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The mutated spider knight Noac in his chamber. Hey..are there things from the future? |
Kyflynn retorts,
‘Well, we don’t care if you’re a Lord of Doppelgängers, Black Prince or even
the tiniest worm from hell, we’ll crush you like a bug you are.’
‘Huh, you think
you have seen it all, loudmouth? Think again!’ Saying so, the Black Prince is
about to shape-shift. He takes his armor off, revealing his muscular, pale-blue
body that elongates like a caterpillar’s and gets blackened. His lower body
also transforms into an eight-legged spider, black with red stripes. Long
spikes sprout from his new legs, and his upper torso is now covered with
black-red spider crust that serves as armor.
The gargantuan
tarantula-man moves quicker now with eight new limbs replacing his feet. His
hands merge with the Carrion Lance, one for each tip.
Desmond, Tina
and Flynn are already wounded and fatigued from the Black Prince’s attack.
Never, in their wildest dreams they expect such surprise from this shapeshifter
that is generally known to copycat one certain being only – never modifying,
never combining.
Yet, there’s no
time to be surprised. The trio spreads out into attacking positions,
surrounding the gigantic arachnid as he finishes his transformation by the
change of his human visage. His eyes turn large, round, faceted, clearly an
insect’s. His nose shrinks into slits, and his mouth stretches much larger with
monstrous fangs and a set of big mandibles. Two pairs of pronged antlers
replace his hair.
Thus completes
Nöac’s true form, both devilish and monstrous befitting the Dark Overlord’s
ever-overshadowed, long-lived bastard son, born in the time of Fireheart, kept
himself hidden and low-profile until now.
Kyflynn, as
usual, is the first one to move, with a sneak attack he lands a Backstab on the monster’s spider
abdomen, CHRAATSZ!! Making green ooze sprout from that wound.
Nöac turns to
swat that little ‘mosquito’, and then comes the second wave of attack: the
frontal swing of a great hammer to split his body with Landsplitter Quake.
CRRACKLEE,
BATT!! The monster’s upper pair of spider legs on the back ‘catch’ the speeding
hammer and stop it on its track simply by putting high-concentrated electric
charge on each spider leg-tip, transferring high surge of electricity towards
the berserker! ZZZZTTT!!!
Once again,
Desmond endures another torture. All that suffering, however is just a tactic
to buy time, because on the next moment comes Tina’s shout, ‘Vare Jokulhaups Nek’havr!’
Waves of ice
come crashing down from the sky in a glorious Avalanche. FYRRSCHH!! On-and-on, covering that area with the
freezing aura. Is Tina mad? She’s going to hurt her friend as well!
Well, she keeps
on, adding pressure and damage on these two individuals. And surprisingly, Desmond’s
face stays calm and he endures on, ans though he is all prepared for such
action and believes fully in her partner’s precise analysis.
At last, Monster
Nöac throws Desmond away, and the waves of Avalanche
stop gradually. Yet, the nut doesn’t crack yet. The monster stands immobile
in place as though is freezing to death, and the next moment, his four upper
limbs stretch out! CRRACKKLL! CRRACKLL!!
Electric currents are culminating into a Ball Lightning in front of him. The ball gets bigger and bigger,
Nöac’s lanced hands spin and thrust the ball, and the ball bursts!
BLLAARRSHH!!
Electric bolts spread out, leaving no room for the opponents to escape. Even
Kyflynn, the quick one got hit and electrocuted by that wild current!
FZZT! ‘GYAAAHH!!’
The berserker
and the sorceress are hit by a lesser portion of that blast. The berserker,
still with electric current on his body moves forward, leaps high and swings
his great hammer vertically with all his might!
BHLAAAMMM!!
Desmond hits Spider Nöac’s abdominal back, making a Quake Epicenter that sends a wave of destruction throughout his
body. CRAACCKLE-CRACK! The abdominal crust cracks at last, and green ooze
bursts out from it.
‘SSKRRAAIIIEEE!!’
The monster raises his two hind legs and his spider back to knock back the one
who cracked his back, and the berserker moves away just in time to avoid them.
Now the
gargantuan moves here and there, thrusting with all his limbs desperately and
randomly. And then, he stretches out all arms to full length, covering all
directions and shoots cobwebs! The sticky traps envelop the three opponents
like fishes in nets, and again, the electric webs electrocute the three
Paladins in a continous jolt to the death! There’s no escape from this
ultra-powerful Arachnid Carnage! Nöac
clicks his mandibles excitedly in rapid succession, moving closer towards
Kyflynn to finish him off!!
‘AAARGHHH!!!’
Never before the night elf is this helpless. He, who prevailed against his
rival MacLair and was unofficially the ‘King of Speed’ in Aurelia is now going
to succumb to the power surpassing speed: absolution.
The spider has
trapped three flies on his web, and as he’s about to devour the quickest, most
annoying fly, suddenly, BAMMM!! A great hammer hits him with a force so great,
making him sway off target.
Still under
pressure, Kyflynn turns his head to see his rescuer, who is none other than
Desmond Edmundsen. The berserker shouts thunderously, ‘Fine! A monster like you
will never understand that your web won’t hold my strong body and your
lightning will get neutralized by the ground, its anti-element. Now reap your
own folly: Omnipotent Catastrophe! HHEEAARGHHH!!’
