189. About Time

[151!]

A bullet for an eye, but the Envier's mimicry held, its one remaining triangle doing the work of two. Next to Serac, the Fury committed to its full-speed attack, first digging into PULVERIZER before spinning around the shield and onto Rakshasa flesh.

[51!], [110!], [110!] -> [271!]

Serac tanked the damage and ignored it, keeping her full focus glued on the highest-priority target. The Envier shifted on its stubby feet, strafing out of REVOLVER's line-of-sight. But the movement was slow, clumsy, and all too simple for an experienced marksman to track and lead.

[151!]

Two bullets for two eyes. That finally did it, breaking the Envier's Poise while stripping its allies of their knockoff [Dusklight]. The effect was instantaneous, as Serac once more experienced a 'split' between action and perception.

The future showed the Fury's tail-blade cutting into her one more time. Which, after all the hits she'd already tanked, was one hit too many for her Poise to take. Very, very bad. Definitely couldn't have that!

But a big boon of being in slow motion was Serac could actually keep up with the Fury's speed. Enough to contort her body just so and slither out of harm's way. At the same time, even as she arched her back like a limbo dancer, she reached for her belt and speedloaded a fresh set of rounds.

Back to Chamber One, but not enough Mana to cast any of her Infernal spells (damn you, Realgar!). The only option left was an unimbued bullet, timed right as the Fury's oversized tail spun away to expose the rest of its cat-like body.

[181!], —

Big damage—in excess of REVOLVER's Base Attack Value! The Fury was one of those Aberrants with negative mitigation: squishy once you broke through its whirling defense. Which also meant Serac could finish it in—

[Chamber Two: APPETIZER]

[227!], [227!] -> [635!]

—two more shots buffed by Zealous damage!

The Fury raised its hackles and bristled its tail like a cat who'd suffered a grievous offense. But only for a Ksana, before it too swirled into Souldust. It was so simple in the end. The way to overcome furious speed was to, well, slow it down.

[4,666 क]

The fight wasn't over. Serac kept her head on a swivel, taking only the quickest breather to recover her Stamina.

[Dusklight] showed the Envier mending its Poise, the tips of regenerated triangles already poking out of its eye sockets. In [Twilight], however, Serac put a stop to such nonsense. A triple burst to empty out the cylinder ([189!], [189!], [189!] -> [567!]) and free the Envier from its miserable existence.

[7,777 क]

From the corner of her eye, Serac saw a fresh cloud of Souldust spread (slowly) through the umber air. The Glutton had succumbed to a tenacious fight-back by Team CROZIER ([3,111 क] for Serac's share). It hadn't been easy. Both Travertine and DLEE were down to their last chunks of Health, not to mention they'd be without ORD the rest of the way.

But more importantly, they were still in the fight. Two Wayfarers and one Little Doe, supported by a time mage Viceroy. Meanwhile, the Breachspawns were down to just the one: useless Braggart still wearing its spiky crown and screeching its horrible song.

"Giiiiive iittt uuupp aalllreaddyyyyy…"

Serac yelled in slow motion. Halfway through, she was startled (and put off) by the sound of her [Twi]-warped voice, but it was too late to cry over spilled taunts. Across from her, the Braggart only continued to wail, as though bad music alone could compel the Wayfarers into submission.

More puzzled than anything, Serac stole a not-so-quick glance at Travertine. The Cardinal remained in his combat-ready stance, Instrument held slightly off to his side. CROZIER's crook still drew a golden band to connect with DLEE, who shifted her weight onto her haunches, looking ready to pounce at a moment's notice.

Weird, Serac thought at 'normal speed'. They both still see the Braggart as a threat, but they're not taking the initiative. It's like they're waiting for it to attack first!

Serac was curious to see if she might be able to speed things along. She fired a probing shot, from the hip so as to minimize the telegraph. She half-expected the Braggart to strafe like the Envier before it, though perhaps with somewhat more grace. But instead…

[0!]

The Braggart didn't even have to move, thanks to its total mitigation. One of those Aberrants! Should Serac switch off [Appetizer] and try a different damage type? But if the solution were that simple, surely Travertine would've had the means to enact it.

No, there was something else at play here. Some kind of gimmick masked by darkness and distorted by song.

Serac was reminded of a particular oddity (one of many!) about this group of Breachspawns. For no matter if they were a Glutton, a Lecher, a Miser, or an Envier, they all had HP totals of exactly 777 and dropped Karmic rewards of exactly [7,777 क].

That's an awful lot of 7's for it not to mean anything. Especially odd when you consider there have been exactly six different Breachspawns, each named after some kind of vice or personality flaw or, I dunno, sin.

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Yes. Odd for there to be only six sins here. Unless—

That was when Serac finally felt it. The presence of a seventh enemy, first as a massive surge of ripples that pressed against the stumps of her horns. Second as a solid wall of shadows that advanced from the far side of the room, taking up the whole width from floor to ceiling. And third as a Pathsighted label to announce the belated arrival of:

[Frenzied Sloth]

It really was just a wall, with not one discernible limb, feature, nor even shape upon its flat surface. But surely, Serac mused, this thing too must have a triangle somewhere.

After a moment, she saw it. A billowing flap that split the wall from its center to one of its bottom corners. Said flap shifted languidly from one side of the room to the other, driving the wall forward with its constant movement. And it was this thin sliver of an opening that formed a rough 'triangle', one a Rakshasa might squeeze through if she rotated her own body sideways.

