I opened the Ally Tracker function and checked the Map for Khaelen’s position. He was relatively close, being only about 2 days worth of normal travel away. If I ran at full speed with minimal breaks and chugged stamina potions, I might be able to make it there in little less than a day.
However, I had no idea if he and his group could hold out for that long.
I closed the UI and took off, powerfully leaping from tree to tree. As I soared through the air, the tentacles attached to my back swung me through the branches, further increasing my momentum. There was hardly a moment where my feet even had to touch the ground or I had to stop, despite the lack of a clear path.
At the current rate I was going, I might make it there in much less time than I’d thought.
Good, I could conserve some stamina and make some extra preparations then.
I’m coming, friend.
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A small, mouse-like girl trembled as the shimmering shield projecting from her fingers rippled in waves.
Another laser pulse, fired from a hulking fusion of flesh and metal, struck the shield once more but it still held steady.
The strange cyborg lowered its slightly glowing claws and with a synthetic, gravelly voice said, “Just give up already. We know you can’t last much longer. Give us our Nemesis target or we’ll make sure you all die very, very slowly.”
The girl began to shake even harder, as small tears began to run down her cheek.
A large furry hand suddenly reached out and patted her shoulder, gently soothing her. The girl turned her head and hesitatingly asked in a quivering voice.
“Mr..Mr. Khaelen.... is your friend really coming here to save us? It’s been so long and I’m almost out of points.... I’m so scared....”
The beastman, with a forced smile, said, “Don’t worry Misha, he’s almost here. Adun is a good guy, and he’s very strong. The two of us even took down a Tier 4 otherworlder before. There’s just one extra Tier 4 this time, so you don’t need to worry. We’ll definitely make it out of this alive.”
Even as Khaelen spoke, he felt a heavy weight press on his chest. He knew that in truth, nothing but an agonizing death awaited them and Adun. The words he had said were nothing but empty promises.
It had been some time since Khaelen had last seen him, but how much stronger could he have gotten in the meantime? They had barely managed to kill just one Onisha through sheer luck and the barrage of dozens of other Tier 5 races.
And now, two Tier 4 otherworlders stood before them, completely unharmed and in perfect condition. There was no way that Adun would be able to change their fate.
He should have tried harder to stop him. Lied to him. Never even told him in the first place. But that fellow... Khaelen knew that once he set his mind on something, it was impossible to change it. He was a uselessly stubborn fool.
Outside the shield, the two cyborgs began to roar, finally losing their patience. Their metallic crocodile-shaped heads and bright red eyes blazed in fury as they unleashed their full might.
Their entire bodies glowed with light as they overclocked their engines, rapidly burning through their power supply.
A blue plasma blade extended from their left hand while the other converted itself into a chrome cannon. Shoulder-mounted lasers popped up on each side and their chests opened up, exposing a menacing red glow that began to charge and increase in intensity.
BOOM!
A calamitous storm of lights and explosions began to bombard the shield, causing the group of Tier 5 otherworlders huddling within to tremble and scream in panic.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
The cyborgs relentlessly continued their assault, slashing and burning away at the shuddering barrier as their bodies turned red-hot.
Slowly, but surely, a web of small cracks began to form on the shield and spread.
Khaelen tightly shut his eyes and with a grimace, began to reach for his shurikens.
The end had come.
The cyborg creatures, seeing their efforts come to fruition, howled in triumph.
“You forced us to use our Overdrive mode! Now we’ll guarantee you don’t have an easy death! I’ll peel your skin off, layer by layer. I’ll crush your organs, one by one. I’ll grind your bones to dust and use it as fuel. I will dance over the graves of your worlds and-”
Suddenly, a pair of bright green boots flew through the air and dropkicked the crocodilian head, sending it flying deep into the trees.
A surprisingly cheery voice could be heard as a monstrous, grotesque being stood up from the ground and pulled out a massive glowing club.
“What are you, a professional yapper? Quit the stupid villain lines, and let’s get it on!”
With that, the strange monster stretched out its tentacles and grabbed the other cyborg nearby, swinging its club as it did so.
Laughing like a maniac, it began to pound away ferociously at the cyborg as bits of metal and flesh began to fly. The cyborg desperately freed itself as it severed the tentacles with its plasma blade and activated its back thrusters, flying away into the trees.
The monster then bent its thick knees and jumped impossibly high, following after the cyborg in hot pursuit.
“Where are you guys going? I’m here to redeem my 2-for-1 Tier 4 coupon! Don’t scam me!”
As their figures soon vanished into the thick of the Canopy, and the sounds of metal and flesh colliding faded away, Misha turned her head to Khaelen with a bewildered expression.
