by Wolfe Locke
Terra and Celeste looked at each other. “Like, combine?” Celeste said.
The nymph made a face. “I like my own body, thanks. Don’t need another one.”
“Not combine bodies,” Caroline said. “Not necessarily. Combine attacks. Like, shoot them at the demon simultaneously and see if they turn into one thing.”
They both scowled, and the Catgirl flinched. “It was just a thought,” she said quickly. “You don’t have to do it or anything.”
“It’s the best idea we have,” Zander said. “I think you two should try it. See if you can work together.”
They looked at each other, uncertainty passed over their faces. Meanwhile, Rocktooth and the Forest Titan roared with pain as Dagon threw them to the ground again.
“Okay,” Celeste said. “Let’s do it.”
“Sure,” Terra said. “It was my idea.”
She shot a vine into the air as an experiment, and Celeste fired an [Ice Bolt] at it. It hit. The vine was now enchanted with frost. Its entire surface was covered with ice.
“All right!” Caroline said. “See? This was a great idea.”
Zander wasn’t so sure. He was still skeptical that the two could work together. But whatever gave them a potential edge against Dagon was worth a shot. He couldn’t let the grand demon destroy his home.
“Go for it, you two!” he said. “Caroline, let’s handle the undead.”
The cat shivered. “There are so many!”
“Yeah, but all we have to do is keep them away from the real fight. We don’t have to kill them all. If we can destroy Dagon, all these Draugr will vanish.”
They stood back to back, putting themselves between the creatures and the battle that raged on. Both of them were already exhausted, but they knew the worst part of the struggle was only beginning—and that the odds were very much against them. They’d have to fight harder than they’d ever fought before to have any hope of winning.
Meanwhile, Celeste and Terra teamed up. Together, they shot a frost-encrusted vine at the grand demon, and it wrapped itself around his leg. Terra’s previous vine attacks had done very little to harm him—he’d just shaken them off, breaking the vines easily. This one was different. He tried to pull away, but the combined vine held fast, trapping him in place as the Stone Colossus approached.
Thanks, Rocktooth said. Took you two long enough.
“We aim to please,” Celeste said with a wink. “But it takes a while to achieve perfection.”
This is perfection? He’s still destroying us.
“Not for long, he won’t be,” Terra said, shooting another vine at the demon’s other leg. Celeste charged it with her power, and it, too, hit home, trapping Dagon where he stood.
“Clobber him!” Celeste said excitedly. “Clobber him!”
Rocktooth and the Forest Titan did as she said, pounding Dagon’s head with their stone-and-moss fists. The demon howled with fury and tried to pull free from Terra’s vines, but they held. Stuck, he resorted to lashing out with his claws, hitting the Colossus as hard as he could.
Watch—Rocktooth said, but he was too late. Dagon struck the Titan square in the forehead and knocked it unconscious. The Colossus’ second head lolled sideways on its shoulders, useless—but Rocktooth was still awake, and still able to fight.
Thanks for leaving me to go it alone, he snapped, but, good sport that he was, continued to attack Dagon with all the power that he mustered.
“I have a great idea!” Terra said. “The demon’s trapped. Let’s attack it from behind while Rocktooth tries to get it from the front!”
She shot vine after vine at Dagon, and Celeste charged each one of them with frost. Dagon roared as they struck his back, and Terra snickered.
“Finally,” she said. “Getting a taste of his own medicine! Take that, demon!”
He ripped free from the restraints they’d placed on him and turned on them, snarling. Celeste and Terra scattered, leaving Rocktooth to face the demon head-on. They regrouped behind him and continued attacking, pleased with the new technique they’d learned. Zander and Caroline kept beating off the undead, and slowly, in spite of their fatigue, they were gaining ground. It almost boggled the mind, but somehow, despite the overwhelming odds against them, the tide of battle was beginning to turn. Dagon was slowing down. They were winning.
Chapter Twenty-Four: The False Celeste
Dagon, being a grand demon, didn’t play fair. It made sense: a demon didn’t get to “grand” status without learning a few tricks along the way. And, like most demons, he hated losing.
When he realized that brute strength wasn’t working, that he was slowly being beaten back, he changed his tactics. Terra had just unleashed a maelstrom of vines to pummel the demon’s head when she realized her attack was hitting empty air.
“Where’d he go?” she said, peering into the darkness. The undead were still milling around, but they seemed to have lost their sense of purpose. Rocktooth stared after her, using his more powerful eyes to look into the night.
Don’t see him. Titan?
The Forest Titan stirred, still groggy from being knocked unconscious. Nope. Nothing.
I sense him, though. He’s not gone. Dagon’s still out there somewhere.
“Celeste!” Zander said. “Since you can fly—can you zip around through the woods and see if you can get eyes on him?”
“Zip around?” she said.
“I don’t know. Whatever you want to call it. Try to find out where he is.” Zander commanded.
