The chains expanded as their illusions were broken.
There were three Drafeng commanders and one regular Drafeng.
“Looks like a bit more than Agents of Chaos. We have a nest of commanders,” Anthony said, panting.
He’s having to use his own power. The power of Dena is restricted here by the formations on the different pillars.
“Guardian,” one of the Drafeng commanders hissed.
Claire looked at the saints pinned to the walls as they started to move oddly.
“Guardian Anthony!” the dwarven judge yelled out as a beam of chaotic power came from the hallway.
A man leading other saints charged forward. His blast struck Claire, who had been at the entrance to the meeting room, some twenty meters and then through a wall.
She used a flight spell, stabilizing herself as she looked at Anthony.
The Drafeng in human illusions fired on the courtroom, tearing through the purple judges and the court. Their power consumed the power of the Guardian’s Judgment, forcefully destroying it.
The saints on the wall and floor broke free of their bonds. They started to transform, the power of Dena within them being converted into chaotic power as they transformed into chaotic beasts. The Drafeng were covered in a white glow as they started to transform into their combat forms.
“Kill the leaders of darkness. Angels of Light have come to assist us!” the man who had struck Claire called out.
Anthony defended himself, but the backlash from having his Guardian’s Judgment forcefully cancelled drained him of his power temporarily, being a magical being he was fighting to stay on his feet.
Claire let out a yell as the mana in the area was disturbed. She fired spells back at the Drafeng. The room was shredded apart with exploding meteors.
With her left hand, a rainbow of prismatic light shot forward in a cone. People burned; others were covered in acid, lightning, poison; still others were hit with cutting cold, crying out in pain. Some were restrained and other blinded. One of the newly transformed chaotic beasts cut out at a Drafeng.
Their limb glowed with chaotic power, cutting through them and leaving a dying husk. They absorbed their chaotic power, restoring their strength and repairing the cold damage. They cut off their limbs, regrowing them with chaotic power.
Claire used Wind Blade, slicing through several chaotic beams of power. Anthony was struck, being hurled out of the open wall.
The mana around her surged and funneled through a spell formation, creating a raging inferno of flame that filled the meeting room and the halls around it. The heat was enough to warp the floor as flames spat out over the balconies.
Claire muttered another spell under her breath.
A semi-sphere shield appeared around Claire as she dual cast a weight-reducing spell on Anthony and a weight-increasing spell on herself. She shot down, dodging the chaotic blasts as she grabbed Anthony.
“Mana chaotic—head is fuzzy,” Anthony said.
Claire used Stone Shape on a wall in front of her, using it in a circle. She threw Anthony; he crashed into the circle. It fell inward and he crashed into the ground.
Claire was pushed forward by a blast hitting her back.
She finished chanting her spell. Several shining doves shot out from her hands. They landed on Drafeng and chaotic beasts, as well as saints who had appeared and not changed. Their eyes turned gold as they fell under her spell and started to attack one another.
She was only able to affect a few as she cast Illusion on herself and used voice amplification.
“Kill the creatures of darkness! The darkness has invaded our church!” she yelled out, looking like one of the people she had seen in the room before they had shed their human illusions.
She used Domain of Silence, covering the commanders so they couldn’t argue.
“Come, priests, guards! Saints! Kill them!”
The church was stirred into action, given direction now. Some said that she was using an illusion, but they were few and seeing the saints and the guards fighting the chaotic creatures, they rushed in to join them in the fight.
The Drafeng didn’t care, slaughtering their way through. Lances of chaotic power landed on Claire’s shield, pushing her backward. She dove into the floor she had opened up an entrance to.
Anthony was getting to his feet.
“So much for a knight. Are you okay?” Claire asked.
“Let me get back to you on that. My power is nearly gone, can barely call up anything.” Anthony looked punch-drunk as he swayed on his feet.
By reaction more than conscious thought, he raised his sword, defending himself.
“Good punchy shield.” Claire moved behind him and started casting. Using him as a new barricade, she fired past him. Mana bolts collided with chaotic beasts, cutting open wounds. Several ballistas appeared on either side of her. They fired out bolts that changed between red, white, and green: fire damage, cold damage, and poison damage.
Once the bolt was released, the ballistas’ magical construct turned into motes of light as Claire replaced them. The chaotic beasts were growing in number.
“How many people did they corrupt? This place is like a damn hive!”
Three of the Drafeng commanders worked together, shooting at Claire and Anthony. She grabbed him, casting Fly.
If we stay here, we’ll be pinned down.
She flung him over a balcony between the bridges; she adjusted him and aimed for the Lord of Light statue.
Little middle finger to the assholes.
She increased his weight as she flipped around her body. She let out a crackling laugh. Mana flowed through her veins instead of blood. Her eyes turned purple as green and black power covered her body.
She flipped, dodging attacks as the Drafeng and their people charged down the tower, and jumped onto bridges, causing them to crack and break. Debris and dust rained on people below.
