War Games

by Nikita Thorn

  “And to be honest,” Seiki admitted. “I want to.”

  Mairin looked at him. So did the rest of the group.

  Seiki gave a solemn chuckle. “Okay, magic’s rough. Poison’s rough. Puzzle… no clue what that was all about. But this…” He turned toward the demon in the middle of the cage, taller than a man, with a weapon that would probably hit very hard, but tangible, touchable, fightable. “This I can do.”

  Melee was his home territory, after all.

  Ippei studied him for a moment, before letting out a long breath and stepping aside. “Okay,” he said. “But you know the game is all a lie, right? They always betray you on deals. Like I always say, there’s a reason we never negotiate with the Demonic Clan.”

  Seiki nodded. “I know.” He took a step forward. “And don’t worry. We’re not.”

  He took a glimpse at his unit, who, as usual, knew exactly what he had in mind. It was clear that they also knew what they were up against. Even Saburo, who was always enthusiastic about killing demons, seemed a little nervous.

  Putting the hairpin safely in his inventory, Seiki made his way toward the opening.

  “Here,” whispered Kentaro as he handed him three more bottles of potions.

  “No potions,” shouted the Demonic Spearmaster from within the cage. “No heals. No help from outside.”

  Seiki turned to thank the houshi, but shook his head.

  “But if you die, the instance is over,” said Kentaro.

  “If he destroys the key, the instance is also over,” said Seiki.

  “We’ll stay close,” Ippei said in a low voice. “If we can burst, we’ll burst. The cage will probably stop arrows, but with two obake, we have a lot of ranged damage.” He paused for a moment. “Since it’s your instance, we’ll wait till you say so.”

  Seiki nodded.

  The group moved closer to the cage, and the demon’s smile widened as Seiki and his unit stepped through the entrance. All four sides of the arena, as well as the top, were made of tangled barbed wires, twisted together into a tight mass, and Seiki found himself somehow grimly amused by the fact.

  “Good, good, good.” The Demonic Spearmaster’s voice dripped with hungry excitement. He lifted his weapon, and in one extravagant swing of his spear severed the metal hook, letting the heavy door crash shut behind Seiki and his troops. It was rather obvious he had no intention to let anyone leave the cage.

  Seiki could hear his friends shifting uncomfortably from outside.

  “It’s okay,” said Seiki, keeping his eyes on the demon. He knew what he signed up for.

  “I hope you’ll be at least as entertaining as my last friend here. Look at the evidence of our wonderful memories together.” The demon gestured once again at the sides of the cage. It was not blood stains as Seiki had predicted, but traces of black, slimy sludge that thinly coated the barbed wires.

  This, Seiki realized, was also a hint.

  “So they… poured poison on the last prisoner?” said Koharu in horror.

  Yamura shrugged. “Demonic Clan.”

  Ippei grimaced as he glanced around at the setup. “Is it all over the inside?”

  “Yeah,” said Seiki, realizing what it meant. Help from the rest of the group was impossible, as any light-infused ability would set off the poison, and the demon himself, just like the last one, was most likely immune to normal attacks.

  “Gather round, now,” said the demon to the group. “I love an audience, especially when you all can watch your friend die. But no tricks, and stay where you are. If I see any of you even move a finger, you can say goodbye to the key.” Again, he rattled the key against the ring.

  Yamura swore very rudely at him.

  The Demonic Spearmaster turned back toward Seiki. “As for you, First-Rank Unit Chief, let me reiterate our rules. If you can hit my back guard, you can have the key. No potions, and no help from outside, but you may use that ground-shrine in the corner.” The demon smiled hungrily as he waved his weapon through the air again.

  “That is…” The demon turned and charged forward. “…if you can reach it.”

  Signaling his troops to draw their swords, Seiki had them stand their ground. “Steady,” he said, tightening his grip around the Hikari as he watched the incoming demon. At the last second, Seiki dashed sharp left, mentally commanding his unit to run to the other side around the Spearmaster.

