Kill him.

Iris’s words rang through Arylos’s mind as his mind was emptied of everything. As he charged towards Reyz, his fangs elongated as he howled like a screaming and hungry demon. He could feel seething rage burning under his skin as he brought his sword down on Reyz’s head.

Time slowed for Reyz as adrenaline kicked in and he was able to block the attack but was kicked in the side by Arylos. As Reyz took a few steps back, Arylos followed up with an uppercut that was barely caught. Yet as soon as Reyz blocked the strike, Arylos struck him with a violent punch that knocked his jaw loose. Before Reyz could correct himself, Arylos readied his sword for another strike. Reyz deflected the blow only barely but Arylos spun the blade around and sliced across Reyz’s face, leaving deep cuts in his cheeks as his jaw barely clung in its place.

Reyz lifted his sword and tried to run it through Arylos’s chest yet the Titan slapped the sword away and kicked Reyz in the lower gut and Reyz had to swallow the bile that came up from his stomach from the kick. Arylos followed up with another swing that went for Reyz’s neck that he dodged with a few backwards steps. Yet Arylos brought the blade back around and struck the muscle on the side of Reyz’s neck, sending a shocking pain down his arm and a ringing in his ear.

Reyz tried desperately to lift his sword yet his arm disobeyed and stayed limp as the shock kicked in. Reyz lifted his offhand and Arylos ran his sword through Reyz’s forearm, right in between the bones in his arm. Arylos grunted and swung the sword as the bones broke from Reyz’s wrist joint and sprayed blood everywhere as Reyz shouted in pain.

“Yes, scream more for me,” Arylos growled as he pulled out his sword and ran it through Reyz’s exposed chest. Reyz tried to grasp the sword with his broken arm as his sword arm could finally move. Reyz lifted his arm to attack yet Arylos grabbed his sword arm and twisted his wrist until it broke. Arylos looked at the sword and saw that Iris’s observations were true; the sword remained in his hand even though his fingers were limp.

Arylos growled as he pulled his sword out of Reyz’s chest and lifted it high. Reyz saw an opening and his sword hand twisted back into place as he brought it to Arylos’s knees. Before the sword could land, it was suddenly stopped by Arylos’s sword as he dropped it perfectly to block Reyz.

Arylos glared at Reyz with burning eyes, a non-verbal warning that Reyz would not be able to fool him with that trick again.

Reyz backed away and held his other broken arm close, waiting for it to stitch itself back together. Reyz groaned as the pain was too much for him as he felt the muscles pull themselves together. As his hand regained function, he reached for his broken jaw and tried to guide it back into place as his cheeks rebuilt themselves.

All the while, he could only watch the angry Titan, watching him with fire in his eyes. Reyz began to slowly realise that he could no longer see his brother; only the Titan inside. While he may still look like Korseis, Reyz could not shake the knowledge of what the creature was inside.

Reyz felt the bones in his left arm reconnect as they healed. He shook himself free of his mind and gripped his sword with both hands. Before he could prepare an attack, a bolt of blue lightning struck his sword, sending electricity running through his body. As the bolt faded, Arylos was on him and trading sword blows with the Paladin, all the while Iris danced around them as animate lightning that struck Reyz with every opening.

Reyz broke free from his engagement with Arylos and swung his sword at the lightning, yet the energy flowed through the sword and into his body once more. Arylos took his chance and struck Reyz in the hole in his chest and pulled out a rib as Reyz backed away, clutching his still healing chest.

Arylos threw the bone to the side as blue lightning danced around him. Within the blink of an eye, Arylos ran forward for an attack that was barely caught by Reyz. Iris reappeared behind Reyz and ran her sword through his spine. Arylos took the opening and ran his sword down through Reyz’s shoulder and into his torso. Arylos’s eyes shone a bright red as Iris’s shone a brilliant blue as energy poured from their respective swords; red and black flames from Arylos’s with blue and white flames from Iris’s.

The flames poured into Reyz’s body, burning him from the inside as he screamed with hints of flames burning in his throat. Reyz nearly blacked out as his body burned, drowning in the searing agony. Arylos and Iris pulled out their swords and Reyz fell to his knees in a burning pile of rotten flesh as the stinging pain of the flames refused to leave him.

What the fuck is going on? Reyz thought to himself. How am I losing already? What am I doing wrong? The burnt skin on Reyz’s hand cracked as he tightened his grip on his sword. The sword hummed softly as voices echoed in Reyz’s mind.

“Do you have the strength and determination to become my Tyranny?”

Reyz grunted as the voice pulsed in his mind like it stretched his brain with each syllable. He felt conflicted and confused as his mind twisted, no longer feeling like his own. He felt hypnotised by the voice as he began to wonder. Why would his master call to him?

