Avalon Rebirth by Mitchell T. Jacobs Read Free Book Online Page A

again,” she said. “I think we got too focused on winning and ignored everything else. That might be why Jon and Leo left.”
    “Did they say anything like that to you?”
    Leah shook her head. “No. They never said anything about being unhappy. But they could always put their emotions aside to focus. Maybe they just got sick of it and decided enough was enough. Or maybe I'm just making things up. The point is, do we want to risk it again?”
    “So you want to take it slow to avoid that kind of risk, is that what you're saying?”
    “I'm not saying that we have to slow down. I'm just saying that it might be a good idea. Unless you want to go through all of this again.”
    “OK, point taken. But don't you think you're being paranoid about it?”
    Leah shrugged. Maybe she was. At this point, though, she only wanted to make sure that something like the last disaster didn't happen again. It wasn't unusual for a team to break up, even a high-ranking one, but not in such a spectacular fashion. Usually they just faded away. If they had to go through another change, she wanted it to happen that way.
    They didn't have any time to think about it any further. Leah spied Erika waving to them as she approached. Another player walked across the plaza toward them as well. She didn't recognize him, but Darin stepped forward to meet him.
    “Sorry I'm late,” Erika said.
    “No, it's fine. We weren't doing anything important anyhow. This is just to get everyone up to speed and see how we work together as a team.” She turned to the other newcomer. “You're Taji.”
    “Yes. Good to meet you,” he said with a warm smile.
    “I'm Leah. Looking forward to teaming with you. This is Erika, by the way. My other partner in crime, Darin. And Taji, as he already introduced himself.”
    The other three greeted one-another, and Leah felt herself relax a little. At least it seemed like it was going smoothly, though it was way too soon for her to tell whether they'd make a good team or not. That would require some fieldwork.
    “So we're going to head to the Crystal Pillar today for some action,” Darin explained. “For now we're just going to work together and get in some fights. Hopefully we'll have to deal with a few elites. That should test our skills.”
    “Or a boss,” Leah said cheerfully. “That will test them even further.”
    “Yes. Though two of you managed to take one down by yourselves. Showoffs.”
    Taji looked over at them. “Wait, you took out a boss-class monster by yourselves?”
    “It was two of us,” Leah explained. “And it took a bunch of improvisation and tricks. It wasn't just us walking up and hitting it a bunch of times till it died.”
    “It kind of was,” Erika spoke up.
    “Well yeah, everything is, but there was a bunch of stuff in between.”
    Taji shook his head. “Kind of puts us to shame, huh?”
    “You held your own just fine,” Darin told him. “No shame in that. And that's what we're going out for. To see if we can get everyone to fit together as a team. Does everyone have their builds set?”
    Taji and Erika both nodded. Leah made a mental note of their party's composition. They had Taji equipped as a tank, Darin as an all-rounder with support magic, Erika as a quick-strike damage dealer, and herself as their ranged support. At first glance it seemed fairly standard, but it was in the implementation where the differences would become. Leah was eager to see just how they all fit together.

    * * *
    T he crystal giant let out a low, guttural roar and swung its club downward, slamming into Taji's shield and forcing him to stumble back a few paces. He kept his shield up and his balance steady, though. Leah took a quick look at the health bar floating above his head. Using a combination of his shield, Stone Skin, and positioning he had managed to avoid most of the damage. More importantly, the giant had expended its attack.
    Right on cue Erika flashed into sight, making several swipes at the giant