Task Name: Saving the King and Queen
Tier: 2
NPC or PC: PC
Location: Briss Kingdom
Crew, Team, or Personal: Personal
Description: After defeating the group who had ambushed him, he hurried to the throne room to save the rulers of the Briss Kingdom. He was in time to see the queen being taken away. He wasn't too late to stop them from taking the king, though, whom was worried what they would do to his wife. The remaining cultist looked to be the other general who was leading the cult. If Malik were to defeat him, the operations would stop.
Enemy Details: 1 Tier 2 Cultist Lieutenant, 2 Tier 2 Cultists, 1 Tier 1 Cultist
Boss:

Boss Name: Cultist Lieutenant
Tier: 2
Description: One of the leading generals that carry out a mysterious goal to take over the Briss Kingdom and soon the south blue.
Devil Fruit: No Devil Fruit
Haki Aura: No Haki
Equipment: Brass Gauntlets with Steel Claws
Specs:

Hand-to-Hand: 2

Melee Weaponry: 3

With an incredible amount of vigor present within his slim figure, the young martial artist rushed through the halls with utmost urgency. With his previous victories over a group of cultists that have ambushed him earlier when he started traverse the hallways in the first place, he was able to move one further. Hopefully, there won't be any more enemies slowing him down when he was trying to make it to the throne room where the rulers of the Briss Kingdom resided. He dashed as fast as he possibly could with his enhanced agility. At the same time, he constantly scanned the area around his as he rushed to the king and queen's aid. He didn't want to bump into any obstacles that would deter him from his objective. If the cultist were to capture the rulers, then, the whole state of the kingdom would collapse. They were already dealing with difficult enough problem as it is. They do not need, some corrupt organization trying to make it worse for their home or the entire South Blue. There was no way he would allow any harm to befall the king or queen while within his sight. Speaking of which, he carefully alter the angle of he gaze to make sure he was moving in the right direction. He did not want to get lost and risk waste what time he had left.

In the process of looking for the room where he was find the two people he was looking for, Malik cam upon another passage way, which lead to a another area in the castle. The door was already open, meaning someone else was already inside. To his expectations, he had to guess it was more members of Tri-Shadow. They have made it here before he did. Perhaps there was still time left to stop them from doing anything sinister to the rulers. When he made it to the entrance to the throne room, he immediately slowed down to an appropriate speed. he mentally prepared himself for what ordeals he would face while he was enter. However, from this distance, he could hear screaming and yelling. One voice was highly feminine as well as having charm to it while the other was masculine, carrying an air of authority. The last voice reminded him of his father, he was strong, commanding, but also benevolent and loving. He really treasured the moments he had with the man, but right now, he had to save the king and queen. They too may have a family they cherish.  Upon Walking in, he noticed the king being barely held down by three cult member. From how the man was handling things, he must have been a strong individual. Still, he was having trouble getting their hands of of him as he had to watch the queen be taken away against her will.

"Unhand me you scoundrels and release my wife this instant. I refuse to let her be taken away!" The King roared with power, refusing to to give up and fight to his last breath. From just looking at this man, he can see why the kingdom itself was still stand. If a powerful leader such as him wasn't around, it would most surely have crumbled away. The three cult soldier desperately trying to hold him down were giving it all of their strength. Even then, it was difficult to restrain him. His might physique was of a giant among men. He was strong, handsome, an authoritative. However, even with all of his strength, he just could get to his beloved in time, before she was taken away. Unfortunately, Malik had also arrived too late to stop them as well, but he will save her after he is finished with these vile cretins. With his wife out of site, the king collapsed to to the floor, landing on his knees and hands. Even if he did released himself, he would have no idea where to look overall. They could have taken the queen anywhere into the city, but perhaps there may be another way. With his majesty kneeling in defeat at the kidnapping of his beautiful wife, the three cultist, who were previously holding him down, looked to their leader, the remaining lieutenant who was know leading the cult by himself. He was the one Malik needed to defeat to finish off Tri-Shadow.

"So, Chief, what do think we should do with the old man? He looks beaten, now that his wife is in our hands." The lowest-ranking soldier present stated, questioning what should they do now they the king has inwardly surrendered with his wife captured. There was hardly anything the large man could do now that the queen was in the cult's custody. He dreaded, at the moment, of what the soldiers he called brutes would do to her. Malik refused to allow this to go on any longer. If those cultists were anything like the one he meet in the alleyway, who were torturing the woman he saved earlier, then, he was going to take them down, one by one, if he had to. He started to a certain spot within the location he was currently at. When he stopped, he was in front of the entire group, king, cultists, and lieutenant. It was at this point he wanted to make himself heard. While the cult soldier had captured the queen, he could still save her, if he could get any information out of this robed men before him.

