Page 3827

The immovable man was certainly a problem, but there were various means of dealing with him. The least costly was to simply keep him distracted, and for that task, the Outerdark Patrol would serve well enough. With Abolish and the Vanguard fighting each other again, it wasn’t difficult to have a detachment of skeletal soldiers head over here on a newly formed bridge via the howl.

They wouldn’t be able to hold Dozer’s attention for very long, Koh knew, but he didn’t need them to. He only needed time enough to get to Ettol. As long as Gohvis didn’t decide to run, that would be doable. And knowing how tremendous the Black Scourge’s ego was, he was quite unlikely to flee.

For now, at least.

If Koh couldn’t finish the job in this next onslaught, that might change. The Scourge might realize that this was a losing battle for him and consider altering his strategy.

Better to avoid that hassle entirely. Better to strike with overwhelming force now.

The only problem was that he didn’t actually know what his most powerful technique was, anymore. With Kallmakk’s aid, where did the limit now reside?

Perhaps it was time to find out. He drank deeply of the Darklight, letting its power fill his mind and body still further. And then he let it explode outward, though not as a form of attack.

He wanted it to cover the area, to create a bubble of his own, a new domain to grant him yet more advantages in this fight. Greater strength. Greater speed. Greater resilience. Greater senses.

And the ability to warp space as he saw fit.

A Dark Domain.

The Patrol could use it as well. More bridges for them. In all directions.

As the howl subsided once more, Dozer and Gohvis had swapped places. No need to chase. Dozer might’ve been immovable, but the space he existed in was not. And this way, the Scourge’s problematic speed could be suppressed or even ignored. And those psychic illusions could be seen through more easily, too.

Gohvis’ fist was already mid-swing, however. Aiming for his head. Another deadly instance of the Scourge’s predictive analysis. Koh was familiar with it from their sparring sessions.

Which was why he was ready for it, too. Instead of landing cleanly, it only grazed the top of his head as he ducked under it. Still rattling, certainly, but not nearly enough to stop him. His jaw caught Gohvis under the shoulder and bit down with enough force to nearly tear it off on the first bite.