by TJ Reynolds
Landing, she let Spirit Surge slip.
She regained her feet and saw Kai standing fifty feet away atop a boulder. He was smiling. “Rhona, you okay?”
Rhona laughed, a little blood spilling into her mouth. “I am. Surprised you are though.”
Hastings stared at the two of them in turns. “So the dragon has a teleportation skill, and you just tried to use an ether-leaching skill on me? How dare you, monk? It might have worked too had it not been for my lovely device here,” he said, flexing his foul gauntlet.
Taking up a fighting stance once more, Rhona gestured with her hands. “Shall we go again? Or do you prefer tricks to real fighting?”
Properly goaded, the commander charged at her.
Absently, Rhona noticed Kai casting a spell. Green ether pulled from the air and formed around his arms.
She walked to meet with Hastings.
They met with a clash of fists and feet.
The man feinted a low kick before pivoting back and launching a more powerful kick at her ribs.
Rhona relied on Wall of Stone, blocking the mighty blow on her forearms. A small amount of the damage she received bounced back and struck Hastings.
Hastings followed up his attack by sending a flurry of punches her way.
She moved to block each of the attacks, but Hastings was too quick. His fists penetrated her guard twice, one slamming into her shoulder and the other her chest.
Rhona stumbled backward, feeling a flood of AE enter her body as she absorbed the damage.
Some of the released AE she forced back into her injured flesh. The cracked rib at the side of her sternum healed, but the bruising she left alone.
Then, Kai’s spell was released.
It wasn’t aimed at Hastings.
A stream of Earth ether blasted into Rhona’s body, and for an instant, she wondered why Kai would be attacking her.
Her skin transformed as Earth ether wrapped itself around her.
Uncaring, Hastings shot forward with another sequence of deadly punches.
Suspecting what Kai had done, Rhona blocked each of the attacks. Each block activated Wall of Stone again, reflecting 10% damage. And each attack sent tendrils of Earth ether lancing back at Hastings as well.
The result was a confused-looking Hastings, staggering in surprise to see his attacks had caused him the greatest harm.
Emboldened, Rhona waded in with her own attacks.
She flooded her legs with excess ether and jumped forward, kicking at the man’s face. Hastings blocked this easily, but she transferred her power into a downward punch.
Again, Hastings blocked the attack, this time on his crossed forearms. Rhona infused the strike with ether though, and sent a dagger point of power into the man’s arms and body.
He grunted, coughing up a little blood.
The old Rhona would have gloated, would have laughed at the man’s show of weakness.
Now, though, she kept her mind stoic.
Her plan was precise.
She only needed him to rely on his greatest weapon. When he did so, she would end him.
A second spell emerged from Kai’s outstretched palms. It was a sphere of Soul ether, a spell Rhona had witnessed before.
Confounded Core struck Hastings even as he was recovering from her attack.
The Soul ether wrapped around his limbs and coiling into his chest.
Hastings panted, staring at the two of them as the spell took effect. Grunting, the man clapped his hands together and twisted them. Suddenly, a ball of raw ether exploded out from Hastings, shrugging off the last threads of Soul ether at the same time.
He glared at Kai. “Your weak spells won’t finish me, lizard. You might as well—”
Kai shut the man’s mouth as he struck out with his glaive, triggering Flame Spear.
The Fire spell, now augmented by Wind ether Rhona noticed, sliced a path through Hastings.
Yet still the man stood.
Once more Kai sent Flame Spear at the man before wisely using Breeze Step again.
Hastings blurred out of time, and Rhona knew the man was close. She triggered Spirit Surge and followed him into the strange slow-motion world.
The commander stood patiently, waiting, perhaps.
Rhona charged to meet him, but the man reacted to Kai’s figure emerging from his Breeze Step.
Her enemy gave her a look of disgust before channeling his odd combination of Abyss and Fire ether. Before she could reach him, the man had formed a barrier of black and red energy.
He pushed it with his hands, and the barrier slammed into Rhona, knocking her back.
An echoing pop sounded, and Rhona saw Kai reappear twenty feet behind Hastings.
The man spun and ran at her friend.
Kai, move! Rhona tried shouting into his mind.
Her friend was too slow.
Hastings lunged and struck Kai in the chest with an open palm. The attack fractured Kai’s breastplate down the middle. Rhona saw the rippling damage the single attack caused her friend, and she cried out in fear.
Kai sailed away at full speed, crashing into the base of the keep.
He didn’t move, just stayed slumped as he was, as if asleep. If not for the ruined armor and blood pouring from his mouth, she’d have assumed Kai was sleeping.
Enough, Hastings, she said with her mind.
The man turned to her, surprised she had the power to respond mentally.
Setting her feet, she challenged her enemy. We are wasting Progression. Surely, even a monster like you can appreciate the conservation of such a resource. Fight me, Hastings. Let me show you the Path of the Bleeding Tiger.
Trusting the man’s pride would guide him, she emerged from Spirit Surge.
For a moment, her head swooned, the multiple applications of the skill draining her core.
Hastings followed.
With no further words, the two resumed their fight.
Hastings threw a devastating roundhouse that Rhona caught on her shin. The impact rocked her bones, but she repaired them with excess AE immediately after.
