Saiyan

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

As soon as he saw the flash of blue and gold zoom under and between the legs of the ogre, Zell knew what was up. Two seconds later and the massive beast was going down like a felled tree in a forest, MacKensie surfing the ogres head to the ground and Zell carefully avoiding being flattened.

As always, the synchronicity of the duo from Europe was on point. MacKensie repeater-fired off a half-dozen shots while Zell dislodged The Black Sword from the ogre ribs. Black blood burst forth as the blade came free, and the dark ichor whipped into the air as Zell swung the instant he could, delivering a mean parry that took one knight completely off balance. Zell was able to kill an orc in quick succession, skewer the off-balance knight and leave The Black Sword in the body, trading his weapon for the dead knight's polearm, transitioning into a new fighting style and stance suitable for the longer weapon.

Bolts flew over his shoulder, Zell having no fear whatsoever that the French sharpshooter would mistakenly hit him. Hell; he'd felt the wind of more than one bolt of hers whistle past his ear. Miss Stiff-as-a-Plank could certainly be mischievous when she wanted to be. No, he feared not, merely focusing on the sweeps and swings of the polearm in his hands as he wielded it expertly against his foes, in perfect concert with the Frenchwoman behind him.

"Are you okay?" MacKensie asked him, over his shoulder.

"On top of the world, doll!" he replied cheerfully as he fought. "Ppreciate the assistance."

"Alright, good luck."

Between the length of the polearm and MacKensie's shooting, the two had managed to create a slither of breathing space by the time MacKensie departed. Zell was about to get The Black Sword back from the corpse next to him, but not before, "James!" He threw the polearm like a javelin in the direction of his best friend, where two orcs had gotten through their defence and were charging the back line. The flying polearm was a one-shot kill, leaving only a single orc for James to deal with, which would be no problem for cleric, considering how the Mexicano handled his anchor.

Zell repositioned himself back in line with Barracker, but edged a little closer to James, to narrow the gap where the two orcs had broken through.

"Hey, mate!" he shouted. "How about these fucking ogres, eh... reminds me of the day we met. I'm feeling a little Bro-mantic, right now! Ha!"

...

The Lions were not close to the breach that had manifested in the Bazaar, but as soldiers on the ground and archers on the rooftops turned their attention to plugging the gap, the defence in the Lions' vicinity had thinned and things became tougher. Everyone was exhausted by this point. There'd been no real rest since the early hours of the morning when the sirens went off. First, the run across the city to get to the wall and form up. Then the fighting which felt like hours. Then the run back across the city to retreat to the Bazaar. Now, endless skeletons and zombies. It was, for most of the block, a new experience that had sapped their mental and physical energy dry.

Mistakes were bound to happen.

With the orcs, goblins and corrupted tribesmen, it was at least a proper fight, with both friend and foe trying to attack and defend - hit and not get hit. These skeletons cared nothing for their own safety! Which, in one way, made them easier to kill. But in another way, made it so much more dangerous because any little cut or bite or punch they could manage, they'd risk life and limb for. And no matter how many you killed, more took their place and they were not perturbed or deterred in any way, shape or form.

All it took was a single break in concentration and an injury was sustained. Lions were dead on the floor amidst the pile of twice-dead skeletons. The piles of corpses messed the battle lines up. Skeletons would sometimes look dead, but then strike a Lions' foot with their sword and the result was usually death.

Slowly but surely, the numbers of the Lions dwindled. But they died fighting for Valhiem. Ares, God of Fighting, would be proud. As were the brothers they fought alongside.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

As James relayed battleplans, everyone listened. Like him, Alison was also stood next Second Chance's leader, on the other side. Her body language and the way she talked told Zell that she was not just proficient in the tactical and strategic elements of combat, she was into it too. Another reason for him to like her. Another reason why they needed to win. And live. And see another another day. Have another drink together.

"Yeah, we'd be best off in the middle," Zell agreed with James' assessment and drew out a triangle on the table with his finger. "If we are positioned a little forward of the line. Create a wedge formation. Then we'll take a little pressure off of Evermere and the Silver Arrow, while they keep our flanks covered."

