Simulation 3ND 9 Reverse

The flashing lightning erupted the earth as Alexandros and Jason posed their battle positions. The golden armor of Alexandros materialized in golden flair. His sword was gripped with tighter force in a position that looked like playing baseball. Jason on the other hand was placed in a defensive position, with his round shield covering his front while peeking his eyes strategically, while his right hand holds his sparkling spear. I suspect that Jason will duel defensively as he sees Alexandros as an aggressive fighter.

"Alister," Alexandros said without turning his eyes away from Jason. "Remember what I told you, back at my castle?" Yes. During the training days with him, he told me advices about how to defeat a Master more efficiently. All Masters are like a piece of a chess. For example, a Master is the representation of the King, while the player represents the Queen. Although I'm weak in nature, we are bound with mana which fuels the Master with tremendous power. If that chain breaks down, the Master will be weakened from the mana pool and thus reduces their defenses in half. This is why he challenged the Master head on, while I remained outside the battle in search for the enemy player. It is a divide and conquer strategy, but it's the only play we have now. I theorizes that Jason ordered his player from the battle because perhaps the player wasn't experienced enough or perhaps…

He raised his shining sword and smirked at Jason. "Time to die, Jason!"

Jason. After he told his name and speaking about Iolcos, this reminds me of a Greek hero I read in cla.s.s. Jason who went with a group of heroes named the Argonauts, sets their eyes in search for the Golden Fleece so he can claim his throne which is rightfully his. He is a determined hero, which is dangerous considering he is a master tactician. However, I feel that something is off here.

Alexandros clashed his sword with Jason's shield which surprisingly held on. Each swipe he made, it was tremendous, like a hammer knocking down on a wall. It was indeed strong, but Jason didn't falter. His eyes sparked as Alexandros swiped his sword more aggressively to him. I scanned the area and the cathedral was empty other than the duelists. I used my Scan ability again and again, but nothing was out of the ordinary. Perhaps the player wasn't here at all. But, I kept my eyes open.

Jason saw a weak spot in the seconds of Alexandros' attacked and used his spear to stab his golden armor which sparked electricity. Alexandros reacted to him but didn't suffer much. His golden armor had a high endurance and magic defenses. But in reality, Jason was testing him. He posed his defensive stance and waited Alexandros' next move.

Alexandros changed his tactics and went attacking from the left and roll. Jason grunted as Alexandros swiftly rolled as he attacked from the right which slashed a bit of his left arm. Jason went for the offensive as he jabbed his spear horizontally. Fearing that he will be backed into a wall, Jason proceeds to attack numerous times which boosted his spear's electrical power. Alexandros tried to defend himself with his sword, but Jason was too quick, which many of the electrical currents sparked him and bites his HP a little.

Jason focused now on defense, with his round shield covering him. I saw Alexandros' glare at him which right now he must be p.i.s.sed. Although Alexandros is a 'Tank' based player ( which could take a lot of damage because of his high endurance), it was clear that he needed to change his strategy.

"You are good, Jason. A worthy opponent." He said as he brushed his hair gracefully. "However, you will die knowing that I am superior than you."

"Such an arrogant man you are. How does it feel that you gained so much and you feel hollow inside knowing that your conquests will soon vanish into thin air when you die?" Jason said with a justified tone that echoed the halls.

Alexandros didn't flinch. "You know nothing about me, Jason."

Jason'e eyes shined brightly as the lightning erupted from the skies. "A true monarch knows the will of his people. You, on the other hand, relies on brute strength alone. This is why you will fail."

"I am Alexandros, conqueror of Persia! How dare you insult me! I haven't lost a single battle and this will never be my first!" Alexandros sword shined with golden light as he roared with fury. He launches a full scale attack on Jason, while he braces himself from the attack In my point of view, Alexandros has boosted his strength power, something that I haven't seen before.

BANG! The light shattered on Jason's shield as he flew away like a baseball toward the concrete wall of the cathedral. The intense power shattered the windows, bringing the windy rain inside. My eyes were wide opened, impressed by Alexandros' power.

There, on the fallen concrete, lay the hero Jason, covered with dust as the sparking spear lay bare on the ground and his shield cracked.

"You did it!" I said happily. "I…I never thought you will pull it off."

"Of course I do." He said while panting. "I never lose a battle." His face was tainted with sweat. His HP was moderately high which the battle went well. However, I felt something strange. Something was definitely wrong.

In just a few seconds, my eyes blinked as Jason's apparent dead body rose up from the concrete and his sparking spear came alive. It was quick that even I couldn't react to the situation. Alexandros' face changed as the spear stabbed his back and pulsating energy blew me away. His HP was lowering dangerously fast.

"There's one thing that you must know." Jason said with a whispering tone. "Never turn your back on your enemy. That is a Master's greatest weak point."

I took out my sword and tried to react to the situation, but suddenly, something grabbed me from behind and stabbed me on the back. As I slowly walked and fell to the ground, the invisibility of the a.s.sailant appeared before my eyes. The pain inside of me was terrifying. I saw my Status and saw my HP going green, which means I'm poisoned. Slowly, I was dying.

"You are clearly fools. Never thought this will have worked out." It was a dark haired woman, with murderous eyes and smooth lips. Her carved smile frightened me. She flipped her dagger into her pocket. "I'm glad you are my first victim of this fancy war."

My eyes were trembling as I looked at her carved smile. I saw her Status and the details of her.

