[Celestial Arms | Solo] The Celestial Orb -- Part 5

[Saber]

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[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [1909]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [-N/A-]

Notes: [Meeting with The Informant]

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"]The sound of people began to pour in through the opened window, causing the sleeping warrior to stir. His mind had gone blank for several hours and the man simply sat in darkness, cleaning his blades in his mind as his body rested. That was the normal and the usual. Dreams were for people who had them and for those who were lucky enough to have happy lives. The man who sweat, quivered, and breathed heavily beneath the sheets wasn’t so lucky. The dreams he had were filled with blood, horror, and nightmares. Whenever he dreamed he found himself being tortured by the people he killed or abandoned by the people he tried to help. It was the main reason he didn’t like to sleep; he was afraid of it. Out of everything, Saber feared his own mind. After several months of terrifying dreams, Saber worked on controlling them until finally he was able to close them off. Rather than dream, Saber separated himself from his body and locked himself within his mind. Darkness swirled around him and he could still hear the grotesque laughter of the lingering souls, but it was much easier to bear this way.

It also allowed Saber to sleep for longer periods as compared to others, giving him a lot more energy for the next day and increased the spans between sleep cycles. When the Elf finally opened his eyes again, it was already midday and the sun was high in the sky. Even as Saber stared at the wall of the room, based on the way the light entered the window and the activity outside he could guess the time. But that wasn’t all he heard. As he laid there, his consciousness steadily returning, he heard the sound of someone sipping at a cup followed by the noise of a page being turned. Someone was here, in the room. He didn’t know who it was but still, Saber moved to defend himself. Slowly, he slid his hand up under his pillow and grabbed onto the hilt of the dagger there. He squeezed it tight and slowly started to pull it towards him.

“That won’t be necessary, my dear.” The one person Saber did not want to see in the morning spoke up clearly from her seat at the table. Saber closed his eyes at the painful sound of her voice and let out a sigh. If she was here, then that meant she had watched him last night. Perfect.

“Shouldn’t you be seducing some noble…?” Saber groaned and sat up, pulling his dagger out and setting it down on the bed. To his right, and several feet off, a woman in finely woven clothes and shining armor sat with a book in her hand and breakfast on the table beside her. She had eaten hers, but there was an additional plate and another cup of tea as well. It was still warm; she had just arrived it seemed, or had just ordered the food.

“I need a break sometimes too, thank you. With my main client running around in temples and disappearing too far off lands, I haven’t been too busy recently.” The woman smirked and placed a marker in the lines of her book before closing it. She set it down and exchanged it for her cup of tea. Saber wiggled his nose and then cracked his neck and back. The woman cringed.

“Is that necessary?” She asked, her tone dropping as she glared at the man. Saber chuckled and slid out of the bed and onto his feet. The woman diverted her eyes.

“Of course. Why would I pass up a chance to make you feel uncomfortable?” As he spoke, Saber accessed his menu and summoned his basic clothing; black pants and a black shirt. The woman rumbled a little but didn’t give a retort. Saber walked over to the table and asked if the food was his. When told yes, he sat down and began to eat.

“I didn’t hear back from you last night. Did everything go well?” As Saber cut into an egg, he chuckled and looked up to his company. She sipped from her tea again and stared at him.

“Oh? The Queen of Solitude is worried about me?” A sly grin crossed his face as Saber placed some egg and bacon into his mouth. The woman sneered at him.

“The King of Mistakes tends to get into trouble a lot. What did you find out?” Well for one, Saber found out that she was worried since she didn’t deny it. For two, he found out that he was locked into another stupid run around. There seemed to be a lot of them, but he didn’t share much of what he was finding. If he did, the Adventurer world might start to change. For now, Saber didn’t want that. If he could help it he wanted to handle it all on his own. That would be the best way and the way which would lead to the least amount of casualties. Besides, if Saber lost his mind in the process no one would miss him.

“I found out that the Celestials exist and I also found out that temples are heavily guarded.” His words didn’t seem to surprise the woman, but instead caused some kind of annoyance. She glared at him and didn’t say anything, as if telling him to spill the beans. Saber sighed and took another mouthful of food, using it as an excuse to make her wait a little while he thought of what to say.

“You’re so nosy.” Saber muttered, tapping his face with his napkin to clean up the mess there.

“Really? You’re calling me nosy? It’s my job to ask questions, you idiot.” Saber chuckled at the painful jab he got and sipped from his own tea. Oh, she tricked him. It was hot chocolate.

“For the moment, I don’t really know what I’m in. I got into a fight with some knights and keyed some kind of artifact in the temple. Now, I’m being sent to another one. I took a break because I was attacked by some zombie things in the forest and had to fight said knights. I won’t know what’s really going on until I reach the temple.” His answer caused the woman to sigh. She knew he was withholding information, but she also knew he was the one person who wouldn’t give him more no matter what she did. She could go as far as to strip for him, but it wouldn’t make a difference. Saber was a treasure trove of information that she could give the world to, but it still wouldn’t open for her. She had heard that he opened up once but ever since, he’s sealed himself up tight. And to think, she thought she was the one who would get closest. But she did know about one thing…

“Those zombies you fought, did they come in a swarm?” Saber seemed to react quite well to what she said, and he nodded. The woman sighed.

“Black sludge for blood? Did they continue to move even though you hacked them up?” The Assassin continued to nod as she asked her questions and Saber found himself confused. So, he had returned.

“Necromancer.” Saber instantly started to cough at the word and his expression turned hard. He snarled and clutched onto his napkin tight.

“What? I thought we killed him?” Indeed, Saber had fought this Necromancer during his travel East when he was chasing the guild, Raven’s Bane. The Necromancer was one of the higher tiered members of the guild, which made him difficult to get to. However, Saber pushed him out. After a hard fight, the Necromancer was thought to be dead but Saber never confirmed it; that was a mistake. A little after, Saber took control of the guild and made them clean up their acts while working for Margate. It was still a rough relationship, but the Ravens and Margate were both doing better now. And to think, the Necromancer would still be alive… Not only that, but he now knew about Londinium.

“It seems not. Others have been finding similar signs of dark magic in the area and two others were attacked by zombie-like creatures as well. If my suspicions are right, he is still alive and he’s targeting Londinium. I don’t know what he wants but it can’t be good. His attacks so far have been weak and the traces of magic we have found weren’t dangerous, but we don’t know for how long he will remain in the shadows.” As she spoke, Saber listened quietly while finishing his breakfast as well as his tea. Because of her information, Saber wanted to drop what he was doing and go after the Necromancer immediately but he knew full well that was a bad idea. If he did that, then the Necromancer would simply hide himself away again and come back later. Saber also wasn’t equipped for magic-tracing. He could track a physical being, but mages were out of his reach. He didn’t like it, but he would have to leave it to her.

“Keep me informed. Has there been any activity around Margate?” Saber got a quick response of a no. The Ravens had kept their eyes open, but it seemed that the Necromancer wanted Londinium. It was probably out of anger and revenge, but this man was no fool. He would wait until he could cause a critical blow to the city before attacking.

“Good, then for now I’ll keep focused on the Celestials. Notify Cirna. Have him get the Mercs ready just in case.” The woman grinned, her red lipsticked mouth stretching a little as she tried to make herself look sexy. Saber’s eyes closed slightly. Damned courtesan.

“I’ve already done so~ And Cirna wishes for you to be careful. He knows how riled up you can get just as much as I do.” Saber huffed and stood up from the table. He equipped his gear and slid the key over to the woman.

“Your worries are misplaced, I’m just a ghost.” Saber adjusted his scarf and headed for the door, grabbing the handle.

“And ghosts can’t die, am I right?” The words caused Saber to pause for a moment. He stared down at his hand on the doorknob and pressed his lips together as the memory of the nightmares attacking him in the forest and his mind going blank shot through his skull. He forced the memory away and buried it, then opened the door and left the room.

Saber made his way out of the inn, notifying the keeper of his key exchange before he left, and headed straight for the gates. He didn’t bother meeting with the Sages and didn’t bother communicating his intentions with anyone else. Saber wanted to get this over with as soon as possible. With that in mind, the Assassin climbed to the rooftops and swiftly moved out of the city, vaulting through the door and then up into the forest. Thule was a good distance away on foot and it would take time to reach it. At his pace, Saber would arrive within thirty minutes. Night would come quick today because of how late he slept so he wanted to at least get inside the temple before dark. Based on the position of the sun, he had five hours; plenty of time.

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[Saber]

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[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [3969]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [Pacify, Scout]

Notes: [Flaming Squirrels]

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"] “That must be it.” The Assassin knelt down at the top of a cliff face, staring out towards the ocean. There were several islands which dotted the horizon, but there was only one which drew the most attention; the Isle of Thule. Saber was able to pick it out almost instantly because of its strange shift in appearance. The last time Saber had been on the coastline, Thule was protected by a fog barrier and was near impossible to reach because of the deadly whirlpools, high level monsters, and violent storms that raged around it. Now, the island was quiet. There was still a lingering fog but the storm clouds that hovered above it had cleared, the waters were calm, and the scent of death that flowed from the blue depths was gone.

If the door was open, Saber would take his chance. Casting the bulk of his equipment into his inventory, Saber exchanged his heavy clothes and armor for shorts and a tight shirt. He also kept his daggers on his lower back and throwing knives on his thigh. Others would have used a boat to travel to the island, but Saber kept a lower profile. Instead of paying for transportation, the Assassin hurled himself off the edge of the cliff and dove into the waters below. He slipped beneath the blue surface in a splash, tensed up his body, and began to swim. The ocean floor was in view for a few hundred meters, but soon it dropped off into darkness. Once that happened, Saber began to check around himself every so often as he swam.

Unlike on the ground, Saber could be attacked from any location at any moment by anything in the open waters. Monsters here were much larger, much faster, and a lot more deadly. The ones he had to worry about mainly consisted of sharks, squid, eels, and even predatory fish, but the dark depths could hide anything of any size. There was no doubt in Saber’s mind that the possibility of a kraken-sized beast lurked just beyond sight. If that was true, then he would rather commit suicide than try to mess with it. Suicide would be a lot less painful as well, probably. Even with that threat, Saber pushed on.

The island was quite a ways off, but the well-toned body of the Assassin helped him navigate the waters easily. He went up for air every few yards, but then he dove down beneath the ocean’s veil right after. The main reason was to avoid the waves. If he fought with the waves he would waste energy and could also find himself losing ground even as he gained it. By swimming down below, he didn’t have to worry about getting smacked or blind-sided by water. Sure, there was a current and he was still moved and nudged around, but it was a lot weaker. Underneath the water, Saber could also see around him at all times. At the top, Saber would only be able to see whenever he forced himself to look down and he would have to stop if he wanted to get a good look. Where he was, Saber could swim and see all around him without having to stop.

