The Duat was indeed the Egyptian Underworld, but it was more than that. It was a kind of infinite spiritual world that held the Gods and magic; many layers existed beyond the twelve houses. In the depths was the entity he sought. In fact, he had reached his destination.
Ikki floated calmly.
Before him, the ocean was an impossible mass to define—mist, fire, water, all boiling and churning in an endless maelstrom of red and gray. It was as if matter itself was in constant destruction and rebirth, a raw, primordial force that devoured everything that dared to approach. Fragments of earth, trees, entire buildings were pulled into the vortex, dissolving instantly upon touching the chaotic waves.
A giant boulder rolled from a distant hill, plummeting into the ocean and evaporating without a trace. Winged creatures tried to escape, their wings beating frantically against the invisible force pulling them in. Some succeeded, others were swallowed, their cries lost in the chaotic vastness.
In that direction lay the Land of Demons.
Well, he ignored that part for now.
His feet hovered lightly above the unstable surface, as if he walked on an invisible road. The swirling chaos around him didn't touch him. Neither gravity, nor the force of the vortex, nor the insidious call of that infinite abyss seemed to have any effect on him. His serene gaze swept over the landscape of destruction, analyzing it with almost casual interest.
His hair was slightly stirred by the chaotic currents around him, but his body remained motionless.
Every particle of the Sea of Chaos that approached him seemed to hesitate, avoiding him as if recognizing something in him that it couldn't consume.
In the distance, a strip of land emerged like a makeshift pier in the midst of the madness. At its end, a white obelisk gleamed, ancient and imposing, radiating an ancestral light that seemed to refuse to be extinguished by the chaos.
Ikki remained suspended above the Sea of Chaos, his eyes scanning the infinite expanse of raw power that seethed below him. They said that from that primordial ocean were born Ma'at, order, and the world itself. But what truly mattered was that there, in the depths of its chaotic essence, lay the shadow of Apophis, bound to the obelisk that resisted time. The primordial serpent, the enemy of the gods, the one who yearned for the end of everything.
When Creation began, Apophis hated the world because his *sheut* was trapped beneath the First Earth, giving him a lasting hatred for *Ma'at*. And because he was Isfet, the first spirit in time, which is the manifestation of Isfet, and Ra was born from Creation, which was the devastation of the Serpent's chaotic plan.
He observed the white monolith gleaming in the heart of the chaotic maelstrom, the only thing that seemed to defy it. That was the prison of Apophis's shadow. His true body might be slumbering elsewhere, but part of his essence still struggled there, like a poison embedded in the fabric of the universe.
Ikki slowly raised a hand, and his palm glowed gold, radiating a light that spread through the space around him as he drew the magical energy from reality to cast his spell.
Then, he invoked one of his innate spells, [He Who Laughs Last].
A spatial power unfurled around him like pages from a forbidden book, as the sky behind him drew a face of blood that smiled.
Space trembled.
The Sea of Chaos seemed to respond, its churning increasing as if trying to resist what was about to happen.
But it was too late.
With a single command, he summoned the Serpent of Chaos completely, in all its aspects, to that location. Time and space bent, and the very concept of Apophis was dragged there. In layman's terms, his magic had forced Apophis's Shadow and his true body to merge, while bringing his true body to this point through space and time.
The vortex trembled. The obelisk pulsed as if trying to resist the violation of reality. And then… Apophis emerged.
Before he appeared, Ikki raised two fingers in a gesture and used another spell to encase the Sea of Chaos in a translucent barrier, separating this entire part of the Duat. No one would know what was happening in this place.
The Sea of Chaos roared as Apophis emerged, and space itself seemed to contort around his presence. The creature wasn't just colossal, it was a living cataclysm, a fragment of primordial chaos incarnate. His serpentine body extended beyond the visible horizon, made of swirling sandstorms and reddish lightning that crackled on his skin like poisons of the universe itself. The matter of his form undulated impossibly, as if his existence defied any logic the world tried to impose.
