Chapter Twenty-Seven: Battle at Ravenstone
Charging with their blades Seth and his new ally swung and attacked the sin of Pride who dodged and used his claw to deflect the two swordsmen's attack.
Swinging a kick the highwayman swung a blade attached to the heel of his boot. Catching the man's foot, the Gratificator looked at the blade, "Oh my, that would have hurt, if I was a lowly mortal."
Swinging the man he slammed him into Seth sending the two men crashing into the street where the Gratificator pounced on Seth stabbing one of his claws through Seth's hand and pinning him to the street.
"GAAAAAAH!" Seth cried out pulling out his pistol and began shooting his attacker in the chest almost emptying the clip into the enemy.
Realizing his bullet didn't do anything the Gratificator smacked Seth's pistol out of his hand and held a claw to his throat, "Ahh ~ I knew your screams would be good."
"GET OFF HIM YOU BLOODY TWAT!" Ginjer screamed jumping onto the back of the Gratificator hood and stabbing her scissors over and over into his neck.
"Ginjer?!" Seth gasped wincing when the Gratificator ripped his claw out of Seth's hand and stood up trying to get the little creature off his back.
"Filthy vermin! Get off!" the Gratificator yelled getting Seth's cutlass plunged into his chest and pushed back they ended up slamming into a rail where Seth could hear the ocean waves down below the thick fog.
"Seth!" Jaya yelled rushing over with Mika, Seth then pulled his blade out kicking the man in the chest, grabbing Jaya's hand and swinging her around where she kicked the Gratificator across the jaw.
"YAH!" Mika yelled coming from the left and punching him, causing him to stumble backward towards their new ally who stabbed the Gratificator with his knife and threw him over the rail where Ginjer held up a grenade for Seth to see.
"Hey Pride! Like bombs?!" Seth smirked charging towards the Gratificator while Ginjer climbed up the enemy's back and onto his shoulder before she shoved the bomb into the enemy's black hood and pulled it over his head.
With the bomb in black Seth slammed the Gratifacor over the rail where Ginjer jumped off and landed on Seth's shoulder both watching Pride fall off the edge of the cliff.
Hearing the man yell the explosion sent Seth and Ginjer flying back into the road where they both looked back to see the fog start to clear some.
Panting Seth looked back to see the highwayman from before was gone and from the fog, he could see Jaya and Mika.
"Are you ok?" Jaya asked rushing over and examining Seth's bleeding hand.
"I'm ok, are you two, okay?" Seth asked the two girls.
"I'm just happy I paid that asshole back for stabbing me!" Mika growled cracking her knuckles.
"Ginjer," Seth smiled down at his friend and adjusted her hat, "you clever Gnome, I can always count on you to bail me out huh?"
"Damn right, you ditzy blonde twat!" Ginjer teased looking over to see Connor and the others rushing over.
"Is everyone okay?! Anyone hurt?" Connor asked seeing Seth hold up his hand and walked over to start to heal him.
"Is he dead?" Jaya asked looking to the edge where the Gratificator had been pushed over to the sea down below.
"His Banshees and their crotch spawns sure are," Kyler spoke feeling the entire city shake, "what the bloody hell?!"
Seeing the sky become black and red with Corruption the city around then became flooded with darkness and from the edge where the Gratificator was shoved over a stream of darkness shot into the sky.
"RAAAAAAAAH!" the Gratificator roared in a disfigured monstrous voice as he began to emerge from the darkness standing at over a hundred and four feet wearing a brown and black leather hooded a creature with a white mask with glowing red eyes red teeth like designs in the mask that moved like it was a part of his body, he then slowly began to lift a headsmen axe over his head.
"Oh shit," Connor spoke seeing the size of the massive axe, "RUN!"
Quickly moving out of the way the heroes quickly jumped when the Gratificator chopped his axe down into the city the impact destroying several buildings and the roads, "bwahaha! To hell with Wrath's order to test you! I will do as I please and destroy you all and burn this city to the ground!"
"Holy shit!" Kyler yelled seeing the sheer size of the creature, "That's the Gratificator?!"
"Now let's see," the Gratificator spoke looking down at the heroes before spotting Connor and snatching him in his hand.
"CONNOR!" Seth yelled trying to grab his friend's hand before he was lifted in the air being brought closer to Pride's face.
"So, you 're what's left of the great Black bloodline?" the Gratificator spoke watching Connor try to break free.
"LET GO - GAAAAAAAH!" Connor cried out when the Gratificator squeezed the hero.
"Connor!" Roscoe yelled looking to the others, we need a plan!"
"How the hell do we fight something that big?! None of our attacks even hurt him before! How do we fight this thing?!" Mika yelled all looking up when Connor cried out again.
