CHAPTER 2

CHEATED!

Robbie made Cleopatra back into the opposite corner from him, as he knelt down and trained his bow on the stairs. He notched another explosive arrow, and waited. Whoever was coming up, would be in for one massive headache.

Cleopatra’s thoughts kept him up to date with the progress of the approaching player. The worg could hear far better than him, and her ability to smell enemies long before they could be seen, never ceased to amaze him. He listened intently, but could hear nothing. Without his pet to warn him, the player would have likely taken him completely by surprise.

Then he heard the scuff of a boot from below. Holding his breath, he drew back his bowstring. How had the enemy player gotten by Abby? He’d seen nothing in his mind’s eye that told him she’d taken damage. Her HP remained steady.

All at once, heavy boots thudded up the stairs. A figure charged up the final steps. Instinctively, Robbie let loose his arrow. It exploded with an ear splitting roar, the shockwave leaving him unharmed as the PVP Battleground had removed friendly fire. The flare of light faded, and he caught sight of a solid wall of iron bearing down on him.

Leaping out of the way, he barely avoided being crushed against the wall. Something slashed out at him as he tried to get back to his feet, connecting with his arm.

-21hp (140hp remaining)

Cleopatra leapt at the figure, slamming into them, latching onto their leg with her teeth and inflicting her temporary snare. The worg brought Robbie precious seconds to take stock of the situation. The enemy player was a heavily armored Martial Warrior with a Shield Spec. High hp, but lower DPS. His arrow had struck the warrior’s tower shield, sparing the player any damage.

As his pet continued to snare the player, Robbie activated his Mark Target ability and placed it on the warrior. Then, with gritted teeth, he notched a standard arrow, and used Armor Piercing Shot to inflict as much damage as he could.

Letting loose the arrow, he struck the warrior in the side with a metallic thud. The player roared in pain, his voice sounding hollow in his iron helm.

Inflicted 46 damage.

Finally, Cleopatra's snare wore off and she instead used her Gut Rip ability to inflict burst DPS against the player. Her attacks did little damage, as the warrior wore heavy plate armor. The player slashed at her with his sword, enraged by the worg’s ferocity, seemingly forgetting Robbie was there.

Pet inflicted 12 damage

Pet inflicted 10 damage

Pet inflicted 14 damage

Pet takes -27 damage

Robbie sent forth another armor piercing arrow, burning more of his precious energy.

Inflicted -51 damage

15/100 Energy

He was too low on Energy to do anything more than use standard arrows. So he fired, arrow after arrow, most of them inflicting no damage, bouncing off the enemy player’s armor.

Enemy Player

206/318 hp

Roaring, the warrior spun to face him, then charged, slamming into Robbie with his shield. Robbie flew back into the wall, striking his head and sinking to the ground, breath bursting from his lungs.

-61hp (Shield Smash)

Robbie went to reach for his bow, that had fallen to the ground several feet away but before he could scoop it up, the warrior kicked it across the room. Cleopatra leapt on the warrior’s back, her claws racking his armor.

The enemy player was a front-line tank spec’d warrior. Outside, and in the open, Robbie would have ran rings around him, but in the small room in the tower, the melee close-quarters-focused Martial Warrior had the distinct advantage.

Too bad he also blocks both exits from the tower… Robbie thought, his mind racing to come up with a plan.

He had to grab his bow, and try to race past the warrior and back out onto the wall. Hopefully, Abby will have engaged the Steampunk by then, so he wouldn’t get gunned down.

Drawing his knife, Robbie slashed at the warrior, trying to keep the enemy player back, as he moved toward his bow. The knife had no stats on it, and served as nothing more than a tool he used to skin animal hide with for his Leather Working Profession. Like the Steampunk class, Poachers were forbidden to use melee weapons with stats.

A stupid game rule, made for a time when people played for fun.

These days, the stakes were far higher and living by the old rules had become a tedious annoyance—at least, when the rules weren’t working in your favor.

Outside, and with room to move, the enemy warrior would be easy to take down. Once the enemy player’s charge abilities were on cool down, and he was no longer able to close the distance between them, Robbie would be able to turn him into a pin cushion. I can live by rules like that!

Cleopatra dropped off the warrior’s back and retreated several steps. Then she used her Primal Leap ability, and once again landed atop the warrior, this time staggering him.

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Pet inflicted 21 damage

Robbie used the time to scoop up his bow, and fired an armor piercing shot. The arrow took the warrior in the shoulder, inflicting decent damage and staggering them a moment.

Inflicted -49 damage

Using the opportunity to move around the enemy player, Robbie headed for the exit. As he raced out onto the wall, he allowed his Energy to regenerate. He scanned the windows where he’d last seen the enemy Steampunk, and realized Abby had now engaged them in combat. Distracted by the warrior, he hadn’t noticed her hp had started to decline.

Then he saw them through the window. Abby had the Steampunk backed into a corner, and already the enemy player was below half-health, with a poison DOT (Damage over time) slowly eroding their hp. Just like Robbie had been inside the tower, the Steampunk was at a disadvantage in close quarters combat. They were a ranged class, and weak in melee.

