811 - Never Again
Lex could remember the last time this had happened.
He’d been in Vanhoover, fighting Lirtkra, Monitor, and Aria all at once. The three of them had been more than he’d been able to handle, and while strategic use of his magic had been able to slow them down, it had only delayed the inevitable. But when he’d used the scroll he’d taken from the hoard of the green dragon he’d slain in Tall Tale – which had contained a spell to trade in magical power for martial prowess – he’d felt certain that he’d be able to turn things around.
Instead all he’d done was buy himself a little more time.
Just like what was happening now with Sissel.
Thrusting Belligerence at her center of mass, the snow giant spun her axe in a defensive pattern, the butt of it circling around to knock the quill’s barbed head aside, causing his strike to go off-target. Worse, the motion left him overextended, an opening Sissel immediately moved to exploit as she brought the head of her axe back up and swung it at him.
Realizing too late that he wasn’t going to be able to get out of the way of the glowing blade, Lex instead turned to meet the strike, dropping Belligerence in the process. But before it had a chance to hit the ground, Lex swung one claw out and summoned it back, moving the quill perpendicular to the arc of Sissel’s swing, timing it so that it would strike the flat of her axe and knock it off-course before it could hit him. It was a variation of the same trick he’d used less than thirty seconds ago, when he’d summoned the quill in order to block what would otherwise have been a fatal attack. Except this time the goal was to deflect, rather than block-
“I knew you’d do that,” smirked Sissel.
She was already moving as she spoke, stepping into the swing even as Belligerence diverted it, and Lex had just enough time to realize that the glow around one of her feet had intensified before she brought it up and into his side.
The impact sent him flying, hitting the canyon wall with such force that he nearly blacked out. Even so, Lex counted himself as fortunate, knowing that he’d taken far less damage from her kick than from the rock she’d placed the aristeia-augmented spell on before. But that wasn’t surprising; given how much magic was flowing through her, it made sense that it would have the most dramatic effect on her spells, with her physical gains being ancillary.
For all the good that does me now, growled Lex inwardly, somehow managing to stay upright. He could feel that several of his ribs were broken, a stinging pain in his shoulder suggested that it was dislocated, and there was a grinding sensation from his abdomen that he suspected was at least one perforated organ. If it wasn’t for his new body’s incredible toughness, and his dark magic’s letting him regulate his ability to perceive tactile sensation, he had no doubt he'd have been near-totally incapacitated.
And Sissel was already casting again.
Gritting his teeth as she finished her spell, Lex somehow managed to dodge the coruscating ray that sprang from her hand then, knowing that it would have sapped his strength had it hit him.
Instead, he summoned Belligerence back to his grasp and threw it, but Sissel stepped out of the way with almost contemptuous ease, having no trouble dodging from such a long range. Even so, it bought Lex a moment, and he took the opportunity to hurry forward, ignoring his injuries as he closed the gap between them.
It was his only hope of winning, he knew.
But that hope seemed to be growing smaller with each passing second.
In addition to being a powerful spellcaster even before aristeia, as well as a seasoned tactician, there was no doubt in Lex’s mind that Sissel was a skilled fighter. She’d clearly put in a great deal of training with her axe, whereas he had never used a spear – which was how he was wielding Belligerence now – in his life. Nor were his animal instincts any help, as the beast inside of him still wanted to attack her with tooth and claw, uncaring of the fact that those weapons had proven to be useless against her.
In a spear-versus-axe battle between the two of them, Lex knew that he had very little chance of emerging victorious. But there was no viable alternative; a distance battle would allow her to use her aristeia-enhanced spells, which were far more potent than her physical blows. Worse, his only options to counterattack at range would be to use his magic – which she seemed to resist even easier than she had his claws – or to keep throwing Belligerence at her. And he had yet to hit her once that way.
Two more hits, decided Lex, recalling the quill to his grasp as he moved into Sissel’s range, rolling under a swing that very nearly took his head off, prompting him to swipe at her with Belligerence in response. Maybe three. That’s the most I can take in my current condition.
Hopefully he’d be able to keep her busy long enough for the spell she’d used on Solvei to wear off. The lesser version Paska had used had lasted for less than two minutes; it Sissel’s was of a similar duration, then if he could just wait for it to run out, he’d be able to summon Solvei and have her heal-
Spinning her axe in her grip, Sissel quirked a brow. “Let me guess. You’re waiting for your wolf to recover?”
