"RAWWWR!!!"
With a terrifying roar, the massive body of the Sea Kraken collapsed toward the shores of Bilgewater.
BOOM!!
The colossal impact kicked up clouds of dust and smoke, even forcing the Black Mist to retreat briefly. But within moments, the fog surged back, lifting the Sea Kraken's body as if refusing to let it fall.
As a gigantic sea beast, the Kraken's length stretched nearly a hundred meters, like a living train. It resembled the Jörmungandr of Norse myth, a creature that could awaken primal fear within any soul.
Tentacles sprouted from its lower jaw to its abdomen, reminiscent of an octopus, designed for hunting. On either side, four massive fin-like limbs propelled it through the sea.
Though half of the Kraken had collapsed onto land, the rest floated eerily on the water's surface. Thanks to the undead properties granted by the Black Mist, the beast defied physics, hovering where it pleased.
Shrrrkk!
Its tentacles shot out like smoke, plunging violently into the ground and curling around anything they could grasp. Once anchored, the limbs yanked backward, dragging the Kraken forward.
Its cavernous mouth, lined with razor-sharp teeth, gaped wide like a living meat grinder, devouring anything within reach.
"Now that's what I call a big boy... Father!"
Hovering midair, Duke incinerated wave after wave of wraiths with the mana radiating from his powered armor. Nearby, Wall E's scanning system locked onto the Kraken's massive form.
But despite their efforts, the undead hidden within the Black Mist surged endlessly toward Duke, like moths diving into flame, fearless, relentless.
"We have to take that thing out in one shot! If it reaches Thieves' Square, our entire defensive line could collapse!"
"But how? Look at the size of that monster!"
"Wall E, how much energy do we have left?"
"Sixty-five percent, Father!"
Wall E's systems responded immediately, he was keenly aware of his energy reserves. Duke, hearing this, pulled out every ultraviolet grenade he had left.
"Then prepare to burn through all of it!"
With a flash of movement, Duke charged directly at the Kraken's gaping mouth. The beast twisted in fury, its belly slamming through rows of houses, its spear-like tentacles lashing out toward Duke.
Zzzzt!
Electric arcs flickered through the air. No matter how many tentacles came at him, Wall E's octo-arms sliced through them with pinpoint laser beams.
"ROOAARR!!"
Raising its head, the Kraken opened its blood-red maw to bite at Duke. To the Kraken, he was like a buzzing butterfly, elusive and infuriating.
Duke climbed higher, dodging the bite. Then, pulling all the pins from his ultraviolet grenades, he tossed them into the gaping mouth of this oversized sea serpent.
A blinding flash erupted, like the Kraken had swallowed a miniature sun. The searing light ignited its insides, boring through tissue and bone.
"HRRGHH!!"
Screaming in agony, the Kraken reeled. From above, Duke watched as it thrashed wildly, like a caterpillar on a leaf from this height.
Rolling across the terrain, its massive form devastated the entire shoreline. Bilgewater's docks and shantytowns became an unrecognizable wasteland.
The intense pain triggered a frenzy. The Black Mist, unable to rapidly regenerate damage caused by ultraviolet radiation, only fueled the Kraken's rage.
Its soul, a corrupted fusion of abyssal energy and necrotic mist, was being burned alive from the inside.
"ROOOAARR!!"
Now berserk, the Kraken surged toward Thieves' Square.
Duke flipped both hands, pulling out two weapons from his inventory: the Railgun he'd previously repaired, and a newly crafted Photon Rifle, built using the same principles as his ultraviolet gear.
"Wall E, give me suppressive fire. I need time to combine these two!"
As he spoke, Duke disassembled the photon rifle, extracting its core component. He then embedded it into the railgun's firing chamber.
If he wanted to erase this monster in a single shot, he'd have to spend big. No holding back.
Above, Wall E maintained distance, lashing at the Kraken with his laser-equipped arms. Though the damage was superficial, it kept the creature enraged and distracted.
Meanwhile, deep within the Black Mist, a pair of sinister eyes locked onto Duke.
Greedy. Curious. Cruel.
"Such a fresh, delicious soul…"
Back at Thieves' Square, every eye was locked on the howling beast.
