CHAPTER 158: The Wall Falls
Emily screamed. The ground was becoming a slope beneath her, leaning towards where a giant blue fist kept pulling back and pounding the wall.
It wasn’t that the large chunk of the wall she was on was separating from the rest. The wall had somehow turned brittle, maybe due to some of the skills that the Kukiolis had used while punching. The cracks that Emily had been trying to hold together had become debris, rocks of all sizes were ricocheting around until they bounced down towards the outside of the wall.
The Kukiolis’s head was below the height of the top of the wall. Yet Emily could see the head and the pounding fist as the wall was crumbling away. She kept trying to stand, to move herself onto more stable ground, but her lack of physical stats and experience in these situations resulted in her panicking. All she managed was to scream.
She didn’t cry for help or try any miraculous way to avoid it. Fear and uncertainty froze her mind and actions, like when driving on treacherous roads and watching a tractor trailer coming straight towards you after having lost control. The situation was so far different than her experiences and abilities that she could only watch in terror, no solutions coming to mind.
Everything moved slowly as the terror took in all the details that she couldn’t control. The rocks and rumble beneath her that were making it too difficult to shift her body, the pull of gravity that was drawing her towards the increasingly dangerous ledge. A part of her mind, boosted by her intelligence stat, was trying to focus on her skills and spells, searching for one that would help her in this situation. Unfortunately, the rest of her just trembled, watching wide eyed as the inevitable fall approached.
The screaming didn’t stop. Some people watched from a distance, distracted from attacking a different Kukiolis, with as much uncertainty as she felt. Andrea was yelling even as she continued casting her lightning to finish off the cyclops Emily had previously been attacking.
Others on the wall, some with physical classes, were using skills to try and reach her before the entire section of the wall shattered and fell. One support class was even trying to cast a crowd control skill to try and root her in place, but it was too far out of reach.
Emily’s screaming continued and she began to grab and claw, trying to find anything she could hold onto.
The Kukiolis below had noticed the screaming, and it had stopped punching. Its one large eye was fixated on her as she slid towards the edge. The invader’s left hand, as big as a car, was waiting to catch her when she fell.
Finally, with too much of the ground crumbling away, Emily then fell, caught in the rocky landslide. Her breath caught and screaming stopped as she was pulled down to the outstretched hand.
With the screaming stopped, she heard a new noise growing closer and getting louder. Three new sounds blended together. One was a threatening growl, one was barking, and the other was a canine whine. As her body dropped through the open air, rocks bouncing off her too, she looked back up.
A long shadow came over the edge, becoming a three-headed dog as it leapt from the wall, speeding towards her. Two heads bit her clothes, holder her tightly as they now fell together. The third head looked down at the rapidly approaching palm. It opened its mouth and blew fire breath. Emily felt the heat as they dropped, even as Fido angled the breath away from her.
The Kukiolis bellowed and pulled his hand back, allowing Fido to drop the remaining distance to the ground. They landed heavily, but the Carthraga’s stats were high enough that the fall did minimal damage to him. Emily, with her low strength and vitality took a greater amount of damage from the impact, even though she was held by Fido, having the wind knocked out of her.
She choked and sputtered, trying to breathe deeply. Her eyes swam while her brain was amazed at how far they had fallen and survived. Pre-[System] that would have easily been their death but now it was something many could walk away from.
Unfortunately, Emily wasn’t finished with being in danger. Once able to breathe again, she looked up, realizing that Fido had placed her on the ground. All three of his mouths were baring their teeth and growling at the swarm of approaching Scyrric.
A platoon of lizard men approached. Fire, ice, and lightning breath was sent out at them. Barriers and shields easily blocked it. When one of the breaths ran out, Fido would bark with a flash of red. Some of the Scyrric would stumble backwards from the fear inducing skill he used, but not enough. They pressed forward in formation.
Emily cast [Tidal Flows] causing a wave of water to come from nowhere to crash against the approaching invaders. Only a small bit of the water passed through their barriers, but it did nothing more than make a few of the Scyrric damp.
She used [Flame Geyser], focusing the stream of fire coming from her hands, but a shield was able to block it without melting. Any damage caused by it to the defending Scyrric was undone as a healer flashed their skill, repairing their vanguard.
Emily yelled as she panted heavily from forcing out so much mana, combined with her fear. She was weaker than them. Even if her level was in range of theirs, their skills and equipment were better than hers. Maybe one on one she could have done something, but this was a trained and experienced military unit.
Then they counter attacked.
A yellow bolt of magic flew out and struck her in the chest. She felt the power behind it and was thrown backwards off her feet. A blue ball of some element hit her in the stomach, and she landed on her back.
