The Slayer Ascension: Cursed and Blessed.-Chapter 55: Do you trust me.... Hell no

Chapter 55

The red cores of the cylinders that held immense explosive power began to glow all at once. If anyone had been close when they ignited, they would have felt a heat unlike anything before. It poured out violently, surging higher and higher, wave after wave, refusing to settle.

Then, at a single point in time, all that heat converged.

And exploded forward together.

A deafening BOOOOOOOOM tore through the world.

The trio had been running. Xon was closest to the edge, already near the bottom of the mountain, while Gazel and Blaze were only halfway through their descent. The force of the blast caught them head on and sent them flying.

The explosion, combined with the brutal terrain, hurled the duo across the snowy plain, dragging them closer to what felt like the very center of the frozen wasteland. Pain tore through their bodies. Deep, bone rattling pain.

Even Gazel, with his monstrous endurance, could not stop the groan that escaped his throat.

Still, he forced himself up.

He rose to his feet, face perfectly neutral, perfectly composed.

Blaze, who had landed several meters away, stared at him in disbelief. He was certain they had both been launched here by the leftover force of the blast. Yet Gazel stood there, unmoved, unfazed.

"You really are strong and cool, man," Blaze said, eyes shining.

Gazel thought bitterly. I must look like some knight in shining armor to him right now.

"That small explosion didn’t even have the strength to make me groan in pain," Gazel said, teeth clenched, lying through every word to protect the image Blaze had of him.

"Wow, man. You’re just a mouth opener," Blaze laughed, placing a hand on Gazel’s shoulder.

The pressure sent a wave of agony ripping through Gazel’s body.

He yelped.

Pain twisted his face before he could stop it.

"Are you alright?" Blaze asked, startled.

"No. Of course yes. I’m fine," Gazel replied instantly, forcing his fearless mask back into place.

Inside, he was cursing Blaze with every ounce of strength he had.

Crazy bastard. Can’t you see I had a rough landing too?

"Hey. I’m happy you two made it out alive."

Xon’s voice reached them a minute later.

His figure emerged from the thick smoke of snow that still hung in the air from the destruction of the massive snowy mountains. He looked completely untouched. No signs of strain. No signs of pain.

Even his brown hair and eyepatch were perfectly fine.

Most of all, he did not seem bothered by their condition at all. He was simply glad they were alive, like tools that had survived a dangerous test.

The thought ignited something ugly inside Gazel, but he kept it in check.

"So why hasn’t this world broken yet?" Gazel asked instead. "Did your genius plan fail?"

Xon turned to him with an amused smile plastered on his face.

"No," he said calmly. "We aren’t done yet."

He turned toward the snow covered land ahead of them.

Moonlight reflected in his eyes as they glinted sharply.

"Now," Xon said, "we get ready for the second phase of the breakout."

Before Gazel or Blaze could ask what he meant by second phase, they felt it.

The temperature shifted.

At first, it dropped even further, biting deep into their skin. Then it stabilized. Then it began to rise. Slowly at first, then faster. Higher. Greater. The air itself seemed to tighten as the heat continued to climb.

Before Gazel could even comprehend what was happening, the world howled.

The ground screamed.

The quaking continued, making the entire snowy land shudder violently, as if the world itself was tearing apart. But something far greater than the shaking was happening.

The temperature was rising.

Fast. Sharp. Unnatural.

Snow began to melt away in seconds. Steam hissed into the air. Then a deeper rumble cracked through the ground, heavier than the rest, like the earth itself was drawing breath.

The land split open.

Lumps of earth burst upward, clustered together, rising higher and higher. They merged, shifted, twisted, forming a massive structure before their eyes.

A mountain.

But this was no ordinary mountain.

Jagged cracks ran along its body, and inside those cracks flowed violent streams of lava, glowing like exposed veins. At its center was a massive hollow, a gaping hole that radiated unbearable heat.

Blaze’s mouth fell open.

"Th-that... that’s a volcano," he blurted out.

Gazel stared at the volcano standing where snow and ice should have ruled. But even that wrongness did not last. The more fire energy surged, the hotter the world became. Snow vanished almost completely, reduced to water and steam.

Gazel’s eyes widened.

He understood.

