[Kara] Chapter 20: Like A Monster (Patreon)

So far, things had been going swimmingly. Kara hadn’t expected venturing into the lower tunnels to be such a breeze. She had been given a short overview on the kind of threats that could lurk down here by Caius when they had still been waiting for the permit from Koros. And while it hadn’t been an in-depth explanation of every species of monster that lived in these caverns, it had been about the kind of threats that could be found, which had been enough for her.

Most of the time, the monsters that lurked in this section of the lower tunnels was enough for ordinary soldiers to handle. Infant giant centipedes were weak. They were the lowest evolution stage of a giant centipede, which made them pretty much nothing more than pests. Supposedly, even someone with a Tier 5 manacore could deal with most Infant giant centipedes.

Of course, it ultimately was contingent on both the person and the giant centipede itself.

However, there were the occasional Lessers that roamed this area of the lower tunnels too. And sometimes, there would even be Juveniles. When those were spotted, Captain Bushra had to be called down to exterminate them, because of how dangerous they were.

And while Kara hadn’t spotted a Juvenile giant centipede here yet, she had seen them in action before— when she had peered into Zarkoth’s memories during her ascension to the Second Stage of her dragonsoul. So she knew exactly how much of a threat they could be, having almost killed a baby Zarkoth.

But an Adult was an entire stage of evolution above even a Juvenile. It was not something Kara had ever seen before, however the danger it posed was clear.

“We’ll have to inform Koros about this Adult,” Caius said as he drew away from the newly-carved tunnel. “We won’t be able to deal with it ourselves.”

Kara narrowed her eyes at that. “Why not? With three of us here, I’m sure we could probably take it down together. I don’t see why we should get Koros involved too.”

The elf was against it. “Perhaps we can take it down if we fight when it’s alone. But it won’t be alone.”

“What do you mean?” Kara asked, crossing her arms at him.

“An Adult giant centipede is dangerous, yes. But what’s even more worrying is what it entails.” He turned and held her gaze. “If there is an Adult, there is always a nest. Which means there will be even more Infants, more Lessers, and maybe even Juveniles too. I don’t doubt you can handle all those on your own, but good gods, even I have my limits.”

Caius looked towards both Angel and Arjin off to the side.

“That is not to mention them.”

“Hey, Angel can hold his own!” Kara said, shaking a fist at the elf.

“But he’s still only in his Second Stage of evolution. Even if he knows magic, he’s still vulnerable. Maybe he can fend off a Juvenile or two. But what if there’s a dozen of them there? And what about if there’s a hundred Infants and a few dozen Lessers too?”

Caius eyed her with a raised brow. She bit her lower lip, before he continued.

“That’s not even considering the fact that Arjin is here. This is too dangerous for us. Even if we defeat the Adult, one of us might die. All of us might even die, but I’m trying to be optimistic here, for your sake.” He turned away and looked towards the magical markings on the walls leading back to where they came from. “This is simply too risky for us to handle. It’s better to leave it up to Koros when he finds the time for it.”

Angel tilted his head when he heard that, and he almost seemed like he agreed. Arjin was already shaken from when she heard there was an Adult down here, so she evidently wanted to leave. Even Kara could see where Caius was coming from.

“...that’s a fair point,” she admitted as she closed her eyes.

But then she felt the mana pooling around her dragonsoul. Even after everything she had done today, there had barely been any change. Killing a few dozen Lessers and a hundred or so Infants had barely provided any mana. They had been far too weak.

She needed a strong opponent if she truly wanted to grow stronger.

Caius nodded, glad to hear her response. He continued down the tunnel. “Exactly. As I keep saying, I always knew you were smart, Kara. So come on, let’s get out of here.”

Angel took a step forward, about to follow after him. But then the utlas bear realized that Kara hadn’t budged. He blinked and eyed her curiously.

Caius only noticed that he was alone after taking five more steps. He glanced back with furrowed brows.

“Kara? What are you doing?”

“Sorry, Caius,” Kara finally said as she opened her eyes. She placed a hand on her chest. “While I understand your concerns, I’d still like to face the Adult giant centipede.”

