The Trusty Advisor was looking at the King meaningfully.

“It is approaching.” It chirped.

The King put his palms together and touched his lips as if in deep thought, “So it is coming,” he paraphrased.

“It is.” The spider chirped again.

“Well then, we have no choice.” He said with resolution. “Let’s make our last stand.”

The Trusty Advisor nodded in understanding.

…

The Alliances were made so that in tough times, and especially in times of war, the two parties could help each other. After all, there was no doubt that the Spider Kingdom was at War, it’s just that the aggressor was rather unusual. Regardless, the call for aid was issued and the Allies responded.

The Lamia were already a part of Spider Kingdom: their Queen stood at the side of the Spider King as his wife and their egg vaults were here also, so it was obvious that their warriors stood with their spears raised high and ready to defend that which is the most precious. They stood proud donning the now iconic armour, it was blue and made out the leather coming from their favourite snack – Enchanted Boar. The leather armour was light in nature so that their slender movements wouldn’t be limited.

The strongest response must have been from the Drow. They came as a whole: men, women, and even children; everyone came to defend the MegaFarm. The High Chief’s decision to involve children was questionable, but it was final. Their forces were the most diverse. There were FireWalkers, Archers, Spearmen, Mages, Grenadiers, and all sorts. The children were there for support, they will be mostly resupplying the Drow troops. In retrospect, it was rather shocking, but it was evident that all of the Drow knew how to fight in one way or the other. In other words, in the lousiest form of the term, they were all ‘warriors’; a past trauma had likely had something to do with that. Anyway, they were here, they were armed to the teeth and they were roaring and rearing for a fight.

The Great Ancestral Tree and its avatar the Wisp, obviously couldn’t make it in person. Being bound to the forest had its advantages and drawbacks. Regardless, they had sent their forces consisting of a swarm of Apex Squirrels and a small bunch of Dryads accompanied by a larger group of Sprigans, not to mention all the Amber they could spare. The Apex Squirrel was an evolved variant from a normal squirrel: they were larger, had sharp claws and a deadly horn on their forehead. Squirrels aside, the Dryads and Sprigans were there to provide the healing then necessary.

Speaking about healing and healers, the White Sprigans had also come from the Magical Forest in great numbers. What was it, nearly a thousand of them? More? So yeah, there were plenty of Nature casters to fight the inevitable Drain effect. But mostly they were here for the aftermath – to rebuild, no, to Regrow.

The Kobolds, while having some fighting power, weren’t suited for the open terrain. They were agoraphobic and that overwhelming fear of open spaces meant that they couldn’t participate. Well, certain individuals like blue and brown kobolds had lesser versions of the phobia, but even then it was ruled out that their presence was unnecessary. After all, they had been already helping for the longest time, way before any of the other Allies. They gathered ores to smelt and make weapons, and also they shaped the many-many bricks which were used to make a very-very large wall encircling the farm as a whole. Yes-Yes!

The Myconids were the smallest faction, they had only a few caves in their territory and the individuals were few and very weak. But they had helped nevertheless. The Queen had sent a large batch of Stimulant Spores, which could be used even in its raw state to help in a prolonged battle.

Both King Aurelius II and the Covenant of the Black Hand were also informed. Their response was predictable but even then – disappointing. The Black Hand were Trade Allies only, and they didn’t express any interest in participating in the Spider King’s quest to vanquish the Darkness itself. Well, Vumbeldor had given a long-winded reply full of whys and excuses; basically, they were just too scared. However, King Aurelius II was more willing to participate, but it was clear that the human forces would never make it here in time. At least, there were still ‘volunteers’ from before; Aurelius II encouraged to utilise these men and women.

What was left was the Centauri, who also like Lamia and Drow were just itching for a fight. No doubt they still wanted to prove themselves. The girls were clad in heavy black armour; they will be serving as the heavy cavalry. Just at the right time, the Centauri Champion was back to lead her troops to victory.

And so, that was that. The forces were spread around the farm evenly and awaiting the fated moment.

…

With the increased presence of the defenders, the draining tendrils of the Shadow Plague were kept in check. Occasional pop-pop sounds reverberated from the TomGrape webs but so far that was that. Everyone was tensely waiting for a signal.

Further away, in the distance, a blue flair of light made an arch in the sky and exploded with a bang like a firework. This was the signal; the Darkness had crossed into the clearing of the Spider Kingdom. The signalling spell wasn’t exactly necessary because there was the Magic Compass and the fact that the sky was literally turning pitch black. Mind you, this was during the day, so the effect was even more pronounced. Everyone had expected the attack to come during the night, but it didn’t look like it would matter or that the encroaching darkness cared about such things at all.

The sudden change was rather spooky, no it was strong enough to fill Lamia and Drow alike with Dread, but it was good that spiders were fearless and demonstrated courage thus reassuring and inspiring the other races.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

The King was giving a late speech to boost the recently fallen morale. Enchanted by Wind magic, his booming voice was carried across the MegaFarm.

“My subjects! No, my allies and my friends.”

He continued the address with:

“Don’t let yourselves be filled with Dread and other dark emotions. We can win! We will! I am most certain because we don’t stand here alone. Just look around you: it’s your allies, your friends, your family, your lovers, and other many precious things we must protect. So here we stand together to expel the Darkness, and darkness we fear not for it can be dispelled! And for those who are afraid of death… I tell you – be not afraid! For you can be resurrected, you will be Reborn! Now let’s fight, let's show it our true resolve!” He blasted his Aura Projection at full power.

