Creation Online
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44 - Hunter and the Hunted.
🕑 Added 2024-04-24 14:14:18 +0000 UTCFor the first time since she started fighting mobs, Hildelith didn't curse the devs. It was unclear and, to be honest, irrelevant what was preventing her from complaining—whether it was the focus, a dulled mind, or even fear.
But more significant was the eyeless thing that had just landed in front of her, its head tilted almost as if it were listening.
Hildelith retreated, her feet continuing to scrape the earth. Not even the thought of using the bow in her hand had crossed her mind. All she could think about was running.
Flight and fight had been weighed and flight had subconsciously been found a worthy concept. She whirled around, desperate to get further away from whatever the hell that thing was.
She felt a forceful blow to her back, followed by the sound of metal scraping against metal and the creak of armor as she was propelled off her feet and into a tree.
[Blunt Damage]
[-100 Health]
A mental prod to her health even as she slowly peeled herself off the tree brought her the confirmation she needed.
[24/24 (860/960)]
Eight more such hits would put her dangerously close to her death. She refused to allow it to be that way. Flight had been found lacking. Fight was slotted into position. It remained the only option.
Bane of Heroes raised, Hildelith turned defiantly and aimed directly at the bewildered creature. Her hands quivered and shook a bit as she pulled at the strings of the Bow.
But she had forgotten something very important. The Bane of Heroes was not Harbinger. Expecting all arrows to work the same was wrong. Hildelith paid the price for that mistake. Unexpectedly, her feet, attempting to regain her equilibrium following the shock of discovering that there was no magical arrow in sight, stepped on a splinter of white wood.
She did not even have time to flinch before the thing was upon her. Fortunately, her reflexes kicked in this time. The Sword of Murre materialized like an angel of light, ready to rescue the day, and the Bane of heroes was promptly banished into her inventory.
Blue dazzling metal met seven thin fingers with long crystalline claws. There was only one victor.
The sound of metal breaking was enough to dull out the thumps of her beating heart. Its hands, long and lean, white with crystals running in a line from the elbow to the wrist flashed and struck her with a slap that sent her flying once more, gold liquid spraying out her ear.
[Critical hit]
[Blunt Damage]
[-150 Health]
Flung like a ragdoll, Hilde crashed through the trees, shattering them before landing in a heap. Dazed. A cloud of white dust rose from the site of her crash.
The thing had struck disorientation into her head.
[Stun effect - 1 min]
[Daze effect - 30 secs]
The perils of a full-dive game. She rose weakly after a minute even as she heard the feet of the creature racing through the forest following the sounds of the destruction to find her.
"What even is it?" she groaned, her side face burning.
The thing leaped out from behind a tree and landed to her left. Its body uncomfortably caught its weight on its side before it scrambled up and its head cocked. This time Hildelith didn't dare move.
Slowly, she raised her left hand to the side where the creature was. A green glow lit up her palm as she used her Earthen Grace insight.
'I keep forgetting I have powers when needed'. A distance away, the earth heaved and a spike shot out stabbing into a tree.
The creature was gone in a flash after the sound.
'That confirms it, it truly is blind.' She frowned, feeling like she had messed up badly. If she had just studied it better then maybe she'd have avoided such damage.
'I guess panic is indeed bad'.
Her arms and body glowed as a rush of divine energy flowed through her, mending the cuts and bruises on her body.
She watched as her health ticked back to its full bar then she exhaled softly.
'Now, what to do?'
Hiding within the ruins of the city was an embarrassment that Hildelith couldn't understand. It was normal for her to feel a tad bit invincible after all her accomplishments.
Yet in the two or was it one second of beating, the creature had exorcised whatever arrogance had bloomed into her.
It was the closest she had been to dying in this game. While her health had been far from drained, it meant nothing to an animal that could kill her in nine strikes. Less if there were critical bits to be accounted for.
It reminded her of the Unknown variants. While less powerful, they had been a force to be reckoned with together.
Looking in the direction of the city, she stood, cracked her neck, and then mentally activated her streaming.
'Don't know what other fight would be worth streaming if not this'.
Glancing up at the materializing bird, she waited till the red lights glowed in its eyes before she spoke as loud and as quietly as possible.
"Hey, guys. As promised, welcome to my stream. Hope you all are ready. Let's go".
*****
HAERO'S POV
"Molliwag. The Firstborn. That's not right". I muttered, astounded at what the template showed me.
"Indeed". The beast of an entity moved towards me in slow strides. Not that it mattered. I might have been a giant but this creature dwarfed me. Black scales, red jagged lines running through its wings, crimson eyes, and a fearsome maw.
'How the hell did mother create him?'.
"You're quite less than expected". The beast moved around me. A loud sniffing sound came from it. "Smell grand and powerful but not nearly enough". The Primordial dragon scoffed. "Weak".
