Atlas Rising a LitRPG gaming adventure by Blake Severson (top 10 books of all time .txt) 📗

into the second attack as the staff pivoted and clipped the fighter in his temple. The last strike was interesting as it required him to spin the staff one full rotation before coming back down onto the man’s shoulder. It made little sense at first until the attack landed.

The added speed from the rotation caused the staff to hit with significant force and the warrior crumpled to the ground, clutching his arm.

You dealt 3 HP damage to Hercules with Double Slash. (Interrupted)

You countered Skullcrusher for 3 HP damage.

You dealt 16 HP damage to Skullcrusher with Blade Chase. (Critical)

“How dare you,” hissed the assassin as pain erupted in Atlas’ back. He spun to see the fighter back on his feet with his daggers in hand.

Hercules dealt 8 HP damage to you with Shiv.

“I don’t know how you managed that long combo on Skull, but I won’t sit around while you cheat the system. Looks like I have to take you out quick.”

“That’s rich. A worthless player killer blaming me for being a cheater. Maybe if you learned the game instead of trying to screw people over, you wouldn’t be in this predicament.”

Atlas made a move before Hercules could. He dashed forward with his Double Slash. The first attack landed a solid hit to his side, but the assassin deflected the second attack.

You dealt 3 HP damage to Hercules with Double Slash. (Interrupted)

With a grin, he charged back at Atlas. The evil gleam in the man’s eye took him off guard and caused him to step backward. His mind caught up with him and watched the image moving to counter the blow, but he couldn’t match the speed with his delay. The first dagger plunged into his stomach, causing him to buckle forward and grasp his belly in pain. Hercules never slowed and spun to lodge the other blade into his kidney while pulling his first blade free.

Hercules dealt 14 HP damage to you with Spinning Blade.

Hercules inflicted Bleeding Rent on you. Deals 1 HP damage every 3 seconds.

Atlas swung his staff around and Hercules jumped backward to avoid the hit. A warm feeling trickled down his back and Atlas reached back to touch the spot. His hand came forward with a bright splotch of red blood. Damn. Damage over time effect can be nasty. On the bright side, that means healing them closed should stop the bleed.

He needed to cast a healing spell, but he didn’t want Hercules to attack while he attempted it. Instead, he chose Entangle to lock the fighter in place. Entangle was also faster to cast than the healing spell.

Activating the ability, he concentrated on the power as it rose in him. He followed the quick, swirling motions and finished the spell by pointing both hands at his target. Vines burst from the ground and caught Hercules as he dashed toward Atlas. They twisted around his legs and rose all the way to his waist. Thorny protrusions stabbed into the assassin’s legs and he grimaced. With a small sigh of relief, Atlas turned to his Nurture spell.

The power flooded into him, and he concentrated on the motions. The spell completed with no problems and the magic soaked into him.

Bleeding Rent dealt 3 HP damage.

You healed yourself for 15 HP.

You healed Bleeding Rent.

Great. Now to finish this assassin. He took a step forward to attack the trapped fighter when the hair on the back of his neck stood on end and a chill permeated his being. The warrior!

The thought hit him too late as a blade smashed into his shoulder. The sword dug in deep and pain like molten fire burned through his arm. The sword ripped free, and another strike followed in a sweeping side slash, digging into his side. Ribs cracked and crunched as the blade punched through and the force caused him to trip backward. He twisted with the fall and jabbed the end of his staff into the ground to halt his motion. Sliding his feet back under him, he steadied himself and looked toward the fighter.

Skullcrusher dealt 18 HP damage to you with Furious Rush. (Critical)

The warrior looked enraged and a red coloring flushed his face. Atlas swore he saw a literal red tinge around the man’s irises. A chopping sound caused him to look toward Hercules and he watched the man methodically cutting the vines away from himself. I have to keep them separated to have a chance at this. A glance at his status didn’t comfort him.

HP: 44/80

Mana: 60/80

If I can Entangle the warrior, I should be able to get another heal spell in before the assassin gets free.

He activated the ability, but the warrior didn’t wait. Skullcrusher dashed at him again, and Atlas continued his spell. The furious look on the fighter’s face worried him, and he almost made the mistake of trying to move faster than the spell required. The short sword arced for his side again, but his spell wasn’t complete. Knowing this was going to be unpleasant, Atlas closed his eyes.

The blade sunk into his side with a meaty thump, and his teeth ground in pain. Luckily, his focus paid off as the spell completed a moment later. Opening his eyes, he saw the vines fly from the soil and wrap around Skullcrusher’s legs. This also allowed him to see the image he needed to counter the second swing. With a force of will, he lifted his staff and deflected the second attack.

Rage fueling his reaction, he activated Counter again. Instead of following the image he saw pop up, Atlas changed it up. He dropped to his favorite hold and gripped two hands along the bottom of the staff. The rage-filled baseball swing that followed would’ve made a MLB player proud as the end of his staff smashed into the man’s jaw and caused him to crumble over backward, legs still trapped by vines.

You discovered Heavy Counter!

You dealt 9 HP damage to Skullcrusher with Heavy Counter.

The anger of the situation fueled him further, and he activated