Fair warning: I'm a Worm fan. From this point onwards the story will keep escalating. You have been warned.
Hidden Event: Clever Boy (Vincent)
"It's bigger than I thought!" The monster clawed its way to a rooftop, its limbs extending beyond what Vincent originally thought their reach would be.
He used the wind to jump out of the way when it threw claws at them that broke the untended brick in small detonations of flame between its claws.
"Man, aren't you a bringer of joy?" Vincent couldn't bite tongue before he replied. He really did not need Joseph's insight now.
Vincent pointed his blade at the monster mid-air, gathering his spirits without a second to waste, the sweat produced by the being's heat making it difficult for him to aim.
"Zephyr, get it out of my face!" The spirits detonated wind orbs with the fury of the other world's tornadoes colliding with earth. The Wretch's limbs were mauled by the spinning razor-sharp winds growing from nothing fueled by Vincent's mana. Not big enough to work to their full potential, but good enough to blow up the Wretch's limbs.
The monster recoiled, steam rising to the midday air in industrial quantities as the only indication of Vincent's spell hurting the thing. It did not cry nor screech, it did not sound hurt nor did it roar in anger. It simply hated.
It also jumped very high. It'd have crushed Vincent and company if the young aristocrat hadn't spent enough time sparring for his body to automatically get out of the way.
Is it smaller? Not by much in any case.
"Damn." Vincent cursed, guiding his spirits to his ankles for a quick fix after the rough landing. He released Joseph from his grip and took a double-handed stance with his sword "Get to safety."
"I can't leave you here." Joseph sounded horrified at the very idea of leaving a marquis heir to his fate. To be fair, death would be a mild punishment in that case.
"Then go call reinforcements! Just get out of here." Vincent detonated an orb of wind between the two of them. Launching them clear out of the Wretch's path. It released more twisted limbs to kills its own momentum with the building's walls, and twisted around more swiftly than something of its size has any right to.
It wailed again, its nasty noise eclipsing the sound of steam for a moment before its orbs lit up brighter and it "spat" fire in the general direction of the two young men.
"Gaaah!"
"Joseph!" Vincent dug the sword into the ground, flooding his surroundings with mana and a silent order to his spirits.
Wind exploded all around the young noble, carrying the fire out of the way but lighting it even more due to the oxygen carried by his magic. The young commoner didn't look to beat up, but he'd require healing.
Every moment he didn't stand up was a moment that his situation could get worse.
"Go!" He stood up at the noble's words, looking back to see the blonde leap several meters into the air surrounded by a wind shield and into the beast's head. The heir's sword cut clean into the Wretch. Steam rising to the offender as if to retaliate while the abomination reeled back to claw at the aggressor.
The slums were on fire now. Smoke and super-heated mist coating the alleyway in a blanket that didn't help the noble spot the beast any better.
Its ghastly frame became increasingly harder to spot as it released more and more steam after getting clear of every attack without any apparent harm at all. The previous monster Vincent fought had resisted the most brutal attacks because of its thick frame, but wasn't outright immune to damage.
The Wretch took every hit but didn't get hurt. Limbs that should have been thorn off its body still functioned and lashed out when Vincent got close enough. The head that ate several wind grenades and half a dozen Penitent Blades kept on seeking the noble's whereabouts when he fell back to catch his breath. The liquid that oozes in its veins instead of blood simply evaporated in the air, adding to the mist that made the fight increasingly more difficult.
By the time Vincent realized his attacks were completely ineffectual, the slums already looked like a ghost town out of a horror movie. Shrouded in steam in such a way some buildings could only be outlined at a distance and no farther, the Wretch's frame becoming half-invisible save for its eyes and the tethers that clung to its frame.
It had no mouth to speak of, yet Vincent could feel the smugness radiating from its body language. It was far more intelligent than it had any right to be.
"You're not a demon. Who the hell's making you?" Between pants, Vincent glared at the being that decided to take things slowly and take its time to reach the breathless noble. He didn't detect any mana, except for the monster in front of him but demonic beasts sometimes have a "miasma" to them that can be confused for it.
Still, the young noble dropped his enchantment and focused. If he wasn't mistaken, there should be someone fueling this creature into existence. But who? And most importantly, who'd be capable of pulling something like this off?
Zephyr sometimes chooses to get a corporeal body like a ghost, or sometimes as a bird made out of wind. The same goes for Ariel's spirit… Could this be a manifestation of spirits too?
But out of which? Yukino showed the ability to manipulate the state of water, and given this creature's body simply pulled itself together and became steam at such high temperatures then it had to be water.
Vincent drove his sweaty hair out of his face.
That doesn't sound right. By themselves, the spirits have a tendency to manifest themselves in their element's main incarnation. To be made out of steam it'd be more logical for them to be commanded. But from where?
From within?
The radiating orbs were pointed his direction. Those were as much of an enigma as the being itself. Those couldn't possibly be made out of water. That had to be fire, but that didn't make sense with his suspicion.
Vincent pulled out. Charging and feinting wouldn't help at all. The Wretch followed his movements as if it knew he'd try to deceive it. The monster's strikes almost caught him off guard every time it took an opportunity. It fought ferociously but not savagely. It didn't aim to hurt him, but drain his morale in a battle of attrition. Otherwise, it'd not allow itself to be harmed. Vincent already knew it is swifter than its size would suggest.
