God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Chapter 537: Gulls of the Styx.

The storm had finally calmed down...

There had been many lost to the Black Sea, but many more stood firm.

Staring into the distant horizon, Cain finally had the chance to analyze what was going on properly.

'From the looks of it, we were sucked into the Death Zone without even knowing it. That's a first...'

Normally, even though Dead Spots were elusive and most of them managed to catch them off guard, they didn't pull them closer intentionally.

This one was different...

And the pull has been subtle too. Like that strange force that attracted all things towards the center of a Celestial body. It was subtle, almost unnoticeable. But it was there.

A kind of influence that affected the very space around it.

'Not only that, but there could be many Mutant Creatures lurking in these waters, apart from those Leeches that is. However, most of them aren't going to attack. At least not now...'

Cain had realized something earlier. Although the Dead Spots were strange, the Creatures that existed here weren't dying. Meaning they much have a unique way to brave the terrible conditions of that place.

A Dead Spot is termed such because a portion of the ocean within this spot doesn't move. This is due to the high activity of mana that influences the rules of nature within the confines of the space.

'In this case...'

The rules that had been manipulated, for starters, was the rain.

Cain had come to a conclusion on why there had been no rain for a long time.

One thing the Black Sea Water was rich in, apart from mineral salts, it mana. And because of this mana, it no longer acted exactly like regular sea water.

Instead, it became heavy...

So heavy, in fact, that it couldn't evaporate into the sky. With what little heat the sun provided, the chances of rain falling back to the earth, not to talk of even rising to the skies in the first place, was quite minimal.

And yet, in this strange place, there was rain.

So what caused it?

It was simple...

'Mana. Or rather magic. Natural magic. A direct conversion from elemental mana to the element itself. But how is this possible?'

Cainw as embroiled in confusion. For there to be a spell, there also had to be a caster. In these impossible circumstances, there was no way rain would descend on its own. There had to be an explanation. Still, try as he may, Cain was unable to find it.

'And then, there's this darkness.'

Normally, Cain wouldn't complain about darkness. Even with the world so bleak with little sunlight reaching it, he wouldn't have complained because his perception stat was incredible. Not only that, but simply activating {Eye of Clairvoyance} would allow him to see as bright as day in a deep chasm.

And yet...

Within this storm, and unnatural darkness spread over the surface of the ocean. It was unlike anything Cain had ever experienced.

He could still see the horizon, distinct like a clear line that split the world into two equal halves.

However, that was all. It was like even the night was consumed by darkness, creating this realm of semi-illusions where it was difficult to differentiate what was real and what wasn't.

The storm had yet to let down, and flashes of lightning occasionally lit the darkness up.

Suddenly, Cain heard a strange sound. He could only interpret it as;

A series of piercing keows that split through the darkness like the sharpest of blades.

"Something's coming." Cain heard a whisper burrow into his ears.

He immediately activated {Eye of Clairvoyance}.

What he saw made his face turn pale...

After experiencing the devastating storm, those who had survived felt the need to rest up before any more crisis appeared.

What the didn't know, was that crisis was already upon them. They just didn't know it yet.

The ocean was still roaring, and the sky still let out occasional rumbles. And yet, somehow, Cain's voice managed to reached every single one of them.

"Everyone, get up! We are under attack."

Confusion and the sound of rushing feet became rampant on the deck.

"Cain, what's going on?" Cain heard Hunter call for him from.behind.

Cain let out a deep breath.

He turned around. He could barely make out Hunter's face due to how fake it was.

"Hunter... Don't you think this darkness is abnormal in any way?"

Hunter paused for a second, "It is. But I didn't think much of it. What are you trying to say? Where are the attackers coming from."

Cain tried to regulate his breathing as best as he could.

"There... Up there." Cain pointed towards the dark sky.

His words were like a sledgehammer,

"There's something up there."

Accompanying his words was the increase in tempo of the keows.

Now, not only Cain, but mostly everyone could hear it.

Then the sound of flapping wings came...

"What the hell is going on?" Hunter said through gritted teeth as he pulled out his compound bow, drawing the bowstring back.

