《My Second Life is an Absurdist Power Fantasy?!》The Shaman's Scheme
Advertisement
Rawgh'faz lay on the stones of the square, his mind calculating about his next move. The blue-skinned girl was not going to leave her invisibility if she could help it, and as of this current moment had the upper hand on him as he lay here. But there was something working in his favor. By the way she used components, she was clearly a wizard, which meant that sooner or later she would run out of supplies to cast any more of her little tricks. And by that point, she'd be defenseless. All he had to do was wait her out, bait her spells, and strike when she was no longer able to cast.
Now, from this position, he couldn't very well move without drawing her attention and likely being struck by that damned stick of hers. But he didn't need to move, and if he was careful, he could do what he was thinking without letting on.
As he lay there, mentally intoning the ritual chant in his head, he laughed aloud, cackling hyena-like for several moments before he spoke in a gruff, barking Common.
"You fight well, girl. I like a good challenge." He said. "Leaving the footsteps was a nice touch."
His words hung in the air for several seconds without any reply, just long enough to make him wonder if she had actually left, before her voice sounded out somewhere behind and above him.
"Talking isn't surrendering, mutt. I'm waiting for you to tell me you're leaving." Eleanor said.
Rawgh'faz made himself chuckle out loud again as he mentally worked the second stage of the chant in his mind. He could already feel the first threads of connection to the spirit he was calling for, but he would need more time. Perhaps a minute or two. He had to keep her talking, or, at the very least, busy.
"And why would I do that? I like it here." The gnoll said, his teeth baring into a doggish grin as he turned his head to the side, granting him a limited view of the space behind him. "It's so much more entertaining than sitting in our caves waiting for some hero to come kill us."
Advertisement
The girl scoffed, and said, "Because if you don't tell me you're leaving, I'm going to turn your hide into a throw rug. Now, are you leaving, or do I need to fold you inside out first?"
The way she said this last sentence struck Rawgh'faz's ears as ever so slightly off. She was posturing for poise and confidence, but the subtleties of her tone were giving her away. She was impatient. And, more than that, she wasn't as confident as she was trying to present. There was an edge of nervousness in her voice that she was trying very hard to mask. Which told him everything he needed to know. She was probably running low on tricks. And recognized a genuine threat when she saw one. He had to give her credit for being at least that smart.
The threads of connection with the spirit he was beckoning were growing thicker by the second as he mentally intoned the name. A few more moments, and he'd act. He cast his vision as far back behind him as he could from his limited vantage point, and sighed audibly, effecting a look of defeat and frustration.
"We'll leave. You have my word." He said.
"I want to hear that you'll never come back. Say it." The girl said. This was accompanied by another sharp crack of her staff against the back of his head, causing the gnoll to curse aloud, both out of pain, and out of nearly losing the connection thread he was about to complete.
"My tribe will never return to this place. You have my word as chieftain." Rawgh'faz said, doing his best to make his tone as genuine and fearful as possible as he felt the connection tether complete, and the spirit's vitality rush into his body in a roaring wave. It took everything in him to not howl out in pain and ecstasy at the experience.
"Good dog. Now leave, before I decide to turn you into a cloak." The girl said, her invisibility dissolving to reveal her standing about fifteen paces behind him, her staff held defensively in both hands.
Advertisement
Rawgh'faz shifted his weight and pulled his hands down to his sides, slowly placing them against the warm stones as he pressed himself up and slid into a sitting position. The spirit's essence clamored inside him, rushing to burst free from his body in a torrent, but he held firm. It wouldn't be long. He turned and looked at the girl, who was looking at him threateningly
She pointed to his staff laying on the ground next to him.
"The staff. Hand it over, dog." She said, shifting her weight into an even more protective position.
Rawgh'faz did everything he could to hide the smile threatening to form around his hyena lips. Surely it couldn't be this easy. How on earth could a girl this clever also be this completely foolish?
Rawgh'faz reached his hand out and grasped the gnarled wood shaft of the staff, wrapping his fingers around the shaft and feeling its resonance amplify the already surging power inside his bones. Lifting it up, he turned and, with a flick of his arm, tossed the staff towards the girl.
Just as he had hoped, her eyes followed the wood, and a hand strayed from her staff, reaching out to catch it as it flew towards her face. As soon as he saw her guard drop ever so slightly, he burst into action, leaping from his seated position and charging towards her, opening the channels in his body to allow the summoned elemental's energy to surge into his hands and burst outwards in a torrent of red-orange flame that rocketed directly for her.
Eleanor's eyes grew wide in shock and terror, and she jerked her staff out in front of her shouted a flurry of Infernal as the fireball slammed into her. The resulting explosion, barely deflected by a magical barrier, knocked her flying backwards. After sailing a few dozen feet, she hit the cobblestone, tumbling and skipping another dozen feet before coming to rest on her back. Her staff, or what remained of it, clattered across the ground, the first third of it a smoking, charred matchstick.
Rawgh'faz lowered his hands, the elemental's flames still lapping at his palms, and grinned wickedly as he looked over at the girl's crumpled, smoking form. That'd gone even better than he expected. He walked over to where his staff lay on the stones, and picked it up, feeling its power synchronize with that inside him as he walked towards the girl's body.
