BOOM!

The mountaintop exploded as three gargantuan aurae burst into the sky, heralding a battle like no other.

Bzzt!!!

Dark clouds gathered overhead as three oppressive aurae burst into the skies. Dense mana and ki charged the atmosphere, rendering it thick and heavy. Peals of lightning flashed in the sky, illuminating the trio levitating in the air.

Razznik brandished his sword, a hard gaze leveled at the two opponents. Lucius was certainly not an easy foe by any means. The hybrid clearly took this seriously as he had adopted his werewolf form. Thick, snow-white white fur covered his back, abdomen, and sections of his arms and legs. Unlike other werewolves, however, his facial features did not alter much, preserving his calm, noble demeanor.

Zeno, on the other hand, adopted her draconian form. She grew a pair of beautiful purple wings and a deadly tail. A pair of curling horns on her forehead gave her a ferocious vibe boosted by a sardonic, toothy grin that screamed bloody murder.

Razznik did not pay any heed to their transformation. "I said co—"

"Watch me!" Zeno roared with excitement. She disappeared.

Razznik instantly shifted to the left and placed the flat of his blade on his right side. Bang! As expected, Zeno appeared at his right, a powerful right kick blocked by the blade. Zeno was not shocked by this block. Such a simple attack would never phase Razznik. As her leg bounced off the sword, her right hand, wrapped in pulsing dragon ki smashed down.

"Block this!" The dragon laughed.

"Too easy," Razznik snorted. He shifted the sword out of the path and caught the blow with his left. Boom! A hurricane erupted behind the swordsman, shattering mountains in its path. Razznik's angry red eyes blazed as he squeezed the fist.

Zeno pulled back, instantly retrieving her hand from Razznik's grip. "How about this!?" She suddenly erupted with a thousand punches and kicks. She was too quick, often appearing above, behind or below Razznik. She delivered hundreds of blows in the span of a few seconds, but Razznik's sword easily kept pace with her.

The clashes evoked images of Armageddon, each blow emitting thunderous sounds that echoed for several miles. The sparks from their clashes sparked a massive wildfire in the forest below, but neither of them cared.

"Too wild." Razznik snorted. He suddenly tossed his sword to the front and punched at it. Surprisingly, Zeno appeared just in front of him, already throwing out a punch. Her fist smashed the sword's face, but Razznik's fist hit the other side at precisely the same time. Roiling ki traveled along the swordsman's arm. Somehow, the ki channeled through the blade without harming it in the slightest.

BOOM!
The ki exploded upon collision with Zeno's dragon ki. The restless dragon was sent flying back by the force. "Not yet!" Zeno roared and took a deep breath. Half a second later, a fireball the size of a football field launched out of her mouth with the speed of a bullet.

Razznik did not have the time to retrieve his sword. This was of no consequence. He twirled his fingers and the blade rapidly rotated in place. The blade had his ki embedded in it at all times. The blade's ki confronted the fireball, instantly shattering the fireball into large clusters of embers.

Razznik's brows did not relax despite blocking the fireball. A microsecond after the fireball was dispersed, with the embers still flying out, a fur covered hand smashed against the sword. In the next microsecond, the owner of that hand confronted Razznik directly.

Razznik cocked his head to the right. Lucius' right hand brushed Razznik's cheeks as it burst past. A heavy gale blew out, instantly killing the forest fire everywhere it passed. In return, however, trees and rocks were instantly uprooted and pulverized to dust.

Unlike Zeno, Lucius already had a thousand moves planned out in the event he missed. The hand that brushed past Razznik's cheek opened up and clawed its way back. His left knee also shot up at exactly the same time.

Razznik ducked. Lucius' right hand missed him, but he put himself directly in the path of Lucius' knee. It was too late to dodge. Razznik's palms crossed over his chest. Lucius' knee crashed into his palm. The force blasted Razznik upward where he was met with Lucius' left arm, charged with glowing wolf ki.

Razznik managed to spin in place and once again block the blow with his palms. However, the force still sent him crashing to the earth.

BOOM! BOOM!

Razznik hit the earth at the same time as his sword. A massive crater formed around the swordsman at the epicenter. The sword cleaved the mountain in two and crashed several dozens of meters beneath the earth.

