Chapter 215: Loop 2 Day ? (3)

Chapter 215: Loop 2 Day ? (3)

Elara had become depressingly familiar with corpses as of late. More than she ever thought she could be. It was hard not to, what with the time she had been forced to spend as a Cores puppet, pulled by strings and spores in whatever direction her captors pleased. Forced to walk by the bodies of those that didnt make it; of people that might have been friends, or family, or anything in between - not that she was ever made to look close enough to check whether that was true. If someone died facedown, well, shed never see their face.

Though that didnt stop her from imagining it.

Regardless, Elara had grown familiar with corpses. With the way they smelled, the way they looked, the way they decayed.

And, as she stepped forward to meet the tide of monsters that assaulted them, their many mouths slavering and limbs scritch-scratching against the stone with an alien fervor, Elara was reminded of those corpses. If only they laid themselves down, letting their limbs fall where they may; if only they stared more blankly, or did any number of things that they rightly should have, then they might appear as dead as their ruined bodies claimed they were.

Elara had become depressingly familiar with corpses; and these were corpses, even if they pretended that they werent.

Which was why she wasnt at all surprised when, after her blade came down and nearly decapitated the first enemy that came near, it was only a brief moment before the thing got back upagain.

It was, by all appearances, already dead. What was a little more death, when added to the mix?

She brought her blade back down again, and aimed for a leg this time.

The snake slithered through the tunnel, cool stone sliding against bitterly cold flesh. Around it, a black cloak of death visibly surged, black wisps momentarily appearing and tugging it in another direction. The undead snake turned, obeying the silent command despite the tiny, almost nonexistent voice that said it shouldnt.

That it should resist.

Elara bent backwards, spine popping uncomfortably with the motion. A body, all tattered flesh and crumbling bone, surged overhead. She let herself fall down the rest of the way, throwing a hand backwards and letting her knuckles press against the ground. Then, with a rapid spin that nearly snapped tendons in its ferocity, she brought the other hand upwards in a slashing motion - a single blade held tight within its grip.

The body split in two, and Elara called out. Doran, got another crawler for you!

The bisected body was already starting to twitch, raising itself from yet another death. Soon enough, its front legs - the only ones that remained, with its lower half recently removed - scrabbled at the ground, attempting to drag the beasts remaining pieces with it.

Disgusting fuckers Doran muttered, tiredly stepping closer with battleaxe in hand. The blade flashed, and the body split in half again - this time in the other direction as the shining metal cut from head to torso. It slumped over, finally dead.

In the meantime, Elara had already turned back around, ready to meet yet another moving corpse. After a few waves of the unsettling beasts, the Seekers had grown used to the unique dilemma they provided; fortunately, their early mistakes had gone unpunished, protected by their enchantments as they were.

Still, they had already been tired at the start, and the persistent nature of the enemy only made that a growing problem. Valera, in particular, was flagging; her breaths were coming in ragged pants, even as she occasionally forced herself into a blurring series of motions that left ruined bodies in her wake. Her fighting style was much more draining than that of the others, and it was beginning to show.Visitt novelbin(.)co/m for the latest updates

Erik, meanwhile, was showing his worth as the teams bulwark yet again. Teeth and claws broke again and again against the mans tower shield, the repeated impacts failing to even leave a scratch on its surface. The monsters had long since started to change tactics - a surprising show of intelligence, given everything else - and suicidally thrown themselves around the mans defenses, willingly suffering wounds in doing so.

Except, with the monsters undying nature, it wasnt suicidal at all.

That was where Elara came in. She had moved in to fill the gap in the defenses as soon as it started to form, utilizing her enhanced body control - and the reflexes that came with it - to slash and stab at the enemies that left the most durable of the Seekers alone. When it became too much, she simply let her armors enchantment activate for a few moments, letting the charging monsters slip by to be handled by Valera and Doran behind her.

Kala, unfortunately, was ill-suited to the fight. A bow was a poor choice against something that refused to die; it couldnt crush bones or sever limbs. She was forced to mostly wait in the back, occasionally attempting to pin limbs to the ground with a well-timed shot or two.

