Chapter 60 – The White Colossus I

In the viewing area above, Prince Enthril’s eyes narrowed, his surprise turning to intrigue as he went near the edge. He stopped himself from entering the arena as his heart raced from some unknown force pulling him, but he resisted and thought it was excitement. “He’s stronger than I imagined,” he murmured to himself, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Perhaps this will be worth my time after all.” With a slow, deliberate movement, he took another sip of sake before tipping the rest over the edge, watching as the liquid splashed down into the pit below.

As Shawn stood, holding his ground, a strange vibration pulsed through the sand. His senses sharpened, instantly alert. Selena, seated nearby, felt it too—a growing tremor, like the heartbeat of the earth itself. She glanced down, confusion flickering across her face as the sand beneath her seemed to come alive, shifting under her fingers.

“What is happening?” she murmured, barely a whisper, her eyes darting around the arena. The vibrations grew stronger, intensifying until the entire arena seemed to resonate with a deep, ominous rumbling.

And then, the sound hit—a thunderous roar, a rhythmic pounding that filled the air like a storm. Selena turned, her gaze locking onto the sight in the distance. Her face paled, and a sharp intake of breath escaped her lips.

Shawn, still holding the elephant at bay, tilted his head slightly across the elephant, shifting to glimpse what lay beyond. His eyes hardened as he saw it too: emerging from the gate, a massive herd of elephants, each one larger and fiercer than the last, their eyes blazing with raw, untamed energy as they thundered toward him in a charging mass through the gate.

As Shawn held the elephant in place, the rumbling ground signalled the oncoming herd. His gaze hardened as he measured the approaching wall of flesh and tusks, each step of the charging herd a powerful tremor beneath his feet. He glanced down at the elephant he held, calculating his options. “This… is troublesome,” he muttered, his brow furrowing. “I could toss this one aside and unleash a few slash waves from my blade, but how many would it take…” His voice trailed off as he considered the possibility of exhausting himself, leaving him vulnerable if Prince Enthril chose to join the fray, “And will I have enough strength left if the prince decides to join in?”

The pounding grew louder, snapping him from his thoughts. The herd was nearly upon him, and the elephant he held bellowed with renewed ferocity, using every ounce of its strength to push forward. Even with Shawn’s grip on its tusks, it managed to shove him back a few inches, causing him to dig his heels into the sand. He gave a determined nod, his resolve hardening. “Enough thinking,” he said, his voice rising over the cacophony. With a shout, he released the grip on the elephant’s tusks but held his hand on the tusks’ top to guide it towards the ground.

The elephant lurched forward, its tusks digging into the red sand, crashing into the ground. Taking advantage of its unsteady footing, Shawn stepped between its tusks and grabbed the elephant’s trunk with both hands. With a surge of strength and shouted with his might, his muscles tensing as he shifted his stance. He began to pull, twisting the trunk to unbalance the creature. The elephant’s massive body staggered, its weight swinging as Shawn spun, his grip firm. The beast let out a panicked roar as it lost its footing, beginning to spin under Shawn’s control as he used its massive body as a weapon in his grip.

Up in the viewing area, Prince Enthril watched with a look of surprise and delight, his eyes gleaming as he observed Shawn’s show of power. “Remarkable,” he murmured, a smirk tugging at his lips. “He is nothing but fascinating, but there’s something about him…I can feel inside my heart.” With a chuckle, he leaned forward, fascinated.

Below, Selena sat on the sandy floor, her mouth hanging open in disbelief. She had seen Shawn perform incredible feats before, but this… this was on a whole different level. Her wide eyes tracked his every move, unable to comprehend the sheer strength he was displaying.

Meanwhile, the herd thundered closer, undeterred by Shawn’s display. Each beast’s eyes blazed with intensity as they vied for a chance to reach him first, their massive bodies jostling against each other, causing a chaotic symphony of trumpeting roars and pounding feet. Shawn’s gaze shifted as the first of them neared, a swift decision crystallising in his mind.

