Awarded 2 experience points for assisting in the defeat of a goblin.

I relax my grip on the spear and pull it out slowly. Then, I wipe the blood off the tip with a dry towel given to me by Laela.

Graem crouches down pulling out the dagger at his waist. “I really can’t wait until you catch up to our level so I can finally pair with someone who doesn’t hate butchering the ears.”

“I’ll do it if I have to Graem.”

“Yes, but you’ll hate every second. Don’t worry, I’ll deal with it. Just get back into position and wait for me there,” Graem commands.

“Up to you.” I step back into the hidey-hole, my home away from home for the past week. Closing my eyes, I try to focus on the sounds of footsteps; Graem’s arrive shortly. He steps into the rocky crevice beside me, then his breathing fills the air, I do my best to phase it out. Finally, I catch something else. Tapping. I’m getting better at this; Laela will be here soon. Gorm’s lasso starts whistling. My eyes gently open. Locket light brightens the room. The whistling accelerates. It’s followed by a fierce high-pitched shriek.

“Laela!” Graem screams. He shoves past me and madly leaps over the rocks with a Mana Bolt already forming in his free hand.

I follow, bursting towards what should be a single prone goblin thrashing madly in the last moments of its life. Of course, it isn’t. Instead, in the goblins place Laela lies thrashing about madly. And where Graem and I should be ending its miserable life at least fifteen goblins surround and advance towards her.

The bolt in Graem’s hand flies into the swarm. His aim appears true, but at the last second the targeted goblin leaps out of way.

“Grasping Vines!” Graem shouts while still running. A split second later a mass of thorny vines erupt out of the dungeon’s earth right in the midst of the most concentrated group of goblins, ensnaring four of them.

“Graem, your spear!” Jaed cries while rushing up from the side. She raises her open palm and Graem throws the spear he is holding high in the direction she is running. As though I were watching a Kung Fu movie, Jaed leaps high into the air then gracefully swoops the spear into her grasp. Like a falcon, she descends. Her spearpoint flicks downwards spearing a goblin through the throat. Its head slams into the ground a moment before she lithely lands.

“Berserk! Second Wind!” Laela cries.

I glance back to her, she’s pulled out a dagger and has managed to cut herself free from the rope. Madly she swings her dagger. Wide aggressive arcs, fending off attacks from all sides. It seems to be working, but surrounded like that, her luck won’t last long.

“Triple Bolt!” Graem shouts, a trio of Mana Bolts forming around his hand. The bolts blast into the goblin horde flaring up giant goblin shadows on the cavern wall opposite. Then with a flurry of flashes they disappear. Leaving behind no trace of their existence aside from a blackened scorched goblin corpse. Graem turns to me confusion and anger present on his face. “Fucking move it, Reed!”

Shit! He’s right! What the hell am I hesitating for?

I rush forward and thrust my spear towards the nearest goblin. “Berserk!” I cry as my spear nears its body.

Berserk activated: 60 seconds remaining.

I burst out with explosive speed. The goblin flinches and attempts to dodge, but its too slow; or rather, I’m too fast. My spear erupts out the back of it and my lowered shoulder rams into its face.

Dealt 28 Health Points: Piercing damage. Dealt 14 Health Points: Bludgeoning damage. Awarded 5 experience points for the defeat of a goblin.

I kick the corpse off my spear and turn to look for another goblin foe. But before I can pick a new target, I’m distracted by a savage roar.

“Berserk!” It’s Gorm, figures it would be the big guy. He bursts into the clearing of goblins surrounding Laela. “Crushing Blow!” His huge hammer swings wildly through the midst of the goblins colliding with three of them and in turn sending three mangled corpses soaring though the air.

The goblins pause and turn to Gorm. Seems I wasn’t the only one distracted. I turn to Laela; she’s on her feet fighting off the surrounding goblins urgently. There’s a gap! Why isn’t she moving!? Can’t she see it from where she’s standing. No! Shit, her leg! Damn that’s a lot of blood.

“Jaed!” She twists towards me, I point towards Laela. “There’s a gap through the vines! Laela needs healing!”

Without waiting for Jaed’s response, I charge through the gap into the midst of the goblins.

-4 Health Points: Slashing damage. Dealt 16 Health Points: Slashing damage. -2 Health Points: Piercing damage. -6 Health Points: Slashing damage. Dealt 9 Health Points: Bludgeoning damage.

Spear whirling, I brute force my way past their fangs and claws until I find myself back-to-back with Laela. “Hold on! Jaed will be here soon.”

Her voice comes out ragged and pained. “Okay.” No time to worry about that.

I stab forward at the closest goblin. It jumps backwards out of range. Another goblin leaps at me from the left, I raise my palm to it. “Ice bolt!” A shining white crystal materialises against my palm. It shoots forward slamming into the leaping goblin flinging it backwards. An icy sheen quickly glazes the goblins skin.

Dealt 22 Health Points: Magical Cold damage. Awarded 3 experience points for assisting in the defeat of a goblin.

It hits the ground with a thud. Dead according to the blue box. The rest of the goblins pause and consider me warily.

