Reincarnator RB Dragons, ch 53

Kevin stared at Historia.  He stayed absolutely still, and although the demon was standing casually, Kevin knew he could move incredibly quickly if he wanted.  Luckily, Lydia was staying still, too.  One of her clawed fingers was trembling slightly.  Kevin wasn’t sure if it was from fear or adrenaline.  Maybe both.

Historia wasn’t restraining his aura anymore.  The Champion’s power beat on the air like dark wings, full of violence and corruption.  His presence was a terrible as it was powerful, making the world around him, worse.  This might be the first time Lydia had ever encountered an enemy that was a real threat to her life.

“Little goblin, how do you know me?” The demon lazily asked.  “I have never been to this world before.  You are a Champion, but this is still curious.  I was expecting to do this simple job, leave, and never even exchange words.”

As Historia spoke, the surrounding vegetation withered or sickened.  The demon’s very physical presence was an affront to the natural order of the world.  Kevin had no idea how the old fiend had hid his presence for so long.

Kevin was having a crisis.  There were aspects of his lives he actively avoided thinking about, avoided acknowledging.  Historia was a part of one of them.  In addition to the fact Kevin was very likely going to die soon, the mere presence of the demon was causing his dismay. 

He didn’t want to remember.

His first life had been on earth.  His second life had been on the world of Haliron.  Now he was living on the world of Pangea…

…but he’d had another life before this one.  He was on his fourth life now, not his third.  Clamorcausm.  He’d existed in Hell, in all but name.  Living on the run, hiding, existing, barely surviving, all while being hunted down for his Champion status.

He remembered Historia–oh yes, he remembered the demon well.  Although Historia had not been one of his most powerful enemies, or even the most evil, his casual cruelty had been well known.  His survival instincts had also somehow kept him alive for hundreds of years, despite his many enemies.

Historia was a Champion of Baal.  Although he was not considered notably powerful on Clamorcausm, right now, facing Kevin in the middle of the wilderness, even with Lydia at his side, the demon represented almost certain death.

Rippling muscles quivered under his knotty, veiny skin, even as the demon stood still.  Mist or steam rose from his crimson flesh.  He was bipedal, with cloven hooves.  Huge, engraved horns rising from his forehead.  Narrowed, cruel eyes with black sclera regarded Kevin and his cousin with amusement.  A wide belt made of suspiciously-fine leather–likely the skin of his enemies–held up a loose pair of shorts, the only clothing Historia wore.  Sigils carved in stone adorned the belt, and embroidered hell runes ran up and down the seams of his clothing.

The only way that Historia’s appearance differed from a stereotypical demon was his huge size, and also his tail.  His tail was short, thick, and ended in a stony ball.  However, Kevin knew that the weight still served as an effective counterbalance, and despite being so large, Historia was known as a deadly fighter, even among other demons.

Historia casually carried a spear in one hand.  The demon was dangerous enough without it, but Kevin decided his highest priority was to separate him his weapon.  Ignoring Historia’s question, Kevin said, “Lydia, remember what I did to you in our first sparring session ever?  When you were in your human form and you underestimated me?”

“That was well–ah, yes.”  Luckily, despite the stress of the situation, Lyda was quick to catch on.

“I’m glad you understand.”

“Are you two done with speaking in code?  I’ll admit that I am a bit curious about why a goblin knows my name, especially in this world, but I’m not curious enough to spend much more time here.  This mission already took me far longer than I thought it would, needing to wait outside that small, pathetic city you were staying in just because of a troublesome mage.  Imagine my surprise that a soft, prey world like this can have beings of real power, even at the fringes of what passes for your civilization.  It makes me want to come back and challenge her with a few comrades, for pride if nothing else.  

“Very powerful wards and alarms, so strong I could even visualize the caster as a warning! Arrogant, that.  To be honest, I am also irritated that I had to travel all the way around the city when I finally felt you moving far enough away to actually kill you.  Troublesome, and all for some goblin that interfered with Maldroga’s plan!  We thought it was chance.  Now I see you’re a Champion!  Maybe this hasn’t been a waste of time after all.”

The demon chuckled, and Kevin’s hackles rose.  He’d heard that exact sound before as Historia murdered one of Kevin’s friends.  What a miserable life he’d led.  Other than the form he’d been born into that life, he hadn’t had any magic to call on, no extra power of his own, and he hadn’t had any renown points to use in the Eternal Struggle Reward System.  That experience had deeply strengthened his desire for magic of his own.

With magic, he’d never be powerless again, even as a child, even if he kept inexplicably being reincarnated.

