by Eric Vall
Just like Blagdan said they would.
“Alright, wise guy,” the king growled, “if you really want to be the star of the show, why don’t you come up here?”
“Nah, I’m good,” Todd giggled, “your obnoxious heat-lamp of a face is already blinding me from back here.”
Tenebris tossed up his boot and kicked the next nearest Shadow Person square in the face.
Black, tarry droplets of blood sprayed from the creature’s mouth as its head was tossed back, and then Tenebris raised his sword to its throat.
“Come out now, or another one of your brethren--” he began, but was then cut off by one of his guards hopping in front of him.
“Sire, watch out!” the guard cried, but it was too late.
Just as the soldier stepped in front of his king, a large, wooden tube struck him in the face. His head whipped back as the projectile fell to the ground, but it didn’t seem to do too much damage. The guard bent down, picked up the object, and inspected it thoroughly.
“What is it?” another soldier asked him as his eyes narrowed.
“It appears to be a … Oh god!” the first guard gasped as he tossed it to the ground in horror.
“What was it?” Deja asked curiously.
“How’d you like my little toy, boys?” Ira giggled as she stood up and tossed off her tablecloth. “I know it’s personally one of my favorites.”
Fucking hell … Ira had thrown one of her wooden sex toys at the poor bastards.
As Eclipse and Vidia stood to their feet, they both went on the offensive.
“Snuff out the darkness!” Vidia yelled as she hurled a handful of fireballs toward the king.
Eclipse repeated the battle cry and then launched a floating ball of black Hellfire at the guards to the right. A tiny black hole appeared in the sky above the guards, and each of them had to stab their spears into the ground so they didn’t get yanked into the abyss.
Meanwhile, Todd, Blagdan, and Ira were charging.
“Leeeeroooooyyyy Jenkins!” Todd cackled as he tossed fireballs at the guards.
Ira got there first as she materialized her morning star out of thin air and took a swing at the two guards who were holding on for dear life. One of the bastards pulled his spear loose and tried to block, but instead he just screamed as he was yanked into the black hole above. His dark, sticky blood poured out of the portal like a waterfall as his screams were silenced, and then it slammed shut.
“What the fu--” the second guard gasped, but his head was quickly caved in by the right spike of the morning star.
“The Shining Alliance?” Tenebris scoffed. “I should have known. Kill them all!”
Now that the element of surprise was no longer on the team’s side, the remaining guards were able to mount a defensive. Invidia’s fireballs were knocked away harmlessly, while another one of the soldiers was able to get the hilt of his weapon up just in time to stop an incoming bite from Blagdan.
The final guard set his attention on the succubi who had taken down his brethren, and so we got to witness an epic spear versus morning star and naginata battle. Then there was Todd. The imp was currently zipping around the room, and he hurled fireballs while he made the fireball sound effect from Super Mario Bros.
All the while, the crowd of Shadow People began to panic and headed toward the main exit, but the commotion caused a traffic jam in the Playhouse and effectively rendered the front door unusable.
It was pure chaos down there, and that was exactly how we wanted it.
Finally, Tenebris’ right-hand men made their move. One of the guards stepped in front of the King to shield him, while the other one placed a hurried hand on Tenebris’ shoulder and began to lead him toward the back of the room.
“Alright, everyone,” I announced to my friends, “it’s go time. Zilla and Inpulsa, do you think you two can handle the guards while Deja and me take care of Tenebris?”
“That’s why we’re here.” Inpulsa smirked as she summoned sparks into her hand. “Let’s go toast some motherfuckers.”
Inpulsa and Deja picked Zilla and I up and flew us over to the alleyway, and then we took our positions.
Zilla guarded one side of the alleyway, Inpulsa took the opposite side, and Deja and I stood firmly in the middle so we could divert the group as needed.
There was no way Tenebris was getting out of here alive.
“Do you think you can get your powers to work?” I asked Deja one last time. “Because if not, this whole mission is gonna get a lot harder.”
