Civilization

Peeking above the stairs, and looking around the floor, David quickly assesses the situation before ducking down. He speaks in a low tone, keeping his voice as calm as possible but there were hints of nervousness. Since we were so close to the exit now, we were able to hear the constant yelling of orders mixed with the screeches of the monster above us.

"There is a fight going on right now, on the other side of the exit and along the stairs. A large group of humans and demi-humans are currently fighting against the monster which we first fought on this floor. However, there is a slight difference between the two monsters. This one seems to have an extra set of wings, tails, and an extra head… It hasn't been that long since Gibing came here with Gopopo to scout out the place and the monster has already changed. This is going to be a lot tougher than anticipated." - David

"They haven't noticed us? Even though we were like elephants walking up the stairs?" - Kingston

"None of them were turned toward us. They were focused more on the flying monster. I would be too if you saw how big that monster was." - David

"How many enemies were there? Not including the singular monster." - Ian

"It was a large party similar to our size with a variety of troops. From what I could see, there were people wielding shields of all shapes and sizes, people holding long knives, spearmen, archers, and a small group of people holding onto a stick of wood or a book.

I don't think I can give you an exact number but that was what I could see, most of the archers and the people with the staff and books were alongside the stairs. They had a couple of shield-wielding demi-humans in front of them with the rest on the ground. Although I was able to spot Travys in the front of the formation standing next to another human, that wasn't Song and Tsugi." - David

"Another human? Wouldn't there be a lot of humans there?" - Gibing

"Was the air around this person different?" - Howard

"Yes. I only took a glance at him before coming back down but the hair on my body stood up and my breath felt like it was taken away from me." - David

"David, describe him for us. As much detail you can remember." - Stellar

"I don't remember much. The human's presence was as great as Calliope's, I wouldn't dare keep looking…" - David

"Only one way to find out then right? Let's move up to the next floor. Immediately get into position alright!" - Ian

Letting out a sigh, David goes back up, this time with everyone else following him. In my mind, there was only one person I can think of that could potentially be a threat to us… Devel. The top dog of Bones, the highest commander, leader of their main village, and one of the top 10 players from the beginning. I guess it was finally time for some of the top 10 to fight.

I know nothing about his abilities but from our interaction with Travys, Devel would know some of my skills. The Code of Hammurabi is no longer a special trick that I can use,  after all, I used it already to defeat the other monster. If I want to use it, I would need to be extremely sneaky, bringing it out and using it as quickly as possible. Kingston moves back against the crowd until he was next to me.

"We are about to fight Devel right?" - Kingston

"Most likely. There is no one else who I can think of that might be standing next to Travys with such a large presence. The only other exception would be an extremely strong NPC but what are the chances of that happening?" - Ian

"You're right. So, what's the plan? We didn't account for a strong player. We knew there was most likely going to be Travys and his party but to think even the top player of Bones will be here. Things might get a little bit dicey…" - Kingston

"The plan won't change, for the most part, there isn't much that can be changed. However, out of everyone here, either you or me has to deal with Devel. Save Belial for the Heart unless things get too dangerous and try your best with dealing with him. If needed we can switch, or even tag team Devel but then it leaves Travys.

While Travys wasn't that strong when we last fought him, his skills make him hard to deal with. We were only able to defeat him quickly before becasue he used up his skills defending against the monster." - Ian

"Then let's do it like this. I'll handle Travys and take care of the front with David and Howard. The rest will be like how we planned it before, with Stellar and Gewari taking care of the backline before they do any real damage to us and the Zivotinjas casting their shields on our front line while attacking anyone that comes near." - Kingston

"Yep, let's keep it the same. I'll do my best to handle Devel. I still have the Hoplites, the spider, the new bracelet, and this new spear as well." - Ian

"Alright, then. Be careful okay, Ian" - Kingston

"You too. Don't die on me, just go Berserk. I'm sure that will be better." - Ian

"If only… If only…" - Kingston

Leaving me, Kingston slips through the demi-humans, climbing up. I follow not too far behind, mentally preparing myself for the fight that is to come. With just a few more steps, I finally get to the floor. Kingston and the rest of the front line we already in position, and after a glance see that Stellar and Gewari had already disappeared. Looking past them, I could see the situation with the monster with my Eye of the Roc and I could feel my mouth drying up.

Standing in front of everyone, facing the Twin-Head Guiafairo, is a singular man with his hand gripping a black handle behind his shoulder. An outrageously large jet-black rectangular sword with multiple blue cracks along the body could be seen below the handle. The air around it seems to bend and curve as the blue cracks start to glow brighter and brighter as I see the man grip the sword tighter.

Wearing simple leather armor and leggings, with the only unique-looking equipment being these navy gloves with multiple lightning bolts on the back of the palm, the man starts to bend his knees, leaning forward slightly. His black hair seems to float up slightly as the Twin-Head Guiafairo screeches toward him.

Both sets of wings start to flap picking p the dirt and dust along the ground, picking up speed quickly but the man only bends lower. His sword sparks blue lightning around him, zapping the flying dirt and the ground. The sword glows brighter and brighter, to the point that it seems like it was the cracks that were holding the black sword together.

Travys commands his troops to fall back, pointing with his bronze ax for them to move toward the stairs. Doing so, he was also able to notice our presence as we stood at the staircase going down, prepared for battle. Some words were spoken between Travys and the man and I could see Travys smile before running to the stairs as well.

Meanwhile, the Twin-Head Guiafairo sends two dust tornados at the man, before flying up into the air and sending two balls of compressed air aimed at the man as well. Lightning sparks off him intensify as his sword lights up the whole room, drowning us in bright blue light. As the two balls of air draw near, he finally breaks his stance, swinging the sword over his shoulder, producing a wave of lightning slashing the balls and creating two large explosions.

Wind blasts at us from the impact zone, but it didn't stop there. The moment his sword swing comes down, he grips the sword with his other hand and leaps off the ground. Lightning flies off him, like a cape as he reaches the monster's left head at terrifying speeds. Bringing the sword above his head, he slashes downward sending a lightning strike to the ground, spitting the head in two.

Screaming in pain the Twin-Head Guiafairo struggles in the air, desperately swinging its whole body around in an attempt to fend off the man. However, the man bounces off the air as if there was a platform below his feet, dodging any counterattacks. Bouncing off the air a few more times he positions himself above the other head.

Replacing the sword behind his shoulder, he grips the handle with both his hands. A grin could be seen on his face, as the sword bursts, revealing an erratic lightning bolt with small chains of lightning connecting the broken pieces. His whole body erupts in blue lightning, wrapping around like armor, as he pushes off the air spinning downward and slicing through the monster's head and body, landing on the ground with a loud thug.

Sparks could be seen in the dirt cloud as the tornados lose their power, releasing a huge amount of collected dirt and dust. Stepping out of the dirt cloud and approaching us, with his sword, back in its previous form, resting on his shoulder, was the man.

"So, you are the ones who killed my people the other day… Fair enough, they were weak but not anymore. Number 1 on the leaderboard, Ian. Step up. Let's have a chat, I'm assuming you know who I am and if you don't let me tell you. Name's Devel. Nice to meet you, RavenStar." - Devel