Thoughtlessly, Daniel mentally selected [Yes] and his whole world blew up.

  Lines and lines of golden text that looked like code scrolled past his vision in the blink of an eye, far too swift to read, until it stopped on a final few lines:

  “Archangel System Downloaded

  Warning: Danger Detected! Low Power Detected!

  Engaging Makiel Protocol, [Minimum] Power”

  As Daniel watched this unfold, he still edged closer to death. His body had been brought within range by now, and the Harlac ravenously bit down on its helpless prey. As it did, the Xenos felt immense pain in its tentacles as they were suddenly snapped by an unknown force. Its teeth stopped suddenly, unable to close around this strange morsel. In that moment, the immense predator felt something very unusual.

  It felt fear.

  …

  Gulliman breathed heavily, blood gumming up one eye as he searched for an opponent which had just disappeared into thin air. He had been using his recently acquired Enforcer technique since the beginning of the fight, enhancing both Strength and Dexterity at the expense of his Mental Energy. He’d dismissed his Shield to conserve energy, but the blood loss was starting to get to him. On top of that, his opponent was slippery beyond compare, constantly darting around and avoiding his attacks and taking whatever chance it could to cloak itself again. His left arm hung limply by his side, the bite marks turning an unhealthy shade of purplish black. Poison.

  He sliced through the Diaboco at rapid speed as he tried to chase down the enemy, but the sinking feeling in Gulliman’s chest told him that he was dying. The monster was toying with him, he could see. Constantly running around, carving off small chunks of him here and there, it had never deigned to match him head on. Growling, Gulliman stopped for a moment and whipped out his emergency measure. He dismissed his sword, trading it for a syringe of bright green liquid that he roughly stabbed into his thigh. His heart began pumping faster, veins bulging as his muscles further enhanced. Gulliman managed to re-equip his sword in time to block another strike from a re-materialized beast, his wounds closing at a visible speed as he held back both claws with one arm.

  With a grave look on his face, Gulliman went back on the offensive. He did everything he could to keep the monster from disappearing again, scoring several shallow cuts across the beast’s hide but nothing definitive. Seconds flowed like minutes as the man fought for his life, desperate to score a decisive blow. He deflected a strike from the monster’s tail, and lunged forward, stabbing directly at the creature’s side.

  And something snapped.

  The purple light surrounding the Sergeant shattered and he staggered, coughing up blood. The poison had spread up through his shoulder and reached his heart, right as he overtaxed his Mental Energy. The creature’s counterattack tore right through his extended sword, scattering fragments of black metal into the mud. Gulliman knew his insides were next, so he closed his eyes and waited for death, pain and resignation his only two emotions.

  Suddenly, a strange wind was kicked up right in front of him. There was the *smack*of metal on bone and the sound of the creature’s strangled roar as the wind of something fast passing right in front of him blew through his hair. In shock, Gulliman opened his eyes to find nothing in front of him. His wide eyes peered to his right and beheld the broad back of a man in ivory armor with gold outlines, facing down his off balance Xenos opponent.

  “What the hell…?”, was Gulliman’s last thought before the world went black.

  …

  In the fraction of the second before the Harlac bit Daniel in two, the young man’s entire figure was shrouded in a luminous white gold light. In the blink of an eye, his whole body was covered in shining white armor, decorated and outlined with lines of gold that glowed intermittently with a soft pearly light. Most distinct of all was the helmet, its’ peak striped with a line of gold and sides bedecked with resplendent designs. These designs were complete with gold, wing shaped pieces on both sides of the crown. It also sported a sleek black visor where the user’s eyes should be.

  Daniel gulped up deep lungfulls of air, the inside of the armor blessedly insulated, his hands automatically shooting upward to catch the teeth descending upon him. Miraculously, they moved at half speed to his eyes, and he felt a rush of vital energy flowing through his limbs as he snapped the Harlac’s tentacles and stopped the descending teeth in their tracks. His whole body propped open the beast’s mouth before it could crush him, and Daniel realized with a thrill that it wasn’t even straining to do so. But the surprises weren’t over:

  “Greetings User Hardgrave. Please note your status and system power.

  Of special concern is the system power, which is currently 1%. Recharge requested immediately.”

  The words came not as text on his HUD, but as a voice echoing out within his mind, a deep, intense male’s voice. That was simultaneously good and rather scary. It wasn’t distracting like text would be, but it was also invasive and direct. More important, however, was the information the voice transmitted into his mind in the same invasive-yet-convenient way after it finished speaking:

  System Power: 1%

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Status

  Strength: 62 (+300)

  Dexterity: 71 (+300)

  Constitution: 64 (+150)

  Adaptability: 38 (+100)

  Psyche: 44 (+150)

  Heavenly Armament: Offline

  Secondary Armaments: Offline

  Maneuverability Gear: Offline

  Subfunctions: Minimum

  Daniel’s jaw dropped when he looked at those stat increases. But the armor wasn’t done with its surprises:

  “Significant User damage detected. Initiating Recovery Subfunction.”

  Daniel immediately felt the pain all around his body lessen, his ribs shifting a little as they set back into place and began to heal. As this happened, he watched his system power tick down to 0.9%. That reminded Daniel to shove his way out of the Harlac’s mouth, the creature immediately swimming away after he did. Once Daniel re-oriented himself, he popped to the surface like a cork with a few kicking motions. Daniel motored his way toward shore in the blink of an eye, staggering onto the beach in surprise at the speeds he’d propelled himself at. Once he got his bearings, he looked around and saw his group much further north. He and the Harlac must have been carried south by the current.

