Ben's pickaxe slammed into the barrier.
Instead of breaking, it bounced back like rubber and absorbed the impact.
The ground shook from the force of his strike.
Cracks spread across the battlefield, but the shadow wall still held.
Ben's muscles tensed as he pushed harder.
He poured more strength into the swing.
The barrier stretched and bent, but it refused to break.
Then the tendrils came.
They whipped around him, twisting like snakes.
They tried to coil around his limbs, pierce his armor, and drag him down into the dark.
Ben gritted his teeth, eyes blazing. "You're not stopping me!" he shouted.
Blade-like appendages shot out from his back.
They cut through the tendrils with fast, precise strikes.
Each cut tore through the living darkness.
Black blood sprayed into the air as the tendrils screeched and writhed.
Even so, more tendrils kept coming.
The Krell Alpha clicked its tongue in annoyance.
Its six glowing eyes narrowed.
