Demi-God Twin Chapter 27: The Power of an S-Class Attribute.

Chapter 27: The Power of an S-Class Attribute.

(Iphicles P.O.V)

Ori and Atalanta's weights prove too much to stay in the air, so I land at the edge of the forest.

Before us is a massive crater where once sat a mountain.

And in it's place, a monstrous goat made of rocks and wood—has fully risen, shaking off debris like it’s waking from a long nap.

Only, this thing isn’t just stretching its limbs. It’s alive with divine fury.

Its massive horns, thick as tree trunks coil and twist toward the sky. Its red eyes burn with something primal, something angry, something very much ready to kill us all.

And on its forehead, right between it's horns rests a green gem the size of a tray and the source of the divine pressure pressing down on us.

"Any ideas guys?" I ask.

"Say sorry for whatever you did and hope It will let us go?" Atalanta suggests.

"I think it's a little too late for that." Ori mutters in a strained voice. "When a God decides to punish someone, no amount of apologies will change their mind."

"So we fight then?"

The Ogre barks out a laugh at my question. "I knew an idiot human would get me killed one day."

"We could run." Atalanta states. "The priority is to get the Lotus to Chiron."

Running away is a good plan but I'm not to confident it will work. My insticts tell me the Goat Mountain is ready for that.

It doesn’t charge to stop us from doing so. It doesn’t roar to freeze us in fear.

It doesn’t need to.

Because the forest moves for it.

Behind us, roots rip out of the ground like a thousand reaching hands, creating a wall.

The trees groan, their branches twisting writhing to cover any gaps on the wall.

The wind howls and the sky darkens with thick clouds that hide away the moon and stars. The only source of light is my dim wings and the glaring scarlet gaze of the giant stone goat.

We’re facing a God's will.

Ori lets out a low curse. “This thing isn’t just a Guardian. It’s an Avatar of Pan himself. My magic will not work against this. The spirits are terrified, we need to go now!”

There's no time for hesitation. Not when Chiron is counting on me.

"I'll hold it back! You find a way out and leave!" I launch into the sky with Ori and Atalanta shouting for me to wait.

I ignore them, wings flaring out as I unleash a storm of metal feathers, raining them down like a bronze death trap.

They hit—but they don’t do a damn thing to the Avatar.

Some embed into it's rocky hide, most bounce off harmlessly. It doesn’t flinch. It doesn’t even acknowledge the attack.

Then it moves.

With one stomp, the earth explodes. A shockwave rips across the land, splitting the ground open like a fresh wound.

I twist midair to dodge the worst of it but I'm still sent leering back. Below me, Ori and Atalanta aren’t so lucky.

The former barely manages to punch his fists into the ground to anchor himself, while Atalanta stabs the tip of Chiron's bow and does the same.

Then, the Avatar speaks.

The voice that rumbles through the air isn’t just loud—it’s like the mountain itself is speaking, deep, ancient, vibrating in my bones.

"INTRUDERS."

Its massive hooves split the rock beneath it.

"YOU CARRY WHAT IS NOT YOURS."

The Lunar Lotus pulses in Atalanta’s hands, as if even it can feel the weight of those words.

"ONLY THE WORTHY MAY LEAVE THIS SACRED LAND UNPUNISHED."

I open my mouth to tell it to go to hell—

But the emerald gem on its forehead flickers with bright light and something yanks me out of existence.

I blink, and the world is… wrong.

I’m standing in a forest, but not the one I just left.

This place breathes.

The trees shift like living muscle, their bark pulsing, their leaves whispering in a language just out of reach.

The ground beneath my feet beats like a slow, steady heartbeat.

And then I see him.

A throne of vines and antlers rises from the earth, ancient and gnarled, twisted into something alive.

And Pan sits upon it.

The Wild God.

His goat-like face is sharp and dangerous, red slit-pupiled eyes gleaming like a predator’s.

Muscular, covered in fur and ivy, his wood-clawed fingers tap lazily against the armrest.

The weight of his presence alone is suffocating.

I don’t kneel. I don’t bow. I can't even speak, so I stare right back.

His lips curl into something mocking and amused.

“YOU ARE NOT FIT TO TOUCH MY DOMAIN, MORTAL WORM. YET HERE YOU ARE, CORRUPTING IT WITH YOUR PRESENCE. WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOUR CRIMES?” he says, voice enraged.

I stay silent and hold his gaze, unflinching. My hand rises and I flip him off.

Pan's eyes narrow.

“I AM NOT AWARE OF WHAT THE GESTURE IMPLIES,” he continues, tilting his head, "BUT IT REEKS OF INSULT AND DEFIANCE. IT APPEARS MY CURSE WAS NOT ENOUGH TO TEACH YOU HOW TO RESPECT A GOD. SO BE IT, YOUR INSOLENCE HAS EARNED YOU THE LAST OF MY IMMORTAL PATIENCE."

His clawed fingers rise.