And now he was in a nightmare scenario, facing down Historia, a villain from his past.  What’s worse, Lydia was with him, and despite her faults, she was a good person.  His cousin was worth protecting, maybe even worth… Kevin hated the situation, and he hated the decision he’d already made.  If the situation grew dire enough, he’d use the trump card that he’d otherwise been unwilling to use even to save his own life.

Some things were worse than death.  He didn’t want to remember, he didn’t want to…feel…the past.

Lydia growled deep in her chest, a sound that Kevin had never heard her make before.  There was no way she would not be able to feel that the two of them were totally outclassed.  Kevin got a very, very bad feeling even before she started speaking.  “I am not accustomed to being looked down on by a mere demon, especially one with ugly horns and terrible fashion sense.  Know your place, fiend.  I am a dragon!”

“You are a baby.”  Historia laughed.  “Perhaps in another few hundred years you might have some power to back your words, but right now, you are a light snack, or playful exercise.  And spare any threats of your kind retaliating.  I will be long gone before any help arrives for either of you.”

Then what Kevin feared would happen, happened.  With a roar of fury, in part because of Historia’s words, but also echoing an inborn, inherited hatred for demons, Lydia launched herself forward.  Her tail cracked out like a massive whip that could destroy trees, but instead of the demon’s body, she aimed directly for his hand holding his spear.

Kevin was as surprised as Historia.  His cousin’s unrestrained attack had been a ruse. She’s listened to Kevin’s code, aiming for the spear first.  Perhaps partly from surprise, perhaps due to Historia’s arrogance, and likely partly because the demon was not actually accustomed to using weapons…her tail connected.  

In Kevin’s memory, Historia was mostly a lazy hedonist.  He was not on the front lines of the demon forces, nor a hunter-killer, nor a Champion-catcher.  Instead, he’d lorded it over captives behind the front lines.  That’s where Kevin knew him from.  After he’d been captured, before he’d escaped, he’d seen Historia execute and torture the prisoners.  The demon had enjoyed it.  

Luckily, killing Champions that way didn’t give as much credit in the form of Renown Points.  Otherwise, this fight would already be lost.  But especially now that Lydia had separated the huge demon from his weapon, there was hope.

Kevin just needed to do his part.

He polymorphed into a chipmunk, running full-tilt towards the spear, tracking it as it flew through the air. The moment he started running, he began channeling [Arcane Surge], preparing the power, gathering it.  

Historia hadn’t reacted yet, but when he did, it would be fast. 

Kevin had almost reached the spear when Historia moved.  In only one second, he’d almost caught up.  But Kevin had just enough of a head start that he reached the weapon first.

Then he jumped up, polymorphed into his spry, original human form, and using [Arcane Surge] on his arm, he grabbed the spear and threw it as hard as he could at the distant river.  Historia tried to catch the weapon as it sailed through the air again, but his fingertips barely missed.  Almost like the world was holding its breath, the spear arced across the sky, tumbling end over end until it splashed into the water.

History turned slowly, more steam rising from his body.  His mouth gaped open, displayed jagged, shark-like teeth.  “That,” he growled, “was annoying.”

Lydia wasn’t interested in hearing anything more the demon had to say.  She sprang forward, roaring in primal hatred.  Her claw described an arc to eviscerate the demon, but Historia dodged with a furious snarl of his own.  The young dragon’s head snapped forward like a striking snake, trying to clamp down on her enemy’s arm, but although she was faster than Historia, he had much more experience.  The back of his fist crashed into Lydia head, knocking her to the side.  She rolled into a tree with a thunderous crash. 

Kevin narrowed his eyes and prepared a [Soul Shock] spell.  He didn’t have a lot of practice with it, and still needed to get close for the spell to connect, but he couldn’t pull together another [Arcane Surge] yet.  He was also still hoping he wouldn’t have to show all of his cards.

To have any hope of surviving the next few seconds fighting Historia, Kevin needed to be smart.  If he panicked and used everything he had while his would-be killer was still uninjured and fresh, the surprise would be wasted.

Historia must have sensed Kevin gathering magic.  The huge demon took two fast, running steps.  Kevin prepared to leap aside, even change into a chipmunk if he had to, but suddenly a green-blue blur slammed into Historia from one side.

“Claws and teeth!” Lydia roared her ancient battle cry.  Her natural weapons tore into Historia and the demon had to be in sp,e pain, but he didn’t panic.  With practiced ease, Historia defended himself with his rock-solid, massive arms, only taking minor damage.  The way Lydia was rearing up to attack, she didn’t have enough leverage. 

