Chương 65: APEX DECEPTION

Guard Gael, a man with a perpetually bored expression, leaned heavily against the stone parapet, polishing the dented chest plate of his armor with meticulous, slow strokes.

"You know, Kev," Gael grumbled, not looking up, "I still don't see why the rotation schedule puts me on duty on the busiest gates on the quietest days. It makes no sense." Kev, Gael's partner, was a leaner man, whose polished armor gleamed with infectious optimism. He was peering out at the road, scanning the relatively empty plains that stretched toward the Forest.

"And what would you do if you were given a day off, Lemme guess..."

"Sleep." he and Gael said together. Kev tilted his head toward his comrade and grinned.

"You're just grumpy because you haven't embraced the social life the city offers. It's your antisocial nature that prevents you from finding a suitable partner, my friend."

"And you think standing here is an 'improvement'?" Gael retorted, snorting.

"And as for my social life, I'll have you know I'm going to the City Mixer this evening. I'll be off the market before midnight."

"A mixer? You, voluntarily seeking conversation with women?" Kev burst out laughing, a loud, good-natured sound.

"That's a better surprise than the King announcing free ale!"

"Well, believe it. Soon it'll be my turn to tease you."

"I already have a woman though. Besides why, are you already anticipating your success at the mixer? Are you that impatient?" Kev tried to hold in a laugh.

"Leave me alone, Kev." Kev was about to say something when he noticed figure emerged from the road beyond the treeline, stumbling and staggering across the uneven ground.

"Hold there!" Kev commanded, dropping his playful demeanor and moving foward.

"Identify yourself!" It was when he got closer that the two guards saw things clearly. It was a man, dressed in rough traveler's clothes, but terribly, impossibly wounded. His jacket was shredded, and dark, arterial blood dripped rhythmically from several long, deep gashes across his arms and face and torso. He moved with a jerky, unnatural momentum, focused only on the gate. The wounded man staggered closer, collapsing outside the gate just a few feet infront of the two guards.

Gael, his instincts finally overriding his lethargy, had his sword half-drawn, regarded the man with caution. Kev quickly stepped closer and inspected the mans wounds, his hand already channeling a subtle, restorative pulse of Flow toward the man.

"Easy now, friend. Let us see to those wounds. They look vicious." The man looked up, his face pale and slick with sweat and grime.

"Beast… there's a beast… near the city," he gasped, his voice raspy and broken.

"It attacked me… I barely escaped… must warn the Lord Protector."

"A beast?" Kev frowned, continuing to push his restorative Flow into the man's torn flesh, but the man violently pulled his arm away.

"No! Inside! Take me inside! Now!" the man insisted, struggling to pull himself up and crawl past Kev. Gael joined them, stepping closer to help restrain the struggling man.

"Calm yourself, friend. We'll get you inside, but first, let us stabilize you or your chances of survival will drop. What kind of beast was it Imbued or Awakened? and could you give as a descrption?"

"Gael, he's wounded, and not in his right mind to answer all these questions."

"With the way he's bleeding he may die before we find out what attacked him. Its better we get the information now that he's concious."

"But..." The wounded man turned his head sharply, his eyes meeting Gael's.

"It was… it was a monstrous creature. Big. Covered in slime. It moved like a snake in the mud."

"A snake wouldn't have been able to create these deep gashes obviously." Kev said he leaned foward and closely inspected a cut on the mans left arm, his brow furrowed."

"Wait... these cuts… they're too clean for a beast. They look almost… self-inflicted." The wounded man stiffened, his body going rigid. Gael looked from Kev to the man. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

"Self-inflicted." He repeated, confused. The man's body began to shake violently, and his eyes rolled to either side, his pupils turning so that the iridescent irises were pointing toward opposite directions. A thick, slimy drool began to spill from his slack jaw, and a faint, acrid mistbegan to rise from his body. Kev's face went white. He instinctively backed away, drawing his sword in a single, metallic hiss of motion.

"Gael, get back! That's not a man!" Before Kev could react fully, while he was still in the process of rising, the man's skull expanded with horrifying speed, like wet clay being pushed outward by an unseen force. His jaw distended, and his face elongated into a grotesque, primitive reptilian maw, lined with jagged, yellowed teeth. The creature roared, a wet, snapping sound, and clamped its jaws down on Gael's shoulder. CRUNCH! Gael was a Votary with'The Moon' Trait which governed dreams and illusions.

He attempted to trap the beast in and illusion and managed a split-second Flow reinforcement to his left side, which saved his arm from being severed entirely though the bones were crushed and later amputation was an outcome. The beast's raw, Apex-level strength ignored his attempt to enthrall it and breached his armor with a sickening crunch of bone and steel, spraying hot, viscous blood onto the cobblestones. Gael screamed, a high, agonizing sound of pure agony and shock.

