Smurfocalypse chapter 74: The Dark Tower part 3

The Black Hearted was dead, and his victims were free. However Clockwork had sustained critical damage, and the knights were not entirely sure that it was even safe to approach their fellow Smurf-in-arms out of concern for their own safety. The magic barrier behind the throne of bones had disappeared allowing passage to the next floor, but the knights could do nothing but stare at the remains of Clockwork Smurf.

"Is he dead?" Falconer asked finally breaking the silence.

"Clockwork! If your alive move something buddy!" Hefty ordered.

Hefty began walking up to Clockwork's body to examine it.

"Just move anything… Clockwork please move something." Hefty says as he walks from the body to Clockwork's head.

Hefty glanced down at Clockwork's head. If he were a biological Smurf not only would his head be severed due to the destruction of his neck, but half his brain would be smashed in. However Hefty knelt down to look Clockwork in the eyes. One of his eyes no longer worked and the pupil sort of fell to the bottom of the visible part of his eye and is laying there in his skull useless. His one working eye moved to meet Hefty, and his mouth began to move despite the fact he could no longer use it to produce language.

"Clockwork… You did great. Just sit tight ok? We're going to get you some help." Hefty said as he lifted Clockwork's body with ease and slung it over his shoulder causing more metal components to bleed out.

"Well don't just stand there with your mouths open! Some Smurf grab Clockwork's head, and let's move out! Look alive!" Hefty ordered.

His knights were nearly paralyzed with fear at this point. One could only imagine the tremendous amount of stress being felt by the knights right now considering where they were and what they were doing. Hefty's fearless nature is a rare gift that few possess. The other Smurfs were scared for their lives, and were trusting Hefty to keep them alive.

"Right!" Timber finally shouted as he collected himself.

With a hand motion he gestured for the others to follow him as he sprinted towards Hefty in his heavy armor.

"I got his head Hefty. Now let's keep moving." Timber said as he picked up Clockwork's head.

Hefty nodded and the knights sprinted across the arena and began to ascend the stone stairs to the next level. The further they ascended the darker it got. With each step the comfort of light left the knight's behind as they drew closer to the next throne room where the next Black Hearted awaited them.

"Only four more to go… Then I will deal with Vanity, and we can go home." Hefty said as they finished climbing the stairs.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that Hefty Smurf…" a familiar voice said from the pitch darkness.

Hefty and the knights cautiously froze as the torches began to light. The throne room was an exact copy of this one.

"Vanity has achieved a level of power you couldn't even dream of Hefty. You and your ragtag band of survivors have made it far enough. It's time to die." The voice speaks again from the darkness.

"I know that voice…" Hefty said.

"Me too." Timber said.

"So do I" Sweepy said.

"Yup as do I." Famer said.

Once the room was fully lit a figure materialized onto the throne from a swarm of flies. The demon that was once Sloppy Smurf. The Black Hearted Lord of the Flies. Though it wore the clothes Sloppy died in, and had a voice that somewhat resembled Sloppy's it was not Sloppy, and it could not be reasoned with as though it were.

"Now… Which one of you do I kill first, or should I slaughter your entire army while you watch Hefty?" the creature said.

"I believe we have unfinished business." Falconer said as he stepped forth towards the throne with his arm outstretched and Zarus perched on his armguard.

"You have some nerve challenging me after that pitiful performance in the forest. You should have taken your survival as a blessing and never come to this place." The demon said.

"I'll show you that leaving me alive was a mistake." Falconer said.

"Be careful cousin... I have your back if you need me." Archer said.

Falconer shook his head, and removed a vial of the Formula of Strength from a compartment in his leather armor.

"This is our fight, right Zarus?" Falconer said as he poured the formula onto his falcon.

Zarus shook his body so as to bathe in the liquid allowing it to seep into every fine pour of his body to give him that amazing power once more.

"Behold the master of the skies!" Falconer shouts as he signals for Zarus to soar towards their prey.

"Master my ass!" Sloppy spit as he sat up from his throne and cracked his knuckles loudly.

"I'm going to kill you and your bird in front of all your worthless friends. Then I am going to torture and kill them one by one afterward." Sloppy said.

