Return to Jorgaldur Volume IV: Reunion

Assassins in distress (I)

Eldi threw an explosive potion at the agent, who had a couple of cuts on his face. The fragments had gone through his clothing, but it wasn't serious.

Attentive, the agent released a discharge of mana that prevented the potion from reaching him, and causing it to explode. Immediately, the high human launched another. As he was closer, he risked being hit by the explosion, but he didn't hesitate.

Frowning, the agent-assassin repeated the move. This time, he shielded himself from the explosion with his arm and a Mana Shield, but it never came. The potion was fake, just a distraction.

They had rescued game ideas that hadn't worked, and suggested new ones. This was one of the tactics that the group had found useful. All three carried explosive potions and fake ones of the same color.

Eldi took advantage of the moment of surprise, and having him busy, to jump on his enemy with the hammer by summoning Earthquake.

The assassin blocked with both arms, with a Mana Shield in each, and worried. Although he was one level above his enemy, fighting head-on wasn't his specialty. Like most of his companions, he moved best in the shadows, launching surprise attacks. Therefore, he perhaps took a second too long to realize that the impact of the hammer was less heavy than expected.

The battle mage had released it, thus canceling the skill, and wielded a spear that quickly went at his enemy with Perforating Impact. The agent barely managed to dodge it with Shadow Evasion. It is a skill that melts one with his shadow for a few moments, although it has a high cost, and doesn't completely prevent damage.

The agent avoided it, and fully materialized an inch from the weapon. He swallowed the very blood he was about to cough up, thus avoiding a moment of distraction that could be fatal. However, he couldn't avoid a Burning Blast from so close.

The spell's activation gives only a few moments to react. However, Eldi had started it while his enemy was still dodging, still in the shadows.

The assassin's clothing caught fire, but the armor beneath it protected him from most of the impact. The problem was that Eldi hadn't stopped there.

It was too slow to draw the spear back to attack again, so he released it and drew the axe. He swung it from the side and added Double Edge as he moved his body to give momentum to the blow. An arrow was also let through by him, as its sight has been hidden by his body.

Eldi had practiced it many times, and now he managed to chain the blows and synchronize with Goldmi 70% of the time. If he missed, Goldmi could control the arrow thanks to Curved Shot.

Off-balance and caught off guard, the assassin concentrated on blocking the axe attack, which seemed far more deadly. He couldn't use Shadow Evasion again so soon, plus it wouldn't be easy to materialize without the axe inside, which would be lethal.

He managed to block Eldi's attack at the cost of spending a lot of mana on several Mana Shields, and finally managing to block it with his two daggers. However, he had underestimated that arrow.

Goldmi had used Accelerate, Piercing Arrow, and Wind Touch on the projectile, which was also one of the special ones made by Eldi. It was more expensive than the others, and could penetrate armor. Though it was a shame to break it, it was the most effective method. Upon piercing him, it exploded with Wind Overload, which enlarged the wound and pushed its victim backwards.

As he fell, he watched as Eldi attacked him with the flat axe from the bottom up, instead of the blade. He was waiting for it to be turned, while gritting his teeth against the pain. The agent was prepared to block it with his arms, which were reinforced with the metal rods set inside his armor. After that, he planned to throw a few sachets of an irritating substance at his enemy to regain the initiative.

What he didn't expect was that the blow would be so powerful, to propel him several meters up. Eldi had done it with Propel, as he was treating the axe like a hammer through Hammeraxe.

The high human dropped the axe, as he summoned a Lightning Spear and Javelined it towards his enemy.

"It's him!" the agent suddenly realized it.

In a moment of lucidity, he understood that their target, the one they had come to eliminate, was the one who had ironically set the trap for them. They had been dancing on the palm of his hand, while thinking they were idiot adventurers.

Still, the understanding was of no use to him if he couldn't get out of there alive. While trying to regain his balance in the air, he again invested his dwindling mana to summon some Mana Shields. He didn't expect something to hit him on the head before his enemy's attack came.

The goshawk had Collided with him, in addition to damaging him with the aura of the Daughter of the Wind. She did just an instant before the spear arrived, which caused the agent's defenses to give way, so he was struck by it. The electrical power stunned him for a few moments, while the bird's blow propelled him to the ground, towards Eldi.

The high human greeted him with a spear, firm to the ground with Stand, as he was wielding the axe he had picked up from the ground. The spear pierced the stunned Engenak agent. Eldi attacked him with Slicing while his enemy was impaled. Already dying, he was finished off with Decapitate.

He turned to assess the battle situation, and charged at another enemy with Almost Thor. That one was being harassed by three Blood Hounds and Goldmi's arrows. She was barely able to defend herself, so she panicked when seeing a hammer arrive with someone holding onto the weapon.

The agent wanted to dodge, and had to divide her attention between the high human and the hounds. She didn't see how a shadow approached from behind her, reached her and stabbed her with a sword from which she couldn't defend.

The undercover agent, the resistance member, had approached from behind while Eldi was approaching from the front. She gazed for a moment with almost adoration at the battle mage. She was almost certain that he was Eldi Hnefa.

Nilgha wanted to ask him a thousand questions, but now wasn't the time. The two looked at each other, nodded, and ran in Gjaki's direction. The vampiress had bigger problems than anyone could have expected.