The sheer size of the undead Kraken, the destruction it brought, was almost beyond comprehension.
"My god... Now I get why Duke told me to burn that thing completely,"
muttered Miss Fortune, stunned as she watched the giant rise like a skyscraper. Her gaze then shifted upward.
"What's that light?"
"Is there supposed to be starlight on Soul-Eater's Night?"
"It's not natural…"
"Did Duke cause it?"
"That must be it! It has to be Duke!"
As whispers spread through the crowd, a radiant cross-shaped light exploded in the sky, like a star being born in the darkness.
Camille had just landed when the brilliance caught her attention.
"That's...!"
High above, Duke had fused the cores of the railgun and the photon rifle. He poured all of Wall E's remaining 65% power into the combined weapon.
The arcane engines overloaded, by more than a thousand percent. Magical light bled from every crevice, forming luminous rings around Duke.
Hovering in the sky, weapon raised, he stared down at the Kraken rolling through the ruins below.
The Kraken raised its head, roaring as it caught sight of the blinding light surrounding Duke's weapon.
"Wall E, energy status!"
"Charging at 35%... 50%... 67%..."
"Father, for your safety, I recommend you halt charging, "
"Shut it. Pour in everything. We need to erase this bastard from existence if we want to protect Thieves' Square!"
"88%... 93%... 95%... Father, the weapon is overheating! Rails are melting!"
"Tch... Miscalculated the material tolerances."
Within Duke's HUD, a targeting reticle locked onto the Kraken's colossal form. The crosshair zeroed in on the beast's head.
"Prepare for recoil. Monitor all damage systems. Report any critical failures."
"Understood!"
Wall E disengaged all safety limits. His arcane engines fired at full capacity.
"Feel the power of science, you overgrown leech!"
Duke's arm dropped, the railgun-photon cannon pointed directly at the undead Kraken. At nearly 100 meters tall, the creature rose like a monolith to the sky.
BZZZZZHHMMMM!!!
The weapon's rails spun violently, electric arcs screaming between them. No one could stare directly at the light; it was too blinding.
The cannon fired.
A golden beam, solid and divine, shot down like a god's sword from the heavens, straight into the Kraken's skull.
The energy pierced downward, unstoppable. The surge swept through the entire city. Any mage could feel it in their bones, a metallic taste of raw power.
The Kraken didn't even scream, it simply vanished into the light.
Everyone at Thieves' Square saw it. The divine beam shredded the Kraken, and with it, the Black Mist that had shrouded the battlefield.
KABOOOOOM!!!
The blast lit the city in flame. In seconds, everything combusted to ash. The shallow waters of the dock became a smoldering crater nearly 50 meters wide. Shockwaves galloped outward like a thousand wild horses.
CRACK!
The railgun shattered in Duke's hands. All of Wall E's remaining energy had been poured into that final, glorious strike.
Like a firework in the night, brief, but blindingly brilliant.
"Warning!"
"Warning!"
"Remaining energy below 5%! Armor damage at 70%! Rune matrix compromised, over 60% failure!"
"Thrusters offline! Weapons offline! All external systems offline!"
"Mana engines shutting dow, "
"Father, I'm sorry... I need to sleep now…"
Wall E's voice faded. Duke spoke softly:
"Don't worry. I'll fix you."
"Still... damn, that was expensive. One monster, and I blew a railgun and a photon cannon worth over ten thousand Gold Sea coins... not to mention your systems are wrecked."
"Bit of a loss."
Duke's body fell, free-falling toward the earth.
At the last moment, a bright anti-gravity field surged outward. The fall's kinetic energy dispersed harmlessly, Wall E's final act of protection.
CRASH!
He landed in the center of the glowing crater. The scorched earth around him had turned to glass, and seawater began pouring inward.
Breathing heavily, Duke removed the now-silent Wall E from his armor. The drone's light faded.
"You dumb dragon... protect your father, okay?"
"I'm gonna nap for a bit…"
He transmitted those last two lines over the public comms.
Then silence.
Duke bent down to recover Wall E for repairs.
CLANK!
Suddenly, a metallic rattle echoed through the air.
From the Black Mist, a sinister hook, dripping with malice, lashed out, flying straight toward Duke's heart.
End of chapter...
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