Alex stared at the raiding party approaching them, wondering how he was yet again in another situation with the odds stacked against him. Even as powerful as the rest of the party seemed to be, how could they hope to beat so many?
First and foremost came the sixty Chaos-born. They looked… Well actually, they looked rather normal to Alex. He could make out the pointed ears of elves and the stunted forms of dwarves. They looked just like any of the other races Alex had encountered so far. It would be easy to mistake them as allies.
What truly separated them from being 'normal' were the slight grotesque mutations to their bodies, often due to the presence of Chaos flowing in their veins. Aside from the pallid color of their skin, Alex saw an elf that had an extra arm. Another one appeared to have an extremely massive arm that didn't match the rest of the body it was attached to.
Each of them bore some sort of mutation to their body that marked them as beings blessed by Chaos. It was hard to imagine such a thing could happen to people, but the proof was staring Alex in the face.
They all stretched out onto the grassy plain, arraying themselves in neat and orderly battle-lines. But that wasn't where the shit stopped hitting the fan, because of course Alex didn't have to fight just sixty weird looking people. No, he also had to take on the twenty half-trolls that stood behind the Chaos-born.
Standing just a few feet taller than Alex, wielding massive blunt weapons and clubs, and decked out in what looked like leather armor, the dark-blue skinned half-trolls added on to the sinking feeling in Alex's stomach. The massively muscled creatures could easily crush him with those weapons and they wouldn't bat an eye.
And to top it all off, three hooded figures stood at the very back, wielding gnarled wooden staffs that were surrounded by black swirls of energy. Alex mentally kicked himself. Of course they had wizards, why wouldn't they have wizards?
If Alex didn't think Dragnar would hate him for all of eternity, he would've already fled. Alex had no real battle experience. The only things he had fought so far were mindless crocodile creatures and overgrown plants. The assassin didn't really count because he was acting on pure survival instincts, and that was in an adventurers hall.
This was in an open plain where anything could happen, and it wasn't just a one-on-one. Could he really fight against soldiers who looked like they had been training their whole lives for this moment?
"Damn, they really went all out for this. Guess they've finally realized how vital this realm is to us." Dragnar's gruff voice broke Alex out of his thoughts. The goliath was readying a massive silver two handed battle-axe that sent shivers down Alex's spine. There was a gleam in the man's eye, and if Alex didn't know any better, he'd wager that the goliath was actually excited about the upcoming battle.
"I hope you're ready Alex. This is going to be a glorious fight." Dragnar barked out a laugh after that comment and gripped his weapon tighter, bracing himself for the battle to come.
Glorious? What could possibly be glorious about getting killed on some god-forsaken realm that he wasn't even supposed to be at? At least this time it wasn't his real body on the line. If he did die he would just have to wait twenty-four hours before he could re-enter the game.
Still, dying wasn't a preferable outcome. He just couldn't fathom how he was supposed to survive in a fight where they were outnumbered this heavily. Would he really be able to survive the coming onslaught?
Maybe he was just looking at this all wrong. Maybe all those heavily armed warriors over there didn't know how to swing their weapons. Maybe those towering trolls that looked ready to crush even their own allies were actually just pacifists. And maybe those sorcerers- yea no. He just didn't see the silver lining in this.
He drew the [Blades of Beruviel] and readied himself as best he could. Despite the overwhelming odds, he couldn't die here. He would give this fight his all because he had to meet up with Amanda.
A low chuckle escaped his lips, it was always her that kept driving him forward. She was the only thing that was his motivation to get stronger. Without her all of this was meaningless.
Another horn blared loudly and a resounding cheer went up on the side of the raiders; then they charged.
Vorcast
"So Corianna, you said you were supposed to meet someone here, right?" Jalek, the party's half-orc paladin and resident geek, set down his fork and stared at the elven woman who just stared off into nothing. "Hellooo? Earth to Corianna. Anyone home?" He waved a glove fist in front of her, causing her to blink rapidly.
