More and more undead arrived at the very edge of Paca’s Sun spell. The ash remains of the brave or foolish monsters that entered the sphere of the spell dotted the edges as a harsh reminder. The Spirit Walkers stood directly under the spell with Paca at their center. The diminutive Spirit Walker Sun Priestess was shaking with effort.
“I’m not sure how much longer I can maintain this,” she muttered.
“Just a little longer,” Rainia assured her.
“You better be right, or we will be in for a world of trouble,” Miss Heng hissed.
Ahanu scowled at the Amber Guard Captain and squeezed his sister’s shoulder. “I believe in you, sis,” he said.
Miss Heng looked away and crossed her arms.
“I hate to say this. I’m with Miss Heng on this,” Zena observed. The archer was balanced on a high gravestone, and she was scanning the surroundings. “If this plan does not work, we need an exit strategy.”
A shambling wall of undead stood at the very edge of the sun spell and covered the complete diameter of the circle. At this moment, there was no escape for the Spirit Walkers.
“Maybe we should have kept the Corpse Eater alive,” Zena muttered.
Rainia closed her eyes and held up one hand. Her face grimaced, and after a moment, she reopened her eyes. “The spirits confirm to me that this is the right spot, and adventurers will see the light and join us.”
Paca wiped her brow. “I hope so. Did the spirits mention a timeline?”
“Have faith,” Rainia replied.
Zena snorted and was just about to make a wise remark when she saw something. She squinted and said, “By all that is holy. You were right, Rainia! I see adventurers battling their way toward us!”
Miss Heng uncrossed her arms and asked, “Where?”
Zena pointed.
The Amber Guard captain exhaled slowly and began to shape Runes using both her arms. Ahanu admired her grace, and based on his limited knowledge of Rune casting, he knew what she was doing was extremely complex.
“Stand back,” Miss Heng said.
An ominous dark gray thundercloud appeared above Miss Heng, and it flickered with lightning followed by cracks of thunder. The cloud grew, and swirling winds buffeted Ahanu and his teammates. The blasts of wind grew stronger, and the Spirit Walkers had to protect their eyes. Miss Heng pushed her arms forward, and the storm cloud shot forth. Ahanu saw that the storm grew larger as it sped toward the mass of undead. By the time it reached them, it was enormous! The howling winds tossed bodies aside like they were made out of leaves. Lightening lashed out like hungry snakes that vaporized huge swaths of zombies. In moments, a clear path was made. Miss Heng closed her fists, and the storm dissipated as fast as it was formed.
“Come quickly!” Ahanu called out to a team of adventurers that were located on the other side of the newly made gap.
It was a team that he recognized but never spoken with. They were five and armed with spears, shields, and axes. Their chainmail armor jingled as they ran across the parted sea of undead. The zombies and ghouls recovered and surged forward like a tidal wave, but the adventurers passed the threshold of Paca’s sun spell. The unfortunate undead that followed howled in pain and collapsed in a heap as they were burned by the Sun aspect.
“We saw your light and made a run for it,” a man wearing a tarnished breastplate and a steel helm said. He was breathing hard and leaned on his halberd.
“Did you see any other teams?” Miss Heng asked.
“No, mam,” another of the team answered. She wore a heavy brown jacket that jingled with numerous pockets. Ahanu recognized a few Rune-covered channeling tools along her body and guessed her to be a Rune caster.
“None alive, at least. We came across the remains of a team,” the man in the tarnished breastplate added.
Rainia shook her head. “It is the life we live,” she said quietly.
Ahanu noticed that the other three teammates remained quiet but they removed their packs to settle down. They looked tired and battered. It was clear that they had a rough time on the fifth floor.
Miss Heng snapped, “Do not get too comfortable. There is work to be done.”
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The adventurers slowly rose back to their feet. Their gear jingled. Ahanu noticed that their packs were filled with gems and coins. His eyes narrowed.
“Where did you find the treasure?” He asked.
The lady in the heavy jacket stepped back and growled, “It is ours by rights.”
Ahanu shook his head. “Of course, I am just curious. We have been here for two days, and all we found was ash and dust. Nothing of value was in any of the tombs we searched or on any of the undead.”
The man with the tarnished breastplate gripped his colleague’s shoulder and she appeared to relax, but still held on to her pack. The man pointed in the direction they just came from.
“We found a dungeon back that way. There was a Monster Portal,” he said.
Rainia and Miss Heng perked up at this. “Can you take us there?” They both asked at the same time.
