EPISODE 58:
SCALES AND TAILS
Vash lunged to one side, barely avoiding the Rat King’s charge. The creature skidded to a stop, claws scrabbling at the dirt and stone floor, turned without losing momentum and continued chase Vash by scent alone.
Vash thought, letting his drop. Warmth and color flooded back into the world, even though it was just the pale colors of shadowy moonlight. Vash shifted the flow of mana over into his Talent, focusing on agility. The boost to his reflexes gave him only a slight edge over the Rat King, who lunged and bounded over obstacles like they weren’t there.
Vash thought, turning towards the exit.
The Rat King put on a burst of speed and cut Vash off from his escape. Red-orange eyes glared at Vash with a feral cunning.
. Vash thought. It would still be several minutes before Corwin and Sera came to help with the other rats. I could call them for help, but they’d come running straight into a flood of rats and one extremely pissed off Rat King.
Vash watched the Rat King. It stood in front of the broken door, crouched and ready to fight, blocking Vash’s escape. It seemed pleased to wait, like it knew something was about to happen.
Vash turned, but suddenly felt teeth sink into his calf. He cried out in pain, kicking out his wounded leg to dislodge the dog-sized rat that bit him.
The rat scurried back, out of reach, and squealed in a combination of fury and triumph. Cool healing magic washed over him, his Guild Medallion pulsing in time with his heartbeat. The pain in his leg faded to a dull ache, but he could feel a burning sensation moving outwards from the wound. It was more than a simple bite.
Vash thought.
He didn’t have time to consider it. As soon as his attention shifted, the Rat King attacked. Vash dodged out of instinct, sending a quick pulse of mana into . The Rat King’s claw caught on Vash’s shirt sleeve, tearing it open but only grazing the skin underneath. Vash grimaced, feeling the same burn as the bite on his leg. His medallion quickly muffled the pain, but he could still sense it there, throbbing and growing underneath the mask of healing magic.
Vash thought while shuffling backwards, trying to put some distance between himself and the rats.
The scrabbling of claws and shriek of rats was getting louder. The rest of the nest was on its way up the tunnel.
Without taking his eyes from the Rat King, Vash extended his senses using Dungeon Sense. This time he focused on the rats, rather than the Scalebacks. In his mental map, the red dots reorganized themselves. A large red dot with a gold ring around it marked the Rat King, and a smaller red dot with no border appeared for the other giant rat. Flickering red dots, too many to count easily in the chaos, were swarming somewhere at the edge of Vash’s mental map. Vash put the rats coming up the tunnel out of his mind and focused on what was in front of him.
Using , Vash focused on the smaller Giant Rat. Even though he kept his eye on the Rat King, Vash could tell where the other rat was with no problem. He reached across his body and pulled out a small dagger. With a burst of speed, he flicked the dagger across his body, releasing it with an almost casual gesture towards the Giant Rat.
The dagger struck home, burying itself in the rat’s neck. The rat squealed in surprise and pain, while the force of the impact knocked it off its feet. It spasmed once after hitting the ground, then lay still. The small red dot on Vash’s mental map winked out.
The Rat King shrieked and surged forward, claws raking towards Vash in a wild frenzy. Vash drew his short sword and batted away the attacks, trying to maintain his guard while fending off heavy blows. Cuts appeared on the matted gray fur around the Rat King’s claws, blood staining them a deep crimson. It did not seem to care about the wounds, just attacking its chosen target.
Vash side-stepped, putting a barrel between himself and the Rat King. Before the creature could move around the barrel or vault over it, Vash kicked out, sending it crashing into the Rat King with all the force he could muster.
The barrel knocked the Rat King back a few paces and threw it off balance. Vash took the opportunity to draw his long dagger, giving him another option in the fight. The Rat King struggled free, flinging the barrel to one side where it shattered against the stone wall. It glared at Vash, coiling its body in preparation to strike again. Vash settled back into a stance the Eth Mitaan had taught him, one of the forms, useful against a charging enemy. In his mind he was already layering and , preparing for the Rat King’s charge.
From the commotion in the building above, and the sound of approaching rats, Vash knew he had little time left.
The Rat King shrieked, a horrifying sound that crossed the border between human and animal. It charged. Vash could feel it using mana, enhancing its speed and agility. Vash silenced his emotions, the pain from his wounds, and everything in his mind, focusing on the charging creature. He could see it clearly, even though the Rat King was moving too fast for a normal person to follow. The benefits of his Talents and the mental training needed to use them made the Rat King appear to move at a leisurely pace.
