Stuart POV
He wasn't sure how or why but this new ... thing, whatever it was appeared to be hunting his brethren. He wasn't sure at first but then he watched easier prey run by completely ignored. It's definitely targeting them. That's it he decides whatever the cost it cannot be allowed to find the nest. With his mind made up he quickly rallies every rat that feels might be strong enough to help defeat it. Some remain by the nest as a second line of defense in case they fail. As the fight begins, he hangs back to observe the newcomer and call out orders.
Thomas POV
This was a bit more than I bargained for. Fortunately, it's only the level 7 rat that poses a serious threat. That's not to say that I'm unbothered by the sheer number of level 5 and 6 rats. The first thing that I do is activate mirror shield. It only reflects 10% of the attack back at the attacker. That may not sound like much; however, I learned the last time I used it that it also mirrors the location of the damage received. So, biting me in the leg will end up hurting their own leg and slowing them down. I doubt I can keep it going indefinitely but I should be able to turn this from an absolute slogfest to something somewhat manageable.
As the fight begins, I bite and claw at anything in range. At first, I don't manage to land a single hit. This is expected though. Eventually the mirror shield does enough damage that I can start to feel several of them slowing down. I'm getting cut up pretty bad from all the bite and claw marks. Thanks to my high defense though I believe they are getting the worse end of the deal. Eventually I'm able to start landing a few bites and the level 5 rats start dropping one after another.
It's still not easy and I can already tell I'm having to exert much more effort to keep the mirror shield up. That said, I soon have only the level 6 and 7 rats to deal with. I am paying special attention to the level 7 rat. It does have a strong enough attack to do some serious damage if it bites a vital spot like my throat. Fortunately, or unfortunately I'm not entirely sure which. It has been holding back and simply observing. Meaning that by the time I deal with these level 6 rats it will still be fully rested and ready to go.
They take much longer to deal than the level 5 rats did. Partly because they have higher defense, but mostly because I can feel myself starting to slow down. Keeping mirror shield active for so long is really starting to take a toll. It's one of the few ways I have of actually dealing damage to something that is significantly faster than I am. Still, I have to end this fight soon.
Stuart POV
The entire team was defeated. How is that possible! He could see that this thing was barely able to land any attacks and yet he could sense that it was doing ... something. He could also see that whatever it was doing was exhausting it. Perhaps leaving some rats behind to guard the nest was the wrong play. He couldn't worry about that now though. He would never have a better time than now to take it out. With that in mind he lunges at his opponent hoping to at least drive it off.
Thomas POV
The level 7 rat finally joins the fight properly just before the last level 6 rat dies. It's just me and him now. By now I'm completely mentally exhausted. I can't afford to drop the mirror shield though as I honestly don't think I can defeat the level 7 rat without it. I can feel it starting to flicker though as I no longer have the mental energy to maintain it properly. A few of his attacks start to get through without receiving the 10% effect of the mirror shield. A few, but not all. Meaning that I am still slowly wearing him down.
Stolen story; please report.
Eventually I even start to land a few glancing blows. These add to the damage he received from mirror shield and help to slow him down further. Eventually allowing me to start landing actual attacks full on. Sparing a half second to glance over at my right front foot I suddenly realize just how much of a toll this fight is taking. I'm covered in so many scratches and bite marks that it appears as if my skin has actually turned red. The level 7 rat to his credit does last much longer than I thought he would. I get the distinct impression that's not entirely due to my exhausted state. Eventually he does fall though which leaves me standing victorious.
Finally, I get the victory notification.
Defeated rat Outnumbered Bonus 12 Received Experience 432
I do a double take when I see the amount of experience I received for that fight. Part of me even wonders if I'm seeing it correctly ... then the other notifications start coming in one after another. They flash by so fast I barely have time to even register the information being displayed. One thing I am aware of though is that I seem to have jumped ahead by several levels. I'm so exhausted that I just choose to receive skill point rather than deal with a bunch of new skills. After the skill points and attribute points have all been assigned, I pass out without even bothering to check my states. If I wasn't so exhausted I would have found a more secluded spot to pass out.
I'm not sure how long I was out but the locals have definitely noticed me. I can feel several children climbing on my shell. Which is odd because last I remember I wasn't near big enough for someone to climb on much less several someones. I do have a vague memory of leveling up but surely, I'm not that much bigger. This piques my interest and I quickly pull up my stats.
Name Thomas Race Large Turtle Size 3m Level 10 108/110 Health 792/800 Attack 31 Defense 44 Speed 31 Skills Passive: Regeneration level 2 (5/10), Healing Aura Level 2 (0/10)
Active: Water Manipulation Level 2 (0/10), Mirror Shield Level 2 (0/10)
Talents
Obsidian shell, Last Stand, Improved Mental Fortitude
Well, going from 20cm to 3m certainly explains how kids are able to climb on me. It doesn't explain why they aren't afraid of me though. Thinking logically, I guess my sudden arrival, from their perspective anyway, coincided with a drastic reduction in the number of pests they have to contend with. I did kill 14 rats in one day. The fact that that last fight only made me stronger probably scared off a large portion of the other rats as well. While my intentions where mostly selfish I guess I did help out the settlement. Either way I have no intention of staying here.
While I am here though I take a minute to study my improved skills. Level 2 of regeneration makes it so that I recover one health ever 50 minutes instead of every hour. Turning my attention to healing aura I discover another possible reason the adults allow the children to climb on me. Healing aura is a passive skill which means as long as they aren't trying to hurt me, they can benefit from it even while I'm asleep. Other than that, being level 2 just improves the effect slightly. One odd thing is that the number of experience points needed to increase the skill further is the same as at level one. It does explain why the system was quick to point out that any unused points would be lost forever though.
As for the active skills, water manipulation being level 2 allows me to make my water constructs slightly more solid. Mirror shield on the other hand now reflects 20% of the incoming attack instead of 10%.
The talents did confuse me for a moment when I noticed one of them seemed to be missing. After studying the situation for a bit though I realized that the new obsidian shell trait gives an additional 5 points of bonus defense on top of what stone shell gives so it simply replaced stone shell. As for the new trait, improved mental fortitude, it apparently reduces mental fatigue caused by prolonged use of the active skills.
I can feel the kids hurry off as I poke my head out to look around. Oddly, they still don't seem to be afraid of me. It's more like they just don't want to get in my way.