Pudge burst out of [Concealed Steps], ripping through the Adontis scout. The man’s light armor offered little resistance to Pudge’s sharp claws, and the bearkin tore through him with enough violence to send his two halves flying in opposite directions. That was as expected, given Pudge’s newest skill:

[Sinister Claw] (D) – You are an ambush predator of rare talent. Spring from stealth with a mighty attack. Upgradeable.

The description of the skill lacked nuance, but Pudge suspected that was due to his own nature. He knew for a fact that many of Sasha’s skill descriptions were long and involved, and he’d discovered that Jasper’s songs were similarly complex. By comparison, his were straight and to the point, which he preferred. He didn’t need a bunch of flowery language to know what his skills did.

For instance, [Sinister Claw] worked by augmenting a single attack, so long as he engaged from the stealth of [Concealed Steps]. He wasn’t great with numbers, but with Sasha’s help, Pudge had deduced that it increased the power he could bring to bear with an initial attack by nearly five times. Thus, when he used it, very few entities could stand up to his might.

Perhaps Zeke might have managed. So could some of the more powerful Knights. But a foot soldier like the scout he’d just killed? It was gross overkill, but Pudge was so enamored with the skill that he couldn’t bring himself to eschew its use. As a result, he tore the scout in half before sighting in on the man’s suddenly horrified colleagues.

That was another thing Pudge had discovered.

He was aware that there were skills to induce fear and rob an enemy of their rationality. Jasper had a song that did just that. However, for Pudge, that was entirely unnecessary, and he understood why. He was a hulking and horned bear, teeming with corruption, and when he suddenly appeared amongst the enemy, ripping one of their allies in half, the resulting terror was entirely natural. Yet, it was no less effective because of that.

Using [Netherclaw], he manifested a giant, black-and-red claw, then slashed it forward. The mana-induced appendage tore through another scout, leaving only a handful left. Before they could react, Pudge slashed out again, sending an arc of blood flying before he used [Shadow Evisceration], disappearing from their perception.

Time slowed as shadows enveloped him. A ring of black corrosion exploded from him, tearing across the forest and leaving corruption in its wake. Pudge barely noticed it, save to note how much time it gave him to act. He raced forward, ripping through as many opponents as he could. His attacks were inelegant and brutal, and Pudge regretted that he couldn’t employ some of the more advanced techniques he’d been practicing in the Hunting Grounds. But he only had a specific amount of time, and he couldn’t waste it on perfect form.

Instead, he used his Path of Ferocity to lend his attacks more power, and the result was predictable. In the space of an instant – at least from their point of view – six men were torn to shreds. Blood sprayed in wide arcs as a half-dozen gashes suddenly appeared, exposing their innards. A moment later, the ring of corruption swept through, exacerbating their condition until, finally, Pudge reappeared, bloody and with his chest heaving. It wasn’t from exertion, though. Rather, his Path of Ferocity came with significant excitement.

Even as his previous victims fell to the ground in what seemed almost like a synchronized event, Pudge whipped around, looking for more targets. There were none, which wasn’t surprising. He’d done his job well, so there were no more threats in the immediate area. As such, he quickly embraced [Concealed Steps] and loped away. Over the next few minutes, he killed three more groups, which was more than he’d been led to expect. For all their prowess, the Knights didn’t generally employ many scouts. So, the presence of three full groups meant that they likely expected some sort of surprise.

And that was accurate.

With that in mind, Pudge returned to the temporary base of operations, where he found Sasha surrounded by a dozen spirtweavers. Despite their best efforts to conceal the vast mana signature, Pudge could still feel it crawling along his hide. But he didn’t dare interrupt them with his discomfort. He’d seen Sasha work often enough to know that she wouldn’t thank him for a distraction. With the added burden of the spiritweavers’ input, and any such disturbance would likely be disastrous.

