Reidar crashed through the undergrowth, each breath a searing agony in his chest. The terror was a living thing clawing up his throat, but beneath it ran a cold, sharp current of focus. His grip on the spear was a lifeline, his only promise of defense if the chittering mass at his back finally closed the distance.
Branches tore at his clothes and scratched his face. Behind him, the sound of thousands of pursuing creatures filled the forest. Trees shook as the sprite swarm forced its way between trunks and over fallen logs.
These weren't even all of them. It was just those who heard him or those who thought he was a tasty enough meal.
His lungs basically blistered, and he was having trouble breathing. The spear in his hands didn't help at all with all that added weight, but he wasn't going to leave it.
He figured he could use the system's inventory to store it. That way, while in the Gas station, he stored everything that would help him survive in the future, from tools to food and clothes. But he was not going to leave the spear nor put it in his inventory, since he didn't want to risk finding himself in front of a monster he would have no way to kill.
The creatures behind him chittered and shrieked. Terror was fanned like a flame because of the monstrous voices, and what would happen if those voices got too close? He didn't want to think about it.
Reidar reached the gas station's clearing.
"Finally!"
The building stood exactly as he had left it. Fuel still leaked from the damaged pumps.
He sprinted past the station and continued into the forest on the far side. The Rift-Sprites were still behind. Some of them stopped at the gas station.
Reidar left the monster corpses there, hoping some of them would stop to eat, but there were not enough lures for them all to stay.
The open space made it easy for the sprites to gather. Some were drawn by the smell of the meat, so they stopped to join in. Others were curious and wanted a share of the meal. A few even started fighting over the food.
Reidar kept running, actually getting on the right of the gasoline trail. There was some more ahead of him, but the trail itself wasn't that long. It was just enough for Reidar to get out of the explosion radius, or so he hoped.
He turned to look back. Too many monsters were still chasing him, while just a minority of them stopped at the station.
"THESE MOTHERFUCKERS! WHY ARE THEY SO FOCUSED ON ME WHEN THEY CAN JUST EAT EACH OTHER?!"
At that distance, Reidar didn't know if the blast would get them all.
Reidar pushed himself harder. Two hundred meters from the gas station, he found what he was looking for. A metal gas canister sat beside a thick oak tree.
The container was empty now, its contents spread along the trail that led back to the station. This was as far as his preparation had reached.
The first wave of sprites was still far enough away to give him time to set the trail on fire, but not much.
He pulled the torch from his inventory. The gasoline-soaked rags were wrapped around the mop. His hands shook as he reached for his lighter. The small flame flickered to life on the third try.
The torch caught fire right away. He tossed it onto the gasoline on the ground. A trail of fire spread behind him, heading back to the gas station.
The flames raced along the trail he'd made. They followed every step he'd taken earlier. Reidar watched from a safe distance, his heart pounding. The fire moved fast, burning everything in its path.
The sprites saw the flames. Their chittering changed. Some tried to retreat, but thousands more pushed forward, drawn by the fire. Others pressed forward, drawn by the heat and the promise of fresh energy; most of them were Ember sprites.
The sprites closest to the station stopped moving. They chittered nervously as the flames spread around them.
The fire reached the gas station. For a moment, nothing happened, aside from Reidar hiding behind the impossibly large oak tree. The flames appeared to stop at the edge of the large pile of flammable materials he had collected.
Then they found the motor oil he had spread across the floor.
The entire interior of the station erupted in flames. Fire poured from the broken windows and climbed the walls. The heat was visible even from Reidar's position.
Then the fire found the gasoline-soaked cloth that led directly to the underground storage tanks. Reidar hugged his legs and stood under the tree. The explosion destroyed the increasing darkness.
A pillar of fire erupted from the gas station, climbing hundreds of feet into the sky. The shockwave almost knocked to the ground the tree Reidar was hiding underneath, but luckily it held. His ears rang. The flash of light burned white spots in his vision, despite him not even looking directly at it.
The blast radius extended far beyond the station itself. Sprites caught in the open were incinerated instantly. Others were thrown through the air like broken dolls. The lucky ones died on impact. The unlucky ones burned.
The notifications began before the sound of the explosion faded.
[Ember Rift-Sprite defeated.]
[Stone Rift-Sprite defeated.]
[Aqua Rift-Sprite defeated.]
[Wind Rift-Sprite defeated.]
…
…
…
The messages appeared faster than Reidar could read them. Dozens of kill confirmations scrolled past in seconds. The system struggled to keep up with the massive number of simultaneous deaths.
[You have gained 26460 C.L.A.S.P. Points.]
[You have earned 15000 Survival Points.]
Then the notifications about the titles came.
[COMMON HUNTER ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Creature Slayer I]
[Reward: Title - "Creature Slayer I"]
[COMMON HUNTER ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Rift-Sprite Hunter I]
[Reward: Title—"Rift-Sprite Hunter I"]
—[«Creature Slayer I»]—
Description: Title awarded to those who have begun their journey as a hunter, having eliminated 100 hostile creatures.
Passive Effect: Increases Survival Points gained from defeated creatures by 3% when equipped.
Rarity: Common (A standard achievement for new survivors).
Additional Effect: None.
—[«END»]—
—[«Rift-Sprite Hunter I»] —
Description: Title awarded to survivors who have proven their capability by hunting 100 Rift-Sprites.
Passive Effect: Grants a +5% damage bonus against all Rift-Sprite variants when equipped.
Rarity: Uncommon (Awarded for dedicated hunting of a specific creature type). Additional Effect: None.
—[«END»]—
[COMMON HUNTER ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Creature Slayer II]
[COMMON HUNTER ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Rift-Sprite Hunter II]
[COMMON HUNTER ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Creature Slayer III]
[COMMON HUNTER ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Rift-Sprite Hunter III]
[COMMON HUNTER ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Creature Slayer IV]
[Reward: Title—"Creature Slayer IV"]
[COMMON HUNTER ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Rift-Sprite Hunter IV]
[Reward: Title—"Rift-Sprite Hunter IV," Unique Skill—"Summon Rift-Sprite Squad"]
—[«Creature Slayer IV»] —
Description: Title awarded to seasoned hunters who have eliminated one thousand hostile creatures.
Passive Effect: Increases Survival Points gained from defeated creatures by 9% when equipped.
Rarity: Common (A high-tier milestone for dedicated survivors).
Additional Effect: None.
—[«END»]—
—[«Rift-Sprite Hunter IV»] —
Description: Title awarded to expert hunters who have specialized in and eliminated one thousand Rift-Sprites.
Passive Effect: Grants a +20% damage bonus against all Rift-Sprite variants when equipped.
Rarity: Uncommon (A high-tier achievement for specializing in a single creature type).
Additional Effect: None.
—[«END»]—
Then came the skill notifications. His First Killer achievement had triggered multiple times during the massacre.