She watched as the wave flowed over her creatures, the other Cores’ creatures, and the Raiders without any discernible effect – for which she was thankful. It had been a worry that she might end up hurting them in the process, but some intuitive part of her mind told her that they would be fine; still, she didn’t relax until she saw that they were fine.
As for the invaders, when the shockwave hit them, they froze in place and spasmed a few times…but that was it. That was severely disappointing.
“Wait—look!” Shale pointed toward one of the blue-skinned invaders, who had been in the middle of decapitating a Raider, when it was rocked backwards as multiple spell bolts slammed into its chest. It recovered quickly, but that did nothing to disguise the fact that the glowing Personal Force Field that had protected it was…gone. From what Tacca could tell over the next few seconds, it wasn’t coming back, either.
“Now we know how to take them out, General! Spread the word!”
Seriously, Brandon? Not now!
Around the arena, this discovery was made by both Raiders and invaders alike. Strangely enough, rather than fight more cautiously, the six-armed, blue and purple-skinned monstrous people fought harder; not to be outdone, the Raiders matched their ferocity, throwing themselves into the fight. Compared to just moments before, the revelation that those attacking them were now vulnerable gave them the morale boost they needed.
It also helped that the invaders’ weapons, previously with a special edge so powerful that it could easily cut through skin, bone, and even metal easily, now appeared to be just “normal” weapons. Granted, they were still massive, heavy, and sharp weapons, but those fighting against them could actually block one with a shield and not end up being cut in half immediately. The strength difference between the two types of fighters were still significant, though, so brute force was still enough to do some heavy damage. Overall, it seemed as if everyone was on a more-level playing field; the invaders had the strength, while Tacca’s allies had numbers on their side.
Even better, she discovered something else after the first frantic seconds after she used her Omen Charge ability.
“Tacca! I can use my abilities again! And my Fairy Mana is regenerating—”
Then hurry, use whatever you have that might be beneficial. To the other Dungeon Assistants, she added, And if you all have something that you’ve unlocked over the years, now would be the time to use it!
“But, shouldn’t we flee now that we can Translocate out?” Tulip asked hesitantly.
Shale shut that down quickly. “No, our responsibility is to our Cores, and our Cores are fighting for their lives here. Now, GET MOVING!”
Tacca saw Shale immediately use his Creature Boost ability after activating Invisibility, flying down to start affecting any and all creatures within range. After a brief moment of obvious internal conflict, the other Assistants disappeared as well, and the Dungeon Core could sense someone activating a Healing Aura, another was using some sort of defensive ability that placed a temporary shield around some of the creatures, a third used his Fairy Mana to magically push one of the invaders off balance, while the others were using a mixture of offensive and defensive abilities. The sucky part about it was that none of them could help the Raiders, as their abilities were tailored specifically to help the dungeon, of which the Raiders were certainly not a part.
Guess it’s up to me.
Abandoning her thought to hold some Fairy Mana in reserve in order to Translocate out in case of emergency, Tacca added her own Healing Aura, which was much more powerful than the other Fairies for some reason, and it reached every creature in the room. Better yet, it reached her Bonded Hill Dwarves, who were in the middle of a fight. All of the creatures in the arena, whether they were from her Core or one of the others, suddenly started to heal from their wounds at a rapid rate, extending the time they could be of use.
Knowing that just about every other ability would be detrimental to the Raiders in addition to the invaders, such as the Electrified Pacification or Blinding Flash, she instead concentrated on creating small Flame Walls that surrounded individual invaders for a few seconds while the Raiders gathered themselves and rallied. Since it cost 500 FM per minute, and each Wall was up for a few seconds, she was only spending about 30 to 40 Fairy Mana on each Wall. It got expensive after a while, but it helped her allies enough that it was worth it.
One by one, the invaders started to succumb to the numerical numbers of the Raiders and her own creatures, though the toll they took in order to get to that point was horrific. Bodies were strewn all around the arena, many in multiple pieces, and yet the fight still went on as a little less than a thousand surviving Raiders in the arena continued to push against the martially superior enemy.
