Yvvaros: The Clash of Worlds (33 page)

His magical doppelgangers disappeared almost instantly, struck down by Tymian strikes. One of the monsters managed to connect a claw strike with his back, and Luke fell forward as he reached the steps of the temple. He lost a third of his health.

Luke swung his sword behind him, forcing the Tymian back as more of the creatures pressed forward. He started pulling himself up the steps, trying to use his sword to keep them from getting within attacking distance.

I can’t fight them. If there is a way to take control of this city, it’s not going to be any help.

The Tymians swarmed on the step beneath him. He defended himself as best he could, keeping his face toward the attacking horde while slowly feeling his way up the temple steps.

CONJURE SWORD 4

Luke positioned his four floating swords in front of him as though they were a fence. Hundreds of Tymians pushed forward, most of them paying little mind to his weapons as they pursued him.

“Damn it!” yelled Luke. “No!”

He turned away from the mob and scrambled up several more steps, fear coursing through him. The Tymians were beginning to climb up the sides of the temple. Only by juggling his swords through various defensive positions was Luke able to keep a defensive line around himself.

Finally, his free hand grabbed onto the final ledge. He pulled himself onto the upper platform and immediately ran forward. A flash of red light appeared in the center and Luke froze as a new figure stepped out of it.

KORRITH: Monstrous sorcerers rumored to have played a direct role as instigators of the Severance Onslaught. They are often incorrectly described as being clad in heavy black plate armor, though in reality it is their hard scaled flesh that gives off the appearance.

The Korrith was at least eight feet tall, hulking over Luke and killing what little hope he still clung to that he’d make it out of the city alive. It wielded no weapon, though one of its hands was dripping with dark purple slime. The eyes on its face were oversized and totally gray. It had no mouth.

Luke didn’t have a choice. He ran toward it, doing his best to knock back the Tymians pressing down on him with his conjured swords.

At least I’ll die fighting…

PIERCE ATTACK 4

He shot through the air toward the Korrith. The creature raised a single horrifying hand. It was fingerless, as though the hand was contained within a mitten. It pointed the fingerless hand at him, and despite the speed and momentum of his combat skill, Luke froze in midair.

“What…?” He couldn’t move. Luke still held his sword out in front of him, locked in place like a statue. The Tymians rushed up the last few steps of the temple and charged at him. Their feet pounded on the black and red bricks, sounding like war drums of death.

Luke used his conjured swords in a desperate attempt to ward them off, but the creatures treated them as a mild annoyance, batting them out of the way. He couldn’t see what was happening behind him, but he didn’t need to. He knew that it would be over soon.

CHAPTER 36

The Korrith dropped its hand toward the ground. A viscous purple substance dripped from it onto the brick below. It moved with a sinister presence. Its legs were bent backward, like an insect, and when it walked it appeared to be expanding more than stepping. Luke couldn’t move. He hung frozen, helpless against the repulsive creature moving toward him.

He expected it to wrap itself around him, to absorb his life force as the monster at the mud flats had tried to do. Instead, it moved to the center of the platform and levitated. As it rose a dome appeared, encapsulating both Luke and itself within.

The Tymians reached the top of the pyramid just as the dome finished forming. Several ran toward Luke, slamming into the membrane of the barrier. Their arms and legs strained against the malleable enclosure as they made rabid attempts to reach Luke. The dome held.

Small drops of ooze began to drip from overhead. It appeared to be the same substance leaching from the monsters hand. Some of it landed in Luke’s hair and on his back. It burned slightly wherever it touched his skin, but he couldn’t move to do anything about it.

Just let me die a normal death. This is torture.

The Korrith finally reached Luke. It set its hand against his chest and Luke felt his entire body begin to tingle with an electric pulse.

What is it doing?

Long tendrils of sludge from the dome seeped over him. Luke felt it slipping through the cracks of his armor as it sought out his skin. It was excruciatingly painful, but he was still locked in place, unable to move, unable to scream.

