Hearing the gunshot from inside the Bastion's walls, Astaroth knew something was up. He looked at the guild roster to see who had been wiped, and what he saw made him freeze.
Khalor's name was greyed out, with the little skull next to it, signifying he was dead. And since Khalor was the one that had been limiting the player flow into the gate, this was terrible news.
Astaroth was just about to switch melds from White to Luna, and he made a snap decision. Since no one was guarding the entrance anymore, he couldn't stay inside anymore.
He had to move outside the walls.
As he melded with Luna, he activated another skill as well. Royal Protection.
His back flared up in pain, not dissimilar to the one he felt when he was being marked, and he felt like he was going to incinerate. Unbeknownst to him, his body was flaring up in energy shockwaves, pushing the nearby players away.
The melding process, which was usually slightly painful, now seemed like tickling in comparison. He felt his body changing, like the first time he had melded with Morpheus, his bone structure changing.
Although he was used to melding with Morpheus now, this pain wasn't remotely at the same level. It was like someone was torching him with a flamethrower to expose his skeleton and remodel it.
After about thirty seconds of excruciating pain, a soothing wave washed over him. Like someone applied balm on the burning.
Astaroth felt something different from usual. Melding with Luna usually calmed him, like sleeping under a moonlit sky.
But not this time. Quite the opposite.
He glanced at his status screen and gawked.
Status:
Name: Astaroth (Fused to Solara)
Race: Ash Elf
Grade: Special (Legendary 9:58)
Luna's name had changed. And he was sure it didn't stop there.
Scrolling down rapidly, he saw the 'acquired skill' list, for the skills he gained when melding had changed too.
Skill Gained: Hyper Stimulus (Passive), Aura Of Superiority (Passive), Sun Flare (Active), Lightstep, Cleansing Flame
Four out of the five skills she usually gained were different!
He skimmed through the descriptions, wanting to know what they did.
Hyper Stimulus (Passive): Your mind is in a state of hypervigilance. Your thoughts are much quicker than usual, and you perceive time at an accelerated pace. All mental ailments will burn up as they activate.
Sun Flare (Active): The power of the sun flares from your body in a circle around you, burning anything in its path. 1000% Magic Damage. Mana cost: 5000 MP.
Cleansing Flame (Active): You dispense a wave of flames that burns away any physical ailment they touch, and heal wounds otherwise mortal. Mana cost: 5'000 MP. Cleanses all physical ailments. Heals to full any ally touched by it. Onetime use per meld.
Lightstep (Active): You can take one step in any direction, and travel at the speed of light to reach your intended destination, at a maximum of one light second away. Onetime Use per meld.
His jaw slacked. These were all game-breaking abilities!
Even if he couldn't use all of them as much as he wanted, they would still be called cheating later, and he knew it. But he didn't care.
For now, all that mattered was winning this siege.
But Astaroth was curious about one last thing. He wanted to know what his body looked like.
He could see and feel that he was taller, and also bulkier. But he wondered what else had changed.
The players surrounding him were still looking at him in awe, with a smidge of fear. Astaroth thought the Aura Of Superiority might be affecting them, so he used it to his advantage.
He spotted a player with a bright steel shield that was over-polished to his tastes. But he could use it as a makeshift mirror.
He took a few heavy steps in the player's direction, who shrunk as the massive man walked toward him. Reaching him, Astaroth grabbed the shield by its edge.
When he tried pulling it, the man instinctively resisted, to which Astaroth clicked his tongue. But when he yanked harder, the result was more than expected.
Astaroth was now holding the gleaming shield, with on its backside, an arm dangling, blood dripping to the ground. The man, to whom this arm belonged, started howling in pain, as someone had ripped his extremity off.
Astaroth looked at him with a tinge of regret.
"Oops. Sorry, man. You should have let it go sooner."
The surrounding players watched in horror as the player bled out before bursting into pixels.
Meanwhile, Astaroth was watching his reflection on the shield. He quite liked this new look.
His face looked fiercer, with some fuzzy fur covering it. He could see prominent canines peeking from his mouth corners, that looked capable of tearing through flesh with ease.
His head was still with the crown-like antlers, like when he melded with Luna normally. But one detail was different.
Over his head floated a small ball of orange flames, slowly rotating on its axis. It was like a mini sun.
He was also now much taller, reaching almost eight feet high, and his body looked like that of a bodybuilder. He chuckled.
'I'm a beefy boy now.'
But he didn't have time to admire himself anymore. The surrounding players were already snapping out of their daze.
Astaroth smirked, dashing back to the center of the stone bowl, before unleashing his new spell, Sun Flare.
He felt the energy surge from above his head as a massive circle of fire flared from his spot, reaching the walls of the stone enclosure. Everyone that was touched disintegrated on sight.
*-32,550*
The damage was staggering. And this was strictly with mana.
He had pumped no Aether into his attack.
Astaroth was more than impressed as the people all around him vanished. He now had a clear view of the tunnel leading to him.
He grinned as he dashed in its direction.
'Time to go have some real fun!'
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