With both versions of himself barring the monsters' path and preventing them from pressing toward the retreating party, things grew rather gruesome.
He couldn't afford to conserve much of his essence anymore. Of course, he had accepted that fact already.
Right now, what he wanted was to create a containment with the last of his essence and trap the monsters within it until someone sensible came along.
His clones would probably vanish and he would have to return to a slumbering body, but that was alright.
There were so many things he worried about, but he couldn't afford to dwell on them.
All he needed to do was wake up.
Hell would break loose when he did.
Northern, after confirming that the party of Drifters had all retreated behind the coliseum, stopped moving.
Javelins of fire and ice still pelted the monsters with devastating force from above. Explosions bloomed across the expanse, painting the air with destruction. Their rabid, ferocious maws continued snarling at him with demented fury, stopped only by the invisible barrier of void force.
Northern had another task in mind. Something else needed doing.
He glanced at his other self, who had just struck down another monster with the flat of his sledgehammer.
The Molten Vein Northern glanced back and nodded. There was really no need for such oddity—he was the same person. But Northern strangely found control easier when he approached both as different people.
When he approached both as the same person, they easily spoke the same words or moved in unison. Hence, this was how Northern maintained control of both minds.
The him in Night Terror armor bent down and touched the ground, closing his eyes.
A cold mist flowed from his body. From the point where his fingers met earth, ice began to spread, crawling forward like a hungry tide—a crystalline infection consuming everything in its path.
The other Northern shot forward like a bolt from a crossbow, tearing through the thick entanglement of rabid monsters with his mere speed and powerful frame alone.
He leaped skyward at some point, twirling in the air—time seemed to slow, as he raised his hand and saluted at the other Northern. Then he descended with his leg extended, like a dancer performing a deadly, twisted ballet.
Boom!
As he crashed into the ground, tectonic vibrations rippled through the earth, and everything overturned in an instant. The ground began to crack and split, the fissures racing like veins of destruction, tearing the land apart.
Monsters lost their footing and tumbled down into the earthquake's origin, crushed as the land ripped open and swallowed them whole.
Northern, being the only one left, cast a cold glance at the macabre scene and in that moment, intensified his efforts.
More essence—volumes of it—poured into the ice he was building. The speed at which the ice flowed suddenly tripled.
The ice blistered across the ground, flying over hulking frames, stones and monsters alike. It knew no discrimination and devoured everything in its path with equal hunger.
The ice slithered across the battlefield, carving jagged, cruel spears that impaled whatever needed silencing with the cold precision of a seasoned assassin.
The horrid and unsettling scene continued to unfold. Luckily, Northern was the only witness to the twisted creation he was wrought this time.
The ice raced all the way to the back seats of the coliseum, slithering over everything. At the edges, it shot skyward, curving to meet at the center of the sky.
The coliseum transformed into what looked like a massive cage carved of ice. Well, that was exactly what it was.
The ice didn't just run on the surface—it seeped underground and lunged vicious spikes at anything lurking below.
Toward the shimmering rift, thousands of ice spikes plunged in a grotesque entanglement that reinforced the frigid strength of each one, turning the place into a frozen land of execution.
All of them waited for the next wave of monsters that would burst forth, ready to tear through them with merciless intensity.
Northern sighed and stood up, staggering slightly.
He dusted his hands and surveyed his surroundings. The cold began to seep into his skin. The sun had reached its crescendo—afternoon at its peak, poised to begin its descent down the slope of the horizon.
'Ah... hell.'
Northern slowly faded into nothingness.
***
Meanwhile, outside the coliseum, the scene scattered across the estate was one of confusion and disaster. Though no monsters tore through them now, they remained in a disheveled state.
The wounded lay on the lawn, with medics hastily attending to them, faces glistening with sweat, breaths coming in ragged pants.
All injured had been gathered to one side, before the building dedicated to administration in the estate.
They would have been moved inside, but equipment was scarce. Most stretchers remained abandoned in the coliseum. In their rush, they had prioritized saving lives over salvaging gear.
That was how Kaelan and Nyssira found themselves among the rows of people laid out on the bare ground.
Beyond that, everyone stood with horror etched across their faces, their expressions freezing further when the ice shot up into the sky. Wide eyes tracked the glacial prison, minds racing to comprehend what was unfolding.
"Helena! Helena!"
Ellis shouted while weaving through the crowd to reach Helena, who appeared deep in conversation with one of the Academy Instructors.
"What is going on? Where is Northern?"
Helena turned to him, her brow furrowed with worry.
Ellis studied her face, raising one dark eyebrow. His eyes narrowed to slits.
"What's wrong, Hel? You can tell me."
Helena exhaled, her breath a cloud of resignation.
"We're not sure what exactly is happening, but we think... he might be dead."
Ellis's face darkened like storm clouds gathering.
"What are you saying?"
She stepped closer, her eyes soft with sympathy as she rested her hand gently on his shoulder.
"Look, Elli—"
Before she could finish, Ellis slapped her hand away. His face twisted into a mask of betrayal and disappointment.
"The very fact that you can utter such a statement shows me how different our perspectives are. I finally understand why you and Northern never got along. Northern, dead?"
He let out a bitter laugh.
"The world would crumble first before someone like him dies."
Helena's expression hardened as she pointed toward the reformed coliseum.
"Can't you see that?! Do you think creating something of that magnitude was just a casual stroll in the park? The moment it started, we felt both their presences vanish from the coliseum. We believe they sacrificed themselves to destroy all the monsters!"
Ellis tilted his chin upward, scoffing with undisguised contempt.
"Yeah, dream on. The Northern I know is far too selfish for such heroics."
He shrugged, regarding her with a flicker of disappointment in his eyes.
"Not that I'd expect you to understand or agree. You don't know the first thing about Northern. I'll find him myself!"
As he turned to leave, Helena's hand struck like a viper, hitting him precisely on the nape of his neck. Ellis crumpled, his body falling limp into her waiting arms.
"I'm sorry."
She whispered, her words barely audible even to herself.