The Korrith stood in front of him, one hand on Luke’s chest, the other waving in the air as if directing what was happening with unseen magic. Luke couldn’t begin to understand its actions.

Above him, Luke saw his conjured swords hanging above the dome in midair. He reached his thoughts out to control them and was relieved to see them respond as he focused on their movements.

He brought them down, striking against the barrier and setting them to sawing through the ooze. They only managed to stretch the skin of the membrane. It held strong, as it had against the Tymians. Luke continued willing them downward, but they became stuck in place, hanging from above like disgusting stalactites.

Soon, the ooze began to inch its way toward his mouth and nostrils. Luke panicked, feeling claustrophobic and helpless. Another figure appeared, standing behind the Korrith and staring at Luke with gentle eyes. It was her, the same woman he’d seen at the Elemental Wells. The same woman who managed to look exactly like his mother and yet generic and forgettable all at once.

“You must not give up,” said the woman. “You are almost there.”

Blue light emanated from her body, extending outward in tendrils that served as a counter to the Korrith’s magic. As each one made contact with Luke’s body, the muscles around the point of impact were released from the curse.

The ooze melted off Luke as he pulled himself free. He gasped and scraped his hands across his face, feeling paranoid about the sludge still surrounding him. The Korrith stepped forward. It’s slow and deliberate movements were arrogant.

ELEMENTAL INFUSION 2: HOLY

PIERCE ATTACK 4

Luke launched forward into the Korrith. It moved quickly, casting another spell that deflected the point of his blade. Luke immediately turned and swung again, coming within a hair of the creature’s head. His sword pulsed with shooting energy, strengthened by the upgraded version of his infusion.

“Your town is burning,” said the woman. “I can save it, but you must activate Makorin.”

I won’t die! Not here!

The Korrith directed spires of ooze at him, pulling them from the skin of the bubble and curling them toward Luke’s body. He dodged each of them, and swung his sword in an overhand strike.

It made contact, cutting deep into the flesh of the Korrith’s face and bursting with holy energy. The creature’s health bar dropped by about half, but more importantly, it flinched back, momentarily stunned. Luke cried out and was finally able to pull his conjured swords through the bubble. He directed them at the Korrith, skewering it like a pin cushion. Its health dropped even lower, and Luke’s last blow lopped its head clean off.

The ooze bubble instantly disappeared. Luke was at the top of the temple and hundreds of Tymians had formed a ring around the perimeter. They looked ready to finish what had been started, even without their sorcerer.

The woman was standing just beyond them, next to the three control spires. Luke knew that it was his destination. He needed to make it there or at least die trying.

The Tymians charged forward. Luke swung his sword at them, fending them off with the desperation of a cornered wolf. He positioned his conjured swords in front of him and launched into the air, stepping off the body of a downed Tymian.

Sword stepping was still new to him, but he hovered high enough above the monsters to move forward without being open to their attacks. They jumped up at him, swinging claws and gnashing jaws, a pack of mindless killers. A few of them already stood near the spires, as though they knew that he would be headed in that direction.

He took a dozen long, jumping steps through the air, and then dropped himself down in the middle of the spires. One of the Tymians waiting there swung at him. Luke ducked under the blow, not bothering to counter. Instead, he hurriedly pulled out the Elemental Crystals and began jamming them into the slots.

This better work!

He pushed the last one into place. For a moment, nothing happened.

“Thank you, Luke,” whispered the woman. “You’ve done it. You’ve freed me.”

Her body began to glow bright blue, some of the light splashed off her and onto Luke.

NEW ABILITY OBTAINED: PROGENITOR’S SOUL

The Universal Truth floated up into the air, giving off enough light to compete with the moons in the night sky. The Tymians still pushed forward at Luke, and only with all of his weapons was he able to hold them at bay. Even still, some of their strikes made it through his defenses, and once again his health bar began to drop rapidly.

