Dragon [https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczPbfErKpIGdvJq8BdvLIWO58KcmLhyr4ex2VRuUQflFBSkMGRfQC5vKhytyfBMcio-wGflSRt1pxg8XCFNYu8aH68GeD_S_KXK6tQ67FWGDqbAoLElsmCGXoznqn6LWxw8zLDjl9SLdGVbp8ENIa4Qo=w613-h919-s-no-gm?authuser=0]
Instead of being able to man any of the port’s outer wall defenses, King’s Dream was sent back to the circular wall that surrounded the inner city, separating it from the eight outer districts. They would continue evacuating people as needed and wait for monsters to reach them.
When the Firebird came low and set the port district ablaze with its flaming tail, she was grateful that they had managed to get most of the civilians to safety beforehand. She still felt Crystal auras get snuffed out, but Dazien informed them that other Emerald Casters, alongside Everin, were already moving fast to rescue the remaining Sapphires, which her portal could only save two of every five minutes.
Meanwhile, Phoenix’s mind was racing through potential crazy stunts she could pull off this time to try and minimize the number of inevitable deaths as more flying monsters left the ship now above the port. She put her trust in her party this time as she verbalized each idea telepathically through Dazien’s chat to get everyone’s input.
Most of the mental conversation was them telling her ‘no’ or pointing out the fact that the risky and outrageous stunt would potentially cause more damage to the city than the monsters would.
When she finally gave one that they all paused at and Dazien replied, “That might actually work,” she laid out the steps they would take as soon as monsters came in range of the group.
They didn’t have to wait long as flying Caged monsters came into view, and the gathered Tulimeir forces that were dispatched along the walls at various intervals began their ranged attacks. Phoenix cast her ritual, and then Saiya chanted alongside her, adding her own mana to the ability to further boost the effects.
“Let dreams become reality.”
A large phoenix made of starlight appeared in the air in front of her outside of the inner city walls that matched the one she had cast long ago when defending the city walls. It quickly grew to the size of a ten-story building, its majestic wings spreading out like a shield to protect the city behind it.
Cheers and shouts were called out as some people recognized the symbol that lit up the sky. Phoenix unleashed her layered aura, pushing it as far to either side of her as she could. It lit up the wall, with little [Starlight Companion] constructs hovering over the shoulders of each of the defenders, and [Sun Shells] flickered around them before becoming invisible.
After a few moments of boosting the city defenders’ morale, the giant magic illusion flapped its wings once and then moved toward the swarm of monsters making their way to them. As her ability looked like it was about to consume a portion of them in its silvery beak, it shattered into hundreds of smaller versions of itself, causing as much chaos as possible high in the sky.
When the phoenix shattered, the wall of Casters rallied behind the signal and unleashed their own abilities into the mass, raining destruction upon the puppet forces. Uriel was already standing alone off to the side of their group with his Silencer removed, chanting his area spells of Fire and Ice, while Saiya downed a mana potion to begin buffing the team as a whole.
Phoenix triggered her mana tattoo first then also began incanting her next ranged spell. She had never tried targeting a point in the air with this particular spell and hoped it would work as she desired, “From the depths of the universe, I summon forth the shards of annihilation. May the wrath of the cosmos descend upon all who dare to oppose me.”
As a small rift appeared in the sky, the creatures didn’t react right away. Phoenix suddenly wondered if she could use her portal to move the meteor in case it missed and might hit the port itself below the swarm… at least the port was already on fire.
She shook off the distressing thought as she watched the flaming mass of molten plasma hurtle through the air toward the group of aerial monsters. Like she had hoped, her [Meteor Shower] exploded on contact with the random assortment of creatures and took out some of the lower Crystal ones that had managed to fly in this far.
More and more abilities began to light up the night sky as the monsters came into range. Some of the creatures seemed to have ranged attacks of their own, however, as Phoenix began to sense the destruction of her little aura companions and light barriers. She expended the small amount of mana required to reconjure the tiny protectors and shields as often as she could, hoping it would help save lives.
Trying a different tactic to attempt to speed up her mana replenishment while dealing damage from afar, Phoenix conjured her [Night Blade] and aimed carefully towards one of the larger monsters that was moving slowly but steadily towards the city walls.
She channeled the little mana her [Astral Oasis] aura had recovered for her to send the dagger flying away from her towards the monster to embed itself into the creature and deliver her [Mana Siphon] Bane.
When that –on top of her aura– replenished more mana, she conjured her dagger again and aimed at another target, slowly ramping up the sources of mana regeneration from the various enemies.
