Chapter 302 Heat Of The Battle
In the fleeting moment that Northern was busy copying his talents, Cal had materialized behind a White Walker.
And with a casual flick of his wrist, Cal punched through the creature's back, his hand emerging from its chest, fingers clenched around a still-beating heart.
The Walker's eyes widened in shock, its body convulsing as it realized its fate.
Cal withdrew his hand, the heart slipping from his fingers to fall into the snow, steaming in the cold air. The Walker crumpled, lifeless, before it even hit the ground.
Another Walker, a female, seeing its comrade fall, roared in rage and charged at Cal, swinging a massive hammer.
Cal's eyes gleamed with amusement as he ducked under the blow, his movements fluid and effortless.
The Female Walker's momentum carried it past him, and Cal spun, delivering a brutal kick to the back of its knee.
The Female Walker dropped to one leg, and Cal's hand shot out, grabbing it by the back of the head.
With a savage twist, he snapped the creature's neck, the sound of breaking bones echoing through the clearing.
He let the body fall, his expression one of almost bored detachment.
Meanwhile, Northern's clones were locked in their own battle.
The clones fought with a synchronized efficiency, their daggers flashing as they dispatched one Walker after another.
One clone ducked under a sword swing, slashing at the Walker's legs and sending it sprawling to the ground.
The other clone moved in, driving his dagger into the Walker's back, severing its spine.
They moved together, a deadly pair, cutting down any Walker that dared to come near them.
Finally, Northern raised his head from the panel he had been locked onto, stretched his legs and looked to the rest of the Walkers scattered abroad.
In fact, the more they vanquished them, the more they appeared.
Northern had no doubt at this time that it was the entire settlement they were fighting. Just that there were no children among them.
'Wait, had there ever been children among them?'
That was actually one thing Northern had missed. In the entire settlement of White Walkers, it seemed that Ulzred was the only child.
'Fishy, fishy indeed.'
Northern, after stretching, straightened his back and looked ahead.
"Now, then, shall we start properly, friends and foes?"
His eyes gleamed with newfound vigor, heart beating with pristine excitement as they pumped in readiness to use the new talent.
Northern could feel it; the very attempt to even put the talent to use was causing significant changes in and out of his body, like the increase in the speed of his heartbeat.
The chaos around him felt like it had slowed. The movements of the White Walkers seemed sluggish.
He took a deep breath, feeling the cold air fill his lungs, and prepared to unleash his new abilities.
The battlefield in that moment was a frozen tableau of violence and desperation, and in the next moment…
…It came into sharp focus.
White Walkers, their faces twisted in feral rage, continued to close in on him from all sides.
Northern's clones, precise and unyielding, held their ground, their daggers flickering like serpentine tongues.
Within it all, Northern felt an exhilarating sense of anticipation.
Then he muttered:
"Velocity Dash"
Immediately the ability was activated, the world around him blurred. In an instant, Northern was across the clearing, his swords slicing through the necks of two White Walkers before they could even register his presence.
The speed was intoxicating, a rush that made him feel almost invincible.
He spun on his heel, launching himself at another group of enemies, his blades carving arcs of death through the air.
Meanwhile, Cal continued his own brutal ballet.
The air shimmered around him as he reappeared amidst a cluster of White Walkers, his movements a blur.
One moment, he was there, the next he had vanished, only to reappear behind his foes, his fists and feet delivering devastating blows.
Sometimes, he even ignored distance, going in and out of reality as he deemed fit, appearing instantaneously and leaving his enemies disoriented and broken while paying attention only to himself.
Northern, however, even though he now had an excellent ability, a battle-useful one for that matter, still kept his eyes on Cal.
He wanted to learn much, see how he made use of each skill. A compartment out of all his eye compartments was reserved for following and observing the strange Cal while also paying an equal rate of attention to his own battle and sometimes even replicating Cal's moves.
Of course, this also meant that his moves were slowed here and there as he was not able to maintain maximum focus. He was not so smart as to have his focus divided into two and not be affected by it.
A scratch here, a dodge by the skin of the teeth there, another lame miss here and there.
Northern's Chaos Eyes tracked Cal's rapid movements with difficulty, even with their enhanced perception.
And he couldn't help but marvel at the seamless fluidity with which Cal moved, striking down opponents with casual efficiency.
There was an art to Cal's combat, a lethal grace that Northern couldn't help but admire, even in the heat of battle.
But there was no time to dwell on it. Northern refocused on the immediate threat.
A trio of White Walkers charged at him, their crude weapons raised.
Feeling the heat of the moment, Northern activated Sonic Surge, and a shockwave of energy erupted from his position, sending the attackers sprawling.
He was on them in a flash, his swords slashing in a blur of motion.
One fell, its chest cleaved open, while another lost its head to a swift decapitation.
The third tried to rise, but Northern's blade plunged into its heart, ending its struggle.
And funnily, his clones were mirroring his movements with uncanny precision.
One clone ducked under a spear thrust, his dagger slicing across the Walker's belly, spilling its entrails onto the snow.
The other clone somersaulted over a sword swing, landing behind the attacker and driving his blades into the Walker's back.
They moved as extensions of Northern's will, each strike a testament to their perfect synchronization.
But the battle was just getting started…