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Prototype's Gate
Act 3. Chapter 27

Act 3. Chapter 27

In a swift, fluid motion, Alex raised his hand, forming an arcane barrier just as a creeping veil of darkness settled over them. The darkness pulsed with a malevolent life, pressing in around them, seeking any weakness in their defenses.

Alex turned to Incognita, his faceless mask unreadable, yet something in his stance was grave, urgent. She could feel it through their link—a warning, heavy with the weight of experience and danger.

“Incognita,” he said, his voice steady but laced with an edge , “whatever happens, do not let those things touch you. Promise me.”

Her eyes widened, a flash of surprise mingling with concern. "Why? Are they more dangerous than the spirit eater and the behemoth?" she asked, casting a wary glance at the writhing mass of creatures beyond the barrier. There were so many of them, grotesque forms lurching and crawling in unnatural patterns, but they didn’t seem like the same overwhelming threat.

Alex’s response was chilling. “Those things… even a single touch will twist and corrupt your flesh. Just like the monsters on the upper level.” His words carried the weight of knowledge, not just as a warning but as a haunting truth. This was no ordinary threat. It was a plague, a force that would warp and consume anyone it touched.

Incognita’s face hardened, her ruby-red eyes narrowing. “And you? Are you immune?”

Alex nodded once, a simple, reassuring gesture, though his faceless mask revealed nothing. “This should help you fight them,” he said, his hands beginning to glow with a necrotic energy that pulsed like a dark heartbeat. Shadows coiled around his fingers, casting a ghostly green light as he wove the arcane energy into a spell.

Instinctively, Incognita took a step back, but Alex raised a hand. “Do not move,” he said, his tone firm. The necrotic light seeped from his hands, crawling over her skin, sinking into her flesh. It felt cold, chilling her to her core, yet there was an underlying warmth—a raw power, wild and ancient, that surged through her veins. The energy wrapped around her, bolstering her, until she felt as if her entire being was cloaked in strength.

And then, in a flash, she was gone—teleported across the chamber to the entrance gate. She blinked, momentarily disoriented, then looked up to see the battlefield before her.

A dark veil of shadow surrounded Alex, obscuring him from view, but the chaos beasts were massing around it, drawn by his presence. The massive form of the Beast of Bedlam loomed at the back, its skull held by one if its many tentacle trained on the gathering creatures, as if watching the slaughter that was about to unfold.

A sudden tremor rippled through the ground, so powerful that it sent cracks spiderwebbing across the stone floor. Incognita’s breath caught as she saw the chaos beasts nearest to the shadow veiling Alex explode upward, flung like ragdolls by an unseen force.

And then, with a deafening roar, a sea of dark tendrils erupted from the center of the darkness. They speared through the chaos beasts, dozens at once, each tendril wrapping around a creature and pulling it inward, absorbing it into the fleshy mass. The creatures writhed and screeched, their piercing cries echoing through the chamber, but it was useless. One by one, their bodies were consumed, the sounds of their struggle growing fainter until only silence remained. The tendrils, now glistening with the remnants of their victims, slowly retracted back to their origin, leaving behind a haunting stillness.

The veil of darkness dissipated, revealing Alex standing tall in the center. He was a figure of wrath, an avatar of death itself, his form radiating a cold, predatory aura. The stone floor beneath him was cracked, a web of fissures spreading outward from where he stood, as if the very earth had recoiled from the intensity of his power.

Incognita felt rush of awe mixed with fear. She had seen him fight before, but this… this was something else. This was the full, unrestrained force of his dark magic.

Alex turned, his gaze locking onto hers, the faint glint of his eyes behind the mask catching the light.

A flicker of determination ignited within her, and she stepped forward, resolute.

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Incognita’s hand crossbows hummed with an almost sentient energy as she raised them, her fingers tightening around the triggers. Shadows twisted around her form, wrapping her like a cloak woven from darkness itself. Her ruby eyes gleamed, cutting through the dimness like twin embers, and from Alex’s vantage point, she looked nothing less than a wraith—a deadly phantom clad in pure shadow. For a moment, she even surprised herself. She could feel something new coursing through her veins, a feral, intoxicating power that pulsed with the strength of her vampiric heritage, fully awakened by Alex’s magic. She felt unstoppable.

“Let’s see what this can do,” she whispered, a smirk pulling at her lips.

With a squeeze of her triggers, the bolts left her crossbows, tearing through the air like wrathful phantoms. Each bolt seemed to be guided by an unseen force, curving and twisting, zeroing in on its targets with pinpoint accuracy. The chaos beasts screeched as the bolts struck true, burying themselves deep into grotesque flesh. The creatures stumbled, collapsing one by one, their bodies dissolving into black sludge that hissed and smoked upon impact with the chamber floor.

