Rise of the Rejected Deity from Chaos

Outside, in a vast field where Kaeliyus battled the demons, he had taken down one, leaving only two standing.

The surroundings were a chaotic ruin—cracks marred the ground, bloodstains smeared the ground, and the air itself seemed thick with destruction.

Kaeliyus stood, facing one of the demons. His body was battered, clothes torn and soaked with blood. He panted heavily, keeping a wary distance from his opponent.

It wasn't that Kaeliyus was weak; it was that the demons were formidable—likely as powerful as he himself was.

The demon facing off with Kaeliyus, snapped his head to the side, turning to face his companion who was in a heated battle with a figure—appearing to be in a tight spot and on the losing end.

"Why are you struggling so much with a mere clone?!" the demon snapped at his companion, his voice laced with frustration. "It should possess only a fraction of the original's power. So why haven't you defeated it and come to assist me?" His anger flared, seething openly as he glared at his comrade.

In order to finish things quickly, Kaeliyus made a clone of himself after taking down one of the demons, to have him fight one, while he himself fought the other.

A low cackle sounded from Kaeliyus at the demon's frustrated words at his companion, drawing the demon's attention.

"What is so funny?!" He snarled, his anger evident.

Kaeliyus continued cackling, the sound lingering for a moment before he fell silent, his voice lowering as he spoke.

"That clone," he began, "is no mere copy. He lives separately from me. In other words, he is his own person."

The demon's brows knitted in confusion, his expression demanding further explanation, and Kaeliyus obliged.

"Contrary to what you believe, he doesn't possess only a fraction of my power. He has his own. While we share our strength equally — fifty-fifty, I suppose — he isn't like ordinary clones that vanish after sustaining severe damage or those weak imitations bound by the limitations of their creator."

Kaeliyus's gaze sharpened, a flicker of amusement dancing in his eyes.

"As I said, he exists as himself. I cannot create any more clones, my limit is solely him. That's because I don't even 'make' him at all — we merely separate. But…" He paused, his lips curling with faint disdain. "Ugh, never mind. What's the point of explaining anything to someone who will soon die? Not that you'd understand anyway."

He sighed, the weight of his words hanging heavy in the air.

The demon's face contorted with rage, his lips curling over gritted teeth. Veins throbbed along his brow, pulsing with seething anger at Kaeliyus's words that threatened his death at his hands and insinuated his ignorance, claiming he wouldn't understand even after an explanation.

"Yes, yes, that's it," Kaeliyus cheered. "Get angrier, burst into flames. Save me the trouble, will you?"

Hearing Kaeliyus' words, the demon calmed himself, taking deep breaths. In a calm, steady tone, he spoke. "How about we declare a truce and put this fight behind us?" He asked, gazing up at Kaeliyus who stood taller.

"Not a chance. I'm determined to eliminate the both of you," Kaeliyus replied.

"You speak as if you would be able to stop me if I decided to make a run for it."

"That is because I can, and I have," Kaeliyus revealed. "You might not have noticed but I had set up a barrier around us to prevent any of you from fleeing."

The demon snapped his head around, his face growing tense.

"Why? Have you started to foresee your end?" Kaeliyus asked in a teasing tone. "You're already losing to begin with," he added.

The demon snapped his head back at Kaeliyus, angry. "Who's the one losing?!" He growled.

"Considering the hearts I've ripped out of you, I'd say I hold the upper hand. How many has it been? Three?"

The demon's anger flared, his teeth grinding. "Just look at how battered you are," he sneered. "If not for your regeneration, you'd be covered in every wound and bruise I've inflicted, while you couldn't even manage to leave much of a mark on me."

And in truth, the demon appeared far cleaner than Kaeliyus, who looked thoroughly battered. The demon bore only a few notable bloodstains on his clothes, while Kaeliyus was a mess—bruised and bloodied from head to toe.

Scoffing, Kaeliyus retorted, "Having ripped out not just one, but three of your hearts, in comparison to mere bruises and wounds, when you haven't even managed to rip out one of mine—isn't that quite lacking?"

This ended it for the demon, snapping his composure, and cutting through his patience like a razor.

"And how many are left now?" Kaeliyus pressed. "One? Two? I guess I won't know, so I have to tear you open."

The demon lunged at Kaeliyus fiercely, and a small smile ghosted Kaeliyus' face before he lunged forward as well, heading straight at the demon.

The other demon and Kaeliyus' clone also lunged at each other.

Just mere inches from clashing, Kaeliyus and his clone disappeared and swapped place through teleportation, appearing right behind their opponents.

Kaeliyus' clone placed a hand on the demon's shoulder that had been facing Kaeliyus, paralyzing him in place.

"I can't move," the demon breathed, his feet rooted to the ground, unable to even turn to face Kaeliyus' clone.

"Of course you can't," Kaeliyus replied from his side, jamming a large, dark blue orb into his opponent's chest. The orb seared through the demon's skin like acid, burrowing deep before exploding outward from the other side. It left behind a gaping hole that stretched from his chest to the base of his belly, nearly obliterating his entire torso.

The demon collapsed to the ground instantly, his hearts having exploded to bits from the impact.

"Another one down," Kaeliyus stated, turning to the remaining demon and his clone.

The demon remained glued in place, eyes trembling frantically within their sockets, cold sweat beading his face as his mind raced to comprehend the situation.

Kaeliyus approached, halting a fair distance away.

"Now, shall it be the 'mere' clone who sends you off next?" he mused, deliberately stressing the word 'mere,' just as the demon had referred to his clone.