Amanda had forgotten that she had told the game to give her some random name, and wasn't used to people calling her by anything but her actual name. Adjusting to being 'Corriana' was still a process. "Oh, yes. We were supposed to meet up earlier today, but…" She trailed off, chewing her lip and wondering just where in the hell Alex was.
He wasn't willingly avoiding her right? No, he wouldn't do that. Something was keeping him from her, Amanda was sure of it. But what on Earth could that possibly be?
Mediya
Alex decided that being bait sucked, especially as another longsword came towards him, intending to relieve him of his head. He caught the blade with one of his daggers and managed to deflect the blow before slicing his other blade in an upwards arc and ripping the chain links of his attackers armour to shreds.
These blades had already saved his life more times than he could count, and the battle had barely just begun. Thankfully the daggers seemed to be a cut above whatever gear the raiders had brought with them, and the difference between that gear had been made as clear as day.
The head of an axe that he barely managed to avoid before returning a blow of his own, piercing the armor of the Chaos-born and earning a cry of pain, only reinforced that point.
He had long since lost sight of Dragnar and he had no idea if the rest of the party had sprung their trap yet. He didn't really have time to ponder how the fight was going as he instinctually sidestepped a spear aiming for his stomach and stabbed his dagger into the chest of the wielder.
As much as his gear might be a bit better, the raiders had evened the odds with their sheer numbers. He had lost track of how many attacks he had managed to just barely dodge, but he felt the sting of all the ones he hadn't. His left upper shoulder had an angry red line from a longsword that he hadn't seen. His right side hurt like hell from where he had taken a swipe from a warhammer.
If things kept up like this, he wouldn't live to see the end of this battle.
He wasn't even sure how many of the enemy he had killed. Killed? His inner self laughed. He was stumbling around and barely evading attacks as it was. Compared to these hardened warriors, he was a complete and total novice. At best, any blows he had managed to get in only wounded the opponent.
Alex's first taste of actual combat was as chaotic as could be. How people fought like this, he would never understand. He had no sense of his surroundings and the enemies and attacks he avoided didn't seem to make a difference because they just kept coming. It felt like an endless tide of enemies were all around him, trying to wash him away with pure force of numbers.
Somewhere nearby a scorching ray of heat made Alex flinch, followed by screams and the smell of burning flesh. It was all so overwhelming, and he was barely hanging on. His senses were being overloaded and thinking clearly was becoming harder and harder. How in the hell was he meant to stay alive amidst the chaos?
His thoughts were cut short by a loud roar and the ground under Alex shook. Turning around, Alex found himself nearly face to gaping maw with a blue skinned half-troll. Before he could even react, he was swept off his feet and sent tumbling to the ground. His left side protested in pain as Alex shakily pushed himself to his feet. Breathing hurt and everything looked out of focus before he shook his head and steadied himself.
He couldn't die here. He had to keep pushing forward. He had to keep putting one foot in front of the other.
Keep fighting, Alex. You've got this.
Despite the chaotic fight happening around him, his mind felt clearer now. Getting his ass tossed around like a ragdoll had managed to unite his thoughts to one purpose. One goal. Survive.
The half-troll let out another roar, seeing that the small human could still stand after taking a direct attack from his club. Alex braced himself and readied his daggers, which he now realized were not in his hands. He must've dropped them when the big blue bastard sideswiped him. A glint of steel drew Alex's eyes to where the two daggers had embedded themselves in the ground… Right in front of the path of the half-troll.
Well shit.
Making a snap decision, Alex pumped his legs and dashed towards the daggers, adrenaline fuelling his every movement. The half-troll wasn't standing idly by either. The moment Alex exploded into action it started to run at him, intent on clubbing him once more.
Alex, luckily, had speed on his side and he made it to the daggers first, plucking them from the ground and continuing his mad dash.
At the last possible second before they collided and the half-troll smashed him with its club, Alex slid under the beasts legs, and used his [Leap] skill to jump onto the creatures back.
A mere second later he plunged both daggers into the half-trolls unprotected neck and activated [Fatal Strike]. The normally tough hide gave way to the sharp daggers, and they sunk all the way to the hilt before Alex stopped applying pressure.