As he swam, Saber mainly only saw a few schools of fish, shrimp, and a couple small sharks but nothing he would have issues with. The Assassin also used skills to help conceal his presence. The skills wouldn’t save him from the predators from the deep that might have better eyesight, but it would at least give him a small bubble of protection from the smaller threats. About halfway through his swim though, Saber’s problem slowly shifted to fatigue rather than being attacked. Thule was pretty far, now that Saber thought about it, and swimming may not have been the best idea. But, that was also why he had a backup plan.

After going up for air once more, Saber tilted his body down and lowered himself deeper into the water. He unmasked his presence and activated another skill in his trove of abilities; Scout. It was an ability gained when he switched one of his subclasses to Animal Tamer and in this kind of situation, it would prove useful. The Assassin approached a nearby shark and carefully floated near it, careful not to provoke it. The shark didn’t move much at first, but then Saber cast his skill. Its eyes sharpened and the peaceful black eyes flashed red. Saber narrowed his eyes, but he didn’t attack. Even as the Shark turned and dashed towards him, Saber stared down the creature and clutched his right hand into a fist; he was left with no choice. When the shark was a few feet away, Saber tilted forward and delivered a hard sucker punch right to the sea predator’s nose. The strike connected, but it was just a tap as Saber lost much of his momentum because of the water’s resistance. The strike still did its job and the Shark turned away. As it did so, Saber latched onto the Shark’s main dorsal fin.

The skin of the shark was a bit rough, but it was still smooth to the touch. Saber held onto it tight and pulled himself right up alongside the predator. It was a bit longer than Saber so there was no doubt in the Assassin’s mind that it was also more powerful, but for now he needed to rely on the creature and had to turn it over to him. With the Scout skill still active, Saber held onto the shark and gently rubbed at its side. The shark’s eyes remained red and it thrashed a little, but then Saber used another skill; pacify. Seconds later, the Shark’s eyes dimmed. Its aggressive movements stopped and the shark began to simply float forward. Then, Saber received a notification; the Shark was now willing to cooperate. Saber nodded and gripped onto the shark’s fin a little tighter. Using a hand motion, Saber commanded the creature to go to the surface. The shark complied and dashed upwards.

The dorsal fin broke the waves and Saber took in a long breath. Once he had it, he dove back down and connected with his ally again. Gently, he rubbed at the Shark’s side as if to thank it and smiled. When he was set, Saber pointed forward towards the distant island. The shark understood and began to swim forward. Saber kicked his feet alongside the creature, not wanting to be deadweight. The shark continued to swim through the open ocean, dragging the Assassin along and going back to the surface every now and then as Saber tapped its side. Soon it got into a rhythm. Saber could hold his breath for a minute so at about fifty seconds the shark would tilt upwards and begin to rise. In about a third of the time it would have taken Saber, the shark reached the island’s edge.

To show his appreciation, Saber took a few throwing knives and dove down into the depths of the water. Quickly, he pegged a few larger fish nearby and gathered them up. The shark lingered near the surface, watching as Saber performed his swift hunt. When Saber returned, he presented his ally with the catch and then released the creature back to the wild. Before the Shark swam off Saber gave it a light belly rub and then patted its back. The shark slapped Saber upside the head with its tail, giving the Assassin its own form of a present and then vanished into the distant blue. Saber smirked and swam up to the surface, kicking his feet steadily. Once he breeched the top of the water the Assassin pedaled and pulled himself to the beachhead. The sand rose up rapidly and finally Saber was able to shove his foot into it. He huffed and dragged his upperbody a little further through the water, using a wave to help guide himself in. When he could start wading, Saber lifted his torso out of the water and stood up tall, walking all the way up and out of the ocean.

“Feet dry…” He muttered, stopping just at the edge of the tide to admire the island in front of him. The Isle of Thule, a name given to places in history which were thought to have been without reach, had lived up to its name until now. As Saber dug his heels into the beach and marched forward towards the grassy edge, the island lost its crown. It almost seemed too easy so Saber prepared himself just in case.

Taking a towel out of his inventory, the Assassin stripped down to nothing and began to dry off his body. There wasn’t anyone around so he didn’t worry about getting spotted. Instead, he worried about drying his tired body. The island didn’t seem to be as far off as it truly was, making the trip even more difficult. Sure, the island was pretty much on the horizon or a little ways in front of it but Saber didn’t expect to be in the water for thirty minutes, hanging onto a shark for dear life. Maybe getting a boat would have been a smarter idea… then again, he preferred the challenge. Having survived the open water without being devoured by some sea monster he was quite content with his decision to swim. He might even try incorporating a long distance swim into his morning workout. It could be fun, could be.

Once he was dry the Assassin sent his wet clothes into his inventory and brought out his battle gear. His scaled armor clunked onto his shoulders, his many layers of clothes brought warmth back to his skin, and his weapons nestled themselves in on his waist. His boots separated his feet from the sand and his thick socks fought off the chill in his toes almost instantly. Even his hands became covered by black, fingerless gloves. Though, he was forced to blow on his fingers for a few moments to heat htem back up because of the gloves’ designs. The final touches of his setup were his cloak, and his scarf. He pulled his hood up over his head and tucked his nose into his scarf. Set and ready, the Assassin released a slow breath before marching off the beach and into the tall grass.

The island was larger than some might have thought because of the distance and it was inhabited by various kinds of birds. They fluttered around, chirping and singing without a care in the world as they lived their quiet lives. A few small creatures, about the sizes of squirrels and foxes, darted around in the bushes and through the open spaces. One was curious and popped its head out of a hole in the ground by Saber’s feet. The Assassin glanced down at the little creature and stopped. It wiggled its nose up at the strange humanoid and crawled cautiously from the hole in the ground, crawling low all the way up to Saber’s boot. Carefully and without any swift movements, Saber knelt down to the creature and summoned forth some seeds. They appeared in bag but he sprinkled some into his hand. The little critter looked like an enlarged chipmunk and had an extra bushy tail that wiggled behind its body. Yet, its fur showed that it was no ordinary chipmunk.

Saber extended his hand out to the littler creature and watched as it snatched a few seeds from his hands. The chipmunk had a dark orange color to its fur and its tail was the color of a flame; a deep shade of red at the base, orange in the center, and yellow at the tip. Its eyes were a soft yellow and its belly was a bright shade of red. The game denoted the creature as a Fire Squirrel, but it looked a lot closer to a fire chipmunk because of its ears and shape. Though Saber didn’t consider himself an animal expert so he didn’t pay much attention to the differences. Instead, he accepted the little critter as a chipmunk and that was that. He considered taming the critter but it seemed as if he didn’t even have a choice in the matter. Once the animal finished the seeds, it darted up Saber’s arm and onto his shoulder. Saber rumbled at the little thing but it ignored him and simply stared into his eyes, as if asking for more.

“Greedy bastard…” Saber muttered, plucking another seed from the bag and feeding it to the chipmunk. It happily accepted the gift and instantly devoured the thing. Again, it wanted more. Saber found himself continuously feeding the thing seeds until the bag he carried began to grow light. At that point, he finally said no. The chipmunk simply stared at him and its tail twitched.

“Boi you bettah give me anotta seed or I’ma torch yo weak ass.” Saber’s eyes opened up as the chipmunk’s mouth flashed. It spoke quickly and its voice was deep; the complete opposite of what he had expected.

“W-what?” Saber was dumbfounded and speechless. Did… did that chipmunk really just say that?

“You ‘eard me. Gimme anot’er seed, punk.” Suddenly, the chipmunk’s nose began to glow a bright red; it… it was catching on fire?!

“Whoa! Hey! Relax!”

“GIMME ANOT’ER SEED, ELFBOI!” The entire body of the chipmunk ignited into a flame as it shouted and it latched onto Saber’s face. Saber yelped out in surprise and grabbed onto the burning little critter, yanking it off him and tossing it away to keep from being burned. His face was singed and his fingers were a bright red, but he didn’t suffer from anything terrible. The chipmunk flipped in the air and landed easily on its four legs. Well, at least that confirmed where the ‘Fire’ in ‘Fire Squirrel’ came from.

“Really? Really. YOU’RE ON FIRE?!” Saber shouted, both confused and concerned at the same time. He half expected the chipmunk to be burned alive by now but it seemed quite content with being engulfed in the red and yellow light.

“God damn right I’m on fire. Now you bettah hand over dem seeds or you gon’ be a burning corpse, boi.” The chipmunk waved its flaming tail, which was now just a massive flame, and snarled at the Assassin. Saber couldn’t believe this. He was fighting with a flaming chipmunk over some seeds. Stopping was a terrible decision, perhaps the worst decision he had made since he started the quest.

“Fine, whatever. Take the stupid things.” Saber clutched the seed bag and went to toss it over to the chipmunk, but then he grinned. He increased the strength behind his toss and launched the bag over to the left and well out of the reach of the chipmu---Red

“WHAT?!” The chipmunk flashed in front of Saber’s eyes, catching the seed bag out of the air like some kind of ninja flame. It grinned wide and stared over at the Assassin as it soared brilliantly through the sky. Saber did nothing but watch the chipmunk fly and stared even as it landed and darted away.

“Seeya, Sucker!” The chipmunk shouted, sprinting into the tall grass. Saber snapped out of his frozen state and sprinted after the chipmunk; he wasn’t going to let the little bastard escape. No, not after that crap!

“YOU DAMNED DEMON CHIPMUNK! I’M GONNA SKIN YOU!” Saber bellowed out, drawing one of his daggers out of its sheath as he chased the critter through the grass. It remained in its enflamed state and burned the area around it, but no fires started. It must have been an effect to the fire. Now that Saber thought about it, his hood and scarf hadn’t caught on fire either; it was probably just an effect to show that the chipmunk was really hot to the touch.

“Catch me if you can, Elfboi! I’m the quickest squirrel on this island!” The chipmunk taunted, dashing right and then left, and then right again, weaving through the tall grass as Saber chased behind it. The Elf gained ground, but the chipmunk kept itself at a distance. It never looked back, trusting in its own speed that it could keep ahead of the Elf. Sure the chipmunk may have been the fastest thing on the island, but Saber wasn’t from the island.

The two burst into the forest and the brush thickened, forcing the squirrel to get crafty with its movements. Saber’s eyes flashed in front of him, reading out the debris and calculating the quickest path through it all. The squirrel was low to the ground and could easily slip beneath a lot of things, but Saber’s agility allowed him to hurdle over things that may have slowed the squirrel down. Though, his size also forced him to slow in tight spaces. Due to this, Saber wasn’t able to gain much ground. Not only that, but the squirrel didn’t seem to be getting any more tired. Its quick speed and nimbleness never waned even as Saber started to feel his muscles burn. If this kept up, he would lose the critter.

