Salvos

415. Round Two

“Nice to kill ya!”

Avaritia laughed, followed by a clink— like the ringing of a bell— before his body blurred. Daniel barely saw the [Imp]-[Changeling] move. The young man backed up— before his eyes grew wide. In an instant, the Demon was standing before him, swinging a clawed hand for his face.

It was like time slowed. Daniel remembered being in this position before. Facing a different [Imp]. He’d almost died, then. The only thing that saved him was his Ring of Lesser Protection, then. He did have a Pendant of Greater Protection now. And there was that extra layer of armor that Zin had given him.

Yet he knew— the [Hero] understood— very clearly that he would die here if that claw struck his face. But there was nothing he could do about it. Avaritia sneered as he followed through with his swing.

“Goodbye, Human—”

“Daniel!”

Amanda moved. She was a [Rogue], and unlike Daniel, she’d already seen the attack coming. With a [Savage Step], she barely reached him in time, even though she only had to cross half the distance of Avaritia.

She brought up her double bladed dagger just in time to block the attack. Yet, despite parrying the Demon’s claws, the impact sent her flying. Daniel grunted as she went flying back into him, the pair crashing into the enchanted wall and smashing open.

They landed in the corridor outside of the room as guards came running down their way. Daniel got to his feet with a groan, watching the wheeling world steady as the fighting continued in the room.

Avaritia scoffed as he lowered his claw.

“I’m surprised there’s one of you who can keep up with—”

“[Frostflame Vortex]!”

A gushing of ice and fire poured out in a concentrated spiraling motion towards the Demon. He vanished as the attack struck nothing but air, before reappearing where he was standing. He tilted his head back towards Edithe as she lowered her staff, wide-eyed. Avaritia grinned.

“—me.”

He finished. Then he bared his teeth as the red-haired woman backed up. She whispered quietly, staff glinting brightly.

“[Aura of Greater Protection].”

A flicker overcame her as the [Imp]-[Changeling] rolled his eyes. He gestured at himself as Hadrian stepped in front of her.

“Oh, come on. Do you really think that’ll be enough to protect you from me? I’ll break through that spell in a second.”

Once again, there was a clink. His body blurred. Daniel got to his feet right as the Demon vanished. He cast his gaze around the inside of the room, blinking.

“Where’d that Demon go?”

Amanda saw something the [Hero] couldn’t, her eyes darting around the room as she tensed. Zin Norwood turned and raised her staff as Avaritia reappeared once more. The Archdemon was laughing as he sprinted up to Edithe and Hadrian.

“You’re mine—”

“[Tangle of Brambles]!”

The [Druid] yelled as soon as the Demon stepped foot on the ground. Avaritia blinked as thorns grew out of the heel of his boots— a snare that caught him by the legs, slowing his movement.

“What the…?”

That surprised the [Imp]-[Changeling]. He blinked as he raised a leg, only for it to be yanked back down to the floor.

“Now!”

Zin yelled. Both Crocus Merryster and Hadrian. The two [Warriors] raised their respective blades, flanking the Demon.

“[Sunder Slash]!”

“[Valorous Charge]!”

They swung for Avaritia’s head and feet. The [Imp]-[Changeling] clicked his tongue and leapt out of the way as the thorns tore open. The moment he landed back on the marble floor, the snare caught him once again— the vines and bramble regrowing and keeping him pinned.

“This is annoying—”

“[Ray of Retribution]!”

Edithe caught him while his guard was down. She pointed his way as her spell shot out. A bright light that flashed out, blinding Daniel’s vision as he stepped back into the room. A small blast engulfed the Demon as everyone watched the smoke dissipate.

The red-haired woman lowered her staff, whispering.

“Did it work?”

“You’d know if I died, dumbass.”

A snort. Avaritia stepped out, his right arm covered with a few burn marks, but otherwise unharmed. He tugged hard with his feet, breaking the bindings from Zin, only for it to regrow.

It was really impeding his movements. He narrowed his eyes, and Amanda decided it was her time to strike. She sprinted up behind him, slashing for his neck.

“[Pinpoint Strike]—”

And the Demon caught it. Amanda blinked.

“You…”

“Come on, you’ve got to try harder than that.”

Avaritia scoffed as he let go of the blade. She yelled and unleashed a flurry of strikes at him.

“[Charge of a Thousand Blades]!”

The [Imp]-[Changeling] grinned, standing in place, blocking each of her strikes with ease. He laughed as Amanda cursed, unable to strike him.

