Nightmare Realm Summoner

Alex didn't waste any time on words. He was already sending mental commands to his monsters and taking a step back, making sure Princess was between him and the lumbering monster of a man that had just emerged from the Disruptor.

"Who are you?" Alex asked. "What happened to you?"

The questions were far more to buy time and keep the behemoth's attention away from Claire than they were to actually get any information. Something told Alex that the tortured man-metal amalgamation before him wasn't about to sit down and have a long chat over a cup of tea.

A grating screech marked his thoughts correct as the man dragged his massive sword across the ground and lifted it into the air before him. Metal ground and bones popped as he lowered himself into a fighting position.

The purple fluid dripping from his lips and joints sizzled as it splattered against the ground, eating into the bleached white wood of the huge tree branch they stood on.

Great. He's got acid blood. Even better.

Burning light lit within the man's body as the machinery encasing him like a metal coffin started to whir. Neon pink energy pumped through tubing and illuminated it from within as a huge piston on the man's back let out a whump.

His veins bulged as they were pumped full of whatever liquid it was that filled his suit. The air above his head shimmered as the System finally seemed to remember that it had a purpose beyond fucking with the people under its domain.

Vaxon, Living Revenant (Adept 5)

"Oh," Alex said intelligently. "Fuck."

Vaxon blurred. An enormous crack echoed out through the still air as the branch beneath his feet shattered from the force of his movement. His sword carved through the air in a streak. The huge man was terrifyingly fast, but Princess was already in position.

She lurched forward and slammed herself into Vaxon, driving her huge hands into his shoulders like a sumo wrestler trying to throw his opponent from the ring. Vaxon's massive sword continued on its path, carving deep into Princess' sludgy body.

Strands of black goop reached up from the severed portion of her torso, reconnecting to the rest of Princess even as she pushed Vaxon a step back, her grip on his metal body tightening.

Vaxon lifted his free hand before his fleshy face, protecting it as the undulating centipede arms on Princess' back streaked out. They slammed into his armor and screeched against it harmlessly.

Spark and Glint both burst into motion. A shadow rose up from the ground before the Knight Wraith as he loped forward on all four limbs, forming a perfect clone of him that split away to search for an opening.

The Glasmir chose a considerably more direct opening. He leapt straight over Princess, vaulting through the air like an acrobat and aiming to dig his razor-sharp claws straight into Vaxon's fleshy face while he recovered from Princess' attack.

Vaxon shifted his weight to the side, slamming Princess' massive body to the branch like she was nothing more than a child. Sludge splattered across the white wood and the entire thing trembled from the force of the strike.

In the same motion, the man reached out and grabbed Glint from the air with an armored hand, whipping the Glasmir to the side and sending him hurtling out into the open air. The motion had been so fast that Alex had barely even had a moment to process what had happened before he saw his monster doing its best swan dive impression toward the ground below.

From the corner of his eye, he spotted Claire dart past them and toward the Disruptor. Its guardian was distracted beating the shit out of Alex's team — and that was probably their best chance to actually get away with this.

There's no chance we can beat this guy. He hasn't even activated his domain yet and he's already manhandling my team. But we don't need to beat him. As long as I can keep his attention and hold him off until Claire manages to rip the power source from the Disruptor, we can make a run for it and claim victory.

Vaxon straightened, something within his body making a horrible grinding noise as his neck turned so his gaze could be directed straight at Alex once more. He lifted his massive sword, stepping over Princess' fallen body —

Alex cast Rift Flood.

Power exploded through Princess' body. Deep purple lit within the veins buried deep within her sludgy form. She exploded up from the ground in strands of goop, entangling his armor and binding around him as tightly as she could.

Spark and his shadow both took that opportunity to charge, simultaneously lunging at the openings in Vaxon's armor without a sound.

The huge man twisted his body, ripping through Princess' grip like it was nothing but strands of painter's tape. He swung his sword in a broad arc, carving through Spark's shadow and sending it hurtling right for the real monster.