Falconer drew his hunting knife and kept his eyes on his opponent. At this moment nothing mattered. All that was going through Falconer's mind right now was how he was going to survive, and somehow defeat this creature. In this intense and horrifying situation nothing else matters other than the thought of how much damage can be done to his opponent, and how he was going to survive. All that Falconer can focus on is his most primal survival instincts, and the intense training Hefty has put him through. Falconer's entire world has just been limited to this arena, and if he doesn't win he knows he will die.

Zarus appeared as merely a blur as the formula's magic enhanced his flight. Zarus used a combination of the enhanced flight abilities that would just grant a flightless creature flight along with the strength the potion grants to increase his flight speed. The kestrel seemingly disappeared into thin air as he soared towards Sloppy. However it would take a lot more than super speed to throw off Sloppy. Vanity's Black Hearted soldiers were getting stronger the further Hefty and his forces progressed up the tower. Sloppy merely threw himself out of the way of Zarus as the bird swooped in for the kill. The falcon's talons instead destroyed the demon's throne. Zarus then took flight and performed a U turn in order to chain another attack. The demon Sloppy would find himself being approached by the super falcon once more as Zarus swooped down talons out and ready for the killing maneuver. Sloppy just barely avoided the falcon as he soared passed where he once stood. Sloppy had jumped out of the way of the talons.

As Zarus applied pressure Falconer was able to close the distance between himself and the demon. He had his knife drawn and was ready for whatever might happen. However, the demon did not draw any sort of weapon, or assume any sort of stance. When Falconer went to stab the creature seemingly endless amounts of flies flew down from the spellbound staircase leading to the next floor and came to the creature's defense. A swarm of flies literally absorbed the attack, and Falconer could feel them trying to pull the knife from his hands. Falconer quickly pulled back his knife wielding hand so as to shake the flies grasp on his weapon. Falconer continued to attempt to jab Sloppy in the ribs, but the flies would match his attack and protect their master, Falconer couldn't even get close enough to attack.

"I suppose now that I've let you have your go at me that I should retaliate…" Sloppy said from behind a thick protective swarm of flies.

Sloppy cast forth his right arm towards Falconer, and instantly a swarm of flies began to pursue Falconer. The flies swarmed around him and took the form of a large human hand. The hand of flies grabbed hold of Falconer viciously and began crushing the Smurf in its palm. Falconer struggled as the hand attempted to squeeze the life out of him. The knight used every single survival tactic he could think of to lighten the grasp of the hand including biting one of the 'fingers' which resulted in him getting a mouthful of insects. Falconer spit the flies out and the living ones rejoined the swarm that's currently forming the hand. A second swarm of flies was protecting Sloppy by fully surrounding him. As Zarus swooped down to try to attack Sloppy he instead would have his talons scrape against a barrier of flies that could move at will and seemingly form any shape on command.

"This is the end of you Falconer Smurf! Now I will crush you to death!" Sloppy screamed just before commanding the hand made of flies to squeeze tighter.

Falconer was struggling to not be crushed. Within the palm of the hand he struggled. He was separated from Zarus entirely and because he gave his dose of the formula to Zarus he only had the average strength of a young adult Smurf to aid him in his struggles. Unfortunately for Falconer, Sloppy's attack was specifically designed to crush a Smurf into nothingness regardless of their age. Leather armor wasn't exactly known for its ability to absorb crush damage and the possibility of Falconer being killed at the moment was quite probable. As Falconer struggled to survive, his Kestrel was currently doing all he could try to disassemble the hand made of flies. The bird screeched angrily as he flapped his wings rapidly to stay in a hovering position above the hand. Zarus was rapidly pecking at flies in an attempt to break away the hand's 'thumb' in order to free Falconer's head. As the duo dealt with their ordeal their opponent mocked them and laughed at their efforts.

While Zarus tried to free Falconer the Smurf was trying his best to get a decent grip on his knife. The obvious solution at this point would be to utilize a tool to try to escape. If Falconer could get a good grip on his weapon he would be able to perform some sort of retaliation other than flailing about and trying to pry apart the fingers from the inside. The problem is that he is currently facing complications in regards to his weapon for at the moment there were flies trying to pry it out of his hand presumably to stab him with his own weapon since crushing him was taking longer than expected.

