The sword smashed into the stone with a loud, ringing clatter, which was only drowned out by the screams of the other guard as whatever had attacked him tore through his armor, the sound of tearing flesh following it.
I tried hard not to think about what cursed creature might have found us down here as I brought up my own sword, deflecting another attempt to push my back into the wall again.
I swung outward from the left, using the moments it took him to block me to circle back around, so that my back wasn't facing whatever was killing his friend.
He hissed as he lunged, sword jabbing forward. I brought up my own weapon, the blades clashing together.
They stuck edge against edge, and the guard pushed forward and down, sliding his weapon along mine. The shrill sound of metal rubbing along metal dug at my ears. I squinted, as if doing so might somehow blot out the noise.
The noise cut off, the blade slapping into the cross guard on my sword, and he flipped the blade upward. The sharp edge slashed across my thigh, and I felt hot blood rush out of the tear it left in my skin.
I tried to pivot to the right again, to give myself space, and felt my leg give slightly when I put pressure on it.
He pressed forward harder, like a starving animal spurred on by the sight of blood and torn skin, bringing his sword down again and again. Each time I managed to block the attacks, but just barely. His onslaught pushed me back against the wall, stone pressing into my back as I tried to hold off his hits for just a few more moments.
What else could I do?
He was bigger and stronger. Any chance I had of beating him was gone if I couldn't keep my distance and make the most of my speed and the weight of the sword. But anytime I tried, he just closed the distance. Forcing me onto the back foot.
I could try to wait it out. Hoped that whatever had attacked his friend came back for him. But there was no guarantee it wouldn't come for me first.
I had to end this now, or I was as good as dead. I had to do something stupid.
[Swift Strike].
The thought flitted across my mind like a fly, and my arm shot upward, sword swinging toward his side. He parried the hit away, but I didn't hold onto it. Instead, I let the weapon fall from my grip, instead bringing my left hand around, palm spread, toward his head.
If I could just get his helmet off…
Skin slapped against metal.
Stunned, his eyes locked to mine as my fingers curled around the edge of the opening on his helmet, fingernails scratching against the rough hair that covered his cheeks beneath it.
I ripped the helmet upward, trying to force it off. His head snapped back with the movement and he let out a cry of pain as my knuckles dug into his eyes. I cried out, too, the edge of the helmet digging into my fingers as I held onto it.
But I couldn't stop. It was me or him.
I kicked out with my good leg, buckling slightly as the weight of my body crashed down on my wounded leg.
I had to finish this now.
I pulled harder as his body leaned forward, the power from my kick forcing his leg out from under him, his knee slapping the stone in front of me as he was forced to kneel.
The helmet finally gave up its grip on his head, and the bottom slipped past his face in a blur of movement as I cast [Swift Strike] once more, focusing the energy on my hands and arms. Just as quickly as I'd pulled it away, I slammed the back of the helmet back down onto the top of his head, like a rock on a wounded rabbit’s skull.
Metal crashed against bone.
I wasn't strong enough to crush his skull in one go, but I didn't need to be. Instead, I kept slamming the helmet down, letting the sickening sound of bone cracking fill the air.
He tried to lash out with his sword, but the swing was panicked and weak. I took it in the side with a grunt, the blade biting into my jerkin before it rebounded off the enchanted material.
I bashed the helmet onto his skull again, and the hilt slipped from his fingers. The blade smacked against the stone beside me, and I brought the helmet back down harder, even more blood leaking down the man's face as his eyes stared—wide with fear—at the tiny woman that now towered over him.
His body fell backward as he tried to pull away, the movement throwing him off balance. He smacked into the ground with a crash of metal, his sword forgotten in the fury of my hits, and I followed him, straddling his body and putting all of my weight on him despite the screaming pain in my leg.
I twisted the helmet in my hands; the edge facing downward now, and brought it down as hard as I could, a scream rushing out of my lips.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
His neck collapsed under the weight of the blood, scattered gasps and rasps rising from his lips as I pulled away, staring down at the bloody mess that remained of his face.
A hissing roar pulled me from my bloodlust.
I twisted, taking in the silhouette of the shadowy creature that prowled toward me down the corridor. It was large and carried itself like a cat. It walked forward on four legs, sharp claws tapping against the stone floor as it moved.
I dropped the helmet as I pushed away from the body, kicking at the guard's corpse with my good foot, my butt scooting along the floor. The creature stalked up to the body, massive head leaning down to sniff it. As it did so, I got a glimpse of several eyes blinking on the sides of its head.
I couldn't count them all, but it looked like it had at least twenty eyes, maybe more. Some of them locked on me, while others took in the grizzly scene at its feet.
It stepped over the body, moving closer to me. I froze as it sniffed me. As it did, all of its eyes seemed to focus on me, as if trying to peer deeper into my body. The entire idea was unsettling, and I felt shivers erupt across my body.
