by The Ranger
It was a more intelligent approach than she might have anticipated.
"I can try to hit both groups with a single swing, but I'm not sure I possess the precision to do so accurately," she mumbled as the growing Seeker began to slam into the veil.
"No, we must be concise and deliberate in our approach," Jira advised. "Roland and I can deal with the smaller monsters. You must use the Viper to take on that big one. As long as we are steadfast in our attack, we might be able to persevere."
The old man began to move forward, closer to the smaller group of Seekers, and spared a look back towards Roland.
"I'm overwhelmed with your confidence," the archer sighed, nocking an arrow.
"As long as you overwhelm them with your accuracy, we'll be fine," he remarked, stopping at the veil.
Jira swung his mace at the Seekers closest to him and prevented them from striking the veil further. Roland let arrows fly towards any of the creatures that tried to move away towards the other side. It looked, to Khora at least, that their well-tuned coordination may be what allowed her to focus on the hulking skeleton ravaging the veil in front of her.
She trudged as close as she dared and raised the Viper. A plan formed in her mind; fused Seekers had more resilience than their lowly counterparts, so it was unlikely she could easily defeat it with brute force. Instead, Khora thought of tangling the monster with the chain and allowing the Viper to reduce its size until the creature was trapped. It was a perfect plan.
She was ready to put it to action when she heard a scream that forced her body to stiffen. She began to hold her breath as the wicked sound clawed through her ears. She recognized Eren's cry.
"That wail…" she whispered to herself.
"Khora! Why aren't you attac-" Jira began to yell before falling silent as their world grew cold.
The golden veil that stood over Solton began to dissipate; it crumbled to shining dust and withered strands of light that fell around their feet. The snow almost seemed to absorb the magic as it sunk deep into the ground and disappeared.
Khora leapt away from the giant Seeker when it launched its fist towards the spot where she had been standing. She managed to slip into the sleet as her legs entwined with the flail's errant chain.
"Damn it!" Roland screamed, rushing forward to pull Jira out of the encroaching Seekers' reach.
The old man swung his mace, thrashing the heavy weapon against one of the monsters that attempted to pursue them. The creature did not break but simply fell back into the snow as its brethren trudged forward.
"Khora, we need help!" the archer squealed, releasing an arrow into an advancing Seeker.
"W-we can hold them!" Jira countered, slamming his weapon into two skeletons at once. "She must focus on that abomination before it can even think of targeting the others!"
The old man began to wheeze as his strikes persisted, but he made no effort to flee.
"Give me a moment!" Khora shouted, watching the monster before her for an opening. "I-I can help, just let me… just let me defeat this one!"
There was no time for schemes or clever ploys— she knew her allies needed help.
She burst forward and slammed the Viper into the massive Seeker's knee with all the force she could manage. It cracked beneath the assault, and the creature bellowed as twin axes formed in each hand.
It groaned as it brought its weapons down near Khora, but she was already steps ahead of the monster's moves. The Viper hissed in her hands as it lent her the strength needed to battle this atrocity.
With a thought, she shortened its chain and swung it around the axes. She grabbed the ball of the flail, feeling a stray spike or two pierce her flesh, and pulled with all the might at her disposal. The Seeker grumbled and growled as Khora trapped it within the Viper's embrace and worked to pull it towards the ground.
"I've nearly got it!" she yelled, turning to catch a glimpse of the others.
Her eyes widened in horror as she watched them battle. Roland had released most of his arrows, leaving perhaps five or six in his quiver and one in his hand. Even in the fierce cold, Khora could see the man sweating as he cursed under his breath. Jira looked no better than him, as the fabric of his shirt was torn at the arms, revealing various cuts adorning them. His white hair seemed wiry now and was darkly stained by an injury near his scalp.
Khora gritted her teeth as she observed them and returned her attention to the monster before her.
"Enough!" she yelled, releasing it from her hold.
The creature fell back as the chains receded, and Khora ran along its toppled form until she reached its head.
She raised the flail and brought it down on the Seeker's skull. The bones cracked, and she lifted her weapon once more to hit it again. The monster aimed a swing at her, but she bashed it repeatedly, forcing the atrocity's attack to slip away. She could see the fractures in its face; only one more strike would be needed to finish it off.
"There's too many!" Roland exclaimed.
Khora hesitated as she turned to look and was too slow to avoid the skeletal fist that met her.
She flew backward through the air and tumbled through the slurry as she landed. She raised her head to glance towards her allies.
The archer turned away from the Seekers and pulled the last arrow his quiver held. He nocked it and drew it back, his sights on one of the homes where Jira had stationed defenders.
"What are you doing?" the old man questioned, glancing at his ally. "There are no enemies in that direction!"
"The arrow will pierce the boards on the window, and they'll know we need help," the archer murmured. "I don't know what happened to Eilon, but we can't handle this on our own!"
"No!" Jira yelled, turning to raise his hands towards Roland. "We can still defeat them ourselves! They must remain where they are, they must protect the childre-"
The old man grunted as a black blade pierced his back, followed by a second and a third.