“Wow,” she murmured, her voice tinged with awe.

But she barely had a moment to catch her breath. More beasts charged at her, their twisted forms a frenzy of teeth, claws, and seething rage. Without hesitation, she reached into her coat, pulling free several small, dark grenades. Her fingers danced over the pins, yanking them loose with practiced ease. Just as the beasts closed in, she tossed the bombs into their midst, her eyes narrowing with cold satisfaction.

The explosions lit up the chamber in rapid succession, each blast sending waves of flame and shrapnel through the swarm. The beasts howled, their bodies torn apart by the concussive force, some splattering against the walls in grotesque sprays of black ichor. But not all of them were destroyed. One of the more resilient creatures—a twisted abomination of jagged limbs and exposed muscle—emerged from the flames, charred but undeterred. It lunged at her with lightning speed, its gnarled claws mere inches from her chest.

Incognita didn’t flinch. Instead of dodging, she simply allowed her body to dissolve into a dark mist, her form dispersing like smoke caught in a sudden gust. The creature’s claws slashed through the air where she had been only moments before, its expression twisting in confusion.

She reformed a few paces away, solidifying back into her human shape with a quiet, deadly grace. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she raised her crossbow, her movements fluid and precise. Before the creature could react, a single bolt pierced its malformed body, embedding itself with a sickening thud. The beast gurgled, black ichor spilling from its wound, and crumpled to the floor, melting into a puddle of ooze.

The thrill of it all rushed through her, exhilarating and terrifying. She could feel the vampiric power surging within her, stronger than ever, each kill awakening more of the latent strength that had lain dormant in her blood for so long. Her senses sharpened, her vision brightening until she could see every detail of the monsters around her: the quivering of their flesh, the nervous twitch of their muscles, the flickering hatred in their beady eyes. Even the sounds of the battle—the screeches, the crunch of bone, the hiss of dissolving bodies—felt sharper, more vivid, as if she were hearing them through some darkly enchanted filter.

She could feel her fangs elongating, a reminder of the primal hunger that came with this power. But instead of fighting it, she embraced it, letting the power fuel her rage, her focus, her desire to win.

Another beast charged, its form a tangled mess of insectoid limbs and dripping venom. It slashed at her with a barbed claw, but she moved faster than thought, sidestepping its attack with ease. She could feel her movements becoming more fluid, almost like a dance. She slipped behind the creature, her form blurring with supernatural speed, and plunged her dagger into its back, twisting it deep. The creature shrieked, its body convulsing as dark venom oozed from the wound. She pulled the blade free, kicking the dying beast away as it slumped to the floor.

She could feel Alex’s presence beside her, his own powers wreaking havoc on the horde as he unleashed waves of necrotic energy and shadows.

More beasts fell, and with each one, Incognita felt her strength grow, her senses heighten, her confidence surge. She was no longer just a rogue, no longer simply a fighter—she was a predator, a creature of shadows and blood, and the chaos beasts were nothing more than prey.

One of the last beasts—a towering, muscular brute with claws like scythes and glowing red eyes—charged at her with a thunderous roar. She grinned, her fangs gleaming, and dissolved into mist once more, evading the creature’s attack. She reformed behind it, driving both daggers into the back of its skull. The beast spasmed, its eyes flickering before it crumpled to the ground.

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Breathing heavily, she looked around the chamber. The floor was littered with the corpses of chaos beasts, their bodies dissolving into pools of dark ichor. She turned to Alex.

The Beast of Bedlam loomed at the back of the chamber, its nightmarish form twisting and undulating with a sickly, rhythmic pulse. Its tar-slick tentacles reached out, slithering and curling like the limbs of some unholy tree, while its primary tentacle held aloft a humanoid skull. The skull's hollow eyes like to pits of void, tracking Alex and Incognita with a predatory intelligence that sent a chill through the chamber. Every twisted inch of the creature seemed to scream defiance, as though daring anyone to challenge its dominion.

Alex stood firm, his gaze locked onto the monstrous figure before him , as towering reaper wreathed in shadows, his form seeming to swell with otherworldly power. Dark flames sparked around him, swirling until they erupted into a blazing pillar of necrotic fire that shot up toward the ceiling, casting an eerie, deathly light over the chamber. Creatures foolish enough to draw close to him dissolved on contact with the flames, their flesh crumbling into dust, their life force consumed by the hungry fire that now burned at his command. His reaper form was like a dark sun, radiating pure power.

