"Hey guys!" William waved as his bloody and roiling aura seemed to fade from existence.
The sudden change caught them off guard, and they were initially wary of approaching. The pause lasted so long that William began feeling awkward, but suddenly Kate rushed toward him and threw herself into his chest.
"Not that I mind personally, but you may want to cover it up!" She muttered, red-faced and struggling not to look directly at it.
William finally took notice of his less-than-humble state and was about to panic; he could already see the headline: Hero turned pervert.
Before his panic could reach too much of a fever pitch, Kate summoned three clones of herself and covered him from his other angles, effectively surrounding him with a harem of blushing Kate clones.
As this was happening, Cecil had teleported in front of the group being led by Immortal while holding a briefcase; he had been watching everything in real time and had decided to bring a new suit for William to wear.
"Cover it up, boy, you are going to give us old timers a heart attack!" He handed William the briefcase with a subtle smirk on his face.
Cecil suddenly noticed the sword impaled on the top of a mound of dead Flaxan invaders and stepped towards it as William got dressed.
Kate began creating a squad of clones who formed a wall around William, allowing him to get dressed without worry that someone would see his weapon and pass out in fright.
As Cecil's aged and scarred figure slowly ascended the mound of bodies, taking extra care with his steps so he would not hurt himself.
He neared the top of the mound when the hair on his arms and neck stood up, but ignoring this, Cecil decided to attempt grabbing the weapon when suddenly...
WENG!
A blood red light erupted from the blade, and at the same time, a force struck Cecil and sent him flying off the mound of corpses.
"OH SHIIIIIIIIIT!"
Cecil cursed in response to being sent flying, the adrenaline of the ride somehow overcoming the pain coming from his ribs, but he knew that his landing would be rough, and at his age, it would likely cause severe injury.
FLSH!
Suddenly, his backward momentum stopped, and Cecil looked up to see Immortal had saved him from an untimely fall and a can't get up situation.
"What the hell is with that sword? And this energy!" He watched as the dense red glow expanded outward and formed a sort of barrier around it, the barrier being so potent that the bodies below it that had gotten in the way immediately found themselves severed and crushed.
What biomass that remained inside the violent energy barrier began to visibly disintegrate into nothingness as if it were merging with the energy of the blade, the sight of which caused those watching to take a step back subconsciously.
STEP!
A single footstep echoed out, snapping the group from their reverie as they saw William in a sleek and streamlined version of his other suit, it appeared to be a pure black and streamline version that was made for more form that function, his heroic visage followed closely by Kate, who had a persistent blush on her cheeks.
William held his hand out, preventing Kate from moving further.
Kate looked at him with confusion in her eyes.
"Why did he stop me? What is going on?" She thought as she noticed his stern glare at the sword behind the barrier, the same sword that had slashed him so many times today.
WHOOSH!
The Barrier suddenly increased in size, enveloping the entire mound and stopping only mere inches from where William was standing.
Sweat formed on Kate's forehead, and she mentally reminded herself to thank him later.
William turned towards her with a smile on his face and rubbed her red cheek with his thumb.
"Do you mind stepping back with the rest? I don't want to risk you getting hurt!" He said before pointing his thumb at the dissolving biomass inside the barrier.
She nodded fervently before stepping back and walking towards the rest of the group.
Immortal and War Woman stood firm in front of the now recovering group of young heroes.
Agents who were capable assisted with handling their wounded companions, and soon there was a makeshift triage in the center of a blood-soaked Chicago block.
Cecil approached Immortal and War Woman from behind and stopped between them, his gaze focused on William as he approached the sword and the slowly enlarging barrier around it.
He could not explain it, but he felt like he should stop this, as it would be a potential hindrance to his plans.
"If that barrier suddenly expands with me inside of it, though!" He imagined the feeling of being atomized to feed a bloody barrier, and a sweat formed on his forehead.
William raised his hand towards the barrier, and a hush fell over the entirety of the battlefield, and everyone could not help but subconsciously look towards him.
CRACKLE!
His hand pressed against the barrier, and suddenly, a wave of force attempted to smash into him, but with his strength, he stood defiant against it as his hand broke through the barrier.
TSSSSS!
A searing pain erupted from his hand as it passed through the rather thin membrane of the barrier, and a burst of sound erupted in his mind!
A chorus of endless, throat-ripping screams, layered with sobs and inhuman wails that clawed at the ears.
It sounded like a billion voices shrieking in agony, all begging for mercy that would never come.
A cacophony of despair, like glass being ground into bone, each scream more desperate than the last, and William gritted his teeth until they cracked, and his gums bled.
However, as he watched from outside the barrier, he noticed that although it felt like he was dipping his hand in lava, the missing flesh would restore to its pristine state, forming a cycle of creation and destruction localized on his hand.
"Even with the healing factor, I can only imagine how I would end up without being as tough as I am!" He thought as he pressed through pain and soon found himself head deep into the barrier.
"AAAAHHHHHHHH!" His screams of pain soon joined the incessant chorus of baleful screams within his mind.
Even as he screamed, he moved forward, the continuous destruction and regeneration of his flesh was further enhancing his durability at a constant and steady rate, and as he reached the center of the barrier, the lava felt like it was cooling.
The barrier, or more likely the sword in the center of it, seemingly sensing his approach as he passed the halfway point and the wave of force pushing against him suddenly multiplied.
CTCHHHHH!
William's feet carved deep trenches into the asphalt, but by abusing his flight to propel him from behind, he fought against the waves of force smashing into him like a freight train made of gravity.