“I’ll try,” the tan succubus nodded, “it seems to mostly happen when I’m in the middle of combat, soooo … ”
Deja called forth her spear-tipped chain and began to twirl it around slowly.
“I like the way you think.” I grinned as I pulled the Unhallowed Sword out of its sheath.
The two of us stared at the door for a minute or two, and then we heard commotion on the other side. Commotion that was heading directly our way.
Suddenly, the back door was kicked open, and Tenebris and his two guards came bumbling out.
Deja wasted no time in tossing her spear at the fuckers, but the guards were too quick. One of them caught the chain around his hilt, yanked Deja toward him, and then slugged her in the face.
The succubus let out a shout of pain as she flew back and hit the side of the building behind us.
At the same time, I lashed out at Tenebris with my blade, but my weapon struck the wooden hilt of the guard’s spear instead.
The fucker knocked my sword up in the air and then twirled around so he could skewer me on the end of his spear. He would have, too, if not for the quick flash of purple I threw down at the last minute. Instead, his spearpoint bounced off harmlessly, and then I caught my sword and came at him once more.
This time, it was Tenebris’ turn to defend. There was the sharp clang of metal on metal as our blades collided, and I came face to face with our enemy for the very first time.
“Kill the others,” Tenebris growled, “leave this one for me. Tell me, friend, are you the Shining Alliance’s new ‘savior?’”
“We’re about to find out,” I shot back as I knocked away his blade and blasted a shot of red Hellfire at him from point-blank range.
Tenebris laughed as his body quickly faded and then reappeared on my right, and I was just able to get out a shield of purple before his sword collided with my side.
“Queen Zilla?” the Shadow King gasped mockingly. “How nice of you to join us. She must really believe in you, ‘savior.’”
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Inpulsa and Deja were engaged with one of the guards, while Zilla was holding her own against the other. The Caliginis guards, however, were quick, and I could see why the Shining Alliance had so many issues trying to fight them.
Maybe the element of surprise was what I needed to gain the upper hand. I summoned silver Hellfire into my hand, surrounded the steel ball on my belt with its magical glow, and commanded the ball to turn into a makeshift spike. Then I threw it back with a flick of my wrist, but the fucker phased out.
My projectile rocketed through the wall of the building and out of sight.
Damn it.
Then Tenebris reappeared in front of me and lashed out with the speed of a cheetah.
This time, he didn’t miss.
There was a metallic crunch as the Shadow King’s sword went through the armor on my left leg and stabbed me straight in the thigh. My vision went red for a moment as white-hot pain shot through my body, and then I fell down to one knee.
I let out a roar of frustration as I unleashed a handful of yellow shuriken at the bastard, but he just dissipated once more. I tried to put weight on my injured leg, but the pain was almost unbearable.
I had to fight through it, though. This guy was already hard enough to kill, and it was only going to be harder if I had a gimp leg.
I heard Tenebris reappear behind me, and I used all of my strength to launch myself to the side
. His blade swished past my position as I slammed into the wall, spun around, and blasted bronze Hellfire down at his feet.
My attack must have caught him off guard, because he let out a yelp of surprise as he fell back onto his armored ass.
I lifted up the Unhallowed Sword, took aim, and then brought it down on Tenebris.
He rolled out of the way of my attack, phased out, and then reappeared to my left. I was just able to parry his blow, but the impact knocked me back onto my knee.
The world went white for a moment as the pain from my wound shot up my spine, and I tossed out a purple shield in front of my entire body. As my vision faded back into view, I saw Tenebris was staring me down.
“And what makes them so sure you’re the one?” he mocked from the other side of the barrier. “You’re fighting just like all the ‘saviors’ that I’ve killed before.”
Tenebris disappeared in a flash, but this time I was able to predict his attack on my own.
I held out the Unhallowed Sword and spun around in a full circle right as the bastard showed up behind me. He let out a gasp of surprise as my sword struck metal, and then I saw Tenebris fall back against the alley wall.
