on a miraculous winning streak, winning ten straight matches without receiving a single visible wound. Naturally, the advent watchers of the 200th Floor recognized the man's strength and spectacular ability.
Every spectator in the audience knew all too well of Adam's Nen Ability and its absurd abilities which continuously led to victory after victory, however, the person standing before him was Gilgamesh.
They had the utmost faith in his victory over Adam and they couldn't wait to see the how.
"Begin!" The referee announced as he swiped his raised hand down, signalling the start of the match.
Naturally, the two Nen User's activated their Nen.
The six colorless circles of light appeared around Gilgamesh.
"There it is!" The announcer lady shouted in anticipation. "There is Gilgamesh's signature ability, as we officially haven't gotten a name for them, they are known as the gates of oblivion. Because all of those who have stood in front of them, mysterious swords of death shoot from the unknown void!"
As she spoke, Adam activated his Nen Ability. Enshrouded in a lime colored aura, grass, vines, tree roots sprouted from beneath Adam's feet. Within seconds, the entire arena was covered in lush grass, bright flowers, and a singular majestic tree.
Unbothered, Gilgamesh noticed deer walking around and enjoying the scenery, taking time to bend over and smell the wonderful flowers at its hooves. A hopping bunny stopped to chew on some leaves, a kaleidoscope of colorful butterflies fluttered in the air, and hanging from the tree was a single red apple. This bright red apple hovered between the two of them.
Adam kneeled down and then calmly laid on the grass. With a hand leisurely placed in front of his mouth, he yawned. A single tear escaped from his left eye and with an index finger, he wiped away the tear.
Gilgamesh's Nen didn't feel any hostile intent. As his eyes scanned his surroundings, he then noticed to be blinking heavily, he seemed to be at such ease, he was getting sleepy.
"Tired?" Adam asked before closing his eyes and folding his arms beneath his head, then using his Nen, a plush bed of thick grass grew for comfort. "You can close your eyes and get some sleep, oh great one. In here, there will be no harm done."
Gilgamesh's right eyebrow twitched.
"Here we go folks!" The announcer lady screamed. "Adam's nonchalant attitude and tactics returns to the main stage. Let's see how Gilgamesh will fight back against this strange strategy."
Like the explosion of a cannon, one of Gilgamesh's conjured swords erupted from his right side, piercing Adam's chest. The conjured sword punctured through the exposed chest and heart, killing Adam almost instantaneously.
The crowd boomed in favor of Gilgamesh.
"To nobody's surprise! One of Gilgamesh's swords was buried deep into Adam's chest, killing the man!" The announcer lady celebrated.
Seeing Adam's death, Gilgamesh brandished the rest of his swords as they turned into a gray mist dissipating into thin air. Even the conjured blade piercing Adam's heart vanished. He began turning around to leave the corpse behind him.
"Gilgamesh!" The referee took two steps in his direction to gain his attention. "This fight isn't over yet."
"Do you harbor the awareness of a baboon?" Gilgamesh sneered as he turned back around to mock the referee but in his vision, he noticed something move. It should have been impossible but his eyes picked up the slightest twitch from Adam's corpse.
Then like straight from an ancient horror story, Adam rose from the dead, animated and gasping for air.
And without hesitation, Gilgamesh sent another conjured sword straight through the man's forehead, killing him for a second time. After two seconds of the blade impaling Adam's head, his eyes snapped open like a zombie coming back from the dead and his hands reached for the blade's handle and freed himself from the piercing blade.
Once freed of the sword, Adam tossed the blade away and then let out a big yawn. His arms reached above his head as his whole body shook from stretching.
"Do your ears work, Oh Great One?" Adam taunted as his tone dragged lazily, glowing in a bright lime aura.
"Incredible! Adam can come back from the dead even from Gilgamesh's insane swords!" The announcer lady shouted. "The one known as 'God's Favorite Child' cannot die or receive any 'real' damage. This is how Adam initially received his losing streak because of the fighting system rewarding unfair points to the opposition until the higher ups got involved and adjusted the grading system for him alone!"