Vash pivoted, swinging his body out of the way of the charging Rat King. Once he planted his back foot, Vash lunged. Vash stabbed the Rat King through the neck, just behind the creature’s ear. The short sword slid into the deformed monster easily, arresting its movement with a sharp jerk. Releasing , Vash withdrew the blade, twisting it as he did so.
Blood poured from the wound in the Rat King, staining one side of the creature red. It staggered away from Vash, all appearances of speed and strength gone. Struggling to stay upright, the Rat King wobbled on legs that suddenly went to rubber beneath it.
Vash waited, letting the blood flow from the Rat King’s wound. He didn’t want to close and get struck by the creature’s death throes.
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“Nine gods, Vash!” Corwin swore. Vash turned to look, seeing Corwin and Sera in the doorway, weapons in hand. Corwin looked down at the mortally wounded Rat King, and the destruction from their battle.
“Sera was right.” Vash said, trying to get his breath back. “It was a terrible plan.”
The shrieks of Giant Rats surging up from somewhere beneath the cellar drew Corwin’s attention. “Those things will follow the Rat King, right?”
“That’s what it says in the .” Vash said, getting ready to land the killing blow on the Rat King.
“Hold on!” Corwin said. “I’ve got another terrible idea.”
A Nightscale slammed its shoulder into the door of with a resounding boom every few seconds. The heavy door flexed and shuddered in its frame, but hadn’t given way yet.
“That’s a solid door.” Vash remarked to Sera.
“Lucky for them.” Sera said, her hand touching Vash’s shoulder lightly. A pale green glow bloomed around his blades, and Vash felt the strange cool tingle of Celestial mana. “Or they wouldn’t have lasted this long.”
“Talk later.” Corwin said, grunting with exertion. “Time is a factor here.”
“I’m ready.” Vash said.
“Ready.” Sera nodded.
“Oy! Uglies!” Corwin shouted towards the Scalebacks.
A dozen scaled heads turned towards Corwin, eyes gleaming orange in reflected firelight.
“Present for you!” Corwin said and heaved the squirming Rat King at the Scalebacks.
Vash felt the surge of mana from Corwin and couldn’t help but smile at the sight of the Rat King flailing through the air. The Rat King landed hard, shrieking in rage, disorientation, and pain.
The Scalebacks stepped back for a moment, confused.
That was when the rest of the rats arrived.
They had timed it well, dragging the Rat King up the hill while Vash watched the Giant Rat nest follow on his mental map. He counted at least twenty small red dots in the roiling mass of angry rodents that swarmed up from somewhere deep below.
Angry rats ranging from the size of small terriers to nearly half the size of a man came scurrying up the hill. The furious rodents surged to protect their King. Leaping through the air, three of the rats landed on the first Scaleback they encountered. Within heartbeats, the lizard-man had rat bites all over its face, neck, and torso. The Scaleback staggered backwards, dropping its spear and clawing at the rats as they bit and scratched in blind fury.
Taken by surprise, the rats overwhelmed the Scalebacks, turning an organized raid into a mass panic. Nightscales could brush off the rats easily with minimal damage, but the regular Scalebacks were falling to the greater numbers of the rats.
It wouldn’t last long. The Rat King lay in the center of the confusion, blood coming slowly from the wound on its neck.
. Vash thought.
“Let’s go!” Vash called, dashing into the fray.
Corwin and Sarah let out wordless battle cries, following Vash.
A Scaleback lunged at Vash, spear extended. The pulse from his Core barely gave Vash enough time to react. He dodged, and the spear skidded along Vash’s ribs, leaving a deep gouge in the leather of his armor. Not wanting to waste the power from his blessed weapons, Vash rolled out of the way and let Corwin come in behind him. The Scaleback never saw the gleaming sword that hacked through its collarbone and sliced deeply into its torso. It was dead before Corwin kicked it in the back to dislodge the body from his sword.
Vash spotted his quarry. One of the Nightscales waded through the sea of rats, not even bothering to use its spear, just stomping them to death with its huge, clawed feet.
The Nightscale looked confused and disgusted as it waded through the rodent assault. Vash spotted a deep shadow behind the Nightscale. He cast out his aura like a net and hooked the shadow. Vash pushed mana into the formula for and pulled.
