Desperate Assault

Kai returned to the lane, only to be greeted by a group of minions hacking away at her Turret. While she was gone, the Sorcerer eliminated her next wave and his minions pushed forth.

For some reason, Freezer himself didn't advance with his minions to push harder. He remained in the back and watched how his soldiers bravely fought and died for his cause. He didn't lift a finger to help them.

[Do you think you can take it easy against me?] Kai clenched her controller. This damn Sorcerer sure had some nerve. Just because he had a matchup advantage he was acting cocky. [I'll make you regret not taking advantage of this opportunity. You should've pushed while you had the chance.]

"Can you enlighten me why you didn't push?" Aron asked. "You had a great opportunity."

"Yeah, a great opportunity to push," Alex nodded. "Also, a great opportunity to get ganked."

"Yuel is defending Bot right now, so no need to worry about that."

"He's not the only one who could've ganked me. There's the lass over there who just returned."

"You were cautious about a gank from a Lumimancer?" Aron frowned.

"Call it a hunch," Alex smiled thinly. "Don't expect her to go down without a fight. She strikes me as the type who wants to bare her fangs. That's exactly how she got in trouble last time."

"I see your angle. Then again, is a Lumimancer gank really something to worry about? She doesn't have any hard CC."

"And, I don't have any escape tools," Alex shrugged. "Sure, I bought Blink, but I'm not supposed to put myself in situations that force me to spend it."

"Of course," Aron nodded. "You got a point, you have to be extra careful as a Sorcerer. I feel like I haven't played the class in ages. I only ever think of Sorcerer as an easy gank target."

"Yeah, exactly. I got a huge attack range but I'm screwed if anybody gets close. Life sure can be a pain."

"Fair enough," Aron nodded. "Then, what's the plan? You're going to take the tower done via chip damage?"

"Maybe. Or, maybe somebody will finally get a kill on her to open up the lane."

"I like how you say 'somebody'. Last time I checked, you're in the best position to get that kill. You know that her Flash counters my ult, so I can't pull anything big."

"I don't see myself getting a kill on her either," Alex shrugged. "At least, not until she makes a serious mistake. She's not an amateur."

"Is that so. Then, you think you'll have to drag it out until mid-game?"

"Most likely. Unless [somebody] figures how to kill her with a gank."

"Sorry, but [somebody] is currently unavailable. He rather not deal with targets that have a low cooldown blink."

"Then, we wait," Alex shrugged. "This girl is mechanically sound, but I wonder about her mental fortitude. That Blinding Light she pulled last time came out of the blue. It might be a sign she's getting nervous."

"You think she'll overextend again?" Aron asked.

"Maybe. Just a hunch. I feel like she's out for blood."

"Then I'll keep an eye on your lane," Aron said. "Maybe she'll do something stupid again."

[Alright, here's the next wave.] Kai spotted enemy minions jogging in the distance. This was her cue. During this wave, she'll turn the tables around!

As usual, the Sorcerer created a Magia Orb in preparations for the incoming minions. The orb damaged enemies who passed through it, so this was an extra bit of damage that Kai's frontline had to suffer every time. There wasn't anything could do about it, so she let her swordsmen run face-first into the orb and eat damage.

As the two sides clashed, Kai activated Ray of Light as always. However, she didn't place this one near her allies. Instead, she summoned the light farther into enemy territory. The ray of light covered the entire enemy force. This method briefly maximized her clearing speed.

In the long run, this was less efficient than basking her minions in the light too. However, for the first couple of seconds, this method actually generated more lane advantage. She wasn't planning to drag out this clash, so those few seconds were all she needed.

[She's up to something.] Alex thought. He was about to make his Sorcerer snap his fingers and activate Dimensional Collapse, but he stopped himself at the last moment. [No need to rush. Let's see where she's going with this.]

[No pull?] Kai wondered. The way she placed Ray of Light made the enemy minions receive continuous damage, so it should've tempted the Sorcerer to pull minions away ASAP and break this disadvantageous formation. But, instead, he let his minions suffer in the blazing sunlight. Why?

[Is he preserving MP?] Kai wondered. The Sorcerer has been using his spells repeatedly and even unleashed his ult once, so it was taking a toll on him. He was down to 40% MP, so it wasn't unreasonable to start preserving MP at this point.

But, how he planned to handle the wave without his spells? Surely he wasn't going to come closer and clear minions with basic attacks?

[Yeah, thought so.] Kai nodded. The Sorcerer didn't show any signs of budging from his spot. This easygoing fella had no intention of working hard for anything it seemed.

Then, what was the big idea? Was he going to let Kai take control of the lane? Just like that?

Wait, maybe he decided to go easy on her because he had the upper hand this entire time? Even worse, maybe he was disrespecting her and didn't see her as a threat because she was a girl?

[Damn, I'll show you!] Kai activated Blinding Light and sprinted toward the enemy minions. Dazzling light enveloped her and she was about to unleash it on the entire enemy wave!

[Same desperate move again?] Alex wondered. Since the girl came to the frontline out of her own volition, he could easily block her escape route again with Magia Orbs.

Except, this time, he didn't have his ult to blow the orbs up. The ult needed 40 more seconds in order come out of cooldown. So, did the Lumimancer girl decide to gain some lane control while his ult was down?

[No, I don't think she's doing all of this just for some lane advantage.] Alex shuddered. [There's more to this play. I know it.]

