Max wanted to pass out, but his mind wouldn’t let him. The pain was excruciating as every bone in his body felt like it had been shattered.

Regeneration was working quickly, and tiny pieces of bone rejoined where needed. A heal flooded over Max, and he felt air finally fill his lungs as he tried to breathe, wishing he hadn’t, as the pain of it almost made him black out.

Trying to lift his head again, Max saw the demon was snarling. Its body was encased in ice that was melting quickly. It still held her as the three members of his party raced toward him.

“Seth!”

Grateful his ears worked, Max nodded and winced at doing so.

Talina thrust a potion into his mouth, and he drank. The foul taste of a healing potion didn’t bother him as his body quickly accelerated the knitting of his bones together.

Popping sounds came as he felt joints reattach and move back into place.

“Talina!” Fowl shouted.

“On it!”

He could see her casting but wasn’t sure what it was.

“A little more,” Max groaned. “Almost ready.”

The worst part came when his lower body joined, each socket, joint, and bone, moving to where they needed to be. He wanted to roar in pain but instead bit his lip, hoping that there was still time.

“She’s free!”

Max tried to sit up but couldn’t.

A shimmer of light covered him and the others.

“Dome cast!”

The clanging of a sword and howling of a pissed-off demon filled his ears and sonar. Max could sense the dome that Batrire had just cast, buying time for them as he continued to heal.

Over and over, the demon raged against the dome yet couldn’t get through. Max then realized the demon no longer had a shield.

Two last popping sounds came as his hip sockets moved into place, and Kaen groaned. He stood to his feet and saw the demon woman step back in shock, sword held off to the side.

“Impossible!” it shrieked. “You should be dead!”

[ Regeneration Expired ]

Max laughed and pulled two massive axes out of his dimensional storage, each almost as tall as he.

“Ready for round two?” he asked.

“Five seconds,” Batrire said.

The demon hissed and shrieked again, backing up a few steps as Max moved like nothing had happened.

He had glanced over a few yards and saw his halberd. He needed it, but no one could bring it to him. The perks and disadvantages of being bound.

A light shimmered around them as the dome vanished, and a few seconds after it had, Max’s ice spell went off. As it did, the demon began to move back through a portal that he could barely see and sense with his sonar. The more times she used it, the sooner he was starting to detect it.

“Shift right!”

The group moved without hesitation, keeping close and an eye out for the demon. She appeared twenty yards away, looking at them with frustration and anger.

Max quickly swapped out one of the axes as he picked up his halberd. Glancing around, he saw his shield was a few yards toward the demon. Putting the other axe away, he motioned to it.

“As a group. We’re winning… not by much, but keep doing what we are doing.”

A few grunts came from everyone and they moved as a unit again, allowing Max to retrieve his shield.

“You going to keep hiding?” Max shouted. “I thought demons were scary and never afraid. Perhaps you should have been on the first floor of this dungeon.”

The demon’s eyes went wide, and when she snarled at Max, every black tooth was visible.

Charging at them, the group got set, preparing for her attack.

“Immobolize then hit!”

The demon blinked out from her charge, and Max spun to the left, shield out and his halberd swinging to catch the demon. She had barely gotten her sword out of the portal when Max was already on her, knocking her blade down and chopping at her wrist with his weapon.

Unable to stop the momentum of her charge, the demon surged forward more, exposing her forearm, which had armored skin. Max’s blade cut about an inch into the demon’s forearm, blood pouring from the wound, and the thick protective layer shattered.

Howling in pain and anger, the demon came through the portal, grabbing Max’s shield with her free hand. Max stored his weapon, holding onto the demon’s clawed hand as it tried to yank his shield from him.

[ Weakness ]

[ Festering Touch ]

A fire burnt his skin as they touched, and searing pain shot through his fingers as he held tight, conveying the skills he had gotten.

[ Regeneration ]

The demon tried to yank its left arm back and failed, stumbling as she did, weakened by the effects Max had inflicted on her.The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Ice again formed at her feet, beginning to lock her in place.

Letting go of the demon, Max stepped back, an ice spear forming and preparing to launch at the enemy they were overcoming slowly.

He sensed Talina’s ice spear growing in the air near her. Max nodded as his hand healed, and he could finally grab his weapon from storage.

Both ice spears flew forward, and the demon woman raised her sword, blocking Talina’s spell. Shards of ice pelted her and melted upon contact with the unholy, flaming skin.

Max’s ice spear hit, piercing her shoulder a few inches.

The sword sliced, cutting the spear loose from her body, and she yanked out the frozen piece of magic only to see Max’s weapon coming for her head.

Her body flashed black, and her sword moved instantly. She parried his blow and forced it to the side.

Without missing a beat, Max used that momentum. She was trapped, so he spun and chopped down again at the demon. The fire sword clashed again, deflecting the blow as the demon struggled to stay standing, only held in place by the ice that still constricted her movements.

Two more attacks came, and each one was successfully deflected. The ice was melting from her prison, and Max smiled as his weapon came around once more, wondering if he was right about the ability the demon was using.

She began to try and dodge, the ice cracking and falling off when it suddenly grew back into place.

Her eyes glanced at the prison rising up, taking her eyes off his blade as it came down. Her body flashed black, and the impact of Max’s halberd against her sword drove her arm down, exposing her body.