His determined eyes sought approval from James and Alison. He was confident in his own knowledge of battlefield tactics but there was always a chance he was missing some factor that they had spotted. As for their two fellow adventurer parties, the leaders of which had shown up for the quick briefing, Zell wasn't too sure how strong they were. Judging by the captain of the Scarabs, who was an Evermere frontliner, Evermere might have been just about strong enough to deal with the cult of Drath'tuthan... maybe. Either way, pretty soon they'd find out just how strong everyone was, on the bridge.

A little more discussion with James having the final word and everything was settled. Zell rapped his fist on the table. "We've got this, guys!"

As captains went to their blocks to relay orders and messages were transmitted to the rest of the Bazaar for where to take up positions, Zell had a brief meet with the Lions. He didn't even realise until now, but none of his block had seen him come into the Bazaar. So all this time, between what happened in the streets and now, they'd thought he was dead. Zell was confused at the reception for a second, then he realised and laughed.

"Ah, come off it. You didn't really think your captain would get taken out by one measly fireball, did ya?" Many thanked him for his quick thinking and life-saving play against the pyromancer. Others were still stunned in awe. "Alright, alright, no worries. Now listen up because we ain't got much time..."

He relayed James' orders of positioning, with the Lions set to hold a handful of alleyways, between the shops, that opened up onto the riverbank. After that, he gave them all some words of encouragement, almost indistinguishable from the team talks he'd given in the past before an important football match. There was a customary series of "Oorah!" chants at the end, then they broke up to hit their positions. Zell was satisfied as he watched them go, until his eyes caught three of his men who had not immediately left and were standing in a huddle. He went over, noticing immediately that it was Biff, Chip and Kipper, three of the more unforgettable personalities in the Lions.

"Wassup boys?" he asked as he approached, but they didn't need to explain. As soon as he saw the young lad, Kipper, Zell figured the situation. The kid was as white as a ghost.

"It's Kipper, Captain," Chip said to Zell. "He's not doing too well."

Zell knew he didn't have time for this, but a quick look around told him that not everyone was done with their briefings so he had a quick minute. They all tried to share a comforting word with Kipper. Chip told him that he was scared too. Biff assured him that he'd stay close and protect them. Zell said that he'd seen Kipper's conduct on the wall and congratulated him for an impressive performance and getting this far. All of their efforts were enough to perk Kipper up a little, but he was still shook. And who could blame the kid.

"Look, mate," Zell put an arm around Kipper's shoulder. "You've read them stories about heroes who do great deeds, right?" Kipper nodded. "And all the awesome shit they do? Kicking ass and looking damn good while doin it? Even gettin the smoking-hot princess at the end?" He managed to get a bit of a smile with the last nod. "Every single one of them heroes in them books... we're fucking shitting themselves with fright, the whole time. The authors don't often tell you about that bit, because it's not very flattering, but I promise you... just like you... just like me, right now... just like Biff and Chip too... shitting... bricks, pal."

Kipper frowned in confusion and looked at them all. Biff nodded. "I'm terrified I'll never see my wife or little boy again."

Chip chimed in. "I can barely hold last night's dinner, Kip."

"But that's what courage is, Kipper," Zell continued. "Courage ain't fuckinnnnn... being fearless. No. That's just fucking stupid. Courage is being scared, but having the will to keep going." Kipper's eyes searched the floor as he took in the words. The colour was at least returning to his face a little. "Look at me... people will write about this day. They're gonna write about you, me, Biff, Chip... all the Lions. And they're gonna tell all about our courage. Because that's what matters. We stood up and faced down what was thought to be unstoppable." Kipper nodded and blinked a few times as his back straightened. "And in the final chapter, Kipper gets a feel of the smoking-hot princess." They all laughed. Even Kipper couldn't help but chuckle. "Alright," Zell decided this was the best he could do and wrapped things up. "Your orders, you three: Stay together. Look out for each other, yeah?"

"Aye, Captain," they all said.

Zell backed away and just before he turned to run and catch up with his party, he told them. "Let them motherfuckers hear you roar."

...

He arrived at the bridge last, but fortunately not too late as to fuck things up. The enemy were lined up across the bridge and chanting. Zell took up his position. Front and centre. The Englishman wouldn't have it any other way.