Confusion clouded its eyes, which turned to recognition as it leaned forward, touching me gently with its bloody muzzle. Then, just as quick as it had appeared, the creature turned, grabbed the body of the guard in its mouth—the man let out a soft groan as its sharp teeth punctured his armor—and stalked off down the corridor.
I stared until its hulking form vanished in the flickering light of the lanterns, then I turned toward the cell, the door still wide open.
"Ophelia?" My voice was loud against the silence.
Pushing to my feet, I moved toward the cell slowly, careful not to slip on the bloody trails that now marked the stone floor. The cell was dark when I peered inside, so I waited for my eyes to adjust until I could make out Ophelia's crumbled form on the ground.
I rushed forward, kneeling next to her. I pressed an ear to her face, listening for any signs of life. My heart skipped when I felt warm breath against my cheek.
"Thank the Seven," I muttered and ran my hands along her most vital areas—her chest, stomach, and neck. When I didn't feel anything that might be wet blood or an open wound, I leaned back in relief, her head resting in my lap as I sat on the floor.
She was still alive and she wasn't bleeding, at least as far as I could tell.
That was very good news. Now, I just needed to figure out how to wake her up. We couldn't really afford to sit around waiting for too long, especially if anyone happened upon the corpse of the guard in the tunnel.
I tried gently smacking a hand against her cheek, but when she didn't respond, I decided to try something else. Reaching into my satchel, I pulled out one of the potions that I'd had Irinda purchase for me before. I held it up to the dim light coming in from outside and could just barely make out the red tint of the liquid inside.
It was probably a good idea to take some myself, so I did. Once I'd taken a sip, though, and had felt the effects rush through me like warmth from a fire on a cold night, I held the uncorked top of the vial to her lips and lifted it just enough to hopefully get some to go in her mouth.
I closed the vial and waited. As I did, I mentally thumbed through the notifications the System had spit out at me, ignoring the warnings about changes to my health.
Sneak +1
Existing Skill registered: Long Blade – Level 3
Dodge +1
Long Blade +1
Unarmed +1
Basic Medical +1
The notification about the existing skill was new; I'd never seen anything like that before. I wondered what other skills I might have like that. I'd have to do some experimenting at some point—or maybe just ask Aurelion some questions about this whole 'System' thing, since he seemed to have been at it longer than I had.
Once I'd gone through everything, I turned my attention back to Ophelia. She still hadn't moved and part of me wondered if maybe the potions didn't work as quickly on people without the System connection.
There wasn’t anything special about them as far as I knew. Tonics had existed in this world for centuries now, though as a dragon I’d never had to rely on them very much.
Suddenly, a new window appeared in front of me—one that I couldn’t have ignored even if I’d wanted to.
[System Share] activated.
Integrate the consciousness of a chosen target with the System, giving them access to new Skills and Abilities. Irreversible action.
Would you like to share System access with Ophelia Lovelace?
I stared at the words for a long while, Ophelia's head in my lap. I could share this thing with other people? How was that possible?
It made sense, in a way, at least as much as coming back to life after dying did. But what would sharing such a System with her accomplish? Would it help her heal faster with the potion?
Did I have anything to lose if I did share access with her? It might earn me more trust with her, if she could see what I was working with. But, it could also put me at a disadvantage, not to mention I had no idea what Aurelion would think about the entire thing.
I leaned down, pressing my ear to her lips once more. Her breathing sounded more ragged now, as if she had somehow grown worse since drinking the potion.
My gaze jumped back to the window hovering in front of me, and I read through the message one more time.
I had so many questions—even beyond just whether or not Ophelia would love or hate me for what I was about to do. But, like so many other things, those questions would have to wait.
For now, I needed to figure out a way to get her up and moving again so that we could finish our quest and get the hells out of the palace before we were caught.
"Thulus guide me,” I muttered, weighing the option one last time.
What I was about to do had the potential to ruin everything I was trying to accomplish. Or perhaps it could give me allies with strengths I’d never imagined having.
Ophelia was already quick on her feet, but what might be possible if she were given access to an otherworldly System that actually let her improve based on Skills and Abilities?
I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to share the System with anyone else—or even what had triggered the option here. But if this was possible… Who else of my allies might become stronger if given the access that I had? How many could I actually trust with it? I would need to pay better attention to them and what they wanted from our alliances.
I couldn’t even imagine what I would have been able to accomplish if I’d been given such power before the [Hero]’s arrival, when I’d had an entire empire at my command. I cursed the Seven for not giving me such a blessing when I’d been at my strongest.
Looking down at the girl with her head laying in my lap, I made my choice.
She might turn on me, but the potential was worth the risk. She would need guidance, and while I still didn’t know my way around the System as well as I probably should, I knew enough to guide and possibly control her.
Before I could potentially talk myself out of it, I spoke the words aloud… “Share System access.”
Patreon already). Pretty crazy milestone to hit considering I spent at least 10 years trying to write a book and never managing to push myself past 50K.