TAKE ON ME [Survival LITRPG Apocalypse]

Kate stood over Tom, screaming his name.

The Troll lifted its club again. Tess and Amber hacked at its skin, drawing it away.

"I'll help him!" Finn yelled.

Hana made a half-hearted attempt to hold him back since the troll was still near, but he easily slipped away from her. He knelt beside Tom.

"Kate, help them! I've got him." Finn's hands were shaking, but his voice was firm.

Kate hesitated, and then Amber only narrowly dodged a swing from the Troll's club. She kissed Tom's bloodied forehead, hefted her bat, and charged at the Troll.

Hana's numbness receded.

Is Tom dead?

Hana threw her [Sickness] and [Radon Light] abilities at the Troll. Tess lunged forward again, her Sword raised. Amber leaped and rolled, her Dagger swiping back and forth..

The Troll showed no signs of slowing down. Hana's stomach spasmed as its club whistled past Tess's head.

"Oh, fuck it." Grimacing, Hana crouched and cast [Debone] on a slain Headless Pygmy nearby, uncertain of what would happen.

The flesh on the Pygmy's arm rotted away, leaving only bone behind. The stench of decay assaulted her senses, and Hana struggled not to gag. She leaned forward to pull the bone away from the rest of the body. She expected to hold herself up with her right arm; the arm she kept forgetting was missing. Hana tipped forward into the lifeless body, planting her face directly into it.

With a frustrated growl, she used her left hand to push herself back up. Her face was smeared with crimson Pygmy gore. She spat out an unknown chunk of meat that was sharply acidic, and retched.

When her eyes stopped watering, Hana retrieved the decayed arm. Yellow-green mana pulsed down her left arm, exiting out of her fingertips, and infusing into the rotting limb. Strands of mana formed magical tendons and ligaments, holding the bones together. A prompt displayed in her vision.

[Please select a spell you would like to merge with the Headless Pygmy bone's essence.]

What?

Hana tilted her head to the side and peeked around the displayed prompt, catching a glimpse of the colossal Troll swinging its club in a wild whirlwind. Amber leaped over the club, while Tess barely crouched below it.

Hana tried to dismiss the prompt in front of her, but it wouldn't go away. She refocused on the prompt, selecting the [Sickness] spell without understanding what she was committing to.

[Your Sickness spell has now been modified while using Headless bones.]

[Sickness I is now Malnutrition I.]

On-use ability.

Sickness gains: +XS.01

A sickly green mist materializes around the chosen victim, wrapping them in an unseen shroud of malevolence. The spell takes root deep within the target's body and drains their essence: triggering emaciation; fatigue; and the rapid development of genetic disorders.

Ability Power: XS.03 (Extra Small - Power Rank 02 of 100).

Mana Usage: M.1 (Medium - Mana Drain Rank 01 of 100).

10 Copper to upgrade; you cannot do that here.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The Troll took another swing at Tess.

A dark smile spread across Hana's face. She cast a spell she had not yet used.

[Bone Graft]

On-use ability.

When the Witch Hag invokes the Bone Graft spell, a sinister ritual unfolds. The bone merges with the caster, infusing her with a deep connection to the dark arts. This infusion enhances her control over the macabre energies she wields, allowing her to unleash more devastating spells upon her foes.

Ability Power: XS.01 (Extra Small - Power Rank 01 of 100).

Mana Usage: S.01 (Small - Mana Drain Rank 1 of 100).

10 Copper to upgrade; you cannot do that here.

All right, fucker. Try this one.

Kate was a tornado of screaming maternal fury. Her muscles bulged unnaturally, her veins standing out like cords, as she slammed her bat over and over into the Troll.

The Troll freely took all the damage; it was caught in Chloe's [Fear] spell. It gripped its head and howled in terror.

Hana unleashed [Malnutrition] onto the Troll.

It staggered and swayed unsteadily, a hand raised to its mouth.

Hana dropped to her knees, fighting through her own nausea as she chanted the on going spell.

"Fix the debuff, Dad!" Tess yelled. She turned back and sliced across the Troll's thigh.

Bo summoned his magical instrument once more. His eyes unfocused, and a moment later the chorus surged forth from his throat. An indicator appeared above his head: [Playing: You're the Best by Joe Esposito]. Bo's fingers danced across the glowing guitar strings. The air shimmered as the notes rippled across the battle field.

The song crashed into Hana, and the notes raced across her skin like tiny electric charges.

[Best Around: XS.04 increase to dodge and physical damage. Provider: Bo Robinson.]

