The Goblin Alpha
"Oh, you have to be kidding me," I mumbled exasperatedly as the Window disappeared automatically. Instead of the usual spawning event, I could feel heavy reverberating steps that shook the entirety of the room.
Accompanied by another deep scraping sound, a humongous hole opened up in the wall on the opposite side of the cavern and a monstrously huge, green bulb of a creature. It was the biggest goblin I had ever seen before. I got Paradigm to scan it and it came back with the entry:
[RACE: GOBLIN - ALPHA
THE ONE WHO SITS AT THE TOP OF THE GOBLIN HIERARCHY. ONLY A LIMITED NUMBER OF GOBLIN ALPHAS EVER EXISTED IN THE WORLD BEFORE THE PARADIGM ERA. IT COMMANDS A HUGE NUMBER OF GOBLIN UNDERLINGS.]
The note about the Goblins existing before Paradigm bamboozled me. As far as I knew, Paradigm had always existed in the world. There was never a time when Paradigm didn't exist. Although, like all the other kids in the orphanage, I have never gone to school, so don't quote me on that.
The Alpha roared a guttural war cry and assumed what I guessed was his battle pose. I looked at its level and it said 'Level 8'. I gulped. It was the highest mob that I've fought against so far. I gripped the hunting dagger and steeled myself.
Almost as if its internal countdown had finished, the Goblin Alpha suddenly rushed at me. I sprinted out of the way of its lumbering mass. It smashed right into the wall and the collision was so destructive, that some of the stalactites on the ceiling of the cavern fell and shattered on the ground. The shock also caused me to trip and I scraped my knees.
The Goblin Alpha pushed itself off the wall of the cavern and howled. A Window popped up in front of my face.
[GOBLIN ALPHA USED "RALLY CALL"]
Four Goblin Chiefs spawned around the Goblin Alpha. All of them were Level four. I froze on the ground. I had only fought against one Goblin Chiefs in all the previous wave rooms before. The dread that each Goblin Chief was able to use "Rally Call" themselves crept up my back in a cold sweat. Let alone all the Fireballs that I had to start dodging.
This boss room was going to fill up quickly.
Almost as if they read my mind, the four Chiefs all used "Rally Call" and a total of thirty-two level two goblins appeared and started to make their way towards me and I attempted to stay a couple of metres away from them as they came at me in a single-file.
Another ground-shaking roar scared me into remembering that the Goblin Alpha was still around. A flurry of stomps accompanied his rush at me and I managed to dodge roll successfully from his rush attack. Unfortunately, I had accidentally rolled right into the way of four Fireballs fired at me. I was forced to perform another Dodge Roll but I was not able to execute it perfectly and the familiar lightning pain shot up my arm. A warning Window popped up with [+2%] and from the increased numbness that I felt within my left arm, I knew that the situation I found myself in was getting out of control.
In its anger of smashing into the wall once more, the Alpha swung its long skinny arms around and killed twenty-seven of the Goblins in friendly fire. I didn't get any of their EXP and I cursed under my breath. I could have used all that EXP to get stronger.
A howl echoed through the cavern and I saw that another three Level four Chiefs had been brought in by the Alpha. They in turn used "Rally Call" and a total of forty-five Level two goblins now set their eyes on lonely old me.
I quickly used Chain Slash and followed that up by slashing at two more goblins. Five limp bodies fell from the line within seconds and I received 50EXP for my trouble before needing to roll away from the barrage of Fireballs that came along soon after.
The Alpha swung wide once more and I managed to dodge out of the way in time.
I rushed at one of the Chiefs and executed a Chain Slash. Because of my strength attribute and level, I managed to take one down with just that move. I received 80EXP.
In a flurry of movement, I realised that the nearest Chief had used Fireball on me and in a hasty moment I had managed to roll right into the path of the Alpha's rush attack.
I flew off his tackle like I weighed nothing and landed heavily on my left shoulder which left me breathless. [Nerve Degradation: 43% (+5%)] along with the shooting pain blocked my vision. I cried a silent cry as my lungs desperately struggled to fill back up with air.
I managed to dodge and roll away from even more Fireballs shot at me and I used the opportunity to check my status.
I was not doing too well. My stamina was running low at around below half, while I had also lost around a third of my Health Points. Behind my Status Window, I saw the outline of the Goblin Alpha prepping for another Rush Attack and I dodged my way out of this one as he stomped over all of the goblins that were making their way endlessly towards me.
My breath was now starting to become loud and ragged after I was forced to dodge away from another barrage of Fireballs. I was quickly losing every foothold I had in previous battles. There were too many things happening at once that I had to keep an eye on that I couldn't.
The Alpha used "Rally Call" once more and now there were a total of ten Level four Chiefs all synced up with each other.
What was the saying I heard Obaa-san say a few times? 'Desperate times call for desperate measures?' I brought up the Inventory system and placed the hunting dagger in there, before taking out the Sword of the Chief.
As soon as I placed it in my dominant hand, warning Windows popped up to remind me of what I was already painfully aware of.
[WARNING!
WEAPON EQUIPPED OVEREXERTS LIMITATIONS OF DOMINANT ARM.
