Character Sheet

Name: Antonious King  Race: Ascendant  Essence: 4

Class: Squire (5) | Knight (5) | Dread Knight [Blademaster] (6)

Attributes

Strength: 30  Charisma: 20  Intelligence: 20

Dexterity: 22  Wisdom: 21  Wits: 21

Endurance: 30  Spirit: 30  Luck: 15

Skills

Melee – 20  Awareness – 10  Occult – 10

Survival – 5  Fortitude – 16  Athletics (Freerunning) – 10

Socialize - 5  Tandem Tactics: (5)  Resolve: 6  Empathy: 5

Sagas:

Active Saga: War Against Heaven

Backgrounds:

Artifact: Pauldron of Vengeance  Covenant  Gjöll Stone Amulet

Familiar: Maximus

Talents

Summon Dreadblade (Life-Biting Essence)

Berserker’s Stance  Frenzied Blood Rapture

Pommel Strike  Punishing Parry

Oath Sacred Vow

Knight's Charge  Battle Rush  Asphyxiate

Invincible Will+  Indomitable Self  Runeforging

Fatal Resolve  Adamant Slash+  Bloody Haste  

Contrary to what happened when Jorogu challenged Tony, the party being challenged teleported the group straight into the boss chamber. The room was expansive and circular, glass panels illuminated the chamber and its contents, the lab of a madman.

"You did well to reach me here," a voice echoed over the loudspeaker, "and to have destroyed my latest creation. You know what they say though, thirteen is a lucky number."

"Let me guess, this is the part where you monologue us to death?" Tony interrupted. He knew these fights well enough, confront the evil genius in his lab, he monologues, sends his minions out in waves to survive through, then when you fight the boss your resources and cooldowns are spent just dealing with the mobs so you have to fight at lessened capacity.

"Not at all, Ascendant. It would be where I analyze the subjects for my next experiment. The three of you and maybe even the Daimyo Arach in the regeneration pod upstairs will make for a sufficient amalgam to end this pathetic project," the voice said.

A chill ran up Tony's spine that was swiftly burned away by anger. "Now I know you didn't just threaten my dog-"

"Oh? Going to get angry now, are you? Well, I've prepared for that."

Shit, Tony thought, was that why I felt like I was being watched on the ship?

A set of bay doors on the ground hissed open and dumped a horde of the Rotten constructs into the room and snapped closed. Tony looked to Vasna. "Do you want me to take them, or do you want them?"

The shaman just shrugged. "I'll take those, you take that group and the dog takes the rest?" she offered up. Without another word the three of them jumped into action; blade, claws, fangs, and Vasna's mace flashed through the mob of Rotten with ease and precision. Fifty of the constructs went down in just under ninety seconds.

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"That's impressive, even for a pair of Ascendants. Your performance beats the last record by fourteen point three seconds. Experiment thirteen will certainly be impressive," the voice said.

"You want us for your experiment, come and claim us yourself, lazy ass!" Vasna shouted.

Tony smirked. "Do you think he'd really-"

"As you wish," the voice answered.

An instant later the whir of a hydraulic lift echoed through the chamber. "Well son of a bitch," Tony muttered.

A section of the wall opened up and a man emerged; more than half of his body was either made of metal or had metal grafted to it. His left eye was an insidious red orb in the silhouette standing in the lift.

Mendacius  Level: 20 Dungeon Boss (Divine) Heart of the Infernal Machine

He spread his arms and walked into the room. "Still content to call me lazy? Allow me to show you the results of my hard work!" With that, the whole room came alive. Images of bladed machines, fire, and death across the cosmos. "You see-"

Tony interrupted the machine-man's monologue with a combo of Battle Rush and Adamant Slash stacked with Adamant Blade. The attack caught Mendacius flat-footed and pushed him back, the metal of Tony's charged Dreadblade sparking against the Boss's mechanical arms.

Mendacius's chest parted and crackling red essence gathered over the center. Tony attempted to break engagement but metal fingers wrapped around and plunged into his forearms, claiming ten percent of his HP. "Don't worry, Antonious, this won't kill you. I need you to tell me how this feels."