Lydia must have deduced this through her rage, because she abruptly spun, putting everything into a powerful attack with her tail.  Historia didn’t try to move or dodge.  He held up one taloned hand and a pylon of bone and illusory blood erupted from the ground like a huge concrete pillar. Lydia's tail snapped against it, but the post did not move. The sound was thunderous, and Kevin was sure that his cousin had been injured.

She spun around, and as if the magic had reminded her that she had power of her own, the dragon leaped backwards and opened her mouth. A torrential flood of fire erupted in Historia's direction. At the same time, all around her, pale blue globes manifested until there were at least six of them hanging in the air. A moment later, they erupted.  Each globe shot out powerful lances of ice, rapid fire, at where the demon had been standing. As each sharp ice projectile passed through Lydia's dragon flame, none were affected. Her powers did not negatively impact each other.

Her magic was largely inherited.  Although simple, this was a practical display of why Lydia's parents were considered extremely powerful in the dragon world. Unfortunately, Lydia was not her parents. Even as she continued to breathe fire and throw ice, Historia moved to the side out of the kill zone.  Lydia tried to shift fire but the demon was too fast. 

Kicking off the ground with a terrific burst of wind, Historia closed with Lydia in an instant. His massive fist slammed down on top of her head. She didn't immediately stop the searing outpouring of flame, and it charred the forest floor even as Historia delivered several savage, rapid punches into her sides.

Lydia coughed and thrashed, trying to bring her claws to bear, but Historia didn’t let her.  The demon's huge hands went to her closest wing in an attempt to break it, but his arms flexed and the wing stayed whole. Her wing wasn't fully developed and was stumpier and stronger than it would be in the future. Historia no doubt would be able to eventually break it with brute strength, but not on the first try. The failed attempt gave Lydia the opening she needed to get her wits together and counterattack.

She reared up with all her weight and slammed into the demon, bringing him down to the forest floor where she attempted to maul him. At the same time, her ice magic orbs changed, becoming one large, soli spear.  The conjuration slammed into the ground over and over like a huge, translucent sewing machine needle.

Historia managed to fend off all of Lydia's attacks and avoid the giant ice spear at the same time. His forearms were so tough that Lydia couldn’t actually damage them much with here teeth or claws.  Each time the ice spear descended, he dodged it, using minimal movement.  The demon laughed mockingly before throwing out one hand and delivering a shrapnel blast of bone at the ice lance, shattering it. Then, in an explosive display of strength, he stood while throwing Lydia off of him. The hatchling dragon crashed through two trees and rolled to a stop.

Kevin was petrified by indecision. He warred within his own mind, savagely fighting himself.  One one side, he balked at remembering a past life, on the other side was a combination of self-preservation, and loyalty to his cousin. 

Sweat poured down his nose and his eyes shook.

He kept telling himself to move. If he didn't do something, he and Lydia were both going to die.  But the terrible voice in the back of his mind seemed to say, “Why bother?  We’re going to die anyway.” 

It sounded like Historia was in this world specifically to kill Kevin, but he hadn't known that Kevin was a Champion. There was only one other reason why he could be here for his blood.  tKevin remembered what Alariel had said, that he was marked by evil. The words kept repeating over and over in his head, finally breaking down some of his walls.

It had been like this in his third life, being chased.  He’d been a Champion, wanted by other Champions, but seen as a hero by those around him, the castoffs, the weak.  His people had known what he was and they’d had hopes for him. They’d believed that he would save them from their plight but instead, the only outcome was that they'd all died, sacrificing themselves in vain so that Kevin could live. Angry tears ran down Kevin's face as he was forced to remember again, forced to face his worst life, his worst existence, and his greatest regrets.

It was actually during that lifetime when he learned his cleric skills wouldn't work on non-humanoids or sufficiently large body sizes. He learned later on this was because of the body he'd first been born into, his first, human body, and that aspects of his divine channeling would be humanoid. So now he knew there was very little he could do to help Lydia, at least using power channeled from Morrigan.  His helplessness kept running over and over in his mind in a loop. Each repetition made him feel more powerless, more miserable, just like he had in his third life.

His third life.  A life where he'd spent his entire existence on the run only to be captured and tormented, knowing that the only reason he was even being kept alive was to increase his value before death. Kept on a Champion farm.  After all, if another God's champion were to kill him after he had more power or had lived more life, they would likely get more reward from it. This was how the demons of that world dealt with every enemy Champion they discovered. 

They didn’t get much benefit from it, at least not individually, but it was safe and they were sadists anyway.