"Let's fuckin go, lads and ladies!" he flashed a grin at his friends behind him. It felt so good to be fighting by their side again.

With his Source-gifted mental rolodex of combat knowledge, his mind could not decide between Water Stance and Stone Stance. Water Stance was perfect for defending in open spaces against superior numbers, but Stone Stance had all the best counters and he could do with such against the ogres. It turned out that Adam would make the decision easy when the Druid charged across the bridge, crossed past the charging ogres and transformed into a bear, causing chaos in the enemy ranks and leaving a large gap between the ogres and the bulk of the Orcs and Knights.

"Ha!" Zell was pleased and dropped into Stone Stance, then rushed forward to meet the ogre in front and hopefully get the beast's attention so it did not complete a full charge and end up in the back ranks of the adventurers. "Oi, you big ugly bastard!" It worked.

The ogre back-hand swatted Zell with it's machete. Zell took the full brunt of the attack on his sword and slid a metre across the pavestones from the sheer force. The next attack was parried with a smooth counter strike on the arm, but ogre flesh was tough and the strike did nothing to slow the beast down. Orcs came running into the fray as Zell backed up to stay in line with Barracker and re-establish a front line shield. It quickly became a game of; kill as many orcs as possible in between fending off the big, slow attacks of the ogre.

Then an opening appeared. Zell recognised the enchanted arrow of Fenna and blessed the woman for a second time this morning.

He took advantage, dashing in and delivering an awesome combo to a single knee of the ogre. It stumbled and Zell drove the Black Sword into the ogre, up and between the ribs, hoping to catch a vital organ. The ogre howled and Zell gritted his teeth, and exploded with all his might to drive the sword even further into the beast.

It was a risk to get so stuck when other enemies were about and might take advantage, but the prospect of dropping an ogre quickly was too tempting to pass up.

...Meanwhile...

Biff, Chip and Kipper did indeed stay together. They, with a few others, held the mouth of an alley where they frantically hacked at any skeletons trying to climb up from the river. Zell was not lying...

...they were all shitting bricks.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

phew, thought id missed the end of the round for a second there lol

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

Swimming in blackness. Everything in slow motion. Even his disjointed thoughts.

^{"Come on Zell get your lazy ass up we have to go!"} the familiar voice sounded so far away and he couldn't respond.

All he could do was try to swim towards it......................

..............Zell's unconscious self moaned. Soft and brief. The soldier of the Falcons who had Zell on his back could not hear the swordsman over the din of battle........................

...............There was no sense of direction in the blackness. Zell didn't know which way was up. But he tried to swim anyway. His current form was a figment of his mind - a construct of his warrior will. Somehow he sensed this. Somehow he knew that his physical self was knocked out cold. But if he could just swim towards the direction of the familiar voice from before, he might be able to awaken through pure force of will.

"Why do you resist?" Baphomet's guttural, scraping voice was not at all far away. It was loud and all around him. "I have here the power you need to save your friends and yet you spurn it."

Baphomet was a lot of things, but 'wrong' was never usually one of them. Here was no different. It was so tempting. If what he'd felt already was just a taste of the Oblivion Plane's power, then to give himself wholly to this contract with Baphomet would almost assure Valhiem's victory. Zell would be invincible. But the price was high.

"Of course the price is high," Baphomet responded, reading Zell innermost thoughts. Gone were the days when Zell could hide things from the devil. Long gone. "But what does it really matter? You are already dead. This is your afterlife. Whatever heaven you think your family will go to, you will not be there to greet them. And you owe the Quinity nothing. Why would it be so bad to give up your soul for immortality? An everlasting life of battle. Of adventure. Of pleasure. Of fame."

What the hell even was a soul, anyway? He didn't even believe in the value of that hippie shit. What did it matter? It didn't. His life was over with. That busdriver had ended him. All of this? It was just some crazy-stupid video-game shit that wasn't even real. Hell, it might be all just the posthumous imagination of a dead Under-grad. All of these people, these 'friends,' were probably hallucinations. His dream girl, just a dream.

"But, real or not, it doesn't mean that you cannot have them," Baphomet continued. "You can have it all. And it will feel real, whatever 'real' means, to you. Or you can throw it all aw-"

^"Zell!"