She tilted her head to see Fido whimpering, trying to stand and limp over to her. One of his legs was burned and another didn’t seem to be working correctly. A projectile that was more like a spike than an arrow had pierced his side.
Emily pushed to her feet. Her abdomen felt bruised, as if a boxer had used her as a punching bag. Yet she was still alive, and barely damaged thanks to the equipment she had worn. She knew it was the best the Sentinel Army could make, due to Adam insisting that those closest to him were protected the most.
She unclasped the cloak and hood on her back and stumbled over to Fido, where she put it around him to try and block any more attacks that might come. It didn’t matter though. Warriors walked forward with bladed weapons and shields; hissing laughter made at her extent.
Then another Scyrric pushed its way through. It had a tag of “Barrier Adherent [46]”. That level meant it was Tier 3. She shot an [Earth Lance] at it, but it broke apart before reaching the invader.
“Pathetic native,” said the Barrier Adherent. “Trying to hurt us with such paltry spells. Not even a worthwhile class to challenge us with. Your death will be meaningless.”
Emily struggled to her feet. She stood there, knees slightly bent, holding her side. Fear, frustration, and hate filled her.
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“If my brother was here, you wouldn’t stand a chance!” she screamed. “He would kill you no matter the Tier and then your whole army!”
The Scyrric stopped approaching, thinking it was a joke. He joined the rest of the troops in laughing at her. “Little hatchling, your disrespect of the Scyrric only dishonors you and shows your ignorance. No native on this world has a chance against us.”
“My brother has killed more of your kind and will continue until your whole race is DEAD!” shrieked Emily.
The Scyrric looked at her thoughtfully, dragging one of his talons along a ribbed translucent barrier he created in the air. It made a clicking noise, almost like an absent-minded gesture while thinking.
“Brother? This is a hatch mate, yes? Could you be a she hatch mate of the aberration?” the Barrier Adherent asked.
“He’s not an aberration!” Emily continued to yell. “He’s a hero and he’ll put you in your place! Under the ground!”
“How does me being under the ground matter? I could easily dig a tunnel with my barriers,” pondered the invader, missing her intention. “But you being a hatch mate of the aberration changes things. Since we no longer have him to study, maybe studying more in his line will prove informative, yes?”
Emily went to yell more but then froze, mouth partly open. Her mind realized too late what the Scyrric was saying. Her insides became panicked, and she broke out into a cold sweat. She wanted to protect Fido as much as herself, and maybe the best way to do that was to get away from him. She turned to run…and ran into a translucent wall.
With one side blocked, she moved in another direction only to be restrained there too. She turned all around to find that she was in a box made of barriers. The Scyrric saw her fear and laughed louder.
“Yes,” the Scyrric answered as if someone had asked a question. “Since your aberration is no longer available to us, you will begin the repayment for his crimes.”
Emily could do nothing but pound on the barriers. She tried screaming for help, but it didn’t look like her voice penetrated the barrier. She even tried casting her spells, but those were blocked from use too. Tears streamed down her face as the Barrier Adherent walked back through the troops, her prison steadily floating behind him.
Due to the barrier blocking all sound, Emily was unable to hear his next order, “Their wall is coming down. Prepare to enter it.”
***
Alissa had been running after Fido. She was too far behind when she saw the hood fall from Emily’s head and realized who it was.
“Stupid cutie,” she muttered as she ran. “I can’t fault her for wanting to help, but it would have been better to stay in the tower.”
Then the wall gave way, taking Emily with it. Fido didn’t hesitate to leap off the edge after her.
Arriving at the end of the stable ground, Alissa looked down and saw the two land safely. But landing safely didn’t make them safe. The burn on the Kukiolis’s hand from Fido’s breath was healed, and the monster wanted his revenge. He was looking down, turning his hand to flatten them.
“Oh no you don’t!” Alissa said.
She activated [Blessing of Wrath], [Ascending Vitality], and [Intelligence to Strength] to boost her strength and vitality. Then she jumped so she was facing the Kukiolis’s eye. Once in the air, she cast her Tier 3 ability [Angel’s Advance]. Black feathery wings appeared on her back. They were only temporary and not a physical manifestation. The skill triggered and she flew through the air in a straight line.
The Kukiolis was still looking down at Fido and Emily, so she yelled, “Up here, one eye!”
The invader looked up. Right before impact, Alissa used a slew of other skills. She cast [Sins of the Vengeful] to increase the damage the invader would take from her attacks, then [Avenge Ally] to boost her damage based on the damage her target had done to her allies. Finally, a Tier 1 spell [Increase Power] boosted her magic power further.
Then she smacked into the giant’s eye.
This wasn’t like getting a small bug caught in your eye while riding a bicycle. Alissa came at him like a torpedo, a tier above the creature, with her strength and damage buffed as high as they could go. The speed [Angel’s Advance] propelled her, and the stability since it required her to move in a single direction, enhanced the impact further.
