Chapter 6: Chapter 6: Spark of a Warrior

So, I started walking.

And kept walking.

And after that was done, I walked some more. I never really thought about it since movies and games tend to gloss over this, but fantasy worlds must have a lot of walking. Felt like I had been shuffling my feet for hours before anything of note happened. For the longest time, I saw nothing but trees and grass. There was the occasional chirping from birds, but other than that? Nothing.

Being a stranger in a new world didn't help with my nerves, either. I was constantly looking behind me, just waiting for something or someone to attack me. Even though the thought of being able to use [Volt Channel] on an enemy did sound enticing, I think I would have preferred to at least be near other people in case something went wrong. Nothing would be worse than getting killed on my first day as a Champion in Sianka.

I contemplated asking Govessa for directions. I lifted up the stone around my neck and stared at it. I came close to tapping it, letting my finger hover over the blue rock but I couldn't go through with actually making the call. For one, it's a total scrub move. Asking for help when I'm not even a full day in makes it seem like she made a bad choice. And two, at my level, [Mana] is precious. I can't just go around making long distance calls whenever something doesn't go exactly as how I planned.

Frustrated, I let the necklace rest around neck like it's supposed to. I took in a deep breath, enjoyed the fresh air and continued my trek. At least it seemed like I was getting closer. The small silhouettes of huts in the horizon slowly got bigger. Still couldn't make out the finer details, but I was finally feeling like I was making progress.

That was until the sound of rummaging made me freeze up. Something was moving near me. I could hear the way branches snapped and leaves crunched. I tuned my ear to the sound; it came from my right. I then took cover by pressing my body against a large oak tree. I poked my head round the trunk and looked towards the source of the sound.

Trees obscured my view, making it impossible to get the full picture of what was going on. But I could make out shadows moving among the forest floor. My head told me that it was just some animal moving around, but my gut said there was more to the story. Part of me wanted to just turn and book it for the village, but my curiosity got the better of me and I began to investigate.

I darted from cover to cover, making sure to minimize the time my body would be exposed to whatever was making the noise. As I narrowed the distance, the sounds became more distinct. I could hear... sizzling? And water? An odd combination. I definitely don't remember seeing any flames or smoke during my walk through the forest. Maybe someone was trying to stop a fire from spreading.

I made some more calculated advancements through the trees. As I hid again, I could hear someone grunt. Sounded feminine. Like a younger woman. I poked my head from my cover and saw the back of the person. My assumption was right. Even though her back was turned, I could still make out some of her features. She had dark brown hair in a short and somewhat untidy bob. Looked like she had on a loose cloth top, a bit like a gi with a black band strapped around her waist. Her legs were bare from the bottom of her thighs and down, showing off her milky skin below the tight black shorts.

But what really caught my attention were the other... things... that were on the other side, staring her down. They were shaped like people, but they definitely weren't people. Each one was dark black and scrawny, kind of like a charred skeleton. A glowing purple aura surrounded them that flickered like flames. That must have been what was making the sizzling sound. I counted a total of three of them, and they all surrounded the woman. The... things... took a hunched stance as they narrowed in the distance between them and their target.

I darted from my cover. Looking back, you think I would have learned my lesson about rescuing people from aggressive assailants, but that thought didn't even go through my mind. Nothing makes me madder than seeing innocent people getting attacked, especially when they're outnumbered. As I ran through the trees, my eyes were locked on the woman. She didn't turn around despite all the noise I must have made by stomping over leaves, grasses and the occasional branch.

The purple flaming creatures didn't pay me any mind, either. Seemed like we were all focused on the woman as she took a step back. She lifted both of her hands in the air, and as she did, her limbs became engulfed in water.

That explained the splashing sound from earlier.

She flung both hands down, hurling the blob of liquid about twice the size of her head towards the nearest monster. The attack hit it in the stomach, knocking it on its back and sending water across the ground. I slowed my running, rethinking whether or not to help her out. Seemed like she had it under control to me, but my heart said that it couldn't hurt to be sure.