The sword's energy obliterated everything within three miles. This set off a catastrophic chain reaction that ultimately resulted in the awakening of a dormant volcano. Unbeknownst to everyone on the surface, rivers of lava swiftly funneled their way up the path cleaved open by the sword.

On the surface, Razznik. He raised his head to meet a large, clawed hand reaching for his face. "Predictable," Razznik admonished. He grabbed the arm with his right hand.

Bam!

Lucius did not have time to experience his shock before he was slammed onto the ground. The ground caved beneath the force and Lucius was forced to gasp for breath.

"Order Without Chaos is Stagnation."

Lucius barely had time to process what that phrase meant before a dark sole consumed his vision. "Shcuck!" The proud vampire swore and rolled to the side. Just in time too as Razznik's boot struck the earth.

Boom!

The earth shook like it had been hit by a megaton earthquake. Unable to withstand the strian, it split in two, forming a mile-long ravine.

Lucius was blasted away by subsequent shockwaves. This bastard is striking to kill! Lucius angrily slammed the ground and hopped to his feet. If Razznik wanted to play things seriously, he would return the favor. He charged at Razznik, only to find Zeno had already beaten him to the punch.

Razznik smirked as seven identical Zenos, each with flames wrapped around their limbs attacked him at the same time from all directions.

He was familiar with this technique. It was definitely not as shallow as a simple clone technique, or the afterimages Phantom Thieves used to deceive their enemies. These bodies were all the real Zeno, each containing just a little less power than the original body. The only thing equally shared among them was the original pool of mana. But in the case of a monster like Zeno, that did not mean anything.

When one divided infinity by 7 what would they get?

Zeno evidently took this battle seriously. Her eyes were wild with joy as she roared, "Wild enough for you!?" She did not wait for Razznik to answer before the seven bodies indiscriminately punched or kicked at the swordsman.

Looking from the outside, it was like Hell itself descended on Earth. Pillars of flames accompanied every punch and kick, some small, some large. The flames, as if alive, fed into each other, rowing exponentially within the blink of an eye. In less than the time it took to blink, the eight figures were swallowed within a giant pillar of flame that rapidly grew in size.

Eight figures could barely be seen flitting about within the chaos, at speeds imperceptible to the human eye.

"Adding more chaos to an already chaotic situation." Razznik's cold voice came from within the flames. "I do not blame you. Most people react the same way when something does not work the first time." Within the flames, the Zenos could not hide their shock as Razznik suddenly sped up, his fists turning into a blur even they could not follow. There was no need to mention how fast those fists were if even Zeno could not follow them. "I myself lean toward Chaos when I seek solutions to my problems..."

Whooosh...

A storm formed around Razznik as his fists rapidly blocked and parried the Zenos' attacks with unbelievable ease. The Zenos angrily increased their speed in response to Razznik's obstinate defense. They refused to believe the seven of them could not bring down this monster.

"However, you must be careful not to lose yourself in Chaos," Razznik continued.

"Shut up!" Zeno roared as she clawed at his head. To her shock, Razznik completely disappeared right in front of her. The seven Zenos froze in place. They had been so engrossed in their attack that for a brief moment, their brains were muddled when their target of attack suddenly disappeared.

In a brief moment was often the difference between life and death.

"There is no merit to a chaotic battle if you yourself are swept up in it."

Zeno looked up to see Razznik's fist stretched out several meters above them. "Damn!" Zeno shouted as a massive cyclone enveloped her. Razznik, this bastard was not the kind type. Normally, one would talk before attacking, giving their opponent a chance to at least counter. Razznik, on the other hand, had not only launched his attack but waited until it couldn't be dodged before speaking.

Zeno cursed as she rapidly reformed into one body and raised a mana shield. The cyclone smacked the shield with extreme prejudice. Zeno could not stave off the force. The cyclone pushed the shield until she crashed into the earth.

WHOOSH!

The cyclone exploded outward upon impact with the earth. The flame pillars were instantly extinguished as the gale swept up everything in its path. What little trees remained within several miles were uprooted by the cyclone and blown away. Within moments all that was left was barren land for miles, with deep gashes in the earth telling the tale of the terror wrought.