He swung his sword to clear out a mistless path he could take. Being mindful of jumping from roof to roof in erratic patterns, so the Wretch wouldn't catch up to him as easily.
How? What are his winning conditions? It can't just be invincible, something has to work on it. No matter how ridiculous. Not even the Vampire Bear was unbeatable. Nothing ever is.
Vincent drove his blade into the roof below his feet and swung upwards, demolishing the entire building before jumping off out of the Wretch's path.
It sunk to the ground, limbs reaching out but not fast enough to keep it up while tons of stone and wood collapsed as furious wind spikes came out of it to disperse mist and monster body alike in their path.
Without a second to hesitate, Vincent jumped back to the building the Wretch collapsed on top of and kicked.
The wind carried him down like a comet. Enhanced by his magic and the protection that he practiced for moves like this, he dove into the ground with the speed of a cannonball, followed by the cracking noise in accordance.
He couldn't have possibly calculated accurately where the Wretch's center would be. But he didn't need to, because his magic made his area of effect bigger. The results were akin to having jumped onto a balloon full of water.
And it popped accordingly too.
Vincent's sweat got cleansed away when the rush of scalding water and steam simply exploded on him like an angry geyser after holding back its contents for a bit too long. The burns would have been way more serious had he not taken precautions to both enhance his resistance and cover himself with magic shields.
Huh…
He rested one of the edgeless faces of his sword on his shoulder.
"Easy." He spoke against his drumming heart and burning lungs grasping for fresh air. Staring at the place where the magic presence escaped to "Now then…" He swung his sword again, cleaning the area of the mist without difficulty. Only to rest the weapon against his shoulder away "Let's see who's behind the mask, gang."
A tentacle rose to his provocation. The dark blue tendril snapped at him with such violence the cracking sounded like it broke the first sound barrier for a moment. Vincent's shields collapsed completely, and the young noble threw himself out of the whipping path before it could lash out again.
The Wretch lashed out with a second tentacle. It collided on the walls and floor with small fire explosions detonated everywhere it struck. Vincent parried a couple of hits aided by his spirits but had no choice but to keep falling back before they could overwhelm him.
It bought the monster enough time to run for it, disappearing into an alley like a rat scurrying for cover. Its petite body making the analogy a little more fitting.
"You're not so menacing like that." Vincent forced a chuckle through his dry mouth "Way more approachable. Would invite you to dinner, even." He only saw a glimpse of long black hair and more tethered cloth. Nothing to draw conclusions, but at least he knew he was dealing with a person "Are you perhaps shy?"
The silence that followed was to be expected. Vincent looked around, especially towards where the mist began clearing on its own. The dull sound of fire cracking in the distance the only indication of the fight without being able to see most of the slums. He'd get to hear moans and protests far away and he knew Yukino wouldn't be happy.
No, don't think that way. You screwed up big time, but if you help out rebuild and relocate people… You can turn this into an improvement for the better. Make amends instead of lamenting.
The magic presence still lingered, circling like a predator waiting for its prey to drop their guard.
Vincent smiled. The Wretch had taken the initiative from the beginning, but now that their real body was discovered they took cautionary tactics.
What a clever thing.
"If I had to ask something, then it'd be "why?"." He spoke loudly, swallowing the hot pain in his throat. He needs a drink, preferably one made by Ariel "I've only met one person so grossly talented at magic." Vincent kept looking around, while very aware of the presence's general location "What is someone like you doing in the slums?"
The only answer he got was the hissing noise of steam behind him. Vincent unleashed his blade and cut down the forming head before it could become a whole body. Steam rose and Vincent unleashed wind blades to defog the place.
He didn't strike anyone, though. Because his detection works with magic. Someone who's not using it can easily sneak behind him with a knife.
"…?!" The stab didn't feel like anything that people describe it as. The wetness of his own blood escaping his body an alien sensation until the weapon was twisted and his nerves screamed agony until his own voice echoed the feeling.
"You know?" The voice sounded immature, still in the middle of development. The hands weren't as small as Vincent thought, and they carried a firmness that no child should possess "That's a pretty good question."
The Wretch swiftly took the knife out and twisted around to make it land in Vincent's neck. The noble blocked the small blade with his arm, allowing it to find its way between muscle and bone. His legs gave up.
The eyes that glared at him were mismatched. A blue and red eye looking down at his bleeding form. The frown as much as an indication as any.
He couldn't be older than Ariel. His long black hair hid his small frame, yet the child-like face carried none of the joviality of his age. A face riddle with scars and dirt. He smelled a lot, even when it was apparent he had tried to wash himself without much success. But what stirred Vincent's gut the most was his gaze.
The frown looked so natural on his face it'd have felt strange if he smiled. And the eyes made his soul scream when a single glance made things make a lot more sense.
"Y-You…" That… That guy. The monster from his Hayama memories.
"Strange, you look familiar?" The boy tried pushing the knife even deeper, but his strength wouldn't allow him to break through bone. Didn't matter either, Vincent still screamed at the violation of his wound.
"…Why?" Vincent felt like puking. A bizarre mixture of regret and fear going up his throat like bile ready to mess up his feelings. It was one of the most real things he'd felt since he became himself. It actually scared him that everything else had been detached in comparison.
"As I said…" The monster of logic pulled the knife out of the noble's limb. Going for another thrust without missing a beat "That's a rather good question."