"You should let him go, now. I will not allow you men to sully the name of the king and queen with your heinous actions. Leave him alone, and fight me, instead." The young warrior said, challenging the four enemies with their attention momentarily focused on the king at the moment. They all, his majesty included, switched their attention to the adolescent fighter within the room. The king had no idea who the boy was. From his perspective, he was a child, who looked so harmless, but had amazing amounts of courage to come all the way to the palace. To the cultists, they recognized him as the martial artist who easily plowed through their forces, like a scythe through weed.

The young brave fighter of a adolescent pirate stood before the group, determination evident in his narrowed eyes. They have already taken the queen, he was not going to let them do as they please with the king as well. He clenched both of his hand into fists out of anger. What these men were doing was wrong. Trying to take control of a kingdom, just to do what they want is an act out of selfishness, greed. They must be punished for their transgressions. He was not going to let their influence extend all across the South Blue, his home from where he grew up. Specifically speaking, Karate Island, which his family still resided in. No matter where in the world he was, he will never let this dirty fiends lay one finger on them, especially his mother. He won't even let them touch a single hair on her head. His family is too precious for such scum to harm them. In fact, he won't let them hurt anyone ever again after witnessing the brutally on certain members in the way they severely hurt an innocent woman in front of. He remembered how he dearly made those scoundrels pay. No one should do that to another human being out of sheer enjoyment, ever.

"I-It's that kid, the one who crushed our forces so easily. He's the one our forces were having the most difficulty defeating." One of the high-ranking cultist, who was holding the king down to the floor said with surprise in his tone. The lieutenant was also shock at how far this child has come. In fact, from his own point-of-view, the robed man didn't see him as a child no more. He was a fierce warrior who will crush any malevolent being. In the boy's eyes, they were considered nothing more than vile beasts who hurt other for fun, guided by their greed and lust for power. The king looked up from where he was held down and saw the one whom had been doing good within his own kingdom. He was impressed at how much strength the boy possessed. It was obvious he was a formidable foe, if he had done away with Tri-Shadow's forces so easily. The boy admittedly had trouble with certain members, who used his weakness for long-range combat against him. Though, he managed to find a way around it.

The lowest-ranking soldier in the group present within the confines of the throne room stood up, releasing his hold on the king while the remaining two increased their grip to keep him in place. He simply walked up to the lieutenant, a smirk of arrogance evident on his facial features. From what Malik could see, this man must be an arrogant fighter. He was one of those warrior who thought that no one could defeat him, that he was unbeatable. Such overconfidence will be a martial artist downfall, if one is not careful. It will also cause great injury to their honor when lose happen upon them. When the low-ranking member of the cult was beside the leading general, he stared down the adolescent in front of him. Malik could see in the man's eyes from what he was thinking. His gaze read that he thought he was better than the boy. Oh how wrong he was. It is not who has the most power or has has the greatest moves or that you can do something others can't. It is what you do with such power and gifts, the choices you make and who you chose o be that matters. That is what makes you a better person. This man was far from Malik's expectations. Even the lieutenant appeared he couldn't stand him. It would seem their organizations has standards concerning how their embers act. The young warrior could see the slight annoyance in the man's gaze aimed at his subordinate.

"Yo chief, you stand back and watch. This guy is just a kid. I can take him out in two seconds. You can simply watch, this is just too easy, hehe." The low-ranked cultist said, an arrogant tone clearly lacing his voice. The adolescent fighter had to admit. He had never meet someone overflowing with sheer audacious overconfidence before. This man before him was so blind, he couldn't even measure the difference within their power. Yet, he believes he could defeat the boy that easily. Malik inwardly notes this robed individual to be quite foolish. He would be more so, if he were to eat a Devil Fruit. Without a word, the leading general simply turned on his feet and walked to a section of the room where he could watch the battle to come. The man was expecting this to be a quick defeat, but for his arrogant subordinate, who thought could be anyone. The spot the lieutenant chose to watch from was close to his higher-ranking members, who now had the king in chains.When he had made it to the certain area, he turned to watch.

Both the young warrior and the arrogant cultist before him stared each other down. On the robed man's side, he had a gaze that said to the boy in front of him that he was going to will without fail. Oh how wrong this foolish soldier was, to assume such this through overconfidence. Arrogance can be one's downfall for certain and yet, this cultist had yet to grasp his position in the pecking order of his organization. He thought so highly of himself, he could see how powerful in reality he was. On the side of the young fighter, his expression was more serious and stern, never letting arrogance such as his opponent's show on his face. Even if, he had a higher chance of winning than this fool before him, he wouldn't let that chance go to his head as their is always a possibility that the situation could take an unexpected turn. He was also cautious and never overconfident, which differentiated him from the arrogant cultist. Right now, the boy was going to show him how blind this man was and let him know his place. The robed man was was about to show the adolescent martial artist the reverse of what the novice pirate thought to begin with. Malik decided to simply get into his combative position, preparing for his battle, that looks to be easily won. The cultist simply did the same with the same arrogant smirk he wore over his rugged face.