"This is my Nen Ability: Garden of Eden," Adam revealed with his eyes closed. "Neither you nor I can cause any type of physical damage against each other, we will not get hungry, dehydrated, or even die in this current state."
"Current state?" Gilgamesh repeated.
"If you wish to put an end to our perfect pleasant paradise and forsaken our land, then take a bite out of that apple," Adam said, pointing at the alluring red fruit. Gilgamesh's attention rose to the hanging apple. "Although, I do advise against that. You will be punished."
Gilgamesh strolled toward the apple, stopping below it from arms reach.
"How long will this stalemate last till Gilgamesh eats the fruit?" The announcer lady shouted in anticipation. "Because in every fight, Adam's opponent will take a bite and then suffer from an overwhelming defeat. Will this same fate be true for Gilgamesh? I just can't wait to find out!"
Gilgamesh conjured a sword at his side, grasping the handle with his right hand and sliced the fruit free from the tree bark. The large fruit weighed heavy in his left palm, feeling the gravity and consequence of ingesting the apple.
In the tiniest fractions of a second, the advance Nen Users in attendance quickly analyzed the precarious situation.
'This is a complicated Nen Condition, eating the apple isn't worth the risk for this pointless match.' The pink haired lady thought.
'In this situation, I doubt digesting a Nen Transmutated Apple will be the actual cause of death. So, I would eat it and see what follows next,' thought Hisoka as a creepy smile stretched on his lips.
'Maybe, I can force him into taking a bite,' thought the black hair man wearing glasses.
At the end of second, Gilgamesh took a large bite into the red apple.
"Woah! Gilgamesh, without a care in the world, chomped down onto the forbidden fruit!" The announcer lady erupted into an excited frenzy. Riding on the moment, the entire arena roared from uncertainty and shock.
Adam watched Gilgamesh casually chew and then swallow the broken down fruit. As the muscles of Gilgamesh's esophagus push down the forbidden fruit into his stomach, Adam's Nen explodes in a powerful light. The Condition of his Nen Ability now fully satisfied, his Garden of Eden transformed. The entire arena glowed into a dark forest green, the docile deer grew large numerous antlers, the bunnies grew oversize fangs, the flowers morphed, spewing out poisonous gas, venomous multi colored snakes slithered in the thick grass, and the massive tree grew a sinister mouth and arms as jagged tree bark.
"Forsaken Land of God," Adam declared as he dragged himself onto his feet. A snake slithered up his arm and climbed onto his head, the mouth of the snake chomped onto the end of its tail, creating a floating halo above Adam's head. Bright clear translucent wings sprouted from his back and with one flap, he ascended off the ground. "Repent for your sins and then accept your punishment."
Gilgamesh folded his arms in front of his bare exposed chest.
"Repent? Sins?" He repeated and then burst into an arrogant laugh. "You fly and deceive yourself but you do not stand on a higher plane of existence than I? You do not wield the authority to rule out punishment to anyone! You are a blasphemous mongrel"
In response, Adam tilted forward in the air, pointing a slightly bent finger toward Gilgamesh. An unspoken command for his monstrous creatures to exact out punishment. The massive sentient tree grew eight legs as it marched, four two headed snakes slithered, the beastified antlered deer stomped, together they all blitzed Gilgamesh.
Gilgamesh's hand reached out into a blood orange orb of Nen Aura, activating his Nen Ability.
"King of King's Sword: Ea!"
He pulled out a gold and blue encase cylindrical, drill in shape weapon which was composed of three rotating segments. Red intricate lines ran along the strange looking "blade". Gilgamesh felt thick vines and roots ensnare his ankles, entrapping him.
The instant precisely before: the two headed snake lashed out, the sharp antlers of the beastified deer, and the sentient giant tree shaped fist could bite, stab, and clobber Gilgamesh as they were mere inches away, he whispered a singular word.
"Sing."