Xar was quiet as he spoke, "Remember, efficiency, quick, but stay safe, keep your seconds alive, and they’ll do the same for you. Bacchus, Eolus, you are sweeping. Marg, you are on overwatch. Prochorus healing, Bonney and Alfred front and centre, shield wall while Calliope and I back you up. Brick, taunt them. Be yourself—the standard for waves."
They were going to be using our skills for shock and awe. I waited for my orders.
He continued looking at me, "Luke, I want you to leave the centre while we clear it and draw attention. Head forward, remove any targets of opportunity, use stealth, and unleash. We need this done quickly and in a messy manner but safely. Nothing flashy, just quick and efficient. Use some of your skills, even if they deviate from SOP. Let's see what you can do."
Again with a pause and look at me, "If you have skills that we don’t know about, we are not going to judge. It is not time to hold back. We will mop up, converge on the middle and fortify, ready for the next waves. At this tier, the waves should be quick. Do not pressure the stone too early as that can trigger waves faster than expected."
Everyone here was top of Tier 3 or Tier 4. They were highly trained and the best of the best. It would be good to see them throw down and engage fully.
More importantly, I would see how some of my skills and powers would blend with the horrific training I got in Bootcamp. Fuck you, Rufus.
I had felt entirely left out of my previous progression for a while; I had not used my stats, and I had a bunch of skills that I wanted to use. I had jumped ahead so fast, and when that slowed, and I had to operate at a more sedate pace, it wasn't easy to reconcile with my desire to keep improving and grow stronger. I was second-guessing my role in the Legion. I didn’t fit into the chain of command, and my future was not cemented as part of it either, despite my training and Xar’s insistence on keeping with the standard operating procedures.
I felt I was just being kept busy, out of the way and under the supervision of someone I respected. Truth be told, if I didn’t want to do something, there was not a lot on Earth that could make me do it. My Oath was not as binding as most suspected.
That was a point of contention with Sprite, and she was firmly on the side of keeping Oaths.
There was quite a lot to interpret in my Oath. The hypocrisy was not lost on me, but the pursuit of power did not fit well into a stagnant structure like the Legion. I think Xar knew this and was doing his best in a bad situation, trying to shield me and trying to keep me away from unwanted attention. Cutting loose and using high-tiered powers was one way to draw attention.
Today, I was given some freedom and time to show my skills. I smiled as we were given the instructions and expectations and let loose to do the job to the best of our abilities. My job was to be stealthy and invisible, then target the back of the pack, smashing back through the centre and taking pressure off the legion shield wall. I was to look for anything that might be trouble or out of the ordinary, the incursion leaders or boss mobs.
I had to stop thinking in gamer terms; otherwise, I would get upset when I realised I could not respawn.
Zero health was not a reset. Death was a possibility. I needed to take it seriously.
I felt a bit nervous fighting with others and having a team that would rely on me. I would play with the big boys behind the lines, no pressure! I had shut an incursion like this before, even if it was luck and circumstance rather than a skill that got me through it.
If Xarius were doing this by the book, I would be stuck with the turtle shield wall. But now, I’d stealth and use my skills, Eyes of Fury and Thundergrip; I’d see what Dawnbreaker, Runed Blade of the Night Sky and my shield, The Eye Of Lyztune, could do.
I’d smiled when Xar pulled them from the Legion inventory. Sarah was more than thoughtful. They must have cost a packet.
Dawnbreaker was interesting. When I first held her, I could feel the presence of something, eager to be used in battle, dormant and waiting to be unleashed. I felt curiosity and a soft tendril pressing at the edges of my consciousness when I held it. She, for I got the impression of an elegant and intimidating lady, sharp, flexible and deadly. I was cautious about it but also excited at the same time. I responded with a friendly hello towards the sword and got a happy feeling in return. Nice.
I summoned The Eye of Lyztune from my inventory and strapped it to my left arm. It was essentially a slab of metal that I stood behind. Even with my strength, it was challenging to use, but I was willing to put it between me and any attacker, and I had faith in its construction to stop most things. It resonated with a sense of solidness and dependability. Looking at the Eye, I shivered. Even attuned to me, the sense of malice was almost physical,
As soon as we had done gear checks, we were off.
Our scouts, Bonifatius and Alfredus, reported on the positions of the incursion stone and portals, so we moved in. They had been watching from the hunter blind that was set up.
