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Chapter 31

  My eyes stung terribly as I emerged from the darkness of the sewers and back into the dazzling sunlight of the surface. The blurry outlines of the wrecked cityscape gradually became clearer as my eyes readjusted to the sudden influx of light.

  It was apparent that the shade had done quite the number on the city while I had been underground. Only the ruins of many familiar sights and establishments remained, while others had been completely leveled to the ground. The major buildings remained relatively untouched, but no doubt with enough time they’d be destroyed as well.

  The shade was very clearly still on the warpath, evidenced by the ongoing commotion several blocks away. I carefully made my way over while using the remaining intact structures as cover.

  After only a brief period of time, I was able to observe it from afar as I lay flat upon a small rooftop. The shade was currently laying waste to a certain popular wholesale retail store with an amazing food court. A vein bulged in my forehead as I continued to watch its wanton destruction. This was sacrilege of the highest order!

  Nevertheless, I had to remain calm and wait for an opportune moment to strike.

  The large warehouse building began to teeter, as more of its support pillars were summarily demolished.

  I continued to bide my time, until it seemed that even a stray breeze of wind would knock the building over.

  Then, with a gentle mental nudge, I applied a small amount of force to one of the last remaining pillars riddled with cracks.

  BOOM!

  Like the proverbial last feather, the entire warehouse came crashing down upon the shade, burying it in a mountain of rubble and concrete. A large cloud of dust and fine particles billowed upward, obscuring my vision.

  As the dust cloud slowly settled in the ground, for a few brief moments, all was quiet.

  Ah, there’s no way that was enough.

  As expected, the pile of rubble soon began to shake, vibrating intensely until the shade finally burst out with a furious roar. However, it was not completely unscathed; small portions of its body had begun to blur, just as my body had.

  Unaware of my interference, it proceeded to its next target as I stealthily followed behind.

  This time, as it passed by a large construction crane, I severed a hefty load of rebar hanging in the air. Several tons of steel plummeted directly onto the shade and buried it once more.

  Eventually, it dug its way free, but at a slightly slower pace than before. The blurred portions of its body had increased in size and a hint of fatigue could be seen in its movements.

  At the same time, I suffered the backlash of altering the mental realm as more of my essence flowed away.

  Gritting my teeth, I continuously repeated the process of triggering various environmental traps all over the city. Another building collapse here, a generator explosion there.

  The shade’s body grew hazy and its movements sluggish.

  However, I was in no better shape.

  Despite trying to minimize the amount of mental effort used, my body was steadily eroding, with hardly any of my original features visible. At this rate, it seemed that I would expire long before the shade did.

  Yet, I couldn’t simply allow it to continue its rampage and destroy my mind.

  Damned if I do, damned if I don’t, it seems.

  Is there a more cost-effective way I can cause damage to it?

  I decided to take a small break to consider other means of offense while continuing to watch from afar.

  Suddenly, some of the surrounding buildings and streets that had been demolished began to reassemble. Piece by piece, they flew back together and were soon restored to their former states. My body began to grow clearer and more defined as it slowly regained some of its lost essence.

  Nice timing, Melchior! He must have sensed my brain slowly dying and intervened.

  As proof, more sections of the city began to repair themselves without any action on my part. If this continued, I could drag the shade into a war of attrition and eventually wear it down.

  With renewed vigor, I resumed my underhanded assault on the shade. I didn’t have to conserve my energy nearly as much as I had, and could afford to use a wider variety of attacks.

  Bits of essence began to flow out of it and clear wounds appeared for the first time. Every step it took seemed to require a small amount of effort now.

  A surge of excitement rose in my chest; victory was within sight.

  However, I seemed to have celebrated too early.

  As a pair of power lines fell directly upon the shade and electrocuted it, it slowly raised its head and turned around.

  Despite having lost its cognitive abilities, it seemed to have instinctively detected that something was amiss.

  With a shocking amount of alacrity despite its condition, it rapidly ascended a nearby building and scanned the area. Almost immediately, it spotted me on the rooftop of a library where I had been watching it.

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  Damn, it had actually found me.

  Although the shade had been weakened, a vast gap remained between our capabilities given my own condition. I wasn't fully recovered and I’d expended a considerable amount of mental energy; I had to evade it once more.

  The shade leapt towards me without hesitation while I hastily jumped off the building.

  As it bellowed in rage, I conjured a wall of smoke to buy some time and sprinted down a side street.

  Much as I had before, I made my way through the city using various shortcuts and alternative routes to shake it off my trail. I continued to summon various obstacles to impede its progress as I passed through district after district. The thought of using a vehicle crossed my mind, but I quickly dismissed it due to how clogged the streets were.

  The shade clearly no longer possessed the speed it once had, and the distance between us gradually widened.

  Eventually, the sounds of its pursuit could no longer be heard. I leaned heavily against a wall and took a deep breath.

  This should be far enough right?

  Alright, time to regroup. First, I’ll return to the-

  Whoosh!

  A clawed hand burst through the wall and jutted out of my stomach, tearing a massive hole in my body.

  Extreme confusion and fatigue instantly clouded my mind as I belatedly freed myself and began to run.

  My body, which had just managed to stabilize, was in critical condition again. Somehow, the bastard had managed to sneak up on me.

