Part 5: Dark Fury

The city was a nightmare. A slimy trail wound its way through the street—a marker of the monster’s path. Along the way lay crushed cars, broken utility poles, and the limp bodies of unlucky people who’d gotten in the way. There weren’t dead, but their appearance was just as unsettling. They lay sprawled where the monster had left them, eyes staring into nothing.

The Ronins and Sentinels raced through the city, following the creature’s trail. They found it sitting in the middle of the busiest intersection downtown. Mia thought the thing almost seemed to be waiting for them. It was all connected somehow—the monster, Stygia, the hospitalized young women. She could sense that. But who was behind it? What did they really want? She had no time to work out answers to those questions now. They had to stop that thing from doing anymore harm. The rest could wait.

Without a word, the young warriors spread out in a circle around the slimy thing, forming a barrier between it and the frightened people.

“Everybody, get back! Get as far away as you can!” Sai swung his trident, showering the pedestrians with a mild spray of water. The cold water shocked them out of their stunned trances and got them moving.

Ryo squeezed the hilts of his swords in anticipation. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the people fleeing the area. That’s what he was waiting for. “FLARE UP NOW!” With a slice of his katanas, he shot waves of flame at the creature. Three of its head swiveled in his direction, spewing fire of their own. Their blasts met in mid-air and blew each other out.

Ryo leaped across several cars and tried again. Three other heads turned and blocked his fiery attack with their own. He couldn’t even singe the monster! Heads were everywhere, in every direction. Every time he blasted the thing, it shot back, blocking his power.

“SUPERWAVE SMASHER!” If fire didn’t do the trick, Sai though maybe water would. A terrific blast smashed into the monster. It didn’t budge. Sage held up his trident and called forth the raging waters again. This time the creature turned several heads in his direction, countering his water with fire. A great cloud of steam exploded between them. Sai was shocked. The creature’s flames would have to be impossibly hot to turn such a huge blast of water completely into steam!

Two tentacles flew out from behind the wall of steam, grabbing Sai. They threw him in the air. He landed with a hard thud the next street over. Sai got to his feet and ran back to join the others, feeling more light-headed than he should have.

Sage gripped his huge no-datchi with a determination of purpose. “Maybe it’s time for a more direct approach.” He charged, swinging with all his might. With a slice he cut off two heads. In one smooth motion, Sage reversed his blade and swung back, cutting off a tentacle.

Anubis followed suit. He leaped over the creature, spinning in the air. As he flew overhead, he spun his scythe in a downward arc smoothly chopping off two more heads.

Jack turned to Mia. “This guy’s not so tough after all, huh?”

Mia frowned. Something was happening. As she watched, the severed heads and tentacles began to grow. With a great roar, new heads burst from the bloody stumps—two for each that was decapitated. Two new tentacles sprung from each severed one.

Ryo’s eyes widened. “Oh, crap!” This was going to be a little harder than they’d thought. A tentacle suddenly shot out towards him. He cartwheeled to the left, barely out of the monster’s reach. How could something so big and slimy move so fast? He only had a second to think before another tentacle whipped out at him—then another, and another. Ryo leaped through the air, spinning and twisting, jumping right and left. There were so many of them. One snagged his leg, picking him up and slamming him into the ground. Even through his armor he felt the burn of its touch. And something else. Something he just couldn’t put his finger on.

Ryo stood up, feeling a bit winded. That smack against the ground hadn’t been that hard. Why did he feel like this? He picked up his katanas and readied himself. As the tentacles zipped towards him he used his weapons to stab rather than slice them. He couldn’t avoid them all. One of the tentacles smacked him hard, knocking him back into a nearby building. He staggered to his feet. Why was he so weak?

Dark storm clouds swirled overhead, booming with thunder. Jack smiled as flashes of lightning cut the sky. He pointed his hammer at the monster. “DEATHSTORM STRIKE!” Bolts of lightning streaked down from the sky, striking the creature. The hideous blob just sat there. Its slimy flesh was burnt where every bolt had struck, but the thing didn’t even seem fazed. Anger rose up in Jack like a black fire. He would show this pathetic monster who was more powerful. He would show it!

He reached out with his thoughts towards the storm. Jack could feel its dark thunder and lightning pulsing in his veins. He was the storm and nothing withstood the storm for long. His eyes rolled back in his head at the strain, but he held his focus. The black storm clouds engulfed the creature, pummeling it with more rain and lightning than a hundred storms. There was no way that thing could survive!

A tentacle snaked out of the clouds and whipped around Jack, squeezing hard. He could feel the power slipping away from him. His storm started to dissipate—he just couldn’t keep it together. The sound of thunder dimmed and the lightning strikes became less frequent.

Sage ran to help him, willing to risk chopping off one tentacle to free Jack. Two more tentacles shot out from what was left of the storm, reaching for Sage. He leaped into the air, jumping from one place to another. More tentacles attacked him. One managed to wrap itself around his arm as another snagged his leg.

An idea formed in Mia’s mind. Heat didn’t seem to bother it, but it did affect it. The burns Jack left showed her that. She remembered a myth about the ancient hero, Hercules. Didn’t he fight a dragon with heads that grew back when they were chopped off?

“Ryo! When I chop off a tentacle, burn the stump! But we need to get in close so it can’t counter your blasts!” She raced towards the creature, Ryo right behind her. Ryo shadowed Mia’s every move, knowing her magical instincts would keep her out of the creature’s grasp. She sliced through one and Ryo seered the stump with flame. Nothing grew from it. Mia moved like a shadow, weaving in and out of the creature’s way, slicing effortlessly though its heads and tentacles. Ryo scorched them as fast as she cut them.

The others got the idea. Anubis and Sai attacked the monster, cutting a path though its tangle of waving parts. Jack and Sage used their lightning bolts to burn the places the others cleaved. It was working! Nothing was growing back!

Mia jumped away from the creature to survey their handiwork. All that was left of it was a squirming mound. She looked at Ryo. He nodded. They glanced over to the others. Agreement was in all their eyes.

“DARK FOG RISE!”

“FLARE UP NOW!”

“CHAOS FURY!”

“SUPERWAVE SMASHER!”

“DEATHSTORM STRIKE!”

“THUNDERBOLT CUT!”

They all blasted the monster at the same time. When the smoke cleared, there was nothing left. Mia smiled for the first time in days. Her smile only lasted a moment, though. She felt…strange. Weak. Mia looked down at her armor. It was splattered with the creature’s blood. She must have gotten it on her when she was cutting its heads and tentacles off. Something about that thing’s touch, even its very blood, seemed to drain energy. That was why she was so exhausted after such a short battle. Mia looked around her to see that the others were feeling the same effects. All of them had been physically touched by their opponent in some way. “Let’s go home, everybody. I think we’re all going to need a nice long rest.” She powered down, causing her armor to disappear. The blood disappeared with it, but she still felt the drain on her body.