This was a hilly, almost mountainous region, as if the Southern Chaotic Mountain Range had spread its roots. Strong winds blowed from the Western Ocean, which was not too far away, getting caught in the mountains, affecting the weather, giving the Duchy of Galebend its name. The City of a Thousand Gales, the capital city, occupied a vast area with valleys and mountain sides. This single city concentrated most of the duchy's population. The rest of its territory was mostly covered in fields and forests.
Since the nation was only a dutchy, and due to the influence of the chaos faction, the Dutchy of Galebend had always been chaotic. If it weren't for the Gale Army, which was an almost autonomous entity, the city might have long been broken apart in internal strive instigated by the chaos faction.
"Go back where you belong!"
"Haha, do you even dare to fight? I have already informed my brothers!"
"Crying for help? What a joke! Watch me kill you before your brothers can arrive!"
"Sow chaos!"
"Sow chaos!"
As Liam and his friends arrived, chaotic shouts reached their ears. They saw outside of the city, amongst a muddy field, groups of players locked in a bitter struggle. Players of the chaos faction had invaded, some wearing shadow cloaks, others proudly revealing their demonic forms. Of course, the order faction couldn't allow them to proceed as they wished. Brave heroes stepped forth to face the enemy.
And the bravest hero of all was just about to arrive.
"My friends! Chaos has reached out its ugly hands once again! We need to assist our courageous companions of the order faction!"
Radiant Shield spoke with a sonorous voice, his majestic griffon letting out a resounding cry. Even in the chaotic battle some people heard it and looked up to the sky.
"Reinforcements?! This quick?!"
"Flying mounts! They are at least level 60!"
"What to do? Run?"
"No, wait! I recognize them! It's Hotpot, but only four people!"
Among the chaos faction multiple eyes lit up. Ever since Hotpot thwarted a plan of the dark elven Tribe of the Dark Mother, there were quests among the dark elves to kill Hotpot. Their generous rewards were extremely tempting. Now, among the players outside the city were thirteen dark elves. If they all worked together, perhaps it would be possible to overcome the level difference…
"So you want to fight?"
"Yes, fight! At least kill one of them. If it looks bad, we run!"
"Can we run? They have flying mounts…"
"Just split up. Whoever is lucky enough survives."
The chaos faction players came to a decision. Instead of escaping they grabbed their weapons tighter, eyeing the approaching group.
Radiant Shield also noticed the tension in the atmosphere. His eyes narrowed. It was time for the hero to show those petty villains the gap between them.
Just getting in range, the earthen-yellow fur of Radiant Shield's mount waved in a mysterious rhythm. [Lion's Leap]! For a moment the rain seemed to stand still in the air. A lion's roar thundered. Before the sound reached the chaos faction players, Radiant Shield already appeared in front of them and the claw of a Lion slashed with heavy might.
[-38!]
Radiant Shield was unhappy with his damage. It would be a different story had he activated his ultimate skill, but obviously he didn't want to waste in against these small fries.
"Do you dare to face me?!", shouted Radiant Shield as his hammer collided with his shield, scattering brilliant golden light, attracting the aggro of multiple players. With his chest stuck out he looked incredibly heroic. However, someone was competing with him for the spotlight.
Silver Blade also activated her mount's skill. A dazzling light shone forth as mount and rider transformed into a brilliant star, tearing through the bleak atmosphere. Every ally touched by the light had their resistances improved, naturally including Radiant Shield. The already impenetrable armour had become even more impressive.
It took a few seconds for Silver Blade to come into range. Thinking about the earlier conversation she didn't want to reveal too much information. Thus, she held back her newest skill [Unavoidable Bulwark] and instead engaged the fight with her trusty [Luring Barrier].
At the start, the order faction had been outnumbered by the chaos faction, and this was till the case. However, with Silver Blade and Radiant Shield both attracting the attention of three chaos faction players each, the odds were now even. Of course, the tanks could have drawn more aggro, but the order faction tanks had already done much work before the arrival of Hotpot. Therefore, Silver Blade and Radiant Shield could only attract some of the enemies.
"Haha! It's Hotpot! You are so done for!"
"Silver Blade! Radiant Shield! We only need to hold out for a while! Reinforcements are already on the way!"
"This time, let's make sure to keep all those chaos faction devils behind!"
As Hotpot's tanks made their valiant entrance, the order faction players shouted in joy. They increased their efforts, some with their own little thoughts. These chaos faction players were only small fry. Surely, Hotpot wouldn't compete for the kills. So, the rewards for killing could be hogged by them, the poor players. Furthermore, the only damage dealer present from Hotpot was Bleary Mirage. How much could a single person kill?
Well, Liam was about to show them. Drasky sped up as he fell from the sky, racing towards the chaos faction. His eyes were on the mages and healers at the back.
"Now!"
Suddenly one of the chaos faction warriors raised his black halberd towards the sky, his voice like a signal. A black light erupted from his weapon, illuminating an area at the back. The area was not big, but the chaos faction was already prepared, their mages standing closely together. When the black light shrouded them, they were suddenly freed of all aggro, able to attack freely.
This was an extremely specialized skill, almost useless when battling monsters. Obviously, this warrior was barely interested in PvE battles, spending most of his time in PvP. Even this skill was a reward he bought with the points gained from killing order faction players.
Even Liam was taken aback for a moment as this move came too unexpected. The mages not far away turned towards him, their faces painted with shady smiles. The hunter suddenly became the hunted. Their skills already prepared, the mages unleashed them at the approaching warrior.
The air shook, brimming with a violent static and ferocious flames. There were five mages targeting Liam. Two skills moved incredibly fast. A fist formed from black lightning arrived from above, distorting the air, while a wall of flames burned brightly in front of Liam. Even the veteran was too slow to react to the lightning. The fist slammed his head, dealing more than 2000 points of damage.
However, because of this spell, Liam's flight slowed down for a moment. Thus, he didn't crash into the flaming wall. The grey sky darkened even more, turning day into night. Darkness spread above the mages, sending chills down their spines. The next moment a figure plunged out of the darkness, a cute fox baring its teeth as it dove at the mages.
Cleverly using his [Darkened Sky] skill, Liam avoided the wall of flames and continued his hunt of the enemy's mages from another direction. For a moment there was confusion. Two of the mages had already directed their skills at the flaming wall, expecting Liam to break through, immediately welcoming him with their spells. Yet Liam didn't follow their script. Drasky crashed into the ground, spreading a shockwave of chilling dark magic, dealing at least 3000 points of damage to everyone around.
The chaos faction players were experienced in PvP. There was no hint of panic in their eyes. Just the opposite. One of them, a female skeleton mage in deep blue robes, called Cold2theBone, suddenly showed a big, scary grin. She raised the crooked staff in her hand high and couldn't help but shout in excitement:
"Ferny's Frozen Hell!"
Instantly the temperature around her dropped drastically. A terrifying blue light erupted from her staff. The rain in the air froze, continuing its way as hail. With the mage as the centre, freezing ice spread all around at extreme speed, unavoidable, turning a large area into a frozen landscape.
However, the mage unfortunately made a small mistake. If it were anyone else, it wouldn't have been too bad. But her enemy was Liam. How could the veteran not react in an instant upon hearing the name of such a famous ultimate skill like 'Ferny's Frozen Hell'? When the ice reached his position, Liam had already transformed into a bunch of sparks, escaping into the distance.
Pushing Drasky, Liam stormed away at a high speed. He abruptly came to a stop and turned around, staring at the group of mages. And right in front of him, perfectly calculated, the ice stopped its spread. He stood at the edge of the frozen landscape, admiring the scenery.