Chapter 168
Demon Knight Battle Part I
Looking at the soldiers that had fully manifested their Void energy behind their leader, the recently slain Super Warder, Alexa noticed that their souls now seemed stable. Unlike the previous groups that she had squared off against, these five had souls that were now fully merged with the chaotic energy. The effects made it so they were both instantly more powerful, but also felt wrong.
Everyone, even the Supers who had gathered to help stop Alexa, who was still in her Aru’ka costume now paused at the sight of the new enemy forces.
Wondra, the strongest Super of America, someone who was as unageing as the dungeons were, was now old. Inexplicably old. Worse, she seemed to be powerless. Seeing her new state many feared what would happen, as it was clear she had powers that were beyond the scope of most people. Even Vibranium was down, though from a quick glance it was clear he still had his powers.
Alexa stood up first, then slowly her back began violently forcing its way back into place.
Snap, crackle, pop.
A grimace filled her face, but she quickly forced her all too trademarked vindictive smile to form on her lips.
Clap, clap.
“Never let them see you weak.” The Not-Warder Demonic Knight said mockingly as he began walking closer.
“Shut up.” Alexa hissed as she forced her legs to begin to move, pain momentarily forgotten as rage and desperation began to war within her mind.
At the sight of Alexa’s forward charge, Demonic Warder charged forward, the corrupted elven soldiers under his command following in quick lock step.
For a moment it looked like Alexa would fight the squad of demon soldiers alone. Mentally she even prepared for as much. Then the voice of an angel cried out from the gaggle of stupefied Supers who all looked on in horror.
“Get them!” It was Gina, the shortest of the Supers that were part of Alexa’s pack, but the one with the largest voice, when she needed it the most. Then like a wave, twenty-one recently awakened supers emerged from the crowd and began to engage the enemy.
Most surprising was the fact that nineteen of the pack all began to have their muscles grow and bulge slightly, causing portions of their Super suits to stretch to their utmost and finally stop at the last minute.
Just knowing that her pack was there to help made it so Alexa’s heart began to beat and pump with pride.
Badump, badump.
Magic was off the table, especially as her pack mates were now engaged in direct combat with the Void corrupted soldiers. Instead, Alexa decided to help out her pack first, as she began to engage in direct combat with Warder, as she Telekinetically reached out and began pinning different corrupted elven warriors on the ground.
Sucker punch.
“Oof.” Alexa had been so focused on the battles going on around, on the way her pack was moving to take out the overpowered demon soldiers that she had taken her eyes off of the main enemy.
“Focus on what’s ahead. The fact that you look elsewhere implies you don’t trust your team.” Demonic Warder said mockingly, as her body was knocked five feet away.
Rage.
Alexa felt angry at the words, angry due to the massive spikes of adrenaline that were coursing through her body. Angry at the fact that her mind was now fully awakened due to the excess Void energy that her body was trying to safely convert. Finally, most of all, she felt anger at the fact that he was right. The monster wearing her father’s face, his smile, the one who dared use his voice to give lectures, as if he was still there, as if he still cared. He was right, and there was nothing Alexa could do or say to refute that.
Breathe.
Alexa let out a breath, and then caused her mind to focus. Rather than letting her now active mind get flooded with all the lights and colors of emotions, she purposefully went into herself, letting her rational mind take over. Going to this state was easy, it was after all her default state for most of her life, she instantly knew when she was going into this state. Most of the time she feared entering this state, but only now did she remember the reason for the fear. Fear was a natural reason for her needing this mental space, as it was the reason, she first found herself going into this mentality to begin with. When she was young, she knew true fear, and her only way of surviving was to enter the box, to preserve herself. For years she fought to rid herself of the box, but now she realized she still needed the box, to help drown out all the different impulses that the world provided and let her focus on what would come next. As she needed to focus on how to survive.
Like a switch, the tingling sensation in her mind was turned off. Her manic battle smile went flat, and her posture loosened.
Seeing the sudden, but unmistakable change that had overtaken her body, Demonic Warder paused and cocked his head to the side. “You’ve given up this pointless fighting, and are finally willing to join me?”
Alexa just stood there, her face blank and expressionless. Finally, after a second, she responded with just a one-word answer. “No.”
That was it, the end of the banter, as Alexa charged forward. Her movements somehow looser, less rigid as she charged forward, a look of cold resolve on her expressionless face.
