Crunch.

The sound of Taiki’s spiked club hitting, with no protection to soften the impact and no check to its speed was a wet, mortal sort of sound. Even with the din of the battle breaking out around them they could hear it clearly, though thankfully Falynn turned away just in time to avoid witnessing the worst of it. She felt her stomach lurch at the sound alone, and it took a supreme effort not to be sick.

Leonov, used to the gore and mire of the battlefield, was unfazed. He was in combat mode, relying on his instincts rather than any sort of calm, calculated reason. It was a good chance he’d not even really noticed it, as he was already stepping past the Infernal to his next target. Roni, of course, had seen plenty of blood and unpleasant things before as a hunter, but even she was surprised at the speed and efficiency in which the bulky warrior had achieved that kill. She caught herself thinking that perhaps that brute strength wasn’t all the Nihon-Jan had tucked away.

Taiki and Leonov stepped forward as one, the metal shield covering both of them against the spear thrust that was aimed at them by the next Infernal. It hit the shield square on, then deflected to the right as Leonov tilted it slightly. Before it could be withdrawn, Taiki smashed the head of her kanabo down upon it, splintering the wooden staff and sending the heavy head clattering to the ground. Its wielder, now holding a feather-light shortened stick, retreated quickly.

Spells rained down on Taiki and Leonov from dead ahead. Three spells, the first two of which struck Taiki, knocking her away and down, to crash against the cobbles of the street. Leonov slashed the third spell before it could strike, the spine of his blade glowing a fierce bright blue. Spellrend’s anti-magic capabilities were derived from the powdered Magic’s Bane folded into the steel of the sword, giving it the ability to dispel attack magic without the use of counter-magicks.

Leonov let out a fierce yell, and, lowering his shield, barreled toward the closest of the mages. With no spearman to protect them, they fell quickly to his sword, leaving him more than enough time to defend against the next two spells that were fired at him. The spearman was up again with a fresh weapon, and he unleashed a barrage of powerful jabs at the Attosian’s shield, pushing him back and forcing him onto the defense.

Falynn was at Taiki’s side as fast as possible, creating a quick magic barrier to block any spells that might interrupt her. She put one hand on the Nihon-Jan warrior’s forehead, sending her mana through Taiki’s body to revitalize her. It wasn’t proper healing, but it gave her the boost she needed to clamber to her feet and rejoin the fight. She rushed the spearman that was holding Leonov down and delivered a vicious upward swing that took him in the ribs. His armor took the worst of the shock out of the hit, but she knew there would be broken ribs at the very least.

She moved forward, circling the man as he swiped his spear, denying him any leverage and staying inside his reach. Then Leonov was able to reach out in a high stabbing lunge, burying his sword in the gap of his armor between shoulder and chest, opening a deep wound. The Infernal let out a cry of pain at the icy touch of the blade and collapsed to the ground.

They’d won that first clash, and the only two surviving Infernals were running down the street. In a few seconds, they’d turned sharply into the Market District and vanished from sight. Taiki started to rush after them, but Leonov’s shout drew her back. “Wait! We shouldn’t chase them!”

“Why not?” She asked, glancing back with an annoyed frown. It was clear she hadn’t enjoyed being stopped in the act of giving chase. “They’re the enemy.”

“Our goal is the Temple District,” Leonov said, gesturing towards the left-hand path that would take them there. “As long as they’re not in the way, they’re not our concern.”

“He’s right,” the priest of Shigeru said, seeming to come to his senses. “We have to move now. The faster we get this done, the better.”

Leonov nodded and wiped the blade of his sword on a cloth. “I think we’d better split up. Roni, you’ve got the sharpest eyes and the longest range, so you sit in the middle of the district. Falynn, go to end of the district with the followers of Shigeru, Grimr, and Bora Bora. You soldiers, we’ll hold the entrance against any other possible attacks.”

They all nodded, seeing the good sense of the plan. Falynn especially wanted to make sure that no relics of Grimr were left behind. They entered the Temple District in a dead sprint. Taiki, who hadn’t been addressed specifically, chose to stand guard at the entrance with the others, Falynn and Roni moving further in with the priests. As the various followers of the gods began to scatter to their individual temples, Roni unslung her bow, keeping watch on the area. Gadderoth came off her shoulders and flew around the tops of the buildings, keeping an eye out for anyone who attempted to scale the walls of the district.

It felt less like a recovery and more like a raid, Taiki thought, as she occasionally glanced back to see the priests running in and out of the temples. They had each laid out a huge cloth and were depositing the relics upon it. She knew that it would all eventually go into one of their dimensional storages, but first, they had to be sure that everything was accounted for.

“Enemy approaching!” Leonov shouted, drawing her attention back to the front. A group of three people was approaching. Two were women, tall with red eyes that indicated Infernals, and the fourth was a bulky human man. He was more than bulky, Taiki thought. Clad from head to toe in full plate mail and wielding two imposing spiked tower shields, he was massive. He stood just as tall as the two Infernals, and nearly twice as wide.

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“Gods help us!” One of the soldiers cried out, taking half a step back. “That’s Rajlen Taro!”

Rajlen? The name was vaguely familiar to Taiki, though she couldn’t remember why it was so prevalent. In any case, the man didn’t give her any time to ponder his identity. He smashed his shields together at once, forming a tall wall just wide enough to hide him from view, and began running forward. The closer he came, the more speed he seemed to pick up. It was definitely magical, for no human could run that fast or straight by natural means.

