Vortex Origins
Chapter 91: The Third creature wave - 9

Chapter 91: The Third creature wave - 9

The fused knight moved.

Wind shrieked as it tore across the field—no time to think. Kaius barely reacted, a blast of air erupting at his feet as he launched himself backward.

But Hunter was slower.

A blade swept through him in a blur. His body split clean down the middle.

The knight stopped.

Blood dripped from one of its swords, tapping the dirt with slow, steady beats. Its hollow helm turned toward Kaius next.

Ash froze. His breath caught.

Too fast. That thing wasn’t like this before.

The knight took a step.

"[Skill: Phantom’s Stride]"

Ash vanished.

In the next blink, Kaius stood far from where he’d been, wind swirling around his legs, chest heaving from the sudden shift. He blinked again, trying to understand.

Ash stood in front of him.

"You’ve got two choices."

His was voice cold.

"Leave like your short friend... or stay and die like the rest."

Kaius stared at the knight.

At the bodies.

At the blood.

His fists clenched.

"They were my team. I owe them that much."

Ash stepped forward and smacked the side of his head.

"Then you’re an idiot. I don’t care if you leave or drop dead—but if you stay, keep those damn creatures away from us."

He pointed beyond the battlefield.

Grimhorns had broken through the outer fence. Alex was still out there, pinned down and swinging wildly to hold them back.

"Make your choice."

Kaius looked from the swarm... back to Hunter’s ruined body. His shoulders tensed, jaw tight.

"Fine. I’ll keep them off you. But that knight... you saw what it did. It’s not Tier Five. It’s something more."

The fused knight was moving again, step by step.

Steam coiled from its frame, each footfall shaking the dirt. Its shoulders looked like they belonged to a giant, armor cracked and reforged into something monstrous.

Ash didn’t look away.

"I’ll stall it. That’s all I can do until the others show up. Just make sure those things don’t get behind me."

Kaius nodded once.

"Whatever skill you’ve got... I hope it’s enough to keep you alive."

He turned and ran toward the approaching beasts, wind curling behind him. A single tear slipped from his eye—but he never looked back.

Ash stepped forward, blade low and angled behind him, the weight of it light in his fingers.

The fused knight loomed ahead—its twin swords angled outward like wings made of death. Black steam hissed from its armor, staining the air with heat.

Ash didn’t rush.

His feet moved steady, his eyes locked on the thing’s grip.

’The swords... That’s the key. If I break one—maybe that’s it. Maybe it dies. Or maybe I die first.’

The knight shifted.

Its swords blurred into motion, crossing in a scissor strike aimed at Ash’s chest.

"[Skill: Static Surge]"

"[Skill: Storm Vein]"

A crackle of lightning shot through Ash’s limbs. Sparks danced along his skin as he moved.

Not fast enough.

The blades screamed past, one slicing the air an inch from his ribs.

Ash staggered back, lungs burning. His heart thudded like a war drum.

’Faster than me—even with my lightning skill? If he moves like this, he’s stronger than a Tier 6 Vessel. Or maybe something worse.’

The knight dropped low, one sword behind its back, coiled like a snake.

It lunged.

Ash’s jaw clenched.

’Phantom’s Stride — I have to keep using it or I’m dead.’

"[Skill: Phantom’s Stride]"

The world warped. Color drained. Time staggered.

Ash vanished.

The stab pierced nothing but fading afterimage.

He reappeared behind the knight, blade aimed for the nape of its neck. A clean strike.

The knight moved before he landed it. One sword whipped behind its back in a sweeping arc, perfect, deadly.

But Ash was already gone—again.

The edge split smoke.

Ash reappeared ten feet away, crouched and gasping.

The fused knight straightened, black steam rising thicker now. Its head turned toward him like a predator locking in on prey.

Ash tightened his grip on the blade.

This thing wasn’t just strong. It was learning.

And it was hunting him.

He slipped through the shadows of the battlefield, moving like a ghost with his blade flickering in and out of sight.

The fused knight spun, its twin swords cutting through the air, leaving trails of black smoke.

Ash dodged each strike by the smallest margin—his feet barely touching the ground as he slid sideways, backward, then forward again.

He slashed at the knight’s side, the blade scraping against the thick armor. Sparks flew, but the giant barely flinched.

Hit after hit, Ash’s blade struck the dark steel, but no cracks, no blood—nothing.

The knight growled low, a sound like grinding iron.

Ash’s chest heaved as he backed away, eyes scanning for an opening. The creature’s swords moved in a deadly dance, faster and sharper with every attack.

He flicked his wrist, striking a quick jab at the knight’s exposed wrist. The sword shifted, but the armor held.

Suddenly, the fused knight lunged.

Ash twisted, trying to dodge, but the creature was faster this time. A heavy kick slammed into Ash’s side, sending him crashing to the ground.

Pain shot through his ribs as he hit the dirt.

The knight towered over him, one sword raised, ready to drive the blade straight through.

Ash stared up, breath shallow, the world narrowing down to the dark steel gleaming above him.

’This is it.’

Suddenly, A thunderous blast cracked through the air.

The knight staggered as the force smashed into its side, throwing the armored figure across the battlefield. It crashed into the dirt, skidding like a broken weapon. Its feet dug trenches into the ground as it struggled to halt its own momentum.

Ash turned his head.

Standing where the shot had come from was a bot—taller than the others Max had built, its metal shell scorched and marked with the name JULIET carved across its chest. A smoking cannon extended from its arm, steam hissing into the air.

Ash exhaled, chest still tight. Juliet being here meant one thing—Max and Kael were almost finished with their part of the fight. And with the bots now arriving, he finally had help.

Or so he thought.

The knight moved like thunder. One step, then another—then it tore through the bot in a blink. Juliet’s metal frame shattered under the knight’s strike, torn apart like paper.

Ash froze.

Scraps of Juliet clattered around him.

’Shit. Not even one of Max’s best...’

His thoughts stopped.

A shadow passed over the field. Not fast. Not sudden. Just... massive.

Ash raised his head. The sky darkened.

A ship drifted overhead, its hull silent and wide, blotting out the light. Engines whispered in the distance. From its sides, drones poured out like black birds in formation, spreading across the sky.

The knight also looked up.

Dozens of bots hovered above, their visors gleaming, watching the ruin below.