Bellow the quaking advance of war was the clandestine underground lined with blinding torches and filled with frantic citizens.
“I can’t believe this is happening.”
“Next year my boy would’ve joined the expeditions!”
“Our soldiers are being killed by monsters!”
People were trembling, falling over one another, crying, and holding onto one another, some adults held the now orphaned children of those who stayed to fight, victims of collapsing buildings or those who’re murdered trying to escape.
Soothing words and calming instructions were delivered from two noblemen towering above the despairing mob.
“Everyone please orderly enter the prepared carriages, remember the 12-person limit.” Eyes like calm flames looked upon the crowd, easing their wariness and panic.
Icy eyes looked on in admiration at the fine work of their parallel pal. ‘Zestos you really have come a far way from that loudmouthed brat.’ Looking down to his citizen index his frigid demeanor shook.
‘This is no time to panic, I’m a noble, I represent the best of Guardian, if I fall so does their hope.’ Droser’s face was rebirthed with determination.
“Ensure each child is accompanied by at least one adult, ensure parents and children aren’t separated either-.” A light tap upon Zestos’ shoulder snatched him from his preaching zone. “Droser something wrong?”
A scroll with the heading ‘Nobis Lane’ was presented with solely names.
The once chilled noble now took a gulp of air as he shivered, inspecting the scroll. “Don’t tell anyone, if it was to break that an entire lane had gone entirely absent a mass panic would ensue, then we can’t guarantee anyone’s safety.” His fingers curled, tunneling into his skin.
“Zestos, you really are deserving of nobility.” A brotherly impulse, distress and a dash of fear pushed Droser to embrace his friend. “You’re also the best friend I have.”
“Droser now’s not the best time.” Zestos looked on at the now completely halted crowd staring at the pair’s embrace.
A moment of silence before an uproar of invigored hopes sound.
“We are people of Guardian, the one bastion of pure peace left, we mustn’t fall deterred here!”
Wounded soldiers, unharmed adults and the more gifted teens stood to fight.
Droser stomped his foot, commanding attention. “We are people of Guardian, but as our guide Favos always says ‘Guardian is 50% the people and 50% their hopes, so I forbid you all from leaving this place to waste your lives fighting to lose half of Guardian, as long as you stand together Guardian is there, not this land.”
All starred on awe struck at his words, as they calmed their senses kicked in and they continued boarding the carriages.
“I can’t believe it, you sounded just like Favos.” Droser pat the back of his friend as another panicked group descended into the passage.
___
In a hollowed area of Muteki a troop of hulking Ursidae with pure muscle bodies built for winter sat before two intruders attired in black cloaks.
“The siege only just begun and most our men are gone! half of the entrance points have already been dealt with, what’ll be next ours!?” His fingers curled, digging into his sullied gloves.
“Don’t be so rash! We still have Shi, and at least the other half of the entrance points are operational.” He smiled to his ally.
Beyond a pile of crates in a corner lurked a shadowy assailant possessing fractured black eyes. ‘I’ve heard enough.’ Favos laid his hands on the floor, casting a grey miasma circle around the troop.
A grey maw erupted from within the circle; devouring the beasts whole and retreating into the darkness.
The invaders stiffened, unable to comprehend what had taken place.
Snap! The invaders’ eyes darted to the disturbance, capturing the image of a man stepping from the darkness, before being eradicated by the same grey. Spines ruptured from their chests, squiring the rest of their body, cleaving through every organ rendering their target little more than a hole-ridden bloody mess.
‘This brings my tally to 3.’ With a wave of his hand the crates disappear in a blue flash.
He turns to the area of forced entry; a gapping 4 meter tall and 3 meter wide opening, rubble scattered across the ground from its creation. Looking about, his interest is peaked by 4 green crystals on golden pedestals outside the opening.
Favos approached like an irate wreath, snatching all gems and shattering them with his grip. ‘Damn these disruptors.’
BZZT! A green barrier formed within the gap as Favos stepped back inside.
Raising his hand, the rubble levitates. A complex yet swift series of hand movements follow, reforming the wall. A flash of blue then a swirling finger spreads a fast-acting bind across the remade surface.
‘Time to move.’ Grey-light spread from his hands, shoulders and ankles, concealing his entirety by blending into the shade. Darting out the room he flew across a lengthy hall with scores of off-branching passages.
Each step was eerily silent, like he’d morphed to an apparition determined to repay the transgressions of those who’d dare trespass.
After traversing multiple sectors with his only companion being claustrophobic silence, once more he hears noise up ahead.
“We were promised an easy invasion on a group of almost entirely untrained folk, yet we are being slaughtered on mass!” A heavy thud echoed.
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“We were overconfident! We should’ve never come so unprepared.” Their voice trembled.
“I need this to work out, I need this money to feed my daughter with the inflation on the rise!” Distant sobs followed.
Favos peaked into the passage to find 3 invaders stationed beside another breach. Their expressions were a mix of despair and desperation, One hanging their head and barley moving, whilst another trembled.
‘This could be a good opportunity.’ From Favos’ gloves flew a pebble, crashing into the center of the room.
“Prepare your weapons!” The bulkiest of the interlopers jumped to a defensive stance, whilst the rest sluggishly moved.
“Calm yourselves, I’m here to assist you, not hurt you.” Favos entered clear as day, speaking in a confident and calm tone.
“You’re the whole damn reason we’re here!” The bulky man instantly charged.
“Bad choice.” A grey beast spiraled around Favos, its body covered in scales and possessing two forward curving horns on its head. Its arm stretched forward, its clawed fingers pointing downward. A pressure exerts on everyone in the room, flinging them to the ground.
“What in the world!” The floored attacker attempts to move his body but fails to do so little as budge.
“Thank you Nove, now it’s time for a conversation.” The chilled domineer knelt. “Answer my questions and I’ll help you all with the resources you need, but you must leave after, understand?”
The invaders passed glances. “Yes.” They unanimously spoke.
“Good, firstly, will you be felled if you’re discovered to have taken my help?” Favos brought his face closer to man before him.
“Felled? No, the people that call the shots will torture us then leave our families in debt with ‘treason’ to the blasted Fos family!” His face grimaced through the pressure from sheer animosity.
Favos squinted. ‘So it seems there really is another branch out there, but.’ “Why’d they want to cause trouble with us?”
A woman further behind spoke up. “They’re raging narcissists who see themselves as ‘pure’ whilst viewing others as ‘impurities’ that leach off of them. Once they caught wind of another branch of their family descending from some disgraced family member, they gathered an army of trained and untrained to kill them.”
Favos’ head lowered. “Untrained, so they picked people off of the streets with promise of wealth…monsters.”
“We must hurry liege; the soldiers mustn’t be left alone with all those lieutenants running about.” Nove, the beast coiled around Favos spoke up.
Favos nodded. “I’ll make you all a deal, you seal up this intrusion while remaining passive and when this is all over I’ll come back and give you supplies.” He cast his suffocating stare upon the group.
“We have no better choice; we’ll die if we decline anyway.” All the fight drained from the aggressor as he confessed.
The pressure eased away with the agreement. “Also, leave me the disruption gems.”
As Favos turned his back, Nove spoke up. “Some advice for you, when you return with the supplies, show only some and hide the rest, so even if they take a cut you have enough to thrive.”
A mix of relief and gratitude was felt among the group as the domineer and his tormentor departed.
___
Huph…Huph! Galini’s steely glare was captivated by the calamity. “You’ve gotten stronger, colour me impressed.”
The sidelined pipsqueak’s eyes drooped as they watched the perpetual bout. “I thought you’d be more flashy demon, make another big boom or something.” The lieutenant mouthed an explosion before falling with excessive bravado.
Both the wolf and Galini looked to them with snarls.
“WHAT! You two are the boring ones, humph!” They folded their arms and pursed their lips.
Galini rolled her eyes. “Hey molten monstrosity, you done warming up as well?” Tens of green threads reached out from her spear, wildly lashing about the area.
Disfigured mounds formed atop the beasts’ knees spewing magma like puss from its cracks until a glowing eye took shape. A harrowing roar accompanied by a volcanic rise in temperature followed as the beast locked all eyes on Galini.
Galini’s brows furrowed. “I can’t have you doing that, it could damage the whistle.”
As the threads continued their chaos the area began to disappear as the spear glowed brighter.
“Hey listen to her, I can’t call Shi if you melt my whistle.” The lieutenant threw a pebble at the wolfs head.
A low growl escaped the beast’s maw but no further act of resistance as the heat drained.
Galini smirked. ‘One good thing came out of that miniature menace’s mouth for once.’
Crack! Fissures sprouted about the ground as the beast’s leg came down. Beneath the fractures heat built, warming the air before lava erupted from geysers around and beneath Galini.
A white barrier formed from the soles of her feat, halting the lava beneath whist her hair glowed a dark green, extending and creating a dome covering her completely.
As the lava crept, trickling down the edges of the dome, some had ostensibly vanished with an intensifying radiance from within the barrier.
Stomp! The beast leapt, moving thought the air like a meteor to pounce upon its prey. As it landed the earth shook, buildings around collapsing as their foundation crumbled.
Clank! The beast’s fangs came down on the baking dome, wildly thrashing about attempting to shred its way in. A light spilled out as the barrier loosened, creating a small hole viewing the beast’s throat.
‘Spell: Shooting star’ A beam tore through the beast, shooting out the back of its neck, forcing its jaw’s release.
The remaining lava droplets were absorbed as Galini’s hair returned to normal. ‘The buildings!’ Her uncovered eyes manically scanned the area of leveled buildings with a sheet of lava cloaking the ground.
In the air blitzing around, surveying the battle was a large black bird with a child upon its back. “HEY I KNOW YOU TRIED TO KILL ME DUMB MUT!” As if enhanced by magic their voice deafened the combatants with their frustration.
‘A perfectly good rear was ruined when that munchkin grew teeth.’ Galini brandished her fangs to the screaming pest.
Ghrr! A growl escaped the recovering beast’s mouth.
‘I can’t let this fight go on; Guardian will be flattened.’ ‘Active technique: Rising-Action’ Galini’s hair morphed to hundreds of twirling and interweaving threads. Her lively eyes drained of fun as the threads dug into the ground. light flowed up her threads as her bow re-formed with her spear acting as a bolt.
In a flash the beast’s gargantuan claws rocketed towards her face, flashing magma onto the road as it hurdled. Galini’s empty eyes didn’t depart the beast’s head as she punched the air beside her, conjuring the maw of an ethereal beast to clamp down on the enemy’s paw.
A wistful whimper escaped the wolf as it recoiled spilling magma upon the lane. As it turned to face its oppressor again a luminous spear purged half of its body. A flash of fire flared from the eviscerated side before it spewed molten rock like an eruption.
“Now that’s what I’m talking about!” The miniature lieutenant bounced up and down, pumping their fists to the sky as they cheered. The rest of the beast’s body now fell apart, its remnants seeping into the earth alongside the heaps of lava.
Galini’s dead eyes moved to the lieutenant. “You next mouse.” A volley of arrows instantly burned away the enemy’s cloak whilst charring some skin and throwing them off their mount.
The lieutenant hurdled towards the ground with watery eyes. “Hey look demon, no need to be rash, you can spare some bones you know.” A wry smile arose as the lieutenant was approached and subsequently snatched from the air by Galini’s hair.
“I’ll be taking that.” Her hair shifted to normal as she ripped the whistle from the lieutenant’s throat.
“So, can I leav- AHHH!” The pipsqueak plummeted to the earth as Galini released them.