Hero Academy Fan Fiction by Reegan Cantrelle

While his wounds were being healed, Gerald assessed the field. Too much was happening at once to take it all in. Arrows were raining down on enemies attempting to cross onto his side of the field. A wizard was inflicting massive casualties, until a spear ripped through his chest and pulled him out of sight. Things were starting to look bleak for the Council. A fireball was summoned, and as it rained down from the heavens you could hear the screams of the poor souls that were about to be seared alive. As the smoke and debris cleared there was only one enemy left, a high value target; a wraith. Gerald put on his helm, picked up his shield, and prepared for the battle ahead. Hoping to use the element of surprise, he rushed the Wraith.

Still dazed from the explosion caused by the fireball, he had time to run across the field and get one strike in before the wraith turned his attention to him. Gerald remembered his training well; pivot, thrust, block. Slash, sidestep, counterattack. Avoiding a potentially fatal attack, Gerald rolled behind the enemy crystal, using it as cover. Darting around the other side, he raised his sword above his head, swung, and cleaved his enemy in half. The wraith fell into a pile of bones at his feet, and Gerald knew his foe was defeated.

Just as he turned to walk away, a green fog descended upon the battlefield, and Gerald felt his strength waning. There was no visibility in any direction, so he raised his shield and waited. After a moment the fog lifted, and Gerald saw the formally deceased wraith devouring the nameless cleric. Apparently feeling his gaze, it turned and flew towards him with frightening speed. He wasn’t ready. It knocked him to the ground, his helmet falling off in the process. He somehow managed to keep a grip on his sword and shield, so he stumbled to his feet and attempted to defend himself. The wraith was different now, stronger. Its attacks were merciless and came with blinding speed. Even Gerald’s heavy armor couldn’t keep up with an assault as ferocious as this. Without a cleric, his wounds began to catch up with him, while the wraith seemed invigorated by the battle; each blow it landed on Gerald caused its own wounds to seal up. He had no time to marvel at this fact, he decided he was down to his last resort; reading the Scroll of Power. Each team got two before a match, and reading it magnifies the user’s abilities considerably for a short amount of time. It just so happened that Gerald had one in his possession, so he took cover behind his crystal, raised his shield, and quickly read the incantation on the scroll.

The moment the last syllable left his lips, he felt newfound power coursing through his veins. He charged out from behind the crystal and struck the wraith with all of his strength into a single blow, but it wasn’t enough. The wraith faltered a moment, then launched a brutal counterattack that left Gerald on the ground, blood gushing from hundreds of cuts across his body through tattered armor. The last thing he saw before he fell into unconsciousness was the wraith performing some strange victory dance, taunting him in his defeat…