“Mr. Khaelen, what was that thing? I’ve never seen anything like it. It was so ugly and weird! But it was also kind of cool....”
With a facepalm and a tired voice, Khaelen replied.
“Sigh.... that’s Adun.”
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A singed, yet slightly delicious smell filled my nostrils as my severed appendages began to regrow. Would it be cannibalism to eat my own plasma blade-cooked tentacles?
A scorching hot laser beam flew by my head as it narrowly grazed my shoulder and left a small burn.
Clearing my head of any unnecessary thoughts, I continued my ascent into the Canopy as we continued our dance of death. The other cyborg I’d kicked in the head had already regrouped with its partner and had joined it in blasting me with an array of weaponry from above.
I was having a hard time keeping up with them; their agility stat was significantly higher than mine and I was only barely able to follow using the Leapfroggers. They seemed to be aware of this, as the pair consistently just barely kept me out of range and continued to kite me.
As I absorbed blast after blast, wounds began to quickly accumulate all over my body. My second set of arms were working overtime as they constantly poured Medium and Greater Potions all over my body. None of the Grand Potions were used yet however, as my injuries were mostly minor.
Nevertheless, this couldn’t continue; I had to break this stalemate somehow. The two were clearly fast enough to run away from me if they wanted to, but were pretending not to so that I would stay interested.
I’d have to catch them off guard. I uncorked a Medium Swiftness potion and swiftly drank it.
As the smooth, sweet liquid flowed down my throat, I felt my body become significantly lighter. I tightly grabbed a thick branch above my head with both my Onisha hands and all 4 tentacles. Then, as my muscles bulged powerfully, I swung myself upwards and flew through the air like a rocket.
As I rapidly approached a cyborg, it immediately increased the output of its thrusters in response.
Too late, buddy.
I activated the Leapfroggers’ EX ability and jumped once more while midair, allowing me to finally be within melee range of it. Two of my tentacles immediately sprayed a blinding cloud of acid and noxious gas that caused its crocodile head to recoil in confusion.
As it remained briefly stunned, I grabbed its cold, metallic neck and with a grin, whispered.
“Got you, little piggy.”
We began to plummet down towards the earth, like a meteor falling through the sky. Its thrusters desperately sputtered as they to keep us afloat but ultimately couldn’t support our combined weight.
As we fell, the cyborg repeatedly stabbed me in the chest with its plasma blade and fired with its cannons, leaving horrific wounds.
Creeeeaaaak!
With a piercing screech, I completely ripped off its bionic arm and crushed the cannon on the other. One by one, I continued to dismantle the various weapons attached to its body. Then, I began to pummel its head with my fists, slowly deforming its skull.
Sensing its plight, it suddenly emitted a massive soundwave that burst my eardrums and sent me reeling in shock.
BOOM!
The two of us, still locked in mortal combat, finally crashed into the earth in an explosion of dirt and rocks.
Oof, I’d definitely broken some ribs and suffered some internal injuries.
Fortunately, the cyborg had taken the brunt of the impact. It lay in the middle of the crater, slightly twitching as crackles of electricity sparked from its broken circuitry.
Purple blood slowly pooled underneath its crushed torso while I raised Storm Caller, preparing to finish it off.
Swoosh!
With the eyes grafted on the back of my head, I narrowly dodged a plasma blade swinging at an incredible speed towards my neck.
Instead, it continued onward and deeply pierced through my shoulder, causing both left arms to go limp.
The second cyborg emerged from my shadow and continued its assault, which I barely managed to block with Storm Caller.
I attempted to counterattack with a mighty swing, but it instantly vanished and reappeared in a nearby shadow. In return, I received an energy blast to one of my open wounds, creating a large hole in my abdomen.
Extreme pain and fatigue began to cloud my mind as a river of blood flowed from me.
One of my auxiliary glands began to release a potent anesthetic that soon numbed the pain while another released a cocktail of hormones that restored clarity and reinvigorated me.
Two of my tentacles began to stitch the hole in my stomach together while the other two popped open one of my precious Grand Potions and poured it over my body.
Having somewhat recovered, I dashed over to the cyborg’s new location, but it was to no avail.
Shik!
Again, the cyborg dodged and reappeared within my shadow, this time severing my right leg’s hamstrings. With a thud, I knelt to the ground as my leg buckled and collapsed.
Damn, damn, damn. His shadow ability and high agility countered me too well.
There were too many light plants scattered about to be able to destroy all the shadows, and it could just project its own light source even if I did.
At the rate things were going, I was the one about to be butchered like a piggy instead.
As I continued to kneel, frantically trying to deflect any fatal wounds, a thought suddenly struck my racing mind.
It could project its own light source.... because its machine parts were powered by electricity.
There’s a way to stop it.