As the Sloth entered the frame, the Braggart's song underwent a 'key change'. From hideous wailing to… also hideous wailing but now with a distinct note of relief. The message was clear, even to its unintended audience: about time you showed up, ya lazy sod!

As for Serac, she took her cues from the [Dusklit] future. The Sloth, even when fully sped up, moved at a leisurely pace. Yet its presence was undeniable, what with it covering one whole dimension of the arena! Serac already had an idea how she might go about smiting it, but first, she wanted to watch it interact with its Braggart ally.

As it turned out, it was barely an interaction. The Braggart merely stood in place, continuing to sing its horrible song. The shadowy wall that was the Sloth then passed through it as if it wasn't there.

It's a team of seven sins, and the Braggart runs the whole show. And it gets to just stand there and look pretty because it's invulnerable while its teammates are still up and about. Well, let's see how well (badly) you can still sing after we get rid of your last pal!

Now, onto the getting rid.

[Dusklight]'s future-sight was still active, but Serac no longer found much use in it. Simply because the Sloth moved too slowly for the extra few seconds to be consistently actionable. So, she went back to the basics, taking her advantage as a ranged fighter against a slow-moving target. Two speculative shots to start with:

[2!], [2!] -> [4!]

… No. That couldn't be right. She must've misread, or Pathsight must've glitched up. Better try again, this time with the familiar triple burst:

[2!], [2!], [2!] -> [6!]

There was no denying it this time. The Sloth really had cut REVOLVER's attack value to a measly two points. Not quite 100% mitigation but close enough to barely matter. Well, if Zealous damage is no good, let's deactivate [Appetizer] and see what happens.

[2!], [2!], [2!] -> [6!]

A Physical triple burst produced the same result. So far, Serac had spent eight Cartridges to deal a grand total of [16!] in damage. The Sloth edged ever closer, its Health bar essentially as full as it was eight bullets ago.

The gunslinger brought REVOLVER up to her face and stared at it, wondering if her boomstick was the thing that was malfunctioning. The gesture would've looked rather amusing in slow motion, but right now, laughing at herself was the last thing Serac wanted to do.

As a gunslinger wasted time trying to deal damage to the thing, the wall itself had moved in close. 'Future-sight' came in handy again, if only to predict where the 'triangle of safety' might line up.

Serac watched as Travertine and DLEE aligned themselves with the open flap. The CROZIER-wielder gave the wall a couple of good whacks (to the tune of [2!], [2!] -> [4!]; so, Primal damage was no good either), even as he slid through the opening. Just behind him, DLEE crouched low to do the same, careful not to let her antlers touch any part of the Sloth.

Shouldn't be too bad, Serac thought nervously now that it was her turn to mimic her deer allies. Just gotta time it right, and [Dusklight] has given me plenty of warning for that. All's I gotta do is turn sideways and—

But this was a newly ascended Rakshasa's first time playing limbo against a wall of shadows. She was so concerned with the object of the game that she paid little attention to the terrain on which it was played. And as she contorted herself into the size and shape of a triangular flap, her foot caught against one of the countless cadavers that filled the floor. She lost her balance, and promptly bumped into the wall as it passed.

[91!]

The damage itself was modest and manageable. The problem, however, was the considerable Poise check—shooting well past the threshold after the beating Serac had taken in a short span of time. She fell on her butt and was unable to move, let alone stand and regain her footing.

Another key change in the Braggart's song, now taking on a sense of high-pitched urgency. The Sloth responded by reversing course. The intent couldn't be more obvious: flatten the gunslinger while she stayed on the ground, defenseless.

Serac saw the future, clear as burnt umber. The Sloth would come for her again and slide back-and-forth, hitting her several times with the critical multiplier until she was dead. Serac saw the future…and was powerless to change it.

That was when the future did change, thanks to the decisive action of another.

The dainty, antlered figure of DLEE skipped into the frame. Little Doe then wound up her legs and unleashed a powerful hind kick—at Serac and sending her flying backward.

[413!]

It hurt a lot! Especially with the critical multiplier. But it also fell just short of lethal damage, and more importantly, it sent a defenseless Serac well out of crushed-by-a-wall range.

But it also meant…

[103!]

DLEE had already been low on Health. And one touch from the Sloth was enough to drain the last of it. Little Doe didn't let out a single peep, keeping her antlered head high and dignity intact as she dissolved into Souldust.

"Nnnooooo…!!"

Serac's [Twi]-warped lament came out as a low-pitched dirge, very nearly harmonious with the Braggart's wailing. Slowly, she mended her Poise and got to her feet, now simmering with barely contained wrath of her own.

DLEE had sacrificed herself to keep Serac—the ranged fighter—alive. It was a sensible 'trade', given DLEE's limited attacking options. The Oathborn could also come back to life, along with her Stag partner, at the next turn of the circadian cycle. But none of these rational thoughts did anything to cool Serac's fire.

I fucked up, and an ally had to suffer for it. I won't let DLEE's sacrifice go to waste!

Beside her, DLEE's Oathkeeper appeared to be of the same mind. There'd be time later for Serac to apologize to Travertine, but it seemed the man had little interest in an apology. No, the only thing he cared about was payback. And as was his purview as a protector of the herd, he would be the one to dish it out.

Travertine faced down the Sloth's advancing wall and raised CROZIER high into the air. For here was a KL-95 veteran who didn't get to where he was solely by relying on his Oathborns.

[CROZIER Spell: SHEPHERD'S STAND]

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