The Hero of Vengeance

Chapter 13: Black Ooze

Cain roared as he stomped the ground below him.

It cracked from the strength of his foot and he glared at me.

Jax stepped towards Cain with his sword pointed at him.

"You're not laying another grimy hand on Mizik. I don't know what the hell is going on here, but Maul asked me to protect him with my life!" Jax waved his sword and shouted.

"Then I'll just see how strong your resolve is, weakling!" Cain lept...and I mean jumped twenty feet into the air and slammed into the ground where Jax had been standing.

Jax had hopped back and struck with his sword.

"BERZERKER STRIKE!" Jax shouted with all his might as he brought the greatsword down onto Cain.

Cain didn't bother to dodge and caught the blade on his black arm.

I could feel the heavy impact as the ground cracked below Cain.

"RAMPAGE!" Jax began wildly swinging his sword at Cain from multiple angles.

Cain parried and blocked the attacks effortlessly, but with each impact, I heard a loud crack.

Jax is strong...but it doesn't look like he's having an effect on him!

Cain grabbed the blade with his black arm while Jax was in mid-swing and punched him square in the jaw with his free hand.

Jax didn't even flinch and thrust his head forward in a jump, slamming Cain on the bridge of his nose.

Cain doubled back in pain clutching his face with his regular hand and glared at Jax.

I saw Jax give him a wide smile.

"So only that crazy-ass arm of yours is immune to my attacks? Then that means I'll just have to aim somewhere else!" Jax reset his stance and shot to Cain's right side where his normal arm was.

Cain's eyes went wide and he tried to turn but it was too late.

"VANGUARD ASSAULT!!!" Jax slammed into Cain's side and delivered several heavy slashes before bringing his blade down the center.

Cain's normal arm was severed clean off at the shoulder and Jax's sword cut deep into Cain's torso.

"GAAAHHH!" Cain screamed as blood sprayed out of him.

However, his blood was a much darker red than normal.

Jax jumped back as to not be splashed by the vile substance.

Suddenly, Cain's side convulsed and more of the black ooze came forth to form a secondary arm.

Jax's eyes went wide as Cain roared with laughter.

"I love this!!! I feel invincible!! I-..."

Cain's eyes went wide in horror all of a sudden.

He opened his mouth wide as if to scream and started coughing up blood as well as the black ooze.

His face twisted in agony and suddenly Cain's body began to convulse and warp. His skin went from being pale to pitch black and his eyes glowed a dark purple. I saw his blonde hair turn to white as his teeth warped into razor sharp spikes.

Black tentacles sprouted from his back and he grew to twice his normal size.

"GRRROOOOOOOAAAAARRRR!!!!!!!"

Cain roared at Jax and I saw his eyes go wide in fear.

"Hey, what the fuck is this!? WHAT IS THAT CRAZY SHIT!?!?"

WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING!?

I felt terrified. This thing...this...Abomination...was this the kind of thing that black ooze could create!?

As it stood there, the feeling of doom that came off the monster intensified greatly.

My legs barely had any strength. The toll from 'Rage of Iratus' was a steep one if you couldn't kill your opponent before it ended.

Even so, I used everything I had to stand up straight. However, I quickly lost my balance and fell backward.

I heard Jax's heavy footsteps and he stepped in front of me.

"Mizik, we need to get the hell out of here! I don't think I can kill that thing!"

"Jax, you run away. Get everyone out of here. I'll see if I can't buy some time to-"

"And just what the hell are you gonna do to that thing in your current state, Mizik? You can barely stand!!!" Jax interrupted me as I tried to protest.

It was true. I could barely stand at the moment, let alone fight. What was I thinking? Did I want to die that badly!?

No...I wanted to repay these people! To thank them even with my life, if possible!

The monster that was formerly called Cain looked this way as it stepped forward. It was looking directly at me.

"I'll see if I can buy time for you to get to safety. Get up, crawl if you have to. But warn everyone. Tell them to evacuate the area and run away! Got that?" Jax said with a nervous smile.

"Jax, no! There has to be another way!" I sat up and tried to stand as I spoke. My body felt extremely heavy at the moment.

"If you think of one, let me know. Sorry, Mizik, but I wasn't planning on bein' a hero today..." Jax said nervously as he turned forward to face the slowly approaching horror.

Come on! Think!!! What can I do right now!? Am I really so weak!?!?

[Use me. Kill them all. Destroy your enemies! You have my power!]

I shook my head as I began hearing the strange menacing voice again. Now was not the time to go crazy.

