Trash: Chapter 139 Evolutions of Death (Patreon)

Chapter 139

Evolutions of Death

It is an odd thing, when you feel and see the unnatural happen right before your eyes. Just as Neanderthals found themselves entranced by the glow and magic of fire, so too was I now caught staring at the massive transformation occurring before me.

Fortunately, I wasn’t alone in my awe of the magnitude of what we were seeing, for many of the Royal Order of Watchers and fellow guards who had been charging forward to help protect me also stopped, their bodies holding still as they like me found their minds entranced by the glowing transformation occurring before us.

A transformation that happened relatively quickly, but my mind seemed to pause the moment, stretching each noted change out the same way one might stretch caramel out to a thinner and narrower strain, until it finally snapped. Watching this transformation was one of the oddest and most frightening things I had ever witnessed, yet I could not look away. Or what would be better strike out, using this perceived moment of vulnerability to strike out, and counter this transformation that was happening before us. I knew I should act, but my mind was too engrossed in the scientific discovery, of watching how this monster can transform right before my eyes.

I watched as the unnatural glowing green eyes of the faster and stronger Death Eater, the only one of the initial three that was still intact, flicker for a moment as it seemed to provide a fresh green coating to cover the glowing red crystal I had plucked from the second Death Eater. Backing up a few paces, I never took my eyes away from the monster and instead used the added distance to get a better view of the transformations that were occurring.

One red glowing and pumping orb of energy spiraled its way down the last Death Eater’s throat. A faint glowing red light the only sign of its existence as its glow pierced the black veil covering the Death Eater. Then I watched in awe-fueled horror as the falling orb mixed with the still beating and pulsing red orb already alive and active within the last Death Eater. Just feeling the two glowing orbs get closer caused a wave of energy to be released and send shivers down my spine.

Again, I should strike, I should move, but something told me to wait. Maybe it was the unstable forces that were seeming to converge and press ominously outward, seeming to suffocate me. Maybe it was the fact that despite how frightening this whole process was, it was still beautiful in some dark macabre way. But mostly, I think the reason why I stayed my hands was because I suddenly felt that I was at a range disadvantage. The monster before me still had the semblance of a dark scythe that seemed to both hide from within its cloak, and reveal itself to my eyes. Realizing this was not the time to hold back, I activated my second bloodline Skill, my Divine Sight. My bloodline Skill now amplified by my True Sight of Enigmas seal* provided my mind and senses far more than I could have expected.

With the addition of Divine Sight, it was as if the dark cloak surrounding the Death Eater was nothing more than a darker shadow-like effect. With the protective veil gone, I could see the changes and processes happening more clearly. Not only was the Death Eater, poised and ready to strike out at me with a dark scythe made of death energy, but it seemed to have other defenses in play. Now that I could see the blade, the angle it was held at, and the positioning of the monster’s hands along the scythe’s shaft, I would have a better chance of avoiding its first strike.

The scythe did pose a problem, as it gave the monster a much larger reach than my hands offered. Also, I was not entirely certain that my hands would be able to stand up against direct contact with death energy, should I need to deflect or block an incoming strike, causing me to have to reevaluate my options.

Yet, all of that was minor in comparison to the wave of cold that seemed to radiate from the Death Eater the moment the two glowing red orbs found each other. Again, only seconds passed, but the entire process seemed to last forever, my mind taking detailed notes of every action that was happening, to better understand what was happening.

The smaller orb dropped and collided with the larger orb, causing an almost ripple like effect on the surface of the larger orb. Before the two glowed brightly for a moment and then began to merge into one larger pool. They merged the way molasses would, if you were trying to combine a smaller pool of molasses into a larger mass. The result was an odd slow melting and merging process of the two pools of energy combining into one larger core.

That’s when something seemed to shift out of control. The oppressive power that had been pushing us all away, mentally forcing us back seemed to intensify as a physiological change began to occur to the boney structure beneath. With horror, I saw how the size of the heart seemed to have a direct and proportional response to the skeletal structure that housed and protected it.

While this last Death Eater had been denser and more durable than its companions before, it now seemed to grow with an intensity that was unexpected. Worse, I could see the effects and streams of dark energy corrupting the stolen life energy and converting it into a sick patch like structure resembling bone and muscles.

As the glowing red orb had seemed to function as the makeshift heart for the beast, it now shot out webs of thick black tendons that connected the heart in a protective cocoon within the Death Eater’s ribcage, anchoring it in place and seeming to protect it even more from possible attacks. However the changes didn’t seem to stop there, as the glowing red crystal continued to beat and pulse more and more streams of dark tendons within it.

I was already moving forward, realizing that I had waited too long, spent too much time gawking at what was happening, and not reacting to the clear threat before me. My resolve seemed to break whatever effect had hindered the Guards and Watchers, for they too began charging forward.