“Lesser Healing.” Jaed calls out behind me. She is crouching, her arm placed forcefully against Laela’s punctured leg. Laela has taken the spear and is slashing it in wide arcs keeping the goblins at bay. Good, just need to buy a bit more time. Following Laela’s lead, I unleash a wide slash of my own forcing back the rest of the approaching goblins.

“That’s enough!” Laela barks. I glance back and see Laela yank Jaed to her feet and shoves the wooden spear handle against her chest. “Take it!” Laela commands.

Jaed glances down at Laelas leg still caked in a thick layer of blood. “Your leg?”

“I’m full health points Jaed, it’s just blood. Take it!”

Jaed grabs the spear warily and twists around.

“Graem, what do we do!?” Laela yells.

“Give me a second!” Graem calls back.

Another goblin rushes toward me, but, it slows to a halt at I turn my spear towards it.

“We don’t have a second!” Laela cries. Desperate, she turns to me. “Reed, any ideas?”

“Huh!?” Why is she asking me!? I scan the battlefield quickly. Gorm is still taking the brunt of the goblin offensive, but alone like that it won’t take them long to bring him down with overwhelming numbers. Laela and Jaed appear fine, but we’ve also only got until the four goblins caught in Graem’s Grasping Vines get free. Shit! I should have asked how long that ability lasts. What about Graem? He’s far enough away from the horde and is kiting the stragglers effectively, but he’s too far away to help. “There’s no choice! We’ve got to break out of this encirclement!”

“How do we do that!?”

Resisting the urge to roll my eyes I fire another Mana Bolt towards the goblin leaping at my throat.

Dealt 13 Health Points: Magical corrosive damage.

If I knew how to break out of here, don’t you think I would have said something? “Jaed, how much mana do you have left?”

“Meditate.” Jaed replies breathless. “About half. Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine. How strong is that Charged Mana Wave ability of yours?”

“I think-” Jaed looks up at me warily then bites her lip. “Graem said pretty strong.”

“Only one way to find out! Laela, protect Jaed! Jaed, everything you’ve got at the goblins caught in the vines. We only get one shot at this!”

“Right!” Jaed and Laela call in harmony. Jaed twists towards the ensnared goblins.

Laela swings her spear in another wide arc and the nearby goblins leap backwards. As they do so she takes another step forward giving Jaed and I a bit more room. I follow her lead with another wide swing of my own. The goblins scatter and I pull the spear in close again while stepping forward. It’s easier to use the spear now with more space, but with more space there are also more angles the goblin can attack from. Especially while I have to protect Jaed. I grip my spear tight ready to lunge at the first hint of an attack.

Behind me there is a faint hissing sound. Turning, I see a dense, cyan, ball of mana, about the size of a marble, floating slightly above Jaed’s hands. A couple goblins lunge at me, but a couple quick feints with my spear sends them back. The hissing accelerates, I glance back again. The ball has grown to the size of a tennis ball, blue sparks discharge in arcs like a tesla coil. Jaed’s body is completely illuminated by the pulsing cyan glow.

"Charged Mana Wave!” Jaed waves her arms violently and the ball shifts into a thin sheet of cyan mana slashing out like the after image of a sword swing.

The closest goblins leap safely out of the way, but those few still caught in the vines are not so lucky. As the wave passes through them the goblins along with the vines are sheared in half. Arcs of cyan plasma race over their spasming bodies.

“Second Wind,” Jaed puffs out. Her face is pale.

“Come on!” Laela yells. She rushes forward towards the gap, grabbing Jaed by the elbow and pulling her along.

“Right!” I leave the goblins a parting gift of one last wide slashing arc of my spear before dashing after Laela and Jaed.

Laela laughs as we rush past the four goblin corpses. “Damn, remind me to never stand in the way of that.” Charred bones and organs clearly visible along severed edges of the body parts. Blood sizzles along the singed skin where the arcs trailed.

I turn back and see the remaining goblins we just escaped mostly ignoring Gorm and chasing us. Damn it! We worked too hard to get out of there. We may have thinned out their numbers a little, but Jaed is basically out of commission and Laela and I will be too soon once Berserk runs out. What do we do!? Damn it, I need time to think!

“Gorm! Give them hell!” Graem yells from across the chamber. Another bolt of pure blue mana flying towards a goblin on his tail.

“Stalwart Defense!” Gorm’s voice booms throughout the cavern. He stampedes through the midst of the goblins chasing us, his hammer swinging back and forth wildly. Barrelling straight into the centre of the goblins he roars again. “Second Wind!” Then he twirls in a circular arc his hammer outstretched as though he were competing in a hammer throw. Goblins hit by this swing hurtle through the air.

Awarded 1 experience point for assisting in the defeat of a goblin.

Most of the goblins chasing us turn back to dealing with Gorm, but two continue their mad pursuit. Laela twists around and dashes forward towards the first. “Lacerate!” she cries and her dagger turns bright red. As her dagger slices across the goblins skin a lattice of torn flesh flares out like tentacles from the shallow wound. The goblin flops to the ground clutching its leg screaming.

