Huh? What… What's going on?
Momentarily confused, Milo rolled over, his heavy eyelids slowly opening. His room was dark, way to dark, only the soft moonlight coming through the window lighting the room. Slowly sitting up, Milo felt the new volume he was reading slip off of his chest and clatter to the floor.
OK then. I must have fallen asleep… damn. What time is it?
Milo reached out towards the nightstand where his phone was. There was no reaction from the phone after pushing the button.
I forgot to plug it in… whatever…
Milo put the phone back down and looked around the room.
It's quiet. Isaiah must not be home yet.
The only noise in the room was the subtle Tick-Tock-Tick-Tock of the clock on the wall above his door. The rhythmic sound and eerie darkness were starting to give him anxiety. Normally, even in the middle of the night, the sound of passing cars on the street below could be heard. Tonight it was quiet. Unable to fight the urge to investigate, Milo looked towards the open window.
Whoa, Huh. Wait…
As he went to push himself out of bed, his sense of balance screamed at him in his head. Still groggy, he felt like he almost floated over towards the window. The light of the moon beckoning him to take a look.
Where are all the cars? And the lights? And the people? What's going on? It's never this dead outside.
Looking down at the street below, Milo couldn't find any traces of cars or pedestrians moving around. The street lights were out and the normal glow of the city was nonexistent. Feeling a strong sense of unease, Milo turned around to check the clock on the wall. Even if it was late, there should still be some places open and the street lights should be on.
What's going on with the clock? Is it broken? I just change the battery like a week ago, it's never done that befo………. WHOA! Wait, Whoa, What!
As his eyes focused on the clock, the faintly glowing hands seemed to begin moving in opposite directions. The Ticking of the clock matching the moments when the hands passed over each other. As his mind tried to process what he was seeing, he felt that same floating sensation again. His feet slid across the floor, his face moving close to the clock as the hands continued to spin faster and faster.
Suddenly the hands came to a complete stop, the last tick seeming to ring out through the apartment.
It stopped. Midnight, is it really only midniiii…….
The familiar feeling of hardwood under his feet suddenly vanished, replaced by a sudden rush of warm air from beneath him. The floating sensation vanished for only the briefest of moments before it was replaced by the terrifying feeling of free fall. As his body fell, the face of the clock vanished into the darkness, his body swallowed by the inky blackness of the void.
"Cuuuuh, ugh." Milo groaned as he lifted his head up off of the ground. As his eyes fluttered open, he could see small tufts of green surrounding him. Squinting to allow his eyes to adjust, Milo slowly pushed himself up. His head was pounding, his eyes hurt and his hands and knees were damp from the dew on the lush grass beneath him. Finally looking around, Milo could see beams of golden light streaking through the trees above him. With the gentle warm breeze blowing through his messy hair, Milo's mind finally caught up and his eyes went wide.
What? Where am I? Where is this?
The grass in the clearing swayed in the wind, the sound of the air moving through the canopy above and the dense overgrowth below left no room for interpretation. He was in a forest.
Is this a dream?
It was far too real to be a dream. He could feel grass on his feet, and the dirt on his face. Unlike the fog of a dream, the forest was vivid. No… this was almost certainly not a dream.
"H-Hello? Is anyone out there?" Milo called out, his voice echoing amongst the trees. He waited a few moments but there was no response.
I should probably have expected that… I probably shouldn't be yelling like that when I don't recognize this forest. I need to find someone.
Looking around, Milo tried to figure out a good direction to start walking in. Staying in one place was effective if someone was already looking for you, but Milo didn't know if anyone even knew he was gone and after not getting any response to his shouting, he doubted there was anyone nearby. His best bet was to pick a direction and start walking, hoping to find some sign of civilization soon.
Staring up at the canopy, the shafts of light seemed to dance through the leaves, small points of light striking the grassy floor of the clearing.
Ok, East should be that way. So I guess I'll pick that direction and hope I can keep following it for a while.
After getting a rough direction from the sun through the trees, Milo began making his way through the underbrush, trying to maintain a straight direction. The quiet sounds of the forest vanished as twigs and branches cracked under his bare feet. Having just gotten out of bed, Milo was in nothing but a pair of sweats and a tee-shirt. In order to not hurt his feet too badly, he moved cautiously, checking each step before moving.