I racked my brain thinking of anything I could do.

An idea formed in my head and I pulled out my trusty crossbow.

While barely standing, I focused and aimed the weapon straight.

"Piercing shot!" I shouted as a bolt was launched straight towards the monster's head.

The bolt buried itself halfway into Cain's forehead and he strode on towards us without flinching at all.

The bolt fell out as the flesh on his head shifted and regenerated.

How do you even fight something like this!?

Cain transformed one of his arms into an ax and swung it down at Jax.

If he moved, it would hit me. But if he stood still, he would be the target.

"Steel wall!!!" Jax shouted as he held up his sword in defense and a barrier formed around him.

The ax from the monster slammed down into Jax's sword and caused the ground to shake. I was thrown off balance from the force of the impact and saw Jax's sword shatter.

What I saw next would probably haunt me for the rest of my life.

The tentacles on the back of the monster shot out and pierced through Jax's torso and wrapped around him.

He screamed in pain as he was lifted off of the ground.

The back door to the Inn opened behind me and I heard Maul rush outside.

He stopped just behind me and gasped in horror.

The abomination had unhinged its jaws and enlarged its mouth. It began eating Jax whole.

Jax screamed in agony as the teeth tore into his body and looked at us in desperation.

"RUN AWAY! GET OUT OF HERE!"

Suddenly I felt Maul's huge hands grab me and yank me through the back door. He slammed the door shut behind us and locked it. Maul carried me as he ran back to the dining hall.

As we walked into the hall, I could see that the knights under Cain had been knocked unconscious and tied up. Several normal adventurers were standing around looking on. Likely they had heard the commotion and came running. I saw Rose as well.

"Mizik! You're alive!!!" Aria shouted as she ran over to us.

"Aria, we gotta get the hell outta here right now. Everyone, forget your things. We can come back later. We gotta move!!!" Maul spoke rapidly and loudly for everyone to hear.

Maul set me down and Rose ran over.

"What do you mean? What's going on and where the hell is Jax!?" Cleo asked with a look of fear in her eyes.

Without a doubt, they had heard the sounds. They had to have...

"Jax is dead. He got eaten by some...monster out there! That Cain guy turned into it!" Maul shouted as tears welled up in his eyes.

I saw a look of despair and horror enter Cleo's usually calm face.

She teared up and held her hand over her mouth. Everyone else looked on in horror as they heard.

"Mizik! What happened here!? Who did this!?" Rose asked.

"The guy who evicted me from my home... The reason my dad died. Knight Captain Cain. I don't know how he found out..." I said.

"I kept the secret, I promise! But don't worry, I'll help in any way I can!" Rose said.

"I believe you, Rose. I didn't doubt you for a second," I said.

"Thank you...I'm sorry about Jax..."

"Don't be..."

Everyone else looked ready to break down in tears.

But for me? I felt nothing but searing rage at that monster...

[YES! MAKE THEM PAY!]

I shook my head again as I was assaulted by the strange voice.

Then, it happened.

We heard a loud crash from the back of the building.

The other adventurers that had been confined to their rooms had begun pouring into the dining hall.

Rose stepped forward and raised her shield.

We all heard the heavy footsteps and crashing of the monster heading this way.

The monster exploded into the dining hall and immediately the 'brave' adventurers recoiled in fear. They ran away screaming.

The monster had blood all over its mouth...Jax's blood.

"Wh-wh-what is that!?!? What is that thing!?" Rose said fearfully.

"That...is the Knight Captain. That black ooze stuff turned him into a monster!" I said.

"Black...Ooze...?" Rose said.

"It's what I'm calling that weird black stuff that infects everything it touches. Have you seen it?" I asked.

"I've heard of it. The stuff warping the landscape in our world?" Rose said.

I nodded.

"GRRRRROOOOOAAAAAARRRR!!!!!" The monster roared.

I have to do something here! I can't just let this thing kill everyone!

I quickly looked in my inventory for something to use.

That's when I saw the magic sword 'Vengeance' sitting where it always had.

Something seemed different about it this time, somehow.

I looked at the item's information.

{Item name: Legendary Magic Sword 'Vengeance'

Description: A magic sword of incredible power that has chosen the wielder [Mizik Iratus]. This sword is capable of unleashing devastating magic attacks and uses the wielder's own rage to strengthen its blade. Once this blade has picked a target, none may escape its wrath.

Quality: Divine Mythical.}

[May your enemies flee in terror for the day of reckoning has come.]

