The misshapen form of man and demon crawled forward.

Fallen.

It was a Fallen. The worst enemy to deal with right now. One with a malignant intelligence.

There was no doubt of it, its hate vibrated in near-tangible waves.

But then what damn class was it on?

What spectrum did it fall under?

Thra-DOOM!

Thunder clashed once more.

The rain rode on the hard wind, bathing the space in its colorless ambience while the monster's eyes remained only of noticeable sinister color. It was five yards away, and slowly it opened its mouth. But not where Hope expected it to open on the human's face, but beneath the lower jaw where it curved toward the neck. There it split, and a forked tongue extended like a blood ribbon with sharp fangs bared.

'What…'

And from it a fetid odor emanated, teasing nausea as black liquid dripped.

'The hell…'

Ssssh…sshiish…

Move. He had to move.

Of course, there was the chance of it lunging out. But Hope was doomed either way. He had to dare any options.

Hope gritted his teeth. 'Dammit…'

As the monster swayed to the side, Hope commanded his body to follow as he took a step back.

…Ssssslk.

When it swayed to the left, so did Hope.

Ssshh…

Steadily, he mirrored its movements.

Ssshh…ssshiish..

Hope had crossed Fallen Creatures before…from a great distance. Of course, never personally, that was the Awakened's job. Hope should've recognized its aura, but it was different with the proximity. Or maybe moreso from the type of species it was.

Its burning eyes peered into him, observing his every movement. For some reason, a part of Hope could read that this monster enjoyed this silly dance. And maybe any monster would. To play along with the weak. With their food.

A monster enjoying the quiet thrill before a kill.

Step…

Ssssshh–

Options. What the hell were his options?

Strength?

Hope's lips twitched in a grim line from the thought.

There was no defeating the serpent monster with fists or crafted weapons. Even now, Hope felt a similar feeling back in his First Nightmare when he faced the Awakened Demon. The time when he was certain he would die then. Realistically, that possibility was high in this scenario as well.

But if Hope had to simplify his situation, in which he needed to in this dire situation, then he supposed he could say it was just a monster.

An intelligent mind but not one of human thought. Although, most of humanity were quistionably idiotic. But that was because few pushed their limits.

Hope was not one of genius minds.

Nor was he an Awakened. Obviously.

"Huu…" Hope let out a steady breath.

But Hope didn't need to overpower this thing.

He just needed to survive it.

'Whatever logical means necessary...' Hope thought with bitterness. 'Fucking odds…'

Step…

While Hope took another swaying step back, the memory of each planted bomb fleeted through his mind. And every surface, every crack, every lengthened pace, and every pockmarked hole he recalled rushed across his eyes. The flooded information caused a slight dizziness. But he knew he would only have a split moment to react in the next minutes.

Or likely seconds.

Hssss!

The serpent monster hissed, as if it saw something shift in Hope.

'An Army Reserve soldier you said…' His memory's voice suddenly whispered. 'I guess we had high expectations of you–'

'Shut up.'

Hope narrowed his eyes.

HsssSS!

The monster reacted.

Hope instinctively swung his arms up—predicting the incoming strike.

But still his block was too slow.

And there was not enough time to summon the Ashen Shield.

In a flash, the serpent lunged, driving its claws into Hope's shoulder and chest. A heavy force caved inside him, the air bursting out of his lungs as the impact sent Hope flying back.

"Urk!"

Hope gritted his teeth as he rolled on the glass surface.

The cracks screamed from his landing. He pushed off, twisting his body with an awkward desperate motion to avoid the spots that buried certain death.

Krrrrrr–

And at that moment, he used the spine blade's edge—the pitch claws for jagged teeth—that scratched against the glass surface, screeching like tittering cries till it slowed him to a stop.

CracK!

Another crack resounded.

But Hope wasn't looking at the ground anymore.

Hssssh!

