End Online: Volume 6

by D Wolfin

  Soaring through the air gives me a great vantage point, so I am able to easily track the AI swordsman as he bounds through the city. Not only is he incredibly quick, but his ability to jump is astounding. If it wasn’t for the fact that I can fly, I wouldn’t be able to keep up with him despite all the obstacles he has to go over.

  “Lost, where is the swordsman now?” Verde’s inquisitive tone resounds in my head as she sends a private voice message.

  “He’s heading East, towards the nearest city gate.”

  I also relay this to Sir Laurence and Gladox, who are currently avoiding the guards after escaping from prison, so they can meet us there.

  As Fen is with Verde and doing her best to keep Chronix from catching them, I am the only one near the AI swordsman. He quickly reaches the city gate, easily dodging the few guards who bar his path and escapes the city. The guards are then rapidly left behind as he flees toward the neighboring swampy forested area just outside the gate.

  Not far behind the rogue AI, I fly through the air at a speed so great it creates afterimages of myself in the sky. As the AI reaches the forested swamp, I shout out loud and strain my body, forcing myself to undergo a short burst of speed, overtaking the AI and send a ‘Dire Starburst’ raining down on him.

  The swordsman reacts instantly, dodging the attack in a way that made me think he has some paranormal sixth sense for danger. He doesn’t dodge every small ‘Dire Star’ that falls down upon him, as the technique spreads out damage in a wide area if I so choose. Unfortunately only five or six attacks land on him, doing so little damage that there isn’t any visible reduction of his health.

  The attack, however, did stop the swordsman from fleeing and cause him to glare up at the sky. His gaze didn’t wander at all as it pierces the distance between us, as if he knew where I was the entire time.

  “It has been some time since one has been foolish enough to attack me. What is your name?” The swordsman’s loud voice rustles the trees around him and forms ripples through the swamp.

  “Normally you would introduce yourself before asking for someone else’s name. I didn’t think you were very interested in me before.”

  “That is correct, I am not. But as you are about to die, I will grant you this single request. I am Ladon.”

  After speaking, Ladon draws his sword in an instant and fires a shining green flash of swordlight towards me in the sky. I barely react to the attack in time, but my speed compensates for my late reaction and allows me to dive under the attack.

  Ladon gives me no time to regain my balance as another attack of swordlight follows up immediately after the first. Even after barely avoiding the second attack, a third, fourth, and even more come in a constant stream of attacks.

  Strangely enough, there is enough of a gap between each attack to allow me to dodge, almost as if the enemy AI had planned for me to do so. It is only after dodging nearly ten of the swordlight assaults that I notice I am suddenly nearing the ground. By frantically avoiding all of Ladon’s attacks, I have unwittingly lost my flight advantage.

  The trees’ canopies blot out most of the sky so the moonlight doesn’t reach the ground. Shallow water reflects what little light that reaches it, the silvery glow barely allowing a player to see. I use the small breaks between attacks to throw dire flames at the trees nearby, creating pools of deep crimson flare to illuminate the area. I end up wasting all my mana just lighting the area so I can fight effectively. Looks like I will have to count on my melee skills only in this fight.

  I feel frustrated at not having an opportunity to get closer and attack, but I should at least be able to hold out until the others come. By my estimation, it should take them around ten minutes to arrive here on foot. My only concern is that Chronix may do something unexpected and ruin everything.

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  - Fen -

  Watching Lost fly into the air and chase after the other inheritor candidate, I can’t help but feel nervous. I stand rooted to the spot and don’t realize we are still being pursued until Verde, that vixen, grabs my arm and starts to drag me away while screaming at me to keep running. I instinctively started to condense a dagger of ice to make her release me, but force restraint upon myself. Lost will be unhappy if I attack Verde.

  The group of men chasing us are getting closer, and there are also more of the city guards in the area closing in on us. I shake off Verde’s grip and start to flee down the closest city street. It is still night time, so the flickering street lights illuminate the roads.

  I stop and let Verde catch up before pointing in the direction we need to run, then I start moving again at a speed she can keep up with. My hearing is much better than anyone else’s, allowing me to hear the guards as they approach.

  The man that attacked us a few times in the past, Chronix, isn’t very far away from us either. Strange, I know he should be able to catch up to us, or at least be much closer. I wonder why he is holding back.

  “Lost said that they are at a swampy forested area to the east of the city, not too far from the gate,” Verde whispers quietly, her eyes nervously trying to penetrate the darkness of the alleys as if there is someone there.

  I don’t wish to speak with her, so I only nod my head in understanding. We need to reach Lost as soon as possible; he doesn’t stand a chance against this inheritor candidate by himself. Lost has done so much for me already, and I can’t allow him to be killed by someone like that.

  “There they are!”

  Several guards come around the corner in the distance and immediately shout into the night. I can hear guards responding without delay and changing their patrol routes to intercept us.

  It is at this moment that several strange men and women step out of the shadows between buildings and intercept the guards. They are all extremely strong in their defense as they hold large shields with which they block any attack and push the guards back. I have no idea who these strange people are, but they must be idiots to voluntarily fight the guards.

