by EA Hooper
“The Jiminy World Crickets are here!” Jim screamed, raising his fist.
The invading army launched their first attack on the nearby squadrons of confused Justiciars by bombarding them with spells. Vincent and Lloyd rallied their people to gather at the missing section of the wall, so Justiciars high above didn’t have a good angle on them. With the World Fountain restoring their Wardens’ mana, they found it easy to defend the new bottleneck.
Squadrons of Justiciars rushed across the streets from different directions, and Vincent could tell they’d prepared for the enemy army to break the wall. The first hundred Justiciars fell to their bombardment, but soon more than a thousand had gathered at strategically placed barricades. Just as many Justiciars positioned themselves in nearby towers and attacked with long-distance spells.
The Void Knights gathered together and targeted the nearest tower with combined Mana Cannons, collapsing the tower in seconds. They replenished their mana using ethers and the rainbow rain, and then they destroyed the next closest tower.
By the time they’d toppled the third closest tower, the number of Justiciars on the nearby streets had doubled. The enemies gathered their own squadrons of Wardens and pushed closer.
“Okay, this is getting rough!” River shouted, struggling to keep one of the team forcefields in place.
>Vincent: Jim, Quinn, Xan. We need to make our move before they bring down our forcefields. Use your Blood of the Ancient potions.
>Keanu: Hold on, I’ll buff you too.
Keanu held his hands out toward the four strongest players. An orange light flashed over them one by one, although he had to pause and drink an ether to get all four.
Triple-Plated Barrier Armor (Warden Only | Upgraded) – Mana Usage: Medium | Magic Rating: 100 | Creates three layers of barrier over the shields of a within-reach player that lasts ten minutes. | Threshold (100) | Weaker Elemental Threshold.
>Athena: I have a buff that won’t cancel out his, although it only lasts three minutes.
She waved her hands at two, drank an ether, and cast the spell on the next two. Light danced across the four players bodies.
Light-Absorption Buffer (Cleric Only) – Mana Usage: Medium | Creates a field of light absorption around target player for three minutes. This field absorbs the strength of incoming mana attacks, lowering their magic rating by 50.
It lowers magic attacks by 50? Vincent noted. That means my Gravity Shield’s Nullify will even stop Mana Magnums for one minute. The only problem is it still uses my mana to Nullify them, so I can’t let myself get overwhelmed.
Vincent and his three closest friends drank Blood of the Ancient potions. The potion tasted terrible, and he gagged trying to choke it down, but he felt the thirty-minute buff take hold as his levels increased by twenty for all his stats.
With level 200 Perception, Vincent felt like he was watching the war in slow motion. He followed mana bolts whizzing through the air and Scanned enemies before they could even cast their spells. He eyed the tightest-packed group of Justiciars and knew he should target them.
Vincent took off from the protective barriers, eyeing a gap in the crossfire. He darted at superhuman speed for one of the broken towers, planning to use it for cover. He equipped a mega-ether in one hand, and then leapt over the rubble, throwing himself high into the air with Zero Field.
He felt the barrier armor chip away from mana blasts as hundreds of Justiciars shot at him. However, his Gravity Field stopped the next few attacks. Vincent flew over an entire squadron of Justiciars and cast Black Cinder. He landed, chugged half the mega-ether, and then cast Black Cinder once more on the other side of the squadron.
Thousands of void embers rained on the Justiciars, putting holes through their bodies. A hundred men died at once, and a hundred more were left with holes in their limbs. Their screams almost drowned out the explosions and whizzing mana.
Vincent took off in a superhuman sprint the moment he finished casting his second Black Cinder. He circled around the burning men, using them as cover from the next closest squadron. The men had no qualms about firing through their own allies, however, and they gunned down dozens of injured soldiers in their attempts to hit Vincent.
The Ranger finished his mega-ether as he rushed toward the broken wall. He felt his mana draining quickly as stray shots pelted him. His ears caught the boom of Quinn’s Gravity Fist tearing through a crowd of Justiciars, and he eyed Jim’s Void Crow cutting down a dozen men.