Then, from his back, a pair of bony, skeletal wings emerged, their edges lined with flickering black flames that licked and curled with a predatory grace. Each wing was a weapon unto itself, jagged and sharp, burning with the promise of death. In the hellish glow, Alex looked like a harbinger—a dark apostle of death itself.

As his hand rose, the orb in his chest pulsed with raw energy, feeding his power. Spectral blades materialized around him, each one glinting with a sickly, ghostly sheen. There were dozens of them, floating in an ominous ring, spinning around him as if awaiting his command. With a single flick of his wrist, the blades shot forward, slicing through the chaos beasts in an unstoppable torrent of death. The creatures screamed and writhed as they were shredded to pieces, their bodies dissolving into oily puddles of ooze, their essence consumed by the dark energy of the blades. When the blades stilled, only piles of ichor and twisted remnants remained, the beasts annihilated before they could even reach him.

Finally, Alex turned his gaze back to the Beast of Bedlam. The creature reared back, its massive form quivering with rage. It let out a guttural roar, its skull flashing with furious light, its tentacles writhing and snapping as though eager to tear him apart. The creature recognized him as a true threat now—a worthy adversary.

Incognita moved to Alex’s side, her own form shadowed in an aura of dark power. She could feel the energy radiating off of him, the raw strength that seemed to shake the air around him. She glanced up at form, her ruby eyes wide with a mixture of awe and determination. He was a force of death, unstoppable, relentless.

The Beast of Bedlam lunged, its tentacles lashing out with terrifying speed, aiming to crush them both in a storm of writhing limbs. Alex stepped forward, his wings unfurling with a mighty sweep, his flames blazing even brighter. He raised a hand, and from his palm, a surge of dark energy erupted, colliding with the nearest tentacle. The force of it seared through the creature’s flesh, leaving a smoking, charred stump in its place. The beast recoiled, letting out an ear-splitting howl of pain.

But the Beast wasn’t finished yet. With a renewed fury, it swung its remaining tentacles, each one crashing down with enough force to shake the ground beneath their feet. Incognita dodged nimbly, moving with a preternatural grace, her vampiric speed and strength fully awakened. She darted in and out of the creature's reach, slashing at its flailing limbs with her daggers, her strikes leaving trails of shadow in their wake. She could feel the thrill of battle coursing through her veins, her senses sharper than ever, her every move infused with a deadly elegance.

Alex, meanwhile, stood his ground, the flames around him intensifying. He leapt into the air, his bony wings carrying him high above the creature. He raised both hands, channeling his necrotic power, and brought them down with a mighty force. Dark lightning crackled from his fingertips, arcing down into the Beast of Bedlam, striking it with relentless fury. The creature thrashed and writhed, its tentacles spasming as the lightning seared through it, leaving smoking craters in its pulpy flesh.

The Beast howled, its defiance turning to desperation as Alex’s power bore down on it. With one final, devastating surge of power, he extended his hand, a massive scythe of pure shadow forming in his grasp. He swung it with all his might, the blade slicing clean through the creature’s body, severing it in two.

The skull fell and crashed to the floor, cracking in two upon impact. The sound echoed through the room, a reminder of the creature defeat.

But the beast did not die. A sinister laughter filled the room, seeming to come from all directions at once, mocking their efforts.

As they watched in horror, the beast's body began to knit itself back together. The monstrous form regenerating with unnerving speed. Within moments, the beast stood before them once more, its body appearing exactly as it had before their fight, none of the injuries present.

This abomination needed to be utterly destroyed—no half-measures, no remnants, both of them thought.

The Beast of Bedlam, sensing their intent, reared back and unleashed another sickening screech, the horrific sound rattling the stone walls of the chamber and filling the air with chaotic energy, as it contorted the chamber around it. Jagged spikes erupted from the floor, twisting and slanting in unnatural directions, as if the very walls themselves recoiled from the creature's chaotic influence. Alex and Incognita could feel the warping energy clawing at their senses, pulling them toward madness. But together, they steeled themselves, ready to face this horror head-on.

It unleashed another horrifying , even stronger than before , screech that pierced the air, echoing through their minds and rattling their spirits. Incognita staggered, feeling her confidence waver. A clawing, creeping terror crept up her spine. Her knees buckled slightly, feeling the fear that was not her own. Yet she gritted her teeth, summoning every ounce of resilience within her. She refused to falter now—not in the face of this monstrous foe.

“Focus!” Alex's voice cut through her haze, grounding her. He reached out, sending a pulse of energy that created a protective aura around them both, stabilizing their senses.