As Falconer clung to life Zarus was able to use the incredible speed and strength he was granted to peck an opening in the clutched fist. Whenever flies would soar to it in order to attempt regeneration Zarus would simply pick it apart again. Falconer noticed torchlight peeking through the swarm, and shortly afterward he was lifted up out of the fist by his head and lifted into the air by Zarus. The fist formed by flies broke apart and then the swarm pursued Falconer and Zarus as they attempted to fly away. Zarus was thankfully far faster than any insect could ever dream of being, and so before long they were able to shake the swarm. Zarus would return Falconer to the ground before perching on the Smurf's armguard.

Falconer gestured for Zarus to lean in closer towards him and the bird obliged. Falconer cupped his hands and whispered into the kestrel's ear.

"When I give the signal pick me up. Together we'll fly towards Sloppy and attack at the same time." Falconer said.

Zarus nodded.

Falconer could have access to a plethora of military strategies provided he too were able to fly, but what's done is done. He chose to give his dose of formula to Zarus, and so far his choice proved to be the best one as the decision has already once saved his life in combat. After a few seconds of respite Zarus grasped Falconer in his talons and the two of them took flight towards Sloppy. The falcon had to fly through and around thick clouds of flies as the demon attempted to clog the bird's flying space with flies. Sloppy was trying to command his magic flies to prevent Zarus from approaching him, but to no avail. With the aid of the formula Zarus as an ordinary falcon could stand a chance against these magic opponents. The bird would simply soar straight threw a swarm and the flies would scatter before reshaping. After besting the obstacles Zarus was able to swoop down towards Sloppy with extraordinary speed. The moment they were within range Zarus let go of Falconer and Falconer was sent falling down towards Sloppy with his knife out and ready.

Upon landing Falconer wasted no time. He immediately jabbed his blade at Sloppy, but the demon avoided the attack. The demon then swiped at Falconer with its claws and Falconer's armor absorbed the attack completely. Falconer then began to rapidly slash at Sloppy and as he was doing so he was quickly joined by Zarus who was currently hovering just above the two of them and was screeching and pecking at Sloppy's head. The knights could barely process what was happening due to how fast everything was playing out. Zarus and Falconer unleashed a deadly combo of blows at Sloppy, and this combo was appearing as merely a blur. All the while flies would seeming just appear to take hits for the demon and their corpses would just shoot out of the blur and litter the floor. This continued for a few moments before blood was seen shooting out of the blur and flies then everything came to stop.

Falconer has just had razor sharp claws rake across the entire left half of his face. Because of the way his helmet is made his face was not protected, and Sloppy clipped him good. His left eye was destroyed such that it could no longer even be opened, and there were deep scratches going down his face to his mouth. However Zarus had managed to bite off and consume the creature's arm. The amount of pain Falconer was in right now is indescribable. His body was visibly quivering, but he dare not take his eye off of his opponent. Zarus continued to peck at Sloppy and the creature dodged the attacks and disappeared into a swarm of flies before re-appearing further down the arena towards the spellbound staircase and the throne. When he reassembled a new arm had materialized for him as well. Falconer was left standing and bleeding in the center of the arena. Zarus had taken pursuit after Sloppy, but Falconer was so badly injured he was struggling to focus. Falconer began to run after Zarus to join him when the Flies formed a smurflike creature and stood to oppose him separating him from Zarus.

Falconer grit his teeth both out frustration and pain as he glared at the figure with his good eye. There was absolutely no point at all in fighting a swarm of flies, but the damage they are capable of doing is very real as is the threat they pose. Falconer knows he has to damage Sloppy's heart in order to kill him, but this particular demon was especially good at guarding his heart it seemed. So much so that Falconer was beginning to wonder if he had what it took to finish this. Falconer screamed and began to brutally stab the being in front of him again and again not even giving it an opening to attack. The figure then bursts into a swarm of flies and Falconer charges through them to catch up with his bird.

"They're illusions! I was never fighting any sort of additional opponent! The flies can only take so much damage at once." Falconer thinks.

As Falconer ran he realized something troubling. He only has one eye now. How was he going to shoot his gun and ever dream of having it hit his opponent? While Falconer was currently not being pursued perhaps now would be the best time to take the potion in the vial in his pouch. Falconer reached for the vial of the addicting potion of instant health in his pouch and removed the cork before consuming it in order to have his wounds fully restored. With both of his eyes now he could execute his plan of shooting Sloppy in the heart as he fought to avoid Zarus who could kill him in a single attack and has ridiculous speed and power at the moment.

