My opponent aborts his Invisibility spell to dodge my soaring fist. The muscle-memory of my current body kicks in and I follow up with a few consecutive blows. I don't even have to hit: The turbulence behind my punches alone creates enough force to get the wolf-kin off balance. No wonder this shape takes half my mana-supply to activate.
Liszka seems to feel the same about letting our enemies cast their Invisibility. Roughly two dozen yards away from me, she keeps her own opponent busy by generating small snow storms to hide in and icicles for surprise attacks. If we allow the assassins to vanish from our sight, her death is almost certain. I'd have to be lucky to catch up to her.
I use all my skills including my blonde fighter's hair-attacks, and yet we're in a stalemate with the assassins. We've been going back and forth for a minute, a small eternity in such an encounter. What kind of enemies had Liszka made?
We're running out of time. The assassins show signs of fatigue, but so does Liszka. If we don't get this over with, exhaustion will set in and she'll die from a mistake or misplaced move. Something has to change. If it just weren't for their damn Invisibility...
Should I turn into one of them then? If I stay invisible, Liszka might not figure out my true nature and my opponent would have to deal with their own annoying abilities for once.
No, that won't do. I'll be exactly on par with one of those assassins, meaning I'll get stuck in a one-on-one fight again, leaving the other free to attack my companion. Liszka's combat fatigue would get to her and she'd die anyway.
Furthermore, the two assassin's first attempt to kill Liszka was really well coordinated. They must posses some skill or item to detect each other's advanced Invisibility, so I can't even use their skills against them.
A grunt escapes Liszka as her back impacts the ground. But being a professional in terms of escapes, she already casts another miniature snow storm around her, forcing her opponent to guess where a potential attack might come from. I wonder if she used her miniature snow storm to hinder the vision of some turrets in the new caves. Wait... that's it!
A plan hatches in my mind, as I wait for my opponents next attempt at a spell. Liszka's snow storms are such an obvious clue, that I want to slap myself for my oversight: There's a difference between detecting invisibility and locating hidden individuals.
Once I succeed at the next spell interruption, I try to transform, but it doesn't work. A system-message pops up instead:
[ Transformation failed: Too much biomass for transformation. ]
Of course. In a world brimming with magic, the laws of conservation stop a fucking rank S skill. I'm so irritated, I almost miss my enemy's next attempt at activating their Invisibility, but it turns out I have no time left to mope.
Liszka yelps, as the kick of her opponent connects with her chest and sends her flying several yards. While sliding, she tries to regain her posture. She has trouble breathing. The assassins sets off to close the distance created through the kick.
I curse under my breath and start running towards Liszka. I grab one of the swords from the ground that I've been stabbed with just a minute ago and start cutting at the back of my head, in hopes that losing the massive amount of hair will be enough to allow my transformation.
[ Transformation failed: Too much biomass for transformation. ]
"Oh, come on!", I shout at the message, but quickly start thinking of what else I can get rid of. First, the arms come to mind, but I can't cut my limbs without them. I could be cutting at the waist, but I might lose too much biomass instead.
Liszka casts her miniature snow storm just in time to make her opponent miss, but I can see her stumble out of the area of effect-and so does her assassin. They circle the small snow storm to reach her on the other side.
I grimace. "It's either her or my legs, huh."
Having nothing but my half-baked plan, I dash. Once I get within six feet of Liszka with my run, I leap towards her. As I'm airborne, I grit my teeth, anticipating the upcoming pain. Finally, I activate one of the skills that come with my current shape: Meat Carving.
The cut happens with little resistance and sound, telling me the skill had worked. I part with my pair of powerful legs. I'd be smiling, if it wasn't for the growing pain. I quickly activate the transformation to escape the morbid sensation.
#
Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.
Liszka's own heavy panting drowns out any foot steps. Her chest burns, where the kick had landed. She can feel her blood pulsate in her temples and ears. It's a miracle that her tail is still in one piece.
Tyllat was supposed to be a new beginning, but her homeland's destroyer is apparently very thorough with any loose ends, even after she resigned and left. Her pursuers still don't take kind to cowards.
She turns her gaze back to her miniature snow storm, probably the last one she'll ever cast. The assassin emerges from behind it, charged blade first and jogging. The wolf-kin's eyes quickly lock with hers, steps turning more determined.
The assassin slows down, just a yard away from her. Why the hesitation?
Liszka's confusion only lasts a heartbeat, for the air moving around her ears clues her in. She turns her eyes to the right. The sizzling blade of the second assassin come closer at the height of her neck, slowly appearing out of invisibility with the wielder.
So the quest assistant hasn't made it. What a shame, although it wasn't a bad run, considering the enemies. Liszka closes her eyes, a coward till the end. There it is. She can feel the blade's electrical charge touch her neck's hair.
Yet her eyes open again. A new wind passes her ears. Who's that third presence? Was it three assassins? Was Fylka fighting two of them towards the end?
A heavy smack from behind Liszka interrupts her speculations. Too curious about why the blade meant for her neck just dropped, she dares a peek over the shoulder. Her eyes widen.
Her executioner was robbed of their consciousness by another arctic fox-kin's kick to the head.
YOU ARE READING
Shapeless Hero
FantasíaIdentity crisis? What's that? ---- An earthling's soul was born into an incompatible, human body. Their muscles misbehaved, their skin and body felt like a rigid shell, and their weak constitution left little options for any activities outside of...
