JaceVAmor
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Chapter 186: The Living Flame
🕑 Added 2024-01-19 16:11:01 +0000 UTCCoop passed through the superheated wind barrier without so much as flinching. To be honest, the wind was extraordinarily uncomfortable, but compared to so many other trials and tribulations, it was a fleeting annoyance. The heat didn’t threaten his health pool, so it was something easily withstood. Coop could feel his hair whipping in the wind, singing at the tips, but his steps were steady. The discomfort wasn’t that the wind was hot enough to ignite grains of sand that were stripped from the packed ground, turning them into popping sparks, though that was obviously a factor. The issue was that it was incredibly dry. Before Coop launched his retaliatory salvo on the overconfident High Priest, he was thinking about how desperately he wanted some chapstick.
After Coop re-emerged from the barrier, he leaned forward while his pace quickened. Following a large step, taken as if he was preparing a long jump, his body coiled like a spring and he launched himself at the priest. His planted foot left an indentation in the seared ground with a webbing of cracks expanding outwards, each letting small flames leak onto the surface from below ground caverns. He lunged with his ethereal shield held in front like a battering ram and his one-handed warhammer trailing behind his hip on the right, dragging heated air in its wake that blurred the flickering light from the flames.
Huracan managed to lean backwards in the instant that Coop raced across the gap between the pair, but the uncommitted dodge wasn’t enough to avoid the first strike. The head of the hammer arced from behind the shield in a low side swing that slammed into the pitch black forearm of Huracan’s reformed limb. The collision sounded like the ethereal hammer struck a solid metal anvil, moving as fast as a gunshot, and to Coop’s surprise, the High Priest’s arm remained intact, though it was flung out of the way with a shower of sparks.
The High Priest barely kept his feet as the force of the quick strike left him reeling, shifting him backwards and to the side. He seemed more surprised than Coop that he hadn’t taken critical damage from the force of the blow, but Coop wasn’t about to let up the pressure. He had taken the initiative with the first direct attack after the combatants faced each other on even ground, and even though the High Priest had yet to acclimate to his increase in stats, Coop had no limiter when it came to momentum in battles.
From his very first life or death struggle with another human, the outcome had been determined by who could seize the momentum during combat. How many battles had come afterwards? In Coop’s mind, every one of his fights had been determined by the momentum gained after his first victory, carried forward from the start. The heaviness of his attacks was built up with the first Ancient Defender defeated with Jones at his side like snow rolling down the side of a mountain, picking up victories as he went.
The Avatar of Huracan hadn’t built up his Strength one swing at a time, but instead had found a way to cravenly steal it from others. Coop didn’t believe it was truly his to use. This was an opportunity to prove it.
“How many people does it take to reach level 400?” Coop hissed as his second strike whirled in the hot air, leaving a warped blur that trailed its motion.
The ding of his warhammer cracking Huracan’s other arm came before the response, forcing the High Priest to stumble further backwards as sparks bounced off Coop’s armor and rained onto the sand. Despite being as harried as he was, the High Priest clung to whatever confidence he had left in the arbitrary number that indicated his level. He had to believe the level difference would be enough for him to survive or he would already be admitting defeat.
“Hundreds of thousands.” He sneered, a sick smile forming at the edge of his mouth as he embraced his perceived advantage like a security blanket. “Less if they had leveled like you have, but most are too weak.” He taunted, obviously planning on adding Coop’s progress to his own.
The High Priest managed a wide swing with a blackened metal fist that Coop blocked with his shield. Flames exploded from the strike, lighting the darkened valley with a burst of orange.
Coop’s hammer rose in the same instant, smashing into Huracan’s torso and sending molten ejecta shooting out of his back. Rather than blood, it was like the High Priest’s guts had been turned into a forge.
Coop pressed forward, but the High Priest barely slowed, even after receiving significant injuries. The Priest twisted to his side to sweep at Coop’s legs with a spinning kick in the moment that Coop eliminated the little distance they had. Coop hopped over the leg, and prepared to bring his hammer straight down, but was interrupted by a gust of the superheated, dry wind, sending him flipping backwards once he left the security of the ground and his stable stance.
