Origin ARS 3 (Origin A.R.S.) (5 page)

“We, like, need to reach my village and see where the Shar-Shar went. I, so, don’t think we can afford to lose the whole night unless we have to.” said the mermaid.

“Scott can’t see in the sea, though.” said Ero. She fluttered around her BFF and Rhea in a figure eight pattern.

“Like, hold on. Give me a minute, ‘kay?” Neira looked around the area for a moment then nodded. A smile lit her features.

“I think there is something here than can totally help.” she said.

“Something here?” asked Rhea. She looked around and saw nothing but water.

“Yah, totally.” Neira pointed off toward the left. “There’s an island over there. Sometimes the monsters there drop items that can let people do things better in the water.”

“Are they strong?” asked Scott. He was all for chasing after a better solution to their situation.

“Well, no. It’s just a hangout for Shar-Shar.” said Neira.

Rhea squeezed Scott’s hand. The Shar-Shar were higher in level than either of them at the moment, but if they could fight on land, monsters like that were within their range due to their enhanced stats. “We should give it a try.”

“Totally.” said Scott with a smile. They could use the practice fighting the Shar-Shar anyway.

Neira smiled at him and then at Rhea. “That, so, works for me. The better you two can fight in the water, the better chances my people have. Right?”

“Right.” said Ero. She wanted to remind everyone that she was there too, after all.

In agreement, the group began swimming toward the island. On the way, Scott asked about the local Shar-Shar that hung out at the island.

“Oh, don’t worry. They aren’t with the Shar-Shar who attacked my village. They’re a different group.” said Neira.

Scott had been concerned that they might warn the main group of Shar-Shar. “Speaking of the ones who attacked your people... Won’t they be more alert since I killed one of them?”

Neira laughed musically, a shower of bubbles erupted and rose toward the surface of the ocean. “They’re a bunch of pirates and thugs. They would, totally, be mad that I escaped since they want mermaids to have their babies. But they would not chase me down. They are, so, not into confrontation if they can lose.”

“Does everything in the ocean want to have children with mermaids?” asked the man. Her people must be quite exhausted by now.

Neira giggled sweetly. “Well, it’s either a mermaid or a scylla for guys like the Shar-Shar. There are, like, a bunch of all-male species that have to capture girls.”

“And mermaids aren’t into Shar-Shar?” asked the man.

“Like, as
if
! That’s just gross. Would you want to have babies with a fish?” asked Neira.

Scott glanced at her tail as it gracefully thrust her forward through the water. He had to admit, if he was not currently interested in a certain someone, he might very well be inclined toward having babies with a fish.

Rhea noticed his peculiar form of male gaze and squeezed his hand gently. Scott squeezed it in turn and she smiled once more.

The nearby island turned out to be quite some distance away. Neira’s definition of nearby was a good hour long journey. Admittedly, they would have arrived sooner if they could have swum faster.

As they drew close to the island and the background music grew quiet. Soon it changed to a tropical beat with steel drums playing.

“Like, we’re here. The Shar-Shar should still be half-asleep but heading onto the beach since they mostly come out when it’s dark.” said Neira in an informative manner.

Scott swam up to the surface and looked out over the water. On the beach up ahead there were dark figures moving around near a small fire. He moved down into the water and returned to his comrades. “Yeah, there is something moving over that way. Strange that I could see them, but they were there.”

“Why would it be strange?” asked Rhea.

“Huh? Well, don’t monsters just spawn randomly?” asked Scott.

“Not always. If it’s a dedicated base for a race, like a village, they would be visible. If you had any
survival skills
you’d be able to see them anyway.” said the elf girl.

Scott snorted at her. “Good to know. Hopefully I’ll finally learn those skills soon. I didn’t want to spend a decade hunting grass rats just to get started.”

Rhea smiled at him. “Well, you would have gained enough stat increases to move up to something else in a year or so. You wouldn’t have absolutely had to fight rats by then.”

The sorcerer gave her a sour expression. Maybe some people thought that the true measure of a gamer and adventurer was a desire to kill the exact same monster for years on end. He had always defined success by how quickly and efficiently he overcame opponents.

He did not mind grinding, loved it in fact. However, he always preferred fighting bosses with skill and precision instead of grinding till he could one shot them. It ruined the fun of the game when the boss was not a challenge. He would much rather find its weakness and exploit it than simply go all
overpowered badass
on it. Victory brought about due to game mechanics that allowed the hero character to essentially cheat their way through did not give him satisfaction.