Saying so,
Desmond swings his hammer to eight directions, and the power spreads to
eighty-eight hits towards the eight hundred and eighty-eight different spots in
the man-spider’s body, head, legs and limbs! CRACK-CRACK, CRACK! CRACK! With
power greater than all his other moves.
Every blow he
deals makes a crack on the man-spider’s crust, and adding new cracks on top of
the old ones. Nöac tries to struggle, but he can’t seem to move
his limbs to fight back. He is like stunned, like a helpless sitting duck being
torn apart.
‘SHKRIIEEKK!!’
The monster screams in agony.
When Desmond moves in front of his
face, suddenly the spider spits a jet of cobweb! It hits and sticks squarely on
his chest, and the next moment, an electric current powerful enough to kill a
legion of armored troops is surging into his body! ZZZT! ZZZT!!
The pain is beyond belief, but
Desmond bears it and moves on to finish his eighty-eight hits! He delivers a
big finish on Nöac’s head, BLAAMM!! And moves swiftly to a safe spot.
Nöac stands immobile for a second,
and the next moment, the true power of Omnipotent
Catastrophe comes exploding from the cracks! BLAM, BLAM, BLAAM!!
‘A monster like you will never
understand that disrupting the nature’s balance and fighting against it is
futile! Survival is for the fittest, the ones who walk alongside nature
hand-in-hand. So, die with your stupidity, Son of Vordac!’
Desmond stands tall in triumph as
he watches the misfit of nature crumble into pieces, with beastly shrieks wash
down into his doom. And with that, electricity stops flowing into the cobwebs
as the source is now dead. Free at last, Desmond comes towards his partners and
free them from their nets.
Suddenly, from the splattered
remains of the arachnid monster a mist shoots up and forms into a man’s figure.
His visage is of Alaric’s, and so is the voice that comes after.
‘Thank you, brave Paladins,’ he
says with a calm, peaceful smile. ‘You finally broke me free from being
imprisoned in my own body, only watching that wretched Nöac abuse it to his own
gains.’
Kyflynn stares at the ghostly
apparition and speaks softly, ‘I’m just curious – how did you meet this Nöac,
Sir Alaric? I mean, you should’ve known better than to sell your body to this
abomination.’
‘I know…’ Alaric’s spirit lowers
his head in shame. ‘I was so envious to my little brother, Eldric. I saved his
life countless times, even lost my right eye, but he always got the promotion
and always got ahead of me in every endeavor. In a mission to salvage the ruins
near Norell Loch, I found a Spider Pendant, and Nöac’s spirit in there
interacted with me since then.
He offered power, power beyond all
limits - a chance to surpass my brother and more. I was so desperate so I made
a covenant with him. Never did I expect that he betrayed that covenant,
regardless of the curse that will befall him – as he is already cursed. How
stupid of me, but it’s already too late…’
Alaric pauses a bit, and then
continues, ‘Thank Vadis that I met you three, so I am free at last, ready to
atone my sins to the Holy One, ready to be expelled to hell because of the
horrors I did.’
Hearing that, Kyflynn raises his
hand, ‘Wait. Correction: It was NÖAC who did the horrors, not you. Your only
sin was envy, and it was forgiven once you realized your mistake. I don’t
worship Vadis, but at least I understand a bit about his intentions and the way
he handle things. So, let your heart at ease and go in peace.
Don’t worry, we won’t tell anyone
about your link with Nöac, so the people of Lore will always remember you as a
hero, an equal to your brother Eldric.’
‘Well, thank you, Kyflynn,’ Alaric
curls a warm smile. ‘May Vadis bless you three in your struggle in
Kraal’thragon. For your information, you and your fellow Paladins must face two
more guardians before you can reach the Dark Overlord’s heir, the one you’re
seeking for. Farewell.’
With that, Alaric’s spirit
levitates and dissolves, crossing over to the afterworld.
Kyflynn and Agustina don’t blink
even once as they witness this supernatural event. And then their eyes turn to
Desmond, He also has his eyes on the vanishing apparition, and then turns
towards the white-haired woman, saying, ‘Are you all right, Tina?’
By which the latter only nods –
which is enough for him.
Staggering, Kyflynn walks up to the
berserker, pats his shoulders and says, ‘Well done, Desmond. I wouldn’t have
had a solution more effective than yours back there. I owe my life to you,
partner… my friend.
Well, now that we have eliminated
the first guardian, let’s join other Paladins. There are still two more
guardians to topple… UURGHH!!’ Suddenly, the night elf falls on his knees!
Desmond
immediately rushes to his side, saying, ‘Slow down, Flynn. We have to take a
rest for a while, here in the monster-free spot, and let the others do their
share. We’ll catch up with them once you’re recovered.’
Agustina
also states her mind by pouring a vial of healing potion into Kyflynn’s mouth,
puts the empty container back into her bag and sits near her team mates,
resting.
Seeing
his partners’ actions, Kyflynn only snorts, leaning on a piece of spider crust
and staring at the remains of Team Kyflynn’s latest conquest with a smile on
his face.
One down, two to go.
Image Source: Monster Spider by DClayne
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