Hp: +400

Mp: +600

P.attack: +500

M.attack: +600

P.defense: +300

M.defense: +400

Acc: +200

Eva: +400

Spd: +300}

YES!!!

I felt a surge of excitement within me as I saw it. I reached into my inventory and grabbed the sword.

Suddenly, I felt something come over me.

A haze went over my mind.

I started to hear a voice in my head again.

[I can feel your rage. Your potential. I have long-awaited someone worthy to wield me. I choose you, warrior. Accept me and we will have VENGEANCE!]

{MAGIC SWORD: [VENGEANCE] WOULD LIKE TO BIND TO [MIZIK IRATUS]. ACCEPT?}

ABSOLUTELY!

I equipped the sword in my hand and pulled the sheath straight off.

Immediately I felt an incredible power surge into me.

I saw several words that appeared in front of my eyes and spoke them allowed.

"VENGEANCE!!! I CALL UPON THE BLADE OF THE OVERSEER!!! COME AND GRANT ME YOUR UNLIMITED POWER!!!" I shouted.

"Vengeance!?" Rose said suddenly.

The blade was long and curved like a scimitar. It was dark gray with light blue runes written in an arcane language engraved on the blade.

The abomination, which had been looking around the room sizing everyone up, suddenly stopped and stared at my sword.

"GROOOOOOOOOOHHHH!!!" The monster let out another piercing roar.

"Maul!!! Get everyone back!! I'm going to kill this thing!" I shouted. Maul took a moment to see what had happened to me and nodded.

"Give that bastard one for Jax, you hear?" Maul said desperately.

I nodded and faced the monster.

Maul began evacuating everyone towards the entrance.

"Now, let's see how powerful this thing is..." I mumbled to myself as I lifted the sword to fight.

Cain charged at me and swung his ax downward.

It seemed slow. I easily avoided it and swung the magic sword at his arm.

It sliced through with no issue and severed the arm clean off.

The monster roared in anger and sure enough, another arm grew back as the previous one melted down and combined with its owner.

It seemed like this thing didn't have a weakness upfront. How would someone kill it?

My thoughts were interrupted as the back tentacles from the monster shot towards me.

"Lunar slash!!!" I shouted as I sliced and diced the tentacles to pieces as they came at me. After that, I jumped back to avoid another strike.

Let's try something else!

This was a magic sword after all.

"Chain lightning!!!" I held out my sword and the runes glowed brightly. Suddenly electricity sparked along the blade and shot out in an instant with a thunderous roar.

The lightning hit Cain and he screeched in agony as he was electrocuted.

Unfortunately...the attack did little more than piss him off...

Cain looked down and charged straight towards me in rage.

He had changed one of his arms to a mace and the other had reformed into an ax. I focused on simply evading the attacks and trying to see if I could find a pattern in its attacks.

There were none, of course. The monster was just really pissed off and could only attack randomly.

I could probably keep this up for a while, but after remembering what happened when Jax inflicted serious damage, I was worried. I definitely had the power to win. That much was clear to me. However, I needed a decisive victory. If I could find a weak point and kill this thing before it could regenerate...

I could win this fight easily.

[Take my power! Use it to your advantage!]

I heard the voice of the blade speak in my mind again.

Suddenly a message flashed across my eyes.

{Cooldown on skill: 'Rage of Iratus' reduced! The skill is now available for use.}

Perfect.

I held the sword up and pointed it at the monster.

"RAGE OF IRATUS!!!" I shouted at the top of my lungs.

As I prepared to feel the same bloody rage that normally came with the skill, I was shocked to find myself relatively calm.

I could still feel the adrenaline pumping and I felt incredibly angry, but somehow...the sword seemed to be keeping me focused.

The green aura radiated around my body.

I felt far stronger than before at this point as well.

I looked at the sword as I saw the light blue runes and gems on the sword turn blood red.

The monster seemed to notice the change and took a step back.

Too late for that, you bastard!

"ASSAULT SLASH!" I called out the name of the skill and shot forward at the beast.

I leaped into the air and brought my sword down to the monster.

The blade glowed with red energy as it solidified an extended blade and cleaved the monster in half down the middle.

As the two halves fell apart, tendrils shot out from either side to pull the pieces back together.

I called out another skill name.

"LUNAR SLASH!!!"

My blade sliced and diced the monster as it halted its regeneration.

Lastly, I shouted one final ability.

"CRITICAL SLASH!"

