Ezekiel and the rest of the humans within the Spirit Haven were not pleased with the news the guardian Birds had brought them. There were several voices that had declared they needed to leave. That the best step for them would be to cut their excursion short.
By now, roughly half of the guards for both the Morse and Alkena families had bonded with Spirits. This was already a massively higher percentage than usual. But that was somewhat expected thanks to the nature of the Spirit Haven.
Fortunately, calmer minds won out, and the group did not leave. Instead, they worked with some of the weaker Wild Spirits to create fortifications that the humans could use as a defensive measure.
Though, half the guards had been relocated to a separate area as a backup defensive position that they could retreat to. Not that it was certain to do any good, if the cult managed to get their way.
It was highly likely that any Hunters from the cult that managed to get into the haven would be going after them, after all.
“... It’s strange...” Ezekiel muttered as he looked out over the walls that surrounded the fortified building that had been created. The sky was dark with clouds, but no rain was falling yet. “Being on this side of a defensive formation...”
Beside him, Riley just leaned into his shoulder, having fully recovered from Celia’s breakthrough. The now draconic Spirit was, in turn, curled around them both, as Shine rested on Ezekiel’s lap.
“When do you think it will begin?” Riley was quiet as she and Ezekiel tried to relax. The past few days had been hard on her, as she felt guilty at the fact that she was the cause of the fire that had alerted the cult of the Haven’s location.
It was something that they had learned after the even had happened. Spirit Havens had a naturally formed boundary that kept anything on the outside from perceiving what happened within. Except on the occasions where something drifted through the air, high enough to exit the boundary’s limits.
Such things, when observed from the outside, allowed outsiders to triangulate the position of a Spirit Haven, rather than be subconsciously guided away from it as they got closer.
The more mature Spirits didn’t blame Riley for this, as her breakthrough had been unexpected. If they knew such a thing would happen, they would’ve had her breakthrough in a more easily concealed area. But it wouldn’t have mattered for too long anyway.
The decision to attack the cult was already underway. If anything, the revelation of the Spirit Haven’s position just moved the time frame forward. Given the destructive power of the cult’s new weapon, it would be impossible for the Spirits to let them keep moving without fighting back like this.
By now, it had been a couple days now since the news had been given to them. Even now, the Spirits were doing their best to reinforce the defenses of the base that had been set up.
Ezekiel had found it interesting, witnessing the creation of the natural enchanted formations that now covered the base. They were impossible for him to find with the standard human knowledge of enchanting that he had been trained in.
“Whenever they get within range for their weapons, I suppose. That, or whenever the Spirit Tide has fully gathered.” Ezekiel had been shocked to hear that a Spirit Tide was being summoned for use against a group of humans.
Never, in all the history he had ever studied, had a Spirit Tide been used for anything other than the Cruor. Usually to a mixed rate of success.
“How well do you think we’ll do when the battle begins?”
“Probably, but when it does, we’ll be able to deal with it. I know basically all the tricks they’ll be able to employ.”
The two sat in silence for a little while longer, before a bell rang in the distance. The guards that were out looking for Spirits to bond with had returned. Much earlier than they had on previous days.
The only reason they would be returning early would be if a conflict had begun outside the boundary of the Spirit Haven.
Above them, Ezekiel could see the guardian Spirits of the Feathered Peaks flying away. Headed toward the area that Riley had set on fire days prior.
Ezekiel glared into the distance as he and Riley stood from their place on the wall. A bad feeling nagged at the back of his mind. One that wouldn’t go away.
If the cult breached the boundary, as was expected of them, it wouldn’t be long before the caravan from Tollren also came under attack.
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The earth rippled and shifted as rocks and roots were thrown about.
Icicles formed and fell like bullets raining from the sky, and fire boiled and burned the flesh of any that were too slow to move out of the way.
Water from the rain nearly blinded many who were fighting, but regardless of the weather, the fighting still went on.
“To the south! Aim cannons! Fire at the Spirits!” A Legendary cultist screamed orders as he flew through the sky.
