REVOK, THE CHIMERA OF WESTERWEALD (LVL 150)

HP: 2100/2500

WILL: 3000/3000

Barely a scratch on him…

Ethan stepped back as Revok roared again, rooting him in place as it reared up for a charge attack.

The lion-head's mane glowed with fierce, bright light – the light of an inferno rippling across every hair.

"Ethan – look ou-!"

Fauna's cry was swallowed by the Chimera's charge. It lunged forward, intent on snapping up Ethan in its jaws, and only with application of herculean effort did Ethan manage to hold it at bay, summoning some [Thorn Whips] to once again tie up the creature while his claws kept its mouth away from him.

But only the lion mouth. The other two had other ideas.

The goat head sprayed another gout of lightning right at Klax, who tanked the damage but was sent flying back into the crumbling wall of the castle. Tara leaped to strike at the beast and was intercepted by the scorpion stinger at its back. The catgirl's daggers met the organic stiletto that was the stinger, and she was pushed back, her legs wavering.

Next, the snake-head elongated itself and rushed towards Fauna as she prepared a spell of [Free Action]. The Hopla looked up, saw the venomous fangs of the creature coming for her, and had only a moment to register shock before –

"HAR!"

-before Ethan [Skittered] towards her and pushed her aside.

He clamped both his claws down on the snake-mouth and forced it open. Then, with a roar of fury, he sent a [Twilight Edge] strike right down its elongated throat.

The Chimera reacted instantly – its other heads turning to both strike out at their enemies.

But not at Ethan.

Panting, ready to snap the snake in two, Ethan saw the goat-head clamp its jaws down on Tara and throw her into the air. It opened its furry maw and roared in pleasure as she fell towards it.

It charged up another spear of lightning in its gullet, and then felt the stinging pain of Ethan's [Spectral Snipe] blast its eyeball, singing clear through its skull and knocking it away.

Even with the creature's regenerative capabilities, that strike had been potent. Ethan looked towards the beast and attempted another Appraisal, but suddenly found that the creature had entirely disappeared from sight.

"Archon!" Lamphrey shouted from the end of the hall. "Look to the skies!"

Ethan did. He looked up to see the hulking behemoth coming crashing down on him, channeling an ability that he'd all but thought, with the sheer scale of the thing, would be impossible to manifest.

Dive…Grade S…

He had enough time to activate [Ethereal Form] and slink away under the floor. Even then – the impact of the beast brought the entire castle tower's foundation crumbling apart. The floor gave out entirely, and Ethan and the rest of the party felt themselves tumbling towards the ground, seeing the grey moon of Argwyll disappear as they fell towards the jagged rocks at the bottom of Griffon's Watch Island.

"You see your death, Archon?" Dr Haylock bellowed above the cries of the party. "Tell me – do you see?!"

Ethan ignored his shallow taunts. With a quick flicker of [Wing Buffet] he caught Klax and Tara together and hovered with them as the great Chimera kept up its plunging attack. Together the three of them faced the beast and its trio of snapping, gnashing maws…

Fauna…Lamphrey, Ethan channeled, using the connection between them to call out – just to make sure they were still alive. Fa-

We are here, my Archon.

It was the first time he'd ever been glad to hear the Tialax's hissing voice. He couldn't see them, but he knew that couldn't have fallen too far.

Ethan! Fauna cried. We're ready!

He looked back at the quickly approaching knife-rocks below him. He, Klax, and Tara were heading right towards a watery grave.

And above them, the Chimera was still mid-dive…

I need you to do something…he transmitted to them both.

He kept his command simple and curt. Because time was the one thing they didn't have, here. Not against something as monstrous as this.

"TELL ME YOU'VE GOT A BRIGHT IDEA, HATBOY!" Tara screamed over the din of their roaring pursuer.

"There's only one thing for this," Ethan told them as they kept plummeting towards the sea-rocks. "But the two of you have to trust me."

"Famous last words!" Tara spat. "But, hell, what other choice do we have?"

Klax said nothing. Ethan only felt his every muscle tense, his eyes focused entirely on Jun'Ei's vat, which still glistened in the remains of the destroyed room above.

"Whatever it takes," he growled.

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Ethan nodded. "Okay."

He let go of them. He felt them fall from its grip, screaming as they dropped towards their certain death, while he channeled [Dive] right back at the falling Chimera.

Moments before they slammed against the craggy rocks, a gust of air whipped them up and onto the safety of one of the castle courtyards. Fauna had done her job.

Haylock didn't even see it happen. Right now, he and his beast were fixated on Ethan.

"Oh, ho!" he heard Haylock shout down at him. "You're approaching me? How fort -"

The Doctor's words were drowned out by Ethan's assault. He channeled [Dive] with [Sonic Skitter], weaving both skills into a synergy of flashing, electrified power. His form became shrouded in the lightning from [Skitter] and then projected itself forwards like a missile shot from the seabed itself.

He crashed right into the Chimera's lion-mouth, felt its jaws clamp down on his neck, and heaved against it with all his strength.

"Remarkable!" Haylock squealed in delight. "Truly, truly remarkable!"

Somewhere in his head, he heard Lamphrey and Fauna call out that they'd caught Tara and Klax. The fact they were safe was all he needed to know. He didn't look back. Instead, he pushed.

He felt the lion-head burst. He felt its eyes pop, its fangs split, and its entire skull give way and crack under his pressure.

Suspended in midair, both creatures defied the laws of gravity. Trails of fire streamed from their backs as they channeled equally matched Skills.

