CHPT 443: What the Future Holds, What my Blood Molds…

SLASH!!!

A blue blur of light ripped through a grouping of Serpentine Lizardfolk, erupting waves of sand dyed by blood.

Blood spurting from their necks following the removal of their heads.

[+60 EXP]

Maris skidded to a halt in the sand. The dead lizardfolk behind her squirmed and writhed silently before stilling forever.

"HSSSA!!!" More remained at the top of the sand dune, aiming their reptilian wild eyes at her from faces spliced between man and snake. No noses, simply slitted holes. Some had thick hoods like cobras, or beaded rings at the end of their tails where human legs could've been.

No matter. They were all the same. Even if these ones were larger than usual.

Blood bags. Like the ones behind her.

Maris tightened the grip on her blade. The blood leaking from the dead lizardfolk behind her slithered across the sands like liquid snakes, rearing up to scale the length of her sword and coat it. Shape it.

After a few seconds the blood mold turned the sword into a climbing pick.

Footsteps in the sand behind her caught her attention.

Soon after, Isaac came to a stop beside her, shrugging off charred Lizardfolk limbs and an arrow.

"He missed one." Isaac explained. Maris could feel the sarcasm leaking from his helmet.

"I didn't miss a damn thing." Warren retorted, sounding truly offended.

"Keep it that way." Maris said before she began scaling the massive sand dune with her blood mold climbing pick.

She made small leaps and bounds with each pull of the pick. Beside her, Isaac used his physical explosiveness to scale the hill, in between bursts of (Shoulder Charges) aimed at the sky. That skill defied physics so casually it was baffling. Warren followed their flanks with a massive updraft of wind. In doing so he caused a sandstorm to roar up the mountainous hill.

The Lizardfolk slithering down after them were blinded. Maris took advantage, shaping her weapon back into a sword. She aimed for the throat of the closest blinded creature.

SHLCK!

[+30 EXP]

The blood that spurted from the wound flocked to her sword, adding to the bulk and length of the blade.

Isaac sent a wall of flames at the rest, bombarding them with shards of scorching hot glass.

"AHHHH!!!" Their screams were unpleasant to say the least.

When the trio reached the top of the hill, Isaac was shaking sand and glass pieces out of his steaming silvery black and red armor. Warren looked as good as new.

And Maris was carrying a blood sword twice her size.

Isaac shook a handful of sand out of his gauntlets and turned to Maris, "So that isn't odd to you?" He asked in reference to her…. developing abilities.

Maris shook her head.

"We have a friend that might be a Werewolf and you're asking if a blood sword is odd?"

Isaac cursed and looked around the sanded world, "Dude! Shut up— We got detectives all over the place. You see why I didn't want to tell him shit?"

"Quiet." Maris snapped impatiently.

They did so, but one could only remain in silent suspicion for so long in a Tangent.

"What's going on, red?" Warren questioned.

"Isaac what do you know about snakes?" Maris asked. Her muscles tensed beneath her sectional armor.

Isaac readied himself. For what he didn't know exactly but it wasn't hard to guess. "Limbless cold blooded reptiles. Known to shed skin and have deadly bites. Some say they're the dragons eyes. They're all over the world…..? That was a very broad question. What's the matter?"

Maris grunted, "We're at the tallest point in the entire Tangent. I can't help but feel like this is a place of significance, Isaac."

"Snakes are known to sleep under rocks and dead trees." Isaac supported.

"What about under a mountain of sand…?" Maris questioned.

DING!

[Tangent Boss has been discovered. Gather your team and slay the Dune Python!]

Suddenly the mountainous sand dune rumbled. The ground at the bottom shifted and churned like ocean waters as something moved beneath. Waking from its slumber.

Warren stomped his feet and unsheathed an arrow, "Shit! SHIT! How do y'all always do this!?"

Maris could've smiled. They haven't had the chance to fight a Boss in a while.

And this one was large. It held a lot of blood. She could feel it. Power in excess beneath the mountain of sand.

The landslide started before they had a chance to consider it. Maris manipulated the blood around her and fell, like a teardrop through a dry storm.

A tear drop.

A small beginning.

A prelude to more. A piece of a whole….