He was fending off two Legendary Spirits as those at the weaker Tiers fought against a horde of Spirits below. Had Ezekiel been there, he would notice that the current battle was not unlike some scenes from Harkem during the first attack.
The air thumped with the force of multiple explosions. Cannons launched their payload towards every direction they could. Entire swaths of Spirits fell as the land was shattered. The ammunition from the cult’s weapons caused widespread destruction with every use.
Suddenly, a heavy weight fell on the Spirits and cultists alike. Above them all, a figure that was clad in golden cobra themed Spirit armor silently looked down on them.
Spreading his arms wide, circular ripples of Radiance formed around him in the hundreds.
“Let the Light shine on you all.”
A deep and echoing voice reverberated through the air, and beams of light fell from each of the ripples. They lanced through everything in their path. Leaving melted holes in the ground where they made impact. Nothing survived this onslaught.
The Spirits panicked, but even as they fell, more just filled the ranks.
‘Onward! Do not let these invaders take our homes!’ The silent scream of a massive Cavern Wolf Spirit rallied those that had followed it into battle.
Above and below, more Legendary Spirits fought toe-to-toe with the Legendary Hunters of the Cult of Light. Leaders from both sides fell, but it was clear that the battle wouldn’t be ending anytime soon. Not until one side was wiped out.
In the distance, far away from the main battle, and hidden beneath a veil of altered lighted, Meli and several other Kindled Hounds operated artifacts given to them by their clan. They aided in providing cover for the team that was going to strike the heart of the Spirit Haven.
They had prepared for this for over a day prior to the battle breaking out. Ready to break into the haven at a moment’s notice.
A sharp whistling noise shrieked through the air.
“Get ready. Once the boundary falls, we break for the nearest focal point of the Haven. It’ll be barely guarded, perhaps a couple of Legendary Spirits, but not much more.” Meli reaffirmed their orders as the cannon’s projectiles came within view.
Within seconds of falling silent, Meli saw a crack appear in the air only a hundred feet from her group. The rocks beneath it had broken from the impact of the explosive weaponry.
“Go!”
The Kindled Hounds ran as the crack in the Spirit Haven’s boundary slowly began to heal. Within a few seconds, it would be closed once more, and their moment of opportunity would be lost.
Not too far away, the air rippled as another group made their way into the boundary first. The cultists had been warned previously and took the necessary steps to move before the Hounds.
“Leader...” one of the hooded Hounds nearly called out in alarm, but Meli had expected this.
She had actually prevented her group from moving at their fastest pace.
Screams filled the air as the Kindled family Hounds finally crossed the boundary. The crack filling in behind them. In front of them lay the broken bodies of several cultists, as the ones that were still up and fighting suffered injuries that nearly caused them to fall.
“To the focal point!” Meli didn’t bother waiting. Instead, she and her group just rushed to the side. They avoided the fighting cultists, and Meli pulled another artifact from her Void Pouch. It was shaped like a compass with the needle pointing to a smoking crater not far from them. “This way.”
The group of Hounds dashed toward their target. Intent on destroying one of the cornerstones of the natural magic formation holding together the Spirit Haven. All so as to permanently create a hole in the boundary that protected it.
Behind them, a second crack formed in the boundary. Once more, a team of cultists flooded in. This one had a Legendary Hunter in it.
But all of this was ignored by the hounds as the cult cleaned out the Spirits.
It wasn’t long after that the area was clear. Motes of different colored light drifted into the air and disappeared, while blood and bodies littered the ground.
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For the past few hours now, Ezekiel’s premonitions were getting worse. A soul deep sensation was telling him that something bad was happening. It only ever let up a little bit when he thought about leaving the fortified base that he and the caravan were stuck in.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
‘We still don’t know what the problem is. For all we know, it could be a situation where, if we tried to fight alone, we would fail, but fighting together will let us win.’ Shine tried to be the optimist as Ezekiel’s mood progressively got worse. ‘We’ve almost gotten you back to a third of your full strength. That should be enough to be a significant contributor.’
Ezekiel didn’t reply. Instead, he focused on the feeling that had haunted him for hours now.