The land surrounding the portal was an open outback tundra with scrubby bushland and rolling rocky and sandy hills. In the distance, we could see the changes brought about by the incursion. As we approached the incursion, the land started getting humid and from a kilometre out, it was a soupy humidity that seemed to sap energy. Some areas were becoming marshy, with the scrub trees deformed and decayed with a stink of decaying biological matter, worse than a half-remembered trip to the dump. A low mist shrouded the centre of the area, roughly the size of a basketball court. The centre was hidden within a swirling cascade of fog—thick and sickly pale green-grey. Movement and dark shapes appeared and vanished as the fog tendrils swirled and disappeared in the still air, becoming impenetrable to even my high perception. As the legion shield wall formed, I broke away and activated my skills.
Can’t see me. I’m invisible.
Stealth - Hide from shit.
The mana and energy drain was comforting as I became invisible and silent, ready for anything.
Within minutes, I was hidden in the mist and lost sight of the Legion. I could not see them even though they were less than 20 meters away. All sounds were muffled, warped and distorted, which suited me fine.
Shortly, I heard the first sounds of a muted battle, which faded as I moved further into the dim mists. The air absorbed sound, making vision and listening next to useless. My job was not to engage until I saw what I considered bosses or incursion masters. I saw the necrotic mists swirling around the portal before I saw the horror.
It was immense, the size of an old school bus. Even looking at it made me sick.
Mental Influence (Fear) Resisted.
We were in trouble.
Fetidcrackle (Swamp Pig) Horror Of Deigggh (Chaos, Tier 5)
I sent a message to Xar.
Sprite, can you call Xar and tell him we have a Tier 5 boss pig? I am going to engage, but I may need backup.
Sprite: Done. It should take them a few minutes to mop up. They are only fighting Tier 3 and the odd Tier 4.
Xarius: Hold it and keep it occupied. I think you are the only one here who can face it front-on. We will have to finish the others and then support you. The eta is 5-10 minutes. Remember comms protocol. Out.
Because of the Swamp Pig's size and thick miss, I missed seeing the true boss of the incursion until I heard the soft chittering.
Tangle (Doom Scorpion) (Major) Horror of Deigggh (Chaos, Tier ????) Incursion Master.
Are named bosses a thing? Or is that just ... what the hell is an Incursion Master?
Sprite: A boss, as you call them, if they have a name from identification, that means that they are old, cunning and have been successful against foes before. An Incursion Master should be an impossibility. Intelligent, cunning and powerful, they herald a true Invasion.
Just what I needed.
It didn’t help that Tangle was the size of a house cat, half covered in the thick swamp muck yet seemingly moving gracefully as it skittered around the portal. Multi-legged and covered in chitinous armour with massive pincers and a serpent-like stinger, the stinger flexed like a cat tail behind it, clearly agitated. While the pig’s aura was miasma and sickness, this tiny creature’s aura was dread, doom, and destruction.
The swamp pig looked like it was sleeping, lying on its side, legs splayed. Eyes closed, slow thunderous breathing.
Faintly, I could hear the noise of battle moving closer, and I saw a slow change in the pig while Tangle continued to dig and seemed to be looking for something in the muck.
The giant slab of decayed bacon was aware of the incoming Legion but remained still.
I kept my eyes on Tangle. Its multifaceted insectoid eyes seemed to peer in every direction as it skittered around in the swamp. It tensed but kept doing whatever it was doing. I could hear the cracking of its pincers as it furrowed in the mud.
Lair Stone (Chaos: Incursion: Deigggh) Tier 5 82% (05:33:22)
I sent that information to Xarius.
My perception and visual skills gave me more information than last time. I also got a timer.
Tell Xar 5hrs till this incursion kicks from Tier 5. What happens, then?
Sprite: Message passed. I can tell you this should not be here, in a new world that is not connected to the System or The Karass Prism. The energy balance should be stable enough that this incursion is impossible. If this evolves from Tier 5, either a Legendary incursion leader, what you might call a world boss, will come through, or it will become a permanent chaos colony, similar to a permanent breach. Here, it would be linked to the swamps of Deigggh, one of the worst I could imagine. I am very concerned. Xar said to be very careful.
Well, we need to get this sorted. What do I need to know?
Sprite: This won't be easy.
