It was glorious.

The lights targeted only the rats as they pierced through their bodies. Most of the rats hit by the falling missiles were severely injured but not dead, a rat could take nearly 5-7 lights before dying. The rats filled the air with their pained screeches. The immediate area around the circle of swordsmen was filled with corpses but the further away from the circle the fewer dead rats and more dying. Even further away were more living and insane rats.

The mages and swordsman rest for the short while that the rats were at bay. One of them noticed that The prince was unconscious and began to treat his injury. In the distance, Commander Erwin was sitting atop the sandstrider, away from the rats while all the Horses and their riders laid waste to the sea of rats and made it a sea of bodies. Erwin was still able to direct his troops even though he was far from them.

"Husks, prepare fire, we are in retreat, Throw the stones after the retreat is complete" Commander Erwin spoke directly into the minds of everyone present. Nico regained consciousness and lay on the ground as his purple robes tore revealing brown cotton cloths. He also heard Commander Erwin and was repulsed yet again when he heard of the vile, smelly, dirty, and disgusting Mob of undead rushing to them. The dry and repulsive creatures were a type of undead that roamed the labyrinth and unfortunately the desert.

The sandstrider that Commander Erwin was on was turning back while all the horse-riding soldiers were rushing back. The mages immediately started to chant spells and write runes midair. The swordsmen began carefully pulling small sacks filled with black rocks of various sizes. They looked like red glass encased in obsidian, the were parts where the red colour showed. The swordsmen pulled the sacks to their place and kept them at their side.

The sandstrider and horses had already crossed the distance. The swordsmen all faced the side the horde was on with a Blaststone in their hand while they made a semi-circle formation. Once the retreat was over they Cocked their arms back and threw. The stones went flying in the air at speeds so fast that they were not visible. The stones flew like missiles and threw sand high in the air when they landed.

Explosions were heard in the distance as the stones exploded. But that didn't stop the advance of the horde. The swordsmen just took more stones and repeated. The mages continued to cast as the sound of explosions was in the air. The horde of husks and rats was losing numbers before they even reached the group. Many mages had finished their spell already and flung them. Contracted summons of fire, massive fireballs, Hundreds of firebolts, a huge ball of green-yellow gas, and many more were thrown at the horde. The gas ball was the first. As it neared the gas ball spread until it covered the horde like a mist. When some fire reached the gas-mist, it ignited, engulfing the entire area in flames as it blew up. the rest of the spells spelled carnage.

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The blaststones were all used up and the swordsmen returned to a circular formation. The massive horde of undead husks and disgusting rats was reduced to just a group of monsters. Yet they advanced until they were in reach.

"Mages, Reduced their mobility. maintain the iron shield" Commander Erun shouted as he referred to the circle of swordsmen as the Iron Shield.

the wave of monsters finally came as they crashed at the iron shield. Erun and the horse-riding warriors had already rushed in the horde. Many mages continued to tug at their exhausted mana pools to cast spell after spell. The ground around the bulk of the horde caved downwards while sand blurred in a circle around the depression in the ground as it cut through many. many monsters just stopped moving like they were statues and ever more spells cut their mobility.

All the while Jacob had been chanting a spell. He wore a brown cotton shirt. He was a middle-aged man with black hair and black eyes. his face was wrinkled with stress as his hands blurred in motion and his voice hoarse from chanting so many spells. He was again casting a long and tiresome spell, attack friend. it would make all the rats attack the husks and then other rats and if they still survive then they themselves. all while ignoring any humans. The spell wouldn't be completed any time soon.

the horde was thinning as more and more were decimated. The horses left trails of bodies free of living or undead as they became just dead. their riders were cutting swaths of bodies every time they attacked with their whip blades. Commander Erwin was watching from above and coordinating everyone. The mages stopped firing spells into the bulk of the horde as the fighters were there, instead, they focused nearby. The Iron shield formation was holding strong and completely surrounded.

Jacob had finally finished his spell. The Dune-rats went into a crazed frenzy and started attacking husks nearby. the slow corpse sandbags were torn bit by bit by the Dune-rats. the dune rats outnumbered the husks and quickly the entire Horde was down to a twentieth of what they had started with. Between the Blaststones, Spells, swords, Horses, and generally just carnage, the fight was nearly over.

The Air was deafening with the insane chatter of the rats as they ripped each other to shreds and then themselves. The last of the rats were dead. The warriors, the mages, The Commander, and the prince all felt relieved as the last of the rats died. The battle was over.

"Why the hell were there so many of them?" Nico thought as he sat on the ground, His shoulder felt hurt but otherwise fine. The air smelled like death, shit, and corpses.

"The rocks were not there before" Nico thought as he observed around him. The rocks in the distance not there before and were strangely getting higher or was he hallucinating.

Suddenly the ground shifted. Nico stumbled and regained his balance and looked around. The rocks were definitely higher now.

He went to a nearby mage and started to point at the rocks which now were now 10 meters above the ground and many more were still rising.

"You, look there. Those aren't supposed to rise are they" Nico said while pointing at the rocks.

Before the mage could respond the rocks shot up and curved. The rocks were in a circle Around them forming a dome. At the base of some of the rocks a leathery material was present. Soon all the rocks had it at the base. All of the pieces were connected by the leathery material.

It was a mouth.