Player Name: Nightshade

Age 19

Cla.s.s: Rogue

Level 35

"Let me tell you a little secret." She said with a shivering whisper. "My Master has a special equipment that allows him to regenerate fatal injuries." And then it hit me. I knew something was wrong. Jason was testing him, waiting for him to strike him out with his strongest attack. Jason wanted to get hurt, that way he can catch Alexandros off guard and myself. This woman named Nightshade, she was watching me, waiting for the moment to strike. She played her card well, and now. After blinking my eyes, I come to realize that the Golden Fleece was attached to him, like a cape or coat covering on his back. When he rose from the concrete rubble, the Golden Fleece shined brightly. Healing powers. A very powerful equipment.

"My Master will recover each time a fatal blow strikes him. And it's all thanks to his fancy Fleece. Such joy. Such terror." She laughed like a maniac, licking her lips hungrily. "How I enjoy the suffering. I'm glad that I came to this strange world, just to murder people for pleasure."

"d.a.m.n…you…" I said weakly. My HP was low. The agonizing pain was like a thousand needles drilling each of my organs. I saw Alexandros falling to the ground, with Jason's spear stuck on his back. I can't die here. I can't. I have a purpose to complete. d.a.m.n myself from not knowing this. d.a.m.n myself from being weak. I wish I can be strong. Stronger that I can survive. But now…

"Goodnight, sweetheart." Nightshade said as she kissed my cheek. I closed my eyes as my HP went to 0.

Silence. During the few seconds in the dark, words burst right between my eyes saying: 'SIMULATION END.' What does that mean? And, where am I? But, after staying in the dark, watching these words, a light shined through on the horizon that broke the words in half and zapped my paralyzed body into the void, until I opened my eyes. I was back again, at the Cathedral watching Jason and Alexandros fighting. Somehow, I felt that I knew everything. That moment when Nightshade stabbed me, the feeling of poison, Alexandros dying… This was different. It was like I was seeing the future, the events unfolding as I stood there watching. Back at school, I witnessed my death. I knew I died and yet I came back. The Cla.s.s type 'Resetter' has an ability that allows the user to reset the moment the person dies. That is what I learned during the training days. If I die in real life, my body and mind will reverse back to the moment before my death. However, the event that happened now wasn't because I died. It was because I saw something in my mind the recollections of the events that will happen in mere minutes. I saw my Status menu and saw a pa.s.sive ability called Foresight. It is an unpredictable ability but very powerful. It consumes half of my mana but if I focus on my mind, I can at least see the things that will happen in minutes. My theory on this matter is that each time I die, my abilities grow in strength. That is why I wanted to test this power here. And now, I know everything.

Alexandros brought down Jason to the ground and flew into the walls. I quickly realized the danger now.

"Alexandros! The Golden Fleece is a healing equipment. Finish him off!" Alexandros turned his back, knowing of this knowledge and Jason was caught unguarded, throwing away his ruse and flipped himself into battle. Just at the moment, I heard the gasp of surprise of Nightshade as I point my sword to her in the shadows. She then materializes into full being, the point of the sword clutching into her throat.

"I must say," she said with an murderous look. "I will look forward into killing you."

She sneaked by and grabbed her knife to strike, but I quickly dodged. I swung my sword toward her, and she sneered as I cut her left arm slightly. I felt powerful and in a good position. While I a.n.a.lyzed her movements, I was preparing to throw her a 'Slow' spell to gain advantage. But she was quick. While waving my bronze sword, copying Alexandros' movements back at training, I quickly got the hang of it. Until, she kicked me in the chest at the gates which pushed me back outside at the cold wet floor.

She told high above, watching me with murderous look, shining bright red with fury. She slowly lifts her poisoned knife and she yelled. "Die!!!" A ball of fire knocked her out to the ground. When I saw the tiny figure running toward me, I was surprised to see her.

"How did you managed to get out?" I exclaimed Hestia while panting.

"Didn't I tell you? I study at the School of Draconian Sorceries, dummy." She said while she helped me.

"But you said you were studying the Fire branch." I said until she shook her head. "Does it really matter now? I came to help."

Nightshade began to rise up from the cold floor, wet and fueled with rage. She gritted her teeth while holding her knife tightly. "You wretched little parasite! How dare you interrupted me from slaying my prey! Now, I have to gut you and strangle you using your intestines."

Hestia and I braced ourselves from the swift attacks of the unpredictable Nightshade, until the Cathedral blew with shining light. Nightshade stopped at her tracks, her face melted with worry. She stared at me with hate and wanted to kill me really bad, but she retreated back inside. Hestia and I followed along.

The Cathedral acc.u.mulated strong winds as I covered my face from the blasting light coming out of Alexandros bright body. I saw Jason holding his cracked shield and sparking spear as he gritted his teeth, bracing himself from Alexandros' powerful attack. Alexandros himself was also injured, with few pieces of his armor broken into the floor. I saw Nightshade running toward Alexandros with her knife ready to plunge until…

"FINAL JUDGMENT!!!" Alexandros boomed as he smite his sword into Jason, creating a havoc on our surroundings. Hestia and I covered ourselves on the pillars of the church, but it wasn't enough. It was like a pumped up hurricane, blowing away everything in it's path. The chaotic wave was so strong that the Cathedral's floor erupted, breaking down into oblivion as we fell into the darkness.