Most powerful gods didn't choose Champions on that world because it was pointless, they all just got captured and executed.  Only the weakest gods took a chance on Champions in Clamorcausm.  Kevin’s luck had been the worst.  It was only because he was reincarnated there that he had such a strong sponsor, which some of his people had known.

They’d believed he was sent there to save him.

He bit his lips as he watched the ongoing battle.  Lydia was being toyed with by Historia. She was completely outclassed. The demon was taking his time, proving to her how little hope she had… over and over again. Her sides were a bloody mess and her tail had an unnatural kink in it, it’d been severely damaged in at least one place. One of her arms was swelling up and she couldn't put her full weight on it.

At the moment, she was throwing every offensive spell she had at Historia. Mostly ice magic, but a bit of fire too. Her breath wheezed as her chest worked painfully in stops and starts. It seemed her fire breath was no longer an option.

Kevin's heart broke as he watched his cousin throw everything she had at Historia. He wanted so badly to help her, to do anything other than just stand in one place and wallow in oceans of pain from a past life. But he knew instinctively that if he were to try joining the fight now, he'd be almost instantly killed. Even with all of his advantages, his new magic, he was no match for Historia.  An ambush, if possible, would not be enough, either.

He knew for a fact that the demon hadn't even used his full power so far while basically tormenting a hatchling dragon–a hatchling dragon from a powerful family, no less. 

Realistically, there were only two things Kevin could do, and he couldn't bring himself to decide on either.

Lydia wailed as she was slammed into the ground over and over again. The dragon's cry of distress was like a lonely trumpet that shook the air. Historia's laughter almost perversely harmonized with the sounds of pain.  

Indecision gripped Kevin with an icy hand around his heart.  He just couldn’t shake the rush of memories and emotions he’d left buried. 

Every moment he'd watched his people die, every moment he'd witnessed captives eaten alive or toyed with, every feeling of helplessness he'd experienced while a captive of demons replayed itself in his mind.  So many people had placed all their hopes on him, and he’d failed.

He compared what he knew about Historia to himself, to the meager power he'd been able to scrap together this life…and he found himself wanting. There was really only one way to bridge that gap but if he did, it meant he'd never be able to forget again. Should he, could he run, or should he, could he accept his third life?  That would mean never running from it again, though.  To run, or not to run?

Kevin was usually brave. He’d always thought of himself as brave.  The reason he couldn't make this decision now was because his third life had proven that he really wasn't. There were circumstances that could break him.

The tears running down his green cheeks were like a flood as he was overcome with anguish and self-hatred. Would he even be able to move before he was killed? At least he could move, could fight in his past lives.  Maybe this really would be his last life and this would be the end of his existence. That would be fitting. Anger at himself and his weakness suffused every cell of his body.

A crash split the air.

Lydia was thrown backwards into a rock outcropping and something inside of her popped. Blood was running down all her limbs now. She snarled at Historia, but then suddenly caught sight of Kevin out the corner of her eye. She was panting in pain and desperation, and Kevin entirely expected her to curse him or demand that he help her, get off his ass.  Maybe she’d even stare at him with betrayed eyes and ask why he was broken. Instead, she shouted, "Run you fool! What do you think I'm dying for here, you stupid goblin?"

The words echoed through the surrounding trees that had not been destroyed yet.  Stupid goblin, stupid goblin, stupid goblin, stupid goblin…

Something inside Kevin snapped. This was no time for him to worry about consequences. 

He'd spent so long trying to forget his third life, it petrified him.  But some challenges didn’t need thinking, they didn’t need planning, they need faith.  There were moments that one had to act and think about consequences later. Inside of him, deep in his heart, his soul magic beat in time with this message. And warm fire rushed out from his center all the way to his fingertips.

Heat grew at the base of his eyeballs, replacing his consternation and conflict with resolve.

He was still stricken. There were still feelings of self-hate. But now he didn't care. He had a job to do and if it killed him, that was acceptable. He’d made his choice. Kevin would not run, not from this battle, and he would not let anybody else die in his place, especially not family.

Kevin still felt a moment of sadness as he made the decision to polymorph into the only other form he could manage in this life. Not man, not a chipmunk, not a fish.  This was the one polymorph form he'd never had to spend any time working on to perfect, and he'd only discovered he could even do it one night after sleepwalking. He’d never used this form intentionally in this life, and it hadn’t come back against since his sleepwalking episode.

His arm went over his head as he drew his sword.  Then with methodical precision, he  unloosened his belt. It was still very possible he was going to rip his clothes.  But if he prepared for the shift, maybe he could salvage them later in case he survived.