"And you're strong. Because you're big". I asked, my anger rising. I felt a prickle of annoyance and I didn't like it.
The dragon chortled. "Indeed. But more importantly". He reared back, wings spreading out to full length. With a thunderous flap, he ascended. The dragon flapped higher and then descended. With a booming laughter, he circled me like prey.
"I. Am. Just. Better!".
His hind legs hit the ground with a vibration that shook the entire mountains. His front legs dropped down shaking the ground again. His head came low till his eye was up close.
"Nice to meet you, little brother".
I glared right back. "What are you?".
"I know you're small, but seriously, blind or foolish too". Molliwag's eye blinked.
"I'm not blind. I'm just curious. What is this dragon you are?".
"Hmmh. I am unsure. But I bet it's just as weird as being a giant. Of course, a dragon is better cause well, I am a dragon and I'm just better".
I could feel my left eye twitching. "Giants are stronger and more mighty!". I shouted.
"Yes". He huffed in obvious amusement. "Keep telling yourself that little one". I glared at his words.
"I'm not little I'm big".
"Indeed. I admit you were brave but nothing like Mother or I. You need more growing". I kept glaring. I didn't shout back cause I knew somehow he was right. More of my Solar Arts and I would soon become big enough to stomp on that lazy eye of his.
The dragon's head rose from my level and then with a lackadaisical head swing looked away. His wings unfurled and with another mighty flap in my direction, this one uprooting my legs and sending me on my butt he was flying away.
"Hey, where are you going?".
"To sleep". His voice came back with a sound I could understand. It was one I'd been feeling whenever I had to come home. Boredom.
"Just sleep. Nothing else you got to do?".
"Nothing". He flapped faster, obviously trying to get back to wherever quicker.
"Why don't you go have some fun?. You sound bored". The dragon paused his flight. Twisting his long neck to have his head face me, I could see the weird expression on his face.
"Fun. Hmmmh. That is something my Luminaries did when they realized they had been spared. What do you do to have 'Fun' here?".
"Uhhh...." Ignoring the Luminaries he just mentioned that I wasn't aware of what it even was, I decided to take him to Sol. We'd see how prideful he could be when he saw my buddy.
"I do my Solar Arts on Sol. It's exciting. All the new possibilities and new skills I could gain". He clenched his fists and whooped before pausing and looking at Molliwag.
The dragon's red eyes surprisingly had a dead look. His head turned to stare past the nothingness and to the burning ball of fire and radiation before turning back to Haero.
"That.. is called training". He shook his head as his amusement returned. "Giant boy needs a sun to fire away".
"Yes, because you could do better". I asked annoyed. Molliwag gave me this eye that told me the challenge was accepted. He turned and dove downwards straight at me.
I saw it coming. His chest glowed brightly. Like a stream of light, it rushed up his long neck and to his maw. When he parted his jaws he caught his drop with his wings and his mouth opened. Fire. White, red, green, and all the colors I had seen in the Dream Realm when I spied into it poured out as flames around me.
It was quick but I could still feel the heat. The fire died as quickly as it burned the mountains around me. He landed right back. "Does that answer your question?". He tilted his head.
I kept silent. The dragon huffed and he turned to leave once more. "I felt your fire". He paused and focused back on me.
"Time.to.feel mine". I looked to the side in the direction I believed he looked the last time. Luckily while I couldn't see Sol I could feel its location and sense its presence.
"What do you say brother?. I'm sure you could bear Sol's flames. After all, you are a dragon". I smiled as innocently as I thought I could. Molliwag's eyes never left mine. Then he snorted.
"I've lived since the dawn bang. I am not easily swayed". Another huff. "Still, come. Let me show you how inefficient Sol's fire is".
****
No one doubted it when Hilde had said she'd stream. Okay, maybe a few didn't expect her to stream so soon. But still, even they hadn't expected such a sight when the video began. All those waiting and watching the page alerted the others when it began. Soon the viewers steadily climbed upwards.
The world of white stunned many. A lot of game graphics had been shown or seen in many games, but an entirely white setting gave a feeling that no one could understand.
A wrongness.
The white that should have stood for something clean now bothered the viewers.
The voice of Creator Hildelith could be heard as she told them to get ready. Ready for what? Many of the viewers commented on the possibility of a fight. Must be a new kind of mob, and others asked to know what the game was about.
Those were ignored since many knew the creators would say nothing about the game.
The alpha test was barely in less than two weeks.
Franco was one of the watchers, as was Jameson and the crew. The staff marveled at the place since it was one of the many AI-run zones in the game. Even the higher-ups it was rumored, had no say in what happened here.
The stream was silent as they watched the girl do some strange things. First, she had sneaked through a white forest. It was the wrongness that made it clear that it wasn't snow that filled the forest just white. By the time she finally got out of the forest, almost were stunned to see the ruins that stretched out in front of her.