The elf stared at her, utterly taken aback. “But why? That doesn’t make any sense— it’s dangerous for all of us.”

“You’re. It’s too dangerous for you guys.” Kara’s eyes flickered as she raised her head. A smirk spread across her lips. “That’s why you don’t need to face it. I can take it down myself.”

“...you can’t be serious, right?” Caius blinked a few times.

But she shrugged in response, “I mean, both you and Angel had your chance to show off on your own, right? Now it’s my turn.”

The elf’s jaw dropped. He looked at her in sheer disbelief. Even Angel looked a little bit worried. Arjin just glanced between them apprehensively.

“How are you going to take down an Adult and an entire nest?” Caius asked, shaking his head. “You’re going to get yourself killed.”

“Well, I’ve got a plan,” Kara said as she stepped forward. She thought back to Zarkoth’s memories— when he had first learned his Dragon’s Breath. And then her eyes darted to the daggers dangling from the elf’s waist. “I do need a little bit of your help, of course.”

Caius frowned, and she grinned at him.

“Just a tiny bit of your help. You told me you weren’t going to doubt me ever again.”

“And you told me to doubt you a little bit,” he retorted. “I—”

He opened his mouth, then he saw the pleading look in her eyes. Caius deliberated over what to do for a full minute. Until, finally, he sighed.

“Fine. What do I have to do?”

—--

Caius almost regretted agreeing to Kara’s plan. But he had already said yes, and he wasn’t going to go back against his word. He took in a deep breath as he dropped a Blink Blade, before walking down the newly-carved tunnel. He raised his torch as he waded through the darkness until he spotted an opening at the other side revealing a small cave chamber.

Even before he got close, he could hear the clicking footsteps of the giant centipedes. He saw their shadowed figures lining the walls, many of them even sticking to the ceiling. But that was not where the majority of them lay. A mass of monsters were congregated at the center of the room. Infants, Lessers, and Juveniles alike gathered there, protectively circling a pile of faintly luminescent eggs.

“Is this what friends do for each other?” the elf asked himself as he stepped out to the entrance of the room.

But was he even friends with Kara yet? They certainly had managed to get to know each other over the course of this little trip to the lower tunnels, but it didn’t feel like there was a real connection there yet.

Not like Caius knew what that even meant. There had been some people he knew back in Catherine who he would consider his friends. However, if those counted as true friendships, then he should have been able to call Koros a friend too.

But he didn’t think of the Dark Lord as anything other than a close acquaintance. So what even were friends supposed to be?

The elf asked himself these questions as the giant centipedes took notice of him. Those that clung onto the walls and the ceiling immediately fled to the back of the room, and he raised his bow. A glinting arrow was already nocked as he aimed at the nest.

But a massive undulating figure shifted there. And he loosed the arrow as he took a step back.

“Twentieth-First Core: Acid Blast,” Caius whispered.

He watched as the arrow shot straight forward, before exploding into a spray of acid. It rained over the nest as he heard the shrieks of a handful of nearby giant centipedes, followed by a loud sizzling. But that was all. He looked back up at the clearing smoke as the massive undulating figure from before shielded the majority of the nest.

It was the Adult giant centipede. It had to have been nearly a hundred feet in length, and over ten feet wide. Its red-brown carapace was partially melted where it was struck by the blast, but it otherwise survived the attack unscathed.

Caius closed his eyes for a moment. He was certainly close with his parents. But he knew that friendships weren’t supposed to be the same as familial bonds.

“Or maybe I’m wrong. What do you think?”

He opened his eyes to see the Adult giant centipede looming over him. It let out a terrible shriek, before charging at him.

“Yeah… I have no idea either,” he said as he leapt back. “Sorry for killing some of your children though!”

He made it a dozen feet before the monster caught up to him. It closed its mandibles around his figure, before his entire body blurred. The world around him spun and he found himself standing right next to the Blink Blade he had left behind. Picking it up, he glanced back to hear the Adult giant centipede crashing into the rock wall and screeching.

