“I shall go coordinate the Cherubim with Lightfist,” Parsnew said, flying past Alburet.
“Thank you,” Alburet said as he jumped off the wall again to avoid the beams of oily blackness being shot at him.
The person furthest away on the wall was hit hard, the casters below focus firing on him. The body fell to the wrong side of the wall, so they were unable to use a battle resurrection on him.
“If they focus you, step off the wall on this side. The being who brought you up will catch you and get you to the ground,” Alburet yelled as he flew down the line.
The fight on the wall dragged on for minutes, with the casters dying or rotating out to be replaced by others. The Golem side of the raid was able to start killing them without losing many more fighters, but the body count from the first explosion had been high.
When the battle started to wind down, Alburet was a little surprised that none of the raid members who had been killed had made it back to the fight yet. When the last Plated Death Golem exploded, the groups on that side turned to help hold the gate. The crowd of undead and cultists on the far side was being whittled down slowly, but with the extra help, they finally pushed through into the holding wing.
The fight suddenly became chaotic, but was over in no time once enough groups made it through the gate. During the cleanup, several noble’s signets were looted. Benedict, Blaze, and Gerald collected them to hand over to the King. Many of those who had made it through the fights were busy swapping out gear with loot drops they received.
“Form up defensively here,” Benedict ordered. “Our fallen are on their way back and we need to send scouts to see what the building ahead of us looks like, as well as where the next gate is.”
Minutes passed before Sidewinder showed up, jogging ahead of the rest of the fallen raid members. Face red with anger, Sidewinder marched straight up to Benedict, “You got us killed!”
“How do you figure that?”
“You sent us into a trapped building!”
“It was not known to be trapped,” Benedict said, standing up and looming over the smaller man. “If you can’t accept dying, you might need to go back to the graveyard and help out there.”
“Oh, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?” Sidewinder snapped. “How about we guard the next gate and you go into the building instead?”
“If that’s what you want,” Benedict snorted. “Go ahead, it’s on the far side of the building. We’re doing recon still, so don’t be surprised by anything.”
“Come on, guys,” Sidewinder yelled. “We’re going to the next gate while they go inside this time.”
Most of those who were part of smaller Guilds or none at all followed the irate man, but a few seemed hesitant. A few of them stayed back, and after a bit of whispered consultation, one of them stepped over to the trio of leaders. “If it’s okay with you, we’d rather join one of your Guilds.”
“I’ll take them,” Blaze said. “I know you both have rules in place about recruits.”
“I’m fine with that,” Gerald said.
“Works. It’ll be a bit before we move on.”
The group, now sporting Delvers insignia, went over to join their new friends.
Alburet coughed once, seeing the King and command staff heading their way. “Incoming.”
The King’s expression was grave as he walked through the ruined courtyard that had been the intake wing. Approaching the Two-souled leaders, Tyr bowed his head fractionally to them. “I see you’ve managed to breach the holding wing. We heard the explosions... what happened?”
Benedict, Blaze, and Gerald gave a quick rundown of the raid and handed over the rings that had been collected. Ioaniss took the rings and checked his book, “That’s all the traitors other than Carradine.”
“Yet it feels like it was too easy,” Benedict said. “Yeah, it was hard and we lost people, but the fight was very straightforward. There were no transition phases, no surprises... nothing.”
“Let me help with that,” a gloating voice said just before an unearthly sound filled the air.
Everyone who heard the sound shivered, feeling like it was invading them. “Who is this?” Tyr demanded as he shook off the strange sensation.
“I’m Hemod, lowly voice of Stein. Most call me the Prophet, as I bring them closer to the truth,” Hemod chuckled. “But before we talk more, it’s time for fun.”
Roberto was the first to react to the sudden threat, interposing himself between the King’s back and the guard who suddenly drew and stabbed at Tyr. “Scott? Subdue him!” Roberto shouted.
“We have a problem,” Gerald said. He slammed his foot down, Ground Stomping and stunning all the people nearby, who had drawn swords and were looking toward the King with hatred.
Chapter Forty-three
“Kill him for me and know that Stein looks upon you with favor,” Hemod ordered the mind-controlled guards.
“Tiny,” Alburet shouted, “form a wall. Andrea, Yuna, we could really use your boys in here.”
“What do we do? If we kill them, they’ll die their Final Deaths,” Marysue said, standing behind Gerald.
“Use your favor,” Alburet said. “Maybe Peace can break the mind-control for us.”
“But we don’t know if the Prophet is even here to attack,” Marysue said as she pulled out the coin she had received earlier.
“Please. If there is a chance to free my men, then use the coin,” Tyr said.
“Peace, I ask for your favor,” Marysue said, and the coin vanished from her hand.
“Gladly, child. May my warmth and light help you in this time of need,” Peace’s soft voice permeated the air throughout the courtyard.
