Path of Dragons - A LitRPG Apocalypse (BOOK TWO STUBBING AUGUST 15)

The trolls noticed him within moments.

And the swamp colossus’ attention soon followed.

Even as Miguel charged, Trevor’s hooves kicking up black dirt along the way, the colossus let out a gurgling roar that very nearly burst Miguel’s eardrums. He leaned forward, urging Trevor to speed as he drew his sword. They covered the ground in seconds, lancing into the enemy with ruthless precision.

A troll’s arm went flying, accompanied by a spray of blood and a cry of pain. The colossus swiped, but Trevor nimbly leaped over the thing’s twisted arm, narrowly avoiding the intended blow. So close to the creature, Miguel could feel the dense humidity surrounding it in a haze of moisture and swamp rot. He aimed his next attack at the ethereal chain binding the colossus to the trolls, but his sword passed through without consequence.

And the trolls had not remained idle. Even the one with the suddenly missing arm sprang into action, though they leveled no physical attacks in his direction. Instead, they gathered ethera, which coalesced into a series of red balls of roiling liquid, and hurled them at him.

He dodged three and blocked another with his sword, but he couldn’t avoid the fifth. It hit him in the leg, burning through his armor and his flesh, cutting down to the bone. He grunted in pain, though he didn’t let the agony affect him. He’d long since learned that his body wasn’t necessarily powered by muscle alone, so while his leg was damaged, it would remain functional – at least for a while.

If he didn’t get healing soon, that would change.

But Miguel couldn’t concern himself with that, because the swamp colossus was still very much a threat. It let out another wet roar, then threw its hands in Miguel’s direction. At the apex of the motion, a series of moist vines leaped from the extended appendages, rocketing toward Miguel.

Trevor dove.

Right into another trio of roiling red balls of blood. Miguel leaped free, hitting the ground in a roll. Meanwhile, Trevor dashed in the other direction, avoiding the attack. He followed it up with a beam of moonlight that hit the already injured troll blood priest in the chest. It seared through flesh and bone, filling the air with the smokey odor of burning flesh.

Miguel barely noticed it.

Instead, he flitted forward, summoning Bulwark to block a fourth ball of caustic blood. Then, he embraced Quiescence, which would provide a little healing. Next, he used Protection of the Forest, and a hand of mud erupted from the ground, wrapping its fingers around one of the trolls.

Trevor lanced in, his antlers blazing with Spirit of Wildfire. He impaled the injured troll, which immediately burst into flame. By that point, Miguel was among the trolls, his sword glistening green with Bite of the Viper, which was an upgrade to Bite of the Cobra. A barrage of attacks fell upon the wounded troll, one after another. Miguel moved with alacrity and precision, and in only a couple of seconds, he managed to cut the creature to pieces.

Bite of the Viper enhanced each attack, adding damage and tacking on an affliction that slowed regeneration. Without it, the troll would have recovered very quickly. However, with that, combined with the volume of attacks and Trevor’s fire, it soon succumbed to its wounds.

Which left only four.

Plus the swamp colossus.

He dove to the side, barely managing to dodge another volley of boiling blood. When he rolled to his feet, it was in the shadow of a massive, descending foot. Miguel raced to the side, but even as he did, he knew it wouldn’t be fast enough.

Fortunately, he was not alone.

Trevor rammed the swamp colossus’ foot, knocking it just off track, allowing Miguel to avoid being splattered.

It was expected, largely because he could feel the stag’s intentions through their bond, but appreciated nonetheless. Miguel turned his dodge into a Knight’s Charge. It affected both him and Trevor, increasing their speed by more than five times. So, he hit the next troll like a runaway train.

The creature’s bones broke under the weight of his charge, but Miguel knew they would soon heal. However, it was briefly stunned, which allowed him to embrace Companion Spirit.