Paragon of Destruction

Despite the overwhelming power that coursed through Arran's veins as he charged the creature nearest to him, he did not allow himself to be careless.

Perhaps the creature could not quite compare to a dragon like the one Crassus had slain, but it wasn't far off, either. Even with a Living Shadow weapon, just seriously injuring it would be a difficult task.

And then, if he defeated it, there were another two left.

But with battle already upon him, all he could do was focus on the moment. And before anything else, he would have to test whether the creature's strength and speed matched its size.

He ran toward the giant beast with his sword raised, eyes fixed on its movements. Yet while the creature could clearly sense his approach, it did not respond, remaining still — almost as if it was waiting for him.

But then, when he came within twenty feet of it, a sudden twitch of motion ran through the creature's massive body.

At once, Arran darted to the side — just in time to avoid the giant claw that slammed down next to him, tearing a two foot deep gash within the rock.

Although the creature's speed surpassed what he'd expected, he did not pause to marvel at it. Instead, he rushed at the beast's other foreleg, swinging his blade at its armored skin with all his might.

His first strike achieved little. While his blade tore through the giant digger's skin with ease, the creature was simply too large, its muscles and bone buried too deep beneath its skin for Arran's sword to reach.

But Arran wasn't so easily repelled. In an instant, half a dozen more attacks fell on the creature's leg as Arran furiously hacked into it, the Living Shadow blade tearing through the creature's skin and shredding the flesh that lay beneath.

Then, he jumped back — and not a moment too soon, because even as he moved away, the creature's giant jaws crashed into the ground where he had stood, crushing the dense rock beneath with a deafening sound.

The attack would have killed Arran if it hit him, but now, a vicious smile appeared on his face when he saw his chance.

Without hesitation, he jumped on the creature's barn-sized head, then rammed his blade into the beast's skull with all his might.

A lesser opponent would have died right then, but this creature was no common monster. It screeched in anger at the attack, then violently moved its head, desperately trying to shake off its tiny attacker.

Yet Arran's sword was embedded in its skull up to the hilt, and as the creature furiously shook its head, he held on as best he could.

The violent motion continued for some moments, but the beast's desperate attempts to throw Arran off only worsened its condition. Each time it moved, the blade embedded in its skulled moved as well, further aggravating the already grievous wound.

Then, suddenly, the titanic creature's movements came to a stop, and its vast body collapsed a moment later, falling to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

Perhaps the damage had finally become too much, or perhaps some vital part of its brain had been destroyed, but either way, it died in an instant.

Arran felt a surge of energy entering his body as the creature died, but he had no time to savor the feeling. Because as the creature collapsed, one of the other two arrived. And as he pulled his blade free from the creature's body, a giant claw slammed into his body.

The blow hit Arran like an avalanche crashing into a straw shed, knocking him a hundred paces away and sending his body sprawling across the ground.

Pain surged through his body as he hit the rock floor, and he knew instantly that dozens of his bones had been broken or even shattered.

At any other time, the attack might have crippled or even killed him. But after slaughtering thousands of diggers, there was little punishment his body could not withstand.

He felt his bones heal even as they were broken, and although the pain caused him to scream in anguish, his body recovered in an instant.

He shuddered as he got back to his feet, his mind still reeling with the pain he'd felt only seconds earlier. Yet there was no time to dwell on it — although he'd killed one of the creatures, two more remained.

He eyed the two creatures warily. While he'd recovered from this attack easily, he could not help but wonder what would happen if he lost a limb — or worse.

Whatever power he'd gained from killing thousands of diggers, he had little faith that it would heal him if either of the remaining creatures' massive jaws snapped him in half.

But the two creatures seemed to be in no rush to attack him, either. Instead, they kept their distance, facing him without advancing.

Once more, Arran realized that these vast creatures were more intelligent than their smaller cousins. While he'd overwhelmed the first before it had a chance to defend itself, it seemed the remaining two had no wish to meet the same fate.

The two sides faced off silently, and Arran felt some unease when he considered his position.

He was confident in facing either of the creatures alone, but against both of them, he was at a disadvantage. If he attacked one, the other would seize the chance to strike at him, and he now knew they had the power to kill him.

Yet he couldn't draw out the fight for hours, either. Right now, he was still filled with the power of his earlier massacre, but most of that strength was only temporary. Some small part of it would strengthen him permanently, but the bulk of it would be gone in a matter of hours.

Worse still, he could sense that healing his injuries had used up a sizable chunk of his strength. Much still remained, but if he went head to head with the creatures, he knew would run out of power sooner rather than later.

