Opening his eyes, Zeke found himself staring up at Circe’s chin, realizing immediately that she’d rested his head on her lap. Despite the dull headache still persisting on his temples, he lazily rose up. “...Did I sleep long?”
“Nope, just an hour or so,” Circe replied, her eyes still remained fixed on the scenery in front of her. “If you're alright now, we should get going.”
Zeke checked his status window, specifically checking if he had recovered enough mana for their upcoming battle. “Yeah, I'm ready,” he dismissed the screen and got to his feet, eyes landing on Nasrin’s figure leaning against the bent bars. “Nasrin, you can lead the way now.”
“Good to see that you're up, Ezekiel,” the bird warrior seemingly smiled, seeing as her eyes gleamed with jest. Nasrin turned and strode through the gates, followed by Circe and Zeke as they both called their weapons into their hands. “We will be taking the portal up to Tarren’s lair. Be careful, the terrain is not meant for ground dwellers.”
“I understand,” Circe nodded. Soon, they emerged into another identical room, this time with a swirling portal in the middle. “But what about you? You don't have wings either.”
“...Tarren might have clipped my wings,” a chuckle sounded from Nasrin’s deep tone, sending a jolt down their spines. “But he should’ve killed me while he had the chance.”
As they stopped in front of the portal, Nasrin turned to face them. “Remember, all you need to do is support me, and I’ll take care of the rest.” she looked back at the portal. “...And…it doesn't matter what happens to me, while alive, I'm nothing more but a dead man walking. Avenging my fallen comrades is all I care about,” a brief glance casted their way. “Understand?”
Even though Nasrin didn't say it directly, the both of them knew what she meant. Reluctantly, they nodded. “...Yes.”
‘She’ll do anything to get revenge, even if she dies.’
“Good.” Nasrin let out a lighthearted chuckle, as if her words earlier were obsolete. “We’re going in.”
.
.
.
Emerging through the other side, the roars of the raging wind muffled their hearings. As they gazed ahead at their surroundings, they saw multiple floating islands dotted around the large, open area they currently stood on.
[
‘BOOM’
Lightning flashed across the stormy sky, followed by a sudden gust of wind stronger than the ones around them. Nasrin’s head snapped onto something in the distance, making the two follow her gaze in curiosity. Yet, they saw nothing but muted clouds. “...He's here.”
‘BOOM’
‘ROARRRRR’
[WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!]
[High level difference detected!]
[WAR—]
[The Boss Monster
[
It emerged from the turbulent storms around them, soaring through the thunder clouds as if it governed them all in its fierce, iron talons. Each beat of this tyrant’s wings caused massive electrical surges through the clouds.
Tarren’s roars shook the skies like the cry of thunder, his six ashen wings had a tinge of white beneath each feather, making it seem like lightning ran through his every plume.
“...So that's Tarren.” Circe’s voice hitched in her breath, eyes widened with bewilderment at the sight of the ancient avainkin’s giant body descending to the ground.
When Tarren’s claws touched the ground, he suddenly let out a terrific cry. Lightning crackled from around his body as his gaze locked onto Nasrin’s. “Ha, so you have returned at last, Leader of Weisswynn. Did you think that you could defeat me after finding yourself two measly Outsiders?”
With a dominating presence, Tarren’s voice reverberated through the air, carrying the heaviness of a thunder’s growl. That alone made Zeke and Circe tense up unknowingly.
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Despite that, Nasrin didn't waver, raising her head to meet the tyrant’s eyes coldly. “Karma always catches up, Tarren. Today, I shall vanquish you and free my people from your rule.”
“HAHAHA!” literal lightning accompanied Tarren’s booming laughter. “Fool, I am a proud member of the Ancient Aviankin race. And you are nothing more but a mere copy; a fraction of our might. Did you forget…? It's because we are GODS that you worship us as one!”
Nasrin’s frown deepened. “If this is what a god amounts to…” suddenly, she rushed forward, her single, powerful kick creating a crack in the ground. “THEN WE DON’T NEED ONE!”
With that single leap, Nasrin reduced the distance between her and Tarren in an instant. Even though she moved first, Tarren still managed to react to her incredible speed, meeting Nasrin’s claws with a breath of lightning.
As their attacks collided, an explosion covered the battlefield with smoke, but soon Nasrin emerged from the veil once more, leaping up towards Tarren now with her body covered in a turbulent, golden swirl.
Seeing the shimmering power by her hands grow into large claws, Tarren flapped his wings and propelled himself backwards, letting Nasrin’s cleavers drag through the empty air.
