Ruthless V6Ch11-The Warp King

The monster disappeared from in front of James, and he suddenly felt himself pulled in a new, downward direction.

Did he crash into the ground? What’s going on? James wondered.

At the same time that he had these thoughts, he sent a hurried series of instructions to Doppelganger, and James deactivated Invisibility. He wanted the monster to see him now—to think that James was weaker, running lower on resources, than he really was.

Let him believe I can’t maintain Invisibility anymore. He’ll think he’s got this in the bag—assuming he’s not already dying.

But at the very least, the wyvern was not dead. James would have received a notification by now. As he fell, he managed to rotate his body through the air so that he was looking down.

He saw that the wyvern was on the ground, lying on its stomach, seemingly breathing heavily. Trying to heal itself, perhaps.

A stab wound to the heart should be fatal, but James thought it was likely that some creatures in this mad world could survive such injuries. He would need to be cautious.

As he fell closer to the wyvern, James used Precision Gravity Control on himself, not breaking his tie to the wyvern—that was too valuable in knowing where the fast-moving creature was—but simply reducing his weight a bit. He was going to land soon, and he would prefer to avoid breaking his own legs.

Then the wyvern’s back feathers all stood on end and shot out at James. It felt like a weak, desperate attack as he watched it, but James was determined not to underestimate any last-ditch efforts to win the fight.

He used Predator’s Sacred Armor again, his pulse pounding as the fight pushed him close to his resource limits.

Regenerating from multiple serious injuries, including severe lacerations across the front and back of his torso, as well as a severed limb, along with multiple energy-intensive attacks and defenses, had been expensive even for James. One way or another, the next few attack exchanges would decide this fight.

The wyvern feathers struck the aura shield, and they splattered against it with a hissing noise. Somehow, the feathers had turned liquid on contact with a hard surface. James guessed that they were some sort of acid or flesh-eating venom.

Still pulling out new tricks even at the last moment, James thought with a mix of weariness and admiration. He was beginning to doubt that the wound he had inflicted on the Warp King was even that serious. If this Ruler could essentially teleport, transmute its body parts into acid, and even continue fighting after James had punctured its heart, who was to say it hadn’t just transmuted some other, less vital part of its body into a new heart?

Maybe James would have to chop it up into itty bitty pieces or burn it to ashes if he wanted this thing to stay dead.

Of course, either of those options could be arranged.

As James fell into close range with the wyvern, he finally decoupled himself from its gravitational pull. This was too close for his liking. He didn’t want to be in physical contact with the monster, which was larger than him, probably physically stronger, and covered in blade-like feathers.

“Well done,” said the Warp King as James touched down five feet away. “You inflicted a fatal wound on—”

A small but very noticeable chunk of the back of the wyvern’s neck suddenly disappeared, exposing flesh and blood and the inside of the monster’s spine. The wyvern briefly spasmed, eyes wide open, body out of conscious control.

Doppelganger made himself visible again, holding one of the two Bonded Oni Axes, which he had planted firmly in the enemy monster’s spinal column.

The wyvern’s eye twitched, its body seemingly at least partly paralyzed. The dying creature was unable to even look up at the one who had crippled him, though his peripheral vision must have told him it was another life form that looked very similar to James.

“Did I perform well, Progenitor?” Doppelganger asked, smiling nervously.

You cut him off mid-sentence, which I certainly approve of, James thought.

He let loose a brief Solar Ray and blasted the wyvern’s head to ash before he replied.

[You killed Vorpal Wyvern Warp King Zandros, Lv. 48!]

[Predator in Human Skin leveled up!]

[Evolver Human leveled up!]

[Fisher King leveled up!]

[Predator in Human Skin leveled up!]

[Evolver Human leveled up!]

So it really is over, he thought.

Only once he had received the notification did he feel safe. As his heartbeat slowed, he realized that this fight had actually scared him for a few brief moments. There were too many events that strained his understanding—that suggested that despite all his experience, tactics, and stolen Skills, the wyvern had abilities equal to or above those that James was equipped with.

“You did very well,” James said finally. “You came in at exactly the right moment with the axe. The only thing I would gently criticize is that you made yourself visible again while the enemy was still alive. He was paralyzed, yes, but he could have killed you anyway, if he had a Skill appropriate for the task. I made myself visible for a specific reason, and I had not ordered you to do the same.” Doppelganger’s face fell. “On the other hand, you deviated from my order in just the right way with the axe. You took advantage of an opportunity and essentially ended the fight. You were instrumental. I’m betting the System rewarded that?”