Then, of course, there was the 20-foot-tall red-skinned invader; that was going to be a problem.
Chapter 31
Sterge went flying backwards as he blocked a hit from a mace larger than he was, feeling his arm break from the impact, and possibly something in his back as he hit the hard ground nearly 30 feet away. The blue-colored invader couldn’t follow up on its attack to finish him off, though, because it was intercepted by a dozen other Raiders, all attempting to block other attacks – some successful, but most not.
The horrid monster was a whirlwind of blows, sending its 5 working arms out in directions that didn’t appear possible. Still, it was vulnerable – as evidenced by the fact that one of its arms was dragging uselessly at its side – and they had to do everything they could to keep it contained while their long-range fighters, such as Gwenda and Mordecai, could hurt it enough to kill it. He’d already seen a few of the six-armed attackers go down out of the corner of his eye in other parts of the arena, so he knew it was possible, but it was hard.
Sterge tried to get up, but a pain in his back made him seize up in pain, preventing him from moving. Thankfully, he felt a soothing warmth flow through him as William was there a moment later, laying a hand on his shoulder, sending a healing spell through his body.
“I think you broke something important in your back, Sterge,” the Combat Medic shouted, his voice barely audible even inches away from the Hill Dwarf’s ear. “I can block most of the pain, but I’m nearly out of energy to heal you anymore. Perhaps I can find another Healer—”
Sterge abruptly felt something shift in his back and arm, causing him to spasm and jerk away from William’s hand. An uncontrollable scream left his lips as a burning infused his body, the exact opposite of the Medic’s healing. Fortunately, it only lasted a few seconds before it faded, leaving him a little winded from all of the screaming, but feeling…fine. Better than fine, even, he felt revitalized.
“Thanks, Will. I think I’m good to get back in there.” He stood up, expecting some pain, but there wasn’t any.
Their Combat Medic looked confused. “But I didn’t do anything!” he shouted.
Sterge just shrugged. “Whatever it was, we have a few uninvited guests we need to kill.”
So saying, he ran back into the fray, only to be smacked away again, though not as far this time. Either the invader was tiring, or Sterge only caught a glancing blow, but the hit didn’t feel nearly as strong as it was before. It still broke his arm, but somehow it healed itself by the time he picked himself up and got back into the fight. We’ve got this! Let’s take this thing down!
It took another minute of a constant barrage of arrows, knives, and spells to finally hit something vital, as the blue-skinned monster suddenly started to spout blood from its neck. While it had been wounded in dozens of places before and was bleeding slightly from each and every one, this wound had an immediate effect on the invader. It suddenly swooned from loss of blood, and when it tried to strike out at the encroaching Melee-Class Raiders it stumbled, going to a knee. Seeing wounded prey, Sterge and the others quickly took advantage, stabbing or smashing every part of the thing until it lay dead on the ground.
A quick breather was all they got as they stared arou
nd at each other with grins on their faces, sticky red and blue blood covering them from their own wounds and the fountain of blue liquid that came from the invader’s neck. They were a gory mess – but they weren’t done yet.
Staying out of the middle of the arena by sticking to the edges, they joined up with dozens of other groups taking on a slightly larger, purple-colored monster, and their additional numbers were exactly what the beleaguered Raiders needed. Another minute was all they needed to overwhelm the invader, though at least another dozen of their friends lay dead as a result.
Time passed in a blur of pain, exhaustion, and death, and before he knew it there were no more blue or purple monsters to slay. A horrendous crash followed by a rumbling of the floor caused the tired Hill Dwarf to lose his footing, and he crashed down on his rear, smacking his shield against his face – which was quickly healed by whatever mysterious power was constantly fixing him back up. He looked toward the middle of the arena, only to see the final result of why they had been avoiding the central in the first place.
