Chapter 81

What +55 Bonus Stats Can Do

Dowser grabbed Netta by her shirt and, I think we all thought he completely misunderstood the assignment, but he chuckled her straight for me. She recovered from her shock midway through, catching onto what Dowser was doing. She took a swipe at me with her weapon.

Without even thinking I dropped to my knees. That alone would have been a great show of Reflexes, but I was able to take it a step further. As her and her weapon sailed harmlessly over me, I jumped back up, slamming my fishbowl into her stomach. I heard her shout in pain as she continued to sail over and away.

But I wasn't out of danger yet. Stephen had drawn a gun and fired as Dowser charged, his long arms pulling him along the ground as he ran at a break neck pace.

The bullets were still faster though and I used that to my advantage. I reached out with my mind thinking that, just maybe with my added reflexes I could catch the energy bullets in mid air. It wasn't a run away success. I stumbled and only got a good grip on my last attempts, catching two of the bullets just before they hit me. The third I had to bend my head down and take it with the fishbowl.

The bullets were decently sized so just the one blow was enough to knock me back a bit. But otherwise I was unphased. And could move onto part two of my idea.

As Dowser continued barreling toward me, I directed the bullets back his way, steering them right into his eyes. He cried out and his hands went up, all attempts at attacking me completely averted. As he stumbled blindly forward, unable to stop his advance, I sent a wave of energy at his legs, knocking his feet out from under him. He joined Netta in sailing over my head.

I grinned, already feeling a swell of accomplishment—but that was foolish.

Stephen had ran behind Dowser, using the latter's body to hide his advance. He delivered a two handed stream of energy into my stomach, no amount of Speed and Reflexes would allow me to escape unscathed.

I was able to bring my energy up into my stomach, almost completely on it's own, dampening the brunt of the attack. But not completely. He shaved 25 points off my meager health bar.

I flew back through the air, but not for long. I sent out some energy behind me, canceling the throw and sending me careening back toward Stephen. He activated a beam sword and swung it straight for my stomach again.

But I caught the blade with my energy, forcing his arm up as I slid underneath, landed on the ground, and bounded up, slamming my helmet into his chin with all the force I could muster.

I fully expected him to go sailing away, possibly get knocked out cold. Instead, he took the blow, a rush of his energy swelling under his chin, cushioning it seemingly completely.

"Impressive," I said through gritted teeth, still pushing up against his chin.

"You think I didn't keep up training at all?" He gritted back.

"I never once ran into you here so, yeah, I assumed you'd been slacking off."

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I was the first to break our stalemate, sending a wave of energy into his chest to see how he liked it. He grunted and flew back but with a swirl of energy he landed onto solid ground, with a grace I'd never seen from him. He held his hands up, readying for more.

"Nice moves. Your big head must have been inflated with a lot of hot air."

Dowser roared with laughter but there was something off—it sounded way to close. I whirled around, just in time to duck under a swing of his ax. How the fuck had he snuck up on me so quietly!?

"Dowser!" Netta called. She was back on her feet, too, a bit farther off, her hand glowing an icy blue. "You totally ruined that sneak attack!"

"Oh come of it!" He grumbled back. "Do I really look like I'm built for sneaking around!?"

But I could see it now, the same icy blue was faintly outlining Dowser's body. Netta was using some kind of spell on him to silence his footsteps. Luckily for me it didn't work on his loud mouth.

Dowser kept coming for me, swinging his ax wildly. I cranked up my light and, hopefully, became a blur. It began to work immediately, his swings went from centimeters from touching me to complete misses.

"Damn, that light really works!" Dowser bellowed, happy at first, but the more I dodged the crosser he became until he was positively boiling. "Stay... fucking... still!" He brought his ax high above his head and slammed it down onto me.

Oh, sorry, I meant where I had been like three seconds ago. The ax splintered the ground, and Dowser's face was still in a look of glee, the fact that I wasn't underneath the ax not yet dawning on him.

I darted forward and leapt, my foot heading for his head, energy rushing to my sole.

Dowser's eyes caught up with what was happening and he shut them, preparing for the hit. But something strange happened: the blue energy that had been around him suddenly flashed brighter and then leapt from his forehead.

I cried out as my foot hit something way less kickable as Dowser's face. It was a cluster of ice, sticking painfully through my shoe. My health flashed again, another chuck of health getting shaved off, leaving me with a little less than 50 remaining.

Dowser's eyes shot open and he was just as surprised as I was to see me hanging from icicles sprouting from his head.

I didn't wait for him to recover. I pounded my energy infused fist against the ice, shattering them and earning my freedom. I dropped to the ground and then jumped backwards, I needed to put as much distance between him as I could. And figure out where Netta was. She was no doubt behind the ice.

But as I sailed backwards, the cracks Dowser's ax had left in the ground glowed a familiar blue.

"Oh, fu—!" My shout was cut short as huge spikes of ice grew up below me.

I threw energy forward and spun even further backwards, hitting the tips of the ice with the top of my fishbowl. I'd saved myself but... What the fuck did I do now?

My momentum had been killed so I just sort of was perched on the tips of the ice spikes, upside down.

I looked all around for Netta. My only course of action was to find her and knock her out.

I wouldn't get the chance.

"Netta!" Stephen called from somewhere. "Splinter the ice!!"

On his command, the spikes holding me up shattered and I was falling again. I sent my energy coursing through my body, unsure what was going to happen next. I couldn't figure out why he wanted the ice to shatter. Best to get them the fuck away from me.

I pushed some energy into all of my fingers, setting up two shotgun blasts. But I didn't get a chance to use it. Stephen appeared, taking a huge leap off of Dowser's back and into the air. I couldn't for the life of me figure out what his plan was.

I held my hands up, aiming my primed shotguns at him and the ice. I couldn't do anything else all I could hope for was that the blasts would push him and the ice away from me. I released the energy and the waves exploded, sending the icicles spinning like mad, heading straight for Stephen.

Even more mysterious: he had a huge grin on his face. He waved his hand, activating his mental power, and suddenly all the ice halted...then rotated, aimed at me.

From somewhere I heard Netta exclaim, both of us catching onto his plan. But far too late for me. Netta's energy flashed on the ice and every single broken piece became jagged deadly points and, again, all aimed at me.

Stephen closed his fist and the ice shot toward me. I swung my hands out wide, throwing my energy out like a net. I grabbed some of the icicles but others slipped through, puncturing me. And even the ones that I did get a grip on took all I had to keep from hitting me next. As such, I was completely open as Dowser darted into the ice storm, his ax coming up at me underhanded.

I closed my eyes, accepting my fate.