Crystal Shards Online Omnibus 1

by Rick Scott

  I cast Shadow Tendrils and Shadow Copy in preparation.

  Yup, I think to myself. I’m pretty sure I’m about to die.

  Chapter 32: Beast King

  Val Helena charges in, and I follow right after. She uses a bunch of protection abilities, and then unleashes War Cry on the two groups of mobs as she reaches them. Her HP bar begins to deplete as the forty plus high-level mobs go to town on her. I target the crab and hit it with a Charge Strike, give it a full burst with my blades. I take off 10% of its health before I Retreat and dash away to face Ullithilli. The monster towers over me. I’m scared to as heck to even touch it.

  I use Elemental Shadow Wheel to cast Shadow Fire on it from a distance.

  A small explosion goes off above its huge mantle, and its blocky-pupiled eyes focus in my direction.

  You cast Shadow Fire!

  Ullithilli resists the spell.

  No effect, but at least I got its attention. I use Shadow Mist next, and am not surprised by the results.

  You cast Shadow Mist!

  Ullithilli resists the spell.

  “Come get me!” I shout using War Cry, and the huge octopus moves in my direction—just as the crab catches up to me. Oh crap!

  I barely duck under the massive claw, and take off running toward the other end of the arena in a sprint. I glance over my shoulder to see the guild chopping away at the kraken and the fish-men, both of which look about half gone now. Val Helena is still in the middle of it all, taking heals as her Health bar bobs up and down.

  I reach the end of the arena and turn to start running around the perimeter.

  A huge tentacle swipes at me and my shadow disappears.

  Uh oh . . .

  I stop for a second to recast, Shadow Copy and as soon as I do, I get hit again.

  Your shadow absorbs the attack.

  I try to take off running again, but the massive beast is too close.

  Ullithilli hits you!

  You take 634 damage.

  Ullithilli hits you!

  You take 584 damage.

  You are defeated!

  What!?

  My heart sinks as my body hits the floor. How could I screw up so bad so quickly? The shame of letting the team down flushes me hot with embarrassment.

  (RNG)Reece: Guys, I’m sorry. ) :

  (RNG)Val Helena: Gilly, get him up.

  (RNG) Gilly: On it!

  The crab and Ullithilli slowly start back toward Val Helena, heading to where she’s just finished off the last of the kraken. She points to the crab. “Zeke, burst down the crab with Power Attacks while I take the boss.”

  “Got it!” Zeke shouts. He and the dwarves charge at the crab with a flurry of special moves that drop it to 0 HP in just a few seconds.

  Val Helena uses War Cry on the boss, and it lashes out at her with its massive tentacles. It does eight hits in a row, each one taking Val Helena’s health down by 10%! Silvi and her team barely have time to get her back up before the onslaught comes again.

  “Hurry it up, Gilly!” Val Helena cries.

  Just then, Gilly appears to cast Raise on me. “Better get back in the game quick, Reece!”

  I raise up, and Gilly tops off my weakened HP bar.

  451/451 HP

  Better than nothing, I guess. “Thanks, Gilly!”

  I recast Shadow Tendrils and Shadow Copy, and add Shadow Cloak for good measure. I’ve got to do better this time. I get behind Ullithilli and hit it with a Backstab that takes off a whopping 4% of its health, bringing it down to 92%. I blow an Active Dodge as it turns to face me, and my body blurs through a hit. I focus on dodging and manage to weave through the next few strikes as well, but its arms are moving so fast I can barely keep track of them all. I lose my shadow but after a few tense seconds of dodging, I manage to recast Shadow Copy again.

  I get some slashes off in between and use War Cry to keep the LM focused on me.

  Thanus starts casting debuffs to slow and paralyze, but the giant monster resists each one. Zeke’s team yells and hollers as they release a few more Power Attacks, and Ullithilli’s health drops down to 82%. Jax hits it with a Backstab, doing an impressive 6% damage all by himself. Then Thanus casts an attack spell, and a massive meteorite falls from the sky to explode atop Ullithilli’s head, dropping it to 65%. The sight reminds me that I still need to use my Elemental Magic on it. I pause to cast the spell and lose my shadow in the process.

