Fate - First Reply Slayers of the Wicked

[Jakub]

He gripped her shoulder tightly, holding onto Heike with an arm outstretched, finger-pointing at the creature. There, on its forearms, ran something akin to capillaries but too close to the surface to be called such. They pulsed and glowed in a faint, reddish hue, rippling across the surface of its gaunty skin. Jakub felt an urge to get closer and prod at them, but he knew the consequences of such carelessness. Valuing his life above all else, the male stepped back, making as little noise as physically possible.

The creature neither advanced nor backed up, curiously repositioning itself to face the pair. It was trying to lure Heike and Jakub in with its meager telepathic abilities, making up for the blindness it suffered due to lack of ocular organs. It spoke broken sentences, hoping for a response that'd reveal the position of its guests, but it never came. Jakub's staunch refusal and Heike's lack of awareness worked together as a preventive measure, keeping the two from uttering a single word.

"We can't rush in, not on our own at least. We'll not survive a one-on-one with it," muttered Jakub, mouth obscured by his forearm, distorting the sentences so only Heike's ears would receive them. "Pay special attention to the beast's exposed body parts. I am sure your keen eyesight sees the glowing patches." He was, of course, referring to subcutaneous, vein-like growths spanning the length of their adversary's forearms, spreading into the biceps and disappearing at the point where the limbs and the body conjoined.

"It's using a primitive, unrefined form of enhancement magic. So the thing..." he paused, unsure of what else to call it, "...is not only big but also supernaturally strong, and worst of all, likely supernaturally agile for its size." He stuck with the term 'thing', internally wondering what kind of diseased science or blasphemous, occultish practices brought an amalgamation of flesh and limbs into their world. It made no sense for it to exist in the first place. No anatomy would form like that...but it has! Was it natural? How could it be?

"If either of us engages it on their lonesome, we'll be torn limb from limb, much the same way you'd pluck a chicken. A horrible, terrible death if you ask me."

Heike Eisen

 

[Heike Eisen]

Heike on several occasions had the thought cross her mind, and so it did so here again. In her quest to rid herself of her vampirism, she had likewise cleansed herself of a strength that was--in terms purely practical--useful in her ongoing endeavors. But that vampiric strength, that power, was not moral. No matter what enemies it enabled her to combat, this foul aberration before her or the Slaughtern Vampire Host itself, it was not moral to maintain that strength.

And yet, humanity did not survive so long upon Arethil without having a strength all its own. Though her muscles now lacked that vampiric might, her bones that fiendish durability, her legs that unholy speed and reflexes, still the duty to Koninghaven and to Abigail rested upon her.

The aberration, by Jakub's estimation, was a formidable foe indeed.

But it was not insurmountable. Not if she and Jakub outwitted the thing.

Heike kept her sword up and ready. She turned her head slightly back, whispering to Jakub, "Mayhap we could bleed out its power."

Those vein-like growths he'd pointed out. If the aberration's blood (or what might count for blood in so grotesque a thing) carried in it that enhancement magic, exsanguinating the fiend could level the field. Such a thing worked against her when was a Slaughtern vampire--that gripping weakness when she was bloodstarved was a distant, but still rather tangible, memory.

The problem, of course, was getting close enough to strike. And then far away enough to avoid retaliation. This, however many times might be necessary. And if exsanguination was even a viable strategy.

Jakub

 

[Jakub]

Heike on several occasions had the thought cross her mind, and so it did so here again. In her quest to rid herself of her vampirism, she had likewise cleansed herself of a strength that was--in terms purely practical--useful in her ongoing endeavors. But that vampiric strength, that power, was not moral. No matter what enemies it enabled her to combat, this foul aberration before her or the Slaughtern Vampire Host itself, it was not moral to maintain that strength.

And yet, humanity did not survive so long upon Arethil without having a strength all its own. Though her muscles now lacked that vampiric might, her bones that fiendish durability, her legs that unholy speed and reflexes, still the duty to Koninghaven and to Abigail rested upon her.