But the creatures didn't know any of this. And that, Arran realized, still gave him a chance of victory.

Alien though the creatures were to Arran, as he looked at them, he saw that their movements betrayed something he recognized as fear. Fear of the foe that had slain their companion so easily.

Despite the danger of the situation, he could not help but smile at the irony. Had these two creatures been as mindless as the smaller diggers, they would have attacked at once — and most likely defeated him.

But instead, they had enough intelligence to fear the fate that had befallen their companion. And now, that fear was the one thing that gave Arran a chance of defeating them.

He knew he had to move quickly. While the creatures feared him now, they would surely grow more confident if he failed to attack. Eventually, they would take the initiative, and then, Arran's only choice would be to flee back to the mines.

That was something he had no intention of allowing to happen. Not with the treasures he sought almost within reach.

Once more, he approached the creatures. First at a jog, then accelerating to a run as he drew closer.

Vast though the creatures were, they hesitated at his attack, with one of the two titanic beasts even taking several steps backward. And no wonder — though it was many times Arran's size, a similar beast lay dead just a hundred paces away.

Arran's run turned into a sprint as he came upon the nearest creature, and he dodged and turned as the behemoth lashed out with its claws and tore through the cavern's dense rock as if it were paper.

Yet Arran narrowly avoided the attacks, and a moment later, he was underneath the creature.

This, he knew, was his only chance of winning — to stay so close that his enemies' size became a hindrance to them.

He ran beneath the beast, sword slashing at its legs and belly. This time, he did not linger long enough to do serious damage — with both of the creatures swiping at him with their claws, to stand still for even a moment would mean death.

After some moments of this, the monster seemed to recognize its disadvantageous position, and it moved to retreat, to get Arran out in the open where both creatures could freely attack him.

Arran had no intention of allowing this to happen. He circled the creature's legs, forcing the other creature to hold back its attacks for fear of injuring its ally.

Yet while the colossal creature lacked Arran's speed and agility, having to dodge both creatures' attacks hindered Arran greatly. With giant claws tearing through the rock just feet away from him, much of his attention was occupied merely keeping himself from being torn apart.

Despite his best efforts, he could not prevent the creature from moving away. Just a few more moments, and it would be clear of him entirely.

That was something he could not let happen.

Out in the open, he had no hope of matching these opponents. Their reach alone would make it all but impossible to defend himself, and if they were able to use their full strength, he had no chance of winning.

Lacking any better options, he quickly jumped on the creature's side, using his sword for leverage as he clambered up its back, leaving a trail of deep wounds behind him.

But this time, he could not ram his sword into the creature's body to steady himself — not without giving the other creature the chance to strike him. And as the monster violently shook its body, Arran was sent flying.

Before he even hit the ground, he was hit by the other creature's claws, swatted from the air like a fly. The blow was strong enough to break several of his bones, and even more injuries followed when he crashed into the ground.

He got to his feet in an instant, his wounds once more healed immediately. Yet although he remained uninjured, he could feel that he'd lost another portion of his strength.

Again, he charged forward, focusing his fury on the injured beast as he dodged the other's attacks. But although he spent several minutes further injuring his foe, it was not enough — the beast remained on its feet, barely even slowed by the wounds Arran had caused it.

And then, Arran was struck again.

He rose to his feet with an angry shout, furious at his inability to defeat his opponents. By themselves, he could defeat either one with ease. But together, they left Arran unable to do enough damage to decide the fight.

This repeated several times, with Arran growing increasingly frustrated as he felt the strength steadily seep from his body. If this continued, he would have no choice but to flee. And once he fled, there was no going back — not without thousands of diggers to grant him strength.

It seemed that the creatures had finally recognized their advantage, as well.

Although the injured beast was now noticeably slower than before, its many wounds did not deter it in the slightest. Meanwhile, the other monster was growing increasingly vicious, now charging at Arran whenever he wavered for even a moment.

Face twisted in frustration, Arran groaned when he realized he was losing the battle.

Despite his strength, and despite his weapon, he was slowly losing whatever advantage he might have held at the start. At this rate, he would soon be at risk of losing even his life.

And so, he began to retreat, steadily moving backward after each exchange, rising to his feet slower than before after every blow he took.

Yet the direction he retreated in wasn't that of the tunnel through which he'd entered the cavern. Instead, he moved in the opposite direction, steadily heading even further into the dark depths.

A mile passed, and then another. And while Arran caused the injured creature a few more wounds, those merely slowed it down. However much pain it might feel, its anger far surpassed it.

