“Boom! Boom!” several blood red and dark green energy bolts landed right on the buildings of the three houses of the Grant Academy. The protective energy arrays around these buildings immediately activated when the first bolts landed on each of the buildings.

“All students and faculty members, head to the nearest safety shelter immediately. All students and faculty members, head to the nearest safety shelter immediately.” an emergency alert message was broadcasted across the campus: “All safety personnel, activate invasion protocol. All safety personnel, activate invasion protocol.”

A loud cracking sound came from a patch of dark red cloud that appeared in the sky, and with it thousands of fireballs rained down from the sky and over the area in which the monster was standing, and fighting with Professor Barnes and Glenda Grimes. Professor Dorothea Clarkson reached into her robe pocket and took out a small metal mirror, then she threw it into the air at the fiery cloud she conjured.

Professor Barnes and Glenda Grimes backed away from the area just mere seconds before the rain of fire came down on them. The monster was not prepared, and it had to take the attacks head on by growing additional hard shells and scales to guard its body.

“What the fuck is this thing!?” Professor Barnes looked back at the buildings inside the campus and confirmed that the protective magical weapons were raised from inside the buildings due to the activation of the invasion protocol.

“No one knows.” Glenda Grimes sheathed her light green rapier, then infused her power into both the sword handle and the sheath: “But looks like it’s adapting - and learning. We cannot drag this on.”

“Whatever it is, it shouldn’t be able to withstand the weapons. So just lock it in place, and let them strike.” Professor Dorothea Clarkson spoke to both Professor Barnes and Glenda Grimes: “Randall should activate his thing soon. ”

“Okay. He’d better be quick.” Professor Barnes raised his broadsword again, and before the monster could react, he unleashed another energy slash against the monster’s thick shell.

The moment the weapons from those buildings became armed, the monster’s whole body shivered as if it sensed a sudden coldness, and before the weapons could open fire on it. And its body swiftly shrunk while growing long like a giant snake or worm, and after curling back its body, like a compressed spring, it launched itself at the closest building to it - a tall watchtower used by some of the researchers when they try to observe the stars.

“Fuck!” “Fuck!” “What the - ”

Before Professor Dorothea Clarkson, Professor Barnes or Glenda Grimes could react, the weapons from the buildings opened fire, yet the monster blinked, disappearing from where it was and reappearing in the air, leaving the watchtower to be completely decimated by the devastating energy attacks from the academy defense weapons.

“It broke the teleportation barrier. Randall, strengthen it as much as you can!” Professor Dorothea Clarkson shouted and flew towards the position of the monster.

“Lock it down! Lock it down!” Glenda Grimes also flew into the air.

Around twenty of battle mages and fighters, who are the academy’s security personnel, came out from different corners of the academy campus and started launching their attacks at the monster.

“Professor Barnes, any orders?” one knight in a suit of dark blue armor with a scepter in his hand came to Professor Barnes and asked.

“Send two mages to help Headmaster Collins enhance the teleportation barrier, five of your team members to go to the control panel of the suppression array, activate it in full force to slow it down.” it did not take Professor Barnes too long to lay out a plan: “Have people mount those defense weapons and aim carefully, use concentrated beams instead of explosive blasts. All others, go into battle and attack it from all angles to restrict its movement and wiggle room.”

“Understood.”

After giving these orders, Professor Barnes flew into the air and joined in on the assault against the beast, which had now taken the form of a giant four-winged and three-headed bat.

Two of the bat heads opened their mouths and unleashed two waves of concentrated and directional sonic blasts. Two groups of academy security personnel were hit at almost point blank range and were thus blasted onto the ground.

A fire snake shot towards the monster in a curled trajectory, and a light green wind energy eagle glided through the air aiming to strike the monster on its weaker spots. The monster apparently feared the attacks of Professor Dorothea Clarkson and Glenda Grimes more than it did others that fought against it, and it blinked once again to appear on the floating castle that was the official building of the Martin House.

A crescent-shaped energy slash drove the monster away from the floating castle, and this time the monster left half a dozen broken windows and several big patches of broken roof. The monster tried to blink once again, but a force field just blasted it out from its original position.

“Teleportation barrier is up.” Glenda Grimes spoke, and her voice resounded in the ears of Professor Barnes and Dorothea Clarkson: “We’ve gotta be quick - I’m afraid it’s gonna change again.”

“All security personnel, attack! Now!” Professor Barnes roared.

While the fight against the monster was happening, several groups of people came out from their shelters and started rushing towards the Anderson Plaza - the place where students coming into the academy or leaving academy all had to go through.

“Hey Ms. Wong, we’re in some kind of battle here.” Jason was hiding in the underground shelter under the main building with Caroline, Thomas and Aimee while on a call with Josephine Wong: “The hearing’s over, but we’re kinda in a warzone here.”

“Professor Kapur told me.” Josephine Wong answered, she sounded like she was thinking while talking: “Okay, our plan should remain unchanged, bring Aimee and Thomas with you, leave the academy immediately, head to the Anderson Plaza right now, your extraction is en route, and should be there any minute.”

“What about Professor Kapur? And the others?”

“Professor Kapur insisted on staying inside the academy, and I could not sway her. She’s an important asset of the academy, so she would be safe there as well. But no one could guarantee yours, while there are some hidden players that may want to harm you. So you need to head out right now and head to the inn. It’s the safest place for you right now.”

“What about the key? The silver box?” Caroline asked.

“No one knows jack shit about it while it was there for years. You’d think there’s anyone better to decipher it than me or your master?”

“Okay, fair enough, let’s go!” Jason hung up the phone and held the silver metal ball in his hand.