Fight!

I jump onto the pier, casting Water shield as the guards aim their arrows at me. Some charge towards me, waving their swords and shields. Their names are in red as if they were normal monsters. Except they're all level 101 elites, which is why no one is dumb enough to attack other players in the cities.

I glance back to see that the other players who hadn't left the boat are trying to dodge Eugene, who's frantically running in circles on deck. A guard is shooting at him too, and he doesn't know what to do.

"Eugene!" I call out, and he stops and turns to run towards me. In a swift move, even if I didn't know I could pull it off, I climb onto him. Thankfully, the guards' aim isn't too good, or their arrows aren't strong enough to pierce my water shield. We run towards an alley. A swarm of about ten guards chases us, and our only advantage is that while they take their time to stop and aim, we're already turning the other corner.

Being on the ground is different from seeing the city from a screen, so it's hard for me to figure out where we are. By the time I get a sense of our surroundings, it's too late. We run into the main square, in front of a temple, where a patrol of guards is strolling by. I will Eugene to stop before we collide with them, but we've already caught their attention. Their names are red and now they're also after us.

The square used to be a portal hub, and there are many players standing near the fountain in the center, where the portals used to be. Perhaps they're figuring out how to get somewhere without teleportation. As I speed toward them, they look at me curiously.

"Get out of the way!" I yell, and some move instantly. Others who may be asleep in the real world or are busy looking and their interfaces don't move at all. Two of the players who moved throw spells at the guards, and bursts of fire swoosh, past me hitting the patrol. The guards separate, focusing on the mystics, who, by the look on their faces, had no idea what they were doing.

The guards from the pier have caught up with me, and they've dragged other guards with them. Soon, there are about thirty guards charging towards the fountain, directly at me. I dismount Eugene and he dashes away, disappearing into another alley.

Now it's me and the two mystics against the guards. If I knew any spells, I might be able to slow them and try to get away from the city. The nearest exit isn't too far away, but there will also be guards near the gates and on the city wall, ready to fire from the parapets.

"If I die, you're going to pay to repair my gear," says one of the mystics near me. He's also a Sorgin, but his skin is darker and his eyes are purple. The other one is a human, and who's trying to use crowd control to keep the guards at bay.

"Are we going to fight them?" he says, as he freezes the ground, trapping and slowing the guards down. But as soon as he manages to freeze one group, the other one gets loose. The guards with bows and arrows fire at us, but I recast my shield and they still don't pierce it.

"My mana is going to run out soon," says the mystic with more urgency.

I try to think of the skill I accidentally used on Wandalla, and my hands move in circles again. It seems like spells also work as long as your weapon is attached to your body, because my staff that's attached to my back begins to glow blue. Then water from the fountain swirls up in the air, as if following a current. I think of the water spouting towards the guards, and the current crashes into the group that's farther away. They're thrown back, and most of their lives go down at least 30%.

The Sorgin mage frowns.

"She's a water mage. We'll be here forever," he says, casting an ice wall all around us.

By then, the others players in the square have scattered, not wanting to get caught up in the mayhem.

"Why did you attack them, you idiot? Now we're stuck with this other idiot," says the human mystic to the other Sorgin, while casting a violent whirlwind that throws the guards back again. I can barely see them through the ice wall that separates us, but it seems like their hp bars are going down.

"Are you calling me an idiot?" I say, casting another wave or whatever the skill is called. The water goes above the ice wall and crashes into the guards again. I'm beginning to get the hang of this, directing the water and willing it to move in the direction I want.

Without noticing what we're doing, the two mystics and I quickly establish a pattern of crowd control and damage. My water spell throws them back, the ice wall stops them from getting too close, and the fire and ice spells damage them and slow them down.

"All we're going to get out of this is a loss of experience and a drop of reputation with Starford. We'll be lucky if we can even get back into the city. So yeah, I'm calling you an idiot," says the human.

For the first time, I notice that every time a guard dies, a small red notification pops up at the corner of my vision. It says:

-50 REPUTATION WITH THE CITY OF STARFORD

The last group of guards dies in the next minute, and their bodies fade out soon after.

"Holy shit, my reputation has gone down by 1750 points," says the Sorgin, and he drinks several mana potions, one after the other.

I walk into a store to see if I can buy the guy a few potions as a thank you for helping me. The shopkeeper looks at me as if he's scared of me.

"What do you want?" she says, her arms firmly holding on to the counter.

"Nothing, sorry," I reply and walk back out.

That is definitely an unfriendly NPC. I don't remember what my reputation with Starford was, but I know it's not 'at peace' now.

"We have to leave before more guards come," says the human mystic.

"Well how the hell are we supposed to get out of here? Do you see any portals?" says the other one.

I have an idea.