“Gaaah!”
He shrieked with agony as the molten gold hit his face. The sword was only nullified as a tool if she used it carelessly. But Natalie would never make that mistake.
While Randy peeled the melted gold off his face, skin included, Natalie made her move, closing the gap on him.
“You’re finished.”
Right as her sword was about to cut off his head, Randy’s body crumbled. It turned into dust from head to toe, spilling across the floor.
Did she beat him? Or did he self-destruct?
The answer was: neither.
The tiny shreds began to move on their own, scattering across the floor. But they weren’t pieces of him—they were little Randies. Each was its own fingertip-size Randy, and they attacked en masse.
The fire earlier was just a teaser. This was his real ability.
“They’re like bugs.” Natalie grimaced. As they spread out, they swarmed around her. It was easy to knock them loose, but they were too small and numerous. You could stomp them, slash them, and swat them, but a swarm of thousands of Randies was just too much.
“Don’t stop moving. If they cover you, you’re finished… Just wait.”
At last I could move again. The temporary sun was useless, but I still had my brute force method, which might be enough. I hated to show off my secret method, but I didn’t have much of a choice. As I tried to stand up straight, Natalie was suddenly blocking my path.
“Who do you think you’re talking to?” she said, grabbing the back of my neck and hurling me one-handed. I slid across the floor until I bumped into the wall next to April. I guessed she didn’t want me underfoot.
“You’re responsible for her. If she gets hurt, I’m going to draw and quarter you, you big galoot,” she said before turning to slash at the little Randies, accurately severing their heads from their bodies. It was a level of dexterity I couldn’t match. Despite not having a usable dominant arm for years, she hadn’t lost an ounce of skill.
Many, many Randies died and turned to ash. But they continued to assault her. Their battle tactic was exceedingly one-note, but the numbers made it hard to handle.
“It seems you’re at your end,” said a voice like many buzzing wings. I realized that Natalie had been pushed into the corner of the basement. That was his goal; thousands of tiny Randies gathered underfoot. The moment Natalie glanced downward, a small blob of something fell from the ceiling.
“Above!”
Two Randies fell toward her, clutching one another with a small shard of metal between their bodies. They could easily catch her by surprise and slash her throat with it.
“Another cheap trick,” said Natalie, who had noticed, of course. She lifted her sword, but suddenly tilted her neck at an unnatural angle. I could see a tiny Randy on her shoulder, yanking on her black hair with both hands. Where did it come from? I realized the answer right away: the corner of the basement where the walls met.
He had been pushing her into the corner to take advantage just like that. Natalie swatted it away in a panic, but more Randies grabbed her legs and started to crawl up her body.
“Ah!”
Natalie shrieked and toppled over onto her face. They swarmed over her body.
“Natalie!” I bellowed. “You want help?”
“Has your memory gone soft, too?” she snarked, then lifted Dawnblade high. “You know this isn’t enough to beat me, remember?”
The next moment, the swarm of Randies exploded off her body.
“Sol est extrica, avasolus ix terra crea.” (The sun rules over all, absolute creator of heaven and earth.)
She must have learned how to use it ages ago. With that horrible, ear-splitting curse, wedge-shaped scales surged out of Dawnblade, knocking the divided Randies off her body.
For Arwin, the scales had been red, but Natalie’s were blue. The blue scales rapidly multiplied, encircling and covering her left arm as she rose to her feet.
“Torrisclade moa phosistoris.” (Deliver humiliating defeat and death to our enemy.)
Her arm was then covered by an enormous blue gauntlet.
“There we go.”
With a light little swipe, she created a maelstrom of blue flame. It danced, twisted, and cavorted with a mind of its own, swallowing up the divided little Randies. A rancid, burning smell filled the room, as did the screaming of little insects.
“Not done yet!”
Natalie vanished.
She sped around at blisteringly fast speed, exterminating the Randies with blade and flame. Her blue flames did not miss those that tried to squeeze into the cracks where the walls met. When they tried to flee into the treasure chamber, she burned only the Randies, not the treasure. It was not at all like when Arwin did this.
Are the properties of the magic different depending on the user?
Or is this just her innate skill?
The next thing I knew, there were no more Randies in sight.
For a moment, I thought he was truly gone, until I saw the moving soot along the floor, walls, and ceiling. Once again, they came together, swelling until they coalesced into that bald monkey form.
He was one tough bastard. Was there no way to be rid of him short of cutting off his head?
It was all having an effect, though. His body was gaunt, and his face was grim and deathly, all bones and skin.
“You…you will know my wrath if it is the last thing I accomplish with this life,” he snarled. At the very least, his willpower was still strong.
“With that body? You’ve only got moments left to do it.”
“Because that’s how long you have left?” smirked Randy, pointing. There was another tiny Randy brandishing a small piece of metal at Natalie’s neck. I’d thought that was all he had, but there was one more of the little things left.
“This is the end for you!” He cackled. The little Randy swiped the shard of metal at her throat. Natalie didn’t move.
With a harsh scrape, the shard slipped loose and fell to the floor.
Blue scales protected Natalie’s throat.
“I don’t think you heard me the first time, so I’ll repeat it,” she said, grabbing the little Randy and popping its head off with her thumb.
“Nothing you do matters anymore. You’re finished.”
The full-size Randy let out a little shriek, leaping up and fleeing down the tunnel on his hands and feet like an actual monkey. Natalie didn’t give chase. She let the sword point dangle just above the floor and steadied her breathing.
“You won’t escape me.”
Slowly, she swung the weapon up.
“Anima sol deus immortali est.” (The soul of the sun god is undying.)
A flash.
Blue light flickered in the dark, narrow tunnel. A casting of ghostly illumination against the wall framed the silhouette of Randy, his head separated from his body. He turned to black ash as he collapsed to the ground. I worried he would come back the way Levi had, but this preacher was a one-and-done. The ash dispersed into nothingness.
Silence returned.
Natalie sheathed Dawnblade and returned to the unconscious April, lifting her up.
“Thanks for the help.”
She was stupid but good at her job.
“Mm-hmm.” Natalie grunted, sticking out her hand. This was just the type of person she was.
“Here,” I said, putting a silver coin in her palm.
Her cheeks puffed out as she pouted. “Are you kidding? I risked my life fighting for you, and this is all you give me?”
“I’m broke. It’s all I can give.” I pointed toward the treasure room. “All that will belong to the squirt in the future. Send her a bill later, and she’ll pay you whatever you want.”
“If I take money from her, I’d be a bad guy.”
Who says you aren’t?
“Anyway, what’s up with Dez? Is he all right?” I asked.
“After I rescued him from the guards, an Adventurers Guild staffer came by and took him back to the guild. Apparently, there was some kind of emergency.”