  You cast Shadow Fire!

  Ullithilli’s resistance to fire is decreased.

  Success! But then I see a room-wide message.

  Ullithilli readies Whirlpool!

  The water begins to stir as its arms flail widely. I try casting Shadow Copy, but it’s still on cool-down! The attack goes off. It sends a wave of tidal energy that crashes into us from all directions. I flat line in an instant. So does Jax. The rest of the melee team is hanging on by a thread, and Val Helena is down to 20%. The beast turns toward her, and Silvi just manages to top Val Helena up before the attacks start slamming into her again.

  I feel like such an idiot! I shouldn’t have cast Shadow Copy so early. I’m going to cause the whole team to wipe now!

  Gilly casts Raise on me just as I see another attack go off.

  Ullithilli uses Ink Storm!

  A second AOE attack goes off in a cloud of blackness that covers Val Helena and the melee team. Their HP all drop to zero, and the LM starts to head toward Gilly.

  No!

  I rise up, double weakened, with only 27 hit points to my name.

  “Stay away from her!” I yell with War Cry, and the massive beast turns back toward me.

  Oh crap. What am I going to do now?

  I refrain from casting Shadow Copy too soon. That’s what got me killed the last time. I use the five seconds to recast Shadow Tendrils instead. I then Retreat to increase my distance and sprint away from Val Helena and the other fallen warriors. Ullithilli slowly starts to give chase. I’ve got to do something. But its attacks are just too fast. I can barely keep track of them enough to dodge.

  I’ve got to slow it down somehow. But even Thanus’s spells were being resisted.

  Resisted . . . that gives me an idea. Shadow Magic is based on dark. If I could lower its resistance to dark, maybe I could get it to land.

  I turn about and use Elemental Shadow Wheel again.

  You cast Shadow Darkness!

  Ullithilli’s resistance to dark is decreased.

  Yes!

  I cast Shadow Mist, but an error message appears.

  You don’t have enough TP to cast that spell.

  What?!

  I look at my stat bars, still in a double weakened state, their max cut to a third instead of just half.

  13/49 TP

  I need 15 TP to cast the spell. Darn it!

  Val Helena’s ring kicks in then, and my TP jumps up to 14/49. Yes! 1 more second! I brace myself to dodge as Ullithilli draws near, and then cast Shadow Mist when my TP hits 15.

  The purple mist sprays from my palm, and I cringe in preparation to be slammed again.

  You cast Shadow Mist!

  Ullithilli is poisoned.

  Ullithilli is slowed.

  Ullithilli is paralyzed.

  The LM freezes before me, and I almost don’t know what to do. I snap to my senses just as fast, though, and make use of the second chance this has given me. I ignore my HP bar. 100% or 1%, it doesn’t matter anymore. From this point on, I need to not get hit.

  Ever!

  I cry out with another War Cry as I unleash a Triple Attack with my flaming blue blades. The monster returns to life, and I focus on its massive arms as they spin and twirl toward me. They’re still fast, but not as fast as before. It takes all my focus and determination to bob and weave between each one.

  But I do it!

  I get more attacks in as my success emboldens me, and I begin to study and learn the pattern. I get into the zone and relax a bit. Think. This thing has two AOE moves nearly back to back. I’ll
need to precast Shadow Copy to have the cool-down ready to cast again when the first AOE goes off. But that means not getting hit and losing it prematurely.

  A lot riskier than with Sheeba.

  I use Retreat and cast Shadow Copy, then reengage with a Charge Strike.

  (RNG) Zeke: Holy crap . . . he’s actually soloing that thing!!

  (RNG)Val Helena: Silvi, give us raises! We can recover! No one get up until the room AOE goes off.

  Silvi and her team start casting Raises, assisted by Gilly.

  Gilly: You’re doing great, babe! Hang in there! xD <3

  Her words encourage me, even as I see the room-wide message appear.

  Ullithilli readies Whirlpool!

  I put in a full set of attacks as the AOE blast goes off, stripping my shadow. I Retreat and cast Shadow Copy again. After dodging a few more hits, the second AOE comes.