It had been right around the time that a shimmer had appeared in the sky. While he couldn’t be sure, Ezekiel had a feeling that such a thing meant that something had happened to the boundary.
The problem had been fixed, for now, but given how long it had been since then, Ezekiel didn’t hope that things would last much longer.
Suddenly, a pressure wave washed over Ezekiel. But no one else seemed to notice it. The shift Ezekiel felt in the air as mana seemed to swirl around the center of the haven drew his attention.
‘They’re coming.’ Ezekiel moved to a bell hanging not far from where he had been standing on watch. He had just started ringing it when the sky seemed to open up.
A deluge fell from the heavens as the boundary began to break. Jagged lines, cracks in the natural formation, ran through the sky unimpeded.
A second shift from another direction, and the cracks began to spread faster.
The boundary had fallen, and the cult was free to enter as they wished.
Only the Spirit Tide outside the broken edges of the haven stopped them doing so.
Ezekiel knew better though. The fact that the haven was now open to the world meant that there were forces already inside. It seemed that the newly bonded guards would be getting first-hand experience with fighting alongside tier Spirits.
“Ezekiel!” Warren’s voice cut through Ezekiel’s worried mind. It was rougher than usual. With a slightly deeper rumble to it that drew Ezekiel’s attention in an instant. He had already donned his Spirit Armor. “Get to the wall, we need to be ready.”
Gone was the loving and caring image of Ezekiel’s father. In his place was the no nonsense mask of a veteran Hunter. One whose orders were to be followed without question.
Ezekiel nodded and dashed away. His physique ensured that he could fight without using too much of his mana, but it wouldn’t mean much if the cult, or the Kindled, got into the base via sneak attack.
At the moment, Ezekiel was garbed in a different style than he previously used. This was to hopefully keep him from being the initial target. In fact, all the guards were dressed and armed with their best weapons and armor. A minor precaution meant to emphasize the importance of this conflict.
Seeing Riley on the wall, Ezekiel moved to her position. She too was wearing her Spirit Armor. A necessary act due to the increased defensive measures that it granted. Almost no sneak attacks would be able to break through it. Not unless greatly overpowered compared to Riley.
No words were exchanged as Ezekiel placed a hand on her shoulder. Riley nodded to him as he moved past. They needed to focus and had already shared words a little while ago.
‘Are you sure that we should be here? Your mom and sisters retreated to the second group. It’s probably not too late to take up that offer to go with them.’
Shine’s words reminded him of the near fight he had had with his mother earlier that day. Well before the first sign of fighting had occurred.
Evelyn had insisted that Ezekiel fall back with the guards that were hidden in the second base. The one carved out by Charus for secrecy and security. But Ezekiel had refused. He felt that his place was to fight, since it was, as per usual, him that the cult was after.
If it wasn’t for Warren agreeing to take care of him, Ezekiel doubted that his mother would’ve let him go. He figured she would’ve knocked him out and dragged him away, if given the chance.
‘I am needed here. This is the first line of defense to make sure the cult and the Kindled Hounds don’t get all of us. With two Legendaries, we already have stronger forces than the second group.’ Ezekiel mentally called to Shine. ‘With Lance and the majority of the Hunter guards in the back, we should be able to fight well enough to survive.’
Ezekiel received a sense of uncertainty and doubt from his bond with Shine. The Void Spirit was worried. To be fair, so was he, but running away from his problems wouldn’t help here.
Any plan of doing so only resulted in a lessening of his bad omens. Not the removal.
A sharp pain lanced through Ezekiel’s mind. His attention turned and focused on a patch of the woods in the distance. Shine channeled their mana through Ezekiel, having sensed the same thing.
An immense sense of danger that was coming straight for them.
“Cover!” Ezekiel screamed as he pulled forth one of the explosives that he had prepared the previous day. It was immediately thrown in the direction of whatever Ezekiel had sense.
Not a moment too late, as when it was halfway between the woods and the fort, it was directly pierced by a large stone spear that would’ve taken out the walls to that side. If it was able to get through the formations.
