The ruin grader's eye blazed back to life, casting the chamber in a sinister red glow. It let out a deafening mechanical roar, reverberating through the stone walls. I barely had time to react before it started moving again, its massive frame shuddering as it raised both arms high.
"Brace yourselves!" Kaeya shouted, but his warning was nearly drowned out by the sound of the grader's limbs creaking as they swung down.
The ruin grader unleashed a flurry of attacks, its movements suddenly faster and more erratic. One of its arms came crashing down, sending a shockwave through the chamber that rattled my bones. I leaped to the side, feeling the ground shake beneath me as the impact sent debris flying.
"Watch out! It's going berserk!" Paimon shrieked, zipping through the air in a frantic panic. "It's doing the spinny thing!"
Aether and I darted forward, weapons at the ready, but the grader wasn't about to give us an easy opening. It pivoted on its remaining leg, spinning its massive arms wildly.
Aether lunged forward, using a burst of wind to dash out of harm's way. I barely managed to roll under one of its sweeping attacks, dirt and stone pelting my face. For a moment, everything around me was just a blur of chaos and destruction
I struggled to find my footing amidst the turmoil, feeling the energy in my body drain faster than ever. Damn this stupid Abyssal energy! My regeneration was working overtime to fight off the contamination, burning through my strength. I didn't feel tired, but I could sense that my "demon mode" time limit was rapidly closing in.
"Stay on it!" I roared, forcing myself to my feet. My grip tightened around my sword, the metal warm with the heat of my blood flame.
I charged in, my focus entirely on the grader's leg, when I noticed a sudden flicker of movement from above. I looked up just in time to see the ruin grader's massive arm swinging toward me like a falling boulder. Panic surged through me, and I tried to dive out of the way, but I was too slow.
The grader's arm slammed down with a deafening crunch. Pain exploded through my body as the arm crushed my right limb, severing it cleanly. My sword shattered beneath the impact, metal shards flying across the chamber as I stumbled back. "Son of a—!" I yelled through gritted teeth. Blood splattered across the stone floor, and I clutched the mangled stump where my arm had been.
"TAYDEN!" Aether's voice ripped through the chaos, raw and frantic. Paimon screamed in horror, her small hands covering her mouth as she floated nearby. "Your arm—your sword—!"
The rest of the group froze for a split second, shock and alarm painted on their faces. Lisa's eyes widened and Amber let out an alarmed shout, but Kaeya was way calmer than the others, probably because he knows this should be nothing for me.
The ruin grader loomed above, its eye tracking me for the final blow.
"Hang on!" Aether shouted, sprinting toward me with startling speed. He grabbed my shoulder and yanked me backward just as the grader's arm came down for a second swing. We tumbled across the ground, debris pelting us from the grader's missed strike.
Aether dragged me behind a boulder, breathing heavily. "Your arm!" he panted, eyes wide with terror as he stared at the stump. "We need to stop the bleeding! We have to—"
He froze mid-sentence, his eyes widening as he watched in disbelief. I glanced down at my arm and couldn't help but grin. My flesh was already knitting itself back together. Bones reformed, tendons reconnected, muscles and skin wove together seamlessly. Within seconds, my arm was fully regenerated.
"What... how did you...?" Aether stammered, his gaze fixed on my newly formed arm in disbelief.
"W-What was that?!" Paimon shrieked, hovering just behind Aether. Her eyes were wide, her tiny body trembling. "Y-Your arm just grew back! That's... not normal!"
I chuckled despite the lingering ache. "Oh man, you two should see your faces right now," I said, flexing my new fingers. "I thought Kaeya would've told you about my other abilities, but I'm glad he didn't. Your reactions are hilarious."
Aether blinked, his mouth opening and closing like he was trying to form words. "You just... grew back an entire arm... and your sword..." He glanced toward the grader, where shards of my once-reliable weapon lay scattered and broken. "Your sword is completely destroyed."
"Yeah, I noticed," I sighed, my grin fading. "So much for using a sword. Guess I'm going hand-to-hand now."
Aether shook his head, the initial shock slowly giving way to his usual resolve. "All right. Just... try to keep your limbs attached this time," he said, his voice steadying.
"You got it!" I replied, flexing my new arm and preparing to jump back into the fray. This fight had just gotten a lot more complicated, but I wasn't about to let that stop me.
---
We leaped back into the battlefield where Kaeya was holding the grader's attention, his icy smirk never faltering as he taunted it. Lisa and Amber moved with precision, unleashing bursts of Pyro and Electro energy. Explosions rocked the grader, keeping it off balance as it tried to regain control.
"This thing is relentless!" Paimon yelled, circling frantically near Aether. Her face was twisted in fear, but there was a flicker of determination in her eyes. "It's gonna try that big laser attack again! Watch out!"
Aether nodded sharply, his focus locking onto the grader. "Paimon, get back!" he ordered, his voice steady and clear despite the chaos. He dashed forward, his feet barely touching the ground as he summoned a gust of Anemo energy. Wind swirled around him, forming a protective barrier to deflect debris.
I couldn't help admire his mastery over the Anemo element, hopefully when my body finally absorbs enough of it, I could also do things like that. But now is not the time to be thinking about it.
The ruin grader's eye glowed ominously, its energy building up for a devastating laser blast. "It's charging up!" Amber shouted, her keen eyes tracking every movement of the machine.
