The statues before him were all orcs. With an enemy that had stature on him, Luke had Sooty and him regroup. Sooty oriented toward where the orcs were most concentrated, about a group of thirty on his left side.
The current Xera only helped with his Essence Lance, so he switched her back to being a sword.
"Today's the sword day, then. Okay!" She said.
Taking Infusion, Luke placed it on Sooty and Xera. He'd instead Infuse Whispering Edge, but he already knew Xera would have something to say if he did otherwise. Luke's stamina wasn't too drained yet. While they had fought waves of creatures until now, he had breathing room to spare. Leaving him with plenty of gas in the tank. The Orcs paused on their statue platforms for some time.
Luke used this opportunity to get a read on their stats.
[Statue of an Orc]
Level: 7
HP: 77/77
Zug Zug.
Their stone exterior cracked, and living, breathing orcs began to gather their surroundings. The pressure was building, but it was far from something he couldn't handle. When the orcs stepped off their pedestal, Luke put an Essence Bond on the side Sooty was to take. She let out her Essence Screech, charging toward the 30 orcs simultaneously.
Each of them got infected with Essence Bond, and Sooty started her massacre with Talon Strike, going through the necks of two Orcs. Luke kept his ground on his side. He wasn't as mobile as Sooty. Not to mention, she could fly away if she got caught in a bad spot. Luke didn't have that luxury.
The orcs didn't go in groups like the Troggs; all twenty on Luke's side came and attacked as one. Luke edged to the side of their charging, dashing away at the last second. Then Whispering Edge went through the back neck of an orc. Luke smashed the head of another with Xera.
Using the Infused Xera, her main job was to deflect or redirect the strikes of any orcs coming his way. It was Whispering Edge that did most of the killing. Making sure not to use any of the Infusion stacks on himself, Luke had no trouble dodging the counters of the orcs.
He dashed in, using both his weapons in a whirlwind motion. Three orcs fell. Each was one Luke managed to cut with Whispering Edge. Xera didn't have the natural sharpness or damage needed yet. War cries of orcs surrounded Luke.
Instead of jumping back to avoid damage, Luke jumped forward and twisted. Both swords came down, bisecting the foolish orc through the waist. Luke then dodged the axe of an orc, taking a glancing blow to his chest.
With that force acting on his body, he veered back, letting Xera gut the orc. Then, rotating forward, he ripped Xera out while Whispering Edge handled the orc before him. He re-infused the two weapons. A dust cloud of dirt was created from the mass of orcs trying to trample him.
Xera had glowed a few times throughout the multiple rounds of fights. Luke made a note to ask her at the right time.
Three orcs tried to pincer him in a triangle. Two sides had other orcs behind them. Taking the unguarded third orc, Luke dashed. Letting Whispering Edge take the lead in slicing the leg of the orc. Then, once behind, Luke targeted its lower back with Xera. The orc became crippled, and Luke let it bleed out, choosing to focus on the other orcs around him.
Edging more away from the group's center, Luke crossed his swords against the neck of one orc. He slashed them forward with all the strength he could muster. The head was lopped off in one motion. Combat was becoming instinctive to Luke by now. His body's veins would show a gleam, revealing the increasing amount of essence he was handling.
Battle shouts of orcs sounded. Even with many of their warrior deaths, they fearlessly charged in. One had two weapons, as Luke did. Luke tried to let the orc overextend, but it always had one arm back as the other swung seamlessly in motion. This would be an issue against an opponent with far more stats or speed. Fortunately, he was the faster of the two for once.
Luke solved it by lopping off the hand holding one weapon. Shock appeared in the orc's expression for a moment. The next moment, Xera cheered as her blade plunged into the orc's forehead.
"It's been too long since I've pierced brains. I miss it!" She was getting sucked into the constant combat.
The remaining orcs came at Luke. Each had little to no plan. Kill the human. How hard could it be? The ten of them practically dog-piled Luke. He dove to avoid their attempt at suffocation by orc.
"Aye, lad, re-team with your feathery devil," Wayfinder suggested. "One screech from the lassie and the battle's done."
