Path of the Slayer B1 C47. Repay Them With Rage

“Don’t eat all of it, Sabretooth!” I shouted as I dimmed Hellion’s power without the half ripper going inactive just yet. “I need to check his body!”

To my relief, Sabretooth listened and stopped consuming the flesh of the elf corpse. 

Without Vitality, it would’ve been easy for her to consume the entire thing in a second. All that remained was the gory upper torso, and even that was hanging like it was going to unravel into bloody strips and leave a pile on the floor.

“Take the knives.” I tipped the sword down and the corpse fell off the blade with a splat. The Rank 4 blades were already on the ground. “You helped me big, Thumper. The knives are yours.”

He hesitated a little. His old disguise wasn’t up on his face anymore. Now that he was standing, I could see the noble lineage, or what some folks would call good genetics.

He really could have women falling over themselves to get his attention or to at least feel him step on them.

Thumper scrunched up his shoulders. His silver eyes scanned me, searched the mess at our feet as I sifted around, and landed on the knives waiting to be taken.

“You’re not going to ask about me and…” he trailed off.

I gave him a shrug. “Your personal business is your business as long as it isn’t a big deal most people should know about.”

“I’m a guy, by the way,” Thumper admitted. “And I’m … uh … of a very affluent family. You should take the knives.”

After putting away the poisoned arrows, I found what I was looking for – a ring filled with storage magic – I could recognize it because of my own ring. Before I invaded it with my Path Energy, I stopped and looked up at the awkward half-giant noble.

“Normally, I would’ve taken full advantage of your pity. But I’ve been growing my pride as a Pathwalker lately.” I let out a chuckle that I didn’t feel. Still, I put on a cheeky act. “You opened up the way to beating that Rank 4, who was a bastard with a goddamn Blessing. You’re the one who gets the knives.”

I snatched the deadly loot and thrust them into Thumper’s chest. “I’ve worked with affluent nobles before. I’ll work with you.”

He accepted the knives and slipped them onto the inner waist of his weapons belt. I paused at seeing his lack of a storage device when I realized there was a solution in my hand. That and he was a rogue.

“Here, crack this for me, and it’s yours. We need to check if there are … any heads I might recognize in there,” I said grimly, passing on the ring.

“Depending on the Rank and Quality and how long it’s been in that guy’s possession, it might take me some time,” Thumper admitted, slipping the ring on his finger. “But I’ll crack it for sure. If not, then we can use Merlin’s help.”

I didn’t care how they did it as long as it got done. Hell, I might have to collect a few more storage devices, but it was the elf guy who was the type to have heads in his ring.

There was nothing else of note on the elf. With a wave, I let Sabretooth feast. Hellion’s already nipping at my Path Energy, so either I make him go inactive or we find another fight quickly.

I was going to ask Thumper about Merlin, but the fight found us.

The rogue sensed danger first and shoved me out of the way as multiple arrows that left ghastly green streaks in the air flew between us. A few struck Sabretooth and forced out of her a horrid, gear-grinding screech she shouldn’t be making.

Path Magic activated: Tyrannosaurus Roar!

I dropped to 90% Path Energy and opened up with a resounding bellow that reached up and down the walled-in lane. Just when I finished, another roar resounded, this one coming from around the corner of a new opening that wasn’t there before.

The opposing roar rolled over me and Thumper, colliding with our energy and mental defenses. I pushed through with my stoicism skill, and Thumper fought out of it with his Epicness.

“Duck!” Thumper growled, lunging at me from my right.

I did as ordered, the half-giant flying over my head as ghostly green arrows flew in from my left. Thumper became a streak of inky shadows, his lanky arms whipping out to catch each of the arrows with his curved swords and depart them like they were mist. 

On the other end of the projectiles, the pale-skinned nomad hefted a gnarled, evil-looking bow while draped in a wispy cloak. He faded from view and whisked away as a fast-moving mist before Thumper reached him.

My attention turned toward a meteorite of wild and killer intent crashing down upon me, following a targeted Suppression that was weaker than the murderous elf’s from before. It was still enough to activate my lifter skill and boost my strength.

I backed away with a lightning-fast jump while yanking Sabretooth out of the danger zone with magnetism. My old guild leader crashed down and broke the floor, forming a spider web of disheveled stone around him.

There was a moment where I let some of my weakness come through.

There was a moment where I remembered how much I looked up to the man.

“Please tell me you didn’t hurt Britta,” I said.