  “This way,” cried Seiki, bluffing an attack as he retreated to the side to make sure the demon kept his attention on him. He had no clue if it worked the same way as normal tanking, but luckily the Spearmaster chose to come after him, swinging out the gigantic spear like a mace.

  Ducking under the sharp spikes, Seiki yelled, “Stun!” just as he dropped to one knee and let loose a long Slide back toward the demon’s legs.

  Behind the Spearmaster, his unit stepped up to the guiding line. They unleashed their misnamed Sweeping Blade formation at the demon’s waist, while Seiki—speeding past the demon in the opposite direction—struck out with his own Sweeping Blade at his ankle.

  Seiki had not quite figured out how to specify the height and angle of the attack for his formations, and the timing was not exactly perfect, as his own Sweeping Blade had struck a little later than the unit’s. Still, it was enough to trip the Spearmaster, who staggered forward at the unexpected double strikes.

  Turning back around in a hairpin turn, Seiki leapt to his feet. The demon’s back was wide open as he stumbled, allowing Seiki to stab at the black leather guard on his back.

  Whether it was out of instinct, or practiced reflex of knowing when something gave way that should not have, Seiki realized something was amiss as soon as the tip of the sword touched the alleged piece of armor. He had cut through Demonic Clan armor before, and they all had the same texture with varying strengths depending on the type of the demon. Never had anything yielded the way this piece of back armor did.

  A deafening explosion burst out from the wound in the leather, and black tar-like liquid squirted out like deformed hands in every direction. By now, Seiki had seen it enough times to instantly recognize what it was.

  Rumi let out gasp, and Seiki grunted as the shockwave slammed into his body, throwing him backward. His unit broke out into alarmed cries as the spewed poison flew at them, and Seiki reached into his pocket for the only thing he could think of.

  The tiny Fractured Light crystal, smooth and cold in his hand, burst into specs of dust at the slightest force.

  Crystallized Potion of Fractured Light activated. You and your troops are immune to Obora poison for 2 seconds.

  When Seiki hit the ground, he felt a thin layer of something cool and refreshingly clean on his skin. His friends were groaning, and his unit let out yells as they fell backward from the force of the explosion. Seiki landed dangerously close to the wall, but pushed himself away in time so as not to be impaled by a metal spike that stuck out at a deceptive angle.

  Around him, black poison rained down. But with the temporary protection, it evaporated harmlessly into puffs of black smoke as it touched his body. Scrambling back to his feet, Seiki discovered that the explosion had scattered his unit. Rumi was on the ground slightly ahead of him, while Genta and Ojisan had been thrown further deeper toward the middle of the cage. Saburo had unfortunately been slammed into the nearest wall and now had a long bleeding gash down his left side from one of the spikes, his health reduced to half. Luckily, the crystal had managed to save them all from the poison, which would have otherwise been lethal.

  The demon’s laughter filled the air. “Forgot to tell you there’s a surprise twist to my game. Too bad it didn’t last longer. These humans drop like—”

  His laughter was cut short as he realized that the humans he was talking about were not only alive but that they had closed in on him. The troops slashed him with a Focused Strike and Upslash, which cut through his armor and spilled dark purplish blood on the ground.

  Seiki had rus
hed in at the unsuspecting demon. It was a full connect and took an eighth of the demon’s overall health.

  The Spearmaster roared and spun around to strike him, and Seiki let loose another Slide to get out of the way.

  “Regroup. Run to the middle,” he told his unit as he avoided another attack from the spear. He had expected a trick. Perhaps not that one, but at least he had honored his end of the bargain, which meant everything else was now legal.

  Suddenly, the Spearmaster stopped chasing and shifted his grip on the spear. Scrunching up his face as he realized what was about to follow, Seiki spun around and Parried the weapon before the demon could plunge it into the ground for a stun. The abrupt odd-angle connect knocked them both off balance.

  “Hey, he hit your back guard,” cried Mairin from outside the cage. Seiki had no time to observe what had happened to his friends as he steadied his grip on the sword and turned back to face the demon.