Growing stronger by killing pathetic scrubs that cannot possibly harm him while the boss was forced to remain the same with no chance of growth was the hallmark of the modern hero. That had always been a part of games, but Scott had preferred to focus on finding the spell or the sword, or the anything, that was the enemy’s weakness.

Grind until he would become a threat, and then use his knowledge and skill to wreck the enemy’s shit. It was much more fun for him that way. It was a gaming style that allowed him to essentially beat any game in a pathetically short amount of time. That was also how he marked his success in a game. His gamer skill-set had always been about playing the game and defeating the boss as efficiently as possible. He did not need to have the highest level ever, and he could always spend time after finishing the game searching for rare things or one more cool widget.

Once he defeated the final boss, he did not feel as much need to conquer the game. He could enjoy the wandering around portion more. But dammit, there were worlds to save and princesses who needed help. Though, from what he could see few among them ever gave the hero any of that sweet tender goodness that was promised throughout the game. Sometimes he even wondered if that last tidbit was the real meaning of
Nintendo Hard.
Seriously, did Link or Megaman ever get
mega-laid
?

Sadly, he had begun to think of himself as a dying breed of gamer due to his gaming tendencies and overall inclination. Most games in the current era simply forced the player to grind forever, and people thought that doing so equaled great game play. There were a few that avoided that, but they were precious gems in a sea of lost time that would never be regained.

Scott shook his head. No, he did not care that he lost out on a handful of stats by not grinding at a low-level for years on end. He was eternal now. What were a few hundred stat points compared to infinite respawn capacity? If he could only die once, he would still be punching rats to this day. That was not the case, however. It was not like he could not just grind at another spot that allowed him the exact same level of ability point development, but at an accelerated pace.

The sorcerer considered what Rhea had said earlier then smiled at her. “I’m learning.”

“Learn faster.” said Rhea, a sweet smile on her lips. She could not know of Scott’s thoughts in the last few seconds, but she could guess.

Scott looked into her eyes for a moment. He then took her hand and gently pulled her close to him. He slipped one arm around her waist then smiled gently. “Teach me...”

Rhea’s face began to heat up despite the coolness of the water. Why had he become bold so suddenly? “Scott...”

“You wouldn’t do me like Zelda would you?” he asked suddenly. Scott gazed upon Rhea with wide and curious eyes. His expression was one of hope and longing.

The elf girl gaped at him. What the heck was he talking about? “Uhm...?”

Ero suddenly giggled loudly then shook her head. She was not one hundred percent sure, but she suspected that she knew what Scott meant. She could share his memories directly after all.

Neira looked between them, uncertain what to say, if anything. That cuddle-session had come out of nowhere. She fanned her tail a little then pouted. She could use a hug and a few private lessons too. Who those lessons would come from was not really important to her, either.

The sounds of guttural cries and shuffling feet on wet sand and rocks echoed out to sea. The Shar-Shar, a race of beings who resembled several types of predatory fish, but who were bipedal like a man, celebrated.

Recently they had raided several small fishing vessels and even acquired a bit of interesting cargo. Of course, the thing that they were most proud of was currently held inside of a cage along with the rest of their ill-gotten goods. It had almost escaped, but they had caught it and put it to work soon.

The Shar-Shar were separated into several small bands on the island, usually no more than a small few of them were gathered around any single fire. It was something that they had learned long ago, do not group up. Magic users could completely annihilate them if they did. Of course, that wisdom would prove useless if they became roaring drunk and started to pass out.

Due to their celebratory mood the Shar-Shar closest to the shore did not see the terrors that arose from the deep. Sleek and muscular, they radiated murderous intent. The creatures slipped through the water with ease, and seemed keenly interested in the drunken revelers.

Out of the deep came shimmering blue hair, pouty pink lips, and a delightful feminine frame wrapped in a neon pink strap. Nearby another dark thing, a creature with blue hair and masculine features crawled out of the surf as well. The man-beast wore a tight blue banana hammock that left no room for doubt, and a smile that promised violence.

The night-terrors glanced at each other then back toward the drunken fish men. Slow, feral, grins spread across their faces. It was time to get to work.

The duo reached the shore then ran in opposite directions. Scott opened up the battle with a dart of flame. The Shar-Shar did not expect the attack. The sudden explosion of light and flame took them completely off guard.

The background music, previously a festive steel drum beat, shifted to a dangerous and edgy battle tune. The screams of burning fish men permeated the air soon after.

<<<
Message
>>>

You have surprised a clan of Shar-Shar; however your sudden attack has drawn the attention of everything on or near the island.

