Mark of the Fool

Chapter 618: Vivisection

Chapter 618: Vivisection

What? Butcher said. What happened?

Track them! Baker snarled, turning to a Hunter looking skyward. Where have they gone?

It frowned in confusion.

They are not farbut are also not moving. I cannot tell where they went! the Hunter cried.

The sky suddenly shimmered.

Earth shattering roars split the heavens.

The male Usurper had returned, and he was not alone.

Beside him floated a tortoise the size of a hillside, a giant man of metal and stone, and

a line of winged creatures growling in warning.

Impossible!

The Sage of Uldarand her many imageshad returned.

But she was no longer a small human woman.

Not at all.

A Usurpers energy emanated from the enormous body of a black-scaled, sinewy beast. A powerful creature that had given even the greatest of the Raveners spawn pause in the past: a dragon.

Kill the blood-draks, Alex instructed Claygon, Drestra, and Vesuvius. Thin them out while I go back for the others.

Yesfather Claygons voice was low and rumbling like an angry beasts.

Vesuvius roared.

Drestra hissed, flame pouring from her jaws.

Tyris, mounted on her familiars shell, raised her hands. Burning lava dripped from her fingers. For Carey, she snarled.

And the four monsters flew into the pack of Ravener-spawn, prepared to obliterate them.

Alex glanced sideways. Ready?

Theresas disembodied voice answered. Very. WelI find them.

Brutus three growls rumbled, his massive body invisible.

Good luck, the huntress said. Alex felt her lips brush his cheek. Stay safe.

He felt a rush of air as they dove into the forest.

Hunt well, he whispered, teleporting back to the hills.

Waiting for him were the rest of the strike force, armedand sheathed in defensive and enhancement spellsready to take on whoever had captured Carey and Merzhin.

Theresa and Brutus are on their way, he nodded toward the woods. Keep your attacks focused on the blood-draks, but watch the forest. We dont know if theres a petrifier or something else hiding in there. Grimloch, Cedric, Hart. Youre next.

Gooood The sharkman cracked his knuckles then placed one hand on Alexs shoulder.

Lets crack some bloody skulls, Cedric said.

He and Hart reached for Alexs back, and suddenly, they were over the forest.

By the time the Chosen, Champion, and a very bloodthirsty Grimloch leapt into the swarm of blood-draks, Alex had already teleported back to the rest of the team.

Isolde, Khalik, Thundar, youre next, he said.

His cabal gave him grim nods.

It took two more trips to transport the rest of the strike team to the battle. Reaper remained behind.

Alright, be ready, he told her, The instant I come back for you, I need you ready with Disintegration.

I guarantee you Ill be ready. One cannot hesitate when one does what I do, I would pose too great a risk to the security of Generasi, she said, giving him a grim nod.

He nodded and teleported back to the battle, this time to stay. With one hand, he reached into his bag for booby trapped-flight potions, and with the other, raised his staff, calling on its power.

Elementals shimmered into being around him.

Alright, Theresa, he said softly. The next parts up to you.

Clenching his jaw, he unleashed hell on the Ravener-spawn.

The sky was an apocalyptic scene.

Ravener-spawn clashed with battle wizards, summoned monsters, a massive dragon and her identical copies, and a volcanic tortoise the size of a hill. Flame filled the air. The Heroes tore through the monsters ranks like fire through dried leaves.

Alex floated in their midst like the general of a bloodthirsty war god, heralding the end times. With a sweep of his staff, he conjured troops of flying monsters that swarmed blood-draks. His free hand launched potions in twos and threes, sending the flying Ravener-spawn careening into disaster, striking each other at speed, cracking bone while pulping flesh.

At his side, Claygon raked the creatures with beams of flame, his war-spear slicing through swaths of winged monsters.

Alexs cabal attacked with combinations of magics, and the Watchers of Roal blasted the creatures with force jets, lightning, and flame.

But below, the real battle was yet to begin.

Theresa Lu crept between trees with Brutus at her side, both sniffed the air, searching for any sign of their quarry. Though the young huntress could neither see nor hear her cerberus, she felt him through their blood connection.