No shit, Sherlock, thanks for that.
I moved silently to get to a position where I could move in on the sleeping pig and, hopefully, engage it without too much interference from Tangle. Despite its size, I thought it would be the easiest of the two. I was very concerned that the First Cohort would be out of its depths. Xar was the highest ranked, and I doubted he could take either of these alone, let alone deal with both. With luck, he could hold one while I dealt with the other. I prayed they had some Legion surprises to deal with extreme cases like this. I knew there were some emergency protocols that he could enact.
Despite being able to do some of his roles, it was well above my pay grade.
To Xarius: are you okay with helping? Out.
Xarius: Engage, and I will assist as I can. 3 mins still. Out.
To Xarius: I don’t think we have 2 minutes, let alone 3. They are aware of you. I am moving in. Out.
In my movement, I lost sight of Tangle for a second. I was unsure if it was just out of sight behind the bus-sized pig or had some stealth ability. I hoped for the former. I focused on the pretend sleeping form of Fetidcrackle. I planned to deal with the pig and then Tangle.
Using the movement skills from Leet Parkour, I was nimble, running, jumping and rolling across the ground to Fetidcrackle, accelerating to superhuman speeds, drawing Dawnbreaker and engaging a mighty shield bash with my slab of metal, The Eye of Lyztune.
Skill Resisted. Dazed for 10 seconds. 50% reduction in speed, cognition and regeneration
Fetidcrackle’s bulk stopped me dead.
I crunched into the shield with a sickening crunch before being flung back to land in a heap on my back. In my dazed state, I barely managed to hang onto my sword and shield.
Sprite: Damage Report: Broken nose, three ribs. Mild concussion. Your shoulder is dislocated.
Sprite: OMG, Heal me, it hurts.
Sprite: Take a healing canister. I suggest we get integrated injectors so that I can assist with those.
In my dazed state, I managed to do that.
Noted, and Thanks!
The pig had not moved and opened large, baleful yellow and bloodshot eyes in almost slow motion. An intelligence lurked in those beady, red-tinged, porcine eyes. Faster than I could track, the bulk of the pig hurtled up and lunged towards me, standing and accelerating in one movement. Mighty clods of muck and filth flew up from its hooves as it thundered straight at me through the shallows of the swamp, crossing the short distance in the blink of an eye.
In my dazed and confused state, I looked on in horror as I watched the razor-sharp tusks, as long as short swords dripping mucus, grow larger. Pus and maggots fell from the cavern, which was its open mouth, and I could see the brown and sickly breath bellowing out of the mouth and nose as saliva and snot flew wildly.
I slowly struggled to rise.
Debuff: Poisoned 30 seconds. 200 (Partially resisted: reduced to 10) damage every 5 seconds.
Debuff: Disease partially resisted.
Debuff: Paralysis resisted.
Debuff: Fear resisted.
Debuff: Karma drain: Diseased (partially resisted Infection incubation for two days.)
Curse: 20% reduction in all stats.
Debuff: Stunned 0.7 secs.
Sprite: OMG, Heal me, it hurts.
This wasn't good.
Worse than bad, for the first time in a while, I feared for my life.
Despite the terror and the surge of fear at the prospect of imminent death, I smiled. This was what I had been missing, something that challenged all the gifts of the system.
Something that I could throw my luck at.
Once again, I felt alive, and despite my inadequacy, I was having fun.
The pain that shot through my left leg almost knocked me out. I could feel the burning as the poison spread through my body.
I saw Tangle’s pincers darting at my legs as a follow-up of its stealth attack.
My body was struggling to get up. My health was dipping quickly. At least, it was slower due to my resistance, but the rest of the notification was disturbing. I could feel the reduction in my stats and the hint of wrongness from its Karma Disease trying to syphon off some of my connection to fate.
Leet Parkour saved my leg, not my toes, as the pincers quickly removed the bottom of my foot straight through my boot.
Movement speed was reduced by 15%. Mobility and Agility are reduced.
I performed a slightly skewed Cat Roll, thanks to Leet Parkour, and the somewhat less graceful movement took me right into the path of the charging Swamp Pig. The only thing that saved me was the positioning of my shield, which I was hunkering down behind as I moved around. The already scarred and battered shield caved. With a shockwave like a nuclear blast, I hurtled into the air. The pig raked its tusks across the shield as a parting gift. This left more scars and added pits as its miasmic breath weakened and scared the front even more, leaving rusted pockmarks in the nearly indestructible alloy.