Atop his crest, the hieroglyph Isfet glowed, a symbol of pure ruin, of absolute negation of order and existence. His eyes were crimson slits, burning with an ancient malevolence, deep as abysses that had never known light. His mouth was a gaping chasm, a pink and wet cavern, where fangs the size of obelisks dripped with a corrosive bile that hissed as it fell into the void.
His mere presence distorted the surrounding landscape. The dimension Ikki had created trembled as it tried to contain his vastness. To say Apophis was gigantic was like calling a black hole "slightly dark." His body stretched for miles, capable of coiling beneath entire deserts and lifting cities like mere grains of sand in the wind. His head alone rose like an infernal monolith, as tall as the Great Pyramid of Giza.
The Sea of Chaos churned violently, whirlpools of chaotic energy swirling around the obelisk as Apophis fully manifested. The land, if it could even be called land, writhed as if alive, distorted by his absolute presence. His colossal serpentine form rose further, expanding, and for the first time in millennia, he was whole.
Free.
Apophis let out a laugh, a terrible sound that shook the very space around him. His body, made of sandstorms and scarlet lightning, undulated with renewed strength. The Isfet hieroglyph glowed even brighter on his crest, pulsing with absolute power.
"For millennia I have waited for this moment!" His voice reverberated, laden with insane excitement. He spun in the air, his immense form expanding and contracting in impossible patterns. "You, mortal… You have freed me! No longer fragmented! No longer imprisoned! I am free!"
The serpent stared at Ikki, and for an instant, his red eyes burned with an almost… affectionate gleam.
"I should devour you immediately, but look! A human freeing me! What GLORIOUS IRONY! What a DELIGHT! How can I reward you, little destroyer of order?"
The colossal serpent circled Ikki, like a predator toying with its prey.
Ikki looked at Apophis with a slight smile on his face, showing no sign of fear before the enormous chaotic serpent that towered before him. He wasn't there to seek rewards or favors. For him, all that mattered was the fight.
"I'm not interested in your promises, Apophis," Ikki said casually, almost as if he were talking about a light workout. "I just want the chance to face you. A good fight, where I will destroy you."
Apophis laughed, bringing his titanic face closer, fangs dripping. "You believe you can destroy me, don't you?"
The hiss that followed carried something beyond mockery; there was pure euphoria there, an emotion bordering on hysteria.
"Then come! Audacious mortal! Try! Give me a show!"
The surrounding chaos roared, mirroring the grandeur of the entity that was now complete. Apophis was ready to consume everything—but first, he wanted to have some fun.
Apophis didn't waste any time. With a deafening hiss, he lunged, his maw opening like an abyss, ready to swallow Ikki whole. The sandstorm and Chaos lightning that made up his body roared with destructive energy, warping the very space around them.
But Ikki?
He just gave a slight smile.
At the last instant, his body shimmered with a golden flash as he moved, dodging with casual grace. Apophis's attack passed through empty space, his fangs snapping on nothing. The impact of his attack resonated through the surrounding space, the pressure alone enough to obliterate entire mountains, but Ikki didn't even flinch.
"Slow."
With a calm movement, Ikki raised his hand, where golden lightning coalesced, swirling and shaping itself until it formed a short double-edged sword, shimmering with divine power. The blade pulsed like a newborn sun, radiating a blinding light that tore through the chaos around him.
Then, he advanced.
The surrounding space shattered like glass as Ikki shot towards Apophis, his blade slicing through the air. The serpent responded with a furious roar, its red eyes glowing like embers as it lashed out with its massive tail.
The impact was catastrophic.
Had they been in the mortal world, multiple continents would have been destroyed, if not for the barrier erected by Ikki's magic. The Duat itself would have suffered irreparable damage, its mystical structure shattered. But even with the barrier containing the devastation, the sheer force of the confrontation was enough to collapse the Obelisk Tower, which crumbled in a flash of dust and debris.
Chaos swirled around them, thunder ripped through the sky, and the earth trembled under the weight of the battle.
Each of Apophis's strikes was accompanied by natural disasters. With a single movement of its colossal body, typhoons appeared out of nowhere, engulfing everything around them in devastating gales. Its hiss was a chant of ruin, and where its tail touched, earthquakes ripped through the ground, making the entire Sea of Chaos tremble.