She felt what he felt.

She knew when he wanted her attention.

When he found something.

And the instant he did just that.

Following close behind her blood familiar as he broke into a runnow silent from the power hed gain from herlifeforcethe huntress moved between trees in near silence.

The pair dodged broken blood-drak bodies as they fell from the sky, plummeting through the canopy, crushing whatever they struck.

Closer, and closer they crept to their prey, until at last, Brutus stopped.

Theresa saw why.

Ahead, a clawed monster crouched: one of the Raveners bloodhounds.

It huddled among the brush, looking up, watching the battle with hate filled eyes.

No doubt waiting for its opportunity to strike, maybe drag a wizard to the ground if they flew too low. Or maybe it was waiting to pounce on the back of a blood-drak and soar into battle.

Her nostrils flared, sniffing the air, taking in the creatures foul odour.

It could be waiting for some petrifier to paralyse our team members then get them when they drop, she thought, easing the twinblade from its sheaths.

I smell something that stinks even worse than that Hunter does.

Her sense of smell had sharpened since the ritual joining her and Brutus; something disgusting filled the air, unlike anything shed ever smelled beforebut she knew Brutus had. His nostrils were flaring, scenting a foul odour he would have smelled in the Research Castles courtyard. The snowy ground had been littered with the dead, both mortal and monster alike..including a single petrifying Ravener-spawn.

I get it now, she thought. Petrifiers are the size of titans, but fight like ambush predators...and also have their own unique stench.

Her swords rose. You wait until the exact right moment, then you jump whoever youre after. Well, too bad for you. You waited too long. Theresa grinned.

Planting the tip of her sword in the earth, she took potion bottles filled with sparkling, purple liquid from her belt.

She cocked her arm back. We may not have Baelins spells to make you visible, but theres more than one way to find an invisible monster. Thanks, Alex.

She launched the vials, and as they flew, she retrieved her planted sword in one fluid motion.

Then she and Brutus lunged.

The potions blurred through the forest, striking something unseen hiding there.

There came a screech of surprise as glittering mist filled the air. Tiny, sparkling droplets enveloped everything they touched, clinging and outlining all in brilliant purple light.

Theresa swore.

Three titanic shapes materialised among the trees, eye-stalks whipping in her and Brutus direction.

And before the trio could blink, she and Brutus were on them.

The cerberus barreled into a set of towering legs, his invisibility fading. A pair of jaws clamped down, puncturing a monsters chitinous shell like melting butter.

His other heads swivelled toward the creatures other leg.

Two mouths spread wide.

Howls erupted, pouring from Brutus maws in concentrated cones of sonic energy. They split the monsters shell, shattering it even as his third head shredded the creatures remaining leg. He spun, lashing out with the spiked bone mace at the tip of his tail.

It battered the broken limb, crushing it in a single swing.

The petrifier shrieked, collapsing against the trees as Brutus jumped, tearing at its eye-stalks.

The other two petrifiers pivoted toward the three headed beast, poised to turn the cerberus to stone.

But they had miscalculated.

There wasnt one monster attacking them.

There were two.

Miller had been taken down in seconds by the three-headed beast and could only flail in agony as it tore away its eye-stalks.

The other two petrifiers levelled their gazesat the creature, but Butcher suddenly shrieked, sounding tortured. Even as it turned its eye-stalks at Millers bone-armoured assailant,several of its eyes were abruptly blinded.

A human materialised atop Butcher, swords chopping away its vision. Protective chitin that should have turned aside blows from the strongest human, was split with ease. In a whirlwind of motion, the petrifiers eyesight was taken as every eye-stalk was severed.

It could only scream, as blinded and bleeding, it writhed, trying to dislodge the human.

The Raveners Hunters sprang at the attackers, desperate to rescue their masters, but were shredded in a blur. Using all three heads, the beast grabbed any Hunter in its path, crushing humanoid bodies to paste.