"Jira!" Roland screamed, slamming his bow into one of the Seekers standing behind the old man.
The monsters withdrew their blades and allowed him to crumple onto the snow as they advanced. The archer cursed at the monsters and continued to step back as he swung his bow at any that got too close.
"Damn you all," Khora whispered, raising her arm while the large Seeker lumbered towards her.
The Viper grew long as she whipped her wrist and smashed the flail into the monster's skull, forcing it to disintegrate. Her face contorted in rage as she dashed forward, snarling while the flail's chain shortened.
"Get back!" she growled, standing over Jira and swinging her flail. "Get back!"
Khora stooped low, concealing his wounded form with her own body as she spun the Viper in the air around them. The six Seekers standing closest to her crumbled as her weapon met them, and the rest stood just out of reach.
"We have to get back!" Roland cried out, slamming his fist against a monster that nearly reached.
She looked in his direction and saw he was standing near the steps of the healing house, waiting for her. There was no one here to stand with her. She was alone.
"I won't yield!" Khora yelled back, her flail slamming into a Seeker that began to approach when she turned away. "I will not leave him!"
"Help them, Kh-Khora. Keep them safe."
She looked beneath her and saw Jira turn his head so his eye could meet hers. She could see the wounds on his back and the bloodied slush at her feet.
"Jira," Khora whispered. "I can still-"
"Still pro-protect the rest," he finished, his eye narrowing as he groaned. "P-please Khora. This is the last of wh-what I ask of you. Defend my home, m-my family…"
She did not want to flee, but Jira's eye stared back at her. It begged for her to listen.
Shame ran through her veins as she obeyed the old man and left him lying in the snow. She swung the Viper behind her as she ran, taking no satisfaction in the sound of Seekers shattering in her wake.
The healing ho
use grew close, and Roland reached out to pull her in. Edmund slammed the door as they passed through and grunted while he pushed a cot in front of it. Khora turned in time to hear a pounding begin at the door and reverberate across the walls; she winced as each strike was joined by another in a never-ending fury.
"This won't hold them," she whispered, looking towards the rest.
The women and the children were huddled in the corner farthest from the door. They shivered as the healing house shook and hid their faces from each other as they cried.
Khora made no effort to hide her tears, though, while her mind raced to find a solution.
Roland groaned as he bent over near a cot and pulled another quiver from beneath it. It was smaller than the one he had been carrying and held maybe a dozen or so arrows. He carelessly pulled them out and tossed them into the quiver fastened to his hip.
"What are we going to do?" Edmund questioned, the club in his hands shaking as hard as his arms were.
"How many were left, Khora?" Roland asked, examining his bow. "Nine? Twelve? Seventeen?"
Khora nodded silently as the archer paced around in front of her.
"And the rest will just keep reforming if we let them, right?" he added.
"Y-yes," she muttered. "Why are you-"
"We open the door," he suggested, with a wild look in his eyes.
"T-that's the opposite of what we want to do!" Edmund squealed. "We're trying to not let them in!"
"Well, I thought I'd think of something more helpful once we got in here, but they won't give us the time to do it. So, I'm thinking we open the door and let them have anything we can give them. She'll whip around that cursed flail, I'll fleck them with arrows, and you can bash any that happen to get through the both of us."
Khora stared at him and was amazed by how quickly he had composed himself once he was thoroughly cornered. She closed her eyes for a moment, attempting to ignore the ongoing attack on the healing house, and tried to process his idiotic plan.
It was better than nothing.
"If we're going to do it, we have to do it now," Roland urged. "Before any more of those Seekers reform, or worse, others join them here."
"If we open the door, they'll flood in before we can attack," she pointed out. "I'll break it down with the Viper and knock some of them back with the same swing. If any get too close, would you be able to loose an arrow without striking me?"
"I'll have to," Roland grumbled.
Khora brought her attention to Edmund and saw that even he had begun to steel himself.
"Some of the others may continue attacking the rest of the building. Ed, I'll also need you to be mindful of our surroundings. If the Seekers manage to find their way in elsewhere, you will have to stall them until we can attack."
"Of course," he agreed. "I-I'll be ready."
She nodded and turned to the door. It had already begun to crack and creak beneath the monsters' assault. There was no more time.
"Be careful with your aim, Roland," she reiterated. "Pull the cot away, Ed!"
He pulled back the cot blocking the door as she slammed the Viper forward. Just as she had predicted, the door broke apart and flew away, along with a pair of Seekers.
The monsters were too eager to enter and stumbled into each other as they entangled themselves in the doorway. Roland loosed an arrow into the group while Khora whipped her flail and hit them head-on.
As the Seekers began to dissolve, she was able to count their numbers. There were only seven gathered before her, and a few were running towards the entrance from all sides.
"See, isn't this efficient!" Roland shouted, releasing an arrow into an approaching Seeker. "They're just crowding themselves in for us to put down!"
"Please focus on the task at hand," Khora groaned, landing a solid hit on three Seekers at once. "We cannot fail now…"
She grew quiet as she looked into the distance and saw more of them approaching from beyond her sight. She knew she would have to redouble her efforts if they were to survive this ordeal.
