CHAPTER 103: CHAPTER 102: COCYTUS PART 4

"What!? If we go back empty-handed..."

"He wasn’t making idle threats, you are completely at his mercy now and according to the future; if we stay here then in eighteen minutes and forty-three seconds he has full command of our powers and we lay dead. If that happens, then Father will be completely unprepared."

Cocytus growled. "I’ll go for now, try and get a measure of his power... Don’t worry about causing a mess."

"Fine, I have nine and half minutes until I can’t portal anywhere and thirteen minutes until he steals my power and kills me. Tell Father he has already left Dracula for dead as well, I saw it in his memories."

Cocytus’ eyes widened and he flinched away from Carl, wondering how the mortal managed it. He quickly remembered the way they all felt a disturbance the previous door and everyone who looked, including their Father, had their eyes robbed from them.

"How the hell did he do it?..."

"It wasn’t clear, like he wasn’t controlling himself."

"A devoted conduit... Just as Father thought. Hold out for five minutes, I’ll be back with reinforcements. Don’t forget, my creator is here as well."

Without warning and almost so casually it made Cocytus wonder "who?" for a split second, the sound of fingers snapping echoed, Eckro disappeared and then several ice stakes appeared to skewer anyone in the place he had disappeared from.

"You know, this is a cool move, but it lags quite a bit... I wonder..." Carl kept focused on Eckro and snapped his fingers over and over as quickly as he could.

Cocytus was standing frozen watching the one-sided game of cat and mouse, then all of a sudden Eckro appeared in front of him. For a split second he thought Eckro had betrayed him after all, but then he noticed he had actually blocked a physical attack meant for him.

"Brother, I can’t protect you and fend him off, the future has already changed a dozen times. I think we should both leave immediately, but if you still aren’t convinced I’ll hold out as long as I can."

"Oh! I get it now!" Carl’s declaration robbed their attention, wondering what the hero could have just figured out. "Infinity is the beginning and the end and everything in between but it is also each thing between, not just eons and eternities but seconds and even milliseconds, that’s how you measure so accurately."

"What!? How is he deciphering laws in the midst of battle!? Eckro, come! We cannot allow him to learn anything more from you!"

"Agreed, the hero is a monster it seems."

Cocytus opened a portal, but Carl forced it closed as they were about to step through. "Just a bit more... I need to try this out a bit."

"We have no choice, distract him, I’ll try to find a moment to get us out of here. Don’t rely on the laws though, show as little as possible."

"I’ll do my best." Eckro lunged forward and swiped at Carl, but he had moved a scarce millimeter out of range.

"A bit closer than I planned, this focused foresight thing is tricky." Carl jumped back and gestured for him to try again.

Eckro stopped though, he knew he had to give it his all, but he was concerned that he might overdo it. Carl sensed the hesitation however and rushed in with a feint, accounting for the foreseen dodge, then followed through into the real attack which connected solidly.

Eckro grunted, but the difference in their basic stats made Carl’s seven digit strength practically nothing.

"I see, you have all that power with laws and skills, but your body is still rather we-" His analysis was interrupted when Carl emitted some kind of pulse that sent him hurtling through several pillars.

Carl cheered and made his own analysis about Eckro needing to focus to see the future, then fell victim to that same shortcoming as Eckro appeared behind him and kicked him across the cavern.

He immediately changed into his ice form so he could pass through the pillars, but the strike had broken several ribs and pain streaked through his body and made it hard to maintain his altered body.

He sacrificed some MP to restore his health and heal the damage, but it took a ridiculously large chunk and he wouldn’t be able to do it more than three times.

"Hmmm... What about that icicle shot ability that Cocytus was using?"

Carl pictured the ice forming and they did appear, but when it cost divinity to create the ice from nothing, he switched to transmuting the ice in the pillars.

In just a few seconds, dozens were moving towards Eckro as fast as any bullet that Klaire could shoot.

"He stole that from me as well?"

"FOCUS! That should have killed him, if he has the strength to counter-attack we’re missing something."

As Eckro, ducked, dipped, dodged and weaved between them, one missile got directly above him, then suddenly changed direction and dropped straight down...

