Ashan 69th of Arc 711
Directly following the events of this thread
The shock of the sudden stab of pain jolted the animal back into rage. A bellow escaped as it swiped at the armor-clad human, spittle mixed with foam and blood send flying. Sharp and long, the beast’s claws whistled through the air. However, Jeesa did not dodge, did not block. She instead prepared a new attack of her own, winding up for a heavy haymaker. Her ether reserves decreased further as the claws failed to even leave as much as a scratch on the breastplate, but not as much as before. Despite the glowing red runes enhancing its strength, the bear was clearly weakened, hindered by its wound.
All the better.
Her readied attack was to be a left hook to the wounded spot once more, which the drillmistress hoped would crush some organs. The heart, preferably, but collapsing a lung or puncturing one with a shard of rib was good too. However, the bear sensed the danger. It managed to position its armored shoulder into the path of the strike, the rounded shape deflecting some of the damage. But not all. The armor cracked like an egg, unable the withstand the impact, which reached the joint underneath without issue. Thick or not, bone was bone still. The armor was sturdy enough to perhaps even take a couple blows from a similarly enhanced bear –though Jeesa very much believed those blows would have to be blunt-force, as the claws were tough and sharp enough to take huge chunks out of trees—but there was an enormous difference between such a strike and one of her own.
Namely, her fist was way smaller. All that force behind a small object was devastating, armor or no. True, in ordinary situations Jeesa would have had no way to break straight through, but the bear had neatly handed her the method of defeating itself. Or rather, the mage who’d created it had.
The bear staggered away, bleeding and limping. Most of the fire in its eyes was gone, replaced by fear. It was considering if it should flee or not, head swiveling in several directions while huffing and growling uncertainly. Jeesa took away its choice, launching herself at the beast, aiming another blow, this time going for its nose. At the last moment, the surprised creature lowered its head, the helmet-like bone structure protecting it successfully. As she’d expected, her normal power –which was akin to a sledgehammer—could not break or pierce the armor. She backed off a little, and then a little more.
And the beast mistakenly believed victory was ready for the taking. It bit through the pain, and backed away itself. Just a little bit, increasing the distance between them, but not for long. The sigils on its forelimbs grew brighter again as it broke into a sprint, propelling its body with unusual gait. Still, it was fast nonetheless, almost throwing its body forward. Jeesa, having retreated quite a bit, began to dash forwards as well, on a collision course with her foe. Each of the drillmistress’ strides pushed her farther than it should, her own strength runes combining with the properties of her armor. Neither party slowed down. Not that they could, each going too fast to react in a way that would allow a complete avoidance of the other.
Within mere moments, they clashed.
It was rather anticlimactic, really.
There was no shockwave, there was no loud smack as the both of them smashed their bodies against each other. One moment they were running full sprint, and the other they weren't. Jeesa had come to an immediate stop within the blink of an eye, all kinetic force absorbed by her armor. She did not feel the impact. Yet the bear did. It wore no Sovereign Ward armor, and the third law of motion still held sway over it. The beast recoiled as it collided with the immovable Jeesa. It was hurt, staggering backwards, but not very much. Dazed for a second, as if it'd run into a wall.
For but a moment did the opportunity last, a tiny opening that passed by quickly. Jeesa seized it. The drillmistress stepped in like a boxer, hand already shooting forward. An open palm strike struck the beast right on its unprotected black nose, hard. That alone would be enough to make it flinch if it’d been an ordinary punch. Enhanced with strength runes and kinetic energy of the equal opposite reaction, Jeesa could easily cave in its entire snout, probably smashing the brain.
But the drillmistress’ armor contained all the force, all the kinetic energy generated by both herself and the bear smashing into each other at full speed. That momentum, that impact, released all at once right in the beast’s face. She held nothing back.
It completely obliterated the monster’s head, even destroying the upper part of its ribcage and clavicle. As chunks of skull and fur and flesh rained down all around, the massive bear slumped and fell. For a couple seconds, its form twitched and spasmed, but it did not get up again. The glow of the runes on its body faded, then vanished completely.
The beast was dead.