Lex growled, jabbing Belligerence at her feet, thighs, and belly, but the snow giant easily turned his attacks aside. “If that’s your plan, then you’re going to need a better one,” she continued, bringing her axe around and forcing Lex to fall back. “Because you’re not going to last that long.”
She punctuated her promise by raising her weapon as Lex darted back in. He was still outside of her range, but he nevertheless braced himself, suspecting that she was about to rush him-
And so was caught completely by surprise when she threw her axe instead.
End over end it tumbled through the air, still aglow from the aristeia she’d forced into it, and Lex somehow managed to throw himself aside...just a little too late.
By all rights, the slight contact that her axe made with his right shoulder shouldn’t have done more than leave a shallow scratch.
Instead it took his foreleg off completely.
Blood fountained from his shoulder as Lex stared at the wound, unable to process what was happening even when he caught sight of his severed limb landing over a dozen feet away. It was only because of his inner beast’s instincts that he managed to snap out of it, the creature he’d merged with caring little for even permanent injuries, and he somehow had the presence of mind to recite the minor healing spell the Night Mare had given him, the arterial spray staunching as the wound suddenly scabbed over. But it was accompanied by a wave of dizziness as the shock and blood loss left him reeling, struggling to listen to the instincts demanding that he continue the fight-
“Credit where credit is due, you inspired me to try throwing my weapon,” commented Sissel as she strode toward him, one hand raised in preparation for casting another spell. “It’s not really balanced for it, and it doesn’t come back to me on its own, but I’d say it worked out pretty well. Now to finish-”
“M-MASTER!!!”
Solvei’s horrified scream captured both Lex and Sissel’s attention, the two of them turning in unison to look at where the adlet was pulling herself out of the hole she’d been dropped into. “MASTER, RUN!” she shouted, stumbling toward the two of them. “I’LL DISTRACT HER, JUST GET-”
Bringing her arm around so that she was pointing at Solvei, Sissel rattled off another spell, one that Lex dimly recognized was meant to cause pain without inflicting injury.
That was proven a moment later as Solvei’s screaming turned agonized, her voice raising in a wordless howl as she collapsed and began convulsing.
“You’re hoping that if he escapes, he’ll be able to resurrect you again later, is that it?” asked the snow giant as she made her way over to where Solvei was still shrieking. Slowly, she raised one foot and – with uncharacteristic gentleness – placed it on Solvei’s middle, pinning her in place as she kept thrashing, still wailing as the spell continued to torture her. “I’ll admit, that’s not a bad plan.”
The snow giant glanced back at Lex then, one brow raised. “My next spell will kill her,” she announced, raising her voice to be heard over Solvei’s screaming. “If you want to get away, you’d better hurry.”
Lex’s response was to summon Belligerence and throw it at her again.
It was more of a gesture than a counterattack, his injuries ensuring that the quill went nowhere near its target, very nearly causing him to collapse in place. The sight made Sissel snort. “Have it your way, then.”
Without further ado, she began casting.
And Lex knew that he had only a few seconds left before Solvei died. Again.
...no...
Her life would be lost because she’d wanted to help fight his battle. Again.
...no!
And her death would come after he’d pushed her away, refusing to acknowledge how important she was to him. Again.
NO!
There was no spell that came to Lex’s mind then. No command to his tulpa. No order through the Charismata. No prayer to the Night Mare.
It was simply that he couldn’t bear the thought of losing her a second time.
NEVER AGAIN!!!
It was less a thought than it was an urge, a need that tore through every part of Lex’s mind. Through his heart. Through his soul.
And through the link toward the piece of his soul that resided within her.
In the span of an instant, that urge waged war against the spell Sissel had cast to cut the two of them off. It threw itself against the barrier, attacking it with nothing more than pure will. It was a contest that he knew he couldn’t win, but at the same time couldn’t bear to lose, pushing forward to reestablish the bond that at that moment meant more to him than anything.
Aristeia was a power beyond any that Lex had ever encountered, short of the gods themselves. It had shrugged off his claws. It had bested his magic. It had injured him near death, maimed him, and left him powerless to fight back. And now it was going to take the person he was closest to away from him.
That wasn’t something Lex Legis could forgive.