Zell instantly ignored the devil in favour of another distant but familiar voice. And this one evoked such strong emotion that he didn't need to guess the direction. He could see the light in the blackness. And he swam for it.

As for the Oblivion Prince: Baphomet's disappointment was apparent, but it was clear that he and Zell were coming to an understanding and were close to sealing the deal. He had seen the state of the battle through Zell's eyes and he could see that it was obviously unwinnable. The situation would soon become desperate and Zell would have no other options. Baphomet would have his champion and vessel..................

............Zell stirred and the soldier carrying him noticed. The Englishman opened his eyes, dizzy as hell, and got off the man's back gingerly but in time for MacKensie to crash into him with a fierce hug.

"You stupid idiot." He almost fell over but she kept him up and he chuckled, hugging her back just as strongly. "You stupid, stupid idiot."

"You're a sight for sore eyes, doll. And no mistake." As they halfway let eachother go, he smiled at her. "Am I glad to see you."

He wanted so badly to kiss her, but seeing as that would be incredibly inappropriate for a myriad of reasons, (not least of which was that they were in streets that were about to be filled to the brim with skellies,) he managed to refrain. She helped him the rest of the way, through the checkpoint and down the last stretch of street to the Bazaar. They traded a few snippets of knowledge of the happenings this morning and Zell's battered head also managed to put together the puzzle that Fenna had been the one to rescue him.

"Fenna, pal, you are a walking miracle," he said as they came over the bridge and into the Bazaar. "I owe you one." His grin soon turned to a frown as he and MacKensie's attention turned to their other friend who was in Fenna's arms. "Shit," Zell cursed. Sil was hurt.

When they inquired on Sil's well-being and got the news that the falcon was hurt but would be okay with some healing, they were relieved. Zell parted ways with them to go get some medical attention of his own and thankfully, Fenna's soldier stayed with him because as soon as his adrenaline wore off, he fainted. The soldier managed to catch him and stop the swordsman from whacking his head on the ground for the sixtieth time, then picked him up and carried him to the medical station where he was awoken again.

"Fuck. I didn't faint in front of the girls, did I?"

Typical Zell Brooks.

A tiefling Cleric came to him, in a noticeable bad mood. Zell guessed that she was just feeling the fatigue of overwork. Michael Fern's elven hearing had been keeping a close observation of the Cleric's conduct and overheard Adam direct her to Zell. He went over and introduced himself. "Michael Fern."

"Zell Brooks. Second Chance," Zell returned, reaching out to shake the man's hand.

"Any friend of Adam is a friend of mine," Michael said. "You have a top o' the range Druid on your back line. And with a big heart too."

Zell grinned as, speak of the devil, he saw the American (strangely, with that fucking dickhead, Xavier.) "Yeah. He's one in a million, that guy."

Michael smiled and left to attend to other things. At that point, Barracker showed up. Zell nodded jovially at his fellow muscle-head and brother-in-arms, saying to the Cleric. "Do me a favour and sort out this pincushion next, will ye? He's got more arrows in him than a map with directions. Ha!"

His mood was improving during this lull in the battle. In spite of the desperate situation, just seeing that his friends were okay was buoying up his spirits to no end. All he wanted, in this moment, was to see Alison and of course, his best friend, James. Everything would be right in the world once he caught a glimpse of that permanent scowl and Mexican accent.

He groaned as his broken bones were being reset and cured. He would go and see those last two party members as soon as he could move. For now, at least he could enjoy a laugh with Kass.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

@Loksfjoer

citizenkaneclap.gif

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

@SaiyanIf no one saves Zell then I'm killing him off. Just so you know

@xenon

bastard lol anyone! You're free to control Zell, just don't let xenon kill my character

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

My anger is my armour! My hate is my weapon!

Zell allowed the Orc Heavy to overextend. Block. Combined with slight sidestep. The orc stumbled past as Zell brought his sword around to deliver a violent hamstring. The orc fell, Zell stepped down on his back and finished him. He could feel the rage building - the pain going away. Good.

No.

Before he re-engaged, he realised that half of the thoughts in his head were not his own and growled with frustration as he pulled himself back.

Attack!