Of them all, though, Doran was most in his element - they had quickly learned that his mana-enhanced strength and sizable weapon allowed him to bypass many of the monsters advantages. They couldnt back from the dead once their body was mangled beyond belief.

Even so, the tide seemed unending, and Elara wasnt the only one to begin to worry.

How...many more do youthink well have todeal with? Valera asked between pants. Elara risked a glance backwards, noting that the womans hands were visibly shaking, the exhaustion of an extended battle working its effects on her body.

I think theyre finally starting to thin! Just a little bit longer! Erik responded from his vantage point in the front; Elara couldnt see it herself, but the shield bearing Seeker was notably taller than she was. He would be able to tell better than she could.

With that encouraging thought, the Seekers worked to battle the horde for a little longer, crushing bone and slicing flesh until the stubborn monsters finally began to still. By the time the battle neared the end, Elara knew that the others were in poor shape; even with the advantages that her mana-derived body control granted her, Elaras toes and fingers had started to tingle and go numb somewhere along the way, fighting against her efforts to move them properly. More than that, exhaustion had long since begun to creep in, with every Seeker stumbling unnaturally at one point or another.

But finally, when the ground was coated in shattered corpses and mismatched limbs, it seemed over at last.

And then an orb of light slithered out of the darkness, beating back a portion of the shadows with its familiar glow.

A tiny section of the worlds mana invisibly surged once more, rushing towards a visibly stunned serpent.

Mana-Infused ./././.././ Defeated.

Calculating ./././.././ Strength.

Requisite Experience Awarded.

Level up x2!

2 Trait Points Gained.

Level 70 Reached

Analyzing Potential Reward Choices

Only One May Be Selected.

Revealing Possible Rewards Unlocked Through Species: Undead And Its Interactions

Death Boost: You are born of death, and may temporarily imbue yourself with a small portion of the strength of those you usher into its arms, growing more powerful from the fallen. (Provided by: Undead)

Necrotic Venom: You are born of death, and your venom bears its touch. Adds a withering effect to venom. (Provided by: Undead, Snake)

Blighted Rebirth: You are born of death, and will be born of it again. Your body is healed and reanimated upon final death, providing a second chance at undeath. This effect does not free the undead ouroboros from the influence of its original reanimator. Blighted Rebirth may only activate once before needing to be selected again. (Provided by: Undead, Ouroboros)

Revealing Possible Rewards Unlocked Through Species: Snake And Its Interactions

The cloak of death surged around the serpents scales, flexing its will and pushing the serpents choice towards [Blighted Rebirth]. The hissing at the edges of the snakes mind grew, spiking in intensity, and deaths control wavered slightly.

With a sudden mental jerk, the serpent chose something else - something that had always waited there, ignored. Always seen, but never wanted. A blight on the thought-lights rewards, something that the snake-that-had-been had avoided even thinking about.

Something that, for the first time, was needed - necessary, even if the choice itself felt like the worst kind of betrayal.

Scales of Devotion: The scales shift as your devotion is altered further; provides powerful protection from the mental control of any being not connected to your Chains, while greatly increasing the mental and physical effects of [Chains of the Creator]. (Provided by: Snake, [Chains of the Creator])

Reward Chosen: Scales of Devotion

[Scales of Devotion] Acquired.

My mind cleared as the touch of death fell backwards, even as an old influence began to rise in an attempt to take its place. My mana shifted, turning gold. Tiamat called, her sudden thought-hiss breaking past all my minds defenses.

[INTEREST].

I lunged towards my scale-flesh, brilliant streams of gold already running from my fangs, knowing that in the next moment Mother would -

[SUBMIT].

The thought-hiss crashed against me, and I cowered underneath it. Mother was right. I should submit.

I wished that I could - but I couldnt. I was already dead, an overwhelming wave of life essence ravaging my body, the substance long since spilled from my fangs. Breaking reanimated flesh down into nothing, and turning it to ash.

I died one final time and, this time, not even the touch of Death itself was able to bring me back.