Savage Awakening 449. Armor Break (I)

Most of the items were grayed out, but a few—the ones closest to him—were viewable.

An icon caught his eye: an up-arrow over a physique symbol.

Locked: Buff of Ultimate Vigor [Uncommon (D)]

No description he could see, but he had a solid guess about what it would do.

There was a bulk package of dreamsteel for sale, too. He still had a few dozen blocks of the stuff, but it was good to have.

There was more locked deeper in: bones, vials, strange plants.

He figured it wouldn’t be long before he could see them. He contemplated the icons as he munched on a plate of heavy dreamsteel.

Friend of the System, Tier II — 58% Progress

First things first—the thing he’d been working toward all this time.

He had all the Credits he needed now.

He seized hold of that third Shard.

***

Reina woke not long after. She got her bearings pretty fast—though she was a little embarrassed she’d been knocked out.

She was a little fuzzy on what had gone down at the end there.

“I’m pretty sure you drew Creation straight from the World Tree,” he told her.

She blinked. “I did?”

“You were incredible out there.” He was proud of her.

She flushed a little, then lifted her chin, grinning. “Maybe you shouldn’t be so surprised, Zane Walker.”

She had to set out for the World Tree not long after. She had to take care of the rest of the war.

“I’ll be right by you when the Final Challenge starts,” she promised him. That second challenge hadn’t shaken her at all, by the looks of it. She seemed more determined now, if anything.

They had one last picnic before she left, and a nice leveling session to boot.

Level up!

Essence Level 543 -> 544

She gave him a kiss. Then she was off.

***

Zane found a lonely plateau—a dwarf planet made mostly of sandstone. The sky lay open before him, gray and relentless.

It felt like his mind in that moment: calm but intense.

Then he held out a fist and crushed.

He sank into the vision.

***

The first thing he saw was a man.

Quite muscular, lanky—somehow familiar.

A man rife with the aura of the Titan Rhino.

Just by his Vitality, you could tell he was Empyrean.

He had long, scraggly hair, windswept. But he’d been beaten up pretty bad. Chains bound his wrists and legs, chains runed with immense Corruption.

Thousands of chains sank into the walls of a dank cell.

A narrow well of stone rose thousands upon thousands of feet. No light at the end of that tunnel.

But if the man was bothered at all, he didn’t show it.

He sat there, watching the uncertain sky, grinning.

Zane would know that grin anywhere.

He was much younger—early Empyrean, by the looks of it. He had none of the scars he bore now, though.

Crimson eyes sliced open the darkness. Each eye the size of a man. Crowded into the cell, invading. A heavy aura descended…

The runes began to flicker.

Barbarian Sage. At last.

“That’s the one!” said the Sage cheerfully. “Say—you’re that big ol’ snake, aren’t you? The one they call the Monster Overlord… To think you’ve heard of little old me.”

He chuckled. “Guess I’m more famous than I thought.”

You have been a nuisance to Lord Malzareth for a very long time.

“I’ll say.” The Sage stretched his neck. “How many of those meatheads did I take down? Had to be at least a dozen. Still had to jump me from behind to get me down though, eh? Dirty move, that…”

The red eyes twitched. It appears you do not understand the severity of your situation.

“Tell you what,” said the Sage, sitting up. “Why don’t you let me out of these here—”

He shook his chains. “Let’s have a duel. Man to man! Man to snake? Then—”

Extreme white slashed the air.

Destruction concentrated in one stark line. It struck the Sage’s body—but it struck him deeper in the soul. He groaned, then swore.

Even Zane had to wince.

He’d felt that pain in his Minor God breakthrough. It was one of the worst he’d ever felt.

Malzareth slammed another slash that nearly knocked the Sage unconscious.

Zane clenched his jaw. But all he could do was watch.

Humans… Malzareth’s gaze lorded over the Sage’s prone body. Such irritating creatures. A weak, insignificant race, little more than dust. And yet, filled with such… hope.

The Monster spat the word with utter disgust.

Hope. Six eyes narrowed to slits, leaned down over the Sage. The nature of man, it hissed. Is to grovel!

The Sage managed to get off the ground, barely conscious.

Let me show you what you are.

An immense pressure descended, crushing the Sage flat down. Those chains exploded with Corruption, digging like hot knives into the muscle, the bone—for a few seconds, the Sage just spasmed, teeth gritted.

When it stopped, the Sage lay still.

A knife of white hovered over his head. An executioner's blade. An unseen force peeled his head off the ground.

Anything else you’d like to say?

The Sage coughed blood, squinted blearily.

“Yeah,” he croaked. He grinned. “Suck my nuts.”

There was an immense flash of white. It sent the Sage spasming again.