It looked down the tunnel and hissed. It charged him again as he grinned, hurling a Bink Blade down one tunnel, before tossing the other in the other direction.

“Come and get me!” Caius shouted.

And the Adult giant centipede rushed forward, moving far faster than him. But every single time it got close, he teleported away with the help of the Blink Blades. It continued to chase after him as he spotted Kara in the far distance moving into the tunnel that led to the nest.

“Now let’s hope this plan of yours works.”

If not, the elf was going to be running for his life for a long time.

—--

Kara watched the Adult giant centipede pass through the main tunnel, before emerging from the little alcove Angel had dug out. She nodded at him and Arjin as she started down the side path towards the nest.

“Follow me, but stay back.”

They listened, keeping a few feet behind her. She made her way through the small tunnel until she reached an opening. There, the nest of the giant centipedes waited for her, no longer under the protection of their Adult.

Caius had been a pivotal part of her plan because of this— to draw the Adult giant centipede away from the nest. So that Kara could do what she needed to do next.

The gathered giant centipedes spotted her and started squirming. The Infants and Lessers retreated as the Juveniles moved to attack the intruder. A small grin appeared on her lips as she stepped forward, creating a ball of flame within the palms of her hand.

Kara had seen Zarkoth do this before. When she had peered into his memories during her prior ascension. Perhaps if she hadn’t witnessed it, she would have thought her power wasn’t enough to accomplish this. But right now, even as the Juvenile giant centipedes charged at her, she knew—

She raised the sphere of golden flames to her mouth and exhaled softly, Dragon’s Breath.

All at once, she unleashed an inferno into the nest of giant centipedes. Just as the Young Zarkoth had done in the memories she had seen. It wiped out everything in the room. The golden fire washed away everything as the monsters screamed.

Angel and Arjin backed away as the flames in the room melted even stone. They gaped at the destruction she wrought into the nest of giant centipedes.

Kara felt her dragonsoul shrinking as she unleashed her attack. But she felt the pool of mana gathered around it grow as the monsters died en masse. When she was finished, she was left panting, but also smiling.

“That should’ve taken care of all of them—”

But her eyes flickered. She frowned as she scanned the partially molten room. There were still a handful of giant centipedes that were wriggling on the ground, somehow still alive. They were mostly Juveniles, although there were a few Lessers that survived too. No more than a dozen in total. And while their carapaces were partially melted and their body covered in burn marks, they were still alive.

“How…?” she asked the question with wide eyes.

Did she overestimate her power? No— she had seen what Zarkoth had been capable of as a Young. She should have been able to do the same. Unless… she was somehow weaker than him, even with his dragonsoul?

A nearby Juvenile giant centipede picked itself back up and leapt at her. But she didn’t even bother to react. It didn’t matter if her Dragon’s Breath hadn’t been strong enough to wipe out the entire nest, because—

“I’m not alone.”

And a pillar of stone shot out of the ground, intercepting the monster. The attack crushed it against the ceiling as Angel stepped forward and created a spear made of stone. It shot forward, cutting through multiple of the injured Juveniles in a single swoop. The remaining Lessers squirmed where they lay, barely able to move because of their injures.

“Arjin, you too,” Kara said with a nod to the dark elf.

The former prostitute hesitated, clutching onto the silver dagger Dammir had given her. She looked down at its blood-stained surface. An orc’s blood. And she resolved herself.

She stepped forward and swung down at a Lesser giant centipede. But even though it was already hurt, her attack barely cut through its skin. Arjin squeaked as she nearly fell back when the monster continued wriggling.

Kara crossed her arms and spoke simply. “Good job, Arjin. But do it again, and put more strength into it.”

Arjin tightened her fist around her silver dagger and swung down again. And again. And again. She repeated this motion a dozen times until she was left panting. But the Lesser giant centipede was no longer moving either. It was dead.

She drew back and nearly sprawled on the ground.

“You did it.” Kara smiled, offering a hand.

Arjin looked up at the human for a moment, before she accepted the proffered hand.

“I… I did.”