  “You mean my supply of Obora poison.” The demon laughed. “It was a keepsake to remind me of the good times I had with my last friend. Hope you enjoyed it.” He turned around, the black poison still spilling from the back piece.

  “Give us the key,” said the kitsune.

  As to be expected, the demon raised his brow mockingly. “What key?”

  “Any opening at all?” shouted Ippei.

  Seiki understood his friend’s meaning. Now that the demon had broken his word, they were free to break theirs. And as the samurai had planned, the group could perhaps try to assist from outside the cage.

  “No. I don’t think so. The cage is covered with poison,” Seiki said as he took a quick peek at the demon’s health.

  Demonic Spearmaster [Level Unknown]. HP 6892/8945.

  The demon had lost some health from the initial attacks. But Seiki and his unit were now at half energy and, as Ippei had said, it was still nowhere near enough.

  The demon then turned toward the group. “Actually, I’d like to see you try healing your friend. See how far the explosion is going to throw him.”

  Black poison was still trickling from the container on his back, and as the Spearmaster moved, he covered more of the cage floor with the substance.

  Mairin growled. “That’s not fair.”

  “It’s the Demonic Clan. Of course, it’s not fair,” said Yamura.

  “It’s okay.” Seiki gripped his Hikari firmly in both his hands as he gauged the distance. Saburo had rejoined the rest of the unit, and although he was pale from the loss of health, he was still very much alive. They had now repositioned themselves in the middle of the arena, away from the poison pools, and Seiki glanced at the golden tano-shrine at the far corner. He could try making a dash for it, but then again he was not sure about putting so much distance between himself and the demon, as the spear’s stun effect had a tremendous range and he did not want to risk being caught in it again.

  Judging from the demon’s massive health pool, Seiki was certain he would need the shrine at some point, and the earlier perhaps the better. There were basically three viable options: one for slows and stuns, one for health, and one for attack power and energy.

  “Okay, let me think,” said Ippei. “There must be a lockout on his stun. So immediately after he’s used it, there should be a small window.”

  “How do you know?” asked Yamura.

  “I’m guessing,” said the samurai. “Otherwise, the encounter is impossible.”

  “Okay,” said Seiki, taking a deep breath. His friend had a point. If he could lure the Spearmaster to use his stun again, perhaps it would give him time to burn one of the cards.

  “You think I don’t understand your scheming?” said the demon. “And stop right there, kitsune,” he added as he noticed Mairin trying to creep closer to the cage.

  “This isn’t good, is it?” Koharu whispered, perhaps not meant for Seiki to hear.

  “It’s okay,” Seiki reassured his friends, his mind still racing through his options. “I’ve got this.”

  The Spearmaster smiled. “I like your confidence. I really do.” He suddenly burst forward at Seiki, his spear stretched in an attack, his red eyes burning with malice. “I like crushing it.”

  Seiki prepared to Parry. But at the last second, the demon rotated and charged the unit, who had just regrouped. Cursing under his breath, Seiki demonstrated a quick Parry. “Do this!”

  Yelling an affirmative as the notification asked him if he wanted to save the formation to the slot over the existing one, Seiki swept the mental guide over the air in front of his unit. Immediately, the four villagers raised their iron tantou up to block the attack. The formation, like an invisible shield, aided by the extended range and attack power from the slot, stopped the spear in mid-air far above their heads, but it still sent them staggering from an invisible force.

  Seiki took this chance to rush in once again with a combination of Focused Strike and Upslash, taking another eighth of the demon’s health, which turned the Spearmaster’s attention back to him. The demon struck out once more. At close range, Seiki was forced to Parry the incoming spear without sufficient energy. The Hikari flew from his grip, grazed a poison pool and another explosion threw Seiki off his feet.

  “Now don’t you wish you had sacrificed your men to use that shrine?” The demon gave Seiki no respite as he closed in with another attack. “Now you’ll pay for your foolishness.”

