CHAPTER 126: Enduring

“Masteeeeeeeer…” two shrill voices hissed as they ran up the stairs.

Tom removed his arm from around the organ grinder corpse’s shoulders and yanked his sword free. Two Tier 3 agility-based Pellicians were racing towards him. There was a “Spine Slasher [14]” and a “Bloody Cutter [16]” moving at him fast. Much faster than he was.

His sword was brought up and Tom prepared to [Quick Step] away from them before they reached him.

A shadow covered the hole in the ceiling of this garage level and a body came through. Two glowing hands grabbed the back of the Pellicians’ heads and slammed them into the floor, holding them there. The effect of [Kinetic Impact] caused the heads to practically bounce onto the floor and back into his hands, driving their faces in deeper.

“Aw, boss. I had them right where I wanted them,” whined Tom while also breathing out in relief.

Adam looked at the organ grinder. “Killing the Tier 3 Arripion and Pellician solo is impressive enough. Let’s leave it at that for today.”

“But I had them right where I wanted them,” Tom repeated as he sheathed his sword and then shadow boxed, as if looking for another fight.

“Shall I release these two then?” asked Adam, raising an eyebrow.

“Er, that’s ok. Since you’re here now. Besides, I might have pulled a hammy just now,” Tom groaned as he grabbed his clearly unhurt hamstring.

Adam waited as Tom fake hobbled over and stabbed the two incapacitated Pellicians.

Pellician “Spine Slasher [14]” was slain. 5,738 XP gained.

Pellician “Bloody Cutter [16]” was slain. 5,994 XP gained.

“I assume your side is clear?” asked Tom.

“Yeah. The group was rather weak. Leprechauns and gorillas,” Adam said dismissively.

“Did you get their pot of gold?” jested Tom. Then he thought for a minute. “Actually, I saw something when fighting.”

Tom ran over to the organ grinder’s corpse, sticking his tongue out in disgust, and reached into the fat rodent’s armor and pulled out a necklace with a brown crystal attached. Once free, he tossed it to Adam.

“Thanks. Guess we’ll get the water reclamation plant after all, though there are probably still Pellicians there…for now.”

“Glad to be of service, boss,” Tom crowed while giving his poor imitation of a salute.

“Now we need to hurry. We’re about twenty minutes behind everyone else.”

***

Chad watched, in awe, as Commander Rexus fought. Nine others in the special forces fought with him. It was a sight to behold. The commander was already at Tier 3, but the others were close as well. The difference in capability between them and someone only midway through Tier 2, like Chad, was easy to see.

The commander rushed around the front lines, trying to intercept attacking invaders. The class “Siege Wall [9]” must be some kind of defensive class, because when Rexus was struck, there was always a reversal of the attack, with Rexus countering more powerfully than he was hit. He also suffered some damage, but not as much as he should have. He carried a shield and short staff made from the bones of some of the more powerful enemies they had faced.

Behind the commander stood Tyler Zito with the class “Domain Healer [38]”. He would create an area around him that would naturally heal the allies inside. Some buffs and light shields were also thrown out by him. As long as the commander stood inside the domain, all the damage he suffered would heal.

Jack Fleming, “Firemancer [39]”, and Cody Sloan, “Airmancer [39]”, stayed in the domain while throwing spells into the hordes of invaders across from them. Dalton Coleman, “Piercing Archer [38]”, was able to target specific enemies with his bow. He didn’t have a lot of arrows, as manufacturing them on the road was more than difficult, so he concentrated on the most troublesome enemies and nearly one-shotted them all.

Jamari Gillum, “Outrider [1]”, was a scout and hit Tier 3. His skills weren’t targeted at direct combat, but with a combat knife in each hand, you couldn’t tell as he engaged any enemies that came to him. Next to Gillum were Kevin Spence, “Breakdown Pugilist [0]”, who used only gloved fists to crush his opponents and Willis Abrego, “Pocket Dueler [0]”, who dual wielded bone long blades to slash anyone who entered his “pocket.”

Those eight stood at the front. They couldn’t prevent all the invaders from getting past them, but they took out their share. Others from the special forces had gone to the rear, to engage whatever enemies were there.

Then there was Gregor. Chad and he had gotten close over the months, and he had seen Gregor in the aftermath of battle, but he had never seen the man fight. Now he knew why everyone feared him, and the power of the man they said was the strongest after Commander Rexus.

Gregor didn’t hold the lines. Nor did he stand in front. It was like all reason and thought had left the man as his skin tinted red and he charged directly into the invader hordes. His punches and kicks used enough force to explode his enemies. He could pick up any weapon and it would become deadly through the force he wielded it with.

His skills would flash, and he would charge unstoppably through the invaders until he reached his target. Shouts came from him that would disorient those around him. Red flashes would go off and his already huge muscles would gain more size as he became increasingly feral. Gregor was a force of nature like no combatant or invader he had seen.

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Other fighters from their caravan, Chad included, stood behind Zito’s healing domain. If people took injuries, they would step inside, otherwise it was important not to tax the already tired healer.

Everyone was tired, even those special forces powerhouses. Resources were dwindling and focus was wavering. Worst of all, the enemy horde, tens of thousands strong, wasn’t even sending all its warriors. They were attacking mostly from ranged, sending out just enough to keep the humans from pushing forward.

The most dangerous were the green tipped arrows. If they hit people, poison spread quickly through them, and getting the suddenly barbed arrowhead out of them was often deadly. Zito didn’t have the mana to help those hit, so Chad was focusing on preventing those arrows from arriving.