“Now,” Kara said as she spun around to the entrance to the chamber. “We wait for the Adult to return.”

—--

Caius was nearly out of mana by the time he returned to the nest. While the Blink Blades were powerful artifacts, he couldn’t use them infinitely. Each time he teleported with them, he used a small amount of mana. It was surprising how little mana it wasted. He would have expected it to be much more. But whoever crafted these weapons must have been a master at creating mana-efficient enchantments.

Unfortunately, using the artifact dozens upon dozens of times still took its toll. Furthermore, the elf was also slightly tired from all the fighting he did earlier, in addition to using one of his most powerful Manacore Abilities.

So he hoped Kara was finished dealing with the nest at this point. Otherwise, the plan would have been completely compromised. He dropped a Blink Dagger right outside of the tunnel before he dashed into the room.

The Adult giant centipede was right behind him, snapping its massive mandibles for his neck. But his figure vanished, and it crashed into the room with an angry screech. It picked itself up, before pausing.

It saw the thin layer of smoke blanketing its surroundings, and it smelled the charred bodies. It looked down at where its nest had been. Then it paused. It saw the burnt corpses all around it. It saw its dead kin. It saw the ashes that had once been its eggs.

And it let out a screech of rage as a figure approached it from behind.

The Adult giant centipede turned to face who it was. She stood there, coated in golden flames and carrying golden claws in her hands. A wild smile was plastered across her face as she took on a wide stance.

“Sorry for doing this to your children,” Kara said apologetically. “But… you guys did attack us first. So I’m not that sorry, either.”

And the monster charged at her as she dashed forward. The two of them clashed in the room, golden sparks flying and illuminating the dark chamber. Caius, Angel, and Arjin stood by the edge of the tunnel, watching the fighting as it began.

“W-who do you think will win?” Arjin asked hesitantly.

Caius glanced at her, then looked towards Kara with narrowed eyes. “We’ll see.”

That was all he said as Kara exchanged blows with the Adult giant centipede.

—--

Kara was sent flying back as the monster crashed into her. Her Dragon’s Scales flickered and absorbed the brunt of the damage, burning the Adult giant centipede in return. It hissed as it reeled back, and she flipped in the air, landing lithely before it.

She raised her hands. Her Dragon’s Claws blazed brightly as she dashed forward once again. The Adult giant centipede swung its tail at her, and she slid under the attack, swiping up with all her strength. Her attack tore through the monster’s carapace as it circled away from her.

But she didn’t let up. She charged straight at it as it ran across the ceiling of the room. Her attack missed as she struck the wall of the room, breaking off chunks of rock. The monster flanked her quickly and smashed into her.

Kara reeled as she was dragged through stone by the Adult giant centipede, her Dragon’s Scales flickering, barely holding up against the attack. But as she regained her bearings, she tightly grabbed onto the monster’s carapace.

God Strike.

She swung out once, and the Adult giant centipede went flying with a shriek of pain. Looking up, Kara kicked herself off the wall and landed onto the monster’s back. She continued to tear into its broken carapace as she grinned savagely.

“I thought I was finally going to have a strong opponent. But—”

The monster whipped its body, sending her flying back. She was thrown back into the wall at incredibly high speeds, only to twist and land lithely with a smile still on her face. She held a ball of golden flames to her mouth. Enough time had passed since she destroyed the nest. So she unleashed her Dragon’s Breath as she screamed.

“You’re so weak!”

The Adult giant centipede was engulfed in the golden flames as it practically screamed in pain. Kara had thought that this battle would be more difficult. She remembered her encounter with the Soulmaster’s machine. She recalled her fight with Angel’s mother. She thought of all the times she had to wade through the storms of the Xor-In Mountains, narrowly avoiding the magical blasts of lightning.

The memories of everything she had been through since she arrived in Xantos to before she reached Alyona flashed in her mind. From running from the gargoyles to hiding from the stone golems that stood taller than any skyscraper she had ever seen. Kara’s heart raced in her chest as she recalled all this.

