Hope

Instantly the vanguard group moved to try restrain the hulking mass of rock now breaking free from the crater in the wall it had made when falling into it.

As we moved the support group threw a rope over to each of us. The vanguard group's role was to ensure the beast couldn't move.

"We won't be able to hold it against the wall." I called out.

36 looked around for a moment.

"Use the pillars as pulleys"

As I looked at wrap the rope around the behemoth's arm and then run over behind the pillar I realised what he exactly meant. I copied it on the other side, wrapping around the pillar to ensure once the thing stood up we could ensure it wouldn't move an inch.

I moved around a second pillar to magnify the effect, further. It wouldn't have the force magnifying effect of a moving pulley but being able to hold the beast in place is all we would need.

7 wrapped his rope around the beasts neck but oddly didn't seem to try wrap his rope around a pillar like 36 and I did.

33 also moved swiftly to anchor the beasts last remaining limb, that being his leg. The one that hasn't been broken off by the knee.

As the monster begun to lift to its feet 36 and I pulled on our ropes to have the monsters arms open and stuck. 33 quickly pulled on her rope causing the behemoth to topple over and making the force on my rope almost unbearable.

I was struggling to hear or even see as the pressure in my body seemed to rise and rise but I couldn't let this beast move at all.

The glistening bolts of ice shot into the weak spot one at a time, digging deeper and deeper each time but I wasn't able to watch. My stamina was running out quickly, we had to kill it before any of us fell. The moment one of us did spelt our deaths.

The time between each bolt felt like an eternity of suffering. My hands grew numb while my mind came and went but my grip didn't wane for a second. Eventually the endless trial overcame me and I collapsed, causing me to be catapulted into the wall as my consciousness faded.

As my mind went into the black all I could do was watch our organisation crumble.

36 POV

Right as I thought I had reached my limit I had brought even more out of myself but even that was not enough, the relentless force from the stone monster was far too much. The ice bolts hardly seemed strong enough to do anything to the monster the atlas system called a cragnine and it wouldn't be long before someone faltered, and once that happened all hell would break loose.

It wasn't a few moments later when 4 seemed to slip. He didn't even seem to notice, the man didn't adjust his balance at all and got pulled along with the rope straight into a wall. 

'Fuck, can't anyone do something right?'

Even though I thought that I knew that he did his job perfectly. It was just simply that he wasn't able to withstand the pressure he had placed on it. 

The cragnine quickly used its free arm to snap the rope connecting its leg and then the one on its remaining arm. 

A bolt seemed to land perfectly in the slot of the cragnine's rock armour and I doubted we would get another chance. We had failed to kill it, and we would all die in return.

Unlike before It had to awkwardly move on three legs compared to its bipetal nature. That was an advantage I couldn't forget, but at the same time It wouldn't help us in this exact moment.

We all began to run into the hallway, away from it. trying, no praying for it to leave us. It seemed to be quite angry at us however.

In its current state it was slow, even more so then normally but its sheer size allowed it to keep up with our sprint.

33 however seemed to have a different plan. She had a fire in her eyes I hadn't seen since her arm was taken off. She grabbed 7 by the shoulder.

"We need to stall it, you said you had an ability to do that. I will help"

7 looked at her in horror. "I really don't want to die." The man looked conflicted for a second before turning around.

The look on his face was of one who was prepared to die. His figure looked like a valiant hero and I hated that I was too cowardly to face him. I knew that my abilities wouldn't help now in the face of that monster but running away like this felt truly pitiful.

As we all passed the hidden main door to this accursed facility I stopped and stood still. The others were more opportunists and had hidden in nearby.

I simple stood there, looking back through the doorway. I saw 7 and 33 trying to hold back the cragnine to no avail, but while they were unable to hold the cragnine back. They certainly made sure to get its attention.

The cragnine's monstrous form was far too swift for what anything of its size should be capable, but that did not make it agile. 7 and 33 were dodging like two masters of combat, taking every advantage. Including the fact the rock body of the cragnine gave them just enough room to move where it's inflexible body could reach.

It didn't take long before their streak of luck begun to falter. Afterall the cragnine was an intelligent creature and had been learning too. Using wide sweeping swings instead of precise strikes was making 7 and 33 take glancing blows.

But just as the creature was learning they were too, each second they became better and better. It became more and more tense by the second, 7 had even begun helping lure the cragnine when 33 was in a bad situation and soon she started to do the same.

'I have to get in there, they aren't trying to hold it back at this point. They are trying to beat this thing all on their own.'

Of course they had no chance to, they would die long before succeeding but none the less I couldn't let fear hold me any longer.

I ran in and entered the carnage. At first I was slow and imprecise, but 7 had helped me without a word. There was no need for words anymore, only focus. I slowly learnt how it moved, and it learnt how I moved as well. Just as I was going faster now, so was the cragnine. 

Unlike the other's strikes however, mine were more effective.

'Now is not the time to hold back.'

I had lied about my blessing, it had never been about increasing the piercing effect of objects. It was instead to weaken the defences, this distinction was small but very important.

Concealing ones power was certainly important, this world was full of dangers. Humans being some of the worst dangers out there. On the other hand though there were situations where you could not hold back your full capabilities and this was one such situation. I just had to trust them not to backstab me later using this knowledge.

Every spot I hit was noticeably weaker and easier to break. While weaking it was still not enough to be able to allow any significant damage, if I piled more and more strikes on. The weaker and weaker it would become.

Looking up at the completely shattered part on the cragnine's back I considered what it would take to be able to kill this thing.

Turning to my left I saw 7 make a fatal error. He had slipped on a rock just sitting on the ground causing his large body to fall to the ground and worst of all it made him vulnerable. It wouldn't even take a second for him to right himself but the cragnine had already begun to take advantage.

Reaching out I grabbed him by the ankle before yanking him back as hard as I physically could. He had come out mostly intact though his right hand was mangled though still nearly impossibly both still attached to his body and with its bones seemingly intact, despite being in questionable spots.

This wasn't a good sign for things to come and the future held up to its grim promise. Each of us were riding lines so fine that every minor mistake became fatal without help from another.

Every moment felt long and painful. Our only hope was to weaken its entire body enough to wear it down faster then we would be worn down.

'If only we could go back and use the-'

A flying bolt, nearly so fast it felt like a laser shot past my head right into the further weakened hole in the cragnine's back.