Getting close, I saw the slight twitch of bone. A shifting of the still bony hands along the shaft of the dark scythe that was enough for me to realize the threat. Seeing the angle that the scythe was being held, I understood that it had to be a diagonal cross-strike, one that went from its bottom right to the top left of me. Realizing the angle, I dodged on instinct, rolling to my right, and crouched low, darting in and under the slash that would have bisected me had I not reacted accordingly.

“GAH!” One of the Watchers cried out, apparently not expecting to be struck with the backswing of the scythe, or to be struck by a scythe at all. This was odd and showed just how powerful this Death Eater was.

Surging forward, I felt the intense burning sensation in my chest echo out and grab onto my fingers. Lunging out, I struck, my fingers cutting into and piercing the oily black cowl that covered the Death Eater. However, this time things were different. Before, what had felt like cutting through densely packed spiderwebs was now replaced by a deeper oilier texture. Rather than letting my inner flames burn up and ignite their way through the veil, this time, I felt something deeper. A dark chill covered my fingers and coated them, all but snuffing out their flames and causing my hands to stick in place. With a horror, I retracted my strike, trying to pull my hands free of the dense tar like substance that seemed to have its own agenda about grabbing me and holding me still.

Worse, I could see the glowing shifting of bones, as the Death Eater squared its hips and retracted its hands to strike down again. I watch the scythe arc its way through the air, reversing its original path, going from its top left shoulder, just over my right shoulder and slicing down at an angle towards the ground. Waiting until the last second, when the scythe was already set in its intended path, I moved, arcing my body back, and bowing out with my knees in a grotesque reenactment of a counterbalance lean.

Slicing blades cut through the air that I had just stood in. To my horror, I had misjudged the distance, or the ability for the Death Eater to readjust its strike in midair as it twisted its hands, rotating the blade downward, causing the blade to lash out and pierce my veil.

Instantly, the world that had been slightly darker before, hiding in a shade was now gone. Instead, I felt a chilling wave of cold brush past my face as I came within inches of death.

With the blade past, I knew my hands were still stuck in the oily dark tar of its cloak. But I now had options.

Leaning this far back did not go unnoticed by the Death Eater, as I could feel it holding onto me with its dark cloak and leaning back as if to try to keep me locked within its clutches. This was good, as I realized the monster’s mistake, far before it even had a chance to shift its hands once more and swing its massive scythe back. Being this close, I was within its guard, and that meant, I now had the advantage, as long as I pressed.

Rocking back on my heels just a bit, I pulled on our connection, on this demonic thread that now bound us together. Seeing that I was captured, I stopped resisting and instead went with it, once I was at my furthest point back, I sprung into action. Pulling with my arms and snapping into a kip-up, I lunched forward, causing my entire body to barrel into the unprepared and unsuspecting Death Eater. With a violent force I pushed myself forward, tackling into the Death Eater, who was unable to adjust to my sudden shift in momentum and weight. Tackling forward, the Death Eater stumbled back. Kicking my left foot out, I plunged its burning form into and through the cloak. Having one of my three Holy Sword of Slaying seals* on it, the burning flames of light did not extinguish as quickly as they had when they had to travel through my arms. This made it easier for my foot and leg to sweep through, and hook behind the staggering Death Eater.

“ARRRRAAAH!” The monster cried out, as it could still feel pain. And while what I had done had not been a direct attack against it, the intense burning sensation of Light energy touching its bones caused a wave of panic and fear to be released.

The rest was a matter of applied physics and grappling techniques, as I tripped my opponent, while using my momentum to push us forward. This resulted in the Death Eater stumbling backwards, with me on top, and its deadly scythe wedged between us.

Looked down through my pierced veil, I could see a faint trickle of blood pooling on my nose, a sign that I hadn’t been as fortunate as I originally expected as I clearly was cut by a glancing blow of the scythe. But I was focusing beyond my own injuries, adrenaline keeping me from feeling anything at the moment, a fact I was immensely grateful for at this moment. Then looking up, I could see the look of panic, and confusion filling the Death Eater’s glowing green eyes fade. Then finally I saw the moment it stopped panicking and realized that I was not able to hurt it. That even my leg that had managed to hook around its form and trip it was now coated in tar-like goo, that felt cold to the touch and was already quenching the power of my seals.

It had won.

At least that is the impression it seemed to have as it stared at me, and I swear almost gave a smile. Being this close, it was only a matter of time before I would be sucked in and suffocated by the thick mass of slime around us.

But it had underestimated me, as I smiled back. A manic gleam in my eyes, as I had it right where I wanted it. Being this close, our faces nearly touching, it was right where I wanted.

Taking in a deep breath, I paused savoring the look of confusion that quickly filled the Death Eater’s features, before I released my final trump card.

I sang, in the key of Light. “AHHHHHHH!”