Book1, Volume 6

Chapter 64

Enraged, Flowers swung his huge clawed paw in a powerful swipe towards Wylla. Above Ceri 'tootled' with everything she had at Wylla willing her to dodge!

Wylla heard Ceri's cry, and more importantly, felt her desire through their connection, bolstering her will power, snapping her out of her fear-induced stupor.

Seeing the swipe coming, Wylla lifted her spear and put her whole body into a powerful forward thrust, catching Flowers by surprise as his paw slammed into her, sending her flying, but at a huge cost as the heavy swipe drove the long piercing blade of Wylla's spear deep, easily piercing his barkskin armor, plunging through muscle and flesh, cutting through ligaments where his right foreleg attached to his body.

“ARRGH!!!” Both screamed in pain in near unison.

Wylla's body flew over a dozen yards, hitting the ground hard! Kicking up dust and debris as she tumbled to a hard stop.

“OWW!” Wylla cried out; Her back coming to a crashing halt against the hard rock wall of the cavern; The impact causing small cracks to form on her scales.

Wincing in pain, her eyes flickered to the top right corner of her vision, confirming what her body was feeling as her health bar flickered down to less than a quarter full. If I hadn't been in my Dire Syldrake Battleform... I'd be dead right now... Shaking her head to clear her mind of such thoughts, she focused past the pain and burgeoning despair, and called out to Ceri, her voice weak and raspy, “Cover me...”

Ceri flew up to the badly limping Flowers, the blood flowing down his wounds thickening... slowing. Ceri warily stayed out of reach, of his claws and his fangs, dodging the needles that were flying her way from the mouth of the remaining serpris. But since there was just one, she had a much easier time.

Ceri breathed in deeply as Flowers ignored her, marking her as no threat, and tunneled in on the lizard that skewered him, making him bleed! The lowly lizard who was pushing herself up off the ground with trembling arms.

Wylla got back onto her feet, swaying as she wiped the blood from her mouth, feeling the energy supporting her Syldrake form nearing its end. She inhaled deeply, and nearly retched as a vile stench hit her. Looking down, she saw what it was; The small pouch holding her last trump card was dampening.

Ugh, not good, got to get rid of this... fast! Wylla quickly, and painfully removed the strap from her shoulder, and absentmindedly tossed the foul pouch away from her body, where it flew through the air, landing with a wet squelching sound, right in front of a bloody but angry Flowers who was shambling her way with her spear still plunged into his right foreleg shoulder.

So near to his goal, of ending this STINKY lizard bug! Coughing and doing his best to not inhale, an irate Flowers shambled around the stinking bag, and headed Wylla's way, preparing himself for a final lunge; Wylla looked past Flowers, waiting for something to happen, to make her move...

Flowers body coiled back in protest, claws biting into the earth beneath his left paw, his red tainted eyes focused solely on Wylla.

He opened his jaws, fangs glistening, ready to lunge and rip flesh... when the sounds of air being blown out rained down, quickly followed by a mouthful of billowing purple and pink spores that blanketed his head first, and then the front half of his body.

The poisonous cloud flowed into his open maw, flowing down his throat causing him to gag and cough. His eyes lost all sight of his target as they burned and watered. The world seemed to spin and shift for a moment, causing him to sway, and lose his footing; The poisonous effect of Ceri's Dreamnisca Spore Breath lasted for only a fraction of the time it normally would on foes without such strong poison resistances. But thankfully it lasted long enough for Flowers to lose his equilibrium and tumble down onto the hard ground jaw first as he cried out in pain.

Wylla's Syldrake form ended at that moment as she quickly shifted back into her butterfly form. She then cast her hex, re-applying her ghostly leeching vines onto Flowers prone body and ran knowing that there was no way she could let that beast near her again.

Her body, battered and bruised, protested in pain, especially her right side but she had no time to listen; Her dress ripped and tattered, and side bleeding from the slashes across her waist, hip, and upper thigh.

Need to heal... time to heal... hide to heal... but where? Her eyes jolted about, scanning the huge cavern room but it was all flat open space with nowhere to hide!

If only... if only it was like my training sessions yesterday... filled with trees and... and... Ah, that's right! Trees and...Her foot hit the ground, sending energy into the earth causing it to rumble and tremble as a large earth flora pillar rose up towards the ceiling, reaching over 6 feet in height!

Eyes still burning, and throat still gagging Flowers rose up from the ground. He let out a loud broken roar, angry that the annoying bug was gone!

Turning around, he clawed the ground in frustration; The area around him was no longer flat terrain, no... there was now a forest of earth flora pillars standing before his eyes making it hard to spot that stinky bug!

Since he couldn't use his eyes to spot her, he decided to use his nose and 'sniff-sniffed' the air but that was no good; Between that smelly bag that the lizard bug threw at him and the poisonous spore cloud, his sense of smell was out for the count... so he could only rely on sight and sound.