He responded with four words, “God Emperor, witness me!”

Magnus the Obliterator was already a monster of a half-giant. When the explosive power of a divine Blessing enveloped him in the empire’s red and gold colors, I felt the palpable power of his physicality and Vitality hit me even when I wasn’t touching the aura. It only got worse from there when he used his well-known powers – Raise Strength, Steel Defense, and Bear Shift.

He went from eight and a half feet tall to fifteen feet tall, his armor falling to pieces at his fur-covered feet. All the fur that covered him became steely and reflective. His muscles bulged with more and more strength that amplified his already mighty bulk. The Blessing only enhanced him further – Vitality and body-focused powers went well together for half-giants.

The massive Obliterator Morningstar looked properly sized for him as it clanged in his hands.

“It’s nothing personal, kid,” he said gruffly, “but killing a few Pathwalkers is the easiest way us Rank 4 losers can become Pathwalkers ourselves.”

I couldn’t believe it.

Rogue Nomad Stoicism activated!

I wanted to howl with mad laughter.

Rogue Nomad Stoicism activated!

How could he consider himself a loser at Rank 4?

I shook my head as my stoic skill settled my nerves. I heard the ghoulish words about the ‘God Emperor’ behind me, another Blessing being brought to the fold. Thumper would have to deal with that pale nomad while I dealt with my old guild leader.

“I looked up to you. I wanted to be you,” I said.

“That’s foolish. We were all losers in that playpen.” He took a floor-shaking step forward. “But you’re a Pathwalker now. A winner.” He licked his bear-shaped muzzle. “It should’ve been me. It will be me.”

“Hit and run, Sabretooth!” I shouted as Magnus pounced forward again, but with more weight and speed and deadliness.

I unfolded my magnetism from my half ripper hand and sent my autocycle skidding to the right while I flew off to the left. Sabretooth did the smart thing of turning with my shove and getting her wheels under her, moving out of reach of the fifteen-foot, steel-furred bear-man.

Magnus crashed down so hard he sent pieces of the floor flying in deadly fragments. I knocked away a large piece with my greatsword and landed in a crouched position. Hellion kept nipping at my Path Energy, begging to be used.

Magnus turned and pounced at me again, closing the distance fast. This time I went forward, straight into danger, as his morningstar swiped down in a deadly arc.

I sacrificed Path Energy to latch onto his steely body and yank me in close before repelling me away from making contact with his leg. Autosaw energy rotated with crimson teeth around the greatsword’s edge as I slashed my blade along his thigh.

A metallic screech pierced the air on impact, sparks flying between me and Magnus as I threw myself away before he could catch me with a swooping backswing.

The wind force from the passing morningstar nearly sent me askew when I noticed Sabretooth swerving around me on purpose. I pushed against her with magnetism and launched off into a new angle while Sabretooth whipped around and lunged aside to dodge yet another of Magnus’s smashing pounces.

I went around again and again to slash his legs, throwing up sparks with each metal-screeching impact. Each attack came with the threat of getting swatted and crushed as Magnus readjusted smartly with his years of experience.

As I circled around again, I glimpsed the damage I left on him so far.

It was minimal at best.

This couldn’t last.

Behind me, I felt the ghoulish and shadowy battle between the pale nomad hunter and the noble half-giant rogue. It was less noisy and more haunting. If it hadn’t been so overt and out in the open, especially with the Blessings in play, I would’ve missed it.

I ignored my instincts to watch my back – trusting Thumper fully for this one – and threw my greatsword with a magnetic wish.

The weapon flipped end over end before landing handle-first along Sabretooth’s handlebars. Instead of merely falling, my impromptu wish magnetized the lower end of the greatsword to Sabretooth.

She accepted the new weight with grace as she kept wheeling around in circles. Magnus saw this, but paid it little mind – his focus was all on me.

My hands raised and thrust forward. Two Single Shot Arm Cannons appeared from out of my storage ring. One hit my open metal hand with a clang, the other caught in my fleshy hand.

The moment they appeared, Magnus rushed me, and I pushed away from him with magnetism and fired my shots. One came out while crackling with lightning. The other flew faster and harder with the power of magnetism.

The one-two shot struck Magnus’s snout with a strident crunch and zap that dazed him, but only a little. He still kept up his rush, eating up space while I burned Path Energy to use Path Magnetism on him. 

I pulled out another pair of hand cannons and shot them. He blocked the hits with his forearm and came out okay.

This couldn’t last.