In my panic, I saw the pig, sighted it and spammed Eyes of Fury,
Eyes of Fury.
Eyes of Fury.
Eyes of Fury.
Eyes of Fury.
I was falling into bad habits; I had learned much since the Tutorial.
My eyes heated, and I managed almost to blind myself.
My eyes were boiling in their sockets as I pumped more energy and mana into the skill. My vision blurred as the heat started to impact my sight, yet I could not get close.
This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
I slowed the skill speed down as I tracked the pig monstrosity throughout my flight. I could feel the heat build up to a point where I knew another shot would tip me past the point of permanent damage. I knew I had to wait. The shallow pool of water I finally landed in ten meters away offered little cushioning.
Sprite: Punctured lung, broken jaw. The concussion has gone from mild to moderate.
Crap, that hurt. I don't need a running commentary on my conditions. Unless it's important, it makes it feel worse if I know how bad it is.
I managed to down a healing potion from my bandolier. Smooth red liquid eased some of my damage. I really needed some auto-injectors despite my hatred for needles.
I knew lying still in a crumpled heap with my head in a puddle of foul water would kill me. For the second time, I was genuinely fighting for my life. The threat of death was imminent and overwhelming. As I took stock of my situation, instead of panicking, there was a building feeling of eagerness. Embracing the pain and confusion, I cleared my eyes and stood, careful of my balance, with half my foot missing. I briefly wondered what my face looked like as I imagined the feral grin appearing. I mashed another healing potion into my mouth, followed by another. Despite being smashed and having done minor damage to the pig, it was my turn to deal some damage.
Sprite: OMG, Heal me, it hurts. I feel useless here. Do you trust me?
WTF, Sprite? Not the time to go deep. But yeah, sure, I trust you. If I get eaten by the pig or snipped up by Tangle, you go to, don’t you?
Sprite: That is correct. We can discuss this later, but I am going to...
Not the time. I am fighting for my life here. I know these conversations take moments, but I need to focus. I trust you. You have my back. We got this.
I laughed. I felt truly alive. Even though I was still worried, I stood, leaning slightly on my good foot. This was what I had been missing. This was where I truly felt alive. Near-death and facing impossible odds.
I could feel the regeneration kick in and knew it would outheal the poison, but I was very concerned:
Dazed: 25 seconds
Poisoned: 27 seconds
Cursed
Slowed
As I stood, Fetidcrackle was surprisingly agile, turning and then pawing at the ground, looking to start another charge. More significantly, once again, I could not see or feel Tangle.
Fetidcrackle had some scorch marks along its back and head, but there was no other evidence of the damage from my spammed eye attack. This was the real power differential between Tier 4 and Tier 5. I saw it for the first time. Xarius and Tasar had told me Tiers count, and now I saw the vast difference first-hand.
I could barely keep myself in this fight despite having an Epic Tier. Knowing I was outclassed strengthened my resolve. I needed to train, and I needed more power. I was an Epic Noob. Rather than giving up, I decided that now was the time for me to show others that Earth humans were contenders on the galactic scale.
If I quit now, we would have no future. We would always have to rely on others for protection. Looking at the Legion fighting with me, even their best today was not enough. We would be overrun by this incursion here and now, and in a few years, the Karass would have finished enslaving most of the world.
How could I protect people, my friends, Sarah, Mike, even his bloody-minded Dad, and the community of Min Min, my community and, more importantly, my home? If I got defeated here, it would be all over.
I drew one of my pistols. Dawnbreaker in my right hand and left-handed my Thunderguard as I aimed over the top of my shield, set and resting it in the mud.
I unleashed shot after shot at Fetidcrackle as it charged. It was fast, but my shots were rapid, and I hit and blinded the pig’s left eye while it was twenty meters away, enraging it further. My shots were wild at first, but as I focused and settled my nerves, my accuracy improved, and I could feel my Agility making slight corrections to my aim.
I swear the pig grew in mass and surged forward even faster, with an enrage skill or something, as a power shock burst forth.
Fetidcrackle (Swamp Pig) Horror Of Deigggh (Chaos, Tier 5) (Enraged)
I was right about the enrage skill, and I just hoped there was a time limit on its skill, or I’d be in trouble.