"So ya brat, how would like your punishment. A good ol' fashioned beat down or dropped from fifty feet high?" He said with a tone of glee, anticipating some anxiety from the teenager before him. The boy simply scoffed at the man's proposal as immediately went on to dash towards him. The speed he was traveling at notably surprised the cultist. This was to an extent that he temporarily let his guard down. Taking advantage of this certain reaction, Malik quickly closed the distance between him and his opponent. In that moment, he clenched his right hand into a fist and thrusted it forward. The blow managed to hit the man in his stomach, causing him to bend over in pain while at the same time letting out an audible grunt. The cultist soon began to question what was happening due to the adolescent being able to hit him so easily. It was his overconfidence that blinded him to the boy's true compatibility. There were obvious reasons for how he was able to decimate large portions of Tri-Shadow's forces. However, all the robed man saw before beginning the battle with the young warrior was a boy who was in over his head. He was very much wrong as it was the other way around in this situation.

Following up with his successful hit to the cultist's gut, Malik followed up with a roundhouse kick using his right leg. The attack connected to the left side of the cultist's head. The force of the impact was such to an extent that the robed man was pushed a couple of feet to the young fighter's right side. The boy was not about to let up on his relentless assault. From what he could see at the moment, his last attack left his opponent frazzled. He quickly rushed towards him and performed a kick with his left leg. The blow was able to connect with the cultist's chin, knocking the man off of his feet. Soon after the attack, the slowly began to slowly lose consciousness. As he did, he began to wonder what had happen, why did he lose, why didn't he see it coming. All of these questions point towards one answer, arrogance. Sheer arrogance was the cause of his defeat. When the the cultist landed on the ground on his back, he lost consciousness there and now. The boy simply stood up tall without any sort of pride. He decided to speak to break the silence between him and the remaining cultists.

"I hope I am not being impatient, but I am ready to combat my next opponent, if one of you cultist be so kind to step forth." The young fighter spoke in a polite tone, expressing his readiness to fight another cultist and be one step closer to rescuing the king and then, going to look for the queen. The lieutenant smirk at the boy's audacious enthusiasm for wanting to fight more. He is certainly an interesting child. He has what many people call, spunk. He could tell the excitement and, at the same time, urgency in the adolescent's tone of voice. He wanted to defeat the cultists as soon as possible, so he had much time to release the king from his shackles then, save the queen, who had been captured. Deciding to not waste anymore of the young warrior's time, one of the cultists soldiers standing by the king started to walk forward. It was time to begin the next battle. However, it wasn't going to be as easy as the previous one. The opponent Malik had face was an arrogant fool who thought he was better and anyone for no good reason. As the higher-ranking cultist kept walking straight to the young fighter, he decided to speak out next.

"I would like to warn you. I am not like that overconfident fool of a soldier. I do not become careless, especially when fighting someone who appears to be a child. We are well-aware of your past endeavors with our comrades and are informed of what you are capable of, boy. As such, I shall give it my all to make sure our plans come into fruition." The robed man said, letting Malik know of his serious facade as well as not being so easily swayed by arrogance. If he was going to give it everything he had in his battle with the boy, the adolescent warrior himself will fight with all of his might as well. He knows full-well that this battle will be in both participant's favors as both are stern in personality and are not willing to let their guard down. From here on, this is where the real fight begins.

As the cultist neared the boy he was about to do battle against, the said young fighter got into his signature battle stance. He could tell he needed to keep on his toes with this soldier. Unlike his previous fight, this would prove to be more challenging. His last opponent was so obtuse with arrogance that even his own comrades were annoyed by him. For the lieutenant, he was glad that someone, even their enemy taught the jerk of a cultist a lesson. His comrades were more respectful, despite them being villains. As such, they do not aloud arrogance to cloud their judgement so easily. They take their positions seriously and fight with all of their might. That is why Malik can't afford to be overconfident himself or hold back on his attacks. When the cultist had closed the distance between him and the boy, he immediately stopped. From there, he got into a combative position of his own. Seeing how this adolescent warrior fights from his battle with the arrogant soldier, he had decided on being to first to land the starting blow in this fight. He rushed to the boy without warning, rearing back his right fist. Malik was quick to react to such an attack. He raised both of his hands a a way to defend against it. He was able to successfully block the attack with little difficulty, but still put in much effort to maintain his current position.