The red-colored invader stood in the center, bleeding and obviously injured from multiple bite wounds, burns, cuts, and abrasions; unfortunately, he was also victorious in his battle against the dungeon’s monsters, as the gigantic axe it had been wielding was buried in the dirt and stone of the arena, having just chopped the head off of the largest dog Sterge had ever seen in his life. Around the 8-armed figure was the loot left behind as evidence that it had completely devastated the monsters sent against it, wiping them out with deft strikes of its weapons, as well quick moves to avoid most of the injuries that it would’ve had otherwise.
At least, that was the Hill Dwarf’s impression having seen some of the colossal fight through his peripheral vision.
The invader roared, lifting its arms into the air in a challenge to everyone in the room, and the little bit that was still in Sterge’s bladder leaked out. We can’t kill that thing…not with who is left. Looking around, he realized that there were probably less than 500 Raiders still alive in the room, many of whom were still wounded because the Healers still alive were out of energy to do any healing spells. Plus, everyone looked ready to drop from severe exhaustion.
Out of nowhere, bars of light suddenly flared around the invader. They were extremely bright and made Sterge need to squint as he looked at it, but it didn’t take more than a second to see what it was: a cage. A cage made from bars of light; who has the ability to cast that? Not any of the Raiders, that was for sure.
The red-skinned monster attempted to break out, but was repulsed from breaking through the bars holding it captive. While they were apparently made from pure light, they seemed to burn the invader’s skin when it attempted to shoulder its way through. Its weapons were tried next, but they passed through the illuminated cell as if it wasn’t there; it was obvious to Sterge that the cage was only designed to hold flesh.
A familiar tiny voice could be heard above him, talking to Gwenda. “Hurry, Tacca can only hold it for about 30 seconds before the Light Cage will disappear! Throw everything you have at it!” Then the tiny Fairy shot back up into the air, stopping about 50 feet above the imprisoned invader.
Sterge didn’t wait more than a second before he shouted, “Throw everything you have left at it! Let’s kill it before it breaks free!”
At his signal, arrows and spells shot out, hitting the massive invader all over its body; since it was in a cage, it couldn’t dodge anything, though it sure tried. Sterge could see that their attacks were causing some injuries, but nothing deep or fatal; similar to the blue and purple-skinned monstrous people, the natural thickness of its skin was so great that only extremely strong attacks or repeated strikes on the exact same spot could cause any more than minor damage.
The invader, trapped and being turned into a pincushion, went berserk. It started throwing itself at the bars of light, which burned it badly, but it also started to bend and break the bars of light, as well; how that even worked, Sterge didn’t know, but it was happening before his eyes. That thing isn’t going to last for 30 seconds; it’ll be lucky if it lasts half that long.
Sterge gripped his mace tightly, stepping forward as the cage began to break in earnest, dreading the moment it broke free. Looking around, he could see the determined – and frightened – looks on every Raider face he saw, and he realized this might be their last stand.
Gwenda slumped in place next to him, all of her magical power completely spent on a last few Magistrikes sent out at the invader. On impulse, Sterge slid his mace into his belt, turned to the wonderful Hill Dwarf next to him, lifted her drooping chin, and kissed her deeply on the lips. He pulled away after only a few seconds, heat suffusing his cheeks, as he grabbed his mace again.
With a stunned look on her face, Gwenda asked, “What was that for?”
“In case we don’t make it out of here alive.”
On his last word, the cage made of light shattered completely, fragments of it spraying everywhere – though they seemed to disappear before the shards got more than a dozen feet. The invader, with dozens of arrows dotting its skin and burn marks that appeared to have melted its skin in long swathes, stood triumphant with a murderous look in its disturbingly beady black eyes. We’re screwed.
The monstrous behemoth took a step forward with another roar, its arms limbering up for some wholesale slaughter, when there was a barely audible *crack* of shattering stone from the ceiling above. The invader obviously didn’t hear it while it was shouting, but Sterge and many of the Raiders certainly did.
