Zhaire led the charge, not having a moment to waste. As the Ogrog closed in, the gaps in their line shrunk until they were nearly shoulder-to-shoulder. Neither side flinched as they hurtled themselves headlong at each other.
Zhaire was at his customary position as the point of a wedge-shaped formation, with Betelgeuse being especially well suited to break through the enemy formation. With jarring force, the two sides collided. The first Ogrog fell, overwhelmed by the sheer force of the Starseeker’s inertia. However, unlike last time, there was a press of bodies, halting any momentum the majestic rhino-like creature had accumulated. Zhaire swung his glaive in short, controlled swings, dismembering the hands that attempted to grasp himself or his mount.
While the throng of massive creatures arrested Zhaire’s momentum, they also stopped moving forward. This proved to be a fatal mistake as the other Starseekers plowed through their now somewhat stationary opponents. The Ogrog were trampled underfoot like roadkill on the side of the road, the Starseekers and their riders experiencing little more than a speed bump as they continued through at speed.
Just like that, the knights had punched through the enemy's line. They had killed almost a dozen of the Ogrog, most of the damage done by the Starseekers, though a couple of corpses sprouted feathered shafts that had sunk deep into their skulls. Zhaire idly wondered if they would become higher-level Beast Tamers than their classes at this rate.
The knights had broken through and had a clear line of retreat. Unfortunately, this was not true for the rest of the people in the large camp, which was still mostly encircled by the doglike ogres. This was becoming less true by the second as the horde rushed toward the knights in an undisciplined, frenetic manner. However, as the knights continued further away, the war-loving creatures realized they couldn’t catch the mounted humans and turned back towards the camp to vent their frustrations on innocent people.
Zhaire watched this with horror. Turning and looking at each knight, he saw a mirror of his emotions on each of their faces. Wordlessly, each of them nodded as they met his gaze. He shouted a series of commands, and the mounted knights began wheeling around, moving in for another charge.
Zhaire angled them to charge through a particularly thin grouping of the Ogrog line. There were many options, as their opponent's undisciplined nature left quite a few gaps. Again, the Starseekers and their dense mass inflicted heavy casualties, trampling the Ogrog under hooves. Unfortunately, they weren’t breaking through this time, but moving in towards the center of the horde.
Despite Zhaire’s best efforts to pick a suitable point to break through and wheel around, that quickly became impractical as the creatures swarmed around them, miring them down in individual battles. Zhaire’s glaive darted from side to side, still focused on keeping their clawed hands off him and Betelgeuse. He would occasionally land a killing blow when they tried to savage him with their teeth, conveniently making their neck an available target.
Veronica and Antonio unleashed their magic at full capacity, something they rarely did. A wave of force radiated forward, tripping a swell of Ogrog, which had a chain reaction as they fell midcharge, causing those behind them to stumble and fall. This gave the knights some much-needed breathing room. Other Ogrog turned on their compatriots, brutally savaging throats with their wolf-like canines. Antonio could subvert several of their minds, meaning they probably hadn’t required much manipulation to enter an uncontrolled frenzy.
Despite being a healer and the lowest-leveled knight, Una also unleashed her magic. A spectral champion that resembled Ravi appeared, attacking an unsuspecting Ogrog. Despite being incorporeal, the blade sank into flesh, causing the area to become dead and withered in an instant. The spirit continued attacking, killing several bewildered Ogrog before disappearing, presumably from Una’s lack of mana.
The rest of the unit was not to be outdone. As they became ensconced, they activated their enchantments, gaining a significant boost for a short time. Swords and spears flashed out, biting into the flabby flesh of the ogre-like creatures. Ray continued using his bow at point-blank range, the dedicated archer firing his enhanced bow with deadly speed and precision. Each shot flew forth with a force greater than any pre-integration bow would have been capable of.
The Starseekers were still the greatest source of damage, constantly trampling over any Ogrog that lost their footing. They would occasionally gore an enemy with their horn when the opportunity presented itself.
Despite the massive damage the knights inflicted, it was never enough. More of the creatures kept throwing themselves at them with reckless abandon, almost seeming to revel in the carnage, even though it was at their own expense.
Zhaire watched in horror as a mass of enemies managed to topple one of the Starseekers, rider and all. He redoubled his effort, activating his Frenzy skill. As he did, the glaive seemed to move of its own accord, seeking out the creatures' weak points and decapitating limbs and heads without slowing.
A sound started emanating from the camp, softly at first, then growing loud enough that it could clearly be heard over the snarling Ogrog. Zhaire almost faltered in his strike when he realized what it was: music. A woman sang in a hauntingly beautiful voice that projected across the battlefield louder and clearer than any concert. Despite the volume, there was no distortion or other signs that the voice had been projected in any way.
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Something about the music urged him onwards, making each strike slightly faster and easier. He noticed a similar effect for all the knights, who had been on the verge of collapsing, as they redoubled their efforts beyond what they had been capable of.
The melody also inspired the people of the camp, who now assembled near the outskirts of the battle. As the song reached a crescendo, a mass of people surged forward, charging into the fray. Each of them was low-leveled, with no armor and poor weapons that they had concealed or improvised weapons. They would have been slaughtered without the knights occupying most of the creature’s attention.