With the herd closing in, Shawn tightened his grip and swung the elephant forward in a savage arc, its massive body whistling through the air in deadly swings. The momentum carried it straight into the path of the charging beasts, and the collision was nothing short of devastating. The crunch of tusks colliding, the snap of bone,  shook the arena as the brute force of the impact sent several elephants sprawling. They tumbled and skidded across the red sand, their tracks gouged deep into the ground, blood streaking the floor where their bodies struck. For a moment, the herd’s relentless charge faltered, a gap torn open between Shawn and the wall of muscle thundering toward him.

But Shawn did not stop, since the next set of elephants broke past their fallen companion and surged toward him. His stance rooted like stone, he pulled the beast in his grip back with raw strength, swinging it wide in another deadly arc. With a roar, Shawn hurled it forward again, the momentum of its weight smashing into the flank of the next oncoming beast. The struck elephant reeled, legs buckling as it collapsed on its tracks, crashing into those behind it and spreading chaos through the formation.

He yanked the beast in his grip back once more, then thrust it forward in a relentless rhythm, the swings growing heavier, more precise, each strike landing with shattering force. The air quivered with the tremors of impact as the herd howled in pain. Elephants were flung off balance, some slamming into the arena walls, others trampled beneath the crushing weight of their own companions. The sand was no longer only red with its natural hue—it darkened further under the splatter of blood, a battlefield painted with violence.

Still, the herd continued, and Shawn’s motions were fluid yet unyielding, each arc cutting swathes through the herd. What had begun as a charge of unstoppable beasts was now a scene of collapse and ruin. The cries of the injured filled the vast arena, echoing off the stone as bodies slumped in heaps, their once-mighty forms reduced to obstacles in their own path. The ground itself seemed to tremble beneath the fury of Shawn’s improvised weapon, a storm of strength and will made manifest in every deadly swing.

Selena watched, transfixed, as Shawn’s onslaught showed no sign of faltering, each swing deliberate, brutal, yet unnervingly controlled. The herd, despite its overwhelming numbers, fell into an almost tragic rhythm—charging forward only to be hurled aside in ruin. Bloodied but undeterred, more elephants thundered from the gate, their cries shaking the air. Yet the arena had become a graveyard of their own making; bodies littered the sand in heaps, blocking much of the ground. The newcomers faltered, some veering sideways in confusion, others funnelled into a narrowing path where the only obstacle was the monstrous weapon Shawn wielded—their fallen kin, swung with unrelenting force.

The herd regrouped, gathering momentum and pressing forward in waves down the constricted lane. Seeing this, Shawn’s expression hardened, his grip tightening with fierce resolve. With a guttural breath, he swung the elephant in a wide arc, the beast’s massive form spinning with terrifying speed. He turned tighter, faster, until the carcass in his hands became a whirling weapon, its weight cutting through the air with a roar. Dust exploded around him, rising in a violent storm that encircled his figure, shrouding the arena in a haze that made his display of power seem otherworldly.

As the first wave stepped in, Shawn’s captive elephant crashed into them, its tusks driving mercilessly into the skulls of the charging beasts, the brutal impact cracking through bone and momentum alike. The collision was instant and thunderous, the sheer force stumbling the oncoming line sideways before they toppled together in a heap, legs thrashing uselessly beneath their own collapsing weight. The second wave thundered forward without pause, but they too were met with the crushing sweep of the captive elephant’s flank, its massive body arcing in deadly swings that sent the newcomers sprawling backwards, tumbling in confusion before crashing down in another dazed pile. One wave after another fell into the same fate—battering against the beast’s revolving might, only to be thrown aside like broken pillars. Their colossal bodies slammed into one another and against the stone itself, piling high as if the arena floor were becoming a grave of fallen giants. The walls groaned beneath the mounting weight, cracks splitting along the stone as the stacked carcass of muscle and bone pressed hard against the barriers. Still, the herd pressed forward, colliding endlessly with the swinging behemoth, their massive bulk unable to carve a path through Shawn’s relentless, rotating defence, yet still refusing to yield, the elephants emerged from the gate wave after wave.

