Vivid Stars Online

A wave of plasma fire hit the first beast as it came around the corner. Fire splashed off its hide as it continued, barely scorching its spongy flesh. Then Linnea’s cannon struck, blowing it backward in a staggering blast.

The first beast faltered, but the second one somehow slid past it in a flash of purple light. I hit it with Ethereal Roots, holding it in places with glowing lines of light.

It struggled, snapping lines with every movement, before being halted by another cannon blast. It too rocked backward, only to be replaced by the first as they swapped places again.

A hideous burn marked the flesh of the first Beast even as it healed before our eyes. More plasma fire from the soldiers struck the wound, only to be shed once again. The Toughness of these Beasts was incredible, far beyond either of the ones I’d fought before.

Step by step, they continued advancing, swapping each time one was hit by a big attack. My Ethereal roots slowed them, but could never halt the advance. They gained ground even as we retreated, and eventually, I let them pass.

We couldn’t retreat forever, and the roots were only a delaying tactic in the end. If we were going to take them out, we would have to hit them with something big. Just as one staggered back from a cannon blast, I sprinted forward to intercept its fellow.

The creature slid around its comrade in another purple burst, only to run headfirst into my Psi sword. Empowered with Technokinesis to the max, my blade cut it straight across the stomach.

The edge sliced through the wounds it had already taken, revealing its soft insides for the first time in the fight. It screeched and withdrew, even as its fellow slammed forward with a bundle of tentacles.

The attack resembled a moving tree more than any punch, and it threw me backward harder than anything had ever hit before me. Even with Skin Hardening running at full, the blow dented my chest plate.

I collapsed backward, gasping as the metal pressed against my chest. I could barely breathe past the obstruction, and the world faded as I tried to get air into my winded lungs.

Dimly I could hear the crack of plasma fire around me, giving me hope we might still win. With a focused wrench of will, I poured energy into my chest plate, pushing the dent back out one inch, then another.

The energy cost was exorbitant, but it was one I gladly paid as precious air flowed back into my lungs. Gasping, I pulled myself up and took in the state of the battle.

One Tentacle beast had collapsed in front of me, its insides revealed past the sword wound in its chest. From its stillness, and the way its insides looked cooked by plasma fire, I wrote it off with a sigh of relief.

The other was nowhere in sight, though I could hear plasma fire behind me. Turning, I spotted it several dozen feet away. My struggle for breath must have taken longer than I’d thought, and I’d failed to keep both of them back.

With a cry of rage, I summoned my discarded sword and charged at its back, covering the intervening space in a sprint. With a surge of will, I empowered my blade again, even as a headache ripped through my head.

I was dangerously low on energy, but I pushed forward nonetheless. If the beast had gotten past me, then Linnea was the only line of defense before our soldiers. This may have been the plan, but it was the part I hated the most.

My blade struck it in the back, cleaving through the outer layers of flesh, yet failing to strike as far as my first. The damage from Linnea’s blasts had been significant, it would take multiple hits to do as much by myself.

A tentacle swung from the side at an insane speed, striking me in the middle and carrying me straight into the wall. The hit took the wind from me again but it lacked the strength to breach my armor from this angle.

With a groan, I swung again, this time severing the tentacle holding me in place. With the obstruction gone, I sprinted forward again, striking it in the same place again.

The creature let out a screech of pain mixed with rage, before suddenly spinning in a flash of purple light. Whatever power had let it squeeze past its comrade apparently allowed it to maneuver in place as well.

Face with a gaping maw of teeth, I backpedaled in panic even as tentacles gripped my legs. Only a few feet back, they ripped my legs from under me, pulling me to the ground as they dragged me forward.

From behind the creature I heard the incredible crack of Linnea’s cannon again, followed by an explosion that sent the creature stumbling forward. Its tentacles loosened for a moment and I severed the tentacles holding my legs in two swift strikes.

The ache in my head increased as I pulled myself up, yet the sight ahead filled me with hope. They’d covered the entire front of the creature in burns, with a hole drilled deep into its center.

Without the switching act it was playing with its counterpart, Linnea’s cannon had taken a terrible toll.

One last hit, I realized as I took in the depth of the damage. That should be enough to take it out.

I could barely stay conscious as I took in my energy reserves. They were as low as they’d ever been, only my increased stats were keeping me on my feet this time. Another strike would almost certainly knock me out.

But as long as it took the creature out as well, it would be OK. I charged forward toward the flailing creature, barely ducking past one of its few remaining tentacles. My sword flashed forward, and I focused my will on empowering it at the last possible second.

I felt the hit land as my consciousness faded, felt it cut through skin, flesh, and the organs underneath. The last thing I heard was the beast’s death screech as the world went black.

I came awake with a groan before realizing that I felt surprisingly good. While the headache remained, it was only at the level of a light hangover rather than a raging migraine.

“I hope this means we won,” I croaked as I opened my eyes.

