Return to Jorgaldur Volume III: blood warrior

Duel (IV)

Black Wolf was unable to move while the skill was active and draining his energy. The only thing he could do was direct more attacks towards a certain area, and watch as his skill beat the vampiress. Well, it was what he had expected.

However, she was dodging over and over again those attacks that were supposed to be unpredictable. Even he didn't know exactly when and where they were going to hit.

In the game, he had believed that she had cheated, that she had used some kind of bot or hack, some kind of forbidden plugin to help her react more quickly, to dodge in her stead.

"It can't be... She can't have brought her hacks into this world," he muttered, incredulous.

The truth was that he had good reason to think so, that she was using programs to help her dodge. Despite Gjaki's agility and speed, what she was doing seemed impossible. It was as if she understood the skill better than its owner, as if she could foresee where it was going to hit.

The vampiress was moving before the energy of the blow manifested, barely a second before, but it was enough time to dodge it. She did it with such solvency that she was getting closer to her enemy little by little. He wasn't noticing it, since she was taking a huge detour.

The reality, however, was quite different from what the demihuman imagined. The vampiress didn't understand the skill nor did she have outside aids, unless spells and skills are counted as such. Precisely, the key was a spell that practically no one knew that she had obtained. It had been her goal from the beginning, from the first spell she had chosen, since she had created the character.

It had been a risky bet, for she couldn't be sure it would be as effective as she wanted. The truth is that Premonition hadn't disappointed her. Although she had found it difficult at first to adapt, to be able to react in time, it had become her main secret weapon.

Furthermore, since it wasn't a spell that had visual effects, it had been impossible for others to discover it. In fact, she was the only player who had learned it.

There weren't many players who had discovered its existence in hard-to-find arcane spellbooks, let alone those who had researched it. No one else had spent the effort she had invested in figuring out what it took to learn it.

She had created a new character for herself, a vampiress, and had started from scratch. Then, Gjaki had been acquiring the necessary spells and skills one by one, which hadn't always being easy.

For some, it had been enough to go to a trainer, perhaps pay a large sum. For others, it had been necessary to gain access to places like forbidden libraries, and spend a great deal of time learning them. For a few, it had been especially difficult.

Long adventures to find pieces of manuscripts, and put them together, or ingredients, or to contact spirits that could teach her. Sometimes, she had faced dangerous adversaries over and over again, without losing but without winning either, in order to assimilate their techniques.

Luckily for her, her companions had accompanied her even knowing that it wouldn't bring them great benefits. They had even insisted. It was fun, and they were helping a friend. Perhaps, that had been what had finally broken all of Gjaki's reluctance, what had shown her that they were truly her friends, what had allowed her to open her heart to them.

Once again, Premonition displayed an illusion of what was going to happen up to a second in the future, thus giving her time to dodge, and finally moving close enough to her enemy. She knew that if she got any closer, he would react, but he was waiting until the last moment. Black Wolf wanted her to get within his range. Then, he would cancel his skill, and attack her by surprise. For now, she could still dodge him.

He was finding it hard to believe what was happening, but he had no choice but to accept it and react. The demihuman didn't even know that his enemy was delaying it as much as possible, to make him spend more energy.

The truth is that she was also wasting quite a bit of mana and blood because of Premonition. Furthermore, the vampiress was afraid that, if she dragged it out too long, she would lose the opportunity. So, as soon as Gjaki found an unhindered path for her whip for the next second, she attacked.

The flexible weapon, with Dark Touch, Grabbed around the demihuman's neck, hardened with Stiff, and carried dirt with it to blind him with Did you get something in your eyes? Also, of the two whips she had worn on her belt, that one was the spiked one.

The sudden attack wasn't deadly, but it was painful and unexpected. It caused Black Wolf to lose control of the skill, so she achieved its interruption. This led to the energy running wild and circulating uncontrollably through the demihuman's body, thus breaking veins and arteries. He was even hit by attacks from his own skill before it completely dissipated.

Gjaki took the opportunity to attack, seeking his eyes, but he quickly turned his head. The daggers inflicted deep wounds on his face, but not as decisive as she would have liked.

Without pausing, the vampiress kneed him in the stomach, then reached out with her other leg to attack his ankle. Out of control and cornered, Blackwo activated Berserker. Therefore, he gained strength and speed, but was blinded by his bloodlust.

Another Energy Wave hit Gjaki, and sent her flying. She did a half somersault in the air, and landed on the ground, on her knees, with no time to rest. Possessed by the frenzy of the skill, his enemy was even more aggressive than usual. He was already charging towards her, as his wounds healed even faster.

She jumped to the side and summoned a couple of Clones, which only buy her a few seconds. He jumped over those clones one after another, without stopping. While his skill wouldn't last forever, it was more than enough to tear her apart if he caught her.

She led him to one of the surviving traps, a Bloody Trap, the contents of which covered him. The blood threatened to engulf and blind him, but wasn't very effective against someone in his condition. His quick and abrupt movements were causing the blood to shoot out.

Gjaki considered hiding in Darkness, but that would slow her down, and she knew he would attack the entire area without stopping. She couldn't risk it, so she just dodged.

Gjaki leaped to the side again to avoid another furious rush, and landed a couple of slashes on his paw. However, this time luck was not on her side, as her foot stepped on a hole that had been covered with dirt. It had been thrown over and over again by the continuous attacks, and accumulated there, but hadn't compacted. Her foot sank, and she lost her balance. With terror, she saw that her enemy had turned on her.