  I change my planned direction and lead the way with Verde following behind. I see her looking at the men with a complex expression. I hope she stays with them so she will leave Lost alone, but after only a moment of hesitation she chases after me.

  We flee through a few dark, narrow alleys to get the guards off our trail while we keep getting closer to the eastern city gate.

  At the east gate, there is a group of seven guards standing ready to barricade any attempts to exit. Lost and our foe have already made it through despite them so they all have their swords drawn and are ready to try and cut us down if we get too close.

  “Psst. Verde, Fen,” a gruff voice quietly sounds out from an alley next to us while we watch the gate.

  It turns out to be Gladox and Sir Laurence, the two men who are currently travelling with us and always have perverted gazes. They are hiding in the shadows while watching the gate and the guards defending it.

  “What?” Verde answers beside me.

  “We need to get out, I trust Lost told you where to find him and that swordsman?”

  “Yeah, but those guards don’t look like they are going to leave the gate.”

  “They won’t. We tried luring them out, but they wouldn’t budge. They are determined to defend the gate, and nothing but the gate.”

  “What do we do then? Kill them?”

  I want to say that I personally have no problem with killing them, but before I can get the chance to speak my thoughts, another voice sounds in the alley.

  “There’s no need to worry. Our people will clear the guards away. We only need to break through.”

  The voice belongs to Chronix, who happens to approach our group at the most opportune time. I can sense a considerable hostility from him, so I am more wary of his actions than the others seem to be.

  Gladox thinks about the situation and is the first to reply, “Then please do. We need to
get out of the city as quickly as possible.”

  “They will be here in a minute and a half. You had best be prepared.”

  Gladox seems to be at ease with Chronix’s help, but I am not that naïve. I create an ice spear in the air next to me and send it flying at his chest, aiming to pierce the heart. Chronix only smiles at my attack, casually sidestepping and avoiding the spear with very little margin for error.

  The tall blonde man who gives me a sense of danger doesn’t retaliate, only stepping back into the shadows and disappearing. Even the sound of his footsteps quickly fades, as if he is a ghost.

  Just as Chronix said, a small group of people arrive at the city gate a minute and a half later. The people, heavily armored and wielding massive swords and maces, charge the guards protecting the gate and swing their enormous weapons down upon them. The guards respond well, standing firm and fortifying their positions, but such an assault still takes up all of their attention.

  Gladox is the first to charge toward the gate, with Verde, Sir Laurence, and myself right behind. I also see Chronix and five other people exit a dark alleyway and do the same, but they are ahead of us and will reach it first.

  Chronix and his people manage to slip between gaps in the fight and get to the other side without taking any damage. We do the same, running through the melee whilst avoiding any stray attacks from the guards.

  A sense of relief washes over me as we exit the city. Very few guards will chase us now, and for the few that will, they won’t search very far.

  “Now, where are we heading?” Chronix casually asks Gladox while giving a sly glance towards the rest of us.

  Sir Laurence is about to warn Gladox not to say anything, as he hasn’t come across Chronix before and doesn’t know our history, but he isn’t fast enough. Before he gets the chance, Gladox says, “Lost and the swordsman are to the east, in a swampy forested area. He is currently holding him back, but I don’t know how the fight is going. We have to hurry.”

  “Indeed, we do.”

  Chronix signals to his men and they set off to the east, leaving us behind. Gladox is surprised when Sir Laurence grabs his arm and lets Chronix’s group run ahead. Sir Laurence quickly explains that Chronix and his guild have been trying to kill Lost for quite a while. Gladox frowns, looking at the backs of Chronix’s group as they continue to run ahead.

  “Then why did he help us? If he wants Lost dead, he could have gotten in our way. Even getting us locked up would have been easy for such a large force.”

  Sir Laurence’s brow furrows as he ponders deeply on the question before clapping his hands together and saying, “He must want the tablet. He knows Lost wants the tablet enough to steal it, so it must be valuable. We need to be careful of not only the swordsman who has the tablet, but Chronix as well.”

  Gladox and Verde nod their assent, but I don’t believe there is anything to worry about. I fear the inheritor candidate, but those other people can’t stop me.

  “Fen, you go ahead,” Verde says with a smile. “That way, you can get there before Chronix. Do you know where to go?”

  I nod my head curtly and immediately sprint off to the east to find Lost. As long as I can get close, I will know where they are.

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  - Lost -

  Ladon’s attacks are ruthless, unending, and have an uncanny accuracy. He constantly sends multiple swordlight attacks at me, and whenever I get close, flashes with an instantaneous movement that allows him to teleport 10’ in any direction and blows me away with a backhanded slash of the sword.

  I manage to get a few attacks in, but his health has barely decreased by five percent. In the meantime, my health is nearly at half. I have to keep flying above the ground too, because the swampy surface of the forest is an ankle deep pool of water and slows my movements. It has the same effect on him fortunately, otherwise I don’t know if I would be capable of holding out as long as I have.

  Ladon appears to be getting tired of the constant back and forth attacks; his swordlight attacks are coming more frequently with no sign of stopping. I can’t even get the chance to fly higher in the sky to give myself more freedom of movement, as each time Ladon counters with a torrent of attacks that force me to descend.