Zhaire smiled, pleased that people still had the will to fight, that hadn’t simply decided to give up and accept their fate. They simply needed a fighting chance, and the knights had given them that.
The wave of humanity crashed into the Ogrog line, overwhelming them with sheer numbers. Despite this, scores of people still lost their lives as the powerful creatures cleaved apart their human victims with claws and teeth. For each Ogrog they managed to whittle down, more people brutally lost their lives.
Zhaire, momentarily distracted by the shifting tide of battle, almost didn’t notice an assailant until it was too late. This particular Ogrog was big, even relative to others of its kind, its powerful muscles accentuated even against their excess skin. An almost instinctual Identify told him the creature was a level 32 Ogrog Alpha.
With a powerful leap, the creature went airborne, hurtling itself towards Zhaire with bared teeth. Zhaire, unable to stop the momentum of the massive Ogrog, was forced to interpose his glaive to prevent the powerful jaws from clamping down on him.
The mighty creature slammed into Zhaire with a powerful impact, knocking him off Betelgeuse. A second impact occurred as Zhaire hit the ground with the creature's weight on top of him. His ribs broke, and all the air escaped his lungs, causing an instinctual panic. He struggled to breathe, his nearly caved-in chest making it so air came in raspy breaths. Despite his broken body, he continued on thanks to his Feel No Pain trait and his massive strength and constitution.
Through sheer force of will and his improved physical strength, Zhaire managed to keep the snapping jaws of the large Ogrog away from his neck. To his horror, the creature bit into his bone-plate armor, easily crushing through the near-indestructible Drake bones. He screamed as the canines bit into his shoulder, and even his trait was unable to mitigate the pain fully.
Zhaire managed to free his dominant hand and used it to retaliate with his short sword, burying it to the hilt in the creature’s side. The creature howled in pain, releasing Zhaire's body from its savage bite in the process. This also relieved some of the force that had been pressing down on him, as its weight was no longer directly over him. Summoning all his strength, Zhaire pushed and squirmed, allowing himself to escape the powerful Ogrog’s grip.
The moment he was free, Zhaire scrambled to his feet. His gaze shifted, looking out for an opportunistic strike that would undoubtedly be coming. To his utter astonishment, the nearby Ogrog seemed content to watch as if this were some unspoken duel.
Again, his surprise nearly cost him his life as the higher-level Ogrog raked out with a powerful swipe of its claws. Zhaire only just managed to dodge, feeling the air pressure from the speed of the attack that missed him by the narrowest of margins.
With a bestial snarl, the creature charged him, attempting to crush Zhaire with pure force. Zhaire smiled, knowing the Ogrog had just given up its reach advantage. While the Ogrog had an explosive first step, once it got moving, it was hard for it to adjust its course, allowing Zhaire to sidestep its charge. The beast slammed into one of its allies, who was watching the fight. Instead of turning back to face Zhaire, the Alpha savagely attacked its ally, brutally ripping out its throat in frustration. The other nearby Ogrog continued watching, though a few stepped further back, giving the combatants more room. For a moment, Zhaire thought the creature had been somewhat affected by Antonio, but Zhaire quickly dismissed that, as the mage would have been going all out for far too long to keep affecting his opponent. This did explain how he had affected so many of the Ogrog.
Zhaire let his own Frenzy drop, as he couldn’t win this fight with overwhelming force and needed a clear head. The creature turned and charged towards him again, not adjusting its tactics at all. Zhaire continued sidestepping the charge, again narrowly avoiding the attack. Unfortunately, the creature was too fast for him to retaliate and was forced to continue simply dodging.
The alpha rounded on him again, this time approaching at a more modest pace before swiping out claws that were easily sharp enough to cleave through the strongest pre-integration materials. Again, Zhaire narrowly avoided the blow, the tips of the claws harmlessly scraping against his armor. He dodged wild strikes until the creature overextended, stumbling slightly as its momentum carried it forward. He lunged in, burying his shortsword into the creature’s side for a second time.
He stepped back as he withdrew his blade, but not fast enough. The creature retaliated, scoring a direct hit with one of its claws, carving through his armor and digging into his flesh. Zhaire screamed as not even his traits could mitigate the agony that coursed through his body. Despite the grievous injury, Zhaire smiled. The Ogrog Alpha was starting to slow as injuries and fatigue affected it.
Zhaire’s grin only widened as the creature started attacking even faster. It was more frenetic and less efficient. To the casual observer, it appeared that Zhaire was losing, narrowly dodging blows that would easily cleave him in two. However, both the combatants knew differently. The creature started stumbling more, leaving wider and more obvious openings. As Zhaire continued to exchange blows when an opening presented itself, they gradually grew more one-sided as the alpha’s reaction slowed. On the fifth such exchange, Zhaire managed to dodge the retaliatory strike cleanly. After a few more deep wounds, the Alpha slumped to the ground, the last of its life escaping its body.
Zhaire stood victorious, his body a bloody mess, his armor hanging ineffectually in tattered pieces. Despite his condition, a broad grin had remained plastered on his face the entire time.
The nearby Ogrog let out a high-pitched mournful howl that was quickly picked up by the entire pack. Zhaire braced himself for their vengeful charge, though he doubted he could move much in his current condition. However, it never came. Instead, every one of the Ogrog stopped fighting and prostrated themselves before their new alpha.