“What’s wrong? You’re fast, but you’re pretty weak, aren’t ya? Is that really all you got?”

Daniel bit his lower lip, watching this. He looked on as Avaritia ducked under one of Amanda swings and— without lifting his feet— headbutted her. Amanda recoiled in pain, dropping her dagger.

The Demon laughed as he stood there. And Daniel reached him a second after. Avaritia blinked and shook his head.

“What are you going to do—”

“[A Hero’s Rage]!”

Daniel bellowed. Zin, Crocus, and Hadrian paused as they heard him call out his Skill. The [Hero] didn’t care, lunging straight at the Demon as his body flashed white. A radiant armor encased him and his blade as he swung down. The giant glowing blade crashed into the wooden boards, shattering the floor as the room collapsed.

The entire floor fell into the one beneath. Daniel waited for the dust to settle before narrowing his eyes. He raised his head, looking around, but the Demon was gone. He hefted up his blade.

“Where—”

“Above you!”

Vines shot out as Zin Norwood yelled. It caught something floating above Daniel, and the young man looked up. Avaritia floated there, tangled in even more vines as he scowled.

“Annoying [Druid].”

He tore through it as he spun around. The Demon ran through the air towards her as she began to shift. Her body was morphing into a bestial form, but she was too slow. Crocus barred Avaritia’s path. The [Warrior] managed to swing once in the span it took the [Imp]-[Changeling] to dismantle his armor.

Amanda jumped in soon after, followed by Hadrian as Edithe supported them with a volley of spells. Zin finished transforming as Daniel charged into the fray. He barely dodged Amanda as she was thrown back, only to be struck by a flying Hadrian.

Even with all of them working together, it wasn’t enough. This single Demon was overpowering them. Perhaps it was due to the Boots of Alexander, but Daniel knew they stood no chance. Something had to change.

Zin charged after the [Imp]-[Changeling]. She took on the form of a kind of bear. Except she had two heads and a scorpion-like tail. Avaritia dodged her swiping claw and frowned.

“So we’re showing off our transformations, huh? Well, what do you think of this—”

He sneered at her as his body shifted too. He took on the form of a [Hellbeast] and caught Zin’s tail. The Demon yanked her towards him and lashed out with his teeth.

“No—”

Crocus shouted. But he couldn’t stop it in time. Avaritia ripped off one of Zin’s head as she went limp. He tossed her aside and kicked the other Vampire back. Daniel got back up and ran in, only to be barraged by a hundred strikes at once.

His glinting ethereal armor survived the onslaught, but it was dented and breaking now, with chinks and cracks forming over its surface. He was thrown back again as Avaritia just chuckled, avoiding another blast of magic from Edithe.

Daniel rolled to a halt as he gritted his teeth. He got back up, ready to charge in once again— even if it was fruitless. Even if his efforts would be in vain. But before he could take a step forward, a hand stopped him. Blinking, he turned around.

“Who—”

“Seems like you lot are having a bit of trouble. Need a hand?”

It took the [Hero] a moment to register who he was staring at. She was a burly figure— tall and built like a Cyclops. But she was Human. She flexed an arm as wraps of bandages peeled off her.

Hadrian stared at her. Even Edithe lowered her staff as she watched this newcomer join the fighting. Avaritia frowned, knocking Amanda back.

“Why, look who it is!”

He spread his arms wide. His voice was garbled and warped, but still comprehensible.

“Lofus. The Broken Berserker of Bharain— quite literally! Cause I remembered breaking you down quite badly the last time we fought.”

Lofus tilted her head back at him. Crocus rushed to Zin’s side as the Elite stepped forward.

“Oi, Demon. How about going for another scrap? I wasn’t prepared last night, but I’ll take you down for round 2.”

“What?”

Daniel didn’t believe what he was hearing. Was Lofus being serious? They could help her defeat this Demon. Why was she chasing them away? However, it seemed like that didn’t matter to her. She glanced back at Daniel and shook her head.

“Get out of here, [Hero] boy. Leave this Demon to me.”

Avaritia narrowed her eyes, and Daniel sputtered.

“But—”

“You’re protecting the Crown of Alexander, aren’t you? Helena sent me a message. Woke me up from a darn good nap. Told me to make sure you idiots don’t lose it. So scram.”

Lofus made a shoo-ing motion. The [Hero] still wanted to protest, but then she cracked her neck.

