Nikita van Damage

[Kwi kwi kwi kwi kwi]

[Whao..] [whaooou...]

The cries of the birds is sometimes loud and startling here, the trees are scattered about large distances from each other but the leaf-trees, shrubs, and general fauna is tall enough to cover our sight of the sun, the grass 2 metres tall and sharp enough to cut through cloth to soft skin below. I look up at the curious arboreal winged monkeys grandpa Zhen calls simians with my own curious fascination. The beasts are tough enough to have killed 14 people in the main Host before conceding that too many of them were dying for too little return.

Though we killed thousands of the things, for them to manage to kill so many means they aren’t simple and the pragmatic way in which they conceded and negotiated a means they are all Awakened to sapience yet still there is no hate for us in their eyes, just curiosity. They’ve been shadowing us through this part of the forest six days now watching how we deal with threats and progress through the dense forest. And twice they have been useful in pointing out antidote plants for some of the more subtle threat’s the Host has come across in what is now slow progress through Tafa, a vast area in Mulsia according to the maps. The terrain has been slopping upwards for days now making the going more strenuous. With the heat, the mosquitoes, the occasional crying child it’s getting harder to appreciate the novelty of the whole ‘travelling experience’ as da likes to call it.

I hear her coming before I see her and I grin to myself already happy for the company, the grass to my left is suddenly much shorter with Iki sheathing her sword as she strides through.

‘’Hey,’’ she says walking next to me pushing the grasses aside with a gloved hand in naked annoyance.

I quickly pull her into a headlock with a grin, rubbing her head hard with my knuckles.

‘’Hey, stop that,’’ she says pushing me off easily before giving me a once over then blowing loose strands of her dark silk hair from her face. I wish I had that hair! ‘’You’re bored aren’t you?’’

‘’So bored,’’ a whine escapes my lips and I’m looking around quickly to check whether mama might have heard that.

‘’Psst. Well, I might as well walk with you.’’ She says, I grin. She’s probably more bored than I am being one of the many warriors hanging back with the Host-followers helping watch the kids.

‘’I’m glad for the company.’’

* * *

Orochi

‘’Look, you need knowledge and that’s Magistry boy; you see Magistry is when you acquire the spark.’’

‘’The spark?’’

‘’You need the spark boy, mana is just fuel, all you Barbarians ever think about is power, you need knowledge boy, discipline,’’ Zhen says smoke pouring out of his nostrils. ‘’Listen here, don’t listen to your Uncles when they tell you Sandersonians are soft, we just take our time when doing things. A Master studies, meditates, dedicates themselves in the pursuit of their art. We even leave the many administrative and political grandstanding that we previously dealt with as Magisters, pursuing wholly the arts of magic. At least those dedicated to improving themselves, I will admit that here in Sandoria a lot of magus are satisfied with the title of magister.’’ The last sentence is spoken dismissively as if it were of no consequence, maybe it isn’t in these lands.

‘’Yeah but why does it take so long? Hannah said Sandersonian Mages can take over 80 years just to Awaken the first time, and many never even Awakening the second time-‘’’

‘’And even fewer get to Grandmaster, yes this is so. We’ve had a hard time Awakening past a certain point that is true, but our foundation in magic is like no other, even compared to the other people that have made it into Paradisum. Well all but the fae, but that’s besides the point. Listen boy, see how efficient your mother Mira is in her use of her magic? Who do you think she learnt her basics from mhmm?’’ The man says taking more puffs from his pipe.

‘’Okay, what else is there to being a Mage down here?’’ Brain, the oldest of us at 12 years old asks grandda eagerly..

‘’Mhmm..., Sway, educate them on the basics.’’ The old man says to Sway as we walk and talk, smoking leisurely taking in his surroundings again distractedly.

‘’Well... first there are novices, where you learn the basics like how to do proper calculations and are taught how to think and the likes.’’

‘’I know how to think already.’’ I say with confidence.

‘’Phhayyy, you think you do boyo but to think the proper way is a skill.’’ Zhen says tapping his head for emphasis. ‘’Go on boy,’’ he gestures encouragingly to Sway, the trudge through the rain and mud not so dull with his stories to keep us thinking about other things.

