Master Of Myths

Within the prism hysterical laughter never ceased, Kamiva's punctured body shaking in delight at his own magnificent plan

"Dispair, wollow in regret, for this unholy place cannot be escaped, a land for the dead where the living may not step"

Looking up at the light coming off the transparent he broke into a large smile

"I'm here, life is slowly reaped from thos whove yet to embrace the undeath, weakend but by but until the very soul is stolen from its vessel, you can't escape, you can't survive, and your power shall be mine!"

In his craze Kamiva's skull twisted to the back, taking one last look on YuJu's face before he died

"....Why are you not dying?"

Witnessing unamused eyes staring back as of to question, are you done, Kaimva slowly sobered up from his earlier madness

"Should I be?"

"Well, yes, your supposed to be writhing in agony as your soul is slowly reaped, you know, screaming and begging before I finally take the seed of Pride that rightfully belongs to me"

"That so"

"Yes.....So?"

Seeing how curious the bony thing was he thought enlightening it a bit wouldn't he too bad

"This trap is made so the undead cannot be harmed"

"Uhuh uhuh"

"That's why your unnefected"

"Yup yup"

"Which is also why I am unnaffected"

"??"

Kamiva's skull tilted to the side in confusion, what sort of explanation was that? It was as if he was saying he was an undead too....oh, no that's what he was exactly saying

Feeling doubtful he took another look over this man, but found everything as it should be, flesh was there, blood was there, fangs were there, skin was, wait, fangs?

"You! Your not human are you?! A vampire? No, semi undead like vampires would also die here, what are you?!"

"Human, you don't need your race to change to be an undead you know, to begin with an undead is someone whose soul is forcibly shackled to the world by a vessel or other means, the shackles are also what allows them to survive in this little trap of yours while those naturally housed in theor bodies would lose their life over time"

"No! I mean, yes, your right, but how is this possible?!"

YuJu shrugged off the question without further explanation

"...So, what now?"

"I kill you?"

"If you haven't noticed yet I'm a bag of bones, nothing more says dead than this"

"Oh there are ways beyond a fleshly death my little funny skeleton"

Keeping a grip on his sickles with one hand he used his teeth to take off the other hand's glove, revealing its skeletal form

"Oh, my long lost cousin?"

Ignoring the bad joke he clutched Kamiva's skull, letting go of the sickle and laying the hand by the side

As if knowing what he had in mind his shadow birthed a human shaped entity, one with a single arm, kneeling so that her head touched upon his fingers

"A shadow? This one looks quite diff- iyaakikikik"

With chattering teeth Kamiva shreiked like a little girl, his entire body rattling under the immense suction force of the vortex formed around YuJu's grip

"Calm down! We can talkikikik this through! It does you no good turning me into mush here!!!"

"Quite the contrary, I get to test something I have had in mind for a while and strengthen my little shadow maid here"

Kamiva wanted to argue further but all that came put was the chattering of his bones as they slowly but surely turned to fine dust, scattering across the ground with all its energy sucked dry

In no time the once glorious Elder Hauntling was no more, unable to even utter his last words

With his defeat the surroundings wraiths shuffled out of the immediate area in haste, trampling over each other to escape this creature with uncanny methods to deal with the dead, not that YuJu seemed to bother chasing after them

"Go fetch"

Giving the strengthened maid her orders he turned to leave toward the place where light energy had been intensly ringing all this while

'They were strong'

As he strode his mind couldn't help but recall the magnitude of power Kamiva and his underlings held, tiny as it may seem compared to his own

'No, it's not my own power they lost against'

Unwilling to admit it as he might be YuJu knew the reason for his effortless victory was none other than the very thing he fought to suppress

'The Sin of Pride, truly a magnificent power it holds, but the weight that it carries will sink us all down if I keep relying on it'

Now however wasn't the time to hold back, since the milk had been spilt he might as well end the war and turn some of his losses into temporary gains

With such intentions he arrived at the battlefield of light and darkness, on one side a seraphic figure covering for retreating humans while on the other a giant wraith and ots army marching toward said figure, trying to get close enough to club it out from the sky

"Master"

Appearing by his side Mia gave a report on the situation

"You day she refuses to back away?"

