But how could Drim be…? Phon whirled her attention back to the cocoon. It was still perfectly intact, but oddly, there were two distinct auras standing on top of it. One was actually Drim’s, not to be confused with the massive ball of nature energy that also contained traces of his aura. Wait no… Drimini?!

The small plant creature, who looked like a flying fairy, zoomed around the top of the cocoon. She opened portals repeatedly, laying down new layers of vines to strengthen the floral barrier. But who was that other aura next to her? It seemed to be following her around, touching whatever she placed. Phon finally recognized it. Dura?!

That mouthy monk of all people. What was he doing here? Wait, did that mean the rest of the CP army was around? Had the induction been completed early and the reinforcements already deployed? No, Phon didn’t sense Jaid or any of the rest. Dura had likely come of his own volition—such was his personality. And now he seemed committed to helping the little plant-spawn protect Last Bastion.

With that out of her mind, she refocused her attention to her brother. Drim was alight with even more flames than before, now covering his entire head, down to his shoulders. And he also wasn’t alone, but she didn’t recognize the person standing with him. Before she could discern their identity, dozens of spotlights from looming helicopters suddenly shined down on her brother, lighting him up for all to see.

And that was the start. Drim wasn’t attacking them, just standing close to their front line, and the soldiers of Horage opened fire. Zjik! Phon screamed internally, preparing to teleport him away, but to her surprise, no harm came to him.

No, the person who had been by his side was now in front of him, and they were… dancing? The person was prancing around into the gunfire, flailing their arms, blocking every bullet that came their way. That was when Phon noticed that their arms had transformed, and were now wide spikes, almost like shields that they were using to keep her brother safe.

She finally took a moment to deduce their identity. Asset?! No wonder she hadn’t recognized their aura, but it still wasn’t the Asset that she knew. Everything had changed about them, not just their aura, but how they looked, and they seemed to have some of Drim’s life energy flowing through them as well. It was as if his plants were making up the fiber of their existence.

Even though it seemed Asset was doing a good job protecting her brother for now, things would change rapidly if more than the closest infantry got involved. Phon tried to teleport him away, but found that she couldn’t. It seemed Drim had expected that tactic from her, because he had rooted himself to the ground.

Damnit, you asshole! She Cursed her brother with every ounce of malice she could muster. If she couldn’t move him, she’d just have to keep him safe however she could, at least until she could figure out what he was thinking… or beat some sense into him.

“Fiends For Hire!” Phon called out to every single member on their comms. “Form up on Drim! Protect your leader!”

◆◆◆

Drim watched with little interest as Asset scrambled in front of him, blocking every shot that came their way. He felt no fear as he glanced at the soldiers trying to kill him, knowing he was safe—not just due to Asset’s protection, but the care of everyone else he’d come to rely on. The man was certain that no harm would come to him.

To his right, a few more soldiers tried to flank him, but Tize suddenly appeared and slammed down his shield, undoubtedly teleported by his sister. To his left, Chorus appeared and blocked with their wardrobe. The helicopters that had been hovering above, shining their spotlights, began to open fire.

Xard swooped above the group’s heads and unleashed a curtain of energy, blocking the shots entirely before he began firing back in retaliation. The edges of Horage’s army that weren’t currently engaged began charging, trying to rush towards Last Bastion and complete their mission, but they didn’t make it very far.

Those on one side were swept into the ocean by a sudden mudslide, the terrain melting beneath their feet and carrying them away. And on the other, they were met with acid rain ripping them apart. Along the rest of the frontlines, forces clashed as the remaining Fiends appeared one at a time, not allowing them to get an inch closer to Drim.

Some were slammed with a monster truck, others had their weapons stolen. A few began shooting each other from hallucinations, more had their ears bleed from malfunctioning tech. Leaders barking orders were suddenly assassinated from the shadows or skewered from the front.

