Chapter 349: Angel of Death (1/2)
A storm was brewing, dark clouds rising in the distance. Groups of mounted imperials rushed out of the city, scouts and soldiers to join the war efforts, to get information and deliver their own.
“Sure you want to leave now?” Maro asked, sitting next to her on the roof.
The building had a good view, near the outermost wall. “They have to be able to deal with it themselves. I can’t be here all the time.”
The man stood up and stretched. “You could be. I was.”
“I can’t do much good here.”
“You could defend the city, be a reason for people not to attack.” Maro said.
She knew he was just fucking with her but replied seriously nonetheless. “Sulivhaan is at level two sixty eight. Dagon at two sixty one. They have the Hand and the Shadowguard behind them. I trust them not to fuck this up.”
“Maybe…,” She added, “Maybe it’s the wrong decision. But if I stay now, I will stay the next time. I care about them, even a little about the city itself, the people living in it. Still, I won’t let it hold me back.”
He shrugged, “Your decision. I hope you’re ready to live with the consequences.”
“Like you did?” She shot back and watched in amusement as he grasped his heart, acting as if a powerful spell had hit him.
“I was there. And I still failed. Perhaps it would have been smarter to focus on what I was good at.” He said and stood up.
“Killing monsters?” Ilea asked.
“No.” He winked at her, “Gambling.”
Ilea pushed some air out of her nose, “I’m sure the leaders of Ravenhall will rise to the challenge. If anything, the city would hold under siege. One level three hundred human won’t change the tide of war. A level three fifty or four hundred though? Maybe.”
Maro snorted, “One level two hundred assassin can change the tide of war. Let’s not get into details though. Come on then. Or do you want to brood on the rooftops some time longer? Maybe until the storm hits, might make a good painting. Lightning flashing in the background. Ilea, the defender of Ravenhall! Lady Lilith, the destroyer, the avenger!” He gestured wildly, nearly slipping on the slightly wet roof.
She silently spread her wings, his words like static in her ears. Did I finally get my Resistance? Ilea wondered, the winds pressing against her bone armor, soon covered by ash.
Maro caught up with her, the two rushing over the mountains with incredible speed, their target, Riverwatch.
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It was hopeless really. The monsters. Hidden near the riverbank.
I was all Linus could do not to scream, to stay composed and to focus. He had faced monsters before, of course he had. Both men and beasts deserving of the name. Both with the guard and with his brother.
His glaive swung wide, twirling in the air and coming down on the neck of a Nazark. He trusted his skill, trusted the blade. The ground was wet, the air cold. His boots moved smoothly on the gravel of the road, blood spraying out from the wound of his enemy.
The glaive continued through the air, his skill keeping the bladed pole moving. Behind his back and finally into his other hand. No monster was in range. None that he could see, sense.
“Retreat!” He heard his commander shout. The sound was lost in a sea of screams and snarls.
He was part of the team that was supposed to flank the beasts. Nazarks, easily provoked, easily led into a trap. Today it was the other way around. The scouts had failed it seemed or the creatures had learned, perhaps had a leader even.
[Nazark – lvl 62]
Weak, he thought. A single blow of his weapon would be enough to kill it. Still he felt his breath get stuck in his lungs, felt the shiver flowing unrelentingly down his spine as he looked at the blood dripping from the monster’s claws.
This was what it meant, to fight outside the walls. To be the hunters, the cleaners. Those that were meant to protect the people living happily within the distant city.
He had of course regretted his decisions many times already. His post on the city walls was secure, his level above one hundred. Many contenders had to become adventurers instead or had to join the troops to scout and kill the beasts nearby.
Riverwatch. The city he had come to call his home. He looked at the lanky beast, taller even than him and thinner, albeit not by much.
Hatred glowed in its eyes, coupled with apprehension. It had seen its kind cut down, its attention focused on the blade held out by the human warrior.
Linus waited, recovering his stamina and mana as he surveyed his surroundings, listening for anything that would try to sneak up. The formations were broken, many wounded or dead. On each side. What the beasts lacked in teamwork and planning, they made up in savagery and fearlessness. He knew the guard was losing. A numbers game. Individual skill might be the saving grace. Both for him or the beasts.
“Why couldn’t you just stay in the forest?” He asked, sincere. The man’s voice laden with anger and fear.
Yet his hand was steady, the heavy wood familiar, a pillar to lean on. To focus.
The beast moved.
Spindly legs propelled it forward, strong muscles tensed and released as they brought its claws toward the armored man.
Lightning cracked around him, his body tensing up before he shot forward. His glaive was aimed at the creature’s heart, a dull crash resounded and the blade had punched through. Too much. He felt it, knew it in his core.
The beast slid closer, the gashing wound on its chest spelling its death. Yet not fast enough. Claws moved in and slashed at the human, their coupled momentum making it impossible to avoid. Not for the monster and not for the man.
Linus’ eyes opened wide right before they crashed together, a bling resounding in his mind just when the long vicious claws buried themselves in his left arm and right shoulder.
The force went through him and the two tumbled down in a ball of long legs and arms. Still, he gripped his weapon, the wood holding against the weight. Linus moved the corpse away from him and stumbled to his feet, blood dripping from his arm and shoulder. Neither wound was life threatening but it would be an issue if not treated soon.
The pain was familiar, not worse than what he had felt before but not much better either. It would impact his skill. The blade slid out of the corpse, the man distancing himself from the body as he once again looked around.
Corpses littered the riverbank but the sounds of battle had moved, towards the treeline to his right. Coughing and moans of pain resounded around him, the iron stench of blood laid heavy in the air. Death. The thought flashed through his mind. Run. He heard himself think. A pounding in his body, his own heart beating faster yet again.
The man activated Meditation, its second tier allowing him to move slowly towards the battle, the side effects of the skill calming him down, unraveling the knot of fear in his mind.
He sped up again once he was focused again, lightning flowing through him to quicken his movements, to enhance his reaction speed. The Nazarks had been quick, had killed five of them before most even knew what was happening.
Any lower ranked adventurer team or even the guards from Stormbreach would have fallen into chaos. Quickly overwhelmed. Yet they were the hunters, trained and prepared to take care of monster infestations. Nazarks hadn’t been planned for today but it didn’t matter.
Fire flashed in the underbrush. The light of dawn slowly pressing through the dark.
The trees wouldn’t favor his weapon, an open space required to fully use the range. Linus moved his grip farther up the wooden pole, his breath heaving for air as he steeled himself. Lightning flashed once more when he broke through the bushes.
Heavy steps pushed against the earthy ground, his blade slashing into the neck of a beast, killing it instantly. A slide allowed him to dodge a flying clawed hand, his weapon cutting through a leg before her rolled and shot up again.
The mage looked injured, stumbling away from two more beasts as a small ball of fire burnt into one of them, released by her hand.
Blood was dripping from her chest, her left arm hanging to her side. The white of bone visible.
Linus moved towards her, the power of lightning flowing through his veins. He jumped to her side and shouted, “Healer!” To deter the beasts and just as muchin hope to find the only healer in their troop to stumble out of the darkness.
Three more monsters answered his call, rushing out from the thicket as he readied his blade.
Everything stopped instantly, writhing lines of moving darkness exploded through the Nazarks’ heads and chests. A figure clad in black, wisps moving silently around their armor landed softly in their midst.