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[Skill-Eater] Chapter 114: Pull
🕑 Added 2024-10-01 17:01:02 +0000 UTCA pulse of Disruption expanded from Warren’s core, widening to a ten-foot hemisphere in the blink of an eye.
It reminded Edge of the technique that Trapper had performed, only bigger, faster, and stronger. Just like what had happened when he was fighting the crew’s leader, the instant that the antimagic field touched his body, shadow step was forcibly deactivated, and the color of the world returned.
Warren’s sword came up in a flash, gleaming beneath the light of the noonday sun, ready to bury itself in Edge’s guts. The manslayers face wore a look of immense satisfaction—the triumphant joy of a predator going in for the kill.
But Warren’s hunt wasn’t fated to end so simply. He had failed to account for one key fact. This outcome was exactly what Edge had been expecting.
Instead of being disoriented and panicking in that moment, he leapt the second that he rematerialized. Rather than jumping up, he leaned forward and launched himself straight at the manslayer with incredible speed—the point of his polearm leading the way.
Warren realized that he’d been tricked at the last possible moment. He raised his sword to shield his body while ducking to one side, just as Edge slashed for all he was worth. The hasty parry was enough to deflect the angle of the naginata by a few degrees. But thanks to the force Edge had put behind the blow, it wasn’t sufficient to get out of the way.
The black blade bit into Warren’s shoulder, cutting through his leather armor and sliding across his deltoid in a bright spray of blood. He swore and almost dropped his sword, giving Edge a chance to follow up.
He transferred his forward momentum into a wicked horizontal slash. He planted one foot and kicked off with the other, then came back around in a streaking arc. It was an impressive move considering his limited experience with the weapon, but it wasn’t good enough.
Warren darted back in the nick of time, causing the blade to slice off the tail of his jacket rather than lacerating his body a second time. He leaned back in and then thrust with his sword, catching Edge in the side of his chest. Thanks to the extra Durability he’d gained from using rank-two leap, the tip glanced off his ribs instead of sliding between them.
That shoulder wound is sapping some power from his blows. If I press the attack, I might be able to break through. Edge was about to stop-thrust with the butt of his weapon, when Warren’s core ignited. A dense wave of mana sent Edge flying back a bare second later—like a giant had caught him and then flung him away.
At first, he thought that it was a skill that he hadn’t seen before. But when a pair of watery blasts erupted into his stomach, he realized that the same power was responsible for both effects. He pushed me away by targeting the water in my body.
Taking the hits hurt like hell. But they weren’t strong enough to break his bones through his armor while Edge was flying in the same direction. On a less promising note, the opening gave Warren plenty of time to draw his revolver, take aim, and then fire his second spellshot of the battle.
Ah hell. Not again.
The instant that his boots hit the ground, Edge leap back and activated shadow step. If Sakura’s information was accurate, this round was even more dangerous than inferno. He had to get away before the crystalized spell activated after travelling a preset distance.
Edge was able to open another sixty feet before that happened. When he glanced over his shoulder, he saw that Warren was running in the opposite direction, desperate to reposition before he was caught in his own attack. But since the shot had been coming toward Edge, he was much closer to its terminus.
When the spellshot burst, he knew that Sakura had guessed its contents correctly. It’s ocean’s prison after all. He resolidified, having been warned that remaining in shadow form would leave him even more vulnerable this time around. Unfortunately, she hadn’t been able to provide any additional details, other than that he needed to stay far away as possible until the skill ran out of juice.
While Edge fought to open more distance, a ball of water began to congeal in the air above their heads. Ocean’s prison was growing larger by the second, as the mana contained within the skill assumed a liquid state.
Once Warren had retreated few hundred feet, he came to a stop, grabbing onto the trunk of a tree for support. The frosty grin was back on the man’s face. That can’t be good. Whatever is going on, he thinks that he’s regained control of the fight.
By this point, Edge realized that each step was more difficult than the last. That it took more and more effort to keep moving forward. It gave him some insight into what was happening. That spell isn’t just making water, it’s pulling me toward it.
As he fought for every inch, Warren began to speak. He seemed happy to explain what was happening, since there wasn’t anything that Edge could do about it. Lilly was right. That bastard really loves the sound of his own voice.
“Ocean’s prison is one of my favorites. I’m sure that it will come as no surprise to learn that there are plenty of creatures on Ord that are so tough that it isn’t practical to take them out with raw damage alone. But that doesn’t mean they won’t die. No matter how much Durability your prey might have, most of them still need to breathe. And no matter how big they are, gravity will still yank just as hard.”
While the bounty hunter monologued, he started firing off watery blasts. Several came close, but none landed on target. Edge saw that instead of arcing down to the ground, they were curving up toward the spell in the sky.