"Chaos Without Order is Extinction," Razznik unhurriedly finished his lecture as he dropped to the earth.

Lucius appeared next to Zeno and helped her to her feet while casting a wary glance at Razznik. Damn, did this guy not know the concept of going easy? He was certain Zeno would have been in serious trouble if she didn't block that cyclone in time. That the felt the need to accumulate her strength in one body was proof enough of just how dangerous that move was. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Zeno replied with a grateful nod. She too cast a wary glance Razznik's way. Only now did she truly understand what Razznik meant by Order within Chaos. During their short exchange, they had both relied on chaos to attack and counter. However, while she got lost in her attack, Razznik began to accumulate energy while attacking, planning his next attack. She had no doubt in her mind that even if his move failed for any reason, he had a backup in mind.

So, this was what was meant by Order in Chaos?

Lucius, on the other hand, was quite sharp. Immediately Razznik caught his arm, and admonished him with 'Predictable,' he understood what Razznik was getting at. As a noble son of Dracula, he was trained in a particular set of techniques. These techniques carried the philosophy of 'Absolute Order' preached by the vampires. Till now, he had yet to face anyone who was his match in battle, so his predictability was never exposed. After all, what was the use of predicting his attacks if he could still punch through whatever shield was put up?

This sort of brute strength to overpower predictability was fine in Earth's realm.

However, they were now in the Netherrealm!

You could throw a stone here and hit any number of powerful enemies. If he carried that mentality into future battles, he would one day get found out! At that time, it would be too late to wonder how and why he died.

Ah, no wonder Razznik used so much force! He wanted them to realize the danger their lives were in. Lucius could not help but look at Razznik in a brand new light. This human might be anti-social, mean-spirited, battle-hungry, mad... uh, Lucius realized there were too many bad adjectives attached to Razznik so he skipped to the praise. Despite all these considerably enormous bad qualities, Razznik was a man who looked out for his companions.

Lucius respected that about him.

"Supposing you two are not absolute idiots, you should have figured it out by now."

Fuck this fucker! Give me back my goodwill! Lucius was absolutely incensed, but he forced himself to remember Razznik had just essentially saved his life, so he calmed himself.

Razznik pointed at Lucius with his left hand. "Chaos in Order," then pointed at Zeno with his right. "...and Order in Chaos." He then clasped his palms together. "Only when you understand how to mesh Order and Chaos effectively will you truly be strong."

Zeno and Lucius revealed ponderous looks. They digested Razznik's words, intending on slowly ruminating on their meaning over time. Indeed, this was not a concept they could completely assimilate in one moment. Even if their heads understood, it would take time for the body to follow.

Luckily, this was the Netherrealm. There was no shortage of people to 'practice' on.

"Tutorial's over." Razznik's cold voice dragged the duo back to reality. They stared incredulously as Razznik raised his hand. The earth began to tremble beneath their feet, accompanied by a loud rumbling sound.

BOOM!

Zeno and Lucius's cringed as a black sword burst out of the earth. Its arrival was celebrated by a massive lava stream shooting out of the earth as if launched by a geyser. The lava stream reached as high as thirty meters high before spreading out over miles. Rocks, small and large, flaming and bare were indiscriminately launched across the plains. Craters formed where they smashed the earth, and soon, the world was once again engulfed in flames.

The man responsible for this chaotic scene, Razznik, remained unfazed by the destruction. His gaze remained even as the black sword flew over and nestled its hilt in his grip. Razznik's aura skyrocketed, causing the air around him to distort and shift. He pointed the blade at Zeno and Lucius. "I shall not hold back this time. Come!"

Lucius let out a wry laugh. That was you not holding back? Despite his chuckle, he tapped his chest. A katana's hilt slowly protruded from a small vortex that appeared in his chest. He grasped the hilt and drew out a slim but long blood-red katana. He casually waved the blade to his right.

BOOM!

A truck-sized portion of the earth was instantly uprooted. The rock fell back to the earth, sliding back into place like it had never left. Such was the unbelievable sharpness of the strike.

To Lucius' left, Zeno's entire body burst into blue flames. The earth beneath her feet turned to glass from the sheer searing heat. However, this was not as simple as a fire body. She had truly turned into an elemental. With this body, physical attacks were rendered utterly meaningless.

