Cursed Devourer

The smoke from the massive artillery explosion still hung heavy in the air, casting long, dark shadows over the battlefield. The ground was a charred wasteland, littered with the ashes of the billion souls Malik had vaporized with the improvised divine bomb. Flaming debris rained from the sky, mingling with the crimson rivers of blood that carved between the mangled bodies.

Yet, one billion soldiers remained.

They stood in formation, stretching far beyond the horizon– a solid wall of spears, swords, shields, mages, war beasts, siege weapons, and every nightmare the empire could summon. Their numbers were still impossible to grasp, but Malik's expression remained unchanged.

His chest rose and fell slowly, his armour slick with blood- some of it his own, most of it not. His body was littered with burns from the explosion, but they were already healing at visible speeds. The divine flame burned around him, flickering like an extension of his rage, his hatred, his purpose.

'One billion left.'

He rolled his shoulders, his body cracking from the strain. Then he moved.

Malik exploded forward like a cannonball fired from hell itself. The ground beneath him shattered with every step, shockwaves rippling outward, knocking soldiers off their feet before he even reached them.

The first line of defense- a tightly packed phalanx with massive tower shields- braced themselves. Their shields glowed with magical reinforcements, layered with protective runes crafted by the finest mages.

Malik didn't slow.

At the last moment, he threw himself into the air, twisting mid-flight, and slammed both fists into the ground as he landed.

BOOOOOOOM!

The impact was cataclysmic. The eart itself rippled like water, and an expanding crater swallowed the entire phalanx formation. Tens-of-thousands of soldiers were pulverized instantly, their bodies reduced to pulp and shards of bone. The ones on the edge of the blast were sent flying hundreds of feet into the air, their limbs flailing before they crashed back down as broken heaps.

Malik didn't wait.

Before the dust settled, he rushed into the chaos, moving like a living storm. His fists tore through steel and flesh alike, his sword flew by itself at his side, slicing and dicing soldiers as if they were butter. He grabbed a soldier by the head and crushed his skull with a single squeeze, then swung the limp body like a club, using it to bludgeon hundreds more into bloody paste.

An entire battalion of mages tried to counter, chanting spells in unison, their combined power creating a massive beam of destructive energy aimed directly at Malik.

He charged straight through it.

The magical beam burned away chunks of his flesh, exposing bone, but his regeneration kicked in immediately, tissue regrowing even as it was being destroyed. Malik reached the mages before they could react, his body still smoking from the attack.

With a single swipe of his hand, he unleashed an arc of divine flame that bisected thousands of them at once, their bodies falling apart mid-scream, torsos sliding off legs, intestines spilling onto the blood-soaked ground.

'Faster.'

He wasn't here to savior the fight anymore. Efficiency was key.

A massive war beast the size of a fortress roared, charging at him with spiked tusks and armoured plating. Its handler screamed commands from atop its back, surrounded by elite guards that stood out from the regular soldiers.

Malik didn't hesitate.

He sacrificed his left arm, channeling divine energy into it until glowed white-hot, then ripped it off at the shoulder and threw it like a spear. The limb pierced through the war beast's thick skull. embeeding deep into hits brain.

A second later, it denotated.

The resulting explosion was massive, disintergrating the beast and the soliders around it, leaving behind nothing but a smoking crater. Malik's arm had already begun to regrow, bone jutting out before flesh wrapped around it like wildfire.

'No time to slow down.'

The army tried to regroup, but Malik was already upon them.

He moved like a force of nature, his divine flames sweeping through the ranks like a living inferno. Each swing of his arm wasn't just an attack—it was a massacre. Entire battalions of tens of thousands were reduced to ash with every burst of energy.

Soldiers screamed in terror, some even dropping their weapons, trying to flee. Malik didn't care. He hunted them down, his speed making escape impossible. He grabbed one fleeing soldier, ripped his spine out, and used it as a whip, the jagged bone cutting through groups of men, decapitating and disemboweling with every crack.

Artillery units tried to bombard him again, not learning from their previous blunder, but this time Malik caught one mid-air and pumped it with a quick pulse of divine energy. Spinning, he tossed it right back at them, their faces pale with shock as the shell flew at them like a bullet.

The explosion was apocalyptic, engulfing millions in its wake.

A mushroom cloud of fire, blood, and gore erupted across the battlefield.

From atop Potix's walls, Leo and Katya watched in silent awe.

Katya's smirk had faded, replaced by an expression of genuine shock. She leaned forward slightly, her eyes narrowing. "This... This isn't normal." Her voice was low, almost a whisper. "He's not just strong. He's... relentless."

Leo's jaw clenched, his golden eyes following Malik's every move. "He doesn't fight like someone trying to win a battle. He fights like... like he's erasing an entire existence." His hands gripped the railing tighter. "And the worst part?"

Katya glanced at him.

Leo's gaze darkened. "He's still holding back."

"But there's something I don't understand..." Katya's face twisted.

"Why did the King tell us to not intervene until he cleared the army?"

Leo sighed. "I don't know sister. And to be honest I don't care."

For the first time in decades, Katya saw her brother smile. It wasn't a happy smile. It was pure madness.

"I want blood."

...

Within hours- or perhaps even less- the army was gone.

