LogFAQs > #935469963

B

"I'm going to try something new."

"Oh," she says with a bit of wonder. "Alright."

Raven shoulders the club as she builds energy.

"Arcana Stellae! Stellae Magna! Stella Umbra!"

Just like the duel with Renee, Raven disperses the shadow stars all around Malchior. Raven jumps into the closest one and pops out of the star under Malchior's right shoulder, and she cracks him in the ribs! He lets out a grunt but keeps his arms up. His tail comes around but she slips back into the shadow star. His tail swats the star but she's already popped out the left side to crack him in his stubby dragon leg! Then she pops back in to reappear behind Malchior and crack him at the base of a wing!

Meanwhile, you hold your own hands up. You bring some of the storm clouds down, add more wind, water and lightning affinities. You gather things up as quickly as you can given Malchior's explosion is reaching critical mass. Raven appears in front of Malchior's face, he snaps his jaw at her, but she's gotten away to a few feet below and cracks him in the throat! Malchior hacks and coughs and his arms start to lower! The explosion starts to falter, so you're able to gain some ground!

"Tempestas Ferrum!!" you shout. "GLADIO!!"

The storm clouds, with lightning and wind and ice swirling inside, form into a sword! You hold it with both hands and slash through the air! A bolt of lightning and a splattering of hail head for Malchior! The lightning hits Malchior in the shoulder while the hail pelts him in the knees. Malchior lets out a screech and the arm that was hit falls! His explosion is practically gone! You rush in, ready to thrust!

Malchior flaps his wings but Nate cancels out the gust with a gust of his own! Raven uses the club to crack Malchior in the base of his wings again, and again, and again! Malchior flaps his wings again but Raven slips away through the shadow stars. You approach at high speed and thrust!! Malchior brings both arms in, attempting to catch your sword's storm blade, but it scrapes scales off his palms like cheese against a grater!! You get him center mass in what you hope is his disgusting heart!

Malchior coughs up blood and it splatters all over the ground behind you, so that's a good sign. You can even feel the heartbeats through the sword.

"Should..." Malchior says weakly.

"What was that?" you ask.

Malchior's neck lowers to arch over you.

"You should've aimed for my head!"

His neck twists around and he breathes one last powerful flame!! The flame adds to the explosion and it immediately swells!!

"NO!!" you and Raven both shout.

*shwa-BOOOOOOOOM!* The fire and force erupt, and Uidre surrounds you as a shield! Her water sizzles and steams as you fly back! Nate uses everything he can muster as a minor spirit to be a gust that slows you down. Field is also there, making more soft dirt for you to crash into rather than hard concrete.

"Gah...!" you grumble as you force yourself to stand.

Despite the layers of security provided by the spirits, you feel like you were thrown off the top of a double decker bus while it was moving, then run over by whatever traffic was passing by. The concussive force of the blast might have even given you a black eye or two. It also doesn't help that you've used up both a lot of chi and mana in this battle. You wobble on your legs before sitting down on the dirt mound. You look around with limited vision and see Gurim still floating there as if nothing's happening, but not...

"Raven!" you shout. "Raven, where are you?!"

Raven slips out from underground, her shadow phasing surely being how she survived. She's sluggish with her return, and has to basically crawl over to you.

"Gurim!" she calls. "Is Malchior dead enough yet?!"

"Not quite," Gurim says.

Confused and frustrated, you clear the smoke with the wind magic you can muster. And to your dismay, Malchior really isn't dead. The explosion magic he used was clearly double-edged, as his wings look like raw meat from having lost scales. Perhaps he shielded himself with those. His tail lost some length, being completely unprotected, and his back also sizzles since it could not be shielded. He lets out pained groans as he forces himself to stand up straight.

But then he starts to shrink! He transforms back to the paper body! The paper is itself torn up and burnt on some parts, but he still has both legs and enough of a torso to stand up. And to turn and run!!

"Coward!" Raven says.

"Shadowfax!" you shout.

Shadowfax drives in through the barrier and heads your way.

"Metamorphosis!" you shout.

Shadowfax transforms using Alchemy and Summoning to become a metal horse!

"He can do that?!" Raven blurts.

"I told you he's not just a motorcycle!" you say. "Shadowfax, attack the paper person!"

Shadowfax turns and heads for Malchior. Malchior looks back to see the mechanical stallion storming up behind him and stumbles out of surprise! Shadowfax runs Malchior over, leaving hoof prints in the parchmant! Then Shadowfax bucks and kicks Malchior in his head! Malchior's paper body flops and tumbles backwards!

"No...!" Malchior shouts in a dazed rage. "Necronom Hezberek Mortix!"

Malchior uses his one remaining arm to make some hand signs, and he blasts Shadowfax with dark, murky fog! Shadowfax neighs and rears back but is bogged down! Pieces start falling off him!

"No!" you shout as you force yourself to stand.

"Rorek, hold on!" Raven says as she staggers over to you. "We'll shadow travel but you'll have to drop that storm sword."

"That's fine," you say as you release the magic.

She takes you by the hand and you both phase into the ground. You feel yourself moving very quickly, and then when you resurface, you see Malchior's paper body only a few meters ahead of you!

"Ignis Pugnis!" you shout as you lunge forward!

Fire surrounds your fist and you put your everything into this punch! Malchior turns his head, and you punch right into the ink rendering of the now signature Rorek eyes!

"RYAAAAAAAH!" he lets out in pain as his paper face burns!

Malchior frantically smashes his face into the dirt to smother the flames, and they do extinguish, but he's left with just the back half flapping and flopping about now.

"NOW?!" Raven asks Guri