A Split Decision

A train was only as strong as its weakest point, and Noble became painfully aware of what that weak spot was.

Putting the dining car back in place had kept the armored beast from derailing, but it had also placed a huge strain on the connection between the cars.

So although she was able to slow the nightmare creature by pushing it with her ability, her efforts were just not enough. The monster was just too strong. It crashed into the roof of the car, tilting the whole cabin just enough.

Not enough to cause the wheels to lift fully from the track, but enough to twist the armored box contrary to the cars before and behind.

Metal creaked and groaned before giving way. The coupling between the dining hall and the carriage behind it sheared away.

"NO!" Noble pressed her hands against the window of the door.

Immediately the back half of the train began losing momentum. In contrast, the front half, now free of the extra burden, sped up increasing the forming gap.

Feverishly, Noble tried to open the exit, but it would not budge.

"Safety protocol dictates we keep the doors locked between cars until the threat has passed," some well-meaning worker called out to her from farther forward.

"You have got to be kidding me?! Open the door before I make you!" The professor ordered.

"I-I couldn't even if I wanted to!" The young man stuttered.

'What kind of safety precaution is that?!' Noble wanted to berate the worker for the foolishness of the policy, but it would do no good.

Instead, she pushed past him and headed for the broken window. The Awakened keeping the wind at bay looked at her with a furrowed brow.

"Let down the protection for a moment. I'm going out" Noble told him.

The man looked outside, "Are you insane?"

"A little, but I can also fly…float. I'll be fine. I need to get to my husband." Noble hovered over the table and waited for the man to lower the magical barrier.

"There are guns…" one of the soldiers warned.

"I'll be careful. Now let me go or I'll punch through to get out." The professor cast aside her shoes. They would be a hindrance anyway.

She summoned her secondary armor at the same time as the [Ruby Tear] manifested in her delicate hand. Part of her wanted to call forth the [Unlikely End], but this sword had more brute strength.

Surging forward, Noble was relieved when the invisible barrier lifted just long enough to release her into the wild.

Her relief was short-lived. The Nightmare Creature had selected the weaker target and was now getting ready to ram the part of the train which was slowing to a stop.

The abomination seemed even bigger out here in the open than it had when she was inside. 

While not as big as some Nightmare creatures, the monster's torso was longer than a railcar and covered in impenetrable armor.

In addition to its head shaped like a hammer, two massive orange wings spread out with skin thinly stretched like the fabric of a kite. Two taloned feet scooped at the roof amid the rain of bullets.

A projectile grazed the back of Noble's armor, reminding her to get moving.

The engine and cars still attached were continuing to travel at a rapid speed, but that did not stop the gunmen onboard from laying as much cover down as they could for the back half of the train.

Soon, however, they would be out of range.

That would leave only the rear half's firepower to deal with the flapping abomination. The professor needed to act before that could occur.

'I should have summoned a bow or something.' Noble had nothing to get the monster's attention.

So she moved as fast as she could toward the creature. 

If not for the direness of the situation, the flight would have been exhilarating. The floating Awakened rarely let loose like this, especially with an audience. 

But there was no time to revel in the freeing feeling. She was soaring headfirst into danger. 

The artillery on top of the train was firing so rapidly that the air was filled with the constant sound of explosions. It took every ounce of skill to avoid the hail of metal and make her own mark on the abomination. 

She stabbed the creature where its skin was the thinnest. 'Take this!'

The flying monster roared as the [Ruby Tear] punctured one of its wings. It flapped up to get away from the sting. Blood dripped from the thinly stretched skin, but only for a moment. 

The wound almost instantly healed. 

'Not good.' 

As soon as the hole closed, the entire force of the wing crashed down on the Awakened's head. 

Even with her attempt to block the blow, the professor went flying like a bullet from one of the turrets. Barely managing to miss the train, Noble went crashing toward the dirt. 

"No!" She braced for the impact. 

The armor of her bottom and legs collided with the ground. She rolled, then skidded, before lifting herself back into the air. The Awakened bit her lip to hold in her scream. 

Her flaw had been activated. 

It hurt worse than being burned alive. 

Noble's vision faded in and out. Her body felt like it would split into a thousand pieces. But she couldn't give in–not out in the middle of nowhere. 

Giving into unconsciousness would mean floating to the sky never to be seen again, or being eaten by the monster before she got the chance.

That thought filled her with fear. 

Instead of caving into terror, Noble let her eyes swirl. Gripping her stomach, she poured as much essence as she could into her Ability. 

When the monster dove toward her, she pressed all her fear and searing pain straight onto the monster's psyche. While the Awakened could not make it experience the physical pain it had caused her, she could give it every bit of mental anguish that she was feeling. 

The creature screeched and then spread its wings. Its hammered head might have been impervious to attack, but the mind underneath was not. 

Air filled the thinly-stretched skin and brought the creature to a full stop in the sky. 

Noble used her remaining stores of essence to hold the monster in place. With its mind weakened, its body had no choice but to comply. 

That was all the turrets needed. 

Thousands of rounds of both mundane and enchanted bullets pelted the abomination's chest, causing cracks in the thick armored hide. Before the flesh could self-heal, more and more artillery pierced the forming hole. 

Finally, an incendiary round streaked through the sky. 

"Stay still, you menace..." Noble floated barely above the ground, her eyes trained on the Nightmare Creature. Every bit of concentration was laser-focused on the monster overhead.

She felt her essence draining rapidly, but she continued to make the creature suffer as long as she could. 

On target, the incendiary bullet dug deep into the creature's chest...and detonated. 

Flesh went in every direction. The hammer head of the abomination separated from both wings and legs as the creature's chest cavity split open. 

Noble barely processed the sight before her. It wasn't that it was overwhelmingly gruesome, though it was certainly gory. This was not the first time she had witnessed such horror. 

She was just too exhausted to care. Her body hurt more than she could bear.

But just as she was about to release her hold on the waking world, the voice of the Spell whispered in her ear. 

[You have slain a Fallen Monster, Volitant Bludgeoner] 

[You have received a Memory.]