Hive Knight: A Dark Fantasy LitRPG (Trinity of the Hive Book 1) by Grayson Sinclair (black authors fiction txt) 📕

“No problem.”

While he stared at me with pure unadulterated hope in his eyes, I plunged my sword downward into his neck and twisted, killing him instantly. His lifeblood spilled to the earth as I pulled my sword free.

With those six dealt with and their blood sinking into the earth, I faced the four men who were the actual threats, except there were only three of them.

Shit! Where’s Slip?!

 The wind picked up, rustling leaves rolled by, and I knew what was coming. I turned and sliced my sword behind me, right where I expected Slip to Shadow-Walk, except my blade whistled through empty air.

No! Damn it! I wasn’t the target.

Eris was.

Slip appeared in a haze and wrapped his arm around Eris, fading back into shadows before I even had a chance to cry out. A few seconds later, he reappeared at the tree line with the others, passing Eris to Mikhail, who raised his sword to her throat.

Darren held a look of confidence. He wasn’t sure he could take me in a fight, so he took Eris to save his own skin as well as make a profit off her. Two birds, one stone. He grinned wide at me.

“Take one more step, and your little girlfriend’s head rolls to the floor!”

Fuck.

Chapter 18 - What Are You Willing To Lose?

Darren looked me down, bursting with confidence.

“Now, how’s this going to play out, hero? You going to set your weapon down like a good boy and walk away, or is Mikhail here going to paint the grass with her blood?”

Shit! What can I do? No way can I make it there without Dance of the Immortal, and if I fuck up my timing, I’m dead, and they’ll take her.

My hand gripped my sword tight enough to hurt, and I tensed, ready to make my move, but Darren was faster.

“Uh-uh, I don’t think so,” he said, motioning to Mikhail, who drew his blade tight across Eris’s throat. A thin line of blood snaked down her neck, causing her to squirm in pain while her entire body shook with mana depletion.

Even if I can get her away, she’s too weak to fight anymore. Darren smiled as he watched me trying to figure out a solution and come up wanting.

“Don’t even think about it. Now, you’re pretty strong. I mean, godsdamn. You two took out six of my men like it was nothing, but I wouldn’t do anything rash if I were you, you’ll just end up dead.”

Damn it! I seethed in rage, but I couldn’t attack without a plan, and a glance at my battle fatigue told me that I didn’t have it in me for another fight. It was high, nearing the top and slowly creeping down as we kept up our conversation. But it wouldn’t drop fast enough.

“Do you wish for power?” my Darkness asked.

Like hell, I’m going to answer you. Nothing good can come from a question like that.

”Do you not wish for your queen to be returned to you, sir knight?”

Obviously, but I’ll do it my damn self, with no help from the devil whispering in my ear.

“Very well, knight. It’s your life if she dies,” it said, chuckling as it faded away.

I had a plan, but it all rode on timing, and with Mikhail holding Eris, her safety came before anything else.

My battle fatigue was high, but I had a way to deal with it and activated Dance of the Immortal. All color bled from the world, sending my vision into a wash of every hue of gray. I sprinted the distance as fast as I could, reaching the four men in two seconds. Eight.

I pulled Eris free from Mikhail’s filthy hands and ran her away from the group. Six. When we were safe from them, I pulled a mana potion from my inventory and pressed it into Eris’s arms, and then rushed back to the group, hoping to do some damage before time ran down. Four.

My naked sword found purchase in Mikhail’s chest, skewering him through the heart before I removed it and severed his head. Two.

A flash of color told me my time was up. I took out one final potion from my inventory and filled my mouth with half the contents as I ran back to Eris. One. Time returned to normal. Mikhail’s body sprayed blood like a burst pipe, showering Slip and Darren in his gore. My battle fatigue soared as it nearly maxed itself, and a timer appeared in the corner of my interface. Counting down from seventy-two hours.

I stumbled as the effects of Dance hit my system and swallowed the potion in my mouth. The recovery potion kicked in almost immediately. Only drinking half of it was a blessing and a curse. It lessened the aftereffects, but it was also half as effective, knocking down my battle fatigue, but not removing all of it and only taking twenty-four hours from Dance’s cooldown.

It’ll do. Hopefully. Eris looked to me and back at the men with surprise. “How did I get here?”

“No time. Drink the mana potion and get ready.”

“Wha—oh.” Looking down and seeing the blue vial in her hands, she quickly uncapped it and downed it. As her mana climbed, she steeled herself for battle. A swift breeze rolled through the trees, chilling the sweat dripping down my face and bringing the stench of blood to us, I choked back the scent and readied for Darren and his thugs.

My Darkness whispered to me from my heart. “Not bad, knight. But you still have enemies. I could help you get rid of them in an instant.”

Fuck off.

I could handle them on my own. It was up to me to earn the title of Hive Knight