Level-Up Apocalypse: Surviving With The Assimilation System
Chapter 63: System Parasite, Part Two

Coming in from the dragoon's right was the knight, sliding in as his hoodie flowed behind his swift movements. The dragoon snapped its neck around to face the incoming knight, rearing its spear back again as its elbow creaked.

Blood continued dripping from the remnants of the human head of the dragoon, slipping down to the stained, sleek armor of the figure.

Jasper opted to close the distance before that spear was thrust his way, placing his shield in front of his body–

["Flash Joust"]

A golden afterglow trailed behind Jasper as he moved as if fast-forwarded, sliding a half-dozen meters forward in an instant to bash his shield against the dragoon. In the same motion, he used his sword like a spear, stabbing it right through the dead one's abdomen.

A fatal blow, perhaps, though only to one who lived and breathed; the dragoon didn't so much as groan as the blade pierced its flesh.

["Repulsion"]

Jasper knocked his shoulder against the back of his shoulder, though found the top of it grasped by the dragoon's hand. Despite the shock wave pressing directly against the controlled corpse, it didn't budge while hanging on.

"Seriously–?" Jasper questioned in surprise.

"Did you…have a…good day?" The disconnected question left the lips of the puppeteered corpse, though didn't seem meant to be answered.

An explosive impact struck the dragoon from the side, bringing the walking deadman stumbling to the side, yet enduring the cannoneer's blast. Finn moved in quickly while the sparks of Magnus' blast still rained down, crossing the desecrated platform with quick, swift steps–

["Scamper"] [0:29]

He relinquished his daggers, opting for a weapon better suited to confront one clad in such sturdy armor. The greataxe manifested into the grip of both his hands as he closed in, pivoting off his right foot to fake out the dragoon, forcing the parasite-controlled body to preemptively thrust its spear in the wrong direction.

Finn swung the massive weapon for his target's back, letting it roar without mercy. The manipulated corpse snapped its back forth with a crack, playing a game of limbo as the axe passed right over it.

'--Shit,' Finn thought as the wide strike missed.

While in the unnatural position, the lifeless man spoke, "...Sorry, hun…Daddy has to work overtime again…"

From all sides, the dragoon became surrounded; knight, assassin, spellblade, and cannoneer–they each enclosed on the one in bloodstained armor.

As quickly as it had bent backwards, the parasitic fighter straightened back out, lifting a single leg before bringing it down. Before any could reach the dragoon, the stomp was bolstered by an eruption of force–

["Grandiose Presence"]

An ear-filling sound crashed against the assassin's ears; the roar of a dragon as he felt himself be thrown back by the shock wave that erupted from the dragoon's position.

Finn flipped himself to regain his momentum, landing his feet against the ground as he slid back, "--Ffuah!"

As he caught himself, the same couldn't be said for everybody else; Charlotte and Jasper landed just fine, though it was the cannoneer who was pushed by the dragoon.

Magnus' back slammed against the wall by the escalators, having the wind knocked out of him as he gasped out. With the daunting figure quickly approaching, the cannoneer raised his weapon to defend himself, though the dragoon was faster–

["Scale Peeler"]

The dragoon performed a single step to cross the distance between itself and Magnus, thrusting its spear forward while in a side stance. With foul precision, the tip of the winged spear went straight through the cannon-wielding hand of the cannoneer.

It was through the knuckles, coming back out having skewered past the elbow and out of the man's tricep.

"Grk!--" Magnus gritted his teeth.

A merciless flick of the dragoon's wrist ripped the spear out of the man's arm, leaving a spillage of scarlet onto the worn out tiles.

'Dammit!' Finn thought, sprinting right back in.

With the knight and spellblade coming in as well, their presence brought the dragoon to turn his attention away from the wounded cannoneer.

Charlotte ran in from right behind the puppeteered corpse; it spun around, launching a harsh kick right to the young woman's stomach.

"Pyyf!--" Charlotte spit out before being knocked away.

A sharp elbow was launched by the dragoon to the knight who approached from behind, smashing right against Jasper's helmet to blow him back. Unrestricted vision, superb reflexes, frightening agility–it had it all.

