Lawrence listened with mild curiosity and masked worry as Domingo and Ilchymis hurriedly shared their exploits from the previous night with him the next morning. Dispassionate as the mercenary was, he could no longer ignore the fact that some mysterious creature meant Domingo ill - twice now the treasure hunter had nearly been killed - and though he would never admit it aloud he had grown quite fond of Domingo. And who wouldn't have? The man was charismatic and people were drawn to him. No, the bottom line was that they needed to get the damn Crystal and get the hell out of there. So he said to the three of them, "We need to get the damn Crystal, and get the hell out of here."
Ilchymis, Domingo, and Centime exchanged incredulous looks at Lawrence's ever-insulting bluntness, placed hands upon weapons, and started on their way without objection.
To his credit, Lawrence led them onward swiftly through the now-thinning mists that obscured most of Rixis; there was no doubt that he moved with a sense of urgency now, aware that things were far more dangerous than any of them had guessed. They proceeded through the desolate northern construct without incident and hurried up a narrow, spiraling alabaster staircase to a landing with a magnificent view of what lay ahead.
In the distance rose a pyramidal structure much akin to a Mayan temple, and they were close enough to fall into the impressive shadow cast from the sun behind the temple. They were very high up now; looking around, Lawrence supposed that the mists that plagued their journey through Rixis were actually veils of cloud. A bridge connected the plateau they were currently standing on to the plateau bearing the temple, and after a moment's hesitation Lawrence led them across the bridge and up the temple's steep staircase.
Ilchymis, bringing up the rear, had just crested the staircase when the massive birdlike demigod swooped from the heavens.
Domingo pivoted gracefully on the spot, whipping out his crossbow as he did so, and fired a silver-tipped bolt at the diving monster; it razed a wicked line across one outstretched wing and slowed the malevolent Rik'talish in its flight. Lawrence drew out the violet-bladed falchion and dashed forward, executing a two-handed overhead slash that opened a wound in the feathered belly and illiciting an agonized screech from their adversary. A blinding silver bullet cracked from the barrel of Centime's revolver, lodging itself in the Rik'talish's neck.
But the battle was far from over. The demigod landed with a resounding crash on the temple summit, flapping its wings and surrounding Centime and Lawrence with a whirlwind of razor-sharp feathers, but both warriors managed to escape unscathed. Frustrated, the Rik'talish spewed a beam of pale blue light over Lawrence, but the mercenary shook that off too!
Ilchymis was no less brilliant; with a cry of "Crystales!" he conjured a spear of ice from the ground beneath their opponent and gouged a gash in its underbelly, flecking the roughly-hewn stone with dark blood.
Across slashed the deadly falchion, scoring another mortal wound just above the first Lawrence had inflicted; Centime fired again, but the Rik'talish dodged the bullet. Ilchymis lost his focus and failed to cast his next spell, and Cupil morphed into a throwing star but sailed harmlessly past. Domingo dropped his crossbow and unsheathed both red-bladed kukris as he lunged ahead, but the Rik'talish's massive wing batted him away.
The Rik'talish raised itself up to its full height and summoned the whirlwind of knifelike wings, and while Lawrence shrugged off the attack, Ilchymis wasn't so lucky. The razor-feathers sliced ribbons through his robes and flesh, dropping him to a kneeling position, and while the mage was prone the Rik'talish struck with the blue beam. Every fiber of Ilchymis's will fought the magic, but he was eventually overpowered and collapsed to the stone, asleep.
Lawrence swung the falchion again, enraged, but the attack was far more superficial than the last and mostly tore out feathers. Domingo was there to pick up the slack, though, tearing through the demigod's tough skin with his cruelly curved blades, but further away, the sun was in Centime's eyes and he held his shot. Lashing feathers encircled both Centime and Lawrence, ripping through flesh and staining their clothes with blood.
Coming up to a knee Centime opened fire, but the Rik'talish was unharmed; it spewed a pinkish beam upon an unsuspecting Domingo, but somehow the treasure hunter miraculously shook off a bout of confusion. Lawrence's next stroke was batted away by a heavy wing, and the mercenary inadvertently thwarted Domingo's next attack.
The revolver jammed this time, and a ferociously snapping beak forced Domingo back a few steps; while the Rik'talish was distracted Lawrence hefted the falchion and mounted the screeching demigod from behind, hacking at its back. Though the monster snapped and howled, it could not shake Lawrence.
Centime didn't dare fire again for fear of hitting Lawrence - a wise decision, as the mercenary was struggling to keep his balance - but then Domingo surprised them all by leaping up next to Lawrence and slashing the back of the demigod's neck. With a mighty stroke and a sickening crack Lawrence shattered the Rik'talish's neck and the beast collapsed, quite still, as Ilchymis awoke at last.
Author's Note: And now I will be deviating from the plot we're all familiar with. Get ready for a couple of crazy twists in the chapters to come, fight fans.
Syek: Are you familiar with Dungeons and Dragons? I statted out all of these guys and I roll everything, and Ilchymis had to have a 20 on a d20 to pull Domingo up... sure enough, he rolled a 20. XD. The last sentence of your review made me smile; I'm very flattered. Thank you.
Meowzy-chan: You'll just have to stay tuned, won't you? XD
Derek Barona: Have an entire chapter devoted to Lawrence and Alfonso coming up soon, actually. And let me just say that my Alfonso is quite different than the one in SoA... to be honest, he's a complete badass.
Desert Lynx: No rush; read at your leisure. Hope to hear from you again soon.
Thanks all. 'Til next time.