Secons passed where Kevin reached inside himself, removing mental blocks and deep chains he’d place himself.  A moment later, he polymorphed. He began to grow larger, surpassing the size of his human, knightly body from his second life. The sword in his hand, which had looked so large when it had been a goblin, now appeared to be not much longer than a dagger. Now his hand was gray and covered in spiky fur. 

Kevin's jaws opened and his tongue lolled out. He hated how comfortable this form felt when almost everything about it represented the worst time of his life. But he couldn't deny the sudden rush of power that ran through his body. His tail lashed as Kevin took one experimental stomp, feeling what it was like to be a werewolf ten years after he had last polymorphed into this form.

Strength coursed through his body.  He really was a werewolf.  This was his most complete polymorphed form.  

Without hesitation, he cast every cleric buff that he knew on himself. After all, while his cleric powers had limited effectiveness on other humanoids, he'd always been able to use them on himself. 

[weapon sharpening]

[anti-bind]

[weapon strengthening]

[weapon swiftness]

[unshakable resolve]

[battle focus]

[divine inspiration]

[instrument of war]

[guided by prophesy]

Morrigan’s divine power descended on him and he could hear the sound of crows, smell the blood of the battlefield.

Lydia didn’t notice what was happening as she fought for her life, and Historia was having too much fun torturing the young dragon.  Neither looked over at Kevin as images of divine crow feathers rained down around his head.

The last two spells in particular impacted him greatly, putting weight on his spirit.  Strain from casting every buff he could on himself would not have been possible in his third life. But not only did his extra powers and abilities in this life make him stronger, tougher, and more magically conducive than before, his base form was also stronger now too. As someone who had lived a lifetime as a perpetually shifted werewolf, Kevin's success rate with the polymorph was as high as it could be.

Now, while he was polymorphed, he essentially was a werewolf, a monster, a creature that was killed on sight in this world, Pangea. He could feel his mana draining in this form, though.  Unlike his other forms, something was different, special about this one.  Blood ran from his eyes and from one corner of his mouth as he growled deep in his chest. The laundry list of quick-casted cleric spells had hurt his spirit more than his body, but it had still ruptured the top of his mouth. 

As a werewolf, especially a werewolf with [Werewolf Constitution, Minor], making his natural physical traits even greater, the minor wound healed quickly.  Due to all the extra endurance and magical strength he had acquired in this life, the strain on his soul was tolerable.

It still didn’t feel good, though.  And he had a time limit.  His mana wouldn’t last forever.

Kevin ran forward three steps before using [jump] and [weightlessness[.  His powerful werewolf muscles, in combination with the dragon life skills allowed to clear the gap between himself and the demon in an instant.  He slammed into Historia, the speed of his dash combined with removing [weightlessness] at the last moment knocked the demon mostly off of his half-conscious cousin. 

Then Kevin grabbed on with one powerful, clawed hand and began jackhammering his longsword into Historia. The moment he’d opened a few cuts, he lowered his head and bit. The heat of the demon's body burned his mouth and vaporized part of his tongue, but Kevin ignored the pain. Instead, he moved lower to stab, and alternated between shanking the huge demon with his sword and injecting [Lion Iguana Neurotoxin Venom] with is teeth.

The ambush was so fast and so savage that Historia didn't react to it as quickly as he might have. But finally, the demon reacted.  Instead of trying to make a grab that Kevin could have avoided, he swung an arm, not making direct contact, but springing into the air, using centrifugal force to throw Kevin off.

If Kevin hadn't been familiar with this type of fighting or with his new form, the violent motion probably would have caused him to slam into the ground and bounce a few times, breaking bones and injuring him in the process. Instead, Kevin expertly spread his arms to increase air resistance as he flipped, landed on his feet, and skidded to a stop.[Uncanny Balance] and [Elvish Acuity] helped him time his movements so perfectly, he landed facing his enemy.  He hadn’t even been scraped.

Kevin and Historia glared at each other across the destroyed battlefield.  The ground was still smoking in some places, and some distant trees had caught fire.  Then the demon’s eyes suddenly widened in recognition and he roared, "You!" 

To one side, broken and bloody on the ground, Lydia's only functioning eye rolled to look at Kevin before slightly widening in surprise at his new form and closing. He hoped that she had passed out and was not just dead. If it was the latter, he truly didn't know if he could live with the guilt, live with himself.  For the moment, all he could do was try his best to kill this horrible demon and believe that his cousin was still alive. After all, Kevin was a mage now, and if he survived, he would be able to heal her.  Maybe. 

Historia sprang forward, and Kevin prepared himself to meet a nemesis from a previous life in mortal combat.