As he walked, Milo instinctively reached for the phone that was normally in his pocket.
Of course I don't have anything… Couldn't I have at least gotten a pair of socks?!
Milo silently prayed that his walk wouldn't be a long one. After only a few minutes, his feet were already starting to become sore and the ticklish feeling of the plants on his bare toes made him severely uncomfortable. The only thing worse than the tickling grass were the small hard shells of some plant that had little spikes on them. The pain wasn't quite as bad as stepping on a lego, but it still forced him to stop every few minutes to carefully pluck the embedded stickers from the soles of his feet.
The pain managed to keep him distracted from the thoughts swirling in his head. The situation was strange, he was still confused about what happened to bring him here and the strong disconnect he was feeling between reality now and the day before was causing his anxiety to flare up.
Where am I?
How did I get here?
How am I supposed to get home?
Can I even get home?
What if I can't?
What am I supposed to do then?
What if I never find anyone out here?
After about an hour or so at milos best guess, the forest that had returned to its normal state suddenly became eerily quiet again. After noticing this while stopped to care for his feet, Milo carefully scanned his surroundings.
*Crack*
The sound of a small twig breaking in the brush somewhere immediately drew his attention. Through the trees, milo could see the dense underbrush shake as something pushed its way through.
*Thump Thump* *Thump Thump*
Milo's heart began to pound in his chest. Without knowing what was in front of him, Milo instinctively felt his fear begin to accumulate. He knew that walking through a forest alone, especially one he didn't recognize, was a dangerous idea. He was now painfully aware of how right he was. Running through the forest, his feet being stabbed by the small shells and rocks on the forest floor the whole time, Milo knew how hard it would be to get away from anything dangerous. Worst case scenario, he would be turned into a tasty snack by whatever was about to come through the underbrush.
The sound came to a stop. Squinting his eyes, Milo tried to force his vision through the grass and shrubs to make out what was lurking in the shade.
"Grrrrrrrr." A low growl rumbled out of the bush. Milo instinctively took a step back. As he moved, the large creature slowly stepped out of its hiding spot and into view.
It was massive. Its head looked like that of a dog or hyena. Its shoulders were broad and its massive arms hung to the ground as it lumbered forward like a gorilla. The matted brown fur covering its body was stained with mud and filth. There were patches of exposed skin that looked like something had taken a chunk of flesh and torn it away. At the ends of its hands or paws were long black claws and its mouth was filled with yellow and gray teeth and fangs. The torn ears on its head twitched as its narrowed eyes focused on milo. It slowly opened its mouth, gobs of saliva falling to the ground while it listened to the loud pounding of Milo's heart.
"Ok, ok, ok, I d-d-d-don't want to hurt you." Milo's voice came out stammered. He now realized how truly scared of this creature he was. His eyes darted around, looking for any opening to escape.
Something! Anything!
The two of them stood there, squared off.
"Grrrrrrrr!" The creature let out another low growling sound. Terrified, Milo's eyes glanced to the side for the briefest of moments. This was a moment the creature was not going to let slip by. Without hesitation, the creature lowered its head before lunging forward, its fangs bared.
In a panic, Milo dove off to the side, falling to the ground just as the hulking form of the monster passed him by. "Hyahahahahya'' the creature laughed, its teeth exposed in a vile grin. Scrambling back to his feet, Milo bolted into the forest, trying to weave between the trees and slow the larger creature down.
I need to go faster! I'm going to die if I don't! I need to run…
Milo could feel the presence of the monster slowly gaining on him, its claws digging into trees and scraping against rocks as Milo desperately tried to escape.
"WHOA!" Milo yelled as his foot came to a sudden stop, snagged on a tangle of vines and tree roots. Milo rolled over and tore at the roots and vines, the creature lunging forward at him while he remained helpless and trapped. "HELP!" Milo yelled, hoping someone, anyone would hear his desperate plea.
Milo squeezed his eyes closed and huddled himself into a ball as the monster bore down on him.
Huh?
The strike milo was anticipating never came. The sound of the monsters panting came to a complete stop. The sounds of the forest around him had vanished. Slowly, carefully, Milo opened his eyes.
Wha!!!
The creature was mere inches from his face, fangs bared and arms drawn back to swipe at him. Its body was suspended in the air, like someone pressed the pause button on reality.
