Path of Dragons - A LitRPG Apocalypse (BOOK TWO STUBBING AUGUST 15)

Elijah tackled the monster, leveraging his greater mass to drive it into the ground. As he did, he used Iron Scales, though even with that ability augmenting his defenses, the creature dug its own claws into his body, ripping his scales free. Elijah ignored it, trusting Ron to heal him. Instead, he hammered his fists into the creature’s body, hitting her with so much force that his blows cratered the ground below.

But the advantage afforded by his surprise attack didn’t last, and the creature used its superior Strength to throw him aside. Elijah skipped across the rubble, then hit another building. It collapsed atop him, but he’d long since passed the point where a fallen building could truly damage him. So, a second later, he burst free from the wreckage, sending a shower of rocks in every direction. He was just in time to see Sadie descend upon the monster, her sword glowing with white light. It cut into the creature, but only a few inches.

The monster had no abilities or skills – Elijah had seen enough to recognize the lack – but its Constitution was so inflated that even Sadie’s best shot couldn’t do more than graze it. Fortunately, she was not alone.

Benedict cast a mass of roiling darkness at the monster, and his imps bombarded the creature with one fireball after another. At the same time, Oscar and his dogs brought their own abilities to bear. The two largest among them darted in on either side of Sadie, nipping at the monster’s legs. Their bites were no more effective than the Crusader’s, but they weren’t there to do damage. Instead, they were a distraction that allowed the rest of the pack to bring their own unique abilities to bear.

The shih tzu was a whirlwind of activity as it dashed in and out of combat, ripping one wound after another into the monster’s legs. At the same time, another dog – this one a mix Elijah couldn’t identify – suddenly appeared behind the monster and tore a chunk of its hamstring away before disappearing a second later.

However, the real star of the show was the chihuahua, who bathed the monster in dense fire that far exceeded the potency of any flames Elijah had ever seen. They were almost solid, they were so powerful, and they had more effect than any attack anyone else had leveled against the monster.

Seeing an opportunity, Elijah shifted into the Shape of Venom, then dashed away. Once he’d turned a corner, he used Guise of the Unseen before returning to the scene of the battle. Embracing Venom Strike, Predator Strike, and Envenom, Elijah jumped atop a pile of rubble, then raced along a still-standing wall, and leaped at the monster’s back. As occupied as it was, it didn’t even know he was there until he bit into its neck and injected the potent venom of the shape into its flesh.

But Elijah wasn’t finished. Even as the creature tried to dislodge him, he jumped away, then darted in and bit the monster again. And again after that. Six times, he hit and run until, finally, the monster had had enough. It wheeled around, ignoring every attack as it tried to catch him.

The creature was strong and fast. Elijah couldn’t even begin to guess how high its attributes were. However, he knew they far exceeded his own. Still, he was no slouch, and he was capable of easily moving in three dimensions. So, he managed to remain just ahead of the creature until, at last, Sadie used Call of the Crusader, snatching its attention back.

With a little room, Elijah transformed and cast Swarm before rejoining the fight in the form of the lamellar ape. He crashed into the monster, adding his own attacks to the tidal wave of damage his companions had inflicted upon the monster.

Yet, the creature endured.

The fight had been ongoing for almost fifteen minutes when Elijah felt something change. The monster remained as feral as ever, but the difference was that dozens of new people had arrived to add their own efforts to the fight. The monster didn’t acknowledge the newcomers. Instead, it remained entirely focused on Sadie, who used Call of the Crusader as often as possible. At some point, it was clearly unnecessary. The sheer hatred in the creature’s bloodshot eyes was strong enough that there was no chance of her looking elsewhere.

Eventually, the already-unrecognizable monster had lost so much of its scarred skin that it had begun to look like an exposed corpse. Still, it fought on, even as its attacks started to lose their potency. Not because its Strength had given out, but rather because the mechanical connections between its muscles and joints had become so frayed that they began to snap.

Finally, it fell, its leg muscles having been shredded.

Even then, it flopped around, biting and clawing until it couldn’t move. It took thirty more minutes of constant attacks to wear it down enough that, at last, someone destroyed its brain.

More experience washed over Elijah, sending him to level one hundred, but he couldn’t muster any excitement for the achievement. Nor could he pay much attention to the notification that came with it. Instead, he could only stare at the shredded pile of organic matter that had once – long ago – been a human woman.

His choices had pushed her down a dark road that had eventually turned her into a monster, but Elijah couldn’t deny his own role in her descent. He told himself that she’d had it coming, but he didn’t really believe it. Nobody deserved to endure the fate that had been foisted upon her. Death? Sure. That was a fitting punishment for her misdeeds. But to lose her humanity entirely? That was something else altogether.

Elijah was busy ruminating on that when someone spoke up.

“What do we do with the others?” Sadie asked.

“I think you know,” Elijah answered without looking back at her.

“They’re helpless.”

“And they won’t be once they’re let loose. I don’t know how it all works,” Elijah answered. “For all we know, if we let them live, they’ll be able to take the leader’s place. We need to end the threat, here and now.” Finally, he looked back at her and said, “If you’re not up for it, I can take care of it.”

“No,” Sadie said. “We all have a responsibility to do what needs to be done.”

After that, Elijah and the others all headed to where the remaining Immortals were still bound by Kurik’s traps. None of them were nearly as powerful as the monster, and so, the traps were more than enough to subdue them. It wouldn’t last forever, though, so it was with no small degree of grim determination that they began the extermination.

No one sat it out. Elijah and his companions, alongside all of the other Trial-takers who’d joined the battle against the monster, killed the Immortals. Then, they embarked on a mission to scour the city and the surrounding area, just to ensure that none of the Immortals remained.

Such was their ire that no one was willing to let a single one escape. A few of the Trial-takers had tracking abilities that facilitated the hunt, and by the end of that first day, none of the Immortals remained among the living.

Along the way, Atticus and the other non-combatants were freed, and the man apologized profusely for his Consortium’s role in building the enchantment that had very nearly gotten Elijah killed. For his part, Elijah brushed the apology off, acknowledging that they’d had no choice in the matter.

However, it was a good reminder that, just because someone wasn’t built for combat, it didn’t mean they weren’t dangerous.

After two more days, the Nexus Town returned to some semblance of normality. No one would forget how close everything had come to disaster, but with the absence of a common enemy, everyone went their own way. That included both Benedict and Oscar, who disappeared sometime during the clean-up. Elijah didn’t blame them, though he wished that Oscar, at the very least, had remained.

Elijah and his companions took the opportunity to rest and recover. For his part, he stripped off his bloody armor, doused it with cleaning powder, then retreated to an empty room where he used Healing Rain to take a shower. When he was done, he donned a set of mundane clothes, then lay down on his bed. And finally, he gave his status the attention it deserved: