How had it all gone so wrong? It had seemed like such a simple job at first. There wasn’t even a vault! Just smash the windows, grab the goods and run for it. Even Heroes took time to respond to crimes, so you just had to be fast. That was it. Well, fast and lucky.
And that second part was where it had all fallen apart. They’d made it about half a block from the jewelry store, sprinting for all they were worth, when something the size of a soda can had dropped in front of them. It wasn’t until too late that they’d realized what it was.
The waves of electricity coursed through their bodies, forcing muscles to spasm and convulse. Luckily, the shock only lasted for a few moments, and it wouldn’t be long after that until they were ready to fight. Who had attacked them?
That was when the hammer made of glowing blue light came through and started to systematically smash through them. Just as a thief gained a little bit of control of their own body, the hammer would come through and smash them to the ground. One of the bunch had supposedly been the guard of the group, and had miraculously managed to keep a grip on their gun.
One shot rang out, aimed at the damned cape who held the hammer. The bullet missed, but the cape leaped back. He was a mountain of a man with thick slats of metal protecting his front. He didn’t look scared, but almost bored.
By the time the second bullet fired, a barrier of white energy appeared in front of the hero. The bullet, and all those that followed, bounced harmlessly off the surface. The cape dismissed his hammer and instead conjured a knife into one hand. He casually tossed it into the air, and the final criminal paid it no mind. He was too busy looking for a way to escape.
The knife flew in a high arc before coming down hard on the thief’s back and shattering in an impact that sent the man sprawling to the ground. He groaned softly once before passing out.
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Lightforge shook his head as Gray Guardian’s barrier dropped in front of him. The jewel thieves weren’t exactly criminal masterminds, neither were they particularly strong. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that they were pathetically weak. Even Gray Guardian could probably have held them in place long enough to get them arrested. It was exactly the kind of confrontation that they needed: quick, simple, and more XP than he would gain from any three repair jobs.
But it wasn’t exciting. He’d spent weeks muddling through the tedium of setting up and running his shop. He’d been looking forward to the game acting like a game again. Exciting fights, cool opponents, and all kinds of interesting powers to see in action. But this?
He’d never noticed just how boring the early areas of the game were. Not only were the criminals dumb and obvious, but they were weak. None of them had powers of any kind. It was understandable, it was meant to provide a slow and easy introduction to the game before diving in headfirst. In that sense, it was perfectly reasonable.
On the other hand, it was only meant to be experienced for an afternoon at most. Within a few hours of starting the game, almost all players would have moved on to bigger and better things in more interesting parts of the city. Decker Row and Chancery Hills would still be there, waiting for more new players, but rarely visited again.
But now? The jewel thieves were the third set of criminals that the heroic trio had taken down, and each encounter had gone exactly the same. Taser grenade from Cannoneer, hammer from Lightforge, and Gray Guardian protected them both from any attacks. Rinse and repeat until you get bored.
Which was right now. While they could run around town like this all day and gain a decent amount of experience from it, it was going to be a grind. And while Lightforge could make himself do that, he really didn’t want to.
“Ok, this is getting boring. We need to go to a higher level area.”
“You think so?” Cannoneer seemed genuinely confused, “We’re moving at a decent rate here. If we keep going like this, then we’re all but guaranteed to level without any real risks.”
“And die of boredom in the process. Look, let’s be serious here: we’ve spent a month making slow, tedious progress. If there’s a time to take risks, it’s now.”
Gray Guardian shifted and nodded.
“I agree with Lightforge. We should make the most of this time, and fighting these small time crooks isn’t the way to do that.”
Cannoneer nodded and said, “You have a point. But we don’t have time to familiarize ourselves with a new area. Staying here is the safest way to progress.”
“Or… I just had a brilliant idea.”
“I swear, if you mention Leeroy Jenkins–”
“No, no. Way better than that. When I got here, I died on my first day because a bunch of villains got the drop on me.”
“Newbie hunters. Now that’s some real scum.”
“100% agreed. But what if we hunt the hunters? Go after the villains while they expect us to be busy?”
Cannoneer’s eyes lit up at the suggestion. He put a hand on his chin and stared off into the distance as he began muttering under his breath. The words were too quiet to make out, but the tone was another story. It started out incredulous, but that quickly shifted to excitement and then to thoughtfulness in the space of a moment. He grinned.
“Ok, let’s do it. And I think I have a plan. Gray, how do you feel about being bait?”
“I hate it already.”
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Hammerfist strolled through the back alleys of Chancery Hills, just waiting for the proper signal. He was a true giant; nearly eight feet tall and so wide that he had to turn sideways to fit through most doorways. He was, as always, shirtless and showing off the towering physique that had won him his power. He was bald and, in fact, his eyebrows were the only hair above his waist. He wanted nothing to get in the way of his magnificence.
At first glance it looked like he was wearing gauntlets, but a closer inspection revealed the truth. His hands were made of a dull gray metal halfway to his elbows. He was pleased with the progress; at level 1 it had stopped at his wrists. Between his metal knuckles and his enhanced strength, there was nothing that could stand up to a full power blow from him.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
So he let the other, pettier villains run around Decker Row, desperately trying to steal and pillage before the system’s safeguards came back online. But he was a true villain, and that meant that there was only one way to truly gain experience: killing heroes. With the streets in chaos and everyone looking for NPCs to fight, they never saw him coming. And even if they did, what could they do?
There were always those who thought they could think their way around any problem. That strategy could win the day no matter what. They were wrong, and Hammerfist was the proof. Plans and tactics crumpled beneath the might of his fists. Power to crush anything in his path.
Three high, sharp whistles rang out from one of his sentries a couple of blocks away. His grin was wide and malicious; it was time to get another kill. Maybe this time he would take it slow and enjoy himself. He would decide once he saw the victim.
He turned a corner and strode forward, full of confidence. The target was at the end of the alley, by the street. No matter, they wouldn’t get the chance to call for help. It was a cloaked figure, breathing hard and leaning up against a wall. They must have had a close getaway recently. This wouldn’t even be a challenge.
The cloak shifted and revealed a slight figure beneath. A woman? Hammerfist licked his lips; he might spare this one if they were willing to address his other needs. Then again, that wouldn’t gain him any experience.
Strength surged through him and he surged forward with a warcry. The figure turned, but too late. He threw his fist towards them in a strike that would crack the concrete beneath their feet. At the last moment, a white dome of energy appeared to block the blow.
Petty tricks. His punch landed with a ringing that sounded up and down the alley, and the barrier cracked. Not completely; it was stronger than it looked. But not enough to deter a being of pure might. He slammed his other fist into the energy before raising both hands and bringing them down in a mighty hammer blow.
That was too much for the barrier, which shattered and began to dissipate into motes of light. Hammerfist grinned madly and pulled back a fist to finish the fight. A single flash of blue was the only warning he received.
An enormous warhammer swung towards him, propelled by a figure that had jumped into the alley’s mouth. Hammerfist grunted and changed targets mid-punch. His fist collided with the hammerhead. The air rippled as the attacks clashed and the force threatened to throw lesser men from their feet. Dust swirled around them and scattered as two titans were brought to a standstill.
Hammerfist grinned again. It looked like this was his lucky day; there was an ant that might be worth fighting. The man with the hammer was big and broad, but not to the same disturbing proportions as the giant villain.
The hero roared as he threw himself at Hammerfist, swinging his hammer with both hands. The villain met the challenge head-on and intercepted the attack with his own metal fists. The hero was surprisingly quick with such a large weapon, but it was no use. It was immediately obvious that the fight favored the villain.
It was the simplest of math: one hammer versus two fists. And each fist was at least as strong as the hammer, if not moreso. It was a hopeless fight, but the smiling villain almost admired the sheer rage and violence that the cape attacked with. It made him worthy to be crushed.
The hammer met with a two-fisted hammer blow and shattered under the force of the impact. The hero was thrown backward as their weapon vanished. He flew back at least five feet, and Hammerfist relished the sense of victory. As was inevitable, he had won; and now it was time to relish the kill.
There was a high-pitched whistle in the air, and a missile shot down from above, directly between the two combatants. It erupted into a bloom of fire and sound that sent even the mighty villain stumbling back.
A delay, and nothing more.
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Lightforge half stumbled, half fell away from the alley mouth as the explosion engulfed his enemy in flames. Gray Guardian was there in an instant, helping him along as they retreated for the moment. His blood was still pounding in his ears as he forced himself not to leap back into the melee.