"Hahaha! You weren't even worthy of transforming! However, it be a shame not to kill you and your friends at my fullest power, none of you could compare to such strength," the Gratificator laughed squeezing Connor again.
"Oh no you don't!" Jaya growled digging in her bag and pulling out a strange gem that she dropped into a black vial put the topper on and began to shake, "Tercero! Kyler!"
"What's your plan baby girl?" Kyler asked seeing her hand Tercero the bottle.
"Potion of explosive light! That's how we hurt this son of a bitch! With light or fire!" Jaya explained, "Kyler! Throw Tercero high! Tercero, you throw this potion in that prick mask!"
"With pleasure!" Tercero growled attaching the potion to his belt, "Let's go, Kyler!"
"Explosives huh?" Seth spoke looking around then looked at the Gratificator's chest where he saw some yellow cracks, seeing his bomb from before had done damage, "we need to hit that bastard with a bomb!"
"Seth!" Ginjer called pointing up the hill of town where Seth spotted a gun shop.
"Brilliant Ginjer! Mika! Jaya! With me! We're gonna make a barrel bomb!" Seth growled then turned to Roscoe and Neo, "You two be ready! I am gonna need your sharpshooting and your magic!"
"Rodger that!" Neo growled quickly spreading out with the others to do their part.
"Hold on Connor! Kyler now!" Tercero yelled taking the other hand and was launched high in the air, where he then used his phantom blade grappling hook to hit the Gratificator's hand and pulled himself to where Connor was being held.
"What's this? Why do you still fight? Don't you see it's futile to fight me? I am untouchable," the Gratificator chuckled when he saw Tercero trying to free Connor.
'Gotta buy time,' Tercero thought seeing the ground below his allies rushing to put together their bomb, "hey! Puta! How about you pick on someone your own size? Eres tan patetico!"
"What is that supposed to mean little worm?" the Gratificator spoke not understanding the assassin's words.
"It means you're pathetic!" Tercero glared pointing his cleaver, "calling yourself Pride? Now that's sad, couldn't do anything with your life when you were a human so you became an executioner? Bet your mamá was disappointed."
"Why should I care for the little words of a tiny little flea? I am the superior Sin, all sins come from Pride, I am the ultimate being," the Gratificator spoke using his free hand to try and flick the assassin off but Tercero chopped his cleaver into the creature's finger and ran up his arm throwing the potion towards Pride's mask where Neo used his sharpshooting to make it explode.
Creating an explosion of light the Gratificator roared dropping Connor who fell and slammed against the roof of a building at the edge of town where he looked up to see Pride remove a hand from his face and glare at the hero revealing new yellow cracks on his body.
"Come get me!" Connor yelled running across the roof and jumping to the next building where Pride began to follow him.
In the gun shop, Seth closed the lid on their explosive barrel looking out to see the massive Gratificator chasing after Connor, "now where can we drop this on him from?"
"I have a crazy suggestion," Mika spoke pointing to the clock tower and seeing Kyler run up and pick up the barrel with ease.
"Then let's do it!" Kyler yelled running and grabbing his seal, "Connor do you read?"
Running Connor jumped onto another roof dodging Pride's fist as it smashed the building behind him, "Yeah! I hear ya!"
"The clocktower! Lead his arse over here! We got something waiting for him!" Kyler said making Connor glance over to the clocktower across town.
"Got it!" Connor yelled using Slow Time to increase his speed and reach the road below running up the hill with the Gratificator roaring and following close behind.
Running down the streets Connor stumbled but quickly caught himself when dodging cars that were thrown at him, "that the best you got?!"
Sensing something new Connor saw the gems on his gauntlets begin to glow turning from blue to white and radiating in a new power that began to move through his body making his will markings glow from blue to White.
"W-what happening?" Connor spoke stopping a few feet from the clocktower entrance.
At the top Kyler punched the glass of the clocktower face before walking out with the others who all looked down to see the Gratificator looming over Connor, "the hell?! Why did he stop?!"
"Connor move your arse!" Seth yelled seeing a grappling hit the wall and Tercero zoomed up to them.
"Something happening!" Tercero spoke making all the others look down to see Connor turn around to a wall of darkness that stopped before him and the Gratificator rose high above him.
"Nowhere to run boy," the Gratificator smirked approaching but stopped when he noticed Connor looking down and could sense something, "wait."
With his whole eyes turning from blue to a white light Connor hovered off the ground, before a wave of powerful magic burst in all directions, "RAAAAAAAH!"
"What on earth?!" Jaya gasped shielding her eyes when they saw light begin to spark and whip around Connor's body.
Pulling out his sword Connor vanished in a burst of light coming from the side and slamming his elbow into the Gratificator mask before he began to vanish and attack like a fast-moving fly the massive enemy tried to swat but with each hit of powerful light left new cracks.