By the time it was ten meters away, less than a second after it started charging, I had unleashed the entire clip, forcing me to drop the pistol. With the sword in hand, I braced myself behind the shield, ready to leap.
Leet Parkour: Monkey Vault,
I flipped to the side as I delivered a slicing blow. I was rewarded with a squeal of pain and a fountain of blood as Dawnbreaker sliced quickly through the thick skin on the shoulder of Fetidcrackle. Spinning the sword to fling the blood off, I turned to face the horror again, landing in a superhero pose that no one saw.
My leg collapsed as I landed on my mangled foot. I felt a stabbing into the back of my thigh.
Debuff: Poisoned 30 seconds. 200 damage every 5 seconds.
Debuff: Disease resisted. Paralysis.
Fear resisted.
Karma drain resisted.
Debuff: Infection incubation for two days.
Debuff: Curse: 40% (cumulative) reduction in all stats.
Sprite: OMG, Heal me, it hurts. I can’t track it. I need some more time to work out an attack strategy. Some poisons and disease resistance or cleansing should become a higher priority.
Remind me later. I've just got to keep going. Can't give up.
I fell to the side as my leg gave way and felt numbness from my mid-calf down.
Dazed: 22 seconds
Poisoned: 29 Seconds (200/5)
Poisoned: 24 seconds (10/5)
Partial Paralysis - Left Leg, Left Arm: 59 Seconds
Cursed (Cumulative)Partially Crippled (Loss of limb)
My face was in the pool of water again. This time, I could not move.
Debuff: Poisoned 30 seconds. 200 (Partially resisted: reduced to 10) damage every 5 seconds.
Debuff: Diseased.
Debuff: Paralysis.
Debuff: Blinded.
Debuff: Confused.
Karma drain resisted.
Debuff: Infection incubation for two days.
Debuff: Curse: 60% (cumulative) reduction in all stats.
I felt my connection to Dawnbreaker sever as my stats dropped below the requirements to wield it, and I became clumsy. Thanks to Sprite, Tasar, and that stupid collar, I was used to my stats yo-yoing.
My thoughts turned sluggish as my vision darkened. As my stats dropped, I could no longer lift The Eye Of Lyztune, its massive bulk becoming too unwieldy. This was worse than that stupid collar. I let it sink into the muck. It was in a sorry state, and I hoped it could be repaired, but it had done its job. If I survived, this Sarah was going to kill me.
Sprite: Hang in there. Let me try something.
Sure, pretty lady.
My HUD and all the system output looked like they were on the fritz. I watched the old-school TV with poor reception, as it came in and out of static focus.
$pr1TE: tH15 I5 g0iNG t0
I was losing coherence.
In my confused state, I realised I was paying for my lack of training—not legion training, but actual skill training, using and practising skills.
Shit. For my casualness, inflated ego, and thinking I was a powerhouse. Above all others, I felt that my Stats and Titles outclasses were mere monsters.
Dance had tried to put me in my place in his weird way, and it was embarrassing that I had ignored him. I had not even used all my non-class skills and abilities. I had forgotten all my legion training.
I was vaguely aware of some things in my HUD
LOG: Agreed. 30 Days.
10000 Energy/ month(24 Months).
One tax-free independent land plot in the colony.
1 Tier 5 Favour.
LOG: Disconnect System Failsafe.
SYSTEM WARNING: You have disconnected Safety Protocols.
SYSTEM WARNING: XP, KARMA Penalties may apply.
LOG: Failsafe override: 20 Seconds.
LOG: Disconnect Karmic Buffer.
LOG: Skill Learned: Blademaster: Longsword.
LOG: Engram Spliced: Countess Gennevote of The Morass of Ringworth (First)
LOG: Skill Learned: Purity Cleanse of Cardash (Tier 4)
LOG: Skill Upgrade: Karmic Flare (Attack) (Tier 5)
LOG: Skill Upgrade: It’s okay, I’ll be better soon (Tier 5)
LOG: Reconnect Karmic Buffer.
LOG: 18% Chance of permanent reduction in cognitive abilities.
LOG: All Stats set to TIER MAX – 10%.
SYSTEM: Permanent 10% Stamina and Endurance Penalty.