He was about halfway to her when she stirred, coughing and groaning as she sat up. A line of blood tricked down the side of her face, and her robes were visibly burned. She looked in his direction, a mixture of panin and rage crossing her face as jumped to her feet. She looked around frantically for her staff, and her face went cold with terror as she saw the smoking wood in front of her. She looked back at Rawgh'faz, who was cackling evilly as he continued to close the gap.
"You're talented, girl. And clever. But also very, very stupid." He said, drawing up a short distance from her. "I'm going to enjoy breaking you in after this."
Eleanor's hand shot to the component pouch on her robe belt, and felt a jolt of horror when she felt it missing. She looked down, and where the pouch should be sat a scorched, blackened bit of fabric. Her eyes shot back to the gnoll. Her hands were shaking, and tears began to well up in the corners of her eyes.
"Looks like you're all out of tricks." Rawgh'faz said, raising his staff and opening the channels of his body to allow the elemental's energy to flood into it. Roots at the tip of the staff glowed a bright red-orange, and with a final word of command, Rawgh'faz unleashed every bit of power the spirit had provided him at the cowering, terrified girl.
Advertisement
- In Serial19 Chapters
Re:Naruto
A soul of a man floats through endless darkness, awaiting its next reincarnation. The man remember nothing and knows little, but when his chance to reincarnate comes he will learn he has an abnormal amount of positive karma. Positive karma he can use to gain plenty of advantages in his next life. In fear of being powerless or becoming a pawn he makes full use of it, becoming someone who would surely leave a mark on the world he heads to. His destination? A world of ninja, shinobi. The world of Naruto. I do no own Naruto nor anything else from the source material. This is only a fanfiction.
8 232 - In Serial8 Chapters
Filii Aquilae
Log Entry: 1011 Year: [Redacted] By: Cristabel [Redacted] Unit: KWSC Division: Valkyrie One Report: Black Site Alpha 3 compromised. I Repeat, Alpha 3 is compromised. Hostiles, identified as the Alliance, overrunning all security measures. All research data wiped from all stations and copies secured by Old Man and the Hell Hounds. They're en route to rally point [Redacted]. Valkyrie One and Saber Two making their last stand to buy time. [Redacted] personnel remain, but will be lost to cover Old Man's escape. May winds of glory guide their way. The old man a true veteran of the battlefield. Been everywhere. Done everything. Now he's running for his life, with the Kids and data his sister died for. He's fucking pissed. The alliance who messed with him is going to pay. He'd ensure it. But little did he know that he might just get wrapped up in a war greater than any other he has fought, because this time the Wilds is on the verge of collapse, not just The Imperial Warmongers. Will, he able to pull off this seemingly impossible task? Or will he fail? PS: I am new at writing and this is my first attempt at this. Any criticism or suggestions is appreciated. Hope you enjoy the story. I am really slow at writing so I apologize in advance for the time between chapters.
8 192 - In Serial88 Chapters
The Void King.
The gods themselves have granted mankind the ability to cultivate, to gather up and unleash Qi as devastating attacks or life-saving healing powers. And yet, in the small village of Green Willows lives an abandoned child, Huang Ying, who was denied even that, forbidden from enjoying what every other living person gets to have. But is everything really as it seems with Huang Ying, is he truly doomed to live at the very bottom for all his life, or could there be a beast hidden even within this abandoned child? And what if that beast was one that saw even the universe itself as nothing more than a snack?
8 301 - In Serial8 Chapters
Dauntless Star
WWIII has come to pass and 91% of the Earth is left scorched and uninhabitable. From the ashes of WWIII two major powers emerged. The Southern Alliance (SA) and the Northern United Nations (NUN). The SA sought refuge in space devising devices to enhance the body and keep the mind occupied. This novel follows the journey of a young man named Crescent who saw the worst humanity had to offer in The Game and was given a second chance, traveling back in time when humanity first left for the stars. More importantly when The Game first started. Hello Author here just thought I’d say hi. This is the first novel and there will more than likely be a lot of grammar mistakes and slow writing but together we can finish this novel. Any constructive feedback you can give or editing you can do will be very appreciated. So come join in a journey of sci-fi, fantasy, time travel and romance (hopefully). Damn single life ? Ps if the cover artwork is yours and you can provide proof, I would be happy to take it down at your request as per you intellectual rights. If not thx
8 103 - In Serial8 Chapters
Rising of the Serpent
The year is 5278. In a world filled with Magicians, humans granted magic powers due to interspecies relationships with an alien species that landed on earth, humans have become slaves to their genetically superior overlords. The only humans with freedom live on the Island of Saint-Victor. One of these humans is Martial Dallas, a passionate human who wishes to attend the world's greatest magician academy, Saint-Victor's Military Academy. When he's accepted to attend, there's only one thing standing in his way; a 10,000 dollar deposit and only having four months to raise it. When living in a world with few opportunities for humans, Martial really only has one option:Become one of the world's greatest human pornstars.
8 143 - In Serial18 Chapters
Hetalia One-shots 2019!
Hey people! It's a second Hetalia one-shots book!Don't worry, you don't have to read the first one (but if you do, I win't stop you :) )Requests are happily accepted!Please enjoy!
8 97