But the bug was being quiet as a mouse and hiding behind all these blasted pillars... aargh! The urge to smash, to rampage bubbled up within him as he shambled forward with heavy steps and hard ragged breaths.

Wylla, crouching behind one of the pillars, giving her body time to heal and mind time to think turned her head to the side, listening.

Guided by Flowers's steps and breathing, she scuttled around the pillar, keeping it between her and Flowers. She lifted her trembling hands to her scalp, pressing down hard with whitened knuckles, trying to force a plan out of her mind as her heart thumped loudly in her chest.

Doubt gave rise to despair as she started to mutter, “This... this is impossible. He's too big... too strong. My spells hit him like... like softballs, my stink bomb trump card is gone... (She looked down at her other damp pouch, becoming further disheartened) as are my potions. And my Syldrake form is on cooldown... one hit and it's over... heck, even if I had full health, it would be over... I.. just... can't... win...”

Just as Wylla was about to give in to despair, her infobox popped up:

[ You got this Wylla. You can do it... just like in the dojo when you finally beat that mini-boss spidoll after a dozen tries. You didn't quit then... so don't quit now because the power to win is inside you!

Just think and search for it within... and grab onto it. Make it your own... a part of you. Mold it, shape it, and use it to... slay this beast! ]

“Aye, lassie! You can do it!” “That's right girlie, the knowledge and power to win are in you.” “””We Believe in You Wylla! So Fight... and Kill the Beast!””” Words of encouragement rained down on her as Ceri flew down nuzzling in support.

Tears streamed down Wylla's cheeks, as she clenched her fists, steeled her heart wiping her face dry, and looked up mouthing a silent but clear “Thank You.”

Okay... I got this. The power is in me... so what do we know? His resistances are strong... or maybe it's not just his resistances... alone. Maybe the reason my spells are doing so little damage is also because of his... armor. His barkskin armor.

And if that's the case then I need to get rid of them... but I can't get rid of his resistances since their from within him... I think. But his barkskin, that I can get rid of... so what can I do. Hmm... in games acids and corrosive liquids destroy armor... and fire burns wood.

So If I had something that was both acidic or corrosive and fiery... then I could... take him out.

Thoughts of fire and something dark and liquidy... something corrosive kept circling round Wylla's mind. Fire, I have plenty of experience with heat thanks to my alchemy. And fire thanks to cooking back home.

As for corrosive... why do I keep picturing dark... purplish liquids when I think of corrosi... Oh, that right!

That huge plant Tundri gathered... the one I saw from the kitchen window this morning... what was it called... it was like the Titan Arum... Arum... Yes, that's it. Noctis Arum!

So if I combine fire with a Noctis Arum and turn it into a type of bolt... Wylla's eyes glowed as the energy within her chest rushed to her mind where a seed... a seed of magic sprouted and a new spell entered her Druwytch Grimoire.

Ah, that's a little different than what I expected, well in shape that is... although it probably took that shape because of all the Wuxia stories I've read... either way, it's perfect! Wylla thought as she read the spell's description:

[ Noctis Phoenix Bolt: Streams of dark corrosive energy merge with phoenix energy forming a bolt which streaks towards the target transforming into a dark purplish flamed Phoenix whose body is made of corrosive liquid flames resembling dark lava under a black light.

The Noctis Phoenix explodes upon impact causing minor plant damage and major corrosive flame damage. Targets will continue to burn for 6 seconds taking 15% of the spell's initial damage every 3 seconds and corroding their armor. Current Damage Strength: 5 to 8 points of damage. All crits add 50% more damage. Cost to Use Skill: 6 Oryn Energy Power ]

Peeking around the pillar, Wylla watched as Flowers hobbled about, her spear still stuck in his shoulder, and his breathing sounding ragged... and tired. His eyes looked towards her direction but just missed seeing her as she ducked back and began to plan...

Hmm, there's no way he should be able to keep up with me now. And it seems my Hex is finally taking a toll on him, chipping away at his stamina and energy so I just need to keep my distance and blast him with my new spell while keeping an eye out for his charge.

So... no need to carry this extra baggage. Wylla thought to herself as she removed the large damp pouch from her body... the pouch that had held her Medylixrs and Orynlixrs and Refuelixrs that was supposed to be her 'in case of emergency drink this' plan.

She was about to toss it aside but followed her urge to look inside first. Yup, as expected. All the earth flora bottles broke... but couldn't I just reform them then into one large bottle? Sure the potions would be mixed, and a lot of it has already soaked into the pouch... but there should be enough to top off my health, oryn energy, and fatigue bars. Couldn't hurt to try...

As Wylla began her little experiment, Flowers stopped moving for a bit. Feeling tired, run-down, and quite sore. He needed to do something to get that blasted spear out of his shoulder so his wounds could start healing and his body could start moving the way it was supposed to move.

So he opened his maw wide, turning his head to the side and tried to bite down on the spear's shaft... only to be met by the spear's little thorn-tipped tendrils which grew out of the shaft, just below the spearhead.

