My Shard Bearer System - Elias's Legacy
Chapter 128: Fallen status

Chapter 128: Fallen status

"Cubes, veil!" Elara barked, her voice a whip-crack.

Frost Veil erupted from her Ikona, a chilling mist rolling out fast. It swallowed the pit, turning the gravel slick with ice, the torches dimming to faint blue glows. Ravel’s vertebrae clacked louder, spinning wild in the haze.

"Think this’ll stop me?" Ravel shouted, his voice hoarse through the mist.

He thrust a fist forward, Spinebite unleashing a storm of bones. Five vertebrae shot out, slicing through the fog—jagged, fast, aiming for Elara’s chest and throat.

She didn’t blink.

Permafrost Armor flared, ice snapping over her body in a jagged shell. The vertebrae slammed into her—crunch, crack—bones splintering against the armor, shards raining down. Blood flecked her cheek from a stray graze, but she didn’t flinch.

Her fist clenched, knuckles whitening.

"Cubes, spears!" she growled, her breath a frozen plume.

The mist churned as Glacial Constructs forged a dozen ice spears—sharp as daggers, glinting with menace. They launched in a brutal swarm, tearing through the air, their tips whistling toward Ravel.

He twisted again, Reactive Twist contorting his frame. Two spears grazed him—one slicing his shoulder, blood spraying red against the frost, the other ripping a gash along his thigh. He stumbled, boots slipping on the ice-slick gravel.

"Shit!" Ravel spat, blood dripping down his arm.

His vertebrae snapped into a frantic shield, deflecting the next spear with a metallic clang. Sweat stung his eyes, his chest heaving as he forced himself upright.

Elara advanced, her armored boots crunching the frozen ground.

Her eyes burned—cold, furious, a storm unleashed.

"Cubes, burst!" she shouted, slamming her fists down.

Cryo Burst detonated, a shockwave of freezing energy blasting outward. The gravel cracked, ice spiking in jagged waves, the air turning razor-cold. Ravel’s legs locked mid-step, frost climbing his calves, his vertebrae stuttering in their spin.

Elias watched from the platform, his knuckles white on the railing. She’s not fighting—she’s destroying, he thought, sweat beading on his own brow despite the chill seeping up. She’s pissed, letting it all out.

Ravel roared, his muscles bulging as he broke free. "Not yet!" he snarled, his shard flaring red-hot against the frost.

He mirrored his last fight—the one that crushed Camber Tullis.

Vessel Drag fired, a red thread snapping from his palm to Elara’s chest. Her body jerked, her armored arm lagging as the tether yanked her forward, gravel skidding under her boots—just like it had pulled Camber to his doom.

Then Spinebite struck again.

Three vertebrae launched, fast and vicious—one clamping her shoulder, another her thigh, a third her ribs. Pain jolted through her, her fingers twitching, her breath hitching as blood trickled from the punctures.

Ravel charged, his fist swinging low and hard.

It smashed into her armor, ice cracking with a wet snap. Elara slid back, her boots carving trenches in the gravel, her face twisting with a snarl.

"You’re mine!" Ravel yelled, his voice raw with triumph.

He twisted his wrist, Segment Recall pulling the vertebrae back. The bones tore free, slicing fresh gashes across Elara’s side—blood sprayed, staining the frost red, dripping in thick rivulets.

She grunted, her hand pressing the wound.

Blood seeped through her fingers, hot against the cold.

But her eyes didn’t waver—pure, icy rage.

"Cubes," she hissed, her voice a blade. "Shatter him."

The air turned arctic, frost snapping along the gravel.

Glacial Constructs surged, ice shards forming in a chaotic swarm—dozens, sharp as razors, filling the mist. They launched at Ravel, a relentless blizzard, their edges glinting like death under the dim torchlight.

He twisted, Reactive Twist bending his body into a frantic arc. But the shards were too many—too fast. One sliced his shoulder, blood gushing. Another ripped his chest, fabric tearing. A third drove into his knee, forcing him down with a guttural scream.

"Fuck!" Ravel howled, blood pooling beneath him.

His vertebrae spun, slower now, their clacking uneven.

Elara didn’t pause.

She stomped forward, her armor splintering but holding.

Her fist clenched, ice reforming around it—jagged, brutal.

She swung, smashing Ravel’s jaw with a crack that echoed.

His head snapped back, blood and spit flying, his body crumpling to the gravel.

Elias’s breath caught, his hands trembling. She’s relentless, he thought. Turning pain into fury.

Ravel coughed, blood flecking his lips, his shard pulsing weakly.

He forced himself up, his vertebrae trembling—one falling, cracked.

"Not... done," he rasped, sweat and blood streaking his face.

Dorsal Feed flared, drawing strength from his wounds.

His fist glowed, Vessel Drag firing again—wilder this time.

The red thread snagged Elara’s leg, yanking her off-balance.

She stumbled, gravel crunching, her armor cracking further.

Ravel lunged, his vertebrae snapping toward her throat.

Just like with Camber—bones aimed to tear, to end.

"Cubes, veil—thicker!" Elara snapped, her voice cutting through.

Frost Veil doubled, the mist thickening to a blinding shroud.

The vertebrae slowed, frost coating their edges, their clacking muffled.

Elara twisted free, the tether snapping with a crackle.

"Cubes, burst—now!" she roared.

Cryo Burst exploded again, wider, harsher—ice spiking in every direction.

The gravel froze solid, jagged spears stabbing upward.

Ravel’s legs locked, his vertebrae seizing mid-spin.

His arm swung, desperate, but the cold slowed it to a crawl.

Elara charged, her armor glowing with fresh ice.

She smashed her fist into his chest, ribs snapping like dry twigs.

Blood sprayed, his scream choking off as he flew back.

He crashed into the gravel, his left arm twisting—then snapping clean.

Bone jutted out, blood gushing, his vertebrae scattering.

Elias’s stomach lurched, the brutality sinking in.

Ravel groaned, his shard flaring red—a last gasp.

Heartstring flickered, a red thread lashing out, hooking Elara’s shard.

Her body jerked, energy draining, her breath hitching.

"Cubes..." she gasped, her voice raw.

The air stilled, frost thickening.

Ravel grinned, blood dripping from his mouth.

"Got you," he rasped, pulling the thread tighter.

His vertebrae twitched, one rising—aimed for her throat.

A killing blow, poised to rebound.

Elara froze, her armor splintering, her eyes blazing.

Ravel groaned, his left arm a mangled stump, blood gushing onto the frost-slick gravel. His vertebrae trembled, scattered and cracked, but his shard flared red—a desperate pulse. Heartstring flickered to life, a crimson thread lashing out, hooking Elara’s shard tight.