002 - Betrayal

A moment later, the man notices his legs are being rooted by some block of ice. He tries to break it, but he is late in getting away from Zaw Min’s saber.

  

His demonic left hand, the one holding the unique Kris, has been severed, and is now flown in the air. That man is now looking so pissed off because of it.

  

He draws his severed hand toward Zaw Min. A kind of demonic flesh grows so fast, sprouting out and hitting Zaw Min right in the chest. It slams Zaw Min so hard to the giant petal, and makes him unconscious.

  

That bizarre demonic arm is slowly shrinking and turning into a normal arm. That mysterious man is now back to having two arms again.

  

“Hey, buddy! What year is it now?” he asks with a friendly manner.

  

“Huh? Um, it’s 2093,” replies Arifin with a confused face.

  

“It has been that long, huh?!” says that man with a naive look. “Now that’s really a problem. It seems like I went too far into the future.”

  

Since losing that mystical Kris, this man doesn’t look like a monster anymore. But Jaidee just attacks him. He even issues the other soldiers to gang-up on him.

  

Meanwhile, Zaw Min is still unconscious laying on the ground near that mystical Kris, with one foreign voice talking directly to his mind.

  

<< What is your deepest desire? Tell me, and I’ll turn it into reality! >>

  

During the fight, that mysterious man is getting closer to that mystical Kris. And then, something suddenly starts talking directly in his mind, the same words that appear in Zaw Min’s head.

  

He picks back the mystical Kris. Weirdly, he is suddenly back to his madness with so much blood thirst.

  

<< Each desire requires sacrifice! >>

  

He reaches out his hand toward Arifin. “That’s him, the offering you are asking for! Eat him, and make my wish come true!”

  

More flesh tendrils appear from inside the shrine, and grab Arifin’s legs and arms.

A few of them also catch the other soldiers and lift them up.

  

One of them bites Arifin’s neck. Immediately, he feels some strange aura running down his blood stream.

  

Deg!

  

He is in black-out. Another flesh tendril, a bigger one, slowly approaches him. The tip of it is opening like a wide mouth, ready to swallow Arifin from the top.

  

Meanwhile, Jaidee tries creating another ice block above Zaw Min’s head from a distance.

  

“Wake up, dude!”

  

He lets the ice drop on Zaw Min’s head to wake him up. Soon after that, they both start fighting that mysterious man again.

  

Jaidee doesn’t even care about saving the helpless Grace. Several flesh tendrils are biting and chewing Grace's skin, bit by bit.

  

Fortunately, she has a unique ability, the blood which can heal her wounds faster. But this condition will only prolong her torment if no one comes to save her.

  

On the other hand, the katana that Arifin holds is vibrating. Its color is darkened. It shakes Arifin’s hand and his entire body.

  

A moment later, all the flesh tendrils which are ensnaring him suddenly explode. It immediately attracts that mysterious man’s attention.

  

“Hm?”

  

That man easily casts Zaw Min and Jaidee away. He no longer cares to fight them. He  seems amused as he sees some weird dark plasma is currently overflowing Arifin’s entire body.

  

“Come! Let’s continue our fight. Show me your beautiful sword dance like the old time.”

  

But Arifin doesn’t even lift his sword. His eyes are now looking like the eyes of a mad man. He just screams so loud, letting out another strong shockwave, knocking everything around him.

  

“Wu?” That mysterious man is startled and knocked away. “What kind of art is this!”

  

Jaidee catches the mysterious man, hugging him and then traps the man's legs in an ice block.

  

“Zaw Min! Cut his head!”

  

The next second, that monster’s head is severed by Zaw Min’s sabers.

  

Zaw Min then begins looking so hectic looking for that mystical Kris. Until he finds Arifin already holding that devilish item, standing with a blank face like he is being hypnotized by that wavy dagger.

  

Zaw Min’s face turns so sour. He snatches that dagger and kicks Arifin away.

  

“We won’t spare anything for a deadweight like you!”.

  

***

  

Now, only six of them are left. And the only way out of that place is so high at the top of this giant carrion flower.

  

Zaw Min commands Jaidee to close the shrine entrance. He also tells one awakened warrior with sharp pointy fingers like a lizard to climb the giant slimy-flesh petals.

  

“Luis! Take these two ropes to the top!”

  

After that one warrior reaches the top, he drops the ropes. And so, they climb the rope one by one, until there are only Grace, Arifin and Zaw Min left.

  

Grace takes the one rope on the right first. Zaw Min and Arifin take the same rope on the left together. The other soldiers pull them from the top.

  

Right when they almost reach the top, that mystical Kris drops from Zaw Min’s treasure bag. Luckily, Arifin manages to catch it.

  

And mysteriously, that strange voice occurs in both Arifin and Zaw Min’s heads.

  

<< What’s your deepest desire? Name your offering, and I’ll make it come true >>

  

Arifin just mumbles with a confused face. But it is different from Zaw Min, whose face has already turned so mad.

  

“Fame! Power! Dominance! That dagger, I won’t let you have it.”

  

He waves his saber and cuts Arifin’s left hand, the one which is holding the rope.

  

“Wu, why?”

  

Arifin falls from the height. Grace manages to grab his hand. But her left hand, which is holding the rope, is snapped and slips off.

  

“No, Grace!”

  

He makes a quick decision during the fall, creating a kinetic repulsion to prevent Grace from directly hitting the ground. But at the cost, he lets himself fall without any protection.

  

Zaw Min grumbles so mad for losing that mystical Kris. However, without the influence of that mystical Kris, he is back to his senses.

  

“Forget it! My ice block will be melted soon,” says Jaidee.

  

“If I have that kind of ability, I'd be able to save myself along with Grace.”

  

“What would you expect? He just doesn't cut out to be a genuine warrior.”

  

“Well, it's such a waste to also lose Grace.”

  

“That bitch is damn hot, I admit it,” says Zaw Min. “But with these treasures, we can get any replacement far better than her.”

  

Grace is now checking on Arifin’s condition. She cries with so much awry, realizing how dire Arifin's condition is.

  

“Why? You could have protected yourself?”

  

“How would I know!” replies Arifin before he coughs up with so much blood. “That’s the first thing coming to my mind,”

  

Grace understands this side of Arifin. Without any second thought, she slits her both hands to help him.

  

She has a unique ability as a medical soldier. Her blood can move like some nanoparticle to fix the broken muscle tissue, even broken bones.

  

“No, Grace! If you let out that much blood, no one will be able to save you here.”

  

Grace picks Arifin's severed hand and reattaches it again. “It’s okay, the citizens need you more than me.”

  

She notices the coming of the zombies. In order to fasten reattaching Arifin's severed hand, she slits another part of her own hand to let out more blood.

  

“No! That’s enough!”

  

Those zombies start biting Grace, flesh to flesh. That beautiful face has been deteriorated. And Arifin isn't able to do anything, can only cry for his helplessness.

  

“That’s enough, please! I'm fine now! Just get away from here!”