"Damn! What was that!" Exile groaned as he scrambled to his feet and looked around in a daze.
The blast from Parthus' spell had disorientated the members of Ragnarok. As they tried to regain their footing, cursing escaped from them as they tried to make sense of what had hit them. Exile's eyes turned towards the ships as they narrowed. 'That spell... It was more than just wind.' As he thought about it, he wondered if Parthus was a wind god. But it was too soon to reach that conclusion just yet.
"Exile... Some of the weaker members have taken quite a lot of damage from that attack." Clay whispered as he approached.
Exile frowned as he checked his own stats. But he had not taken any damage at all. 'So, it targets weaker players while only applying a knock back and disorientating effect to those of a higher level.' His eyes turned back to the ships as he summoned another lightning bolt, thoroughly wrecking an already damaged ship.
That was the signal for their attack to resume as Ragnarok continued their offensive. Exile turned towards Clay after watching the scene for a while with a grim expression.
"Have anyone whose health drops to twenty-five percent retreat once they've used all of their DP. They'll just die for no reason once this turns into a melee. In fact, tell everyone to immediately cancel their Avatar once their health reaches that stage when these guys make landfall. Let us not give them the satisfaction of claiming even a single orb." Exile seemed to ponder something for a bit. "Oh, and tell them to prioritise grabbing any orbs that drop. We won't give them anything but they have to pay a price for coming here."
Clay nodded to the order before rushing off to relay the message. Most of the lower levelled seemed relieved about it. It was clear that Exile was not just going to treat them as expendable and make them throw away their lives. Their morale grew alongside their respect for their Pantheon ruler.
Exile's mind raced as he watched the continuation of the ranged battle with keen interest. Parthus did not release a second blow, but more golden discs appeared to protect the ships. Each one lasted roughly thirty seconds, so Exile began barking out orders.
One person would bait Parthus to use that spell, then count down the seconds until it was due to disappear before the others concentrated their spells on the now defenceless ship. This tactic proved effective, and eventually, Parthus stopped trying to counter it. It was just a waste of DP after all.
'Hmm... since he's stopped, maybe it's time I hit him with something big.' Exile grinned as he glanced at the clouds and activated Lesser Miracle. Immediately choosing to spend the maximum of 15 DP on the strongest one he could conjure.
Because of the ongoing storm of spells being fired and countered, Parthus and his army failed to notice the dangerous flashes of subdued light in the clouds overhead. A great rumble of thunder suddenly roared over the ships, but before anyone could glance up, ten thick bolts dropped on different ships at the same time!
The size and severity of the attack was something that they had not been expecting, and so they were caught unprepared. As the lightning struck, it split the masts in two before driving straight through the deck and hull and causing the ships to break in half.
Cheers erupted from the shore at that sight. With Exile's display, it brought the total wrecked ships up to twenty-one. Which was almost half of what the enemy had started with. But that would be the last big move from either side as the storm of spells started to calm down as the players ran out of DP one by one.
The atmosphere on the shore grew tense as Ragnarok split up into teams for the melee that was soon to begin. The first ship reached just off of the shoreline as the warriors on board dropped down into the shallow waters and waded their way to dry ground. These warriors ran straight through Ragnarok to eagerly search the homes behind them.
Meanwhile, Exile and his comrades glared at the three players still standing on the ship. It was clear that they felt uneasy about being the first to arrive. They would certainly be slaughtered by how outnumbered they were. One of them nervously glanced over his shoulder to check how far behind the next ship was.
"Watch out!" The players standing next to him yelled at the same time.
But it was too late. Exile had used that opportunity to boost his speed and launch the first strike! The player grunted as Exile's axe carved into his shoulder, as the rim of Exile's shield struck his companion, knocking him to the ground. Before the third could react, Clay and several others landed on the deck and charged at him while roaring madly.
The players on the other ships watched this scene unfold with grim expressions. They had quickly overwhelmed three of them, which made the rest of the ships slow down to arrive at the same time. Exile nodded happily at that sight. It bought more time for the villagers since they were unwilling to rush in any more.
His eyes sought out the ship he was certain that Parthus was on, but he noticed that it had fallen back to the rear. 'He won't face me in close combat unless I'm weakened...' Exile let out a long sigh. His opponent was wise and seemed to be aware of his limits. Facing someone that could keep a cool head and analyse the situation was a difficult thing to do. Most petty tricks and taunts would not work on them.
"Everyone! Back to the shore! Check your health and arrange your teams accordingly! And remember! Cancel your Avatar as soon as your HP gets too low! I won't stand for any deaths today! Do you hear me!" Exile roared above the din of the storm raging around them...