“This [Changeling] ain’t the only Demon around here. Even if we can beat him together, once they show up, it’s game over. Go and hide. Keep the Crown of Alexander safe.”

“I…”

Daniel hesitated as the Broken Berserker of Bharain started forward. Avaritia laughed, nearly doubling over.

“Ha! Beat me? That’s a good one.”

She was right, though. There were other Demons running amok. A single victory like this didn’t matter when they showed up. Daniel pursed his lips, and Amanda appeared next to him.

“Lofus is right. We need to get out of here.”

She was panting— clearly exhausted. But she’d done her fair share of fighting. Daniel had almost thought she’d run away at the first sign of trouble, and yet she saved his life.

Amanda proffered the [Hero] a hand. And he sighed. He accepted it and called out to the others.

“Let’s go!”

Edithe helped Hadrian to his feet and hobbled over. But Crocus Merryster got up from next to Zin’s limp body. She was twitching slightly— was she still alive? She did have two heads, but Daniel wasn’t sure how that would work. Regardless, the Patriarch of the Merryster Family stood tall and raised his broadsword.

“I’ll stay and help Lofus.”

The Berserker snorted.

“Make sure you keep up. Because I’m going to pummel this Demon to the ground if you don’t.”

Avaritia bared his teeth dangerously.

“We’ll see about that.”

A red aura wisped off Lofus as she charged at the Demon. Their clash shook the entire palace as Daniel, Edithe, Hadrian, and Amanda took off. They ran down the broken hallway, feeling the tremors from the battle between Elite and Archdemon. They caught glimpses of the war being waged beyond the city between an army and two floating figures.

Daniel never thought that so few Demons would cause such a problem at the Conference of Alyras, yet this was happening now. He slowed his pace once they were far enough away and turned to the other three individuals with him.

Now what? Daniel didn’t know. But he saw the state they were in. Edithe was unharmed, yet she was tired and frustrated. Nothing she threw at Avaritia even slowed him. Hadrian, on the other hand, was hurt— injured and limping. The leader of the Valiant Dreamers Company had only been ragdolled by the [Changeling].

Neither of them were in any state to continue fighting. Meanwhile, Amanda had mostly been able to avoid any actual damage, while Daniel had [A Hero’s Rage] to protect and empower him. He had to decide what happened next, and he made a quick decision.

“We need to split up.”

Edithe raised a brow.

“What?”

“If we split up, they won’t know which one of us has the Crown of Alexander. All that matters is that it’s safe. Here—”

He reached into his pockets and produced the little pen that acted as a Dimensional Storage Unit. He faced Edithe grimly.

“Amanda and I will be the distractions. You and Hadrian take this and hide.”

She blinked a few times. Edithe looked like she wanted to argue. So did Hadrian. But there was no time. Daniel pushed the Dimensional Storage Unit to them insistently.

“We can’t argue about this. We have to—”

“So that’s where you’ve been hiding it.”

A soft voice pierced through the background blasts. A gust of wind swept up the Dimensional Storage Unit from Daniel’s hand. He tried to hold on, but this wasn’t an ordinary night gale.

The Dimensional Storage Unit went flying as he called out.

“No—”

It went flying out a nearby window, smashing the glass open as a pair of silhouettes floated there. It landed in the hands of a yellow-skinned Demon as the bulky green-skinned next to him leaned back nonchalantly.

“Your plan of doing nothing really worked, huh Iivor?”

“Of course, Desidia. I knew they’d reveal it eventually if we just left them alone for a while.”

Iivor cast his gaze towards the gathered Humans before raising a hand. Daniel and Edithe moved. But a powerful blast of wind knocked them all back.

“Now, goodbye.”

And both Demons vanished. Daniel lay there for a moment as Edithe hurried back to her feet in a panic. Amanda rushed to his side, helping him up.

“What are you doing? We need to stop them!”

The former assassin spoke frantically. He got up and looked towards the panicking Edithe, Hadrian, and Amanda. Then he chuckled.

“That really got them, didn’t it? We don’t need to do anything.”

He ran down the hallway as they stared at him, confused. Daniel ushered them forward as he called out.

“It was a decoy. Come on, that’ll buy us five minutes, tops, before they realize it’s just a pen from my world.”

“Oh.”

Amanda blinked. Edithe paused for a moment, before grinning.

“That’s smart. I didn’t expect that of you, Daniel.”

“...what does that even mean?”

He sighed. And they continued running.