Unpleasant memories flooded in as two huge raking talons swiped the air like it tried to close Rue’s world. From the corner of his eye, two blurry figures zip in. The warriors thrust their shield and enlarged it with the familiar skill he had seen Gilbert use.
Loran and Linda pushed back on the doctor's clawed talon. Half of its body was still black feathers, dropping. Its hand is the only body part that has changed; behind him is a bright, bristling flame, which it had completely avoided.
The doctor withdrew both of its talons back, and again it swiped across. Loran shield held, but Linda is not so lucky. Her body was ripped into four parts as a claw swiped past her. Her shield, along with part of her body, went into free fall—leaving a trail of blood against the stone.
“Linda?” Loran gaped, his body froze---he extended a hand, dropping his sword, as if he tried to turn back reality. But the doctor is not so kind. It slashed down. At the last minute, the warrior managed to block the strike with a shield in both hands.
“Weak,” The doctor screeched. It used its other talon—bringing it down on the old man.
Its talon deflected, Rue was there—with his body covered in obsidian, and a dark Frostbite sword just parried the Doctor's attempt.
“You again?” It asked, craning its neck.
At a blinding speed, the claw swipes over him. He parried the claw, redirecting the force side. A newfound balance cries in joy inside of Rue, and he settled his leg and brought his sword down, raking over the Doctor's armor. He felt a coarse reinforced chain shatter, causing the Doctor to fly back.
No flesh was injured, so no icen Frost can manifest.
The doctor was about to turn, facing Mey as he knew the Fire Conjurer was still alive. Rue, recognizing this, did not miss his chance. He steps over, legs dangling in the air, and black ice is there for him to step on. He sliced the Doctor's side, Frostbite sword raking through the strange armor. The doctor turned to regard Rue, and he wondered what emotion it had behind that mask. His sword kept going, parting more armor until he felt flesh against his sword.
Rue slashed across, and blood jumped out with his sword.
“Huh?” The doctor asked. Black ice burst from the monster's side—it suddenly started to fall in a free fall. Rue almost lost his balance, he stepped back to safety, and began to cast Frost Shrapnel, but he was reminded that below is the spearman…
Five fireballs streaked from below straight at the Doctor. It summoned its cane, forgoing its talon. It's attention occupied. And Mey launched in a blazing spiral down at the doctor in white-hot hellish flare, melting his obsidian ice as she passed by Rue.
“What?” Rue blinked; his hand went to his throat. Can he speak? He looked down at his tunic, now its color had returned to blue.
Mey just undo his Obsidian ice just by passing by him?
Rue gritted his teeth as a searing heat crept beyond him, the after flame Mey had caused was hot, unnaturally so, and they held a bright white color like it's meant to be the color of pure flame. Those flames and this here are the reason his Obsidian ice got banished. So fire is the weakness of this spell.
He shook his head, forcing his mind to the battle; he would lament about this later.
Approaching him are two people. Epheyw as supporting Lars, who looked like he was in a lot of pain, vein bulging from his skin, a greenish color took over his pale skin.
“You lot shouldn’t have come, " he heaved, “I'm able to—”
“Here, drink again.” Ephey poured a green vial down his throat, laying the man against the stone wall. “Elend!”
“Yes, yes, I got him,” Elend opened his tome, searching for spells.
“Linda?” Ephey asked.
Rue looked at Loran, who was still frozen in a spot, his eye twitching, his whole body confused.
“She passed away,” Rue simply said.
“I see,” Ephey said, no hint of emotion under her voice. “Go to Mey Eur, she needed all the help she could get, we will heal this loner here.”
“Yeah,” Rue gave Loran a look. He grasped the man's shoulder, clenching his hand.
“I will come with you,” Loren said, still dazed.
“Let’s go then,” They began to descend. Rue gazed downward as they did. A dance of flame whirled around, facing the Doctor, who parried any attempt to kick it. Black feathers flew all around them, and Mey burned any that came close to her. But the spearman is not so lucky; they began retreating through the archway, losing half of them.
Rue recognizes the situation is worsening; the main reason the spearman is there is to cover new people that would’ve spawned in. And with the constant spawned happening…
A man spawned in right then and there. He fumbled around, hefting his shield—before the doctor crashed its can against the man's helmet, instantly killing him.
Rue ran faster, as fast as he could without falling.
He checked his Obsidian armor and then stopped at his track. Loran stopped with him. “What is it?”