The ground beneath the High Priest’s feet exploded with another burst of fire as he launched himself after Coop, trying to take advantage of Coop’s vulnerable position in the air. He slammed a solid black metal fist forward, but Coop contorted his waist to block with his shield yet again.
The resulting collision sent Coop further down the valley, away from the temple, with his body still suspended in the air, so the Avatar of Huracan chased as if he was carried by the wind itself. His abilities gave him an even more effective form of flight than what Charlie had ever demonstrated. The High Priest had respectable mobility on top of firepower and obvious durability. Truly a waste of a good build, in Coop’s mind.
Before the gap closed, Coop had fully rotated his body while in the air, and unleashed his quickswapped spear from the grip that held the short-ranged hammer with a simple side-arm throw. The spear was thrown with deceptive strength due to the awkward motion and lack of solid ground, but it pierced Huracan’s chest straight through all the same.
The blow confirmed that the man had become some kind of magma monster after the last set of levels, finding nothing but flames ejected from the wound on both ends. Coop wondered if the transformation was a temporary active skill or a permanent passive one. Either way, it promised to extend the time the High Priest could stand up to Coop. If not for Ledwidge, it would have been among the first times that a non-boss stood up to Coop for a proper bout, giving him a chance to utilize more of his skirmishing techniques.
Huracan was the first to crash into the ground, propelled by his collision with Coop’s spear. The fight reset with Huracan’s wounds sealing with a layer of molten metal cooling in the air as he regained his footing and Coop landing on his feet three dozen feet away, weaponless, but shielded.
Huracan released a guttural shout as he transformed more and more into a charred metallic monster. His skin was turning pitch black, erasing his tattoos, but his eyes continued to glow red. While raising both arms forward, aiming at Coop he contorted his fingers to cast another spell. “I am the manifestation of Huracan! A God! You dare strike a God!?” He shouted as a stream of fire shot from the palms of his blackened hands.
Coop flicked dripping sweat away from his brow. “Without hesitation.” Coop mumbled as he disappeared into mists. A stream of flames shot harmlessly down the valley, creating a rift in the night that might have seemed as though a crack in the Earth’s crust had formed if seen from above. The caverns below responded with groaning. Fonts of superheated air escaped the cracks in the ground, adding a whistling sound to the battle.
At the end of the day, Huracan was a caster. He held the advantage when they were at range. The fact that he had built his class so that he could be a skirmisher was a testament to the flexibility of the system, and had been a choice that Coop thought was ideal. It was the same thing he would have done, after all. That he was a caster seemed to have finally occurred to the High Priest, and he was temporarily embracing the role in an effort to leverage whatever advantage he could grasp in the fight against the Champion.
Coop reappeared behind the Avatar of Huracan, where his ethereal spear had implanted itself in the cracking ground after penetrating the High Priest’s chest. The spear transformed into a gleaming short sword as it sliced through the air, edge glowing with heat, before smashing into Huracan’s shoulder.
The man folded onto one knee, avoiding being cleaved in an impressive display of strength and speed, but Coop was already chopping for a second time, ignoring the geyser of flames that shot into the sky from the wound. However, before the finishing blow landed, Huracan exploded with another blast wave, sending Coop sliding away as if he was on skates, back toward the pyramid’s steps.
With the fight reset for a second time, Coop reassessed the durability of his opponent. Huracan’s stats should not have escalated to the point of matching up with Coop’s if they were based on level alone. He was sure the man had some passive effects similar to the ones provided by his own Revenant class. Perhaps the strange way the Priest’s body had been altered could account for the discrepancy, but the question of ‘why?’ didn’t matter at the moment.
Attributes alone wouldn’t be enough to compare without more experience in utilizing them, but the raw numbers were causing the fight to continue beyond what was anticipated. Their physical stats might actually be approximately even, but there was a difference in other areas, and Coop absolutely had more total stats. He would have wondered what the High Priest was thinking as his inadequacies were slowly being exposed, if it wasn’t so obvious.
Huracan was roaring with fury as he lunged after Coop once again, blasting forward as he revealed the limited number of techniques he had acquired over time. Coop sidestepped the pounding fists and tore a chunk of molten material out of his torso with the edge of his sword.