Despite this, Ikki dodged with calculated movements, always on the exact edge between survival and the impossible. Apophis's tail crashed down, crushing everything around it, but Ikki was no longer there, his speed leaving only a faint spark of lightning.
The sky darkened as a hurricane of apocalyptic proportions formed around the serpent, sucking everything into its vortex of destruction.
Ikki merely raised an eyebrow, and in the blink of an eye, he launched himself into the storm.
Golden thunder enveloped his double-edged blade as he sliced the hurricane in half, carving a path through the catastrophe. Apophis hissed in fury, unleashing a tsunami of darkness and red lightning, capable of obliterating worlds.
Ikki moved.
He dodged at the last instant, his image flickering like a blur before appearing above the serpent's head. His blade flashed intensely.
And then, he struck.
The air exploded in light as the sword plunged into Apophis's titanic body. The impact carved a deep furrow in the flesh made of storm and destruction, tearing at the very essence of chaos. The serpent roared, its pain echoing like an earthquake that shook the foundations of the Duat.
But Ikki didn't stop.
He spun in the air, dodging a strike from the gigantic fangs, and then struck again. Each blow was precise, relentless, his blade tracing a path of golden light through the absolute darkness.
Finishing it all, he floated above the immense serpent, observing it with a calm but slightly exasperated look. His sigh echoed in the chaotic void around him as the golden energy surrounding his blade diminished slightly.
Apophis was wounded. It raised its colossal head, its red serpent eyes gleaming with malice, and then, to Ikki's surprise, it smiled.
"Impressive…" Its voice hissed, laden with an arrogant and ancient tone, reverberating like dark thunder across the Sea of Chaos. "I didn't imagine a mere mortal could wound me. Only Ra or that irritating Desert God, Seth, have managed such a feat…"
The compliment didn't come without mockery. It was acknowledgment, yes, but also a challenge.
Before Ikki could respond, the serpent opened its titanic mouth.
A sea of dark clouds emerged from its throat, as dense as boiling oil, spreading like a living storm. The smell of acidic poison burned Ikki's nostrils, his eyes narrowing a moment too late. The attack caught him by surprise.
His body was trapped in the fog for a fraction of a second, and in that moment, the world trembled.
*BAM!*
Apophis's colossal tail struck him with absolute brutality, moving faster than anything its size should be capable of.
The impact was devastating.
Ikki was launched like a bullet, hurtling through the Sea of Chaos in a blur of light and blood. The blow crushed his body, and for an instant, all he felt was a searing shock coursing through his spine, his bones snapping like shattered glass.
His body cut through the surrounding fog and destruction like a meteor, ricocheting off debris that dissolved into the chaos. If he were any other warrior, he would already be dead.
Ikki spat out some blood mid-flight, his expression twisting into a bitter half-smile.
"Son of a…" he muttered, tasting the metallic tang at the back of his throat.
It was like being hit by a baseball bat with the weight of the sky… multiplied by the force and speed of a colossal serpent.
He spun in the air, recovering amidst the chaotic darkness. The pain pulsed, but his gaze soon gleamed with something different.
Excitement.
Because this… *this* was a fight.
His body began to regenerate instantly.
Every broken bone realigned, every torn muscle mended, and every destroyed cell rebuilt with even greater vigor. He felt stronger. His body pulsed with renewed energy, and he realized his defense had improved.
The same blow wouldn't hurt him again.
Still floating in the infinite chaos, his eyes narrowed, fixated on the colossal doomsday serpent.
So that was it.
The unexpected effect of his [He Who Laughs Last] magic had brought forth a version of Apophis that had already devoured Ra, becoming an infinitely more powerful existence than before. He hadn't foreseen this development; after all, his magic wasn't supposed to work this way. No… It had never had this effect.