Cain cursed again before summoning {Maelstrom} from the {Armament Armory}.

With a grunt, he drew the bowstring back. A wave of water elemental mana gathered between the bow's arch and the drawn bowstring, forming a long shaft and a very pointy arrowhead.

His eyes burning, Cain let the arrow fly into the sky.

A split second later, Cain heard the system's ominous voice echo within his mind,

***

{Congratulations to Host... You have slain a Gull of the Styx}.

{+300 Free Attribute Points}.

***

From that moment in, it was chaos...

The dark sky split open, and countless ghastly green stars appeared in the sky.

However, upon closer inspection, those on the deck realized they weren't stars at all...

They were eyes...

Thousand upon thousands of eyes...

Creatures as black as night. It was as though the feathers had been dipped in tar. Neon green eyes sparkled with sinister intentions as these cursed feathered beasts dove down towards the ship.

"Shit. Shit. Shit! We are screwed!" Steve said frantically.

Cain frowned, "Get everyone ready. It will take about a minute for the first of them to reach us. Archers and Marksmen know what to do. Any that manage to reach the ship should be cut down."

A thought resonated in his mind.

"Manny, Blaze, Li, Stan... follow me."

The four of them standing a little ways behind him exchanged confused glances.

Blaze frowned, "Where to?"

Cain grinned, "To the sky!"

Without waiting for them to understand his words, he decided to show them what he meant.

In that moment, he activated several spells and skills...

'Wind Weaver.'

'Azure Burst.'

'Burning Spirit: Lightning Enchantment.'

'Ki Fire.'

'Golden Wyrm: Asura.'

His eyes turned golden as flames burned within. His armor changed and was enveloped by a thick layer of Demon Matter.

'It's hot.'

His blood felt on fire.

"C-Cain..." Blaze called out, his face a little strange.

For what it was worth, he currently didn't look human at all. If anything, he resembled a Devil.

In a deep gutteral voice, he called out,

"Let's go."

Manny let out a chuckle. Drawing his blades, they managed to glint in the darkness.

"This is going to be exciting!"

A vortex of wind formed around the three of them.

'Burst Step.'

A deluge of mana was ejected from the soles of his feet. Upon the undulating waves, the ship lurched backwards due to the force. And just like that, all five of them were soaring through the air.

"Son of a gun!" Li cursed out loud, trying to regain his balance.

Stand gritted his teeth as he drew his saber,

"Look up!"

With Cain taking the lead, they were on a straight collision course with the evil looking birds from Hell.

"Damn it! Cain! Are you trying to get us killed?!"

Cainsnorted, his voice coming across a few tones deeper,

"We are going to dive into the heart of that thing. Take a look."

Just about their heads, the thousands upon thousands of Mutant Creatures formed a vortex, and within that vortex, there seemed to be a strange figure cloaked in the surrounding darkness.

Cain's voice was as heavy as lead,

"That's our target. These guys are small fry, but they are dangerous."

Blaze frowned deeply, "Not only that, they have a great resistance to fire. My flames might not do any damage at all." He said whilst pulling his spear out of his inventory.

"Then we'll just have to cut through." Cain said decisively.

Soaring through the air, something that should have been impossible for the mortal man, they were bound to clash with the flock of evil birds.

Stretching his hand out, Cain summoned the {Scale of the Abyssal Flame}. The blade oozed a viscous bloodlust that seemed to affect those behind them.

Their speed continued to climb, until they met with the first of the beasts.

A torrent of green, hellish flames poured out from the beaks of the first of them. Feeling the terrible might of the eerie flames,Cain summoned a shield of golden metal to block. However, that was melted away and turned to ashes in a split second.

Feeling the dread creeping up on him, Cain could only pray his armor was strong enough to hold until they got into the eye of the flock.

His muscles bulged, empowered by the power of his stats and multiple enhancing skills. With nothing holding him back, Cain let out a stifled roar.

Tearing through the winds, his blade sang a low melody. Flames, sparks and bolts of thunder swam across the blade as it crashed into the first of the beasts, turning them into broken bones and torn flesh.

And just like that, the tide of several thousand was split in two...