The aberration, by Jakub's estimation, was a formidable foe indeed.

But it was not insurmountable. Not if she and Jakub outwitted the thing.

Heike kept her sword up and ready. She turned her head slightly back, whispering to Jakub, "Mayhap we could bleed out its power."

Those vein-like growths he'd pointed out. If the aberration's blood (or what might count for blood in so grotesque a thing) carried in it that enhancement magic, exsanguinating the fiend could level the field. Such a thing worked against her when was a Slaughtern vampire--that gripping weakness when she was bloodstarved was a distant, but still rather tangible, memory.

The problem, of course, was getting close enough to strike. And then far away enough to avoid retaliation. This, however many times might be necessary. And if exsanguination was even a viable strategy.

Jakub

"Something along the lines of that," he uttered, words barely audible, muffled and strangled by the sleeve of Jakub's coat. The male reached out, grasping Heike's sword by its hilt. He half tugged, half squeezed it, feeling the magical currency electrifying his hand. Sparks of green flew around Heike's waist, disappearing at random before, soon enough, her blade illuminated them with its newly-acquired hue.

"Stun rune," continued Jakub, "it'll cause the arcane within the creature's body to twist and turn upon its user, violently combusting and, with some luck, killing it before it can do the same to us." Jakub ditched his coat, letting it fall to the ground with a slight thud, catching the fiend's attention even if only for a split second. It drew closer, inquisitively prodding its immediate vicinity with muscular limbs, gauging, observing for signs of life.

"That said," Jakub all but choked on the bile building up in the back of his throat. He swallowed torturedly, knowing that Heike needed further clarification. His eyes remained fixated upon their enemy and its lack thereof, unmoving and undeterred. "You'll only have one shot, so be precise. And don't think that a shallow cut will be enough. Your sword has to go in deep for my sorcery to take effect."

There was more magic pooling into his dominant hand, purple this time. The raw arcane formed an object, a sword of sorts; one whose blade appeared bone-like and curved, much like a saber. But it was no product of mortal craftsmanship, and indeed, its hilt laid covered by flesh, tightly clutched within the palm of Jakub's hand. Each of his girthy digits found its resting place as the grip adjusted to suit its user, offering a supreme ergonomic experience.

Jakub winced, registering a throbbing sensation on his lower forearm. A tentacle had extended from the hilt's bottom, stabbing into Jakub's flesh and entrenching itself there as it leeched away at his raw magic, infusing the sword with it. He smiled faintly, observing the outcome through the lenses of ambivalence.

"Are you onboard?" There really wasn't much choice or room to say no, given that the unholy beast stood some fifteen, perhaps twenty-ish meters away from them, gaining ground by the second.

Heike Eisen

 

[Heike Eisen]

Heike's gaze followed the sparks about her waist and came then to settle on the glow of her sword.

What she had pondered earlier came echoing back--magic solving problems borne of magic. Were it that there was no such grasping need for the stun rune to even the scales against the supernatural beast, but neither she nor Jakub had that luxury. The vampires (and whomever else) befouling this crypt had taken upon themselves the malicious intent to wield magic in pursuit of their fiendish ends, and a counterbalancing was required. That counterbalance was Jakub, a man who wielded magic with an intent adversarial to their own. Once they departed this crypt, she'd undoubtedly have more to think on concerning the question of magic--and of her own people.

One shot. The pressure was on. Heike felt it, even though landing such a strike against a sightless, unarmed opponent was something that ought to be trivial in the wake of her experience. It wasn't some disarmed enemy soldier, blinded by blood or sweat in his eyes. It was a creature whose strength would strike her like the blow of a great warhammer if she let it.

The new light caught her eye briefly. She looked down and saw the conjuration of the arcane sword in Jakub's hand, and, worryingly, the freakish stabbing of an appendage from the arcane sword's hilt into his forearm. She gave him a dubious, concerned look, but relented. Trust. She had to trust him, and his magic.

Are you onboard?

A small, confident smile behind her helm. "The sooner I need not look at that thing, the better."

