Snaaaaaaap!
Xavier’s eyes widened in shock.
In the tug of war between himself and the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey, his Midnight Scythe had snapped clean in half.
Shock was written on the alpha’s face just the same. It was strange seeing shock after so much rage had been etched on it since Xavier’s first glance of the beast.
The sound was a terrible one. Fragments of the staff—dark splinters from the break—flew through the air like shrapnel from a dirty bomb. Bits of the staff embedded themselves into Xavier’s robes, going so far as to dig into his skin, though they didn’t do him any damage.
The splinters of the scythe-staff didn’t harm the D Grade beast Xavier faced.
A yawning pit seemed to open up in Xavier’s stomach. He hadn’t wielded the Midnight Scythe long, but it had been the strongest weapon he’d ever possessed.
Strange, how he felt this loss so acutely for something he simply picked up at the System Shop.
There wasn’t time for him to dwell on the loss, however. Xavier took the opportunity of the alpha being in shock to strike out with his newly acquired claws. He cast Telekinetic Enhanced Strike, wondering if the spell would even work now that he didn’t wield an external weapon—he certainly wouldn’t have been able to use Heavy Telekinesis to help him in this situation like he had used it with his scythe-staff.
The spell worked. Xavier’s strike was strengthened. He had aimed his attack at the beast’s exposed neck. His reach wasn’t near as long as the long-armed monkey-beast, but up this close he didn’t need it to be.
A gash opened up on the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey’s neck. Four long gouges spurting blood. The beast had yet more shock on its face as it clutched a hand to the wound.
But its counterattack came swiftly.
The two tails gripped onto Xavier with such force that he wasn’t sure he would be able to budge them in the same way as he had before—to the point where he thought some sort of spell must be involved.
The fact the tails glowed a harsh orange only supported his assertion.
Xavier didn’t struggle. He didn’t cast Heavy Telekinesis and Hover Dodge like he had before. And he was no longer in a position to use Otherworld Phase, as that imbued ability was still in cooldown.
Instead, he clamped his teeth into one of the beast’s tails and chomped down with all his might. The skill, Red In Tooth And Claw, had gained several ranks during the fighting, only further enhancing every single one of Xavier’s unarmed attacks.
Like the one he had just performed.
A screeching scream came from the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey as Xavier’s teeth dug into his prey. The tail, though strong and tough, was cut clean through by Xavier’s teeth.
It came off, and the grip it had on him loosened, but there was still one more tail on him.
Xavier took that moment to cast more spells. He used Spirit Break on the beast yet again, and after the physical attacks it had just suffered, the spell appeared to have more of an effect than it ever had on the beast in the past.
It’s becoming vulnerable.
Xavier thought the beast’s rage would somehow make it drop its mental guard, but he had quickly realised that this beast—much like its brethren that Xavier had slain—used anger as fuel. It wasn’t something Xavier could goad it into in the hopes that the beast would have cracks in its mental defence.
But apparently hurting it physically had a different effect…
Xavier cast Soul Shatter on the beast once more. He didn’t know how much damage the spell did, but it was enough to make the alpha stumble backward in pain.
The Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey did not remain idle. With its remaining tail still gripped around Xavier, it pulled him close and tore a claw straight at his robes—or, at least, it tried to.
Xavier cast Soul Block. He used five souls in the spell—not a massive amount, but enough, he hoped, to blunt this attack. Soul Block had a similar problem to Soul Strike—its cooldown was calculated based on how many souls one infused into it, which meant he wouldn’t be able to use the spell for another five seconds.
The Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey’s claw was blunted by the soul apparitions that appeared, but the attack was not fully thwarted. It still thudded into his chest and knocked the air straight out of him, taking away 5 percent of his health in the mix.
Xavier couldn’t help but grin back at the beast, however, as 5 percent of his health wasn’t a great deal.
Xavier grabbed at the beast’s arm before it was out of his reach and dug his claws deep into the alpha’s flesh.
Heavy Telekinesis!
Xavier’s feet were dug deep in the ground.
Not just his feet, either—the claws that had grown from them. He’d managed to tear through the front of his boots, and now he was clinging to the ground as strongly as he could manage.
The Heavy Telekinesis spell pushed the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey backward. With only a single tail holding onto Xavier, it wasn’t enough for the beast to keep its grip on him.
The alpha was thrown backward through the air. As it was thrown backward, Xavier’s claws gauged a long line through the beast’s arm.
Core Burn!
The spell slammed into his enemy midair. Previously, the spell hadn’t had any effect on the beast. Its mental toughness—its Willpower—had simply been too strong. It had resisted his attack easily.
This time, however, Xavier was sure there were cracks in that mental barrier. The Core Burn spell didn’t appear to hurt it, but it did appear to occupy some of the beast’s attention.
Xavier stepped forward as two of his spells reached the ends of their cooldowns. Spirit Break! Soul Shatter!
