MM - Chapter 86 - THE MARTIAL PATH

The army of players parted, revealing the road leading deeper into the mountains. Each soldier wore nearly-matching, golden-dyed armor. The few out of place pieces of equipment held a shimmering blue lustre, and there were hundreds of them. Whether it be cloth, leather, or plate, the materials, time, and effort required to acquire and craft so many matching sets couldn't be underestimated. 

Levels and gear aside, each member of Rising Endlessly held themselves with poise befitting a class three martial trained by the prestigious Phoenix Clan. The players arrayed before Raine were truly an elite force for the early stages of ZionLine, and their combined presence was unsettling in the extreme for both his, and Richtor’s groups.

Through the deepening shadows of late afternoon, Raine boldly led the way down the revealed road. He disregarded the glares, smirks, and buzzing chatter that pressed in around them.

“I was wondering why you didn’t cause a scene,” Celeste grumbled, shouldering the oppressive atmosphere admirably.

Raine grunted, “You thought they kept Righteous and DyingNight away with a couple dozen casters on a wall? Remember, our objective is getting to Vile Peak Town without dying. So don’t make any sudden moves. I’m talking to you, Rhino.”

“Huh, w-why me?” Of the ten, Rhino was the only one shaking like a leaf in a storm. With his paranoid personality, he preferred picking battles he knew he could win. The rest of the group fared nearly as well as Raine, though only Fizgore was able to match his stony confidence. Richtor’s party was holding up better than expected and Raine nodded in approval, glad they had the experience of escaping from DyingNight to fall back on.

The soldiers were packed inside the narrow valley for nearly three hundred meters. Raine savored each step; being surrounded by powerful enemies was always an excellent opportunity to further hone mentality. His bloodlust boiled just beneath the surface, ready to be unleashed at a moment's notice. When they were nearly out, he glanced back at his struggling companions, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

This is so good for their development. There's got to be a decent excuse to bring everyone back through.

The girls didn’t need to hear his thoughts to know his expression meant nothing good for them. Mel shot him a pleading look, and Raine responded with an evil smile. The chance was taken from him by a man in a fully matching set of plate armor. From the last line of soldiers, he calmly stepped into the center of the road with fifteen players fanning out behind him. The man wore an armband signifying he was a sergeant or lieutenant.

[Traveler (Warrior): Level 15 (HP 725/725)]

Already made it to Silverlight and unlocked his class. Even chose a pure class instead of a worthless combination. Not bad.

The warrior held up his palm, “Halt!”

Raine stopped right before him, lifting a hand above his shoulder to call for a pause. He tilted his head at the officer, remaining silent.

The man frowned as though confused why Raine hadn’t thrown himself into the mud at his feet already. He hooked a thumb in his belt, the other hand resting on the pommel of his sheathed shortsword, “My name is Sergeant Harris. My squad will accompany you to Vile Peak Town to avoid any… complications.” his tone brooked no argument, and Raine shrugged his assent. “You’re to stay on the road at all times. Do not under any circumstances draw your weapons, or you will be put to the sword.”

Raine caught snickers from the sides and sighed, wondering how he’d ever felt intimidated by such paltry showings of force in the past. The officer turned sharply, marching up the road. The fifteen players spread further to circle Raine’s group and together, they moved in lockstep.

Around the first bend, they picked up speed to a gentle trot that was significantly slower than Raine’s preferred pace. He could feel the tension rising in his companions. Their twitching muscles and long looks were a dead giveaway that they expected an ambush. Fifteen minutes later, Raine nodded to himself.

This should be far enough.

Celeste and Mel cringed at Raine’s thought, hands drifting closer to their weapons. Fizgore and Rhino caught on and shifted to defensive positions a little closer to the girls. Raine sounded bored when he spoke, shattering the tense silence, “How much?”

Sergeant Harris’s frown deepened and Raine briefly wondered if the man had any other expressions, “Pardon?”

“To speed this along. I can’t remember the last time I traveled this slowly,” Raine clarified, “Time is money.”

Several of the soldiers scowled, and Harris was one of them, “My men have two speeds, filthy vagrant. If you don’t like this one, I guarantee you won't like the next. Bribery is a high crime in the entirety of the Everlasting Phoenix territories, attempt it again at your own peril.”

“So, ten gold?” Raine offered, hiding his smirk with a curled brow.

The man’s hand snapped back to the hilt of his sword, his words a throaty growl, “You’ve gone too far! Hand over the coins or I’ll cut you down for daring to besmirch the Phoenix Clan!”

“What are you doing!” Richtor hissed, his friends staring at Raine like he’d grown a second head, followed swiftly by a third.

Raine lifted his hands in surrender, “My mistake, my mistake.” Only Celeste and Mel didn’t relax at Raine’s apology, and his next words caused the rest of them to gape at his audacity, “You honestly sounded like a beggar demanding a higher cut. Wait, you don’t take bribes, but robbery is okay? How does that make sense?”

The sixteen soldiers had been born and raised inside Phoenix Clan lands. For every day of their lives, the meals they ate, the ingredients harvested, and the education they received was directly influenced and funded by their clan. To say they lived and died by the clan’s whims was an understatement. The unquenchable fervor that beat within their hearts was directed solely toward ensuring the outside world knew they were superior: that was the Phoenix Clan way.

The soldiers dug in their heels, grinding to a halt and drawing their weapons. Raine’s people followed suit, facing outward against the forces surrounding them. The officer pointed his blade at Raine’s throat, his hand shaking with fury, “Last chance. Pay for your crimes freely, or you’ll suffer a quick trip back to wherever you filthy scum spawned from.”

