Chapter 119 Monster within

Chapter 119 Monster within
The dungeon fell deathly silent except for the creak of chains and Sabine's shallow, terrified breathing.

Vandal stared at Ragab's massive hand clamped around Sabine's head. The pressure was building. One wrong word, one hesitation, and her skull would crack like an egg. His mind raced through the options. Reveal everything about the treasures hidden inside the jade-infinity crystal. Tell Ragab how to access the storage ring now concealed within it. Betray the last advantages his group possessed. Or watch the woman he had grown to care for deeply die right in front of him.

The choice clawed at his soul.

Tiny and weak at first, intrusive thoughts crept into the edges of his consciousness.

Give in to your anger.

Give in to your hate.

Let your rage flow.

At least even if you do not defeat him you can cause enough of a problem to enable your friends escape.

That way you would at least be useful because right now you are useless.

And you are failing to protect those you care about again.

Maybe that is what you are destined to do. Fail to protect all you care about as they die one by one.

His heartbeat quickened. Blood pulsed faster through his veins. The berserker core deep in his chest began to pump volatile energy into every limb. Heat flooded his body. His skin flushed red at an alarming speed. Before Ragab could understand or process what was happening, Vandal's left eye activated on its own. The world sharpened into flows of energy. He saw the dense ocean of power swirling through Ragab's body, powerful vortexes at major meridian points.

And there it was. A single red point below his midsection, just before the stomach. Any energy that flowed near it dissipated as if hitting a dead zone. A mortal injury. It had damaged his meridian flow and blocked him from advancing further. From the stolen knowledge in Vandal's mind, breakthroughs required all soul meridians to be healthy. This was the weak point.

Vandal let the anger flow.

Rage at the world. Rage at his powerlessness. Rage at the torture and the helplessness. The berserker energy exploded outward. With a primal roar that shook dust from the ceiling, Vandal ripped his chains from the wall they were tethered to. Metal screamed as bolts tore free. He slung the broken chain over Ragab's thick neck in one fluid motion and pulled himself forward with savage strength. Timing it perfectly, he drove his fist straight into the red point at Ragab's solar plexus.

The impact landed with devastating force. Ragab coughed up a spray of blood. His eyes widened in shock and pain. The massive elder flew backward like a cannonball, smashing through the dungeon wall in an explosion of stone and debris. The hand around Sabine's head dropped instantly. She gasped for air, collapsing against her chains.

But the rage did not stop.

Vandal launched punch after punch into the air. Each strike compressed the space before him into invisible fists of vacuum force. The deadly blasts hammered the collapsed section where Ragab had crashed through. Stone cracked and splintered under the barrage. Chunks of masonry rained down as the entire ceiling in that area gave way with a thunderous groan, burying the elder under tons of rubble and twisted rebar.

Shouts echoed from beyond the walls. Heavy boots pounded down the corridor. Guards burst through the main dungeon door, weapons drawn and resonance abilities activated. A few more dropped in through the fresh hole in the ceiling, eyes wide at the destruction.

"We do not know how you escaped or did this but surrender or else we will kill you!"

Vandal became destruction incarnate. He leaped at the nearest group with blinding speed. His red-tinted fists struck with devastating power, sending guards flying into walls and collapsing in heaps. Blood sprayed across the floor as bones cracked under the force. Desperate screams filled the chamber while he moved like a crimson storm through their ranks. A flame energy blast grazed his shoulder, but he barely felt it. He tore through their formation until the surviving guards broke and fled back through the door, voices hoarse with terror. Vandal did not chase. He stood amid the carnage, chest heaving, blood dripping from his arms.

Then he turned. His muscular but compact and slender frame trembled with unchecked power. His red-tinted skin glowed with volatile energy. His left eye burned as killing intent poured out of him in waves. That same feral gaze now locked onto Sabine. A tiny fragment of his true self screamed in horror deep inside, trapped beneath the overwhelming tide of rage, but the berserker refused to listen.

Chan swallowed hard, his throat working visibly. He twisted in his chains, stretching desperately toward his blade that lay just out of reach on a nearby table. His fingers scraped empty air again and again.

"Shit... shit... shit... I cannot reach the damn sword," he muttered.

Jaden strained beside him, face tight with effort, but no sparks of thunder resonance answered his call no matter how hard he pushed.

Jaclynn fared no better. Her attempts to summon her own power failed under the lingering suppression of the manacles.

"I cannot even summon an ounce of power either," she whispered.

Sabine's eyes went wide in pure terror. "Vandal... it is me. Sabine. Please."

Chan and Jaden saw the direction Vandal was headed in. Their eyes widened in realization. Both shouted desperately from their chains.

"Vandal! Snap out of it!" Chan yelled, straining against his manacles until his wrists were scraped raw.

Jaden's voice cracked with urgency. "Brother! Fight it! Do not do this!"

Sera also stirred. Her winds weakly stirred around her as she tried to break free. She saw the raw terror in Sabine's eyes and the murderous aura radiating from Vandal. "Vandal, no! Come back to us!"

He did not hear them. Or if he did, the berserker rage drowned it out completely. With feral vigor he pounced toward Sabine. His hands seized her and the chains binding her. He squeezed with terrifying strength.

Sabine screamed.