Heike reached into the coin pouch on her belt. Carefully plucked several of them between her thumb and two fingers. And, with a flick of her wrist, tossed them forward and slightly off to her right. The coins clattered and clinked on the ground, bouncing, rolling, spinning with a metallic ringing until they all came to a stop.

Both hands on her sword again as she observed the aberration, seeing if and how it would react to the sound.

Jakub

 

[Jakub]

It lunged with such quickness as to render its form a barely recognizable blur. With one muscular arm raised, the creature brought down its wrath, descending from the high heavens. The balled-up fist struck true and dangerously close to a handful of coins tossed by Heike, splintering the stone floor, causing it to develop deep fissures in the unlikeliest of places. The very ground gave in like putty, sending tens, if not hundreds of tiny, jagged fragments flying in every conceivable direction, not unlike a hailstorm of shrapnel.

Thinking himself clever, Jakub zig-zagged around it, relying on the immediate burst of power provided to him by his own enhancement magic. But it heard him, and it wasn't dumb in the slightest, digging out fistfuls of stone, flinging them, seemingly, at random, for what it lacked in ocular prowess it certainly made up for in sheer brutality. The beast couldn't pinpoint Jakub's location, but it needn't have to as its projectiles grew dangerously close to hitting home, only dodged by a hair's breadth through the virtue of Jakub's superior acrobatics.


Jakub breathed heavily, exhaling through his flared nostrils like a brazen bull. It befell his mind that he should get closer, but that was easier said than done. His oversight proved nearly fatal when the creature decided to be the one nullifying the distance between them, all but blindsiding the occultist whose eyes caught the incoming glimpses of something large and hostile practically hauling itself towards him.

"Fuck," Jakub cursed under his breath, rolling with the telegraphed blow, using his shoulder blade to deflect the force. In that brief window of time, he made the most of the monster's confusion, stomping forward and slashing at the upper part of its outstretched limb. His saber bit in, gushing with blood as it effortlessly cleaved through the attacker's flesh, only stopping when faced with the hardness of now exposed, ivory-colored bone. For all its perks, Jakub's weapon couldn't sever it in one blow, and he had to pull back, assuming a defensive stance.

"HEIKE," he all but screeched, expecting her to do something, anything, before the six-armed brain had the chance to pummel him into the unwelcomingly hard floor below.

Heike Eisen

 

[Heike Eisen]

A hail of ruined stone pelted Heike's armor, like a volley loosed from a full line of enemy slingers. She felt the shock of their impacts vibrating through the metal of her kit, through the padding of her arming garments, through her undergarments, through her skin and muscle and down to her very bones did the hard blunt force touch. She reeled, turned, having to plant her foot down to steady herself once more. But her armor had protected her, absorbing the impacts of the shrapnel and leaving her to contend with but a fleeting moment's dull pain.

That aberration was fast. Faster than it had any right to be.

It was on Jakub. Hearing him. Chucking fistfuls more of that broken stone shrapnel at him. Lunging and striking at him. Whatever foul reason there was for the creature's lack of eyes, said lack was ever to Jakub's favor--that strike may well not have missed had the thing been able to see.

But he had the beast's attention. Most, if not all of it, with any luck. If the thing's feral nature was such that it stayed narrowly focused on what it perceived to be before it, then Heike might be able to close the distance whilst it remained distracted with Jakub. For while her approach could be considered swift, it certainly wouldn't be silent.

HEIKE.

She charged forward. Eyes set on the three arms closest to her. On those glowing veins pulsating beneath its flesh.

But the aberration swiped at her with those three close arms, and she had to grind her heels to stop and jerk her head back to avoid being struck. The WHOOSH of air in the wake of the thing's sweeping strike whipped against the metal of her helm and her pauldron like a strong gust of wind.

Searching hands probed the air where the aberration had swung, and Heike stood just outside of the thing's reach. She stood still as a statue, controlled breaths within her helm the only sound she made. The aberration's attention seemed in totality to be on her, in searching for her--though it was unclear whether the beast knew that there were actually two people in the chamber with it or not.