“It's melted from top up—and it's recovering… I can't summon it,” Rue muttered.
“That armor of yours?”
“Yes,” His mind blanking, what to do?
Letting a huge puff of breath, Rue summoned the Sword of Akansa. The golden word settled in his grip. He refuses to stay idle. With Loran in tow, they reach the bottom of the stairs.
“Escort the Spawn!” Mey shouted as she noticed them. She whipped two lashes of flame at the Doctor's hand, who merely turned into a black feather before Mey charged in with a body of flame.
“I will protect the spawn. You escort them through the archway and get some people here, too. Go!” Loran said. He hopped down and settled in on the spawn spot, a bluish circle that just spawned a girl.
Rue counted five people around. Loran shielding them from the stray black feather.
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Casting a fireball with his Frost Wand, he blasted a huge one through the archway, burning some feathers, opening a brief path to safety.
“Come on! Run!” Rue screamed. The five still hesitate, followed him. They live with Loran huge shield and run as if their lives depended on it.
Rue brought their front, and he was relieved no feather went their way. They easily made it to safety, well, if here is safe.
“Eur!” Soma called the moment he finished guiding the last of the five, an old woman with a bent back. “Situation?”
“We need people to evacuate the spawner. Gather some” Rue clasp Soma shoulder, then running with his Akansa sword to join the battle. As he closed his distance toward the Doctor, Lars was there also, just finished hopping down the stairs.
They share a nod of recognition. And charge into the dancing red and black. Burning dark feathers sway around, becoming the source of swirling light along with torches mounted on the wall. Mey slammed the Doctor, who skidded back, recoiling from the kick. The Doctor whirled around, blocking Lars strike just in time.
Rue shot out a fireball, causing the doctor to break its engagement with Lars, and dodge only to be slammed by Mey straight at its stomach. The creature went crashing into the wall. It groaned, raising its beaked helmet, only to be met with Rue swinging his golden sword down.
His sword raked across the undefended doctor; instead of blood, however, feather of black feather appeared, splitting from his sword's path.
“Slow to learn, are you?” The doctor asked. Both of its hands burst into huge talons, closing on Rue. He stepped back and parried both attempts. In a blinding flash, those arms went to normal, and in his right hand is a cane that drove straight at Rue’s heart.
A metallic taste gripped his throat, and he threw out a blob of red blood. Rue fell to his knees, coughing blood as he felt his body numb from an inexplicable invasion of something unseen inside of him.
“Normal blood? You have quite a resistance.” The doctor whips his cane, snapping Rue’s head up. Something cracked, and he could sense inside him resisting the certain death that should've come.
The world snapped into place, his vision zeroing in on the doctor, who was currently warding off Lars's slashes.
Rue's hand tightened on his Golden Bone. He rended down upon the unsuspecting Doctor. A grave swung across its back. Blood flew out, arcing through the fire-lit tower. It can be healed almost instantly, as it has proven countless times. His earlier attack with his sword of Frost has nowhere to be seen, no damage apparent. That is why it's time to press.
Lars streaked in, his sword of Light piercing through the thick doctor's cloak. His bright sword went through the monster's back, adding to Rue's wound.
A sizzling blast whooshed beside him. Mey suddenly appeared there, arcing her legs and slamming them to the Doctor's shin, snapping its head up.
Rue teleported his Golden Bone to his spatial ring. With his now freed hand, he summoned Frostbite Sword. The edge of winter shone around its fang of edge. Rue snapped the sword down, its endpoint in line with the doctor's gaping wound, that rapidly closing.
The Doctor turned, but too late. With a Glacial wake, a burst of ice sprouted around Rue’s leg. He slid forward, impaling the Monster with his Frostbite. Flesh parted, and his sword went through.
“Ah,” The doctor coughed. Its beaked head peered around all three of them. “Death?”
Black feather began to flutter around its body. But, Mey, seeing this, blasts fire in point-blank range, scorching the Doctor. Lars and Rue withdrew their sword, dodging the sudden flame.
“Fire, keep going!” Mey shouted. She threw lashes of fire, tying both of the Doctor's hands.
A streak of flame burst from above them. Elend and Ephey are there, raining down flame.
From behind Rue, a fire spell burst forward. He turned to recognize mages shooting various spells of flame from their palm, and a warrior covering the respawn point.