"Command 'Help' Recognized. Foreign Object Unidentified, Beginning Diagnostic." a soft voice said.
Who? Unidentified? Diagnostic? What's going on?
"Who's there?" Milo called out, but there was no response. While he was looking around for the source of the voice, a sensation similar to the pins and needles you feel when an arm or leg falls asleep washed over his body. For a moment, the area around him seemed to become just a bit brighter.
Looking down at his tingling hands, Milo saw small blue sparks form in the air and begin jumping in and out of his skin forming small arcs like electricity as the sensation climbed his arms. The arcs jumped from one place to another leaving a strange warmth wherever they made contact with skin.
What's this? Is this…
Milo rolled over, and with a quick tug, pulled his foot free from the roots and started to try and crawl away from the monster that was still suspended mid air. The arcing electricity ripped down his neck and back, his muscles twitching at the unusual feeling. The slight jolts continued to work their way lower and lower, the tingling caress of electric fingers finally reaching his…
"HEY! WHOA! WATCH IT THERE!" Milo jolted. A sudden pinch on his back side caused him to leap forward and roll onto his back. The arcs of electricity slowly faded away before the soft voice spoke again.
"Diagnostic complete, Foreign object unrecognized, please state authority level."
"What?"
"Foreign object unrecognized, please state authority level."
"What's an authority level? Who's there?"
"Response unrecognized, please state authority level." The voice said again.
What am I supposed to say? Where is that voice coming from anyways… WAIT!
"Help!" Milo yelled out, remembering that he called for help just before all of this started.
"Command 'Help' Recognized, Initiating Display." The voice responded.
There was a flash in Milo's vision, causing him to see stars for a moment as his eyes adjusted. Down in the corner of his vision, Milo saw a small glowing dot, like a smidge on a pair of glasses. As he mentally focused on the small dot, the glow expanded filling his vision with a semi-transparent window.
This can't be real.
As the light faded, the remaining light condensed together in small patches in his vision. The patches morphed into lines, combining to make characters, those characters starting to form words on the strange VR like screen.
Object Unrecognized
Please select authority level:
Object.
Sub user.
User.
Sub Administrator.
Administrator.
Owner.
As the words formed a list in his vision, Milo could see that three of the options on the list were grayed out. The options for 'Object', 'Sub-User', and 'User' seemed to be the only available choices.
I don't know what's going on. This is the strangest dream I've ever had. This has to be a dream right? This seems way too much like a videogame to be real… Should I just pick an option at random? Is there a best choice here? Do I have to pick?
Seemingly in response to his thoughts the voice spoke again.
"Please select authority level."
Alright, I guess I have to pick one… I'll take the highest option I can get. That's hopefully the best choice. Wait, how do I select it?
As Milo focused on the option, 'User', on the interface, the word suddenly blinked and the text suddenly changed.
"Authority level, 'User' Selected, Please Identify New User." The voice said, a small text box now appearing under the word user.
"Are you like the voice of the system?" Milo asked out loud to the voice.
"Identity 'System' is already in use. Please identify new user."
Just like a character creator for an online game. Does it just want my name?
Thinking about his own name for only a moment, the text box was suddenly filled with the characters spelling his full name before blinking and fading into a column of new text.
Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
"User, 'Milo Braxton' Identified. Authority Level, 'User'. Command 'Help' Authorized. Displaying Relevant Data."
Name: Milo Braxten
Authority: User
Level: 0
Experience: 0
Class: Unknown
Skills: Unknown
Available Commands:
Help.
Begin Creation.
Check Authority.
Toggle Display.
Toggle Audio.
Terminate.
As Milo's eyes scanned over the new information in front of him, his eyes nearly bugged out as the game-like nature of what he was seeing hit him.
OK… This is exactly like the beginning of a video game… wait… otaku male… wakes up in forest… completely lost… saved by the system from a monster… has a spot for a level, experience and class… DID I GET ISEKAIED?!?!
No no no no no… this can't be happening… this isn't real… I have to be dreaming… I didn't die, right? Like… that truck from earlier… and the sign… and the bread… and the bucket… wait wait wait… but… I… just… uh… WHAT THE HECK!