“There is nothing left of value,” the woman in the heavy jacket answered.
“We can repurpose the Monster Portal,” Ahanu said.
Rainia glanced and explained, “We are a Safe Zone Squad.”
The lady shook her head. “It was destroyed.”
Miss Heng narrowed her eyes and asked, “By you?”
The lady shuffled a step away from the Amber Guard Captain. The man stepped forward. Ahanu gripped his sword.
“Nae, it was destroyed when we found it. We swear,” the man replied. He placed his halberd on the ground and held up his two empty hands.
“By who?” Miss Heng asked.
“We were wondering the same thing,” the man replied.
“We can repair it, right?” Ahanu asked.
This time, the lady in the heavy jacket replied, “Nae, it was fully destroyed. Whoever did it knew what they were doing. They did not want it repaired.”
“Every Guild member knows to disable a Monster Portal when they encounter one so that a Safe Zone Squad can repurpose it,” Miss Heng stated.
“Do you think it was the” Ahanu began, and then he leaned in closer to his team and finished, “the Cultist?”
“That is a possibility and a reminder of the threats we face. We must remain on guard, especially with those whom we do not know,” Miss Heng stated.
Zena hopped down to join the conversation. “And we just announced we were Safe Zone Squad. You just place a target on all of us,” she said.
Miss Heng agreed. “We must be guarded with that knowledge.”
Ahanu looked over his shoulder at the other team. They were also talking amongst themselves. Already, the two teams were starting to distrust one another. Ahanu sighed and shook his head.
“The Cultists have already won. They have sowed distrust among the Guild,” he observed.
Rainia smiled at her brother and called out to the other team, “Are you hungry?”
“Only if you have real food,” the man replied with a crooked smile.
“Aye, we have been eating hard bread and even harder jerky,” the lady replied.
Rainia smiled at them despite the glare she received from Miss Heng. “We have something more. Come and join us.”
“Have you forgotten about me?” Paca said with a grimace.
The small Spirit Walker collapsed, and the Sun Spell ended.
“Quick! To arms!” Miss Heng cried.
The two teams quickly formed a circle as the undead swarmed in like a crashing wave of rotted flesh and gnashing teeth. Ahanu activated the Force enchantment on his Shield, which forced a large portion of the monsters back. Zena responded perfectly with a well-placed exploding Fire aspect arrow. This perfect teamwork was forged through countless hours of battle. To their credit, the new team fought well and maintained steady under the constant pressure.
“We can’t hold this,” Zena observed.
“Have faith. The Spirits assured me that this is the spot where others will find us,” Rainia promised.
“Many have died from their faith. We make our own destinies. On my command, we make a push toward that monument,” Miss Heng said.
Ahanu and Zena performed their combo again. He forced a huge swath of undead back, and she exploded them with Fire aspect arrows. This gave the two teams a moment of reprieve. Rainia turned to Miss Heng.
“You forget I am the Team Leader. We hold this position,” she said.
Miss Heng glared but remained silent. The undead horde regrouped and surged forward once again. Rainia activated the Vitality Spring. This invigorated the Spirit Walkers and the team, and they both fought with enhanced ferocity. The situation improved until the stronger undead arrived. The ghouls and the wights entered the fray. Ahanu heard a gasp as the man was stabbed through his throat.
“Marcus!” The lady cried as her teammate was dragged into the mass of grasping arms of the undead. She held her face and wept as more hands threatened to grab her.
“Ahanu, cover that gap!” Miss Heng barked.
The Spirit Walker Protector activated his last Force enchantment to buy them time. He felt a moment of sadness for the lady as she fell to her knees and sobbed. Ahanu had just met Marcus, and now the man was gone. Doubt formed in his chest. Was his sister wrong? Was she tricked by the Spirits? Or did she misunderstand them? Ahanu quickly glanced over his shoulder and saw that Rainia’s face remained resolute and firm. If this is where I die, this is where I die, he said to himself.
“Stand up and fight!” Miss Heng yanked the lady to her feet.
Above them, Zena fired arrows in rapid succession. Every shot removed an undead from the battlefield, but there were too many. Despite the Vitality Spring, Ahanu felt the dark tide of despair creeping up from his heart like a spreading plague through a city. Then he heard it. A loud clang of steel resonated over the sound of howling and hissing undead. It was a clear clang that rang true into the air. Hope stirred and pushed back the despair. Ahanu once again heard the expression that had saved his team before in the past.
“For glory!”
“Hurrah!”
The Frostsworn charged into battle.