Abby would slaughter them.

Robbie called Cleopatra to his side so that the warrior would come outside after him. The wall wasn’t the perfect place to fight the enemy player, as his movement remained somewhat constricted, but it certainly beat the small room inside the tower.

When he’d reached halfway along the wall, he notched an explosive arrow and aimed at the warrior. The enemy player had charged out of the tower, his shield raised. Robbie cursed under his breath. If he struck the shield again, it would mitigate his damage.

He had only enough Energy for one shot—so he had to make it a good one.

Aiming for the ground just in front of the warrior’s feet, he let the arrow fly. It exploded as it hit the stone, blasting the warrior’s shield aside, and making him stumble to his knees.

Inflicted 15 damage.

Not much damage, but for a few seconds, the warrior was vulnerable. Drawing a standard arrow, Robbie let it loose. The arrow flew true, shooting through the warrior’s eyepiece and blinding him.

Inflicted 134 critical hit damage.

Inflicted bleed effect

Inflicted ruptured eyeball

Whoa. Robbie grinned. That had to be the biggest crit he’d ever inflicted with a standard arrow. The warrior wasn’t dead, but he’d certainly felt it.

Enemy Player

206/318 hp

Ripping out the arrow (and most of his eye), the warrior tossed it over the edge of the wall as blood gushed out from inside his helmet. His hp continued to decline at a steady rate.

Then the warrior’s hp bounced right up, as he popped some sort of Shield Warrior cool down. Robbie didn’t know the name of it, but the effect was temporary. It increased the warrior’s health by 30% for several minutes. It was a last ditch ability, and when it was over, the warrior would be left with whatever level of hp they had as they had popped it. If the blood loss had reduced the warrior’s hp to zero, then the ability would leave him with 1hp and he would die seconds later from the blood loss.

Robbie had to survive long enough for the ability to wear off, or burn him down fast, for his own health was dangerously low.

Suddenly, the warrior stood right in front of him, swinging his weapon

-56hp (Ferocious Charge)

Stunned for a moment, Robbie took a second hit, this time a quick slash to his stomach

-14hp

Robbie Owleye

HP: 9/225 (BASE: 180+45 from equipment)

Robbie staggered back, pain ripping through his body, his field of view flashing red. Had this been outside in the main Visarian world, his pain would have been enough to kill him. But here, things hurt far less. His field of view continued to flash, as he raced away. He had no healing pots, no nothing. One more hit and the the fight would be over and Abby would be on her own.

Shared kill +150xp

Robbie grunted as he sent Cleopatra to snare the warrior in place. Abby had just killed the Steampunk. It would take her a few minutes to get up on the wall to help him, so he had to kill the warrior on his own.

Spinning around, he fired another arrow. It struck the enemy on the helm, and glanced off. Cleopatra had the warrior gripped in her fangs, and inflicted moderate damage on him.

Pet inflicted 15 damage

Pet inflicted 14 damage

Another ten seconds, and Robbie would have enough Energy to fire another explosive or armor piecing arrow. Until then, he had to make do with ordinary arrows. Notching one, he fired. Before it struck the warrior, he’d notched another. Then another.

One after the other he fired, each doing no damage, or next to no damage. Plate armor is so over powered! Robbie raged.

Then his regen brought his Energy up to thirty, so he went to grab an armor piercing arrow. As he did, Cleopatra took another hit, and howled in pain.

Pet takes -31 damage

Then, in a moment of rage, the warrior dropped his shield, picked Cleopatra up, as she snapped at his arms, and threw her over the side of the wall. “Nooo!” Robbie cried.

Pet has died.

Enraged, Robbie drew back the armor-piercing arrow and let it fly. The warrior had only just grabbed his shield and started to raise it when the arrow took him in the guts. He flew back, air exploding from his lungs, and with a terrible cry, he tumbled over the inner wall.

A moment later came a crash as the enemy player landed on the roof of one of the ruined buildings below the wall.

Inflicted -67hp

Enemy player took -137hp fall damage

“Damn it,” the warrior still wasn’t dead. But now he would be stuck on the building, and posed no threat.

Robbie glanced over the outer wall. Cleopatra lay on her side in the dead grass, blood pooling under her. He hated seeing his beloved worg like that, but she would be back once they were done in the PVP battleground.

Robbie raced to the inner wall, ready to finish the warrior off. His mouth dropped open. “No, you—”

The warrior leapt headfirst off the side of the building and crashed to the courtyard below.

Player has suicided.

Damn, you! The enemy had just robbed Robbie of the xp for the kill.

A brief loading screen came up, advertising the defunct Visaria Online cash shop. Then Robbie and Abby spawned in the PVP lobby.

They turned to one another, and at the same time cried, “frigging losers!”

A deep male voice sounded in their heads.

“Congratulations, warriors. Your Team were the sole survivors!”

+500xp

+1g

+500 reputation with the Guild of Player Killers

+200 reputation with the Independent City-State of Thorn

An exclamation mark appeared in Robbie’s mind’s eye. He and Abby had both leveled up!