The Breaker’s Banner faded away. It hadn’t lasted as long as Loch had wished. He just hoped it had made a difference. It had helped him. His speed and strength had increased. He’d managed to get more attacks past the Dullahan’s defenses.
It still wasn’t enough.
The Dullahan was wounded but still a strong foe.
It swung its axe, Loch ducking beneath the swing, kicking out. He struck the Dullahan in the side of the knee, falling to the ground with the shock. Hitting a gaunt was like hitting stone. Hitting the Dullahan was much worse. Somehow the monster was more solid. It did stumble back a step, just not as much as Loch who rolled across the ground out of the way.
He bumped up against a jagged piece of asphalt. His back hurt from the impact, the stone digging into him with the point. He pushed up, careful not to trip on the broken ground.
The Dullahan faced him, hollow skull eyes glaring. The flames around the head grew a little brighter as the Dullahan lifted its good arm, still holding the axe. It held it horizontally, the axehead starting to glow a dull orange, the edges flickering in time with the crackling flames around the skull.
Sparks of light started drifting up from the dead gaunts around them. Bodies lay everywhere, some in the holes formed with the pavement lifted, others laying across the broken pavement, still some in the cracks and others just on the ground. It was only in around a ten foot radius, the sparks dancing in the air.
They weren’t the multi-colored lights of Spirit but a single color. A dull gray. They danced faster, in tighter spirals that twisted and turned as they flowed toward the Dullahan. The gray sparks entered the monster’s body. Loch cursed as the wounded arm started jerking, spasming as bones knitted and reformed.
Small wounds across the Dullahan’s body sealed up. Broken bones mended with cracks. The Dullahan’s body jerked as the gray sparks spread throughout. The bodies of the gaunts, already thin, pulled tight across the bones, started to turn saggy, flaps forming in the skin, as the bones seemed to disintegrate. The skin lay across the ground, the wind pushing at them.
The Dullahan stood straighter, the glow around the axe fading as the flames around the skull grew brighter. It took a couple steps toward Loch, who staggered. He felt weak, exhausted.
He didn’t know how much he had left in him. The Dullahan was stronger and now it had almost fully healed. It had taken everything Loch had to get it as wounded as he had, now he had to start over. He didn’t think he could do it.
But knew he had to.
Loch stood as straight as he could, feeling pain flare from ribs he hadn’t known he’d fractured. His muscles protested, straining with each movement. He held his hand out, summoning Onyx from where the axe had fallen. His Health was about half full, his Stamina far less and his Spirit Reserves tapped out. The Dullahan knew he was in bad shape.
“There is no shame in death,” the monster said, its dry hollow voice echoing, loud over the sounds of the fighting from the schoolyard. “There is no escape. Death comes for all. For some it comes sooner.”
“Why are you doing this,” Loch asked, moving to the side, trying to find flatter ground.
“Because Death comes for all.”
The way the Dullahan emphasized death, Loch knew it meant the Divine Being, the Concept of Death. Anything that embodied Death had to be the strongest Being in the Connected Worlds. But why would Death be involved in a Resource World? As the Dullahan said, everything eventually dies. Death would claim it all. Death became a Patron for everyone eventually, even if they didn’t acknowledge it.
Why were the gaunts attacking? It seemed the Divine Being was taking a guiding hand, unlike Loch’s own Patron. What had happened to Earth was bad enough. They didn’t need the added games of the Divine Beings.
How was Earth, and the humans that still lived, supposed to thrive and grow with monsters and invaders?
What was the point of it all?
It swung the large axe, Loch barely getting Onyx up in time to block. He couldn’t concentrate enough to Activate any abilities as the Dullahan kept hammering with its axe. Loch felt a knee start to shake, going numb as it could no longer support his weight. He dropped, holding Onyx with two hands, shaft holding back the cutting edge of the Dullahan’s own axe. The sharp edge slid closer and closer as Loch struggled to hold it back.
He let go of his axe with one hand, falling to the side away from the downward swing of the Dullahans. He could feel it cutting through the air, only inches from his leg. It cut deep into the pavement, cracking it and breaking it up more. Loch rolled to the side, grunting in pain as the Dullahan kicked him, stone-like boot slamming into his side.
He groaned, trying to push up as another kick landed. It sent Loch rolling, bouncing over the broken ground. Something snapped. He was in such pain that he didn’t know where the new pain came from.
Coming to a stop, Loch rolled against an angled piece of asphalt. He used it to stand up, staggering, finding it was his leg that had broken. He turned, looking around for Onyx, having dropped the axe. Loch glared at the Dullahan. It stared back, skull expressionless, flames crackling.
Holding out his arm, Loch summoned Onyx. The axe felt heavy in his tired arm, muscles protesting as he lifted it, ready to throw or swing.
“Can you feel death coming closer?,” the Dullahan asked, taking a couple steps forward. “It comes for you now.”
The Dullahan rushed Loch, swinging its large axe down. Loch tried to raise Onyx but couldn’t, managing to hold the axehead away, but the weight slammed Loch down into the ground. He rose off the ground, feeling ribs breaking, as the Dullahan kicked him.
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Landing hard, Loch rolled over onto his back, looking up at the Dullahan. He knew it was his imagination, but he could have sworn the skull was smiling. Checking his status, he saw his Health tick below 10%, joining his Stamina and Spirit Reserves. He could barely move. Every part of his body hurt, in the most intense pain he’d ever felt.