Heike flicked tense eyes to look at Jakub. The only part of her which moved. Even so much as preparing to strike one of the creature's arms would cause her armor to rattle, and for the thing to perhaps dive full force at her before she could deliver the blow.

She couldn't dare move right now.

Jakub

 

[Jakub]

The beast's overwhelming musculature screamed, eager to release its overwhelming power. In one fel swoop, it carved out a literal trench across the floor, scooping out cubic meters worth of rock and soil, a move that inadvertently produced a thick dust cloud, lowering the room's overall visibility.

Jakub forced his mouth shut, breathing through gritted teeth to prevent himself from inhaling the harmful, airborne particles. Alas. the gesture did little to protect his exposed eyes. and he began blinking erratically, momentarily losing his previously iron-clad focus.

Their opponent scuttled sideways, rapidly shifting its grotesque form through the chamber's dust-enshrouded bounds. No longer fixated upon Jakub, the unholy one redirected its attention towards Heike, vaguely discerning her position based on the faint clanking of her armor.

Despite the girl's best efforts, her opponent nonetheless deduced that it was up against two assailants. Angered and irritated beyond comprehension, it flung itself sky-high, reaching the ceiling in a single mighty leap. Its meaty digits dug knuckle deep into the hardened material, displacing it like low-resistance putty. That way, the aberration had where to cling upon what would otherwise be a smooth, crookless surface.

Like a horrid thing it was, the spiderlike brain did its best to line up with Heike's standing position, intending to drop from the above and squash her, leaving behind naught but a messy stain. A blast of radiant energy stopped it a bare second away from enacting the insidious plan.

Jakub had slung a bolt of raw, destructive arcane from the tip of his sword, further explaining why he had it attached to himself in the first place. An explosion of purple erupted, engulfing half of the thing's body with malicious intent. The monster lived, but a good chunk of its back was missing, prompting its injured self to plummet unceremoniously towards the granite floor, landing straight onto its non-existent face.

There it wobbled, struggling to stand up, dazed. Jakub shot her a glance amidst the chaos, eyeballs bulging out of his skull, urging Heike to do something, anything before their enemy regained footing and plucked them like a pair of chickens. Gods knew that he had little magic to spare after this little stunt of his.

Heike Eisen

 

[Heike Eisen]

The dust from the aberration's frustrated strike found its way inevitably into Heike's helm. Tickled her nose and scratched her throat. And she strained mightily to keep from coughing, sneezing, gasping. Her eyes watered, and she held her breath, the burn of her lungs within her chest joining the other pains inflamed by the dust and her effort to stay quiet.

She heard the aberration move. The sharp, curt rustle and whoosh of its jump.

And she couldn't know where it was going. The obscuring dust that had yet to thin and settle. The uncertainty of knowing not if it was going for her and that silence should be abandoned, or if it was again imperiling Jakub, couldn't be discerned.

But Heike reckoned that she could not merely stand there. If it was after Jakub, then she had some leeway to reposition. And if it was after her, then she most definitely should move. Seconds were precious in battle. Even split seconds--perhaps split seconds most of all.

Heike had only just taken her first backpedaling step when the bolt of Jakub's magic struck the falling aberration. The explosion of magic ushered the dust in the air away, creating a pocket of clarity in which Heike could see.

There lay the sick aberration. Injured. Not so far away stood Jakub, with eyes that conveyed the very sentiment of Now is the time! more than words ever could. With the creature reeling, perhaps utterly disoriented (for a few of those aforementioned precious seconds), there was no better time to get past its defenses. Even if she caught a wild, flailing arm, it was all she could do to put faith in the steel which encased her, for she needed to deliver the blow and thus the Stun Rune to end this vile creature for good.

Heike charged forward. Sword up and readied on her approach. Deep. It needed to be deep. A shallow cut will not do.

And she swung down with a large overhead strike once in range of the fiend's prone body.

Jakub