Chapter 31 #2
The screaming skulls and flashing void blades flew forth to thresh the Dusk General’s legs, cleaving through the robes and insectile flesh.
The General let out a strange, high-pitched trill, and crashed to the ground, nearly filling the remnants of the bailey. Harald activated Abyssal Grasp as it tried to rise, the great coils of black smoke wreathing the giant-like chains, and immediately the monster’s essence began to flow into him.
But more energy was descending from the wheeling patterns above. The General began to lever itself upright, tearing through the coils.
“Hurry, Harry!” Vic’s cry was desperate. “It’ll regain its—”
Harald needed no urging. He half-limped, half-ran the remaining distance, right up to the ridged moth-helm with its curving scythe-horns and detonated a Black Halo at point blank range.
The void shards tore the General’s head apart, the lights from the eyeholes obliterated, and the vast monster collapsed.
A Zenith Tide scale appeared overhead.
But that wasn’t what Harald wanted. Grave Concordat reached out of its own accord and snagged the Dusk General’s essence. Stole it down into his Cosmos, bound it there, and a second later Harald summoned the vast monster back into the 37th.
It appeared in the air above him, titanic, jet black, its wings delicate veils of shadow, its robes leaking smoke, its scythe-horned helm turned upward to regard the Swarm Knights and remaining minor Dusk Generals.
“Go finish them,” breathed Harald, reeling back, hand thrust into his scale pouch as he began absorbing Aurora Veils.
The gigantic Dusk General beat its gauzy wings and ascended to do battle.
Power and health flooded into Harald as he absorbed scales, and with his body growing hale and structurally sound, he ran back to the edge where the wall had stood and saw his friends picking their way through the tumbled blocks toward him.
Nessa was amongst their number, completely unhurt, her burns and wounds gone.
Had to be the Solace of Aurelum.
The others were banged up badly, but still Sam’s Warden’s Pulse played over them, so that by the time they staggered up onto the bailey’s edge, they were ready to keep moving.
“Damn,” said Vic, gazing upward at where the monstrously huge General was wreaking havoc on the other flying monsters. “That’s… that’s some power you have.”
“How did you do it?” Harald eyed Vic. “Disarm the General of its Abilities?”
“Level 7 Active. Tried to tell you before. Intimate Dissection.”
“We need to run,” said Nessa, calm tone barely concealing her strain. Dying will do that to you. “We need to get out of this fight.”
“Let’s go,” said Sam, leading the way across the bailey and out of the eternal sunset glow into the darkness within.
They traversed a few chambers before they found the well. Its edge was ringed with black gems, and it stood in something akin to a great hall.
“The 38th,” said Vic, moving up to its mouth. “We ready for that?”
“Let’s catch our breath,” said Nessa. “We can easily flee below if pressed. Harald, your… new Servitor. How is it holding up?”
Harald focused on the Dusk General, summoning his window as he did so.
Artifacts: Dawnblade (Common)
Servitors: Shadow Mastiff (Uncommon), Gauntlet Golem (Rare), Rootwarden (Uncommon), Twilight General (Rare)
“Still fighting.” He could dimly sense it out in the skies. Shadowpaw had returned to his Cosmos at some point, and the golem had limped into the room last, acting as their rearguard. It was in such bad shape that Harald had dismissed it to his Cosmos to heal up.
“Let me do some consolidation first,” said Harald. “Will just take me a moment.” Without waiting for a response, he dropped to his knees, cupped his hands together in his lap, and closed his eyes.
Abyssal Attunement. Demonic Edge. Tenebral Surge. Black Halo.
They were all facets of the same power. The same ability to dominate a battlefield. To manifest his will as an oppressive, destructive force through which his foes had to traverse, in which it would be a trial just to exist.
Harald willed and molded the four powers into one, and felt them coalesce smoothly into a greater, sleeker, whole.
Abyssal Imperium.