  His spear was fast in close combat, and Seiki dived out of the way toward the cleaner half of the cage. However, the demon was not going to let him off the hook so easily and the gigantic spear thrust out once more. Rolling onto his back, Seiki grunted as he drew his Kohagane for another last-resort Parry as the black mass of the Spearmaster loomed up above him. That’s when he felt a streak of chilling numb across his wrist.

  With his left hand, the demon had tossed out one of his throwing knives, and the Disarm forced Seiki to drop his dagger.

  Without a weapon, Seiki threw himself aside as the spear pierced down, missing him by less than two inches. He winced when he understood that was hardly the end of his problems. The weapon’s multiple blades hit the ground, and the shockwave that followed caught him at point blank, passing through his body in a trembling rush. There was a brief second of nothing, as the stun produced a hiccup in his mental faculty. The next thing he knew, the demon was towering above him, slowly twisting his spear to let one of the protruding spikes cut deep into his flank. Seiki gritted his teeth as his health dropped sharply below half.

  The demon’s red eyes filled with glee. “Bleed!”

  Seiki’s unit was screaming as they attacked the demon from behind. But the Spearmaster, now that he had seen enemy blood on the ground, no longer spared them any attention. He lifted the multi-edged spear, preparing to stab down again, and Seiki could only stare.

  A small explosion suddenly threw him out of the path of the descending blades, allowing him time to recover. Seiki gulped down air as he regained control of his body, and pushed himself off the ground. The burst had taken another fifth of his health, but it had saved him from the killing blow.

  On the other side of the cage was Mairin, eyes wide, hand half-raised. She had risked a heal, knowing that it would set off the poison on the spiked cage wall. She had fortunately aimed well enough to use the explosion to propel him out of harm’s way.

  None of the healing effect actually reached him, but this had given Seiki enough time to scramble to his feet and run for his Hikari.

  The demon snarled at the kitsune. “I said no help. I’ll hold you to your end of the bargain. Consider the key destroyed.” He whirled the spear around, preparing to grab the iron key from the ring at the end.

  Luckily, Seiki had been expecting this reaction.

  As soon as the sword was in his hand again, he spun around and traded nearly all his remaining health to Slide back toward the demon before he could yank off the key. The demon took a step back out of range, his left hand reaching for another throwi
ng knife. Seiki fought his own instinct to block or dodge and swept up his Hikari as high as he could in an Upslash.

  Metal connected, and he felt his Hikari’s very fine blade slicing through the ring as if cutting butter, and dropping the iron key and its leather tassel to the ground. The move, however, left him wide open to the demon’s second throwing knife, which slashed him on his right wrist in another Disarm, forcing him to drop his sword once again.

  The Hikari was no longer needed though.

  Snatching the key, he turned and spent the rest of his energy in a Slide toward the edge of the cage. He noted grimly how Strength of Will had already kicked in, and that he was leaving behind a slippery trail of blood across the cage floor. Even the iron key in his hand was starting to get wet from his bleeding wrist.

  Behind him, the Spearmaster laughed. “What are you going to do with that, First-Rank Unit Chief? Do you really think you can keep it from me?”

  The demon’s meaning became clear once Seiki figured out the key could not be stored in his inventory. Spinning around as soon as he reached the tano-shrine in the corner, Seiki glanced at the demon’s health.

  Demonic Spearmaster [Level Unknown]. HP 5211/8945.

  It was still not even close, and even with the effect of the Cards in his possession, he doubted any single one of them would allow him to finish the fight alive.

  The demon seemed to have read his thoughts, and a cruel smile returned to his mouth. “Go on,” he said mockingly. “See if any of your precious ancient powers will save you right now.”

  The Spearmaster was right. With Seiki on the brink of death, and with the demon still above five thousand health, he needed both health and energy. Unfortunately, no single card was that powerful. And since Disarm would force him to drop the key, he had no idea how he would be able to keep it away from the spear’s destructive power should the demon choose to come after it.

  The Spearmaster had stopped a little further away as he slowly reached for his third throwing knife, which he flipped slowly in his left hand as he took aim. “Make up your mind.”