As predicted, the shellback surged upward from the lake water, crossing the grass as it opened its beak and roared at the bite-sized human who dared taunt it.   Allistor gunned the engine and shot forward, the front wheels rising up slightly as the ATV threatened to flip under him.  He leaned forward and eased off the throttle slightly, getting all four wheels back on the road as he watched the tank-sized spiked monster hurtle toward him.

It passed behind him, only missing its target by about ten feet.  The tail swished toward Allistor’s ATV, a last-ditch attempt to crush him.  It fell short, but one of the spikes slammed into the rear tire and knocked the small vehicle on its side.  Allistor rolled with it, back on his feet in a second. As the shellback slid down the grass into the center of the median, it began to turn.  On a whim, Allistor tried casting Restraint on it.  The thing paused for maybe half a second before resuming its turn.

The two Howitzers fired less than a second apart.  The first round impacted the side of the monsters shell, punching through and rocking the thing toward its other side.  The second round hit its underside on an angle.  It didn’t penetrate, but the explosion pushed the thing further onto its side.  Allistor tried Restraint again, but it had no effect that he could see.  The monster was just too many levels above him.   He Examined it quickly, to see how much damage the guns had done.

Ancient Shellback

Level 22

Health:  97,400/130,000

Allistor nearly leapt from his moving ATV in excitement.  Two hits from the big guns had done more than thirty thousand damage!  And one hadn’t been a direct penetration.    Turning his ATV toward the monster as it righted itself and began to turn again, he slowed.   A moment later, two more 105mm rounds pounded into the shell.  They hit simultaneously.  One round punched into its shell, shattering it and sending chunks flying.  The other streaked past its head to impact right at the spot where its neck emerged from the shell.  This one penetrated deep into soft flesh before exploding.  When it did, it was like setting off a firecracker inside a soda bottle.  The thing exploded, its neck torn to shreds and its head falling to the ground.

The cheers from the survivors fell off abruptly as their interfaces lit up with notifications.  Even spread among two dozen people, the experience from killing a level 22 monster was incredible!  The kids jumped from level zero or one to level four and five.  All of Luther’s adults picked up at least three levels.  Allistor himself hit level nine and got halfway to ten.  Fame points flooded across all of their screens.   The gunners all picked up new skills, and Allistor got something called a Title.

Congratulations!  You have earned the Title: Killer of Giants