Its sonic howls tracked Millers remaining eye-stalks, rupturing them with sound. It plowed its spiked and armoured form into Ravener-spawn, impaling them, rupturing chitin.

The human, however, wasnt done.

Her blades whipped around with precision. Each time they connected, they avoided vital parts, instead, seeking the Hunters limbs, cutting them away with quick strokes, working to immobilise the monsters.

In less than a heartbeat, three of the Raveners Hunterscreatures that had torn through a horde of human fighters with easefell to the bloody ground.

Each limb was gone, leaving them with no means of killing anyone.

This cant be! Baker screeched, levelling one of its petrifying eyes toward the human. It was beyond taking steps to avoid hitting its Hunters, now all it wanted was to be rid of this assailant; it unleashed a volley of paralysing beams.

The woman leapt clearher body weaving through the aircatching a ray with the flat of her sword and reflecting it back, freezing Baker for an instant.

Just for an instant.

But it was enough.

You dont need those eyes, look at the harm you do with them, a male voice said from behind Baker.

An eye-stalk swivelled.

It found the male Usurper, his hand firmly planted on the shoulder of Uldars Champion. The larger man swung his massive sword.

Bakers vision washed redas the giant of a man severed the eye-stalk with two swings of his sword.

An instant later, it felt its legs carved away by more strokes from a blade. Its trunk crashed to the forest floor, blind, helpless and in agony. Humiliation burned within the Raveners petrifying monster; even the humans the Hunters had massacred had not suffered such a shameful state.

Wewe have to atone for our failures! it called to its fellows.We have much to be ashamed for and the Usurpers must still die!

Though it could not see, it could feel the energies of self-destruction begin to burn within Miller and Butcher. Baker called upon its inner power, starting the events that would obliterate it, leaving no trace.

But something shifted.

Suddenly, the male Usurper vanished.

A heartbeat later, he reappeared.

Good! Baker thought. Stay! Die with us as you should!

There, the human said. Right where Im pointingprecisely five feet below the shell.

What is he doing? Baker thought. What is happening?

Suddenly, Butcher shrieked with such intensity, that the forest shook beneath its sonic cry. If any mortal had been paralysed and their body was near, they would have been turned to dust, but the three petrifiers had been dealt with before they could act.

There were no petrified bodies waiting to be shattered.

Baker felt Butchers self-destructive energies vanish.

It was as if a flame had been snuffed out with one quick breath.

One moment it was there, the next, it was simply gone.

Six feet to the left, five feet deep, the male Usurper spoke again.

Another scream, this time coming from Miller; its self-destructive energy disappearing.

Something terrible was happening around them.

In growing panic, Baker tried accelerating the self-destruct energy, needing to make the organ burn faster.

The Usurper spoke again. Four feet deep from our position. Just where Im pointing.

Something lanced Bakers side, a searing power burrowed down into its body like a hot blade. Within the monster, its organ of self-destructionits very last hope of atonement in this bodyvanished in a white hot sun of agony.

Baker screamed, less from pain and more from despair.

It had failed.

They had all failed the Ravener.

They had gone against these Usurpers and been outmanoeuvred in every way. Now, here they were, captured, helpless.

Professor? the Usurpers voice came from nearby.

If only it could see!

Alex! a womans voice said. Is everyone alright?

More than alright. You wanted one sample? We got you a few more than that. Three petrifiers and Traveller-knows how many Hunters. Prepare your operating tables, professor.

Baker coughed up a foul looking liquid.

Hold on, dont go dying yet, the Usurper said. My friend heres gonna try to patch you up before you bleed to death. And thenwell, I dont even want to think about what Professor Jules is going to do to you. Never seen her so angry. You should never have taken our friend. He hissed.

In frustration, Baker screamed.

Oh, stop it, the Usurper said.

There was a crack of glass and more mist enveloped the Raveners servant.

Suddenly, a weariness fell over it. Its consciousness began to fail even as it struggled to resist.

You might want to save your strength, the Usurpers words were cold as Baker lost consciousness. After all, you have a whole lot of surgery waiting for you.