Boy Meets Ai

Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Now

Hendricks and Marquis stepped on to the tile of the arena. The bard felt the atmosphere electrify. The audience was fired up from the previous match, hungry for more. The healer and monk on the other side stayed close. They looked nervous, which gave Hendricks some hope. This was actually a pretty good match up for him. Doable. He scraped his knuckles together, the metallic spheres ringing softly as he did. The gloves were his backup plan if the monk pressed him. He pulled his guitar from his back. Its lacquered surface reflected the dusk light.

Lost in thought, he barely heard Gabriel shout "BEGIN!"

Luckily, his opponents didn't move right away. In fact, Hendricks couldn't tell what they were doing. Thomas raised his hand to his face. As he did, it became obscured as pitch black smoke began swirling around his head.

"He's equipping something. Not sure what though so be ready for anything. The bard said to his Ai. Marquis nodded dutifully, taking aim at his opponents.

The smoke plume grew larger, snaking its way around Thomas' body. As it began to settle, he stepped forward revealing a terrifying visage of death. The healer's head had been entirely covered by a pale skull with a red gem in the forehead. The hollow sockets peered at Hendricks, making his skin crawl. Most everyone in the stadium recognized the mask immediately. A Legendary grade drop from the Death Knight boss battle.

Zerfallen, Helm of Eternal Dread.

Hendricks' eyes grew wide as he realized what it was. No wonder a healer had made it this far. Zerfallen was a highly coveted piece of gear that most players would drain their bank accounts for. How did this kid have it?! Marquis slung his rifle of his shoulder and drew his pistols, freeing him his mobility. Hendricks swallowed hard. The battle would be more challenging than he originally thought. Prioritizing attacks on a healer in a pvp battle was typically the best strategy an opponent could attempt. Hendricks recognized that Thomas could keep himself and his companion alive indefinitely but if they blitzed him instead of wasting time on the monk, they might have a chance.

"Focus on skull face. We gotta whittle him down." He murmured to Marquis. His companion lifted his pistols and pulled back on their hammers.

"Let us get started then."