As he watched the colossal serpent before him, the truth began to reveal itself in his mind. The Sea of Chaos was a domain where all laws and concepts were distorted beyond comprehension. Within that primordial chaos, his summoning magic had evolved unpredictably, creating a space-time anomaly. What had happened was clear: he hadn't just summoned Apophis, but rather bent reality itself, pulling a version of the Serpent of Chaos that existed some hours in the future; a future where Ra would already have been consumed and where his intervention hadn't yet occurred.
In other words, he hadn't just summoned an enemy to the battlefield. He had brought forth the personification of the imminent ruin of his friends' mission *without* his help.
In terms of power, he would have to place the Serpent of Chaos far above his father and uncles. Even the most feared Titans and Giants of Greek mythology were no match for the entity before him. He dared to admit that only the Primordials of his land, at full strength, could face Apophis as equals.
Cronus and Typhon? They would be crushed like helpless children next to the gods, unable to even comprehend the absolute horror of that existence.
And to make matters worse, it was in its domain: the Sea of Chaos. Here, there was no order, no logic that could be imposed. It was the entity's absolute territory, where its powers knew no bounds.
But in the end, none of that mattered.
His eyes fell on the immense serpent.
The sandstorm and lightning that made up its body churned like a furious maelstrom, distorting reality itself around it. The gaze of the Serpent of Chaos wasn't just a manifestation of fury, it was an ancient hatred, something that dated back to the beginning of the universe, a primordial grudge that transcended time and human understanding.
And Ikki smiled.
Not in mockery. Not in superiority.
But in pure, raw excitement.
His heart beat faster.
It had been a long time since he had felt this, the true ecstasy of battle. The adrenaline burning through his veins, the air heavy with the scent of imminent destruction, the moment when death and survival balanced on the blade of a knife. When every move could be his last. When every drop of blood spilled only increased the intensity of the combat.
Finally, after so long, he had found an enemy that could hurt him.
"Hah…" He chuckled softly, his breath ragged from the remnants of the previous blow. "This is going to be fun…"
And then, he advanced.
The first assault was brutal.
Apophis attacked with the weight of Chaos itself. Its colossal tail sliced through the air at the speed of light, transforming the surrounding space into a blur of red storm. When it moved, the very air was sucked in and spat out in destructive gusts of wind. Each lash of its tail was strong enough to reduce continents to dust, to erase civilizations in an instant. It was so powerful that the cataclysm that extinguished the dinosaurs, as told by science, was like mere fireworks in comparison.
Ikki dodged by inches, his perceptions heightened to their limit. One wrong step and he would be crushed. He leaped, spun in the air, weaving through the blows with absolute precision. But the serpent gave him no time to breathe. With each movement, space itself bent, making his dodges more difficult.
Then came the attack.
Apophis raised its colossal head, its eyes like slits burning with chaotic power.
And then, destruction fell upon Ikki.
It wasn't an ordinary blow, not an attack that could be measured on mortal scales. The universe itself seemed to scream as a sphere of black energy, compact and dense as the heart of a black hole, or rather, pure chaotic destruction, was spat out by the serpent.
The impact didn't come with an explosion, but rather with the collapse of everything around it.
Space was devoured, the concepts of matter and time crushed in an instant. Compared to this, a supernova would be nothing more than an insignificant flicker.
Ikki tried to move, but it was as if his existence was being erased before the blow even reached him. The Egyptian tunic he wore, woven with ancient magic and resistant to the most terrible spells, disintegrated instantly, reduced to just the lower part by the touch of that destructive energy.
He didn't have time to dodge completely.
The attack grazed him, but a "graze" of this level was enough to disintegrate the entire world.
The pain was instantaneous and absolute. The right side of his body that had been struck simply vanished; skin, flesh, bone, all vaporized in an instant. The air around him still crackled with remnants of Apophis's attack. If he were any other being, even a god, that would have been the end.
But Ikki was different.
The first sign came with a low hiss, like boiling water. Then, a dense white fog began to emanate from his mutilated body. What seemed to be mere vapor transformed into an explosion of pulsating energy. Veins of golden light raced through his exposed muscles, expanding like living lightning.
Flesh began to rebuild.
Muscles intertwined, bones regenerated, new skin emerged like a divine mantle. But it wasn't just recovery, it was ascension. His body reconstituted itself stronger, more resilient, each cell pulsing with far greater power than before.
