The attack came suddenly and without warning. Jack woke with a start as magical projectiles slammed into the walls of the house he and the bore-bots were staying in. The sound was deafening as fire, water, stones, and bolts of force struck at the house with enough strength to break the walls down with ease. The broken walls caught fire and began to catch the rest of the house.
Within seconds, Jeler had rushed Jack out and into the hallway. Dirge shot out into the hall, locking eyes with Jeler. The two of them nodded to each other, reaching some conclusion that Jack didn't understand, and then rushed him to the stairs as fast as possible. Still disoriented, Jack was having trouble remembering Riniox's lessons about escaping but knew well enough to follow along.
On the first floor, several knights in full plate and wielding hammers and shields had broken into the home. They ignored the continuous onslaught of magical bombardment still happening behind them, their eyes immediately focusing on Jack. They stepped forward as a unit, quickly working to close the gap and dispatch him.
Dirge launched blasts of water and steam at the knights, but they were small, fast shots. The magical attacks weren't the strongest Dirge could use by far, but the steam bore-bot didn't have time to cast a more powerful spell. The advancing troops moved like a phalanx, their shield wall absorbing the magical impacts as they charged. It seemed like they would reach Jack in moments, but suddenly their line stumbled slightly as one of the troops fell out of step with the others.
A bolt of water slammed into the head of the out-of-place knight, knocking them over backward, their helmet dented in with the force of the blow. Jack stared at the fallen knight, wondering if they had been killed. There was a small blue screen near the knight's feet, and Jack realized that Jeler must have tripped them up. Even as the group moved to correct their stance, Jeler once again made a defense screen and interrupted the practiced movements.
Dirge followed up easily, slamming the now disrupted formation with blow after blow. They shoved Jack back toward the basement as Jeler lept forward into the enemy. Blades flashed, and Jeler used his defense screen like a combination of a third weapon and an extra wall. He kicked off of it midair, only to resummon it and leap off it again, constantly dancing around the heavier knights. His daggers snaked in between the armor gaps, drawing blood even as Dirge continued to pelt the knights with magical water blasts.
Jack reached the door to the basement, his eyes glued to the fight happening before him. Even as Jeler and Dirge dropped a dozen heavily armored knights, more were storming into the building with each second. A loud crash sounded from the floor above, and Jack knew that the second floor must have been destroyed by the magical bombardment.
Hands emerged from the staircase behind him, and he felt himself be pulled backward into the basement. He flailed for a moment before realizing it was Glimm. He let himself be led down, his eyes still glued to the door leading to the basement. He could hear the sounds of combat clearly, even as Reph and Glimm shoved tables and storage containers in front of the steps. Jack realized that they were blockading the basement, a last line of defense...but they were doing it without Jeler and Dirge.
"W-wait! They're still up there! W-we need to get them-" he didn't finish the words before an explosion rocked the basement. Tools and parts fell to the floor in a loud clatter as they each stumbled.
There was a sudden silence from above, the fighting having stopped. Jack felt his body freeze up, his mind going blank. What had happened? Surely...Jeler and Dirge would both be fine, they had to be fine. This had to be a bad dream, there was no way that this was really happening. His body shook, as if trying to fight up against freezing again. He suddenly felt the need to act, to fight. But what could he do? He was only powerful in the white void when he had access to...
"Alpha." his voice was practically a whisper.
A notification popped up, and he opened his status screen. [I'm here]
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"I need you." The butterfly lifted off of his screen, settling on his outstretched hand. "Don't be afraid, this won't hurt at all."
Jack flexed his mind, his ability to manipulate the system bugs responding without a valid target. He focused on Alpha. The last time he had done this, there had been some kind of response, and Jack had revealed his new status as a black-cloaked figure of some kind. He leaned into it now, his power pushing, and Alpha's body became slightly fluid, shifting and undulating.
