"My children! I have returned!"
A distorted voice echoed through the room. The Dark Mother slowly raised her upper body. Dark magic engulfed her, leaving only her arms bare, revealing the grey, patched skin covering surprisingly delicate arms.
The Dark Mother scrutinized her own body with her thin, black eyes belonging to a sharp face. Her pointed ears were obvious for everyone to see as there was no hair on her head.
"Hmpf. This body is barely good enough. You could have done better."
"Yes, yes, mother. This child is ashamed."
"Did you at least bring my staff?"
"Of course, mother!"
A simple staff made from black bones appeared in Kiyarohl's hands. The Dark Mother revealed a faint smile. She reached out with her hand and the staff swiftly flew towards her, trembling like a lost puppy returning to its family.
Watching all of this happening Zeuerch was frozen in shock. Finally, he managed to snap out of it and turned towards the players.
"Adventurer! Hurry! We need to stop them while the Dark Mother is still weak! I will deal with the dark elves while you send the Dark Mother back to slumber. Are you up to it?"
"Sure. Let's go."
After that, the Arachne didn't hesitate any longer. Zeuerch leaped through the air. He turned his behind towards the dark elves and large amounts of sticky, white web shot towards his enemies.
"Hahaha, little spider! You are too late!"
Kiyarohl laughed arrogantly. He and the other dark elves revealed their weapons, fighting back against the spider web. The web was ripped apart and immediately rebuilt by Zeuerch. For a while there would be no winner on that side.
The Dark Mother watched for a moment as a frown formed on her face. This was not how she had imagined her return. Her tribe appeared to be in a dire situation. It was once again her who had to save them. She slowly stood up revealing her slender, tall figure, struggling a little to find her balance. Meanwhile Liam and his friends rushed towards the Dark Mother, blocking her path.
"Adventurers, hm? Back in my days you only dared to scurry around the cracks, collecting leftovers from the battlefield. Who would have thought that the likes of you would dare to stand in front of me one day. Seems it is on me to teach you your place!"
"Hmpf. Try it, you patchwork monster!", rebuked Cyclone mockingly.
"Ignorant. A body is but a hull! And after killing you and absorbing your essence, this body will grow stronger and stronger!"
"You… want to what!?"
Fortune shivered as her imagination ran wild.
"Guys, I really don't want to become part of that thing. Can we please kill her? Fast!"
"Yeah. Let's do this!"
The friends didn't talk much longer. Silver Blade rushed towards the Dark Mother, slamming her shield into the enemy's waist. The tall dark elf let out a chuckle. The black magic surrounding her began to surge, looking like constantly transforming clothes.
"This won't take long!", shouted the Dark Mother as she swung her staff and shot a ray of magic at Silver Blade. The tank hastily brought her shield in the way. Her body shivered as the magic passed through her.
[Stance -24]
Despite Silver Blade's block, the magic continued behind her. Liam had already warned his friends beforehand. Still, their expressions were quite solemn as they watched this peculiar normal attack. Of course this didn't intimidate them. The friends swiftly revealed their own might. Cyclone was the first to attack while checking the boss's status.
[The Dark Mother, resurrected
Rank: Boss
Level: 54
HP: 75.000/75.000]
Cyclone waved her wand, throwing out her own normal attack. While the transparent magic sphere was still in the air, she directly switched to casting a skill. Suddenly sparks played around her wand as a mysterious force affected her spell. Cyclone's face lit up with joy as her skill was completed in an instant and she casted [Bindings of Lightning] at the enemy.
[-322!]
[-429!]
"Nice opening, Cyclone!"
Fortune noticed what was happening. She praised her friends while firing her own attacks. After a normal attack the cast for [Arcane Bolts] was immediately started. It was a pity that she didn't have Cyclone's instant cast.
[-244!]
Meanwhile Silent Acacia could only watch on enviously. He had to gather some Fury first before he was able to use his skills. At least he had his new bow which made his damage quite satisfactory. Or so he thought…
[-132!]
As the damage number popped up, Silent Acacia couldn't help but complain:
"Why do all bosses have such a high physical resistance and such low magical resistance?"
"Right?! Finally, someone says it!", agreed Quickstep immediately.
