Avalon Rebirth (3 page)

Leah nocked another arrow and let it fly at the beast, impressed by her partner's display of skill. Erika hadn't even used Flash Step to get away this time, probably keeping it in her back pocket for a time when she needed it more. For now they seemed to be working well in tandem, even though they had only spent a short time together.

The ogre roared angrily as another arrow cut into its flesh. It grabbed ahold of a tree and uprooted it like it was a stalk of grass. Leah braced herself for its next attack.

“Watch it,” she warned.

“I know.”

Leah didn't have time to say anything more. The ogre roared again and hurled the tree straight at her, forcing her to dive aside to avoid being hit. The trunk missed her by mere inches, and Leah felt some of the leaves brush the back of her neck.

She landed on her feet, thanking her lucky stars she had survived her close call. Any closer and she would have been severely hurt, and they didn't have a support magician with them to heal.

Another arrow hit the beast in the face, enraging it further, but Leah felt nothing but frustration. At A rank she might have been able to hit it in the eye, but now she was struggling to place her shots where she wanted. Apparently the demotion had hurt more than she originally thought.

A blur charged at the ogre again, and the creature stumbled for a moment. Leah took the opportunity to nock another arrow and charge it with another destruction spell, Fire Blast. This one would do some serious damage, but it had a recharge time of five minutes. It also had a wide area of effect, and she didn't want to hit her partner in the process.

“Get clear!” she warned.

In a moment Erika had disappeared from view. Was she far enough away to avoid the blast? Leah couldn't hold the arrow any longer, or it would explode in her hands. She fired off her shot, straight into the ogre's chest.

The blast sent the monster reeling backward, the sound drowning out its roars of pain. Leah felt the heat of the explosion ripple past, tugging at her cloak for a moment before fading away. She had another arrow nocked and ready within seconds. The fire arrow might have hurt the ogre badly, but it wasn't dead. Even when wounded it was capable of doing damage.

She fired off her arrow, then nocked another one. Leah raised her bow to fire again, but the ogre had grabbed something and hurled it toward her, forcing her to dive aside to dodge it. Stone shattered everywhere, narrowly missing her once again.

Another rock came flying in, and Leah rolled out of the way, her mind racing. She had managed to avoid damage so far, but eventually her luck might not hold out. If it threw another tree at her she might not be able to dodge. Even if she was able to keep away from the projectiles, she had to spend all of her efforts staying alive. The creature would start to regenerate health eventually, and then they would be back where they started.

But one thing worked in her favor. Alone, Leah was in trouble, but today she had a partner.

Right on cue, Erika charged back into the fray. More figures appeared around her, and Leah guessed that she must have activated Wraith. She counted five in all, a fair number, though the best were capable of making up to ten.

The ogre roared again and struck out with one of its hands, catching one figure and dissipating it into a cloud of smoke. It struck out at another one, smashing its hand into the ground and destroying the target as well.

But another one of the figures jumped onto its arm and charged upward. Before Leah even knew what was happening the ogre roared again in pair, then toppled over onto its knees, trying to hold itself up. One of its eyes had been severely damaged.

Leah drew back her bow one last time, aimed for the other eye and let the arrow go. A second later the monster thudded into the ground, shuddered and then lay still.

She let out a sigh of relief as Erika rejoined her.

“Well, that was something,” her partner said, a smile on her face.

“I'll say,” Leah nodded. “So that was an interesting combination. Draw its arm down with Wraith, then climb up the arm with Flash Step and stab it in the eye. Have you done that before?”

“No, that was the first time.”

That floored her. “Really? You just came up with that plan on the fly and pulled it off?”

“Well, I've been thinking about it for a while, but I never actually tried to pull it off. Seemed too risky when I was fighting all alone. But since you already weakened it with the fire arrow and made it go berserk, I thought it might be worth it this time.”

“But still, just trying something like that on the fly...”

“I guess I thought it would be fun?” she shrugged. “I haven't had the opportunity to test things like this out, so I guess I wanted to take the chance.”

Leah nodded and said nothing else. The gears in her mind continued to turn. A player with an unorthodox style and the willingness to try new tactics. That could be something very valuable to a new team. The question was, would she be willing to compete in the tournaments.

