To Kill Gods or Die Trying

Chapter 11-Titanus the Bear

July 5th, 2301

"Wherever did you find them?" Cecelia asks.

"Well, we went to go take a walk and then we just... found them," a Whisperer explains.

"Nothin' special, really," the other says nonchalantly.

"We haven't flown them yet, but they seem pretty nice," Sess admits. He ruffles the feather of his newly tamed griffin. It coos at him. "We understand one another."

The Beast Whispers had stumbled upon a herd of griffins and tamed one for the each of them.

Titanus Polar Bear demigod.

The trail leads into an ice crevasse. Only 100 or so feet wide but probably hundreds of feet tall, I'm already planning on how to adapt tactically in this claustrophobic ravine.

"Wizards and Whisperers, you guys get the air advantage. Stealth guys, try to slip under it to the other side. Support, get the flanks with easy access to the rest if we need help. Got it?"

Everyone nods. I confirm the quest. "Let's do this."

We continue walking down in the chasm, looking around cautiously. When we see it, we stop dead in our tracks. The polar bear lies sleeping. It... is... huge! And fat...

"I bet that thing can bear-ly walk," Pranav whispers. "Like, can it, Nav!" Rachel hisses.

I signal everyone for a massive jump-start, and we creep silently in front of the monster. Altogether, we activate our skills.

"Armor Piercing Strike," I whisper right next to the massive beast. "Engage!"

I rear my arm back and thrust it forwards as hard as I can into the bear's fluffy fur. Everyone strikes at once and we watch in amazement as the health bar drops from 100x to 60x.

"Good job everyone!" Havanna exclaims. "Talk about a rude awakening," Pranav jokes.

Indeed, the bear has been woken. It screams, sending powerful waves of cold wind and sound to strike each one of us. Time seems to have not passed as I am sent twirling into the air, and my body slams into the icy wall of the abyss. All the wind is knocked completely out of my body. I fall on my head on the way down.

I can't breathe. What just happened? Am I dreaming? Am I dying? This can't be the end. I won't let it! I try to lift my arm up, but I can't muster the strength. My vision goes from clear and blurry to blurry and red to red and black. I'm gonna die... It happened so fast... What even happened?

Alo stands up, weakly, holding onto his sword for support. "Life for Life!" I hear through heavily ringing ears. What is life for life?

An orb exits his heart and glows brightly. He drops to his knees, threatening to slump over as he grips his sword with all his might. As I struggle to stay alive, I suddenly realize what he's doing.

"Don't do it... Alo," I croak with my last breath. I'm about to let go. I can't hold it. The death animation begins; I can see my own particles fading. He looks at me, grins and flashes me a thumbs up. The orb grows bigger and brighter. I watch in horror as Alo's HP bar drains rapidly. I can't see it, but I can seeing him slumped on the ground, fading, dying, sends the message. He sets self-healing spells on himself, but then his mana bar begins draining rapidly.

He's gonna kill himself! His mana flatlines, and the life orb is about as big as a beach ball. It divides itself into 29 pieces and flows into every dying player.