[ Rampage ]

His weapon moved quickly, defying everything he knew except that magic was real. The first attack struck the demon’s neck, shattering the raised skin that acted like armor.

The demon groaned and slammed down into the prison that was holding her fast but was unable to get her sword up as the second strike hit in the same spot, the axe blade sinking through the armored body part and cutting inches into her neck.

Max roared as the third strike came, wishing he still had his Power Strike. Max’s eyes tracked his weapon as it sliced into the middle of the demon's neck. The blade connected with its spine, sending the demon to the right, the impact forcing her downward.

Another icebolt struck, burying itself deep inside the demon's right shoulder. A cracking sound came as it tried to raise the sword but was unable to.

Like an enraged animal, Max stored his shield as he swung again, both hands grabbing onto the shaft. He swung again, connecting once more with the same wound that was gushing black blood like a bubbling spring.

His voice echoed in his ears as he roared, angry, upset, pissed.

Like a lumberjack trying to fall a tree, his blade hit over and over in the same spot until it didn’t, the head tumbling off the body.

“Seth!”

Talina’s voice caught him as he was about to strike the empty spot again, not yet realizing he had already removed the head.

The colosseum was silent as the light in the demon’s eyes dimmed and went dark. The body began to fade.

And then Max began to shake. Cold power roared through him, and he couldn’t control the energy that filled him.

[ 5 Strength Consumed ]

[ 5 Constitution Consumed ]

[ 68 Demonic Essence Collected ]

[Consume has successfully Consumed a skill]

[ Skill does not match entity type ]

[ Consume is adjusting skill ]

[Would you like to learn [Demonic Teleportation]?]

[ Yes / No]

Yes… well done!

Max tried to ignore the words in his head and fought to breathe, his body still shuddering from whatever he had just consumed.

“Seth…”

He heard Fowl whisper his name and saw the female demon’s body fading into nothing, small black particles floating upward before vanishing.

“IMPOSSIBLE!”

The shout caused Max to wince. The volume of it felt like it was going to tear his insides apart.

Every seat in the Colosseum was empty. The audience that had cheered for their demise vanished in a moment.

An overwhelming presence appeared before them, the lord of this area staring down at them, breathing heavily through its mouth. Blood from where it had injured itself by chewing on its own face dripped down on the demon’s chest.

“How?!” it roared. “How can you be so strong?! Are you here to test me? Is this to make sure I still obey the rules?!”

Max turned, putting his weapon up and turned to face the massive demon, who took a step back when he moved closer to it.

“And what if I am?” Max asked, trying to appear as if what had happened had been nothing at all. “Are you willing to break the agreement and suffer the consequences?”

The demon stared at Max and then at Talina until a cough from Batrire forced it to turn and stare at her.

“You are not a party that should be here, and yet you meet all of the requirements set forth,” it said, its voice having lost the pressure it once had. “I will not break the agreement set forth. You four may claim your prize.”

Snapping his finger once, a pedestal rose from the tile floor. Black flesh seemed to make up the base, pulsating as it formed. Once it had stopped moving, the demon lord moved near it and scowled at them. It plunged its hand into its chest and pulled out a massive red gem, setting it on the black pedestal, and then took a step back.

The blood that had covered it drained quickly to the base, leaving the red gem sparkling in the fighting area of the Colosseum.

Moving toward it, Max slowly held his hand out.

Don’t! Something is wrong…

Max cocked his head, looking at the stone his fingers were only inches away from.

Pulling his fingers back, he turned and stared at the demon watching him.

“What is this?” Max asked. “A trap?”

The faintest movement of the demon’s eye and the eyelid covering it caught Max’s attention.

“Perhaps you are wanting to break the agreement and–”

“Enough!” the demon said, growling as it reached out, picking up the gem and then drawing a rune. The color changed from red to a soft yellow color. As it did, smoke and a hissing sound came from where the demon held it in his fingers. Quickly, he set it down on the pillar and backed away.

“Forgive me… I will not interfere again.”

Max saw how the demon moved. It was nervous and scared.

Why is it acting like that?

You defeated something it knows no average person allowed in this test can. I then warned you of a trap, again something no one should know of unless they are something they shouldn’t be. Hold your hand close, and I will see if it is safe.

Max moved back to the crystal and held his hand out, keeping it inches from the gem.

You may touch it.

“Talina, Fowl, Batrire. Come and touch the orb. We will do it all at the same time.”

Max turned to the demon and shook his head.

When all four of them were close, and they all had their hands out, Max nodded.

Something flowed from inside the gem and into each of them, bathing them in a warm light.

[ Defense of the Demon Acquired ]

Each of them smiled, nodding that they had gotten the buff.

Turning to Talina, Max tapped his hair and then his eyes.

She nodded, her eyes going wide as she realized what he was pointing out. After working her bracer, she adjusted her hair and eye color back to their previous state.

Max pointed at the door as he looked at the demon, who had not taken its eye off him. It snapped its finger, and the doors vanished, showing the portal awaiting them.

With a nod, Max motioned to the others, and they walked toward the exit.

When they got there, Max motioned for them to all leave and turned, seeing the demon still staring at him.

“Do not try and cheat the rules again!” Max shouted. “The consequences might be some you don’t want to face.”

Stepping back into the portal, Max heard a roar of anger and hate.

“I shall find you–”