Jack's hand twitched and the butterfly grew suddenly before shrinking back down to its normal size. Jack lifted his hand, and Alpha floated into the air, a blue blob in the air, its shape changing with every second. A long black cloak appeared around Jack's body, and he felt himself grow more confident and cold. He could do this, he was practically a god at this moment.
Jack didn't notice that Reph and Glimm had backed away from him, panicked expressions on their faces. Jack hardly even noticed the noise he made as he effortlessly removed the blockade from the stairs. His eyes remained focused, looking up the stairs as rubble was torn away by knights of the true church. The second he saw them, he extended a hand and trapped them in a screen. The blue screen shot through the figure, freezing them in place. It undulated, and multiple prongs emerged to hold each of the limbs in place. Jack ascended up the stairs, the screen growing to capture each and every new person he saw.
The screen wasn't especially fast, but it couldn't be blocked or dodged. Anyone who entered Jack's line of sight was caught swiftly, their limbs and mouths bound. His cloak fluttered in the wind as he beheld the scene before him. The house had been leveled, fires still burning in some of the wreckage. He didn't see Dirge or Jeler, only knights and mages of the church. Some of the knights had blood on their armor, but they didn't seem injured. He realized that they had probably been healed by the priests, which would have meant Jeler and Dirge would have lost no matter how many people they defeated.
A growing mass of people were collected and restrained by the screen as Jack moved forward. His eyes darted in every direction, seeking out his allies and friends among the mess of enemy troops and destroyed buildings. He barely reached the edge of the house before a voice called out loudly, "Stop right there!"
Several knights stood over thirty feet away, blades held to the necks of Jeler and several other soldiers. With a shock, Jack realized that Riniox was among those being held hostage. He stared for a long moment, his mind racing to understand how this had happened, before realizing who had spoken. Zrez, the draconid mercenary was gathered with Skol, Skirl, and several other mercs that Jack didn't know by name. There were only about twenty of them, but they were clearly allied with the church's troops.
Many of the remaining mercenaries in the camp were restrained on the ground, hands bound and mouths gagged as the knights stood over them. Most of them glared at Zrez and his gang, but a few kept their eyes trained on Riniox as if expecting the woman to break free and start something. She didn't break free, but the situation only grew more tense with each passing moment.
Jack didn't move any closer. There were a lot of troops, and he wasn't sure he could get them all before they killed some of the hostages. At the same time, Jack knew that they thought he could kill the captured knights at any moment, which wasn't technically true. Jack had never tried to manipulate a butterfly so that the screen broke something, but he didn't think it would work. Even ignoring whether or not he could, he really didn't want to. Jeler was alive, and Jack could see Dirge on the ground, steam still coming out of him. His anger cooled, but only slightly.
The bore-bot Arch-deacon, Braith, emerged from the crowd of knights, taking the spotlight from Zrez. "Jack, you look different."
Jack didn't respond, only glaring at the woman with disdain.
"I honestly didn't think you were this powerful. I would have bet good money that you were largely helpless, that the high Deity wanted you largely helpless."
Jack opened his mouth before he could think about his words, "He did."
Braith raised an eyebrow. "What changed?"
"He's not in charge anymore." Jack flexed his hands, and the screen holding all his hostages pulsed intimidatingly.
Braith's shocked expression turned to violent anger. "Kill the hostages! But kill Jack first! Do it now!" She roared loudly, grabbing a knife from a nearby merc and moving to ram it into Jeler's neck.
Before Jack could react, a sudden blast of fog descended fro the sky. Every single person was knocked backward, and the screen that was Alpha the butterfly trembled, then returned to its butterfly form. Jack flew backward, landing hard. He struggled to regain his balance, quickly looking up at what had happened.
A figure stood there, right in the middle of the confrontation. It wasn't a person, but rather a human-shaped cloud, dark and dangerous. Electricity sparked across its frame, and its body swirled and shifted in an alien way. The ducol spoke, "I am here to speak, and you all will now listen."