Deciding to counterattack, the young warrior performed a a kick utilizing his right leg. The attack managed to hit the robed man in his corresponding side. The impact push back a few feet as well as caused him to stagger. He began to see the depth of this martial artist's strength. That it was beyond human. It more over the terms of superhuman. While his opponent was left momentarily left open, Malik quickly starts to devise another offensive. He was thinking on using one of his techniques, but he also remembers that there are other cultists watching their confrontation. He will have to hold back on utilizing any of those tactics and resort to more unorthodox methods. He made a dash towards the robed man, who now regained his composure. Seeing the boy taking the offensive again, the cultist decided to try a tactic of his own. This will throw the adolescent warrior off of his guard and hopefully tip the battle in his favor. He was more strategic than his arrogant fool of a comrade now lying motionless on the flow far from him and the teenager rushing towards him.

As the the young fighter neared, the robed man decided to execute his strategy right now. With Malik growing closer to his opponent, the man simply ducked under the strong warrior. This caught him off-guard as he wasn't able to react with what was coming next. The cultist clenched his right fist and gave a strong uppercut to the adolescent's stomach. The blow connected along with the boy letting out an inaudible grunt of pain. The man followed up with quickly moving behind the young pirate and performing an elbow strike with his left arm, aimed at his back. It managed to hit, causing the boy to stagger forward. Surprisingly enough, he recovered his composure at a fast rate and quickly turned on his feet to deliver a counterattack. He started with a kick utilizing his right leg. It was able to hit the cultist in the left side of his face. Retracting his limb, he followed up with clenching his left fist and releasing a strong thrust. The blow connected with the middle of his facial features this time. The impact and the area for the attack was so inflicting that the man staggered backwards, almost losing his balance. This boy was quite skilled, even after suffering from two strong, consecutive blows, he reacted with a counterattack that threw his opponent off balance.

"I-Incredible, this boy truly is an adept fighter. I have to keep on my toes or else I will be face severe punishment at his hands." The robed man thought, being reminded of the danger this adolescent pirate poses, despite his age. Speaking of whom, while the man was trying to regain his balance, Malik took this chance and made a dash for him. He wasn't going to let his opponent get the better of him as he demonstrates with calmness and a level head. The cultist was in too much in a daze to defend against the adolescent warrior oncoming onslaught. When Malik was close enough to his enemy, he performed a knee strike with his left leg. It successfully landed in the man's chest, delivering a strong impact. Retracting his appendage, he clenched his left hand into a fist and covered it with his right hand. He then, launched the attack at the cultist. It connected with the right side of his face. The force of it was so strong, it knocked him to the ground. When he landed on his right side, he immediately lost consciousness. Standing up from his assault. He turned to the two remaining opponents his had to face. He believes the time to utilize his techniques will soon be upon him.

The king, who remained trapped in chins and shackle restraints, look on in awe at what he just saw happening in front of himself. He couldn't believe what is take place in front of him, a boy no more than sixteen years old, was easily doing away with his captors with little effort. He also never imagine that such a child was the one who was so casually doing away with this cult's forces single-handedly. It is as if a hero had been dropped into the country's lap from God, an angel to judge the transgressions of Tri-Shadow's members. The remaining high-ranking soldier stared in shock at how his comrades had been so effortlessly been done away with without fail. Admittedly, Malik himself had suffered some damage from the physical blows of his second opponent thus far, but he was a highly durable person in a sense he wouldn't let regular attack slow him down from protecting this country and it's people. He hadn't time to waste, he must defeat these last two cultist quickly. However, he must be highly cautious as his next opponent will not be so easy to defeat, like the others. Nor will the lieutenant, the last general of the organization. If Malik can defeat that man, then the whole structure of the cult will crumble.

The lieutenant turn the angle of his gaze towards his remaining subordinate. The look in his eyes told the man that it was time for him to challenge the boy to battle this time. Despite his anxiety at the adolescent's display of sheer strength, he loyally bowed his head at his leader. Even if he was the one who crushed a large portion of their forces, including one of their leading generals, the young warrior did have his limits, like everyone else who had a physical body. As such, there had to be an opening of some sort, a weak-point, which he can strike and bring this martial artist to his knees. With his confidence reaffirmed, he soon started to walk up to the young fighter, clinging onto new hope. He was depending on the fact that there was a sort of opening to his combative position he could exploit to gain an advantage in order to win the upcoming battle between him and the boy. He was soon about to find out how this confrontation would follow through with the young fighter. From seeing the cultist walking up to him, Malik got into his fighting stance. He was now preparing himself for the battle to come.

