Fighting Spirit

Exile's eyes went wide as a large figure burst through the remaining flames towards him! His expression sank when he saw that. 'Damn!' Exile knew in his heart that there was nothing more that he could do. He could only hold out for as long as possible now that it had reached this point.

The Lost Warrior Captain slashed with his mighty axe! A dull thud followed the blow as it struck Exile's shield!

[-7 HP]

Exile watched as his health reached 44/65. 'It's only a matter of time now.' Exile sighed heavily and squinted at his enemy. A surge of adrenaline coursed through his body as his hands trembled. He began a violent slugfest with the mob.

[-7 HP]

[-7 HP]

His health had now dropped below 50%, but he did not care. Exile kept bashing with his shield and cutting with his axe. All to no avail. As time went on, the damage he sustained accumulated while he got used to the Captain's fighting style.

[-7 HP]

[-7 HP]

[-7 HP]

Although he blocked most attacks successfully, it made no difference to his plummeting health points. Exile's breathing had become ragged as he glared at the Captain with a hate-filled expression. He only had 9 HP left, so he knew their fight was almost over.

The Captain stuck out a hand towards Exile and beckoned him to come. Exile's face turned red at the naked taunt. The Captain knew that there was nothing Exile could do to him.

Exile bellowed a roar of defiance as he rushed in! He dodged the kick that the Captain aimed at him and slammed his shield on the enemy's knee! A heavy sensation struck his back at the same time.

[-7 HP]

The Captain sent Exile sliding across the floor, face down. Before he could turn over to defend himself, the enemy leapt towards him! Exile groaned as the Captain's knee landed on his back, locking him in place. No matter how he struggled, he could not break free.

Then, it happened…

[HP: 0/65]

Exile's vision turned white as the Captain dealt the finishing blow…

[You have died! Generating Divine Orb… Endurance -7, Authority -4, Speed -2, Strength -1…]

Exile's mind went blank as it instantly halved his total stats. Exile's expression turned grim as he stood amongst a never-ending white mist. He reviewed the fight in his mind, but there was nothing he could have done that would have led to a better outcome.

'I should have turned this quest down…' Exile sighed as a look of helplessness crossed his face. 'I wonder how the others are doing.'

Just then, his vision went blank again as he disappeared from inside the mist. When he opened his eyes, he was standing in a white marble square room. Indigo coloured wisps floated around, allowing him to see the contents of the room.

There was a solitary chest a mere three steps in front of him. 'Hm? Is this a consolation prize? Like how Donna and Beans still received a reward when they failed?' Exile was finding it hard to be excited. He doubted the tomb could give him anything to make up for his lost stats.

With a frown on his face, he stepped forward to open the chest. There were a few things inside, but one of them made his eyes go wide!

[Exile's Divine Orb]

He did not know whether to laugh or cry at this sight. However, that did not stop him from absorbing it before he paid any attention to the other things. A sense of warmth spread throughout his body as it restored his stats.

'Let's try to avoid dieing from now on!' Exile heaved a sigh of relief as his eyes watered up. 'Hm… Do you always receive your Orb if you die in a tomb?'

Exile considered the matter briefly, but decided he would have to talk to the others to gather more information. The next item he inspected was a bag with 50 Gold in it. 'It's better than nothing I guess…'

The last item inside the chest was a parcel. Exile frowned as he reached out to grab it. However, a notification interrupted his action.

[Lost Warrior Captain (Weakened) had less than 10% health left. Generating bonus reward based on your performance…]

[Common Raider Armour Set]

[+1 Endurance, +1 Speed]

[Description: Show them you mean business with this armour set.]

Exile's eyebrow twitched as he read the description. He was certain that the developers were treating these pieces of text as a joke. The armour appeared in his inventory, and he wore it right away.

Exile's new armour consisted of thick leather, with some accompanying metal parts around the shoulders and waist. The collar had been made of fur, just like the heavy boots. While the gauntlets had fur in the interior, but metal on the back of the hands and up the forearms.

'Hm, it would have been better if the speed stat boost was authority instead.' Exile sighed as he studied his new outfit. 'Still, it looks a lot better than before.'

Now that the chest was empty, a section of the wall behind him slid open. Exile raised an eyebrow before deciding that it should be safe. The short passageway that was revealed led him directly to the indigo door at the start of the tomb.

Exile glanced around at the figures waiting there. It surprised him to see that they did not look any better off for their experience in the tomb!

"What! Why'd you get new gear?" Leggy complained as he eyed Exile with a sour expression.

"Don't mind him… He's a little on edge." Old Un cut in before Exile could say anything. "He died before reaching the rune at the end of his passage. Now he's lost 50% of his stats."

Exile's eyes went wide before he looked at Leggy with some sympathy. 'I guess that answers my question about always receiving your Orb.' He sighed before glancing around once again. 'Wait? Where's Clay?'