"Tess, I think I can share my mana vision to your map!" Loo yelled over the Troll's snarls. "Can you see my [Mana Spring]?"

Tess paused for half a heartbeat. "Yes!"

"Good! Direct everyone into it!"

"Follow your arrows!" Tess yelled. She sliced her Sword across the Troll's other leg.

Struggling not to puke, Hana followed her arrow toward the mana stream.

When she reached her designated spot, she could feel the warmth of Loo's [Mana Spring]. She shook the bony arm and resumed her chanting, once again casting [Malnutrition] on the Troll.

The Troll's eyes dulled, and rolled back in its head. Its rotund body grew gaunt, and its dark-green skin faded. Its movements became sluggish. It gave a tired swipe at Tess.

Bo belted out the song's chorus, his fingers strumming his air guitar. He had fully committed to some type of hip-shimmy.

[Best Around: XS.05 increase to dodge and physical damage. Provider: Bo Robinson.]

Tess squared off against the Troll, her stature dwarfed by the creature's monstrous bulk.

"C'mon! Hit me!"

Hana tensed, and almost lost the [Malnutrition] spell.

The Troll roared, its anger tangible in the air. It took a mighty swing at Tess.

Tess stepped back; just enough to let the club whistle past, grazing the air where she stood moments before.

The monster reared, a growl rumbling deep within its chest. However, pain marred its brutish features. It dropped the club. One hand clutched its heart and the other hand clutched its head. The Troll swayed under a litany of ailments: [Malnutrition]; [Radon Light]; [Migraine]; [Intracranial Hypertension]; [Heart Palpitations]; all converging in a vicious onslaught.

"Now!" Tess hollered.

Tess and Amber leaped into action.

Tess's blade danced across the Troll's chest, carving deep, unforgiving slashes.

Amber's blurry energy roiled up her arm. Agile as ever, she darted low and struck true, her blade severing the tendons in the creature's legs.

A piercing scream erupted from the Troll as it collapsed onto its knees.

Tess was relentless. She screamed her warrior cry and delivered the coup de grâce. The Troll's head tumbled cleanly from its shoulders. Its body slumped forward in defeat.

The final note of Bo's song faded into silence.

Hana stood, but she was unsteady and weak. Her stomach roiled as she fought not to puke. This was the most spells she had consecutively cast, thanks to Loo's [Mana Spring]. She had used her full mana bar twice over, and her mind and body were paying for it. Her vision was blurred and her senses were chaotic.

Finn hovered over Tom, his face a picture of concentration, and his hands resting on Tom's neck and face. Tom's face, still a mess of blood and cuts, slowly pulled together under the vibrant green glow.

The rest of them made their way over to Tom and Finn.

Tom coughed out a wad of blood, then let out a grateful grunt once his smashed lips knit back together. "I'm good," Tom grunted through teeth which were re-aligning in front of Hana's eyes. "I'm sure it looks worse than it is."

I can't believe he's still alive.

"Thank you, Finn." Tom's voice was raspy.

Kate and the Damascus kids slumped beside him, in varying states of anguish and relief. Kate added her [Regeneration Aura] to the healing effort.

Through the clearing haze, Hana's gaze locked onto the Level 3 Boar Rider in the distance, its silhouette charging back and forth across the hilltop. Someone was holding it at bay; a woman whose shrill curses laced the air.

Tess fidgeted with her Sword. "We need to help them!"

Tom slowly lifted himself into a sitting position. He moved his each leg experimentally, and relief washed over his face when they both seemed to obey him, Tom tapped Finn's leg—asking him to make room—and Tom heaved himself up, bracing against the ground with one gauntlet-clad hand.

"I'm ready," Tom said. He straightened his back, trying to hide his obvious pain.

A glowing green arrow appeared on the ground. Hana and the others followed Tess's orders.

Tess marked the first target with a red skull; a Pygmy headed toward Helen and the kids.

Tom surged forward, bypassing Helen in a rush. He tanked it, and between the whole group the monster barely lasted seconds. It lay in the snow, twitching and staining the ice red.

"Easy peasy!" Amber cheered.

"As the nine of us continue to level and receive abilities, we get exponentially stronger," Loo rambled. "If we each get two spells per level, and there are nine of us, then the—"

The Pygmy let out a final gasp before going limp.

Time seemed to stretch; the tumultuous sounds of battle dimmed, as if Hana was submerged underwater. A bright light enveloped her, so intense that she recoiled and shielded her eyes. The blinding luminescence consumed her mind.

Then, silence.

Hana blinked against the after-images dancing in her vision. She looked around slowly, as did the rest of her orca pod.

We're back in the Soul Chamber