The lance of shadows surged forward, a jagged spear of pure obliteration, and Viktor, Selene, and Rhea were thrown to the ground with a force that left them unconscious before they could even react.

Marcus's eyes widened, and his entire body tensed as he saw the devastation, their lives now entirely in his hands.

Gluttony's grin widened, crimson eyes glinting with cold amusement. "Futile," he said, his voice a dark echo that seemed to resonate inside Marcus' skull. "All of it, your defenses, your companions, your hope, meaningless."

Marcus planted his boots into the fractured ice, summoning shadows that coiled like serpents at his feet.

He could feel the weight of the world pressing against his chest; each inhale was a struggle. Every instinct screamed at him to retreat, but there was no retreat. Not when the survival of the planet rested on his shoulders.

Gluttony stepped closer, and the air around him warped violently. Reality seemed to recoil at his presence; each footfall pressed down on Marcus like a hammer of inevitability.

"Do you understand yet, mortal?" Gluttony hissed. "You face the end. There is no contingency, no escape, no salvation."

Marcus's jaw tightened. "I'm not afraid," he said, though his voice was rough with effort. Shadows spiraled upward, forming a dense, protective sphere around him. "I've faced the impossible before, and I'll face it again."

Gluttony laughed, a sound that rolled across the frozen battlefield like thunder. He raised his shadow lance high, the tip glowing with an intense, crimson energy that seemed to draw the light from the sky itself.

"Then show me the futility of your defiance," he said.

The ground beneath Marcus erupted as he channeled his own shadows into a massive, coiling structure. He attempted to block the oncoming strike, but Gluttony's lance moved faster than thought, slicing through Marcus' formation with barely a ripple.

The shockwave threw Marcus backward, his body slamming into the icy terrain, leaving deep gouges where his presence had held the ground together for even a moment.

Marcus gritted his teeth, rising unsteadily. His body ached, his muscles screamed, but his mind was clear. "If this is the only way, then I will fight," he whispered, summoning every shadow he had accumulated, weaving them into a massive vortex that surrounded him.

Gluttony's eyes narrowed. "Interesting… you cling to life, even as it is meaningless."

With a sudden burst, Gluttony lunged. Shadows lashed outward like whips, tearing the ground apart and splintering Marcus' defenses. Marcus dodged and weaved, but even with every ounce of effort, the shadow tendrils left deep, burning cuts along his arms and legs.

Each strike tested the limits of his endurance, threatening to shatter him entirely. Marcus focused inward, gathering every fragment of control he had.

He called forth the remnants of his Oblivion Lance, attempting to condense the shadows into a counterstrike, a desperate bid to force Gluttony to acknowledge his presence.

The lance formed, jagged and black, humming with concentrated energy, yet even as it materialized, Gluttony's crimson gaze met him, unflinching.

"You think a fragment of your power can challenge me?" Gluttony sneered. "I have consumed planets, mortals. Your lance is a child's toy."

With a flick of his wrist, Gluttony shattered the lance mid-air. The energy exploded outward, sending Marcus skidding across the frozen battlefield.

Each impact was like being slammed by a mountain. Snow and shattered ice flew into the sky, and for a moment, Marcus couldn't see, couldn't breathe.

But he forced himself up, ignoring the agony, the blood, the frostbitten pain crawling along his limbs. "I won't..." he rasped, summoning shadows once more, swirling them around his body like a storm. "I… will stop you."

Gluttony tilted his head, his grin spreading wider, sensing Marcus' defiance. "Bold words," he said. "But boldness is no substitute for strength."

He slammed his fists into the ground, and the battlefield itself seemed to shatter. Mountains crumbled, fissures split open, and the frozen landscape twisted like putty in his hands.

Marcus barely managed to maintain his stance, shadows whirling to anchor him as the raw force threatened to tear him apart.

Gluttony's shadow lance reformed above him, larger, denser, pulsing with a destructive force that could erase entire continents.

"Witness the end," he growled, launching it forward with a speed that bent reality itself.

Marcus braced, channeling every ounce of shadow into a protective barrier. The lance collided with him, the impact sending ripples through the air, shattering ice and rock for miles around.

Marcus gritted his teeth, forcing the shadows to coil tighter, pushing back against the crushing weight. The strain was almost unbearable, but he remained upright, alive, defiant.

Gluttony's eyes narrowed, a faint hint of respect or curiosity flashing through them. "So, you resist," he said softly. "Perhaps there is more to you than I thought. But resistance will not save you."

Marcus inhaled, pushing through the pain. Shadows wrapped around him, thickening, coiling into jagged spikes, forming the beginnings of a counter-offensive.

Even now, against a being of unimaginable power, Marcus refused to fall. Gluttony's grin widened once more, and the air around him seemed to crackle with anticipation.

The final confrontation had begun. Marcus was alone now, the only line between Gluttony and annihilation itself, and neither would yield easily. Marcus gritted his teeth as pain flared through his body.

Marcus's eyes burned, shadows spiraling violently, feeding off his sheer will. Every ounce of exhaustion, every wound, every ache fueled the vortex of darkness around him.

Gluttony's crimson gaze sharpened, sensing the mortal's resolve, the stubborn spark of defiance in a world otherwise destined to crumble. Gluttony found Marcus to be experimental. As if, instead of killing him, he wanted to experiment on him instead.

"Your spirit is persistent," Gluttony said, his voice low, almost amused. "But persistence is meaningless."

Marcus gritted his teeth, coiling shadows into jagged tendrils, bracing for the next assault. "Meaningless or not," he whispered through clenched jaws, "I will fight until the last breath. I will fight no matter the cost."

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