As they continued the counter-assault, her concentration was broken when Uriel let out a shout of pain as a metal spike impaled the right side of his chest while Dazien had been shielding Saiya from a similar attack. His newly acquired [Dawn Shield] from the Wayland family vault held up well against the attacks and didn’t even risk destruction from being a conjured replica sitting safely in the Warrior King’s [Armory].
The unprotected mage dropped to his hands and knees as Phoenix moved to his side and gave him a quick warning, “This is going to hurt.”
He nodded briefly as she finished yanking the spear through him and chanted the high cost of her healing spell, “As surely as the sun will rise again, you will see the dawn of tomorrow,” pouring mana into the wound, which slowly began knitting the flesh back together.
A few heartbeats later, Saiya shooed her away and took up the task as Dazien placed himself between them and the monsters. Phoenix stood to refocus on the enemy but felt further distracted as her layered aura sensed the auras of other adventurers begin to slowly snuff out of existence.
A warning shout came from somewhere down the wall as another wave of projectiles seemed to come raining down on them. These ones, however, seemed like long javelins carved from monster bones and partially rotting. Dazien ordered Saiya, “To the retreat!” pulling all of them into her dimensional ability in an instant.
Ability: Restful Retreat
Type: Spell (summon, magical, dimension, life)
Cost: High mana.
Cooldown: 1 hour.
Current Caste: Sapphire 1 (76%)
Crystal Effect: Summon nearby allies into a dimensional garden for a moderate duration. The inhabitants have greatly increased health regeneration and are periodically cleansed of Elemental Banes.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
Sapphire Effect: The inhabitants undergo extreme mana regeneration, and the remaining cooldowns of other abilities are gradually reduced while in the dimensional garden.
Phoenix was exceedingly grateful for the new Sapphire effect but didn’t want them remaining out of the fight for too long.
“Was that a Corruption attack?” Rayna asked their leader.
“Corrupted Death and Earth,” he confirmed, moving to check on his partner, “I wasn’t risking Uriel again and figured we could also use the resource boost. This feels like the war all over again with these endless waves. We won’t win a battle of attrition by not using every tool at our disposal.”
Phoenix grimaced as she tried to ignore the fallen allies that she couldn’t protect any longer beyond the zen-like garden they were temporarily recovering in and looked to Dazien who had finished checking the hole in Uriel’s tunic, “I’m going sky dragon.”
“No,” he responded quickly, “We told you it’s too dangerous with all these spells flying around. You’re likely to fall to friendly fire before the enemy takes you out. You can only hold that form for so long, and if you can’t get back here when it ends, you’ll be completely exposed.”
“Then I best make the most of the time and get back here before that happens,” she said bluntly.
“See, this is you not being a good follower again,” Dazien said with exasperation, standing to face her and she silently cursed the handful of inches he had over her.
She imitated his cheeky grin as best she could as she replied, “I guess this is what you all get for calling me a Princess, then. They’re meant to lead, right?”
He chuckled, indulgently shaking his head, and gave an empty threat, “Make sure to return on time, or else I might really make you the party leader.”
Phoenix still blanched at the idea and shook her head, “I’ll be back soon,” she promised and didn’t wait a second longer than she had to when Saiya’s spell ended, triggering [Avatar of Bakunawa], flooding her body with power along with the temporary fifth aura, [Soul of the Celestial], and infusing her allies with their own surge of Strength and Magic. Feeling the shape-shifting effects occur once again, she had gotten more accustomed to the odd sensation over the weeks of training, missions, and war.
Before the changes had even finished, she was already casting her most used ability that was already at the max of Crystal Caste: [Ruler of Relativity].
Phoenix was pulled skyward as she targeted the flying Crystal Caste enemies that were obviously Corrupted with their rotting flesh and glowing eyes and used her [Eclipse Breath] flames upon them before annihilating what was left with her silvery [Cosmic Talons]. As one enemy fell she pulled herself towards the next, managing to stay aloft by using the enemies as aerial platforms between bursts of mana pulling her through the air.
In the distance, she noticed an iridescent beam lancing into the large Firebird’s wing, diverting its course from the oddly sparkling Cultivators Citadel and crashing into a tower within the Processing District. She had never actually visited that area yet and hoped it would still be there in the future for her to see. The distraction cost her as Sapphire claws raked across her back, and she used her ability to push herself away from the stronger foe.
She felt a surge of energy come from the Soul Reapers’ vessel that was now directly above them, and a giant bright sphere lit up the night sky before quickly dimming. Phoenix was close enough to sense one of the Obsidian Caster’s aura vanish and she hoped it was the defeat of the enemy but Kara had shown her that it was easy for Obsidian Casters to hide their aura from her meager Crystal senses.
The focus on her aura senses once more brought the sensation of her allies falling to the onslaught of monsters raining from the sky, and she grimaced once more at the continued loss.
