Chapter 70: the Battle, III

Ned lifted his sword. Bringing his chest wide open as if he was taunting the dragon. He moved, counting every step he makes. A stance thought to him by his Master, which was especially good for brute enemies. A stance that requires him to attack only what is necessary. Necessary, just like the dragon's foot.

"You—"Ned said as he saw Rassus charging his way.

Rassus growled, his voice was as devoid of life as an ossuary, and his eyes, Rassus' had a basilisk eye and they were smoldering with vengeance. He charged, black clouds oozed from its teeth. Teeth were as jagged as shards of glass. Sparks of purple electrical discharge surround his body.

"Will die here!" Cried, Ned. As he blurred to evade the massive dragon's charge.

But it enraged Rassus. He was faster than before. Midway through Ned's evasion. He whipped his tail, hitting Ned right into his gut and was thrown only to be caught by a large rock. Followed by Rassus head ramming Ned into the rock even deeper. Before the dust settled, Rassus caught Ned's leg between his teeth and smashed him. Making a booming and cracking sound in between. After a dozen of smashing, he lifted Ned up on the horizon. Enraged eyes filled his socket. He paused, then a cracking noise came from his chest, moving along his neck, up to his mouth. After which, the surrounding turned purple as he blasted Ned, which was still stuck into his mouth, with energy. A deafening blast threw the onlooking ghouls and alghouls into chaos. For mindless beasts, they sure know how to be terrorized.

The blast threw Ned off the ground, his body rolled, and swirled, catching dirt along the way.

[Notice: Damage received 9%.]

Inside Ned's display, scratches formed the red marks. Arms and legs, some into his shoulders. His gut was darker than the rest, but it wasn't enough for Rassus to celebrate. Making him thought if Rassus was a dragon type or a lizard type.

Ned tasted blood. He spat and wiped it off with his thumb as the Butterfly rested on his right. "All that for a drop of blood," Ned said, hustling his body to rise. Looking at the enraged Rassus, he said. "You're enraged, making you more powerful, and evolved. But you don't get its concept."

Rassus' eyes, sharped, seeing that the human stood without flinching. He roared! And shot three purple clouded orbs.

Ned received the orbs with ease. Absorbing them and throwing them back double the damage.

Rassus evades two orbs and reflected one with his tail. Smirking along the way.

"Did you know why being enraged is your weakness?" Ned asked. Taunting the dragon with his free hand. "When enraged, all that you could think of is to destroy. Especially you—"pointing the tip of the Butterfly at the dragon—"Rassus the Devourer."

Rassus' enraged state strengthened him. In return, he lost his reasonings. The moment he started to enraged, for once, he never spoke. All he did was to charge, to kill the only human stopping him from devouring. Rassus roared. Black clouds exuded in every aperture he had. Along with Rassus' terrorizing growl. Ten cruel mass of tails formed behind his back. He flapped his wings. Ascended, reaching almost hundreds of meters above the sky, satisfied with the ascend, he then descended. Whistling noise echoed the entire island. Eyeing the human below him. He bombarded Ned with a series of purple orbs.

Ned could absorb two or four of the orbs, but he wasn't fast enough to absorb dozens of them. Making a hasty decision, Ned fired fireball to counter the first four of them, giving him space and time to evade the rest.

The ground was assaulted with a series of explosions. Completely flattening anything it hit.

Rassus instinctively angled himself and glided sweeping trees along the way going to Ned.

A succession of decisive tail stabs attacked, Ned. Making holes in the ground.

Ned blocked, evaded, and parried. They fought within the nook of the forest, running towards the villages, exposing the very base of the structures with their magic. Wood timbered, bricked, crumbled, as they sweep everything on their way.

The two razed the forests, cut trees with a swing from Rassus' tail, and Ned's sword. Burning bridges with Ned's fireball. Wherever Rassus went, the sky mourned and turned dark.

Until they reached the port. Ned saw the vast and empty ocean. Army of the mindless beasts strayed the shore. O'rriadt was empty, all living escaped - if not dead. Rassus went flying, gaining momentum as he started his descent. Positioned his massive body as he kept on descending en route for Ned.

Ned glared at the horizon once more, while he slashes the head of the Alghoul, stabs the ghoul that tried to claw his neck, raised his free hand, focused, and threw fireballs at the horde rampaging his way. Cleaning the horde was fast, one fireball would cleanse the beasts with a blast. Overlooking the calm and empty ocean. They're gone. Ned thought. He was silent for seconds. He then rubbed the surface of his sword. Directed his eyes towards the incoming Rassus.

[Ned, your Mana is below the average level.]

[Energy consumption is fast.]

"Don't worry, I have a plan," Ned muttered. "I need to wear him out first."

The space along Ned's hand was distorted. A signal where a Mana was converted into energy. He then threw fireballs at the incoming Rassus. Whistle of both the fireballs and Rassus clashed mid-air.

It hit Rassus with a barrage of fireball.

The effect was nothing to Rassus, but Ned knew this. He used the fireball to distract and cover the blind-spots of Rassus.

Along with the smoke in Rassus' eye socket, Ned followed the fireball with a much stronger spell. With a shout he threw the spell, hitting not the head, but the chest, covered with bones as armor. "Igneous!"

It entangled the descending dragon with the spell. Making its path obscured of direction, Rassus fell on the ground. Making a deafening boom. His own weight crashed into his body. Skeletal armor went cracking, it fell, one after the other. First, the horns that plated his head. Body. Limbs. Tails. Last to fell like glass, was the armor covering his chest.