Once more he slammed the spells into his enemy, once more he saw the damage they wrought. It wasn’t enough—not nearly enough—but it was a start.
Xavier stepped over one of the broken halves of his Midnight Scythe as he headed toward the beast that had been responsible for destroying it. All around them, his enemies lay dead. Thousands of corpses left to rot in the sun. Soon, he was sure, the carrion eaters would be there to clean the area of the beasts. Time would go by, and at some point in the near future it would look as though the beasts had never existed at all.
That was the fate he wished the alpha to suffer.
The Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey flipped through the air and landed easily on the ground. It roared and leapt straight back at Xavier. There was something different in the way that it moved. Something more… violent than before. Xavier had seen this beast’s rage.
Now he was seeing what the beast was like when it was wounded—when it felt cornered.
Something glowed about the beast’s horn. It wasn’t the red, now-familiar glow of one of these beast’s energy beams. This was altogether different.
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A wall sprang up around the beast. A translucent barrier that didn’t stretch more than half a foot in front of it.
Xavier stared at the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey as it bounded toward him, wondering what this defence was.
He cast another of his spells against the beast—the barrier, however, stopped the spell from working at all. Xavier blinked, a little awestruck by that fact.
The description of the beast did say that it was able to conjure defences.
He supposed that wasn’t limited to dispersing attacks onto its brethren like he might have thought.
Another glow appeared, this time it was green and surrounded the beast entirely. The Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey began to move even faster than before.
Speed Infusion. Its D Grade, of course it would have multiple cores unlocked.
Xavier wanted to stand his ground, but he worried that even with all the physical strength and power he’d gained from his Assimilate Properties skill, he was still no match for this beast up close.
If I had my scythe-staff…
But he didn’t have his scythe-staff.
Xavier had a decision to make. A grin alighted on his face.
He mourned the loss of his weapon—felt it more deeply than he’d expected.
And he wished revenge against the beast that had taken it from him, then subsequently let it be destroyed.
Xavier cast Summon Otherworldly Spirit.
It was time for him to call upon the Spirit of Vengeance once more. He simply hoped his reason for revenge would be enough this time.
He knew he could have called upon the Spirit of Protection—the spirit’s defences would have helped him in this situation quite well. He would likely be able to duke it out with the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey until he’d broken down its mental defences enough for not only Core Burn to hurt it, but for Willpower Infusion to work on it.
But he couldn’t help but want to summon the dragon once more.
Colour drained from the world as a now-familiar humming sounded in his ear.
You have successfully connected to the Otherworld.
What kind of Spirit do you wish to summon?
1. Spirit of Protection
2. Spirit of Vengeance
3. Spirit of Time
The cooldown for this spell varies significantly depending upon the spirit you summon.
Xavier chose the Spirit of Vengeance.
A bright light formed, and soon, the dragon could once more be seen standing before Xavier.
It moved its massive head from side to side and let out a large sigh of relief.
Young Denizen, it is good to see you once more. The giant dragon cocked its head to one side. Though I do hope that you have summoned me for a legitimate reason. It leant forward, so that its teeth were only a scant few feet from Xavier’s head. Xavier could not smell its breath—the beast was not entirely corporeal—and for that he was grateful. I would hate to have to rip you to shreds and devour you where you stand. It’s been many years since I’ve tasted the blood of a reaper.
Xavier narrowed his eyes. You don’t sound all that cut up about the prospect of killing me.
Death comes to all things. I enjoy being the one to deal it.
Right. Xavier scratched his head. Well, there will be no dealing of my death today. He bobbed his head toward the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey. That beast… A scowl took up residence on Xavier’s forehead. It stole my weapon, then the weapon was broken in two as I tried to retrieve it.
The Spirit of Vengeance threw back its head and laughed. You call upon my revenge for a broken weapon? You play a dangerous game, teetering on what is possible with these spells, young Denizen. Were I another spirit, I might deem that it wasn’t enough.
That weapon meant a great deal to me. There was resolve in Xavier’s words, but… they were thin. And… I have a link on a vessel for your spirit.
This got the dragon’s attention. Its gaze locked on Xavier’s like a snake staring at a mouse. Xavier wasn’t sure he liked that gaze.
You wish to summon me into the mortal realm? The dragon’s voice sounded different than it had before. There was a seriousness to the tone that Xavier hadn’t heard from the spirit from the Otherworld. And something else. A hint of… hope?
I do not simply wish it, dragon. I will do it. Mark my words.
The dragon tilted its head up, looking down at Xavier through half-slitted eyes. Do you know, I actually believe you.
The dragon turned toward the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey.
I sense this beast is even more powerful than the one you had me face before it. But I also sense you have grown much in power since then…
A pause.
And yet, not much time has passed.