Coop had barely reached into his own bag of tricks, mostly due to starting the fight with minimal mana. A single mistjump and a couple weapon swaps were all that he had shown. Even though he had identified the potential weaknesses of his Fog of War all the way back when he first began experimenting with it, he had still ended up committing the error he intended to avoid. Relying on Fog of War too much would cause this fight to last longer than it should have, and he had to remember that anything could happen in a fight.
“Feel a God’s wrath!” Huracan bellowed as he whirled on Coop.
The High Priest’s entire body had changed over the course of their fight. He had been forged into a metallic caricature of himself, with his skin glowing red hot before cooling into a black metal. His head was now smooth as his hair had been burned away and his skin was solid, glowing orange whenever he flexed his muscles in an effort to defeat Coop, blood replaced by flame.
“Oh…” Coop vocalized a sudden realization while the High Priest chained a combination of attacks that the Champion bobbed between before jabbing the handle of his sword into the man’s stomach, sending him stumbling backwards. Coop stifled a giggle, smiling in the middle of their struggle. Huracan practically snarled at Coop’s interruption, infuriated that his opponent appeared to be enjoying himself at his expense, but Coop had concluded that the man he was fighting was literally full of hot air.
Huracan ignored Coop’s disruption and continued the fight by leaping forward and launching a straight right punch at Coop’s head. Coop twisted his shoulders to avoid the telegraphed strike. Huracan’s fists emanated heat, glowing orange all the way to the elbow as he poured his energy into the physical attacks. He followed the first punch with a straight left that aimed for Coop’s ribs while the Champion was contorted to avoid the opening strike.
Coop demonstrated extraordinary flexibility by twisting even further to his right, allowing the second punch to land, but letting his body follow its trajectory to diminish the impact and force a mere glancing blow. Coop’s body was perpendicular to Huracan’s by the time the attack actually grazed its target.
Then, the Champion’s trap was sprung. While the High Priest had his arm fully extended, leaning too far forward with his overcommitment to dealing damage, the round ethereal shield came crashing down. The blunt edge came down with enough force to break straight through the forged elbow and send the High Priest stumbling into the sand as his momentum was pulled by his attack.
Huracan rolled back to his feet and roared. His broken arm was a stub that ignited as it rejuvenated. Instead of letting his limb recuperate while exchanging more words, Coop was stepping into another attack.
Coop threw his shield like a frisbee, and Huracan raised his good arm to protect his neck. While Huracan’s arm was raised, Coop chased after the projectile and slid onto one knee, dragging his sword across Huracan’s legs. When the High Priest stumbled backwards to avoid being further hobbled after the shield bounced off his solid forearm, the ethereal sword had transformed into a glaive that whipped a trail of sand and ghostly mist. The shiny blade carved a molten ‘X’ into Huracan’s chest that leaked fire as if it threatened to explode.
In the next instant, the glaive was gone and an ethereal spear was being thrust straight at the center of Huracan’s freshly scarred chest. The High Priest managed to use a superheated air blast to shift his position just out of range of the first stab, but it was followed by another that just barely grazed him with the tip, extending just that much further, and a third that came immediately after and was even closer to impaling the Priest straight through.
When the spear was withdrawn, Huracan prepared to insult the man who had challenged him in his own domain, gloating that even his best attempt hadn’t been enough to slow the High Priest down, but the words were too slow. Instead of giving a statement of self-confidence, he was stabbed in the back such that another spearhead escaped the center of his chest in between both of the fighters. The flames that escaped his wound caused the surprise phantasm to disappear, but the mere existence of similarly repeated attacks was enough for both of the combatants to confirm the fight would end soon.
“I am a God!” Huracan exclaimed, embracing denial. The High Priest was desperately reassuring himself more than he was continuing with the threats. His wounds continued to burn as they healed, but when they regenerated, they transformed the High Priest into something warped.
Coop shook his head and raised his shield, pointing his spear at the High Priest. “You’re no God. You’re just some guy. Same as me.” He declared to the consternation of the self-proclaimed deity.
