Apper, the spider I named after her interest in trapping things, came up with the plan, Our Fortress is Trash, Let's Use This to Beat Our Enemies. Fortunately, the plan is much better than the title. Stage one of the plan: have a crappy fortress design, which is already complete. Stage two: demons exploit inferior base defenses is well underway. Stage three is already set and about to trigger.
Demons pour into our base from the opening in the melted walls, the sky, and the backs of animated trees that climb over our defenses. The three of us, standing in my shadow with my perception wrapped tightly around us, hold still as our enemies rush to kill all within our walls. At once, the sky darkens, and the mana within me becomes more distant. We wait a moment longer before the Glimmer clone snaps.
Pockets of light etched into our pillar push against the darkness. The distant mana inside my core and channels returns, and I feel almost at full strength. As the demons rush by, a few momentarily notice the glowing runes on the pillar before scouring our grounds for their targets. Our fortress is hooves to rears thick with demons trying to reach our few buildings.
Their search is in vain. We have one building we care about. Our plan fails miserably if the demons can make it inside the academy. Not only are the lycans waiting inside our secure building that now expands deep into the earth, but we also transferred all our food and equipment there. We won't fail.
Blending into the darkness created by the demons and spiders is the academy shrouded in shadow. The darkness of both energies seems to combine, creating a bottomless abyss. Not even the light radiating from the runes on our walls and towers makes it through the deep darkness.
Packed in tightly, the overcrowded demons push each other into the darkness. Those on the edge try to resist, only to lose ground and disappear. The abyss swallows each intruder and quickly silences their screams. No more focus is placed on the abandoned buildings. All eyes are gazing into the blackness. Slowly, the darkness around the academy expands. The shouting and screaming become more intense, increasing the demons' pushing and pulling.
Through my perception, I witness Nette, and her spiders deal out death. Arrows pierce through hearts, throats, and skulls. Nette's whips constantly crack, shredding even the most armored invaders. Fen's shields and sword adeptly bash and slice. Many demons are claimed by webs that become sharp as a razor. On top of it all, shadows, mind terrors, earth, and death claim as many lives as the spiders.
As the shadow creeps, the light shining from our towers increases in brightness until they explode with a massive eruption of fire, light, and stone. The entire base is nearly covered in the explosion except for our mangled walls and the empty blackness. After finishing the academy, Glimmer revisited the towers and packed as many runes as possible. Light, earth, and fire were pumped into the runes by everyone that had mana to give.
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Fire burns through the demons inside our home. Even the flying screechers take a significant hit from shrapnel. The dungeon claims all the dead. The core fills with mana inching closer to the next tier rank. The members that participated in the rune traps receive an energy boost to their cores. Some lycan pack leaders even break through into their second stage of progression, becoming rooks.
Before the dead can wither away to resurrect back in that shadow realm, Bones reaches out to all of them, investing his energy to claim their corpses. He holds the dead in his grasp, keeping them prone. Those not caught in the explosion inside our wall push free from the crowd to escape the smoldering grounds now full of death and darkness. They are easy targets for Bones' army. For now, the dead stay dead.
Despite the eagerness of the defeated demons to escape the grounds, they're outnumbered by those on the outside of the wall trying to get in. The power-hungry force is much stronger than those interested in preservation. They quickly push past the meager resistance filling our broken fortification grounds again. Slightly less packed than before, the new crowd of demons make their way through the darkness before coming to the edge of the abyss. Once again, the deep darkness claims a new group of monsters, all while shadow continues to expand unnoticed.
Struggling to free themselves from the packed masses, Bones' army of the dead tries to lift themselves from the ground. They claw and pull, tearing into the bodies of the living. The beasts among the dead are most vicious as their teeth and claws rip through the unsuspecting victims. Confusion arises among the invaders. Before they can react, it's too late. In the darkness, it's hard to tell who is alive. It's not long before the living fight each other, mistaking friend for foe.
The dead and the demons fight wildly. More monsters fall, only to rise again to aid the cause of the dungeon. The stronger demons can stand firm, putting down the tattered dead. They become the focus of an unseen threat; before long, the strong fall with the rest. Bones claims more lives, and the shadow grows. What started in the center of our fortress is now nearly touching the walls.
Stepping out of my shadow, Bones begins strumming his lute more aggressively. His tempo picks up, and the dead enrich his beat. The dungeon boss is surrounded by hollow gray energy. The core of the dungeon is growing in power. The power invigorates the dead as the vibrations of the music carry death and energy into them. What was a meager and trampled army of the dead is now a powerful force that fills our fortress grounds.
Music of the dead enlivens the macabre of the looming night. Just as the sun reaches the peak of its wane and the music crescendos, Gene's shadow finally reaches the wall. The ritual-enriched wall collapses at once, and shadows begin to take shape.
Phase two of stage three: Reap What You Sow, begins now.