“That should clear the way to the falls,” Erika said, breaking in to her thoughts. “Might as well grab the icewind flowers before something else comes after us.”

“Right. Go on ahead. If you're going to just pick them then there's a few more things that I want to do around here.”

“OK then. Well, it was definitely fun teaming with you. Wouldn't mind doing it more in the future.”

“Likewise. Oh, and before you go?” Leah said, opening up her menu and pressing a few buttons. “Would you mind adding me to your contacts list?”

Erika opened her menu as well. “Of course. Thanks for the help again, by the way. That ogre would have been a real pain without help.”

“No problem.”

Leah waved as Erika headed up the final ascent to the top of the falls, still trying to absorb everything that had just happened. Within the span of an hour they had gone from having not candidates for their team to having a very intriguing one.

Things had just become very interesting indeed.

D
arin made
his way through the cobblestone streets, his senses on high alert. The crumbling buildings around him were quiet for now, but that could change in an instant. Here in the Lost City the undead walked the streets, and they would prey on the unwary passing through.

He had been here more than enough times to know of the danger, though at this point anything short of a group of elites or a boss wasn't going to give him any trouble. This trip wasn't about a challenge, or gaining experience, or anything particularly important, for that matter. Darin just wanted a way to blow off steam.

He knew they needed to keep moving forward if they wanted to get back into the A ranks, but Darin felt like the motivation had been sapped from him. Continuing on seemed like a slog, a chore, but he knew there was no choice. Not if he wanted to regain their status.

Leah seemed no worse for wear, even though she showed a few signs of frustration as well. At least she had a prospective recruit for the new team, which was more than he could say. Darin had reached out to some friends and contacts, putting out feelers to try and hook a new member, but so far no one had bit. Either everyone was already taken, or their name had been so tainted by the scandal that no one wanted to associate with them.

That last possibility bothered him the most. Darin had sent out another inquiry, wondering what exactly their former teammates were up to. So far he hadn't heard anything concrete, but it still bothered him. What were they up to? Had this all been planned from the beginning?

And why had they abandoned Silver Star in the first place? They had said they were sick of it, but did they mean the tournament scene, or just the team? Was he responsible for the breakup somehow? Darin didn't think so, but the thoughts wouldn't leave his head. Everything before seemed fine, with nothing out of the ordinary. They had just prepared for the tournament as usual, aiming to win first like they always did. If there was-

A screech put a halt to his thoughts. Darin dodged the axe that came whipping around a corner and brought his halberd up into a defensive position, trying to see how many enemies he faced. A trio of skeletons shambled around the corner, axes and maces gripped in their bony hands. They were grunts, at least, nothing to be concerned about. He sprang forward and took them out with a single sweep of his weapon.

More shrieks filled the air as a host of skeletons charged out of the surrounding ruins. How many were there? A dozen? A hundred? It made for an intimidating sight, but Darin had no fear for his safety. They might look scary, but grunts were little more than ants, only threatening in huge groups. And even then, a skilled player could make short work of them.

He waded into the midst of the fight, swinging his weapon around in wide arcs. Bones shattered into dust and clattered to the ground, smashed to pieces by his wild, vicious strikes. With almost six feet of reach at his disposal none of the skeletons could close the distance to even strike at him, let alone land a good blow.

An arrow zipped past him, but Darin had prepared for that. Since he was traveling alone his normal support magic would do him little good, so he had switched it out for destruction magic back at the hub. He sent a fireball searing through the air toward the offending skeleton, destroying it and several others in the process. The rest continued to press toward him, but they meant nothing. Darin hacked them all down within a few seconds.

He leaned on his halberd for a moment, surveying the damage. That was at least twenty enemies he had taken out without any trouble. And yet, that didn't mean anything. They were just fodder, a way for the game to make players feel powerful. Grunts might look intimidating, but they were little more than flies.

He wanted some sort of challenge, something that tested his skill and posed a threat to him. At this point he wouldn't mind taking on a boss-class enemy, even if that was highly dangerous if he tried it alone. Darin was still looking for some way to vent all the frustration, and fighting was the way to do it. If he had to focus on staying alive and dealing with a tough foe then he wouldn't have time to think about anything else.