LOG: 0.2 Seconds
Sprite: Purity Cleanse of Cardash
In that split second, I went blank, as if I was reborn again. I felt absolute clarity now. Now I had 20 seconds.
Purity Cleanse of Cardash:
Removes all adverse status effects, resets any positive effect timers, accelerates regeneration and provides a complete genetic reset.
COST: Mark of Cardash Obtained.
You may only ever have 1 Mark of Cardash. You must redeem this Mark.
Dazed: removed
Poisoned: removed.
Paralysis removed.
Cursed removed.
Failsafe override reset: 20 Seconds.
Partially Crippled (Loss of limb): 3 seconds
Stats Summary: Failsafe override.
Karmic Loss at 100 per second.
Banked Losses:
Energy Loss of 5% per second.
Mana Loss of 4.75% per second.
Health Loss of 4.75% per second
The world seemed to be in slow motion.
Sprite: I am sorry. It was all I could think of doing. You had permitted me. I was … scared.
It’s okay. Thank you. I was scared, too. I think I was … well enough that we only have 20 seconds, which wastes time.
Sprite: With your Mind so high, your perception and processing are sufficient that we are okay. Our mental conversations were already a split second. These are almost up to my average speed. It is refreshing not to wait so long for you to respond.
The clarity is impressive.
Failsafe override: 19.95 seconds
LEET PARKOUR.
I stood; already, the stump of my leg was growing.
I scooped up Dawnbreaker, flipping it up and catching it quickly.
The differences with the stats and the new skill; now the blade was truly mine, the synergy with Blademaster made it part of me, there was no hesitation from it, and it was happy to be in the hands of a Blademaster. I could feel the skill giving me knowledge, but the spliced engrams gave me muscle memory. It was disconcerting. I had never really used a weapon like this, but the stolen memories were ingrained, and I knew this weapon was an extension of my being. I had moments of memories of countless hours of training and battle fought.
I vividly remembered past battles and some of my early longsword training—except they weren’t mine. I will deal with that later.
I could see everything. The mist no longer clouded my sight; with my enhanced perception, I could see the tendrils of power that Tangle used to move and sneak, how it twisted light around itself to mask its presence. It was a skill. If I concentrated, I was sure I would learn the name of the skill, and with enough observation, I would learn the skill itself. The power was making me giddy.
I could see the distortions. It was waiting in ambush again, moving slowly. I could see Fetidcrackle regenerating from the horrendous wounds I had inflicted. It was incredible -- I could almost see the individual cells growing out of the surrounding mana and nanite-rich chaos cloud. I could tell that something was wrong with the nanites.
This perspective gave me a deeper understanding of Chaos's impact on this energy realm.
I knew that Xar and the rest of the First Cohort were approaching, finishing off a series of minor horrors. They had taken injuries and were in rough shape, having rushed to be here. Xarius started to say something, but it was too slow. I had to act in between Xar’s syllables.
I was a blur before him, heading towards the pig. I knew the mistake I made attacking Dawnbreaker.
Despite being a longsword, I had been infusing it with cleaving and stabbing intent. This weapon would fight its wielder to bring its intent out. It was a weapon of fineness but also a weapon that needed a combination of brute strength and skill to master. The air cracked as I moved, Dawnbreaker slicing as the speed ignited the air in front of it. I broke the sound barrier with the weapon, and the sword ripped through the swamp pig's shoulder, puncturing its lung as I put my strength into the blow.
I kicked it off and was astounded as I punted the multi-ton slab of bacon backwards through the air with a snap kick. A halo of superhot air moved around me as I spun the sword, looking for the scorpion.
Failsafe override: 18 seconds
There was a difference between Tier 5 and the top of Tier 5. I needed this. Tiers and Levels.
Turning, I blocked the pincers of Tangle as they sliced at my legs. We clashed, and I could see the speed and agility of the scorpion were still higher than mine, but with the sword in my hand and the Blademaster: Longsword skill, I could keep the stinger and pincers at bay. Neither of us was undamaged by the blows and relatively evenly matched. It was time to see if I could out-think the beast.
Failsafe override: 17 seconds
My leg was healed - my regeneration was in overdrive.
With my massive passive perception, I could track the pig and the legionnaires as they fell onto it with a fury I hoped all would survive. Despite its wounds, it was far from a pushover. I sent a series of EYES OF FURY at the porcine form as it was being punished, keeping it distracted.
