Inside the Writhing Nautilus - 1:00 PM


    Overwhelming power surged through me as I activated Break Free while Overclocked Body was still in effect. I flexed my wings and retrieved my Vague Stick, still in its sword form, from my inventory. Once I was ready, I lunged forward.


    The Writhing Guardian recoiled at my newfound speed as I slashed through two of its tentacles. For the first time, I had managed to cut through the creature decisively. I kept an eye on them to make sure that they wouldn’t grow into new enemies, but they remained inert.


    Before I had time to turn around, the monster was whole again. Its tentacles grew back longer than before in a darker shade of red. I spun around, using Orbit on my Vague Sword, and Constructed three other blades. I slashed through its midsection with mine while using Drop on the others, cutting through more tentacles.


    It was frustrating; the missing limbs grew back before they even had a chance to hit the ground. The ones from before hadn’t grown into extra monstrosities, so when I dismissed my Constructs I Pulled each of the monster parts to me and sent them to my inventory. During that time, the Writhing Guardian threw itself at me.


    Its strikes came harder than they did before, and I had to block with the Staff of Raphael because they would crack the Vague Sword. Whether by design or desperation, the monster was becoming faster as well. The room continued to heat up as I was put on the back foot, blocking as I looked for more openings to strike at.


    That wasn’t to say that I wasn’t attacking; I Constructed blades that flew in from all sides. The Writhing Guardian wasn’t falling for my tricks, and the new parts of its body were sturdier than the previous ones. My attacks still cut, but they no longer went all the way through.


    Blood splashed as I took a step into the initial puddle, which was too close to the beacon for comfort. It would continue to call the laser down after it was destroyed, but only for a short period of time. The Writhing Guardian lunged for it, and I recalled my Vague Sword into my inventory.


    Reaching out with my free arm, I tackled the beast and started pushing backwards. Four of its tentacles shifted to plant in the ground, but the other two began to beat at me. I activated my Shield now that it was back, but it only took two strikes to break despite the extra boost my Angelic form gave me.


    Still, it was worth it, and I was gaining ground. I Constructed two swords on either side of the Writhing Guardian’s leg tentacles and swung them inwards. It freaked out, attempting to disengage, but I held it tight. The limbs were lopped off above where I had cut before, and I pulled them into my inventory as I got the beast off of the ground.


    I was able to force the monster nearly ten feet before it slithered out of my grip, body complete once more, and it stood up. The Writhing Guardian hesitated, and I couldn’t blame it. I couldn’t see through the core with my aura sense, but I could see beyond the room''s flesh walls. The laser was working fast.


    It turned and fled towards one of the tunnels. I wasn’t sure where it was going to try to go other than down, to get as far away from its impending doom as possible, but I wasn’t about to let that happen. I put both of my hands on the Staff of Raphael, drew it back, and took a step.


    When I put my foot on the ground, I was swinging right in front of the Writhing Guardian. It looked like it was going to be a clean blow, but the monster shifted backwards like it was about to do an impossible limbo. With my heightened senses, I could see the Staff of Raphael bump off of its coarse skin as it whipped backwards.


    Both concerned and impressed, I layered four Constructed blades in front of it at leg level. My swing was a miss, but the Writhing Guardian ran into my trap legs first. It stopped, but not before some more pieces were lopped off from its momentum. I Pulled them to me as I pierced the monster’s body with the spike of my staff. Lifting it up, it became heavier when it regrew its limbs. Its regeneration wasn’t getting any slower.


    “How much more regeneration do you fucking have!?” I asked, pissed off.


    “Enough to outlast you,” it vibrated before its torso split in two.


    Falling off of my staff, four of its tentacles spun together into a drill. Realizing what it was about to do, I Constructed four flat sheets where it was going to burrow. This wasn’t armor or weapons, so it wasn’t as tough, but it gave me time. The Writhing Guardian’s limbs sparked against the top layer as I released the Cable Conglomerate.


    It attempted to move away, but I chased after it. I whipped it with the wire rope and started snaking it between the monster’s tentacles. It writhed and tried to slither out, but I kept it wrapped as tight as I could. Not only that, but I used my Warmind abilities to make sure it stayed captured.


    My body slumped and exhaustion overtook me as Overclocked Body finally wore out. Even with the increased Constitution from my Angelic Form, it didn’t last longer than the Writhing Nautilus’ core.