"Hmm, If I am not mistaking, this would be my third battle since entering this throne room of the king and queen. I am making good time, if I do think so myself." He thought, noting on the number of battles he has gone through since his arrival in this certain room. If he should happen to prevail over this next opponent that was steadily approaching him, he would be facing the remaining leader of the entire cult. He would also be the last opponent he had to face in the throne room. When the cultist had closed the distance between him and his enemy, he too switch to his offensive position. Each combatant cautiously eyed the other. The robed man carefully looked around in every angle to see where he should strike. He decided to use a ploy as a way to exploit the openings of his opponent. He reared back his right fist, making it appear as if he was going to punch. Malik remains cautious on the cultist's motives and decides to raise only one of his arms, using his left one. Seeing a chance to attack, the robed man launched a kick with his right leg. The young fighter turn just in time to catch it with his free hand.

It was now his turn to attack as he himself saw an opening in the cultist's defense he could exploit. It was like the boy was using his enemies tactic against him. He was quick to pick up on what his opponents were planning. This allows him to adapt to a combative situation with ease and formulate a plan for victory. Malik pushed away the man's leg and clenched his left fist. He focused his strength into his limb and poised himself to unleash his might. He dash forward and made a sharp thrust at his opponent, utilizing his technique, "Ryuutakashi". The attack was able to land into the right side of the robed man's face. The impact pushed him farther back with the cultist skidding to a halt. When he stopped, a trickle of blood ran down the right side of his lip as a result of a blood vessel being popped. Noticing it, he lifted his right hand and wiped it away. He must admit, this adolescent warrior was a formidable person. The man does not know how long he will last. If he did happen to lose, he hoped his leader would defeat this boy. The said teenager was strong enough to take on the cult's remaining lieutenant.

[Techniques Used: Ryuutakashi: -15 = 235 Stamina]

Standing firm from his recent assault, the young warrior decided to continue was his physical attacks. At the same time, he retained his caution towards the cultist before him, who was still regaining his composure. At the moment, it appeared to be the right moment to strike him down. He made a dash for him, rearing back his right fist, making it look as if he was going to land a punch. Through multiple battle with these soldiers of Tri-Shadow, he had learn many tactics from them, despite being in such a hurry to get to the king and queen in order to save them. As the martial artist steadily grew closer with each step he took in his dash, the cultist positioned himself for a counterattack. When the boy was close enough, he performed an unexpected action of sorts, which surprised all watching. He spinned his entire body in a clockwise fashion, moving to his opponent's left, who was still distracted by the unorthodox action initiated by the young fighter. This adolescent pirate was certainly special indeed, thinking in ways no one else would as well as accomplishing feats that a man has shown to be only capable of. Stopping on his feet and facing the cultist on his right with hand still clenched into a fist, Malik thrusted it forth. The blow managed to connect to the left side of the man's face.

While a successful hit, he did not stop there. He proceeded to follow up with various other maneuvers of sort. He performed a roundhouse with his left leg. It was able to connect, but this time in the right side of the man's face. Retracting his limb, he has yet to be finished with his current assault. Clenching his other hand into a fist, he unleashed a barrage of punches. This wave of fists consisted of six attack. The cultist braced himself for what was about to come at him. The man was able to dodge three of them in total, but in the end, the remaining three managed to hit him. All connected with the cultist soldier's chest. The onslaught of punches left him in a daze. As such, the young warrior thought it was time to finished this fight once and for all. His next assault will consist of attacks possessing brute force, but not as much as his technique. They were still potent enough to at least knock out a wounded soldier. Returning to his combative position, Malik prepared himself to unleashed yet another barrage of blows against his opponent, which he see as formidable.

"These next array of consecutive attack should accomplish yet another victory for me. Afterwards, I will go for the lieutenant. I am well-aware of his position, so all I can assume is he is very powerful compared to all of the other opponents I have face up to this point. I won't let my guard down, even if I do keep triumphing. There is always a chance at defeat. Destruction and tragedy looms around every corner, so it is best to remain cautious. I expect you would wants to always be cautious and be ready for the worse, Great Father, My Lord." The martial artist thought, making a decision on going for the last leading general of Tri-Shadow after he reigns victorious over the cultist he is current fighting. He is also inwardly assuming the power the man observing them possesses is great, befitting his position as lieutenant. Along with this assumption, he reminds himself to be cautious as with man constantly fighting against evil in the world, one should let themselves be to relax when in danger, noting to Lord God in heaven from his mind even.

The start off with his next row of physical attacks, he performed a knee strike while utilizing his left leg. Due to the previous assault on him, the cultist was still staggering, making it rather difficult to avoid the young warrior's strikes, especially with him being so close to him right now. The attack was able to successfully hit the man within his stomach. This caused the robed individual to let out a grunt of pain while bending over in agony from the force of the impact. Taking this chance with the current position his enemy is in, Malik decided to follow up with an elbow strike using his left arm. The blow connected with the back of the cultist's neck, resulting in the robed man emanating another pain-filled grunt. The lieutenant watching was quite impressed with the boy's skill in close-combat. He must have been taught very well to achieve this level of power and speed. He can tell his remaining subordinate will not last long against a fighter of this caliber. To finish his current barrage of consecutive blows, Malik reared back his right hand, clenching it into a fist and thrusting it forth. The attack successfully hit the cultist in his left jaw, knocking to the floor.

