Zavier stood at the front door, a long length of rope in his hand. He'd tied it around one axle of the SUV and made a noose of the other end. The noose was about three feet in diameter and tied with light twine to a PVC frame that was balanced in the yard next to the garage. If something too big came his way he'd try to jump through the loop and hope that whatever was chasing him got caught in the noose. He'd spray painted an arc in the grass that was a safe zone just outside the limit of the rope when pulled taut.
Preparations complete, he stepped out into the grass and looked around. He switched on his forehead work light and gripped the Toxic Weaver Dagger in his right hand, machete in his left. He gave Tess a nod through the small window in the front door then stalked to the back of the house. He was hunched down and walking quietly when it occurred to him that he was supposed to be trying to attract their attention.
He stood up straight, rolled his shoulders, then whistled as loudly as he could. For a second there was a hush as everything went silent, then bursts of rustling coming from multiple directions could be heard.
"Oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck!" Zavier muttered to himself as he swiveled his head back and forth. Three Arcane Scamperers burst out of the treeline in unison, their black fur barely visible in the dark. The backyard flood lights were the only reason they were even visible against the darkness of the woods behind them. They all paused for an instant to zero in on Zavier, and he was starting to regret getting what he wanted. He was about to be pushed to his limit.
A split second of assessment made him realize that if he stood his ground they'd all be on him at the same time, and there was no way he could fend all three off at once. He broke into a sprint towards the leftmost one, figuring that if he could take it out in the time the others took to reach him he'd be on more even ground.
The Scamperer obliged and rushed him as well. Zavier had come to know their attack patterns intimately by now and turned a quick pivot just as it lunged at him, jaws open. Teeth snapped together like dominoes on a tile table and Zavier spun, Toxic Weaver Dagger in a reverse grip. He buried it in the thing's neck as it flew past him and he let go of the handle. He'd discovered that the longer it stayed in, the more poison it pumped into its victim. Where he'd positioned it in the back of the neck was just out of reach of their arms.
He continued his spin until he was facing the other two, machete held in a double grip. He hadn't had time to pull out another weapon before they were on him. With the freneticism born of panic he parried their claws, ducking his head out of the way of their snapping jaws. He saw an opening between them and jumped through it. Satisfaction bloomed in him when he heard their heads thumping hard against each other as they both lunged for him. He pivoted quickly and slashed the machete upwards in a two-handed golf swing, shearing the face right off of one of the bastards. The other fell back and screeched in shock and Zavier rushed in, not wanting to lose the advantage of the moment. He thrust the machete straight into its soft stomach and ripped it to the side with all his strength, viscera pouring out in a splash. He stepped back and wiped sweat off his forehead as the notification came in.
Three Arcane Scamperers, level 2 defeated
Zavier chuckled to himself as he retrieved the Toxic Weaver Dagger. "Heh. I tauntauned it."
Before he could finish the thought the air was knocked out of his lungs and he felt himself flying through the air. It took his brain a moment to register that he was even moving - as far as his eyes were concerned the world had shifted spectacularly fast. Then he was rolling and his senses came back to him. He slid to a stop and heard a deep snuffling just as jagged teeth ripped into his arm. He was whipped back and forth savagely before being hurled into the side of the house. Fortune favored him enough to have him land on his feet but he immediately slumped to his knees. He thanked his lucky stars as the thing flew over him and slammed face-first into the wall where his head had been a moment before.
Get your shit together! Zavier thought to himself and rolled forward to give himself some distance. His left bicep and tricep screamed in pain when the roll reached that arm, but he used it to clear his head. He had dropped the machete in his roll and hadn't had time to retrieve the Toxic Weaver Dagger. He fumbled at his belt and pulled out a small hatchet. It looked insignificant when compared to the massive wolf creature that was now glaring at him. What a stupid fucking weapon, Zavier thought as he brought it up in front of him. He had just a moment to cast Identify before it leapt again.
