Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction / Saint Seiya Fan Fiction ❯ The Intense Clash of the Gods ❯ Tale 66 ( Chapter 66 )

Fight, Cecil! A single chance at survival!

As Radamanthys walked back to the stadium, he breathed a sigh of relief. A certain someone had decided to keep an eye on Fenrir's petrified form, and hopefully Charybdis, Isaac, or Cecil would dispose of Algol. The sudden sounds of a medical group approaching caused him to notice a number of people wheeling a girl on a stretcher, an IV supplying her with blood as Radamanthys suddenly realized who was on it...

Charybdis. He moved to speak out and ask for the group to stop, but someone beat him to the punch.

"Wait." The medics stopped; Charybdis the speaker. Staring up at the ceiling, she didn't know how... but... "Radamanthys... that's you there... right?"

Radamanthys blinked. Did she... how did she... "I'm right here," he said, walking over to her. Surprisingly, the woman didn't appear as injured as he had presumed... although her Scale was severely ruined. "And I'll notify Pandora to take care of your armor... she shouldn't need too much blood for it..."

Charybdis half-smiled and nodded. "You're wondering how I knew it was you, right?"

"Lucky guess?"

"No..." she shook her head, "I-" she realized they were not speaking privately, Sanctuary's medics nearby potential spies. "Later."

She was carried away, Radamanthys hoping for the best.
_
"Shadow Viking-"

Cecil's attack was stopped before it got off the ground, a kick to the side of the head knocking him into wall and sliding down as Shaina laughed at him.

"A pathetic fighter not even worthy of being a true God Warrior... expecting to defeat the mighty Serpent Handler?!?" Shaina said as Cecil pushed against the wall to get back on his feet. Her near-defeat by Charybdis had taught her one thing however, which was to not underestimate her opponents. Shaina had no doubt that Cecil would be no danger to her provided she kept her wits about her. "I can gauge the strength of a man at a single glance... and your strength isn't even on level with that Mariner bitch... and certainly nowhere near my own!"

"I've pulled off miracles in battle before," Cecil countered. "Hell... the Sun goddess Ambrosia certainly could put a Gold Saint to shame in terms of power..."

"But not in regards to technique," Shaina responded before charging. "Cobra-"

"ANKOKU MOKO REPPU SHIDEN KEN!" Cecil screamed as fast as he could, but Shaina simply teleported behind him, chopping him in the base of the neck. Cecil staggered forward, Shaina moving in for the finishing blow, and barely had the basic thought processes to spin and smash his fist into Shaina's head. Shaina flew away, but spun in midair and rebounded off the wall.

"Cobra Binder!"

Cecil raised his defenses, but the speed of a Gold Saint could reach lightspeed, and Shaina almost instantaneously blew by him. The imposing imagine of a golden snake appeared, binding him and sinking its teeth into his body before vanishing, two large stab wounds appearing on his shoulders. He screamed in pain, staggering forward as Shaina let out a short laugh from behind him.

"During the ancient Holy Wars between Athena and Hades, dozens of Specters would quake with fear at the concept of fighting just one Gold Saint... only the Three Judges, or an unusually powerful Substitute or Reserve Substitute Judge would dare face one in conventional battle. Otherwise, they relied of subterfuge to win. A single God Warrior like yourself lacks any chance of overcoming the mighty Seventh Sense."

Cecil barely heard her, much less fully comprehended what she said. He had one hand around a large stone serpent, trying to sort through the pain he felt. To defeat a Gold Saint... is it even possible? The twelve, no... thirteen most fearsome soldiers of the gods. Even Chary couldn't beat her! Turning back to Shaina, however, Cecil grinned. "Bring it."

Shaina was surprised by the foolish action... Bodu really wanted to continue this total humiliation? Before she had the opportunity to chastise him for the remark, Cecil continued.

"We've got one Gold Saint to beat right? Just one for this round and then we're done... have at least a whole day to rest..." Cecil continued, clenching his fists in determination before he raised them into the air. "Alcor Zeta-"

Shaina smirked... so he was going to try that thing again... "You should know... you can't show the same move to a Saint twice... or at least not when they see it coming. Your-"

"Moko Ranbu-"

"Your 'Violent Tiger Dance' is too sluggish... only about Mach 8. A Silver Saint wouldn't have any dream of dodging it, but-"

"SEI!"

Cecil roared as he charged, punching as fast as he possibly could, screaming out "SHIH-NE SHIH-NE SHIH-NE SHIH-NE SHIH-NE SHIH-NE-" desperately, Shaina simply bending and weaving through the strikes gracefully, even going so far as to pat his cheek once in a patronizing way.

"Thunder Claw," Shaina yawned, slashing down with her hand across Cecil's chest and cutting through his God Robe and electrocuting him in the process. Cecil fell to his hands and knees as Shaina smirked. This one had been much easier. "Die already." She raised her hand up again, already crackling with electricity and about to deliver the finishing blow when she felt a pain in her gut... the impact like that of a very fast punch.