"GAH! Little rat!" the Gratificator yelled blinking when Connor appeared before him with a Light Spell charged in his hand and slammed it in Pride's face, "GAAAAAAAH!"
Covering his face the Gratificator stumbled and crashed into the side of the clocktower, where high above Kyler lifted the barrel and looked below where Neo and Roscoe stood signaling they were ready.
"Everyone take cover!" Kyler yelled chucking the barrel below towards the Gratificator head.
Growling Pride snatched Connor mid-air who struggled to break free, "you will pay dearly for that you little worm!"
"Ngh! Nah that checkmate," Connor grinned with a victorious smirk.
Raising a brow, the Gratificator quickly looked up too late when Neo fired a few shots and Roscoe threw an Inferno spell making the falling barrel explode a few inches from Pride's face.
"GAAAAAAAAH!" the Gratificator roared covering the area in smoke from the explosion where Connor hit the ground hard powering down from his strange powerup and across from him Pride fell weakly trying to push himself up.
Groaning Connor picked up his sword and slowly limbed towards the Gratificator who panted and weakly looked over to Connor before chuckling, "Do you think you've won? Hahah I'm afraid not hero, soon you and all your precious friends will die by our hands and there is nothing you can do to stop it."
"Do me a favor," Connor spoke forming a Light Spell in his left hand, "just shut the hell up! LIGHT!"
Slamming the Light Spell in the Gratificator's face the giant roared his body burning away in the light before all that was left was his mask that hit the ground where the glow of the red eyes and mouth faded.
With blurry vision, Connor began to wobble before almost falling over but was caught by Neo who he looked up to at his reflection in the Spartan helmet, "don't worry, I got you."
"Hey!" Kyler called exiting the clocktower with the others all regrouping to look at the massive mask that shrank till it was small enough for them to wear.
"What do we do with this?" Seth asked reaching out to pick up the mask but it ended up flying forward to the top of a nearby building where it was caught by a hooded figure wearing an expressionless mask like Pride had before.
"Another one?! Come on then! We killed your buddy we can kill you too!" Kyler yelled with all the heroes having their weapons ready to fight.
"Hmph," the Vexator spoke turning around before vanishing just as the sun rose and lifted what was left of the mist that had engulfed the city.
Turning his head Roscoe barked, "Mika! Where are you going?"
Getting the other's attention they turned to see Mika was a few feet away having tried to walk away, with a sigh she looked over her shoulder, "I'm a danger to you, given the chance Reaver will force me to transform again but this time I won't stop till Connor dead, it's best I keep my distance."
"Now that a big load of troll shit, you're one of us now," Kyler spoke seeing Gabriel's light appear in front of Mika.
"You know as well as we do that the danger is greater than just Reaver, you saw just of the threats Tirich has at his disposal, it will take all of you to be able to stop the darkness," Gabriel explained.
"I also meant what I said Mika," Jaya spoke stepping forward, "I intend to keep my promise! I will help you! I will find a cure! Come with us, fight with us!"
Looking to the group Mika turned to see Gabriel holding out a Guild Seal to her, "The choice is yours; will you fight with us?"
Looking at Connor and Seth Mika rolled her eyes and chuckled, "Talk about peer pressure, alright, count me in!"
Reaching for the seal Gabriel held it away and pointed at her shoulder, "but first! I think there are two of you who need our new initiation am I correct?"
"That right~" Seth smirked looking to Neo who behind his helmet raised a brow.
While Neo and Mika were getting their tattoos Reaver entered Tirich's office where the Vexator placed Pride's mask on Tirich's desk.
"Do you enjoy making me mad Reaver?" the Vexator spoke snapping his fingers and closing the doors behind Reaver.
"I have no idea what you mean," Reaver spoke grunting when he felt the strings dig into his body and felt one squeezing his neck drawing some blood.
"Don't play me for a fool!" the Vexator yelled approaching and holding up a camera that he crushed in front of Reaver, "We only need you alive for the plan! Removing your limbs would be the simplest solution to put an end to your schemes."
"You misunderstand, with the Half-Breed in their group we can use this to our advantage to kill the hero, we just simply need to wait for the right time," Reaver spoke seeing Vex's glowing red eyes behind his mask.
"I am only going to warn you once, NEVER meddle in our affairs again, your stupidity could have ruined everything!" the Vexator growled severing the strings and dropping Reaver to the ground, "worry about your kin, they are the ones you must keep a close eye on."
Exiting the room Reaver rubbed his throat narrowing his eyes in Vex's direction who vanished into the shadows of the dark hall.
"Hmph, I could say the same to you," Reaver smirked leaving the room.