The other creature, meanwhile, was growing mad with bloodlust. Sensing victory within its grasp, it no longer held back in attacking and chasing Arran. And if most of its attacks only tore deep wounds into the cavern's rock floor, some still struck true, sapping Arran's strength even further.

When he'd gone two miles into the cavern's vast darkness, Arran slowly got to his feet after suffering yet another attack. Already, his foes were moving in on him, eager to seize their impending victory.

Yet Arran had no intention of being killed by the creatures.

"You want to kill me, you pair of overgrown worms?" he yelled. "Then catch me!"

At once, he set off at a sprint, moving back toward the tunnel as fast as his legs would carry him. And behind him, he heard the thunderous sound of his enemies pursuing him.

But while they might be stronger than he was, he still held the advantage in speed, and it wasn't long before the thunderous sounds of their footsteps grew distant.

When Arran reached the tunnel that led back to the mines, he came to a halt and took some moments to catch his breath. Then, instead of moving inside, he turned around, a small smirk appearing on his face as he readied his blade.

Just a few moments later, the unwounded monster appeared, viciously charging at Arran as it shrieked in rage. But then, it came to a sudden halt barely fifty paces away from its quarry, its movements suddenly filled with hesitation.

"Finally caught on, have you?"

Only one of the colossal creatures stood before Arran. The other one, meanwhile, was still well over a mile behind, slowed by the wounds that had failed to kill it.

And while Arran's strength was waning, there was still far more of it left than he'd revealed — more than enough to defeat the monsters one on one.

He attacked without hesitation, rushing toward the giant creature with a bared blade in his hand and a vicious grin on his face. Hours of battle had taught him much about how the creatures moved and fought, and now, he put that knowledge to good use.

In an instant, the roles were reversed.

Strong though the giant digger might be, it had no answer to Arran's speed and agility — not without a second creature to protect it. And as it desperately tried to hit Arran, the Living Shadow sword cut dozens of deep wounds into its body.

After only moments of this, the creature knew it could not win, and it turned to run — to flee the tiny demon with the impossibly sharp blade.

But it was already too late. Even as it moved to escape, Arran clambered onto its back, his sword leaving a path of wounds as he moved toward the creature's head.

This time, there was no shaking him off — not when he could ram his sword into the beast's body to steady himself. And as he moved toward the monster's head, there was nothing it could do but shriek in fear and despair.

The other creature arrived some minutes later, but by then, its companion was already long dead, its skull pierced in a dozen places by Arran's blade.

The last giant monster barely put up a fight. Wounded and tired, it made no attempt to flee. When it finally collapsed to the ground, it almost seemed relieved to be put out of its misery.

After the final creature stopped moving, Arran spent several minutes staring at the giant bodies. And as he did, he could not help but feel a sense of awe.

He now knew that each of these creatures had been every bit as strong as the dragon Crassus had slain for him. But while he'd been unable to finish even that single enemy by himself back then, now, he'd killed three such creatures by himself.

He could not have done it without the blood-infused Dragon's Ruin, of course. But then, that was as much a part of him as his own hands — more so, perhaps, since it was present in every single drop of his blood.

Moreover, in the large battles he expected to see when war broke out, there would be plenty of enemies to fuel his strength.

He'd spent years without fighting a single serious battle, and although he'd known that he'd progressed no small amount, he still found himself surprised by just how much stronger he'd become.

With power like this, he would not be a mere pawn in the war between the Ninth Valley and the Hunters. He'd be an actual threat even to the strongest of his enemies.

There were still many powers he could not hope to match, but for the first time, he felt like he might actually warrant the title of Master.

He shook himself from these idle thoughts after only a moment. There was plenty of work to do in the cavern — gather the monsters' meat, find the Knight's remains and armor, and figure out what had happened to the Knight's shard of Living Shadow.

Because although he could Sense pieces of starmetal scattered throughout the cavern, he had yet to detect even a hint of the Knight's most important treasure.

That was a matter of later concern, however. First, he would need to butcher the three giant creatures he'd slain. And that would be no small task.

Yet as he was about to start the work, he felt a sudden chill in the air, and a shiver of unease ran down his spine.

"What strange sort of creature are you?" a soft voice sounded behind him.

Arran turned around with a start, and his breath halted when he saw a woman barely a dozen paces away from him. She was black-haired and deathly pale, with eyes that were a milky white and held no pupils.

Neither Arran nor his sword had Sensed anything before, but as he faced the woman, he realized that at her side, there was a dagger-shaped shard of Living Shadow.