"Watch out the Boss has evolved into a new species so expect the unexpected!" Gat shouted as he faced off against the still burning monster.
Lucielle continued to lob fireballs at the Ratman but they weren't doing as much damage to the Ratman as they did to its rat minions, which caused Lucielle to frown. 'This definitely isn't a Rank E Boss. It has to at least be peak E or just entered Rank D. Otherwise my flames definitely should have started melting this thing by now.'
Lucielle continued to shadow Gat as the battle continued to carry the Slayers and the Ratman around the room. It was parrying and dodging the majority of the attacks the melee fighters were throwing at it but some did occasionally land and lacerate it's flesh. Lucielle also noticed when her flames licked at the creatures exposed flesh it would let loose a pained shriek.
Every time it did open its mouth to shriek Lucielle tried her best to whip a fireball down its gullet, but trying to throw a fireball into its mouth had failed thus far as it always managed to dodge at the last second. 'I need a distraction if I want to be able to force it to eat my Hellfire. I know as soon as that happens the fight will pretty much be over as the Hellfire with eat through its insides.'
The battle continued on for another 30 minutes of back and forth when things finally took a turn for the worse. The Ratman had attacked the bastard sword wielding Brian but as he rushed forward to meet the creature it abruptly feinted towards Chris ,who had been supporting Brian from nearby. Chris screamed and used his bow to defend himself with but the Ratmans gaping mouth closed over the bow and part of Chris' arm before abruptly snapping shut and severing the young mans arm from his body.
Blood gushed and splattered the floor as Chris dropped to his knees screaming in agony. Everyone moved to intercept the Ratman before it could end the young mans life but they were too far away to make it in time. Chris stared blankly up into the approaching maw of the Ratman but made no move to defend himself as he knew his life was at an end as the rancid breath of the Ratman gushed into his nostrils. Just as he closed his eyes to meet his end a fireball whipped past his face, mildly singeing his hair as the fire dived into the creatures mouth and throat.
Lucielle had been lurking in the darkness for a while at this point, waiting for an opportunity to end this monsters life. When she saw the creature rip off Chris' arm she knew her opportunity had come and she raced around the room, sticking to the shadows to elude the creatures sight when it launched itself forward just like its less evolved brethren would. 'Game over Ratman.' Lucielle had a satisfied smile on her face as she had dragged Chris out of the way of the Ratman as it convulsed through the air and smashed into the floor.
'The Hellfire should be doing a number on its insides if it's writhing that much.' Once Lucielle had dragged Chris out of danger she quickly knelt down before him and looked him the eyes. "This is going to hurt a bit but it'll keep you alive." She didn't offer any explanation as she conjured some Hellfire in her hand and applied it to the stump that was Chris' left arm.
"AHHHHHH IT BURNS MAKE IT STOP!!!" This was the worst burn the young man had ever experienced in his entire life. The pain of the Hellfire as it cauterized his wound was mind blowing but just as quickly as it started it stopped as Lucielle had accomplished her main goal of not letting the young man bleed out from the loss of his left arm.
Lucielle left the young man and turned back to find the the other Slayers were rapidly hacking at the Ratman as it convulsed on the ground. Gat was hacking away at its muscular neck in a bid to decapitate the damn monster. Lucielle felt they didn't need any additional aid from her so she hung back and watched the other Slayers butcher the Boss.
The boss was beginning to look like a porcupine from the sheer amount of arrows and knives that were jammed into its flesh. Stark was also finally using his power of ice to jam razor sharp ice shards into the creatures flesh. The Ratman had curled itself into a fetal position to reduce the amount of surface area the Slayers could inflict damage and that had extended its survivability considerably.
Lucielle's heart skipped a beat as she felt the energy absorption of the Hellfire abruptly stopped and she screamed out. "Back up it's able to move again!" Alas her warning came too late as the Ratman abruptly sprang forward from its fetal position and bit down on one of the teenagers that was closest to its feet. Their head was crushed like a watermelon and the Ratman used their corpse as a shield to block them incoming attacks from its rear.
The Ratman let out a bellowing roar as it abruptly sprang away from the group of Slayers before turning around to glare at them. Its once beady black eyes had turned into a crimson red that glowed eerily in the darkness of the corner it had leapt to. Seeing those eyes shift and lock onto her, Lucielle gulped as she took her battle stance with her knife and Hellfire. "It's activating its Berserk State! Everyone get ready for a swarm!"