Frostbound [LitRPG Apocalypse]-Chapter 241 - Insanity

Austin

Austin stood and eyed the hunk of Ice next to him. The nip in the air forced him to circulate more mana through his body to ward it away but it wasn't anything he hadn't done before.

After so long, the frigid air and chilly, tingling sensation were normal conditions rather than hazardous.

There was a change, however, in something else and it wasn't readily apparent someone looking in from the outside.

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It took Austin a while to notice it because his eyes had been preoccupied with the fighting, but now that he wasn't distracted, he noticed it immediately.

"You got lifts in that Ice or something? It feels like I'm breaking my neck over here." Austin poked as his gaze was forced up a few degrees.

Christopher's face wasn't clearly visible under the Ice, but the glowing dots of blue were easy to make out. They pierced through the thin layer trying to conceal them like it was glass.

And what they held was confusion, "What are you talking about?"

"Look, buddy, it's okay if you're insecure standing next to me. I can get you a box next time, you don't have to use lifts in your Ice." Austin said gesturing at their now much more apparent height difference.

Chris looked even more shocked, "I don't know what drugs you're on, but I've always been taller than you."

Austin laughed, "Yeah, okay, and Abigail isn't always controlling."

"Wait," Chris said, "You actually think you're taller than me?"

Austin sighed, "I don't just think I'm taller than you, I know I'm taller than you."

Trees creaking and snapping caused both of them to look away, but they soon turned back to each other after seeing the Boss wasn't that much closer. It only sounded that way by the ruckus it was causing stomping through the woods.

"I don't think now's the time for this," Chris said.

While Austin didn't want to give it up, he did because Christopher was right. Now really wasn't the time for this. Even if there was a change Austin wished to figure out.

In general, they were both the same height. Both Chris and he measured in at the six foot, six foot one mark. It'd been a childhood argument about who was taller for as long as Austin could remember. Growth spurts, markings on a family door frame. Breaking out the measuring tape when the arguement got brought up.

The fact Chris was now a few inches taller annoyed him.

Yes, the glaring, extremely noticeable difference, was by only a few inches. So small that no one would notice. No one except for Austin, which only made it worse. If he went complaining, it would just point it out for people to pick up on.

This isn't over, I'll get to the bottom of it. Just wait 'till I get my wings. I won't be the one looking up then.

Ice creaked and snow crunched as Chris made toward the boss but Austin put his hand up to stop him.

"Wait a sec, I wanna try something," Austin said.

They hadn't discussed how they were going to fight the Boss but Austin wanted to test something before Chris went all smashy smashy. He knew it probably wouldn't work, but it was a rare chance he didn't want to pass up.

Chis set his hammer back down with a thud and waved him forward, "Be my guest."

Austin had seen Chris's many displays of power. There were quite a few he could point to in recent memory and he wanted to try the same. He'd grown a lot and now was the time to prove it. Prove it to Chris. Prove it to his family. But most of all, prove it to himself.

The Sun was high, waning but still near enough to its apex, so [Sunshine] was still giving him strength. His skills were still running hot as well. [Burning Light] still flared brightly and [Sun Burst] was still available to be used.

Walking in front of the big lug, [Eclipse] started draining his strength. The fact he wasn't in a frantic fight for survival made the use of the skill much easier and he had to praise the fact that his range could accommodate being so far away.

He took off in a slow jog that slowly ramped up, fighting through the sluggishness the whole way as he prepared the other skills he was about to use. While he wouldn't match up to Chris skill for skill, he could simulate what the big guy could do with a combination of skills.

Similar to how Light and Fire were intertwined in combination, skills could be used the same.

Usually, only one or two could be used at the same time on the same weapon. If too many were layered on top of each other, they would interfere with each other.

One skill to boost the body and another to boost his spear were different. Nothing in the skills overlapped which made their use a matter of mental application and mana availability.