“No problem.” She replied.
She flew off into the night, and the clearing grew darker as she moved farther away. Caroline shivered, looking at the undead next to her, but they remained still. Something was definitely up.
I don’t like this, Rocktooth said, and the Forest Titan chuckled.
You don’t like anything.
Fair enough. But I particularly don’t like this.
Zander tensed, waiting for Celeste to return and hoping that he hadn’t sent her out into a dangerous situation. Although—he thought—this entire journey was really a dangerous situation. Why would the forest be any worse than a clearing of dark creatures hell-bent on their destruction?
“Hey!” her voice shouted from behind him. He turned. She was zooming back toward them, looking puzzled. “I don’t see him anywhere.”
“Oh,” Zander said. “That’s weird, but—”
“It’s a trap!” Celeste said from the other side of the clearing. He turned. There was one Celeste behind him, and one Celeste ahead of him. They were both identical.
“Uh,” Caroline said. “Are there two of you?”
Clever, Rocktooth said. It’s disguised its appearance. Once of them is fake. One is the real Celeste.
“But which one is fake?” Terra muttered.
The Colossus shrugged. How would I know?
“What do we do?” Terra said. “Ask her something that only Celeste would know?”
“What would only Celeste know, though?” Zander said. “We haven’t known her that long.”
“Something about the ancient world?” Terra suggested.
Rocktooth shook his head. Dagon’s very old. He knows all about the ancient world already. He can answer that question just as easily as Celeste can.
Zander decided to take a stab. “Celeste,” he said. “What’s my secret dream? The one I’ve always hoped would come true?”
“To be a real summoner,” the first Celeste said confidently. “You’ve wanted that all your life.”
“It’s her!” Caroline said, leaping up and down with glee. “She knows your dream!”
“It’s a pretty obvious dream,” the second Celeste said. “Elf with two summons wants to be a real summoner? I could have predicted that one. Give me a question. Let me prove I’m the real Celeste!”
“She sounds just like Celeste,” Terra said. “Cocky. With that masculine voice of hers.”
“HEY! That's rude." Celeste answered. "I’m not cocky!
I’m just confident!”
“Uh,” Zander said to the second Celeste. “What did we find in the Eight Sided Die?”
“That sword!” she said. “And some other weapons, too!”
“Okay,” Terra said. “So she knows that answer.”
“The sword says ‘Eight Sided Die’ on it,” the first Celeste snapped. “And by the name, it’s obviously a nerd store that sells weapons and stuff. Next question.”
“Okay,” Zander said. “This clearly isn’t working. Rocktooth, can you sense anything demonic about one of them?”
Dagon’s a grand demon, not an imp. He’s not going to be that obvious about it. Whatever his tell is, he’s cloaking it.
They were at an impasse. Zander tried to come up with more questions, but his mind had gone blank. He couldn’t think of anything.
“Terra?” he said. “Caroline? Any ideas?”
“Wait for the thing to reveal itself?” Terra shrugged. “Presumably it’s going to try to kill us at some point, yeah? So the one that does that is the fake Celeste.”
“Okay. You think we just sit here and wait it out? How long is it going to take?” Zander asked feeling annoyed.
“How would I know?” Terra responded testily.
“Staring contest!” Caroline said. “One of us faces off against each one. Whoever blinks first loses.”
Terra gave her a look of withering contempt, and the Catgirl deflated. “No.”
Demons bore easily, Rocktooth said. Honestly, I think it won’t be long before this one wants to get back to the fight.
“Guys!” the first Celeste said, looking pained. “I’m insulted! Do you seriously not know how to tell the difference between me and some demon?”
“You don’t even sound like me!” the second Celeste said. “How could they think you’re the real one?”
“Demon! I know you’re Dagon!” Celeste shouted.
“Liar! You’re Dagon!" The other Celeste shouted, "And you’re not even convincing!”
The two Celestes flew at each other, and the Forest Titan laughed.
Fight! Fight! This is the most exciting thing I’ve seen in years.
Because you were stuck in a summon orb, Rocktooth said. Don’t confuse stimulus for entertainment.
Don’t remind me about that orb. Ugh.
Zander’s head was starting to hurt. “This is a mess! What are we supposed to do? Drag both Celeste’s to Haven with us and see which one tries to kill everyone?”
“Obviously we’re not going to do that,” Terra said. “Don’t be absurd. I think we can figure this out. In fact, I know we can!”
Just wait, Rocktooth said. Seriously, trust me. Dagon is going to reveal himself. It’s in his nature.
They glanced over at both Celeste’s. One of them looked back at them blankly, scowling. The other was grabbing her own boobs. "Come on Zander, you know it's me"
“Ew,” Terra said.
“Ew,” Caroline said.
“What?” Zander said.
“See!” the other Celeste said. “That’s Dagon!”
Rocktooth laughed. Told you.