The creature's body continued its transformation, its upper torso elongating, covered in hardening, sapphire scales. Its lower body rose off the ground in a billowing plume of cold mist that instantly frosted the stone around it. Gael, his face contorted by adrenaline and rage, channeled his Flow into his blade. The steel instantly roared to life, engulfed in violent, cleansing flames as he applied his Trait,'Temperance' He charged the grotesque beast.

But the Apex Creature, already half-transformed, lashed out with a reptilian claw. It moved with impossible speed, striking Kev with a flat, savage blow that sent the guard flying backward, his armor scraping against the thick granite wall with a metallic scream. Gael slumped, bleeding heavily where the sharp claws had cut through his chest plate and into his ribs. The creature didn't stop to finish them.

It spat Kev onto the ground and with a terrifying, earth-shaking roar, it plunged through the gate, destroying a portion of the structure as it vanished into the city streets. The attack had begun. In his private study with, Lord Alaric was meticulously reviewing documents concerning trade negotiations with a distant coastal region. As he worked, he felt faint tremors shaking the room but was too engrossed in his work to give it attention.

A Knight burst into the room without knocking, his face pale and his armor scuffed.

"My Lord! A beast has entered the city and is wreaking havoc near the Northern Districts!" Alaric didn't react immediatly. He wrote something down and placed his finger on some information to mark it then put down his quill with controlled annoyance and raised his head.

"I said-""I heard you the first time. But how?"" Apparently it… it mimicked a human, My Lord," the Knight reported, breathing heavily.

"It presented as wounded, then transformed and attacked the guards. It's moving fast toward the center, causing heavy damage." A brief, sharp shadow crossed Alaric's face." What is the nature of the beast?"

"My Lord, according to the Hunters Bureau its an Apex beast. They have no one on the level to handle it but are working with our knights currently managing the evacuation and containment.." The mention of the "Apex-level" threat instantly alarmed Alaric. He pushed his chair back, his face darkening as he rose to his feet.

'Just great. Now that Roric is training the kids outside, I'm the one whos gonna have to personally deal with this. Tch, more work.'

"Sir Eddie is already on his way, My Lord. I informed him before coming to you." Alaric visibly relaxed but he still gave the knight a side eye.

'Worried me for nothing.' He thought sitting back down.

"If Sir Eddie is engaged, then everything will be fine," Alaric stated, his tone firm and confident.

"Keep me updated, Knight. I want a full report once the beast is neutralized." The Knight bowed and retreated swiftly. Alaric paused for a moment, glancing out the window, another tremor vibrated through the room causing him to returnto his trade documents, exclaiming as he had inadvertantly removed his finger from the place he wanted marked. Meanwhile, at the Hunter Outpost, miles from the city, the atmosphere was strangely dull. Roric was seated on a simple wooden bench, talking with the other Hunters.

Elias, Jamieand Aina had just returned, presenting the few Flowstone fragments they had managed to collect.

"Not bad, children. You missed the prime spots, but the fragments are dense," Roric commented, his expression easy as he inspected one of the shards. Suddenly, a unter burst in, his face pale, having raced from the city.

"Thorne! The city is under attack! An Apex beast has breached the city gates!" Roric, who had been casually looking at the fragments, slowly rose to his feet, his massive frame radiating quiet command.

"How did it get in?"

"It mimicked a person. It took down the guards and breached the inner perimeter, but the city is already dealing with it. Sir Eddie Gable is on the scene, coordinating with the Hunters." Roric's reaction was profoundly anti-climactic. He simply stared at the messenger, then slowly sat back down, picking up a Flowstone fragment and turning it over in his hand. The other veteran Hunters in the room exchanged dull, knowing glances, returning to cleaning their gear.

Elias felt a confusing spike of adrenaline and cognitive dissonance.

'Apex beast attacking the capital, and they're acting like it's another Tuesday?' He wondered why they were so passive. Jamie, however, immediately voiced his confusion. She looked at her father, her brow furrowed.

"Papa! Why are you guys so calm? If it's an Apex beast, shouldn't we go and help?" A grizzled Hunter scoffed.

"Waste of time, girl. We're Votaries. We'd just get in the way."

"But wouldn't it be better to go in numbers? To support the city guards?" Jamie insisted, her sense of responsibility battling the veterans' ingrained fatalism. Roric finally placed his large, heavy hand on his daughter's head, ruffling her hair affectionately.

"Nothing to worry about, my dear. Eddie will handle it. He's a Saint after all." Sir Eddie Gable, Flow Saint, master of the Phantom Blade style. Elias wondered what special Trait the elusive Sir Eddie possessed to command such confidence. Jamie nudged him, a mischievous grin stretching across her face. She leaned in, throwing an arm over his shoulder and pulling him close." Want to sneak into the city and see whats happening?"

Elias felt a rush of curiosity override his strategic sense and his recent bout of despair.

"Fine," he conceded, the word clipped and quick. Within minutes, the duo was gone, utilizing Flow Supression to finalize their disappearance. Aina, who had been observing the two paused for a moment then followed.