He raised his foot and took a step forward.
RUMBLE!
The ground below his feet sinks inward slightly, but he continued walking forward with his arms crossed defensively in front of him.
At this point, it felt like he was wading inside a vat of superheated water, but the barrier was no longer able to destroy his flesh.
"Hehehe, bonus, I guess!" He could not help but think as he continued to approach the hauntingly beautiful red blade that continued to send the screams of billions of tortured souls into his mind.
The noise grew nearly unbearable as his hand neared the handle, and as his hand was about to touch, a line of blood began to flow from his nose.
GRASP!
He grasped the handle of the sword, and the barrier around him suddenly got absorbed by the blade.
The sight of the barrier disappearing nearly caused the group of heroes, more specifically Kate, to leap towards him, but they were stopped by Immortal, who felt like something was wrong as William had not moved the moment he touched the blade.
Unknown to them, the moment William touched the blade, his mind was swept away from where he was, and he was transported to another realm.
All around William was an ocean of Flaxan bodies of all ages, from the wisest of elders to the most innocent of children, all wailing and reaching for aid that would never come.
BURBLE!
Blood pooled in an area in front of William and eventually took the form of what could only be described as an ancient Flaxan king who was way too into roleplaying as the lich king.
Raising his hand, the ancient king seemed to form a copy of the wicked straight sword out of nothing but condensed blood, but William just knew that this weapon was the real deal despite its make.
The ancient Flaxan king pointed the sword into the air, and strings made of tendons seemingly appeared out of nowhere and forced the already tortured souls to stand to their feet, facing William with looks of pure suffering on their faces.
"You enter a domain not your mortal, and now you shall become one with my power!" The ancient Flaxan king's voice echoed in his mind, but all that came from the king's mouth was a rasping scream.
The scream acted as a signal to the souls within the chamber, who all lunged at William, grabbing and pulling on him from all directions while the sounds of the ancient flaxan king's laughter echoed in his mind.
"OH GOD PLEASE SAVE US!"
"NO... NOOOOO!"
"MOMMY!"
"NOT HER, ANYONE BUT HER!"
Souls cried out in pain, forced to relive their last moments, each one having been tortured before being killed brutally to feed the sword, or more specifically, the being within it.
As the nonstop screams and pulling continued, something within William seemed to snap to life, and the orange glow that had been present in his fight with the current Flaxan king returned in a fiery burst.
From William's forehead, a sharp horn began to protrude and slowly ascend until it began to curl backward slightly.
The flames within William's eyes swept out and covered the entirety of his face, making him look like a one-horned demon made of orange flames as he suddenly roared out.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The space they were in seemed to shake, and a wave of orange iridescent flames erupted outward in all directions and smashed into each and every soul within the realm.
Unlike what one would think, the only expression on their faces when they came into contact with the dense and powerful flames was bliss.
No longer bound by torturous tendons, they turned towards their former master and looked at him with eyes that held nothing but pity as small motes of light began to form around every soul immersed in William's strange flames.
"NO... NOOOO, THOSE ARE MINE, YOU DARE TAKE WHAT IS MINE!" The king reaches out for the motes of light in an attempt to grasp onto some semblance of his former stash of souls, but they pass through his pale hands like water, completely unobstructed.
Rage filled the ancient Flaxan king's mind, and he spun around with his sword raised in an attempt to catch William off guard, but the moment he turned around, he came face to face with a single-horned demon with an iridescent orange fire replacing his normal facial features.
GULP!
The ancient Flaxan king audibly gulped and was about to swing his sword once more when a hand grasped his throat and lifted him into the air, the seemingly heavy armor causing no issues for William.
William bore a demonic grin on his burning facial features, which sent a shiver down the ancient king's spine before the feeling of weightlessness enveloped the king, and he found himself in the air in the realm.
"How did..." The ancient Flaxan king attempted to say, but before he could complete the sentence—
CRACK!
A pair of feet slammed into the king's back and forced him straight into the ground with enough force and speed to create a vapor circle around the ancient king before he smashed into the ground.
RUMBLE!
HYAK!
The ancient Flaxan king spat out a viscous black substance and stood to his feet, the sword that never left his hand scraping against the ground and sending sparks flying for a moment before he raised himself fully and pointed his weapon towards his aggressor.
SWISH!
Waving his blade towards William, a red arc of light swept out towards him.
The ancient King had an overconfident look on his face as the red arc of light swept towards its target, but William suddenly raised his hand and met the beam prematurely.
BOOOM!
A blood-red explosion swept out from the point of impact, and a massive plume of dust erupted in his wake.
"HAHAHAHAHA, YOU FOOL, YOU DEFIED THIS KING AND NOW LOOK AT YOU... DEAD, HAHAHAHAHA, no one bests King Sanguis worm, remember that in your next life!"
The king jumped in joy, the very real threat of being extinguished sent such fear through him that he was scared that he would have died on the spot had he been alive before.
Suddenly, a force swept out from where William was standing and forced the dust cloud to disperse, revealing William's burning figure.
"Don't celebrate too soon, your highness!" He mocked as he pointed his finger towards the king, and a droplet of blood forming on the tip of his finger suddenly floated in front of him, and as he continued to hold his hand like a gun towards the king, the blood began to light up.
BRBRBR!
The blood began to become superheated to the point of forming into a sort of plasma, and after making sure to aim true, William could not help but mutter.
"BANG!"