I arrive a half second later spear piercing right through the second goblin’s stomach while it’s distracted by its screaming kin.

Critical Hit: Dealt 52 Health Points: Piercing damage. Awarded 5 experience points for the defeat of a goblin.

I yank my spear out of the goblins gurgling stomach. Finally, a chance to catch my breath. There aren’t many left but they still outnumber us. That could get bad.

“Laela.” She turns to me. “We can’t let them surround us after our abilities run out. We need to herd them together, lessen the effect of their number advantage.”

“How do we do that?” Laela asks.

“The cavern wall! If we can help Gorm force the goblins into it they won’t be able to surround us. But we’ll have to be quick! Jaed, go reinforce Graem and then bring him back to regroup. Laela, push in the goblins on Gorm’s left flank. I’ll take the right.”

Jaed shakily rushes around the outskirts of the cavern towards Graem. Laela bursts forward to the left of Gorm. I rush to the right arriving just as a goblin attempts to branch away from Gorm toward us. The butt of my spear slams into it knocking it back into the group.

Dealt 11 Health Points: Bludgeoning damage.

“Gorm, drive them into the wall!”

Gorm roars and then swings his hammer wide. The goblins edge back.

I thrust forward as a goblin attempt to step out of our encirclement and flank us. It hastily backs away. Just a little closer and we make it to the wall.

Berserk ability exhausted. Experience threshold reached.

Ability Level Up!

Berserk raised to Level 2.

Shit! The nausea and weakness hit me like a ton of bricks.

I lunge again. The goblin jumps back easily. I’m slow, too damn slow. Laela and Gorm have dropped in pace too, they look even more exhausted than I feel. And there’s still six of them in here. We can’t win this. It’s all going to come down to Graem and Jaed now.

“Reed!” Gorm growls while gesturing towards three injured goblins scampering towards me. No time to worry about Graem and Jaed now, they can handle themselves. I have to stop them!

“Mana Bolt!” The first is knocked back off its feet.

Dealt 18 Health Points: Magical corrosive damage. Awarded 2 experience points for assisting in the defeat of a goblin.

My spear flies forward catching the second in the shoulder and throwing its body sideways.

Dealt 10 Health Points: Slashing damage. Awarded 1 experience point for assisting in the defeat of a goblin.

Gorm grabs the third by the throat in his huge muscly fist. He pulls it up high into the air and then, with a sickening crunch, cracks its skull open against the dungeons stone ground. I twist back to see a fourth goblin leaping at me. Claws outstretched towards my face and throat.

“Triple Bolt!” Graem yells. Bolt after bolt after bolt slam into the goblin knocking it backwards out of the air. It hits the ground hard, skin sizzling. It doesn’t stand up again.

Glancing around, I see a litany of blackened corpses strewn throughout the cavern.

“Die!” Gorm yells rushing towards the last two remaining goblins. They dash aside and Jaed’s spear catches one in the chest while Laela kicks hers back towards Gorm. Gorm’s hammer slams into it crushing it against the wall. It slowly slides down leaving a bloody trail in its wake.

Gorm puffs hard as he lowers his hammer to the ground. I twist around to look for any last goblins. My companions look with me. Finally, upon finding the cavern empty of little green demon spawn, I collapse to the ground in a heap. A second later Jaed plops down beside me.

“Good fight!” Gorm beams and drops his bloody hammer to the ground with a thud.

“Good fight?” Laela stares at Gorm bewildered. “Aren’t you forgetting something important? Like apologising for catching me with your lasso?”

“Accident.” Gorm shrugs.

Laela blinks a few times. “So, you’re not sorry?” Her voice is colder than the goblin caught in the face by my Ice Bolt.

Gorm freezes. I can see the cogs in his brain turning through his eyes. “Sorry, Laela.” He eventually replies.

“So, you are sorry?”

“Mhm.” Gorm nods.

Laela stares at Gorm blankly.

“Hey.” Graem calls out before patting his sister’s shoulder. “I’m really glad you’re safe. This has been a bit too much excitement for one day team. Let’s get the ears, head out of here, and cool our heads.”

Laela sighs. “We don’t have to head out. I can keep hunting today. It wasn’t that bad.”

“No, we do have to head out. Gorm was right, that was a good fight. Just look at the haul.” Graem gestures widely towards the litany of corpses strewn around the room. “But more importantly, this addresses that little issue you brought up last night?”

“What issue?” Laela’s eyes narrow.

“That we’re too inexperienced.”

“How does this.” Laela sweeps her arm towards the strewn about goblin corpses. “Fix our inexperience?”

“Because.” Graem smirks. “This proves we can handle a goblin fight. Even under pressure.”

Laela frowns at Graem, but he ignores her and continues. “I’ll explain what I’m thinking outside, but to summarise, it’s time we evolve our hunting strategy. Until then it’s better to take a break and recalibrate.”

“Evolve our hunting strategy?” I ask. “You mean more fights like this?”

“Indeed, it seems you're ready for it Reed. So, it’s time we started some real combat practice.” Graem nods.

“No more lasso?” Gorm laughs loudly as he hefts his hammer over his shoulder. “Finally!”