The army of Jiminy World Crickets saw their opportunity and charged forward, leaving their cover and rainbow rain behind. They rallied behind the other three Void Knights and tore through the weakened army of Justiciars. Most of the Crickets had their shields still up and magic nearly maxed, and they slaughtered the mana-fatigued enemies.
Vincent took refuge under the rainbow rain and eyed the hundreds of Light-Drain Butterflies as they swooped onto the next squadron of Justiciars, weakening them before the Crickets attacked.
Two heavily armored men dropped from the broken wall, and Vincent Scanned them as they landed.
Player: Titus the Butcher
Class: Fighter
Subclass: Warden
Real Age: 49
Highest World: Zelik
Vitality*: Lv 113
Spirit: Lv 95
Resolve: Lv 94
Perception: Lv 91
Agility: Lv 103
Strength*: Lv 121
Player: Wayward Charlie
Class: Warden
Subclass: Mage
Real Age: 30
Highest World: Zelik
Vitality*: Lv 124
Spirit*: Lv 119
Resolve: Lv 109
Perception: Lv 101
Agility: Lv 99
Strength: Lv 97
Six more Justiciars landed nearby the two men, and then the two stronger ones cast a spell that created a dome around Vincent and the Justiciars that stopped the rainbow rain from pouring onto them.
Battle Dome (Warden Only) – Mana Usage: High (Teammates that cast this spell together can split the cost between them) | Mana Rating: 600 | Creates a dome that prevents players or monsters from entering or leaving, but only lasts three minutes.
“We got you!” Titus the Butcher shouted as he equipped a greatsword. “You ain’t getting anywhere near Lucas.”
“Now, hold on, Titus,” Wayward Charlie said. “He’s still extremely strong. All of us together might lose if we don’t play it safe. Let’s hit him with magic first.”
The Justiciars pointed their hands at Vincent and fired a barrage of Mana Magnums, but Vincent rolled away, equipped Song of War, and sprinted in a circle around the dome. With his incredible speed and reflexes, the Justiciars failed to land their shots.
Vincent ran along the forcefield, and then darted toward the Justiciars, but Charlie raised his hands, and a glowing stone wall rose between them. Vincent stopped himself at the wall, but then the stone swung downward, smashing against him. The force of the blow smashed the wall into pieces and slung Vincent across the ground. He felt the last bit of his mana trickle away as his Gravity Shield nullified the damage.
He caught himself as he rolled across the ground and then kicked off the dirt, launching himself back at the group. All but the two strongest players seemed surprised as Vincent raised Song of War.
Titus jumped forward and blocked the blade with a greatsword. Song of War chipped its edge, and the man struggled to stop Vincent’s momentum. The other Justiciars rushed at Vincent with counterattacks, but the Void Knight leapt away and put several meters of distance between them.
“He’s too fast!” Charlie grumbled.
Vincent equipped a mega-ether, but before he could touch the bottle to his lips, the Justiciars fired on him again. He dodged their attacks with quick steps and took sips between attacks.
“Stop him!” Charlie shouted, firing more spells. “Don’t let him recover his mana!”
Vincent dashed toward Charlie, stopped halfway
as the man raised a barrier, and fired Void Gun. The shot split the barrier, put a hole through Charlie’s head, and even blew the arm off the Justiciar behind him thanks to the Weighted Shell upgrade.
Titus roared, raised his greatsword, and charged at Vincent. “Just die already!” he screamed. The uninjured Justiciars equipped swords and followed their leader.
Vincent blocked Titus’s attacks with ease. He danced around the enemy and waited for an opening before slashing through the man’s double-layered mana shield with one swipe. Vincent sidestepped one of Titus’s attacks, then lopped off the Justiciar’s arm.
Titus screamed in pain as his allies slashed at Vincent. They swiped and stabbed and tried to circle around him. However, the Ranger always turned or knocked away their attacks a moment before they would’ve struck. After mere seconds, he’d removed their mana shields with quick taps of his orosteel blade.
Too easy, Vincent thought, watching their sluggish attacks. It’s not even my higher levels giving me the biggest advantage. It’s from years of sparring with Xan, who could take down all these guys in a sword fight even if they were her level.