Moonshadow Howler, level 2
Description: The Moonshadow Howler resembles a black wolf, but its fur glows with a faint silvery luminescence, blending seamlessly with the moonlit forest.
Well that told him fuck all. Zavier sidestepped to the left and swung the hatchet at the wolf's face, but it was too quick. All he managed to do was score a light line down its jaw before it leapt and spun out of the way. Zavier's brain threw out the fact that wolves could run almost 40 miles per hour. Great, brain, thanks.
Then his eyes snapped onto a cloak just behind the wolf and he cast a quick Identify.
Item Name: Shadow Weave Cloak
Description: This luxurious dark black cloak fades into the shadows behind it and your eyes focus elsewhere. The Shadow Weave Cloak was made from the fur of an Arcane Scamperer, a creature known for its ability to blend into shadows, cast arcane lightning, and create illusory copies of itself. This cloak is too low leveled to provide all the abilities an Arcane Scamperer has but it does provide minor boosts to defense and escape.
Stats:
Defense: +1
Abilities:
Special Ability - Arcane Defense: When the wearer is attacked the cloak releases a burst of black arcane lightning, shocking enemies that the wearer is in contact with. When all charges have been expended, the cloak must sit undisturbed outside overnight to recharge. Defense is triggered automatically upon the user taking damage from a physical attack.
Special Ability - Illusory Escape: Once per day, the wearer can cast an illusion to create a single copy of themselves, confusing enemies and allowing for a quick escape. Copy will stand immobile if the user was not moving. If the user was in motion the copy will move forward at that pace, a static image that dissipates when it hits anything. The user will turn mostly invisible until the illusory copy is destroyed. Note that invisibility does not prevent physical harm and does not protect against creatures with greater senses or higher levels than the cloak.
Zavier didn't have time to read the whole thing, he saw the Illusory Escape and dismissed the screen. He threw the hatchet at the wolf, causing it to shy backwards in a crouch, then pulled out the two items Tess had made the most fun of him for: a bottle of police-grade pepper spray and his crème brûlée torch.
Zavier sprayed the wolf right in its ugly face. Well, who was he kidding? That thing was beautiful in a terrifying 'I'm going to eat you alive' way. He sprayed it with 2,000,000 Scoville Units worth of pepper spray right in its eyes and the thing went fucking wild. It pawed at its face in desperation, growls mixing with whimpers as it spread the oil deeper into its fur. Zavier rushed forward and snapped the torch on, strafing it as he ran past. He'd just hoped to burn an eyeball out but the oil from the spray caught fire and its entire face went up in flames. It rolled backwards in pain and began slamming its face into the grass. Zavier rushed to the cloak and threw it on before running to the second two. He decided to put them on for good measure. If one escape skill was good then three had to be better, right?
He ran back towards the wolf in hopes that the fire had killed it but stopped when he saw it frozen, face pressed into the ground. It slowly lifted its head and Zavier could see hatred and malice in eyes surrounded by burnt flesh and fur. Its chest swelled like bellows and it raised its head to the sky, a piercing cry bursting from it like a stab of dual-toned pain and fear.
Zavier froze as every instinct fled him. The only thing left in his mind was the cold fear of a rabbit under the paw of this apex predator. His muscles began trembling as the howling died out with a hollow tone. He was powerless to move as it fixed its eyes on him and started to stalk forward. There was no rush in its movements - it knew it had him. He could swear he saw satisfaction in its gaze and would have testified under oath that its mouth pulled back into a savage grin.
When it came into range it lunged at him, its massive jaws clamping down on his forearm. Without warning the cloak crackled with arcane energy and lightning leapt into the wolf's face. He saw an eyeball that was already half-burned pop and the wolf screamed in fury again. Instantly Zavier felt the spell of the wolf's howl break and he activated Illusory Escape, flying backwards, invisible as his image stood immobile. While the wolf was distracted Zavier fled to the side of the house closest to him which was, unfortunately, the furthest away from the garage door.