“You must help them,” said the woman. “Go now. This city is not for you.”

What?

The Elemental Crystals popped out of place in the spires, falling neatly onto the ground in front of him. Luke didn’t have time to think. He spun his blades around him as he scooped them into his bag, and then began pushing his way through a wall of enemies.

PIERCE ATTACK 4

His combat ability let him shoot forward, knocking the Tymians in front of him aside. He ran down the steps of the temple, intent on making it back to the rune circle, and hopefully finding a way to activate it.

Something exploded next to him, knocking him into the air. A second Korrith stood with its palm raised at him. Before Luke could react, another spell struck near his feet, throwing him through the air and over the side of the city.

CHAPTER 37

That’s it, then…

Luke stared up at the demonic city. The sensation was terrifying, but strangely, he didn’t feel like screaming. It wasn’t over yet. He wouldn’t allow himself to give up.

He directed his conjured swords beneath him, arranging the blade flats of all four swords underneath his back and legs, as though he was creating a bed frame for his body to rest on. It was impossible to arrest his fall completely, but he did start to slow down. A second went by, and then Luke’s body struck the sand, shattering his swords beneath him.

I’m… alive.

His health bar was almost completely empty, but Luke was alive. He smiled and slowly stood to his feet. Dunidan’s Rest was a few hundred yards off in the distance. The gates had been destroyed, and fire licked at the roofs of several of the buildings.

“No…” Luke shook his head and broke out into a run. “No!”

He could hear sounds of the battle before he’d made it into the courtyard. Luke stumbled forward, his health slowly regenerating as he went. Kaoru was at the front of a group of warriors, all of them attempting to push back a larger group of Arbiters. Further into the compound, Luke could see Tess, Katrina, and a number of other players lending support from a distance.

After everything we’ve done, we’re still going to lose. In a straight up fight, no less.

Luke gritted his teeth and clenched his sword tightly in his hand.

CONJURE SWORD 4

MIRROR IMAGE 3

He rushed forward, intent on pulling as many of the Arbiters away from his friends as possible. In the beginning they’d set out with a purpose. They had a goal, but he didn’t care about that anymore. It was life or death, and he’d already seen enough death for one day.

PIERCE ATTACK 4

Luke shot forward at inhuman speed into the nearest Arbiter, immediately following up with a volley of strikes from his conjured swords. The blows did only a small amount of damage, but they also drew its attention. The Arbiter slowly turned to face him, and as Luke rolled backward, a few of the other Arbiters saw him and moved to intercept.

“Come on!” yelled Luke. “Bring it!”

Tess yelled something from the other side of the chaos, but Luke couldn’t make it out. He caught her eye for a moment. In her gaze, he saw emotions that mirrored his own. Tess raised her staff into the air, and a healing spell landed on Luke.

There were at least a hundred Arbiters in the midst of the fighting. There couldn’t have been more than two dozen allied players left. Luke raked his conjured swords across the backs of several more of the aggressors, taunting at least ten into attacking him.

He squared off with them, his swords defending in a whirling mass of steel. He moved quickly, striking as often as he could while staying away from his enemies’ blades. The goal was to hold out for as long as he could.

If I can distract enough of them, maybe I can buy time for people to escape.

Two of the Arbiters lunged at him at once. Luke formed two of his conjured swords into an X, catching one of the overhead strikes in between them. The other Arbiter swung a large hammer, and he ducked low underneath, countering with a slash at the Arbiter’s heels.

Luke took a step back and heard an object flying toward him. Pain pulsed through his arm. He looked and saw a spear poking out of his shoulder. He pulled the weapon from his body and twisted, spinning his swords around him as he did. He continued to fight, his blades dancing around him, doing minimal damage, but keeping the Arbiters busy.

Luke tried to push through the group he’d been sparring with. He was trying to make his way to where the resisting players fought. There were too many Arbiters. Kaoru and the other players defending the compound had been pushed almost back to the wall. Soon, it would be over.