His senses tingled like crazy. This girl wasn't putting on a small aggressive show to clear the lane faster. No, she was hungry for blood. She was an avenger, a wild beast. Players like her could go for the craziest of plays. Like, for example, charge straight at Alex and unleash literally her entire kit on him.

[I better play this one safe.] Instead of placing his next Magia Orb close to himself, Alex summoned the orb a short distance away, close the jungle wall. If anything happens, this orb will be his lifeline.

"Listen," Alex started. "I think their Lumi might be trying to-" WHOOSH! The enemy vanished in a flash of light! [Damn, I knew it...!]

A moment later, the Lumimancer appeared right in front of his eyes! She was still cloaked in bright light, for she was about to unleash her Blinding Light! She was going all-in!

[Get off me!] Alex targeted the Magia Orb he just placed and activated Dimension Collapse. That should drag away the blood-hungry beast.

Alas, he was but a moment too late. The Lumimancer unleashed an explosion of light right in his face! The entire screen went pitch white. All sounds ceased to exist. He couldn't even confirm whether his Dimension Collapse properly pulled the enemy away.

Either way, he had to make a run for it. It was impossible to fight back in this situation, not while his entire screen was pure white.

[Does this situation warrant a Blink?] Alex wondered as he ran toward his Turret. At least, he hoped he was running toward his Tower. He couldn't see anything, not even the mini-map. He had to rely purely on his sense of direction. Fortunately, he has fought enough Lumimancers and Warlocks to not be shaken by something like a temporary lack of vision.

So, he was pretty confident he was running in the right direction. He should be able to get away alive, no problem. Still, just to be on the safe side, it might be a good idea to blink away and create more distance between him and his pursuer, whose location he couldn't discern.

[It's not like Lumi got anything scary off-hand, but I don't wanna eat damage from her basics. Not to mention, their Viking might be coming after me.] Alex decided to shoot for it. He aimed his Blink into the white unknown and warped forward.

"Aron, I hope you see what's happening here," Alex said.

"On my way," Aron informed.

Meanwhile, Kai's onslaught continued.

[Damn it!] She cursed internally. As soon as she blinked in to unleash her Blinding Light on the Sorcerer, a force pulled her away from her prey. [Why the hell did he even place an orb all the way over here? Bastard!]

Nevertheless, her Blinding Light + Flash combo worked out. White particles of light surrounding the Sorcerer, indicating he was currently blinded. Kai could still press this attack further!

Once blinded, most opponents lost their sense of direction and either wobbled around or fired blind attacks all over the place. But, not this guy. He calmly turned around and ran toward his Turret.

[So, that's the competitive level for you, huh.] A slight shiver ran through her. Cheap tricks like that weren't enough throw off a true high-level player. Her opponents today weren't like the randoms she fought in Ranked. These high-schoolers meant business.

And, Kai was playing against these very opponents right now. After the club has been forcing her to sit on the bench for two years just because she was a girl, Kai finally set foot on the competitive level. And, she was about to prove, right here and now, that she wasn't some lowly opponent to mess around with!

[I'll bring his HP down with basics, then ult him to death. Let's go!] Kai chased the Sorcerer and fired balls of light at him.

Normally, she wouldn't have been able to chase like that for long, since attacking while moving slowed her down. However, Blinding Light not only blinded the target, it also slowed them down. Therefore, she was able to keep up with the fleeing Sorcerer even though she was shooting him.

Since the Sorcerer was blind to everything around him, he couldn't tell that Kai was firing and landing hits on him. If he keeps nonchalantly running away like this, she'll definitely- WHISH! The Sorcerer vanished into thin air!

"Damn" Kai cursed. That damn Sorcerer blinked away. Even blinded, he must have known that Kai was chasing and firing at him.

[Smartass. Try dodging this then!] Kai unleashed the last weapon she had at her disposal - Solar Wrath, her ult. It was a map-scale spell that struck every enemy in the game. The damage wasn't crazy but it had the extra benefit of revealing all enemies on the map for a while thanks to synergizing with the Lumimancer's passive. It was extremely useful for confirming kills and exposing the positions of all enemies.

In addition, after Solar Warth delivered its initial damage, it kept applying small DOT for a while as long as the targets stayed in the sunlight. They had to find a shadowy location and walk into it to kill the DOT effect earlier. In retrospect, Kai probably should've fired Solar Warth before she even blinked in to maximize damage.

[Damn, I really haven't played Lumi in a while, huh.] Kai clicked her tongue. She didn't have anybody but herself to blame for that one.

After unleashing her entire kit on the Sorcerer with varying degrees of success, she brought his HP all the way down to 70%. For a Lumimancer, a non-power class by design, this wasn't too shabby. If she lands a few more basics on that slippery bastard, she'll drop him down to 50% and he'll have to consider recalling. Finally, she'll win the lane!

"What are you doing?" Yuel asked in a stern tone.

"Nothing much. Just cleaning up the mess you created when you made me pick this class."

"You have to get out of there. Their Lionfolk is coming for you."

"Ah, shoot!" Kai was so engrossed in the chase that she failed to pay any attention to the rest of the map. Her Solar Warth revealed that the Lionfolk was on his way to Top!

[Shit, he's already this close!] Kai gritted her teeth. She definitely overstayed her due. The lion was coming to make her pay the piper!