Very good, hissed the serpent. Did you imagine yourself the first impertinent human to face me?

The Barbarian Sage was starting to groan; his eyes were rolling back.

But man is a fragile creature. Its voice grew more gleeful as the Sage writhed. Though Zane could still hear the fury in it. Your kind cannot take this punishment.

The crimson intensified until the Sage’s soul flickered.

Nine days and nine nights… that is how long it took Lord Malzareth to break Ancestor Steelheart, the greatest of your race! Nine thousand, six hundred, and forty-three cuts. And his mind cracked like a Roc’s egg…

The eyes came up close. Your secrets will be mine sooner or later, little human. Or say them now. And I might be moved to mercy.

Malzareth gave the Sage a moment to recover. Just enough to speak.

When he did, he grinned defiantly.

“Why don’t you go take a hot spear and shove it up your—”

Malzareth slashed him into oblivion.

***

Zane gritted his teeth. His Asura body started heating up.

The vision didn’t end. Scene after scene went on like this.

It had to be days later. The Barbarian Sage lay face down this time, groaning in a pile of his own blood…

In just days, his body had wasted away. Emaciated. Wrecked by the weight of Destruction.

It hurt for Zane to see any strong man, any strong Rhino, ruined like this. Especially when it was the Barbarian Sage.

But the Spirit of the Rhino, the blood, still ran strong in him. In his soul as much as his body.

The Sage stayed alive.

Giant red eyes sliced through the dark.

The Sage’s head was hung. Then—“Alright,” he croaked. “I thought long and hard, and… I’ll talk.”

The eyes lit up with glee. Excellent.

“I have a statement to make.”

He took a rattling breath. “How about you suck my nuts, you overgrown—”

Malzareth let out an ear-piercing screech. In an instant, he’d slashed the Sage unconscious.

The Sage was laughing as he blacked out.

***

The same scene played out over and over. The Sage kept up his defiance—and suffered for it.

Zane hated watching it.

The more the Sage stayed stubborn, the more fury built up in those crimson eyes—he could almost feel the great Serpent seethe.

***

This can end at any time.

“I haven’t told you a damned thing for the past—what—two months?” rasped the Barbarian Sage. “What makes you think I’ll start now?”

You think yourself beyond my powers, hissed the Monster. But I can feel you breaking.

“Nine days, nine nights, eh?”

Malzareth shrieked and destroyed him.

***

Over, and over, and over. The sight of that Destruction was burned in Zane’s mind.

Scar after scar after scar… each Destruction slash stayed on the body.

Sometimes the Sage didn’t even move anymore. Couldn’t even muster the strength to retort. He just lay there in that pool of blood.

It was hard to tell if he was broken.

***

Then, one day…

Your soul is shattering. The glee had come back in Malzareth’s voice. Can you feel it, little human? Feel your sanity shattering?

The Sage shuddered. One eye fluttered open and met Malzareth’s own.

You thought yourself beyond Malzareth’s powers… There is no such thing.

“Maybe,” rasped the Sage. He cracked a weak grin. “You sure showed me. Learned a lot down here… All that Destruction… I’m losing it a little.”

You have lost, human.

It took a huge effort for the Sage to shrug. “You make a good point. On the other hand, there’s something you haven’t considered.”

What?

He reached down with one trembling hand, and grabbed his crotch.

Malzareth hit him so hard he almost killed him. But by the look on the Sage’s face, it was worth it.

This time, the scene didn’t fade when the Monster left.

The lights kept shifting in the prison. Hours passed.

Slowly, the Sage woke. Shook his head. Sat there for a few minutes, catching his breath…

Zane knew the Barbarian Sage. In this moment—alone—his eyes were wide, red-rimmed, cracked.

The old guy was tough. But he was rattled bad.

The kind of Destruction his soul had to bear…

“Bastard.” The Sage spat. Then he chuckled. “Credit where credit’s due, though. Almost got me there. Just a few more days, and… that would’ve been it.”

Then his grin hardened.

“Too bad.”

Then he stood on torn tendons.

“I really did learn a lot down here.”

And Destruction flared at his wrists.

The same color as his scars.

The Sage let out a strangled roar—

The Corruption runes on his chains went furious white, Destruction white, extreme white. The chains cracked with a spiderweb of that same white.

It all shattered. One by one.

The chains blew off their hinges, blew off his wrists, shattered like firecrackers all the way up the tunnel—

Alarms in the astral plane. Crimson eyes opened in darkness; there came an otherworldly shriek. A presence descended, trying to force its way into the world—

“Hey, you big bastard!” roared the Sage. He flipped an obscene gesture, grinned, saluted. And rocketed off into the void.