Eli squared up with his newest opponent. As the beast steadily approached him with menace in its eyes, Eli noticed the sickly looking pustules that dotted its matted fur. He also took note of the yellowed edges of the beast man’s eyes. Then his eyes were drawn to the cracked and broken claws of his hands that seemed to ooze puss. The massive matte black machetes carried a rough edge that glistened with what was most certainly some form of poison. Can’t allow myself to get hit, good thing I’m rather nimble. Eli thought as Azuk Rotpaw tightened his grip on his weapons and began to charge.

“Point-In-Line” Eli activated an ability used to control the flow of the fight. Azuk paused and focused on the tip of Eli’s weapon as if hypnotized, at the same time Eli felt his Mana flee his body at a precipitous rate. Eli immediately began barking orders to the troops gathered behind him. “Cover my flanks! This fight will not be quick, conserve your resources! The beast in front of me uses poison! Let me deal with him!”

A chorus of “yes, sir’s” rang up behind him and Eli released his ability and activated Vicious Fleche and lunged forward and caused the beast to raise his machetes to block the surprisingly quick attack.

CLANG!

Their weapons collided in a shower of sparks and Eli retreated a short distance and adjusted his angle of attack. Azuk swept his weapons through the space Eli formerly occupied and snapped his head up when he found the quick man had moved. The gnoll pressed the attack and Eli activated Riposte and drew first blood to the surprise of both fighters. A line of nearly black blood cut in a straight across Azuk’s shoulder began to bubble and sizzle as drops landed on the dirt at their feet.

“Great, acidic blood.” Eli muttered.

Azuk roared and activated an ability that increased his speed with a surge of sickly green light and launched into a series of supernaturally quick attacks that pressed Eli backwards as he began to adjust the timing of his own counter attacks. More than once Eli grimaced as the poisoned machetes nearly reached his soft flesh.

Surprisingly through the opening moments of the fight the large mountain lion kept pace with the fighters and shredded any other gnoll that thought to interrupt the furious duel that was taking place in the middle of the battlefield. So far he had managed to avoid being struck by the beastman and his absurd weapons while landing several light wounds.

That won’t last forever. Eli thought dreading the moment that poison entered his veins. Around him the battle was moving closer to the walls as his current dueling partner had pushed him steadily back while dragging his fighters along by force of will. It was as if his momentum was trickling into the assembled horde. Gonna have to bite the bullet if I want to change the impetus!

The two warriors clashed again and again, as Eli refused to give anymore ground. He pushed his skills to their limit as his opponent pressed him over and over. He had gotten used to a pattern when the gnoll commander suddenly sucked him in with a feint. The commander reached back with one arm as if to swing. Eli slipped forward to plant his sword, presumably, in the gnolls guts. Instead the gnoll flicked his other wrist as Eli lashed out and was caught in the hip by the edge of the machete in the gnolls other hand.

It wasn’t a powerful attack, it didn’t need to be. It just needed to break the skin and let the poison in. Eli retreated and looked at the light wound on his hip and grimaced as it began to hiss and steam. FUCK! A quick check of his status screen informed him of the damage done.

Slowing Poison x1…. 0.00.9:78…

Slowing Poison reduces attack and movement speed by 5% with each application, will last 10 seconds or is reset with consecutive applications of the poison.

That’s not good. While 5% isn’t a huge hit to my speed, it can quickly stack up.

Azuk made a strange noise as it watched Eli register just what had happened. Bloody cunt is laughing at me!

Eli ran forward while the gnoll commander laughed at him. His sword thrust out several times and while the effect was minimal, he could feel how his movements seemed slightly off. Not enough to hamper his ability but enough to cause concern.

Azuk reached forward with the tips of both weapons and Eli activated Fencer’s Feint. Azuk flinched into a defensive stance that left his extended leg open for an attack that Eli took full advantage of as he rammed his blade deep into the gnoll commander’s thickly muscled thigh. The monster began to howl when Eli slipped inside his guard and drove his elbow up into his diaphragm. The howl was cut short as the gnoll was lifted bodily off the ground from the blow by several inches. Before his feet could return to the desert sand, Eli wrenched his sword free of Azuk’s thigh and lashed out with an impressive kick to the midsection that shot the large gnoll backwards through his battle lines.

Just as I teach my students, one shouldn’t rely just on system generated abilities. Eli thought as he charged the tumbling gnoll, rushing past the troops the enemy commander bowled over as he flew into them. Eli noted the large cat followed and shredded the vitals of the now defenseless gnoll troops. He was surprised when he broke through the enemy lines and saw Azuk digging himself out of a house some 200 meters from where they had last fought. Shite! May have overextended myself here.

Azuk roared in rage and charged Eli before he could consider his position any longer. Eli spotted the signs of an ability activating and then found himself repeatedly activating Guard to keep up with the flurry of weapon strikes that threatened to overwhelm his defense. Just as Slowing Poison was about to wear off the gnoll commander managed to knick Eli’s shoulder.

“Fuck!” he cursed as he was struck twice more and grimaced as he felt the effects of a 20% slowing poison like a heavy weight restricting all his actions. He was down to a third of his Stamina and realized it was time to activate another ability, Focus.

His vision tunneled into his opponent as the ability literally lit up across Azuk’s body indicating his weakest points. At the same time the ability aided his stamina regeneration and Eli was happy to see he was now sitting at half and could freely use his other abilities again.

Azuk gave him no more time to consider the situation he was in as the man beast leapt into the air both arms raised over his head aiming to end the fight in a brutal downward slash. Fortunately for Eli his Agility attribute, the attribute that did the majority calculation for attack and movement speed, was sitting at 132. With a 20% reduction he still had 106 Agility to spare. He was still sitting above and beyond that Aussie archer and Alyssa, who from what he could tell were the only ones to have that attribute so high. Other than Karl of course, but that man was a terrifying machine of destruction.