The Beast of Bedlam twisted, shifting with sudden speed. A cloud of noxious, green fumes erupted from its core, rolling toward them with an unstoppable momentum. The thick, poisonous gas clung to the ground, advancing in waves. Alex's barrier protected them, but the fumes continued to spread, filling the chamber with a choking, toxic miasma.

“Stay close to me.” Alex said with calm. He guided Incognita to a slightly higher patch of ground as the gas crept lower, but the Beast was relentless, shifting to block their path with the putrid fumes.

Incognita, undeterred, took advantage of their positioning. She slipped from Alex’s side, positioning herself behind a crag of twisted stone the creature had created, using the cover to line up a perfect shot. Dark energy pulsed around her as she readied her big crossbow, and she felt the shadows surge in response to her will.

The bolt fired from her crossbow streaked through the gas, cutting through the thick haze. Each bolt struck true, sinking deep into the Beast’s shifting, fleshy body, but the creature only screeched louder, seemingly invigorated by the chaos surrounding it.

Alex raised his arms, summoning spectral blades to surround him, and with a commanding gesture, he sent them slicing through the air. The blades collided with the Beast’s tentacles, severing some of the writhing limbs, but the monster's wounds morphed almost immediately, flesh knitting together in a grotesque display of regeneration.

Alex held firm, reaching deep into his arcane reserves, and called upon the most powerful necromantic spells he could muster.

“Circle of Death.” Alex’s voice resonated with power, a word echoing in the air like the toll of a funeral bell. From his hand, a sphere of dark energy expanded outward, rapidly growing as it swept over the Beast . The chaotic creature staggered, momentarily slowed, its tentacles recoiling from the necrotic wave, but it wasn’t enough to end it.

The creature lashed out, a twisted tentacle sweeping through the air toward him. Alex teleported at the last moment, appearing a few feet away, his eyes blazing with unyielding focus. He needed something more—a spell to strike at its very core.

“Finger of Death.” A dark, crackling beam shot from his outstretched hand, piercing through the Beast’s pulpy flesh and causing its body to twist in agony. The necrotic energy sought out the creature’s essence, corrupting it with a deathly force that threatened to overwhelm even its chaotic form. Yet, the Beast resisted, screeching louder as it absorbed the pain, its body writhing and reforming around the wound. The spell had left it weaker, but not vanquished.

Incognita, seeing the opportunity, drew her crossbows and unleashed a storm of bolts, each enhanced with shadowy energy. The bolts tore through the Beast’s form, some lodging into its flesh while others dissolved into the chaotic energy surrounding it. Yet, even as chunks of its body fell away, the creature regenerated, fueled by an inner chaos that defied destruction.

“Time to end this,” Alex muttered, focusing all his arcane might.

He channeled “Blight,” and a sickly green light erupted from his hands, enveloping the Beast. Its flesh and ooze-like form shriveled as the life was sucked out of it, the dark magic eating away at its vitality. The Beast howled in agony, its form diminishing, but it was still not enough. It fought, clinging to life with relentless, unnatural tenacity.

As the Beast of Bedlam staggered under the weight of its wounds, its chaotic form shifting and sagging, Alex saw his chance to end it once and for all. His arms twisted, morphing into razor-sharp claws, deadly extensions of his wrath. He lunged forward, his movement as swift and primal as a predator's.

He tore into the Beast, his claws rending its flesh like a whirlwind, slicing through tentacles and dark, oily flesh. The creature thrashed against him, its many mouths screeching and gnashing, but it was weakened, its chaotic energy flickering, the light in its eyes dimming.

Incognita watched in awe as tendrils of flesh erupted from Alex’s back, dark and sinuous, burrowing into the Beast’s flesh.

The Beast flailed, its monstrous body convulsing under his grip, but Alex’s tendrils held firm, feeding off its very essence, absorbing the life force of this monstrosity as it struggled in vain.

Gradually, the Beast's form began to disintegrate, dissolving under the relentless assault of Alex. Its howls softened to whimpers, then to silence. The chaos within it, the twisted, corrupted life that had defied death, finally gave in, consumed by Alex's power. Piece by piece, it crumbled away, until all that remained was a pool of dark residue, sinking into the cracked stone floor of the chamber.

As the last remnants of the Beast vanished, Alex straightened. His eyes, still glowing with energy, softened as he glanced back at Incognita, who stood beside him.

“It’s over,” he murmured, his voice rough but steady.

Incognita took a step forward, her gaze never leaving his, and offered a small, fierce smile. “You… you are something else,” she whispered, her voice thick with admiration .