‘’Okay so there is mage, megister, master, grandmaster and archmage but da wants me to give the long winded version of the explanation which I’m not in the mood for,’’ Sway says slowing, hanging back shifting between the crowd of us walking around grandda Zhen for a story. Sway disappears between Kragúr, Applé, Krasi, Lawd and Husu as I watch like some sort of magician himself, I give Sere a look. She shakes her head, still not able to see how he does that.

‘’That boy, I don’t know who he takes after.’’ Grandda Zhen says with a shake of his head, comical with how the smoke looks like a white beard around his face.

* *

Nikita van Damage

There is hardly any talking, we are all crouched low with defensive wards being erected in the unlikely eventually whatever the Horde is facing goes through them and gets to us. The tail end of the Host force is over a kilometre ahead but we can hear some of the fighting from here, some likely even able to watch judging by how inattentive I’m seeing some people currently being. Another one of the louder explosions sounds again, a gust of warm wind soon follows and again it’s mostly a silent forest.

I have no true desire to be anywhere near a fight like that, not really. But at the same time I’m so excited about it I could pee myself. I realised long ago I’m more a fan of fighting than a true protégé, not like a lot of my siblings and the eager ball of excitement I’m restraining squatting between my legs. Orochi looks up at me with his adorable pleading eyes, ‘’don’t even think about it.’’ I put a quick end to his ambition of seeing the fight, Hannah not far off restraining a curious Morpheus. The boys are a handful, the girls are much more mild mannered when compared to these two.

Sounds like the cracking of multiple whips in succession reverberates from over the slope deep amongst the foliage. We are deep into the wilderness now to be reaching the territory of an Ancient Beast that can keep the entire Host train from moving further, I wish I could see the fight, I stop my foot from tapping on incessantly, it will likely be over soon anyways.

*

Victor van Daen

Vines whistle cutting through the air colliding against raised artifact shields be deflected by a weapon here and there, some punching through flesh easily to wrap around the warriors not fast enough to cut the branches. Javelins clad in auras of different hues shoot through the air from our forces to find themselves punching ineffectively into trees that smoothly almost inexplicably sway into their paths, roots that suddenly stand on end closing the path to the beast and the last are stopped by a so far impregnable invisible force field 10metres around the beast. At least that’s all we’ve found out about it’s defences from what we have so far observed.

Our Attack Seers finally finish their spell and a beam of sunlight shines between the three Awakened Seers, condenses into an orange ball of light searing into my eyes. I look away shielding my face with my hand but that light has already seared itself behind my retinas and even with my eyes closed I see the light shoot across my vision cutting through trees and root defences with crushing ease to collide around the suddenly visible dome of protection the beast has been employing as a last line of defence.

The silent roaring of the sun-spirit blast dissipates, the beam sputtering away leaving three nakedly vulnerable Seers as the beasts target. The thing opens its eyes for the first time since this brief but titanic struggle started, black pools of obsidian those eyes but they look upon us all causing a hush to spread over all the silent watchers of the exchange. The is creaking like the twisting of an old tree as the beast gets up smoothly from where it’s been sitting this whole time, its full height at least 12 feet at the shoulder I judge.

With practiced ease and smooth efficiency another trio of seers finish casting their spell and a beam of light shines between them before condensing itself into a ball of light energy floating before them. I’m already protecting my eyesight knowing what’s coming but using the rest of my senses I follow the action easily enough as the beam shoots forward. Again it punches through the root defences without issue and again shines brightly with the light scattering around the circular perimeter of the beasts shielding.

The beast’s presence is impressive I cannot deny though it is currently in our way. It has a dark mane of fur around its neck and shoulders that crown it as a monarch in her domain in this land we’ve found ourselves on. The visage that looks upon us is not even one of hostility but dispassionate practicality surveying lesser beings . The beast is like nothing I’ve ever come across, judging by how the Host Chiefs seem to be probing it I doubt I’m the only one wondering what kind of creature we are dealing with.

I look to Arvid who nods that he’s listening to the command conversation following all the decision making not warded from everyone in the war-host. My gaze is back on the 12 feet tall beast as its antlers crackle and grow as we watch which apparently is all the war-chief is willing to risk because a moment later a javelin thrown by Austa woozes through the air bright with condensed power. The roots and trees fail to even get in its path, pushed back rattling as the javelin flies past right at the four legged six tailed proud creature barring our way forward.

