Chapter 6: Survive

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From the sides a shape lunged, claws stretching for Atlas’ throat. He ducked and weaved right, watching as the strike retreated. These things disliked the light. How would they fare against flame? Dropping the dagger but keeping his pick in one hand, Atlas dashed to grab a blazing log.

“COME ON!” He could feel the rage, the fury building. “You want us? THEN COME AND FUCKING GET US!!”

Roaring in unison, the bear smashed his paws into the ground. Together they faced the night, and the darkness granted their request.

A spindly shadow creature leapt up, its vaporous claws tearing the air. Behind it came its brethren, and they wasted no time in lunging forward. Atlas immediately activated dodge and whipped the pick towards its frame, impacting heavily. The ghoul was unperturbed, taking the hit and grasping for his legs. Down came the blazing club, slam skill added.

The creature flared up, fire proving unnaturally effective. Not quite dead, the ghoul scrambled back while still on fire as the other creatures sprinted around it.

On the right side of the blazing fire, the bear twisted, meeting several shadows that tried to tear into its flesh. One paw swiped across a ghoul, completely tearing it to pieces. A quick snap of jaws closed around the head of another creature, before the bear spit it out.

A spear of darkness tore into the cave, barely missing Atlas as he stumbled back. Dodge was still on cool down, so he simply thrust the burning log into the face of a leaping ghoul and used the thrust skill in tandem while swinging the pick. The skill seemed to work, and the tool lodged itself firmly in the ghastly creature’s head.

Unable to pull it free in time, he missed one shadow as it slipped behind him, realizing it only after a sharp pain shot up from his leg.

He snapped a hand back to grab the ghoul, its slimy skin causing his grip to slip. Spinning, he managed to dislocate its teeth and a quick kick sent the creature flying over the flames of the bonfire. It lit up like it was soaked in gasoline, a flaming torch now providing a scant few seconds of light flickering across the area outside the cave. Dozens of shapes slunk away, the shadows warped and elongated.

An idea came to Atlas, even as he punched another ghoul in the head. Holding on to the creatures was virtually impossible, but the one he’d already killed with the pick was just lying there. Dashing forward, he slid homerun style under the leaping, grasping claws and fumbled to grab onto the tool.

Once it was in hand, he rolled to the side, almost falling into the flames nearby. A quick flip of the impaled ghoul into the fire, and he now had a furiously burning dripping glob of putrid mass at the end of his pick.

He swung in adrenaline fueled desperation, smashing the flames into several creatures, lighting them up like matchsticks. Screeches and screams filled the air, the fire spreading as more of the ghouls retreated into the dark, now lighting it up with the yellow glow of their burning flesh.

On the other side of the cave, the bear continued to slam mighty claws down on multiple ghouls, each swipe rendering them into strips of putrid goo.

“HEY!” Altas’ shout failed to catch the bear’s attention, so instead he lept around the front of the fire, catching the end of a burning log and spinning it towards the fallen attackers. Thankfully, the bear noticed and dodged back from the suddenly airborne flame, moving out of the largest pile of dead bodies. The results of the beast’s fury and the flickering light combusted, a wave of heated stench filling the cave even as the right side filled with towering flames.

Outside the remaining creatures paused in their attack, on the edge of fleeing, before a significantly larger shadow-wreathed form let loose a piercing howl. Immediately following this command came another spear of darkness, seven feet long and tipped with dripping ichor.

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Atlas fell backwards, desperately trying to dodge the flying implement of death. A twisted neck caused it to miss his jugular, but he was still pierced through the clavicle and pinned to the ground, his pick falling nearby.

The remaining ghouls leapt forward hungrily, jagged teeth prepared to rip apart his flesh, only to be turned to pulp by a brutal swipe of four inch claws. The bear stationed its massive bleeding form above and in front of Atlas, roaring through a blackened stained maw. Only a few creatures remained.

Grasping at the spear in his shoulder, Atlas jerked it out, then stumbled to his feet. He bent to try and retrieve the pick, left hand dangling loose against his side. The motion caused his head to feel woozy, as an odd vice-like claw gripped his shoulder and neck, its icy talons seeping beneath the flesh.