Despite avoiding the main attack, the gust of wind generated from it sliced through everything in its path, shattering the ground to pieces while slicing a shallow wound beneath Tarren’s eye.
“Hmph. You move well despite lacking wings.” Tarren sneered as he gained distance while Nasrin landed back on solid ground.
He didn't let her move a single step from where she stood, shooting a breath of lightning towards her. While Nasrin dashed backwards to avoid the first bolt, a second one unexpectedly came from above and struck her relentlessly.
But when the electricity dissipated, Tarren’s eyes widened with surprise, seeing that a blue dome of mana had protected Nasrin from the attack. “How…?”
Suddenly, a searing pain erupted from Tarren’s foot, causing him to stumble forward from the burning agony. When his head snapped around, he noticed Circe twirling her daggers mockingly by his wounded ankle. “You damn human…!”
[The Boss Monster
Tarren breathed lightning onto Circe, but by the time he attacked, she’d already disappeared and returned next to Zeke. “He’s hella rude. I guess that means we can curse at him, fair game, right?”
< Skill Description >
Name: Shadow Glide
Type: Equipment Skill
Tier: B
Cost: None
Cooldown: 70 seconds
Effects
* Allows the user to travel along the shadows. Speed caps at Mach 1
* Effect lasts for 10 seconds. Usage beyond that consumes 10 Mana per Second and increases the cooldown by 10 seconds every 30 seconds of extra usage.
<<>>
“Guess so,” Zeke shrugged as he absentmindedly cast another spell. This time, a soft green glow enveloped both Circe and Nasrin’s body. “Maybe if you do it a lot, it might turn into the ‘Taunt’ skill?”
[Skill synergy detected!]
[
[Grants (+3) Agility to ‘Ruelle Peregrine’ for 20 seconds.]
[Achievement Unlocked: ‘Team Synergy’ - Have a party member’s skill activate another member’s skill effect.]
[You’ve earned some EXP!]
“Only one way to find out.” Circe smirked as she rushed forward, briefly sending a glance at Nasrin. With the signal received, she began running as well.
They parted ways the moment they got closer, causing Tarren’s breath attack to miss by a hair’s length. Unfazed by the powerful strike, Nasrin leaped into the air once more, aiming her golden claws at Tarren’s eye.
However, the tyrant quickly turned his head. His swift thinking forced Nasrin to repurposed her powered talons, crossing them in front of herself to block the incoming lightning breath.
As the bolt sent Nasrin flying through the air, Tarren beat his wings and leaped into the sky, dodging Circe’s Assassinate and knocking her off balance with the updraft.
Tarren let out a thunderous roar that shook the earth and sky, his attention now shifted towards Zeke standing at the very back. “Child of a Witch…! I will kill you first!”
With the warning, Tarren swooped in towards his target, beak opened wide to reveal sets of canines lining his mouth like the maw of a beast. Despite the immediate danger, Zeke felt no sense of urgency, simply raising his staff and casted Mana Barrier and Strengthen.
“Yeah yeah, go for the mage first. I get it.” Zeke rolled his eyes. The moment Tarren crashed onto his barrier, he felt his wrist shake as he felt the force of the bird’s strength through the spell.
Just when he thought he could endure a slight ache, Tarren backed up and breathed lightning onto his shield, the prominent pain now creasing his brows. “...Okay, I'll admit, you're not just an oversized chicken.”
As a crack formed on the mana shield, Tarren suddenly stopped his attack and flew upwards, dodging Nasrin’s golden claws once more. “Tch.” she clicked her tongue in annoyance, watching Tarren circle back around once more as he prepared another breath attack.
“Oh, no you don't.” Zeke quickly dispelled his barrier and stepped forward. Striking the end of his staff to the ground, its sapphire began to glow with power before Tarren suddenly got smacked onto the ground by an intense force.
[Achievement Unlocked: ‘Perfect Combination’ - Perform your first
[You’ve earned
“LET. ME. GO!” Tarren attempted to fight the gravity field, but the more he struggled, the further he dug himself into the cracked ground. As he glared at Zeke, the mage nonchalantly pulled out a vial and downed its deep blue content.
[Consumed x1
[
“Potions work for CC skills too,” Zeke threw away the empty vial as Circe and Nasrin both jumped onto the fallen boss. “So in conclusion: Get fucked.”
Circe activated ‘Assassinate’ and ran her daggers down Tarren’s back, ignoring the shrieks of pain and curses that followed after. At the same time, Nasrin’s golden talons worked on severing one of Tarren’s many wings. It looked like the battle was over.
[The Boss Monster