The sound of metal coming into contact with the stone floor echoed as the armored man walked back towards his arena. The crowd was silent as the man walked by, but rather, they stared at him as he passed. This man, clad in slim, black armor, had an authoritative aura surrounding him, making it so that all respected his personal space.

Almost as if in a trance, Loganel started off after the man. It was a clear path for Loganel to catch up with him for everyone had stepped to the side and allowed the man through. Loganel used this to his advantage and jogged after the man. He didn't know why he was following after him, except that he felt a strange urge to do so.

"Loganel no!" Marsha called out and ran after him in hopes of seizing the boy and preventing him from going any further. She left the corpse of the great grey wolf behind her and chased after him.

Not too long after the man had exited the closed coliseum, the man reentered the doorway. Even though he emerged from this closed arena alone, but when he returned to it, he was accompanied by others.

When Loganel finally stepped foot in the arena, he was greeted by a large, circular area with empty spectator stands seated on top of the thick walls of the arena that showcased some cracks here and there due to its old age. In the center of the arena, stood a nightshade sword, with red lines running down the outline of its edge and converging in a elegant and mystic pattern at the center of the hilt.

The mysterious man in armor stopped when he reached the sword, and he looked over his shoulders to make sure that Loganel was in fact located within the embrace of the ancient walls of the coliseum. Suddenly, the doors began to slowly close, grinding and rubbing against the floor which caused a loud uncomfortable sounding noise.

Loganel looked behind him at the closing door in horror. A sense of uncertainty overcame his mind as he panicked over what he had gotten himself into. However, just before the two large metal panels of the doors closed completely, two figures slipped in to stand beside him. One of them, was Marsha, and the other was Tetsuya.

"Didn't I tell you to wait up?" Marsha panted as she scolded Loganel. "And why did Mr. Hero of Light join in as well?"

"I," Tetsuya paused for a second to allow his breathing to return to normal. "I promised everyone that I'll get us all back safe. I can't just let him be here by himself."

"You guys..." Loganel stared at them with a joyful disbelief in his eyes.

Following the closure of the metal door, the outside of the coliseum began to become noisy once again as the people and Undeads realized that they still have a battle that was unfinished. Within the arena, however, was a tranquil silence.

"Are you the guardian of this ancient city?" Marsha drew her blade and pointed it at the armored figure who was still looking over his shoulder at them and has his back exposed.

"..." No words came out from underneath the full face visor of the helmet that the man wore. Instead, the man slowly turned to face the three of them and paused. The man studied the trio from underneath his helmet, staring and observing in silence.

"Not gonna say anything?" Tetsuya drew his blade.

From the corner of Loganel's eyes, he caught sight of motion, and when he glanced over, Loganel realized that the motion was Tetsuya's hands trembling which had in turn caused his blade to shake. Loganel then immediately looked up at Tetsuya's face, and he realized that beads of sweat was forming on the boy's forehead, leading Loganel to arrive at the conclusion that this boy is scared but was still willing to risk his life to come to Loganel's side.

The armored man then slowly shook his head, and slowly lifted his left arm up into the air until it was at chest level. Loganel, Tetsuya, and Marsha all readied themselves for a sudden attack from the figure, causing them to lower their center of gravity by bending their knees a bit and enter into a guard stance. However, what occurred surprised them for they weren't expecting it at all. It all started with the two small shards of flashing lightning that split through the air and hit Tetsuya and Marsha. The bolt of lightning didn't cause any obvious damage to their bodies, but both of them immediately dropped onto the ground as their legs collapsed underneath them. Their weapons fell out of their hands and clanked as it hit the ground along with their masters.

"W-what is this?" Tetsuya gritted his teeth as he struggled to use all his bodily might to lift himself off the ground but was ultimately unsuccessful.

"P-paralysis," Marsha grunted. "Be...careful."

Loganel looked to his sides and checked on their condition. Based on his quick observations, he concluded that they did not sustain any injuries and was only paralyzed. He then looked over at the armored figure who stood there patiently and calmly, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

"What do you want?" Loganel barked at him, eyeing the man with an unprecedented level of fear. He immediately tightened his grip on his sword, for if he did not, he could've easily dropped the weapon as if he was too paralyzed.

Slowly, the armored man lifted his right leg, and planted it down not too far before him. Then, he proceeded to do the same with his left leg. Each time this man took a step, the clanking sound of his footsteps was almost as if a clock of vitality, counting down Loganel's life with each step symbolizing a ticking of the clock. The man moved with a confident demeanor, almost as if he is sure that victory is his for the taking. Slowly, the man moved his right hand into the air and summoned a blade into his hands as he closed in on Loganel.