Gazing froward, across the mirrored glass, the rain split as the serpent slithered forward from the gray with its maw gaped wide.

!!!

'Fast fast fast–'

Another weight finally settled into Hope's left hand and, reflexively, he brought his shield up.

Kiiiing!

He blocked just in time, but the clash sent him back again. His boots skidded to the edge of the fallen building, and beneath him the cracks widened.

Crack—

A foreboding snap echoed through the air.

Move.

Hope then threw himself sideways just as the surface shattered and plunged into blackness.

He rolled into a crouch, immediately planting a hand down to steady himself. "Huff… huff… huff—" And his breathing came in wheezes, the heavy weight still twisting in his chest.

Fallen…The true power of a Fallen.

This was ridiculous.

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"Huff…Huff…"

Survive it. Hope had to–

"Breathe dammit…"

Endure it.

Hot breath passed his lips and clouded in front of him. A cold he had long ignored had thickened into the air. But the Fallen Creature's deep scratch through his clothes and flesh burned into him like a fever, and his heart hammered against his ribcage.

Of course. Some Awakened died fighting against Fallen Creatures. However heroic or unheroic they were, their deaths were glossed over with some fancy narrative to the public. If they were even notable soldiers.

For Masters, it wasn't much of an 'end of the world' problem. A struggle nonetheless with a high surety of success, unless they were worthless fighters or blinded prideful characters.

For mundane humans, they were like casted stones against the Fallen. Thrown aside like toys, mangled like dolls, torn like paper. No one worth naming as opponents.

And for Dreamers?

Dreamers who stood between the Mundane and Awakened, didn't speak much for itself.

'Get up soldier.' His Master's voice spoke during their training. One of those many times he had collapsed from her brutal training.

'You're not done yet–'

'Face…'

!!!

Hope flinched, swinging his arm up–

Kiiiing!

'Shit!'

The Ashen Shield trembled greatly—the reflection shimmering on its dome like teary eyes—as the serpent's tail lashed out.

But the monster didn't waste another moment as it lunged after him again. Faster than ought to have been possible for a monster its size.

Hope coughed up blood as he turned and quickly blocked the second incoming blow.

Cwlang—

Fwooosh!

The wind icily whistled into Hope's ears, the distance growing again with the serpent's evil suns for eyes shrinking to specks as he was hurled through the air.

The moment he rolled onto the rained surface, memories instantly screamed into his ears, even flashed behind his eyelids, of the dangerous spots around. Yes yes he knew. Dammit he remembered them like a hot coal in his forethought.

Hope quickly dodged and weaved between the patches. And his blood clung to the trickling rain, leaving a trail of murky red.

Krrrrr—

The glass screeched again as his sword slowed him to another stop, and his muscles began groaning with exhaustion. Impossible they said. It was impossible against this Creature.

And what did it matter if it was impossible? That wasn't the problem.

He couldn't afford to stop.

Hope gritted his teeth. 'Don't. Stop.' He commanded his body.

Kiiiing!

The serpent hissed and striked again.

'Don't stop–'

Shoulder…

Chest…

Kiiiing! Kiiing–

An ache here. A crack there. A violent shake in his bones through his limbs.

HskkreeEI!

The strikes hit him nonetheless despite instinct grappling at his arms, and the serpent let out a blood-curdling scream that shook the air. Even its eyes seemed to shake from it.

Kiiiiing!

"Urk!"

Another painful block.

Another painful groan from his muscles. .

'You should be prepared…'

'I get it–'

'And what if I am?' Hope flinched, suddenly hearing his past self speak.

'Well then, soldier, maybe I won't rip you apart.'

"..."

The hell kind of training was that at that time…

Maybe Hope had trained against one of the Masters before. The damn one who had an opinion for everything. The way her black glossed lips curved up as she relished the defeat of each trainee. A hell of a fight that was. It could even be called one. But at least back then there wasn't true malice behind her attacks. And unlike Nightmare Creatures, a Master only had one damn class–

'Chest…' An instinctive voice whispered.

