Chapter 401

The Knights, as always to their credit, took action as quickly, and efficiently, as possible. That is to say, they didn’t let the Alien finish its meal, and instead launched their attacks on the Secret Boss mere seconds after it had finished off the Pall Sheep, its massive form and attention still focused on the remnants of its meal.

By acting quickly, they were able to gain a few valuable seconds of surprise attack and damage on the creature, which was always imperative. Especially when fighting something more powerful than you are. Early damage, even if for a few seconds, could be key in turning a battle.

Standing at the tree line, keeping their racial passive up to increase their movement speed and dodge chance, Faust, Z, and Elm all unleashed powerful attacks onto the Alien. Lightning arced, arrows flew and erupted, and a cosmetic array of damage and explosions lit up the snowy landscape in spectacular fashion.

Knowing his job, and grumbling about it the whole time, Oak rushed forward, out of the safety of the trees, to unleash a taunt on the alien. From what James could tell, the tank was going to try and pull it back towards the tree line, in order to try and regain his own dodge buff. While minor, increased chance at evasion, combined with his higher defenses and damage mitigation skills, would greatly increase his ability to tank the boss. But, that was completely dependent on being able to pull it from its clearing, back towards the woods.

The Alien, given its size and own strengths, seemed less willing to go into the woods. After all, with its deadly tail, and increased stats, along with the need for it to be in direct sunlight to regain its mana, the Alien wasn’t about to leave this opening. Meaning, try as Oak might, the alien, while taunted, wasn’t taking the bait.

Furthermore, while their initial attacks hit home, and did a decent amount of damage to its massive health pool, this was a Mini-Boss. Their levels, all below the level 72 Alien, meant the fight was going to take at the very least a few minutes. And after the initial barrage began, the Alien activated its Force Filled passive, increasing its Attack and Defense stats by 10%, allowing it to reduce the damage of all the additional attacks, further slowing their ability to burn it down.

“I could really go for a giant mech suit right about now.” Oak called out as his form shimmered, and his glowing Indra form activated. He was being sparse with his cooldowns, James could tell, but that one was one he almost always opened with nowadays. It offered a nice trade off in damage and defenses, and with the life gain he got from his hits, he was able to test out the creature he was tanking without taking a massive risk. It also allowed him to save his larger ‘oh shit’ cooldowns, while trying to figure out just what the enemy could do. Against Bosses, he especially seemed to enjoy using it, since it helped with the vast size differences.

“That would be a bit too meta.” Z said with a laugh as he launched more attacks towards the Alien. He was aiming for the creatures eyes, but the massive, dark skinned alien was tough, extremely tough, and the arrows seemed to glance off its protective, leather carapace and eye lids. Meanwhile, he ordered Turk and Badgy to join the fray, the Bagderker rushing forward with its weapons drawn, while Turk took to the sky, preparing for its own arial assault.

“Still,” Oak said between swings, “I would literally kill for Voltron right now.” He grimaced as his attacks cut into the Alien, green acid spraying over him. The liquid sizzled against his energy Indra form, trying, and failing, to reach his flesh and armor below. Still, James could tell it was hurting him, just not destroying his gear, yet.

“And I’d kill for level 70.” Elm said as he let another cosmic shot loose. The arrow ripped through the air, shimmering in a vibrant array of colors, before it erupted into the alien. More acid flew from its body, showering Oak even more, causing him to cry out in protest.

“Dude.” Oak sputtered. “My mouth was open.”

The party chuckled and continued; their mood somewhat laid back even though they were fighting something much stronger than they were.

“They’re in for a world of pain.” Rue commented nonchalantly by James, and he nodded in agreement. All of their chatter, all of their attacks, and they’d done maybe 3,000 damage to the creature in the span of, 30 seconds? A minute? That only accounted for one-tenth of the creature’s health pool, and James could tell the Alien was analyzing the situation, and figuring out how best to adapt, and launch its own counter attacks.

Obvious to everyone involved, the biggest, easiest target for the Alien, was the annoying Tank standing before it. And while it was stronger than that being, Oak’s class was meant to take damage, and with Med Ic safely in the forest, casting heals and cleanses in a steady stream, if the Alien didn’t act, it would fall…eventually.

“I’m going to guess it’s about time for it act.” James said, noticing the glint of sinister intent in the boss’s eyes. The creature, by nature, was intelligent. It had the ability to adapt, overcome, and learn from all the situations and environment it was in. Along with that, it had gained the Increased Intellect passive from one of the Painguins it had slain, giving it the ability to utilize even more advanced planning and tactics.

Because of that, James knew very well the creature had been doing just what the party was. It was testing them, so to speak, and analyzing the situation. If James had to guess, it was taking note of the entire battlefield, analyzing threats, and determining who, and what, were the biggest threats and targets.

And now, now it was ready to attack. Just as the shimmering around Oak faded, and his massive Indra size burst apart, the cooldown running its course, the patient Mini-Boss decided to finally act. The creature’s mouth opened, the somewhat humanoid features of it twisting into a sick grin, acid spilling lightly from its maw. Then, a terrible, horrible screech erupted from it, sending literal waves of energy roiling away from it. James knew what that was, even though it sounded different. There was no doubt. The Alien, had just utilized Bleat of Despair.

Even better, at level 72, the Alien’s taunt had a 64% chance of working. Meaning, it came as no surprise as almost all of the Knights Who Go Ni, suddenly found themselves aggroed. And at level 72, that meant the taunt lasted for 7 precious, crucial, seconds.