NERVE DEGRADATION: 43% (---)]
I stifled a cry as the shooting pain continually went up and down my arm. I had to get this over and done with. My stamina was now nearly a quarter left as well. Before the Alpha's attack pattern looped back around, I sprinted at him.
I was forced to perform a dodge roll to get away from the barrage of Fireballs, but the sword and my ever-worsening arm prevented me from doing it perfectly.
The sword flew out of my weakening grip and I grit my teeth as I undid the bandages on my arm before scooping up the sword again and using the bandages to essentially tie the sword up onto my palm.
I had found myself within close range of the Alpha and managed to keep myself out of his vision as I tried to tie the bandage up tight. With a dull shot of pain, I managed to haphazardly make a tight knot to prevent myself from losing the sword again.
Frustrated, the Alpha used "Rally Call" and now there were fourteen level four Chiefs in the boss room. They all dashed away to make some space between themselves and the Alpha and me. Using the last dregs of my Stamina, I performed a Chain Slash at the leg of the Alpha. I managed to hit all three slashes and a whopping 12% of the health was gone. Great only about 88% left.
The Chain Slash had made the Alpha back off in a step, and I was now in its sight. It clasped a massive fist and swung at me in an uppercut motion. I desperately tried to block the punch with the sword, but the punch thundered through my whole body and I was sent flying through the air.
I slammed into a wall of the cavern and the whiplash of the force caused me to hit the back of my head against the stone. My bandaged glove had succeeded in keeping the sword on me and I miraculously managed to miss the blade as I fell onto my arm on the ground.
I struggled to keep my vision and before long I passed out from my low Stamina and low Health Points.
***
Surprisingly, it seemed that death was quiet and painless. I don't know how long it was, but I found myself in the vast darkness that left me at peace and calm. I technically died an adventurer. It just so happened that the quest that did me in was my first ever. That was a little bit disappointing, but the knowledge that I didn't let my disability rule my life was quite comforting.
I don't think mum would have appreciated me being an adventurer. She was never really excited whenever I talked about wanting to be an adventurer like dad, but I think dad would have loved to go on adventures with me. I don't remember his voice, but I imagine he would have supported my choice to go and do this quest.
I was thankful that I was able to still imagine death. That was very kind of the universe to allow that.
It felt like I was floating somehow, even though it was completely dark and I couldn't see anything. It didn't feel like my eyes were shut either, but it wasn't like I could move around and check. That felt very strange.
Slowly I was uncomfortably aware of an odd nothing feeling on what I assumed was where my left arm was. I remembered what a sorry state my arm had been when I equipped the Sword of the Chief. At least I could still feel pain in my arm when I was fighting in the boss room. Now there was nothing.
Like the nothing feeling that came to existence slowly, I suddenly felt a wave of throbbing pain grow out of everywhere. It felt like everything (but the nothing feeling on my left arm) was suddenly hurting. All of a sudden but not.
As if I had filled some sort of criteria in the darkness, I started to hear a distant-at-first, but ever-so-growing notification pinging. Suddenly, out of the all-encompassing darkness, I saw pangs of pain and light start to visualise behind my tight eyelids. I suddenly realised that I had my eyes closed all this time.
Through the pain that spread throughout my chest now, I realised that all this time I had been breathing. Short, shallow breaths but breathing nonetheless. A deeper shuddering attempt caused lightning of pain to shoot up and down my spine, though oddly, the nothing feeling on my left arm persisted.
Painfully, I made slow progress at opening my eyes. Only one answered the call though, and as the vision cleared, I realised the other was stuck shut from being pressed against the ground. I exhaled weakly instead of a cough and could see through the one open eye small pebbles and rocks being pushed from the air movement.
I tried to ignore the pain that came from my right arm as I awkwardly moved it into a position to push my stomach off the ground. Once that was ready, I tried to ignore the pain as I pushed my body around so that I was finally on my back.
The pain was blinding and I could feel the dirt sticking onto the side of my face that had been facing down just seconds before.
Oddly, the nothing feeling on my left arm was still there and a soft alarm rang at the back of my mind behind all of the pain and confusion when I tried to move it but could feel nothing responding.
"Oh gods." my raspy voice quietly said as loud as I could.
I laid on my back in pain for some time. From the odd angle, I was at, I realised that I was right next to the wall that I presumed I had hit when taking the punch from the Alpha before.
Okay, so I'm not dead then, I thought.
Once I felt like the pain had cleared out somewhat, I attempted to sit up by putting some weight on my right arm. The joints creaked and ached which was probably normal from my injuries, but my chest muscles felt like it was slightly dragged behind and I realised that my left arm was acting completely boneless.
I found myself in an awkward sitting position and I looked down at my left arm. I still had that odd nothing feeling in there, and that small alarm feeling at the back of my mind grew bigger. I watched the bandage glove to see if I could see any movements as I attempted to will hand closing to a fist, but I felt nothing. And even more alarming, I couldn't see even the most minuscule of movement. That alarm feeling was no longer behind anything.
"Oh, gods..." I mumbled again in defeat.
I now had a dead arm.