Twisting, she sent her already-raised leg out into the man’s gut.
He caught her leg and jerked it violently, perhaps hoping to either throw her off balance or injure her hip joint.
Bolstered as it was by released AE, Rhona’s hip and leg remained strong.
While her balance would have been compromised, Rhona chose to be water instead of stone. She moved with Hastings, allowing herself to be pulled toward the man. Then she raised her opposite knee and sunk it into his sternum.
Grunting, Hastings tumbled back, finding his feet quickly after.
Again, they met with a clash.
Like her, Hastings had the power to augment his attacks with ether. Somehow, the man had found a different monk path, one that involved Fire and Abyss ether. The black and red energy took its toll on Rhona as she blocked and dodged a dozen more swift attacks.
As she fought, it became more and more apparent who was stronger.
Surprisingly, she matched his skill. In fact, more often than not, it was Rhona who came out on top, getting in the final punch or kick.
But her strikes barely hurt him. Just as the Flame Spear had, her punches affected the man but never produced any lasting injuries.
His blows, however, weren’t so forgiving.
Rhona quickly came to rely on Imogen’s bracelet. She used the bracelet shield a half dozen times to absorb damage for her as her ribs, her muscles, and even the organs in her torso recovered.
Hastings wasn’t a patient man. Normally, such a disposition would have been a weakness.
In a drawn-out fight, it made Rhona nervous. He would be satisfied to trade blows much longer.
As the man activated a new skill, this time enhancing a kick, she knew the time was rapidly approaching.
His leg burned with black and red ether. He spun, adopting a modified roundhouse. The kick didn’t touch her, but the fiery whip of ether did.
Rhona cried out in pain as the Abyss and Fire ether burned her flesh. More painful was the minute thread that wove deeper, pricking the edge of her Mandala.
Her screams became unconscious, and Rhona sagged. She held herself up with clenched fists, kneeling on the stone before him.
She could go a few more rounds, but the facts were simple. She couldn’t match his strength, and skilled as she was, he too had secrets of his own. This portion of the fight, at least, was over.
Her enemy laughed.
Here we go. A little gloating, some shivving insults, and then we can end this, she thought.
Sure enough, Hastings decided to speak. “Can’t you see, young monk? Surely, you’ve the skill to understand you are out—”
“What fool taught you that talking is fighting?” Rhona spat out, cutting the man off. “Are you such a coward as to hide behind words?”
Hastings practically growled.
“Fine!” he screamed at last. “Let’s end this!”
The man moved, and Rhona stood.
He clutched her around the throat, lifting her off her feet. Then he slammed her back to the ground.
Head slapping against stone, Rhona used every ounce of her remaining AE to nullify and heal the wound. Thankfully, it was enough to keep her conscious.
Then she was staring into the eyes of pure malice.
She smelled his sweat, his breath, the oil he polished his armor with. Hastings had the face and body of a noble, handsome and kind in appearance. It was the evil inside that made him so deplorable.
“Are you still brave, monk?” Hastings asked, his face hovering over hers.
He’d landed with a knee on her chest; the other pinned an arm to the ground. Her one free arm felt weak and useless.
“More brave than you. What twisted path do you walk, Hastings? It’s obvious you were once a tiger. But you must have been too weak to uphold your oaths.”
His reaction was proof she’d touched on a sensitive area.
Hastings crushed her throat in his hand. Madness danced in his eyes, and she knew she’d been right. Somehow, the man had adopted her path, and then abandoned it.
For power most likely.
One could not simply take what they wanted by force and remain a true monk.
His mouth gaped, and he tried to form words. He ground his teeth in frustration before saying one final threat. “We will see what good your oaths do you.”
Then at last, he lifted his gauntlet.
She knew his plan at once. Had felt the way the weapon worked when last they’d met. All he had to do was touch the ether-charged palm of his gauntlet to her head, and she’d be his.
In a blink, she moved her free hand and pressed it against the gauntlet.
A cold tingle of pure ether met her fingers, and for a fraction of a second, she saw the indecision and doubt in Hastings’ ice-blue eyes.
She smiled.
Not for the irony or due to the taste of victory. No, Rhona smiled for the warm embrace of Gold Mind as she fell back to that place.
Linked as they were, Colonel Hastings had no choice but to go with her.
45
Punitive Measures
Ban
The handful of men Hastings had left behind on the fifth floor hadn’t been idle.
A brief discussion broke out shortly after the commander leapt from the tower. One lieutenant claimed the leadership position and insisted they follow Hastings’ order.
Though Ban had sensed at least two of the others were reluctant to do so, wishing instead to flee back the way they’d come, all had fallen in line.
They were, after all, soldiers.
Ban listened idly to Kai and Hastings talking. For some reason Rhona was silent, but he assumed she would be ready to face the man.
The Earth Core’s duty seemed clear at this point. He needed to stop these men from doing one of two things: joining Hastings and supporting him as he fought against Kai and Rhona, or attacking his core room.
Only three dalgard fighters and four slime nymphs remained, now tucked away in the shadows of the fifth floor; Ban had other reinforcements nearby.
