Outworld: Awakening

\"Listen here, you little piece of—\"

\"Hahaha... Calm down, Sedo. Don't let him get into your head,\" Morton interjected.

\"Morton's right. Don't let the taunts of some no named bastard get to you,\" Eric said as he patted Sedo's shoulders. \"In fact, we don't have to do anything. He isn't the first bug to run its mouth, but we'll definitely make sure he's the last.\"

Just then, a smile bloomed on the lips of the brothers.

\"All Priests, get in here!\" Morton ordered. His loud roar echoed throughout the factory, instilling dread in the hearts of the prisoners.

Unlike before, some had mustered the courage to flee from the area. Those who remained, however, equally ran the moment they heard Morton's command. None of them wanted anything to do would the impending massacre. Even if their chances of survival were slim, they would rather run than wait for certain death.

Meanwhile, only Adam remained. Like the Cartman Brothers, he, too, donned a mocking grin.

Less than a minute after Morton's command, twenty Priests dressed in black robes arrived in the area.

\"Bishop Morton, why have you summoned—?\"

\"I don't want to hear anything from you incompetent fools! This is the third time this week that the base materials have tried to escape!\" Sedo barked. His body jiggled with each word.

Saying nothing, the Priests prostrated on the floor. None of them dared to raise their heads. According to the laws of their guild, a Bishop could massacre them if he pleased. And they had no right to beg for their lives, either.

\"... who asked you bastard to prostrate? You should—\"

\"Calm down, Sedo. Let me handle this,\" Eric suddenly interjected.

Unlike Sedo, he still wore a smile and looked a little amiable.

\"I don't like to beat around the bush. Since I'm in a good mood today, I'll give all of you another chance. Raise your heads,\" Eric said.

Wasting no time, the Priests raised their head. Revealing their sweat soaked faces. Only them knew how close they were to deaths icy grip.

\"Do you see that bastard?\" Eric said, his index finger pointed towards Adam.

The Priests turned in unison. Staring at the solitary figure in the distance.

\"Y-Yes, Bishop.\" They responded in unison.

\"Good. Whoever brings me his head will be spared. You have five minutes.\"

Instantly, a deathly light shown in the eyes of the Priests. They stared at Adam as a predator would a prey..

Wordlessly, some retrieved concealed weapons from their robes while others charged towards their target. Who, surprisingly, still remained in the same position.

However, the Priests did notice a change in Adam's eyes. It sent a chill down their spines, but it only lasted a moment. From their point of view, the apprehension they felt was nothing compared to what they would face if they failed.

Steeling their hearts, the group charged towards Adam. Only one of them could claim the pardon, and it was the person who delivered Adam's head, not necessarily the person who killed him.

\"You better not make things more complicated. Accept your death!\"

The Priests who arrived quickest, sent his swords towards Adam's stomach in a ruthless and precise stab. His eyes had turned bloodshot and he oozed bloodlust.

However, before his attack could pierce Adam's body, he weaved to the side. At that same moment, however, a halberd came crashing towards his direction. The other Priests had finally caught up.

shifting his body to the side once again, Adam kicked the halberd towards the opposite direction. At that moment, it deflected an arrow heading towards his midsection.

Just then, Adam launched himself into midair. A second later, five oddly shaped shurikens wheezed past the spot he had been earlier.

However, Adam's actions had made him and easy target. The Priests hurled various projectiles towards his falling body, not minding if their attacks struck their fellow Priests.

Like an agile monkey, Adam dodged attack after attack. Before he could land, a spear pierced his thɨġh. Eliciting a painful shriek. The spear wielding Priest laughed in sickening voice, he had finally drawn blood. Before Adam could recover from the attack, two khopesh buried themselves deep into his shoulders, sending him crashing to the ground.

The eyes of the Priests brightened at that moment. Only the person that delivered Adam's head would receive a pardon.

Like rabid dogs, they launched themselves towards Adam's body, slowly hacking away at it while fighting among themselves.

***

\"What the hell are you guys doing?! You only have five minutes!\" Eric screamed. His beady eyes lingered on the Priests who motionlessly glared at Adam. Over a minute had passed since he gave the order, yet the Priests remained immobile.

Neither him nor his brothers could explain what had gotten into them.

'Are these bastards out of their minds? Are they trying to make a joke of Eric?' Sedo seethed as he watched the motionless Priests.

Unlike his brothers, any act of insubordination infuriated him.

\"Are you idiots rebelling! Kill that bastard now!\" Sedo ordered.

However, the Priests remained standing.

'I'll kill every last one of—' Mid-thought, Sedo's jaw dropped his eyes widening in sync. He stared at his brothers in disbelief, and they too shared the same incredulity.