A shiver of emotion went down Alburet’s spine as the voice washed over him, something about it touching his very core. Before he could try to understand why he felt that way, the moment was shattered.
“False god! Useless whore,” Hemod raged as his control over the raid vanished. “You seek to free them, but even your power can’t stop me completely!”
“My time here is short,” Peace said, her voice fading. “Justiceson, pull your people well back. Let the Two-souled do what they are here to do.”
“No! The King shall die under my hand,” Hemod snapped. “Come believers! Come! Rise up and strike down the false leader!”
“Pull back,” Roberto shouted, “pull back and protect the King.”
“We’ll handle it,” Gerald said.
“Fine, I shall bring in my helpers,” Hemod snarled. “Come, my faithful. Come out and play with them.”
“We’ll hold the front,” Benedict said over the Raidstone. “Get the King out.”
“Working on it,” Gerald replied as Destroyers and Archangels pushed through the guards. “Surround the King; get him and the command staff out of here.”
“We will,” the leading Archangel said, sending a burst of light out from himself. “On me! We push out. The loyal may follow.”
“We’ll make sure the rear is safe,” the Destroyer nodded.
Roberto, Tyr, and the rest of the command staff were marched out amid the minion army. The Angels and Infernals were not gentle to anyone that got in their way.
Alburet turned his attention back to the fights going on around him. Gerald was holding off two guards, while Tiny and his duplicates each had one. The other Guild members nearby had also jumped in against the guards, but none of them were trying to kill their targets, not wanting to cause Final Deaths.
“Damn it,” Gerald hissed. “If they don’t stop, we’ll have to kill them.”
“We have kind of a big problem,” Blaze said over the Raidstone. “Hemod’s Helpers are inflicting the raid with debuffs that confuse them so they attack anyone near them.”
“Peace, we could use more aid,” Marysue said as she continued to heal Gerald and the others nearby.
A moment later, the guards who had been mind-controlled stopped attacking. “What just happened?” one of the Sergeants asked, clearly co
nfused.
“You’ve been mind-controlled by Hemod,” Gerald said as he stepped back. “Hurry back to the gate, but don’t try to get past the Destroyers. They’re protecting the King.”
“Right…” the guard said, shaking his head. “Men, we fall back.”
Now that the guards were pulling back, Gerald looked over the Guild. The same unearthly sound still carried on the air, but it was quieter and easier to ignore. “Plug your ears with whatever you can. This whole thing has been sound-based.”
People began pulling stuff from their bags, trying to find anything they could use to block their ears. Marysue pulled out a block of soft beeswax from her bag and fashioned earplugs. Gerald relayed his idea to Blaze and Benedict, taking the earplugs from Marysue and putting them in.
“You’ve been carrying wax?” Karen asked.
“With all the songs and such we keep running into, it seemed like a possible solution,” Marysue replied, handing Karen a set.
“It’s a good idea,” Alburet said. “Fluff and I are immune, at least.”
“None of the Angels nor Infernals seem to be affected, either,” Fluff added.
“Tha’ nay be entirely untrue— tha’ sound makes me want to vomit,” Stacia said.
“Then you should take these,” Marysue said, holding out a set of earplugs. “Al might want to dismiss your Copies if it still causes you problems.”
“We’ll find out,” Alburet said, watching Stacia as she put the plugs into her ears. “Better?”
“Aye. Thank ya, Marysue,” Stacia said.
“Can I get some of that?” Violet asked after Marysue put a set of plugs into her own ears.
Marysue blinked, then smiled, handing over what was left of the wax. “Not a lot left, but feel free.”
“Gerald, we need your Guild up here. It’s a clusterfuck,” Blaze said through the Raidstone. “Most of Heart’s Light keeps attacking each other off and on. The confusion seems to break after a few hits, but also comes back randomly.”
“Alpha Company,” Gerald told the Guild over the Raidstone, “we’re off to help the others. They might turn on you: don’t take it personally, but feel free to snap them out of it. Should only take a hit or two.”
Following Gerald, Alpha Company headed back into the holding wing, ready to enter the fight. A few from the Delvers Guild were also attacking their friends, but not nearly as many as Heart’s Light, who had been standing closer to a group of rotting undead, Hemod’s Helpers.
“Circle defense,” Gerald ordered over the Raidstone.
Those closest to the sides and back turned to face out, stepping in a slow and measured pace that was matched by the raid. The order was the right call: a moment after they had formed up, a patch of Heart’s Light near them wobbled and suddenly turned to attack them.
“Contact,” Ironhand said over the Raidstone as he tossed out his first trap.
“Our allies aren’t the target. Do your best to hinder them, but keep moving,” Gerald commanded. “Same pace, just don’t stop.”