Luke didn't have to move too much. Sooty was flapping over with about 20 orcs on her trail. The two met, leading the two groups of orcs to form into one spot. Sooty let out her screech, and masses of them died. Once the bodies stopped falling, only seven remained.
"My turn," Xera was becoming bloodthirsty.
Luke didn't mind. These seven had to become his experience points. Luke shoved Whispering Edge through the mouth of one orc and deflected the sword of another. He sidestepped two axes as he pulled out Whispering Edge.
Sooty Reaver Beaked another, ripping through its lower sides. Her nails gripped the head of one, letting go when another orc tried to strike at her, only to hit the orc she was on. Intentionally slowing down their kill rate, three orcs remained, doggedly chasing the man and bird duo. Luke had Sooty distract one as he cut their leg tendons. The two remaining orcs took advantage of a positioning mistake Luke made. Their axes landed a moderate cut on his chest.
Luke responded by cutting the two offending arms off.
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"Slicing through bones is the best," Xera commented.
The two orcs pulled their arms back, forgetting any combat, and wailed. Luke put them out of their misery. The last orc was struggling forward with its arms. Luke took each sword and stabbed them into a hand. Then, he let it sit there. He wasn't one to torture, but Luke wanted his skills back off cooldown before the next round started.
Taking his time, he ensured Infusion was back to full on each sword, Sooty, and himself. Once Infusion was back up after buffing all viable targets, Luke stopped resting. He took Xera out and stabbed the orc through the back, killing it.
With the intentional abuse of the rounds mechanic, Luke got a decent rest period forcibly. Letting his body catch its breath. Unlike the Troggs, the orcs started straining his mind and body to be able to kill and dodge simultaneously. The constant mental calculation was becoming an issue. Xera didn't seem to have any problem, but Luke was wearing out from the continuous analysis and using situational awareness.
The room was beginning to clear of the statues, with over half gone. The space in the middle had significantly expanded to about double that of a sizable basketball court. Statues of trolls came forward in a group of 50. Luke turned Xera into a wand. There was no question this time, he'd need to AOE heavily to win this round.
The trolls were smaller than the cave troll he met earlier, and when their stone exterior cracked as they got off their platform, their skin was pale blue, not grayish brown like the cave troll. The trolls took a more organized approach. Luke glanced at their information. He found two types.
[Warrior Forest Troll]
Level: 11
HP: 175/175
[Shaman Forest Troll]
Level: 11
HP: 150/150
Totems and tattoos, baby. Gets all the troll chicks.
The warriors came to the front. Their army split into two. Each side had five shamans to support them from the back line. Each had tribal paint decorate their bodies.
"You need to act, lad," Wayfinder's sharp whisper cut through Luke's focus. "Strike swiftly and silently, or you'll risk us all."
Luke had become too relaxed. The repeated victories without too much effort had dulled him once more.
Xera piped up, "I want some fun too. I mean, attack quickly before we are surrounded."
The warriors on one side lagged slightly, and an opening was created. Luke had a straight shot at the shamans. Sending a signal over Reaver's Link, Sooty shot forward. This alerted the warriors, and they rushed to protect the five shamans. The other group, however, not seeing the bird rush to their side, took their time. When they saw the human not move either, they kept guard but didn't move faster.
I've got to keep an eye on what they can do. Those shamans are being protected for a reason. Luke inferred.
Sooty dived and, as planned, came back up once the warriors threw some of their weapons at her. The crow blurred, and she was like a striking shadow against the lights of the crystals. The shamans cast lightning bolts, coming close to striking her but never landing a real blow; seeing the sudden enemy run away after a dramatic charge confused the shamans and warriors. Their attention ripped away from Luke, nearly forgetting he was there.
"They're troll mages? No, they've got to have more abilities than lightning bolt. Why call them a shaman otherwise?" Luke remarked.
Deciding to use a freshly thought-up tactic, Luke had Sooty prepare to use Shadow Wing. To give maximum effect, she dove as closely as possible first. The warriors horded around the shamans, trying to fend off Sooty. The scene would've been comical if it wasn't a life-or-death battle. Taking an evasive roll while coming closer to the shamans, Sooty let out the Shadow Wing.