“You gettin’ tired back der?! Come on boi! KEEP UP!” The squirrel shouted, turning on a dime and darting straight to the right. Saber huffed and moved to cut it off but just as he got close, the creature accelerated and turned into a yellow flash for a second, escaping right through Saber’s finger tips. Saber huffed and rolled over his shoulder, as he had performed a dive to try and catch the thing, and bounced back up to his feet. He sprinted ahead and elevated himself to the tree tops, avoiding all of the crap along the forest floor. Doing so allowed him to catch up to the squirrel, but he was forced to stay above it. If he dropped down, it would escape him again. Yet the squirrel was smart, and it knew this.

The squirrel sprinted for a mess of trees and hopped into them, but Saber was forced to drop down because the canopy began too thick. The squirrel slipped ahead and gained ground, but Saber kept it in sight. His body burned but he would catch the slippery fur ball even if he had to shoot it. Once he was through the tree cluster and back on the squirrel’s tail, he switched his dagger for a throwing knife. He squeezed the hilt tight and considered what skill he could use to catch the critter. It didn’t have a shadow for him to constrain the squirrel with and it was so small that even a critical strike would be difficult to hit perfectly. If Saber wasn’t careful, he could also find himself smacking face first into a tree. That would end his chase right then and there which left him with only one option; he needed to cheat.

That was when the tree line opened up. The squirrel darted out from the forest and barreled into an open meadow with Saber not too far behind. When his view cleared, Saber’s feet slowed and he steadily came to a halt. The squirrel didn’t stop however and kept going, but soon it too slowed to a stop. It glanced over its shoulder and turned all the way around, dropping the bag of seeds at its feet. Saber stared ahead of himself, the grip on his dagger loosening a bit. So, this was why the squirrel had run off.

“I told you to keep up, Elfboi…” Behind the flaming squirrel was the temple; Saber’s destination. It was a massive thing and seemed completely out of place here on the island. The trees surrounding it were cut out in a perfect circle and the grass was cut pristinely all around it. It was too perfect of a scene.

“So… you were leading me here, weren’t you?” Saber said aloud, shouting to the distant squirrel as he started to walk. The squirrel waited until Saber stopped beside it before it turned around and started talking again.

“Yep. I figured this was why you were here. This damned thing showed up a few days ago out of thin air and frightened a lot of the Elders. I searched around it but found nothing really frightening. The only thing is, I can feel something evil coming from inside. When the birds saw you and started shouting out that we had a visitor, the Elders sent me to find out who you were.” What? The animals on the island really had that complex of a system? Seriously? The hell, if animals could do this, then why was Londinium still so botched? At that instant, Saber was reminded of human nature.

“Right then.”

“Well, I guess I can say that you were right.” The squirrel huffed and started stuffing seeds into its mouth.

“’Course I’m right. Ya don’t have to tell me.” The boldness in the squirrel’s voice and personality made Saber sigh. No wonder the thing was sent to be the greeter. Even if a squirrel murderer showed up on the beach, the damned little thing would still fight the murderer to the death without even shaking.

“Thanks for showing me the way.” Saber didn’t linger for any more conversation and started to head down into the temple. Just then, the squirrel ran out in front of him and halted his advance. It was still on fire. Why was it still on fire?

“Whoa there. Take me with you.” What?

“What?”

“Take me. With you. Are you stupid and deaf?”

“Why does everyone think I’m an idiot?” Shut up stupid.

“Fine, but don’t blame me if you die.” Saber stepped over the burning critter. As he walked, he felt heat and claws on his back. The squirrel then appeared on his shoulder, its flames now gone as it sat down and continued to feast on the seeds.

“Shut up. If I die, you’ll already be dead.” The courageous little rat made Saber’s blood boil a little. The thought of skinning it returned, but Saber suppressed the feeling, for now at least.

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[Saber]

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[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [2068]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [Memory Shot, Doppelganger]

Notes: [Demon vs God]

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"] The air began to shift as Saber walked deeper and deeper into the temple. As he reached the bottom, the scent of death was almost too much. The Assassin narrowed his eyes and tucked his nose against his scarf, glancing around the room as his stomach twisted into a knot. The squirrel on his shoulder must have felt it too, the deathly presence, and had begun to shake almost controllably. His snarky remarks had stopped and the hairs all over the squirrel’s body were now standing up, as were Saber’s. Saber initially thought that he was going to be ambushed again, but he was wrong. At the bottom of the ramp, he was simply shown an empty room. It was a massive, wide-open zone with several columns stretching towards the ceiling to support it. The walls were etched with stories most likely of the celestials and the designs told stories; an expected detail for the temple. However, it was strange.

Saber looked all around the room, checking each corner, each column, and every wall. He looked at every small detail and searched for something, something very specific to all of the temples he had previously been to; age. All of the prior places Saber had visited looked as if they were crumbling ruins. The floors were covered in dust, the walls were cracked, and sometimes there were some pillars that had been broken. This place, though, looked almost like it had just been built and Saber was the first person to step inside of its walls. It was strange, very strange. Even the water in the fountain was fresh. If this place was so new, then why was the air so thick with blood?

“This isn’t good…” Saber knelt down and gently placed a hand on the floor; it was warm. Now this heat wasn’t boiling, but it was a soft, gentle heat. It was one someone would expect from a mother’s loving touch on the cheek. This warmth wasn’t meant to ease; it was meant to lure.

“Squirrel, you need to leave.” He spoke calmly, but sternly, to the squirrel on his shoulder. The order caused the little animal to snap out of the trance it was in. It twitched and tried to speak out against the order Saber gave, but the Assassin simply glared at it. If the Squirrel stayed, it would die. There wasn’t any other way that Saber could put it. In this place, in this temple, there was a battle beyond proportions happening, one that spanned centuries. Even Saber doubted that he would be able to make it back up the ramp this time and if that crossed his mind just once, then he wasn’t going to let a bold animal follow him in. No, in this situation, he wouldn’t even let God step foot into the room.

“F-fine! But only because I want to see you come crying and begging for my help later!” With that, the Squirrel turned around and scampered down Saber’s back then up the ramp. Saber thought he heard the Squirrel whisper ‘good luck’, but he never turned around to check. Instead his eyes latched themselves onto the fountain. It was from there that the deathly presence was flowing and it was there that Saber knew he would have to walk. Maybe he should’ve called out for back-up.

Picking himself up, the Assassin started to walk towards the fountain with his head up high. He kept an eye on his empty surroundings, checking any and all shadows to ensure his own safety as he walked up towards the fountain. The stench kept getting thicker and thicker as Saber got closer, almost to the point that it was unbearable. He wanted to throw up. Part of him felt like everything would be better once he did, but the other part of him knew that it would only get worse, so he held it in. He tried to ignore it but that smell was just too vibrant. It was worse than the stench in the forest, so much worse.

“So, that must be what I’m looking for.” Saber didn’t want to but he forced himself to look down into the fountain’s depths. Inside he half expected to see a mountain of bodies, thankfully there was no such thing. Down at the bottom of the fountain however, he did see something peculiar; a single, shimmering orb. From the distance Saber could only assume that it was the size of a bowling ball. Though, he knew that things could be misleading when it came to the Gods so he took the sight with a grain of salt. Rather than let his eyes lie to him Saber would make his body bring out the truth. He cast a quick skill and summoned forth a copy of himself, a doppelganger. He glanced at his black, silhouetted reflected before ordering it down to retrieve the orb. Without so much as a breath, the double dove into the clear waters and began its descent. Saber watched the double swim for a few seconds before he nodded; as suspected the fountain was deeper than it seemed.

While his double descended for the orb, Saber stepped away from the fountain and began to set up his preparations. He pulled open his menu and equipped his ranged weaponry; his high level bow and set of arrows. He also pulled out several of his new inventions, items from the world he had come from; hand grenades. The Assassin pulled out five of the explosive orbs and stored them on his belt and within his clothing for easy access. Once they were placed, the Assassin vaulted upwards and elevated himself several meters. From his desired height, Saber fired several arrows towards a position a few meters in front of the fountain. Using his skill Memory Shot, he concealed the arrows within the air and made ten of them disappear; the most he could due to the restriction of the skill.

Afterwards, Saber locked his bow on his back and headed back to the fountain. Just as he reached it, an arm blasted out of the waters and extended a small object towards the air. Saber’s double had successfully retrieved the ‘bowling ball’ sized item Saber had spotted. Due to the time it had taken to retrieve it, the fountain must have been quite deep. The Assassin thanked his double for its hard work and then cast it back into the wind, snagging the orb before it could drop back into the water. The instant he touched it, he realized his mistake. The floor began to rumble, the stench became more prevalent, and Saber dropped to a knee. His mind began to swirl at such a rate that his gut became a violent mess. His mind filled with the screaming, shouting, and laughing of millions of different voices as his vision blurred into a mess of memories and visions. In an instant, Saber’s entire conscious exploded with a flood of memories from thousands of other beings. He couldn’t breathe, couldn’t hear, couldn’t feel, and he couldn’t see. All of his senses vanished once he took the orb and before he knew it, he was on the ground.

“You have disturbed my slumberrrr….” A deep, rumbling voice boomed through Saber’s entire existence, silencing all of the voices and memories which had taken over his body. The orb in the man’s hand throbbed, pulsating with power and strength as the room began to quake. Saber felt all of his strength leave but he knew he had to move. The water spurting out of the fountain began to move erratically and the water level rose dramatically, spilling over the edge as a current started to form. The pools began to swirl and circulate, creating a torrent within the fountain’s walls. Saber had to move, he had to get up!

But the commands… they were deafened by the rumbling, blocked by the fear which filled him. His body lay there, twitching and gagging helplessly as his eyes were left to stare at the fountain. He felt truly, completely defenseless as a massive shadow started to emerge from the fountain. Its body was a dark blue shade and Saber could make out exactly what it was; a crab. It was a massive crustacean with four oversized claws and four massive armored legs to support it's huge body. From just a glance, Saber knew the all four of the large claws had a crushing power which could easily snap his body into pieces with just the slightest amount of pressure. He needed to move… GET UP!

“You… Elf… You dare steal my treasureeee…?” The voice didn’t come from any kind of mouth but it seemed to emit from the air all around Saber. It was so powerful that he felt paralyzed in its presence. This Crab… it was different than the others.

“You look frightened… Are you afraid…?” The orb in Saber’s hand pulsed. Suddenly, his body retorted with a harsh outcry from the hundreds of voices in his mind. All at once, they chanted the word ‘NO!’. Saber’s eyes opened wide as he was showed the same view in thousands of different ways; other people had come here. Other people had faced the crab and had done the same thing! They had all said no, they had all stood again him! Yet… yet… YET! They had all died, all perished the same way! This crab, it wasn’t like the Wolf or the Fox! It wasn’t going to make a deal, it wouldn’t make up any trial! No, it was going to grab Saber with its claws and it was going to rip him into pieces. This crab was no god, not one that Saber knew of! No this Crab was something different, something completely different than the Gods he knew of.