SOLLLLLLVEIIIIII!!!
Sissel completed her spell, the black aura surrounding her hand glowing with a sinister radiance as aristeia enhanced its deadliness. Normally the spell was one designed to cause the victim’s heart to skip only a few beats, disabling them. But with the power she’d poured into it now, Sissel felt certain that it would likely stop the adlet’s heart altogether.
Giving one last glance at Lex, who seemed to be in shock at what he was seeing, Sissel shrugged internally. She’d expected some last, desperate ploy on his part – maybe trying to drag his familiar away with his unicorn telekinesis, or casting some spell he’d been holding in reserve – but apparently he had nothing more to give. Which is just as well, she decided, reaching down to deliver the death blow to the screaming lupine, since I’m tired of-
The adlet beneath her foot suddenly vanished.
Stumbling, Sissel lost a half-second staring at where her victim had been.
Then she looked over at where Lex had fallen.
Impossibly, that adlet – Solvei – was there by his side. She shouldn’t have been, but she was. More than that, she was no longer screaming, panting heavily as her eyes glowed green and purple. She was likewise in her black crystal armor again, her ice weapons restored and her size increased, the same way she had been...
Before Sissel had suppressed their link.
Which could only mean that Lex had broken her spell somehow.
Except that was impossible. She’d cast that with aristeia, which should have been more than he could overcome. His only weapon against the power she’d gained was his spear, and a glance to the side showed that it was still lying where his last pathetic throw had sent it. So then how...?
“Master.” Slowly, Solvei got to her feet, an unreadable expression on her face as she looked down at Lex. “Thank you.”
His response was a guttural groan, the claws of his remaining foreleg flexing slightly. But that was enough to make his quill return to it, and Solvei let her ice weapons dissolve as she gently took it from his grasp. Sissel snorted, waiting for the barbs to pierce her hand...
But nothing happened.
Rising to her full height, Solvei raised her arm to point the spear at Sissel, her eyes blazing brighter as her features hardened.
“I’m ending this.”
Sissel knew that there was no reason for her to fear. That she was still far and away more powerful than the two of them combined, especially with Lex in such bad shape.
But for some reason she couldn’t explain, she flinched anyway.
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Lex was lucky with exploding crits sucess there?
Last time I saw a recovery like that, a dwarf in full plate armor flew.
Channeling the trauma of losing Slovei is one way to win a battle of will
What Lex did at the end with Solvei/Akna was surprising and his decision to let her wield Belligerence is tactically sound as well since Akna likely has more experience fighting with weapons. Still, I can't help but wonder how Lex broke through Sissel's spell and if the method had done more than just return his connection with Solvei, especially with Belligerence not hurting her is anything to go by or if it was also made so that only those he trusts can wield it.
11537151 Insofar as what Lex did at the end with Solvei, that one wasn't an issue of making a check (i.e. making a die roll). While many aspects of the d20 System require a check, there are some things which are absolute in their functionality (at least in certain circumstances).
Now, admittedly, this wasn't a typical situation (in fact, without giving away the express mechanics used, it was actually a GM judgment call with regard to two different mechanics interacting, one of which was unique to D&D 3.0/3.5 and the other of which was unique to Pathfinder 1E). Which is to say, I had to creatively interpret how that would work, though in that regard I like to think the call was one consistent with the larger framework of the story.
11537235 Lex learned how much Solvei meant to him the hard way before, when Sissel slew her. Now he's been making the same mistake again, pushing her away because he's upset that she's merged with Akna (and because he's letting his fears about losing himself to the animal within bring out his worst impulses), and it was only at the last moment that he realized he was about to lose her again. After what happened last time, he wasn't about to make the same mistake again.
11537852 This chapter suggests that Lex got through Sissel's spell purely by force of will, but I suspect that there's a little more to it than that. Wanting something badly enough isn't sufficient to make things happen; that's a truism of the Night Mare's religion as much as it is an aspect of the d20 System game rules. You need to actually have the power to effect change. In that regard, Lex apparently did, since he was able to restore his collection to Solvei, which let him teleport her away while allowing her to use the reservoir of dark magic that she has in order to fight off the pain-inducing spell Sissel used on her.
As for whether or not there's any side effects from that, and how she can use Belligerence without it harming her...that remains to be seen, though I suspect we'll get answers sooner rather than later.