Milo felt unsteady, his mind was a violent mess of thoughts and emotions. He didn't understand why. Or how. With everything happening, he didn't feel like he had any choice left but to play along with whatever the 'System' was having him do right now. Though he was thankful that he wasn't already monster food.
Giving the system just a little bit of credit for saving his life, Milo looked at the available commands at the bottom of the display.
I already used the 'Help' command, and it got me here. 'Check authority' seems redundant considering I can see my authority level right there, not that I know what it means. The two toggle options seem like basic settings I'd see in an RPG options menu. Then here's 'Terminate', which sounds ominous. If it meant 'Exit' like in a program, why not just say exit? The word 'Terminate' can have a much more dangerous meaning. That only leaves me with one option I guess.
Milo focused his vision on the option, 'Begin Creation'.
"Command 'Begin Creation' selected. User level does not meet the requirements. Attempting to elevate user level."
"Increasing Level. Result: failed. Attempting to elevate user level."
"Increasing Level. Result: failed. Attempting to elevate user level."
"Increasing Level. Result: success"
"Level 0 increased to Level 1"
"Requirements Met. Beginning Character Creation."
The text of the menu faded away, replaced by another list of options.
Select Class:
Fighter.
Acolyte.
Rogue.
Mage.
Scientist.
What are these? It must want me to pick one? I only know what some of these do from games. What am I supposed to pick here?
Indeed, Milo recognized the 5 listed options from the RPGs he played in the past. He could loosely assume what each one did, except 'Scientist'. That one was a bit of an odd selection to have. If there were any significant differences between them outside of the obvious, Milo was completely unaware of them. Milo stopped to consider the situation before making any hasty decisions. Thankfully the monster that was chasing him was still helplessly suspended in the air next to him.
I don't know what's going to happen once I pick one. If reality starts moving again after I do, then I'm going to have to try and run away again… maybe…
Looking over at the large dog-like creature, Milo decided that his best bet was to pick something that he would be able to use immediately. If he didn't, then there was a good chance he was going to become dog food. He didn't have anything with him, nothing that could be used as a weapon beyond his own body. He needed something he could use without a weapon.
Should I pick a mage? Mages use magic right? Or should I pick Rogue? Rogues usually turn into Rangers or Assassins, so maybe that would help me get away? Acolyte usually comes before becoming a Priest or Cleric, would that let me have healing magic? Then even if the monster caught me I could heal myself. I'm not even going to consider Scientist. I'm not really interested in trying to perform a study on the monster that's trying to eat me. Picking fighters means I'd have to beat the monster up with just my fists. URK! What should I do?
"Hey, do any of these know martial arts?" Milo asked the invisible system voice.
"Processing Query."
So it understands my questions?
"Answer. Class 'Fighter', Class 'Rogue' and Class 'Mage' contain skill 'Martial arts'. Checking requirements."
"User, 'Milo Braxton' does not meet the requirements to obtain skill 'Martial Arts'."
"Huh? So what's the requirement?"
"Answer. Displaying requirement for Skill 'Martial Arts'."
"Class 'Fighter' Level 3."
"Class 'Rogue' Level 5."
"Class 'Mage' Level 7."
So no martial arts then…
"What skills do I get if I pick fighter?"
"Processing Query."
"Answer. Class 'Fighter', Level 1, Listing Skills."
"Inherent skills: Dash, Power Strike."
"Available Skills: Endurance, Surge, Melee Weapons Training, Tactics."
"Ok, And what about Rogue?"
"Answer. Class 'Rogue', Level 1, Listing Skills."
"Inherent skills: Dodge, Quick Strike."
"Available Skills: Evade, Throw, Ranged Weapons Training, Stealth."
Milo asked the system the same question for each of the five classes, mentally noting the skill options that caught his interest as the system laid it all out for him.
Ok, so each class gets two inherent skills, and 4 available skills. Do I have to buy those with experience or something?
"Can you tell me the skills for Mage again?"
"Answer. Class 'Mage', Level 1, Listing Skills."
"Inherent skills: Mana Detection, Mana Manipulation."
"Available Skills: Incantation Casting, Somatic Casting, Meditation, Elemental Magic."
So… Do I need one of the available casting skills to actually cast magic? Or is that covered under mana manipulation? UGH… the best option would be to have part of all of them… this is a hard choice…
"Answer. Attempting to merge classes. Command unauthorized, Authority level is below the required level."
