Sworded Affair

Chapter 190 : The Gravity of the Situation

Now in possession of a viable plan, the party was quick to spring into action. The Leech King started off with a beam of pressurised air, forcing the Time Eater to focus on absorption, bringing its healing to a halt. Saint took advantage of the window this granted, vanishing with a pop to reappear behind the boss. Crevices opened up in the ground around her, unleashing blasts of high-pressure water that cut deep grooves into the boss' arms. As it began to turn, in search of this new threat, Emma shot an arrow through its knee, leaving a fist-sized hole, albeit one that the boss powered through.

Astrid added her own contribution, as well, taking over from Saint in babysitting the Potted Hydra. Chanting with one hand on the plant, and a staff increasingly tinged in green in the other, her curse took the form of small pustules that began to form along the portal rim, tiny barely noticeable to begin with, but growing by the second, eroding the boss' frame from within. With an angry roar, the Time Eater abandoned its pursuit of Saint, its full attention returned to its original orientation, and the portal's suction abruptly increased tenfold. Emma took to the air, her flying sword going at maximum speed in the opposite direction, just about counterbalancing the pull. The Leech King had no such protection, and was being inexorably dragged towards the portal.

"Return," Emma commanded, calling the sinuous summon back before it could be swallowed whole.

Notably, however, her second one was still very much active. Antipode took the suction in good grace, letting his six balls of flame merge into a single sphere, hurtling towards the boss, with his body of ice not far behind. With a pained hiss, Saint blew her entire remaining mana pool to tilt the ground beneath their feet, turning the Time Eater's portal downward by nearly forty-five degrees. The portal still ate most of the incoming fireball, but at least a third of the burning orb survived to hit the boss in the head, as did the massive, icy boulder that was Antipode's main body, leaving a noticeable dent before succumbing to the pull.

[Antipode Defeated.]

The suction faded with those hits, leaving Emma a summon down, but otherwise unharmed. Now hovering in the air, she called the Leech King back to the field, ready to resume the offensive.

"Woo! You've got this!" Mr. Fox cheered from the sidelines, having little of substance to add, given the party's noticeable success just then.

Of course, that was when the tide turned. With a loud crunch, the portal frame's extremities came off, falling to the ground in four loud thuds. The portal itself now floated freely, its frame battered but whole, while its former arms and legs sprouted limbs of their own, creating four burly golems running full pelt at the party, one for each member. Emma wasn't too concerned, given that the golems weren't particularly fast, until the floating portal pulsed.

[Ephemera (Toggle: ON)

The Leech King Defeated.]

Space warped, and suddenly the golems were point blank, a massive fist passing through her intangible form, ultimately hitting the Leech King with far more force than was natural. Her summon fell in a single hit, its second wind denied, but altogether, Emma still got off lightly.

[Ephemera (Toggle: Off)

Wolf, Ram and Heart (Toggle: ON)]

Returning to solidity, Emma called Epitaph in sword form and swung her blade three times. Once to cleave off the golem's arms at the elbow, twice to slice through its knees, and a thrice, this time a pommel strike that caved its skull in. The golem really wasn't too tough, putting aside the surprise attack it had managed, in coordination with the core authority of the Time Eater.

"Ouch!" Saint exclaimed, popping up back near Emma, now back down to a single tail. "Damnit, that's my cheat death gone for the fight. Got any ideas?"

In the far end of the room, Emma could see where the cat had previously been; now occupied by a pulsing, feline shadow, quickly dissolving what remained of the golem that had attacked her. Astrid was nowhere to be seen, having been replaced by a human-sized scarecrow of all things. It hadn't fared well at all, having been split in half by a single punch: just like the golem that threw the punch, which had suffered an identical, fatal wound in return. And as for the final member of the party?

"Woo! Vehicle stage!"

Mr. Fox had somehow gotten inside the final golem and subverted it, and was presently mocking the boss by dancing the robot. Not particularly helpful, perhaps, but at least it made Emma laugh. Then the portal pulsed again, and Emma found herself laid flat against the floor, suddenly the victim of five times Earth's gravity.

[Ephemera (Toggle: ON)

Null Zone (Toggle: ON)]

Even with both her defensive traits active, the effect was only reduced, not dispelled entirely. She was able to rise, slowly, but every step still felt like trudging through tar.. Far more concerning however were her comrades, who all began to glow, much as they had upon first arrival.

"Shit, the homunculus!"

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It was a struggle to walk, let alone run, under such conditions, but Emma did the best she could, making her way to the stairwell where she'd stashed her second body. It was bleeding from the nose and mouth, and Eternal Wind groaned in her hands in protest.