Huracan doubled down on his spell casting, giving up on the skirmishing that he had believed would defeat Coop. The High Priest released walls of flames that danced across the terrain. They forced the Champion to mistjump to the side, then zig zag between as blocks of fire were propelled by superheated winds. Huracan shot flames from his one reformed hand like a firehouse of fire. The combined bombardment led Coop to taking a roundabout path as he aimed to return to melee range. He might have been able to smash through the flames, but the fact that he was almost completely diminished on mana, thanks to Mind over Matter claiming some of the resource over the course of the fight and his single use of Legacy of the Mists, meant that he would finish the fight methodically. He only had the mana for one more phantasm, and any direct blows would impact his mana pool.
Coop was too fast and too agile to be caught by the concentrated flames, and he was too strong and too durable to be slowed by the larger area attacks. Huracan dug deep, sacrificing his regeneration in order to keep the flame assault coming, but Coop slipped through sheets of fire and closed the gap with long strides that constantly changed directions but never took him far from the ground. He wouldn’t be blown off course as long as he kept a firm stance.
The final space was cleared when Coop took a giant step to his left, letting liquid flame splash onto the hard-packed sand directly adjacent to his position. He followed the maneuver with a skipping dodge to his right that skirted the edge of a rectangular-shaped flame wall that crackled as tiny grains of sand had whatever liquid they contained superheated and burst into flashes of white sparkles. Finally, with a great leap forward he was back within striking distance. The final rush took all of his Strength and Agility and had him blasting forward nearly as quickly as his spear throws. Coop’s vision narrowed, as if he was suddenly in a tunnel, with only Huracan remaining crystal clear, unobstructed by the speed that Coop reached.
When Coop struck again, it was with his ethereal battle axe, and he struck with lethal intent. The blow came horizontally, meant to separate the High Priest’s legs from his body. Simultaneously, he used the last of his mana to summon a phantasmal barbarian above and behind the High Priest.
A hulking ghost burst out of the mists with a silent roar etched on his face, muscles bulging as his weapon moved downward in a thunderous arc. The ghostly battle axe gleamed in the light of flames as it rushed with a vertical strike that matched Coop’s horizontal attack.
When Coop’s attack landed, it cleaved Huracan in two, sending a spout of flames all the way around his separated body. An instant later, the phantasm’s attack collided with the crown of the High Priest’s blackened head and continued down, splitting the Aeromancer’s upper body into a left and right half before his hardened body had shifted an inch.
It took a good ten seconds for Coop’s vision to return after the High Priest was properly defeated. The flames that erupted from within had burned the hottest of any of his attacks, but they hadn’t been particularly forceful. For a few moments, the valley was lit as if it was the middle of a cloudless day.
[You defeated Oathsworn Human (Level 417)]
[Congratulations! You have leveled up!]
[Congratulations! You have leveled up!]
[Skill options available.]
[Congratulations! You have leveled up!]
[Congratulations! You have leveled up!]
Comments
JaceVAmor
there's also a bit more going on with the cult to be revealed later :)
Chad Williams
So what you’re saying is the chapter already exists but you’re keeping it from us… THE PAIN! THE SHOCK! THE HORROR!
JaceVAmor
next status screen is gonna be on wednesday and he'll reflect on his skills a bit
Nyroe
I imagine that even if Huracan was a real level 400, it takes time to acclimate to stats. It took a while before Coop was actually able to use his physical stats, for instance, due to his physical and mental blocks.
Amadhe
Same. Disappointed Coop only got 4 levels, but my Disappointment is tempered by the fact Monday's Chapters should contain a new Skill Selection! (Also, this all but confirms that Hurcan was not really as powerful as a true Level 417 should be) If you're reading this Jace (you probably are), please can you also give us Coop's Full Status Window (plus skill descriptions) next time?
Andrew Pilavachi
Remember what Jett's faction did to her? They enlightened her, granted her awareness, knowledge, and understanding. Let’s say an evil faction did the same thing to their chosen but essentially brainwashed them instead, while offering it as a gift it would make sence as to why they are so deranged.
Chad Williams
Nah fam i cant wait for monday i need the next chapter now!
Nyroe
Nice! It is still suprising how much organization people had this early into the integration. One month(?) in a tutorial was enough to convince people to sacrafice thousands of their countrymen for levels.