"He is.. just.. to strong. I.. do not.. know... how the.. lieutenant.. can.. beat.. someone.. like.. him." The robed man struggled to speak as he fell to the ground, slowly losing consciousness. He truly did not know how his leader will far against such a boy, no, a man of such power. This adolescent was more than meets the eye of his enemies. When the cultist landed on his right side, he fell limp, unable to remain awake. Malik stood tall and turned on his feet in order to face the last remaining member of the cult present in the throne room. All the lieutenant can do is smirk from his enemy's prowess in defeating his comrades with much effort put into doing so. He could tell this battle was going to be a challenge as did the young pirate himself, knowing full-well that this man he was facing was not granted the title, "lieutenant" for nothing.

All the king can do from the way he has been chained up is simply stare in astonishment at how he utterly demolished the subordinates of the cult's lieutenant. He never could have imagine that a boy would have this much power to begin with. A human being, as a child of God, has limitless potential and with much faith and belief along with various other subjects, one can become as mighty as a deity, if they push themselves hard enough. This warriors power border on the path of superhuman. If his wife were still within the confines of the throne room, she too would be amaze at this adolescent's prowess. He was indeed someone not to be trifled with. As the young martial artist awaited for his next opponent to approach, the lieutenant continued to stare in amusement. Admittedly, he never met such a person, who was so young and yet, so powerful. If a teenage pirate was of this caliber, he can only imagine that the adults. He was expecting some to be monsters, beasts of battle, soon to be gods. Some were even legends with such examples being the four Yonko, emperors of the seas, unrivaled and only matched by one another.

"He seems to be taking his time on his decision to do battle with me or not. Unfortunately, I don't have the luxury of waiting for such a long period of time. The king may be safe at the moment, but the situation may possibly grow worse, if I wait too long. The queen is already in a severe enough predicament." The brave, young pirate thought to himself, worried for the king's wife's current state after she had be captured and is now being held captive. Then, a sudden solution came to the innards of his mind. He was confirm where the queen is after defeating and keeping the lieutenant awake long enough for him to get certain answers on the woman's whereabouts. He hope she is doing well and is not being tortured, like another individual he had previously recused from the grip of cultists earlier. The thought of the incident still made his blood boil with rage. Right now, all Malik could do was simply wait while his next enemy hurried up with his decision. With the man's mind made up, he quickly walked in the direction aimed toward meeting the adolescent face-to-face. The boy felt a slight hint of relief and waited for the cultist to reach him.

As the man neared the young fighter, the said martial artist crossed his arms. His patience never wavered as the robed man took his time closing in on the formidable warrior. The said cultist reached into his cloak, shuffling around for a certain item or two. Malik tensed at what the lieutenant could be searching for. He decided to uncross his arms and clench his hands into fists. The man then, pulled out brass gauntlets with steel claws, weapon perfect for combat up close and personal. He easily slipped them over his hands, holding tight on the grip in his palms. For reasons known to him, Malik could tell that this battle was going to be a, possibly, a bloody one. The sharpness of those claws indicated multiple wounds in the near future of this current battle. With time still left to prepare for his confrontation with the cultist lieutenant, the young warrior moved his hands to the zipper of his hoodie and started to unzip the clothing. He soon took it off along with his blue backpack. Holding both items in his hands, he then, threw them to his left. They landed in an area in the throne room safe from harm. Soon afterwards, Malik quickly shifted to his battle position.

"I see you are very serious about this battle. From that look in your eyes, I can tell you see me as a worth opponent. I am flattered, I too respect you for you caliber and efforts in getting this far. Now, let us start our match." The cultist said, praising the adolescent fighter on how far he has come since arriving in the Briss Kingdom. While still walking, he was still a far distance away from the martial artist. After finishing his sentence, he made a quick dash towards the boy, fists clenched on the handles of his steel claws, ready to impale the young warrior's flesh. He reared back his left arm, motioning for a strike at his abdomen. Seeing the deadly attack coming at him, Malik prepared himself. Unlike he previous encounters and battle he had had thus far since reaching throne room, this exchange of blows may possibly leave major wounds on his body. This man was shooting to kill or, in the case of his weapons, thrust. When the cultist managed to close the distance between him and the boy, he let lose with the deadly strike. Malik was able to parry the attack well and dodge it, avoiding a serious cut to his abdomen. He counter with performing a kick with his left leg. Seeing what was coming, the robed man lifted his right arm to guard. He was able to block the boy's attack, which result in a stare-down between the two combatants. This battle was starting to become intense and each side struggled to damage the other.