If-

Darin spun around as he heard a noise behind him. More skeletons? It didn't sound like it. They would screech before they attacked, and there weren't very many things in the Lost City that attempted stealth. Normally they'd just try to swarm him with sheer numbers.

“Anyone there?” he called out, wondering if it was another player. This wasn't a PVP zone, so there was no danger of having to fight someone else. Besides, if they were going to try to recruit someone he needed to talk to people. Maybe this would be a promising lead.

“So you're a live one?” a male voice answered.

“Yeah.”

The newcomer walked into view, a tower shield slung over his back and a sword in hand. He had short black hair, dark skin and wore heavy armor, probably equipped as a tank to absorb huge amounts of damage. Darin guessed he had chosen defense or manipulation magic to support his build, though either would be of limited use. He'd probably spend most of his time just pressing forward, smashing anything that got in his way. Anything short of a group of elites or a boss wouldn't be able to get through his armor.

“Exploring?” he asked.

Darin shrugged. “More like going for a walk?”

He laughed. “In the Lost City? That's some walk.”

“Well, I was anticipating a fight too, so it's not like I came unprepared.”

His counterpart looked around at the heaps of bones surrounding them. “Yeah, I can see that. Looks like you know what you're doing.”

“Well, I'm not lacking for experience.”

“No, I guess not.” He offered his hand. “I'm Taji. Or I sometimes go by Taj, whichever you prefer.”

“I'm Darin,” he replied, shaking his hand. “Good to meet you.”

“So you're out for a walk?”

“Yeah, that's it. Trying to get some stress out. My week hasn't been the best.”

“You're one of the players from Silver Star, right?”

“The former Silver Star,” Darin corrected him.

“Yeah, I heard what happened. That really sucks. The punishment was way too harsh, at least in my opinion. Not that it's going to make you feel any better...”

“It's even worse when you didn't do anything to deserve it,” Darin said. “I wasn't the one that threw the match.”

“Oh, so one of your teammates stabbed you in the back?”

“Two of them, actually. So I'm looking for recruits for a new team. You wouldn't happen to be interested in that, would you?”

Taji laughed and shook his head. “I'm not so sure...”

“I know it's not a good look, teaming up with two people who were just busted for cheating. We didn't do anything, but-”

“Oh, it's not that,” Taji said. “I've actually tried some of the lower ranked tournaments. I've qualified for D rank with three separate teams, but we never did well. So I just stopped trying. I'm not sure I was any good at it.”

“How bad did you do?”

“Lost in the first round each time,” he explained. “It just never seemed to work out. I'd like to participate in the tournaments. Everyone does, I think, but they're tough. And if you don't have the skills for it, well...”

“But if you were recruited, would you be willing to give it a shot?” Darin asked, feeling a bit of hope. Taji's failings might not necessarily be his own fault. Having a good player on a team didn't matter if the entire unit couldn't work together effectively.

He shrugged. “I guess. But I'm not sure that you'd want me...”

“Would you mind pairing up for a bit?”

“That's fine.”

“So I can see how you fight, of course. Is that your normal build?”

“I have a couple that I use, but this is one I stick with a lot. It's easier when I can just focus on using weapons.”

“What kind of magic build do you have?”

“Defense. I use stone skin some of the time, but that's about all. It's a lot easier for me to just wade in and smash anything that gets in the way.”

Darin nodded. “OK, sounds simple enough. If I see anything that might help you I'll give you some pointers, if that's fine with you. I've done tank builds before.”

“Sure, that would be great.”

“And I'll act as the damage dealer for the time being,” he added. He had the combination of reach, magic and speed to perform that role well. Taji had a strong defense, but the armor would slow him down, and his magic was purely passive in nature.

“Sounds good. I'll take lead?”

“Go ahead,” Darin nodded.

At least he knew that much. When grouped together a tank was best positioned in front of the group, since they could take damage and deal with any threats that appeared. Even if they suffered hits they had enough health and armor to absorb it without much trouble, allowing the rest of their party to organize their own attack. Now, to see how much he knew about the combat aspects of Avalon Online.

They had only traveled a short distance when Darin heard a growl, followed by a loud clacking noise. It was definitely larger than any of the skeletons they had faced before, probably an elite. From the sound of things there was only one, but that could change quickly.