She could feel her blood rushing through her veins as the Adult giant centipede grabbed her with her mandibles and threw her at the ceiling. Even though her Dragon’s Scales were partially broken, and she was bleeding underneath, compared to everything she had been through before—

“This is nothing!” Kara yelled as she swung down at the approaching monster.

God Strike!

Her attack knocked the monster back again, shredding apart the last of its carapace. The rest had melted into its skin from her Dragon’s Breath. Kara could feel her dragonsoul flickering. She was running out of steam. But still, she pushed herself forward.

She leapt off the ceiling and crashed straight into the Adult giant centipede’s face. Her Dragon’s Scales faded away as she dug into it with her Dragon’s Claws, ripping apart its tough skin. It tried to throw her off, but she clung on tightly. And when that didn’t work, it began to smash her against the stone walls of the room.

Kara could feel some of her bones breaking with each hard impact, but she didn’t let up. She continued to tear into the monster’s head as it desperately tried to get rid of her. It was a battle of attrition at this point— to see who could whittle the other down into giving up first.

And after everything Kara had been through, she wasn’t going to lose.

The Adult giant centipede let out a whimper as her Dragon’s Claws faded away, and she punched through its flesh with her fist. It swayed back as its blood spurted out, before it began to fall. Kara threw herself off it as she felt the pool of mana surrounding her dragonsoul increase.

She grinned victoriously as the Adult giant centipede crashed into the ground, sending a pillar of dust into the air. And over at the entrance to the room, Caius, Angel, and Arjin watched the battle come to a finish.

“A-amazing…” Arjin whispered.

And Caius simply nodded approvingly.

Kara swayed where she stood, and Angel bounded forward. He caught her before she fell. She smiled back up at him.

“Thanks,” she said tiredly. “You always have my back.”

In response, he licked her with both his heads.

—--

And with that battle concluded, the group finally made their way out of the lower tunnels. Kara was too tired to walk, so Angel had to carry her on his back, forcing Arjin to walk. But the dark elf woman didn’t mind it.

After what Kara managed to do, Arjin was happy to let the human rest. It wasn’t like the former prostitute had done much during this entire trip anyway. The most she did was kill a single Lesser giant centipede. But it had been badly injured by Kara, so that wasn’t even much of a contribution.

And yet, Arjin had still been rewarded for it. For pushing herself to her limit. Her manacore had expanded. She could sense the changes. It wasn’t a small change either. She had advanced from a Tier 2 manacore all the way to a Tier 5 manacore all at once.

Her eyes fluttered shut as she continued climbing up the rope to exit the lower tunnels. Looking inwards, she saw her manacore there. It was barely cultivated in its power. But now, she could choose to reinforce the core with either a layer of glass or metal.

She knew that metal would enhance her physical abilities, while glass would enhance her magical abilities. And she wasn’t sure what to choose.

But then she thought of what she had just witnessed. The battle between Kara and the Adult giant centipede. It had been a brutal battle where both combatants were pushed to their limits. The way they both had fought had been completely animalistic.

It had been nothing like the elegant dances and artistic duels she had seen back in her home. This had simply been a brutal battle to the death. And Arjin thought…

It was amazing.

For the first time ever, Arjin hadn’t been reviled by the sight of battle and blood. She didn’t know if it was because she was starting to grow desensitized to it, or because of something else. But the way Kara had fought had completely disregarded everything Arjin had learned.

There were no attempts to strike at any weak spot or anything of the like. No focus on causing as much harm or damage to an enemy in as callous a manner as possible. Kara had simply brute forced her way through the monster’s chitin until she won.

And seeing that, Arjin made her decision on what she wanted to do.

That she wanted to become just like Kara.

So she layered her manacore with metal three times over as her brand new Manacore Abilities instinctively echoed in her mind.

—--

Caius didn’t know whether he should have been impressed or terrified of Kara. He had seen her in battle before, and he knew just how strong she was, but he hadn’t expected her to be able to defeat an Adult giant centipede.

He calmed his confused thoughts as he reached the top of the pit and saw natural light again coming from the glow moss growing around the deepest parts of the upper tunnels. Looking down, he stared at Kara who was clinging onto Angel’s back.