Lvl 8 Chaos Half-troll slain, +400 EXP
Alex withdrew the daggers, both of which were covered in black blood, and then dropped from where he had latched himself on to the creature. With its mouth still open and gurgling on its own blood, the half-troll's eyes rolled up into its head and it fell backwards to the ground with a crash.
He was about to celebrate his victory when he still remembered that this was a battlefield. He might have taken down one big enemy, but he was still surrounded on all sides by the Chaos-born who now sought to avenge their fallen comrade. There was just no way for Alex to handle the four enemies around him in the state he was in.
Pure adrenaline had allowed him to take down the half-troll, but that was wearing off and the pain from getting swept off his feet was setting in. Gritting his teeth and prepared to go down swinging, Alex taunted the enemy with the universal motion that meant 'bring it.' They closed in as one, weapons raised to bring death to Alex.
Vorcast
"Well this guy." Jalek commented as the party sat down at a table in the adventurers hall after turning in their Ghek hunting quest. "He sounds like a real jackass. I mean, I'd never stand someone as pretty as you up."
Amanda, known in game as Corriana, rolled her amethyst purple eyes. Jalek was a sweet guy and he meant well, but he just wasn't her type. Not even close.
She had only partied up with these random people because Alex hadn't showed up and she'd be damned if she was gonna sit on her ass and wait for him. They all didn't seem to mind that she was a literal newbie to the game, but now she was realizing that was probably because of her avatar.
A High Elf had just sounded really cool to play as, especially as a magic user. The downside to this came in the form of the elves' natural beauty. Flawless skin, perfect features, piercing eyes and an alluring figure meant that any guy with a half a brain would party up with her.
She just hoped Alex was having a better time than she was.
Mediya
Alex blinked as an arrow pierced the head of one of the Chaos-born charging him. A whistling sound, followed by a thud, indicated a second arrow had found its mark in the skull of its target. He raised his blades to deflect a blow coming at him from a third opponent, but found it wasn't necessary due to the arrow protruding from the three-eyed Chaos-born's head.
The fourth and final raider found himself now charging alone, his allies dead on the ground. Deciding it was better to leave this mysterious human who had magical arrows protecting him alone, the Chaos-born turned and fled in the opposite direction. He only made it a few feet before an arrow flew into the back of his head and he dropped to the ground unceremoniously.
"You just gonna stand there and stare, or are you gonna get to work and kill these shit-heads?" Like a wraith, Alara appeared out of thin air before Alex, startling him. He almost swung at her with his daggers before realizing who it was.
Her quiver was missing four arrows and her bow was aimed in the direction of the one who had fled. Her eyes held a hint of viciousness and ruthlessness, as if she truly hated the raiders who were attacking.
Alex had never been more grateful that elves were such badasses. He just nodded his head and mumbled a thanks, bending over to catch his breath. When he came back up, the elven woman was gone, vanishing once more into thin air. "Behind you." Her voice in his ear almost made him jump, but he listened to the words and turned around.
Two more Chaos-born had approached, distancing themselves from the whirlwind of death that was Dragnar. Now that Alex had a second to himself, he could hear the booming laughter of the giant man. It was good to know he still had allies in the fight.
Before any attacks could rain down on him from the two newest opponents, the ground violently shook underneath him. He thought another half-troll had decided Alex was its lunch, but the ground shook again, forcing Alex to his knees. It almost felt like an earthquake.
Looking around, Alex could see that it wasn't just him. Everyone still standing in the battle was in some state of unbalance due to the intense shaking of the earth. Even Alara and Alaric with their natural elven grace were struggling to not be knocked to the ground. Just what the hell was happening?
"The treasure vault, it's under attack!" Dragnar's voice rose up over the chaos taking place, reaching his party members' ears. Treasure vault? Those two words followed by 'under attack' was never a good sign.
[Notice! The party leader has delegated you to deal with the vault attackers, prepare yourself to be teleported.]
Before Alex could even comprehend what was going on, he vanished from the battlefield.