  Ullithilli uses Ink Storm!

  Your shadow absorbs the attack!

  I hear Gilly shout: “Reece! Run to the other side! Quick!”

  Tiny bubbles emerge at my feet through the sand. The room-wide arena attack! I disengage and Sprint, running as the bubbles get stronger. I reach the spot where the bodies of my comrades lay, and half the arena explodes in a shower of sand behind me. Ullithilli is caught in the blast, but it doesn’t seem to take any damage from it. Still, it’s down to 46% now, slowly dropping due to my poison.

  (RNG)Val Helena: Lead it back away so we can raise, Reece! Keep it up!

  I do so, kiting the giant octopus. I cast Shadow Mist again and manage to paralyze it a second time, buying me still more distance. Val Helena and the team get to their feet as I settle into tanking again.

  “Change of strategy!” Val Helena yells. “The adds will spawn again soon. Reece, you just keep tanking the boss when they do. I’ll take both mobs. Silvi, you’ll need to work extra hard to keep me up in my weakened state. Zeke, you save your Rage meters and use them on the boss when I say so. Thanus, wait until you see Reece land his debuff before you nuke.”

  “Roger!”

  “Okay!” They all acknowledge the plan.

  I go through another set of AOEs, working down its HP some more, while Val Helena and the crew stick to the sidelines, waiting for their weakness to wear off. The fish-men respawn with the crab and kraken, just as Val Helena predicted.

  “Show time!” Val Helena shouts, and draws the mobs to her with a War Cry.

  I see her HP bar jump up and down more erratically than even before as she activates a series of defensive abilities. Sometimes, her bar drops as low as a sliver before Silvi manages to bump her up again.

  I work hard to land Shadow Fire in between attacks, and finally manage to do so.

  “Debuffed!” I yell, and Thanus’s team responds by dropping huge fireballs and meteorites that take Ullithilli’s health down to 35%.

  “Everyone run toward Reece!” Gilly yells as the arena-wide attack sends bubbles under the melee team’s feet.

  I use Backflip to give me some space, and draw the LM toward me, leaving room for Val Helena and the team to join me on my side of the arena. They battle the mobs as they run, and by the time the arena blast goes off, they’ve downed both the crab and the kraken.

  “Go now, Zeke!” Val Helena yells in her goddess voice. “Power Attack.”

  Jax starts the party with a Power Attack Backstab that does 8% damage. Then Zeke and the dwarves kick in. I’ve never seen a boss’s HP gauge go down so fast. Their combined attack hits with another volley from Thanus, and the LM drops to 5%.

  It also turns toward them.

  Oh crap!

  I use War Cry, but it has no effect. What? My Shadow Tendrils has worn off!

  “I can’t pull it back!” I yell. “You guys did way too much damage!”

  “Nuke it, quick!” Val Helena shouts.

  “We’re all out of TP!” Thanus cries.

  “Us, too!” echoes Silvi.

  Double crap!

  Ullithilli uses Ink Storm!

  The HP bars of the melee team go flat once more as the AOE wipes them out. Crap! Val Helena is still alive, but only by a sliver.

  “Reece!” she shouts as she uses War Cry to keep the mob glued on her. “Backstab it!”

  I use Hide, and then thrust my katanas into its rubbery body. My blades find their mark, doing 4% damage.

  “1% left!” Thanus shouts. “Kill it! Kill it!”

  Val Helena raises her sword to the sky, and her entire body bursts into radiant white light.

  Val Helena uses Invincible!

  “I just used my 24-hour ability!” she shouts. “You’ve got 30 seconds to kill this thing, Reece! Go! Go! Go!”

  Holy crap!

  I go all out on Ullithilli as the LM hits Val Helena with no effect.

  Ullithilli hits Val Helena for 0 damage!

  Ullithilli hits Val Helena for 0 damage!

  Ullithilli hits Val Helena for 0 damage!

  Ullithilli hits Val Helena for 0 damage!

  Ullithilli hits Val Helena for 0 damage!

  Ullithilli hits Val Helena for 0 damage!

  It’s still at 1%, though, and I’m about to run out of Stamina. No!