I juked to the side again to get around Magnus.

He threw his spiked mace at me faster than I could account for.

Great Skill activated: Pain Eater Gluttony.

The morningstar cracked open my Fallen Slayer Breastplate, smashed my ribs into bits, and ran the spikes through my lungs. I became a bloody mess with Path Energy wailing around my body in horror as the immense weapon took me for a ride before we struck the wall behind me and pulverized me further. Pain Eater Gluttony could only absorb so much as my body was pinned into a crater made in the wall by Magnus’s throw.

My vision was blurry.

My hearing was filled with rushing blood and a pounding headache.

Even with my senses off, I still perceived another tragedy. Sabretooth. I caught the vague visuals and sounds of her being smashed off her wheels while trying to help me. Then I noted the hard crash and crumpling of her body in the corner of the opposing wall.

That was my autocycle.

My darling girl.

I gave her a heart and brought her to life.

How much will you take from me?! Why can’t you find your own way?!

It felt like I was fighting the empire itself, a force that represented pure and utter oppression.

I hated it.

“No mercy! No regrets!” Hellion shouted into my ear. “Repay the oppressors with blood and carnage, my liege. Repay them with RAGE!!!”

“Yeah. Exactly. Screw the empire,” I wheezed, belching up blood as I grabbed the spikes on the sides.

“Screw the stubborn mule your fat ass rode on.” I shoved the morningstar out of me, stood from the crater in the wall, and flipped the giant weapon around with magnetism.

“And fuck the God Emperor.” I held the big handle with both hands as I looked up at the lumbering Rank 4.

Magnus raised his mighty metal paw before swiping down to crush me.

I lit up like a goddamn star.

Path Lightning. Path Magnetism. Striving Elementalist Mastery.

I poured all of them into my body, looped them through every fiber of my being in rapid cycles, and extended their power with an electromagnetic frenzy. The air around me ignited into plasma and light so bright it seared my own eyes. Pain Eater Gluttony remained in effect, and so did Gaining Lifter Focus. I called on other powers as my electromagnetic magic shoved Magnus back.

He only retreated one step.

That was all I needed to swing the big screw-all weapon to the side of his knee.

Each tip of the morningstar had autosaw energy churning around like drill bits. The fusion between lightning and magnetism enhanced the blow, crumpling Magnus’s steely defense, piercing into flesh, and cracking bone with a jettison of blood.

The Blessed Rank 4 roared with pain. Hellion drained his Vitality, and I took my fee in Path Energy. But only briefly before I ripped the giant morningstar out. I activated more of my powers to strike even faster and harder on the same spot.

The knee folded sideways with a crunch, and the mighty Rank 4 crashed down before me. I yanked the morningstar out of him again, filled the weapon with more power, and jumped into the air. I landed on the other side of him and struck him in the chest with a heavy slam.

The impact broke the floor even more beneath us and sent waves of rippling stone and gems flying in chunks. We sank three feet deep into a crater as blood and viscera jettisoned out of Magnus’s muzzle, his eyes wide with pain, a glorious sight to behold.

Then I did it again and again!

Up and down the morningstar went!

Crumpling metal!

Breaking ribs!

Pulverising flesh!

I soaked in the vicious beat-down I’d always wanted to dish out while trying to feed my hungry Path Energy. Being an electromagnetic star was draining, even if I could maintain it better now.

Just when I thought I could win, Magnus flicked his left hand and summoned a hand cannon made for a fifteen-foot bastard like him.

Apparently, my old guild leader had been hoarding the good stuff.

I dodged aside, but I lost my left shoulder and arm. Blood and lightning and rippling waves of magnetism streamed away as I flew back from the sheer force of the shot.

I tumbled and flipped and crashed with a meaty thud against the opposing wall. Clenching my jaw, I stopped my Path Energy from rebuilding an entire shoulder and arm. I needed the precious energy for something else.

Magnus sat up, ripped his mace out of the cavity I made of his chest, then used his bare hands to snap his leg back into position. He got to his feet with a wobble, and instead of taking the time to heal with his Blessed Vitality, he limped toward me. The look of murder in his eyes told me everything.

I used the wall to get back to my feet. 

To my left, I noticed Sabretooth extending her bent kickstand to push herself back onto her tires. Her frame was busted. Fuel was leaking everywhere. Her engine had a crack, and her heart fluids were spilling. Yet, she still had my sword magnetized to her handlebars. 