The snaky tendrils speared at his face, getting close to stabbing his eye causing him to growl and shift his head back, abandoning plan A.

Since that didn't work he moved onto plan B; To grasp the spear with the large paw of his good leg and pull it out of his body.

But he soon learned the hard way that this was a bad plan for when he lifted his good leg off the ground, his bad leg wavered in pain, unable to hold up his massive body!

A wave of pulsing pain nearly engulfed him, clouding his mind for a moment as he quickly abandoned plan B, slapping the paw of his good leg back onto the ground, stabilizing his body before falling face-first... again.

Before Flowers could even think of a plan C, he heard a voice cry out, “Take this you big bully: Noctis Phoenix Bolt!”

A dark majestic bird with long ribbony tails covered in liquid Noctis flames burst forth from the magic circle in front of Wylla's wand, streaking towards Flowers backside and... BOOM!

Flowers body jolted forward as he roared in pain, eyes opened wide as he turned his head, unable to see the black purplish flames burning through the barkskin on his hiney.

“See, it's not fun getting hit on your bum right!?!” Wylla shouted, standing in the midst of the pillar forest, her hands on hips, shoulders straight, and chest puffed out. “Now let that be a lesson... the last one you'll ever get!”

But Flowers didn't hear her; He was too busy sitting down, rubbing his bum across the ground, moving in circles trying to get rid of the burning pain that was eating through his flesh.

With Flowers health already half gone, right foreleg badly damaged and impaled, and his body 'dotted' up when Wylla had just launched her first semi-surprise Noctis Phoenix Bolt attack... The results were greater than expected! “Yosh! That'll leave a mark!”

“Tootle-tu!”

“Alright, just like we planned Ceri... let's finish this!” Smiling a bit wickedly, Wylla unleashed a small barrage of dark phoenixes streaking through the air towards 'a just getting back to his feet' Flowers.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The trio of dark burning lava-like birds exploded into Flowers's side, broadsiding him as he roared in pain... and rage!

Eyes seeking blood and mind switched to kill everything mode, Flowers unleashed all the remaining energy within with a mighty echoing ROAR!

Wylla's eyes glowed gold as she watched Flowers's body rapidly change, growing one size bigger as long green-tinted blood thorns burst out of his thickening barkskin armor, and his aura became as blood!

With his sanity gone, Flowers ignored all pain, turning his head to rip the spear from his body, and tossing it aside like a toothpick with an angry shake of his now horned head!

Turning, he spotted her! That stinky winged bug that came courting death, seeking to steal his precious golden treasure, interrupting his hard-earned meal, pelting him with dark burning pain... she was just so... so... “AAARRGGHH!!!”

“Get ready Ceri! Once he gets close... do it!” Wylla said, her voice sure and strong. With wand aimed, she summoned up her energy...

Flowers claws ripped the ground, sending chunks of rocky debris into the air and leaving deep gouges in his wake as he powered his huge dire formed body forward, building up steam, charging right at Wylla.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

His wide body smashing through the forested pillars, debris flying through the air as they crumbled, falling to the ground while a flock of dark fiery birds streaked towards him like x-wing starfighters on a mission, their long ribbony tails leaving afterimages behind them...

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM!

The blasts echoed, rumbling across the shaking ground. Bursts of dark purplish fire lit the air like a strobe light... as a furious Flowers burst through the noise and smoke, covered in dark purplish flames and lost in rage, charging on like an out of control horned locomotive roaring all pain away.

Wylla stood strong, her wings gently fluttering, wand held steady and ready, breathing deeply, eyes filled with focus, gathering all of her regenerating oryn energy as the ground began to shake from Flowers loud heavy steps.

Closer and closer he got, Wylla's eyes furrowing and the corner of her mouth lifting upwards as Flowers face, painted in rage and void of all reason, grew larger and larger...

Seeing his target before him, frozen in fear (or so his rage addled mind believed), he clawed the ground and...

“Now Ceri!” A sharp musical 'Tootle-tu!' pierced through the sounds of pillars shattering and heavy steps falling as a silvery ice blue crescent moon appeared in the air above; A beam of frosty lunar light shot down, landing in the center of Flowers enraged forehead, sending bone-chilling waves into his red shrouded brain and body as his weight greatly lessened just as he propelled himself up off the ground in a powerful jumping pounce towards that stinky bug!

“UUG-HUH!?!” A sound of shocked surprise and confusion spewed out of his mouth as he watched the ground, and that little bug, move further and further away from him as he rose through the air like the Hindenburg Zeppelin.

A flock of flaming dark phoenixes streaking straight at him slamming into his body in a series of fiery BOOMS! The deadly explosions echoing far and wide as the air lit up like fireworks on the fourth of July.

Flowers fiery lifeless body came crashing down to the ground like a comet as Wylla watched with Ceri snuggled across her shoulders, the two of them quietly taking in the hard-earned scene; Their moment of victory.