brother's retry (the beginning after the end)

a troublesome encounter

'Ready? Finally prepared for the last fight?'

"Yep, legs are rested and mana's full."

I stared down at the large den area. "So, this is a full grown SS-class mana beast huh? Sucks I won't have any help besides you all."

'You've fought stronger.'

'And you only had one arm.'

"That wasn't him trying to kill me though. I don't think this thing will share the same sentiment." I muttered as the stone slab I stood on started to descend. There was something off about the area as well. It hadn't mentioned this den like area in the book.

Shaking the doubt away I activated my mana circuits. The mana alteration seemed to wake the manticore as the spells fired down at it.

The manticore quickly leapt away. Sadly none of the attacks even scratched it. "Well you're pesky..." I grunted before I fell into my rusted broadsword. Appearing on the ground I felt my body tense and static filled the air.

Closing my eyes I activated Mana zone. It wasn't as easy. I even lowered the range to a foot around me, lessening the strain on my mana.

The static and tense feeling slipped away from the area around me and I quickly burst stepped up to the top of the slope. My black bracelet shifted into a sword as I thrust it toward the manticore.

With a flap of its large wings it threw itself into the air. Damn it, not good.

A patch of ice formed next to it as I felt the warming sensation take over my body before I appeared on the ice shard. That was a way to move myself using nox fire, dark convection. Blue flames formed on my black and purple sword, I've really gotta pick a name already...

With a flurry of fast slashes I sent waves of blue flames flying through the air toward it. Frost formed on my other hand as I held it up. A lance of ice followed behind the waves of fire.

The manticore reared the black stinger back as lightning changed on it. It sent a blast of lightning toward my onslaught. Quickly it ripped through the fire and shattered the ice but the lightning faded as well. Quickly I appeared in the sky next to it, my gold ring shifted into a short sword as I sliced into its side.

I watched as the sharp spines on its neck stood on end and the weather around me started to shift. "This has gone a bit too long for my taste." I used dark convection to appear just above it but a large bolt of lightning barrelled down on me.

I felt the sting of lightning run through me, thankfully my mana aura protected me like a mana barrier. Since I couldn't use all four raw mana types and the deviants at the same time I couldn't nullify the lightning.

I shifted the ring into a sharp hook that I quickly stabbed into the Manticore. It started to thrash and fly around. I felt my stomach churn and my ears pop as we fly up into the thunderclouds.

Forming another sword I quickly slammed it down into the manticore. Strangely anything to do with image creation and shadow step and walk didn't require me to make nox myself. It was like my beast wills did it for me.

I held onto the sword as I ripped the gold blade out as it turned into a gauntlet. I raised my hand up just in time to catch a lightning bolt crash down. Reverting back to the ring I slammed another sword into the manticore. I felt the bracelet thrum with the mana I took from the lightning bolt.

"Take this you fucking miss match patchwork monster!" I reared back as the bracelet shifted into a katana. With a swift jerk I stabbed through the manticore's neck. The one thing I wasn't ready for is a bolt of lightning striking me again.