Heck you, buzz man! Maximus's voice sounded in his head. The dog charged forward and clamped his maw around one of Mendacius's legs. It must have been one of his organic legs since the man growled in pain. He kicked the dog across the room, Vasna soared over Maximus, giant log-made-mace held overhead, a metal tube popped out of Mendacius's shoulder and discharged the same red essence. The blast washed over the woman and forced her back.

"I'm gonna kill you!" Tony roared.

"Now, Antonious, do tell me how much this hurts." The metal-man's attack went off, claiming fifty percent of Tony's HP. The upside to taking such a severe amount of damage was that it freed the Dread Knight from the Dungeon Boss's metal grip. Tony slammed the tip of Legion into the floor to arrest his momentum; a deep furrow followed him to where he landed.

Use me, the voice from Arach bellowed in his mind, use me and win! The Dreadblade let out the same high-pitched toll it did when it came out of the floor. Tony grit his teeth.

"Vae Victis." With the Invocation came a rush of power and a high-pitched whine that shattered the glass screens and shook the room. Mendacius roared in pain. Tony looked over and saw him clutching his head; now was his chance. He rushed forward and slashed at both of his legs and chest, spending twenty Lore each time and nearly bottoming out his pool to pin the Boss's legs in place and the plates concealing the cannon in his chest shut.

Vasna's tree trunk soared from the back end of the room, magma, lightning, and frost trailing from the business end. It collided with the metal-man's chest and caved in the plating, rending it inoperable. Tony glimpsed back at her and saw her cast a chain heal on Maximus that transferred over to him. The dog was scrabbling to his feet, unable to find purchase on the metal floor, but seemed fine otherwise.

The walls of the room began to split open; tendrils of wire coated with the same vitriolic essence and blades thrashed from the wounds. Mendacius limped toward the lift.

"Looks like we flipped the boss phases," Tony shouted over the din. "Do you have an AOE that can clear these?" Vasna just grinned in answer.

Her elemental aspects flared back to the surface and all reconfigured. Where vines had been, hair streams of lightning replaced them, her eyes surged with electricity, and portions of her body became ethereal storm clouds. Bolt after bolt of levin fury pounded the room, driving back the writhing death coming from the walls and sealing off Mendacius's escape.

Tony paid the ten percent HP cost to activate Bloody Haste and surged after the boss. He turned and pointed one of his sizzling arm cannons at Tony, as the essence built up, Tony activated his Asphyxiate talent and the glow guttered out. The awakened Legion held in both hands, Tony flexed every ounce of power he could muster and pressed the assault. Chunks of metal flew away first as Mendacius attempted to deflect the attacks with his artificial limbs; after the Dread Knight carved through those, he swung again and again.

Maximus let out a loud bark that broke Tony from his fugue long enough for Vasna to get between him and the remnants of a torso atop a single leg. "It's okay, you got him, we're all okay." Her hands ran over his blood-covered face and hair and Legion clattered to the floor. Tony sunk to his knees, the exertion of the fight catching up with him all at once. Vasna cradled his head against her chest. "We're all okay, Max is good, he was fine before I even cast the heal, I promise," she continued.

The war dog padded up to the two of them and sniffed into Tony's ear. Okay Daddy? I okay, you okay? Tony smiled as the dog licked the tears and blood from his face.

"I got so scared," he admitted, "that if he hurt you..." he trailed off. Logically, he knew that the Maximus here was far more resilient than the pet he had loved, that if this Maximus fell, he had the item needed to revive him. That didn't stop his emotions from flaring, from the need to make up for what he thought he had done wrong bludgeoning his conscience. One of Vasna's hands cupped the side of his face and pulled it up to meet her gaze.

The soft look in her eyes, her slightly lifted chin and parted lips registered too late for Tony to say anything about it. She kissed him, hard. Her lips were cool and sizzled against his own, like a molten iron passing through a slab of ice. One arm around her waist, the other under her butt like a seat, he scooped her up and pressed her against the first wall he found. She wrapped her legs around his torso, cementing the lip-lock.

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