Twilight of a Hybrid, стр. 69
Suddenly, a loud roar was heard.
Valverno stopped just at the bridge’s start.
Two large floating orbs came from the darkness of the other platform, near the armor artifact. From the deep shadows behind the armor, a large beast with a long body with two long legs, a long neck, and a goat-head with two curved horns emerged. Now there was a greater obstacle standing in the demigod’s path of the armor he was looking for.
BATTLE WITH AN ANCIENT CREATURE
The group gazed upon the large creature reaching up hundreds of feet, if not a thousand feet, into the air. This was a giant creature they’d never seen before. Of a might of a hundred Dragons, there was no way for the group of five could make it pass the creature without a fierce fight. No creature massive as the capital city had ever been seen on the surface islands of Shimabellia and Isla Maeli.
“What is this creature?” asked Marina, horrified at the giant’s gigantic form.
Valverno had stared at the giant’s red-orange, glaring eyes of the beast while the beast was staring the demigod. In his demigod mind, he could feel a strong presence, a strong aura, coming within the giant beast. Valverno knew the presence he was feeling was ten thousand times older than him or any other breathing creature living on the surface world.
Fear and horror struck his mind while Valverno’s eyes remained vagrant looking at the monster. “This is no ‘ordinary ‘creature’ we see very day or something we get to see every seventy-six years. It’s a Titan, a surviving beast from the Colossal Age, the First Generation of Living Life.”
“A Titan?” gasped the Griffin. “That-that’s impossible! No creature could THAT long. They should be dead. You know, killed by the gods.”
“We were taught gods don’t kill their creations,” said Sora, “so they casted the Titans into a dark, infinite abyss: a very small hole buried beneath rocks of the earth, water of the sea, and a large impenetrable fog under a cloudy sky. And that is no ordinary Titan; it’s the King of the Titans: the Leviathan. It is believed to be the first of its kind, and right now, the last of its kind. And its standing right there in front of us, the only obstacle standing between us and the armor artifact.”
The Leviathan, the King of the Titans, stood between the group and the armor. The Titan stood high and tall and ten times bigger than a Dragon. Not a thousand Cyclopes or Giants could bring down this titanic Titan. The Leviathan is now the only obstacle between Valverno and his part-ripped leg armor that would be able to awaken the next third of his power: then his power would be two-thirds restored and his speed agility would increase.
“Now our strength is being put to the ultimate challenge,” said Geraldus. The middle-aged man remained firm, despite the fact they were very easily outmatched by a single, colossal animal standing in their way. “There is no way we can suppress this ancient being, Valverno. Do you think you can fight against this creature on your own?”
Valverno took a moment to study the body size of the Titan. It was a thousand times bigger than he was and hundred times more colossal than a fire-breathing Dragon. He could have the potential dragon to fight the Titan but he wasn’t at his full strength. “I would if I was able to,” said Valverno, “but the godly power I wield is not at its full potential. It is like Sora said, the power, along with three body parts of mine connected to my half god side, has been ripped from me and distorted from my grip. In order to restore my power, I need to reconnect my hybrid body with those other things.”
“Well, the thing you’re looking for is behind that beast,” said Geraldus. “And a Titan? Just look at that thing. We’re going to need an army to bring that thing down. And with the bridge there as the only way toward the other side, the casualties will be humongous. We have to fall back and come up with a plan.”
“We came this far way down, and you’re telling us to retreat?” asked Sora.
“Without an army or Valverno’s complete power and his lack of power to fly overhead, it would be impossible.”
“I agree with Geraldus on this,” said Marina. “That beast is too big for us to fight and we are outmatched by size and power. Sirens have heard about the colossal power each Titan wields. We alone can’t take on a Titan.”
While the group argued of what to do, Valverno listened to them infighting of what they should do next: retreat, come back with an army or try to take on the Titan and get the armor artifact. The chances of surviving against the Titan were very, very slim. Valverno did make a long journey from the surface world in order to find what belongs to him on his own natural body, which would be the leg.
Valverno was conflicted. He wanted to get the armor and not have to make any second trips back into the city buried beneath the surface island of Shimabellia. Yet he needed to retreat since they lack the power to defeat the Titan, but if they did retreat, Valverno would try to search for the next armor artifact and come back later for this one being guarded by an ancient creature.
Now that Valverno had found the armor artifact he was looking for he was facing a tough choice and there was still time to think. The Titan could size the chance and fight them all at once. If the group tried to run, the Titan, with its long, massive legs, could easily outrun them all. Valverno thought the Titan could walk to the other side of the city in just ten small steps with those legs.
Valverno signed, coming to a decision he just may