“It does indeed,” Linnea laughed from beside me, her voice tinged with concern. “Are you alright? I thought you were dead when we pushed our way past the corpse and saw you'd collapsed. Do you know how hard it is to find someone’s pulse in heavy armor?”

“I’d imagine it’s pretty hard,” I responded with a shake of my head. “I’m sorry I worried you, that fight was just too close,” I finished, turning to look at her.

She was kneeling beside me with her helmet off, looking down at my prone body. Her armor was scrapped and scarred in a dozen places, yet she looked hale and hearty.

“How about you?” I asked, needing to hear her confirm it despite what my eyes could see.

“A little banged up, but nothing too bad,” she responded with a shrug. “You distracted it just in time, it had me dead to rights but threw me aside when you got its attention."

I’m sorry we couldn’t do more,” she sighed, laying a hand on my arm. Patting the cannon by her side, she continued with a deep frown. “This baby was supposed to be the deciding factor, yet it still turned out to be insufficient in the end.”

“It's fine,” I groaned, pulling myself up into a sitting position. “Both times I finished them, it was only because you’d blown through most of their hide. My strikes to the back showed that I couldn’t have done it alone, we only succeeded by working together.”

Her face relaxed a little as she nodded, though I got the idea I didn’t entirely mollify her. For the first time, I cursed the low tech level of Altheias. It was hard to know what she should have available by now, but I guessed it should be higher than what we had.

She’d got around it somewhat by using a squad support weapon single-handedly, but I knew the limit was fast approaching. We would have to find a way to get better tech, not just for her, but for everyone else as well.

Looking past her, I could see the squads nervously clustered around. Most of them looked even worse than she did, their faces twisted with guilt. Despite their numbers, they’d been little help in the fight, though it was far from their fault.

I never should have brought them into such a dangerous fight with the level of gear they had access to. It was a hard lesson, and I was only thankful that none of them had died for me to learn it.

Many of them looked battered and bruised, but all fifteen were present and standing as they kept watch. “Good work everyone,” I said, putting on a brave face as Linnea helped me up. “We took down the Beasts and won together without a single casualty.”

It was the best I could do in the circumstances, and it seemed to help a little at least. “If we’re still here, I’m assuming that the path out is still blocked?” I continued. The staff-wielding beast hadn’t been among them, and I was sure it was the source of the effect.

“No sir,” Corporal Murther said as he stepped up. “It's just as solid as before.”

“We’ll have to go back down then,” I sighed in response. “I figure the third beast is the cause. Killing it is the only way for us to escape. How are we looking for ammo?”

“Low,” he said with a shake of his head. “A dozen to twenty shots each. Enough for one more fight, but not much more.”

“I’m low too,” Linnea picked up next to me. “Two shots on the cannon left, though I’m good with the rifle.”

“One more fight will be enough if we make it a good one,” I responded, keeping my tone positive. “As long as we get out, we can make it back down the mountain as a group. Linnea and I can take any normal beasts out.

We win this fight and we’re back safe,” I finished, looking each person in the eye.

My speech must have had an effect as each of them stood straight and saluted as I looked at them. It was a big ask, but I could tell they were ready for one last battle.

My energy reserves were back over half, suggesting that we’d been here for some time. By the time we reached the corrupted rift room, I expected them to go back to full. Glancing at the two tentacle beast corpses, I considered pausing to dissect them before I thought better of it.

Getting my soldiers out of here was the more important objective. We’d already given the beasts enough time to prepare, and I didn’t want to give them any more than we needed to.

Linnea must have seen the direction of my gaze as she leaned in to whisper to me. “We’ve already pulled the cores out. We can stay for the organs if you want, but I think moving on is the best idea.”

I thanked her before turning back down the tunnel. If we had time, we could come back for them. For now, it was time to take the fight to the enemy.

Two hours later, we were creeping toward the rift room, trying to get the drop on the enemy. I arrayed us much like our previous formation, with myself, then Linnea, then the troops.

Reaching the edge, I peeked around the corner and into the room. The aged tentacle beast stood in almost the same spot as before, its staff reaching out to connect to the rift. That was a clue that pointed toward my theories being correct, but it also wasn’t alone.

A dozen tiny versions of the beast littered the room, each barely as tall as a person. I could only assume they were juvenile versions, yet I doubted that this made them harmless. I could only hope they would be far less dangerous than the real deal.

Even as I took this in, the aged beast let out a screech as it pulled its staff back. Having somewhat expected this, I responded by shouting orders. “Linnea and I will take the big one, everyone else focus on the others.”

Without even waiting for acknowledgment, I rushed forward. Ethereal Roots had shown little success, and my empowered rifle shots were less powerful than Linnea’s cannon. Only my sword had shown significant success, and that was what I brandished as I charged.

A cannon blast shot past me, only to explode against a glowing yellow barrier in front of the beast.

I let out a gasp of shock, yet didn’t let it stop me. Charging forward, I struck, cleaving through the barrier. I made it through just in time for a sweeping strike of beast's staff to strike me, driving me straight into the corrupted rift.

The last thing I saw was a flash of light as everything went yellow.