But the game was nearing its end. Ethan looked at the pile of bloody mush that the lion-head of Revok was quickly becoming, and snarled as he began to push the great beast back.

"There it is…" Haylock hissed. "The strength of an Archon – a true Archon – cannot be rivaled no matter how effective the copy may be."

Ethan snarled at the Doctor's words. He punched through the face of the lion, trying to dig through the creature's innards and find that miserable bastard's head…

"But I wonder…is your strength still tempered?"

ETHAN!

The call came from below – from the spot where Tara and Klax had been spirited to. Down in the black castle courtyard, a beast of shadow loomed over them, staring them down with dull, soulless eyes. The creature had them both in its clutches.

A Shadow Wraith…another skill he's managed to copy.

Fauna and Lamphrey flew to help their companions, but the beast simply phased right through their spells. It blinked towards them, covered Fauna in a thick pall of night, and then beat her down into the courtyard's center.

Ethan felt his whole being shift.

"You know what you must do, don't you?" Haylock chuckled darkly. "And yet, you just can't do it."

Ethan felt himself begin to struggle against the creature's Dive attack. His limbs started to splinter.

One more push is all I need, he kept telling himself. One more, and -

E-Ethan…

His three eyes flew open. The sounds of his friends dying was too much.

He let go. He summoned up a [Wing Buffet] and put all of his strength into it – managing to force the Chimera to crash into another tower of the castle and then rush towards the battle in the courtyard below.

But before he even reached the shadowy specter, the thing disappeared completely.

And pain rocketed up his back.

It was like something had torn clean through his limbs. He felt airless, his wings suddenly clipped, and he looked back to see that they'd been torn clean off his back by some dark, twisting vines.

Thorn Whips…

He had time to turn and block the brunt of the next attack. Still, the force of the impact sent him flying towards the ground. He slammed into the courtyard and kicked up a dust cloud that covered what remained of the crumbling castle.

Faint voices assailed his fading consciousness. He told himself he had to get up. He told himself he had to finish this.

…but he couldn't even make out how much HP he had left.

"Ethan – Ethan, hold still," Fauna's voice cried from behind him. "I – I'll start up a healing spell. Lamphrey, help me he-"

The Hopla's voice caught in her throat as a dark vine wrapped itself around her neck. Ethan saw it apply pressure – twisting veins appearing across its surface as it dragged Fauna away with the rest of the party. Each of them had been taken. Each of them were pulled to the end of the courtyard and presented before him, dangling in the air, their eyes about ready to pop from the attack.

"No, no, no," a voice echoed from within the dust cloud. "You still can't see."

Ethan steadily rose, applying all his remaining will to force himself up and out of the crater he'd formed in the center of the courtyard.

Before him, the grisly form of the Chimera stepped, two of its heads slowly regenerating, while the twisted vines that had sprouted from his body held his friends like they were nothing but ragdolls.

"All the power in the world," Haylock groaned as though in pain. "All the strength to make, and unmake…all the gifts that Kaedmon gave you, and you still refuse to see what you are."

He staggered forward, raised a shaking claw, and then felt the stinging intensity of the goat-head's electrical strike burn up his arms. He fell to his knees, reduced to a smoking bundle of branches.

"Perhaps you really are just another failure," Haylock told him within the body of his beast. "I had hoped that the Archon to slay Carliah Argent herself might have been the one to break the chain. But I see now that you lack the strength. The…conviction needed to truly be what the Archon was meant to be."

Another series of vines – electrified this time – struck out and tore Ethan's right arm from his body. He didn't scream. He slumped down, staring up as his friends died, and thought about how he could win this without hurting them, too. There had to be a way…there had to b-

Stop.

The voice was not Haylock's. The voice was not his – not, at least, as he knew it.

Sys was speaking to him in a very different tone than usual.

You still don't understand, do you?

Ethan's eyes wavered over the Chimera's looming form. It slowly began to stalk towards him, tightening its grip on each hybrid as it did so.

You're holding yourself back, Ethan.

S…Sys?

You're holding back, just like the rest of them did. In the end, it was love that killed them. That's the pattern, Ethan. That's it.

Ethan's eyes bulged. Looking into the eyes of the Chimera, he suddenly saw the other Archons. He remembered the dreams Lamphrey had shown him – of how they had all loved their followers, and their passions, their hopes, and their desires. How their hearts had guided their every movement…

You can't let yourself be afraid. You can't let your feelings for them stop you.

He looked at them all – at Klax, at Tara, at Fauna, and at Lamphrey…

…only the lizardwoman looked back at him with something other than pain in her eyes.

You need to see past them, Sys said. You need to see what you could make this world, if you just let yourself be who you really are.

He felt his entire body shake. But not with fear.

Sys…they've been here with me for this whole journey. I can't…I can't just let them die…

You can't afford to let that stop you. If you keep limiting yourself because of them, eventually you'll go down the same path as your predecessors.

The words were spoken softly, but they had the firm ring of truth. He'd seen it. He'd seen how the Archons had lived, and how they'd died. Every one of them had given their lives for others.

But who's ever sacrificed for you? Sys asked him. Back on earth, nobody cared about you. Here, they want you to be their savior. But who's really in control here, Ethan? You? Or them?

Revok released another torrent of vines from his back. All three heads readied themselves to spit their final attack at the Demon Hat.

But Ethan didn't hear the beast's roar of victory, nor the Doctor's childlike cackles.

Instead, he heard the words of Sys:

Show him who you are, Ethan. That's the only way you're getting out of this alive.

When the Demon Hat then rose again, its Host was no longer shaking.

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