When designing the fifth floor, effectively the last defensible position before the core room itself, Ban knew versatility would be key. For instance, he hadn’t guessed that Hastings would explode out the side of the tower.
With Kai and Rhona ready to fight the man alone, Ban would make sure these few couldn’t do any more harm to his tower.
Ban was pleased his preparations were paying off as even now, a cluster of powerful minions emerged from the small room he’d built for just such an occasion. With exits leading down to the base of the tower as well as up to the fifth floor, Ban’s remaining forces could be positioned wherever they were needed most.
Having regrouped, the Brintoshi soldiers prowled the periphery of the fifth floor. One by one, they found Ban’s remaining minions.
He let the creatures fall while reinforcements arrived.
The soldiers cheered when the last dalgard fell to their brutal attacks.
Ban waited a few moments, allowing their small victory to sink in. Then he delivered a dire warning with Greg’s ominous voice. “Leave now, and you shall be spared. Stay to fight and this place will be the last you see.”
One by one, the knightmares lined up, a total of six in all.
Behind them, grinding the stones of the floor with every step, stalked three of the ice golems Imogen had favored so much.
Only last night, he’d integrated the second threshold of Imogen’s Soul Sphere, and with it, he’d learned to make Water Vipers, Willow Nymphs, Ice Wolves, and of course, the golems.
The shield sergeant looked to his fellows with fear in his eyes, but the Lieutenants refused to back down. The other weaker soldiers didn’t hesitate, taking Ban’s offer and sprinting back up the stairwell leading to the fourth floor.
When one officer made to throw his spear after the men, cutting the deserters down, the leader held out his hand. “No. Let them go. They are as good as dead anyhow. This Earth Core needs to die though. Come, let us crush these weak monsters beneath our heels!”
Brave though his words were, the shield sergeant and other lieutenant looked entirely unconvinced. Still, discipline aided them as they took up a fighting formation.
One to the front, two at either side, the three were a fearsome sight to behold. Two Emerald 1 soldiers and one Golden 3, Ban knew when it came to raw power, these three would take the win.
But he did have numbers for the first time since the invasion had begun.
The sound of an intense battle echoed in the chasm outside.
Kai and Rhona were battling Hastings at last.
Hoping to join that same fight, Ban issued commands.
Ban ordered two of the golems forward with three knightmares to protect their flanks.
Greg remained in reserve for the moment along with the final ice golem.
The Brintoshi acted immediately, all three launching skilled attacks. Two shot Fire ether blasts from their fists, the fiery projectiles crashing into the first ice golem. When the third skill attack struck the same minion, an Earth ether-infused kick, the great minion shattered.
Huge chunks of ice broke across the stone floor, spinning out to every corner.
Emboldened, the leader of the three laughed, then barked another order. “One more volley at the other golem. Prepare to—”
The man’s order was cut short as he spied Ban’s immediate response.
Greg’s javelin rose in the air and broke apart, the blinding gold light of Anlil filling the chamber. Then dozens of ether javelins landed among the three men.
Both lieutenants activated a powerful shield that deflected the worst of the volley.
The shield sergeant, however, spit up a mouthful of blood before falling dead. Five of the javelins protruded from his body like holy quills.
With lumbering steps, Ban’s golem reached the officers and raised up its gr
eat arms. Before the minion could release its attack, the lieutenants dodged to either side and sent ether-powered kicks into its flanks.
Again, a cascade of shattering ice followed.
The knightmares closed in, these armed with a war hammer in each hand. They attacked savagely, forcing the officers on the defensive. One minion was run through with one of the officer’s short swords. It died soon enough, but not before it backhanded the Brintoshi across the face.
The man’s teeth shattered, a few clinking across the stone tiles.
He spat out blood and charged back into the fray with redoubled effort.
Ban watched through Greg’s impassive eyes as the skirmish waged on. The two men were strong and fast, but his knightmares did not fall so easily. The man with the broken teeth soon found himself caught between two of the lumbering beasts.
He fired off one last desperate attack. It was a truly terrifying Fire skill. The roiling ether collected on the man’s chest briefly before exploding out in a dense pillar of fire. It burned straight through Ban’s minion, killing it instantly.
The one behind it though, brought both hammers down on the man. Each hammer struck the top of a shoulder, and the lieutenant collapsed to his knees. The blows dismantled the soldier’s joints, so though he tried to hold up his arms to defend against the third and final attack, he wasn’t able to do so effectively.
He died tasting dungeon-summoned steel.
Surrounded completely, the final lieutenant made a valiant display.
The man cursed the tower, cursed Ban’s core, and cursed the entire country of Hintar. He brought down two knightmares in quick succession and blasted apart another golem that Ban had sent forward.
His end was inevitable though.
And Ban had the power to kill the miserable Brintoshi a dozen different ways. He considered using another of Greg’s skills, or relying on the skills of the knightmares.
Instead, he decided to use this one death as a means to pay tribute to an Earth Core far greater than he.
Synchronized, two of the knightmares dropped their hammers and latched on to the Lieutenant’s arms. The man thrashed, of course. He even used the leverage lent to him by the hulking minions to send out a desperate kick.