<<< * >>>

Neither Scott nor Rhea was stealth oriented. Assassination was not their forte. However, what they lacked in that area they made up for in other ways. Scott, for instance, had planned for this eventuality.

After the situation in the mine, he had suspected that attacking a single group of the Shar-Shar would alert the whole island. While chunks of charred fish-man rained down upon the sand, he stuck to the plan that he had concocted.

“Maghric! Maghric!” cried one of the survivors of the attack. However, he was quickly silenced as thin silver blade slipped neatly between his shoulder blades. He died and turned to motes of light before he ever saw his elven killer.

Scott kept the attention of the fish men by laughing at them and pointing in their direction. He also occasionally turned his back to them, bent over, and slapped himself on the ass. Whenever he did that, the Shar-Shar became even angrier than before. In all honesty, though, even the sight of the man seemed to enrage them to no end.

Was it his chiseled abs? Was it just annoying to be attacked by a man in a banana hammock? It was many things, really.

Rhea spun quickly under the lunging attack of one of the Shar-Shar. She slashed outward at its scaly calves then winced when a bright red number three rose up from the creature. Without the element of surprise, her attack strength was a bit low compared to the higher level monster. She had reincarnated a few times and was easily able to stand against them, but her strength lay in agility rather than raw attack power. Her current equipment was not able to even the odds by much.

Scott raced forward and laughed at one of the Shar-Shar who had opted to aim for Rhea. “I’ve fought fish sandwiches that were stronger than you.”

His skills as a trash-talker were not of a superior grade or level. However, his antics still managed to capture the attention of the fish-man.

Several shadows arose further down the shore, a dozen Shar-Shar were on their way to investigate. The duo needed to work faster.

Rhea lashed out with several quick strikes that only performed small amounts of damage. However, she managed to position herself well. She ducked under a crude spear strike then slammed the pommel of her blade into the weak shin of her opponent.

A loud cracking sound was heard and the beast fell back a little. His chest was completely exposed and Rhea used that to her advantage. She completed her upward movement with a short leap, and then she slammed her blade downward with all of the strength that she could muster.

The elven warrior maiden neatly penetrated the Shar-Shar’s rib cage and pierced its heart. It was a critical hit and the beast took sixty points of damage. Unfortunately, even a stab in the heart was not enough to kill it, not with the sort of force that Rhea could wield at the moment.

However, the attack had stunned the beast. She stepped her right leg behind her opponent, then pressed down. The Shar-Shar was forced to the ground by the expert movement. Rhea put all of her weight into her blade and completely sheared through its heart. The creature exploded into motes of light a brief moment later. That was another one down.

Scott equipped his boomerangs then launched them quickly toward a single opponent. He aimed for the creature’s knees and both of the arcing weapons slammed into the beast one after the other. The Shar-Shar cried out gutturally and fell to the ground.

Rhea spun around then slashed downward. Her blade crashed against the beast’s skull. The attack was followed up by her knee rose up suddenly and slapped against its chin with bone-shattering force. By taking advantage of stuns and critical hits, the elf girl was able to use her slightly lower stats to even the odds just enough to avoid serious injury.

Her guardian angel in a banana hammock continued to draw the more aggressive beasts away. The plan was to allow Rhea to do most of the damage dealing after Scott drew their attention. She would receive more experience that way, and she would potentially be able to level faster. Scott had not known that how you fought actively influenced the amount of experience you could earn, but it made sense.

Of course, the bonuses were small for such things. Rhea would still need to defeat far more opponents than Scott to increase her level.

The sorcerer, for his part, was not concerned with his level during this fight. He had chosen to work on his survival ring until he gained those skills. As such he still needed around fifty thousand experience points. Rather, he needed to give up his next four level’s worth of experience to acquire those skills.

“Burn!” cried the man when the wave of newcomers moved into his spell range. Fish-men screamed in panic as their friends and comrades burst into flames or exploded in a shower of burning gore.

The burn spell, though a simple class level one spell, had been increased to its maximum capacity through time and training. Scott’s intellect was such that it could do several hundred points of damage to several monsters at once.

More of the beasts came. Despite the deaths of their comrades, they ran full-tilt toward the explosive sorcerer. They held their spears like drunken sailors going to a seaside barbecue.