  I prepare to dodge the next attack and charge forward again, but he suddenly does something unexpected - Ladon thrusts his sword into the moist ground. I didn’t expect the move and don’t manage to react until that very sword erupts from the ground beneath my feet and stabs into my leg.

  I fly backward in panic, but not before receiving around 200 points of damage, a little more than five percent of my total health. Ladon sends out another swordlight attack and goes to repeat his dimensional stab again but a thick shield of ice surprises him as it forms beneath and in front of me, blocking the two attacks.

  Ladon’s eyes dart to the side and his gaze locks with Fen’s.

  “Fen, you’re here!” I call out while breathing a sigh of relief.

  “I’m here,” Fen replies timidly while staring intently at Ladon, who has halted his attacks.

  Ladon gazes back at Fen, but the look in his eyes contains no worry about defeat at all. If I had to describe his expression, it would be one of confidence and arrogance.

  Ladon moves his mouth as if to say something, but Fen suddenly attacks with a hail of small ice needles, cutting him off and forcing him into a defensive position. A whirlwind forms around Ladon, blowing the ice needles away before they can reach him. At the same time, he attacks Fen with several swordlight blades.

  Fen raises an ice wall in front of her which, while gradually being cut into pieces, still defends against the attacks. I see my opportunity to attack at this point and use the Sacred Art ‘Backstab’, vanishing from my position and appearing behind Ladon like a ghost.

  Before the AI swordsman can react, I swing my twin god-tier short swords down and cut into his back, dealing the most damage I have done so far. Ladon reacts quickly, blindly thrusting his sword behind himself. I have already retreated to a safe distance, but still took some damage from the windstorm in the process. Ladon’s sword suddenly seems to pierce the distance between us and stabs me in the chest.

  ‘Damn it! Another one of those dimensional stabs!’ I curse to myself as my health falls to a near critical state.

  Fen throws several heavy ice spears which pierce through the defensive gale. The spears hit the shallow water and burst into thorny flowers of sharp, icy petals. They also freeze the swamp water and lock Ladon’s feet in place so he can’t escape.

  The AI swordsman snorts in contempt, twisting his body at an impossible angle and cutting apart the thorny flowers that attempt to pierce him. He isn’t completely successful however, as the icy spears are too numerous and some still manage to stab into him.

  I take the opportunity to take out a bunch of homemade health potions from my inventory and, holding my breath to stifle the taste, pour one after another down my throat. The speed at which I recover health won’t increase from taking so many potions, but the duration of health recovery will continue until the effects of all the potions are consumed.

  I hear the sound of cracking ice as Ladon frees himself by forcefully pulling his feet out of the frozen swamp. The ice shatters around him and swordlight flutters around the area, pressuring Fen. The wolf girl seems to be holding her own against him for now, but I can see her slowly being suppressed.

  “Well, Lost, it appears you are having some trouble,” a nostalgic voice comes from behind me, accompanied by many footsteps splashing in the water.

  I turn my head to see Chronix and the rest of his party. Chronix smirks at me while looking at the battle. I furrow my brow at him and prepare to attack, but he then does something that completely surprises me.

  Chronix orders his party to attack Ladon, coordinating them to circle around through the trees and attack from behind the AI. As he le
aves me to recover health, Chronix flashes me a grin that makes me both anxious and worried.

  As Chronix and his party are getting into position, Fen’s defense finally falters. Several sweeping swordlight blades pass through her thick ice barricade and land on her body, sending her back several yards and doing considerable damage.

  Fen and I could barely get Ladon to lose ten percent of his health, yet each one of his attacks can do the same amount of damage to Fen. I can see where his earlier confidence came from. He isn’t anywhere near the strongest AI we’ve encountered, but he is definitely stronger than us. Fortunately, while he has quality, we have quantity.

  Chronix and his crew finally circle behind Ladon and, with one swift coordinated attack, his party unleashes a barrage of skills. Two high class magic spells are launched: one, a supportive type that will slow down the target’s speed, and the other, a fire type that will deal heavy damage and possibly burn a target for continuous damage over time.

  There are also four Sacred Art attacks at the same time. Some elemental sword strikes and a single defensive art which forms a large shield in from of the party to protect against any counter attacks.

  The defense of the party is an excellent tactic that proves to be lifesaving. Ladon suffers four of the unexpected attacks before performing an instantaneous movement and thrusting his sword at the party. The sword pierces into the shield, but it stops halfway through without being able to fully penetrate.

  Ladon appears enraged by Chronix’s party as he focuses his attacks on them, tearing their defenses apart and forcing them to retreat while still taking damage. As to be expected of a rich party from a large guild, they rapidly pull out health potions of the highest quality and drink them like water.

  The AI swordsman doesn’t get to attack Chronix’s party for long. Fen’s attacks force him to turn his attention back to her. The arrogant expression on Ladon’s face has diminished, now replaced by one of concentration.

  “We’re here!” Verde’s voice travels from between the trees as she, Sir Laurence, and Gladox appear.