Chapter 21:
"Damn it all…!"
Fireballs rush pass me from all over my space of movement giving me no time to breathe. In this giant hall of what was once a hotel, I dodge my way through a series of meteor-like things that are on fire while circling a fairy on a book. That said fairy has 'eyes' that would kill a man, not metaphorically, but literally.
*BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!*
I weave through a series of fireballs locked onto me. I duck, slide, jump, flip, and force my body back onto the ground. I land then leap forward to continue running circles around the fairy. My body is still not having a good warm up, my movements are still sloppy and ungraceful.
As I circle around, I see a pebble. I quickly stop with one foot and raise the other at the same time. I swing my leg and kick it towards her side.
*PING!*
Wow, and all it made was a ping sound; that was dumb. But the pebble was deflected by something before it got even close to the fairy. She turned towards me and raised…!
"…!"
*BANG!*
She suddenly points a finger at me and lightning came out from it. My instincts pull me to the side, dodging only by a hair. Then as I land, I feel the heat from below the earth. Again, my instincts take over before I have the chance to look down. I jump to the side, and the place where I was at, exploded.
*BOOM!*
"…!"
But as I land, a giant black fist suddenly came out from above. I jump back as per my instincts have told me to do.
*BAM!*
The moment I land, my instincts take control again. It forces me to duck down and parry an attack from behind me with a knife.
*SSSSHHHHNNNG!*
"Kh…!"
A spear with multiple shafts twisted together comes from out of behind me. I push it up as the shaft slides onto the blade. But as I do…
*BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!*
Fireballs home in on me, I leap and roll to the side and started running towards her while weaving through the fireballs that are coming at me.
*BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!*
I dodge them all and they hit the marble floor of the hotel behind me. I slide under her, effectively getting behind her, point my SMG and squeezed the trigger.
*BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!*
*PING!* *PING!* *PING!* *PING!* *PING!*
Are my bullets made out of plastic? I mean they're making this were ping sound. Well, so even behind her I can't even touch her. Not that kind of touch. I raise myself up and jump back a few away from her. She turns towards me, her 'stare' meeting 'mine'.
'I guess going all-out is an option…' but what if I did go all out?
Even if I did, I don't even know how she attained those 'eyes'. Her smell isn't like 'his' so I can tell that it's not the same kind of thing that was once planted on Plutie. Plus she hasn't talked yet. I know 'it's' just a copy of the original. I can feel 'it'. And yet, 'it's' effect, 'it's' intensity, looks so legit.
Is 'he' behind this too…!?
"…!?"
Before I could even finish my thoughts, something is flying towards me up high at my 1 o'clock. A black fist comes rushing towards me, I roll forward, dodging it. It creates a mini-explosion behind me. I let go of my MP5, letting it hang on my torso, and throw the knife at her.
"…!"
And as soon as I do that, I lean to the side, letting a sword pass me and catch it in mid-flight.
*PING!*
As soon as I did, I dash forward towards her and catch the knife as it falls. But as soon as I did a large black fist comes from my left, I bring up the sword and block the attack.
*CLASH!*
"…!"
I got knocked back a few feet by the sheer strength of it. My arms go numb almost immediately when it made contact. My kneed almost buckled but I bit my lip and put strength back in my limbs.
"…!"
Two fireballs are coming from both of my sides, I flip sideways into the air letting them pass above and below me. A spear comes up front, I lean back as far as I could. But above me, I can see a spark. I force my body to roll to the side as the lightning comes down.
*BANG!* *BAM!*
And as soon as I recover, a large fireball is dangerously close to me. I step back, taking a stance, put the sword on my side. I take a step, I cut the fireball in an uppercut motion and pass through in the middle.
"…!"
*CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!*
But as soon as I cut my way through, a large number of weapons instantly flies through from thin air racing towards me.
*CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!*
Spears, halberds, arrows, swords, lances. An array of weapons all dart their way towards my head. I parry them all.
*CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!*
Using both my knife and my sword on hand, I seize every opening I could, ensuring even 1 second of my survival.
*CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLASH!* - *CLASH!*
Seeing a gap in the rain of weapons, I quickly parry a spear, then dash to forward through the hail.
"…!"
*CLASH!*
A fireball came rushing towards me as I leap forward. I bring up both weapon to block but still pushed back by it. Fire quickly spreads to my sleeves. As I land, I spread both of my arms to quickly die out the fire.
"…!"
*CLASH!*
"Damn it…!"
From below, multiple spears comes rushing from underground. I block but it pushed me upwards into the air. Then, a black hand holding a giant hammer swings towards me. I raise my leg as it comes, then plant my feet on the hammer.
The hammer swings at an arc, pushing me to where I needed to go. I reverse the hold of the sword before catapulting myself towards Histy. With 'her' eyes still locked onto 'mine', I reach her in practically no time at all.
*CLASH!*
"Tch…!"
The sword broke before it reaches her. The top half of the sword flies off to nowhere as gravity gradually takes over me and I begin to fall.
*BANG!*
"Da…!"
*BAM!*
"Gh…!"
But lightning came out from out of nowhere. My whole body went numb, losing all control all over my body. Electricity buzzes through my entire nervous system as the force of the lightning shoots me across the hall and towards a pillar of the hall. I don't even feel the impact on my back.
*THUD!*
"Damn… it…!" I fall to the ground, almost lifeless. My body is paralyzed. I can't even move a finger. 3 seconds, I just need 3 seconds.
I try to look up, and the fairy on the book 'looks' down on me. As though looking at some sort of pest. And behind her, are the many weapons and tools that she had conjured up until now, ready to strike at a moment's notice. She's not the Tome of the World just for show. She'll really give you a beating when you piss her off. I'll remember that.
But this is a pain in the ass, there's almost nothing I can do against her. I've overclocked my brain the moment we started fighting. And the barrier around her is way too strong. She can move with it too, plus she can just 'stare' at me as she swings all those dangerous toys that she has. She's almost invincible.
"Kh…!" I force my body to stand. It sends signals of pain to my brain. Almost as though blinding me, but I power it through and straighten up my stance. I 'stare' back at her.
"…" what to do? What to do? Do I actually have to take her on seriously? It's not a bad choice given the current situation I'm in. But I really, really don't want to use it. It's an option, yes, but it's the bottom of the list of the things I can do in this fight.
"…!"
*CLASH!*
"Kh!"
A giant sword suddenly darts its way from my side. I raise both of the sword and my knife and pinch the giant sword in between. Then like a trained bullfighter, I parry the giant sword away from me. The tip of the giant weapon digs itself into the marble floor of the hall.
*BAM!* *BRRRRRR!*
"…!"
*WOOSH!*
Suddenly, I giant hammer swings towards me from above, my instincts pull me down, ducking underneath it. Even the wind it generates would make anyone unstable on their feet.
*CLASH!*
"…?"
As it passed it, I heard a sound as though it had collided with something hard. I take a look above, and it seems that the hammer had just collided with something. Given that it was swinging as though it's making an uppercut move. The hammer disappears and reveals what it had hit.
"…It hit its own master…?" she must not have seen me ducking and continued swinging or maybe momentum took over, regardless her barrier, and as expected, didn't affect her at all.
"…?" but my overclocked brain doesn't miss a beat. And sees something unusual with the way she sits on her book.
"Ohohohoho… So you do have an Achilles heel after all" I take my stance, reversing the hold of my sword and holding my knife normally.
"I hope you don't mind that I capitalize on that…do you?"