There was a quiet thump as Cannoneer dropped down from his perch on a fire escape, his face a thunderhead. He stomped over to Lightforge and grabbed the larger man by the front of his costume.
“What the [BLEEP] was that?! We had a plan, and you just ruined it. You can’t go toe to toe with that guy, and now we’ve lost the element of surprise.”
“That [BLEEPER] killed me! I need payback!”
“Which you would have gotten if you hadn’t gone nuts in there!”
“I could have beaten him.”
“No, you were about to get your face rearranged. Cool off for a moment and let’s do this right.”
He roughly shoved the gadgeteer away, and Lightforge forced himself to take a couple of deep breaths. He was wearing his new goggles, and when the name Hammerfist had popped up he’d seen red. But Cannoneer was right; Lightforge was, ultimately, built for utility. This villain was built for raw destructive power. He would lose if he fought on Hammerfist’s terms.
Seconds later, the villain in question stepped out of the alley and onto the street. There was a malicious glint in his eye and the corners of his mouth twitched in what might have been a grin. He looked excited.
“Finally! A worthy challenge. Come, flies. Break yourselves against my fists!”
He roared and charged forward, fists raised. Lightforge felt a buff wash over him and nodded appreciatively to Gray Guardian. This time they were going to do things properly, so he didn’t even budge as the villain raced towards them. The opening was all about the big gun.
Cannoneer was down on one knee, bazooka raised to his shoulder. It would be hard to miss a target as large as the enormous villain, but that would also make it more embarrassing if it happened.
This time the weapon lobbed a grenade instead of a rocket. It could do either, depending on what Skills Cannoneer used. But the little metal canister was becoming more and more familiar to the team. Anyone who managed to get a good look at one would find the outside decorated with stylized lightning bolts. Maybe it would provide a warning.
Lightforge surged forward as soon as the shot was fired. He didn’t reform his hammer; this time he had a dagger in one hand and a shield in the other. With a target this powerful, he couldn’t afford to be even a single moment late.
Hammerfist saw the grenade coming and swung at it with a fist to knock it away. Just one of his powerful, currently metal, fists. The blow triggered the explosive, which shattered into a glowing field of electrical energy that stabbed outwards as it tried to ground itself. And the closest conductive material was the metal fist.
Hammerfist roared in agony as the electricity coursed through his body. He slowed considerably, but he only truly stopped for a moment. And that moment was the opening that Lightforge needed. He closed the gap and threw his dagger with pinpoint precision. The sharp knife buried itself in one of the villain’s legs. A second dagger landed in the other leg moments later.
The titanic villain’s legs buckled and he fell to the ground. He flailed wildly, but his fists touched nothing but air. The motion threw off his balance, and he was hit by yet another dagger, but this one didn’t pierce him. Instead it exploded, pushing him just as he was trying to regain his balance. The villain yelled as he toppled over the rest of the way, becoming little more than a heap on the ground.
Lightforge lunged shield-first at the grounded villain, and it saved him. Even from the ground Hammerfist threw out a fist to intercept the charge, but without any leverage or real weight behind it. The metal fist rang off the solidified light and bounced away harmlessly. Lightforge crashed into the downed man’s torso and drove the breath from his lungs. A dagger flashed and stabbed into the giant’s body three times before the call went out.
“Going hot!”
The gadgeteer jerked backward and dove away from the villain, who didn’t miss a beat in trying to rise to his feet. He had nearly made it when a rocket streaked toward him and hit him in the chest. The raging fireball engulfed him and he fell once again.
When the smoke cleared, Hammerfist flinched on the ground, but nothing more. Lightforge stood, panting, knife and shield at the ready, but it wasn’t needed. The villain stayed down.
Lightforge grinned. Now that was the kind of fight he’d been looking for. It had been taxing, but not outside their abilities. That he’d gotten some revenge was just the cherry on top. He called the police and watched with no small satisfaction as the first person to kill him was teleported away to jail.
The smile lasted until he saw the ruckus happening back in the alleyway where all of this had started. There was a group of people gathering back in the shadows. All of them were looking from where Hammerfist had been to the trio of obviously tired heroes.
Right. Hammerfist was part of a gang.