Claire was a fairy dancing on the wind as she fired out bolts of black and purple. They struck the chaotic beasts, causing them to cry out as their bodies started to decay in real time. Black flames burned through their bodies and purple lines traced through their veins.
When she missed—she rarely missed—the stone walls would explode and then start to decay for a few seconds, leaving black marks on the walls.
People were fighting all across the levels, the church a scene of chaos.
She flew back quick as a sparrow, between two bridges and looped up. Blasts came from her hands as she circled over a Drafeng commander, shooting them from above instead of below.
She created a shield, stopping a blast from striking her; she increased her weight and shot down. Beams intersected above her.
She hit another chaotic beast with an attack. They contorted and yelled out as they dropped. With their mass, they dropped faster, passing her and Anthony.
“Hey, guys!” Anthony said as she was still dodging attacks and firing. She looked over at Aila, Damien, and Tommie, who were running across a bridge to the other side.
She saw them jump out onto the inner wall of the church and climb up it. She and Anthony were far enough down that the chaotic beasts and commanders couldn’t hit them through the bridges. Debris and rocks fell from above and she had to dodge those as they tried to clear the obstacles in their path.
Claire dodged elegantly and she came to land on the ground. She reached the ground before Anthony.
Boom! Anthony hit the ground hard enough to make the ground shake.
Pretty good aim. The Lord of Light statue was now shattered pieces and her fiancé was now three feet below where the statue had been.
“Ow.”
Claire kicked the Lord of Light’s head out of the way and shot a blast of mana at it, turning it into powder. She moved to the right; a rock landed where she had been a second ago.
She was about to call out to Anthony when several bridges crashed down. She dodged them as she heard wing flaps and a powerful presence.
***
Tommie, Aila, and Damien walked through the lower floors of the Church of Light. Tommie was looking around, studying the enchantments that ran through the building.
“Enchantments for lighting, for heating. They took the time to make the enchantments look like designs in the walls, a blend of gnome functionality and elven design. Using the strengths of both, the flowing carvings make the flow of power move through easier. This entire building is just one large machine. Though the enchantments are only working partially. There are some paths that are unused and the enchantments have been missed.” Tommie fell silent as they walked across the main floor of the church.
In the middle, there was a fountain with a statue standing among brilliant white flames, a representation of the Lord of Light. He stood there with a benevolent smile on his face, his hand reaching out to accept others.
If one got too close, they would be burned by the flames surrounding him.
Tommie, Aila, and Damien were focused on a pillar in the corner of the room.
Tommie looked down.
Power is still channeling through the floor, but it is being restrained. That statue must have more to it, and the fountain too. If we remove the limiting factors on the power draw, then it should burn through the added enchantments. If this was made by a gnome, they would have added enchantments to rebuild the original enchantments and formations. We just need to trigger it.
He looked at the room ahead. It was one of the main supporting pillars that ran up to the top of the church. There was a room around the pillar, covered in murals.
Aila came to a stop. “What do we do now?”
People were studying the murals in hushed, revered tones.
“Too many people. Let’s go to the higher levels,” Tommie said.
Damien led the way; he knew the building like the back of his hand. He had been a Guardian acolyte before, so he had spent many days running through these same halls.
He was quiet as they headed to the next location.
They opened a door, finding two guards playing a game of cards. In the center of the room, there was a pillar covered in an enchanted sleeve.
“What are you doing in here? This room is restricted.” One of the guards looked over.
An explosion rocked the upper floors.
“Clearing house.” Damien’s hammer came out and hit the two men. The blow knocked them out as they crumpled to the floor.
“Get working. Anthony and Claire must’ve found the Drafeng. We need to break these enchantments.” Damien moved to the sleeve.
“Wait! Let me study it for a second or else we might do more harm than good!” Tommie yelled, raising his hands.
Damien halted his movements.
Tommie studied the pillar. The work was crude but effective. He took out charcoal and drew circles on the sleeve.
Aila cut off the men’s pants and used it to bind and gag them.
“Hit the spots I have circled,” Tommie said.
Damien used his hammer. He hit one location, building up momentum. He increased his speed, striking the other locations one after another.
The sleeve started to spark mana and show cracks through it. He hit the final location and the sleeve fell apart, crumbling. The white light from before disappeared and a pillar filled with purple enchantments was revealed. The enchantments started to glow and the pillar started to repair itself, drawing power back in. The white stone around the pillar started to change.
“Good. It’s started to rebuild itself. We need to head to the others.” Tommie looked at Damien, who was now back to his original appearance.
“Get on my back. I want to see just how powerful these Light bringers are!”
Tommie didn’t think about how embarrassing it was to jump on another man’s back and ride him like a mount as Damien grabbed him and put him up there. Tommie grabbed a stun bomb from his belt as he grabbed the back of Damien’s armor.
“I’ll lead. I haven’t lost my cover and I can distract people a bit maybe,” Aila said.
“Let’s go,” Damien said.
