Solomon's Crucible 66. The Mandatory Lesson (Patreon)

AN: I originally considered starting with this arc. In the end, I decided to ease you in with a more ordinary litrpg opening arc before things got wild.

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Solomon’s right shoulder had been pinned to the wall. He scrabbled at the arrow with his hook, but he couldn’t get a hold on it. Just bumping it sent a burning jolt of pain racing down his arm.

He hissed and shook his head. At the end of the hallway, his attacker stepped into view. A man, dressed like an ancient warrior in an armored top and skirt, with a bow slung over his shoulder. No, not a man. As he drew closer Solomon could make out his amber eyes and brow ridges that matched Kanmi.

He had never seen Kanmi with such a cold expression on his face, though. While his business partner could sometimes be a little too enthusiastic at the prospect of a fight, he'd never been cruel.

Solomon abandoned his attempt to pull out the arrow and instead pushed forward with his body, attempting to slide himself off the back of the arrow. There was a good foot to cover and each inch was gained with grinding agony, but he didn't have any choice.

As he thrashed back and forth and forward, Solomon saw Kanmi position himself where he could ambush anyone who stepped into the dorm room. Despite the pain, the corners of his mouth pulled back in a satisfied grin. At least somebody had his back.

Four humans were walking in loose formation behind the alien. They were dressed in dark jeans and dark t-shirts, red armbands proudly on display. The extra muscle didn't bode well for Solomon and his one loaded pistol. He'd think of something.

He wasn't going to be able to do anything while he was stuck to the wall. Solomon gritted his teeth and pushed forward. His vision dimmed as he dragged himself further up the arrow shaft. He had to be almost free.

He stilled when he felt a hand on his chest. Opening his eyes, Solomon saw that the alien had reached him. A casual push sent him slamming back into the wall. Solomon's vision blanked out for a moment.

When he came back to his senses, it was just in time to watch the alien step into the room. Kanmi attacked from his blind spot, sword whipping forward with vicious speed. The alien reached up and snatched the sword out of the air, then gave it a yank. As Kanmi stumbled forward the alien pulled a short rod off of his belt.

The alien jabbed the rod into Kanmi's stomach. Bolts of electricity crackled and snapped as they raced up and down the length of Kanmi's armor. Kanmi slumped to the ground, unconscious.

The human backup had arrayed themselves around Solomon. He didn't bother trying to get free, instead watching to see what was going to happen to his friend. After a moment of contemplation, the alien lifted Kanmi up and slung him over his shoulder. He turned to face the humans.

"I'll take this one," he said. "Get what you can out of the other."

The humans brought their right fist up to the left side of their chests. "Yes sir."

With that, the alien turned and walked off back down the hallway. Solomon watched him go until the largest of the human guards grabbed his attention. Technically, he grabbed the arrow that had pinned him to the wall, but it certainly got his attention.

The bruiser gave an almighty yank that pulled the arrow out of the wall and dragged the arrowhead all the way back through Solomon's body. He yelled out in pain and fell into a crouch. The guard tossed the arrow to the side and reached down to grab Solomon by the arm.

Solomon unfolded himself to reveal that he had drawn his pistol. The system hadn't had a chance to heal his arm and he could barely control what he was doing. From this distance, though, it didn't matter. He put a bullet straight through the face of the big guy.

The sound was deafening in the closed space. The back of the guard's head blew off with a fountain of gore as Solomon dropped his pistol and drew his hatchet. A pulse of system healing finally passed over him as he stepped forward. His arm wasn't quite completely healed, but he had most of his range of motion back.

There were two guards in front of him, both bringing swords to bear. Solomon focused on the one on his right and stook a step forward. Then he felt a sharp pain across his hamstring and pitched forward onto the ground.

Right. There had been four guards to begin with.

Solomon felt a foot planted into his back to hold him in place. Before the system healing could kick in and fix his legs or he could think of anything clever, his arms were wrenched back. He was hauled up to a standing position, one guard on each arm. The third guard was standing in front of him.

Just as soon as Solomon looked him in the eye, the guard hauled back and slugged him in the gut. Solomon hunched over, coughing, while the guard frisked him for weapons. He tossed everything he found down the hallway, then punched Solomon again.

"Make sure to stay in combat so he can't access his inventory," the guard instructed his captors, before crouching over the body of the guard Solomon had shot. Off in the distance the alien continued to walk away, apparently uncaring of what was going on behind him.

The two guards holding Solomon's arms kicked at him. They couldn't get a great deal of force behind it, but it still hurt. Solomon could do nothing but grunt and bear it, waiting for a chance.

"What a damn mess," the guard said, shaking his head. He reached out his hand and a very familiar wave of energy swept out, reducing the dead body to nothingness. Not quite nothing. The guard picked up something that looked very much like a beast core from the floor and stuck it in his pocket before he stood up and slapped Solomon across the face.

"Take him inside," the guard instructed the others. "No need to do this in the hallway."

As they hauled him inside, Solomon focused on his mental interface with the system. Picking up the third level in Marksmanship hadn't given him enough to buy out the whole Powder Adept grid. But it was enough to get him halfway through it. Enough to get the first ability.

Powder Charge. It was just what the doctor ordered. Now all he needed was some powder.

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