Convergence: Eclipse Chapter 13: Chapter 13: The Efficacy of Team Work

Read chapter 13 of Convergence: Eclipse by J.L.Hollingwell on NovelPedia.

Team work is essential if you want to survive in the multiverse. Find people with a similar approach to levelling, people you can trust. You will be able to push each other to go further than you could go alone but never forget: this greatest of assets is also your greatest vulnerability. Loss of a loved one is inevitable, and if you let it, that loss can break you more absolutely than your own death. Staying Alive in the Multiverse: A Guide for Idiots Relit Gron Five scale hides, three participants. Those aren’t good odds. Laurie didn’t stop to deliberate; he stashed his potions in the pouch on his belt, dumped his pack, and activated his umbral step, sliding down the tree and hurrying towards the beset group. He pulled his hood forward and looped around behind the trees, hurrying through the tall grass, aiming to come out near the side of the pack. As he got close to the fight, he could see the shadows of the creatures dashing around him, hissing and shouting echoing from all sides. Without warning, one ran across the front of him and Laurie froze, heart thumping. Scale Hide: Level 3 Okay, level 3, that’s not so bad! The creature hadn't noticed him - yet. Laurie took a deep breath and darted towards the edge of the grass where it opened out onto a path. He stopped dead as two more scale hides rushed past him, barrelling towards the water. How many is that, now? Seven? From here he could see the fight, the three strangers battling against the beasts. They were clearly skilled and had magic that Laurie hadn’t seen before. The shield of the armoured warrior widened, the metal stretching itself rapidly into a new shape so that he could block two stinger attacks at the same time, simultaneously smashing his axe into a third. The man with the staff threw what looked like small stones at the two newest creatures - but they must have been seeds, as thick roots grew sprang out of the dirt where they landed, and began wrapping themselves around the scale hides. One was caught but the other jumped back, hissing. Three more were charging down the path. They would have to go past Laurie to get to the group. Now, I have to do it now! He released his umbral step and threw himself out onto the path, pushing light mana through his body, focusing only on speed, imagining himself moving through the world faster than wind, faster than sight, faster than anyone or anything had ever moved. He felt the world start to rush around him as his movements quickened, empowered by his mana. He shot out of the grass, into the path of the oncoming creatures, and promptly tripped, crashing hard into the ground, knocking the wind out of himself and throwing up a great cloud of dust. He scrambled back to his feet with a groan, his voice coming in a wheeze. “I'm here to help!” The three scale hides running down the path skidded to a halt a step or two away from him, making agitated, confused sounds. Even they seemed surprised by Laurie’s chaotic appearance. Up close, Laurie could see that their heads were wider and flatter than the cats of his world, and their mouths were frothing with white foam that reminded him uncomfortably of rabies. Each foot ended in three thick, dark claws, like those of a bear, with a larger claw in the centre. He didn’t give the scale hides a chance to regroup; they had lined up perfectly. Take the shot! Laurie lurched two steps forward, putting himself parallel to the creatures, summoned his shadow blade, and shot. The closest scale hide turned to snap at him, but the shadow blade was quicker, passing through heads of all three of the scale hides, one after another, in less than a second. Each one spasmed, shivered, and fell to the floor dead. Two more came rushing at him from his right. He danced backwards, slashed at the head of the closest one with a second blade and fired a flare at the other. The first went limp and slid in the dirt but the second just hissed loudly and kept on coming. It was too fast to dodge, and rammed painfu