Are you even a human? the elf asked himself. Or are you a monster?

It wasn’t a question that was meant to condemn her. Rather, he found himself growing even more intrigued by her. He wanted to know more about her. While she had answered many of the questions he had asked her today, he had even more questions racing through his mind.

For example,how did she obtain her dragonsoul in the first place? How did she end up in the Xor-In Mountains? And what was a burger?

But most importantly, he wondered where exactly did she come from? She was nothing like the humans he had read about in the history books.

Caius wanted to know more about her. He wanted to spend more time with her. He wanted to understand her even more.

And he wondered if this was supposed to be normal with how people felt about their friends.

—--

After leaving the lower tunnels, the group immediately reported back what they discovered to Captain Bushra of the Twentieth Company. He was worried when they told him that there was a giant centipede nest located so close to the upper tunnels. He would have immediately sent a messenger out to request for reinforcements. But Caius stopped him, explaining what had happened— that Kara had cleared it out all on her own.

Well, mostly on her own.

Bushra hadn’t believed them at first, but after much reassurances, and even sending a patrol to check the nest, he was finally convinced of what happened when his patrol returned. So he apologized for his doubts and thanked them for their help, before he told them he would report this information to the Dark Lord.

For now, he told them all to rest.

Kara couldn’t lie and say she wasn’t exhausted and a little bit hurt after her fight with the Adult giant centipede. So she greatly accepted Bushra’s suggestion. But not before he gave her what he called a ‘healing potion’.

She took a few sips from it, and most of her superficial wounds faded away. Although the deeper gashes still remained. That surprised her. She had never experienced such a thing before. Even in this world of magic and monsters, she still found herself being surprised from time to time.

“Hmph, it is expensive and difficult to make,” Bushra said as he gave her the entire bottle. “Preserve it as best you can. There are very few alchemists and shamans in this city, and they will generally prioritize orders from the Dark Lord himself, so you would be hard-pressed to find a healing potion anywhere else.”

“Oh, thanks.” Kara gratefully accepted the rest of the bottle and pocketed it, saving the rest for a potential future use.

While Kara had certainly absorbed a considerable amount of mana from killing the Adult giant centipede, it wasn’t nearly enough to push her to the next stage of her dragonsoul. But she could tell her ascension was getting close. So she was going to try and delve into the lower tunnels again soon. Maybe alone. She hadn’t decided yet.

The group then made their way back towards the city section of the upper tunnels. No one really said a thing, all of them were too tired from the long trip to the lower tunnels. Even though it had only been about six hours since then— maybe seven— they were all exhausted.

But a few hours was a long time. Even if it didn’t seem like much, a lot could happen in that period, as Kara would soon learn. Because when she arrived at the city section of the upper tunnels, the entire place was in an uproar.

There weren’t riots or protests being thrown, but a susurration swept over the city. There were large crowds gathered, talking to themselves in hushed whispers. Even when they reached the edge of the upper tunnels and approached the main section of Alyona, the ambience in the air didn’t change. It was like there was a sense of dread hanging over the entire populace.

Kara glanced around quizzically as she hopped off Angel’s back. “What is going on?”

“I don’t know…” Caius narrowed his eyes and shook his head. “Let’s ask around.”

He stopped a passing group of dark elves as they seemed to huddle together and speak in worried voices.

“You haven’t heard?” one of the dark elves said with round eyes.

“No.” Kara shook her head. “Please, can you tell us what is happening?”

The group of dark elves exchanged nervous glances. They nodded at each other, and one of them stepped forward, before speaking up.

“Storms above, we still can’t believe it. We just received news of this an hour ago, so we don’t know if it’s true for sure. But—”

Caius’s eyes widened as the dark elf continued. Arjin’s jaw dropped, and Angel blinked a few times. And while Kara didn’t understand the full gravity of the situation, she still knew that the consequences were going to be enormous.

“The Sanctuary City of Vera was destroyed, and Dark Lady Orvana has been killed.”

Author's Notes:

5k words. It's my birthday today :) What thonk?