Down in the harbor, submarines trying to launch missiles at the cocoon were snapped or stabbed by a giant monster. Up in the sky, aircrafts were hunted down and blasted away without mercy. The war was back in full swing, but Drim wasn’t really paying attention to any of it.

He was more focused on the war in his own mind. Something was trying to intrude, worm its way through his brain and take control. It wasn’t his mother. No, it was something new, but it also felt familiar, like it had been there his entire life, laying dormant.

It wasn’t a voice, but more like an instinct that was trying to overwrite his own rationality. Even though Drim knew he couldn’t stop this war all on his own, the instinct was telling him that he could, that he had the power to do so. And the gnawing feeling insisted that it was his responsibility. He owed nothing to the citizens of Last Bastion, but rather, it was his instinctual duty to bring peace to the world, whatever it took. He just had to stop holding back.

Phon finally appeared next to him, the last Fiend to join the fray. She placed all ten of her yo-yos into the air as flat disks, covering any gaps in their defense, just so that she could speak to her brother for a moment. “I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I’m going to be honest with you, Drim,” her voice was tired, almost desperate. “We’re exhausted. I don’t know how long we can keep this up. One way or another, we have to end this soon.”

The man stood silent for a moment, staring off at nothing. “Yes, I understand,” he eventually answered, right after he let that instinct take hold. “Take care of yourselves as a first priority. I’ll end this war.”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Drim then held out his hand to the man still standing at his right. “Tize,” he muttered.

Tize turned around, saw his outstretched hand and responded, “R-Right!” They clasped their arms together and Tize vanished into orange light. 『Synchronization Rate: 100%』

Drim was rapidly adorned in sleek black armor from head to toe, covering every inch of skin. A green luminescent cloak of light draped down his back, and on his head, the spiked, thorny crown lit up with green fire at the tips. His own breaths became deeper and more verbose, echoing his presence to all around him.

The man held out his armored hand and energy began concentrating in the palm. It started as a small green ball but quickly grew in size. His hand started to quiver from the unquellable raw power that pulsated. Words then spoke on their own. ❝Divine Intervention: Well of Life❞

He raised his hand towards the sky, and the ball floated into the air. It then erupted with energy, as if it was a small star, illuminating the night sky. And then suddenly, soldiers right in front of them started to collapse. Their life energy fumed out of their body and was sucked up into the sky, absorbed by the well.

It was hard to say whether or not they were just unconscious, or if that had outright killed them. It seemed to be a mixed bag, but Drim didn’t have the luxury of mercy. Once the well had absorbed enough, it erupted again, sending rays of life energy scattered across the battlefield.

“Holy zjik, I feel alive again!” Kada called out over their comms. The other members then echoed the same sentiment, bursting with energy.

Set to target his enemies and help Drim’s allies, the well would steal life from their foes and distribute energy to those in need. And the capacity was limitless. It would keep absorbing life from the Horage army as long as it stayed active, even if there was no one to give it to.

The well also began targeting more randomly, leeching from those all over the battlefield, not just the ones closest to it. Tanks stopped in their tracks, skycrafts suddenly plummeted from the air on their own, their operators incapacitated. A few of the soldiers began panicking as they watched their comrades randomly keel over, wondering if they’d be next.

But it still wasn’t enough. Even though the Fiends For Hire could now fight endlessly, the instinct still gnawed at Drim. He had to end this as quickly as possible, put an end to this wretched war. “Asset, I’m borrowing your power.”

“Understood,” Asset skirted back towards his armored master. Drim placed his hand on the flat of his ally’s back, but he didn’t absorb them. Rather the opposite. Asset suddenly exploded, splintered into thousands of pieces, their very existence unraveled at their core.

Each splinter reshaphed itself into a short, slender, sharp thorn. The thorns rose into the sky and scattered in all directions. Every single one had the ability to think for themselves, make their own conscious decisions, but they also had their orders.

The swarm of thorns sped through the infantry, targeting each soldier one at a time. They didn’t purposely aim for a killshot, or to disable them, and instead attacked whatever the quickest option was to ensure that soldier would no longer be a threat. In seconds, thousands more Horage soldiers were on the ground, never to get back up again.