There was a massive gash in his chest plate, but no blood, and Tenebris was still on his feet.
I’d just grazed his armor. If I wanted to kill this fucker, I needed to go deeper.
Before I could mount a second offensive, the fucker disappeared into thin air. However, this time I didn’t have a chance to prepare for the bastard, because one of his guards was barreling straight toward me.
I ducked out of the way of the guard’s spearpoint, drew the goat-headed dagger from my belt, and stabbed it into the crease between his shoulder and his torso.
The guard yelped with pain as he stumbled backward and dripped his sticky black blood all over, and I barely had another second to think before Tenebris was back on me.
This time, I wasn’t able to get my shield up in time. I felt the impact of his claymore against my breastplate, and my heart sank as I stumbled backward and felt to see if my bowels were all still in my body. My hand touched nothing but dented metal, and I let out a sigh of relief before I threw up the Unhallowed Sword to parry another one of the fucker’s blows.
I lashed out at the Shadow King with my foot, but it caught nothing but air as he phased out of existence with a flash of black Hellfire. As my foot stomped painfully into the ground, I saw my two succubi tag-teaming one of the guards.
The soldier knocked away a blast of Inpulsa’s yellow Hellfire with the tip of his spear, but he wasn’t quick enough to avoid Deja’s spear and chain. The tan succubus’ weapon wrapped around his neck like a coiling snake, yanked him up into the sky on the power of her black Hellfire, and held him in place as he writhed helplessly.
Then Inpulsa had him right where he wanted him. She summoned black Hellfire into one hand, yellow into the other, and slammed them together to create a giant beam of shocking magic.
The guard’s body lit up like a firework as the attack hit him, spread across his body, and illuminated it in a bright yellow light. As much as I wanted to watch his body writhe in pain while he was fried to death, I had to turn my attention back on my surroundings.
Tenebris was surely going to reappear any second now, and I had to be ready.
But he didn’t come for me.
This time, he reappeared directly behind Inpulsa.
“Watch out!” I tossed out a shield of purple Hellfire behind the yellow-haired succubus as Tenebris’ blade struck, and it bounced off with a clang.
Inpulsa released her spell on the guard, whipped around, and unleashed a blast of deadly electricity. It passed through the bastard’s phasing body and blew a large chunk of rock out of the wall where he stood, but the Shadow King was still at large.
“You alright?” I called out to my two succubi.
“Jacob!” Deja suddenly gasped as her pupils dilated to intense levels. “He’s going to appear right behind you!”
In one swift motion, I flipped my sword around in my hand, thrust it backward, and heard a metallic crunch as it struck its target, but I didn’t hear Tenebris go down.
“Duck!” Inpulsa screamed as she launched yellow Hellfire in my direction.
I listened to my teammate and ducked down just as Tenebris’ blade swung over my head. I heard the fucker grunt as he was hit by the electrical blast, and then a crash as he slammed into the wall behind me.
When I finally spun around to face him, the Shadow King was slowly standing back to his feet.
“Clever,” he grumbled as he raised his hands and showed me his scratched-up gauntlets, “but I’m afraid my Umbrian Armor isn’t as flimsy as what you’re used to.”
The fucker had caught my sword. Even though I knew exactly where he was going to be and my aim was true, Tenebris caught my sword unscathed.
Maybe this was going to be tougher than I’d thought.
The Shadow King released his grip on the weapon and then waved to me mockingly as he disappeared into thin air.
“What happened?” Deja gasped as she and Inpulsa ran over.
“He caught my blade,” I grumbled, “we have to rethink this strategy. Deja, you stay here with me. Inpulsa, you go help Zilla.”
“I don’t know if she needs my help,” the yellow-haired succubus mused as she looked over toward the Shadow Queen. “She seems to be--”
“Inpulsa’s right!” Deja gasped, and then she lashed out to the empty spot just to the right of her sister.
I followed suit with the Unhallowed Sword, and both of our attacks struck the bastard square in the chest.