Light made their way into the cracks, streak of blue, purple, and black lights arrowed outside its chest. The black tentacle-like-tails dissolved from his back. Along with the bones falling, it knocked Rassus out cold.

Ned walked at the unconscious devourer. Lying flat on his back, the core on his chest swirled, making a sphere of continuous rotating energy.

With Ned's perception, he can feel the mana signature emitted by other beasts and humans alike. Walking at the Devourer, Ned could not feel a hint of mana. Rassus' Mana was steady, showing it was not being manipulated. Gesturing his finger to invoke another spell. He moved to close the gap between him and the Devourer. Pointing his hand on the Devourer's chest, Ned invoked his spell. "Egnious," Ned said calmly. Distortion comes the spell. First, a small sphere, almost the size of a pea. Ned then injects more of his Mana, or what was left to it. The pea-sized sphere expanded until it became almost a human's head size. Brilliant orange and red mixed to form a devastating attack. Instead of releasing the spell. Ned channeled it, pouring all the Mana he had left. To ensure that the Devourer will wake up no more.

[Ned, Mana is rapidly decreasing, any more than below the critical level, you will experience Mana Burn.]

ICE connects to Ned's thought.

"I know, but the strength is not enough yet," Ned said. Replying to ICE. The continuous flowing of energy coiled around Ned's arms, going to the tip of his fingers.

[Ned, you're almost at a critical level. Just to warn you, you can only do this because of the Plat Armor that is supporting your body. Without it, it's impossible for your body to handle the continued use of the skill 'Igneous'. Even with the use of your low tier skills, it needed your armor to handle the recoil.]

[Warning: Mana critically low.]

[Warning: mana critically low.]

"This should do it," Ned said. "This is it for you, Rassus."

The sphere was now double the size of a human's head. It kept on swirling as if wanting to be released. With only a little Mana left, Ned's breathing was rapid. Sign that his body was at the limit. With a flick of his wrist, he focused to release the sphere. "It doesn't matter who the enemy is, what they've done. On a battlefield. The only respect one could give to their enemy was a clean death. With this, you will disintegrate into nothing. Igneous Bu—"

Ned's ears ring with a sharp whistle. Before he could release the spell. He was swept and stuck between the Devourer's jagged teeth.

Ned released the spell in an uncontrolled state. The spell went ascending and exploded at the empty sky.

Shit! He hid his energy. Ned cursed. Letting his guard off.

Stuck between Rassus' teeth, Ned forced his way out. He tried Fireballs. "Fireball!" Rassus' bit didn't bulge. "Fireball!" Instead, the strength multiplied. "Fireball!" Series of an explosion. But to no avail, Rassus just smirked.

[Warning: Mana critically low.]

Ned's HUD displayed a series of warnings. Mana was critically low. Energy consumption rapidly decreasing. Even though his not totally damaged, yet, fatigue kicked in. Making him feel that the armor he was wearing now weighs a thousand tons. He gave up with the fireballs. Instead, he rotated the Butterfly and struck Rassus' eyes. But the sword went deep into the socket of his eyes. Feeling nothing but empty air.

Rassus growled. Followed by a dim light. He charged an attack. Running from his chest till his mouth. Ned's body exploded of purple, devastating light. The blast echoed, leaving a sound Ned would remember for the rest of his life. Rassus charged again, as Ned was forced to yank himself free away from Rassus' jaw. Rassus glowed, Ned exploded. Growl; explosion. This continued for more than Ned could remember.

Ned's armor saved him from the explosions. But it exhausted Ned, doesn't matter how sturdy the armor was. It pinched Ned in between. Losing strength as seconds pass by.

The growl turned to hiss, hiss turned to smirk. Another explosion and Ned was almost at his limit.

Together with Rassus barrage of blast. His body regenerated - it was fast, visible to the naked eyes.

Ned's vision blurred, and his body was at his limit. He was falling unconscious when ICE prompted.

[Ned, use it.]

"Looks like I have no other choice," Ned whispered.

Ned was hanging in between Rassus' jaw. With a thought, he strained his hand and implanted it inside the dragon's throat.

Rassus felt something stuck between his throat. Feeling the heat rising, the green flame inside his eye socket, trembled. A continuous explosion happened inside his neck. Then his throat bloated. Bloated with tremendous energy. He gazed at Ned. That was still stuck. "Fool!" He growled. Inside his eye sockets shot a blinding light. Flashing in-between, his head exploded. Followed by a vortex that sucked half of Rassus' head.

Ned rolled and was thrown meters and meters away from the explosion. The light dimmed, the explosion halted. The surrounding fell into silence. Ned forced his legs to obey at his command. His legs were shaking. He stood. Looked at the dragon, or what was remaining of him.

Rassus fell, thudding without a head. Smoke obscured the scene.

"I wanted to save it for future assaults, but guess it's worth it," Ned said breathing.

[As the name implies 'Holy Hand Granade'. It sucks everything down to the target's last atom.]

"Sad, I only had one," Ned replied. Contemplating. "Guess that's it, time to leave."

Ned turned to face the shore. Too much Mana used, too much energy expended. Ned was at his limit. With the breeze brushing his hair. He felt freezing. "Winter has come," Ned said.

Feeling his hair stood. Behind his neck, Ned turned to face the remains of Rassus. Its headless body jerked. Black smoke made its way from his core, covering its wounded neck. The smoke expanded until the neck grew. With a blink, the neck grew longer. Until it reached the length enough for the head to grow. Inside the smoke were two dancing flames. The smoke then vanished. Green eyes trembled in excitement. "Puny human!"