As he looked up in surprise to see what it was, he saw that small fragments of the stone ceiling had been blasted out because of something, and a split second later the reason made itself abundantly clear. A giant cube of something dark grey in appearance – around 8 feet in width – followed the stone fragments, falling quickly toward the arena floor. What the…?
After it stopped roaring in triumph, the invader finally looked at its future victims. Alerted by the fact that many of them were staring upwards with their mouths open, it whipped its head back on its super-thick neck, only to see its death coming for it. Despite the surprise, the monstrous person still attempted to avoid being squished, quickly stepping forward – but it was only partially successful.
The cube of dense metal – that Sterge immediately recognized as pure iron ore – slammed into the invader’s right upper shoulder, knocking it forward enough that its right hip and leg were exposed to the falling raw material. The unimaginably heavy cube slammed into the red-skinned figure’s lower half with speed and immense force, breaking bones on contact and trapping the invader underneath its weight. The strike against the stone floor of the arena caused numerous cracks to spiderweb out of the point of impact, and it was such a significant force that it made Sterge and hundreds of other Raiders tumble to the ground.
Another roar came from the eight-armed monster, though Sterge could tell that this time it was from pain rather than victory. When the Hill Dwarf had gathered himself from his fall to look, he could see that one entire leg of the invader was buried underneath the iron ore cube, likely shattered and pulverized to a pulp. Yet, the ridiculously strong figure wasn’t done yet.
“No…that’s insane. How powerful is this thing?”
Even lying on its back, the red-skinned invader somehow twisted its arm holding a massive battleaxe with some triple or quadruple-jointed action, until it was able to chop down on its lower half. With three powerful blows accompanied with more roars of pain, it managed to cut its crushed leg off, freeing the rest of its body.
Dropping four of its weapons from the lower pairs on each side of its body, the nightmarish figure started to use its appendages to move, dragging behind its other leg, which was intact but appeared to be useless for some reason. Meanwhile, blood poured out from the stump of its lost limb; Sterge was sure that unless it had some way to stop the blood loss, it was going to die. Unfortunately, it might just take the rest of them with it.
Scrambling forward like some sort of demonic spider, the invader went to engage with the front line of Melee Raiders on the opposite side from Sterge, when he saw something move above its head. It was the tiny Fairy again, and a small glow emerged from it—him—right before some sort of invisible force slammed into the red-skinned figure, sending it sprawling on its back.
Looking up, Sterge also saw 6 other Fairies appear above the arena, surrounding the figure struggling to pick itself back up. More tiny glows originated from their forms, and the invader spasmed or was pushed around a little bit more, keeping it on its back. The Hill Dwarf saw their opportunity, and knew this was their chance. “Move! Get it while it’s down! Kill it!” he shouted, and all of the Raiders rushed to obey, screaming their defiance.
It was nightmarish chaos as he and the other Melee Classes, along with many of the Scouts, jumped on the struggling figure and swarmed it with their bodies. Weapons rose and fell in frantic slashes and stabs, breaking through the tough exterior of the invader, even while attempting to avoid the wild swings of the four remaining weapons. At one point, Sterge saw at least 5 Raiders holding onto the red-skinned arms, locking themselves in place with their legs, in an attempt to keep them restrained. It seemed to do some good, as the flailing had lessened to the point where very few were getting hit anymore.
Looking up at a victorious yell coming from one of their own, Sterge saw Anton – missing half of his armor that at some point appeared to have been ripped off – raise his sword above his head and stab downwards with all of his strength. From his location, he assumed he was somewhere near the invader’s neck or mouth, but there were so many people in between them that he couldn’t tell. Wherever the disheveled Raider had struck, however, seemed to do the trick; a moment later the body underneath Sterge spasmed violently once, and then lay still.
The Dungeon Fairy: Three Lives: A Dungeon Core Escapade (The Hapless Dungeon Fairy Book 3) Page 29