Phoenix was distracted from her rising anger as Dazien’s voice came over the party chat, “Okay, Princess, times up. You need to get back here before it fades.”
The shape-shifted Wayfarer knew he was right as she felt the power begin to taper off, but she also knew that she needed to give it more if she wanted to save the lives on the wall until more help from the World Tree could arrive. She would be spent after returning either way, so she might as well go out with a bang.
“Sorry, Daze,” she replied softly over the chat, “Looks like I really am a terrible follower after all.”
“Enough joking, Phoenix. There’s nothing more you can do up there.”
“There is one thing. My secret isn’t worth the lives of the Adventurers standing beside you or any of yours. I’ll shout it to the whole world if it keeps you all alive.”
“No. You don’t have to–”
Phoenix cut off the communication with a mental thought as she could feel herself running out of time and pulled out her last [Magi Fortune Booster] potion from her collection. Pulling herself towards the center of the flying mob, she downed the recoil potion and triggered [Supernova] with the long incantation.
Warning: The selected ability, [Supernova], combined with the [Magi Fortune Booster], has resulted in an excellent compatibility match for increased effectiveness. You have been temporarily enhanced beyond current Caste levels. The ensuing recoil will result in reducing attributes below current Caste levels.
The sky lit up again with the light of Phoenix in the center of her own personal sun. The enemies burned away in a torrent of white and blue ash raining down upon the city below as the overcharged mana tore through the Caged monsters, and Phoenix’s aura automatically looted them, flooding her collection with mostly Mana Bits and ritual materials.
As she fell through the sky, she felt her body rapidly weaken as the debilitating effects of her avatar form took hold, and the aftereffects of the potion threatened to claim her life once more.
She felt her momentum slow as arms wrapped around her in the traditional bridal carry style, and a feminine voice scolded, “You’re an idiot. A volatile, stubborn idiot with a hero complex.”
“Your god seems to like it enough to send you to babysit,” Phoenix managed to retort weakly as Kara flew them through the air toward the wall and her fretting team.
A warm sensation entered her body as the Paladin triggered some kind of ability or item, Phoenix wasn’t entirely sure as her consciousness threatened to abandon her at any moment.
“Will she live?” Dazien’s voice said from somewhere nearby as she let Kara continue to carry her.
“Yes,” the blonde replied with a slight hint of annoyance still in her voice, “Despite her best efforts not to. I am not so easily defeated. I told her that I wouldn’t fail in my purpose.”
“Thank you,” Uriel said from somewhere else that Phoenix couldn’t quite focus on. The warm sensation grew and seemed to help her focus as their movement stopped, and Kara set her against the half-barricade atop the walls.
The golden voxen bent down to look her over and meet her gaze as she said, “While what you did was beyond reckless and well into suicidal, you gave me enough time to fly around the outer walls and incinerate most of the remaining monsters. I need to go and finish the other Obsidian though. My ability only bought me some time to do some clean-up when I noticed your suicidal explosion. Will you stay with your party now?”
“I’ll chain her here myself if I have to,” Dazien stated firmly, glaring at the disobedient party member.
Phoenix managed to roll her eyes at him but nodded at Kara, “I don’t think I have anything left to sacrifice at the moment, so you’ve got some time.”
The Paladin surprised them all by laughing aloud at the statement, “Heroic martyr indeed. Well, I’ll leave you to your party then,” she glanced at the other gathered party members and said with that too-cheery smile that thinly masked her threat making it all the more terrifying, “If anything happens to her while I’m gone, no one will even remember you existed.”
Then to their surprise, Kara abruptly stared up at the vessel above them, “What in the abyss–”
Phoenix wasn’t entirely sure what happened next but explosions, ash, and screaming filled the air as Kara pulled her party members together before shielding them with a fanned-out tail shining with light.
When the furry barrier relented, Phoenix and her entire party stood and looked on in horror at the destruction.
The blossom canons upon the ship seemed to have bloomed and sent a volley of massive laser beams streaking across the city in every direction. The next sound that joined the screaming was various buildings collapsing all over the city after being cut in half.
Saiya clung to her sister and sobbed while the rest of King’s Dream looked on in shock as the fall of Tulimeir seemed inevitable with the ship hovering above them preparing to send another volley.
“Well, that was delicious,” a smooth masculine voice said from behind her as a Divine aura swept over the group, and they all turned to see a softly glowing man. He was wearing a black suit with sleek black hair framing a pale face and pitch-black eyes that were taking in the destruction around them.
Phoenix felt Uriel’s arms wrap protectively around her and pull her back against his own body as the Cataclysm Mage snarled at the deity, “Fuck off, Destroyer.”