The king of the Briss Kingdom contently observed the two combatant as their confrontation intensified in his presence. On one side, a boy, no more than sixteen years old, was fighting for the kingdom itself and maybe something even more. He hardly knows the now-chained ruler and his wife, if not barely, and yet, he risks his life whole-heartily to protect all the inhabitants in the country, regardless of how they treated him when he got here to begin with. He seems to possess much purity at his core, going out of his way to help this kingdom with it's problems. The king never did asked for any help, but he was most certainly grateful of the charity and kindness displayed by this teenager. On the warrior's opposing side was a cloaked man who strived to bring sorrow and agony to the many innocent civilians. All his people were trying to do is make tranquility with one another and struggled through hard times then, these cultists come and cause suffering out of greed and power. He had to imagine that the adolescent fighter must be revolted, depending on what kind of person he was. In reality, it sickened him to the point where he wears a look of disgust at the sight of such evil. It irritated him to no end.

With both competitors struggling to find where to strike next on the other's body, they continued to stare at one another with varying levels of intensity, depending on who was gazing and what emotions were evident in their eyes. Malik wore a look of focus and concentration, never wavering from the slightest distraction within his sight. He was determine to defeat this lieutenant and send the cult crumble to the very earth they stood on. His opponents eyes had an intense look of excitement at the height of power the boy that he was fighting was displaying. He inwardly admitted that he was impressed by the young warrior's prowess in combat, but he was not about to lose to him just yet. He took great pride in leading his cult to their goals and was not to let one boy, no matter how powerful and skilled, ruin all of their plans. He and his comrades have come this far, he wasn't going to give up now. Deciding to end this momentary struggle in the heat of their battle, the cultist pushed the young fighter's left leg away from him and thrusted his left steel claw at him. This attack was aimed at the boy's face.

"Hah, let's see how you feel about losing an eye, compared to me nearly losing my dreams of conquest." The robed man stated in his head, intent on taking Malik right eye with much pain to follow. Thinking fast, the adolescent martial artist was quick to react. He knew where the man was aiming and would never let it happen. Besides, his family would be sorrowful, if they found out he lost an eye. He took a simple initiative, turning to the side and lifting up his right arm. He was able to successfully dodge it by pushing the deadly weapon away from his face, but suffered three cuts to his forearm. He felt the sharpness of the blades stabbing into his flesh. Bearing with the temporary agony, Malik prepared to utilize another technique focused around damaging a certain spot on his enemy's physique. He fashions his left hand in that of a claw then, he gives a sharp thrust. The young fighter managed to grip at the lieutenant right shoulder. He gives a fierce clenching motion, sending an unbearable sensation of agony surging through his body. This was the technique he named "Hebi Nigiri", relating much to the bite of a venomous snake.

"Augh!" The opponent of the martial artist yelled out, grunting from the pain inflicted upon him. The adolescent quickly retracted his limb. He then, balled both hands into fists, preparing to let loose a barrage of punches. He soon unleashed his assault, thrusting forth a total of eight blows in total. Because the cultist was so distracted by the pain of his "Hebi Nigiri", it was difficult for him to dodge the attacks, especially up close. He has managed to dodge two of the punches, but endured the other six. Holding his ground, the lieutenant decided to counterattack. He thrusted forward with with his left steel claw to try and get another attack in. Malik backed away a good distance with the claw-like slash giving two minor cuts to the right side of his abdomen. Two of the punches from the boy's recent barrage hit his face, popping some blood vessel as one can see one trickle of blood running down each side of his lips. This opponent the young warrior was battling was indeed different than the rest, this the most he has sustain injuries all day.

[Techniques Used: Hebi Nigiri: -15 = 210 Stamina]

As the battle continued, both combatants stood on different sides of the throne room, facing in opposite directions of the figure before them. The young pirate novice had sustain minor injuries on his physical form as shown with cuts evident on his right forearm as well as on the corresponding side of his abdomen where his shirt had been cut through. His enemy, the lieutenant, had also taken considerable amounts of damage. It is shown through the trickles of blood running down his face from the barely noticeable spaces from his lips. Both fighters were panting from enduring such vicious attacks, but neither waver from the pain of the blows they have to bear. Malik especially had to deal with this due to the recent pain he sustained from his opponent's weapons cutting into his flesh, like a hot knife through the thickness of butter. The cultist was more or so lucky as e didn't had signs of being slashed into due to the fact tat the young warrior wasn't using a blade. Still, the man had noticeable evidence that his body took a pounding blades or not. Regardless of is current condition, he still continues to fight on for his comrades, something Malik could respect.

