Then the expected followed, as the shadow made its appearance with a [Shield Bash] from behind, but I was ready for it, I was waiting for it.
On my knees, tangled up with the two spearmen and the other two within arm's reach, I brought both of my arms into my chest as I gathered an enormous amount of energy and began to shake as electricity wrapped around my body. Still on the ground, curled up nearly in a ball, the electricity that had surrounded me began to expand rapidly as a shell formed around me, and then, it exploded.
A one-second cast from start to finish, it all happened in a flash.
A literal flash, an explosion of light, of thunder cracking the air, of balled up energy no longer containable, spreading and disrupting the entire area around me. The four men that had been within an arm's reach were instantaneously and simultaneously thrown back, knocked outwards an easy ten feet as they fell to the ground, stunned from the impact as they tried to understand what had happened.
Lying on their backs, grasping their heads and clutching their weapons, they were momentarily incapable of defending themselves.
Without bothering to stand up, I raised both arms and initiated a [Chain Lightning] without a chanted verse. Even though the cast time was short, there was plenty of time for them to gather themselves.
Three men were getting back to their feet in front of me, cursing at me, muttering under their breaths, bitching and moaning that I had pulled a fast one.
"Chain lightning," I mumbled with a sinister grin appearing across my face.
Another flash, another crack, and the intertwined bolts of lightning cut through the air and rain only to impact, spread, and dissipate faster than I could exhale. The three struggled to move as their health had fallen to below half and the paralyzing after-effects kept them down, but I wasn't done.
Not yet, there was more to the magic show.
Gathering myself mentally, I focused on a spot behind the man with the claymore as he was the first to get up. With one knee still on the ground, all I had to do, was think of the next words, Flash Step.
An exhilarating feeling followed, one that left me holding my breath as if it would suck the air out of my lungs if I didn't. My body had dematerialized faster than I could register as I shot through the air, and by the time I realized where I was, my axe had been raised. My mind finally catching up to my body, I eyed the bastard-swordsman kneeling before me, as I hacked once into the base of his skull from behind.
The sound of a skull shattering was rather silent, but the feeling was real enough. Like hacking into a coconut, the thud could be felt through my hand and forearm, and once it broke through the hard outer shell, the mushy interior was reaved into two. His body limp, my axe stuck, I let go as I eyed the two spearmen next to me.
An arm outstretched, a connection between us was made.
Lightning fluctuated, ebbed and flowed, surged and waned.
In three seconds the man had ceased his movements as the other two had backed away, watching in horror. They weren't aware of my secret, they had no clue.
The truth was, that I was a bully.
They had brought this on themselves.
Bringing both palms together and taking a lowered stance, with legs spread shoulder-width apart, I bent at the knees and began to cast a [Lightning Bolt]. It was all I had left mana wise… two more [Lightning Bolts] and I would be empty, gassed of mana and with only my shield and bow left.
It was no matter though.
The two remaining stragglers regrouped, with the shield-bearer standing front and center, defiantly raising his circular wooden shield in an effort to deflect the spell that was about to be cast at them. It was an effective strategy against spells, one that I had yet to employ but would do in the same situation. They weren't entirely unskilled and even showed some semblance of small-unit tactics. Unfortunately, they couldn't block what was about to come.
Unbeknownst to them, in the midst of the rainstorm that had been falling throughout our fight, puddles had accumulated in the low spots. There wasn't enough rainfall to create deep puddles but with the off-and-on rain over the past few days, there were already small pools ready and waiting.
There was a funny thing, about electricity.
They would learn in short order.
"Through power, darkness turns to light, render all to ash," I droned on with monotony as the balled lightning continued to increase in power. They stood back, believing in their defenses, waiting for me to make the next move.
"Lightning Bolt!" I yelled out quickly to startle them, as I thrust both arms forth and aimed at the ground beneath their feet. As the lightning bolt cut through the air leaving a trail of electricity behind, it nearly instantly hit the puddle underneath them as the electricity discharged partially into the ground and the rest up through their legs.
They both convulsed in place for a second, buying me time to pick up my shield and draw my dagger as I rushed towards them. Using a [Shield Bash] of my own, both shields clashed as he met my charge. The shock of the impact sent us both reeling while he lost his footing and slipped backwards. The spearman took advantage and attempted a [Heavy Thrust] that managed to pierce through my side, causing pain to reverberate throughout my body. It was a deep wound to my torso, but nothing fatal.
He pulled back, as the shield-bearer regained his footing and squared up once more. They intended to draw the fight out, to poke and prod… to whittle me down over time.
I wasn't a fucking carving though.
A two versus one scenario, they held their ground as I thought of my next move. My mana was slowly regenerating, enough that I could use another [Flash Step] and possibly another [Lightning Bolt] as well. My health was at 74% while theirs was at 48% and 63% respectively. The only problem, was one good hit could send me to the graveyard. It didn't take more than one solid hit to the head, or a direct hit to the heart to kill a man. We were only mortal, after all.
[Discharge] had a long cooldown, otherwise I would use it again.
A [Flash Step] combo into [Discharge] would easily win me the fight, but I had another thirty seconds to wait. They seemed to catch on though, as I was pacing around them, biding my time just for that. I needed mana, and my cooldown period was long.
They decided to split, attempting to circle me once more.
I kept the shield-bearer in front of me, letting the spearman get behind me. He was the real threat, but I wanted him to grow confident, I needed him to make a mistake. The shield-bearer couldn’t kill me in a one versus one, his equipment and skillset betrayed him. But a single well-placed [Heavy Thrust] would end me.
They started to grow impatient as I watched their every move. They circled, as I continued to shift my feet one step at a time, maintaining an angle appropriate for a counter. I still had my shield and my knife, and they were afraid of the unknown.
"He can't use those abilities again," yelled the shield-bearer to his friend. "He would have used them already if he could do it more than once. Let's get him before he recovers, follow my lead!"
"Talking in the middle of a fight?" I asked jokingly. "You underestimate me."
"You just got lucky punk," claimed the spearman behind me. "Caught us by surprise, you ain't shit. Don't get cocky you son of a bitch."
"Ah, is that so," I mocked with a haughty laugh.
Now was the time.
Slowly turning my head and focusing on the spot behind the spearman, with my body still facing the shield-bearer, I thought of two specific words, Flash Step. Without the need to utter a word, my body was sucked instantly through a vortex of light, reappearing directly behind the spearman faster than I could understand. Instinctively throwing my shield out with a [Shield Bash], it connected with the back of the spearman as he tumbled down to the ground with barely a sound.