    <<<>>>


    [[Notice]]


    You are continuing to suffer from Extreme Dehydration. You will now take 50% more fire damage until the debuff wears off.


    <<<>>>


    I tapped myself with the Staff of Raphael to use the last Touch of Heaven skill. I healed back to full health and got rid of the physical debuff, exactly as intended. As a side effect, breathing was made easier as the poison I had built up from being inside the Writhing Nautilus dispersed.


    But I couldn’t celebrate just yet. The Writhing Guardian, sensing weakness, jerked backwards. I put my feet on the Construct pile and yanked, and we were in a tug of war before it lunged at me again.


    Two of the four bound tentacles managed to squeeze themselves out of my binding, and the monster attempted to strike both sides of my head. I ducked, and they clapped together loudly above me. Anticipating the follow up, I stepped to the side. The Writhing Guardian’s hammerblow glanced off of my shoulder, causing pain to course through my body.


    Taking another step, I dragged it back onto my Constructs so it couldn’t try to burrow. That no longer seemed to be its objective. Emboldened by my sudden decrease in strength, the Writhing Guardian was on the offensive.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    I managed to tangle one of its errant tentacles while the other struck me across the chest, just barely missing my neck. The force knocked me backwards and I felt my ribs crack, but we were connected by a tether and I couldn’t go far. Pushing through the pain, I Constructed four batons and started blocking.


    Between the Staff of Raphael, my newly created defensive sticks, and the Cable Conglomerate, there was a lot to keep track of. The evolutionary speed of the Writhing Guardian had ceased impressing me, instead instilling me with a rare sense of panic. Every time I blocked a blow, it became a little faster and stronger. After a few exchanges, it wrapped one of its leg tentacles around the wire rope and pulled.


    I lifted my foot and kicked downwards, literally piercing the flesh floor to gain purchase. Instead of trying to pull me off balance, the monster slithered closer. The Writhing Guardian’s tentacle attempted to grab hold of my fist, but I blocked it with a Force Field instead. It was immediately crushed.


    By the time I wrapped my Cable Conglomerate around that tentacle, the other two had gotten into a deadly groove. The Writhing Guardian’s strikes were hard to predict. The way its limbs roamed around its body meant that many of its attacks didn’t come from traditional angles.


    The Writhing Guardian sped up with every strike, almost bouncing off of whatever I used to block, and it got to the point where I couldn’t just move the Constructs. With my centuries of experience, it was faster to drop them and then recreate them where they needed to be. Hopeful that the monster couldn’t escape the tangled mess I had trapped it in, I devoted myself to defense.


    It had long since stopped reacting to my attacks, so I did what I could to time out the clock. The core shook and I could finally see the laser bearing down on us. If it weren’t for my Angelic form, I probably would have been adversely affected by the heat, but the sweat on my brow came solely from exertion. Slowly, I backed away from the center of the room.


    My enemy didn’t pull back as I moved us. It knew that the core was going to drop once the walls disappeared just as much as I did. The Writhing Guardian seemed sure of its victory now, and there was always escaping after.


    Not on my watch.


    I released the rest of the Cable Conglomerate and jumped backwards. It lurched forward, but I kept the wire rope as straight as I could as I swung around so that I was closer to the inside. It vibrated, but I couldn’t hear what it said over the sound of the laser.


    The edges of the core that I could see disintegrated, and the blue light started getting closer. Without the walls to hold it up, the dark red brain or heart or whatever the organ was began to fall, and I reached up with my Staff and Lifted.


    My headache, which I had been ignoring, got so much worse as I used every application of Split I had to keep the core from crushing me. Since I could use my Warmind abilities on it, I knew that it was well and truly dead. That was a small comfort.


    The Writhing Guardian flailed in panic and attempted to burst the Cable Conglomerate. Some parts burst, but it was so wrapped up that it didn’t matter. The laser began inching closer and closer towards it.


    Its tentacles bulged and twisted. For the first time, mouths appeared on the Writhing Guardian’s body. They opened in a soundless scream before biting down hard on every piece of metal they could. That was enough to snap them, and it lunged towards me. I mimicked the movement, lunging towards it. The monster recoiled in that way it did when it didn’t understand something.


    I placed my hand on the Writhing Guardian’s body, careful not to get bit, and Bent the core above with everything I had. It broke, snapping in a way that brought the laser down on both of us.


    Only the monster felt the laser’s wrath.