It left Finn now alone in approaching the figure, replaceing the odds only decreasing as the battle went on. Before he could close the distance, it was already surpassed by the dragoon's reach.

"--!"

Finn moved his head to the left as his reflexes were pushed to their limits, feeling the sharp wind press against his cheek. The spear narrowly missed skewering his brain matter, though attempted once again.

Like a piston retracting and firing, the spear was thrust repeatedly against him. He was kept light on his toes, moving backwards with quick steps, having to lean his head side-to-side, spin around and duck as the aggressive dragoon chased him down.

–Faster. Faster. Faster.

["Radiant Skewer"]

The speed of the thrusts became impossibly fast and numerous, even with tapping into the utmost of his focus. Leaning his head to the right to evade a strike at his left, another immediate thrust led the edge of the spear to slice across his cheek.

Before he could even register the wound, another push of the weapon grazed his side, slicing right past his skin.

["Hollow Disengage"] [4:59]

He activated the skill immediately upon replaceing himself completely overwhelmed, forcibly moving himself back as he merged into the unseen. It only lasted a moment before he reappeared, replaceing the bug-eyed dragoon's attention right back onto him.

Glancing past his enemy, he could see the state the cannoneer was in; profusely bleeding from his shredded arm–a wound that would result in death if left untouched. Charlotte was the closest to Magnus, still reeling from the sharp blow she received to the stomach.

From what he could discern in that small time, Jasper still looked capable of fighting, leaving him one choice–

Finn shouted out to the others, "Charlotte! Take Magnus and get him out of here!"

The sudden instruction given perplexed those that heard it, as the threat of the System Parasite required all of their strength.

"But–" Charlotte attempted to argue.

"Jasper and I will handle this! We'll be right behind you! But, Magnus will bleed out if we don't do something!" Finn shouted while having to roll back as the dragoon slammed its spear down towards him.

Though there was clear hesitation from the young woman, she nodded her head. Amidst his evasive maneuvers, Finn saw her lending her shoulder to ascend the escalator steps with the wounded man.

'Alright, good,' he thought, replaceing that weight off his mind.

It was left to just himself and the shield-bearing aussie; he rushed the dragoon from the front, while Jasper pushed towards the back. A pressing issue in engaging the spear-wielding corpse was the environment itself; the platform provided a narrow space to fight, with the dragoon's reach covering the width completely.

Before either could close in, the dragoon spun that spear around with a transcendent rotation:

["Gale of The Dragon's Talons"]

The high-raised spin of the weapon produced a whirlwind of eviscerating force, bringing Finn to slide himself back as the knight used his shield to defend himself. A perfect, circular line was formed around the dragoon from the aftermath, marking the boundaries of the ability.

'--It's impossible to get close with this guy. Everything we do, he just forces us back–shit,' Finn thought.

For the time being, he dashed right past the manipulated corpse as the spear struck down right behind his heel as he rolled away. He made the effort to cross over to where Jasper was, landing beside him.

"What's the plan?" Jasper asked, wiping blood that leaked from beneath his helmet.

"Thinking," Finn simply answered before placing his hand against the front of the helmed man's shield. "Borrowing this. Replication."

Feeling the texture of the metallic shield, getting a feel for its density and size, the composition of it, he conjured a replica of it into his free hand. Right as he managed to create his own form of the knight's shield, he was forced to lift his alongside Jasper's own as the dragoon was already there.

CLANG

The spear crashed down against both of their shields, bringing them to stand their ground, shoulder-to-shoulder against the monstrous weight of the corpse's strike. It was immediately followed up by a barrage of strikes, slamming the tip of the weapon against the shields repeatedly.

"--Startin' to think it's about time we tuck our tails and run along, too…!" Jasper recommended while keeping his shield raised.

"That's an option, but do you think this thing is just gonna sit back and let us?!--" Finn responded, stumbling back as the weight of the spear finally retreated from the shields.

"Yeah, yeah! I was just putting it out there–!" Jasper yelled back. "Can you buy me about…a minute?!"

"What?—I can try!" Finn strained out, quickly stepping back from a thrust of the spear.