"Wait? What are you trying to do?"
"Answer, Attempting to elevate user 'Milo Braxten' authority level from 'User' To 'Sub-Administrator'."
"Increasing Authority Level. Result: Failed. Insufficient Permissions."
"Attempting to bypass Permissions."
"Bypassing Permissions. Result: Failed. Attempting to register a new Account."
"Registering New User Account. Result: Success. Attempting to increase account authority level."
"Increasing Authority Level. Result: Success. Attempting to assign user 'Milo Braxten' to new account."
"Assigning User. Result: Success."
"User 'Milo Braxten' Authority Level Increased from 'User' to 'Sub-Administrator'."
"Attempting to merge classes."
"Merging Classes: Success. Special Class '(#####)' created."
"What are you doing?"
"Answer. Special Class '(#####)' , Level 1, Listing Skills."
"Inherent skills: Mana Control, Dodge, Power Strike."
"Available Skills: Incantation Casting, Somatic Casting, Meditation, Elemental Magic, Evade, Throw, Ranged Weapons Training, Stealth, Endurance, Surge, Melee Weapons Training, Tactics, Analysis, Split Mind, Synchronization, Medicin, Prayer, Divine Strike, Bless, Inspiration"
"Wait, did you roll the classes all together?"
"Answer. Affirmative."
Did… That just happen? Is this how the OP protagonist feels when the system helps them out? It's really difficult not to think about this like I'm in one of my books. Well, if I get all the options together, then that's the only real choice then.
"Special Class '(#####)' Selected. Analyzing abilities."
"Analysis complete"
As the voice rang out again, the display window changed again.
Ability Scores:
Power: 10.
Agility: 12.
Intellect: 8.
"Ability Scores Set, Generating Skills."
Hey, that Agility Score seems pretty good, but… why is my intellect so low?
Skills Unlocked:
Mana Detection (1).
Mana Manipulation (1).
"Combining skills"
Skills Unlocked:
Mana control (1).
Dodge (1).
Power Strike (1).
"Generated Skills added. Analyzing Background."
"Analysis complete. Adding Background."
Background: Noble Student.
Ability Score Increase:
Intellect +2.
Skills Unlocked:
Analysis (1).
"Background Set. Character Creation Complete." The voice said before fading away.
"Wait! What am I supposed to do with these?" Milo called out, but there was no response from the system voice.
As Milo's eyes fell back on the monster that was still suspended in the air, he felt like his eyes were unusually focused on the details of the creature. With a strange sensation, like something wiggling in his brain, the identity of the creature became obvious to milo.
The creature in front of him was known as a 'Gnoll'. Calling it a monster would be more accurate than calling it an animal or creature. These monsters were dangerous, especially for low level individuals and natural animals. Their fangs and claws are sharp and hard, their hide is thick, and their saliva has paralyzing properties to it. One scratch and within minutes you would be unable to move.
How do I know all that? I've never seen one of these before. WAIT! Analysis. Is it just automatic then? I wonder what the…
While thinking about the usefulness of a skill that could just give him free information, Milo saw the frame of the Gnoll begin to twitch and move. Its eyes began to dart around as it slowly broke free of whatever was holding it in place.
"State Resume."
As the system voice faded away, the gnoll's speed suddenly increased and its massive body slammed into the ground where Milo had been standing just moments prior. The gnoll looked around in confusion before its eyes and ears focused back in on Milo's trembling body.
The gnoll made a quick turn on the ground, taking advantage of its powerful arms to lunge forward at milo again. It kept its head low to the ground, opening its mouth to bite at Milo's unprotected legs.
I have to DODGE!
Even as he was unable to take his eyes off of the looming threat, with a single thought, Milo's body began to move. His bare feet dug into the soft forest soil, throwing his body backwards into a roll.
"AAAH!"
As soon as his feet touched the ground, he naturally sprung back up, returning to a standing position with his arms ready in front of him.
"Wha?"
"Grrr. Hyahahayahahahyaha!" the gnoll seemed to cackle as its pointed tongue painted fresh saliva onto its lips.