“SPEAK! ENTERTAIN ME!” The crab demanded an answer and Saber felt the orb throb once more. It lit a fire inside of Saber’s stomach and he felt the swirling sensation vanish. He suddenly felt light, as if all of the weight of the thousands of memories had been silenced. Then, something over took him. He felt pain, sadness and loneliness, fear and agony… and then he felt power. An overwhelming feeling of strength poured out from the orb and stretched through Saber’s entire body. It was a similar feeling to the one he had just before he had fainted in the forest, but this one was different. This feeling was warm and energizing; Saber felt like he could take on the world as the flame stretched through his veins.

“Stand, Elf… Do not fall like the rest of us. You must survive!” Saber blinked as his vision was filled with the faces of thousands of people. They were of various different races, ethnicities, and times. Their genders varied their builds and bodies all different, but they were all the same because all of the people Saber saw were dead. Every one of them had perished here within the room Saber lay in, all of them to the massive Crab that loomed over him. And if he lay there any longer, he was going to join them.

“Please…” The pleading voice ignited a fire within the Assassin’s core that he could not resist. He clutched the orb in his hand and clenched his teeth together as his body began to move. He rolled onto his knees and glared at the floor.

“Stand, get up.” He ordered, forcing his body back onto its feet. He stared at the floor a little longer as he seethed through his teeth. His body pulsed with power and his vision widened. Finally, he looked up from the ground and glared at the Crab in front of him. A name appeared, illuminated by Saber’s interface; Brachyura. Saber snarled and gripped at the orb with all of his might.

“Brachyura…” Saber growled, his teeth fully barred as he glared at the massive beast in front of him. Not an ounce of fear remained in his body; Saber could only feel the power of thousands of others seeping into his muscles from the orb. Thousands of other souls lingered within the orb, unable to rest because of their failure. However, with their strength, Saber was going to let them free… And to do that, he was going to battle a God.

“I’m gonna kill you.”

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[Saber]

[INSTANCE]

--BATTLE BEGIN--

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[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [811]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [Explosive Sigil, Activated Memory Shot]

Notes: [Just Getting Started]

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"] “Those words will be your laaaaaassst!” The massive crab lifted one of its massive, thickly armored legs and slammed it into the stone floor. Slowly, the crab pulled itself out of the fountain, causing water to thrash and spill out from the walls of the container. With the crab moving forward, Saber launched himself backwards. As he moved he pulled out his bow and nocked an arrow against it, snugged the notched back of the arrow shaft into the bowstring, and drew it taut. The crab’s last leg escaped from its container and just as it hit the hard floor, Saber sucked in a breath. His feet touched the ground and then he released. The arrow shot through the air like a rifled bullet; straight and true. Brachyura let out a long sigh-like breath, releasing a mist from its mouth. It let the arrow come and stared towards the distant Assassin. Saber grinned and snapped his fingers.

Out of the sky, Saber’s hidden volley descended on the crab monster, targeting the exact location where it stood. Before the crab could move, all eleven finely sharpened black arrows stabbed into its hard shell. Brachyura’s violent eyes shot open and it let out a bellow as all of Saber’s arrows cracked through its mighty crust as if it was paper. It had underestimated him, and that was its first mistake; it only would get three. The crab had expected the arrows to be normal iron-tipped projectiles, but he would learn that Saber’s arsenal was not normal. His weaponry was made for foes like Brachyura and every weapon was made to punch a hole through the enemy’s defense. For Brachyura, his defense was his extremely hard shell. Thus, his bow and arrows were more than effective. Initially, Saber had predicted some kind of massive fish to come out of the water but a crab? This would go even more smoothly.

“HOOOOW DARE YOUUUU!” The voice boomed through the room as Brachyura felt the pain of Saber’s full strength. Magic powered arrows with reinforced tips made specifically for breaching even the hardest of armors and a bow forged simply to increase the power behind his shots; it was a combination that any shell would crack beneath. Not only that, but Brachyura was also beginning to feel the pain of something else. Out of the eleven holes in its body, six were leaking a slimy green substance; blood. Barbs on the arrowheads sliced through the meaty flesh underneath the crab’s hard shell, cutting it open and causing the creature to bleed. Saber smirked beneath his scarf and pulled on his bow’s string, another arrow readied in the barrel.

Brachyura snarled from his position and his four arms snapped at the air, his claws snipping aggressively towards the distant Assassin. It began to chant murderous threats as its body started to glow, Saber readied himself. Brachyura’s body started to tremble as its violet eyes glossed over. Rage consumed the massive beast and the misty vapor that leaked from its crusty lips turned into a fog. Saber took his chance and released his arrow, pegging the crab in its right arm. The crab snarled and broke off the exposed shaft, snapping the dangling part of the projectile off its body. Then, it attacked. The massive creature leaned forward and darted across the floor, lowering its shoulder as it raced across the room directly towards Saber. The Assassin lowered his bow and dashed to the right, snagging a small black orb out of his pouch. Reacting quickly, Saber pulled the pin and held down the lever. As Brachyura passed, Saber launched his grenade at its exposed back. Along with the grenade, the slick player added another surprise; a brightly colored orange sigil.

The timer in the grenade neared zero and the metal casing tapped against Brachyura’s back as the crab lifted its head, Saber took cover. At the sound of the pinging impact, the creature looked over in time to see a massive orange flame erupt from the black case. The grenade blasted apart, sending shrapnel throughout the room and caused a fierce explosion. With the added banging power of the explosive sigil, Brachyura’s shell cracked and chipped. The massive creature cried out in rage and pain, its howl echoing through the temple with a thunderous rumble. Saber didn’t respond and narrowed his eyes, slipping into the shadows. Brachyura whipped around and snapped its claws at the air.

“COOOOWAAARDDD!!” Brachyura looked around the area and trudged forward, its claws snapping at the air, ready to rip Saber into pieces. However, the crab’s angered eyes found nothing but darkness. The Assassin was gone, completely and no matter how hard he searched and peeked around columns, there wasn’t any sign of his opponent. Brachyura hissed and smashed his claw angrily into a nearby column; the bastard Elf… WHERE HAD HE GONE?!

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[Saber]

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[attr="class","actualBG"]

[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [933]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [Congregating Arc, Substitution Arts, Explosive Sigil, Hazecloud Vault, Spark Shot]

Notes: [Need For Speed]

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"] A sharp whistle rang out through the large room and Brachyura stood up straight at the sound. Its eyes twisted to the left, followed by the rest of its body as the creature turned to face the direction of the noise. Far out of reach once more, Saber stood with his bow and arrow ready to fire. However, there was already a shot in transit, an arrow Brachyura had initially overlooked. Right before the massive crab’s eyes, Saber’s arrow split into multiple projectiles and they pierced through his shell, another critical blow which forced the crab to lift its arms in a defensive shield. The creature moaned out in pain as his tender underbelly was struck directly. At the same moment, he felt a grin. Glancing towards the Elf through his claw-shield, Brachyura could see the Ranger’s smiling eyes staring him down. Seconds after impact, the arrows all ignited with electricity, sending pulses of sparks into the crab’s body. It was another combination strike?!

Brachyura clutched its claws together and snarled loudly as its pain receptors pinged all over its body. The creature felt paralyzed for a moment from the power behind the strike but its eyes were never taken off the Assassin. Afraid that the Elf would disappear again, Brachyura was careful not to shut its eyes. This Ranger was someone far different that the others it had faced before. He was quick, nimble, and used the shadows to his advantage. His attacks were fierce and focused, and they were done with a purpose. The amount of strength the Elf was putting into his attacks was not high but it was starting to hurt. If Brachyura continued like this, he would perish… And that would not happen!

Taking a heavy step forward as the electricity started to disperse; Brachyura stabilized its body and conjured up enough strength to pool water in the basin behind its lips. Its body sucked in energy from the air and absorbed the liquid through its shell until finally it had enough. It used its small tongue to gather it all up, filling the water with its own mana and it did this all in a split second. The moment its attack was ready, Brachyura fired a massive bubble of water out into the air and directly towards the Assassin. Saber narrowed his eyes and drew back on the bowstring, firing his shot directly at the bubble. The watery object was pierced and exploded in a wet mess all over the floor but it had done its job. As Saber pulled out another arrow, Brachyura jumped into the air and launched itself directly towards where the Assassin stood; Megaton Slam!

Saber huffed as he pulled the arrow from his quiver and activated his skill as the oversized Crab threw itself at him; Hazecloud Vault. After a second of being keyed, smoke exploded out from where the Assassin stood and the Elf launched himself up and back, barely evading the oversized wrecking ball as it crashed into the floor. Rocks and debris shot out from the impact point, pelting Saber’s body as he flew backwards. As he floated through the air, Saber nocked another arrow and fired it into the smoke as it was whisked away by a heavy gust of wind. Right after his first shot, Saber snagged two more arrows and fired both of them. All three arrows dug into the crab’s upper left arm and cracked the hardened shell armor. Brachyura, annoyed with the Assassin’s speed, lifted up its body and charged forward once more in an attempt to close the distance. Saber narrowed his eyes and skipped back, firing another shot. This time, Brachyura swatted the projectile out of its face. As its massive claw crossed over its eyes, Saber shifted his direction; he rushed forward.

The Elf accelerated rapidly right into Brachyura’s guard and the crab immediately moved to strike. Two of its claws reached for Saber’s body as the Assassin pulled its hands together, forming some kind of seal, but no matter! Brachyura dug its claws into the Assassin’s body and wrenched down with all of his might! Saber didn’t even flinch. Instead, the Assassin’s body exploded into smoke that lasted only a few seconds. When it cleared Brachyura found himself holding a cracked log. Its eyes opened up and then it felt a tap on its back. Glancing over to the right, its eyes spotted the Assassin as he jumped away, leaving a present behind. Lodged just beneath the Crab’s mighty husk, a metal container was placed with an orange sigil on its side. The orange sigil lit up, flaring to life and then it combusted. Brachyura was blinded by a fireball, engulfed in heat, and felt metal shards dig into its body as its shell crumbled at the weak point. The massive crab’s vision blurred and green goo seeped out from its wound.

A low moan boomed through the room again as Brachyura stumbled to the left, bumping into a column as it tried to stabilize itself. It was blinded by the fire and its eyes were heavily burned, making sight difficult. Unable to see or defend itself, Brachyura found itself defenseless as its body was struck in several places by the Assassin. One arrow after another found its way into its shell, cracking and shattering its impenetrable wall of a shield. This fight was a joke and the Elf was picking through Brachyura like it was nothing! And he was doing it so quickly and so easily… there had to be a trick! There had to be something!

“…The water!”