!!!

Kiiiiing!

Wpatt!

Something hot and cold sliced him again.

Hope realized it was the serpent's tail lash that drew more blood from his chest, causing him to flip back.

But as he made contact with the ground, his boots slipped and he was sent sliding uncontrollably up the fallen building. A planted bomb spot came into view, and Hope forced himself to veer a different direction. However this resulted in him twisting his ankle, and the pain shot up in his leg to his brain like a cry.

But…

'Move.' Hope thought coldly.

…Hope's expression was unreadable from the warning. His eyes remained locked focused as he kept his head up. Wide-eyed even—sparing no glance at his wounds.

Drip. Drip.

He faintly felt blood drip from his shoulder and chest.

And Hope's vision blurred as the world spun around him.

His mind racing and tracking each perilous spot.

There—a planted bomb.

There—a weak glass patch.

Hope began to move again. The hot throb pulsed in his ankle as he pulled himself to the side to avoid the spots.

His balance faltered.

And the slick surface betrayed him.

But Hope caught himself nonetheless, planting the spine sword into the glass for stability.

Sssslk!

The serpent slithered forward.

The sound of its body scraping passed the shards and puddles slipped wetly through the air.

The serpent angrilly hissed. Lashing out with fangs this time with its human face hovering on top like a possessed mask. The horns protruding like a demon. Or a devil.

"…"

Hope gripped his sword and shield till he was sure his own knuckles turned white from it.

Cwlang!

Another block, another bone-shaking impact sent him sliding back. But this time, Hope used the momentum—letting his body twist with it, leaning into the glide. While he did so, he grabbed onto one of the pitch claws for jagged teeth on his spine sword.

And he ripped it from its edge.

Whoosh–

Hope then threw the claw as hard as he could forward.

The claw cut through the air and continued like an arrow till it pierced a glass right next to the monster.

Hsssk!?

And the moment it hit the surface, Hope shielded his face–

BOOM!

Suddenly, an explosion roared through the space, fragments tearing through the air followed by a surprise cry from the serpent.

The serpent reared back, its coils writhing from the sudden bloom of heat.

Of course, Fallen Creatures couldn't be killed by normal bombardments. Bullets or bombs meant nothing to them, a death blow from any of these traps was unlikely. But it was a distraction, a tactic. It was timing. There was still the dealing with the aftershock, the light, and the blasted force. And who the hell could say that he couldn't use them as well?

Hssssk!

The serpent hissed, furious, before it slithered forward again. Its body adeptly moved between the spots that should be avoided.

'Really your territory huh.' Hope thought as he narrowed his eyes.

He gritted his teeth as he too lunged forward before sliding on the ground on his side.

Glass shards stuck to his clothes, but Hope didn't pay mind as he quickly twisted himself one way to avoid a death bite from the monster. Only a drop of venom managed to fall on Hope's exposed cheek, but the feeling of it was like a white-hot needle driving into his flesh.

The serpent being irritated that he dodged the bite, it stretched back and hit Hope back-handed before he completely escaped it.

Hope felt himself suspending into air, but he did the same motion of turning, ripping a claw from the sword's edge, and throwing it at another spot–

BOOM!

HsskreeEEI!?

A bloom of fire erupted.

BOOM!

And another. And another.

Soon, the path grew more treacherous—broken beams jutting from the building and glass splintering. Smoke that coughed upwards immediately scattered from the rough rain.

Plan. The plan… What was the plan exactly?

With an annoyed expression, Hope looked off to the right side of the fallen building.

Then looked away.

That…was the plan…

But the first priority was dealing with this monster to give him enough time to truly escape.

Hope looked up and saw the serpent slither through the traces of smoke. But it stopped. Taking in a deep inhale, as if it could breath in the satisfying sear of burning flesh it marked on Hope.