A few drops of blood flew from her mouth as she was sent backwards, falling down to one knee and looking down at her stomach. Charybdis's injury had been easy enough to mend with her Gold Saint healing powers... but this blow was a new one, right next to it... courtesy of Cecil.

"I guess that Gold Cloth just delayed the impact..." Cecil groaned as he rose back up to his feet. One thing he had to give credit to Kaiser about; his blood had certainly made his Robe a lot stronger. "But it didn't... didn't stop it. How's it hurt?" He then blinked, confused as if someone was talking to him...

Shaina growled in frustration before charging again. "COBRA BIND-"

A sudden gust of wind from Cecil pushed against her, Shaina moving backwards as Cecil charged. "What was that about the same move not working against a Saint more than once?" he asked before punching her in the face. Shaina careened into a massive statue of a woman with a snake coiled around her arms and neck, demolishing it in the process.

"It... it worked..." Cecil said in joy. "I pulled it off, just like you said..."

"Thunder-" Shaina shouted from behind. Cecil turned, responding as fast as he could.

"BLACK TEMPEST!"

He thrust out with his hands, another stream of wind pushing against Shaina as forcefully as Cecil could manage, but she suddenly vanished again, appearing behind and above Cecil and kicking him in the head. The Alcor Zeta God Warrior skidded across the ground as Shaina laughed again.

"I... I have no idea how you're doing this. Nor do I wish to," Shaina mused, "But this ends, here, Bodu! THUNDER-"

CECIL! PUNCH OUT IN FRONT OF YOU!

The voice was clearer now, Cecil doing so as Shaina re-appeared, expecting Cecil to turn away and presume the Gold Saint would attack from behind. She caught an Ankoku Moko Reppu Shiden Ken square in the chest, screaming in pain and being knocked away again. Cecil was overjoyed with this comeback, but also by the voice he was hearing. Syd...

As much your guardian angel now as during your struggle against Ambrosia, Cecil... offering a bit of advice here.

Like what?

Cecil... Chary was talking, right before she blacked out, about becoming in tune with Combat Awareness.

Shaina charged again, Cecil rolling to the side and narrowly escaping an untimely death.

Combat Awareness?

It's... complicated... Hades and the Specters are trying to figure out why Mizuki and now Charybdis developed it... but we haven't a clue. All I can say... is you need to become in tune with your surroundings... understand everything and anything near you...

Well... thanks... I'll do what I can. Cecil nodded, glad to know that once again, his brother had redeemed himself. But enough of this... I need to focus on the fight... and that Combat Awareness thing.

No problem... best of luck.

Shaina charged again, Cecil taking a deep breath and trying to realize what Syd had been talking about... Combat Awareness... what was it?

He bent out of the way of another Thunder Claw, kicking Shaina and trying to do what Syd had talked about... but Shaina kicking him in the groin really set him back a bit. Moaning in pain, Cecil crumpled forward, trying to regain his composure as Shaina jumped into the air and shot down at him.

"COBRA BINDER!" Shaina lashed out at him, Cecil screaming in pain as the attack hit his backside, the snake appearing and punching two more holes through his Robe. Shaina jumped away, entertaining a small laugh as Cecil pounded his fist into the ground.

"I... I will not die here..." he groaned, rising to his feet... "I... I know the feeling that's coursing through me... I've been there before..." He recalled his previous battles... life-or-death struggles against Specters, God Warriors, Coronas, even Death Queen Island... What had let him win before... call upon seemingly unlimited power? It wasn't this "Seventh Sense" that the Gold Saints wielded... it was something else...

Standing there, Cecil blinked in surprise. He realized... he understood...

He was Aware.

Shaina smirked. "Your last fleeting moments are quickly slipping away from you." She began quickly teleporting to the left and right of Cecil, becoming closer and closer, relishing the moment before the kill, as usual. "THUNDER..." Her hand raised into the air just as she appeared in front of Cecil, who had been looking behind him. Foolish. "CLA-"

She never finished. The iron-clad grip of Cecil's hands, one crushing down on Shaina's neck, the other all but crushing her upraised arm's wrist, had stopped her dead in her tracks as Cecil turned around with a grin on his face. He felt like crap... but soon Shaina would be much worse off than him.

"Enough bullying and scare tactics," Cecil said before letting go of Shaina's neck. "ANKOKU MOKO REPPU SHIDEN KEN!" The blow struck her in the face, Psyche flying away with another scream of pain, smashing through a whole multitude of pillars.

Rising up from the rubble, Shaina wiped the blood from her face and looking at Cecil from the shadows. "How... how did..."

"What's the matter? Where's your arrogant facade?"

Shaina tensed up, turning around to see Cecil standing there. "Enough of this shit..." Cecil growled, clenching his fists again. He didn't have much time... so he had to make the next few fleeting moments count. "YOU'RE GOING DOWN!"