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[Saber]

[attr="class","topBox"]

[attr="class","bgBox"]

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[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [539]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [Accel Dance, Shadow Wire, Shadow Bind, Atrophy Break]

Notes: [Running Out of Time]

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"] The blinding effect his grenade had on Brachyura was beginning to dissipate and the massive crab was starting to regain its balance. Seeing this, Saber pushed off the column he touched and directed himself towards the ground. He had been dancing around the room, targeting Brachyura while it was blinded for several seconds and the beast’s shell was starting to break open. He could see its exposed flesh in several places but it was still tough as nails. Its shell was also regenerating, as per the game environment. No matter how much he hammered away with his arrows, the hardened shell wasn’t going to be completely removed. If Saber wanted to keep up his damage, he needed to target key locations and had to focus his shots. That was proving to be difficult and now that Brachyura was returning to his senses and his eyes were almost finished being regenerated, he had to move into the next phase of his plan.

Tucking into a roll as he landed, Saber dealt with the fall damage with grace and rolled to his feet. With a kick, he accelerated laterally and whizzed by Brachyura’s feet as quickly as he could. Just as he passed, a thin black string extended out from Saber’s shadow and hovered a few inches off the floor. Brachyura stepped forward, its heel passing down onto the string. Out from the contact point, black tendrils shot upwards and wrapped themselves around Brachyura’s leg. An arrow stabbed itself into the crab’s back as the wire trap activated, and then a throwing knife dug into the massive Crab’s shadow. In a blink, Saber activated three binding skills which wrapped Brachyura in a shadowy hold, slowing its forward movement to a crawl. Its body resisted and the massive creature continued to list forward, but his second foot still had yet to reach the ground from its raised position.

His trap activated, Saber keyed his skill Accel Dance and darted from column to column, launching one arrow after another towards the slowed Brachyura. Judging by its choice of direction, the creature was heading back towards the fountain where it, no doubt, would have an advantage. There it would be able to attack Saber fully due to the Assassin being slowed by the water. Not only that, but there was nowhere to hide in the open waters. If Brachyura made it into the fountain, Saber would have to chase him in or risk fighting the creature from the outside somehow. Either way, it was trouble. Thus he had to deal as much damage as he could before Brachyura even got close to the fountain. Currently Brachyura was at seventy percent of his original health and with each strike, Saber chiseled away at the bar. At his pace, he would need a lot more time than the binds could give him. This was bad.

“Shit…” Saber cursed in his mind as he launched another volley of three arrows at Brachyura, electing for damage over accuracy. Right now he needed speed. Each shot could puncture quite deep into the shell and even if it wasn’t a critical hit, Saber was dealing big numbers. Brachyura was weakening and it was visible now, but he still needed more!

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[Saber]

[attr="class","topBox"]

[attr="class","bgBox"]

[attr="class","actualBG"]

[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [961]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [Explosive Sigil, Arrow Revolver]

Notes:

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"] Blood oozed out of multiple wounds on Brachyura’s body and the crab roared loudly in frustration and agony as Saber pelted its body with arrows relentlessly. It was a war of attrition and the crab genius was starting to crumble beneath the pressure. The pain of being stung so many times by the deadly wasp known as Saber was growing exponentially with every passing second. Each strike broke through its shell with relative ease, puncturing flesh and ripping through muscle. The Assassin was moving with such speed and aggression that Brachyura could no longer keep up. He was too fast, and Brachyura’s body wasn’t nimble enough. Attacking the player could be done but the crab doubted it could land anything more than a glancing blow at this point. With the Assassin moving at such a high speed, the Elf’s vision was more likely adapted to it. Anything that Brachyura did would be seen in slow motion and would be easily avoided. Due to this, the crab had only one choice; charge the fountain.

* * *

Saber kicked off a column and elevated himself above where Brachyura stood, shooting off a volley of arrows down onto the crab’s head. They struck with a fierce blow and dug deep into its body. Upon impact, electricity blasted outwards from one of the arrows and poured into the crab’s body. Brachyura let out a howl and started to move forward, resisting the painful attack with all of its might. The Assassin hissed at the sight and planted his feet firmly on another column when it came close. When he had enough balance Saber launched himself towards Brachyura’s back. He landed on the blue shell with a heavy thud and caught the creature off guard. As it turned to look, Saber planted a bomb in its upper-left shoulder joint. After pulling the pin and releasing the lever, Saber slid down and swiftly planted another in the crab’s back right thigh joint as he fell.

Touching down, Saber stepped backwards and fired an arrow towards Brachyura’s eyes as it reached a claw back to snatch at him. The incoming claw was diverted to block the arrow and Saber escaped, bounding like a rabbit several meters back. In the midst of his move the first grenade blasted apart in the joint. Saber snapped his fingers as he saw the explosion and the second grenade reacted as well. The targeted shoulder joint ripped and sheered, blasting flesh and hard shell into the air. The massive limb that was slotted into the joint dangled weakly as many of the tendons had been blown off or burned. The targeted leg was completely blown off Brachyura’s frame in a grotesque manner. The explosion blasted carnage all over the area where the crab stood and the stench of the cooked crab internals filled the air. Brachyura let out a terrible roar as it collapsed backwards, its balance thrown off by the two blasted.

A sly grin crossed Saber’s face and he accelerated forward back towards Brachyura. He activated the skill Arrow Revolver, keyed for five shots to standby, and then pulled out two more. Once he was close enough to the struggling God, Saber kicked off the floor and vaulted upwards. Swiftly, Saber fired his first two arrows and then followed with the next five, striking the Crab in his core with six of the arrows. The seventh Saber fired a little too late and it skimmed one of the creature’s right inner thighs. Saber’s feet touched down and the player put himself in between the fountain and the Crab God, kneeling down like a guard as he drew another arrow.

“Fight, Elf! Fight him until he can no longer stand!” A voice cried out from the orb in Saber’s pocket. That object pulsed and throbbed with life, filling Saber’s body with strength as he fought. He could still hear voices crying out to him, ordering him to keep fighting, to keep pounding away at the crab’s health, and to finish it off once and for all. The souls which lingered in the room were watching as he tore into Brachyura’s body and they chanted for him to finish what they started. They roared for vengeance, pleaded for their freedom, and begged for Saber’s victory. With each voice, the orb throbbed and Saber could feel a wave of heat pour out into his veins. It was a power he had never felt before and with every pulse, Saber felt the weariness in his bones evaporate. He could fight like this for as long as it took to bring down this oversized crab.

But even if he had all the time in the world to fight, he still had to keep the crab from reaching the fountain. The orb would provide him with the stamina but it was not the key to victory. The key to victory was in Saber’s ability to adapt. With every passing second, the Assassin conjured up a plan of attack. His mind reacted to every movement of Brachyura, formulated countless possible moves, calculated possibilities of success, and then threw the Assassin’s body at what it thought would be the best path. That was how Saber’s mind worked and at the moment, it was on overdrive. His eyes were drying out rapidly due to him locking them open and his lungs burned due to a lack of oxygen at times. His muscles were tired even though the orb gave him a false sense of strength and once the adrenaline rush was over, Saber knew he was going to have trouble getting out of here. Even his pool of mana was beginning to suffer. It was a small price he was willing to pay for victory, and even that small price wasn’t cheap.

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[Saber]

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[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [1145]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [Hazecloud Vault, Quick Draw]

Notes: [Fatigue Setting In]

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"] As Brachyura slowly started to push itself to its feet, Saber inhaled a long and deep breath to refuel his body with oxygen. The massive beast was on the move again and this time, Saber didn’t have enough power in the tank to keep it at bay. All he could do was fire another shot, nock another arrow, and deal as much damage as possible with each strike. Brachyura slugged forward, stomping with its three remaining legs as its body steadily regenerated the fourth. It was pissed and Saber could see the anger in its eyes. Fifty percent health remained on the monster’s bar and it continued to drop. Bleeding effects in tandem with critical strikes, constant damage, and electrically charged arrow heads whittled away at Brachyura’s life force and brought Saber closer to victory. Though, Brachyura wasn’t giving up yet.

Back on its feet, Brachyura returned to being a serious threat and it did not disappoint. The creature let out a billowing war cry and stampeded forward, rushing Saber and the fountain at a high rate of speed. Saber was forced to roll to his right and evaded the rush. Though, as he got to his feet Saber found himself under an immediate assault. Brachyura had closed the distance with its rush and swiftly turned to face the Assassin before he could get away. Saber grit his teeth and crossed his arms to shield his chest and face as all three pincers came down on him. The first sliced at his left side, the right crossed over his forearms, and then the third was used like a fist and pounded into his core directly. Saber grunted in pain as he was launched backwards through the air, his body filled with a wash of agony. Brachyura roared as his blows connected and it watched Saber slam into a column several meters away. Saber’s back snapped straight and the back of his head bashed into the stone support beam from the force of the impact, dazing him.

“GYEH!” The damned crab, it had hit Saber with such force that his entire body was knocked out of whack. He was lucky that he was still conscious. His vision was blurry, his breathing was erratic, and he couldn’t feel the warmth of the orb in his pocket anymore. The entire room almost went black as Saber collapsed onto his knees. His health bar dropped thirty percent from the single attack, probably because it would have registered as a critical strike. The sly beast, had it learned from Saber to use combinations? It hadn’t used two skills is such succession before except for when it tried to hit him with the bubble and the body slam attacks. After being pelted and seeing Saber mix his strikes, maybe it had learned.

“Oh boy…” Saber huffed and pushed himself up to his feet. The daze he was in lingered, making balancing difficult. Saber staged a bit to his right and breathed in deep to try and regain some sort of grasp on his awareness. Brachyura would not wait, however, and the massive creature jumped into the air and targeted Saber once more; another slam attack! Clutching the bow in his hand, Saber dove to his left and rolled over his shoulder, pushing off his feet an accelerating out of the way as Brachyura slammed into the base of the column he had been flung into. The massive pillar cracked and crumbled, creating a large amount of debris and a huge dust cloud. Out from within, Brachyura fired another bubble.

Touching with his right foot, Saber continued to move backwards and hooked his fingers around a throwing knife. Even though he was dazed, he had to fight! With a flick, he launched the throwing knife at the bubble to get it pop, however it didn’t stop. His toss was off and the knife whizzed by the water bubble, not even skimming it as it flew off into the darkness. Saber grit his teeth and cursed verbally as the floating object collided with his forearms. Instead of exploding though, the bubble swallowed up the Assassin; it was a prison?! Brachyura’s eyes flashed from within the dust cloud and off to Saber’s left, the fountain’s waters raged. Out from within the pool, a huge tidal wave surged forth. It poured out in a rush, splashing and crashing through the room. Saber’s eyes widened as he realized that the water wasn’t coming out randomly but it was coming right for him.

