The arrow streaked through the air, a shimmering bolt of divine energy that seemed to carve a path through the distorted atmosphere. It struck the sentinel's glossy surface with a resounding crack, the impact sending a ripple across its obsidian form.
For a brief moment, the creature seemed to falter, its massive frame swaying as if caught off balance. But then, with an almost casual shrug, it righted itself, the spot where the arrow had struck already beginning to heal over with a smooth, glass-like sheen.
Ebonheim barely had time to process this before Syntris launched himself at the sentinel, his flame-wreathed blade cleaving through the air with terrifying speed. The blade connected with the sentinel's arm, cutting through the gleaming surface with a sound like shattering crystal.
As the sentinel reeled from the blow, the other gods joined the fray.
Aetheron followed suit, his hands glowing with a soft, turquoise light as he sent a wave of energy crashing into the sentinel's chest. The force of the impact was enough to send the towering construct staggering backward, its clawed feet gouging deep furrows into the red earth.
Ariastra followed Aetheron's attack by weaving a complex set of seals with her mahogany fingers. The gestures created a pattern in the air around her body which began to glow with a golden hue. As she completed the series of movements, a beam of dazzling light lanced forth from the intricate geometric formations.
The light enveloped the sentinel in a searing burst of radiance. The force of the blast drove the construct deeper into the ground, its obsidian-glass surface cracking and splitting apart under the onslaught. However, despite the severity of the attack, the sentinel appeared unfazed by Ariastra's assault and, after recovering its footing, resumed its relentless advance.
Meanwhile, Nephri flew above, her slender serpentine body writhing sinuously as she unleashed a barrage of razor-sharp icicles toward the towering sentinel. The shards of frozen water sliced through the air, striking the automaton's exposed joints and cracks in its armor-like surface. Where the ice made contact, crystalline tendrils grew across its obsidian-glass skin, binding its limbs and restricting its movement.
Still, the sentinel pressed on, its movements increasingly hindered by the layers of ice encasing its form.
Ebonheim fired a barrage of Essence Bolts as she maneuvered behind the sentinel. Her aim remained true as the arrows landed upon the gaps between the ice, creating clusters of cracks that spider-webbed outwards.
For a moment, she thought the construct might shatter, but instead, the energy of the arrows seemed to sink into the sentinel's dark body, absorbed by the swirling void where its head should have been.
The sentinel halted mid-charge, its form flickering as if caught between two states of existence. Ebonheim's breath caught as she watched the construct convulse, its limbs jerking erratically. Then, with a sound like glass shattering, the sentinel split into two smaller versions of itself, each one identical to the original in every way except for size.
Now the two were only nine times Ebonheim's height. Not much of a difference—still enormous.
"What the—?" Ebonheim swore.
"Well, that wasn't expected," Syntris muttered, his voice tinged with annoyance as he hefted his flaming sword. "But two is still manageable."
Undeterred, Syntris sprang forward, his flaming sword leaving a trail of embers in its wake. With a shout, he brought the blade crashing down upon the closest of the two sentinels. The construct met the attack head-on, catching the fiery weapon with one massive clawed hand. The impact caused the red soil beneath the pair to erupt in a shower of dirt and debris, as the force of Syntris' assault shattered the ground between them.
"Persistent, aren't you?" Syntris muttered, a hint of frustration creeping into his voice as he tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword. His eyes narrowed, the flames on his blade flaring brighter in response to his growing resolve.
While Syntris and the first sentinel grappled with each other, Ebonheim focused her attention on the second construct. She let fly another volley of Essence Bolts, but this time augmented by her Elemental Admixture. The bolts collided with the second sentinel's glossy torso, engulfing the automaton in an inferno. Flames licked at its obsidian-glass frame, causing the heat to shimmer as they burned bright against its reflective surface.
As the fire died down, the sentinel continued to stand firm—its black form untouched.
Nephri swirled above, her aqueous form twisting and coiling as she released a cascade of icy torrents onto the burning construct. The combined might of Nephri's hail and her fire-enhanced projectiles managed to momentarily halt the sentinel in its tracks.
But then, with a sickening lurch, that sentinel began to convulse. The fires consuming its body dimmed, and the hail pounding its form shattered harmlessly against its darkened surface. The convulsions grew more violent, the sentinel's form twisting and warping until, with a sound like cracking ice, it split down the middle.
Just as before, the two halves pulled away from each other, reshaping themselves into smaller forms that mirrored their previous iterations. Except the new pairs were eight times Ebonheim's height.
Ebonheim's eyes widened in shock. "It's multiplying!" she yelled.
She barely had time to process her words before she had to duck under a vicious swipe from one of the newly split sentinels. The blow caught her shoulder instead, sending her spinning off her feet. She crashed to the ground with a painful grunt, her body skidding through the pliable earth beneath her.
[Divine Aura] 237/400
From one glancing blow?! Just how strong are these things?!
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
She activated her Divine Sight, peering into the aura of the sentinels.
𑇐𑇐𑇐𑇐 Analysis Unavailable
𑇐𑇐𑇐𑇐 Analyze failed due to incompatible entity format.
The message flickered and faded. Ebonheim blinked hard. "What?!"
She looked back towards Syntris and the others. The sentinel that they had been fighting also split, adding two more to their opponent's number.
Syntris parried a strike from one of the smaller versions before delivering a powerful riposte, his flaming blade biting deeply into the sentinel's arm. It retaliated by striking out with its free hand, clawed fingers raking across Syntris' divine aura. A burst of dark energy from its central void then caught him square in the chest, sending him flying back several meters before slamming hard onto the soft earth below.