Her fist flew right into his eye, then popped through the cornea. Optical fluids sprayed out even more than when shot with the sniper rifle.
“Gross, you giant piece of p…,” she cursed before closing her mouth to keep the spurts of fluid from getting in.
The Kukiolis once more bellowed in pain. Immediately the eye began to heal. The hole she had made, about the width of her shoulders, started closing up.
“Forget that!” she shouted.
Holding on to the edges of the eye wound, she began using [Take Life]. It was a drain spell that pitted her vitality, strength, and intelligence stats against her target’s vitality. Her passive skill [Improved Life Transfer] doubled the amount of damage it caused.
As she felt the energy, life, and mana from the creature being drawn into her, the hole stopped closing. It became a clash of her power versus its regeneration. She was doing damage to it very slowly while it was regaining the life she took.
Previously, she had always seen people cast their spells from their hands, but she wondered why they should be so limited. Fido shot spells from his mouths, not his paws. Unfortunately, she was stuck using [Take Life] with both hands to keep the eye from healing. That meant she needed a different way to do damage.
Preparing a mental image, she tried to imitate Fido. She opened her mouth and growled, then she cast the spell [Death Bolt] while focusing the mana for the skill in her mouth. A black bolt fired from it and went into the inner eye.
Alissa nodded at her success, then made sure [Take Life] was continuing to absorb energy. She drew the absorbed energy back to her head where she continued to fire [Death Bolts]. She kept this up for a few minutes. It was tiring, and quite frankly boring and a hassle, but she had no other choice.
“Alissa, I’ve got this!” a familiar voice called to her from the wall. “Drop down now!”
“You got it, babe,” Alissa yelled back, ceasing the casts of [Death Bolt]. She looked to the ground and let go of the giant. Then she used [Angel’s Advance] to rocket down safely, protected from the impact, thanks to the skill, as she struck the ground.
“[Volt Cutter]!” she heard Andrea yell from the wall as a condensed beam of lightning shot from her hands into the eye where the damage Alissa had done superheated from the attack. The beam continued as the blue cyclops fell to its knees, Andrea adjusting her attack angle as it fell.
Alissa looked over at where she expected Fido and Emily to be, but they weren’t there. Instead, she saw Fido covered by one of Brittney’s cloaks. Blood had stained the ground below him and more of those bastard reptile people were approaching, weapons ready. At the edge of her vision, she saw Emily trapped inside an invisible box, pounding and screaming even though no noise came out. She was being dragged along by a Tier 3 Scyrric of a much higher level than Alissa.
One problem at a time. Emily was in danger, but Alissa wouldn’t be able to reach her without a prolonged fight. Fido, on the other hand, was about to be killed.
“This won’t stand!” Alissa snarled as turned to face the Scyrric approaching Fido. She once more activated [Angel’s Advance].
STATUS SHEET:
Name: Alissa Whitmore [20]
Age: 18
Race: Human
Appointment: N/A
Class: Avenging Angel [13] (Epic) Tier 3
Body [7]
Strength: 125
Agility: 58
Vitality: 159
Intelligence: 207
Wisdom: 59
Skill Points: 3
Skills:
Mana Dart: Cast a weak, non-elemental projectile made from mana.
Water Ball +5: Cast a water-based projectile at a target.
Increase Power +5: Gives an increase in damage to attack spells.
Air Spear: Cast a lance of air at a target.
Blessing of Wrath +5: Boost Strength, Agility, and Intelligence to increase combat capabilities.
Give Life: Heal a target by providing life energy from the caster or absorbed through [Take Life]. Requires physical contact with a target to use. A channeled spell.
Take Life +5: Drain the life energy and Vitality of a target. Requires physical contact with a target to use. A channeled spell.
Ascending Vitality +5: Boost Vitality for user or ally.
Quick Step: Increase movement speed based on Intelligence stat.
Death Bolt +5: Cast a mana projectile that destroys life energy and weakens a target.
Improved Life Transfer +5: Double the effect of [Take Life], [Give Life], and other drain effects.
Intelligence to Strength +5: Increase Strength stat by 50% of Intelligence while reducing Intelligence stat by 25% for a set duration.
Avenge Ally: Boost damage done to a target based on the amount of damage they have done to user’s allies in the previous minute.
Sins of the Vengeful +5: Mark a target for their sins against the caster. Increase damage taken by user and all allies.
Angel's Advance: Gain wings that propel and protect the caster as they move in a straight direction. Damage from impacts or contact at the end of the advance are reduced by 80%. Can be used to advance or retreat.
Make Space: Send out a ring of force around the user that pushes or knocks back any enemy within that space. Requires life energy to use.