Loganel trembled slightly in fear, but he forced himself to be contained. He stood in a protective way before Marsha and Tetsuya's limp bodies with his blade drawn.

Do not back down...He told himself. If you leave now, the two of them will be dead. Plus, you have no where to run now. Just stand your ground. Please! He begged himself.

The armored man lifted his right arm that was wielding the summoned blade into the air as he stood before Loganel, who couldn't bring himself to do anything almost as if he was paralyzed as well. In fact, he was in a way for the fear had paralyzed him and made him unable to make a move.

Is this it? Loganel cowered before the aura of the apex predator. Is this how it's going to end? He closed his eyes and awaited the killing blow.

...

After a short while has passed and no pain was delivered to Loganel, he slowly opened his eyes. The armored man was still standing before him with his sword raised, albeit at a lower level now. The armored figure has paused his actions, almost as if waiting for Loganel.

"E-experience...and...learn." A ghastly voice could be heard from underneath the helmet that concealed the man's face completely.

This voice, although creepy in nature, was surprisingly not as scary as Loganel would've perceived it to be. Rather, it contains an odd amount of gentleness.

"Experience...and...learn," the figure repeated once again.

This time, the man slowly moved his sword in an almost sparring-like way, and guided Loganel's blade and arm. Loganel, looked on at the man in shock, but he allowed the man's slow and gentle movements to move his sword and his right arm in a rhythmic motion. Slowly, Loganel began to put more effort into his grip, maneuvering the sword by himself in a cycle that still appeared to be in the control of the man.

Loganel was confused as to what the man was hoping to accomplish, but he went along with it. In fact, Loganel was quite surprised at the almost tranquil but fierce movement that the man was putting Loganel's arm through. All Loganel had to do, was move his arm slightly in the direction of motion that the man guided him in. Each time the man made it so that Loganel's blade was deflected, he would immediately move his own blade so as to cause Loganel's sword to bounce back in a proper attacking strike, albeit at a sparring speed.

Gradually, the man increased his speed, and Loganel did so as well in response. The dancing motion of their intertwining blades went from a slower sparring pace to a faster, almost fervid, dance. Each time their blades clashed, they put in more power in the next attack to the point that whenever their blades made contact, sparks would appear and bounce off to the side.

Loganel's heart pounded in his chest rapidly as it struggled to provide a steady stream of oxygen to his entire body. His breathing intensified and he felt the fatigue slowly starting to overcome the numbing effect of the adrenaline that pulsed through his body. He glanced up at the armored man, realizing that the man was still as calm as ever in his demeanor. This sudden realization provided him with a shot of anger mixed with despair.

Why is it that my best effort can't even tire him out? Why am I still trapped in the man's rhythm of combat? Is there no way to break out and defeat him?

Following a heavy slash by Loganel, the man took a step back after easily parrying Loganel's attack. He betrayed Loganel's expectations of immediately responding with a counter like he had done so earlier, but instead, the man stood there. Loganel lowered his blade slightly, panting as he stared at the man and seeing if the man was up to something. He studied the figure as the man stared at his right hand, and Loganel was focused on the man's every move.

Suddenly, the man lunged at him with inhuman speed, a speed that betrayed all of Loganel's knowledge of the man who moved slowly, almost machine-like, a few seconds earlier. Unable to react in time, Loganel wasn't able to dodge the man's outreached hand, which grabbed him by his head. Loganel could feel the metal gauntlets digging into his temple bones as the man lifted him up and held him there despite Loganel hammering the man's arm with his fist. Through the crevices of the fingers, Loganel could see the man's masked face that concealed all emotions of the person wearing it.

"Loganel!" Marsha called out. "You monster!" she cursed at the armored man.

"Let him go!" Tetsuya forced out. Sweat coated his entire face as he struggled to move his arm with all his might, but was unable to do so.

A red orb of light appeared in the armored man's right hand which grabbed onto Loganel's head.

I-is this the end?

And then, the world around Loganel became dark...

Author's Note:

Hello everybody? Welcome to cliffhanger city. My name is NightLightLuminus and I'll be serving you your favorite meal: The Hanger. Hope you've enjoyed. If you did, please vote and comment what you think of the story. If not, vote and comment anyways. I really like to read your reactions and comments on the story. I give you all entertainment, may I have some entertainment from you all through your comments? Thank you.