She was already on the move, weaving between the scattered rubble with quick, light steps. "We need to mess up its aim!"
Without hesitation, Amber placed her hand over her Vision, and it glowed a golden light. "You want to do a 'big attack'? Well, here's one back at you!" she cried, pulling out a magnificent Baron Bunny infused with intense Pyro energy. She hurled it with all her might, and it struck its mark, detonating against the grader's eye just as it fired its laser.
The beam veered off course, scorching the chamber walls instead of us. Stone fragments exploded around us as Amber grinned and retreated to a safer spot. "Baron Bunny for the win! Keep up the pressure; it's not down yet!"
"Clever move, Amber," Lisa acknowledged, her eyes gleaming. "But we need to keep it from charging up again." She stepped forward, her catalyst crackling with electricity. "I'll slow down its energy buildup. Cover me!"
With a flick of her wrist, Lisa sent arcs of electricity toward the grader's core. It convulsed, the Electro energy crackling along its frame, dimming its eye momentarily. "I've temporarily overloaded its core," she announced, her face calm but showing signs of fatigue. "But it won't last. We need to act fast!"
"Right," Kaeya said sharply. "Focus on its legs; we need to cripple its mobility." With a sweeping motion, he summoned another wave of Cryo energy, coating the grader's legs in a thick layer of ice. "Hit it now!" he barked.
I gritted my teeth, pushing through the fatigue and pain. My newly regenerated arm still felt weird, but I didn't have time to dwell on it. "Got it!" I yelled, charging forward. My sword was gone, shattered to pieces, so I'd have to make do with my fists.
I clenched my fists, letting blood coat my arm. I focused on solidifying the blood, feeling it harden over my skin. I ignited the blood coating, my entire arm blazing like a torch. "Let's try this out!" I muttered, swinging my flame-covered fist in front of me. It wasn't a sword, but it would have to do for now. New move unlocked: Fire Fists!
With the grader's leg frozen by Kaeya's Cryo energy, I saw my chance. I sprinted forward, fire coursing around my arm. "Come on!" I roared, slamming my fiery fist into the grader's joint. The heat clashed with the ice, causing an intense reaction that sent cracks splintering through the metal. Sparks flew, and the metal creaked ominously under the force of my punches.
"I'm with you!" Aether shouted, his eyes fierce as he surged forward. He dodged the grader's wildly swinging arm, movements swift and precise. A gust of wind circled his blade, amplifying his next strike.
Aether swung his sword in a wide arc, releasing a wave of Anemo energy directly into the fractures I'd created. The gust hit hard, deepening the cracks in the metal joint. The grader stumbled, its leg buckling under our combined assault.
"It's working!" I shouted, feeling a rush of adrenaline.
"It's trying to reboot its eye again!" Paimon shrieked, darting up to the grader's head. "Oh no, you don't!" She zigzagged around its face, waving her arms and making wild gestures. "Over here, you rusty pile of scrap! Look this way!"
But the grader had learned from her previous antics and ignored her this time, its eye continuing to gather energy for another attack.
Paimon gritted her teeth, her tiny face scrunched up in determination. "Fine, you want something more distracting?" She zoomed around, gathering as much rubble as she could manage with her small arms. "Take this!" she cried, hurling the debris at the grader's eye. While the rubble didn't do any real damage, it was enough to divert the grader's attention momentarily.
"Perfect distraction, Paimon!" Amber called out. Her eyes glinted with fierce focus as she pulled out another Baron Bunny. This time, she infused it with an immense amount of Pyro energy, the toy glowing like a beacon. "All right, Bunny, time to shine!"
She released the Baron Bunny, letting it sail through the air in a graceful arc. The bunny landed precisely on the grader's remaining functional leg joint, blinking once before detonating in a fiery explosion. The blast rocked the grader, sending metal shards flying as its leg groaned and creaked.
"Freeze it again!" Kaeya commanded, his hand glowing as he sent another wave of Cryo energy across the ground. Ice raced up the grader's legs, locking them in place. He turned to me, his eyes burning with determination. "Tayden, Aether—finish it off!"
"On it!" I roared, feeling a surge of energy. My fist ignited in flames once more as I charged the now-frozen leg. With every ounce of strength I could muster, I swung my flaming hand into the ice-covered joint. The resulting collision of fire and ice sent cracks splintering through the grader's leg.
Aether was right behind me, his blade swirling with wind. He swung with precision, releasing a gust of Anemo energy directly into the fractures. The force of his attack sent a shockwave through the grader's leg, twisting the metal until it groaned and shattered.
The ruin grader let out a final, ear-splitting mechanical screech as its leg crumpled beneath it. It swayed dangerously, its balance lost, before collapsing forward with a deafening crash. Dust and debris filled the chamber as the grader's eye flickered and dimmed.
Finally, I could see it clearly amidst the dust—the corrupted core within its eye. This was our chance
"There! The core is exposed!" I shouted, feeling a surge of hope. We'd managed to bring this monstrous machine to its knees, but it wasn't over yet.
"Everyone, focus on the core!" Kaeya commanded, his eyes blazing with determination. "This is our chance to end this!"
I clenched my fists, the flames around my arms blazing brighter as I prepared for the final assault. We were battered, exhausted, but it was almost over, we would bring this monstrosity down, once and for all.