The heat rose from below, pressing against Eric's armor until his back felt like it was being roasted over a forge.
The faint shimmer of a rune shield clung to him, prepared to absorb whatever impact was about to come.
A blade of fire roared toward him. Eric hurled an ender pearl in panic. In a flash of violet sparks he vanished, reappearing against the jagged cliff wall. The fire sword slashed through where he had stood, scattering the fading purple motes.
The balrog clung to the mountainside like some monstrous spider, ember eyes scanning for prey. Its gaze found him almost immediately, sprinting across the rock face while frantically stacking blocks beneath his feet. Within seconds Eric had built a narrow stone staircase climbing upward.
A low, mocking laugh rumbled from the creature. The fire blade dissolved and reformed into a whip of molten flame.
Snap!
The whip cracked through the air with deadly precision, curling downward as if it could see on its own.
Eric felt his foot sink as if the ground itself betrayed him. In the next instant his entire body was yanked sideways, hurled against the cliff with bone-jarring force. He tumbled upward along the rock face, scraping against stone and splintering debris until he vanished again in a flash of purple light.
The whip had caught only an afterimage.
This time Eric reappeared directly above the balrog, stacking blocks frantically beneath him. With a flourish he upended several buckets, unleashing a cascade of water.
The stream poured down the balrog's shoulders and chest. Steam erupted with a deafening hiss, filling the air with a choking white cloud.
Yet even through the vapor those eyes glowed brighter, burning orange-red and closing in on him.
The stones beneath Eric's feet shattered violently. The water hissed once, then evaporated, leaving not even a puddle. The balrog's flames surged higher, roaring with renewed fury.
Eric plummeted again, arms windmilling.
His makeshift stone staircase was laughably thin compared to the giant before him. One of its massive claws could crush it like stale bread.
Clang!
Eric drew his sword, and met the balrog's blade midair. The clash thundered across the cavern. Light burst from his sword, brighter than it had any right to be, and the impact hurled them both apart. The balrog was driven upward, Eric downward.
The enchantment of Knockback at last revealed its true value. Each strike carried the weight of a sledgehammer, giving Eric just enough force to stand against the monstrous foe.
Or at least… he hoped so.
Blinking at his weapon, Eric frowned. "Wait a second. This isn't just Knockback."
He knew every enchantment on this sword like he knew his own heartbeat. Yet what pulsed through the blade now was different, ancient, and powerful.
The balrog snarled and clawed upward, once more forming a blade of fire.
Eric steadied himself, gripped his sword, and swung with all his might.
The collision shrieked like tearing steel. His arm numbed from the shock, and even Nemesis, with all its strange resilience, could not completely dampen the impact. Yet against all odds, the fiery sword was deflected, sent spinning away. For the first time, they fought to a draw.
Normal steel would have melted like candlewax in the balrog's heat. Nemesis shone defiantly, glowing with a cold radiance. Eric suddenly understood.
This was no ordinary enchantment. It was a blessing from the First Age, when the elves still battled such monsters.
The balrogs were called "Elf-Banes" for a reason. They had slain countless elves, but the elves had fought back, pouring their defiance into their weapons.
And now, in Eric's hand, that defiance burned anew.
The balrog's fiery maw twisted. Its eyes widened in something approaching shock.
"Which lord of the elves sends his vengeance after me?" the creature muttered, its voice like cracking stone. "I have slept for six thousand years… have the elf-lords returned?"
Perhaps in its mind the world outside was still ruled by immortal princes and glowing cities.
Eric glared back from his precarious grip on the cliff. "I'm not here to represent anyone. And I don't need the recognition of a creature that clings to survival."
The balrog chuckled, deep and harsh. "Hah… amusing little mortal. I will remember you."
"Keep your memory. I don't need it."
The flames around the monster flared. Orange deepened to crimson, crimson to blinding white. Smoke billowed from its wings as it launched itself forward, scorching the rock and filling the cavern with choking heat.
Eric, hanging there with sweat pouring down his brow, could only think: Great. I'm the pig, and this thing is the oven.
And that makes dinner a specialty of Moria, roasted Eric with crispy skin. Worth at least a few hundred silver coins on the market.
He muttered to himself, "If Gandalf were here, this would be his problem."
He hurled pearl after pearl, flickering across the sheer walls as if sprinting horizontally through the air, each teleport just ahead of the fiery lashes.
The balrog beat its wings and followed, tearing through the cavern, leaving blackened ruin in its wake.
Eric knew the old stories. Gandalf had defeated a balrog not merely with his staff and sword but with Narya, the Ring of Fire, which let him command flames of light to counter the balrog's corrupted fire. Eric had no such relic.
A wave of searing heat swept over him. He vanished again, but not before a tongue of orange-white fire engulfed him completely.
The flames licked at his armor, yet the fire resistance potion pulsed through his veins. He felt the heat, but it could not burn him.
Unfortunately, the balrog's fists did not share that limitation.
A punch like a collapsing boulder shattered his rune shield. Eric flew like a rag doll out of the chasm, armor screeching, health bar plunging. The golden apple in his belt flared, knitting his wounds as quickly as they came.
"Are you trying to stir-fry me?" he gasped, clutching his chest.
His status bar flashed briefly with a nausea debuff. Groaning, he chucked another ender pearl, crashing through an archway and tumbling into the Hall of Wonders.
He lay sprawled on the stone floor, sucking in the blessed chill of the air.
Never had cold stone smelled so good.
The relief lasted only a heartbeat. The roar of fire grew closer, shaking the walls.
Eric chomped another golden apple. Golden light shimmered over him, and amber runes unfurled from his enchanted ring, crawling across his body in protective script. His staff's reserves of stored magic bled away to fuel his shields.
This was, without a doubt, the most humiliating fight of his life.
His jaw clenched. He had fought and scrambled for what felt like hours, and the balrog's health bar had not even appeared yet.
A deep tremor rumbled through the floor. He saw the massive shadow climbing toward him again.
"Am I supposed to just accept this?"
Snarling, he sprinted to the doorway. Quickly, he plastered the arch with rows of TNT blocks, crouched behind a column, and waited.
The ground shook. The balrog's massive form smashed upward, ramming against the gateway. The ancient stone burst apart in a cascade of rubble, the entrance widening as though made of clay.
One massive, clawed foot stepped through.
Eric grinned fiercely. "Perfect timing."
With a roar he lunged forward, sword flashing, and brought it down on the balrog's toes.
Clang!
The balrog howled, jerking its foot back in pain.
[Balrog of Moria: 998/1000]