Path of Dragons

Book 6: Chapter 86: Monster

For the first time in his life, Lamar Sims felt inferior.

It wasn’t some great revelation that he’d lived a charmed life. As a child, he’d separated himself from his peers by virtue of immense athletic ability. All he had to do was keep his nose clean, train when he was told to train, and play the game he loved to the best of his ability. And he did, even going above and beyond with his work ethic, which had netted him a scholarship to an elite college football program.

Back then, people had told him that he would have a “come-to-Jesus moment” when he attended his first practice, that his new teammates were all the best of the best, and that he’d have to work hard to stand out. That hadn’t really happened. Sure, the competition was better, and there were a few players just as talented as him. But even in that first practice, he knew he was the best player on the field.

The cycle continued when he got the NFL, and while the gap closed, his combination of athleticism and dedication meant that he was still an elite among elites. That hadn’t changed throughout his career, and he had earned the label of a future Hall-of-Famer.

Then the apocalypse happened, and though the world had changed, his place in it had not. He’d even established himself as one of the top hundred people in the entire world, at one point climbing all the way to the number fifteen spot on the power ladder. So, when the opportunity to enter the Trial of Primacy presented itself, he’d had every reason to think his superiority would continue. He’d even harbored some thoughts about pushing up to the top spot.

He had his reasons for wanting power. Some were altruistic – there were bad people out there who needed to be stopped, after all. But a lot of it was wrapped up in his own view of himself. He was Lamar Sims, and he was the best at whatever he did.

But that perception of himself was shaken when, after spending a horrific two weeks battling predatory fish people, he’d met Elijah Hart. On the surface, the man didn’t seem special. He looked like a Hollywood actor cosplaying as a hobo – an impression supported by his eccentric personality that made it seem like he rarely took anything truly seriously.

It was not an accurate impression.

The man had gone into the same challenge that had very nearly killed Lamar and the group that had put their trust in him, and he’d conquered it in only a couple of hours. He didn’t even seem like it had taxed him.

Of course, Lamar knew that the challenges were much easier the second time around. He’d experienced that himself as he and his companions attacked other challenges. Yet, the difference wasn’t so great as to trivialize the endeavors. By all rights, Elijah shouldn’t have been capable of doing what he did.

The fact that he could was a reminder that Lamar could no longer call himself one of the true elites. He was strong. He knew that much, at least. He could stand up to most foes and come out of it with his life. Yet, he knew that Elijah – as well as the man’s companions – were on an entirely different level.

Never was that clearer than at that very moment, when Elijah, in the form of some plant-dinosaur-chimp monstrosity, laid waste to the wraiths around them. Vines, thick and thorny, erupted from the ground, wrapping themselves around dozens of creatures at once, and holding them in place. While they were immobilized, Elijah raced forward and ripped them to shreds.

It wasn’t even difficult for him.

What’s more, according to the man’s own words, he was still getting used to some new abilities. He would only grow stronger with every battle.

Of course, Elijah’s efforts weren’t the only thing that stood out. His companions were almost as impressive – especially Sadie Song. In armor that had been cobbled together from scrap metal, she was a whirlwind of sword strikes. At the same time, she threw protective shields on a half-dozen people all at once, guarding them from the creatures that hadn’t been affected by the vines.

Ron was equally as skilled, using wide-area healing spells that filled the gaps that the other Healers were incapable of filling. Even Dat, as affable and seemingly harmless as he sometimes seemed, flashed among the wraiths, killing them almost as effortlessly as Elijah.

Then there was the dwarf, who tossed out devices he called traps. To Lamar, they seemed more like bombs that spewed all sorts of elemental effects, but Kurik seemed adamant that there was a distinct difference.

In short, the group was terrifying. They were, as he’d often found himself muttering, monsters.

But Lamar refused to give in to those nascent feelings of inferiority. He might not be as powerful as some, but that didn’t mean he intended to lay down and die. He had people to protect, both in the Trial as well as back home in what was left of Philadelphia. So, he hefted his massive tower shield and used Shield Slam.

Shield Slam

Ram your shield into an opponent with unmatched force. Potency dependent on Strength attribute. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

Lamar had always been stronger than most, and most of the attributes he’d gained since the world’s transformation had ended up in Strength, Constitution, or Regeneration. So when he hit something with Shield Slam, it moved. Or it broke.

The wraith that was his target did a little of both. It crumpled under the attack, then flew backward into a slavering horde of its brethren. A second later, it was swallowed by the surging group, but Lamar had gotten a little room to swing his axe. More importantly, it gave him the opportunity to use Beratement.

Beratement

Decreases enemy Dexterity attribute while forcing them to attack. Potency based on Strength attribute. Limit: 6 enemies.

Even as he let out a string of inflammatory curses, he used Concussive Blow:

Concussive Blow

Stun all enemies within range. Effective radius based on Strength attribute. Current: 7.3 Feet.

