Silence lingered in the air, aside from the sound of her own breathing. She tried to take longer, slow, deep breaths to calm herself. But monsters had sharp ears. They heard everything… even the slight trickle of a heartbeat. It was surprising she had not been attacked yet. Not that she could find the strength within her to defeat them if they did!
Maybe they sensed the danger of the Leviathan nearby, keeping them at bay. For which she momentarily felt grateful, but knew innately that the dark fuming monster was not her friend. She had been marked: it wanted her soul, and rumor had it that the creature always got what it wanted. Every time.
Her chest heaved as she took in a few more deep breaths. Her eyes roved about scouting for any signs of danger closing in on her before rising up to her feet.
Her strength gathered, she began to crisscross her way through the Lost Zone, hoping to find a way that would bring her to the skirts of the forest. She yearned to see the open plains and the thick walls of overgrown ruins. All she could see now was an endless land of trees with no finish line in sight.
She did not have a compass in her inventory, not that it would likely be allowed to function inside the Lost Zone anyway. Neither could she look up into the sky and discern the direction she ought to go. When she had first entered the Lost Zone, she ran in what she guessed was the southern direction. Most likely she needed to turn to the right as that would surely lead her eastward? If she remembered anything from the maps - shame that had to go offline as well - the great city of Sariel lay to the east of the Lost Zone. Or was it the ruins of Sariel? She couldn’t remember.
Taking another deep breath, she turned right and hopefully eastward. The moment she did, her ears pricked at the sound of harsh growls. And then she heard the distinct sound of footfalls. Four… eight… twelve... sixteen… maybe twenty.
A string of expletives left her mouth as she pulled out the hunting knife, ready to give whatever these monsters were a fight for their lives.
Threat Detected
A pack of Saber Wolves are approaching. Do you wish to proceed?
Yes | No
What kind of stupid prompt is that?
Brittany hit ‘No’, hoping it might whisk her away to a safer location.
ERROR!
Transport Portals are offline. Please try again later.
Of course. Why did I even bother?
If only Brad had kept his mouth shut! He believed that if a player died here, they died in RL as well. If she died now at the hands of these monsters, she would never re-spawn. That would be the end. Not only of her avatar, but real life as well.
This sucks. Seriously sucks!
Yet she was determined to not let such thoughts linger in her mind. She mustered every ounce of strength in her and got ready for a fight. But with her limited weaponry, she’d fare much better from a distance. Thinking quickly, she stopped running and scrambled up into a nearby tree.
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She looked through the scope in their general direction as the pack’s approach seemed wary, confirming to her that they hadn’t seen her climb up a tree. One of them stepped into her sight. She could clearly make out its wet nozzle with saliva dripping from its mouth.
Brittany took careful aim and fired.
HeadShot: Easy
Instant Kill
+40 XP
The wolf collapsed to the ground, however the sound of the gunshot gave away her position. Snarling and howling, the beasts charged toward her with gnashing teeth bared. She pulled out another round from the sash and reloaded. Taking aim, she fired at another wolf creature barreling down on her but she missed.
Cursing to herself, she reloaded again just as the pack surrounded the tree, jumping higher than she had anticipated with their massive bodies. She fired again at the closest wolf.
HeadShot: Easy
Instant Kill
+40 XP
But while she was distracted, another leapt high enough that its claws managed to rip open the skin on her left leg, drawing scarlet blood. But despite its attempt to yank her free from the tree, she held fast.
[-50 Damage]
She winced in pain but refused to let it overwhelm her mind as she reloaded another and fired.
HeadShot: Easy
Instant Kill
+40 XP
Another wolf jumped and struck just then, latching its claws into the branch and tore Brittany out of the tree with a loud snap.
Thinking quickly, she scrambled to her feet and swung the broken branch at her assailants and clubbed one the wolves with a hard thwack. The wolf crumpled to the ground and howled in pain, a bloody gash on the side of its head.
[-200 HP]
Two more lunged at her.
She jumped to the right and drove the sharp edge of the branch into one wolf’s forehead.
Bludgeon: Medium
Instant Kill
+50 XP
Skill Unlocked: Bludgeon
Delivers an Instant Kill when you swing a large brunt object at your opponent. Chances of Instant Kill are 35%. Greater chances for Instant Kill increase with higher levels. Requirements: Level > 7, Strength > 9, Agility > 4, Stamina > 5
The second wolf was already on top of her. She quickly jammed the blade of her hunting knife through the roof of the wolf’s mouth.
HeadStab: Difficult
Instant Kill
[+60 XP]
The body collapsed on top of her, its entire weight crushing her body. A fountain of monster blood poured out of wound, drenching her in a deep red.
In all that happened, she lost sight of the branch.
She was trapped beneath the dead wolf, the blood now spurting out onto her face. She tried to shove the corpse off, but the monster wolf was too heavy to even move up an inch.
As if the wolf corpse wasn’t enough, she could sense the other remaining members of the pack slowly approach. She was worried about the ones coming from the back. She tried to yanking the knife out, but the blade was embedded in the wolf’s skull.
She breathed deep to drown the simmering tension that created tight knots in her stomach.
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