204 The Yearned For Signal
“Ripper!”
[Spirit: -200 | 3700/3900]
The onslaught of slashes came swiftly, using the adrenaline flowing through his veins to amplify the strength of his attacks as he etched them across the Defect’s back.
But, there was once again a futile display on his end.
–Not even that? He thought in surprise.
As sparks swayed in the air in the aftermath of his swift slashes, he looked upon the creature’s back amidst his fall, seeing its pale-white flesh begin to morph, twisting and melding into a new shape.
Tubes? Spikes?–No! He realized.
Plating his boot against the Defect’s back for a foothold, he initiated a vanishing step, but not before the shapes on the Exterminator’s back took the form of a dozen small barrels–BOOM.
Pellets shot out as smoke exuded, shooting outward just as he blinked away.
“…Ghh…”
Drip. Drip. Drip.
He stood on the street, several meters behind the Exterminator as he watched the fish-headed monster turn around to face him as he breathed out, wincing.
One of the pellets shot out from the creature’s shapeshifted back had nicked his ear lobe, leaving it seeping blood onto the ground below.
The pain quickly stopped registering as his blood rushed with the Exterminator closing the distance in an instant again with a monstrous dash towards him.
The Defect had returned the shape of its arm into a normal hand once again, attempting to grab him into its buff limbs, but he countered with a high kick straight to its chin.
“–!”
To his surprise, the sharp kick did nothing to stop the beastly Defect in its tracks as it pushed forward still, attempting to catch him in its arms before he slipped away.
This thing is tough. It’s got Dae-Mon beat wildly in that regard, at least. Devil Slaying Hour might be my best bet here, but I don’t want to just jump straight into it. It’s incredibly exhausting–it’s a last ditch effort here, and I’m not planning on killing this thing anyway…if that’s possible, he thought.
He flipped back, backpedaling as the Exterminator stumbled, holding the same lack of emotion in its pale-blue fish eyes while moving towards him.
As he prepared for his next move, the moment he took a step forward–the Exterminator’s right arm shifted again, morphing into the familiar shape of a minigun right before his eyes.
–Again? He realized.
Though he was close enough to duck right below its arm as the rapid gunfire began, feeling the unique bullets shoot just above him as his ears were assaulted by the banging.
Still, he moved in with his daggers in hand, setting his eyes on the throat of the Boss Defect.
CHNK.
“–!”
–The left arm of the Defect was still at its side, pointed towards him as his eyes moved down just then, noticing that it held the form of a massive double-barrelled shotgun.
Its left, too? It only morphed its right this entire time–I tricked myself into thinking this was some sort of opening! He thought.
Even as determined as he was, dread still flowed through his veins when feeling the barrels of that destructive weapon pointed dead center at his body. Thanks to his heightened perception that kicked in at moments like this, he could analyze the situation briefly, but it didn’t make his body any faster.
What can I do? It’s right there. I can’t initiate a blink here. It’s too late for a shield spell. What can I do?…Am I dead? No–there has to be something! He racked his brain.
It was then that he began to realize the mistake he had made. He was so tunnel-visioned on making sure that his comrades survived that he had neglected to consider his own life in the equation.
Simply, the foe in front of him outclassed him. It was a simple, irrefutable fact.
But–
…Until I hear that signal, I can’t stop! He resolved.
[You will be unable to completely avoid damage here, Jeong-Hui. However, you can minimize said damage. Don’t think about evading the bullets or blocking them with your blades–meet them halfway.]
The words from the Sage System filled his mind as he instantly understood what it was he had to do.
If there wasn’t enough time to blink away or to manifest a shield, there was time for something else: he was already holding his daggers tightly, halfway through swinging them. He summoned his strength and focus, altering the trajectory of his strikes–
“Ripper!”
[Spirit: -200 | 3500/3900]
It was launched just in time as the shotgun-arm blasted, briefly filling his vision with the explosion within the barrels, puffing out smoke and sparks as an onslaught of pellets shot out towards his torso.
The quick succession of slashes came just in time as he managed to clash against the white pellets as they aimed for him. Though he managed to deflect most of them, a few had pierced through his defensive-oriented offense. ρꪖꪕᦔꪖꪕꪫꪣꫀꪶ
[Health: -800 | 2700/3500]
“Ghh–!”