Its pupils then dilated to narrowing slits.

Staring into him as if with a newfound intoxication.

Hope stumbled back. Through his mind's focused fortress, the pain rippled passed it and screamed out each wound to him. As if wanting to remind him of the reality he was in.

Ah yes. That wound. And that wound. And a number of others.

Hope gripped tighter on his shield.

'And what the fuck did that matter?'

A twist of a joint. A cut on a flesh. A burn. Or a beating. Should wounds damn matter if survival was just within reach? Sacrifice was another word Hope didn't like to use. Mostly because it was associated with some narrative. But if he must sacrifice a part of himself to survive against a bigger foe, then logically he would.

Something cold and dark filled inside him at that moment.

Hope didn't consider it before, but what the hell did this Fallen Creature see when it looked into his own eyes? Did his [Chimera] Attribute have the same effect on it as did humans?

What did it see?

Promise?

Or peril?

Suddenly, though the rain continued to whip around and cry like a sobbing god, the heavy mist melted. Silhouettes of nearby buildings came into view, the crater's mouth to his left bled a hole in his peripheral. Even some of the far buildings he had traveled passed were blurring at the edge.

It was as if a fogged curtain lifted to let the whole world see him and this Creature.

Whether by the universe's hand or fate.

Hope gritted his teeth as he pushed off the ground backward with his one good leg.

'One last time then.'

HsskeEEI!!

The serpent screamed and slithered after him.

The mouth gaping wider like a broken yawn, teeth glistening with black venom.

Beneath it the cracks stretched wider as it coiled forward, glass panels here and there breaking sporadically around that broke in one ear to the other.

'Closer.' Hope thought as he slowed himself to a stop. 'A little closer–'

BOOM!

A bloom of fire erupted, and another where Hope threw the last remains of the pitch claws forward. But the Fallen Creature moved passed lightly and avoided the shells.

Hope's eyes hardened at its movements–

'You think you can stand against me, soldier?'

Hope ignored his Master's voice as he crouched down.

'I am an Ascended. That makes me a god to your kind.'

HssskeeEEI!

Pushing past the pain, summoning his last Memory, Hope lunged forward as well close to the left fallen building's edge.

The remaining smoke and embers and exhaust that erupted previously into the air filled Hope's nose as him and the serpent streaked towards each other.

What was the true difference between Fallen and Ascended?

'You know…' His Master knelt close in front of him, her pink hair strands falling across her features as she smirked. 'I've always wanted to kill a god…Maybe those Creatures think the same.'

HsskEEIII!

A shrill tone from the serpent warbled in his ears—the sinister eyes locked onto him. It was undoubtedly fast. Faster than he was if it weren't for his own instinctive nature to barely get him by.

'So…if it must be a maddened or a broken thought, so be it. That's what we call war. Victory.'

Step…

But Hope wasn't here to win.

Step…

He was just here to endure.

By any means necessary.

'Now…'

HsskeeeEI!!

At that moment, the feeling of a bolt from his head to the soles of his feet was followed by tremendous pain as he moved. Hope shifted his muscles, moving them even before instinct rattled inside of him. Hope's leg tensed and pushed him aside—his arm swinging up.

The Fallen's face, a face that could've been from hell itself, was the only thing Hope saw.

It was as if everything stilled.

Hope continued to move his arm, the shield arcing upward, as fast as he could force his own flesh to accelerate. The serpent's claws, and fangs, passed an inch from his head, leaning then overhead, but further enough of where Hope needed it to be.

And Hope reached further out as well—the shield brushing against the Fallen's human jaw—

Crk!

Then he slammed his shield down as if he were cupping the glass surface.

The serpent screamed over his head, its balance shaken from the hit for a split moment.

And the bomb below the glass detonated.

BOOM!

Pressure slammed through Hope's body. A heat licking him with a scorching tongue. And the last thing Hope saw was himself flying in one direction.

And the Fallen over the edge.