"Yes, feeling it's her duty to protect her fellow humans Sophia has taken it upon herself to protect one third of the frontline all by herself"

"Fool"

"That she is"

Frowning at the sight of the valiant woman holding off thousands of wraiths alone at the risk of her life he decided to end this show of bravery and save her

Putting a little strength into his legs he jumped high up, enough to reach the Seraphic entity and slapped her, yes, he merely slapped her down causing the figure to dissipate instantly, like its previous show of strength was nothing more than an illusion

"!?!?!"

Alarmed Sophia tried to land as gracefully as she could but ended up facaeplanting onto solid ground, a little bruised on the face and chest but no serious injuries

"That's enough hero play for today, go back to your station"

Hearing a familiar yet somewhat forgotten voice she lifted her eyes to take a good look at the person who shot her down, wishing that she didn't do so when she laid eyes on him

It may have taken a moment to recognize him in this new attire and change of style but this man was not someone she would forget, how could she when he'd haunted her nightmares for a good portion of this wretched age

She did not panic nonetheless, this man might have been a terror before bit now she was strong, stronger than ever, no longer was she the helpless woman groveling at his feet

"What did you do that for!? Don't you see I am protecting the front"

"At the risk of your life, can't have you die yet, you've yet to make up for the effort put into nurturing you"

"Who the hell do you think you are!"

Enraged by his words a Blas of holy light came off her body, wind shuffled her hair, and....that was it

"?"

"Cease your struggle, it's not like I would give you power that can be used against me"

"What are you talking about? Give me power? Your little tips and tricks contributed nothing to my current skills"

Trying to activate her blessing once more she found its response lacking, no, the was a response but it seemed like her spirit was, afraid

Noting her confusion YuJu walked closer to her, every step he took she took one back, her breathing becoming irregular and Visage no longer as brave

"Stay away"

"..."

"Dont come near me!"

"..."

"Stay Back!!"

Resorting to her angelic powers instead she shot a spear of light at his cold face, only to see ot slapped away with a wave of his hand

"How....no, I'm not the same weak girl from before, I already overcame my fear, my struggle, why am I still nothing in your eyes!?"

"Because I made you"

"....What"

"Every step of the way it was me who gave you the method to climb higher, wether it be the angle who inherited you their Title, the vampire who fought you till the fear was forgotten, or the exclusive third class which no one could have otherwise known at this point in time, all of them arranged by me"

The more he spoke the greater Sophia's horror became, doubts falling slowly in place as realization dawned upon her mind that refused to believe those accusations before

"You tricked me..."

"Now now, don't be rude to Master Sophia, after ever so graciously giving you all the power you wanted"

Stepping out of the shadows Mia smiled gently as she met her freind, advising her with the best words she could

"You two, you devils, you used me!"

"Did we now? Was it not you who wanted to protect your race, we only lent a hand"

"Then let me protect it goddammit! Why keep me here, disabling my skills and source of great power if I was to be a pawn all along"

Neither answered, they didn't need to, she already knew ot was so that she could live, so that she would be further be used by them

"...So be it, if you wont let me use the power you've given me then I shall use my own, even if you take that away then I shall use my life! I shan't stand by and watch poeple die just so I could be a peice in the devil's plans"

Gathering all her energy Sophia blasted off toward the horde of wraoths in the distance, not at all bluffing in her statement

"Shall I?"

"No use, I guess it's time to let this piece crumble"

Since the raid was already verging an end he didn't mind losing Sophia, she would have been the main peice of he did not awaken the Sin of Pride, but he did making her role obeselet

"As Master wishes"

Stepping down Mia watched the show of lights with her master, how a small ray kept an infinit cloud of abyss at bay, each time it was threatened to be swallowed it would hurt out once more and reclaim the land with its holy light, only to have the abyss dwellers trample over it once more in a bid to get what the light fought so hard to protect

"She's about to run out of energy"

Mia commented to which YuJu nodded, and sure enough moments later the ray of light flickered, once, twice, gradually emitting less and less brightness before finally falling out of its high and might seat in the wind

"It was good while it lasted"

Turning around Mia was sure the show was over, and it should be, but YuJu didn't turn around, eyes trained on Sophia's decending figure

'Would she really give up so easily when danger threatens humanity still?'

There was nothing wrong with giving up, he just expected more, a struggle, a sacrifice, even askance of help would have been better

And the answer to his question came in the form of a.....twinkle