As if to deny those words a mass of shadows showed at the clearing, there were so many they formed a sizeable hill. The hill kept forming into a more defined shape. It became a blob. And then it grew shadowy tentacles. Some tentacles were long and others short, some as thick as the trunk of a tree and others as thin as a flower stem. There were so many of them, more than a thousand. The tentacles grasped for the ground and pulled the body of the Darkness towards the walls of the MegaFarm.

The mortal minds were struck with… Dread, Dread, Dread!!! – the calamity radiated the aura of Dread.

Moreover, the embodiment of the calamity didn’t come alone, much like the Spider King, it had its allies. From the blackened sky, an ocean of Shadow Stingrays descended upon the farm. And from the bordering jungle Shadow Monsters: Shadow Wolves, Shadow Roadrunners, Shadow Behemoths, Shadow this and that, monsters big and small charged towards the walls. If this was the first time something like this had happened the battle would have been lost here and now, but it wasn’t.

There is a saying ‘Practise makes perfect’, and the spiders had plenty of that. A massive spell was cast and purple cracks formed in an otherwise pitch-black sky. It only looked that way because they weren’t cracks at all, it was a web made out of magic – All Consuming Web. The fliers were trapped in the web like flies and died in swarms making a thundering volley of pops. Next came the volley of arrows, there were so many that they too, much like the Shadow Stingrays, managed to cloud the sky. The arrows pierced the remaining flying stragglers and continued flying past the defensive wall and into the clearing. Those arrows flew further and quicker than your normal arrow, flying a whole mile in a matter of seconds. It was only possible because of the dual combination of superior equipment and Wind enchantment. Needless to say, the rushing Shadow Roadrunners, the ones at the front of the charge, suffered the brunt of the piercing attack.

A giant spider was standing among its brethren. “Loose!” The Warrior Leader commanded.

This wasn’t an order for yet another volley of arrows. The Warrior Leader was standing in a field lined with contraptions made out of IronOak and BanditAgave rope. The devices could be best described as torsion siege engines; the King called this design simply the Spider Sling. The slings were loaded with barrels filled with Blue Dust. The payload arched through the sky and smashed in the clearing covering it in the clouds of dust. The Shadow monsters had to avoid those patches, the monster that failed to do that simply popped out of existence.

The defensive wall was lined not just with archers, turrets, and grenadiers but also with mages. The robed figures had cast their spells thus further thinning the monster wave.

But not all was well, the Darkness seemed endless and it was coming for the Spider Kingdom. Despite losing thousands of Shadow Monsters it just kept birthing new ones. It didn’t care about the losses, it was simply moving forward. The saving grace was that its main body, being as massive as it was, was only slowly approaching the defensive wall.

“We can’t allow it to get close to the walls.” The King said the obvious.

The huge mass would just flow over the defensive structure and then Drain everyone to death; creatures and plants alike.

“Then we charge. SSS!” The Lamia Queen was already committed.

“Let’s go. Rally behind me.” The King decided to lead the charge.

Spiders, Lamia, Drow, Centauri, Humans and even the creatures of the forest rallied behind the King. First, the Centauri crushed the shadows beneath their hooves clearing the path for the rest of the group. The Lamia supported the King and then the Drow took the flanks forbidding the shadows from closing in by the generous application of magical fire. Lastly, the Apex Squirrels soon caught up from behind and launched themselves at the shadow creatures for a counterattack. Those horns of theirs were a magical weapon by itself and it was surprisingly effective allowing them to prevent the shadows from closing back in from the rear.

The King kept pushing towards that tentacled blob of swirling darkness and his people were supporting him from all sides. His wife the Lamia Queen was at his right, and his beloved but mischievous pet was at his left. And surprisingly, even the magnificent slug Johny was there right behind him; albeit lagging ever so slightly. He couldn’t help but feel honoured seeing their resolve to fight beside him.

As he got closer to the source of Darkness, the tar-like tentacles sprung from the ground slowing his charge.

“Meow. I’ll take care of those!” A certain wyrmling meowed with resolve.

The Great Wyrmling’s words weren’t hollow. It commanded both the air and the earth pulling the nearby Blue Dust clouds and directing them towards the tentacles. The wyrmling had successfully cleared a path through the tentacles. The King’s forces pushed even further towards the source of the calamity.

Lamia Queen raised her Sceptre of Love high above her head and shouted. “Lamia! Sss-support me and mine! [Morale Boost].”

The power of love indeed was something! But, no, the buff was there to combat the Dread debuff the non-spider combatants were now struggling against. The closer to the Darkness the stronger the debuff was.

Hence so, the squirrels were sacrificing themselves in the counterattack. The Drow were letting the fire loose so that the darkness couldn’t encroach from the sides. The Centauri were running around giving support where it was necessary. The wyrmling was keeping the encroaching tentacles in check. The Lamia were assisting the spiders in their forward push and the Queen was giving everyone buffs.

Soon, the King faced the body of the calamity. He was standing right in front of it. It was bigger than he imagined. Its tendrils swung at the spiders threateningly.

“Let’s whittle it down. Bit by bit.” This was the plan from the start.

The siege engines, the arrow volleys, and the magic barrages all took a small chunk out of the body of the Darkness. But the ammo and mana were limited and in the end it had to come down to the old-fashioned brawl and brawn melee. And he and his spiders were here just for that.

“Let it loose!” He shouted starting the melee with a trust of his Devouring Spear.

The mass of darkness shrivelled under his attack. A tendril, thick as a tree, trusted towards him in counterattack.

“[Bastion]!” He invoked but the magic failed to form.