Vincent decapitated one Justiciar, ducked another’s attack, cut off that man’s legs, and then jumped up to slash through another man’s chest. He stabbed one man in the heart as the Justiciar raised his sword, and then Vincent sidestepped an attack right as he heard footsteps behind him. He spun and hacked the man in half.
Titus’s jaw fell open as he watched his men die one by one. “Y-you monster! I won’t let you near my lord. I’ve done too many terrible things to Lucas’s enemies to see him overthrown.” He equipped a small item to his hand and popped it into his mouth.
A Lotus Capsule, Vincent figured. He paused and smirked as Titus charged forward. My group practically invented that strategy.
Vincent stayed calm as the man rushed toward him, and his eyes stayed on Titus’s jaw muscles. Just as the muscles tightened, Vincent threw himself backward. He scraped the tiny bit of mana he had to cast Zero Field and throw himself faster as Titus’s body turned to mana.
Titus exploded with a flash that spread across the dome.
Vincent collided with the barrier, but the explosion didn’t reach him. He chuckled to himself as he watched the remaining Justiciars be devoured by their ally’s flames. Vincent stood, drank the rest of his mega-ether, and then knocked out the barrier with Void Gun.
As soon as the forcefield came down, his allies flooded back into the gap in the broken wall.
“Fall back!” Lloyd shouted. “Get beneath the rain!”
“What happened?” Vincent asked.
“The enemies prepared a counterattack,” Lloyd said. “We lost almost a third of our people.”
>Vincent: Party count! Who’s alive?
>Jim: Check.
>Athena: Present.
>Alexandria: Doing great.
>Quinn: Me too.
>Keanu: I busted up that hardened-verasteel armor you gave me, but I’m okay.
>River: Like fifty people died around me, but I’m only psychologically scarred.
>Jake: I’ve barely broken a sweat.
>Lloyd: You know I’m still here.
Vincent paused for a few seconds as the remains of their army gathered and their Wardens tossed up more barriers.
>Keanu: Crap, I don’t think May survived. Her group was caught by those two strong guys. One of them broke my armor.
>River: The same two that killed everyone around me? Not going to lie, I bailed out of there like a chicken.
>Jim: I see them. They’re standing in front.
Vincent pushed his way to the front of the crowd. He saw the lines of Justiciars that had formed together to push back the Jiminy World Crickets. Two men stood at the front of the lines. One wore knightly armor and wielded a longsword, and the other wore lighter armor and carried a spear. Both men drank potions as Vincent Scanned them.
Player: Lightning-Lance Javier
Class: Mage
Subclass: Fighter
Real Age: 25
Highest World: Chata
Vitality: Lv 115 (+10)
Spirit*: Lv 138 (+10)
Resolve: Lv 121 (+10)
Perception: Lv 117 (+10)
Agility: Lv 119 (+10)
Strength*: Lv 131 (+10)
Player: Ekon the Paladin
Class: Fighter
Subclass: Cleric
Real Age: 96
Highest World: Karrak
Vitality: Lv 128 (+10)
Spirit: Lv 130 (+10)
Resolve*: Lv 137 (+10)
Perception: Lv 126 (+10)
Agility: Lv 129 (+10)
Strength*: Lv 142 (+10)
Those potions buffed them, Vincent noticed, eyeing the +10 beside their stats. Must be pretty good stuff. Blood of the Ancient is the only other potion I’ve ever seen that boosts all your stats.
Ekon raised his hand and shouted something, and the army of Justiciars halted their attacks. Hundreds of people drank ethers, and then Ekon slammed his hand downward. The army fired a massive barrage of attacks all at once, and the Jiminy World Crickets’ forcefields shattered one by one.
Javier raised his spear and lightning danced across it.
Lightning Breaker (Figher Only | Upgraded) – Mana Usage: Medium | Charges a weapon or limb with electric Breaker energy that can bypass armor. | Upgrades – Bonebreaker: Increases the chance of breaking bones. | Organcrusher: Increases the chance of damaging internal organs. | Stonebreaker: Increases the chance of damaging strong materials other than weapons and armor. | Chain Lighting: Spend a low amount of mana to have this attack spread to nearby enemies when you hit a target. | Thunderous Shockwave: Spend a low amount of mana to increase the chance of Breaker effects.