The honed artifact represents a large escalation in force as Austa is a second tier Awakened bone-bender from the depths of Anastasia, at least she used to be just that before adding the lofty achievement of being a citizen of Paradisum to her already many accomplishments.

SCRUNCH!

The spiritual weapon imbeds itself deep into the now translucent barrier behind which the beast stands gazing at the forces formed against it, it tilts it’s head in a gesture of curiosity looking at the cracks in its defence formed around the still glowing javelin, big mistake. The weapon releases a dark-beam straight at the still curious creature’s face. The force of the explosion of the beam making direct contact is like an echoing clap of power, billowing hot air spreads with the dust cloud created felt even from my vantage over 3 kilometres away in a matter of seconds. I shake my head at the destructive power I’m witnessing.

The power difference between the tiers of Awakening is exponential in nature. As a sign of the respect of the known innate abilities of all Ancient beasts the initial probes were all conducted by the ranged abilities of the tier 1 Awakened, now though things are about to get serious. The Known 2 nd Tier shuffle places with the Horde soldiers that were initially arranged against the Beast, no one expects to have one shot it to victory and sure enough the dust settles to reveal the unruffled epoch like creature. I can definitely see how all hoofed and antlered creatures could be some lesser descendents of this majestic beast.

I lowers its head, the billowing dust clears with with a gust and the thing bunches up putting everyone on the defensive.

Vhoom

The thing is gone-

Squish!! A human body is turned into a pincushion hanging from the thing’s impossible sharp antlers. The Rage of the disabled and immobilised warrior all that keeps him alive as the thing flips its head back flinging the poor fool over 50 metres behind it.

Vhoom, the thing is gone.

Boom, it crashes through a wall of earth hastily conjured by the defensive earth shapers. The 20 inch wall of manipulated mud and stone crumbles like wax as the Beast goes through it but it enough for the soldiers to get their shields up.

Clank!

Antlers collide with artifact shields and going no further, but the warriors holding said shield’s are left shaken from the force of the impact. Roots with no clear origin slither like snakes through the field, between trees, along the ground.

Crank, creak, ding, ding ding.

They ring dully when colliding with the perimeter defence shields as would be expected from wooden spears hitting metal.

More earth wall come up around it only to be completely destroyed by the Beast’s witling tails,

Shhhoo boom, shhhh boom, shshhhooo boom.

Energy Bolts, lightning bolts, ice shards, fire bolts, fire bolts, mud projectiles fly at the Beast the perimeter of our middle range casters right behind the close range warriors eager for their turn behind the shield bearers. With agility and speed that belly it’s prodigious size the Beast swerves through attacks, wall of earth and artifect shield bearers trying to hem it in.

[BAM!]

It rushes through a clump of our bearers with it’s hug antlers ripping shield’s from graps leaving twisted tortured metal behind.

[VhhooM!]

[BANG!] It takes out more warriors, it stomps to negate all grasping abilities trying to hold it down. Tier Two spear and polearm wielders rsush in to harras the thng but it’s tails keep them back and on the defensive, each tail seeming to have a mind of its own as it takes an opponents.

Six spells are finished by six trios of Attack Seers. Zzooo...

The first light condenses and shoots true, spreading around the beast’s perimeter defences as ineffectively as the first two sun-spirit beams. The second joins the first in assaulting the domed defence around the again stationary Beast. A third and fourth beam join the brightness unbearable for most normal eyes, even eyes of an Awakened warrior. The fifth and sixth join even as the perimeter around the shield pops like a bubble and direct contact is made with the enemy.

Our close quarters trusted warriors fly past the spear wielders through the confusion to deliver the deadly payloads of their weapons up close. Rare, legendary or even mythical quality weapons, some enchanted with special attributes wielded by close quarters Tier two warriors, none Barbarian, all Paradisians, mostly fae but there are a few humans in the elite squad.

The perimeter is burnt away by the shot of the fifth beam as the first spatters away. Squad Ante is in the gap and blood and gore is exchanged as they inflict and take wounds. The Sixth beam stoots