Unmade Chapter 25: Chapter 25: Cooking(3)

Read chapter 25 of Unmade by churro on NovelPedia.

Vale stood beneath the five black suns, his eyes widening with a shock so sharp it stole the breath from his lungs. He didn’t know what astonished him more, the fact that the chained man was finally preparing to fight an enemy other than Vale himself… or the abomination that now lumbered toward them. Far beyond the obsidian mountains, a colossus towered over the jagged peaks. The mountains, massive enough to dwarf castles, barely reached its knees. And still, the creature walked, crossing them as easily as a man might step over scattered stones. It was humanoid in shape, but nothing about it was truly human. Its pale flesh was covered in countless hungry mouths, each crowded with serrated fangs that opened and closed in restless hunger. Between the mouths, unblinking blood-red eyes stared forward, fixed solely on the chained man. Twenty mighty arms protruded from its torso, each formed of three elongated bones bound by thick, ropelike ligaments. The limbs rippled with unnatural muscle, twitching with power as it advanced. Everything about it radiated raw, uncontrollable strength. This thing, this walking nightmare, was by far the largest and most terrifying creature Vale had seen in this realm. Vale tore his gaze from the titan, looking instead at the chained man. The man stood calm, spear in hand, the bloody sea still rippling from his earlier touch as if remembering him. Then the man slowly raised his right arm to his shoulder and stretched, his movements strangely elegant for someone preparing to confront a god like monster. “Then…” he said, voice low but resonant enough to vibrate in Vale’s bones. “Shall we begin?” A heartbeat passed. The blades impaled into his back, those ancient, torturous spikes, suddenly flared with blinding white light. And then, before Vale could blink, they crumbled into dust and vanished. Vale stared in disbelief as the wounds healed instantly, the man’s armor and skin mending as though reversing centuries of damage. But something about it felt… wrong. He looked up. The five black suns were trembling, no, thrashing, as if trying to break free from invisible restraints. And then, with a sound like stone cracking across the heavens, each sun split in half. Ten identical black suns now hovered above, perfectly mirroring the number of blades that had once pierced the man’s back. 'Copies,' Vale realized. Replacements. The three small creatures the cat, lizard, and centipede, suddenly snapped awake. Their gazes locked onto the pale man, and their bodies shivered with instinctive recognition. Without hesitation, all three leapt from the counter and plunged into the bloody sea. Vale, overwhelmed by everything unfolding, didn’t even notice them go. A moment later, the ocean erupted. A titanic white tiger, its fur shimmering like starlight, rose from the depths, shaking crimson water from its colossal frame. Beside it, a serpentine metal dragon uncoiled, scales reflecting the black suns, while an enormous metal centipede climbed from the waves, its segmented armor clattering like a dozen swords. They had transformed, revealed their true forms. Yet they did not prepare for battle. Instead, all three bowed. Not to the monster. But to the chained man. Vale nearly forgot to breathe. 'They’re… showing respect? To him.' Creator, Ruler. Something far greater than he’d ever dared assume. And then Vale’s right arm pulsed. A bright flare of orange and purple light bled through the cracks and seams of the metallic limb. The glow traveled up his arm like fire racing through veins. His eyes widened in realization. He had always suspected the chained man had forged this arm… But now he was certain. The colossal monster reached the last of the obsidian peaks, stepping over them effortlessly. Each footfall shook the sea itself. The chained man shifted again. He lowered the spear, letting its tip touch the surface of the blood. This time, the sea did not part. It rose. In an instant, the crimson water surged upward, engulfi