A sudden flash of darkness and a roar of silence. The sensation of moving through an ice-cold river. It was only a moment, but the sensation of a was disorienting. Vash emerged from the shadow at a run, the same speed as when he’d entered. Summoning , Vash lunged at the back of the oblivious Nightscale.
The blades struck true, Vash felt mana course through him, dealing the extra damage. The Nightscale staggered, dropping to one knee. A rat that it had about to crush darted in and bit hard at the back of the Nightscale’s leg. The damage from the Celestial mana had done something to the protection on the Nightscale. The rat’s bite gouged a chunk of flesh from the back of the Nightscale’s leg.
Hissing in rage and pain, the Nightscale swept its claw down at the rat, sending it flying through the air to hit the stone wall of the building with a dull splat. Vash took the distraction to land another pair of attacks. His short sword slid between the Nightscale’s ribs while his dagger sank into the flesh of its neck.
Black blood erupted from the Nightscale’s neck wound. It tried to stop the bleeding, dropping its weapons and bringing its clawed hands to its neck, but it was no use. Vash could feel the pulse of the Nightscale’s Core getting weaker. It slumped to one side and rats immediately swarmed all over it.
A sudden jolt from Vash’s Core made him dance back, instinctively. The heavy blade of a halberd chopped down, striking the earth where Vash stood a moment before. A Nightscale brought the halberd back up with ease and spun it around to take another swipe at Vash.
Fatigue was setting in. Vash could feel his mana reserves getting low. He couldn’t rely on Talents much longer, and who knew how long this battle would go on?
Vash thought.
Over the Nightscale’s shoulder, Vash could see Corwin and Sera dealing with the Scalebacks that the rats hadn’t killed. There weren’t many left, and the rats were dispersing. The Rat King’s circle finally winked out from Vash’s mental map.
Vash thought.
The green aura around his weapons was dimming. The blessing would only be good for a few more moments. Vash felt a tug on his Core. Swinging the halberd around its head, the Nightscale brought the weapon down with surprising speed for something so large. There was no way to counter or block a weapon like that. Vash darted in under the swing, tucking his shoulder and rolling beneath the sweep of the blade. He came up in a crouch parallel to the Nightscale. Vash let go of forms and Talents and just started stabbing.
Hissing, the Nightscale tried to sweep Vash away, but couldn’t get enough power behind its arm to do more than knock him slightly off balance. It tried to move back, away from Vash’s pistoning arms, but Vash just moved with the creature.
Each stab was harder than the last as the blessing faded, but the Nightscale’s side was a mess of blood and savaged meat. It was getting weaker, staggering, trying to get away. It dropped its halberd, lost its balance, and toppled to the ground. Vash leaped on top of it and stabbed it in the throat, eyes, neck, anywhere he could do damage.
“Vash!” Corwin called from somewhere nearby.
Looking up, it surprised Vash to see no more Scalebacks and no rats. The town square was littered with monster bodies. Corwin stood just out of arm’s reach, looking concerned. Sera behind him, giving Vash somewhere between impressed and frightened.
“I think it’s dead, buddy.” Corwin said, giving Vash a shaky smile. Corwin had a shallow gash on his right arm and a spreading bruise just below his eye. But his sword and armor looked bathed in the black blood of the Scalebacks. Sera’s robes had splatters of blood, both red and black, all along her sleeves and across the front panels. The glowing mace had disappeared, and everything seemed quiet.
Vash looked down at the Nightscale. What remained would be difficult to identify. In his fury, Vash had nearly obliterated the creature’s head.
Wearily, Vash stood up, feeling the battle fury fade. Bruises and cuts suddenly leaped into sharp focus now that his Guild Medallion wasn’t suppressing the sensations during battle. His leg still burned from the rat bite.
Vash thought.
The sound of a door being scraped over stone and wood drew Vash’s attention. He looked up to see the front door of being laboriously opened. The Nightscale’s attack had jammed the door and loosened the hinges, but it still worked.
Phaella stood in the doorway, she carried a small hand axe in one hand. “Is it over?”
Vash could see a crowd in the room behind her. It appeared to be mostly families from either the caravan or the refugees who had been crowding the square. One little girl, clutching to her mother in the doorway behind Phaella, stared at him.
Stares were nothing new to Vash. He’d endured stares of disgust and hatred his whole life, but the stare from this little girl was different. She stared at him in undisguised awe.
The monsters had been at the door, and he had charged in and slain them.
In her eyes, he was a hero.
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