He let out a loud grunt as Deja’s spearhead lodged itself into the breastplate of his armor, and the tip of my sword dented it even further. The Shadow King roared with anger as he retaliated with a swipe of his deadly blade, but I quickly knocked it away with a flash of purple Hellfire. Tenebris disappeared, but this time, he took Deja’s spear and chain with him.
“Well, that’s new,” I admitted.
“How are we ever going to get through that armor?” Deja sighed as she looked around cautiously. “We both hit him at full strength, and our weapons didn’t even wound him!”
“But we are wearing down his armor,” I reminded her. “We just need a few more strikes and maybe--”
Tenebris appeared before us, and I had to forcibly push Deja out of the way before she was skewered by his claymore. The Shadow King didn’t hesitate in making his next move, he just swung at me in an upward diagonal motion as he tried to separate my head from my shoulders.
I dodged the attack, lashed out with a red fireball, and watched the bastard vanish before my attack landed.
“We need a new plan,” I growled as I helped Deja back to her feet. “Even with your predictions, it’s not enough time to land a lethal blow. We need to stop this fucker from phasing.”
“How’s that even possible?” the tan succubus asked.
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “Now I’m kinda wishing we’d brought Sia. She could have neutralized this fucker’s powers with her black magic.”
Suddenly, the corpse of the second guard went rocketing over our heads and then crashed into a mangled heap on the ground of the alleyway. Zilla and Inpulsa ran over to where we were standing, and both of them were covered from head to toe with the sappy blood of the guard they’d just killed.
“Tenebris?” Zilla questioned hopefully.
“Right here, Usurper!” the Shadow King bellowed as he reappeared and took a swing at Zilla.
I knocked his attack away with a quick shield of purple, stabbed at him with the sword, and struck him right in the spot where Deja’s spear was lodged. The attack pushed the spear into his body a little bit further, and the Shadow King let out a grunt of pain in response.
As the cowardly bastard disappeared, I realized what I needed to do.
I held the Unhallowed Sword in front of me, summoned silver Hellfire into my hands, and then encased the wea
pon with my spell. Did I really want to do this? This was my most trusted weapon, and once it was melted down, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be able to get it back to the form it was in right now.
But we needed to kill this fucker, and this was the only way.
The rest of my team watched in horror as I melted down the Unhallowed Sword into a dozen tiny, floating spikes of metal.
“What are you doing?” Zilla demanded. “My men spent hours prepping your weapon!”
“Improvising,” I explained. “Deja, where is he coming from?”
“I-I don’t know,” she admitted as she tried to force her foresight to work. “I can’t do it on command, and--”
Suddenly, there was a blip as the Shadow King reappeared to Zilla’s right and lashed out with his claymore.
The Shadow Queen jumped to the side to avoid the attack, but his weapon was still able to graze her arm. Zilla yelled in pain as she fell to the side and gripped the wound on her shoulder, and I was just able to get another barrier of purple up before Tenebris struck his mortal enemy down once and for all.
Now was my chance, though.
I commanded the Hellfire-encased black spikes to shoot forward, and each and every one stabbed into Tenebris’ torso. The Shadow King stumbled backward as his breastplate became a metal pincushion, and then he quickly phased out of harm’s way.
“What the fuck was that?” Zilla demanded through gritted teeth. “You wasted your greatest weapon!”
“Ye have little faith,” Inpulsa chuckled, “if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my time with Jacob, it’s that he always has a plan. And I’m a doubter by nature!”
The yellow-haired beauty was right. I knew exactly what I was doing, but I still needed Deja’s help to make it work.
“How’s the foresight coming along?” I asked as I summoned my silver Hellfire and tried to reach out for my missing silver ball.
Instantly, I felt the metal calling back to me. Even though I couldn’t see it, I could feel it rising up into the air, and I knew it was headed back in my direction. However, I was currently unarmed. If it didn’t get back to me soon, I would be nothing but a sitting duck when Tenebris reappeared.