Every plane they had broken followed the same pattern. They had to do something completely opposite to the world’s nature. By doing that, they disrupted the order guiding the place. And once that order collapsed, they could leave. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

They always escaped from fire.

From sparks to scorching flames.

From bad to worse.

No. Worse than that.

While Gazel was piecing this together, Xon was thinking of something else entirely.

On the outside, his expression was calm, composed as always. Inside, his thoughts burned.

Finally. I will get my hands on you, precious bead. I’m coming.

The trio moved toward the volcano. With every step upward, the fiery aura intensified. The heat pressed against their skin, thick and suffocating.

The amount of fire energy contained within the volcano was far beyond anything they had ever felt before. Even Blaze, whose family was deeply tied to flame, whose own power leaned toward fire, felt overwhelmed.

One day... could I ever wield power like this?

The thought was fleeting. Reality quickly crushed it.

They had one priority.

Get out of here.

Fast.

When they reached the peak, they looked down into the volcano’s heart. Molten lava churned and surged below, rolling like a massive ocean of fire.

It was enormous.

No. It was far greater than they had imagined.

Even with all the respect they had given it from afar, it still surpassed their expectations.

For a few silent moments, none of them spoke.

Then Blaze broke the silence.

"Okay, this is cool and all," he said, forcing a laugh, "but you said we’re moving into the second phase. So what the hell is it?"

Xon shrugged, eyes still fixed on the volcano.

Then he turned to Blaze.

A warm smile spread across his face. Too warm.

"Do you trust me?" Xon asked.

Blaze’s face stiffened.

A terrible premonition flooded his heart.

"I totally don’t know if you were trying to push me into that fiery hell and expect me to survive," Blaze yelled, rage tearing through his voice. "To hell with trust. I’d rather live than burn."

That was it.

That exact statements.

The same thing Gazel had once done.

And that was how this entire nightmare began.

Before Blaze could turn and run, Xon’s hand clamped onto him with a brutal grip. Blaze struggled, twisting, trying to wrench himself free, but the young man’s hold was firm, unshakable. He could not even budge it.

Then suddenly, the world flipped.

Blaze was falling.

He plummeted downward at insane speed straight into the volcano.

"You damn bastarrrrrrd," Blaze screamed, his voice cracking as betrayal crushed his chest. The man he had seen as a savior had thrown him away like trash.

The screaming only seemed to please Xon.

He turned calmly to face Gazel.

Gazel had already drawn his knife.

"Make one wrong move," Gazel said, blade steady, voice sharp with killing intent, "and I promise you will lose your head."

So this was it.

Xon had helped them, guided them, saved them. And all along, he had needed sacrifices. Needed them to free himself from this place.

Xon looked at Gazel, amused.

"You haven’t even formed a core yet," he said lightly. "And you dare think of attacking me. Don’t bother. You’re no match for me."

He stepped forward.

Gazel did not hesitate.

He attacked with everything he had. Speed and strength exploding together. The distance between them was too close. Dodging was impossible.

Xon raised his hand.

He blocked the knife with his knuckles.

For a split second, it looked suicidal. Gazel’s blade was no ordinary weapon. It should have pierced straight through.

But Xon’s skin hardened.

The knife was deflected.

Before Gazel could react, pain exploded in his stomach. His vision blurred as his breath was ripped from his lungs.

No. I can’t.

He tried to swing again.

Another punch slammed into his stomach.

His body shuddered violently. Strength drained from his limbs. In that instant, Gazel understood.

He had completely underestimated Xon.

Before another thought could form, the ground vanished beneath him.

He was falling.

Heat surged upward, growing hotter and hotter. The air burned his lungs. Then his body crashed headfirst into the lava.

Above, Xon stood at the edge of the volcano, watching.

His face was calm. Almost amused.

The volcano rumbled harder now, its fury building.

"Well," Xon said softly, "I guess it’s my turn as well."

He stepped forward and plunged headfirst into the volcano.

A boom echoed, but that impact was nothing compared to what followed.

The rumbling intensified.

The volcano shuddered violently.

Then it erupted.

A massive torrent of flames exploded outward, swallowing the entire surrounding land. Deafening booms followed one after another as fire tore through the plane.

The world began to split.

Like a malfunctioning screen, it cracked, distorted, and then shattered completely.