Besides, I really wanted to try out my new abilities.

I took a fighting stance. Clenched both fists. Spread my legs. Locked eyes with one of the monsters. It looked back at me through a pair of bright yellow eyes. It let out a loud hiss, alerting its other friend to face me as well.

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The woman turned around too, relaxing from her combative posture to stare at me with confused eyes. Honestly, I felt more pressure from her gaze than the two... whatever they're called... staring at me with murderous intent. But I only glanced at her. If I stared back, she might have realized that I was a rookie in this world. I wanted to take these things on with confidence. Govessa wouldn't drop me into a Realm with high level monsters. That'd be a total waste of a Champion.

That's what I kept telling myself.

I took my mind off a potential difference in strength between me and the monsters and instead focused on getting [Volt Channel] to come out. There was no joystick, so doing a quarter-circle motion was out of the question. And Govessa didn't mention anything about having to say the names of my moves for them to activate. As tempting as it was to shout [Volt Channel] at the top of my lungs like a guy in a fighting game, I don't think that would have made a good first impression.

So instead, I just focused on performing the move naturally. I closed my eyes and thought about the description of the attack. A grounded projectile. Okay. So, it travels along the ground. I just need to figure out how I could convert my [Mana] into electricity and send it across the dirt. Might have been a good idea to ask for a bit of clarification before stepping through the portal.

I guess those monsters must have picked up on my inexperience, because they were both closing in fast at the same time. I took a few steps back to get some more space, but I maintained my traditional hapkido stance. The first was now in a full sprint, both arms raised above its head and showing off two sets of claw-like hands. The monsters were now close enough that I could see the contours of its face contorted in a fearsome snarl.

That's when I stopped thinking. Out of instinct I punched the ground with all my might. I could feel electricity coursing out of my veins, exiting my knuckles and then forming sparks in the ground. The sparks merged into a giant mass of pure, burning yellow voltage and shot forward like a wave. Bolts arced from plant to plant before the projectile connected with the monster's feet.

It began to shake. Violently. Its upper body convulsed while the lower half was secured to the ground from what I presumed to be a magnetic current. Yeah, I didn't do so hot in Physics either, but that's the best way I can explain what happened. Either that or magic. Regardless, I must have gotten lucky with my first cast of [Volt Channel] because that creature looked pretty paralyzed to me.

I wasted no time. There were only a few yards distance between us. I closed it with a quick dash and once close enough, I instinctively performed a flying roundhouse. It's an unorthodox technique to use, especially for someone that has practiced hapkido, but it looked stylish. The bottom of my foot hit the beast dead center in its chest. I landed on my feet after the kick. I looked down and saw the monster motionless, sprawled out on its back with its purple aura flickering like a dying flame.

The mysterious monster fascinated me. I took a brief moment to lean forward to make sure it was dead, but that gave the other one ample opportunity to jump on my back. I staggered forward, trying to keep my balance as that thing tried to bury its claws into my shoulders. I grunted trying to fling the thing off. It was surprisingly light for its size, but despite that it could still pack a lot of power with how it wailed against my back. The entire time it was screeching in my ear with the conviction of a wounded animal.

It was pissed.

I reached one arm back, trying to grab any part of this beast until a blast of cool water doused the both of us. Me and the monster both fell to the ground, separated. I got up first and saw the monster on all four, shaking like wet cat. Then it dawned on me.

Water.

Electricity.

I punched the ground again, casting [Volt Channel] immediately. The sparks arced from the point of impact and straight towards the creature. There was a lot of crackling as lighting coursed all through the monster's body. It let out one last howl before going silent. Once I lifted my hand, the electricity stopped coming from the ground and it toppled over, sparks still popping from its body intermittently.

A nasty smell permeated the air. I sniffed twice before turning my head away from the body. Smelled like burnt meat. With my nostrils angled away from whatever that thing was I just killed, I managed to look at it from the corner of my eye. A small bit of smoke rose from its still-twitching corpse.

My back ached a bit, but other than that I think I did pretty well for my first fight.

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