He flexed his fingers and felt the strength pulsing within him. His body didn't know death. No matter how devastating the blow, he would return. He would always return.
The same attack wouldn't work twice against him.
If Apophis felt fear, its colossal expression didn't show it.
Ikki rolled his shoulders, feeling stronger than ever.
And then, he advanced.
He launched himself at Apophis, his golden sword made of lightning reappearing, tearing through the void with an incandescent glow. Each swing of the blade left a luminous trail, tracing cuts that seemed to divide space itself.
The Serpent responded.
Its colossal mouth opened, and the abyss within seemed to swallow all light. From within the darkness, a new sphere of destruction was conjured, pulsing with the hunger of nothingness itself.
Ikki didn't hesitate.
The instant the attack was launched, he sliced through the space before him, opening a rift that sucked in the energy before it could touch him. But Apophis had already moved, its fangs emerging from the void, ready to tear him apart.
He spun in the air, dodging by a hair's breadth, feeling the brush of death pass beside him. In response, his sword flashed with an absolute brilliance, and he delivered a devastating blow.
The blade met the Serpent's black scale.
An explosion of energy shook infinity.
For the first time, Apophis grunted in pain.
A crack appeared where Ikki's sword had struck.
But Apophis didn't retreat.
With an almost imperceptible movement, its tail appeared again, swift as a thought, and struck Ikki directly in the chest.
The impact was brutal, breaking bones, crushing flesh. Ikki was thrown back, colliding with Chaos itself, his body burning as it passed through barriers of existence.
He tasted the metallic tang of his own blood.
White vapor rose from his body. His wounds closed. His strength only increased.
Ikki wiped the corner of his mouth with his thumb, cleaning the blood, and stared at Apophis with a savage glint in his eyes.
And then, he advanced again.
The air exploded around him.
Thunder roared through the world as Ikki shot forward like living lightning, his speed leaving trails of golden light in the distorted space. The wind swirled around him in spirals, forming cutting blades that howled like vengeful storms.
Apophis roared, charging with its maw wide open, its breath corrupting reality itself. But Ikki was no longer there.
In an instant, he leaped back, the winds propelling him as if they were an extension of his own body.
Lightning crackled in the air, concentrating in his double-edged blade.
He struck.
The sword sliced through space, and an arc of electricity erupted, striking Apophis with a discharge that made the serpent collapse to the side. The thunder reverberated like a divine roar, and chaos trembled.
But it wasn't just a physical blow.
Apophis felt something corroding its flesh.
A new kind of poison crawled across its black scales, spreading like an invisible plague. It wasn't an ordinary poison, not something that destroyed only the body.
It was a concept.
A poison he created especially for Apophis.
The Serpent of Chaos, an entity that constantly regenerated, felt its body refuse to rebuild. The very chaos that composed it hesitated, becoming heavy, slow… weak.
Apophis's eyes narrowed, and then its body glowed. The serpent roared, forcing the chaos itself to break free from that anomaly. And for a brief moment, it succeeded.
But Ikki didn't wait.
He raised his free hand and the skies of the Sea of Chaos exploded in thunder. Golden lightning coalesced above him, compressing into a swirling sphere of pure electricity and wind.
With a single gesture, Ikki launched the attack.
The sphere of energy tore through space with a flash, ripping apart everything in its path.
Apophis roared and tried to dodge, but the poison still affected its movements.
Too late.
The blow struck its body with absolute fury.
Lightning exploded in all directions, while cutting winds tore at its scales. The impact shook the Sea of Chaos, black waves rising to the infinite sky.
And in the midst of the devastation, Ikki advanced once more.
With his sword gleaming in his hands, he delivered a final blow, his blade charged with the full force of the storm.
Thunder roared.
And Apophis screamed, before recoiling, its chaotic flesh shattering like a storm collapsing upon itself. But before Ikki could press the attack, the immense tail of the Serpent of Chaos came in a sideways swipe.
This time, Ikki didn't try to escape. He didn't want to.