  The shade promptly broke down the rest of the wall and charged forward. Although its speed was a mere fraction of what it once was, so was mine.

  I desperately tried to escape, but it was to no avail. The combination of my mental fatigue and my massive wound soon found me cornered against the wall in a narrow alleyway.

  Looks like there’s no other choice.

  Mustering the last dregs of my mental force, I conjured a long, thick steel pipe and grabbed the lid of a nearby trash can as a shield. Hey, it was better than nothing.

  The shade stood before me, breathing heavily, as it slowly approached. Perhaps it sensed that this would be the final confrontation.

  The only saving grace I had was that my wounds were still steadily recovering, thanks to Melchior’s aid, while its own condition worsened by the second. With some luck, it might be doable.

  When only a couple meters remained between us, I suddenly sprung forward as I swung the pipe directly at a leaking hole in its abdomen.

  Thunk!

  The steel pipe made a solid connection with the shade’s arm instead as it sluggishly raised its arm to defend. I raised the now slightly bent pipe and swung once more, finally landing a blow on my target.

  As it firmly lodged itself inside the shade’s body, one of the shade’s arms lashed out and struck the makeshift shield I’d been holding close.

  The garbage can lid completely crumpled in half as I was sent flying several meters into the walls.

  Oof, my eighty-year-old back just had another decade added to it.

  Groaning, I barely managed to turn my head in time as the shade’s fist buried itself into the wall next to me. As it loomed over me, I savagely twisted and pulled the pipe still embedded within it.

  With a scream, the shade retreated as a heavy stream of essence began to flow out of it. I wobbled to my feet, pipe in hand once again.

  Both of us stood there for a moment, silently staring as our lives drained away.

  Then, with synchronized roars, we charged towards each other.

  A pair of claws, tearing off my arm as I stabbed it deep in its eye.

  The hole in my stomach, not even half healed, torn open even further.

  The completely deformed steel pipe, thrust entirely up into its chest.

  Blow after blow, wound after wound. Both given and received.

  My vision turned into a faint haze as the world blurred around me. I lost all sense of space and time. How long had we been fighting for?

  Seconds? Days? Years?

  An abrupt stillness suddenly penetrated the fog, restoring me to my senses. The storm had passed, and the battle of life and death had reached its conclusion.

  The shade knelt on the floor, its head bowed and completely blinded. Its left arm dangled by a single thread, and its innards were completely exposed. Yet, it lived.

  And there I lay. Both arms gone, and my lower torso completely missing.

  My body desperately tried to repair itself, but the end was nigh.

  The shade, ever so slowly, began to rise to its feet. With small, faltering steps, it inched its way over to me. Its claws rose in the air, for one last time.

  Come on Melchior, it's now or never!

  Bam!

  A vaguely familiar silhouette of a lupine creature slammed into the shade, sending it reeling.

  An incredibly blurred form of a spider, distinguishable only by its eight legs, descended upon the shade and began to bind it tightly with a silken substance.

  A massive ogre-like creature, with features slightly clearer than the others, grabbed the shade by the neck and began smashing it into the ground.

  One after the other, a small army of various creatures and races appeared and began wreaking havoc. Each one of them represented an organ or body part I’d grafted.

  It seemed that Melchior had successfully removed all my intelligence accessories, causing my body to lose control of all its parts.

  Normally a curse I endured alone, but now a burden that the cyborg brain bore as well.

  Individually, they were no match for the shade, but under their combined might, the shade was slowly torn apart piece by piece.

  It howled in fear as it desperately fended off the relentless onslaught of fangs, fists, and tentacles but soon, its cries stilled.

  As the dust settled, not a single shred of it remained. A tranquil silence suddenly emanated, a stark contrast to the pure chaos of mere seconds past.

  Great job lads! Now hurry on and head home.

  As I continued to spectate while lying on the floor, completely defenseless, every creature present slowly turned their heads. Eyes gleaming, as one, they began to move towards me.

  “Ha...hahaha..hey guys we’re all friends here right? There’s no need for all this. We’ve been together for so long! Hey you over there, are you mad because I use you as the main hand for wiping? Don’t worry, I promise I’ll rotate the wiping hands from now on! That’s why, there’s really no reason for any of-”

  With a cacophony of screeches and shrieks, the swarm of parts pounced on me, intent on devouring me whole.

  Ahhhhhh put the damn accessories back on Melchior!

  Just as a Deinopi’s fangs were about to sink into my throat, they all vanished with a poof.

  Not even close, baby. Definitely all according to plan. Easy peasy.

  And with that, I was now completely alone in my world.

  I stared up at the deep, azure sky as my body slowly regenerated. A sight I had once taken for granted, and one that seemed lifetimes ago.

  Today had just been another small step towards reaching that endless expanse. Who knew how many more lay on the path before me?

  Well, whatever the number was, it wasn’t important. All that mattered was that I never stopped moving, and never lost sight of myself.

  As for how I was going to leave this place... presumably once my brain had sufficiently recovered, I’d be able to leave this “coma”. Much of the city had already been restored, and it appeared that it wouldn’t take much longer for the rest.

  I simply remained on the floor while time flowed by.

  The world gently started to fade to black and I soon lost consciousness.

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