Ha! I’ve been waiting for you, my friend. I skitter forward until I’m facing down the rampaging monster who intends to crush this pitiful ant flat on its way to assist in taking down the fearsome gorilla monster.
If only it were that easy for you, big guy.
Try this dish! The Inverse Gravity Bolt!
With malicious glee I release the powerful blast of purple magic that shoots through the air like a bullet. With its large frame and momentum, the lizard has no chance of dodging the strike and can only choose to continue head-on.
I can almost see the flicker of surprise in the beast’s eyes as my spell impacts and it feels no pain at all. Did the spell have no effect? In fact, not only did it not hurt, my body feels lighter than ever, like I’m flying!
Hue, hue, hue, hue.
You sure are, buddy!
Confused growls followed by panicked squeals erupt from the beast as it rises from the floor instead of smashing me to pieces. Thanks to its irresistible charge, it sails gracefully over my head, legs waggling in the empty air.
As its forward momentum peters out, the poor monster is left hovering in mid-air close to the ceiling, legs and tail thwipping about in vain attempts to control its body and move the way it wants to.
Not to worry, big guy, you’ll be coming down sooner than you think.
As I prepare another spell, Tiny’s pivoted back to his foe and swung out, smashing the lizard so hard he knocks it several feet to one side, unleashing another charge of electricity as he does so.
The scent of roasted flesh fills the air. The lizard roars in pain, unable to resist this fierce elemental damage.
Then its eyes glow and it unleashes something I didn’t expect.
From the floor of the cavern, the rock suddenly becomes soft before reforming into a sharp lance that pierces through the air like the fierce thrust of a spear.
Unable to predict the stealthy attack from below, Tiny is caught unawares and is pierced in the side. He manages to catch the tip in one hand, preventing the stone spike from penetrating any deeper as it continues to extend, lifting the massive ape from the ground.
Earth magic! These monsters must be double evolved to be able to use something nifty like that. My eyes light up with greed at the thought of the XP and Biomass to be harvested from battling against monsters as evolved as I am for a change.
Tiny seems to think the same as me. Far from panicking at being wounded, his fangs are revealed in a manic grin, his eyes wide open and blazing with hunger. He looks even fiercer than before, to be honest.
Still holding onto the spear, Tiny bellows and clutches the other fist before his face. Dazzling blue electricity begins coursing through his body and concentrating on that fist.
I know what this is.
I manage to turn my head away just in time. Tiny thrusts his hand forward, discharging a blinding arc of lightning at his foe! Expecting the attack to end, I instead get an eyeful of blazing lightning when I turn back, as Tiny continues to channel the energy, electricity pouring out from all over his body and rushing to his hand in unending streams.
Under this ferocious attack, the lizard cannot maintain control over its magic and the spear of stone crumbles to nothing.
Actually, isn’t it about time…
Glancing up to the roof, I think my floating friend is just about to run out of charge.
My sense of timing is close to spot on. The beast roars in triumph as the sensation of floating starts to fade. Soon it will drop back to the floor.
Oh, you’ll fall back to the floor all right.
Gravity Bolt!
24. The Beating Goes on
Impacted by the second Gravity Bolt, the poor lizard experiences a brief moment of suspension. A narrow window of time in which the effect of the upward gravity is fading and the new, downward force, is only beginning to kick in.
The tentative balance is broken and with sensational effect!
From hovering in place like an awkward levitating turtle, the monster suddenly descends so quickly, my eyes almost miss the motion.
BOOM!
A tremendous impact sends dust and debris flying into the air, obscuring my vision and showering the cavern with shards of rock.
Holy moly! I did not expect that to happen. Well, not quite so spectacularly at least. Scurrying, I use my antennae to swipe at the air and try to clear my view and inspect my prey.
Stopping in place, I wonder if I may have walked too far. Where the heck is it? Is this dust ever going to settle!
The two interlopers on my back are just as blind as I am, although, for Crinis, it’s a fairly standard state of affairs. Turning on the spot, it takes a moment for me to realise the texture of the floor beneath my feet is slightly different.
Looking down, I notice I’m standing on the back of the monster.
It’s been squished right into the floor!
The dust gradually falls to reveal that the lizard has been completely submerged in the rocky floor of the cavern, and I’ve wandered directly onto it’s back. Even worse, the monster is still alive, groaning painfully as the downward pressure continues to compact it.
Sorry about that, buddy! I’ll, er… ease your suffering?
Piercing Chomp!
Crunch!
Phew, this shell is seriously tough.
Piercing Chomp!
Crunch!
Still not there.
Again! Again! Again!
By the time I break through those tough armour plates, my face is extremely sore and I’ve managed to Level up my Piercing Chomp once! No wonder Tiny was struggling to crack it with his hands. Even using my armour penetrating skill it took almost twenty strikes.
[You have defeated Level 12 Os Lacerti.]
[You have gained XP.]
Feel my wrath, you dinosaur wannabe! Mwuhahahaha! Vibrant seems somewhat confused by my domineering victory pose, her antennae wibbling about until she eventually decides to somewhat copy my dynamic stance, one leg raised to punch the air.
Don’t copy that! For starters, you didn’t even do anything. Second, you’re making me feel childish in my moment of victory. This battle was the first in which my incredible magical superiority played the decisive factor, allow me my moment of pride, dammit!
Meanwhile, Tiny has also completed his battle. After sustaining his brutal lightning attack until the enemy was almost roasted, he then punched his incapacitated foe’s head in.
Instead of expressing his dominance to other monsters by posing coolly, Tiny immediately starts ripping into the Biomass, tearing it apart with his bare hands and shoving it into his face.
You know, looking at the response of the other monsters in the chamber, his method may be more effective in the intimidation department, but it lacks style.
Indeed, the other monsters in this section of tunnel are giving both Tiny and myself a large berth while they continue to battle amongst themselves. Incredibly, I actually see a few of the normally battle crazed beasts slinking off down the tunnel, disengaging from fighting entirely.
Is it just me, or are some of these creatures getting smarter?
In the early days of the wave, they would hurl themselves into bloody slaughter the moment they were created and clawed out of the dirt, regardless of the odds! I couldn’t possibly imagine for a second, one of those creatures would voluntarily escape from battle. Calculating the odds just wasn’t something they seemed capable of.