Chapter 5: Goddess vs. Demons Part 2
[Accel and Zaphro: Team Up!]
(Accel's POV)
This AI is insane... My whole body feels wrecked from the damage I've taken. Good thing I've built up my defense and resistance. My armor set might not be legendary like Kuya Zaphro's, but with the +7 upgrades, it's more than holding up.
I forced myself back to my feet, groaning, and looked over at my teammates. None of them were up yet. Some were still lying on the ground, their HP bar barely hanging on.
"Kuya Xavier, are you okay?" I knelt beside him and gave his cheek a light tap to check if he was conscious.
"I'm fine, Accel. Just a bit dizzy," he muttered weakly.
He rummaged through his inventory, then handed me a scroll.
"What's this?"
"Massive Heal Scroll. Activate it. We need to recover fast." He was too weak to do it himself, so the task fell to me.
I opened the scroll and read the ancient incantation aloud.
"Thurizas dhagas orphilius!"
A glowing magic circle appeared beneath our feet, followed by a wave of green light that surrounded all of us. A shimmering shield enveloped us—an unbreakable barrier lasting for one minute.
Massive Heal Scroll: Heals 5–10 players simultaneously. Grants invulnerability for 1 minute. Heals 350 HP per second.
As we healed, I looked ahead and spotted Kuya Zaphro and Gwydox still clashing with Amana. Zaphro was shrugging off the Ice Goddess's skills like they were nothing, thanks to his elemental immunity. Only her physical attacks could harm him—but even with that advantage, she still outclassed him in speed, resistance, and raw power.
Zaphro and his Animus kept switching tactics. It was mesmerizing. Despite being exhausted, he kept landing hits. His regeneration rate was broken-tier. And slowly, I noticed… his body was starting to change.
He was transforming—his Demonic Form.
Though we shared the same sub-class, I didn't have a transformation like that. I chose a different Ultimate: Soul Reaper. As a long-range combat specialist, it suited me better. Unlike Zaphro's Infernal Duke, which excelled in close combat, mine had a unique feature—self-revival.
It's called Second Breath, a once-every-48-hours ability. When activated, I reanimate myself with double stats across the board—HP, DEF, MP, SP, and even ATK and resistance.
"You guys stay here!" I told the others, then sprinted off to back up Zaphro and Gwydox.
"Shadow Swarm!"
I unleashed a barrage of dark matter orbs at the AI. Amana dodged many of them, but thanks to Gwydox and Zaphro keeping her busy, several of my attacks landed.
That pulled her aggro.
She dashed straight toward me.
"Way of Defense: Dark Kekai!"
A wall of dark energy shot up between us. I knew it wouldn't hold for long. I had already queued my next skill.
"Way of Destruction: Big Bang!"
An explosive self-destruct ability that damages both me and the enemy. But I used it on purpose—to trigger Second Breath.
Amana was blasted backward, crashing into the ruins beyond the town center.
"ACCEL!"
The entire party shouted as they saw me go down.
I was falling through the air… but I smiled and gave a thumbs-up. A dark ray of energy wrapped around my body just before I hit the ground.
"Second Breath."
Now this… this is power.
Get ready, AI. This time, I'm not holding back.
---
(Zaphro's POV)
Accel dealt a huge blow to the AI, but it cost him all of his HP. I was ready to call out a revive when something incredible happened—he was back at full health like nothing even happened.
Must be a secret skill of his. That kid never stops surprising me.
I smirked and activated my Demonic Form. With the upgrades, I now had five minutes of boosted stats: +80% HP, DEF, Resistance, and ATK. Double speed, dodge rate, and crit chance.
You're dead meat now, Ice Witch.
I walked up beside Accel, smiling.
"You ready, kid?"
"I was born ready!"
We fist-bumped.
At once, we both shot forward at high speed.
"Cold Fire!" I cast.
"Spectrum!" Accel unleashed his.
Amana screamed as our combined skills tore through her, dragging her across the plaza and crashing her into the tavern walls. Before she could get back up, I called out another S-Class skill.
"Heaven's Judgment!"
A divine restraint skill. The light chains bound her, giving our allies a chance to launch their specials.
Boom.
Boom.
Boom.
The whole party's skills hit her one after another.
"Whoo! Hell yeah!" Jin cheered.
"Down to 50%! We've got this!" I shouted.
Accel, Gwydox, and I were now the main hitters and restrainers, keeping up with Amana's every move. But then—she began casting a terrifying spell.
"Blizzard Storm."
A one-hit kill area skill. Massive power. But with my current form, I was immune to that. Accel, too, looked untouchable—he was glowing like a demon-lord on steroids.
"Verillion, cast a shield now! That thing's lethal!"
"On it!" Verillion activated Chrono Sphere, freezing time within its bubble. Ayana summoned her creatures to serve as dummy walls. Slicer threw down Seismic Barrier. Jin and Aryus cast layered walls. Shion switched to full defense mode. Erik, Erenir, and Xavier reinforced the barriers again.
Then Amana roared—an avalanche of freezing energy burst forth.
Accel and I didn't flinch. We dashed into it head-on.
"Dark Flame Vortex!" I shouted.
"Demon Swarm!" Accel followed.
I launched black hellfire, while Accel summoned a grotesque swarm of corrupted souls. His skill looked straight out of a horror movie.
We broke through a gap in Amana's storm and charged her. We didn't hold back. Every skill, every strike—we let it all loose. Gwydox switched to support mode, throwing heals and buffs our way.
Sweat poured down my face. Blood dripped from a head wound. It all felt real—too real. These weren't just images. The game made it feel real, as if our bodies were truly taking the pain.
Suddenly—
"Frost Wind!"
Amana struck without warning. I couldn't dodge in time.
It was coming straight for me.
But—
"Pa!"
Gwydox shoved me out of the way and took the hit.
"GWYDOX!"
The blast hurled him across the field. He disappeared into the mist.
"Gwydox!? Hey! ANSWER ME!"
No response.
No signal.
Nothing.
Damn it!
I turned back toward the AI. She was cloaked in fog now—hiding again. Her HP was down to 27%.
She's stalling.
But Gwydox…
Is he okay?
What if he's not…?
To be continued.