Since Ezekiel could tell that the mana used was at least in the upper Legendary Steps, he knew that such an outcome was guaranteed.
Instead, as the explosive Ezekiel threw was activated, the spears momentum was greatly reduced, and it tumbled through the air in two pieces. Each one impacting harmlessly on the enchanted formation protecting the hastily made base.
Not a moment later, over a dozen Hunters of varying power ran from the woods. The group was led by a Legendary Cavern Hunter dressed in the colors and symbol of the Cult of Light.
A flash of light later, Warren and the Legendary Hunter began their battle above and beside the fort. Spirits flooded from the forest, making attacks against invading cultists. But the strongest Spirits were fighting on the front lines or defending the focal points of the Spirit Haven’s boundary.
Though the latter were likely headed out to fight, since the formation protecting the haven had already fallen.
The only ones left were the newborn Spirits and those that were at the apprentice level. When mixed with the number of guards defending the base, their numbers just barely matched the might of the cultists.
No words were exchanged, and the first battle Ezekiel would experience today began.
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Ducking from behind the top of the wall that was far too short for his preference, Ezekiel narrowly avoided a stream of fire from a flying Spirit. He had just stabbed the Spirit’s bonded Hunter and had been distracted when it had shrieked in rage.
‘I’ve got it!’ Shine called to Ezekiel as they released a Void cut that clipped the Spirit’s wing. They were trying to conserve mana, there was just too much to do.
Above them, a flash of light bloomed into being as Warren fought against the enemy Cavern Legendary. Shockwaves rang out as their weapons clashed. A wave of blue fire nearly consumed a couple of the cultists but was dampened by the rain.
While injured, the targets managed to retreat for a moment to regroup.
Riley moved to chase after them but was forced to release a gout of flame at her feet to burn up the roots that had entangled her.
Motes of light filled the area, and it was only the sheer number of Spirits that, even now, flooded the area, allowing the guards from Tollren to fight back.
Initially, Ezekiel had thought that the attacking cultists would be mostly a mix of one or two Adepts, with the rest being Apprentices or Tier ones. That assumption was put to rest the moment the fight began, and the twelve Adepts tore down the, admittedly, weak and temporary defenses.
This had led to the guards having to fall back and rely on numbers as they fought alongside the Wild Spirits that sought to kill the cultists. It was only due to the fact that the guards were well known after three weeks of wandering the haven that none of the Wild Spirits attacked them as well.
Even so, four guards had died in the fighting. A small amount compared to the number of Spirits that were there, but was still saddening, nonetheless.
‘Focus!’ Shine screamed in Ezekiel’s head. ‘Opening over there!’
Ezekiel turned in the direction he felt Shine pull him in. He saw two cultists that had turned their backs on him. Their Spirits harrying a group of guards that were falling back.
Ezekiel hooked a foot beneath a piece of rubble next to him. He then launched the large rock at the back of the glacial Hunter. It impacted on the cultist’s back with a sickening crunch, and Shine followed up by piercing through them with another spell.
Blood sprayed out as the damaged armor was poked through with little resistance, while a snarl of fury escaped the nearby Glacial canine Spirit.
Who immediately turned to Ezekiel’s as its eyes glowed.
Ezekiel failed to follow up the attack and get the other cultists before they retreated to another area in a burst of fire.
A pained cry from the group of Morse family guards told him they had suffered from that last bit of magic. Though it seemed like they would still live.
‘How many more of them are left?’ Ezekiel couldn’t help but gripe.
They had only been fighting for a few minutes, but he was already as exhausted as he had been when fighting the Cruor in Harkem. He had thought that numbers would grant them more of a reprieve than this. But it seemed like the artifacts and armor the cult now had was still too much.
There had already been three instances where his attacks had failed because of the cultist’s armor. His attempts to conserve his mana caused him to have to be more careful when it came to his offense. More so than when he fought the Kindled Hounds. Since they were nowhere near as well equipped as these cultists.
‘We’ve only taken out half of them. But the stream of Wild Spirits has been slowing down.’ Shine spread out their senses to observe while Ezekiel fended off the attacks of the Adept Glacial Spirit that was trying to latch onto his arm to tear it off.