Eckro took a single step back to avoid it, but as it hit the ground it shattered and Carl emerged from within and unloaded a volley of blows in ice form. Each one was devastating and left Eckro wondering what the hell was going on.

"His stats must have changed with his form." Cocytus deduced, studying the exchange.

Eckro managed to focus enough to read the future and dodged a strike that made Carl lose his momentum. Eager to get some distance between them and Carl, he seized the opportunity to punch Carl across the cavern again.

As the clawed fist connected with Carl, Eckro rolled back onto his feet, wiping his purplish-black blood from his lip.

"The hero is insane, your size makes hiding in a projectile an issue, but the fact he controlled the trajectory from inside so accurately is impressive."

"Indeed, he isn’t just using my techniques, he is actually refining them to suit himself. If he ever managed to steal Father’s abilities..."

"Yes, horrifying... There must be limits though, otherwise he would be using all of Dracula’s techniques. Which begs the question; What are they?"

"Simple, I fed Dracula’s soul to my wife... I’m not a weirdo, she’s a banshee."

"A human married to a banshee is a weirdo, or at the very least a masochist." Cocytus laughed suddenly, giving Carl the perfect chance to enact the next stage of their plan.

"I can’t track him anymore! Where did this boost come from!?" Eckro yelled, distracting Cocytus long enough for Carl to get above him and punch him with a massive divinity and aura charged punch to the top of his head.

As the attack made Cocytus slump, the divinity and aura was forced into him and robbed him of everything Carl had said and done, as well as his appearance.

"That volley was a little too real..." Eckro said.

"So were the broken ribs... Sorry though, I kinda snapped a little bit." They looked at each other in a moment of silence, making sure they had nothing left to say before parting ways.

"Well, I think that’s it, come on hit me and get it over with... It will look suspicious if you don’t attempt to destroy my memories."

Carl nodded. "Make the most of this time, when the time comes to get vengeance for all this shit, you’ll need to tell me exactly how much of a beating I owe Margo."

Eckro nodded back, then Carl prepared another punch which connected with his jaw, breaking several teeth and leaving him in the same state as Cocytus.

Carl and Bahamut left with the collected animals the moment they were reunited, appearing in a world of vast grassland.

"Are you going to make me ask?"

"No, but I can’t say until we’re back on Haven."

"So be it..." Bahamut asked, but he had a good idea of everything that happened, that didn’t explain everything and he was still curious.

Carl extended his aura to bring the creatures of Cocytus under us control, then they headed out to fetch the remaining beasts for this creature.

They moved at a much faster pace and before long, the fourth creature was merged.

[ MERGER COMPLETE ]

[ VIT RAISED BY 150,000 ]

[ DEF RAISED BY 100,000 ]

[ INT RAISED BY 12,896 ]

[ DEX RAISED BY 10,030 ]

[ CHA RAISED BY 13,720 ]

[ FIELD OF JUDGEMENT: YOU CAN CAST UNILATERAL JUDGMENT OF ANY CREATURE ON ANY PIECE OF CONTROLLED TERRITORY. ]

[ CREATOR CULTIVATION = 50/50 ]

[ YOU HAVE LEVELLED UP. ]

[ YOU HAVE LEVELLED UP. ]

[ YOU HAVE LEVELLED UP. ]

[ SIS NOTICE: WHAT THE HELL!? THAT WAS WAY MORE EFFECTIVE THAN AEGIS AND I CALCULATED... WHAT HAPPENED? THE DRAGONS AND IMMORTALS WERE ALL ON EDGE THEN SUDDENLY WATCHED IN STUNNED SILENCE AND TOLD EVERYONE ELSE NOT TO WATCH IN CASE IT EFFECTED THE OUTCOME.]

"Sorry Sis, will have to wait until I get back... How mad is Mum, Klaire and the others?"

[ SIS NOTICE: UGH, THEY’RE PISSED, THOUGH TIAMUTAEL AND KI-KO’S NEWFOUND LOVE OF KID-VIDS ISN’T HELPING... MY BAD.]