Amaranthus's forehead was covered in beads of sweat as he stared ahead. The wind rustling his hair and cause him to squint his eyes.
Trying to imagine something with your eyes open, while your life hanged in the balance was a very difficult thing to do. But he endured, he had to.
As soon as the Dark Fog became visible, it's oppressive momentum surged like a tidal wave. The tree were bent towards the ground, almost parallelto it.
The rock giant was already mid-swing, his fist, piercing the air.
Amaranthus, with his outstretched hand yelled within his mind.
'Now!'
Ripples echoed from his body, formless waves warped reality as something supernatural happened.
"ARGGGGGGGHHHH" Needle like pain spread throughout his body, every nerve ending was on fire. He couldn't muffle his scream, the pain was too intense!
Contrary to how his body felt, his fist became coated in frost, the cold air crackled as it permeated from his fist, as if it wanted to freeze the very air itself.
*Fssssssh*
The sound of cold air ripping through the atmosphere resounded. It rushed forward with incredible speed. As soon as the Dark Fog came into contact with the cold air, it began to crystallize.
"What! HAVE YOU DONE TO ME PEST!" The Dark Fog screeched with a piercing voice, it clawed at the ice, only to break apart in its futile attempts.
*Boom!*
The rock giant's fist smashed into the Dark Fog. The crystallized fog broke into fine powder, covering everything for several miles.
The Terraes arm was obliterated by the concussion force and the corrosive effects of the Dark Fog.
Amaranthus was exhausted. His vision grew blurry, losing his balance in the process. Blood leaked from his nose and ears, while his skin became increasingly pale.
"Bleugh" Amaranthus vomited blood. His internal injuries had taken a toll. As he lost consciousness he started falling to the side. The rock giant didn't notice until he was in mid-air, just a few meters away from the ground.
The Giant moved with incredible agility, catching him before he turned into paste against the ground.
"You did well, young one, but I am afraid I will not be of any use to you anymore. Damned Wraith." The Rock Giant rumbled, as it glared at the scattering dust, the intensity causing the ground to tremble a bit.
It began to walk away from the battle zone, since it would only draw more attention to itself.
Eventually, it no longer had any strength left.
It set Amaranthus down, on a bed of leaves and slowly collapsed around him. Parts of the Terrae were corroded, it's head was turning into powder. It lost its right arm, and a chunk of its shoulder.
As it collapsed it turned into the same pile of Boulders it had been before.
"I'm sorry, Ninth Jadeite. I have failed you." The boulders stopped moving. The green moss and vines that draped the boulders began to wither.
...
Two days later.
Amaranthus awoke with aching pains, his skin clamy from the cold sweat that coated him in his sleep. He felt dizzy and a throbbing headache made him wince repetitively. His muscles felt like acid had been injected into them, even the thought of moving filled him with great reluctance.
He stared at the boulders that acted as a ceiling above him.
"Hello?" His voice was hoarse and crackled like a plastic bag. He almost got a scare as he didn't recognize it.
He recalled that these same pile of boulders was the Rock Giant, err. Didn't it say it was a Terrae?
"Terrae?" He spoke a bit more forcefully, unfortunately his dried throat was already parched and the effort caused him to taste blood once more.
He laid there for a moment as he appeared to recall the previous events, the fight flashing in his mind.
'I can't stay in the dark like this..' He slowly sat up, as he used one of the boulders beside him as support.
Once he stood up he leaned against the boulder, catching his breath. The fatigue, aching pains and weakness made it an increasingly difficult endeavor.
He limped forward, to where a small opening was located. As he exited the small cave he saw his backpack as well as the thermal layer, about four meters away.
He limped towards it. As he looked around he realized he was nowhere near the battle zone, that place would've drawn to much attention anyway.
The forest no longer had the eerie silence that attempted to muffle your sanity. He could now hear the weird calls of birds, insects and other living creatures. Even the wind rustling the thick branches of the trees around him was clear.
He first folded the thermal layer back into its bundle, along with the hooks and other small pieces of equipment, which took him way to long due to his injuries.
After he opened one of the outward pouches, he quickly grabbed a hydration bag filled with water and a pinch of salt/baking soda, just what his body needed in order to properly hydrate himself.
'Ahhh,' As the he felt the cold water go through his system he felt how his body responded, his brain relaxing in the process.
After getting his fill of water, he ate a couple portions of beef jerky. The thick but sweet taste put him on cloud nine as he savored every chewy piece of it.
Once finished he sat down on the ground, resting his back against a tree with his eyes closed.
'Since my mind can govern this world, I should see the extent of what I could do here.' With that thought in mind he opened his eyes, only to see the pile of boulders again.
'Wait. Something's wrong.' As the only non-hostile being he had met since his arrival, he had grown rather fond of this thing.
He got up slowly, his joints popping in defiance, limping towards the pile of boulders, he understood why he had the subconscious feeling of loss.
The moss, was brown and brittle as he ran his fingers through it, previously it was moist and firm. The vines themselves crinkled like dried wheat. He tugged on the vine only to see it fall apart.
The boulders themselves looked as if they had been grinded down, and there were noticeable less boulders in the pile.
'It's.. Dead?' His nose stung as a lump formed in his throat. That hollowed feeling in his chest returned.