So, Pudge backed away, continuing his patrol. He wasn’t certain how long the casting would take, but he was well aware that the battleplan hinged on Sasha’s contribution. Without it, the kobolds could still win; in fact, Pudge expected that that eventuality was inevitable, given Zeke’s participation. Yet, if they wanted to minimize casualties and continue the war, they required a bold plan.

That was what Sasha represented. As he caught the scent of another group of Adontis scouts, Pudge resumed his stalking. All the while, he hoped it would be enough to spare as many of their people as possible.

* * *

Jasper parried a Knight’s longsword with his dagger, then followed it up with a thrusting strike. It was no ordinary attack, though. For the first time since taking his class, Jasper had chosen a direct attack skill.

[Melodious Strike] (D) – You have proven your dedication to the power of the song, and as such, you have learned to harness it for purely destructive purposes. Enhance any attack with the melody, doing extra damage while also extending the duration of any song you have in effect. Upgradeable.

It was the link he’d sought for so long that Jasper barely even cared about the extra damage. Instead, he was wholly enamored with the fact that it allowed him to twist his songs together in a way that let him use up to four at a time. Because of that, he had [Rhythm of the March], [Rhythm of War], [Accelerating Crescendo], and [Melody of Celerity] all running at the same time. Every now and then, he would miss a note, ruining the chain, but that was unsurprising, considering he was trying to fight a battle at the same time. Still, he was quickly getting the hang of it, and the results were better than he could have expected.

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[Rhythm of War] increased his and his allies every physical attribute, while [Rhythm of the March] enhanced their footspeed. Meanwhile, [Melody of Celerity] gave them slightly faster reflexes. Finally, [Accelerating Crescendo] did the same thing for him, though at a much higher level. Without the last, he never could have maintained his pace.

Even so, Jasper wasn’t sure if it would be enough. At present, the battle had come to something of a stalemate, with both sides pushing and pulling for an advantage. Kobolds and beastkin died, but so did the Knights, and Jasper suspected that unless something changed soon, even a victory would leave their forces crippled.

There were two chances of that happening. The first hinged on Ezekiel, who was busy fighting an epic battle of his own against a monster of a Knight whose very presence sent a tremor of fear up Jasper’s spine. He knew that if he were to face such an enemy himself, he would last maybe a second. Even his own mother would have been wary of such an opponent.

Perhaps Ezekiel could win – an eventuality that would usually be inevitable – but there were other plans in place that could change the course of the fight. The first had the best chance of success, but the difference it could make was less overt. And it would only show its worth as the battle wore on. The second, though, was far more bombastic, though Jasper questioned if it was even possible.

Yet, he’d seen what Sasha could do, and she’d only grown stronger as the war had continued. Couple her increasing aptitude with those enigmatic spiritweavers, and there was a chance she could end the battle on her own. The only problem was that she was entirely vulnerable while casting her spells, so she couldn’t do so from anywhere near the battlefield. Jasper could only hope that her partner was up to the task of protecting her.

With those thoughts in mind, he parried yet another attack and once again used [Melodious Strike], skewering one of the Knights in the joints between his armor pieces. It wasn’t a fatal blow, but then again, Jasper wasn’t really trying to kill anyone. It was much more important to keep his various songs going. That was his task and the best use of his skills. He could only hope that everyone else was holding up their end of the bargain.

* * *

Raising his spear to the sky, Silik let out a roar, which every kobold in the army echoed. While a battlecry was an important part of any fight, Silik’s had a different purpose.

[General’s Vigor] (D) – Release a momentous battleshout, giving your soldiers a temporary boost in stamina. Also provides a small degree of regeneration. Upgradeable.

When he’d finally attained another skill choice, the decision had been an easy one. Any kobold worth being part of the clutch would have done the same, and so, despite having the option of taking a few powerful attacks, SIlik hadn’t hesitated before choosing the one that would enhance his centurions and legionnaires. Anything less would have sullied his honor and negated his position as the {Kobold General}.