To activate it, he simply needed to hit something with his shield. There were plenty of enemies around, so he rammed the barrier into a wraith’s snarling face. An instant later, a shockwave spread out all around him, and the wraiths stumbled to a stop. He shouted, “Now!”

Derek, his former teammate and current one-armed man, raised his staff into the air and called down a wave of fire that swept through the wraiths. The first few lines were so badly burned that they nearly died right then and there, but from experience, Lamar knew that Circle of Flames dissipated with every additional foot it traveled.

Fortunately, Maya stepped up, raised her bow, and shot an arrow into the sky. When it reached the peak of its flight, it multiplied into a hundred copies before descending into the surrounding wraiths. Each duplicate carried with it the force of a cannon ball, finishing off many of the surviving wraiths.

But there were always more.

Over the next few minutes, he and the others continued to fight. On the other side of Elijah and his group were the elf’s group. They employed a slightly different strategy that utilized high mobility, but in Lamar’s professional opinion, the strategy seemed extremely inefficient. By comparison, his preferred tactics hinged on him taking the hits while his companions were free to dish out the damage. It was a thankless job that resulted in far more pain than he ever would have thought himself capable of enduring, but it kept his people safe.

It also worked.

And eventually, with all three groups playing their roles, they managed to finish the swarm of wraiths. It wasn’t the first, and they all knew it wouldn’t be the last. They’d barely traveled a hundred miles from the Nexus Town, and already, they’d killed thousands. There were always more, which was why they recovered as quickly as possible before resuming the trail. They barely even stopped to let the Healers finish their jobs.

The oddest thing about the experience was that Elijah, who’d proven he could fight on the front lines at least as well as anyone else in the group, could also heal as well as anyone but Ron. It just didn’t seem fair, but Lamar cared less about that than how glad he was that Elijah was on their side.

Soon enough, they were once again trekking through the jungle. Dat, Helen, and the other scouts tried to guide their path to avoid as many of the wraiths as possible, but there were so many that it wasn’t always possible. In addition, there were the abyssal monsters, including the giants as well as the airborne creatures. The members of the group had only gotten brief glimpses of those, but what they’d seen was enough.

Over the next week, they rushed across the continent. Luckily, there weren’t many major obstacles in their way, and once they’d established a set of tactics to deal with the wraiths, they weren’t in too much danger. Certainly, if they lost focus for even a moment, they would be overwhelmed, but no one was there by accident. They’d all established themselves as the cream of the crop, and as such, they were well used to life-and-death battles.

Still, day after day of fighting for every step wore on them all.

Except Elijah and Sadie, who both seemed entirely at peace with it. Then, finally, they reached an area everyone deemed safe, though with the caveat that it wouldn’t remain so for long.

Lamar collapsed, throwing his shield aside as he said, “This is definitely harder than I expected.”

“We’re not far,” Helen stated, sitting beside him. He was jealous of the ability that allowed her to maintain her energy. “Maybe two or three more days. It’ll be worse inside, though. This guy we’re supposed to kill is a transcendent. That’s…that’s more than a god, at least compared to us. I don’t care if he’s Shackled. He’s going to be much more dangerous than anything we’ve seen before.”

“You sound like you don’t think we have a chance,” Lamar responded, his eyes closed.

“I don’t.”

“Then why are you here?” he asked.

“I followed you, you idiot,” she answered, putting her hand on his forearm. She gave it a squeeze. “We stick together, right? That’s what we said in the beginning.”

Only five years had passed, but the beginning of the apocalypse seemed like a lifetime ago. Back then, his teammates – mostly good men – had all looked at it like a game. He’d known it was different. He had taken it seriously, and when everything had started to break down, he and a few others had raided a police station, where he’d found the riot shield that would put him onto the path of a defender.

Without that path, he would have died a hundred times over. And so would Helen. All the others, too, but he had to admit that he cared more about protecting her than anything else. If she would’ve stood for it, he would have left her back home. He knew her well enough to know that she’d never allow that, though.

He opened his eyes.

There was a time he never would have looked twice at a woman like her. By no stretch was she unattractive, but he was used to dating models and actresses. By comparison, she was plain-looking.

Yet, he didn’t care. She was everything he wanted. Everything he needed. She was his world, and more than anything else, he just wanted to protect her.

So, when he caught sight of the creature descending upon them, he reacted the only way he knew how. Without hesitation, he sprang to his feet, shoved Helen aside, and raised his shield. Just before it hit, he managed to activate Hold the Line. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

But he knew it wouldn’t be enough. The creature bearing down on him was no ordinary monster. It was one of the abyssal creatures they’d barely even seen, and he could feel its power bearing down on him.

None of that mattered, though. So long as Helen was out of the line of fire, he could die happy.