Chapter 19 A Hunter And His Prey

But Nexus was all out of pity, especially for these three.

As they attempted to flee, Nexus descended on them ferociously. The knight once again found himself at an advantage with his shield. As the flying sword lunged at him, he planted his feet firmly on the ground, and lodged himself behind his shield.

The stunning impact of the blade with his shield sent him sliding back. Heavy beads of sweat dripped from his forehead. A faint ringing sound rang wildly in his ears as he struggled to regain his balance.

Nexus did not let up. With a maniacal glee, he continued to down on the trio with his raging sword. The other two took the hint, and crouched behind the knight, cowering behind the defense that was his shield. Together, as one, they slowly began to back down, retreating carefully in formation.

Sweeping through the vast cave that was as dark as a tomb, Nexus' flying sword continued to rage violently. The shrill terrifying clanging sounds of sword against metal, rang loudly, resonating and rippling in concussive waves throughout the open space.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Again and again, his blade struck the knight's sturdy metallic shield, igniting tiny negligible sparks, and mometarrily lighting up the gross darkness.

Nexus' hands deftly moved like a conductor at an orchestra, directing the sword's flying movements in elliptic curves, piercing, slashing, angling for the perfect opening to deliver the killing strike- on any one of them.

The mage, knight, and the leader were all sweating heavily, despite the coolness in the cave. Each sword strike against the shield reverberated through their being. The loud percussive pounding of their heartbeats, echoed violently in their ears, filling them with the fear of an inecapable weapon.

Huddled together behind the knight, and with the shield in front of them, not daring to break away, they continued to make their slow retreating escape in barely noticeable inches.

Like some dark predator, Nexus' all black form continued to press forward in the dark. But Nexus' repeated attempts at wasting them in one fell swoop, kept proving abortive. He noticed that the mage and the knight had good coordination, their defense formation showed just how much they were in tune with each other.

So, he had to pivot.

The problematic duo were still pacing in slow retreat. Then, all of a sudden, the heavy, incessant sword attacks abruptly came to a halt.

A deafening silence, louder than the noisy rushing of sea waves, followed immediately. The mage and the knight, breathless from the fear, did not dare to move an inch. In the dark, their wary ears twitched as they angled their necks suspiciously, looking for even the slightest cue.

They thought Nexus was waiting in the dark, watching carefully like a hawk, itching for them to slip up. So they all froze. And remained static, fighting the powerful instincts to run- refusing to do anything else but stay perfectly still.

Unfortunately for them, they were already in the trap. They just had not realized it yet.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity had passed, after big drops of sweat had started forming on his forehead, the big armored dude decided he had had enough of the crippling suspense. Anything was better than staying there like sitting ducks.

So, the knight decided to take a step back- away from Nexus.

But out no nowhere, apprehension gripped him instantly. His armpits began to drip with sweat when he discovered he could not move. He tried again, but his muscle memory seeemed to have atrophied! His lower body simply refused to respond!

A collective feeling of cold, pure dread and shock swept through him at once when it dawned on him- he was stuck.

Both his legs felt like pillars that had been cemented into the earth, unwilling to budge, not even at his command. Breathless, he tried once again, willing his legs to move, forcing them to respond to his command. But they were both frozen in place.

Worse still, he could not communicate at all. He could not open his mouth. He could not even blink an eye.

The crippling terror sent rapid bolts of lightning right up his spine. His breathing became more and more frantic, like a cornered animal with asthma. Fear crept in like never before, bringing along hopelessness and despair. Still, he could not communicate a word.

Only his ears appeared to be working, and they terrorized by Nexus' footsteps.

In the darkness, striding towards them with confidence, he heard Nexus' heavy boots thumping- loud and clear.

"Mister knight," he began casually; "I know, I know, your brain is probably burning with questions. Well, seeing that you're already dead, I might as well let you know. . ."

His voice snaked through the group;

"While my sword was hunting you in the dark, I took out a peice of rune paper that had a Frozen Charm on it, and slapped in on you. Your buddy doesn't know it yet, but right now, you're like a wooden man. You can't move- not on your own."

Without warning, Nexus' sword came down hard and struck something in the dark. The sound of something round and heavy, dropped to the ground and rolled to the feet of the water mage.

The magician's mouth suddenly went dry in an instant.

'No,' he thought, 'It can't be. . .it can't. . .'

In one fell swoop, Nexus' dreadful flying sword had amputated the head of the knight. The severed head, still in the helmet, lay at the feet of the water mage, gushing dark red blood on the rocky floor of the cave.

In the dark, behind the still frozen corpse of his colleague, the water mage turned to jelly. Frightened, and faced with the prospect that he really might die, hoplessness began to seep out from every pore in his body. He clenched his jaw tightly, trying his best to comport himself, but his knees buckled loudly.

His partner was gone. His shield was dead. At this point, he knew he had zero chance of escaping now.

Realizing he had lost the will to carry on, he looked away from the chopped head at his feet, and redirected his gaze up ahead- towards the man responsible for all this.

"Well, if this is the end for m---"

But Nexus was not ready to listen.

The mage's own words choked back into his throat when he felt the tip of a sword on his chest. Blade and hilt, the sword pierced him- ripping through him with morbid savagery, gifting him the same dread that the others had shared. The mage dropped to his knees dramatically, clutching his chest, thinking he was dead already.

But it was not a killing strike.

Nexus had deliberately missed his heart. This water mage had caused him serious trouble, and Nexus was not prepared to let him go so easy. His wrist flicked in the dark, and the blood soaked sword came rushing back at the water mage.

From the back, it ran through him completely, sliding through the same hole it had punctured in the first attack, tearing through the hand he had been using to stop the bleeding.

The man's shriek came again, loud and bashful. This time, riddled with high-pitched anguish and shock. Blood splurted from his mouth in short bursts. Hot searing pain shot through him from the twice lacerated wound.

Still maintaining a good distance out, Nexus repeated the process again and again, piercing through the same wound over and over. The flying sword ran him through from the front and the back, until the man's cries came to an end. He dropped to the floor- a bloodied whimpering mess, marinating in a pool of his own blood.

Meanwhile, the leader, who had been watching the whole scene in real time, turned as pale as death.

The cries of anguish from the mage was still fresh in his head. Fear in his eyes, and heart beating wildly, he glanced back and forth, searching for a way out of this mess. The mangled corpses of his companions greeted his eyes. They were piled up against each other all across the breadth of the cave- a glaring reminder of the fate that awaited him.

Overcome with fear, he jumped out of the hiding place, and got down on his knees, with his arms stretched out before him;

"Good sir! I beg you, please, spare my life! Please!!!"