Waving the little green critter away I was submerged into my own thoughts as I walked through the descending steps heading to the sewers.
The heavy poisonous scent making my mind heady and woozy.
It was slightly great that my flaming head of fire could burn the smell away from my face, not so great that I couldn't hide like a corpse anymore.
Looking around at the sticky walls I shivered.
'I don't think I want to either'
'Focus!' Slapping my face through the hood I focused myself on the task at hand. 'Testing the mutations comes first'
Feeling the stinging pain in my face linger for a moment I soon ignored it and started to walk forwards blades ready at hand...
Or any weapons I needed at the moment really.
'So I can expect the green bats...' Recalling the green little monstrosity that most likely wanted to commit suicide through bombing last time, i kept my eyes on the ceilings every few moments.
And soon enough...
"Why hello little rat"
I was about to fight a veritable hoard of pink rats.
The rats were the size of large dogs and if they were placed in my old world would definitely be the nightmare of many.
These weren't any ordinary rats though, nothing in this Kingdom ever was.
Besides their unnatural size they had large glowing pink pustules on their back that seemed to pulse like an external heart.
All things that were very disgusting.
'However I think I have bad luck' The first thing I saw in the toxic sewers that lived up to it's name with acidic green water was rats.
'It's probably a colony as well'
Feeling slightly uncomfortable the colony of rats finally sighted on me all clad in shadow armor.
'Please look away'
Although I wanted to test my newfound powers I wasn't suicidal...
The attack on the hoard of corrupted was completely on a whim though and I think I was suicidal enough for one lifetime.
But it seemed my prayers didn't reach God or he just ignored me, both very likely options as the rats suddenly announced my presence to the rest of the pack.
'Well shit'
Mind instantly falling into battle mode I instantly looked over my options.
'I would like explosions or things that do area of effect but I don't have many options.'
First order of business, adjusting the terrain.
From my experience in the corrupted hoard I found out it was much harder to defend from all sides than I had thought.
'If I only had to defend from a few less sides than everywhere I wouldn't have received an arrow to the head'
Pulling a few stone blocks I had scrounged up and formed into cobblestone I placed them around me in a cubic formation.
Although the hoard of rats was running towards me from straight ahead, the size of the sewers was large enough that the rats could quickly encircle me.
And from the hoard of corrupted experience it wasn't a good experience.
Next order of business.
Clearing out the enemies in large swaths to cut down their momentum before they could overwhelm me with nothing but bodies.
I should slow them down instead shouldn't I?
'Ice Shards!'
Ice leaving the tips of my fingers and flying through the air to my enemies was soon followed by the crack of an electrical whip.
'Thanks my elven friends' Taking the electrical whip I had gotten as a gift from my elven comrades and fellow students, I used it against the [Rancid Rats]
'On that note, I wonder if she's okay?'
Recalling the elf I took it from I soon turned my attention back to the hoard of rats.
---
She was in fact not okay and felt a shiver crawl down her spine as Slade Fueled PTSD surfaced briefly.
"Ugh..."
---
Ice freezing a good portion of the pack of rats the rancid rats didn't care about their frozen comrades and unceremoniously crashed and broke through their comrades.
The Ice shards formed by the corpses of the rats bouncing on the floor before being trampled by more of them.
Lightning flew through the air as [Electric Whip] singed flesh, electrical shocks being transmitted through the body and into nearby monsters.
By now a good portion of monsters had fallen due to the ice and lightning and I had finished setting up the cobble stone walls in such a way that they were forced to face me from the front only.
A large portion of rats still remained however, but the most important thing that made these guys so dangerous in my eyes was their momentum was destroyed.
Having broke that momentum I only needed to kill these little rats until none of them were left.
Which let me tell you, was easier said than done.
And soon, flesh met the taste of cold unfeeling steel.
---
A cold glint of dark unknown emotions appeared in Slade's eyes as he quickly unsheathed two pairs of blades.
The new Blood Sword that caused the blood of all it's enemies to flow quicker out of it's bodies and to the blade and causing the area nearby to be slick with the blood of it's enemies.
And the other was the old... or it could be called new, Light's Bane.
The Blue blade left black marks in the air as all the enemies that touched the black marks were cut by the leftover marks of the blade, receiving the same amount of damage they would if the blade directly touched them.
A mad look appeared in Slade's orange eyes as he constantly moved his feet both forwards and backwards, making sure to dodge the attacks while pressuring his enemies.
Moving his arms so quickly that they seemed to double, the blades flew through the air like a perilous dance of death where a single mistake would render complete death.
In Slade's right hand a network of darkness unfolded as all the enemies that flew into it was turned into various states of minced meat.
On his left hand was a flurry of blood explosions, every swing of the red bloody blade caused blood to explode out of the wound unnaturally, painting the world red.
However, despite the beautiful sights that painted the world both black and red.
There was no end in sight to the hoards of rats that continued to fly without regard of their own lives.
All living beings all had the instinct to survive the next day and would do everything they could to ensure that, it was only cornered that they did away with caution.
However, those infected by the malaise showed no sign of this instinct to preserve their own lives and threw their lives away.
Rushing in with no regard to their lives with a single minded purpose of tearing apart the human behind the curtain of blades.
In that measure Slade was as terrifying if not even more so.
Relying on the knowledge that he could revive after death without any consequences but a prolonged state of terror from death.
Even that terror was disappearing slowly.
Slade was able to tear apart the enemies with an almost impressive single minded purpose.
"RaaaAAHHHH!!! COME AT ME!!"
Growling, Slade continued to push forwards as he pushed the tide that acted like an inevitable disaster back.
It was slow progress.
But he did it.
Step by step.
---
From the darkness of an alcove Cherry silently hid and stared down at the tide of rats that continued to undulate.
Throwing themselves at a curtain of blood and darkness even as their peers continued to be blended into basically nothing.
'...I didn't expect this'
At first, Cherry was about to greet Slade as he finally made his way to the Toxic sewers were more monsters resided.
But that desire to do so disappeared when she saw the colony of rats at the end of the hallway that Slade had appeared in.
'In that regard you are quite unlucky'
Safe rooms such as the one Slade had left were dotted around the entire kingdom and sporadically appeared as if they were unaffected by space.
Which knowing the mystery of this place it was most likely the case.
'I thought you would run'
After seeing the colony of rats she had that thought, there was no shame in running away from an enemy you couldn't beat.
'But I didn't think you would make a stand'
Although Slade showed surprising powers such as his unnatural ability to make a bright light appear in space while offering raw materials in favor of receiving complete products.
She had no confidence that he would be able to get rid of all the rats and would soon be overwhelmed.
She was indeed surprised when Slade showed more surprising powers by manifesting stone walls.
However she had seen many a stone mage fall against the swarms of abominations that walked the grounds of this unhallowed land.
Even if he had strange powers expected of 'them' she expected for him to fall.
'It's surprising you're still standing'
Looking at the man that was holding his own against the hoards of pink Rancid Rats her brown eyes glinted in the darkness of the alcove.
A small flame being lit in her long dead heart that had witnessed the fall of the kingdom.
+++
Tree