Without waiting for the gnoll to strike again, Milo turned and began dashing through the trees again. Ignoring the pain in his feet, Milo made full use of every point of Agility the system gave him. Despite this, even while leaping over fallen logs, vaulting over rocks and boulders and weaving between the tightly packed trees, the gnolls pounding gate seemed to be inching closer and closer to Milo's back.
*Crunch* *Crack*
Hearing the log he just scrambled over crack and splinter right behind him, Milo instinctively lept to the side. A powerful gust of air blew through the area. Even after avoiding the claws by a slim margin, the wind the gnolls swiped slammed into Milo, throwing him dozens of feet through the air.
"Gah! Urk." Milo coughed. After tumbling across the uneven ground, Milo's whole body ached. His ankle felt twisted and his vision was momentarily blurry. The gnoll wasn't prepared to miss the opportunity to strike again at milo while he was laid out, so the gnoll dug its claws into the ground and leapt forward, the ground shaking from the power in the gnolls feet.
Quickly rolling onto his back, Milo managed to get his feet under him just in time to see the gnolls maw poised to bite his throat. Milo's arms came up and without stopping to consider why, his mind shouted.
POWER STRIKE!
His fist snapped forward, the muscles and tendons in his arm straining under the force.
*CRACK!*
The sound of Milos fist meeting the gnolls jaw reverberated off of the trees. Caught off guard by the last minute attack, the gnoll careened off course and slammed into a tree.
Did I…
Unable to take that thought any further, Milo's eyes went wide as he witnessed the speed of the gnoll. Before making contact with the tree, the gnoll used its powerful legs to kick off of the ground and plant its feet and claws on the large trunk. Using the momentum to charge itself like a spring, the gnoll exploded back in Milos direction, ruthlessly swinging its clawed hands.
DODGE!
Now consciously aware of the skill, Milo activates his dodge and his body throws itself straight backwards, the claws slicing into his shirt and barely scratching his chest. Milos back slams into the tree directly behind him, a sharp jolt of pain running up his spine.
"Guuuh!" Milo let out a pained grunt as he tried to catch his breath..
I should run! I don't know how strong this thing is, it's dangerous, that's all I know.
After missing its last attack, the gnoll made no move to follow up. With only a short distance between them, Milo was well within the range of the monster's attacks, yet it remained still, simply watching milo. Milo carefully scanned the area, searching for a good direction to run to as soon as the gnoll began to make a move. Running was by far his best option, his worst fear, however, was running closer to wherever this monster called home. Chancing across more of these things while trying to escape would only lead to Milo's swift death, an end he was desperately trying to avoid.
The gnoll seemed to recognize the look in Milo's eyes. It stood, watching Milo's every move as he slowly moved his head to check the surroundings for an opening. It recognized it held the advantage, and as if celebrating its victory, the gnoll bared its jagged fangs, showing milo a terrifyingly delighted smile.
"Hyahahahahya! GRAH!" the gnoll bellowed, its claws scraping against the ground as it lowered its body before lunging forwards.
"HAAA!" Milo yelled, his body straining as he put as much strength as he could muster into another desperate leap. In the brief moment the gnoll took to prepare for its lunge, milo moved, lowering himself enough that with the gnolls bulk already moving, its inertia wouldn't allow it to change course and cut off milo as he dove under the gnolls outstretched arm.
Milo felt the gust of wind from the gnoll's furious swipe pass over him again. So far, he had avoided death multiple times by the slimmest of margins. Never one to bank on repeated luck, Milo rushed into the trees again hoping that by some miracle, something in his path would allow him to escape this situation in more or less one piece. However, luck was not on Milo's side for a fourth time. Just as Milo began slipping past the first tree in his path.
*CRUNCH*
A nearby tree shuddered before a massive chunk of raw wood was blown apart. Embedded in the remaining trunk were the gnolls blackened claws. As milo rounded the tree, he came face to face with the gnoll, its wicked grin exposed. Either fortunately or unfortunately, the gnoll Milo faced was using its overwhelming advantage only to toy with its helpless prey. The cackling laughter and dripping saliva was clear evidence of the joy the monster felt as it played a deadly game of cat and mouse.