Why did I need a ranch style home? he thought as he sprinted into the darkness, turning the corner around the front. He realized that he could see his body again and knew that the wolf must have broken the illusion. He made a quick turn and ran a few steps towards the street before activating the second cloak's Illusory Escape. His image flew forwards just as the wolf turned the corner, hot on its trail. He fled again and a moment later realized he could see his body again.
"Fuck!" he yelled and looked over his shoulder to see the wolf turn with lightning speed to run for him. He just made it to the driveway when he felt it clamp onto his shoulder. He cried out in pain and the arcane lightning crackled again, the wolf howling in pain once more. Zavier regained his feet and ran around the vehicle, jumping through the loop of rope. He moved just past the white paint on the grass when the wolf surged through. Its shoulders caught the rope and within a couple steps the noose had pulled taught around its neck. So great was its fury that it didn't seem to notice as it lunged at him, snapping those massive jaws. Zavier had to jump back as the damned thing pulled the SUV a few feet his direction.
Zavier knew he didn't have a lot of time left and nor any more weapons he could use. His left arm and right shoulder were a mess, so the heavy maul and wolverine brass knuckles were useless. Without any more time to strategize he sprayed it with pepper spray again. The wolf thrashed and pushed harder, pulling the SUV into the grass and digging deep furrows with its claws. Zavier kept spraying and brought the torch to the stream. Zavier now held a flamethrower that was spraying dripping fire onto the ground and all over the wolf's face.
With horror he saw that the ropes were starting to burn and before he could react they snapped. Zavier was dead. Is this the kind of story where the main characters die? he thought to himself. Deep down he knew it was. Well, if he was going to die he was taking that fucking thing with him.
He thrust his hand into the open maw that came for him and continued to hold the trigger for the pepper spray. Teeth rent the skin on his forearms down to the bone but he held. He screamed in pain and the wolf choked but neither was willing to back down. He brought the torch up and burned out its other eye which only made the wolf shake its head and rip more of his flesh off. With a final burst of agonizing freneticism it hurled Zavier away.
He lay a dozen feet away, too tired to move. This was it. The next thing he'd feel would be its jaws over his throat. The wolf snuffled the grass blindly as it tried to pick up Zavier by scent. It was to no avail, though, as the pepper spray had burned away any semblance of scent or taste from it. Its ears twitched and Zavier held his breath. Silent. Silent. Silent, he thought over and over. His lungs were burning from exertion and the pepper spray and he felt a cough bellowing up inside his lungs. His whole body clenched as he tried to keep it in, every second agony. Suddenly the coughing fit erupted from him against his will and he was spasming with pain. Tears welled and through the blur he could see the wolf taking slow, painful steps towards him. He heard the front door slam open and saw a shape that must have been Tess sprinting around the corner.
Then the blackness came.
Zavier woke with a start. He lashed out and heard yelps of surprise and shuffling feet. When he opened his eyes he realized he was laying on the floor of his living room surrounded by his family.
"Am I dead?" he croaked.
Nervous laughs around the room, then Tess was on her knees next to him, cupping his face in her hands. She was kissing his face over and over and he felt hot tears falling onto his.
"Almost," she said at last. "I'll show you the video later, but that thing had you torn open pretty badly. I thought we'd lost you, but then you must have leveled up because your body shimmered and you were healed. Your clothes are a mess though."
"My pants are a mess," he joked and felt a lighthearted slap on his shoulder. He winced but then realized he wasn't in any pain, just bone tired. He took a moment to check the core stats portion of his screen.
"Moonshadow Howler, level 2 defeated"
"Your fighting style continues to evolve as you take on more variety of weapons. You have shown an ability and willingness to use anything as a weapon and have used the terrain to your advantage. Your creative use of system-supplied items shows an adaptability that will carry you far if nurtured. To make this more effective you need to be able to find items and terrain that suit you, therefore your luck should be increased to improve the odds of those things occurring. Three points to distribute. Luck increased to 11. Level four obtained. No other changes."