Siva? The goddess?
Who else? Even dead She can't stop getting in my way.
Definitely pissed.
The Maw had become more and more verbal as the fight wore on. Three minutes in and he wasn't sure which hurt more: his wounds or his ears.
Spiritual ears, he supposed, and almost laughed. He was getting loopy.
What?
Nothing. Shut up. Listen, how do we kill this? Felix flared Unfettered Volition again and ran up its back, hopping between bone spurs as they regrew. Nothing I do is working!
You know what you must do, Felix Nevarre. You are simply too afraid to try.
Felix paused, almost disastrously, as the spur he stood up on was ejected from the Larval Ravager's body. Kicking off, he flipped backwards and into its slick flesh, sliding down twenty feet before he fetched up against another spur.
It is the only way.
Felix didn't want to hear that. She (it!) had been pressing the issue since he swung his first punch. The Nym didn't have enough Strength to fight this battle, nor a proper weapon. Except that wasn't true; he had both. But the cost was terrifying. And the Maw was likely lying, leveraging the moment. Felix wasn't an idiot.
Still, he feared it was right.
Screaming. Far different than the howls of the Revenants, this was a painful shriek from close by. Still leap-frogging the bone spurs of the Ravager, Felix cast his Perception outward. There. Evie. Vess.
His stomach dropped as something in his chest burned. Pit!
He could feel Pit's fear. Separated by the horde, but he could sense the tenku coming to him, rushing as much as he could. But there wasn't enough time. His Companion couldn't overcome this beast, the same as Felix.
Not without sacrifices.
You should be used to sacrifices by now, Felix Nevarre. The Maw taunted.
"SHUT. UP." Felix panted, his mind whirling. They're all gonna die. Everyone he cared about in this dumb world. And he could stop it.
He could stop it.
What Dwells Beneath.
Through their connection, Pit cried out in fear, but it was too late. Pain clamped its jaws on Felix, as if every single part of himself was on fire. His flesh tore and lengthened, his skin hardening as it darkened toward leathery black. Spikes of bone tore from his forearms and elbows even as his fingers formed long, curved talons.
He screamed.
What Dwells Beneath is level 18!
Bloodline Progression is 51%
The scream drew the Ravager's attention. It had been toying with him, all this time, letting Felix wear himself out against it's impervious hide. But something rattled the air as he shouted, something primal and entirely not Felix. A mouth-tendril whipped down at him, intent on smashing him into the ground once again. This time, however, was different.
Unfettered Volition!
Felix could no longer parry attacks, so he didn't bother trying. Instead, he vaulted the bone spurs around him, lashing outward with his talons and hit the tentacle straight on.
His claws sheared right through it.
Caustic blood drenched him as Felix's overhand strike carried through the limb like a hot knife through butter. It smelled of rot and rust, as if it were already partially congealed within its veins. It was delicious.
And he wanted more.
Pit felt it when Felix embraced his Enemy-form.
The sensation slithered around their bond like a serpent, an eel that clutched at their connection. It wasn't evil, not like the wrong-beasts or the Enemy, but it was dark and clawed. It was hungry.
He didn't like it. Moreover, Pit knew that Felix had issues resisting it's call. The Enemy-form carried a tempting song, a cord that thrummed strangely against all the rest of his Skills. Perhaps the Enemy-form would win the fight...but Felix would need Pit in the end.
Yet they were blocked.
They were close, perhaps only another two jumps away when the wrong-man had come for them. The females had hissed and shouted, but they met the wrong-man head on without flinching. His attacks were wide and sweeping, and he killed more Revenants than not with them, but the wrong-man was dangerous. Something about his scent and that rapid pulse in Pit's ears...
The females were hurt. Bloody from their long fights, tired from pushing themselves far harder than they should have. Pit tried to help, tried to use his own power to weaken and distract the wrong-man. But it was no use; the creature's hide was too tough for Pit's Skills to penetrate.
"Eat...grow...strong..." The thing panted, barely pausing between clawed strikes and kicks. The Pretty Killer moved fluidly, doding nimbly out of its way as she brought her whirling chain to bear. When she smashed it across his chest, the wrong-man grabbed it, slicing his own unnatural hands to ribbons as he did so. "Eat...!"
"Eat this!"
Three silver spears shot into the wrong-man's chest, followed by a flurry of nearly invisible Wingblades. Then they exploded, the air Mana carving the wrong-man's abdomen to pieces. Dark, clotted blood poured from him in a heavy cascade, yet the wrong-man still stood. Still struggled.
"E...eat...stronger...feed--"
A Frost Spear, thick as a human's thigh, punched into the wrong-man's throat. Finally weakened by the females' attacks, it was enough.
You Have Killed A Manawarped Revenant!
XP Earned!
Pit shrieked, sharp and high. System power pooled in his core, reverberating against his flesh. He fixed the females with a sharp, golden eye and shrieked again.
"Right. Let us hurry," the Dangerous One said. She gathered Pit up in her arms again, and launched up from the earth. Behind, following quickly after them, Pit could hear the Pretty Killer mutter to herself.
"Eat this?"
Strength surged through Felix's veins as a weighty feeling dropped into his gut. He sank his claws into the Ravager's flesh, just below it's roaring, circular jaws and held himself there. A swirling power manifested above his core.
Monster essence.
The Larval Ravager quivered, all of it's mouth tendrils spasming wildly. Thousands of tiny eyes bubbled up and formed beneath Felix, and he kicked at them with savage glee. They burst like enormous abscesses, pus and blood pouring down the already slick, pebbled hide. Felix felt strange, like his emotions were on a roller coaster. The essence coiled within him, boiling above his core fire. A wild, unnerving laugh shot out of his throat, insuppressible.
Something is wrong.