| Thaltos sighed. These "Morlu" were a pain, but they weren't unkillable. The ones killed by Atropos' energy leeching stayed dead, as there simply was no more animated energy left in the withered corpses. And if the demonspawn wished to continue to revive them by pumping more and more energy into them, that was fine with Thaltos. He would drain them again and again until his weapons were supercharged...
And it was obvious that Balthizar did not possess an infinite amount of energy...his Lord gave him only what he could handle, and so as he poured more of his power into Thaltos' blades by way of the henchmen, he would weaken as Thaltos grew. This battle's outcome had been written by the Fates long before Balthizar ever became the puppet he was today. The Shears of Atropos would take his life this day, as all lives fell before them.
Thaltos launched himself at a group of four Morlu, speedily slicing into their bodies with his weapons, draining a portion of their life at each contact and leaving for another strike at a more immediate threat, until the electricity animating the four had all been funneled into the Shears.
Thaltos flung his blades from him, each rocketing through the air to slide into the chests of a different Morlu. Once embedded, they did their work to drain the life from the beasts, as Thaltos snatched up a pair of swords from fallen Morlu and slashed his way back to his weapons. When he reached them he left the two Morlu swords in the body of the nearest enemy, and lashed out with the shears to give him a fate similar to that of his brothers.
Fully half the Morlu had been drained by the Shears by the time this had all occured. The power within the blades was growing. With every Morlu slain, Thaltos came closer to having the power to unleash his ultimate weapon, that would easily obliterate his foe. For now, he taunted Balthizar.
"What's the matter, fool? Why do you hide behind your pathetic minions? Why don't you come face me? Yes, come face your fate! My father has declared that you are to be eliminated as a threat to his dominion, and when I am done with you, you will threaten nothing but the other damned souls of Hades." |