The world shatters.

A storm erupts around me.

The trees around twist and morph into corpses and figures from my past, warriors I’ve killed. My father, mother, Helen...faces I don’t want to remember.

The Ents I destroyed rise again, their limbs stretching towards me, grasping my body, eyes filled with vengeance.

Then—

Heracles.

Towering, laughing, his presence like a choking shadow, drowning out everything else. His falls and strikes at my caged form

My curse burns. I scream in agony.

The soil beneath my feet rots, turning black, the trees wither at my touch. But the visions don’t stop.

The weight of failure, exile, weakness crushes me.

My legs buckle and unwillingly, I kneel.

Pan watches from his throne, red eyes gleaming, a smirk playing at his lips.

“DO YOU SEE NOW?” His voice drips with mockery. “YOU DO NOT BELONG ANYWHERE EXCEPT ON YOUR KNEES.”

Laughter rings in my ears.

I tighten my fists.

Gritting my teeth, I push back against the pressure crushing me.

Pan’s expression shifts—just slightly, but I see it.

And that’s all I need.

I roar as I throw everything inside me outward—

My wings burst open, a storm of silver feathers brimming with the last of my Lunar light erupting in all directions.

The illusion is disrupted and the nightmare shatters.

I break free of Pan's Domain, my vision snapping back.

My physical body is bound to the plant wall, restrained by roots.

The Avatar is still attacking- breathing down massive thorns that poison whatever they touch, creating rock spikes from the earth with every stomp and controlling vines and roots to ensnare my friends.

Ori without his powers and Atalanta are barely keeping up. Atalanta shoots down the attacks with her magic arrows while the Ogre watches her back, ripping apart anything that gets too close with sheer strength and beastial ferocity.

I don’t waste time and cut myself off the wall.

“Distract it!” I shout, already rising into the air. “I have a plan!”

"Got it!" Atalanta fires an arrow that bursts into flames midair, drawing its attention.

Ori slams his hands onto the ground, vines exploding outward, trying to trap its limbs.

It won’t last.

I need to act. Pan has no idea what this Mortal Worm is capable of.

I rocket upward, tearing through the sky, breaking past the clouds. The moon is huge above me, cold and brilliant, a silver beacon.

I spread my wings wide.

And I let the Lunar Light fill me.

The glow burns through my veins, surging through my wings until they’re radiating pure silver energy.

If I can disrupt a God's mental illusion, then it should be possible to do the same to other divine spells.

I don’t hesitate.

I dive.

Wings wrapped around me, spinning like a falling star. The air screams past my ears, the mountain rushing up to meet me. The guardian looks up—

Too late.

I pierce straight through it's forehead, shattering the green gem into pieces as I plunge through rock and wood.

For a single moment, everything is silent.

Then the Avatar explodes.

The impact shatters it's mountain vessel, sending rock and wood flying in every direction.

It’s over.

Or at least, I think it is—

Until I hear Atalanta cry out.

I land next to Ori as he tries to tend to her— only for him to immediately pull back, cursing.

A sharp piece of the Green Gem had sliced her arm open when it shattered. And the cut while small, is rapidly getting serious. Her skin is turning into wood.

"She's been poisoned with a divine curse. If not stopped, her whole body will transform into wood and rock." Ori reveals, using a cloth to cover the gem shard on the ground.

I see the Lunar Lotus in her grip. It could heal her.

But if we use it on her, Chiron dies.

Atalanta grits her teeth, reading my thoughts before I even say them. “Don’t,” she growls. “Chiron first.”

"Damn it all." Ori curses under his breath, looking at me. “Iphicles, what do we do?”

I regard my wings. The Lunar Light still in me is not that different from what's in the Lunar Lotus right?

And with every second, I'm absorbing more and more light from the moon above.

I make a choice.

I grab Atalanta’s arm and press my glowing wingtip against the wound.

She screams.

The curse fights back, green tendrils thrashing, but I pour everything I have into it. The silver glow burns through the corruption like fire through dry grass.

Then—

It’s gone, leaving only a slightly bleeding wound.

Atalanta gasps, clutching her arm. The green veins have vanished and her skin is no longer rough wood. She stares at me, wide-eyed.

Ori lets out a breathless laugh. “That… should not have worked.”

So this is the power of an S class attribute? Not only can the lunar light I absorb disrupt spells, it can also purify curses and poisons.

I smirk, completely drained. “Well, it did.”

Atalanta shakes her head, lightly punching me on the shoulder. “Next time warn me you Arse. But thanks.”

I chuckle. “Where’s the fun in that?”

Ori groans. “I hate that I'm stuck with you humans.”

We’re alive. We have the Lotus.

And soon Chiron will be okay.

-0-

"I'm sorry, my boy...the Centaur, Chiron is dead." The village healer, Bubba says at the entrance to the hut. Beside her is a silently crying Anissa.

We...we were too late. Master is gone.