Aila led the way and started to break into a run. Purple power was leaking from the building, drawn to the higher levels. There was an explosion; as one looked up, they could see through the entire church to the burning flames above. Blasts of magic and another power shot through the air. Beasts that Tommie had never seen before charged forward. Their bodies twisted to create wings and other appendages to attack the source of the magical blasts.
A man clashed with them inside the room. The waves of force blew holes in the walls before he was struck and shot out into midair. He plummeted; the source of magic dropped as well.
People screamed and ran, the guards rushing out.
The trio ran into a group of guards down the next hallway.
“I came in like a wreeaaa-aking ball!” Damien yelled as he swung, not giving them any time to react as his hammer moved. He was true to his words as he barreled through them, sending people flying as he connected with their bodies. He staggered and kept running after Aila, who was still guiding them.
Claire grabbed Anthony and blew a hole in the side of the tower, crashing into a new level. The chaotic beasts from above jumped out of the room they were in, crawling across the inner walls or flying from the higher level to the lower level.
Aila got to the next room, which Claire had told them about.
Damien charged it as Tommie saw a group of guards rounding the corner.
He threw out his stun bomb as they raised their bows at the gnome-riding guard charging into a door.
The stun bomb went off, discharging electricity through the guards. They stayed up for a few seconds. Every muscle in their body tensed before they collapsed. Their eyes rolled back and their muscles twitched.
“What is that?”
“Lightning attack. Messes with people’s bodies, makes familiars go rampant and knock their masters out,” Tommie said with a pleased smile. Damien charged through the door as if it wasn’t there. Tommie ducked in time, covered in dust. The two guards inside were thrown away, hitting the walls and groaning.
He looked at the pillar, this one too had a sleeve, his mind working as fast as possible.
Damien smacked them both, causing them to lose consciousness. Tommie blinked through the dust of what had been the doorway.
“Down at your knee—that corner of that L—your right side—where those four lines intersect—” Tommie started to point out the intersection point over Damien’s shoulder. Dust came off them both as they worked. A few seconds later, the sleeve was broken.
“Guards coming and they’re pissed!” Aila said.
“We need to make it to the higher levels, right?” Damien asked.
“Yes,” Aila said.
Damien put his hammer on his back, and grabbed an axe from his belt and reached out for Aila.
She just grinned throwing out two stone shards that hit the ground ahead of their attackers, stone golems rapidly formed from the balcony, entertaining their guests.
Aila ran and jumped over a balcony, landing on the roof of one of the bridges that criss-crossed the open space of the tower.
She threw her hands up, calling up shields of stone and air, using a combination of air and earth magic to shoot out shards of stone.
Her main skills leaned towards necromancy, but she was an elf, a blessed child of mana.
Damien was less elegant, crashing ontop of the bridge, leaving cracks in it as he pulled out his second axe.
Their ranged attackers shifted their aim to him, thinking him an easier target.
With a growl his axes lashed out, sending waves of red and black force that tore apart spells and arrows alike.
“Hey guys!” a falling Anthony said as he dropped down, followed by a flying Claire, who looked like a demoness as she was insta casting several spells at the same time and dodging attacks through the air.
The bridges around the duo were being torn apart.
The bridge
exploded near Damien, a near miss spell causing him to lose his footing. He slid and fell, reaching out with his axe he embedded it into the bridge with a grunt he used one arm to haul himself and Tommie back ontop of the bridge and closer to Aila who was still running down the bridge.
A dead chaotic beast hit the bridge, making it shake as Claire hit it with a fireball, punching a hole through its chest and killing it.
The dead chaotic beast flopped over the side of the bridge and fell away.
Rubble and sections of un fortunate bridges started to rain down as Aila reached the opposite side of the bridge she was running across, she threw another stone shard, a golem grew from the wall and reached out, catching her as she flung herself from the bridge a spell striking the bridge and taking off its roof.
The Golem carried her upwards, its lower body still melded with the wall.
“Up we go!” Damien ran and jumped as well, using his axes he slid on the wall a bit, getting a panicked ell from Tommie who was clung to his neck.
Damien threw himself upwards, his axes digging into the wall, following the ragged stone left behind the stone golem that was protecting Aila.
A bridge was broken and dropped away, hitting the bridge that they were on and opening a section of the covered roof to the chaos above. It looked as though the spawn of hell were all rushing down toward them.
Aila jumped over a banister. Damien followed afterward, Tommie holding on for dear life as he tried to not look down.
“I am going to be living in a cave underground with no tall buildings around for miles,” the gnome promised himself.
Guards were charging toward them from both directions.
Aila threw out her golem stones, the ground shimmered before it formed into the humanoid golem shapes.
Aila cast spells on them, increasing their abilities and sentience.
Their bodies altered, becoming more refined, they roared before charging the human guards, each of their footfalls making the ground shake as the humans showed fear in their eyes.
“Tommie!” Aila yelled, she threw a dagger, it caught a guard in the leg, a golem hitting them in the chest and sending them flying backwards.
A Skeleton and a Lich Page 13