Razznik was not fazed by the duo's transformation. The smallest of smiles tugged at the corner of his lips. "I've been waiting."

Lucius and Zeno shared a look then nodded, swiftly coming to an agreement. Their auras also charged to the sky as they charged at the swordsman. "We're coming!"

************

Present Day

Nama Woods.

"Well, well, who won!?" Zuri questioned, jumping up and down in frustration. Rider had chosen to end the story at the climax! What kind of monster would do that!?

"The winner isn't important." Rider laughed and patted Zuri's head. "More importantly, did you learn anything from the story?"

"Yes! Yes!" Zuri exclaimed. Clenching her fists, she said, "Uh... um, punching and kicking is good. But, um, um... Zuri should not just punch and kick... um, um, Zuri should... plan?" Her initial confidence waned the further she spoke. By the end, it was more of a question than a statement.

"Correct! Zuri is indeed the smartest." Rider praised. He had come to admire this simple girl. Praises like these were the best motivators for pure-hearted people like her. "You are the chaotic type. There's no need to change that. But you should also plan. It will reduce the chances of being sneak attacked by your opponent. Remember, Chaos within Order, and Order within Chaos."

"Order in Chaos..." Zuri muttered under her breath. She said something more, but Rider could not catch it.

"What was that?"

"Uh..." Zuri muttered something under her breath again.

Curious about what this young girl could be pondering so seriously about, Rider crouched so he could hear. He had just drawn level with her when a fist suddenly struck him square in the nose.

Pow!

"Yay! Plan! My plan worked!" Zuri excitedly celebrated. "Hehe, Zuri is indeed the smartest!" She patted Rider's shoulder, her nose drawn up with a childishly smug grin. "Don't feel bad, Grey Ojii-san, Zuri is a genius!"

Rider stared in shock at the young girl whose sparkling eyes were searching his for approval. Her wide, innocent, almost naïve laugh unlocked a part of the hybrid he had forgotten for the longest time.

Rider threw back his head and laughed hard. He bellowed until tears began to stream down his eyes. No one knew if these were tears of joy or tears of sorrow. A thousand years of buried emotions erupted in one moment. Every barrier he had put up in the past millennium were smashed to pieces by this little girl. No, it should be said, she simply bypassed the barriers. This was the scary ability of innocence.

Zuri could not know all of this. All she knew was that she punched the grey ojii-san and he started crying. She panicked. "Zuri's sorry! Sorry, Ojii-san. Don't cry, please. Zuri won't do it again. Please stop crying..." Soon she too began to cry. She wrapped her hands around Rider's neck. "Stop crying. Don't worry. It'll be fine. Zuri promises."

The warm tears on Rider's cheek woke him from his stupor. He quickly composed himself and began patting Zuri's back. He consoled her, promising her he was fine now. He continually thanked her, but she only let go after he had promised about a hundred times that he was okay. Even then, it wasn't until he started laughing that she finally believed him and released him.

Zuri released her hold and sized up Rider, skepticism in her eyes. "Zuri did not know Grey Ojii-san is so weak. Zuri will try to control Zuri's strength next time."

Rider nearly spat blood. Weak? Him? If he was weak, was there anyone alive who dared to call themselves strong? The hybrid did not know whether to laugh or cry. In the end, he chuckled and patted Zuri's head. "Do you want to go on a trip? We can train as we travel."

Zuri's eyes lit up. "Yeah! Where are we going?"

Rider's gaze turned to the west. "I need to see an old friend..."

**************

**************

A/N: So, not exactly a boss battle in the end, so much as it was a lesson by sempai. But some teasers for these end-game level guys, and their terrain changing abilities. P.S: The Netherrealm's terrain is much stronger than Earth realm's. So, take everything here and upscale it by a factor of 100. That's what would happen if such characters were to battle in Earth realm. It's no surprise these guys are usually confined to the Netherrealm.

**************

Video of the Day

This one's a song. For some reason, it resonated with me in a way few ever have. Really felt like it could be the theme song for Parallel, or for Razznik in particular since that's who   immediately came to mind the first time I heard the song.

https://youtu.be/Loy-My32wT8