No. Defend.

Kill!

No. Protect.

He had to shake the haze of dissonance from his head. He could not continue with this kind of confusion. A tribesman rushed him. Two parries and a counterstrike. Simple work. What was harder was keeping the fury at bay.

Zell looked over to where Fenna was. The older woman might just be the only person in this world whose mere presence could make him behave himself. And now, he saw MacKensie was with her too. Like the cool breeze that came with Undaya's blessing, Zell was awash with a calm that cancelled out his anger. His priorities immediately came back to him. He was a frontliner. His job was to protect. This was better. But such sobriety also came with the physical pain of his injuries. And fear that all of his friends may not survive this ordeal. Maybe not a single one of them.

A look over his shoulder made him aware that the enemy were in the city streets. A glance at where the Right Wing had formerly been, showed why. Teeming - packed with the enemy. They were pushing against the Centre. Charging down the stairs and into the streets with no resistance. Zell could do nothing more than jump back into the thick of things, on the wall, and hope for the best. Had he been in control of the garrison, he would urgently pull back the remainder of the forces - to hell with a steady, tactical retreat. If they did not move soon, there might be no way back to the second line of defense. But he was not in control. He just had to do his job. And hope for the best.

Hope. Fear. Analysis. It would be so much easier to let the hate flow and just... be.

Fuck you, Baphomet. In his mind, the Englishman and the Oblivion Prince stared eachother down stubbornly. Fuck you.

Fortunately the order for retreat came. A couple minutes early, thank fuck. But strange that the order did not come in the form of Commander Thorn's booming voice. It came from a flare on the front. Someone had made an executive decision. Vice Commander Jeremiah, probably. Whoever it was, Zell blessed them.

And speaking of blessings...

The Black Sword lit up with holy fire. Baphomet was pissed. James had done Second Chance a solid.

"Lions! Protect the stairs!"

The Lions switched to defensive fighting and covered the nearby steps, with open ranks to allow other blocks to pass through and get down from the wall as smoothly as possible. Another Lion was killed. And then another. With each block that disengaged, the fighting became more and more difficult. On top of that, the fear that replaced his anger added to the weight of mental pressure - The struggle to keep Baphomet at bay. Zell had to keep his head here. He could ill afford to give in to his rage when a precise retreat would be required. When consideration of what was best for those around him, was needed.

He spared a glance over at the Falcons and Rabbits, to see their progress. He would not leave without seeing that Fenna and MacKensie had safely disengaged. And once they were on their way into the street:

"Lion! Retreat!"

...

He arrived at the next crossroads and looked all ways before making a quick decision. "This way!"

The narrow backstreets were a maze, but the main roads were fraught with danger and there was no time to get caught up in a skirmish. The Bazaar was a fair distance away. Perhaps half the length of the city away. But it felt even longer, there in the backstreets. After the first ambush by a roaming group of orcs and goblins, paranoia added to the fatigue. They had dealt with the group pretty quickly, it was only a small squad, but now every corner felt like a danger-point for them to be ambushed. The heat of a city on fire radiated. The noise of the shouting and fighting rushed through the streets and alleys like the wind.

Several blocks of soldiers converged on a wider street that appeared clear. The Lions followed with the crowd, Zell barking orders to keep together. Then came another ambush. And this one was deadly.

The explosion ahead hair-dryer’d Zell's face. Windows smashed with the force. Fireballs had come down from the rooftops and laid waste to everyone unfortunate enough to be under the pyromancers on the rooftops. Chaos erupted.

"Left turn!" Zell thundered, pointing his sword at the alleyway that ran south . "Quickly!"

Another fireball came down, the explosion even closer. Soldiers bumped into eachother as they pushed and shoved to get away. Zell stood firm and urgently gestured to the alleyway, screaming at the top of his lungs. "Lions! Gooooo!"

And then he saw a pyromancer appear above them - on the roof of a small building - and the red mage was looking right at them. GO! Zell thoughts raced. SAVE YOURSELF! But his thoughts were not his. WHAT ARE YOU DOING! The Pyromancer began doing the hand motions to cast a fireball. TURN AROUND! Zell's feet moved automatically. YOU FOOL! The fireball manifested and began to grow in size. YOU FOOOOOOL!