From the boy's point of view, his enemy looks battered enough to be finished off with his most powerful technique to date. If he could hit the cultist with an attack of that level and skill, he could win this battle for certain. He must be careful, though, this assault uses up a large portion of energy. Along with that, he must be within striking range to even hit the robed man with it. Returning to his combative position, the adolescent fighter prepared himself for what agony the lieutenant will bring to him this time as well as the attack the boy will utilize when the time is right. The cultist got into a battle stance also and stood firm, his concentration trained on the young pirate before him. Malik readied himself as his enemy appears to be ready about charging at him straight on. Said cloaked individual made a dash for the young warrior with much vigor in himself, a serious gaze etched across his facial features. The martial artist stood his ground firmly with such courage in his eyes the lieutenant almost found it unnerving. From the gaze he was giving him, the cultist considered the boy a man at this point.

"That look in his eyes, it's incredible. What had this child gone through to achieve strong determination like that? His teachers much be formidable fighters themselves. Such bravery, I hardly see it in teenagers, let alone little kids." The robed man thought, amazed at how well the adolescent warrior was standing his ground against him with such strength in his golden orbs. He felt a strange emotion creeping it's way into him that he never had felt for a long time, fear. It was undoubtedly fear, he knew. This man was afraid of this young pirate. He now sees why the forces of Tri-Shadow were slowing diminishing under the boy's unrelenting assaults. How, this certain gaze of the adolescent warrior will not deter him from his initiative. When the cultist was close enough, he reared back and thrusted forth his right, steel-clawed hand. The young fighter saw this coming and was ready to react with consequence. He moved in closer towards the lieutenant to get a closer hit with what he had in store for his opponent.

Malik ended up being able to dodge the deadly strike of his the weapon his enemy held, but not without suffering further damage as the attack gave three more cut across his left arm. He grunt slightly from the blades momentarily digging into a his soft flesh. Clenching both of his fists, the brave martial artist focused a great proportion of his strength into them. He then, unleashes a barrage of punches, measuring up to ten in total. Of course, the intense movement irritated the areas where he has been cut, but he didn't cared. He pushed himself pass his limits of pain endurance to defeat this enemy before him. With his opponent so close to him and unable to react to what was coming next, he had no choice, but to suffer the full brunt of the attack. All punches manage to hit him successfully. Lastly, he concentrates all of his power in the eleventh and final punch using his right fist. When enough strength had been focused, he thrusted for viciously and sharply. The cultist was currently dazed from the previous ten strikes he had to endure from the boy's assault. He was struggling to keep his stance. The blow successfully connected with the robed man's chest. The force of the final attack of Malik's barrage was so intense, the punch actually cracked his ribs. This caused the man to cough up a small portion of blood.

He chose not to finish the man off by knocking him unconscious. After all, he needed him to be awake to ask him on the whereabouts on the king's wife, the queen. Retracting his limb, he simply allowed the cultists to fall to his knees in defeat. His technique,"Hageshii Ryuukyoushuu" could be deadly to those severely injured and was most certainly effective in this situation. Moving away from the fallen man, the young warrior rushed over to the king. He still chained up at the moment, but thankfully there were keys to the locks restraining him resting beside his figure. When he arrived to the strong authoritative man, he soon went crouch down and pick up the keys. He carefully inserted each one into the varying locks on the chains that held the king. When everyone of them was unlocked, the ruler was able to simply take the chains off. Both individuals stood up with the king holding out his right hand out of gratitude. Using his own right hand, Malik gave the strong, muscular man a firm handshake.

"Thank you, young man, you were simply incredible. You have power that most men in my kingdom dream up. I am forever grateful to you. Now we must find my wife, we should start by demand answers from that lieutenant on the floor." The king said, thanking the adolescent fighter for all he had done as well as suggesting to force answers out of the cultist. He was too weakened to stand and move, leaving him at the boy and king's mercy. The young warrior nodded in agreement. After they got the information they desired, the king would call his doctor and stylists to fix up his clothes and heal his injuries. After which, he will put on his favorite cyan hoodie along with his blue backpack. He turned on his feet and started to quick walk up to the lieutenant with the king soon following suit. When they made it to the robed man, they look down at him with stern gaze. The cultist looked up at them both, expected what they were going to say. He had been beaten, so the least he could do to show respect was tell what they needed to know. He had no obligation to refuse.

"Answers us, where is my beloved!" The ruling man quizzically exclaimed, wanting to no of the location his wife. Both the adolescent fighter and himself waited as the lieutenant told them everything they wanted to hear, no lies, the truth.

[Techniques Used: Hageshii Ryuukyoushuu: -45 = 175 Stamina]

[Word Count: 8590 Words]