The impact still knocked him back as he blood squirted from his abdomen; a few holes were torn into his black shirt around his stomach.
Just as he landed on his feet, he didn’t even have time to caress his stomach that burned like the pits of hell as the Exterminator pointed its gatling-arm towards him, firing the endless hail of bullets his way.
He had to sprint with all of his might despite the agony it brought on his abdomen, being chased as the bullets nipped at his ankles.
“…Gh!”
It was a difficult pace to keep up: having to jump and run along the side of a building as the bullets hunted him down with impunity. Despite the pain, he kept his muscles clenched to stifle the bleeding before lowering down, bending his knees before springing off of the wall–shooting towards the Exterminator with his daggers sharpened.
The burly, fish-headed Defect stood alone in the center of the street with its gatling gun still firing, though the bullets were trailing behind the red-haired assassin as he went for another attempt at the Exterminator’s throat.
…Dark Edge, Ripper, and Light Blade! With that I should–! He thought.
–Though his mind went blank for a moment as he was propelling through the air downward towards the Boss Defect, seeing the center of its chest morph as the snow-white flesh protruded, shaping itself into a new form.
“–!”
It felt as if he had just waltzed straight into a deathtrap, foregoing his attack as he flipped around, changing his course of action completely.
“Cast: Radiant Shield!”
[Spirit: -50 | 3450/3900]
Beneath his boots, the golden shield manifested in the air as he used it as a foothold to alter his trajectory, blinking away just as the shape on the Exterminator’s chest finished–taking the form of a massive cannon that produced an amber glow in its hole.
FWOOOOM.
The air roared and sound broke as a golden blast launched from the cannon born from the Exterminator’s chest, unleashing the radiant destruction in the form of a coalescence of energy that burrowed through the street and into the building on the opposing side.
As he landed a safe distance, watching from the side, he looked on in dread at the power wielded by his foe.
…It has something like that? That kind of destructive power is just…unfair, he thought.
A cloud of smoke swayed from the aftermath of the blast, cascading down on the street as the silent, fish-faced Defect turned towards him as its chest returned to its normal form.
It began to walk towards him as the wings on the side of its scaly head flapped; the left-hand shotgun morphed as well as its right-hand gatling gun, though it looked to merely be “alterations” rather than complete changes.
Blades…? He thought.
Sticking out from the underside of both gun-formed limbs of pale flesh, snowy blades reached out with the length of longswords.
Bayonets? He realized.
Once more, that ludicrous speed, unfitting of a being so tall and imposing in physique, was on display as the Exterminator was immediately in front of him again.
“–!”
He jumped out, flipping in the air over its left arm that it had thrust forward into a punch, blasting the shotgun end at the same time as the volatile sound filled his ears.
It was incredibly arduous to find the pathway to its neck as when he went in for a slash, it used its right arm not to try and shoot him, but for a stab as it utilized the newly-sharpened bayonet. He managed to deflect the attempt it had to stab him from the underside of his jaw, but he was immediately followed up by gunfire from the gatling end once more.
“–Agh!”
It caught his left shoulder before he could fully dodge, shooting with such velocity that the bullet had bore right through his flesh, skeleton, and out of the other side, leaving a clean hole.
[Health: -400 | 2300/3500]
Holding his shoulder, he quickly rolled to the side as the Exterminator had leapt towards him, stomping down as the asphalt gave in beneath its stomp.
…Where the hell is that signal?! He thought.
As he grasped his shoulder, feeling blood trickle against his gloves, he breathed out as he watched the imposing Defect face him again.
CLANG.
–It echoed from afar. It was an unmistakable sound of steel clashing against steel. The force behind it, how much of a dumb move it was–it fit into place as a small smile of relief went across his lips.
The signal…! Korain did it! Him and Xiaodan made it around! He thought.
They were a few blocks down already, but Korain had indeed used his claymore to strike a wall of steel with his utmost strength.
“I made it as loud as I could for him! Do you think that was enough?” Korain asked.
“It should be plenty–let’s go!” Xiaodan said.