SSS Rank Awakening: The World Beyond Redemption

The ape charged in blind rage showing his large sharp teeths.

The water mage Nathia’s hands snapped up. Water erupted from the ground in thick, coiling bands that wrapped around the creature’s legs and torso—Water Shackle. The spell should have rooted anything of ordinary size. Against the giant ape it barely slowed the rush. The bands stretched, strained, and began to tear almost at once. The ape’s bulk carried it forward like a falling tree.

An arrow cut the air with a thin white trail of light. It sank deep into the side of the ape’s neck. The impact jerked the creature’s head sideways just enough that the swinging arm passed over Nathia instead of through her. She dropped to one knee, heart hammering so hard she could hear it in her ears. Another half-second and she would have been paste on the dirt.

Luke the Swordsmen was already moving. He sprinted in from the side, long sword flashing in a low arc aimed at the ape’s ankle. The blade left a distorted ribbon of wind in its wake, the air itself seeming to part under the force of the swing. ”As if I’ll let you kill her!” he shouted. The edge bit into thick tendon and drew a dark spray of blood. The ape roared, more furious than hurt, and swung its free arm in a wild backhand that forced Luke to leap clear.

Nathia scrambled backward, still on her feet but shaking. Suzy stood only a short distance away, eyes wide, hands pressed to her mouth. The ape’s small, hateful eyes found her. It shifted its weight onto its uninjured foot and lunged.

Suzy screamed.

Luke threw himself into the path without hesitation. He planted both feet, raised the long sword horizontally, and took the full force of the charge on the flat of the blade. The impact drove him backward several paces, boots carving deep furrows in the earth, but he held. For a moment it looked as if he might actually stop the creature.

The ape’s mouth pulled into something that almost resembled a smile.

Both massive arms came together, fists locked, and the ape pulled them back like a battering ram. Then it drove the combined weight straight into Luke’s right arm. Bone cracked with a sound like green wood splitting. The long sword flew from his grip and spun across the clearing. Luke’s face went white. His arm hung at a wrong angle, useless.

”Luke!” Nathia’s voice broke. Tears already streaked her cheeks. She slammed another Water Shackle around the ape’s legs and followed it with a concentrated Water Blast. The jet of pressurized water hammered the creature’s chest. At the same moment one of Lila’s arrows streaked in from the mountain, white trail bright in the afternoon light. The arrow and the water jet crossed paths. The shaft lost most of its force and only scraped fur. The blast itself peeled a layer of skin from the ape’s torso but failed to drive it back.

Luke staggered, still trying to stay between the beast and the two girls. ”Nathia—take Suzy and run!”

The ape ignored the order. It reached down with one enormous hand, closed around Luke’s hips, and lifted him clear of the ground as easily as a child lifts a doll. The long sword lay too far away to matter now. Luke kicked and struggled with his one good arm. The ape’s grip tightened.

Luke’s eyes found Nathia. Panic and something like apology mixed in them. As if the end hit him suddenly. He was ready to die for them but when the death was just about to come he broke.

”Nath... Nathia... save me... me... I don’t want to die—”

The words cut off in a wet, crunching sound. The ape’s hand closed fully. Luke’s lower body simply came apart. Legs and hips dropped to the dirt in a spreading red mess. The upper half remained in the ape’s fist, still twitching. Nathia’s scream tore the air. Suzy’s hands covered her face, but her eyes stayed open, fixed on the horror.

The ape brought the remains closer to its mouth and bit down. Bone cracked. Flesh tore. It chewed with slow, almost thoughtful motions, blood running in thick ropes from its jaws, as if the young man were nothing more than a piece of soft fruit. When it finished it opened its hand and let the ruined torso fall. The body hit the ground with a dull, final sound.

Nathia dropped to her knees. Sobs shook her entire frame. ”No... no, no, no...” Suzy stood frozen a few paces away, face bloodless, staring at what was left of Luke.

The ape turned its head toward the two remaining girls.

A white-trailed arrow took it full in the right eye.

The creature staggered backward, roaring, one massive hand clamped over the ruined socket. Balance failed. It stumbled two steps and nearly went down.

That was when Rael arrived.

He came sliding down the last stretch of slope in a controlled skid, dirt and leaves flying. He hit the flat ground running, scooped Luke’s fallen long sword up with one hand, and never slowed. The blade felt heavy but usable; his Strength was high enough now to swing it without trouble.

Suzy’s head snapped toward him. For a fraction of a second something unreadable flickered behind her wide, terrified eyes—then pure relief flooded her face. ”Rael!” she cried, voice cracking.

Nathia looked up through her tears, saw the newcomer, and could only stare, still on her knees, still shaking.

Rael did not answer either of them. He focused on the ape. The skill activated the moment the sword left his hand.

”Piercing Arrow.”

The long blade became a streak of force. It punched straight through the ape’s stomach and exited the far side in a spray of dark blood and ruined flesh. The creature’s roar turned into a high, broken scream. Rael never stopped moving. He reached the still-standing body, used the protruding sword hilt as a foothold, and launched himself upward. His legs locked around the thick neck. Both hands clamped onto the opposite sides of the ape’s head, palms pressed hard against the ears and temples.

”Ignite.”

Flame exploded between his hands and the ape’s skull. The heat seared his own palms instantly, skin blistering, but he did not let go. The ape thrashed, nails raking deep furrows down Rael’s back. Pain flared white-hot across his shoulders. He only tightened his grip.

”Ignite.”

More fire. The smell of burning fur and cooking flesh filled the clearing. The ape’s remaining eye rolled wildly. It spun, slammed itself against trees, tried everything to dislodge the human locked onto its head. Rael’s burned hands stayed locked in place.

”Ignite. Ignite. Ignite—”

Each word sent another surge of flame into the already ruined skull. The ape’s struggles grew weaker. Its roar faded into wet, bubbling sounds. Finally the massive body swayed, then collapsed forward like a felled tower. Rael rode it all the way down. When the impact came he was thrown clear, rolling across the dirt until he came to a stop on his back.

Both of his hands were blackened and raw. Blood ran freely from the deep scratches along his spine. The ape lay motionless, head a charred, half-melted ruin.

Nathia stared at him as if she could not decide whether he was real. Suzy had both hands pressed to her mouth again, eyes shining with what looked like pure, stunned gratitude. Neither of them spoke. The only sound left in the clearing was the soft crackle of residual flame and the ragged breathing of the three survivors.

Rael pushed himself up to a sitting position, hands throbbing, and looked at what remained of Luke. Then he looked at the two girls who were still alive.

The fight was over.

For now.

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