Inside was breathtaking. Not in the beautiful way but in the realistic way it displayed a ruin. It was just amazing to them.
The next thing she did was to just sit atop a stone platform with an etching of a female that looked almost like her. Her eyes constantly moving in the air.
It was obvious that she was looking through her system status or template. For what none of them had any idea. They watched her for a solid thirty minutes when many began complaining of boredom.
It got a little bit exciting as she finally stood and went outside the gate. Most of the viewers gasped as they noticed the folded gate lying there. Only seeing it when the bird's view stretched a bit.
Then several conversations began as they watched her move things around her. There were parts that she moved the ground around proving to them that magic was a yes for this game. In a way.
Finally, she finished whatever it was she was doing. Only a few recognized her setup for what it truly was. Their suspicions were validated as they watched her erect a piece of earth that towered a fair bit over the land between the forest and the city. However, it did not attempt to even slightly outgrow the city walls.
She didn't make just one but a lot in a circle forming a ring that interlocked.
Finally, she stopped, stretched, and cracked her neck. Looking up at the bird, she smiled revealing pearly white teeth. The males swooned as various hearts filled the comment section.
Then she spoke and everyone stilled, ready.
"Shall we?"
400MVC gone. Just like that. Hilde smiled at the bird while mentally and physically gritting her teeth, hoping it wasn't obvious. The costs for everything she had planned were too much for her to bear. Though not too much of a sacrifice for an unknown monster that could kill her. She knew she could always find a way to earn MVC, and if what she was thinking was right, then she'd soon be earning more.
She slung a quiver filled with arrows. Each with a red arrowhead. There were some with blue arrowheads, others that were normal, and a few with blackheads.
Buying each arrow from the shop cost a total of 100MVC. The remaining 300 MVC had gone to buying and tweaking trap templates from the system market.
She stood atop one of the farther earth constructs, and from there, she notched a bow and pointed it straight into the forest, far enough to attract what lived within yet close enough to not send them away.
The red arrowhead ignited as her divinity poured into it, then flew off with a twang as she released the string.
[Explosive Arrow]
[Incendiary charge - Destructive blast of 5 meters in a circle /Fiery Blaze ]
[+20 Damage]
[-5 health/sec burn]
[Effect duration - 1 min]
A loud explosion shook the forest edge as the flame arrow detonated once it struck the white soil of the ground.
Smoke rose and a red flame burned at the edges of the tree, scorching it black. Like a scar on the earth.
Silence.
Hilde waited. Her eyes watched, and her ears listened.
Raaaaar.
The cry of the thing ran through the air, and she shivered just a bit. Shutting her eyes, the girl first inhaled deeply, steeling her nerves, then exhaled right before her eyes slowly opened, just in time to witness the thing burst out of the forest line, its head tilted to the side, its maw in its naturally half-open state, drool splattering out onto the ground.
A fine poise of death in living flesh.
Hilde sent her will into the Cloak of the One, letting the familiar feeling of disconnect reassure her before she notched the next arrow.
This one's arrowhead was black. Golden lines snaking up into it from the shaft where Hilde poured divinity into it.
[Holy scourge]
[Purifying Essence - To creatures like the undead or cold ember divinities, even unaffiliated entities purity is poison. ]
[+10 continuous damage/second]
[Effect duration - 15 seconds]
It was easy to let her divinity flow into the arrow. Hmshw just hoped it had an effect. The arrow flew through the air. Right before it struck home though, the creature shifted its head barely avoiding the arrow.
Hildelith almost cursed, catching herself in time before notching another arrow. The Holy scourge was meant to remove its speed from the equation, but she'd not considered it hearing the arrow.
Another Explosive arrow shot out. She didn't even bother watching it dodge as she notched the next arrow. Another black head.
The creature, as expected, evaded the arrow. Only for a huge flame to rise from behind it as well as a huge pressure that pushed it forward. Right into the black arrow that embedded into its head.
[- 20 damage]
[ Burn effect applied - Health will drop by 5/sec for 1 min]
[Purifying essence activated]
[Health will drop by 10/sec for 15 sec]
The thing shrieked. Throwing its hands onto its face as it writhed. Hilde wasn't about to believe that the thing was mortally injured. The third arrow, this time the blue head, followed the others, and with the creature shaking about, only entered its thigh.
The leg was instantly erased. Or tried to. The skin and cells ruptured and vanished just as quickly as flesh tried to regrow. It screeched and thrashed.
[Bolt of Nihility]
[Erasure effect]
[+10 continuous damage/sec]
[Effect duration - 10sec]
"Now or never." Rising quickly to her feet with the beast in throes of pain and Cloak of the One hiding her presence, she moved her hands. Both palms glowed a benevolent green as she called to the floor. The ground answered with a deep groan and rumble from within.
