Squire uses Lay on Paws! Squire recovers 52 HP! Squire's HP is now 101!
Slave attacks!
Critical hit! Squire suffers 10 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 91!
Vile casts a barrage of Magic Missiles!
Squire suffers 5, 4, 2, 5 and 3 points of damage!
Squire's HP has been reduced to 72!
The battle isn't going well. I can't rely on my Divine Strike ability, as I need the resources to keep myself healed. Obviously, the magic user is the primary target, what with them inflicting the vast bulk of the damage and presumably not capable of enduring much punishment themselves, but as one would expect from a cat, her guardian is surprisingly quick. Getting around it to attack that rat proves to be pretty much impossible, and all of my efforts just involve wasting combat rounds. Worse, my conventional sword strikes inflict significantly less damage than my Divine Strike, and the cat still hardly looks injured at all.
Things could be going worse, of course. If it weren't for my healing ability, the fight probably would have been over by now, but despite my rapidly replenishing Spirit reserves, I'm constantly trying to keep up with the damage coming my way, and falling the slightest bit behind. Looking behind the smirking feline, I can see Vile casting yet another spell. A familiar one, larger than most. Maybe this is an opportunity.
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Squire grapples Slave!
Grapple successful!
Slave is pinned down!
"H-hey, let me go!" the cat yowls, thrashing about beneath me as I push it to the floor with my paws, jaws gripping the scruff of its neck. Good. As I predicted, the small cat might be tough, but it isn't very strong. It's nowhere close to as physically powerful as myself. As for their request, I happily oblige, just as the spell is being cast.
Vile casts Fireball!
Slave suffers 55 point(s) of damage!
Squire suffers 11 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 34!
The black cat might be impossibly sturdy, but it isn't very heavy. Gripping it with my mouth, I effortlessly toss it into the path of the coming fireball, forcing the spell to explode in mid air. The direct hit looks extra painful, and I could have easily avoided getting caught in the area of effect, but this was an opportunity that I just couldn't pass up.
Slave might not have been killed by the blast, but they are left dazed, and the burst of bright light is rather hard on the eyes, not just for the targets but also the attacker. It offers excellent camouflage as I dive straight through the flames, up onto the barrel, landing behind the surprised rat. I twist the blade within my jaws, the edge of it pressed directly to the furred throat, ready to strike. Meanwhile, Vile looks back at me with an expression of both surprise and acceptance, clearly ready to accept that their end has come.
"Stop!" the black cat cries out at me, it's golden eyes wide, knowing that it couldn't possibly reach the rat in time to protect it. "Don't kill my mistress!" it says, her feminine voice filled with despair. "Please..."
There is a clank as I drop my sword. I didn't even think about it, rationally. If I had, I would have known that I was leaving myself wide open to an attack, and it is unlikely that I will get an opportunity like this again. Still, even had I considered such things, I feel that I would have made the same decision. I'll kill if necessary, but I would never kill someone begging for their life, and the cry of the cat was so desperate, so pitiful that I couldn't possibly bring myself to do so.
Squire has completed the path of Mercy! Squire has attained Paladin rank 3!
Squire has learned the "Holy Aegis" ability!
---
Vile: "At long last, the true protagonist of the story is revealed!"
Slave: "Yes! All hail the great Mistress Vile!"
Squire: "Aren't you kind of spoiling the fact that you'll be joining me?"
Vile: "Oh, please. We're powerful, distinct animal characters that have names. That means that we're obviously important to the story!"
AbyssalWood Alpha: "Huh, names are a lot more important than I realized. I really need to get myself one of those."