Breathing heavily, Shawn felt the strain begin to seep into his arms, but he held on. The herd was still coming, albeit with hesitation now, and he knew he had to end this faster. With a final spin, he gathered his strength, whipping the elephant through the air with a shout and launching it directly at the gate. The beast hurtled forward, slamming into the iron with a deafening crash that sent chunks of rock and debris flying.

The herd that had been trying to force its way through screeched to a halt, their heavy bodies skidding to avoid the blockage. Realising they were trapped, they began retreating beyond the gate, their trumpeting cries fading.

The arena fell silent. Dust settled in the air, casting a muted haze over the carnage left behind. Shawn stood still, catching his breath, his chest rising and falling as he steadied himself. His gaze flicked over the fallen herd, then he cast a glance over at Selena, who was still staring at him in stunned silence, her mind reeling from what she had just witnessed, but the quiet didn’t last long. Their gaze is turned towards the viewing area by the sound of Prince Enthril’s laughter.

In the viewing area, Prince Enthril was standing top of the edge of the viewing area, and his reaction was immediate. He threw his head back, laughter spilling from his lips as he clapped his hands in amusement. The sound of his laughter echoed through the arena, a low, unsettling sound filled with excitement and a hint of madness. “Magnificent! Absolutely MAGNIFICENT!” he exclaimed, his voice dripping with twisted glee.  Both Selena and Shawn were wondering what had happened to the prince. Prince Enthril ran a hand over his face, as though trying to compose himself, but the smile refused to fade. Unbeknownst to him, the fragment of his father’s sword within him was resonating with the fragments that were inside Shawn, reacting in a way he did not fully understand as his heart was beating faster and his body engulfed in heat. But the thrill it stirred in him was undeniable.

Selena’s gaze flicked between Shawn and the prince, her voice barely a whisper. “Shawn, I don’t think the trail has ended!”

Shawn nodded, his eyes narrowing.

Prince Enthril’s laughter rang out, echoing through the arena with a twisted, unsettling edge. He stretched one hand towards Shawn, a sly smile curling at the edge of his lips. “There’s something about you, intruder… something I intend to unravel,” he sneered, his voice chillingly calm. He paused, letting the words sink in. “Even if it means ripping your heart out.”

Selena felt a cold tremor creep down her spine at his words, and even Shawn’s gaze darkened for an instant. Still, he steadied himself, jaw clenched.

Prince Enthril tilted his head, almost amused by Shawn’s resilience. “I’ve seen you endure, defy, and destroy…” As his voice drifted off, the ground beneath him shook violently. Selena and Shawn gasped as a thunderous rumble filled the air, their eyes snapping toward the gate. Clouds of dust billowed as the massive doors shuddered, then with a deafening crash, an enormous shape burst through, emerging from the haze. The viewing platform above the gate quaked under the impact, unstable and threatening to collapse beneath its weight.

Emerging from the haze was a towering, ancient elephant unlike any that had come before. This one was a mighty grey-white behemoth, its sheer size dwarfing every other creature they had faced. Its tusks were as sharp as spears and longer, jagged with battle-worn scars. Its hide bore marks of countless battles, each one telling a story of survival and power. The elephant’s eyes glinted with intelligence and raw, primal fury, a majestic yet terrifying force.

As the viewing platform crumbled with the revelation of the white elephant, Prince Enthril was not buried beneath the rubble. Instead, he emerged, standing atop the colossal creature, still laughing like a madman, yet his stance seemed born to command the beast. Fragments of stone and debris rained around him from the shattered platform, and with every step, the elephant’s immense feet sent tremors coursing deep through Shawn’s bones.

As the dust finally settled, Shawn took in the scene, sizing up this formidable opponent. The elephant’s hulking presence dwarfed him, and even from a distance, he could feel its might, the aura of a beast that had seen war, survived it, and returned hungrier for more. Prince Enthril leaned forward on the elephant’s back, his laughter fading into a grim smirk. “…Now, let’s see how you survive this.”