His divine aura waned, yet it looked like it could still weather a dozen more such attacks.
Ebonheim gulped as she turned her gaze back at the sentinel attacking her.
It looked like she really was the weakest among them.
Regardless...there wasn't any choice except to fight on! It's do or die...literally!
Nephri weaved around a dark blast from one sentinel and swiped at another with her tail. Ice crept along the sentinel's glossy surface in a futile effort to restrain its movements. But just as soon as the frost crystals gained purchase, the construct simply tore loose and continued its relentless advance.
Aetheron and Ariastra fared no better. The former blasted his foes with bursts of pure energy, but the resulting explosions only served to knock them back momentarily. Ariastra emitted a symphony of harmonious tones from the strings embedded into her mahogany flesh—some beautiful, some horrific—and manipulated them as a weapon. The chaotic discord clashed violently against the sentinels' bodies, yet they showed no sign of faltering.
How long could they continue like this? Was there a limit to how many times they could divide? What was causing it? Their attacks?!
The sentinel chasing Ebonheim closed in, its bulk looming above her. She rolled to the side as it tried to stomp on her, narrowly avoiding the creature's clawed foot. She leapt to her feet and fired off another round of Essence Bolts at point-blank range.
Her efforts were rewarded with the sentinel splitting again into two more of its kind.
"Dammit!" she cursed.
She jumped back as the nearest construct attempted to skewer her with its sharp appendages.
While in mid-air, she noticed the void 'heads' of the two newest additions warp and contort—the same thing she saw when one of them blasted Syntris earlier.
A moment later, twin bursts of dark energy shot out from them, enveloping Ebonheim.
[Divine Aura] 0/400
[Health] 608/751
"Aaaaaagh!" she screamed.
She never thought pain could get worse with her not being human. But apparently, that wasn't the case.
She tumbled and bounced like a ragdoll across the rough terrain. Fortunately, the pliable nature of the area cushioned her landing enough to prevent further damage. Still, her whole body throbbed with agony.
Her vision swam, a kaleidoscope of distorted colors and shapes spinning madly around her. Her ears rang with the clamor of battle, mixed with the guttural roars of the sentinels. Through her blurry vision, she could see Syntris and the other gods struggling to hold off the growing numbers of obsidian-glass automatons.
The tide was turning against them. Unless something changed quickly...it would only end one way...
She coughed and tried to pick herself off the ground, her muscles protesting every movement. Even moving an inch sent jolts of white-hot pain racing through her nerves.
"Damn..." she groaned.
The air around her rippled as Aetheron and Ariastra appeared beside her.
Aetheron stood in front of her and pressed his palms together. A shimmering prismatic wall materialized between them and the sentinels.
"A strategic retreat seems prudent," he suggested, his calm tone contrasting with the urgency of the situation. "Our initial assessment may have underestimated this foe." He turned to Ariastra, who nodded solemnly in return. "Prepare to open the path out of here."
Ariastra closed her eyes and began weaving symbols in the air with her deft wooden fingers. Her melodious voice rose in song once again as she wove the musical spell. Golden sigils flashed into existence around them, forming intricate geometric patterns that hung suspended in space. With a final flourish, Ariastra brought both hands together with a thunderous clap, completing the spell.
The air rippled as a portal opened.
Syntris and Nephri regrouped with them. The latter's movements appeared sluggish and erratic, her azure liquid body trailing rivulets of silver in its wake. Syntris' divine aura dimmed, and his weapon faded into nothingness.
"We're leaving," Ariastra said. "Make haste."
Nephri dove through first, vanishing into the glowing aperture without hesitation. Ariastra followed close behind, then Syntris.
Aetheron grabbed Ebonheim and unceremoniously threw her into the portal. She stumbled through and collapsed on the other side into a heap. She shook her head weakly, her blurred vision gradually clearing. Slowly, her senses returned.
Aetheron stepped through the gap and held up a palm. With a flash of light, the portal snapped shut.
They had retreated back to the spot where they'd originally entered this dimension. Or whatever this place could be called.
Ebonheim pulled herself upright and surveyed her surroundings. Nothing appeared changed since they'd ventured in. The same ethereal landscape of twisted shapes and distorted colors spread before them. The strange celestial orb still dominated the horizon.
Nothing seemed to be pursuing them...yet.
"Well, that went unexpectedly horribly," Syntris said flatly, dusting his cloak off. He fixed Aetheron with an annoyed stare. "You'd better explain why we ran away."
Ebonheim shakily got to her feet, wincing as her body creaked and ached with each movement. Aetheron quickly moved over to her and helped her straighten her posture.
"Those sentinels multiplied whenever we caused enough damage," Aetheron explained. "The more we fought, the harder it became to avoid dividing them."
"So you want us to stand around doing nothing?" Syntris countered.
"Far from it. We must investigate this anomaly further. There is a connection between those constructs and the obelisk nearby. That much I am certain. So we need to figure out a method to circumvent or destroy those guards."
Ebonheim couldn't argue with Aetheron's logic. Attacking those sentinels head-on proved unwise and dangerous. At least they could attempt something different with the obelisk next time. Maybe there was a puzzle that had to be solved to disable it.
But that plan required rest and recovery first.
"Guess we can give it a try...when we're ready," she said hesitantly. "My aura needs to replenish before we go again."
"Mine doth as well," Nephri agreed, floating closer to the group.
Aetheron gave a curt nod and took a seat atop a nearby rock formation. "Very well. Let us recover. We are far enough away here to give ourselves time to do so. Use the time wisely. Because we'll most likely have to repeat the cycle once more."