The final billion soldiers had been reduced to nothing. No survivors. No retreat. Just smoking craters, piles of ash, and oceans of blood soaking into the cracked earth.

Malik stood alone in the center of the carnage, his body covered in wounds- some still healing, others fresh. His chest rose and fell steadily, his divine flames flickering around him like an afterthought.

He looked up at the walls, his gaze locking onto Leo and Katya.

"Your turn."

With slow, deliberate steps, Malik began to walk toward the city walls, leaving a trail of blood-soaked footprints behind.

The walls of Potix towered over him, an indomitable fortress, the last true obstacle between him and the King. But its defenders? They no longer seemed concerned.

Leo and Katya did not panic. They did not scramble to reinforce their positions or unleash reinforcements- beacuse there were none left.

Instead, as Malik drew closer, Leo simply leapt from the battlements, landing with a deafening crash that cracked the blood-drenched earth beneath his feet.

Katya followed, descending in a far more graceful motion, her boots barely making a sound as she touched the ground.

For a long moment, the three warriors simply stood in the battlefield, the flickering remnants of burning bodies casting eerie shadows around them.

Leo was the first to break the silence.

"…I'll admit it," he said, his golden eyes narrowing as he looked Malik over. "I thought three billion would slow you down."

Malik rolled his shoulders, the fresh wounds on his body sealing shut. "It did," he admitted. "For a few hours."

Katya let out a soft chuckle, twirling a strand of silver hair between her fingers. "I hope you didn't exhaust yourself." She tilted her head, her red eyes gleaming in the dying light. "Because we're not like them."

Malik's stare didn't waver.

"I figured as much," he muttered.

Katya took a few slow steps forward, her movements carrying a lazy elegance, though the pressure she exuded was anything but casual. "You must be curious, though," she continued, a smirk dancing on her lips. "After all, you've killed plenty of strong people already. Goliath, the entire army… but you must be wondering…"

She extended her hand outward.

Water pooled in her palm, bubbling and shifting before extending into a long, serpentine tendril, its surface reflecting the glow of the surrounding flames.

"…What makes us different?"

Malik's eyes sharpened.

'Water manipulation. So that's her ability.'

Leo took a step forward now, reaching out his hand.

The moment he did, the pools of blood covering the battlefield began to stir.

Malik's breath slowed as he watched in muted fascination.

The blood didn't just ripple. It rose, twisting and surging as if alive. It coiled around Leo's fingers, ready to respond to his beck and call. In a matter of seconds, a solid and jagged crimson blade had formed, pulsating with a power that made Malik's insincts scream one blaring warning.

Dangerous.

Malik's mind raced.

'Blood manipulation… No, not just manipulation. He's controlling it with absolute precision.'

Leo flexed his fingers, and the blood around them shifted seamlessly, like a liquid extension of his body.

He glanced up at Malik and smirked. "Surprised?"

Malik didn't answer immediately. His eyes flicked between the two, taking in every detail, every shift in stance, every hint of movement.

Then, he exhaled through his nose, a flicker of something dark passing through his gaze.

"No," he said quietly. "I was hoping you'd be more interesting than the others."

Katya's grin widened. "Oh, we will be."

The ground rippled beneath them as their power surged.

The world exploded into motion.

Leo was the first to move, his blood-forged blade slicing through the air faster than the eye could track. A crimson shockwave erupted from the swing, cutting through the battlefield with the force of a titan's strike.

Without pause, the blood that still painted the ground began to glow as spears formed rapidly and shot toward Malik from a multitude of angles.

Malik dodged the blade first, twisting to the side just in time for the shockwave to slice a deep trench into the ruined ground behind him. He didn't have time to avoid the spears of blood, instead choosing to let them pierce points he deemed not vital.

Katya followed immediately, applying even more pressure to the situation.

She raised her hands, and hundreds of swords made of high-pressure water erupted from the air around her, each one honed to a razor's edge. They shot forward like a storm of death.

Malik countered.

His divine flames surged, burning hotter than ever before. He swiped his arm in a wide arc, unleashing a wave of fire that clashed against Katya's water swords mid-flight. Steam exploded outward, filling the battlefield with a dense, suffocating mist.

Through the fog, Leo charged.

Malik caught the movement a fraction of a second before impact, his instincts screaming as Leo's blood-formed blade aimed directly for his throat.

CLANG!

Malik blocked with his own weapon, sparks flying as steel met blood-forged crimson.

For the first time in this war, Malik pushed back.

Leo's strength was monstrous, his strikes carrying a brutal efficiency that rivaled Malik's own. He didn't waste movements, didn't overextend- his footwork was flawless, his attacks coming at unpredictable angles.

Malik barely had time to counter when Katya struck again.

The mist thickened around him, and in an instant, Malik realized—she wasn't just controlling water, she was using the battlefield against him.

'She's blinding me.'

Water condensed around him at impossible speeds, forming razor-sharp tendrils that lashed out from every direction.

Malik clenched his fist.

He had seen enough.

Divine flames detonated outward, burning through the mist and sending Katya's water spears evaporating into the air.

As the battlefield cleared, Leo and Katya stood opposite him, watching with renewed focus.

Malik cracked his neck. His divine flames roared around him.

"No more testing." He muttered.

Katya smiled. Leo's grip on his weapon tightened.