The impact hit him like a meteor, hurling him through the distorted space. His body spun uncontrollably, passing through whirlpools of pure entropy, each one trying to consume him, erase him from existence. Bones snapped. Pain tore through his flesh.
For an instant, everything stopped.
Ikki hovered in the void, tasting the metallic tang of his own blood. But then…
Golden flames erupted from his body.
His muscles strengthened. His bones regenerated even stronger.
He wiped the corner of his mouth again, eyes sparking with pure excitement.
His heart beat harder.
Spinning the sword in his hand, the blade sliced through the air with a sharp whistle, charged with golden electricity.
"Again…"
And they clashed.
The surrounding space distorted with their absurd speed.
Apophis charged like a living tempest, its colossal body moving with red lightning crackling across its black skin.
But Ikki…
He vanished.
One instant, he was there. The next, a shower of golden light sliced through the Serpent's body.
Cuts appeared before the blows were even seen.
Apophis roared in fury, its flesh lacerated by invisible blades.
Ikki moved at the edge of impossibility. His feet slid through the air as if running across an invisible field. His double-edged sword flashed, tracing luminous streaks in space, each blow a flash that sliced at the Serpent's existence.
Apophis tried to retaliate.
"Too slow…"
Ikki's voice echoed from all directions at once.
And then, he passed through Apophis one last time.
Absolute silence.
Time seemed to have stopped.
Red lines appeared across the Serpent's colossal body.
Blood gushed in all directions.
The roar that followed was deafening.
Ikki landed on an invisible platform, watching Apophis. His chest heaved, but a smile played on his lips.
He knew.
Apophis hadn't fallen.
The surrounding chaos contorted, answering its master's call. The Serpent's wounded body shimmered as red and black sparks fused with it. The Sea of Chaos, which should have been torn apart, pulsed violently, pouring its primordial energy into the monster.
The wounds began to close. Not completely. But enough.
And then, Apophis opened its mouth.
A white and red light began to form in its gut.
It wasn't an ordinary attack.
It was destruction at its purest level.
The very air distorted around the energy, as if existence itself was being swallowed.
"If you survive this, human, I will devour you with pleasure!" Apophis roared, its voice reverberating throughout the Sea of Chaos.
Ikki just smiled.
"Thank you…"
The Serpent froze for an instant, surprised.
"It's been a while since I felt this…"
Ikki exhaled a white mist, his gaze sharp as a newly forged blade. His body was relaxed, but completely ready.
"So, as a thank you… I'll use my strongest blow."
His foot shifted a millimeter.
His fist rose slowly.
And then, golden flames covered his arm, roaring with inhuman intensity.
One of the Twelve Techniques of the Warlord.
[Heaven-Crushing Fist].
The blow that pierces anything, that compresses the power of every gram of his muscles into a single point and multiplies it countless times.
Chaos oscillated around him.
Apophis roared.
And unleashed its attack.
The beam of absolute annihilation advanced, devouring everything.
And Ikki…
Advanced as well.
His fist met the destruction.
The impact shook the entire Sea of Chaos.
Colors vanished.
Sound vanished.
Absolute shock consumed everything.
The Sea of Chaos vanished.
Apophis's roar echoed, but it was swallowed by the maelstrom of power. Its colossal body began to disintegrate, sliced and pulverized by the explosion of energy.
The Isfet hieroglyph, which glowed on its crest, shimmered one last time… and then vanished.
The Serpent of Chaos, the eternal threat to the world, was completely erased.
And at the center of the devastation, Ikki remained standing.
His body still existed.
His fist was extended, the golden flames slowly dissipating.
The shadows of absolute nothingness receded, revealing his form.
His clothes were torn, his skin slightly scorched. But that was all.
Ikki took a deep breath. His body was intact.
The destruction that should have been irreversible didn't last.
The Sea of Chaos, a fundamental force of the Duat, couldn't be erased.
It began to return.
The void was slowly filled again.
Waves of mist, energy, and entropy resonated, rebuilding the infinite ocean as if the battle had never occurred.
The only thing that remained destroyed…
Was the obelisk.