  Daniel took a deep breath, then got into a runner’s stance. He wasn’t used to having stats boosted this high. While Dexterity represented what he was theoretically capable in terms of physical control, theory and practice were two different things. After big stat boosts, it was often recommended that Pioneers spend hours in training to mentally acclimate to what they could do. Daniel had minutes, at best. He’d have to hit the ground running.

  …

  Daniel collided with the monster running full force. He sent the beast flying and twisting, but it possessed the natural grace needed to land on its claws while facing him down. Daniel was on top of the creature and winding back another punch, preparing to finish it off. But the predator had one last trick up its’ sleeve. Its’ eyes changed color, purple pupils expanding to cover their whole surface area as they shined with a brightness never seen before. A thin film of light expanded outward in a broad domain, with the predator as the epicenter. Daniel’s punch hurtled downward, kicking up mud and debris as it made landfall. It just missed the black-skinned reptilian, who slid to the right with all the slipperiness of an eel. Daniel followed the hit with a left hook, but the monster was already dodging before the attack was even in motion. He hit only empty air:

  “System Power at 0.8%.”

  There were still a bunch of Diaboco running around, and one of them had the audacity to try to get in his way, He slapped it away absentmindedly, eyes fixed only on the troublesome opponent in front of him. Somehow this thing could read his movements and outmaneuver him perfectly. He’d need to try and limit its movements. Daniel dashed forward and unleashed a roundhouse kick, one that the beast dodged, before lunging with an open armed grab. If he could tackle it, he’d tear this thing limb from limb. Unfortunately, the monster arrested its backward momentum and leapt over him in a stunning backflip. He saw it jump at the last moment and tried to adjust his grab, barely coming up short. Midair, the beast’s tail lashed out and stuck his back, colliding with his reactive shielding:

  “System Power at 0.7%.”

  When Daniel turned around, he saw nothing but a few Diaboco looking at him in trepidation, along with his comrades further in his periphery. Gritting his teeth in frustration, Daniel remembered the beast’s original ambush. It could hide itself nearly perfectly, and Daniel would never find it. Then, the armor saved him yet again:

  “Initiating Subfunction: Camouflage Break. System Power at 0.6%.”

  The predator was magically visible again, hiding behind a few Diaboco, using them as shields. But running after it with nothing but his bare hands would probably be fruitless. If only Daniel had a weapon…

  “Manifest Heavenly Armament? This will put System Power into critical levels.”

  Now why hadn’t it recommended that earlier? Obviously, it should give him a weapon. Now.

  “Manifesting Heavenly Armament, [Minimum] Power.”

  White light coalesced in his right hand, just like when his armor manifested, creating a shining longsword in the blink of an eye. The blade was made of what looked to be contained white plasma, cut into the shape of a normal physical sword. Small striations of light shimmered at its edges, giving the blade an ethereal appearance. Its hilt was a dark gold, with a cross guard carved in the shape of outstretched wings:

  “System Power at 0.3%. Estimated time until total shutdown, 10 seconds.”

  Daniel broke into a sprint, carving through the monster’s living shields in a heartbeat. He hadn’t trained much with the sword, but even clumsy swings were good enough to leave them in pieces. Hurriedly, the creature set up its weird domain again, eyes shining as it narrowly dodged Daniel’s overhead swing. Still, he managed to graze the creature, eliciting an angry roar and livid burns on its shoulder:

  “9 seconds.”

  For several frantic heartbeats, they played a game of cat and mouse. Daniel chopped through obstacles and scarred lines of red in the creature’s hide, earning more and more shrieking from the monster. But the Pioneer grew more desperate as well as he failed to earn a killing blow:

  “5 seconds.”

  Horizontal slash. Dodged. Frontal kick. Just grazed it. Stab. Not quite…

  “4 seconds.”

  The monster was running out of room to maneuver, but the more it was hurt the more tenacious it became. Clinging to life, it bit back, forcing Daniel to dodge for a change. If he was hit again, he’d lose power. Then he’d die.

  “3 seconds.”

  Stepping forward, Daniel let loose a wild barrage of slashes, designed to drive it into a corner. The monster let out a final call of defiance:

  “2 seconds.”

  There. An opening. A minor misstep by the creature meant it was a beat too slow to dodge the next diagonal slash. In a desperate gambit, it brought up its right claw to block. The sword sheared through them, but it's delayed enough that the beast barely managed to dodge backward. Yet, its movement is now hobbled. Daniel leapt after it, bringing his sword up for the killing blow.

  “1 second.”

  With a snap, the monster’s jaws closed around the sword mid-swing, sparks flashing as energized teeth met energy sword. The attack stopped.

  “Shutting down.”

  The sword flashed as it began to dim, the armor beginning its shutdown process. But it still had a few embers left, and in those critical milliseconds, Daniel didn’t back down. He grit his teeth and pushed. With a final triumphant yell, Daniel’s Heavenly Armament pushed through this last bit of resistance.

  It cut right through the creature’s skull in a final flash of white light before vanishing into the falling rain. Before his armor disappeared entirely, Daniel heard the disembodied voice one last time:

  “Enemy Neutralized.”

  Patreon. I worked hard for the last week, and it is now 10 chapters ahead, up to chapter 32 as of the publishing of this chap. It is definitely action packed, and if you've enjoyed the story so far you'll probably enjoy those as well. It's also only 5$ monthly.