Too easy.

Raine responded in a sing-song tone, “Filthy scum, spawned from. Nice rhyme! Do you practice in the mirror, or is that a natural talent?”

Anger morphed to surprise which quickly shifted back to anger. Sergeant Harris smoothly spun in place. He drew his arm back, tightening his center of gravity. His spin accelerated into a blur and his sword whipped out in a deadly arc. Raine didn’t try to block or dodge. He tilted his head, further exposing his neck. The weapon cut into his skin, barely breaching a hair’s width into his body. [Critical hit! -27]

The soldiers about to charge halted in their tracks, eyes popping. Raine flashed his eyebrows, finally allowing his smile to show, “Oopsy.”

Bloodlust tore free from Raine’s skin, further faltering the reactions of the men who just made themselves enemies he could kill without fear of becoming a redname. The release of killing intent triggered a flash of light that gifted Raine the heaviest weapon in his arsenal.

[Spine Splitter Greataxe: (Lustrous Blue - LVL 15) (Attack Power +105) (Attack Speed -.25) (PTC +35) (PHY +10) (Durability 200/200)]

With the axe equipped, Raine’s Attack Power shot up to a staggering three hundred. The sergeant took one look at the wicked, Lustrous Blue weapon and jumped backward. Raine took a step forward to match and his axe blurred, then abruptly shifted directions with the clang of metal on metal. Harris’s Parry turned Raine’s own Potency and force against him. He had swung casually without extra Potency of Discipline fueling his movements. That, along with a solid martial stance, saw him recovering in a blink.

[Parry: (Novice) Nullify the damage and redirect the force of a physical attack (Cost: 5 discipline) (Cooldown: 10 seconds)]

Holding the weapon like a baseball bat, Raine swung again. This time, it impacted thin air in a Rupture that enveloped three of the soldiers, including Harris. [-2,766] [Critical hit! - 5,211] [Critical hit! -6,173] Due to receiving damage far beyond their health, they exploded into stardust, dying without a chance to showcase any of their fancy class skills. Their bodies were replaced by three pieces of shining white gear that clunked into the hard soil.

Raine spun to take stock of the unfolding melee. Mel and Celeste met the charge of a soldier with a spear. They split to surround him, heavily utilizing the skills he’d drilled into them to hold off his superior attributes. To their side, Fizgore bent and weaved between the blades of three opponents, a huge grin plastered to his face as he whooped and hollered.

Richtor’s party was surrounded on three sides by eight class three martials with slightly superior attributes. As Raine watched, Kevinsbakon used his shield to Block two hits simultaneously, losing a fifth of his health in the process. Another spear thrust struck him in the gut and he doubled over from the all-too-real pain. His health dropped to a quarter from the critical hit. Richtor’s Mend smashed into his back bringing him back to just above half.

Raine’s spin completed to find Rhino. The kid somehow managed to get himself onto the back of the last soldier and was plunging his daggers into the man’s neck over and over while screaming profanities in his ear.

Raine’s priorities were obvious. He released a skull-pounding burst of bloodlust, this one focused and more potent. The red wave of energy washed over the soldiers assaulting Richtor’s party and they flinched as their attributes dropped by twenty percent.

[Negative affliction applied (Enfeared): All attributes reduced by 20% (Duration 12.65 seconds)]

In the precious second he bought them, Raine dash-stepped. The technique born from martial footwork was drastically enhanced by Raine’s Connection, which allowed him to manipulate the foundations of ZionLine’s physics. By thickening the air pressure behind him, and thinning it in front, he slid forward in an instant, appearing inside the ranks of soldiers.

A spin brought his greataxe crashing through armor and bodies alike in its quest for blood. Screams filled the air as soldiers fell, mangled or dead. [-477] [-492] [Critical hit! -955] Raine was the specter of death as he made a rapid circle around his allies, dispatching the rest of the players with clinical efficiency. Only Mel, Cleste, and Rhino managed not to take any damage. Fizgore had a single cut down his bare chest that leaked trickles of bright blood.

Richtor wasn’t alone in panting from the short, vicious combat. He eyed Raine, hands on his knees, “You… goaded them on purpose… How did you know… they were going to ambush us?”

Raine’s expression distorted with confusion, “What are you talking about? They weren’t going to ambush us. They were going to take us to town, just like they said.” He punctuated each word by tapping a dropped piece of loot with a boot, storing the items in his inventory.

Richtor blinked at him, unable to put the pieces together. Deloralicious stood, nursing a hole on her chest as anger seeped into her tone, “Then why did you start that?”

“Butting heads with Rising Endlessly was inevitable. Besides, you can’t make diamonds without a little pressure.”

Rhino joined in, just as pissed as Deloralicious, “A little? We almost died! We’re so far from the last bind point. You said it yourself!”

“I said it would be dangerous and I want you well rested and completely focused. You'll be in similar situations many times in the future. Remember how hard it is to move your body when the pressure is on. Capture this feeling, internalize it so you can replicate it in your training. If you can do that, you'll eventually overcome the stiffness, and the flinching effects of bloodlust. This is a prime opportunity to grow stronger. You should relish it.”

Raine’s words hit a little different to each listener. They were all on their own martial path, and the lessons they could absorb were drastically impacted by their current perspectives. The contemplative moment of silence ended with a question that they would all come to regret.

“What’s bloodlust? Is it that skill you used to stun them?” Seeing Raine's diabolical smile, Kevinsbakon knew he fucked up.