“Stay together. Don’t panic,” Lance called out, staring down at his empty Never Ending Quiver. Really oversold itself, it did. A quick shift to the quiver above his shoulder counted a half dozen at most. Nowhere near enough to kill the forty or so monsters he spotted.

“Need something else… ” he muttered to himself, drawing and loosing an arrow even as he called forth the Shop. “Let’s see what kind of upgrade options we have….”

Never Ending Quiver Upgrade Options

Arrows of Penetration (+20) Flame Arrows (+20) Ice Arrows(+20) Tangle Arrows (+20) Shadow Arrows (+25) Homing Arrows (+25) Explosive Arrows (+50) Splitting Arrows (+50)

There were more. Too many, really. But he’d found what he needed. There was just one small problem.

“I need coins!” Lance shouted.

“What?” Sarah spat out.

Neil on the other hand did not even bother asking, instead backing off enough to slap a hand on Lance’s back. He transferred everything he had before he rushed forwards, shouting. “You better pay me back!”

“If we live, sure!” Lance said, making the choice. His quiver twitched and glowed, upgrading as Lance purchased the option. But there were no arrows, not in his quiver.

Upgrade taking effect. One minute to arrow replenishment.

“One minute, we got to hold for one minute.”

“That a bloody long time!” Neil shouted back, putting his shoulder to his shield and shoving forwards. He shield bashed the centipede dog that was trying to get past him, then swung his mace in the space between. A goblin, attempting to take advantage of his distraction took an arrow to its eye, falling backwards.

“Four,” Lance growled out, stringing another arrow. He dared not shoot randomly, with only four arrows left. Instead, he picked out the monsters that attempted to sneak pass the defenses of his melee group. They were holding, at least, in the front and some of the monsters that had come out were charging the other team.

Yet on the other side, Lance could see a pack of the centipede dogs swinging wide of the snarl of cars, some even going so far as to jump on the roof. Those, Lance killed, putting an arrow into them at close range.

“We’re getting flanked!” He snapped, loosing another arrow. He reached backwards, only to find his quiver empty as another dog bounded on top of smashed together boots, snarling at him. “Oh hell…”

He swung his bow, knowing that it was not meant for this. Before it could impact the crouching monster, another arrow took the creature in the head. It fell over, scrabbling in the air.

Another arrow, and then another, landed around him. Twisting to the side, his jaw dropped open as a pair of familiar figures stood at the end of the street, launching arrows through the sky. He only let himself take a moment to be surprised before he twisted back around and stepped forward.

He reached out, snatching a couple of the remaining arrows from the corpses of the monsters that had yet to be fully looted. He tore them out, nocked them to bow and fired. The first arrow slammed into a goblin that was clambering on Sarah, tearing it off. The second took another in the chest, forcing it to stumble away, giving the woman time to recover her feet and sweep around her with her spear, smacking tiny green bodies away.

“Come on, come on…,” Lance grinned as the arrows finally appeared. Not just a single one but a full quiver.

Luck.

He drew the first, jumped to the side and fired at the monster not directly ahead of Neil but a little to the left. As though knowing what it needed to do, the arrow split after it left the bow a fraction of a second after it did, one arrow becoming three. Two plunged into his main target, the third winging off into the distance.

“Was that what you were thinking of?” Neil said, incredulously as he booted a centipede dog away. He waited till the monster recharged him before he swung upwards, taking it high in the chest and bowling it over.

“Umm….” Lance for the first time was nonplussed by the events of the day. He had a plan, it was a good plan. Use the splitting arrows, kill multiple monsters with each arrow. Relieve the front line fighters. “Let me try again.”

Another arrow, draw and fire. No need to do a full draw, a half draw was much faster and in close quarters, the difference in draw was negligible. Shift angle, step back. Draw and fire. This time he aimed to the side, at a centipede dog in the back row.

Arrow split, the central one striking and glancing off a carapace. The one to the right buzzed another centipede dog, lodging in a carapace shallowly. The last one caught a goblin in the head, leaving it scrabbling in the face.

“Better! But we need more than just a little better!” Neil shouted, just before he was bowled over. The pair of goblins that had timed their attack proceeded to climb over him, long talons digging into his skin and around his armour. He thrashed around, trying to get back on his feet even as other goblins started to clamber over him and a pair of centipede-dogs rushed at him.

Screaming, Sarah spun and twisted her spear, trying to throw the creatures surrounding off as she tried to get to Neil. Arrows continued to rain from afar, killing mosnters a distance from the group but doing little for Neil himself.

Lance snarled, reaching for an arrow and nocking it. A goblin had clambered onto Neil’s chest, its claws raised as it looked to plunge it into the man’s eyes. For a second, his hand wavered. Trying to gauge flight paths, of true and magical arrows.

No time.

Instinct would have to guide him. Long years of practice and pure instinct.

The claw plunged and his hands moved. Push and pull at the same time, using not just his arm but back muscles, then release second later. The first arrow caught the goblin in its chest moments before it plunged its claw into Neil’s eye, the other two caught the clambering goblins and knocked them off.

“You saved me!” Neil gasped, rolling free of the corpses.

He surged back onto his feet, swinging shield and mace together.

“In the blink of an eye.” Lance replied, grinning before he loosed another arrow. No more thinking, no more careful gauging.

Draw and fire. Instinct. Pure instinct.