Chapter 42 Move Out.
“Ready?” Isaac asked Lenna while they looked down on a rundown pub, that was going to be their entrance to the underground of Sapphirestone, from a nearby rooftop. “Most of the combat is going to be on you, I won’t have any mana to spare.”
Lenna nodded. “Don’t worry, I am much stronger and much better equipped than I was when we first met.” She joked and stepped off the rooftop. Fifteen feet to the ground was a lot for normal people, and even for many other adventurers, but Lenna took the fall as if it had only been from a fifth the height. Her bent knees and aura enhanced strength were enough. “I’ll get started.” She told him while drawing her sword. Lenna stalked towards the building like a forest fire towards a cabin in the woods. Her aura blazed and scattered shadows all around her as each of her heavy footfalls sounded like the clocktower’s midnight bells. With two strong but casual strikes she obliterated the batwing doors that bared her path. She had barely set one foot inside when the first object came flying at her and the yelling began. Not everyone inside was a combatant but those that were quickly rallied to try and defeat the force of nature that burst through their door.
While Lenna was starting the party, Isaac was preparing the backup dancers. Seven silhouettes arrayed themselves behind him. “Animate.” Isaac ordered his seven phantasmal shadows. “Kill anyone who attacks either me or Lenna.” He instructed and then launched himself off the roof towards the building Lenna had just entered. His shadows raced down the wall of the building he had just leapt from and chased after him along the ground. Isaac made it the entire way to the obliterated door before touching the ground, courtesy of Shamesh, and casually walked inside. The reason Shamesh was able to come along was because Isaac had ‘liberated’ a full set of anti-magic bindings from the Guardsman compound and left Topaz in Arthur’s ducal guards’ very capable hands. Her fate after that was unknown but Shamesh was a necessary part of Isaac and Lenna’s team. He covered something that neither of them could, proper spellcraft.
Lenna ignored a chair that was bashed across her back entirely as she cut down a brawler that tried to tackle her. She heard a man scream in agony and looked to her side to see the one that had hit her with the chair. The man had a hole through his shirtless chest right where his heart and core should have been. As he dropped to the ground she saw a copy of Isaac, that was entirely made of shadows, reforming its right arm behind him.
Lenna felt an attack coming and turned around to face it. It was a thrown dagger that she easily batted away with her offhand. Before she could even retaliate, a shadow seemed to rise up in front of the man and reach into his chest. Isaac’s animated shadow passed through the man’s shirt and armor with little difficulty. Upon contacting the man’s skin, the shadows turned to death flames and melted their way through the man’s chest. The shadow only got halfway through the man’s chest before its entire arm was gone and it had become entirely translucent. With the man’s dying breath he tried to slam two daggers into the shadow that had killed him. Surprise overtook his features as they passed through the magical construct with little resistance. That little resistance didn’t mean that the attacks were not effective, it was just that there was so little of the shadow left that it was dispelled from his arms waving through it. The man collapsed as his murderer finished breaking apart into nothingness.
Lenna’s aura slammed down, on all of those not allied with her, with ruthless domination. Fear and terror overtook everyone that she locked eyes with as the entire pub went silent. “Shamesh.” Lenna spoke.
Shamesh appeared out of thin air just behind her with a slight bow. “Yes, my Lady?” He replied. “How may I be of assistance?”
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
“Take all of them prisoner, I doubt most of them deserve to die.” Lenna told him.
Before Shamesh could reply, Isaac did: “Wait.” Isaac said calmly but with enough power and authority that even the shadows in the room seemed to freeze in place. He gestured next to himself and another copy made of shadows rose out of the darkness cast by the lamp light of the pub. “Animate.” He ordered it and it turned to face him just like all of the others. “My shadows,” He began as his eyes panned the room. “if any of them try to leave this room, end them.” He commanded and then turned back to Lenna and Shamesh. “Let us continue. These weaklings aren’t worth Shamesh’s time.”
Lenna nodded to him. “Agreed.” She stated and headed straight to the back corner of the room where the secret entrance was hidden behind the bar. Shamesh vanished again as Isaac sauntered after her in total silence, not even the splintered wood that he stepped on made a sound. “Here it is.” Lenna said and stopped right over the trapdoor.
“Just break it down.” Isaac told her. “No need to get those on the other side to open it for us.”
“Agreed.” Lenna spoke and stomped down with enough force to shatter the floor-like trapdoor. Wood splintered, cracked, and shattered under her boot but there was still too much of the door in the way. “Tsk. Shamesh, remove the entire door.”
Shamesh didn’t bother appearing as the door was utterly obliterated by enough phantasmal force to crumple a suit of armor and the man inside it. A man just like that was right on the other side of the door. He was wearing a full set of armor, brandishing a medium sized round shield and short sword, despite being on a set of stairs indoors. The protection was beyond overkill for nearly any threat that could have come his way. Nearly being the operative word. “I won’t let you pass. Go back to where you came from!” The fully armored sentinel ordered them.
Lenna shifted her sword into a familiar grip and launched her blade at the man with the same amount of force that she had used against Chatohsha. Lenna’s blazing blade punched straight through the man’s shield, armored hand, and breastplate alike, before it embedded itself in his chest and threw him down the stairs. The man was dead before he even hit the ground as his heart was cleaved perfectly in two by the sword that now pinned his shield to his chest. “A man’s resolve to face down an unbeatable foe should be commended.” Lenna spoke as she stalked down the now clear steps to retrieve her sword and continue. “If only you had chosen to join the Guard instead of this hive of roaches.” She lamented aloud as she planted her boot on his shield and withdrew her sword from his lifeless form.
The entire underground complex was made of brick and mortar. The reason for that was that while it was being built, its creation needed to be kept a secret from those in power. Now, the underground complex was a sort of open secret. All of the exits that Topaz knew about were actively being blocked off by the Royal Marines under the direct order of Duke Arthur Von Sasston. There weren’t that many stationed aboard the eight warships in port but there were enough to block off the other eight entrances while Isaac and Lenna took the ninth.
After continuing down the hallway, that began at the bottom of the steps, the trio stopped as the space opened up to reveal a trio of passages. “Shamesh, go straight to the treasury. Follow Topaz’s instructions to get it open without triggering any of the defensive arrays. I’ll leave the level of force you apply to those present up to you.” Isaac instructed his retainer. “Lenna, head straight to where the slaves are kept and do what you do best.”
“Which is?” Lenna wondered.
“Become a beacon of hope and fear in equal measure. Some of those people might need healing.” Isaac replied. “I’ll go to the lounge and hopefully remove all of the hydra’s heads at the same time. We don’t want more popping up to take their place.”
Lenna nodded in agreement. “There shouldn’t be anything or anyone strong enough to trouble either of you, but if there is, regroup and we’ll handle it together. If either of you lose connection with the other, let me know.” She told the other two.
“If I lose connection with anything, all hells will break loose. If Shamesh loses connection with me, he’ll go inert, remember?” Isaac reminded her.
Lenna nodded. “Right.” She spoke, she had completely forgotten that Shamesh actually needed a constant input of mana from Isaac in order to function. It was less the mana itself and more the connection to Isaac’s soul, his core, and his shadow that really mattered. Isaac squeezed her hand and left shadows clinging to it. “Thanks.”
“Of course, now move out.” Isaac replied and the three split up to take all three paths that stood before them. It was time to split the party.