Doppelganger nodded and smiled eagerly.

“Eight levels for me, Progenitor,” he said in a proud tone. “I must be catching up to you now.”

James chuckled quietly and shook his head.

Back when James threw his magic satchel to the wind, he had ordered Doppelganger to catch it, remove one of the Bonded Oni Axes, and use the axe to chop through the wyvern’s wings if he got the opportunity. James had formed a theory that the wyvern needed, in order to use its teleportation or warp speed Skill, to flap its wings in a certain way as a trigger. It was based on a feeling and a half-formed observation—the wyvern flapped particularly forcefully each time it disappeared.

If Doppelganger could sever those wings, the danger of the creature would hopefully be halved.

Of course, at the time that James had given that instruction, he could not have anticipated that he would succeed in rendering the wyvern immobile on the ground, turning its neck into an easy target.

And Doppelganger, understanding the spirit of the instructions—cripple the wyvern—had executed on them beyond what James had requested. That was laudable, perhaps the most praiseworthy behavior possible from a subordinate.

He was about to say something more, praising Doppelganger for his efforts, when he sensed something from the corpse. A lingering activity. Some ability that was going to activate post-mortem?

James pointed a hand at it. Pillage.

The body glowed, and James selected Talent as his theft target. He had no way of knowing if this creature had exceptional Titles, but its inherent abilities—its fighting power and movement Skills—were so impressive that it had to possess some incredible Talents.

[Vorpal Wyvern Warp King Zandros’s body processed.]

[You obtained Wings of the Vorpal Wyvern, 20x Wyvern Meat Bundle, and a Lightning Elemental Core!]

[Talent Obtained: Warp Movement!]

Interesting. Why did a wyvern contain a Lightning Elemental Core? Did it consume it as part of its growth? Maybe that was how it obtained the lightning attack that Doppelganger stopped it from charging.

James wondered how differently the fight might have gone without Doppelganger’s assistance. He only observed faintly, in the back of his mind, that the energy he had sensed active in and around the wyvern’s body had dissipated with his use of Pillage. Now there was only meat and equipment.

“Well done, sir!” A surprising but familiar voice cut through his train of thought.

“Rotter? You’re here?” James asked, raising an eyebrow. He turned and saw Jeremiah Rotter standing next to the Panther Queen. Beside her and Rotter stood Damien, who was panting as if he had just finished the run of his life.

A moment later, the ground shook as Mageddon landed just behind the others.

“What are you all doing here?” James said. “Did the battle in the park finish that quickly, or…?”

“We came to help you, though it was clearly unnecessary,” said the Panther Queen. She licked the back of her paw. “I knew you’d be fine, of course.”

“I got it all,” Rotter said excitedly, holding up the large, glowing, magic eyeball that he used to record events.

“Really?” James said. “Um, that’s great. Cool addition for the Fisher Kingdom propaganda archives.”

Did you come all the way here just for that? he wondered silently. I’m sure Mina probably needs help back at the park.

“Not just that!” exclaimed Rotter. “I can display the fight to the whole city in the sky—once we make sure everything is the way we want it, of course. The spider who Your Majesty befriended explained that the velociraptors’ Ruler is feared in these parts. Once the others in Orlando see your commanding victory over such a dangerous foe, I think a lot of the remaining enemies will simply surrender rather than face you.”

“That is an idea,” James said slowly.

“It would work on me,” the Panther Queen muttered. “I doubt I could have beaten that wyvern unaided.”

“I wasn’t totally on my own,” James said slowly.

“You will be in the video,” Rotter replied in a quiet voice. “Not that I want to deny your creature’s accomplishments, but I will make edits to simplify the matter. It only accentuates your dominant performance to present you performing the feat on your own.”

James glanced over at Doppelganger, who looked completely indifferent to the conversation.

And the Fisher King slowly nodded. “That’s fine, I think. If it helps us take the city more quickly.”

“I think it will,” Damien said breathlessly. “I only caught the tail end of it, since I arrived behind the Panther Queen here, but what I saw was impressive.”

At the mention of herself, the Panther Queen smirked for some reason. James didn’t concern himself with what was going on between the Werewolf and the Ruler, though. It was time to take inventory of his gains from the Warp King.