To my right, there were deep shadows, grasping fingers of mist, ghoulish wails, and the haunting howl of something monstrous going on over there. The fight between Thumper and the pale nomad had transcended into a new tier that went beyond my sensibilities.

Back to center, I watched Magnus approach.

“That ex of yours,” he wheezed in between another limping step.

For a second, I imagined all the brutal ways I could torture Seraphina to death.

“She got in our way,” Magnus let out.

For another second, I imagined all the best ways I could reward Seraphina.

“Drained her family’s Epiphany Elixirs. Became a Rank 4. And stood up to us for that slummy nomad woman of yours.” Magnus spat blood to the side. “I’ll give you this. You know how to pick them.” He chuckled without mirth. “I’ll let them know how you died. It’s the least I can do when I become a Pathwalker.”

I didn’t even need my stoicism skill for that.

The burden on my shoulders was gone. Britta was still alive. Seraphina was delivering on her promise. I was right to trust her.

Behind my shaded visor, I smiled.

I could finally focus on what mattered most.

The fight itself!

First, I found my spatial ring with magnetism. The little thing zipped into my metal hand as Magnus swung down his morningstar.

With the ring grasped, I rolled out of the way and left the most improved version of my explosive canisters in my wake. When he struck the cylinder frag bomb, I was already swinging myself behind Magnus with magnetism. I ended up shielded by his leg as the blast flayed his front with cursed metal shrapnel and knocked him backward.

Using as much power as I could jam into Hellion, I extended an autosaw energy blade that was six feet long from my fist. I swung it to the back of Magnus’s already injured knee.

It resisted, at first, until I added lightning and magnetism, turning the energy autosaw into a rotating plasma cutter.

Sparks and blood flew everywhere. Magnus’s own toughness and Blessed Vitality remained a heavy obstacle, so much so, I felt something buck and vibrate the wrong way inside of Hellion. Yet, the half ripper worked harder than ever before.

We sliced right through. Magnus howled with pain, collapsing onto his back again as I dimmed down the autosaw magic and scrambled out of the way.

Sabretooth came dashing in, damaged, but full of spirit. She launched off an up-shifted slab of the broken floor, turned her handlebars until they were aligned with her body, and stabbed Magnus in the eye with the greatsword.

I didn’t know how she could pull that off while leaking fluid everywhere and aiming with no hands midair. But she did the damn thing. She did it supremely well, running the greatsword so deep it must’ve touched the Rank 4’s brain. Her attack left him stunned on his back.

The magnetic bond holding the weapon to the handlebars ended. She hit the broken floor the wrong way and tumbled with her momentum. As much as I wanted to run to her aid, it was more important to make good on her assistance.

I scrambled onto my old guild leader’s chest. I grabbed the greatsword handle plainly and looked down, the weapon still stuck in Magnus’s face.

I should say something.

But there was nothing else that came to mind.

With a death grip on my sword, I empowered Hellion once more with all my might. His guttural roar was the loudest one yet! Exhaust fumes gushed out from the vent on the back of the half ripper. Lightning, magnetism, and autosaw energy ripped and tore their way along the edge of the Fallen Slayer Greatsword.

I spent more energy than I took in as a blinding array of colors ran an edgy train in and out of Magnus’s face. Ropes of blood, streams of Vitality, and gushing aura from the divine Blessing of a god sprayed up in a twisting geyser around me.

Something like this would’ve killed me many times over if I were on the receiving end.

Magnus proved to be tougher than most. To where Hellion bore the greatest burden to finish the fight for us.

The half ripper kept going and enduring until he made loud clunking sounds that sent harsh vibrations through the entire arm. Cracks appeared in his crimson frame with bright electromagnetic energy beaming through.

My heart sank, and by the time I stopped, it was too late.

[Your Bonded Treasure is heavily damaged! Please dismiss Hellion Half Ripper for one month to fix the damages. Self-repairs might not restore him to his original state and could terminate the bond!]

Crap!

I’d pushed him too hard. I didn’t think this could happen to a Bonded Treasure. Hellion had all of that Vitality to feast on!

Yet my own electromagnetic power had proven too much for him.

I would’ve raged if it wasn’t for one other factor. Through his sacrifice, my first Pathwalker companion got the job done.

[You’ve slain a Rank 4 half-giant!]

[Congrats! Path of the Slayer Leveled Up! 39 to 43!]

[You’ve slain all foes in a significant encounter. Reward: 50% Path Energy!]

Path Energy: 51%