They started out at a good pace, as Edryd, Batch, and the others were close behind them. Their footsteps made no sound, but the sheathes and armor rustled lightly as they descended the gentle slope leading to the market. "Look at that, Garett's made us a gorgeous path to follow," Nenvalur said cheerfully, gesturing to the trail of corpses strewn alongside the road.
"That confirms it, you're insane. I don't know how you can fight that hard and long, and still be so cheerful," Anwill shook his head. "When you spend most of your life fighting battle after battle with the creatures, then suddenly come to a halt for a couple of hundred years and end up missing the battle rage, then you can call me insane," Nenvalur replied with a chuckle.
No, you're just as crazy as she is, Anwill thought, knowing Nenvalur could hear it.
"I wonder if anyone made it out before the invasion," Edryd said remorsefully, gazing down the lifeless streets. The desolated houses and huts along the way gave no signs of human activity, and were as quiet as can be, as the horde's bedlam echoed down the empty streets from a distance. "There's no way to tell right now, young one," Nenvalur said over his shoulder as they continued down the street.
Edryd chewed on the words as he trotted alongside his friend. "Think Thoma and the others have met the enemy, yet?" he asked Batch, but he could only shake his head in response. "I don't know, but I suspect that by now something is going on up there," he replied, prompting Ed to gaze towards the palace, noticing bright shafts of violet, red, and golden light coming from the shattered windows and into the night sky.
Batch noticed Ed wasn't saying anything, and looked off in the same direction, seeing the flashes from the window, and knew Edryd was worried. "Hey, we've got our own shit to deal with. That lanky fuck is fine… I think," he said with little confidence. "I hope you're right," Ed replied, doing his best to return his focus to the task at hand.
Good luck, Thoma, he thought with a silent nod.
The war-party trotted on for the next few minutes until Roburn spotted Garett's horse tied to a post. "He's over there," he said, pointing to where he was on top of a roof. "Looks like he's found a decent vantage point," Nenvalur grinned. "He tends to do that before any attack, but let's see what he has to offer," Roburn replied briefly as Nenvalur signaled to the others to move silently toward the master Synner, while Anwill raised his closed fist and held it high in the air to halt the others.
He gestured to Nenvalur, Roburn, Batch, and Edryd to follow him as they crept up to Garett, lying flat on the ground that overlooked the market. "It's about time you got here," he whispered as the small group crept up low to the ground. "See those giant bastards over there?" he whispered, motioning slightly over the ridgeline of the small hill toward a group of ten, monstrous ochelons gathered around a handful of large crystals.
"Those massive crystals must be the ones he mentioned earlier. If I'm right, the smaller crystals are for individual control, while the large ones are for amplifying the controlling spell. We don't even have to kill the ochelons themselves, since they might prove useful to us once the crystal is broken. That would save us energy and men in the process," Garett said.
"Master Garett, I think there may be something else there with them," Batch whispered, noticing a vacancy in the group. "Ah, yes, that would be the addia," Garett sighed, getting a look of concern from him in return. "Only a few of them are left roaming the world that we know of, but it seems this mage was powerful enough to have one under his command. Hopefully, it hasn't picked up our scent, but its invisibility and long tentacles will be a problem if it does," he continued.
"It can make itself invisible? Fuck me, that's not even fair," Ed sighed quietly. "It can, but that doesn't mean there aren't ways of making it reveal itself. All you need to do is burn its skin; that way, it can't hide itself again," Nenvalur replied lightly, as if doing so were such an easy task.
Maybe Anwill was right; he's insane after all, Ed thought with widened eyes.
"My bow-casters can infuse their arrows to get that done, but the moment we fire, we'll lose the element of surprise," Garett said grimly. "We'll surround them before you launch that attack. If the addia picks up our scent, at least it won't know which direction we're coming from exactly," Nenvalur suggested with a grin, causing Anwill to scoff lightly and shake his head.
"It'll take us a few moments to catch up to you once we do. Until we get there, you're on your own," Garett nodded. "We'll be alright. We'll try to break the crystals in the meantime, while you and your bow-casters get situated for what comes after we break them," Anwill chimed in. "Let's get moving then. The longer we wait here, the more likely it is that addia will pick up our scent before we're in position," Nenvalur said, motioning for his group to prepare to move.
The small group retracted itself from the ridgeline and returned to the others who awaited orders. Garett explained his plan to his archers, and they began to move on foot to their vantage points on the roofs of the nearby houses.
Anwill explained the plan to the others, and they began to make their way down the streets, fanning out between the houses as they went. Once all were in position, Anwill spawned a small flame in the palm of his hand and used the glint of his sword to signal Garett that they were primed for action.
He and the others nocked their arrows, drawing from the Ethereal and directing the flowing mana to the palms of their hands, where it began to seep into their arrows, making them glow a fiery orange. They drew the strings to their cheeks and tilted their bodies back a little to increase their range.
They had the high ground, but although their bows were powerful, they needed to ensure their arrows hit their mark. Garett loosened his grip on the bowstring, sending the first arrow soaring into the night air, while the others did the same a fraction of a second after. The air flooded past the feathers on the arrows and made them hiss before reaching their target with numerous, squelching thwacks.
The arrows struck their invisible mark, and in an instant, the addia was engulfed in mana-flame, revealing itself to its attackers. It writhed and bellowed deeply, swinging its long tentacles at its own body to try and douse the flame that burned it. Anwill immediately sent a large ball of light into the air to illuminate their battlefield. "Now!" he shouted, as he and the others began to charge.
Edryd, Batch, Roburn, Rosie, and Nenvalur were at his side, roaring as they sprinted towards their targets, striking fear into their enemies' hearts. The large group of creatures outside the ring of ochelons messily met their attackers, charging wildly at their armored enemies.
Swords sectioned their enemies, and talons met their marks as the bloodbath ensued, sending all kinds of putrid odors, insides, and blood into the air. Edryd and Batch's strength was beginning to wear thin, but the knowledge that this was one of the most decisive moments of their lives motivated them to continue landing their blows.
Anwill resorted to using his blade instead of spells, though if anyone thought he might be out of practice, the carnage he caused told a different story. He and Nenvalur and a handful of others nearby carved a path through the horde as they made their way to the ochelons guarding the crystals.
The uproar caused by the attacking Synners would be remembered for ages. Even after losing more than a few during their first encounter, the power they commanded over the horde was astonishing.
Garett and his men went down the streets to reinforce the ones below them. As they were almost a stone's throw away, one of the side ranks broke, causing glicks to pour out and head for the palace.
"Shit. Take them out!" Garett shouted, drawing his blade as they broke out into a sprint. Within a few moments, they met the enemy where the ranks had broken, sealing the gap with a mountain of severed limbs and lifeless bodies.
Batch and Ed were carving through the monsters, trying desperately to keep up with Nenvalur and Anwill. "Why haven't the ochelons attacked us yet?" Batch shouted over to Edryd. "Maybe they're waiting for us to get closer. Squash us one by one or some weird shit," Ed grunted, cutting the head off another glick.
"That's not happening. Not on my watch," Batch snarled as he cut more quickly than before, carving a path through the horrible creatures. "Batch, don't go in alone!" Edryd shouted desperately.
Damn it, Batch! He's going to get himself fucking killed, he thought, cutting down a handful of creatures to try and make his way over to him.