Then he struck their line, pushing forward and to the sides with his shields, unleashing a fierce battlecry as he did so. The five soldiers he struck were flung backward for several feet, to come crashing down on the hard cobbles a second later. Dozens of dents and holes had been punched in them from the heavy spikes on the shields, and they were obviously concussed, stirring feebly as they tried, in vain, to rise to their feet again.

Leonov didn’t shrink from the threat the man posed. He stepped around the right-hand shield and stabbed, but his sword couldn’t find any purchase, and only glanced off the protected torso. Taro slammed down one of his shields and released it, leaving it stationary and his right hand free. He seized Leonov by the front of his shirt and threw him bodily into a few of the other soldiers. All of them were toppled like paper pictures, collapsing onto the cobbles in a heap.

Taiki lunged forward at once to cover Leonov, her kanabo swinging down. It made a tiny dent in the man’s helmet, and he laughed. Then she felt the shield he still had slam into her. Her armor protected against the damage of the spikes, but she was thrown backward by the force, crashing into the side of the gate to the district, and fell to one knee. Undaunted, she ran forward again for another attack.

“You are strong, little Nihon-Jan,” he said, grabbing the arm holding her weapon as she swung it at him. His hand clamped down with enough force to slightly bend the metal, and even though she was just over six feet tall, his fists occupied her entire forearm. She let out a grunt as she was forced to drop her weapon. “But not stronger than me!”

He spun on the spot and threw her towards the pile of bodies that was Leonov and the other soldiers, knocking them all over again. They could have been completely at his mercy then if it weren’t for Roni. Two arrows slammed down out of nowhere, both glowing bright with misty green energy. They sank through the thick metal of his armor as if it wasn’t there, and buried themselves in his side. He let out an angry yell as he felt them, and whirled around to look at the puny ranger standing a hundred yards off.

“You should have waited your turn!” He shouted and began lumbering forward, the one shield still raised protectively. She fired three more arrows, each of which struck the protective barrier harmlessly, then started to turn and run in the opposite direction. It was clear that he was going to outpace her. Then, suddenly, his foot sank into the cobbles of the path underneath him, and he sank up to his hips. Then the ground seemed to solidify again. Behind Roni, Falynn had her hands raised, obviously having just finished casting the spell that trapped him. Roni was safe and bolted past her.

Now it was Taiki and Leonov’s turn again. Having regained their feet, they charged in and began to rain blows, down on the giant. Somehow, he’d managed to keep the shield free, and it protected against their attacks.

“I’m finished!” The priest of Grimr appeared to the left of Falynn, looking winded but pleased. He cast his own spell, summoning great vines out of the earth to wrap around Taro’s shield, prying it away. Now Taiki and Leonov could hit him properly, except that the best they could manage was the small dents that the kanabo made. He seemed largely impervious to their attacks, even in his pinned state.

Roni fired another of the misty green arrows, which buried itself in his shoulder. He let out another cry, more angry than afraid. He tried to reach out with one hand to grab Leonov, but the Attosian was able to jump out of reach quickly enough. He slammed his fist onto the cobbles in anger. “Damn!”

Then, without any sign of magical power or warning, he simply vanished. He and his shield disappeared completely, leaving only the hole in the ground where he’d been trapped.

“He was a simulacrum,” said the priest of Arcana, who’d finished collecting the only artifact of note to their faith, a massive tome that she now held in her arms. “He must be terrifyingly powerful if that was only half of his strength.”

“All done here!” Came another shout, and they turned to see the priest of Shigeru appearing. His sleeves were rolled up, and he was holding a wooden sword in his left hand. “This is the only relic I couldn’t fit inside my storage.”

“I’m done too,” another priest said, appearing with a stuffed pack. Another spoke up, saying they too were finished until there was just one. Roni ran over to the temple of Minerva, a frown on her face. “Liandra, are you not finished?”

“No!” Came a frustrated voice from inside the building. “I’ve gathered everything up but Minerva’s Bow! I can’t take it from its stand!”

“Well nobody but her Champion should be able to do that,” Roni said. “Tyrant’s Bane is a legendary weapon. Can’t you teleport its stand somewhere else?”

“I don’t have that power!”

Roni pursed her lips thoughtfully, glancing around as the others peeked in to see the trouble. The two Infernals who’d arrived with Taro seemed to have vanished as well. The ranger dropped to her knees in front of the bow and rested both hands on it. It was a massive longbow, expertly carved of what looked like metallic wood. She lowered her head in prayer, and they could make out some indistinct muttering as she attempted to plea to her god.

“We don’t have time for this,” Leonov said. “Any minute now, the Infernals will come in real strength, and we won’t be able to hold them off.”

“Shut up,” Roni said, barely pausing in her prayer. “I’m working on it.”

“If nobody can lift it, then it can’t be stolen,” Leonov said, trying to reason with the stubborn elven woman.”

“It can still be corrupted or tampered with,” Liandra the priest said, also glaring at Leonov. “She’s attempting to pray for permission to carry it to safety. I’m no fighter so I couldn’t, but she definitely can’t-”

She got no further, for, rising to her feet, Roni tried to pull on the bow. To their surprise, it came free at once. A flash of green energy went through the weapon, even coming out the tips of the bow and joining together to form a string. She gaped down at the weapon in her hands, disbelieving. Liandra let out a soft gasp. “That worked?”