The larger shadow began to laugh in a grating, echoing sound, then rose to its full eight feet. Similar to the ghouls, it had a vaguely humanoid shape, but its arms dragged the ground and its head was warped and stretched in a grotesque assimilation of human features.

It began to lope across the open area in front of the cave, followed by the last of the smaller ghouls. Ignoring the burning bodies, it simply lept over them and slashed towards the two defenders. Atlas, feeling as if his entire left side was beginning to freeze up, barely had the strength to bring up the pick and deflect the oncoming strike. The bear simply hunched its shoulders and tanked the hit, trading it for a swipe of its own.

“This is it. This is how I die?” The thought flashed across Atlas’ mind, even as he swung vainly towards the larger creature. It backhanded him in response, his entire body flying across the cave and into the wall of dirt and roots.

Everything hurt. For a second, he almost blacked out, but the pain was screaming at him, demanding his attention. He struggled, chest heaving, trying to regain some semblance of thought. Vaguely, he made out the smaller forms of the last of the ghouls, three creeping shadows untouched by the vicious fighting between the larger beasts at the front of the cave. They saw his helplessness, tasted his blood in the air. A feast awaiting its end.

He could give up. Let the creatures consume his flesh. Let the darkness take his mind and be rid of all this nonsense. The icy talons gripped tighter, the back of his skull being squeezed in a vice. Yes, there was no reason left to fight. He’d done his best, and now was the end…

Lexi’s blue eyes flashed in his memory.

His mind, slowly fading, ripped itself free of the closing darkness. Fear, for himself, for his family, for his world, all evaporated as it was engulfed by an ever growing anger. A righteous fury, a flame lit within, rising from the ashes to burn out the corruption.

[Reach Beyond] has been activated.

The Void is open.

A hue of purple and red filled the air, pouring into his veins, his skin, his entire body. Vast pools of energy, stirring with a ponderous motion, activated by his actions. It urged… destruction.

His arm snapped up, catching the leaping ghoul by the throat.

For a moment, everything paused. The remaining ghouls, the larger shadow creature, the bear. They all waited with growing awareness, feeling the sense of something… beyond. Something that should not exist in this reality.

Fingers tightened, crushing the ghoul’s neck. Standing, his wounds pouring purple ichor, Atlas tossed the body into the fire. The action was enough to unfreeze the surviving creatures, and they wasted no time in trying to finish off the wounded man still standing there.

Atlas moved, inhumanly fast. A snap of one foot caught a ghoul beneath its chin, tearing off its head, even as the bones in that foot shattered. The last ghoul grabbed onto his leg, trying to trip him. He looked down upon it, the fury continuing to build. Grasping its head, he tore it free, then crushed its paltry skull into mush.

A bellow of pain from the bear caught his attention, the beast now crawling back on its remaining leg, swiping ineffectively at the shadow creature. It lunged forward, claws preparing to disembowel the wounded animal.

Two steps forward to swiftly grab his pick, five more to make to the side of the bear. Atlas swung, every ounce of strength remaining pouring into the hit. The creature, so focused on the beast it had been hunting, raised its head, vile ichor pouring from unhinged jowls.

“CHEW ON THIS!” Atlas felt the first teeth shatter, pick entering the open mouth. Instinctively he pushed upon the energy flooding his body, shoving it to the tip of the makeshift weapon. The pick impacted the back of the creature's throat, vibrating against his hands as its tip barely pierced the shadow’s flesh.

It was enough. A surge of violet light burst forth, bright enough to illuminate through the creature, before suddenly collapsing inward. Instead of the expected explosion, there came a quiet “whump” sound, followed by the shadow creature’s head just… disappearing.

One second it was there, the next second everything from the neck up had vanished. The body collapsed, twitching a few times before falling still.

A surge of victorious euphoria filled Atlas, who stood there for a moment, grinning like a loon, before collapsing next to the panting bear.