As he was going to examine his new equipment, however, a dozen forms entered the periphery of his sensory awareness.

James glanced around, and he saw that to his side, around fifty feet away, a gaggle of Vorpal Velociraptors had gathered. More were on his other side, and another set were behind him—a couple hundred in total.

They weren’t poised to attack him. Rather, the scaly feathered creatures looked like they were considering running away. As he looked, he thought the monsters were poised on a knife’s edge, between running, desperate self-defense—if he should attack them—and submission.

If James used Dominion now, he bet he would sense the presence of more velociraptors, huddled in the buildings, hiding from the monstrous human who had just killed their protector.

“Surrender to me now, and I will spare your lives,” James said in a loud, clear voice. “You can become residents of my territory and live according to my rules. I’ll kill any adult who tries to fight me, and running isn’t acceptable either.”

If they ran away, he would just have more annoying velociraptor fights as his territory continued expanding.

The dinosaurs looked at each other, cautiously, as if waiting for one brave velociraptor to make the first move—whether it would be to attack James or speak up, even the monsters didn’t seem to know.

Then one velociraptor with a thin streak of blue in its fur stepped forward from among the others. It took a knee and lowered its head in an unmistakable bow.

“I surrender to the Fisher King,” the monster said in a clear, male voice.

Wait, they know my official title? James wondered. Did they overhear me say it before?

“We all submit ourselves to your mercy,” pronounced another velociraptor, this one female, adopting the same posture as the male.

The rest of the monsters followed suit, and James was soon surrounded by a semicircle of over a hundred kneeling dinosaurs.

“Excellent,” James said in a loud clear voice. “I am taking over the city, so I will make an announcement about what rules everyone will be living under later. For now, just don’t attack any of these Races of creatures that are helping me—” He gestured at his allies—“and try not to start any fights at all, today, actually. I’ll be accepting the surrender of a lot of different species. It only makes all our lives more dangerous if we start attacking creatures just because they look unfamiliar. Other than that, you’re free to behave as normally.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!” shouted one dinosaur from among the crowd. “Thank you for your benevolence!”

“Yes, Your Majesty! Thank you!” echoed most of the rest, while others were simply nodding and backing away. Their postures gave James the distinct impression that the dinosaurs were still a bit worried about being attacked after having seen how James dispatched their leader. They didn’t want to turn their backs to him, so they had to awkwardly walk backward in order to return to their living quarters.

Luna, you can bring Alan and the others to my location, if you’re ready, James sent telepathically. Is everything all right on your end?

All is well, Luna replied. We will be right there.

James nodded to himself. While he waited, he would check out his new acquisitions.

[Wings of the Vorpal Wyvern: Two pairs of wings that belonged to a mighty vorpal wyvern. They can be affixed to the back of a biological organism or an armor set to enable flight or radically increase flight speed. The feathers attached to the wings are razor sharp and as hard as metal, and the wing bearer can control them telekinetically while using the wings. The pairs of wings are usable as two separate pairs or may be used more effectively when all four wings are attached to the same individual. Consumes Mana and Stamina to use.]

I need to go through all my equipment before the Victors Tournament, he thought. I don’t usually care as much about the reward as the victory, but I’m sure I have a suit of armor I could wear with these wings attached that would be a perfect combo.

There was also a new Talent to consider.

[Warp Movement: Your body has learned the basics of spatial manipulation, though you may lack the intellectual understanding of a Mage in this area. Your movements are radically enhanced by the addition of this instinctive knowledge. Generates Skills “Warp Step” and “Instant Acceleration.”]

[Warp Step: With a single step, a single flap, a single jump, a single motion, move to any location within sight range in one movement. Consumes Mana and a minor amount of Stamina. Mana expenditure and results are dependent on distance and clarity of intent.]

[Instant Acceleration: Transform Mana into immediate acceleration in any direction you choose. Permits you to transcend the natural limits of your own Agility and move in ways that would otherwise be physically impossible.]

Those explain a lot. For that first attack, where he ripped me up, he was probably using both of those Skills at once. Warp Step to appear right in front of me, plus Instant Acceleration to hit me while breaking the sound barrier. That’s not just powerful… It's clever. Kind of a shame that he had to die. Also kind of a shame I could only take one Talent. He seemed like he was collecting a lot of useful things. Like me.