It was when layering skills on top of one another that problems arose, but Austin spent a significant amount of time melding and layering skills onto his spear that he could do more than two, unlike Chris.

While that wasn't entirely fair to Chris as he only had two weapon skills, but Austin would take the small win it was.

[Solar Extension], his Rare skill that he built up from Common, started as the generic weapon skill, [Extended Strike]. What used to only be a mana projection that extended the reach of his spear, turned into rays of searing light that extended out of his spear not unsimilar to his other skill [Solar Ray].

Austin later picked up the Common skill [Piercing Strike] back when he was first an H-rank Warrior, making it a second, but similar, weapon skill that applied to his spear. He'd only managed to upgrade that one to Uncommon, turning it into [Piercing Light].

[Penetrating Strike] was a lucky find from a skill shard during his travel down South which he added to his repertoire happily. He'd skipped over picking it when offered and the new skills presented were a much better option than going back and picking it up.

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Last, but not least, the signature skill of his old Class, [Spear of the Morning].

All of them rolled together, layered onto his spear caused the metal tip to shine radiantly like a second dawn. The metal used to create the weapon drank in his mana with glee.

His pace sped up and he could feel [Eclipse] coming to an end, and the power that it would give about to burst through him. The dam was slowly crumbling and the rush was coming.

He readied his grip, making sure that his spear was in position. His mana continued to flow, taking a considerable chunk out of how much he had left. His feet began to feel lighter and the constraints on him lessened as he fed his Spirit into the attack.

Both his Laws were consumed in equal measure. Fire and Light combining into something greater.

Now that he was close enough, and the time was right, his now sprint came to an end as he abruptly stopped.

Set my feet, rotate the hips, drive the spear forward, and unleash the–

SUN.

Chris

Watching Austin jog toward the boss was only slightly confusing. I'd assumed we'd fight it together, but Austin was off trying something.

I was confused at first, but I wasn't anymore.

I felt the build-up of power. Not only in the mana he started to use and control, but in his aura as well. It spiked and smothered the area before beginning to slowly wane. The steady drop continued but for some reason, the slight danger feeling it held only grew.

The glow from his spear transitioned onto his whole body as he called on his new Anchor, turning him into a bright ball of light for a brief second before my vision was whited out by something else.

Almost without any warning, the steady drop in his aura ended and it exploded out, well past where it once stopped. Everything that was drained away gradually came rushing back faster than before, turning my vision white from the intense luminescence.

All my snow in the area was flash-melted, causing a slight amount of discomfort as I was still connected to it.

I had to blink my eyes a few times to force them back to normal and what I saw astounded me.

Smoke rose off him as Austin stood poised like a Greek soldier of old, stabbing his spear forward in a powerful thrust that hit nothing but air. While his physical spear hit nothing, that was far from being the case.

The searing light that blinded me was the true attack.

Turning to the Boss unveiled the damage Austin's attack caused. A gaping hole was seared through the boss that extended well into its meaty insides. Not enough to burn clear through, but enough to cause obvious damage.

The fur around the wound was blackened, if not burned off completely and blood gushed from the new hole in its torso. The attack happened so fast that the Boss only now roared out in pain. The light closed the distance so quickly that its response felt delayed in comparison.

Austin's breath came in giant huffs, as he forced his lungs to work overtime.

The Boss continued its march toward us, wound mostly forgotten, and it thundered on.

"Damn, huff that barely did anything and it was all I had." Austin huffed.

I said nothing and only looked at the wolfbear, as the System had called it.

Matching Austin's enthusiasm, I marched ahead and readied my own attack. [Permafrost] and [Blizzard] were still active, but the chill did nothing to slow or hinder the boss.

Instead, I readied [Shattering Hammer].

Ice groaned and my hammer shifted, quicker than before, and I ran ahead to swing away. Being much slower than the previous attack, and with the Boss already alerted and angry, it reacted in time to meet my swing but that was fine with me.

It would land either way.

