4. A: Twisting The Flow Or Defying Gravity

"..... ...p”

“...ke Up”

“Temporary Account, Wa-”  “I GET IT, SO SHUT UP”

Screaming so and opening my eyes, I am met with darkness, pain, and headache from a certain digital parasite’s buzzing, still... That’s not the worst part. Thinking about that and feeling my Annoyance-O-Meter reaching new heights, I barely calm my anger down and move my hands looking for my head, and then...

“Ah, here it is.”

Saying that and finally feeling where my head should be, I tightly clench my hand as I then cruelly tear ap-... What? No, not my head, you damn idiot...

ZzZSsSsZt.

Instead, what I tear apart is the reeking body of THIS DAMN CATFISH TRYING TO-...

TeEAr. SPLAT.

“TRYING TO SWALLOW ME, DAMMIT.”

Yelling that and finally breathing fresh air, I look around me with eyes filled with anger as I then...

Thud.

“A-acount, are you alri-...”

“Seriously, t-that... Sigh, that was the worst.”

Falling on my back and weakly saying such, I ignore the worried Navi flying around me, and instead I focus on my exhausted body and increased pulse as it slows down steadily, restoring with it my calm and forcing down the foreign whispers and even my own violent impulses raging inside. Still, my anger issues and ferocious instincts aside, this IS really...

“The worst...”

Repeating that again and sniffing my clothes, I stop the urge to throw up, and then with shaking limbs, I flip myself over as I slowly crawl out of this pool of dirty blood, before then trying to stand, but... Hey, a-at the very l-least, w-we...

“W-we are close, right?” “Huh? Ah, yes, Account. We are almost there.”

Saying that and pointing toward a point in the frozen ceiling, Navi answer me with an excited smile as if attempting to cheer me, but do you know, Oh air headed AI?

That cheap attempt of yours is only making it worse. Suppressing that thought and resuming my attempts to calm myself down, I slowly stand and then glance briefly at Navi, before then quickly moving my attention as I survey the surrounding, but...

“Just what kind of Damn Idiot, am I?”

Saying that and feeling my body trembling from cold, I glance at the gigantic frozen hall around me, before then glancing at the slowly-healing wall from where I just fell from. And just saying, but... I wasn’t the only one brought here by that tide of blood, you know?

“Sigh, I should pay attention next time and be more cautio-...” “But Account, it was fun, you know?”

“Hmm, you really think so?”

“Ye-...” “Then drown yourself, next time.”

Responding like that and fixing my wet hair, I quickly walk forward while also avoiding all the weird things lying on the floor, be it the injured lobster abominations steadily healing, the gigantic pillow monster stuck below them as it trash around or even those weird walking ice catfish glaring at me. Still, we are...

“We are here, ha?”

ZzZSsSsZt.

Saying so and glancing at the ceiling, I casually slap a disgusting dog-like thing sending it flying, before then taking a deep breath and standing in place as I...

“Haaaa. Fuuu... Damn the cold.”

FUuUuSsHhh.

As I slowly hug myself and with the bluish whirlwind of heat and light spinning around me, I heat and clean myself from everything, be it the thin layer of frost forming on my skin, the dirty blood stains on my clothes, or even the remaining black shell pieces still stuck on my right arm...

“Haaaa... Well, I guess I am finally catching you back, kid.”

Saying that and feeling comfort at my body’s state getting back to normal, I once again check it just in case, before then regulating my breathing rhythm and glancing at the ceiling as I then... Jump.

Twisting the flow of Curse and defying gravity, I take a step forward and then jump, flip in the air, and with a ‘Boom’ sound crashland on the 17m high ceiling of this freezer-like hall. Only to then, raise my fist silently and...

BoOm. BAam. CrACk.

“... And gently knock. With my strengthened fist, of course.”

Saying that and punching the ceiling, or the ‘floor’ in this case, I grit my teeth, and then with my right fist clenched even more, I punch the floor once again, then twice, and more...

Without sacrificing my arm or overusing any Color this time, I just raise my fist, cover it in a thick gauntlet made of Curse, and then Punch, as this floor slowly...

CrACk. BoOm.

It slowly breaks apart, as I then once again twist the flow of Curse and instantly jump through this hole before it gets to heal, and then raise my fist once again just in case as I...

ZzZSsS.

“GO”

BoOM.

As I punch forward and with a strong burst of Curse get rid of all the debris around me, only to then smile and feel it... Gravity twisting as it pulls me ‘down’, this Maze’s voice screaming my ears, and also a weird feeling of connection coming from...

“Ah, there you are, kid.”

Gritting my teeth while saying that and finally finding the source of that familiar connection, I fall ‘down’ following the path of gravity and with angry eyes glance around me, at the Endless Spiraling Staircase, at the wall with thousands of bloody eyes and also...

... At ‘It’, a mischievous kid and a divine beast of mine that somehow escaped me.