The Priests had finally moved, however, they didn't charge towards Adam. Rather, they charged towards each other.

\"What are you idiots doing?!\" Eric screamed. However, his words fell on deaf ears.

In a world of their own, the Priests massacred each other with sadistic delight, laughing and dancing as they hacked away at each other. Blood flowed like a spring fountain, while limbs and organs littered the floor.

Barely twenty seconds into the massacre, none of the Priests remained standing. Only the mangled remnants of their corpses proved they once lived.

Standing within the sea of blood, Adam donned a slight smile as he stared at the Cartman Brothers. He could see the fear, confusion and anger in their eyes. Although he didn't know why, he reveled in their stupefaction.

\"Brothers, we can no longer underestimate him. Let's get into formation and end this. If we don't end him soon, we might fall to that cursed ability of his,\" Eric whispered.

Morton and Sedo already had the same thought in mind. No matter how much they thought about it, this was the first time they had ever seen such a strange and unique ability. Even without Eric's reminder, they knew Adam had to die, fast.

Without saying a word, the brothers shared a meaningful look among themselves while subtly increasing the distance between themselves.

However, they suddenly heard a familiar voice, \"Are you going to act already? Aren't you going to send more of them?\"

The corners of Sedo's eyes twitched as he heard Adam's words. He wanted nothing than to wipe the smug of Adam's face.

\"Brat, don't think you're something special because you managed to defeat some fuċkɨnġ E ranked Awakened. They're nothing compared to—\"

Adam's rancorous and sarcastic laugh interjected Sedo. Further inciting Sedo's anger. He wanted nothing more than to smash Adam's skull into a million pieces.

\"... Forgive me. I didn't mean to laugh, but I couldn't stop myself.\" Adam said, he stilled continued to laugh.

\"Before I came here, I had to read a lot of Intel on you three. From your favorite food down to your abilities, I know all of them. So, I can't really—\"

\"Hahaha... then, you must truly be an idiot to have accepted the mission. Since you already know how abilities, that means you know I know your rank already. What can a fuċkɨnġ D rank Awakened do to us?\" Morton interjected. Unlike his brothers, his eyes had a flickering red glow as he stared at Adam.

Initially, he ȧssumed Adam was a higher ranked Awakened, however, he could bȧrėly stop himself from laughing when his eyes revealed Adam's rank. That a mere D rank Awakened could act with so much swagger in front of him left him both intrigued and livid.

\"Oh? You found out already?\" Adam said. He still sported a teasing grin. \"I guess I can't keep it a secret anymore. I believe I can take you on if it was one on one fight. But you scumbags always fight together,\" Adam added.

\"So fuċkɨnġ what?! Go cry to your mummy if you think it's unfair. You'll dread the day you came here!\" Sedo said.

\"Unfair? Hahahaha...\" Adam clutched his stomach as he laughed the brothers. \"I think you misunderstood me...\"

'What's making him so confident? I have a dangerous feeling about this brat. We can't waste any more time. We must kill him now!' Morton thought.

No matter how much he looked at Adam, he was just a rank D Awakened. But, it made no sense that a rank D Awakened would have so much confidence in front of them. Given that they exceed him in rank, and their combined battle prowess rivaled a rank A Awakened.

Subtly, Morton gave Eric a knowing glance.

\"…This was supposed to be a 'hard' mission, after all. But, being a fellow—\"

Before Adam could finish his statement, the temperature in the factory suddenly dropped. In the blink of an eye, thin but large icicles formed in midair. A moment later, they charged towards Adam's body from all directions.

\"Did you get him?\" Sedo said. He couldn't wait to do all manner of unspeakable things to Adam's corpse.

\"I never miss. He should be—\"

Just then, a loud thud echoed. Eric paused midway. Within the icy field caused by Eric's ability, they could see six abnormal patches of red.

\"As expected. It seems you were getting tired of my ramblings. To be honest, so was I.\"

Eric's face countenance darkened the moment he heard Adam's voice.

'How did he survive my attack?' Eric thought.

\"Roar!\"

\"Huh? What the hell was that?\" Sedo muttered. He looked at his brothers, and they too stared at him in disbelief.

Just then, the chilling wind churned. Before any of them could react, Adam's figure came into view once more. This time, however, three abominations flanked him on either side.

'Wait... how is this possible?! What are those insane ranks?! How could his rank suddenly change?' Morton's hands subconsciously trembled as he stared at Adam and his Familiars.

\"You see, I am just a fellow scumbag like you. I enjoy a one-sided beat down more than a fair fight. I'm glad you don't think this is unfair.\"