Mere moments before launch - fireball hovering above the pyromancers raised right hand - Zell appeared on the roof, right beside the mage.

[[Teleportation.]] His last one left.

"Arrrgh!" the Pyromancer cried out as the Black Sword cut straight through his forearm.

Zell managed to snatch, out of the air, the severed hand at the wrist, fireball still hovering above the palm. Then he pointed hand'n'fireball like a gun, point blank at the Pyromancer. The force of the explosion smashed more windows and did damage to the nearby brickwork, but the soldiers below were saved.

Both the pyromancer and the swordsman were blown off the roof. Zell went flying across the street and hit a house before gravity took his ragdolled body and he hit the ground.

He looked dead. The second in command of the Lions took charge and got their block out of there. There was no time for gratitude or sentiment. They could be thankful once they were safe at the Bazaar.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

got a fun idea, but it's gonna require someone bailing Zell out afterward lol im just gonna post and hope one of you have the heart to rescue the party idiot

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

Drink. Rend. Reap.

The goblin was skewered with such force that the hilt of the Black Sword hit the creature's abdomen. For a split second before death, that goblin would come eye to eye, nose to nose with Baphomet's Champion. In this moment, with red eyes full of pain and fear, and green eyes full of rage and hatred...

It was difficult to tell who the monster was.

"...Rrrgghaaa!" Zell lifted the goblin off the ground slightly as he kept pushing and charged a few steps into a group of corrupted tribesmen. A two-handed grip switch to one-handed and he smashed his fist into the ugly green face of the lifeless corpse that slid off his sword. The sequence saw him spin, his green cloak whirling into the face of one tribesman, temporarily blinding the wall-assaulter, while Zell freed his sword in time to block an incoming strike from another. They could not resist him. One by one, he put them all to slaughter. All who stepped to him.

While it looked like Zell was an invincible wrecking ball, racking up a kill score worthy of a professional Call of Duty player, upon closer inspection, one would see that the brand-new steel pieces of his armour were full of nicks. The leather parts were full of cuts, some stained with Zell's blood. His aggressive approach - (that had progressed to careless and now full-on beserker) - was not without it's drawbacks. Fortunately for him, Zell had always been a meathead gym-bro. He was strong and tough, and this magical world had saw fit to accentuate those characteristics of his. But it was not just his front line adventurer Class that was powering him now. With every day that passed, it would seem that the Oblivion Prince of Might saw fit to dripfeed Zell more of his power. The angrier Zell got, the easier it was to ignore pain.

Unbeknownst to the Captain of the Lions, things had gotten hairy on the wall, with the sheer weight of numbers beginning to crush the retreating defenders. Sure, Zell had heard the orders for the tactical retreat, but he was not about to bother himself with the overall strategic picture of the battle. As long as The Lions were to stay on the wall, Zell's only concern was killing. And so Zell did not notice that when the defensive line was stretched too thin and the Right Wing were ordered to close ranks with The Centre, friendly faces were nearby.

"!!!" When he saw Fenna, it was like static-shock sounded off in his brain.

All of the anger drained from his face and he stared at the Captain of the Falcons for second as he started to realise all of the important things about who he was and why they were in this situation. It actually amazing that he'd even forgotten - or maybe 'shoved into the very back of his mind,' would be a more appropriate phrasing. He had friends, he had a mission to figure out why they were all in this world. He had mother, a sister, a father... he was a goofball macho dumbass. He was halfway in love. How had all this so easily just faded into distant memory?

"Agh!" Quick reflexes, but not quick enough. He'd grabbed the wrist of the dwarf and stopped the dagger going into his waist too deeply, but nevertheless it pierced flesh. Notably, it actually hurt.

Zell managed to twist and drive his sword into the dwarf, whose strength waned quickly after and Zell was able to pull the dagger free from his waist. "Dammit."

No time for standing around staring. Back into the fighting. But now with sobriety. He had a city to defend. He had his Lions to lead. He had friends to see at the end of this.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

He's a grizzled veteran

(just came to mind now lmao)

@Jay009

nothing more murican than Adam exercising his 2nd Amendment right in another world

(yeah lol im all out too)