[Bloody Edge: Exactly!]
"Are you guys delusional? All bosses have way too much magic resistance!", rebuked Cyclone strongly. Balm and Fortune both nodded. Of course they agreed with the blond mage.
"I think you…"
Just as Silent Acacia wanted to answer, an annoyed shout interrupted him.
"Guys! Focus! You can joke around after the boss is dead!"
"Sorry, Mirage."
"Won't happen again…"
Everyone put on indifferent expressions, hiding their amusement behind masks. But at least they indeed focused more on the boss. Silent Acacia waved his hand and Zorn was summoned. The white alligator roared happily before shooting a sphere of water at the enemy.
[-208!]
The Dark Mother didn't appear to be strongly affected by the attacks. She sneered and shot another ray of magic at Silver Blade. Instantly a chill ran down Silent Acacia's back. He noticed that Zorn was positioned right in the trajectory of the attack. Hastily, he ordered the pet to dodge. But the alligator was more agile than she looked like. With a skilled sidestep she escaped the attack which pierced into the ground right next to her.
"You won't be able to defend forever!"
As the Dark Mother was mocking the players, the melees surrounded her. Watchful Eye swung his staff. His eyes narrowed as he noticed how the boss wanted to move her leg away. He flicked his wrist, delivering the blow with the other end of his staff, slamming it right into the Dark Mother's calf.
[-277!]
Next, the monk instantly followed up with his newest skill. [Power of the elements] was activated. Watchful Eye slapped his palm forward. A small seal shining in the colours of the five elements slammed into the Dark Mother's chest, reducing all her elemental resistance by 15%. This was the perfect preparation for Watchful Eye's other skills. He flourished his staff and a deceptively small drop of dense water gathered at its tip. Watchful Eye's Qi streamed into the drop of water. Its size didn't increase but the energy boiling within the drop of water grew by the second.
Watchful Eye endured for two seconds before swinging his staff at the Dark Mother, striking her with the energy-rich water.
Boom!
A small explosion went off as all the energy erupted at once. The dark magic billowed chaotically, and a shockwave tore on everyone's legs.
[-287!]
[-350!]
Meanwhile Quickstep was also throwing out her own attacks. Her swords flowed smoothly, following the Dark Mother's movement. She actually welcomed the fact that the bosses tried to dodge attacks from time to time. It was a first step towards closing the gap between NPC and player enemies, allowing Quickstep to better practice for PvP. However, bosses like the Dark Mother still couldn't compete with Quickstep's skills. Each of her strikes was precise like a surgeon's knife, not giving the boss any chance to dodge.
Quickstep cut the enemy again and finally gathered a comfortable amount of storm. [Whirlwind Slash] was activated. A sharp wind engulfed Quickstep's precious blades, and she struck towards the Dark Mother. The wind left her sword, creating a swirling whirlwind. Flashes of sharp, white light appeared in the whirlwind, constantly cutting into the dark magic surrounding the Dark Mother.
[-93!]
[-46!]
[-14!]
[-14!]
Quickstep wasn't satisfied with only one skill dealing continuous damage to the boss. With a thought she activated her newest skill [Storm's Aid]. A strong wind picked up in the room, whistling as it surrounded the battlefield. Suddenly sharp wind blades raced through the air. Each time the boss received damage from Quickstep, she would be struck by an additional blade of ferocious wind. Simultaneously Quickstep's light armor kept flickering. Windborn stacks gathered on the female warrior, making her body light and nimble. Her movement speed increased, and she ran circles around the boss.
Of course, Bloody Edge couldn't miss out on the fun. The assassin's invisible body sneaked up on the Dark Mother's back. Suddenly he lunged forward like a predator ambushing its prey. Daggers shining in holy light pierced deeply into the Dark Mother's back. A faint domain of holy light surrounded the thief, increasing holy damage and crit chance. His own daggers bit like a viper before instantly switching to [Cut Throat], dealing massive damage, even landing a critical hit. Activating all these demanding skills Bloody Edge's energy was rapidly used up. He delivered a quick [Flurry] before retreating into the shadows.
[-70!]
[-35!]
[-70!]
[-251!]
[-197!!!]
[-89!]
[-89!]