My hand moved on its own and the sword shot forward into the area where Cain's heart would have been.

If he had one, the rotten bastard.

I felt something shatter as my blade pierced his chest and a pulse of dark purple energy radiated out from the monster.

Immediately, the tendrils that had been trying to pull the monster back together with melted into the black ooze, and the rest of Cain's mutated body fell to the floor with a loud thud.

I heard no sound. No screech, no words.

The monster lay dead at my feet.

A message flashed across my eyes.

{You have defeated ???ENTITY????}

{CANNOT CURRENTLY PROCESS EXP VALUE.}

What the actual hell is that supposed to mean? What is this thing, exactly?

My attention was drawn back to the dead monster as a heavy purple haze rose from it.

I backed away from the corpse and studied it for a bit as I held my blade at the ready. Prepared for anything.

Rose stepped in front of me and raised her shield.

"Mizik! Don't worry! If it gets back up, I'll help you! Sorry...I was afraid..." She said.

"It's okay, Rose. I trust you," I said.

The body began to deflate and soon after, the entire corpse had melted into a puddle of Black Ooze. The liquid shrank into a smaller puddle and sank into the floor without a trace.

I was in disbelief. That Ooze had completely absorbed Jax and Cain. It left absolutely nothing behind. Not even Cain's clothes or remaining armor pieces. Nothing at all from Jax, either... It was like nothing had even been there.

Immediately after it was gone, everyone flooded back into the Inn and surrounded me and Rose.

There were a lot of tearful hugs and they all praised me for my strength.

When my skill wore off, I only felt somewhat tired instead of collapsing like normal.

Despite all of these things, I couldn't stop thinking about that Black Ooze.

What was it? Where did it come from? And why was it here?

The more I thought about it, the more questions I seemed to have.

Nevertheless, after a lot of celebrating, I went back to my room and got cleaned up. Rose wanted to talk to me as well in private.

Once I had finished showering, I met her in my room.

Actually...I was a bit nervous about having a girl in my room... But all things considered, it was the least of my concerns.

"So...this is your room, huh? It's really clean," Rose said.

"Well...yeah. My new room, that is. My old one was in the other house. But, you wanted to talk to me...?" I said somewhat nervously.

"Right! Sorry! Umm...about Jax..."

I held up a hand to stop her.

"That monster ate him...right in front of me. I really don't want to remember it right now... If I start crying, I won't stop..." I said.

I was already doing everything in my power to hold myself together.

I didn't need to break down here.

"Then I'd like to ask you something else. About this...Black Ooze?"

I nodded.

"Do you know anything about this substance?" Rose asked.

"No. It killed my father and left me as an orphan. All I know is that it can make the landscape change shape, create monsters, and turn people into them," I said.

"Has this been going on for a long time down there?"

"I started seeing it four months ago on the day my father died. Shortly after, I saw it in the sewers after I finished my...business down there."

"Then Lorelei might not be safe enough for me to stay much longer..." Rose said.

It hurt to hear her say that, but I understood.

"When will you be leaving?" I asked.

"Soon. I can't say, but what about you? That sword you used is really amazing. What is it?" Rose said.

I stopped to think for a moment and pulled Vengeance out of my inventory.

This sword was amazing.

I secretly wondered to myself how special this sword was.

"I don't know, exactly... I got it from a pawn shop here in Lorelei. My dad arranged for me to get it," I said.

"I see. Will you be staying here?"

"They discovered my crimes. I don't think I can. Are you going back to Albatross?"

Rose nodded.

"Would you let me travel with you? I need to go to Noir. We can stay together at least until we make it to Albatross...if that's okay..." I said.

"I would love to travel with you, Mizik. I can't go to Noir, but at least let me take you to Albatross, okay? You can stay in the city for a couple of weeks until you're ready to leave for Noir."

"Then it's settled. We'll leave for Albatross soon. I might need a day to prepare, though."

"That's fine. I can wait another day. Trust me...I don't really want to go back..."

I wanted to ask why she didn't seem happy about returning home, but I would have plenty of time for that during our trip to Albatross.

Still, I was worried about something else.

"Hey Rose, do you think that the city guards are going to pursue me? If I get caught, you could be in trouble, too," I said.

"Hmm...good point. Don't worry, I'll think of something. My uncle knows the Duke, so maybe he can put in a word... We'll see!" Rose said.

"Thank you, Rose. I don't know what I'd do without you..." I said.

"Don't mention it. We're friends, right? Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow!"

After we said our goodbyes, I went straight to bed.