Scott’s boomerangs returned to him just in time for him to send them arcing outward once again. This time they caught a Shar-Shar in the wrist and neck. It dropped its spear and began to choke. The sorcerer raced over to it and leapt into the air. The creature threw up a hand in a desperate attempt to block, but the banana hammock clad man unleashed a double-drop kick that tore into its chest with incredible force. Bones shattered, organs were pulverized. The level difference was nothing when you compared the man to the weak Shar-Shar. As far as the sorcerer was concerned, these guys were free experience points.

The Shar-Shar wore little armor and wielded weapons that were even cruder than the weapons that a goblin might use. They had to rely solely on their raw physical prowess. In the sea, if their opponents could not operate freely, the fish monsters would have been unholy terrors. He was sure of that. On land, against a magic wielder, they might as well bend over and grit their teeth in preparation for what was to come.

Scott neatly spun atop the monster then leapt up. He arched his body to the side and performed a beautiful elbow drop that slammed down with enough force to destroy the remnants of the creature’s chest. It exploded into motes of light with little fanfare.

The Shar-Shar kept coming. Scott lost count of how many of them had joined the battle. He caught Rhea’s attention and the elven warrior maiden nodded. They turned and ran off toward the sea. The Shar-Shar thought that they intended to escape into the ocean and set off in hot pursuit.

However, the creatures foolishly massed together in doing so. Dozens of the beasts had formed into a group and that was exactly what Scott had wanted when he had laid out his plan to the girls earlier.

Scott and Rhea dived toward the sand then covered their ears. The Shar-Shar kept coming and that proved to be their undoing.

Neira rose up from the surf and stretched her arms out to the oncoming horde. She sang a loud, discordant note. Now that the moon was no longer full, she had regained her proper magic. The power of a mermaid’s magic was in their voice.

The discordant note rose in volume and then shifted into an agonizing shriek. The sand was torn asunder as a trench appeared in front of the mermaid girl. The Shar-Shar had massed together and could not escape the powerful magical assault.

Over three dozen of the beasts were instantly hit with a powerful chaotic stun that caused them to be unable to think coherently.

Scott took advantage of the moment and immediately unleashed several freeze spells in a row, followed by a single burn spell. The Shar-Shar were frozen just before many of them exploded in a shower of gore and light. Fish chunks rained down upon the area as the arcane blade and her sorcerous comrade returned to the battle, such as it was.

Some were frozen, some were on fire. Inexplicably some were frozen while they were on fire. All were thoroughly confused and unable to do anything but die horribly beneath the blade and fists of their horrifying opponents.

After the horde was defeated they waited for the battle report, but nothing happened. The music never changed.

“Are there more of them on the island?” asked Scott. Did they have to find them all?

“Maybe, but there could be monsters in the water. Let’s try going toward the campfire on shore.” said Rhea.

Scott walked over and picked up Neira. The girl did not protest, though she did look over at Rhea briefly. When the elf girl smiled, the mermaid leaned her head against the shoulder of her man-taxi then visibly relaxed.

Ero spoke from inside his mind, “You didn’t need me after all, Scott.”

“We don’t know that yet, Ero.” said the man. It was true. The battle was still ongoing, apparently.

They walked toward the campfire. When the battle music remained in play, they moved even further away. It took a few minutes to reach a point where they had gone far enough to escape the monsters of the deep that had been drawn to the island.

The music changed back to a festive calypso style sound. A battle report rose up before Scott.

<<<
Battle Report!
>>>

Victory!!

Your party has exterminated an entire clan of Shar-Shar. For defeating fifty-six opponents in a single battle, you will each receive increased rewards.

+ 0 EXP

+ 42504 Fayth

+ 123 Ability Points

Item(s) Acquired:

Fish Jerky X 26

Crude Bone Spear X 12

Fish Scales X 5

Shar-Shar Necklace [
Rare
] X 2

<<< * >>>

Scott’s eyes lit up. They had made out really well and took little damage in the process. It would have been a difficult fight for him alone, but by using their strategy and team work, it had been easy. The Shar-Shar were weaker on land, and that had led to a great result.

He checked his survival lore ring then grinned. His share of the experience had been over fourteen thousand points. If he had defeated the beasts on his own he would have earned three times as much experience, but that was not something he was concerned about. He was finally fighting monsters that gave enough experience to make a dent in the experience requirements for his ring!

“Not bad. Forty-five hundred experience...” said Rhea. Her experience point acquisition was much lower than Scott’s. Everyone received bonus experience for fighting monsters above their level, but humans were racially prone to far greater experience growth. It was one of their few racial gifts. Elves could live ten times longer and were immune to certain status effects like disease. Trolls regenerated health every second. Humans had a much higher bonus for hunting monsters over their current level. Every race had a specialty.