Alpha Realm Online - Book I - The Beginning

Chapter 6 - Murderer

A crimson aura coalesced around Shade's blades as he rushed towards me.

"Stab," I heard him quietly mutter. Throwing myself to the side, I ducked underneath his initial swipe.

I eyed my opponents, quickly assessing the situation.

I was Level 10, and Crux was Level 12. Though this would normally be considered quite a high level, we were dueling the number-one guild. Naturally, we were quite outclassed.

Shade and Noble were Level 14 and Zephyr was Level 15, an entire 3 levels above us. They would hit really hard, even with Crux's tank class giving him some extra shielding.

I fired off more shots at Shade, though many of them missed him entirely because of his speed. I avoided one slash, but ended up getting hit by his other blade. My Healing Ring thankfully healed away the damage done, but it would fade soon, and after that I would be on my own until it went off cooldown again.

I risked taking a glance at Crux to see if he needed some healing. He was still doing well against Zephyr, considering he was a whole 3 levels lower, parrying most of his attacks and getting in some good swings of his own.

However, Noble seemed to be shaking off the effects of Crux's first attack, slowly getting to his feet. Even with his combat experience, it would be difficult to hold up in a 2 versus 1 fight, especially if one opponent could attack from a range.

I healed up Crux a little bit, then returned my attention to the enemy in front of me.

Shade seemed to be getting frustrated at my constant dodging. "Fight me, you coward!" he yelled, activating Stab first, then chaining his attack into a new ability: Throwing Stars.

The three projectiles caught me off guard, and hit me squarely in the chest. His ultimate ability. Damn it, I should've expected to use it eventually. The sudden agony shooting through my chest caused me to drop to my knees, and Shade seized his opportunity.

His slashes hit me over and over. I was powerless against his relentless attacks. No, no, I need...to get up...

Light suddenly flared around me and energy surged through my body, rejuvenating me and giving me the strength to pull myself to my feet. Shade, still temporarily blinded by the light, staggered backwards a few steps.

From behind the barrier created by Holy Seal, Crux withdrew the hand he had flung in my direction and visibly sighed in relief.

I realised what Crux had done as I glanced at my health bar above me. He had cast his own ultimate ability, Sacred Blessing, on me. He's the one fighting two people, yet... I couldn't fight off my smile.

He quickly returned my smile, before his barrier splintered and he returned to his fight, expertly activating Thrust to force Noble to pause his attacks and back up, then engaging Zephyr with his weapon.

Speaking of ultimate abilities, we did have a slim chance of winning despite our massive disadvantages: my Divine Fury. The sudden burst damage would catch them off guard and hopefully severely weaken them, and combined with the enclosed space, they would have nowhere to run.

I trusted Crux had thought of this already, so I was sure he knew why the plan would not work as well.

Divine Fury had an extremely long casting time, leaving me extremely vulnerable to attack in the meantime. In that time, Freefall would easily shred my health points, taking me out. Crux could use Holy Seal to buy me some time, but it was a risky gamble given their levels were so much higher than ours.