Xavier nodded. He took that moment to look about the battlefield. Discarded, almost forgotten, were his soul puppets. They had been stuck outside the time bubble as he’d fought, but now that the time bubble was down, perhaps there could be a use for them once more.
He had created a hundred of them—far more than he had ever managed in the past.
Once time started moving forward again, Xavier would ensure that he sent them a mental command so that they would once more join the fray.
I shall fight for you once more, young Denizen, and hope that you hold yourself to your words. Us spirits have long memories. I will not be lied to.
Xavier hadn’t heard such venom in the dragon’s words before. It made Xavier wonder if perhaps the Spirit of Vengeance had been through this before. When he had used Otherworldly Communion, the spirit he had spoken to had told him that many spirits from the Otherworld wished to gain passage back into the mortal realm.
How many times had the dragon tried just such a thing with a Denizen who had summoned it, and only ever been met with false hope?
Xavier had renewed vigour in his plan to secure a vessel for the dragon, even if it wasn’t something that he could do at present.
Time moved forward once more. Colour returned to the world. The Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey faltered in its run as it saw the dragon appear as though from nowhere.
The dragon swooped into the air then curled its wings at its side as it plummeted straight down toward the beast. A beam of red light shot from the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey’s horn, but the beam simply went straight through the dragon as though it wasn’t there at all.
And, in a sense, it wasn’t there.
The dragon opened its giant maw and let forth a stream of ice and fire as it had in the past. The attack struck the alpha head on, and—unlike the Magma Bull—it did not appear to have any resistance to the spell.
Ice spread over its body even as the fire burned through it. Xavier didn’t know how both elements could work as one without cancelling each other out, but if he was going to start asking how things worked in the Greater Universe, he’d never run out of questions and never get anything else done.
The Alpha Rhinoceros Monkeys movements slowed as the ice overtook its body. The effects, Xavier knew, wouldn’t last long, so he had to make the best of them as swiftly as possible. Xavier burst forward in a sprint. On each step, his claws clacked against the forest floor. It was a strange sensation; one he wasn’t sure if he wanted to get used to.
The dragon swooped back into the air after its attack. It was turning back around fast for another strike. Xavier reached the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey first.
He felt a deep rage well up within. A primal force. The battle lust was upon him, and his enemy was more vulnerable than ever.
Telekinetic Enhanced Strike!
Xavier cast the spell as he slashed his claws across the beast’s chest, tearing through its tough skin and making the alpha bleed once more. Power welled up within him as the blood dripped from the wound. Something in him wished to lap it up, but he fought that instinct—he was not a beast. He was still himself.
Slash!
He went for the neck, reopening the first wounds he’d made on this beast.
Xavier tore, and gouged, and cut, and slashed, and maimed.
His mind was split in two. He observed himself and all that he was doing to his enemy. There was a ferocity to the movements that surprised him. He was not moving like a reaper—he was moving like someone, something else.
And even the mind that was not connected to what was happening enjoyed it. This battle lust… this blood lust, it was infecting every part of him.
Not once had his claws retracted again.
There was an odd noise happening somewhere near him. A strange hacking-coughing sound. It was deep and powerful and filled the entire battlefield.
Sometime during Xavier’s strikes a notification popped up into his vision. A kill notification for the beast he was fighting. Xavier ignored it. He kept striking the beast. It took a moment for the other part of his mind—the one that was supposed to be observing using his Farscope ability, keeping detached—to rein him in and stop the attacks.
His chest was rising and falling even more swiftly than before. Blood thrummed through his veins.
The corpse of the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey lay at his feet. Another notification had popped up—he had just reached Level 170—but Xavier ignored it.
He was too busy staring down at the pool of blood that was soaking the dirt beneath the dead beast.
That’s when he realised what that strange, deep, coughing sound had been. It was the Spirit of Vengeance’s laughter. The dragon had been watching the fight, laughing its head off.
You summoned me to fight and yet you deal death to the enemy so swiftly. I do not often notice the details in humanoid Denizens, for you all—no matter the race—look so similar to me, but something tells me there has been a change in you, young Denizen. I did not think you possessed claws in the past.
Xavier was still staring down at the blood, wanting nothing more than to lap it up. He took a step toward it before he stopped himself and blinked. He shook his head. Some of the battle lust he’d been feeling was leaving him.
He looked down at his hands. At the claws that had formed.
The Spirit of Vengeance had been summoned to fight the Alpha Rhinoceros Monkey, and with its prey dead it disappeared back to the Otherworld.
Xavier stood alone on the battlefield, wondering what was becoming of him.
And wondering why it was he liked it so much.
He knelt in the dirt, blood touching his robes, and placed a hand on the alpha. Xavier deposited the corpse of the beast into his Storage Ring.
When he was D Grade, he would be able to use Assimilate Properties on parts dismantled from the beast.
And right now, he wanted nothing more than to do that.