Spark swapped positions with his severed shadow a mere instant before the blade connected with him. It passed by him harmlessly and his claws dug into Vaxon's flesh, ripping deep furrows across the man's neck and shoulder.

Yes!

Purple fluid exploded out from the wound in a geyser. It splattered across Spark, who staggered back, his armored form melting away like snow in the desert. The elation in Alex's eyes evaporated in an instant as he watched his monster disintegrate before him.

Within a second, the only part of Spark that remained was his warped lower half. Everything that had been touched by the acidic blood had been completely consumed — and even his lower half faded a moment later, transforming into a streak of energy that flew back into Alex.

Vaxon continued toward him without missing a step. He barely even seemed to notice the weeping cut on his neck. Princess pulled herself together once more and threw her body into Vaxon, attempting to shove the man off the branch fruitlessly.

It was like watching a toddler trying to push over a fully grown man. If the Drudge had a bit of momentum she may have had a chance, but at the range she was at, her strength was nothing compared to him.

Vaxon didn't even look back. The piston on his back just raised and fell a second time. There was a deep whump and a wave of pressure exploded out from him. Alex staggered back, barely managing to keep his balance.

Princess, who was directly on top of him, tanked the full brunt of the force. Her body was ripped to shreds and sent flying through the air in a black rain, plummeting to the ground far below. Fragments of her ceramic mask spun through the air along with the sludge. It had been shattered just from the sheer intensity of the shockwave.

Power rushed into Alex as Princess joined the ranks of the dead. He was already calling Glint back to the fight, pumping the summons full of Riftwarped Qi. There would be no saving power in this fight. The moment he didn't go all out, he was —

Vaxon was in front of him.

Alex hurled himself to the side, diving under the larger man's left arm to avoid the spraying acid to the right. He hit the white wood in a rough roll and shoved himself to his feet, still running even as he heard the sound of shattering glass ring through the air behind him.

He threw a glance over his shoulder, only to find a blur of gray filling his vision.

Oh, shit—

He split straight down the center. The sword slammed into the ground at his feet, digging deep into the branch.

Pain didn't even get a chance to process. Alex's brain had been the first thing to go. The two halves of his body split apart, peeling like a banana.

They never hit the ground.

Strands of black sludge shot out from them, connecting and yanking his body back together with a wet squelch. A wave of exhaustion slammed into Alex like a physical blow and bile bubbled in his stomach. His reserves of magical energy had practically evaporated all at once to let him survive the attack. There was almost nothing left, now.

The mildest flicker of surprise passed over Vaxon's features. It was probably the only reason the man didn't just yank his sword straight up and kill Alex again for the second time.

But, whatever the reason, it gave Alex the split instant he needed to force his limbs into motion. He threw himself back to put as much distance between himself as Vaxon as he could.

A brilliant, ringing chime rang through the air as Glint fully emerged from the portal — but the Glasmir hadn't returned as he had been. Polished silver plates covered Glint's body in sleek armor and his wing elongated into a flowing cloak.

He blurred forward, dancing through the air. His cloak trailed behind him like a mesmerizing silver river. Glint closed the distance between himself and Vaxon within moments.

For the first time, the large man turned away from Alex. He raised his sword before him an instant before Glint's cloak slammed into it with a ringing clang. The cloak screeched along the blade, wrapping around Vaxon like a coiling snake.

Then Glint jerked it back. It tightened in an instant, digging deep into Vaxon's armor on its way back to him. The large man staggered as he was pulled off balance. It wasn't a significant amount of damage, amounting to little more than a deep scratch, but it was enough.

His attention shifted for the first time. The man's gaze turned to Glint as he raised his sword once more. A whump filled the air, followed by another. And another. And another. Pink fluid pumped through his body as the piston on his back started to churn.

A thick haze filled the air around the man as his veins bulged.

Alex risked a quick glance back to Claire. She'd managed to scale a fair portion of the Disruptor, but the ship was attacking her from every angle. He had to buy her more time.

He'd managed to get Vaxon's attention. Now he just had to keep it for as long as he could without dying. His lips pulled back into a grim smile.

I only need to survive for a minute. How hard could that be?