“Dammit!” His movement restricted by the bubble, Saber was forced to use another skill and further drained his waning mana pool. He pulled out a throwing knife and used Brachyura as a target so his skill would key. The throwing knife zipped through the bubble’s water seal and popped it, freeing its captive. Saber dropped several meters and landed with a thud, but he had no time to remain still. Swiftly, he activated Hazecloud Vault and launched himself up towards the ceiling. The massive tidal wave washed out the floor he escaped from and reached upwards. Saber huffed in exhaustion and used the columns to elevate himself further and further until he was near the ceiling. With a final kick, Saber lunged up and lifted his feet. The soles of his boots clipped the top of the wave as it passed just inches beneath him.

“Bastard crab…” The Assassin let out a long breath as he sneered. His feet tapped against another column and he slowly bounced his way down to the floor, touching the temple’s base as the water began to evaporate. So, they weren’t in the water but Brachyura could still control it. That would have been pleasant information from the beginning, but it didn’t make much of a difference. As long as Saber kept on his toes, then he could at least move to evade the waves. Though if he kept fighting, he would continue to tire. Dodging another one of the rouge attacks would be difficult; he needed to rethink his strategy…

Sort of.

Taking in a few slow, deep breathes, Saber regained full control over himself and washed away the weariness in his body. Clutching his bow, he raised it and nocked another arrow. As he though, he would have to keep fighting. Brachyura was already on the move again and was preparing to attack once more as it began to rush towards Saber’s position. Saber would have to give the crab one thing; it was tenacious and it wasn’t stupid. Initially, the crab followed Saber everywhere. Now it seemed to be keeping itself close to the water. If nothing else, it was most likely keeping an escape route handy. If that was indeed the case then Saber had to finish the fight before it could do use it.

“I hate Gods.” Saber cursed, releasing the bowstring once more.

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[Saber]

[attr="class","topBox"]

[attr="class","bgBox"]

[attr="class","actualBG"]

[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [1435]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [Explosive Sigil]

Notes: [The Final Stretch]

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"] Brachyura slammed into another column as it raced passed Saber, his shell hunched over as it bulldozed through the zone. The Assassin moved quickly but he also moved with precision. He didn’t waste any energy and kept his footwork clean as he moved about the room. No longer did he bounce for ten meters to avoid getting smacked but instead he moved only a few. He kept Brachyura close and kept the massive creature focused on him as he fired arrow after arrow. The battle was drawing on longer and longer, but Brachyura’s health was diminishing steadily. It had dropped from fifty percent to forty and now, Saber was working on thirty as he fired another explosive arrow into Brachyura’s upper right shoulder joint. The arrow dug in deep through a crack in the shell and the iron head blasted open a hole. Brachyura roared and twisted to the left. Saber filled the hole with two more arrows before stepping away.

Brachyura’s attacks were becoming more frequent and the crab was using more skills to close in on the Assassin. It charged head first a lot without any care for the columns around the zone and fired multiple bubbles to try and capture the slippery Elf. Saber kept to his feet and danced with ease throughout the room. His eyes were open wider and he constantly checked his surroundings, ensuring that he didn’t slam into any of the columns. As he looked to dodge them, he also looked to use them. Brachyura didn’t care for the ceiling supports but upon hitting them, the creature usually took a few seconds to pull itself back together after the impact. That gave Saber extra precious seconds which he used fully. With each column hit, Saber could peg Brachyura with at least four arrows, six if he rushed. Several of the strikes weren’t critical hits and may not have been extremely effective, but there was another reason for Saber’s rapid strikes.

Out from many of the arrow holes in Brachyura’s body, the monster oozed out a thick green substance; its blood. Saber’s bow was reinforced with a bleeding ability and every shot had a chance to tear opened a wound. If it was a critical strike, the wound almost always opened up but even if it wasn’t Saber still had a chance to bleed the crab God. Not only that, but his arrows weren’t restrained to the physical side of the power spectrum like the shell was made to defend. One of the enchantments on his arrows was a conversion from physical damage to magical. Chained together with the piercing status on them, the arrows were making easy work of Brachyura’s hardened shell. The once beautiful watery-blue colored body of the massive beast was now cracked, chipped, and broken into by dozens of black spines.

As quickly as the game could regenerate the shell, Saber was breaking it apart. He targeted critical locations, joints, and soft points in the crab’s body to increase his damage output and shave precious seconds off the fight time, but it was starting to wear on him. By focusing on several different things at once under high duress was quickly starting to put a burden on Saber’s mental state. His focus was spread as wide as he could stretch it in order to keep himself from making a mistake, and it was starting to hurt. A pain throbbed through the Elf’s head and it felt as if the muscles inside his brain were being torn apart. Yet he forced himself on. Saber couldn’t quit even if he began to regret coming alone, he had no choice but to finish what he had started.

Due to being alone, Saber needed to focus on several key parts of the boss fight, and all of them should have been covered by another player. He had to keep an eye on Brachyura, its health, its mana gauge, as well as keep tabs on what skills it had recently used as to keep himself from getting caught in a deadly combination attack; he had to play the tracker. Next, Saber had to play the two forward roles; tank and DPS. It was easy to be the tank due to him being the only Adventurer in the fight but that also meant that he never got a break because while keeping all of the aggro and staying alive, Saber also needed to deal damage. He had to keep his attack rate high enough so that Brachyura couldn’t regenerate any health or set up some kind of trap, all the while keeping himself out of the Crab’s reach. If Saber went down, there was no one to cover for his mistake; he had no healer, no off-tank, and no one to slow or bind Brachyura. Thirdly Saber had to be the field strategist. He had to keep an eye on his surroundings and formulate a plan to engage Brachyura with as the battle went on as well as prepare reactions to adjust for any new situations

Along with the entire set of raid roles he needed to cover solo, Saber had to keep several backup plans in his back pocket at all times. If something went bad with what he was doing, Saber needed to be able to switch gears immediately. In a full raid, there may have been a second team ready to take over and switch with the first group if things really went south. Saber didn’t have that luxury. Performing all of the roles alone and dealing with the boss solo was Saber’s choice so he wouldn’t dare complain about such a thing. However even though he would never open his mouth and say he was a fool, he knew that battling bosses alone was stupid. Bosses were an entirely different group of monster than the regular creatures; they adapted to the fight, could think, could dodge, and had an array of passive skills and attack skills that could wipe even the best of groups. If Saber made one big mistake, it would be all over for him in an instant. Brachyura may have been slow up until now and Saber may have been able to escape with most of his health, but until the very moment that the crab’s health hit zero and the creature popped into pixels; Saber’s success hung in the balance.

However, this was the path Saber had chosen and it was the only path left open to him. The feeling of pain which shot through Saber’s skull was a familiar one and he dealt with it without missing a step. It pulsed hard, disorienting the Elf and the Assassin staggered slightly as he planted both feet on the ground, but his arms still moved. He still lifted his bow, yanked back on the string, and fired an arrow into Brachyura’s left pincer. He had targeted the crab’s chest, but the claw moved to guard. As Saber prepared another shot, Brachyura hurled itself into the air and launched its body at Saber. The Assassin loosened his grip on the arrow in his hand and tucked it into his belt, exchanging it for another hand grenade. Swiftly, he tapped at the floor and vaulted upwards to avoid being squished beneath the flying crustacean. Brachyura rumbled in annoyance as the crab started to regain its footing and glanced at its right shoulder as Saber landed on it.

Immediately, Saber stuffed the primed grenade into Brachyura’s shoulder joint and then shoved himself out of the way of an incoming claw. Seconds later, the grenade blasted another large hole in the crab’s shell and ripped the arm out of the socket. Saber twirled around as he landed, snatched his stored arrow from his belt, and fired an electrically charged shot into the exposed wound. A loud billow escaped Brachyura’s mouth, but Saber ignored it. While the big crab cried in pain, Saber struck the open wound thrice and then shifted his aim to the crab’s legs. Once Explosive Sigil was back up, Saber lodged a trapped arrow into the crab’s right-rear knee. The arrow head blew a hole in the shell and opened up a gap in the flesh underneath. Before Brachyura could move the leg out of the way, Saber stuck multiple black, iron metal thorns into the wound. The two explosive strikes threw Brachyura’s balance off and the critical strikes dropped its health at an increased rate. Saber used the massive beast as his own personal target dummy and shoved arrows into various locations until finally, the crab’s health reached a critical point…

Twenty-five percent remained.

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[Saber]

[attr="class","topBox"]

[attr="class","bgBox"]

[attr="class","actualBG"]

[attr="class","nameBox"]Saber
Level 90 -- Assassin

[attr="class","statBox"]Words: [5068]

Tags: [Solo]

Skills Used: [Lots]

Notes: [The Climax]

[attr="class","titleBox"]This broken glass is all I've got left!

[attr="class","textBox"]“GRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!” The blue body of the massive crab God began to glow a hot red as its health bar breached the final threshold and Brachyura fell to its knees. Saber narrowed his eyes as the large creature released its powerful roar and bounded backwards, creating as much distance as possible as his enemy seemed to begin to change. At the same time, the temple started shaking. The floor cracked, weakened columns began to topple and collapse, and Saber could hear the sound of a massive storm in the distance. He glanced over to his left towards the distant ramp he had used to enter the underground temple and noticed that there was very little light coming through it. Outside, the once peaceful island was most likely becoming a hell hole once more. Saber sucked his teeth and looked back towards Brachyura.

“What the…?” The damaged shell began to crack and splinter as Brachyura trembled on the ground. The pieces fell off, breaking and shattering as they hit the floor. For a moment Saber could see the damage his ranged attacks had done and could see all of the impact points in the crab’s flesh. There were cuts, rips, burns, and gaping gashes all over the God’s back, arms, and legs. Even from his distance, Saber could also smell the disgusting scent the crab let into the air. What confused Saber wasn’t the fact that the crab was so wounded thought. Saber was far more worried about the crab stripping off its shell…

“Youuuu… YOU PATHETIIC ELLLFFFF!!!” Brachyura slammed its claws into the ground in a powerful show of force and out from the cracks in the floor came a rush of water. Saber’s eyes opened wide as all around him, massive geysers blasted through the solid floor, pouring extremely hot liquid all over the room. Where he stood was safe, but only for a few seconds as the area directly beneath him split. It splinted, crackled, and caved in before exploding outwards. Just before the torrent of water beneath the cracks came loose, Saber vaulted backwards to escape being scorched. He landed hard and grit his teeth as the ground broke loose again, and again, forcing him to keep moving. With a hard stomp, Saber launched himself upwards and yanked out a dagger. With all of his strength, he lodged the weapon into one of the cracked columns that still stood and planted his feet on its side to keep himself in the air.

“Giiiiivee…. Giive it baaack….” Saber let out a curse and looked towards where Brachyura had collapsed. While Saber was moving to avoid the surprise attacks, Brachyura’s body had begun to change. The severe damage to the crab’s limbs had fully regenerated and its body was releasing a ton of steam. Water seeped into the crab’s body and Saber could tell that Brachyura was using the liquid to regenerate itself, but he couldn’t get closer to stop it. Extremely hot geysers surrounded the God and kept Saber at bay. The floor also threatened to blasted him again and if Saber wanted to get close, he would have to avoid that too.