    My halo expanded, covering me from the orbital projectile, and a copy of it appeared by my torso. I pulled my arm back as the light burst forth. The Writhing Guardian was now assailed by two instances of the laser, breaking it down.


    I couldn’t see it any longer, and I had to close my eyes to block out the blinding light. Thankfully, I could still see it through my aura senses. My mind raced as I did my calculations.


    The halo couldn’t keep this up indefinitely, and it was already showing signs of overheating. Considering the rate at which the Writhing Guardian was being blown away, I knew it wasn’t going to last long enough. It was already regenerating through the damage; it was just having a problem keeping up. I began charging Dragon’s Breath, but not for the monster.


    Constructing a blade in my hand, I used Orbit on it, my glove, sleeve, and vambrace to get as much power out of it as I could. I activated Distant Slice, sending out a light of my own, which cut deep into the Writhing Guardian. Not through, unfortunately, but after another second of constant bombardment the creature snapped in two.


    Above me, my halo cracked and I raised my head to look at it. It flew back to me while its copy disappeared. Opening my mouth, I released my own laser back at the sky as wide as I could make it.


    The two streams collided a few feet away, and I could feel it pushing back at me. The orbital laser was much stronger than I could ever compete with, but I knew the Writhing Nautilus’ core was depleted and the beacon had been destroyed with it. I just had to hold on for a little longer.


    With the Staff of Raphael in one hand, I retrieved the harpoon. The +20 to my stats helped, but it only seemed to have added another second to my defense. I roared as best I could, ignoring the pain from my migraine, from the cracked ribs, from the bruises and welts the Writhing Guardian left on my body as I fought my losing battle against the sky.


    The blue laser cut through my golden one quickly, and at the last second I pulled everything I owned into my inventory so that it all could survive. It felt like someone had dumped a truck on me as my body suddenly burned, melting my flesh and scorching my bones.


    I felt slightly better as my body partially regenerated. Beside me, the Writhing Guardian was only a few strips of meat, but I could see myself reconstruct like it had. It wasn’t for long; Heavenly Hero made me invulnerable for five seconds, and I would regain 20% of my hit points during that time. The laser wasn’t going to end by then, but there was one more trick up my sleeve.


    Mentally, I counted to five. Once again at the last moment, I commanded my inventory to put My Golden Bowling Ball on my chest. It appeared and started floating. There was one ability that I hadn’t needed to use yet, and I couldn’t let it go off on its own.


    <<<>>>


    [[Item]]


    Boss Anthony Franklin’s Golden Bowling Ball


    Once per day, the spirit of Boss Steener will inhabit the bowling ball in order to block a fatal blow against the wielder. Every time this ability is used, there is a small, stacking chance that Boss Anthony Franklin’s Golden Bowling Ball may shatter completely. This ability may be activated when the item is in your inventory, but this will cause the bowling ball to shatter immediately after use.


    <<<>>>


    “You look like you’re in some trouble, little brother,” a deep voice spoke.


    I grit my teeth, trying to grin through the excruciating pain. A large, furry hand rested on top of my head. The blinding light meant I couldn’t open my eyes, but I could see the wispy form of Boss Steener standing over me through my aura sense, holding the bowling ball high. The orbital laser slid off of it, creating a small cage around us.


    The Writhing Guardian was nowhere to be seen. It had been completely destroyed, exactly as I had hoped. That was when I dropped Break Free, letting the Angelic Power drain from my body.


    I retrieved the Staff of Raphael from my inventory into the crook of my shoulder once the laser finally stopped. It happened all at once, like turning off a faucet, and Boss Steener gently placed My Golden Bowling Ball back on my chest. The remnants of the Writhing Nautilus had been eaten up, and I had fallen down quite a ways. Probably when Heavenly Hero was putting me back together, if I had to take a guess.


    Taking a breath, I opened my eyes to see a gigantic hole in the storm clouds above. I was protected by the wall of the Writhing Nautilus, its insides gutted like a pumpkin, and none of it seemed to be regenerating. The sun shined down on me as if to congratulate me on my victory, as ill-advised as the method was.


    “Take care, little brother,” Boss Steener said, nodding down at me. “Continue to make us Seven-Tenners proud.”


    I tried to raise my hand to give the Filbin a sloppy, and painful, salute, only to find that both of my arms were still regenerating. Instead, I nodded and closed my eyes to rest. I had earned it.