[Null Zone (Toggle: OFF)]

Turning off Null Zone before she could disrupt the candle's power, she grabbed her second body and brought it within the effect of Ephemera, giving it some relief against the crushing power of gravity. The situation was still far from ideal, as she couldn't stash the homunculus inside Eden's Echo for healing, not without the rest of the party vanishing, but at least it wasn't actively dying anymore. Of course, keeping it that way meant Emma was out of the fight, for now. Cursing under her breath, Emma stuck her head around the stairwell to see how the rest of the party were getting on.

—

Status update

Emma Knight

Public Title: Practitioner

Hidden Title: Auditor

True Form: Level 17 Damned Apostle

Anima: 500

EXP: 12,024/14,000

Abilities

Summon Unholy Sword {Epitaph}

Toxovolia: Epitaph can transform into a Bow, firing arrows of ambient anima.

No Pal of Mine: Capture the souls of the worthy, gaining a simulacrum of equal level to the User. Maximum 1 active per 10 levels, rounding up. 10 minute cooldown when defeated. Captured:

The Leech King, Sir Bearington, Earthbound Immortal, Antipode, Duplicate

Flying Sword: Epitaph can change size, and fly up to 60 miles per hour.

Oversoul: Instantly possess the body of a living target.

Parallel Lives (Cooldown: 1 minute): Swap places with your active Summon.

Angel of Extinction (Cooldown: 12 hours): Summon an Angel within line of sight. The Angel is invulnerable and departs after 12 seconds, killing anyone who saw it.

Return (Cooldown: 24 Hours): Teleport Home. Cooldown resets when Home is in danger.

Traits

Wolf, Ram and Heart (Toggle: ON): Attacks are imbued with Death magic, significantly increasing damage and carrying a [Level]% chance of inflicting Instant Death.

Ephemera (Toggle: ON): Become intangible.

Null Zone (Toggle: OFF): All incoming magic fails.

One with Everything (Cooldown: 10 minutes): If Anima would be reduced to 0, stop at 1.

Babble Fish+: You are fluent in every language.

Rorschach's Blot: Attempts to observe you remotely produce nonsensical images to those bearing ill-intent. You will be alerted when observation commences.

Home Is Where the Hearth Is - EXP gains doubled for 1 hour after eating a home-cooked meal.

Inventory - Eden's Echo A ring containing fifty cubic metres of storage space, capable of instant transfer. Living beings are held in stasis and slowly heal. All sapient creatures are less likely to attack the wearer. This item is invisible except to the wearer, who cannot wear other jewellery. Currently contains:

Qilin Horn

Magus Austere's Oxygen Mask

A Practical Guide to Entropy

Portable Crafting Bench: Contains materials for all System-approved crafting classes

Eternal Wind: No matter near or far, all are one. Light a candle with yourself for two ships in the night, build a bridge where none still stand.

Quests

It's the Green You Need

Objective: Raise the Potted Hydra until it blooms.

Objective: Convince the Hydra to give Saint a vial of its blood.

Bonus Objective: Form a summoning contract with the Hydra

Reward: A powerful ally from the Age of Myth, Saint's Divine Item

Bonus Reward: ???

Vae Victis

Objective: Deactivate the gateway beneath Blenheim Palace before it explodes.

Rewards: 25,000 Thrones, Commendation (Order of the Empire, First Class), Season Ticket (The Ghost Train), Residence Permit (Avalon)

Penalty for Failure: Death

Who Wants To Live Forever?

Objective: Pay your respects at the Grave of Sectmaster Horizon.

Objective: Discover who manipulated his Son to turn against the Empire.

Bonus Objective: ???

Reward: ???

Bonus Reward: ???

Level-Up

Select one of the following four choices.

1) Trait - Lord of Mysteries: When someone tells a lie within earshot, you will know.

2) Trait - Maker's Ruin: When holding a magical item, you will know the path to meet its maker.

3) Item - The Compensated Anarchist: A grenade with enough power to flatten a house. Single use, for obvious reasons.

4) Blueprint - Menagerie: Your simulacrums perform their role, but only to the degree you instruct them. Wouldn't they do better, with just a touch of independence?

Half-Demon Homunculus: Level 9 Chandler Stored in Eden's Echo when not in use.

HP: 100

MP: 100

EXP: 1810/2000

Appearance

Red hair, green eyes, plain complexion.

Clothes

Space Suit

Traits

I'm a Candle: A modern understanding of non-magical candles.

Noncombustible: High resistance to heat and fire from all sources.

Blood of the Enemy: Blood taken from those you slay may substitute for one reagent when making Candles. Candles made using this trait are Demonic.

Breath Control: You can hold your breath for (Level)*2 minutes without losing focus.

Candle Attributes

Black: Consumes nearby light, leaving impenetrable darkness.

Hallowed: Repels beings of evil alignment or intent.

Soothing: Emits a potent soporific that can put an elephant to sleep.

Level Up

Level 10 will award max-grade skills due to stacking buff