As Azuk descended from his jump, Eli slipped under the man beasts arc of travel faster than he had expected. The gnoll crashed into the ground with his machetes that found nothing but dirt where Eli once stood. Eli, to his credit, was already striking as the commander hit the ground confused at how the smaller man had moved so quickly. Three red lights appeared in his vision and his rapier stabbed all three in quick succession.

Azuk stumbled forward in pain and swung his left arm back in a blind swipe of his poisoned machete. Eli simply ducked and swiped at the glowing red point where the extended armpit was exposed. Skin and muscle parted and instantly black blood sprayed the ground. Eli retreated a step as Azuk swung his other arm in an attempt to behead the man. He roared at Eli and charged with both weapons cutting a furious tempo as Eli fell into a comfortable defense.

Maybe too comfortable he thought as he found it was his turn to get rocketed across the landscape and collapse into an already burnt out building, scrambling to avoid being crushed by the collapsing roof.

“OI! THAT’S ENOUGH OF THAT SHITE, MATE!” Eli roared, momentarily giving into his lust for battle. Eli had always been hot headed. It was the reason his grandfather suggested he take up fencing. It was the kind of sport that requires a certain level of calm and mental control. It was all about precision.

Eli took a deep breath, raised his sword in front of his face, then exhaled and launched towards the bloody gnoll commander. Azuk returned the charge with one of his own and the two warriors clashed to the sound of ringing steel as they tore into each other for all they were worth. Eli’s arms and bones ached with every strike he blocked. There was a reason the beast man used a slowing poison, it seemed all of his attributes were in strength and endurance. He wasn’t particularly fast but he could hit like a truck and Eli worried that the thinner blade of his own weapon would shatter under the assault.

He started dodging to the side and turning the commander in circles avoiding a contest of strength as much as possible. He bounced on the balls of his feet, parrying and countering attacks as they came in. The gnoll commander was still bleeding from the wound in his armpit and signs of his stamina flagging were becoming apparent. As the duo danced around each other showering the area in the sparks of clashing metal Eli smiled.

Azuk’s eyes narrowed. Realization spread across his face as Eli’s speed and movement significantly increased. The flagging gnoll saw the writing on the wall, if gnolls actually wrote on walls that is, as Eli became a violent, stabbing blur. While the severe bleeding had stopped in his armpit he had lost enough blood that it was having a significant effect on his stamina. His chest expanded heavily with each labored breath as he fought just to deflect the attacks of the puny manling's thin sword. More often than not that blade would poke another bleeding hole in his body.

Eli knew the battle was all but won. He held off on the finishing blow however because he could see the gnoll still had some strength. Wouldn’t do to have my head removed from the creature's last stand attack, would it now? Just when he thought the attack wouldn’t come, the gnoll’s body surged with a shimmering black haze and he launched his weakest arm out in a savage cross cut that would have bisected Eli if he hadn’t been waiting for it.

Eli stepped into the attack and activated Riposte at the same time. Sparks flew as metal scraped across metal then Eli spun a step and found himself lined up with the gnoll’s exposed rib cage. He lunged forward and buried his blade to the hilt in Azuk’s side. The gnoll commander roared and spun to follow Eli with his other blade. Eli ducked and shoved the tip of his blade into the elbow joint of the arm that carried the follow-up attack. While he wasn’t able to push through the bone to pierce the other side he did manage to wreck the tendons inside the joint. Azuk’s giant machete clattered to the ground.

Eli wasn’t finished however and he side stepped to the monster’s rear right flank and swiped the blade across the back of the commander’s knee. With his weight shifted to the leg Eli struck, the audible snapping of ligaments echoed across the field despite the din of battle in the background. Azuk fell forward and only managed to stop himself from face planting with his outstretched good arm. His right arm hung limply in the dirt and Eli walked around to face his enemy.

“It was a good fight, mate. Let’s not do it again.” Eli gave the fallen commander a salute with his sword then plunged the blade through his eye and out the back of his head. A twist of the blade a moment later and he wrenched it free and allowed his opponent to collapse dead in the hot Arizona dirt.

Congratulations! You have defeated: Azuk Rotpaw, Lord of War, Breaker of Men, Defiler of Souls, Adjunct to Legate Khaimshir Splitclash, Commander of the Second Legion; Level 25*** Rotclaw Slasher.

You have earned 50000 Experience and 2500 UMC.

Congratulations! With the defeat of Azuk Rotpaw you have broken the assault on the Northern flank of the SooHoo Military Settlement. You have earned 100000 Experience and 25000 UMC.

Congratulations! For leading the battle from the front, you have earned an additional 10000 Experience and 1000 UMC. All soldiers that you lead in this battle have also gained the same.

“Hmmm, seems some things never change. War has always been profitable.” Eli mused to himself as he stood in the blood soaked northern battlefield, watching the rest of the battle play out while he clasped his hands behind his back and whistled a tune. It seemed that the girl who’s job he took was about to get her own duel going and Karl’s team had managed to bring out the overall battle commander.

As the northern gnoll formation crumbled and retreated back towards the High School the large mountain lion he had rescued from becoming kitty stew approached him and circled around his back and rubbed up against him in the way cats looking for attention do. He reached out absentmindedly and scratched the offered ear and was surprised at the notification that presented itself.

Congratulations! Large Mountain Lion has offered to form a Soul Bond with you. Do you accept? (Yes/No)

I did say coyote or lion cavalry would be fucking cool! Yes.

The mountain lion purred in satisfaction when the bond snapped into place. Eli smiled and began walking back towards the settlement with the lion in tow.

“C’mon, Felix, let’s go see what we can do to wrap up this battle.”