My steps halted and I brought my hammer around swiftly. [Shattering Hammer] exploded out, sending its energies raging through the Boss and I expected blood and gore to go flying from the limb exploding.

The forelimb the Boss used to attack took in my swing... and did nothing.

I could feel the raging energy of my skill coursing through it, but all it caused was another roar of pain similar to the one Austin elicited.

"Hah! I wasn't the only one!" Austin's voice carried from behind me.

It was a first for me.

[Avalanche] full, Bloodline burning bright, [Glacial Presence] nearing its peak, my Laws and Anchor empowering me, and it wasn't enough.

What's this thing made of?

Partly because of confusion, other part because of being distracted and overconfident, I wasn't ready for a counterattack and only saw the limb swinging my way too late.

[Jotun's Resistance] flared as I poured mana into it and I could only brace slightly before an impact shook me to the core. Knocking me off my feet and sending me rolling through the snow back to where Austin stood.

My bones felt rattled and I was shaken up, but nothing felt broken and a quick flare of [Frozen Patchwork] that didn't do anything left me no worse off than before.

Using my hammer to stand, I looked at Austin and smirked, "Maybe we should go together."

"Yeah," he was still slightly bewildered, "Yeah, that works for me."

"Like usual?"

"Right behind you."

[Righteous Fury] burned through me as it was one of the last cards I had left to play. Everything else was already out and it seemed like this was going to be a slow and brutal slugfest.

Whatever this thing was, it wasn't going down easily.

Miles

Insane. Certifiably and completely insane.

Miles had wondered what it took for an entire family to be considered powerhouses and he now knew the reason. Insanity was the trick. A breaking of the mind that lent itself to further power.

Nothing else explained it.

The first case for that being so was the man swinging a giant hammer at something a hundred times bigger than him, not to mention stronger.

Everyone had watched him get launched away after being hit, then everyone continued to watch as he got up and did the same exact thing running back like the hit was nothing. Miles had wondered if he'd imagined the booming thud of the hit at first by the way nothing had changed.

Other than that, the fact he was even down there in the first place was exhibit A. Miles knew he was the one that built the wall and poured hours into its construction and enchanting.

The man built one of the biggest and strongest walls Miles had ever seen, yet he disregarded to use it and fought down below in the plains in front.

Not only did he do it, but he encouraged others to do it too following in his footsteps.

Nearly a hundred people bought into the lunacy and fought like brutal savages and all Miles could do was watch on in utter bafflement.

Some of them even died!

You'd think that would be the end of it, but it was only the start.

The Mayor, the sister of the City Lord, was just the same as he was. Miles was far enough away from the gate to get a clear picture of what was happening while being close enough to make out the details.

Streams of water formed into giant whips that cut down anything and everything that neared the gate. What the whips couldn't kill, was instead cut apart or diced into pieces from jets of water so strong they cut into the earth sending rocks everywhere.

Other than the bisected bodies being left behind, giant cuts were left into the ground dozens of feet deep!

While the water show was overshadowed by what was happening out in front, there were so many other things Miles could point out it was all too overwhelming.

Stone rose from the ground and cordoned off entire sections of the wall by someone wielding two shields. Not one, but two! He wasn't even using a weapon!

Metal flowed changing form and shape as a man sprinted up and down the wall ensuring no section was undermanned.

Crescents of razor-sharp wind and powerful streams of sharp icicles. Jets of intense flame.

Everything was too much.

Arrows, magic, weapons, skills.

All of it was insanity.

These people could march on the petty elites that ruled Toronto like they were nothing. Roll in, stomp them underfoot, and take whatever they wanted and there would be nothing anyone could do about it.

Miles peered out over the ramparts at the duo going blow for blow with something that would kill everything where he came from and couldn't help but rethink his life choices.

At least the man had a code and Miles prayed to every deity that he knew of that he held to it.

He didn't want to see what could happen if he didn't.