Aster

[Party: New Personal Task Available]

[High and Mighty. You have been attacked by someone or something at least three grades higher than you. Can you survive?]

[Task: Survive or Defeat the threat.]

[Time Limit - None]

[Reward based on performance.]

The blue box appeared, and I scanned it as I got to my feet before I dismissed it. Kat hadn't been gentle when she had pushed me, but I couldn't exactly fault her for how she saved my life. I looked at the figure covered in black that I had assumed was a man at a glance because of the outline and broad shoulders, but now that I was looking from the ground, I was rethinking that. The figure on the opposite side of the street loomed. It was at least six feet tall, maybe even seven. Their entire body was covered by a black robe that looked almost tangled around their limbs. A thick smoke seeped under the hood and arms from where his hands and head should have been covering all features.

“It's at least grade four,” I whispered, and at the same time, I sent party invites, regretting that I hadn't done it earlier. As I saw their names appear in the corner of my vision, I kept an eye on the figure. It was motionless, eerily so. It was as if it was waiting for something. With a quick thought, I tried to identify it.

[Unknown - Unknown - Level: Unknown]

[PMS, Kat: Fernand, Aster, do you have any idea what that is?]

[PMS, Aster: Like I said, it's at least grade four.]

[PMS, Fernand: It's not human, some kind of monster. I have a special skill that alters my identity. It's a spector or wraith. We need to be really careful. Does anyone have anything to call the guards or get anyone's attention?]

Before I could even look through my storage for a solution, the monster on the other side of the street started to crackle. It echoed as the creature rose a foot off the ground.

There was a screeching noise as a piece of metal was ripped from a sign above a door that labeled it as a brewery. The metal twisted and bent, reshaping itself into three jagged footlong spikes, and moved to hover above it. I felt my mouth open in surprise and almost didn't react fast enough as the pieces of metal shot toward us.

The spikes were almost too fast to follow with my eyes, and all I could manage was a quick sidestep with Stalkers Movement. Looking over, I stared at the spike embedded into the ground. All but an inch had pierced the hard stone. My eyes moved to Kat and Fernand as I pulled my bow out of my storage. Kat had somehow managed to change the directory of the metal with her dagger, and Fernand had erected three thick walls of force. They had all shattered like glass, but it had given him time to move out of the way.

I pulled an arrow out of my storage and, as fast as I could, drew the bow back and sent it flying.

The wraith or whatever it was turned its head in my direction but made no attempt to move. The arrow hit the wraith and went through the black robe about halfway before stopping.

I watched in a sick fascination as smoke poured out from the hole, slowly forcing the arrow out. It clattered to the ground, and the hole where the arrow had been formed back together.

There was screeching as more metal was torn off the sign and reshaped, and I felt my fear start to take over.

“We're going to run for it, right?” I asked the question aloud to focused on watching the hovering metal to think about using the party system. This thing was unlike any beast in the forest, and it was something we couldn't possibly win against.

“It'll catch up easily. It could probably kill us in a few seconds if it wanted to. It's playing around.” Fernand's voice was strained with panic

“The noise should be loud enough to attract anyone from at least a block away. Why can't we hear anyone coming?” Kat asked

Another round of spikes was our answer from the Wraith. I took another step using Stalkers Movement again to doge.

“It's the monster. Look at the edge of the street. There are small shadows creeping around the edge of the buildings. I think it's a spell or skill that's blocking the noise,” Fernand said with a grunt. This time, he'd managed to raise five layers of force and all but managed to stop the spike.

I took a look where Fernand had gestured and could make out what looked like black flickering flames that seemed to rise out of the cracks in the ground. I followed the line of the twisting shadow as it went up and over the building, over the roofs, and back down and past a point between two buildings. It was in the shape of a circle, and I could faintly make out a mist above The flames that formed a dome shape. The pitch-black sky made the entire dome almost invisible.

The monster let out another Cackle as it raised a hand, and I felt the hair on my back rise. I kicked off the ground to the side towards Kat. The sound of stone being turned into gravel filled my ears as a massive piece of metal, bigger than I was, tore up the paved stone as it made its way to the wraith, passing inches below me.

I was startled for a second as I tried to think of why I couldn't hear the metal as it moved around me. Then I growled as realization hit me. I ripped the golden clasp out of my ear and stored it, ignoring the pain as some of the fur and skin from my ear were torn away. The return of sound was almost numbing. With the number of attribute points I'd gained, everything was even louder than I remembered it, and I could swear that I could hear Fernand's rapid heartbeat only a half dozen feet away.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“We need a plan. Does anyone have any ideas?” Kat asked, her voice tense, and she sounded as scared as I felt.

[PMS, Fernand: If one of us can get out of the dome, assuming we're able to pass through it, we can get someone's attention. All of my flashy spells are too limited on range to get out of the dome.]

As Fernand sent the message, he blocked another spike and, a moment later, with a few muttered words, had an orb of light floating next to him. I glanced at the light ball, a bit guilty. I kept forgetting that they didn't have the skill to see in the dark.

[PMS, Kat: I'm fast, but I need to build up speed for my skill to take effect, and there's no way I can outrun one of those spikes. I can hardly block one.]

I hesitated before I responded, taking a second to dodge a spike as it tried to hit me from the side and look at the twenty spikes that had amassed over the wraith's robe-covered body. There was no way any of us could survive three spikes being launched at us. I could hardly react to one spike.

It was possible to use Stalkers Movement, but what could I use to gain attention? The street didn't have anyone on it, and I'd only have a moment to do something before the wraith reacted if he didn't react faster. I didn't have any Skills that left off a flash or sound. I scanned through my items, and my eyes landed on something that I wondered at. It was the rune torch that we had made in the first month of enchantment basics. By itself, it wasn't very bright, and on the street level, it would get almost no attention, but in the sky? Even a small temporary light with some yelling had to get someone's attention. There was a chance, at least.

[PMS, Aster: I can use Stalkers Movement to get to the roof. From there, I can try to get above the shadow and wave a light around, but there's no way to tell how long it'll take someone to get here.]

[PMS, Kat: I hate that this is the best idea we have. After this is over, we'll figure something out for this.]

I sidestepped an incoming spike, wincing as I was slightly too slow, and it cut through the edge of my new shirt and some of my skin. Then I smiled at Kat's message. She given up said if she had said after.

[PMS, Fernand: I can't do this for another minute. I'm below half my mana. Go for it, Aster, and if you can get away, do it.]

I hated his words, then echoed them back to him.

[PMS. Aster: If it goes after me, you run then.]

I didn't wait for a response, storing my bow and pulling out the unwieldy block of wood that was somehow labeled as a torch. The wraith must have sensed something because instead of the normal one spike at each person, he sent three in my direction as I bent my knees. They were slowed as six force walls materialized, each one shattering just as another was formed behind it. It gave me the time to jump. The sound of stone breaking under me had the hair on my tail prickling, and I moved as fast as possible.

I landed on the roof of the inn-like building as hard as a boar, sending the ceramic ceiling tiles flying as I slid up the slop momentum carrying me. I could see the top of the misty black dome half a dozen feet above me. Bending my knees to jump again, I heard the metal whistle through the air and the shattering of more force walls behind me. I willed mana into the torch at the same time I pushed mana into my skill. I jumped. I wasn't even a foot off the ground when a spike speared my leg. I didn't even feel the pain as it ripped through, and I didn't look down; instead, I willed more mana into the torch, watching as the light at the tip swelled, and I screamed as I passed through the mist. That was when the pain hit, and my scream raised in pitch. Then I started to fall, and I looked at the ground. I hadn't planned my jump, just leaping as high as I could go, and my fall was taking me back over the street. Now I realized I hadn't planned my fall either. Worse was the attention I had gained from the Wraith. While it didn't have a face I could see, I could practically feel its anger as all of its spikes floating above it were launched at me.

There was nothing I could do as I fell, and I didn't know how to feel about it. This entire fight had come out of nowhere and had happened so fast that it almost felt like a sick joke. There was a lot I wanted to do still, but what was the worst was I couldn't tell Umbra goodbye. She would wake up and know, though. I watched the spike come closer in what felt like slow motion, something I'd only read about in story books. A force wall appeared in mid-air and shattered in the next second as ten spikes hit it.

Spikes were only feet away from me, and I could make out the gleaming and rusted metal that had made them when, for the second time, something slammed into me from the side. The hit was so hard everything turned black, and for a moment, all I could feel was the burning pain in my leg. The first thing I heard was the sound of something beating on the wind. Then I could make out little green glimmering specs around me. I didn't know what to think until a roar reverberated from in front of me

There, the sound was familiar and foreign at the same time, and it took a long moment to realize it was a dragon's roar. A screeching followed the noise. Then, the wing beats that I realized I was hearing stopped, and the area around me opened up. I was in the talons of a massive green dragon, one I knew but had to think hard to remember the name of, Emyr. Why had it taken so long to think of his name?

[You have completed the assigned task: High and Mighty. Rewards and experience distributed. Bound Spatial storage detected. Send items added to spatial storage?] [Notice: Items will automatically be sent to spatial storage in 23 Hours and 59 Minutes.]

I blinked at the screen, a bit lost, and dismissed it. Did the screen mean the fight was over? I sat up slowly, a bit hard in the small space but made easier by the gaps in the talons I put my legs through. My right leg felt like it was being held over a slow-burning fire, not mixing right with the way the rest of my body felt. Every thought was slow and foggy, and I found my thoughts drifting off. The sound of voices and the unfurling of the claws had me trying to focus. There was a large green blob in front of me. The blob rumbled, letting out a long breath of air, and I realized it was a snout, Emyr's snout.

“Lady Aster? Are you alright?”

I turned my head and looked hard at the other blob that had come out of the darkness. It took a long second to recognize Baldwin. He was wiping something off his sword and walking towards me. He didn't look too pleased. He paused, looking up at Emyr, then frowned as he looked back towards me. “What do you mean, oh..” He turned around and asked something to someone, but I didn't bother listening in. The dragon's head that I could make out was way more interesting. His eyes seemed to shimmer in the little light there was, but his breath could definitely smell better.

A brief shock of pain had my mind spinning, and I couldn't help the scream that left my mouth. I looked down to see Baldwin had grabbed my leg and was pouring something on it that stung way worse than the metal had. The bottle he held was gray, and the liquid hissed as it touched my skin. I tried to pull away, but his grip was like steel. After what felt like forever, the bottle he was holding emptied out, and then he pulled out another. I winced backward, but his grip and the angle of the talons I was in gave me no way to get away. This bottle he emptied over my leg, though, didn't burn or hiss; instead, it felt like a soothing cold. The red liquid brought instant relief, and I sighed as I leaned forward, my body relaxing. Baldwin said something, but it was muffled and far away. My muscles untensed, and everything started to slip away into black.