“RETURN TO MEEE THE PEBBLE OF PHILOSOPHYYYY!!!!” Brachyura’s eyes ignited with a red fire and it glared towards the dangling Elf, its voice sending an earthquake through the room. Slowly, the water from the floor flowed onto Brachyura’s body and covered the massive crab monster completely. Once the creature was encased in the blue liquid it hardened and changed from a clear blue to a bloody red. Brachyura pulled its claws from the floor and stomped two feet down fiercely, pushing itself back up onto its feet. With its new shell, the crab turned to face the hanging player and let out a long, hot breath. Saber narrowed his eyes and yanked on his dagger, lifting himself upwards.

Twirling around, the Assassin planted one foot onto his dagger as a base and then balanced himself on it. Before he lost it, Saber drew an arrow and swiftly fired it towards the crab. The arrow whisked through the air and within a second of being released, the arrowhead crashed into Brachyura’s chest. Unlike before, not a single one of the pincers moved to block the shot. Brachyura simply watched the arrow streak through the air and its very small, crusted lips twisted into a slight smile. Saber clenched his teeth; his arrow slammed into Brachyura’s shell and bounced off.

“Aw, shit.” Saber lowered his bow and felt his stomach twisted as Brachyura let out a low rumble. So, the new shell was much harder than before and his arrows could no longer puncture it. Was this some kind of new adaptation? Or was it Brachyura’s limit skill as a boss? Most of them came with some sort of skill that was triggered once they reached a certain amount of health, but this was a little much. There was howling storm outside, the once beautifully smooth floor was breaking open, and now Brachyura had an impenetrable shell? What was next, extreme speed?

The instant Saber thought of such a devlish thing, Brachyura’s feet moved. The massive creature shot across the floor in haste and crossed the large distance with ease. Saber’s eyes opened up and he dropped down, yanking his throwing knife out of the column as Brachyura slammed into it. The entire thing shook and began to crumble as Saber kicked off it. The Assassin huffed and sheathed his knife as he bounced off two other pillars and lowered himself to the floor. The same moment Saber touched down, he heard a step and felt a massive presence at his back. He glanced to his right and at the floor; Brachyura’s shadow?!

“WHA--?!” Glancing over his shoulder, Saber looked up in fright. The massive crab was already at his back?! Saber tried to kick away and move to evade, but it was too late for any such thoughts. Brachyura’s two claws moved with a speed he had not seen before and both of them struck him, hard. One slammed into his right side, thrashing his body to the left and into another of the accelerating claws. The second strike threw the Elf like a ragdoll into the air with ease. The Assassin flew at a high rate of speed and slammed into the ground several meters away, bouncing and rolling until he smashed into the base of the fountain. Saber let out a heavy cough upon impact and blood splattered onto the wet floor as all of the air rushed out of his lungs. Pain poured out into his body; he had broken ribs and something probably ruptured inside his chest. It hurt like hell and breathing was now difficult. Was it a collapsed lung? Maybe, but Saber was no doctor. He couldn’t tell. All he knew was that he could still breathe and the iron-flavored red liquid was gushing out of his throat, forcing him to cough it all up.

“Dammit!” Saber winced and forced himself over onto his stomach where he lifted himself to his hands and knees. Blood filled his mouth again and Saber spit it out just as fast to keep his mouth clear. He could still breathe, that was good. And if he could breathe then he could fight however his bow was gone. Somewhere between his last position and where he was now, he had released the weapon and it probably had been thrown across the room. Though he didn’t have time to worry about that; if he wasted any time looking for it, then Brachyura would get him again.

“Think on your feet, Saber. Get up.” The Assassin glanced to his right as he fought his trembling body, forcing it to stand. To his surprise, Brachyura was rushing him again and it was moving much faster than before; a lot faster. Saber spat out another mouthful of blood and yanked his two swords free, clutching them tightly as he tried to get his body under control. Those blows had hit him hard and without much armor to protect him they had hit him almost directly. If it wasn’t for his scaled armor beneath his clothes, Saber would have been killed instantly from that attack and he knew full well that he wouldn’t survive another. He had to dodge everything, or it meant certain death. However, that was easier said than done.

“REEEETUURRRN ITTTTT!!!” Brachyura closed in on the Assassin and lowered its head as it bulldozed through the room. Saber grit his teeth and went to move, but suddenly a pain shot through his right ankle. Even the slightest amount of pressure caused the pain to occur and it made Saber groan in agony; it was sprained and if he pushed it, it would most likely get worse but… sacrifices needed to be made. He had to move! NOW!

Clenching his teeth to force back the pain, Saber pushed off his feet and dove to the left, rolling over his shoulder and then bounding away. The pain in his feet caused him to misstep when he pushed off the ground and his balance faltered. As Brachyura slammed into the side of the fountain, Saber’s right foot hit the floor and then his entire leg collapsed beneath him. Saber fell backwards, slapping his arms down before his back struck the floor to spread out the damage. It still hurt like hell and another rush of blood splattered out of his mouth. Fighting in this condition was damn near impossible and his chances of dying from a misstep were higher than his chances of getting smacked by another claw.

“The shit I go through…” Saber muttered, pushing himself back to his feet steadily. When the soles of his boots hit the floor, Brachyura was finally able to pull itself out of the destroyed wall of the fountain. Out from the new hole, more water poured out into the room and the water level increased by a few inches. Saber breathed heavily, blood leaking from his lips as his body trembled. His muscles burned with fatigue, his mind was starting to draw blanks with what to do, and his vision was fading in an out slightly. After one hit, he was this messed up. Fighting for so long without a break must have really weakened him, and this was his punishment.

“Youuu aren’t as strooonggg as I thooought…. Hooohahaa!” Brachyura laughed as it took a hard step onto the floor, causing the room to shake again. Saber grit his teeth and squeezed his blades. His body wanted to quit, but the Assassin’s heart ignited at the taunt. He was going to make that crab eat his words. Slowly, Saber reached up and keyed his menu. As Brachyura stomped closer and closer, Saber switched his subclass from Tailor to Alchemist. His eyes glistened, reflecting the change and then the room changed. All around the Assassin, he could feel the magical power flowing through the space. When he looked at Brachyura, he could see a thin aura around the crab’s body and his display updated with the status element of the shell. It was water based, as expected. Thus, it would be weak to electricity. Perfect.

“Giveee upppp.” Brachyura’s body began to glow again and the creature prepared another skill to attack with. At the words, Saber snarled, bearing his clenched teeth. A red liquid flowed between them and down from the corners of his mouth. Quit? Give up?

“You must have me confused with someone else…” Saber sneered, spitting out another mouthful of iron. His body tensed up and his thoughts shifted from tactics, to combat. He was going to rip this god damn crab into pieces. His sneering turned to a vicious snarl and Saber’s body began to tingle all over. His hair stood up on end and goosebumps rose out of his skin.

“…I finish what I start!” A wave of strength poured out of the orb in Saber’s pocket and the Pebble of Philosophy replaced all of the pain in Saber’s body with strength. The Assassin launched himself forward, stomping down with all of his might and pushed his body forward. Left, right! Left! RIGHT! He rushed towards Brachyura as the creature roared, its voice sending a wave straight towards the incoming threat. Just before the wave could grow too high, Saber keyed the skill Hazecloud Vault, blasted the area around his body with smoke, and then hurdled himself up and over the top of the rising water. Brachyura’s eyes shifted up and caught sight of the Elf and moved to counter. Saber twirled his body, using his falling momentum to increase his strength and keyed Deadly Dance. Saber’s body torqued into a whizzing spiral and his right blade came down like a hammer onto a claw Brachyura raised to shield itself; the red shell shattered like glass.

“HOOOOW?!” Taken off guard by the strike, Brachyura stepped back and the black pupils within its red orbbed eyes expanded. Saber released a powerful grunt from within his throat, the noise blasting out from his clenched teeth as he slammed his left sword down into the cracked space. Green blood splattered out of the wound and it tore open wide. Brachyura’s eyes narrowed and the creature stomped its back legs down, forcing its body to remain stationary. Saber’s feet touched down and two claws from the right came right for him.

“SLOW!” Saber shifted his weight onto his right leg, the pebble spurting out heat to cover his pain, and the Assassin moved to the Crab’s exposed side. The Assassin pulled back his right sword and then shoved it into a split in the crab’s hardened shell, breaking through the hardened armor with a violent crack. Brachyura’s blood oozed from the wound and another outcry echoed from the beast’s mouth. The two left claws ripped back and were replaced by the unwounded right claw. Saber crossed his blades to guard and braced his body, taking the hard punch head on. From the heavy impact, sparks to flew into the air as the shell hit the metal blades and Saber was pushed backwards several feet, but he wasn’t sent flying.

“Not again…” He declared, his arms straining to hold off the fearsome power of the crab God. His eyes narrowed and blood poured out from his lips; it was getting worse, the wound in his chest. With each harsh movement, more and more blood came out of his throat. Breathing was becoming even more difficult, but he had to put up with it. He had to hold on.

“Youu… How dareee you stand up to a Goood! BOW YOUR HEAADDD!!!” Brachyura pulled its right claw away and then slammed one of its left feet down on Saber’s position. The Assassin skipped to the right again to dodge, his feet sliding through the water as he landed. Once he had his footing, Saber accelerated back left and jumped upwards. His right arm whirled back behind him, and then came down like an axe on one of the many exposed and lightly armored leg joints. The force of the cut split the leg, severing the lower bit from the upper third, and caused Brachyura to lose its balance for a moment. Saber touched the floor again and his feet twisted as he spun himself around to face his enemy. Brachyura launched another claw at him, but the Assassin caught the strike with the angled-side of his right blade. The claw slid off the black tempered metal and slammed into the floor directly next to the Elf, splattering water and stone into the air. Saber took the opportunity to bury his left sword deep into what he guessed was the crab’s elbow joint. He shoved every single inch of his blade into the joint, burying it all the way to the guard.

Brachyura reeled back in pain, roaring out loudly as Saber continued his assault without even taking another breath. The Elf no longer had any time for games. Quickly, he grabbed a throwing knife out of his thigh and latched a grenade onto the hilt-guard. He pulled the pin and then launched it straight at the crab’s upper torso. The instant the thrown bomb touched against Brachyura’s chest, it blasted into a massive and powerful ball of heat and shrapnel. The red shell cracked slightly, but it didn’t cave. Just as the smoke cleared, however, Saber appeared and lunged straight at Brachyura. The crab God’s eyes opened up wide as the Assassin shoved his second sword through the weakened area. The shell cracked open with ease, opening up a small hole. Brachyura snapped his pincers and slashed at Saber, forcing the Elf to pull his blade back and jump away. As Saber moved back, he launched another throwing knife. Its pincers still in an offensive motion, they couldn’t block the throwing knife as it stabbed into the hole Saber had created.

