Book 7, Chapter 85 - Giant Octopus (1/2)

Book 7, Chapter 85 - Giant Octopus

Emerald Star’s underground city was ringed with angry snarls, bloody corpses and the stench of conflict. It was like stepping into the depths of hell.

Autumn sat upon the back of her dragon, gently playing her flute. Her hair danced on sweeping gusts of wind and her green dress fluttered. Her young, pretty face was serene as she played as though she was lost in her own world. She forgot herself, forgot the carnage – all there was, was the music.

Below her a milling horde of creatures shuffled forward. They crawled over and around one another in a chaotic flood. They snarled and snapped, some releasing balls of fire and smoke into the air. Tension filled the atmosphere as Autumn’s army met other creatures and tore them apart. Meanwhile Natessa and her elite crew followed with thousands of troops in tow. They cleaned up what the monsters missed.

The creatures were strong, but not particularly intelligent. Autumn’s will commanded thousands of them and robbed them of the ability to distinguish friend from foe. Like a buffeting tide they swayed back and forth while soldiers cut them down.

Wave after wave were culled. The brutality and efficiency of the extermination was impressive, especially since the monsters were also at one another’s throats. The number of monsters Autumn was able to control was static, but she could shift that control as she wished. Chaos was the result among the snapping swarm.

Azura led her Awakened through the fray, cutting down scores of beasts. The intensity of the fight was more than they’d expected after being told to evacuate. However, though the scene was drenched in blood only very few Awakened were killed or wounded in the fighting.

Defense was the first priority of Greenland’s troops. Most precious were their Awakened. Of course it was not like they were defenseless themselves. Aside from a few unlucky souls, casualties were minimal.

Pigblossom yelled at the top of his lungs. “Something’s going on up ahead!”

His classmates looked in the direction he indicated. There was a cluster of black buildings on the horizon that varied greatly from the surrounding Elysian-style structures. All of them were connected together, forming a massive honeycomb framework. Yet while the exterior looked like iron, it moved, undulating like some sort of organ. Not alive, more like a nest.

No doubt about it. This was where the monsters were coming from. Whatever spawned them was waiting inside.

Nothing about it seemed godly. Some other intelligent species was probably responsible and the gods merely pilfered it. It was the only way to explain what something this odd was doing here.

But where it came from wasn’t important. Natessa ordered the attack.

Autumn, also noting the alien hatchery, commanded her beasts forward. The nine-headed wolves took to the air, but as they prepared to strike a strange power was released from the structure.

Whoosh---!

It was formless but palpable, washing through the area with a deep hum. All the beasts were thrown into a frenzy, even breaking Autumn’s control. She scowled at the affront.

This strange power took her by surprise, not least of which because it was so similar to her own. It exerted its will on the beasts, forcing an order among the mindless things. As she watched they formed a defensive perimeter around the hive.

Yes, this was the place. Inside the brood mothers hid, slave to some overpowering will. It made them endlessly produce more offspring and controlled the hordes like puppets. Now, it was aware of the threat on its doorstep.

The Shepherd God tried again to take their minds, pouring more of her psyche into the attempt. She succeeded in domineering several of the wolves and forced them to renew their attacks. With searing plumes of flame they swooped by the nest. The intense heat caused the exterior to crack.

Another pulse of intense psychic energy was released from inside. As though from some enormous, invisible hand, the wolves were snatched up. They struggled and thrashed but could not move as the consciousness battled against the Shepherd God’s control.

She would not tolerate these powerful creatures being wrested from her, so she fought back. Neither mind would back down and as they contended, the wolves howled in agony. Eventually it was the unseen controller that could not sustain.

The ground collapsed beneath the hive as from the ground a number of blood red tentacles burst forth. They lashed out at the wolves, flinging deadly barbs that dug into the creatures. Each of the spines was lined with delicate suckers.