The fake Celeste squeezed her boobs in Zander’s direction and made a lewd face. It wasn’t attractive at all. Honestly, it was a little stomach-churning. Zander wondered if he’d ever be able to look at the real Celeste the same way again.
“Fooled you!” Dagon said gleefully.
Zander crossed his arms. “Definitely. Knew all along.”
“Depressing as it is,” Celeste said, “I genuinely think they had no idea.”
Dagon charged, still in Celeste’s body. The party—all but the Colossus—ducked as he whizzed over their heads, cackling. As soon as he completed a lap around the clearing, the Dragur started up again. They had a knack for knowing who was most afraid of them, and they started for Caroline en masse. She squealed and tried to take shelter behind Terra.
“They’re coming for me!” Caroline screamed.
The real Celeste launched herself after the demon, racing after the clearing after him. “Suck it, nerd!” she shouted. “I’m going to get you! You’re going down!”
“Ha!” Terra said, watching the chase play out. “Go, Celeste, go! You can get him! If you can’t do it, no one can!”
This is a good time to take him down, Rocktooth commented. Before he goes back to his real body. He’s less powerful this way.
“You don’t have to tell me twice!” Zander said. “Come on, Terra!”
“What about me?” Caroline said.
“You don’t have ranged attacks,” Zander said with a grimace. “You can’t reach Dagon if he’s flying. Can you take on the horde?”
“Again? Ugh.” Caroline complained.
She dutifully did as she was told, though, as Zander and Terra teamed up to go after the Celeste-shaped demon. Zander fired volleys of [Arcane Bolts] at his fleeing back, and Terra lashed out with her vines. Meanwhile, the real Celeste was shooting icicles at Dagon. She hit more times than she missed, and they could watch the demon’s speed flagging as it took damage. Celeste was catching up to it. Zander didn’t want to get excited yet, but he could feel his heart pounding in his chest. Slowly but surely, they were winning this fight.
“Yaahhhhh!” Celeste screamed a battle cry as she finally drew even with Dagon and grabbed him.
“Get off me, insect!” he shrieked.
“Who are you calling insect?” she said. “Gross! You’re the one who looks like a bug in your real shape.”
It was a fierce fight between the two Celeste's, and Zander and Terra sprinted over to help. It was difficult to tell which Celeste was which, and the injured Dagon tried his hardest to misdirect them. After hearing both of them speak, though, Zander was able to tell the difference. The real Celeste was genuine and earnest, even when she was annoyed. The fake one always sounded a bit like a demon, no matter how he tried.
“Take that!” Terra said, wrapping Dagon up in a cocoon of vines. “Zander and Celeste! Finish him off!”
“Don’t you dare!” the demon snarled. “You can’t defeat me. It’s not possible. I’m a grand demon and you’re just—just a couple of worms.”
Celeste and Zander looked at each other. “Who gets to kill him?” she said.
“I think it should be both of us. Simultaneously. Caroline, want to get in on this?”
The cat dropped her fight against the creature she was currently engaged in battle with and raced over to join them. “Do I ever!”
“Rocktooth?” Zander asked.
I’ll sit this one out. I've done enough. I'm embarrassed for all of us.
Caroline struck out with her spear just as Celeste lashed out with an [Ice Bolt]. At the same time, Zander stabbed the demon in the throat with his sword from the Eight-Sided Die. All three got a direct hit, and Dagon shrieked.
“No!” he said. “Are you kidding? This can’t be happening!”
It was—and as they dug in with their weapons, he convulsed and died. Instantly, he turned back into his hideous half-bug, half-pig demon form. The creatures he had summoned to the fight fell to the ground and turned to dust. They stood over Dagon’s corpse, weapons still buried in his body, still unable to believe what they’d done. They’d defeated the grand demon. They’d won.
“Ow,” Caroline said, clutching her arm. “I think I sprained it fighting the undead alone just now. Without any help I might add, like a true warrior.”
“Sorry,” Zander said. “If it makes you feel better, my power’s totally drained.”
“You’re also bleeding.” Celeste mentioned.
He looked down. His hand was covered in blood. “So I am. Must have sliced myself when I killed Dagon.”
“Helped kill Dagon,” Terra said. “We all did it. And I think you were very brave, Caroline.”
The cat beamed. “I told you I was a good warrior. I just needed a little time to warm up.”
Hem, Rocktooth coughed. Zander…can you uncombine us now?
Please, groaned the For
est Titan. I’m so tired of having this stone thing talking in my ear.
You were unconscious for half the battle. You couldn’t hear me talk at all. I don’t understand what the big issue was.
“I’m on it,” Zander said, tired of listening to them bicker. “Un-Combine. Let’s see if it works the same way as Combine.”
He gently set his sword down on the ground and raised his arms. Flickering green light surrounded the Stone Colossus, and the rest of the party shielded their eyes. When it faded, Rocktooth and the Forest Titan were separate again.