Even with their dwindling numbers, the soldiers fought on, as if they had no other choice. Their tenacity circumvented the standard capacities for human self-preservation, even in the face of what were essentially gods. Either they were so loyal to their country, or so brainwashed that they couldn’t think for themselves.

Drim pressed forward, away from those who were still trying to protect him. He headed deep into the enemy crowd where his fellows couldn’t follow, as a way of letting them know that they were free to divert their efforts elsewhere. Though his main intent was to draw the enemies attention, and he did it well, since it was obvious that he was the main source of peril plaguing the Horage army.

The soldiers didn’t hesitate from opening fire at him, but every bullet ricocheted off his armor. It didn’t matter what type, whether it was standard metal or the new energy rounds some were using, none of it left even a scratch.

But even though he seemed virtually untouchable, he still wanted some room to walk. Having the soldiers bar his every step was becoming a nuisance, so he called back a few hundred thorns. They begin swirling around him like a whirlwind, ripping through those nearby, and acting as a deterrent to keep anyone else from getting too close.

It caused those around him to scatter, but also made him an even bigger target—the lone Fiend who was essentially death incarnate. Basically all progress towards Last Bastion was halted, every other Fiend went ignored even as they attacked the front line. All efforts now had to be made in order to stop The Thorned Tyrant.

Tanks rolled in his direction and opened fire, but the man kept on walking, shrugging off the explosions. He sent a few thorns their way. They slipped in through the main cannons, decimating all those inside. A few skycrafts managed to get over him and drop their payloads. He prepared the thorns around him to intercept, but they didn’t even get the chance—blasted out of the sky by one of his comrades.

Once the infantry’s forces had been significantly thinned, some of the thorns diverted. A few went to the sky to attack the skycrafts and helicopters. Others went to the harbor to back up the rampaging Squordfish. While each thorn wasn’t strong enough to destroy the machines, they instead wriggled themselves into any vulnerability, gunking up the works until the devices were wrecked and inoperative.

At this rate, the war would be over in no time, and the army that Horage had deployed would cease to exist. The overbearing instinct assured Drim that this was the correct path, but it still didn’t feel right, his own personality still fighting back. Because there was another option.

Drim, what the hell do you think you’re doing! Eleen suddenly screamed at him. She had held her tongue regarding his current actions, but this was something she couldn’t ignore. I can tell you’re trying to use my power, channeling it to unleash, but you need to stop at once! Damnit, I probably should have had this conversation with you at literally any other time, but you were always so resistant to using it, that I didn’t think it’d ever come up! But her son kept on focusing.

Slow down and listen to me! My power works similarly to your Curses. The more people you try to control at once, the more draining it is on us. And a more controlling order also takes more energy. If you want to use that order on their entire army, you’ll need to wipe out a whole hell of a lot more of them first. Otherwise, you could kill us both!

Drim acknowledged her words, but he still continued to ignore her reasoning. The instinct resisted him at first as well, but then it caved, accepting his course of action, and chose to help. Together, they figured out just how many they could control at once, pushing Drim’s body to the very limit.

As soon as the number left alive reached the amount he could control, Drim gave the order. He didn’t tell them to drop their weapons, or to run and retreat, because that meant they could just come right back. No, the order was more forceful, more underhanded, and could possibly ruin the soldiers for the rest of their lives. But it would end the war.

❝Surrender your will to fight!❞

Immediately, Drim’s heart throbbed as the power unleashed, and he clutched at it in pain, feeling like it was going to burst. Tize unsynced from his as well, fearing what would happen to his host if he continued to feed off his energy. Drim collapsed to the ground, and his vision started going blurry. Phon teleported next to him, checking on him. But he couldn’t focus on her, looking past where she stood. The last thing he saw was the entire Horage army running away in fear.

You idiot, his mothers words were drenched in relentless exhaustion, her consciousness fading away with his.