A sudden patch of ice beneath his feet nearly threw Ezekiel to the ground, but he held his footing.
Twisting his hand and holding his fingers into a claw shape, he reached into the mouth of the Spirit trying to bite him. Its teeth barely had time to break his skin before he latched onto its tongue and kicked it away. Tongue still in hand as the Spirit rolled to a stop several meters away. Fading into motes of blue light.
‘It’s just six more cultists... This battle has been going too well for us...’ Ezekiel knew something was wrong, as he could still sense the bad omen lingering over him. A thought occurred to him, and he rushed to the body of the Glacial cultist he had just killed.
There, inside the dead man’s coat pocket, was a badge shaped artifact. A quick glance at the runes engraved on it told him exactly what it did.
It was a locator tool. One that was based on the Com-Slates. Only this one seemed to be much shorter in range and was releasing a pulse of mana every few seconds.
‘They know where we are.’ Was Ezekiel’s final thought before he screamed.
“Evacuate the base! Get out of here now!”
It said many good things about the guards, and many of the Spirits, when they immediately followed Ezekiel’s orders. No questions were asked as they all began to run. Much to the cultist’s concerns. But as they gave chase, they found it difficult to contain the fleeing Spirits and guards.
Especially with Riley covering their retreat.
It was only a few seconds after the base was emptied that they all heard it.
Shrill whistling as something flew through the air toward them.
The cultists growled in rage and retreated in the opposite direction.
For a moment, when Ezekiel risked looking back while he ran, it seemed like he had gotten a warning out in time. He had to be cautious, however, as he had stayed at the back of the group as they ran. Riley had gone ahead when the cultists had retreated.
Then, the world turned white.
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A few seconds earlier.
Above the base where the guards and cultists were fighting, Warren and the Cavern Hunter were locked in combat. Warren was having a difficult time as he fought his opponent. If it wasn’t for his incredible speed, he was almost certain he would’ve taken a life-threatening hit by this point.
“You fight well for a heathen!” The Legendary cultist screamed. He wielded a large glaive that he swung around as if it were as light as a feather.
Warren wielded a spear in one hand and had a small shield in his other. The shield artifact was something that the Alkena family had provided as payment for this mission to find Spirits for their guards to bond with.
He hadn’t mentioned it to anyone, as he didn’t want any word getting out before it was necessary. Something he knew his wife had done for her own secret weapons.
They had both nearly been forced to use them in the clash with Norton and the Kindled Hounds, but the Legendary birds had swooped in at the nick of time.
Even so, this fight was not going well for Warren. He was outmatched in terms of sheer mana. So, it was fortunate that his enemy was mostly just a brute that didn’t take him seriously.
“Your words are an insult. Given how poorly you fight, you clearly don’t know what you’re talking about.” Warren’s taunt turned the cultist’s mad grin to a frown. But before he could reply, Warren got him in the face with a kick after the cultist dodged his spear.
The cultist backed away, and Warren didn’t chase. Instead, he chose to retain his mana.
The sheer number of attacks that the cultist had made, but failed to land, had depleted his mana at a rate that put him on almost equal grounds to Warren. But he knew that the current circumstances wouldn’t last long.
Ezekiel’s sudden yell from below nearly distracted him, and he realized what his son was trying to say. But Warren kept his focus as his opponent regained his bearings. He couldn’t allow the cultist to move towards the base or go after the retreating figures below.
A beat of silence passed between the Legendaries. They were about to charge each other once more, but a loud shrieking then filled the air, and the cultist grinned much wider than before.
Knowing what was about to come, Warren nearly dove for Ezekiel, but was forced to evade as the Legendary cultist launched a barrage of stone spears at him.
Given no other choice, Warren flew away at his fastest speed. Chased by the cultist he was still battling. All while he hoped that his son and the others would be able to get out of range.
As the ground passed by in a flash, Warren distanced himself from the Legendary cultist due to his naturally faster speed. But just as he slowed down, the world was filled with a flash of white.