His position is dangerous. He doesn't have natural protection to flame like Mey obviously did. But he did not want to back away…
“Shot away! They won't hit you!” Lars screamed, a shield of bright white covered Rue. Lars was holding a spell shield.
Rue gave a silent thanks and began casting the biggest fireball he could manage. He strained his Magic Vein, and a hot pulsing sensation went around his body, his cold briefly overwhelmed.
His HP is less than ten percent because of that head snap.
Death sizzles in front of him, held by his command through his hand. A fireball bigger than Rue himself, he conjured.
The Doctor wrenched its scream, struggling through the fire and Mey’s lashes. It's rose, it's a melting mask, and a figure of gray pricking skin greeted Rue. He is a human… with bright green eyes, each rolling in jubilant. The Doctor is smiling.
Quest Issued!
Slay the Plague Crow Doctor.
The spirit of the unfortunate has cried in the sea of potion. The Plague Doctor had poisoned them to eternal misery; their spirit begged for a hero to kill the Doctor and lift this curse, so their spirit could go on to the afterlife.
Reward: Plague Doctor Class Scroll (Mystic).
Reward: Plague Doctor Cane (Mystic)
Reward: Plague Doctor Beaked Mask (Mystic)
Rue let the fireball streak across. Red spiral of death consumes the Doctor. With a shrill, exuberant voice, the Doctor screamed, raising both hands, snapping Mey's lashes. He moved forward with a body eaten alive by flame.
As Rue’s flame is about to turn him to ashes. The Doctor uttered a final word.
“How kind.”
Fire burst, trying to turn the Doctor into a pile of ashes. The Doctor's body resisted. He ran, maniacal smile etched on his face. A man that the system did not recognize as human. It grinned wildly. The man ran toward Rue. Fire screamed, trying to take the Doctor down, Rue even sweated, and he heard them screaming at the Doctor to die already.
The man, wreathed in dark charred body, lunged with a burning hand. “Ah, I should have invited you to my Lab. You're wonderful, so poisonous! How poisonous! Yet, you resist it. What is it? A skill, I think it is. Will you be my patient? A doctor and patient. The two most sacred bonds in the universe! I can experiment on you so much. So much that it will turn your brain inside out. What is the nature of your resistance? Oh, I can't wait to figure it out. Which poison will work on you, hm? Elder leaves? Sunken Stone? Or perhaps Flay Metal? There are so many to choose from! How intriguing. How much poison do I need to craft, need to create, or brew? Ah, the expectation alone almost made me cry. How kind of you. Thank you-”
Frostbite Sword flashed in Rue's hand, and his body moved before his mind did. Icen sword bravely the flame and decapitated the man's head.
The Doctor's body fell straight at him. And Rue kicked it away, letting fire do the rest of the job.
(You Have Slain Plague Crow Doctor Lvl 55. Extra Experience Granted.)
(Plague Doctor Skill Option Gained).
(Level Up. 26→32)
(Level Up. Frost Apprentice 23→28)
Name: Rue.
Level: 26→32.
Race: Human.
Class: Frost Swordsman Lvl 23→28
Magic Vein (Stone): 75%
HP: 122/2001→623/3287
Mana: 1155/2244→2258/3129
Strength: 148→235
Vitality: 151→257
Dexterity: 177→253
Arcana: 384→425
Mind: 209→259
Perception: 78→115
-Skill (9/15)-
- Fireball (Common)
- Time of Obsidian Ice (Rare)
- Frost Shrapnel (Uncommon)
- Frostbite Sword (Mystic)
- Glacial Wake (Uncommon)
- Spiral Swipe (Uncommon)
- Edge of Winter (Rare)
- Liquid Light (Rare)
- Golden Dominion (Mystic)
-Passive Skill (11/15)-
- Cold Resistance (Uncommon)
- Cold Healing (Uncommon)
- Icen Frost (Rare)
- Frost Pulse (Uncommon)
- Balance of Ice (Uncommon)
- Heart of Tundra (Uncommon)
- Parrying Sense (Uncommon)
- Weapon Throw (Common)
- Will of Steel (Rare)
- Sweeping Strike (Common)
- Willow Tree Sword Style (Uncommon)
Quest Complete.
“It appears… I made it in time to give the quest. It will indeed be unfortunate if none of you are rewarded for taking down such a foe.”
Rue turned; he still hasn’t registered everything that happened. Especially the sudden quest. He turned and spotted a reaper standing there, with bone hand, wielding a bronze scythe. And an Entram was here.