His master? No, Reyz has no master; why would that thought come to him? He felt angry with himself as the confusion worsened like a midnight hurricane in the open ocean, spinning and drowning him in conflicted emotions. He felt his body slowly recover from the searing flames, piecing itself back together as it always does. The Paladin inside him called out for blood, for death.

“I’m only going to ask you this once before you die,” Arylos said in a cold growling voice. “Where did you get that sword?”

Something stirred in Reyz; an unknown fear that called for him to run. This fear told him to run and hide, to get away and try to survive for even a moment before he dies. He fought back against it as his burnt chest heaved for air.

Arylos was silent for a moment before grunting as he lifted his sword. Reyz felt the fear in him grow and his heart pound like thunder. Without thinking, the sword began to glow a bright white light and he swung it upwards, releasing the burning energy right in Arylos’s face. The explosion knocked Reyz and Iris backwards as Arylos burned in the brilliant energy with demonic howling filling the air.

Reyz scrambled to his feet as his body continued to heal. He watched the burning ruin of Arylos’s body slowly stand up amongst the flames. Arylos looked at Reyz with burning eyes and a face of disappointment as black blood poured from half of his body where he had been cleaved nearly in two.

“I said I was only going to ask you one time,” Arylos growled as the air hummed. The flames burning around Arylos changed direction and began pooling into his body as his torso began to regrow his arms. In a matter of seconds, Arylos’s body had been reformed from the flames and he moved his fingers, testing the fit of the repair. The air hummed once more and his sword, as if with a mind of its own, flew back towards Arylos’s hand and it was bathed in searing flames once more.

Reyz knew this creature all too well; the monster that possessed his brother was now after him. He would not be easy to defeat and it would take everything out of Reyz to defeat him. Reyz turned his glance towards Iris, seeing her slowly lift herself back up to her feet. Reyz gritted his teeth as he knew just where to strike the Titan. His sword began glowing once more and he launched another blast of energy towards Iris.

Arylos saw what Reyz was planning and felt fear take him. The ground caved as he launched himself forward, running to meet the blast. Just before the blast found its target, Arylos stood up straight with arms out and looked at Iris with sad eyes before the blast hit him, breaking him apart once more as his demonic howls filled the air. Iris gasped as the blast knocked her backwards, groaning as the pain hit her body.

As the realisation hit her, she quickly jumped up to her feet and looked towards Arylos’s burning body as he slowly lifted himself out of the flames. As he did so, his arm fell apart like ash as he coughed black blood. Iris felt her heart stir as she lifted her sword and looked for Reyz behind the flames yet the Paladin had disappeared. Iris looked around briefly before coming to Arylos’s side as he groaned in pain.

“You didn’t have to do that,” she whispered softly while resting a hand on Arylos’s forehead. She watched as the burning flames coalesced to reform parts of his body but the Titan still groaned in pain.

“There’s no pain that I won’t go through,” Arylos said with pained groans, coughing blood as he slowly rose back up. “Even if I have to die for you, you will not die for my battles.”

Iris sighed and watched as Arylos’s arms reform. She quickly took his hand and held it close as she felt sadness come to her. “You’re an idiot, you know that?” she said softly with a laugh.

“I know I am,” Arylos said, giving Iris a smile as his body finished healing. He turned around and saw that Reyz had left and a sigh escaped Arylos. “We have to end this here and now. He can’t be allowed to continue.”

“Do you have a plan of attack?” Iris asked in a concerned voice.

“Attack,” Arylos answered with a laugh. “We need to keep him here, and we need to keep hitting him until he doesn’t get up.”

“Is that the only way to kill him?” Iris asked with concern.

“I don’t even know if there’s a way,” Arylos lamented as he let go of Iris’s hand and reached for his sword. “But we have to try. If we don’t, a lot more innocent lives will be lost. We owe it to them to at least try, even if we get nowhere.”

“I’ll help in any way I can,” Iris said with a firm nod.

“Which reminds me, why are you still here?” Arylos asked sternly. “This could end badly; you should be with the others helping evacuate.”

“As you said; this could end badly,” Iris said with a nonchalant voice. “I’m with you every step of the way. I won’t let something bad happen to you.”

“Bad things always happen to me,” Arylos said softly while lowering his head.

Iris laughed and lifted his head by his chin. “I’m not a bad thing, am I?” she asked while caressing his cheek.

Arylos thought for a moment before laughing and giving Iris a nod. He slowly rose back up to his feet, using his sword to balance on as he stood up straight. He felt confident yet he couldn’t shake the fear that something was going to happen. Reyz was off, different even. Arylos couldn’t help but still wonder what drove Reyz to this; who set him free, where did he get that sword, many other questions formed in Arylos’s mind.

Amongst all of these questions, Arylos knew one thing; Reyz cannot leave this planet alive.