Level Up Hero!

Facing Despair, Part 2

[Alright, let’s move on to lesson twenty-two; observe your enemy! Once you know what you’re up against, quickly determine its weaknesses — they all have one!]

Sam really wanted to roll his eyes at the message box for stating the obvious, but he just didn’t have the strength to protest because a Banshee’s Death Wail sapped the willpower from all who heard it.

[You need to get it to attack you while keeping yourself out of harm’s way so you can observe all its attack patterns and mannerisms. That’s the key to fighting horrors, kid!]

Sam already knew all about a Banshee’s attack patterns because he’d thoroughly researched this particular horror just in case he ever met another one. All of Sam’s previous research told him he had one shot at gaining the advantage, and that shot would come soon.

Because he knew it wouldn’t be able to move while it sang its Death Wail, Sam continued to hide behind the wall and waited for the Banshee’s shrieks to subside.

In his mind, he recalled the number of seconds he had before it could let loose another wail — ten seconds. That’s how long a low-level banshee needed to prepare its vocal cords for another wail. It was more than enough time for Sam to launch his counterattack.

[You can’t just hide there, kid… Do something!]

“I know!” Sam yelled.

He heard his own voice. That meant the Death Wail had lost its strength.

“It will die down in three, two, one…” Sam counted.

As soon as the horrible sound cut out, Sam jumped out from behind the wall and dashed into the room.

The Banshee waited half-hidden in shadow at the other end of the office, its emaciated form swaying left and right much like a snake readying itself to strike.

However, Sam was adamantly against giving it an encore. He pulled back his arm, took aim at the spot just below the Banshee’s chin, and threw Cranium Smasher forward.

Sam had it all worked out in his mind. The hammer would hit the Banshee’s throat, causing it an injury that would prevent the horror from using its most powerful weapon. Then Sam would get in up close and use Herculean to cause it maximum damage before the Banshee had time to recover. It was a perfectly sound plan. It was just too bad that the Banshee wasn’t very accommodating.

The Banshee swatted Cranium Smasher aside as the hammer came within its range, and although this defensive maneuver broke a few of the fingers on the horror’s left hand, this wasn’t nearly enough damage to give Sam the advantage.

“Hades’ bottom,” Sam grimaced.

He tried to back out of the room, but his ten seconds were up.

The Banshee let out a second high-pitched shriek that caught Sam as he made a run for it, and the shockwave from its Death Wail sent him slamming into the wall in front of him.

Wham! 

Pain flared up Sam’s skull as his face collided with the wall. It spread out to the rest of his body while he crumpled to the floor battered, bruised, and stunned.

[ALERT! [Regeneration (ζ)] is working to counteract the damage. Refrain from taking action while this is in progress.]

The master’s reprimand came soon after.

[I told you to stop throwing that hammer around, kid!]

“Ouch…” was Sam’s only reply.

He noticed that he’d just heard his own voice. This meant the Banshee had stopped her Death Wail a little early.

Sam figured the horror must have thought it had already won from that one devastating attack. As his vision cleared, he glimpsed the Banshee slowly drawing toward him.

[You need to move or you’re going to die!]

Chiron was obviously panicking, but Sam didn’t share his pessimism. After all, Regeneration was already transforming the excruciating pain in his body into nothing more than a dull throb.

Sam’s gaze searched the floor as he began thinking about his counterattack. Luckily, what he needed was lying not too far away. Its handle pointed upward and was just waiting to be picked up again. Now all Sam needed to do was to play possum for a while longer so he could catch the Banshee with its proverbial pants down.

“I’m a healer,” Sam whispered. “But today I become a warrior too.”

[I like the confidence, kid… but you’ll be nothing but dead if you don’t move now!]

The master was right. The Banshee was right on top of Sam. Its face slid down toward him while its mouth widened once more.

A close-range Death Wail would certainly be the death of him, but he really was determined not to give this Banshee a second encore.

Sam’s hand balled into a fist while he waited for the horror’s face to come closer and closer.

He was also aware of how similar this moment felt to that time when the Terror dipped its jaws toward him. The one big difference between that time and now was that Sam didn’t need saving anymore.

“Herculean!” Sam yelled at the same time as he hurriedly pulled himself up.

[[Herculean (ζ)] is now active. Based on probability and threat assessment calculations, your current Strength is temporarily doubled. [STRENGTH: 64]]

Sam could literally feel the muscles in his arm explode with power as he launched an uppercut underneath the Banshee’s jawline.

[WARNING! Your body isn’t strong enough yet to wield this power. You will continue to accumulate damage while it is active.]

Sam’s fist connected with the Banshee’s chin and the force of his punch made the horror’s head snap back in a way that would have broken its neck if it had been human.

He didn’t wait to see how much damage he’d caused it though. And despite the pain that shot down his fist and into his right arm, Sam was able to slide away from the Banshee and pick up his hammer with his uninjured left hand.

[Interesting play you made there, kid… I wasn’t expecting a sucker punch.]

Sam had no time to make fun of Chiron’s pouting for he’d already turned around and noticed that the Banshee was finished snapping its head back in place.

The horror spun in Sam’s direction, its mouth widening once more.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Sam snapped.

He launched Cranium Smasher at the horror. However, unlike previously, the force of Sam’s attack was doubled thanks to Herculean’s power. And although the Banshee was able to deflect the attack by raising both its arms up like a shield — almost as if it had instinctively felt imminent danger was incoming — Sam was ready to execute his next move.

He launched his still aching right fist straight into the Banshee’s unprotected gut — causing the horror to double over in pain — while his left hand plucked Cranium Smasher out of the air.

“Ah~~h!” Sam screamed, for the pain in his right hand had gone from manageable to excruciating in the span of seconds it took for him to send a second body blow into the Banshee’s side. “I’m an i***t!”

[I already know that, kid, so try not to injure yourself some more!]

Sam didn’t need telling twice. He just gritted his teeth and swung Cranium Smasher sideways, slamming it deep into the side of the banshee’s face.

It was a blow that would have cleaved off a lesser foe, but the Banshee — its jaw now unhinged — merely sent Sam a murderous glare that would have stopped him in his tracks if adrenaline wasn’t currently coursing throughout his body.

Despite its broken jaw, the Banshee attempted to unleash another Death Wail on Sam, but now it was his turn not to cooperate. He smashed the ground beneath the Banshee’s feet with Cranium Smasher, and the powerful shockwave of this attack caused the horror to stumble backward and fall back on its bum.

“Check and mate,” Sam said. 

He didn’t fail to take advantage of this reversal of fortunes. He mounted the Banshee and aimed Cranium Smasher at its misshapen skull. The sight of the tears falling down the horror’s face, however, caused Sam’s raised arm to falter for he was reminded once more of the face his mother had when she’d turned into a monster.

“Godsdammit…” Sam said while his arm hovered in the air.

It would have been a fatal mistake too if his self-preservation instinct hadn’t kicked in at that moment and caused him to notice the threat of death coming for him.

Uncannily, Sam managed to block the banshee’s sharp-nailed fingers as it came streaking toward his face with his right arm. As those nails pierced into his flesh, the pain they caused him also helped to sober Sam up.

This creature wasn’t his mother, and it was in terrible pain, the kind only Sam could release it from.

“May you find peace in the afterlife,” Sam whispered just before he swung his hammer down on the Banshee’s face.

The horror’s body convulsed for a long moment before it stilled beneath him, its life finally ended. And Sam wept in a way he hadn’t wept in a long time.

[You have leveled up!]

[You have leveled up!]