  Suddenly, a green light washes over me.

  Gilly casts Second Wind.

  You regain +150 Stamina.

  Hot damn! I charge in with a full tank of gas, and the LM finally expires.

  Reece has defeated Ullithilli!

  You defeated Ullithilli!

  You gain 0 experience points.

  You find a Neptune’s Trident

  You find an Ullithilli Mantle

  You find a Scroll of Heal IV

  You gain 20000 credits.

  Congratulations! You have earned a new Title: Ullithilli Undoer.

  Congratulations! You have unlocked a new spawn point.

  The entire guild erupts into cheers of relief and joy.

  “OMGZ!”

  “We did it!”

  “So close!”

  “Did you dead guys get credit?”

  “Yup!”

  “Man, that was intense!”

  I breathe a sigh of relief as Gilly runs in to hug me. “You did it, babe!”

  I hug her back and feel exhausted. I check my HP. Still at 27.

  Val Helena strolls over to give me a nudge and a smile. “Not bad for a gimp.”

  I laugh at that.

  “Okay. Get everyone up!” Val Helena takes command again. “The show’s not over yet. We’ve got one last thing to do.”

  As Silvi gets all the dead guys raised, Val Helena distributes the drops.

  “Zeke, that trident has you written all over it. Same goes for you and that mantle, Thanus.”

  The two cast lots and gain their new items.

  “Sweet!”

  “Thanks, guys!”

  “Who needs the scroll?” Val Helena asks.

  “I think we all have it already,” Silvi says.

  Val Helena smiles at Gilly. “Well, since you pretty much saved the day with that Second Wind and keeping Reece on his feet, I’d say you earned it, Gilly.”

  Gilly gasps. “Seriously?”

  “Yeah, loot it, Gilly,” Silvi says with a smile. “It’s yours!”

  “Gratz, Gilly!”

  “Gratz!”

  “Go Gilly!”

  I see her face light up as she receives the scroll. “Whoa! Thanks so much, you guys!”

  “I hope you know that means you have to level up to use it now,” Val Helena says, grinning at her.

  Gilly just laughs again.

  “Okay, guys,” Val Helena says. “If you were in-party when we killed the boss, you should all have gotten a new fast-travel point. Check to the side of the main map.”

  I pull up my map, and I do indeed see a new fast-travel point. It’s literally outside the map itself.

  The Plains of Duality

  The name looks familiar to me for some reason.

  “See you
guys there,” Val Helena says, and fast-travels away.

  As the rest of the guild begins to disappear, I share a look of excitement with Gilly.

  “Ready?” I ask as I take her hand.

  She squeezes back. “Ready.”

  Then together, we both fast-travel into the unknown.

  Chapter 33: Plains of Duality

  We materialize onto a field of well-manicured grass. A strong wind blows, and all around me, I can see nothing but puffy white clouds illuminated by a brilliant noonday sun. The area we’re in is quite small, about the size of two tennis courts, and diamond-shaped, enclosed by a hand railing. I realize then that we’re not standing on a field at all. Rather, we’re on some kind of floating island.

  “Woah . . .” Gilly says as she gazes about. “This is so cool.”

  As I approach the railing, I see more islands floating far below us, much bigger than the one we’re on. They’re about the size of the boss arena we just left, and for all intents and purposes, they look exactly fit for that task. I see one that is covered with desert sands, another with ice and snow. Another looks like it belongs in the center of a volcano.

  “Is this where the world boss spawns?” Gilly asks.

  “Yes,” Val Helena says as she steps up behind us. “Come join the others. I’ll explain how all of this works.”

  We move to the center of the island, where the guild is already gathered, and Val Helena goes to stand in the center. “Congratulations, you guys. You now have access to the Plains of Duality, or what people commonly call Sky—for obvious reasons,” she adds with a grin.

  That gets a few laughs.

  “When the world boss spawns about a month from now, it will appear randomly on one of those islands below. When it does, a teleport gate will appear . . . right about here.” She stomps on the ground under her boot. “There’s a catch, though. The gate teleports you randomly to any one of the islands, not necessarily the one where the boss spawns.”