The shoult of [General’s Vigor] was also the signal for the first part of the plan to commence, and a moment later, he looked across the battlefield to see a horde of smaller kobolds suddenly appear amidst the Adontis back lines, where they started killing the wounded who’d been dragged clear, the healers meant to get the back into battle, and the officers who’d so far coordinated the battle.

The rangers – whether they were the ones who preferred ranged attacks or the more up-close-and-personal sort – were vicious and deadly, largely due to their abilities in stealth. Not only could they sneak around behind enemy lines and gather information, but they were also a vital part of any kobold strategy.

If Silik had his way, the juveniles would have lent their weight to the fight as well – as was proper in kobold society – but Ak-Toh had forbidden it, saying that the juveniles were meant to be protected. He hadn’t completely prohibited them from hunting, but Ak-Toh had banned them from participating in such a deadly battle. They were, as he often insisted, the future. And Silik had no interest in disagreeing with their leader. His role was to obey, and though he’d made some strides in thinking for himself, he couldn’t stomach the thought of going against Ak-Toh’s wishes, even when he disagreed with them.

As the rangers slaughtered the non-combatants, officers, and wounded, the Knights faltered. At that point, the kobolds surged, pushing them with their shields. They weren’t concerned with killing them. Not at that point. Instead, they were meant to simply use the brief distraction to herd the Knights into the right area.

But the kobolds couldn’t do it alone. It was lucky, then, that they had accounted for that.

With the rolling thunder of stamping hooves, the centaurs crested a slight hill in the distance, then descended upon the left flank, slamming into the already off-balance Knights with long and sturdy lances before wheeling around and retreating. They were out of range by the time the Knights recovered enough to offer a counterattack. Still, when they turned to respond, the kobolds fell on them with increased fury. The Knights, meanwhile, attempted to respond to both sides, which meant that they were out of position for both.

Still, it was a testament to their durability and high-quality armor that they weren’t immediately slaughtered. Being attacked from three different directions, and with the combination of Jasper’s songs and Ak-Toh’s powerful domains enhancing the kobold army, it should have been a one-sided fight. Yet, the Knights were powerful in their own right, and without Ak-Toh’s direct intervention – he was still busy fighting the powerful leader of the Knights in one-on-one combat – the army of kobolds and beastkin were incapable of finishing off their enemy.

Fortunately, that was according to plan.

Silik and his army continuously pushed against the Knights. They killed some, but that was never the goal. At the same time, the centaurs’ main focus wasn’t to slaughter as many Knights as possible. Instead, they only wanted to keep them off-balance, and in that arena, they excelled. Their lightning-fast charges continuously harassed the army of Knights while the kobold rangers slaughtered the weaker Adontis combatants.

Still, it was a slow strategy that would inevitably lead to many casualties, especially considering that the experienced Knights had already begun to adjust, shifting Knights armed with long lances to the left flank, which affected the viability of the centaurs’ charges.

Silik shouted again, giving his charges an influx of energy and extending the regeneration. They responded with renewed vigor, shoving with their massive tower shields and sending beams of deadly light to crash against the Knights’ armor.

And then he felt it.

Mana swirled, and the ground shook. The red armband he and every other member of his army heated up, then started to glow. It was disconcerting, but ultimately necessary. For what was coming, if he and his people were without protection, they would be just as vulnerable as the enemy.

That was the spiritweavers’ contribution. They were meant to protect. To nurture. To lead. Meanwhile, Sasha’s spell, which was contained and guided by a series of stakes the kobold rangers had driven into the ground, only had one goal – to destroy. And in that endeavor, Silik expected it to succeed.

The girl was nothing if not effective, after all.

Even as the sky darkened, the Knights had no idea what was coming. They were too distracted to brace for the building impact. They were too off-balance to retreat. No – they were bare before the power of a true sorceress, and Silik knew they would be found wanting.

He couldn’t wait.