Milo desperately tried to stop his momentum, his feet painfully digging into the ground. The gnoll pushed itself forward off of the tree, causing the tree to further splinter before giving out and collapsing to the forest floor with a deafening boom. Using the impact like the signal from a starting pistol, the two both moved at the same time. With no more than 3 meters between them, now, the gnoll charged, covering the short gap in only a split second. With his stance broken from the sudden stop, Milo raised his hands in a defensive posture, taking a short quick step to the side at the very last second.
By now Milo had realized that the monster was only toying with him, and if it wanted to kill him, it could have finished this right from the beginning. Unable to outrun it, and being not only smaller by a wide margin but significantly weaker, Milo knew his only chance was to use the gnolls' stupidity against it.
While taking the short step off to the side, feeling the gnoll's claws graze by his cheek, Milo dropped his defensive stance, instead drawing his arm back like a spring before releasing the stored up energy with a violent yell.
"HAAAAAAAAAA! POWER STRIKE!"
*Cruch* *BOOM*
Not holding anything back, and charged by the still mysterious effect of his skill, Milo's arm shot forward like a bullet. The air in front of his fist almost seemed to condense just as his knuckles made contact with the side of the gnolls skull. Unlike his last strike against the gnoll, this attack had Milo's full power behind it. The gnoll's posture crumbled as its feet were torn from the ground and it flopped helplessly to the side. Milo's powerful punch was more than enough to break the bones of an average creature and carried enough force to throw the gnoll several meters before it tumbled to a stop.
Unfortunately, the gnoll wasn't the only thing sent flying. Forgetting one of the most fundamental rules in physics, Milo flew backwards with a tremendous amount of force. Not expecting his own attack to send him flying, Milo was unprepared and rolled to the ground before finally coming to a stop next to the recently felled tree.
In a contest of 'Who can get up first', the gnoll was the clear victor. After its surprising tumble, the gnoll quickly moved to right itself. The slight glimmer of playfulness in the gnolls eyes had completely vanished. Its wicked grin now a furious sneer.
"GYAAAAAAAAH!" the gnoll screamed in rage. Its dexterous movements from before were replaced by a primal fury as it clawed at the ground and charged to quickly cover the short distance between them.
Milo was just beginning to push himself up off of the ground when he heard the gnolls battle cry. Instinctually turning to jump out of the way again, Milo failed to notice the gnolls now enraged state. Using the gnoll's devious nature against it would no longer be an option.
"GAH!" Milo yelled as a searing pain shot into his foot and up his leg. He felt the skin tear. The bones crack. With the gnoll's ferocious fangs biting into his foot, the monster began twisting its body in an attempt to drag Milo off of the ground and throw him. In a moment of pure terror, Milo pulled his one free leg back and drove it into the gnolls snout. The gnoll let out a high pitched, pained "Yiiiip!" as its teeth slipped out of Milo's foot.
Trying to ignore the pain, Milo fell back to the ground and began trying to scramble away while the gnoll wailed from having its sensitive nose kicked directly. As he clawed at the ground, Milo felt his body suddenly become heavy and his heart began pounding loudly. Starting from his mangled toes, Milo's body began to go numb.
Paralysis… its saliva causes paralysis… I'm so damn stupid… Why didn't I just run when I had the chance?
As Milo's body began to seize, the gnoll used the moment to regain its evil composure. The two glared at each other. Now unable to send any strength to his legs, Milo could do nothing as the gnoll stalked over. Blood dripped from the end of the gnolls snout and its right eye was completely swollen with red droplets running down its face.
Hyahahahahya!" The gnoll laughed again as it stretched its arms out as it stood up to its full height. The image of his own pulverized body flashed through Milo's mind as he pictured his final moments. Knowing that its enemy could no longer escape or fight back now that it had sunk its teeth into them, the gnoll seemed to revel in its assured victory.
The chill of the paralysis had climbed Milo's body, his fingers were starting to go numb and his consciousness was becoming hazy. Through the fog, Milo watched the gnoll draw its arm back for the last move of this terrible game. Darkness seemed to swirl around the gnoll's claws, the tips of its fur blackening further as the muscles in its arm tightened.
Milo felt his eyes begin to close, his vision started slipping away.
"BLINDING SPARK!"
Suddenly there was a loud voice followed by an immense flash of light just in front of the gnolls face. Through the darkness following the flash, Milo saw a figure covered in swirling pale white light just as his consciousness faded away.