Chapter 97: More Learning
Fin gritted his teeth, spitting blood again. Fragile? Maybe. But it’s his domain. He needed to stop this onslaught, needed to find a weakness. The sword worked. Maybe the armor...?
He lunged again, not aiming for a knockout blow, but trying to get his hands on the armor itself. Just like the sword, maybe he could drain it, starve the power source. His fingers reached out, silver-green energy crackling—
Contact.
Pain. Not impact pain. Searing, electric agony shot up his arm, like grabbing a high-voltage fence made of pure rage. His own energy recoiled, sputtering, chaotic feedback jamming his senses.
Nope! Bad idea! Very bad idea!
He ripped his hand back instinctively, stumbling away, clutching his arm. The aura around him flickered violently, disrupted. That crimson energy... it wasn’t like the sword’s refined power or that shadow power. It was volatile, almost alive, and it rejected his absorption attempt completely.
Dan laughed, a harsh, booming sound. "Fool! You think the blessed armor of my King yields to parlor tricks?"
He charged again. Fin, still reeling from the feedback shock, reacted purely on instinct. He twisted, ducked under a wild haymaker, felt the wind of the passage stir his hair. He tried to counter, driving an elbow towards Dan’s exposed ribs—
Dan simply powered through it. The elbow landed with a dull thud against the crimson-glowing plate, barely making him flinch. He grabbed Fin’s attacking arm with blinding speed, his gauntlet crushing down. Bones groaned under the pressure.
Fin yelled, channeling energy into a point-blank blast against the gauntlet. His aura light flared, forcing Dan’s grip to loosen just enough for him to wrench his arm free. He scrambled back again, heart pounding, arm throbbing.
This isn’t working. His usual tactics—absorption, overwhelming power—were failing. The green core was too weak, the silver/green mix couldn’t drain the armor, and trying to match Dan’s raw crimson output felt like trying to punch a volcano.