It was all I could spare as I concentrated on the more significant threat.
Despite Brick being smashed away and landing awkwardly, I could see Xarius leading the way with his precision and strength. He had the full support of his Cohort and was tanking it like a pro. If they could keep it off balance, it would not recover.
Satisfied that I could concentrate on the tiny creature before me, I started to engage my Leet Parkour skill, flipping and sliding around as the tiny arachnid used its stealth and shadow movement skills to counter mine. It had some short-range shadow steps to counter my leaps and dives. We were almost at a stalemate. Countering another attack and pressing forward, I managed to sever some legs. It must have had a trollish ancestor with the speed of its regeneration; as I recovered from the swing, I could already see little nubs forming on the severed stumps.
Failsafe override: 12 seconds
Tangle was missing two legs, which did little to slow it down, and I had received multiple stings, which did minor damage. With my resistance so high, all the debuffs were being ignored.
Poisoned 30 seconds. 200(Partially resisted: reduced to 0) damage every 5 seconds.
Disease resisted.
Paralysis resisted.
Fear resisted.
Karma drain resisted.
I knew I would pay for this soon, but the clarity of thought was terrific. I remembered my first frenzied battle, where my cognition and conscious thoughts were scattered and almost incoherent. I was little more than a savage fighting machine, reacting with little planning. Amazingly, I could track the battlefield quickly, keeping tabs on both opponents and my Cohort. This was how heroes in stories fought. These were the stats I needed to aim for.
I tried to get a stat summary:
Stats:
Failsafe Override: All Stats are set to TIER MAX – 10%.
Even checking my stats, all I got was "Failsafe Override".
I cursed. I wanted the numbers. I wanted to know my goal. These stats could easily offset my ineptitude. I laughed. Someone as inept as I was didn’t deserve these stats. Finally, I understood how lucky I had been.
I kept an eye on the Legion. They were frenzied in their attacks against Fetidcrackle, keeping it pinned so it could not use its size or momentum against them. Tangle and I traded blows and maneuvered around each other.
Failsafe override: 8 seconds
I lopped the stinger off. The shrieking from the diminutive boss turned into a burst sonic attack. It made me stumble and unable to take advantage of its distress, pitching me into a muck-ridden pool of water. I evaded the pincers and thrust away as it launched at me, and I flipped over off my back and back onto my feet. I was desperate to get inside the reach of my sword.
Dawnbreaker met the pincers, sparking a deafening crash. We disengaged.
I could feel the intensity of its gaze as we moved around each other.
This creature was at the height of Epic Tier, but I understood it was even higher.
I could only manage to deflect its aura attack. The legionnaires were not so lucky as they stumbled, and Alfredus and Calliope fell stunned into the water. They were close to finishing off the immense slab of bacon.
Too bad it was so repulsive and diseased.
Failsafe override: 4 seconds
I had to take a gamble to end the fight before Failsafe ran out. Tangle was paused, ready to leap at me again. I faked back as it jumped forward. The air cracked around it as it engaged its movement skill.
Stepping in, I used the brutal side of my skills in an almost baseball-style cut, sacrificing some finesse for savagery and trusting in my luck. As I came out of the home run swing, I split Tangle in half as it could not change trajectory in mid-air, and its movement skill must have been on cooldown.
The strength and timing of my cut had been perfect.
Tangle split close to the middle, falling in two pieces. Standing over the bisected corpse, I felt like a character in a Hanna Barbara cartoon; it was sureal.
Not trusting such a powerful creature to die so easily, I jumped to the head half and drove a slightly crusted and dinged Dawnbreaker easily through the top of the head, through the brain and into the swampy ground below.
It twitched once, and I watched the life leave its insect eyes.
Congratulations.
You have defeated Tangle (Doom Scorpion)(Chaos, Tier ????) Incursion Master.
Loot Acquired
XP Acquired
Sprite, remind me to check the logs when I recover.
Failsafe override: 3 seconds.
LOG: Prepare to pay Banked Energy, Mana, and Health penalties in 3
Sprite: That was too close. I had to spend too much.
Later sprite
I could feel the buildup of what I owed.
LOG: 2.
LOG: 1.
The world sped up or slowed down and got quieter and louder.
It was dark and bright, and then the noise returned to normal.
I felt sick and weak.
Title Awarded:
Beautiful Blackness.