***
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Demonic Warder looked on at the creature that was but one of his targets. He had met his own personal task of taking out those who had summoned him. Better still, he had managed to turn a group of the summoners into his own servants.
In his mind he recognized the creature that was charging towards him now. Part of him wished for the girl to win, as a feeling of pride enveloped him, seeing her in her true element, combat. That was why he wished to bring her with him, why he prepared to convert her. There were a limited number of people a Knight could convert, at least at first. Right now, he was at his zenith in terms of power and potential. All he needed to do was to break free, set up a foothold and then corrupt the land enough to let a portal appear. Maybe even get one of the slave race dragons to fully conquer a dungeon for his own personal use. There were dragons around, he could all but feel their presence on the world, they were deep in hiding, those that were still here, but they were here nonetheless. He could call upon them, even now he knew he could, but they would take time to arrive, and worse they would require him to use up a lot of his precious Void energy to perform the summoning.
Duck, parry, weave.
The warrior who dared to challenge him, his own daughter was already upon him, her form was quick and fluid like a serpent floating in the wind. While it was clear that Demonic Warder’s attributes were clearly higher than that of his opponent, his opponent made up for that deficit with sheer skill and determination.
“You’re good.” Demonic Warder said, as he swung out with a power infused fist, only to find empty air.
Silence.
Ice blue eyes stared, then blurred as they weaved around.
Tap, tap.
Warder felt the equivalent of mosquito bites along his arm. As Warder had swung, his opponent had anticipated the attack, ducking under and tapping his arm twice.
“That the best you got?” Warder taunted.
Silence.
Another swing, but this time Warder led with a feint, then with a real strike. Regardless of the cause, he felt two more taps, one on his right ribcage, and the other on his left arm.
Looking at her movements, it was amazing to him how she could so easily weave under his spikes. Spikes that even he was still getting used to having. Had he had more time to practice, he could have likely begun incorporating the massive spikes he had into his attack pattern. As it was, they just made it so that no one snuck up on him from behind. Even the spikes he had on his head, ones that came out like mandible pinchers that a preying mantis would have served to keep his face free of random strikes. As such, it was only a matter of when, not if this battle would be over.
“I can do this all day.” Warder teased.
Then just as Warder prepared to give another exchange of a swing, she darted away.
“What?” Warder asked, but then turned to see that Alexa had broken away from combat with him to go and strike at one of his soldiers that was being pinned to the ground by no less than five werewolves.
Seeing the creatures caused an intense rage filled Warder as he clearly recognized the fierce tribe of warriors on an instinctual level. Seeing them now, made his blood boil as he realized that the Lykanthropy virus made it so the creatures were stronger, not as strong as a full soldier, but that made it so they were no use against five.
Wham, wham, wham!
Lightning quick strike after lightning exploded from Alexa’s fists, with a quick flurry blows Warder watched, momentarily stupefied at what he was seeing. The top warrior had broken away, from battling with him, and was now striking at an immobile opponent. On the one hand, he could fully accept the outcome, but on the other he felt rage build up within him.
Rage that she would dare turn her back on him.
Charging forward, he got closer. Still she rained down blow after blow, until seven blows in all were struck.
“Go.” Alexa said, and without having to be told twice, the five werewolves that had been holding down the one soldier broke free and began scattering to the wind.
Boom!
Warder swung out his massive hand, striking the closest werewolf with a backhanded swipe. Instantly he could feel his powers coming to life, as he felt his powers trying to suppress the werewolf’s own powers.
“Ahh!” The werewolf girl cried out, causing Warder to turn to her and instantly raise up his left foot to stomp on the downed girl. That was when he noticed a slight shadow appear on the ground, their movement illuminated by the brightly glowing blood dome that they were in. This was another thing, if Warder could keep everyone here long enough, they would all be infused with the miasma that was soon to come from the dome that surrounded them, and it corrosive effects.
Warder just like Alexa decided to ignore the enemy around them, for the sake of taking out a downed enemy. Raising his massive boot, he began to bring it down. The girl, for that’s what she was now, a girl, looked dazed for a moment, but then quickly adjusted and rolled mostly out of the way of the stomp, but now found herself trapped between the feet of Warder. Now he had the creature right where he wanted, with a malicious gleam in his eyes, he reached down and prepared to convert the first of many converts to his army. His massive paw of a hand reached down and grabbed, long strong fingers instantly touching and then wrapping their ways around an arm. With that he began to pull the body up, but stopped, as he felt something climbing up the spines on his back like they were monkey bars and then he felt an intense stinging sensation at the base of his spine.
