Chapter 13: Victory or Death

The Butcher’s cleaver followed its terminal arc, wounded arm unable to control the momentum of the monstrous weapon with as much ease as it had before. The wild swing left it open. Kaius was remiss to let the opportunity go to waste. Every second was another that his afflictions would continue to weaken him.

Stepping forwards, he brought his sword down in a heavy overhead strike. The Butcher lashed out with its free hand, trying to ward off his strike. It was successful, partially at least. Knocked off centre, his blade bit deep into its clavicle with a spray of rotten black blood.

The undead howled, infuriated by the injury. It lashed out with its fist. Trying to leverage its size and strength to crush him. Kaius flicked his sword, biting deep into the Butcher’s forearm as he turned the blow, grating against the bone. He didn’t fully escape unscathed, his wounded arm surging with agony from the force of the collision.

A hiss escaping his throat, Kaius disengaged.

His Health had already sealed his cuts, but whatever the undead’s skill-enhanced cleaver had inflicted him with was fighting against the purifying energy, forcing a constant expenditure to keep the wounds closed. Something he couldn’t afford, he barely had a pittance with the cap on his Endurance.

Drawing in another great breath, the Champion released another fearsome roar. This time the ability washed over him as pure, hateful, noise. Rapid Adaptation working quickly to rebuke the power before it could get its hooks into him

**Ding! You have resisted Fear: Call of Consumption**

Kaius moved through the wall of sound, swiftly engaging the creature while it was enraptured in the execution of its natural magics. He needed to cripple the beast. Slow it down.

He needed to go for its legs.

Before it could snap its jaws shut, he lunged. The tip of his sword lanced straight the thick rope of muscle above its knee. He withdrew and disengaged, watching as its leg buckled slightly under its prodigious weight. The Champions roar petered out with a squeal of pain and anger.

It lunged, trying to sever him at the waist. The blow was still fast, still backed up by monstrous strength, but it was slower. More manageable. He watched the heavy blade waver slightly as damaged muscles failed to work as they should.

He saw an opening, his skill twinging.

Side stepping the swing, he cut. His blade deepened the cut on the Butcher’s shoulder, parting flesh to grate against bone. He dragged the cut, stepping through to lengthen the incision and wrap it around the meat of the joint.

**Ding! Sense Weakness has reached level 20!**

Kaius ignored the notification, all his attention focused on the battle.

The ruined remnants of its shoulder tore and the Butcher’s swing collapsed, arm slapping weakly against its chest before dropping to its side. The massive iron cleaver clattered against the ground, the Champion no longer able to lift its arm effectively despite keeping a firm grip on its weapon. With a howl of frustration it swung at him with its free arm, stumbling slightly on its wounded leg.

Kaius turned the strike with the edge of his blade, allowing the undead’s own strength to carry through the cut. Biting deep into its forearm.

He danced back to disengage, watching the Champion’s fingers on its grow lax. He must have severed the ligaments.

Rapid Adaptation surged, finally stalling the creeping affliction in his veins. Getting its measure and stopping it dead. Slowly it pushed back, consuming and destroying the corruption hairsbreadth by hairsbreadth.

Finally, Finally, the battle had turned in his favour

Kaius turned his attention to his resources, more than aware that the corruption instilled by the Butcher’s contagion had wreaked havoc on his Health, forcing the energy to expend itself to ward off its deleterious effects.

Resources:

Health – 48/200 (2/min)

Stamina – 109/200 (2/min)

Mana – 120/120 (2/min)

His eyes widened, shocked at how low it had gotten. It was well and truly a race now. With how quickly the Blood Rot had drained his pool of regenerative energy, it would wreak havoc on his body as soon as his Health ran out. He could only hope that Rapid Adaptation would be able to purge the disease before that happened.

The Butcher scowled at him, thick hairless brows scrunching over its unnatural black eyes.

“Gonna. Eat. You.” It ground out, straining as if each word was a challenge.

The Champion lurched towards him, decidedly slower on its wounded leg. Kaius slipped around a clumsy swing of its cleaver, the undead leaning into the momentum of its body to attack. He cut into the calf of its uninjured leg as he pressed an opening in its guard. More black blood joined the growing pool covering the stone floor.

The Butcher was unfazed.

“Gonna. Flay. You.”

Throwing its whole weight into a heaving swing, the undead’s weakened leg slipped on the blood slickened stone. It stumbled. Kaius darted in, ducking under an outstretched arm poised to pull him into a deadly embrace. As he passed he sliced with his sword, severing its hamstring.

The Champion fell. It tried to push itself up, only for its leg to buckle under its weight, returning it once more to the cold stone.

“Crack. Your. Bones. Drink. Your. Marrow.” It hissed, staring at him in open hatred.

Kaius watched the creature, face twisted with rage at the sick fantasies it had lost itself in. Abandoning its cleaver, it hauled its bulk forward on wounded arms, lame legs kicking weakly in an attempt to assist the movement. It didn’t try to flee, lost in its own mindless hunger.

“Split. Your. Skull. Mash. Your. Brain. Tear. Your. Veins. Drink. Your. Blood. FEED! ME!” It wailed in impotent starvation.

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“Just fucking DIE!” Kaius screamed, the exertion making him feel light headed.

**Ding! Rapid Adaptation has reached level 13!**

The notification flashed through his mind, joined by the sensation of his skill bolstering, burning out his infection with renewed vigour. It was almost there, close enough that he knew he would purge the effects of the Champion’s skill before the last vapours of his health dissipated.

It didn’t make the process comfortable. He could still feel the noxious power curdling in his veins, a feverish red heat radiating from the site of his almost-healed wounds. Breaths came heavier than they should, and his limbs felt leaden. Each swing, every parry and dodge, drained him. Made his vision close it, like he had run a dozen miles without stamina.

He shook off the cloying lethargy, squaring his stance against the crawling Champion that left a trail of black in its wake.

“Meat.” it said, staring into his eyes.

Kaius took a steadying breath and walked towards the Butcher, careful to keep the point of his sword trained on the monster.