Ekon waved a hand over himself, chugged a potion, and then waved a hand at Javier. Light danced over their bodies, leaving a whitish aura.
Walking Dead (Cleric Only | Upgraded) – Mana Usage: High | Creates an aura over a within-reach player that lasts one minute. This aura prevents a player from dying unless their brain or heart is severely damaged. | Upgrades – Heartless: Destroying the target player’s heart won’t kill them. | From the Grave: Critical wounds regenerate while this aura is in effect, however the target won’t regenerate severed limbs.
Ekon and Javier rushed toward the Jiminy World Crickets. Ekon cut down one of the weakened barriers with his longsword, and then Javier rushed into the crowd. He stabbed the nearest player with his spear and activated Lightning Breaker’s upgrades. Electricity danced across a dozen players, shattering many of their bones and armor. Several of the Wardens fell, and most of their barriers collapsed.
Jake struck Ekon with a Mana Cannon, knocking out his two-layered shield. Nearby players, including Keanu, fired on Ekon with Mana Magnums that dented and then tore through his armor, but he ignored them and attacked the round-bellied man. Keanu must’ve lost his shields during the retreat, because Ekon’s hardened-verasteel sword tore through his light armor and skewered him.
Vincent rushed toward Javier, but the man seemed to ignore him and strike another group with Lightning Breaker as mana bolts from Justiciars barraged their army. Quinn reached him first and smashed through his shields and armor with Gravity Fist, throwing him across the battlefield.
Javier slowly stood, his body obviously broken and twisted. He equipped a new spear as his spine snapped back into place, and then he charged another group. River met him halfway and blocked his attack, but the chain lightning still hit nearby allies.
Vincent glanced at Jake to find he’d decapitated Ekon, but Ekon’s body still fought. Once it knocked out Jake’s shields, it thrust its sword through the man’s chest.
Jake’s eyes opened wide, and he glanced at Vincent.
>Jake: Save my friend. Please.
The former moderator turned to dust by the time Vincent approached close enough to see Ekon’s head. The head chuckled on the ground until it saw Vincent approaching. He fired
Void Gun through the head, and it turned to dust.
>Vincent: You need to destroy Javier’s brain! Ekon used a spell—
>Jim: I saw.
Vincent looked through the crowds and flying mana bolts in time to see Jim’s Void Crow slice through Javier’s skull. The powerful Justiciar had knocked River to the ground, but she’d held him back with a forcefield. The crow ripped through his brain, turning Javier to dust.
“Get the shields back up!” Lloyd shouted at their army.
Vincent looked around, noticing they’d lost all but a couple hundred soldiers. It’s too late for forcefields. We need to take out that army, or we’ll be forced to retreat. Their mana barrage is slowing down, so this might be our chance.
>Vincent: Regroup at the front. The enemies are running low on mana.
He rushed through the crowd while drinking a mega-ether. Jim, Quinn, and Xan met him there, and they all fired Mana Cannons at the Justiciars. They drank mega-ethers and shot a second round as Lloyd, River, and Athena joined them. Mana bolts pounded the Void Knights’ shields and armor, but they held steady until the rest of their army joined in their counterattack.
Explosions ripped through the Justiciars as many of them struggled to drink potions.
>Vincent: Give me cover—I’ll go in.
Vincent downed another mega-ether and rushed for the broken tower left of the Justiciars. A few mana shots hit him, and he felt a spot of blood on his side. However, his friends forced more of the enemies into cover with repeated attacks.
Jim spammed Mana Cannons thanks to his skill at chugging potions, Quinn blasted the Justiciars’ cover apart with Gravity Waves, and Xan swarmed enemies with dozens of Light-Drain Butterflies.
Vincent drank two normal ethers to finish restoring his mana while in cover. He traded Song of War for a mana-storage rune.
At max mana with the Blood of the Ancient’s bonus levels, I’d only need to drink part of a mega-ether to get off two Black Cinders—three if I can draw mana from this rune fast enough.
He waited until his teammates gave him an opening, and then sprinted toward the opposing army. They’d been reduced to only a few hundred men, and most of them seemed focused on hiding behind cover or drinking potions. A few saw him and unleashed spells, but Vincent sidestepped all but one Mana Magnum, which dented an armor plate.