“Gerald, over here,” Benedict said as he pushed back one of Hemod’s Helpers. “Everyone but me has been turned on us at least once. I saw movement in the building that these came from. I think he’s inside.”
“We’ll go after him. Do your best to hold here,” Gerald said.
“If you take your whole Guild, you’ll end up fighting them, too.”
“Fair point,” Gerald nodded. “Violet, Ironhand, both of your teams are with me. Everyone else, cut down these Helpers.”
“Wait, take my team, too,” Benedict said.
“You’re the only one of your Guild not currently confused,” Gerald said, motioning behind Benedict.
Looking behind him to see his other group members fighting the rest of his Guild, Benedict cursed. “Fucking god dammit. Fine, but make it quick.”
“Fall in, we’ll push right through,” Gerald said. “Al, Violet, I want the Destroyers to lead the way.”
“I will do it,” Tiny rumbled as he stepped past Gerald, TJ and TW behind him.
“We will do as required,” Theo and Dore, Violet’s Destroyers, added as they joined the other three.
“Push and don’t stop,” Gerald ordered.
With the five Destroyers leading the way, they were able to push past the line of Hemod’s Helpers. A couple of groups of Alpha Company went with them to act as rear guard and attack the undead from behind.
Once they were freed from the press of combat, the three groups rushed forward. The Destroyers fell back around them, acting as a barrier to help push back the few mobs that weren’t in the press. They made it to the three story building, and Gerald led the way through the open double doors without any hesitation.
A massive entry room greeted them. The ceiling towered two stories high, pillars supporting it. As the group rushed in, the doors slammed shut behind them and three dozen Hemod’s Helpers appeared from behind the pillars.
“Tanks, take at least three each,” Gerald said as they came to a halt. “Focus down the healers first.”
“Healers?” Hemod’s voice drifted to them through their plugged ears. “My Helpers do not have healers, nor tanks. They subsist solely to help me help spread the word of Stein. Show them the truth, my minions.”
The undead mobs came rushing at them with startling speed, but the tanks were able to hit their targets. They didn’t expect the monsters to ignore their taunts, nor getting pushed back when at least two of the Helpers latched onto them.
Alburet had just enough time to jump into the air with Stacia, joining the Imps above the sudden chaotic melee below them. “What the fuck are they doing?”
Each visible person in the raid was being grappled by the mobs, who were leaning in to whisper in their ears. The party members struggled to free themselves from their grasps, but didn’t seem to have much success.
Gerald Ground Stomped, stunning all the undead nearest him, allowing him and a few others the chance to shove the Helpers on them away. “If they don’t heal, then we need to be mobile and damage them.”
“Area burn the group that isn’t stunned, switch to single target when it becomes more effective,” Alburet told Bob. “Do you think you can grab one of those and carry it up? Hold them out of the way?” he asked Stacia.
“I can try,” she said as she flew down and grabbed one of the stunned mobs. Kitten and KJ followed her, doing the same.
Violet’s two Succubi joined them a moment later, and the five Succubi flew up to the ceiling, holding stunned mobs. Alburet summoned Fire Blasts, throwing them at the mobs on Fluff, since she seemed the closest to breaking free with her improved strength.
Gerald and anyone who had been near him backed well away. Leggylass was firing arrows at one of the mobs holding Marysue as they went. Ironhand reappeared beside them, and his traps now littered the ground between them and the Helpers.
“That should help slow them down,” Ironhand said, readying more traps.
“What did they hope to accomplish?” Violet asked.
“I think they’re supposed to mind-control us, but we can’t hear them,” Marysue said, trying to cast any of her spells with her hands held. “If we didn’t have our ears plugged, it would probably have worked at least some.”
“Without the Raidstones, we would have real issues communicating,” Gerald agreed. “Al, why are you not focusing on our target?”
“Because if Fluff gets free, she can stack a bleed that will keep damaging them. If we need to attack and keep moving, hers is the best we’re going to get for sustained damage.”
“Hey, I can do better sustained damage,” Leggylass huffed.
“But hers will keep ticking even if she’s caught again,” Alburet added.
“Unclotting Wounds can be very useful,” Gerald agreed. “We’ll switch after Mary is free.”
“Got it,” Leggylass grumbled, wanting to be the savior at least once.
The stunned Helpers shook off the effect and chased after the fr
ee group members, only to hit Ironhand’s traps and find themselves stuck or slowed. Marysue freed one of her hands when one of the Hemod’s Helpers on her suddenly died. With an arm free, she was able to cast Halo at her feet, doing Light damage to all the undead holding the rest of the group. Marysue’s spell was enough to finish off one holding Fluff, allowing her to throw the last one off her arm.
“Now let’s play,” Fluff growled, beginning to spin in place as she triggered Whirlwind.
“How are you resisting them?” Hemod’s puzzled question made the group smile.
Gamer for Love (Alpha World Book 8) Page 38