Meanwhile Zarus was pulling out every single trick in the unwritten falcon combat handbook. This bird was unleashing every hunting and self-defense tactic he knew in order to give his opponent hell for hurting his master. Sloppy was having difficulty keeping away from the bird long enough to attack as he was being overpowered very quickly. Every now and then Zarus would grab a piece of him and simply bite it right off of him, but then he'd regenerate. Blood and flies were laying everywhere as the battle continued. Falconer removes the Smurfgun which was strapped to his back and aims down the sights trying to line up a shot. Zarus then grabbed hold of Sloppy's leg and picked the creature up. Sloppy disconnected his own leg just so he could free himself and as he fell he raked his claws across the Falcon's chest drawing blood and causing the bird to cry out. Zarus then flew upward so as to distance himself from Sloppy. As Sloppy landed Falconer fired his gun into his chest missing his heart and instead striking the lung.

Sloppy's leg grows back as Zarus circles around quickly to execute another attack. Falconer looks to his rifle, and then quickly reaches for a paper cartridge in his pocket. No joke then in the midst of battle Falconer sits on the arena floor as though he were on a hunt in the middle of the woods and began to reload his Smurfgun at a speed previously thought to be impossible. Hefty's jaw dropped as he observed. Falconer's skills have improved so much it was unbelievable. Once reloaded He stood to fire again. This time the shot hits the demon's ribcage and ricochets into the wall. Sloppy stops what he's doing and looks to Falconer, but in that second Zarus had swooped down and took his head right off. The creature's headless body shot blood and fell to the floor motionless.

"Great!" Falconer shouts.

Falconer slings his empty rifle back over his shoulder, draws his knife, and quickly sprints towards the demon's body in an attempt to sink his knife into its heart. As Falconer approached the body he was separated from Zarus by a literal tornado made of flies that formed in the center of the room. On the other side the demon's head grew back and he sprinted into the tornado and was sucked up into the center where stayed and simply hovered in mid-air. As it seemed Sloppy has had enough close calls and was now completely shrouding himself in a deadly tornado of flies. Zarus attempts to remain flying in place as the wind picks up. Falconer stands holding his knife and staring into the abyss. It would be to unpredictable to try to use his gun under these circumstances, but how could he possibly approach Sloppy now? He needed to regroup. Falconer reached for the whistle on a string around his neck and blew it as loud as he could while holding out his armguard. Shortly afterward Zarus perched on his arm.

"It's just an illusion! There's no way he's that strong. So here's what we're going to do. We're going to call his bluff." Falconer said.

Zarus nodded.

Falconer examined his falcon's wounds. Thankfully it seemed Zarus wouldn't need any sort of medical attention in order to survive. This wasn't Zarus' first boo-boo and it wouldn't be his last it was nothing to write home about. However Falconer would obviously prefer if Zarus sustained minimum damage.

"When the two of us work together we can accomplish amazing things. Remember Zarus? Uncle Smurf said that… Let's prove him right by finishing this." Falconer said as he climbed his falcon and sat down on his back.

"To the eye of the storm!" Falconer yelled with his knife hand outstretched.

Zarus screeched and took flight towards the tornado. It was a straight charge towards the center. The two of them tore through the illusion and flew through the storm to the center. In the center Sloppy was focusing all of his power into his final attack which was this tornado. Once again the formula of strength was protecting them by making Zarus a better flier. The winds couldn't shake him and Falconer held onto his bird tight. They approached at lightning speed, and once Sloppy's final attack had been overcome there was little more to occur than Zarus literally catching the creature in his mouth. The falcon chewed Sloppy several times as he struggled helplessly before his heart was finally crushed by the bird's beak. With that the souls of Smurfs and Smurfettes from all walks of life and all cultures ascended into the stars free at last. Among those souls was the soul of Greedy Smurf. The tornado faded, the flies disbanded, and the spell guarding the staircase disappeared. Zarus lands and Falconer dismounts his falcon.

"How was that?" Falconer asked.

"Unbelievable!" Hefty exclaimed.

"To the next floor!" Timber shouted.