It took a second for him to realize that he was being punched on his back. Turning around, he tried to find the person who dared to strike him from behind, only to find open air. Open air, and a noticeable weight on his back. He began reaching back, with his one free hand, but this was long enough for the entity to strike out two more times.
Cold numbness.
The strikes weren’t hard, especially not against his now Void reinforced skin. What was hard was the fact that now he began feeling a slight numbing cold sensation where each prick struck. Given a second to realize what was happening, he realized that the same sensation was now overtaking his arm and ribs where she had struck earlier.
Reaching back behind himself, he reached out to find empty air. Empty air and the all too familiar feeling of weight being removed from his back.
Turning he saw the same warrior with ice blue eyes staring at him.
This entire time Warder had held onto the werewolf girl who was struggling desperately in his hand. Only now that he had a second to pause did he realize he had a bargaining chip, in the form of the now pacified werewolf girl within his hands.
“What’s it going to be? You going to risk the life of your comrade, or take out me the main threat?” Warder said, a malicious glint to his eyes, as he held up the girl in both arms, his enhanced strength more than capable of lifting a ton into the air, let along a small welp of a teenager pretending to be a Superhero.
“I have a question for you.” Alexa asked, her voice cold. Her gaze was locked onto the girl in her arms, but it was clear that she was talking to Warder, at least that is what he assumed.
“What is it?”
“Why are turtles shells curved?” Her words cold and said with a deadpan expression that caused Warder to momentarily pause in confusion.
“Wha…” Just as Warder was about to respond, she struck. Or rather a massive force picked Warder up from the ground, while simultaneously a second unseen force grabbed the girl from his hands and yanked. His fingers cut deep, causing bones to break.
“AHH!” The werewolf girl cried out, but it was over in a second. Then in the blink of an eye she was gone, thrown far away and behind Alexa while Warder felt his body rise up, and then a second force grab his kicking feet and hold him parallel to the ground. In seconds he was over two stories in the air, as he could easily see the ends of the corrosive dome around them right now. He was close, so close to his objective, he just needed to hold out a little longer and this land would be fully corrupted and then it would provide constant healing effects for him, while simultaneously destroying the unevolved bodies of those around him.
Then just as quickly as he rose up, he plummeted to the ground.
Thud.
The spikes and bones of his back dug in deep to the ground, some of the smaller ones at weaker positions broke off, causing an intense jarring pain to course through his body. Just as soon as he was aware of his predicament, he felt a weight jump on him. In his mind he knew what it was, or rather who it was that had jumped on him. His daughter, memories of her flooded through his mind, as she rained down numbing blow after numbing blow directly onto his body. He tried to raise up his hands, but found that they were pinned, pinned by that same power that somehow managed to pick him up and thrown him down, pinning him to the ground.
Realizing things were not going as he intended, Warder decided to use his ultimate trump card.
Calling forth his internal reserves of energy, he forced his body to its first true evolutionary point.
Fwoom.
With that a surge of power welled up from deep inside him, as he forced Void Essence to merge with the rest of his body and instantly, he felt the resistance that had been holding him down release as even the powers of Telekinesis rolled off his new and improved body. This had cost him all his spare Void Essence. Essence that he would have used to corrupt the land and make it so that he could establish a foothold here in the new world. The fact that he was forced to use his reserves of energy so quickly meant that after this battle he would have to likely pull from the reserves that would be created by this land, meaning his recovery would take slightly longer than expected, but would still be acceptable.
All he had to do was survive.
Wham!
The girl who Warder still had memories of recognized the change in his power and her ability to interact with him, but it was too late. As soon as the forces holding him down released their gravitational pull on him, he rose up, smacking the attacker.
His hands tried to grab the girl, but she was too quick, squirming away before he could little more than strike at her. Still, that was enough as she spun violently to the ground.
With the moment he needed, Warder stood up, and with eyes glowing red, he stared at his opponent, a girl that once brought him joy, now only brought him pain. Worse, now all he could do was kill this girl, as he lacked the energy required to corrupt more souls.
“Foolish, you could have had everything.” Warder screamed.
Silence.
She was wounded, grabbing her side, right where he had struck. Seeing her in such a state, his primal instincts took over, and he charged forward, prepared to destroy everything he once held dear in this world.