He had failed. The people that had put their faith in him would die. He’d never find Kelly.
His girls would die.
Loch growled. No. That would not happen.
He felt through his Core, trying to will more Spirit to regenerate. There had to be something he could do. He felt it, an Ability he’d barely ever used, the first time in this battle. One that could only be used in specific situations. It needed no Spirit to Activate.
It gave Loch hope. He had one more shot at defeating the Dullahan.
Loch Activated Go Beyond.
He felt Spirit flooding his Core, coming from the ambient energy around him. It didn’t come close to filling the Core, giving him only 10% of his maximum. And it would only last a couple dozen seconds or so before he’d lose the boost. Loch had to use it wisely.
He Activated Defiant Rage.
Loch could feel the anger pushing to the surface. He was mad at everything. The Connection. The Divine Beings. The gaunts. Mad at himself for not doing a better job. Mad at the people for picking him as leader. Anger that had been held tight in the back of his mind, never allowed out.
It escaped now. It gave him strength and energy, flooding his body with Spirit. His Core flared. His Health and Stamina jumped. His Spirit rose.
Just enough.
He felt the energy spread through his body, into Onyx and into his armor. The Challenger’s Armor, soulbound to him, started to change. The leather changed to thin metal plates. Dented, aged and worn looking. But strong. He could feel the increased strength and durability, the powers granted by the armor growing. Every piece shifted, changing, as his energy moved through the leather and now metal. Not all pieces became metal, just where there had been strips and plates before. They grew, changing.
He didn’t know why or how and at the moment didn’t care.
It all took just a couple seconds. The change started and happened.
In his head, Loch could feel the timer counting down.
He roared, jumping up and rushing the Dullahan, catching it by surprise.
Onyx flared, the head glowing brightly. Loch Activated Precision Strike, seeing only a couple of yellow spots appearing over the Dullahan’s body. There were very few weak spots.
The monster was so close, Loch slammed into it with his shoulder, pushing it back. He swung Onyx, aiming for the shoulder joint. With Cleave Activated, lighting flaring around the impact, Loch pushed through stone-like muscle and bone, cutting deep. He pulled the axe up, still roaring in rage at the world. Loch kicked, feeling bones fracture in his foot, pushing the Dullahan further back.
He swung again, at the other shoulder. The Dullahan dropped its axe, the weapon hitting the ground, the noise lost in Loch’s rage. Red filled his vision, only the spots of yellow standing out. Loch just kept swinging, driving the Dullahan back. He aimed for the yellow spots, the weak spots. He missed most of the time.
The clock in his head continued to tick down.
The yellow spots faded, Precision Strike’s timer up. He knew where they had been. Loch kept swinging. Again he struck the shoulder joint, the Dullahan’s left arm falling off. The monster didn’t say a word, didn’t utter a sound. The flames flared brighter. Loch ignored them, swinging.
He wasn’t attacking wildly, his mind still sharp as the rage roared through his body. His increased strength slammed Onyx down against the Dullahan, each strike planned and mostly accurate. It was hard to always hit a moving target as the Dullhan tried to defend itself. Loch didn’t let up, knowing he had to overwhelm the monster, not give it a chance to respond.
The Dullahan tripped on a piece of pavement, falling to the ground. It hit hard, cracking the pavement, making a dent. Loch kept swinging, alternating the cutting edge of Onyx with the hammer head. An arm came up to block, a hand fell away.
He kept swinging, Onyx slamming down onto the Dullahan’s chest. Bones cracked, gashes appeared. Loch didn’t let up.
He could feel himself tiring, the bonus energy of Defiant Rage being used up. The countdown was getting lower, closer to when he’d lose the bonus energy and even more. The time when he’d collapse and everything would be over.
“No,” Loch roared, slamming Onyx down.
He would not let that happen.
“No,” he growled.
The Dullahan tried to get up but with no arm and no hand, it could not. Onyx chopped down, the head glowing with the energy of Cleave and Smash as Loch turned the weapon over and over. Loch kept swinging, each swing slightly weaker than the last. He was nearing the end. It was going to be over and the Dullahan was still alive.
“No.”
He swung Onyx, the last of his Spirit going into Smash once again. He didn’t even realize that somehow he was using both Abilities far more than he should have. They had a two minute cooldown but he was using it every thirty seconds or so. He couldn’t tell, the world still red with rage, his mind focused on just attacking with everything he had.
His arms felt heavy, full of lead. His legs shook.
Onyx fell, time seeming to slow for Loch. The timer on Defiant Rage ticked down, closer to zero. Onyx cut through the air, the head glowing with Smash, Loch’s Core drained of all its spirit. He watched the axehead falling, the hollow eyes of the Dullahan’s skull watching the falling hammer head.
It connected with the Dullahan’s skull, bone cracking. A bright flash of energy exploded out, flames erupting mixing with the crackling lightning of Onyx. Loch was blasted back, landing on the pavement and sliding, coming to a stop against an upraised portion.
The timer for Defiant Rage hit zero. Loch felt all the energy leave his body. All his Spirit was already gone, but now his Stamina followed. He had nothing to give, the weakness going beyond what it should have. Blackness closed in on Loch’s vision.
Had he killed the Dullahan?
Notifications filled his vision but he couldn’t read them. Everything went blurry, the blackness rapidly creeping in.
Everything went dark.