“Boom…” The throwing knife ignited a moment after impact, the orange sigil hidden on the underside of the blood illuminating and blowing apart. Brachyura’s enhanced shell became its worst enemy as the explosion erupted inside of it. The hard shell contained the blast to inside Brachyura’s body and the explosion tore through the crab’s unprotected internals with a fatal force. Saber could see the shell expand outwards as smoke and flames poured out of Brachyura’s mouth and the hole in the creature’s chest. The thick, green liquid poured out of the hole and leaked tremendously from Brachyura’s lips. The shell no longer regenerated and Brachyura’s health was diminishing; Saber had to finish it before the crab could recover.

Yanking out another throwing knife, Saber lit it up with electricity and launched the object into the same wound he had just opened up. Upon impact, Brachyura’s body twitched and the creature released a gurgle, its claws flailing weakly towards the Assassin. Saber kicked off the floor and rushed in again, swatting away a claw to his right with his sword and then stabbed it through the shell again. Brachyura gurgled again and brought both of its right claws down on Saber’s head like hammers, slamming them into the space where the Assassin had been standing. The Elf moved a few moments before they hit him, pulling his blade free and diving to the left. His body gave out beneath him as he landed, but the Assassin quickly pushed himself back to his feet. Even with the pebble suppressing the pain his body was feeling, he was still hurting and his body was weakening.

“I need more…” The orb pulsed, reacting to his words. Saber clenched his teeth, blood pouring out from between them as he snatched the hilt of the blade he had left in Brachyura’s arm. With a tug, he pulled the weapon free and used the same momentum to spin around. Leading with his right blade, Saber cracked the shell and then broke it open with his left. Brachyura rumbled and let out a billowing roar as it stepped away from the warrior, but Saber didn’t let him escape.

“I need… More!” The orb pulsed even harder. Squeezing both of his swords, Saber rushed forward and jumped up with both of his blades raised. He dropped them hard into the hole his grenade had opened up and dug the black pieces of forged iron inside Brachyura’s body. Saber’s vision started to darken as he moved backwards, leaving his blades inside of Brachyura’s torso. The moment he touched the floor, he conjured up a Void Shuriken.

“MORE!” His eyes flashed open wide and he clutched the dark weapon in his hands. With a heavy throw, Saber launched the shuriken towards Brachyura’s lone left leg. It spiraled sharply and sliced through the joint with ease, forcing Brachyura to use both of its left claws to balance itself. Taking his chance, Saber sprinted forward and slipped passed the crab’s flailing right arms. The Assassin snagged his two blades, pulled them out of the crab’s chest, and then jumped away.

“ELLLLLLF!! I’LL KILLL YOUUU!!” Saber’s eyes narrowed and he forced his body forward again, but this time it would be the last.

“Kill me…?” Saber launched himself at the crab’s right claws and sliced through the shoulder joint of one of Brachyura’s arms. After the strike, Saber jumped backwards and vanished into the darkness. Silence filled the room aside for the sound of the rushing water, and Brachyura’s eyes twisted around as it tried to find the Elf.

“COOOOWAAAAAARRDDD!!!”

“Puny god…” Saber appeared at Brachyura’s back, both of his blades digging into the creature’s back. Brachyura’s eyes opened wide as its health bar began to drop to zero. The crab released a filthy cry of anger and hatred, not accepting defeat even with its last breath, but just as defeat flashed in front of its face, the body double vanished. All sound escaped from Brachyura’s ears as Saber came down from the ceiling. The crab’s eyes dimmed, their color shifting from red back to their cool violent. The Elf flashed through Brachyura’s body, vanishing from his position behind the massive creature and then reappearing right in front of it. The Crab God looked down at the Elf as the little being muttered a single word…

“Assassinate.”

Brachyura’s shell blasted apart with tremendous force. Its body became tremendously light and a mess of carnage poured out from the open wound. However, its agony was not over; a pale blue sigil lingered on the crab’s body and upon life still flowing through its veins, the secondary skill keyed; Perfect Autopsy. The blood within Brachyura’s body boiled for a split second before it turned the God’s entire body into a bomb. Organs ruptured, muscles ripped apart, and its fleshy core was shredded even further. The massive being collapsed, slamming down onto its side as its messy insides leaked out from multiple holes in the shell. Green blood poured out into the waters, staining the brilliant blue.

“Youuuu… Who arrre youu…?” Brachyura muttered, its dying words barely coming out in an audible tone as it asked a familiar question. Saber turned back to face the creature and sheathed his swords; it was already dead and the bleed effect would finish it off. Now, it was just a matter of time. However, there was one more thing that he wanted…

Saber approached the dying crab without a word and squeezed his right hand into a fist. Then, with a tremendous forced, he punched into Brachyura’s torso and dug his hand deep into the God’s core. He reached in and then grasped a hard object within the beast’s body. He twisted his hand, ripping the object free. Upon doing so, Brachyura’s eyes expanded fully, its pupils stretching to their limits. Saber yanked his arm back out, pulling a round blue orb with a pulsating white core. His display illuminated the name of the object after Saber examined it; the Soul of Brachyura.

“I’m just your ordinary scholar.” Saber said with a smirk, clutching the orb tight as he glared towards the massive crab. Brachyura let out its final sigh and then the oversized body flopped onto the floor. Saber watched as the oversized creature slowly dissipated, its body turning into bubbles and floating into the air as its life passed. Saber watched and waited until the final bubble burst, leaving him completely alone inside of the temple. Squeezing the soul of the God, Saber looked down at his pocket where the Pebble of Philosophy was nestled in.

“All of this… for a rock…” Saber huffed, his bloodied lips pulling into a smirk as he sent the God’s soul away into his inventory. He would need that later but for now, he needed to get out of the temple. The walls began to shake and crack, and water began to fill the room. Saber grit his teeth and started to move for the door but as he did, he collapsed. No more strength came from the orb in his pocket and his body was crumbling. His right leg was probably broken in three places, his left lung wasn’t moving as he wheezed for oxygen, and his arms were quickly losing their strength as well; getting out was going to be a bitch.

“Come on, soldier boy…” Saber coughed, spitting up a large sum of red liquid into the rising tide as he limped towards the ramp. He picked up his pace as best he could be soon, the water level was getting a bit too high. He couldn’t really lift his legs too much so once the water got to his knees, he pretty much flopped forward and dragged his body across the floor.

“Almost… there…” Saber grunted as he was lifted off the bottom of the floor by the water. A whirlpool began to form at the fountain and it grew steadily outwards. The Assassin grit his teeth and doggypaddled as best as he could towards the ramp, yet he was slow. Just as he reached the ramp, the whirlpool caught his right leg and swatted it to the left, throwing his body off balance. Saber gasped out of surprise and flailed his arms, forcing his weary body forward. He swam with all of his remaining strength and closed in on the ramp. The whirlpool caught up to him again and this time, it didn’t let go. Saber was tugged hard and then yanked by the raging water; it pulled him under. The Assassin took in a sharp breath as he went down and extended his left arm. It gripped the edge of the entrance way and the Assassin held on with all of his might.

“After all that, I’m going to drown?!” Saber’s eyes winced and he squeezed the edge of the entrance as much as he could to keep himself from going under, but it wasn’t enough. He didn’t have any strength left. The water pulled and pulled, steadily pulling on the Assassin’s body, coaxing him to release the wall. He held on but soon, even his arm stopped listening. His hand slipped free and suddenly, he was ripped from the entrance…

The moment Saber let go, a hand reached out around the corner and snagged his wrist; it was large, black furred, and strong. It gripped onto the Assassin and began to reel him in. Saber’s vision blurred from the water slapping at his face and from his fatigue but as he was pulled around the corner, he saw a familiar face; it was the freaking squirrel.

* * *

Saber felt a hard pound on his chest all of a sudden and his eyes opened up wide. A mix of water and blood exploded from his lips as he was forced back into conciosuness. He reflexively sat up and his hands slammed onto the ground. He breathed hard and heavy for a moment before his lungs filled up with liquid again. He coughed up another messy mixture of red and clear liquids onto the ground before he finally realized where he was. He glanced around himself, ignored the two figures to at his sides at first, spotted his target, and stared at the temple just a few meters off as it cracked and crumbled. A massive storm swirled above the island, a mighty thunder rumbling as the massive stone structure collapsed in on itself. The massive swirling whirpool swallowed up the massive temple, pulling every bit of evidence that the building even existed into its hungry mouth. Saber watched in silence as his battlefield vanished right before his eyes.

“Well done, Elfboi…” Saber finally looked at the figures beside him. One of them was an oversized squirrel with a fiery red coat and bushy tail. The other was a familiar female; Lotus. She looked a bit worried for a moment but after seeing his open eyes, she let out a sigh of relief and sat back on her heels.

“Jesus, I thought you were going to die for real. That scared me.” Lotus lowered her tensed shoulders and closed her eyes for a few moments so that she could regain her thoughts. Saber’s emotion hardened and he looked back towards the swirling whirlpool. It was beginning to calm now and was turning into a normal looking lake.

“Those Sages better be ready to answer some questions.” Saber muttered as he started to try and stand. Lotus opened her eyes and extended her hands, pushing the man back down onto his backside. Saber glared at her, but she barred her teeth; her canines exposed themselves and the secretive fox-tail part of her came out.

“Don’t you dare try to move. You’re too banged up right now. I’ve been healing you for the past five minutes trying to get you to come back but your health has barely budged. You’ve got a collapsed lung, a femur broken in four places and a shattered ankle, your right shoulder was dislocated and your right wrist was sprained, and your left arm isn’t in much of a better condition. Not to mention the rest of your organs are a freaking mess! I don’t know what the hell you fought in there, but until I can patch you up some more, you aren’t moving!” Lotus seethed through her teeth as she returned to healing Saber’s wounded. Welp, it was either lay there and let her fix him or have her put him through even more pain. Lotus was an expert cleric both in the game, and in reality; she was a combat medic in her early years and then became a nurse after serving her country. It seemed that playing the support role was her thing so Saber respected her words. It wasn’t like he had a choice. Lotus didn’t just pick her name; she earned it. The woman was kind, sweet, and beautiful, but she contained a ferocity inside of her petals that no man would dare mess with.

“Whad-you find anyways, Elf? You looked strong ‘nuff. Did jew fight a King or sumtin?” The Squirrel asked a simple question and Saber chuckled. A king would have been easier to fight. He wanted to keep it a secret but seeing as he wasn’t able to run away, he figured it wouldn’t hurt to talk a little.

“No, Squirrel. I fought a God…. And I won.” Saber chuckled again and closed his eyes. Lotus huffed and mumbled.

“Idiot…”

--Battle End--

[End Instance]

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