“Ready for it?”

“Yeah.”

“Go with Stone Skin to make sure that it can't get your health down very quickly,” he instructed, just as the skeleton walked into view.

It stood over them both, probably about eight feet tall, wearing rusty armor and carrying a massive club in its hands. It had reach, almost as much as Darin's halberd, and it wasn't going to just crumble into dust like the smaller hordes of grunts.

“Stone skin, then Challenge Call to make sure it focuses on me?”

“Right.”

Darin started to cast a destruction spell on his weapon, lightning strike, hoping to do some extra damage when it hit. The halberd blade crackled with electric energy, enough to stun most living creatures. It wouldn't affect the undead, but using Fire Blast meant he'd be caught in its area of effect.

The skeleton growled at them and swung its club down at Taji, who braced his shield with both hands. The impact drove him to his knees, but he kept his footing. Moreover, he didn't suffer much damage from the attack.

And that gave Darin a good opening. He charged in from the left, swinging his weapon in a wide arc with the back spike first. The point smashed into the creature, cutting through its armor and sending a jolt of electricity through it. The skeleton stumbled back for a moment, hurt.

Taji suddenly sprang forward out of his stance, swinging his sword and bashing with his shield. The monster's armor deflected the blade, but the blow from the shield sent it stumbling back again. More importantly, he drew its attention and forced it into a crouch, lowering the skeletons head to a reachable distance.

That was perfect for him. Darin moved forward and made a leap at the skeleton, bringing the halberd blade down in a two-handed overhead swing. The creature's head smashed apart with a sickening crunch, and a second later the rest of its body crumbled into dust. The remnants of the armor clattered to the cobblestones, and then the city around them went deathly quiet.

“Nice kill,” Taji commented.

“Yeah. Good work from you as well,” Darin said. “I notice that you got aggressive.”

He made a face. “Yeah, I guess that's my thing. A lot of people don't like it since they think I should be just soaking up the damage...”

“Then what's the point of you even carrying a weapon?” Darin asked. “There's more than one way to be a tank. Your method is an interesting one, actually. You force it to fight you and don't allow it to move its attention elsewhere. That might not be that important against NPCs, but against other players that could be big.”

“I've tried it before. But my teammates didn't like it so much. I wasn't playing my role in the team. Attacking is for the damager.”

Darin nodded. That was part of the problem at the lower ranks. The basic configuration of a tank, a damager, an archer and a supporter was something good to start with, but it wasn't the only way to compete. There were other ways to go about building a team, and even when choosing roles, it was better to have a bit of versatility. He had often fought as a supporter, but had a limited ability to shift to being a damager or tank if needed. That was how the good teams overcame setbacks, by adapting on the fly.

But he could see where Taji's problem came in. He might be too advanced for his own good, a piece of the puzzle that wouldn't fit in with a basic team, but had good potential when paired with similar players. Leah had described her candidate in a similar fashion.

And for the first time in a long time, Darin felt happy, almost giddy. Even after all the setbacks, they might be getting somewhere. From what he could tell, Taji had some potential to be a good A-rank player. They just needed to be able to bring that out and make it work in the context of a team.

“Were you doing anything else here?” Darin asked.

“Oh me? I was just out here looking for something to fight.”

He hesitated for a moment. “So, that last display from you was pretty interesting. Enough that I think you might be capable of something better. Would you be interested in joining a team?”

“The new tournament team you were talking about, right?”

“Yes, that. There's an open spot for you if you want to join.”

Taji rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, I'm flattered. But don't you think you're getting ahead of yourself? I didn't show much. Just-”

“Just some unorthodox style and out of the box thinking,” Darin finished. “And that's important. You don't get to the top of the A ranks by playing it safe and by the book. Being able to come up with new tactics and new solutions is all a part of the game up there. You seem to be able to do that. So are you interested?”

“If you're offering then yeah, I'll take it. But I'm not sure-”

“Not sure if you'll fit in?”

Taji shrugged. “I haven't exactly had the best track record for something like this.”

“Well, maybe it wasn't you. Maybe it was your teammates. And pardon me for saying so, but me and my other partner are a cut above pretty much everyone else.”