That done, he revisited Tyrant’s Halo. With Sovereign Silence returned to him, it was easy to fold it back into the composite power. It took but a moment, and then the resistance was overcome, and his power regained its former potency.
Crown of the Abyssal Tyrant was his once more.
He couldn’t wait to see what these powers would do now that they were all augmented.
Harald opened his eyes, quietly pleased, and cut through the conversation his friends were having to meet Vic’s eyes. “Intimate Dissection?”
“Ah, yes! The description is a little tawdry. You have been inside the skin of darkness and know its texture from memory, and so on. But essentially, it seems my time spent in Eclavistra’s bed has given me an awareness of how to disable a target’s architecture of power.
Not actual damage, but, ah… call it the ability to deconstruct or suppress their most prominent Active ability.
It works best on demons, but as you can see… ”
“A variation of my Thurak,” mused Kársek. “I sever relationships. You cause their relationship to their own powers to stutter.”
“Correct. And my new Passive, Clarity of the Cut. In essence, my Soul Nature—Lacerating Insight? No longer just serves me alone. I can use it now to insulate you from outside effects. It says, The penetrating clarity that dissects your foes broadcasts as a low, constant resonance to those who fight beside you. Allies in your proximity are significantly resistant to aura-based fear, confusion, seduction, and despair. And this is the best bit, Additionally, every enemy whose weakness you have mapped through Predator’s Insight is marked in the shared awareness of your party; their strikes locate the vulnerabilities you’ve identified. ”
“Very nice,” said Nessa, impressed despite herself. “That will combine beautifully with my Grand Orchestration and other powers.”
“Well done, Vic.” Harald grinned at the other man. “Just in time, too. You were starting to feel like dead weight, there.”
Vic made a face. “Never change, Harry.”
“What lies on the 38th?” asked Kársek, peering into the well.
Everybody turned to Sam, who raised a brow. “Really? Fine. Yes, I do know. It’s the Granite Mausoleum.”
“Sounds inviting,” said Vic.
“Rock-based foes.” Sam hesitated. “I don’t remember the exact details. I think… dragons?”
“Dragons?” asked Vic, eyes widening. “Already? Say it ain’t so, Sam.”
“We’ll find out,” said Harald. “My Twilight General’s about to expire. I’m going to summon it back so we can keep it in our arsenal. Enough talking. Let’s descend.”
“All right,” said Nessa, tone neutral, and Harald realized his own had been perhaps a touch too peremptory. “Everyone ready? Vic, you should take the Solace of Aurelum. It’s not good to me for the rest of the day.”
“With absolute pleasure,” said the Rapier Regent, catching it lightly as Nessa tossed it his way.
Kársek moved to the well. “I’ll go first. See you all below.” And he placed a hand on the well’s lip and hopped over to drop out of sight.
“Oh, me next, me, please, let it be me,” said Vic, tone droll, and with a sigh and shake of his head, dropped in after.
Nessa drew Chyron’s Scourge out of her long shoulder bag and extended the hilt to Harald. “Time to start taking this seriously.”
Harald took the Scourge with gratitude. It felt so good to feel its heft and weight again. “Thank you. Keep the Aureate Master for now—I think it’ll balance out the party better in your hands.”
She inclined her head with gratitude, then drew out a circlet. “Since we’re in such a giving mood, here. The Ashwright’s Circlet.”
Harald took it, reconnected it to his Cosmos, and when he looked up Nessa had followed after the others.
Sam moved to the well, looked back at him. “Nessa’s the delve captain.”
“I know?”
“Do you though?” Sam eyed him. “Interesting.” Then she, too, descended into the well.
Harald glowered at the swirling darkness in a moment of frustration and annoyance. Had he been rude, or something? Were his companions getting too sensitive? That was nonsense. They were just under pressure. They had to keep moving.
He exhaled, bound the Scourge to his Cosmos, and took one last look around the dour great hall. A sense of pressure was building rapidly, as if the Swarm Knights were flying overhead.
It was time to go.
Harald vaulted easily over the edge and dropped into the well.