The Viper sang as Khora pulled it back through the air, raising it to attack the horde in front of her again, but it very quickly began to groan. She winced as her arm fell through the air, the weight of the flail forcing her to release it. The chain hissed and returned to its original size— the rune on its shaft faded and vanished from sight. Khora's hair stood on edge when she realized it had burned through its magic reserves.
"N-no!" she yelled, watching the Seekers intensify their attack.
She slammed her foot into the nearest one and was countered with a cut across her leg. Khora recoiled as pain shot up her body, and the Seekers charged forward.
Her hand began to reach towards her back for Edmund's axe, but she found her spear instead.
"Here!" he shouted, handing her the weapon as he clobbered one of the monsters. "Take it!"
Khora pushed him away from a wayward lunge and forced her spear into one of the creature's ribcage. There was nothing she could do to destroy it, but she had trapped it, forcing it to hold back the rest.
"Keep holding them!" Roland yelled, releasing arrow after arrow in front of them.
She nodded, forcing her weight onto the spear and keeping the monsters at bay. She knew it was a desperate act, though, as the Seekers they had already defeated began to return. They packed themselves tightly behind the cornered skeleton and forced themselves forward.
She pushed back against them but flinched when her spear began to bend. It threatened to snap as she forced more of her strength into the weapon. Seconds seemed to slow as she stared at the warping wood— the last tie to her homeland.
She wanted to save it, to pull it back, and find another way to hold the mob in place. However, it was obvious to her that the chances of such a plan succeeding were insignificant. Nevertheless, it was a more challenging decision than it should have been.
Khora cried out as she pushed into the spear with all her might, ready to destroy her own weapon, but found herself recoiling when the brightest light she had ever seen pierced her eyes. She groaned as she felt herself swallowed by the brilliant gleam and let her mind wander as warmth filled her every sense.
Chapter Eighteen
Richard
Richard combed his hand through his darkened and damp hair as the storm above began to stab through Solton's barrier. It was a grim reminder that their work was far from done.
"Damn," the sorcerer groaned, his attention on the sky above. "The veil's decline has quickened."
He turned to look at Eren and could not help but fear for his friend. They had known each other since they were children— he had been friends with him long before he ever met Prince Lucian. In all that time, Eren had never been someone to turn his back on a battle. Richard could see it in his eyes: he was shaken.
Eren turned to look at him as worry shot through his mind.
"We'll be fine, go," he urged. "I'll keep an eye on Mister Magic; you just help the big man take care of things."
"Of course," Richard sighed, wondering if his friend could sense his concern. "Don't annoy Eilon. And be careful, all of you."
He pivoted on his heel as he raced forward, his senses lingering around Khora and Edmund as they began to leave with Jira. As much as he wanted to dwell on their safety, he knew his focus had to be ahead. He had to be ready.
He reached the edge of the veil and found Andros scolding some of the men that had gathered nearby. Roughly thirty defenders were collected there, including Richard, and almost a dozen of them huddled near a long table; atop it laid various armors, shields, and weapons. Some of the men had already begun to equip themselves, others poked at the piles reluctantly, and one of them seemed to have no intention of preparing himself at all. Richard recognized him as the man Jensen had quarreled with during his previous visit. He looked like he was the most frightened of them all.
"Get moving, Brennan!" Andros chastised, clapping his hand on the man's back.
Brennan, a tall and thin
fellow, seemed to come off the ground for a moment after the Sentinel hit him. He slunk forward, turning his brown eyes onto Richard as he trudged away; there were shades of anger and resentment within them. It almost felt as if he blamed Richard for the problems Solton faced.
He let his head drop as he stared at the ground. A part of him knew that notion was not entirely incorrect.
"Do you want anything from here, Rich?"
He turned to see Jensen standing near the table, motioning for him to walk over. He joined the baker and quickly noted that he was not the only one who had his eyes on him. A quick scan revealed that most of the men clustered there glared in his direction, while the rest settled for looking him over cautiously. Kiri and Baku seemed to notice it, too, as the former of the pair offered a slight shrug in his direction.
"Ignore them," Jensen murmured, patting a kite shield on the table. "Want to take it?"
"Thank you, but no," Richard declined. "I have a feeling I'll need a free hand."
He turned to glance at Andros, the only one among them who did not seem to acknowledge his presence, and watched him closely. The Sentinel, who had chosen to stand at the very edge of the barrier, was instead looking out over the masses that stood ahead of them, eyeing their enemies intently. His hands rested on the hilt of his blade as he observed their roiling and rumbling forms.
"I don't think he's scared of them," the baker whispered, scooting closer to Richard. "I think he's afraid of failure, but I don't think he actually fears them."
Richard nodded along as Jensen spoke and realized he was correct. Everyone gathered there had some measure of fear or anxiety, even a strange combination of nervousness and guilt in Kiri's case, but not Andros. He could sense no great turmoil within him.
"Oh, you're just staring at him," Jensen poked. "You doing something with whatever power you've got now?"
Richard managed a smile as he turned back to the baker, internally berating himself for forgetting just how inquisitive he was.