Chad’s arms were held upwards as he moved the air around to alter the trajectories of the arrows, and sometimes to move people out of their way. He was worn down after the days of running and then after almost forty minutes of fighting. It was a struggle just to summon the wind, but it had to be done. He might be running on fumes, but he refused to stop.

The rain of fire, ice, and thrown objects were someone else’s responsibility. Chad kept his eyes and focus entirely on those deadly arrows. He couldn’t imagine anyone able to survive them. It would take someone at Rexus’s strength, or more.

People had gone down. Many were dragged to other healers in the back. Everyone who fell had someone else step forward, but they were beginning to lose people as fast as they could replace them. The levels of the replacements decreased as well, weakening the army as a whole.

Clearly the invaders were trying to wait them out. They had been run to exhaustion, prevented from getting food, water, and rest. If the invaders were so set on having them dead, why had they waited until now? Was it just to torment them? To let their hopes get built up so that they could reach a place of safety, only to tear it away?

Only a few more hours to Jackson. Even by foot, with the entire caravan, it would only take a few more hours. With days, weeks, months of fighting and traveling behind them, a few more hours were nothing. But right now, those hours were everything. The end of the journey was here.

Chad squinted his eyes and drew out whatever reserves were left inside. He created a curve of air, causing an arrow to fly over the head of a warrior. Then he used a sudden burst of air to knock a man over, causing another arrow to miss them and instead hit someone using a reinforced metal half barrel as a shield.

One of those ugly elves targeted Chad directly and he barely got out of the way in time, while creating an uplift in the air, as another gust of wind from an elf caster tried to counter his own air to allow an arrow through to him.

Chad was panting. Then he missed one. His mana, mental focus, and physical energy was drained after a few more minutes. A man screamed as the arrow penetrated his chest. The man went down, black veins spreading across skin that was turning green from the poison. Chad saw it happen and fell to his knees. His hands fell forward. That’s man’s death was on him. He had…if only he could…just one more…

Thoughts weren’t coming to his head. They were elusive. He didn’t remember climbing to his hands and knees. Maybe if he could just take a little nap, he’d be able to stop those arrows again. Chad fell onto his shoulder and closed his eyes. More shouting was happening around him, but he would figure it out after a nap.

A rough set of hands grabbed Chad, jerking him awake. Chad’s eyes looked down and saw Kevin Spence’s gnarled knuckles dragging him into Zito’s healing zone.

“Mental attack. Probably a sleep spell,” grunted Spence, both to Chad and to Zito. “Can’t believe they didn’t attack him sooner.”

“Don’t think we didn’t notice you holding off all those ballistics by yourself. You kept us going a lot longer, soldier,” praised Zito.

“Think he’ll be back to it? We lost twelve by the time I reached him.”

“Unlikely, I think he’s out of mana. Chad, was it?” asked Zito, though just to be polite. “I believe you’re the one Gregor is always raving about. I guess he’s right. You are top tier.”

Chad’s head was clearing while in the healing domain, and he was gaining a bit more energy and alertness. It was also the first time he had had the chance to look around. That was when he realized his strict focus on the arrows had left him without knowing the state they were in.

The lines were being pushed back. Invaders were getting through them, almost to the front vehicles of the caravan. Chaos was everywhere. Only here was it even pretending to be calm. Chad took in a breath and closed his eyes. The healing energy flowed into him. He didn’t want to see his fellow men fall.

With his head placed on the ground, feeling the hard asphalt of the road, amidst a magical dome that would heal him only as long as Zito had energy, Chad let the noises drown out the world. There was a clanging of metal on metal. Grunts as people were wounded. The sizzle of spells and the whistling as they tore through the air. Then there was the shaking of the ground.

Shaking of the ground? Chad sat up and looked around. People were stepping, stomping, dodging, and dashing, but nothing to explain those vibrations he just felt. He stood up and looked around. Zito grabbed him and tried to pull him down, but Chad once more popped up.

“What are you doing?!” complained Zito. “You’ll be a target like that!”

“It’s just…I hear…” Chad mumbled as they turned around.

That was when he saw it. To the south and a little west. Along the curve of the road. There was the haze you got when a lot of vehicles were running hot on a cold day on the highway. Chad stared, trying to see through the heat, straining his ears to hear more.

Laughter came from Chad’s mouth. A few people turned and looked at him like he was crazy. He put his head back and barked more laughter as tears streaked down his dirty cheeks. Then everyone heard the horn.

***

Lucas could see them. There were a lot of them. Adam would be furious if he saw this many invaders before him. He’d be worked up into a rabid froth. Or, he’d be smiling a hungry smile.

Adam wasn’t Lucas though, and Lucas saw danger. That wouldn’t deter him. He reached to where a horn was fastened to his handlebars and pulled it down. When it reached his mouth, he blew hard on it, releasing a series of blasts that was a practiced command. It would be heard far and wide.

After only a few seconds, more horn sounds blared out as his orders were passed down the line.

Lucas slowed down. He allowed people to catch up. Vehicles pulled up next to him, on the road, the median, and the outside grass. Everyone got out of their seats. Shield men formed to the sides, Brittney standing beside him. Spearman formed up behind, like the pikemen of European armies. Then came warriors, supports, archers, and mages. Everyone had their place and knew where it was. Individual unit leaders took charge of the details as everyone fell into step with Lucas.

He raised his war hammer up and held it with two hands, striding forward at a speed that others could follow. So many invaders in front of him, and where were the humans? All he had to do was look across the entrance ramp of the highway where he saw so many humans fighting for their lives.

Lucas found himself grinning. It was a grim look, but he felt a bit like Adam just then. This wasn’t just dangerous; it would also be a feast.

Several orders were shouted by Lucas, but what it all amounted to was, “go kill the invaders.”