Luke took advantage of the singular group bunching up. With Xera being a wand, Luke pointed her to the ground in an attempt to hide his cast by using his cape. He cast Essence Bond, mentally targeting a warrior in the middle of the layers of warriors. The shadow used its distance in the sky to have its Essence Screech hit the entire group.
Two lightning bolts hit the shadow in the same second, but such an act was fruitless. Essence Bond spread like a virus to all 25 trolls on the left side. They were confused, but with the shadow suddenly appearing, they thought it was the culprit. The warriors threw more weapons, and the shamans continued casting lightning bolts.
One started a ritual, and the other shamans began to cluster around it. Luke wanted to see what this ability was. He communicated to Sooty to let the shadow attack the shaman but keep its other skills back.
As the shaman ritual continued, the warriors started glowing red. To Luke's eyes, they were entering into a berserker state. Seeing enough, Luke knew the shamans had to go. The shadow lashed out with every ability it had, except for Iron Feather. The other shamans and warriors were in a frenzy, all trying to take down the shadow.
When they saw its Talon Strike tear the shaman's throat, interrupting its cast, they completely lost it.
Luke glanced to the other side of trolls. They were calm and composed. The shamans set up some totems, and at any second, they would start the same ritual. If Luke had to guess, the totem would make the ceremony even more powerful. The warriors around the shamans started a resounding march in unison.
Sooty remained high in the air, in a central position above Luke. Ready to strike whichever side needed it most. With the other group of shamans in disarray, Luke knew there wouldn't be a better time to strike.
He took in the crisp air. His hand clenched around Xera. Rather than Whispering Edge, which was currently sheathed, his other hand rubbed Wayfinder. A man's eyes grew sharp. His blood boiled. His plan was set. Those shamans had to die on both sides. He commanded Sooty.
The shadow had likely two or three seconds left, but it would have to be enough. It would do its part faithfully. Luke would assist Sooty to finish the job.
A wand raised toward the endlessly high darkness above. Pointing down, a fissure was created in the sky. The warriors and shamans on the more prepared side smashed to the ground, stunned and unable to move. Confused eyes stared at the magically appearing fissure of essence.
Essence Lance.
A large lance of swirling essence shot from the wand. The warriors could only helplessly watch as it came to a central position over the shamans. The icy essence rained cold hell, bringing them close to death. Its winter's cold frosted the ground and ruined their speed. That is, if they could move. As Luke now well knew, close to death didn't mean it was over.
Temporal North.
Luke put extra essence into this lance, trying to force it beyond its limits. A massive feeling of rejection pressed on him, but he pushed through.
"Hey, Luke, stop! You'll hurt yourself if you do this-" Xera started.
"Not a single shaman can live if we're to survive the round." Luke cut her protests off.
Luke's blood spilled from his mouth, but the Lance successfully launched forward, roughly a third larger than usual. It rocketed into the middle of the shamans, still pressed down by a fissure in the sky for an agonizing eternity. The Lance exploded, killing not just all the shamans on Luke's side but several warriors in the center.
Without seeing the havoc he caused, Luke sprinted toward the trolls on the other side. They were in a total frenzy, trying to kill an invincible shadow. As such, they didn't notice the human rushing at them. Luke unsheathed his Whispering Edge. He saw his cooldown on Essence Lance on the edge of his vision. 60 seconds.
Not including the self-inflicted damage, forcing an ability to go up even half a rank had a cost.
Luke came ready to strike a bloody hole in this group of troll warriors. Sooty rocketed to the shamans, the shadow leaving her its Iron Feather as it dissipated. The warriors celebrated the death of the dangerous entity that had killed one of the shamans. Then, a much more real talon crushed the neck of another shaman.
The moment of shock left another opening for Sooty. She Reaver Beaked another shaman, going through its jugular. The bleeding would kill it soon. The crow let out an ominous caw. These fools decided to become her Reaver's enemy.
So she would kill them all.