“Half of the mana creates a big sphere of water. The other half gives it an immense gravitational pull. Since the spell’s gravity is stronger than Ord’s, it drags everything nearby into the center. Then simple water takes care of the rest. The best part is, Disruption won’t help, since the prison’s effect is generated at the point of impact. Not to mention, it leaves the bodies intact for easy looting.”
By this point, Edge couldn’t take another step. He had to fight with everything he had simply to remain in place. He drove the blade of his naginata into the ground, then gripped the shaft for dear life, praying that his strength would hold out longer than the high-rank skill. He didn’t much like his odds, since the spell was growing more powerful with every beat of his heart.
When he looked over his shoulder, pieces of the plains were rising from the ground and sinking into the prison. Rocks, loose grass and dirt, even whole trees near the epicenter went sailing into the air before they were trapped within the floating sphere. And while he saw plenty go in, nothing came back out.
Even still, it seemed like Edge had a chance until one of Warren’s water bullets hit him in the chest, then two more in rapid succession. Unfortunately, the man was getting better at adjusting his aim to account for the various forces at play. When another shot hit Edge’s hands, he lost his grip, and his body started to rise.
He almost went flying to his death in that moment.
He grabbed at the nearby stalks until they gave way, pulling himself lower with each handful, then reached out to dig his fingers into the dirt. He began gliding back, digging long furrows in the earth, sliding faster and faster toward the ocean’s prison. The watery trap was now a good twenty feet in diameter, although it had finally stopped growing.
It was more than enough to end him either way. With the rate that the pull was increasing with proximity, Edge was certain that if he entered the water, he would never come out again.
The only good part of this situation… well maybe good was too strong a word. The only not completely terrible part was that Warren had to stay back, or he would get caught in his own trap. His blasts were no longer reaching Edge’s position either. The man tried firing off a few more, but the pull of the prison had become too strong to arc them over.
Edge looked over his shoulder, desperately seeking some way to open more ground before it was too late. That was when he saw a tree about ten feet behind him. It was the only thing within reach that just might give him a chance.
When the pull broke his grip, he ran at an angle, which let him catch the trunk instead of flying past. He wrapped his arms around it and held on as tight as he could. It bought him another few seconds, but it wasn’t going to be good enough. Edge’s arms would give out before long, and the tree’s roots were already coming loose from the soil.
He struggled and strained, pulling himself onto the side of the trunk that was opposite the prison. He planted his feet, took aim for the closest tree, and then leapt.
He barely made it. Instead of landing near the trunk, he went arching up—grabbing some of the highest branches instead.
Although it was further away from the spell in the sky, this tree wasn’t as deeply rooted as the last. Within a matter of seconds, he could feel it start to rise, as its roots came free from the earth. In that desperate moment, a flash of inspiration struck. Entangle. Edge cast the spell twice in a row, targeting the base of the trunk.
Eight vines emerged from the soil and wrapped around the roots, holding the tree in place for another few seconds. It was better than nothing, but it wasn’t going to buy him enough time. The pull was too strong this close to the prison, and he was running low on mana.
Edge began working his way through the branches, pulling himself down to the trunk. Along the way, he cast entangle about twelve feet further out. Once the vines were in position, he braced his feet against the bark, body parallel with the earth, and leapt.
He misjudged the pull and almost didn’t make it. Just before his momentum expired, the roots reached out and wrapped around his arms, since Edge had set their target for his own body. He cast the spell again and again, until he was completely covered in writhing tendrils, anchoring him to the spot.
He was lucky that he’d made it this far away from the prison, or it would have pulled him out of the ground, vines and all. As it was, he was barely able to remain tethered to the earth. By now, the gravity was growing weaker, and Warren began to swear. He fired off more watery blasts, but they were absorbed by the hearty vines and didn’t do much damage.
Edge knew that the spell had run its course when the giant sphere of water came crashing to the ground, flooding the area below. He shadow stepped into the closest patch of grass and kept right on going.
He had survived, but he was running on fumes. His mana would run dry within another few seconds at most, leaving him at the manslayer’s mercy. Or the distinct lack of it in this case. But Edge wasn’t about to let that happen.
Using the last of his reserves, he activated conceal and got ready to reach into his pack.
Comments
Bryan Dickerson
Thanks. The arc climaxes tend to have a few more cliffs than elsewhere, but it will be over pretty soon.
Jon P
Lol, I mean the fight deserves some time and detail. But man, you're killing me. Lol. JK...great story, I like the pace you have set, though the constant cliffhangers are kinda a drag. Glad though that you dlhavent set it up as a eater smorgasborg with too many skills. Good job
