Wyrchwrought. A corrupt creature formed from the abyssal Wyrchwood and the remains of other creatures. They were hardy, fast moving creatures which had a jerky unnatural gait.

  “Thanr laif!” Verdan roared out the spell as he conjured a thick lance of flames that blasted into the closest of the creatures.

  Flames enveloped the monster, and it fell from the wall it had been clinging to with a screech of pain. Even as Verdan began casting a second spell to ensure it was dead, Cullan and Ada engaged the other two monsters.

  Cullan was still a little hunched from being in the tunnel, and his movements lacked their usual grace, but he was able to drive the Wyrchwrought back with wide swings of his blade.

  Ada, however, became a blur as she crashed directly into her foe, throwing it back several steps. Chasing after it, her sword elongated into some sort of long spear that was thrust through the Wyrchwrought’s chest before it could recover.

  The spear shifted again as Ada withdrew it, shifting into a heavy bladed axe that she used to cleave the monster’s head from its shoulders with disturbing ease.

  Turning back to Cullan, Verdan saw that Kai had rushed forward to aid the Idrisyr and their foe was dead, impaled on Kai’s spear.

  The whole fight had taken mere moments, and all three of the dangerous creatures had been killed without any injury.

  “The guards are dead or incapacitated,” Ada announced, her weapon flowing like liquid to resume its initial shape. “We must move forward with haste.”

  “Agreed, I’ll light our path,” Verdan said, holding his staff up as he bound a light spell to its tip. The time for subtlety was past now, if the Wyrchwrought were creeping around the tunnels, then the rest of the Cyth weren’t far behind.

  “Steel Custodians, to the front!” Ada called out, her voice carrying through the passage. “Hit them hard, push them back and secure the warehouse!”

  A low rumble echoed back from the rest of her Sect as a small group of Sorcerers moved to the fore at Ada’s call.

  They began to move forward again, though at a quicker pace than before, and Verdan noticed that of all the Steel Custodians, only one clanked and clattered in their armour.

  Hearing the comparison made Verdan realise how little noise most of the Steel Custodians made, despite their armour. Some made almost no sound at all, like Ada, which made the noisy Sorcerer an oddity.

  Verdan noted that the man had an oversized longbow in hand as well, whereas most of the other Steel Custodians fought in close combat.

  Pushing the thoughts aside, Verdan focused on the path ahead as they reached a familiar set of stairs. This was the entrance to the warehouse, and unlike the set they’d user earlier, the guard post for these was right at their base.

  Much like before, the guard post was a decent sized chamber that interrupted the passage to the stairs. Unlike before, however, this one held Cyth Lai.

  Humanoid in form but with exaggerated bestial features, Cyth Lai lacked a unified appearance, but were the most numerous of the Cyth.

  There were a dozen of the corrupt creatures in the room, with three more dragging the mauled bodies of the defeated defenders up the stairs.

  A dark fate awaited anyone who was captured by the Cyth. Death was a far cleaner alternative to the corruption and transformation that their captives would undergo.

  The sickening reality of the Cyth was that the creatures before them could once have been friends and allies. Brave defenders of the city turned into the very scourge that destroyed it.

  “Aer torr,” Verdan said with a sharp wave of his hand that released an arc of condensed air which flew forward to slice into the furthest of the Cyth, removing its leg at the knee.

  The Cyth screamed in rage and pain as it tumbled down the stairs, knocking down its comrades.

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  “Steel and fury!” Ada cried out, charging forward, the others of her Sect echoing the call as they raced behind her.

  The Cyth in the guard post rushed to meet the oncoming Sorcerers but were bowled aside by their heavily armoured attackers.

  The dozen Cyth that had been present were cut down in short order. They were simply no match for the battle-hardened Sorcerers in such small numbers.

  “Forward, to the warehouse!” Ada called out, leading from the front as she raced up the blood-slicked stairs with her sword at the ready.

  Verdan hurried along with the others, pausing only long enough to be sure that someone was dragging the survivors to safety. From the state they were in, he didn’t hold out much hope, but they had to try to save them.

  It hurt to rush by them and do nothing, but Verdan’s magic would be needed all the more when the true fight began. Inaction there could cost dozens of lives, not just three.

  It was the cruel arithmetic of battle, he could only save so many, he could only do so much.

  A cry of surprise came from the top of the stairs as Ada burst out into the warehouse. The cry ended as soon as it began, only to be followed by braying calls from dozens of throats.

  Rushing up the last few steps, Verdan raced through the shattered remnants of the secret door and took in the raging battle around the entrance.

  What had once been a warehouse was now a ruin, with broken walls, a smashed roof and piles of debris.

  A hundred or more Cyth Lai were clustered around the building and the nearby street, along with at least a dozen Wyrchwrought and a pair of Cyth Dregg.

  Cyth Dregg were the largest and most physically imposing of the Cyth. The Dregg resembled their lesser Lai brethren, but stood anywhere from ten to fifteen feet tall and were incredibly strong and durable.

  Both of the Dregg present had thick, coarse fur and a set of heavy antlers which had grown into twisted shapes.

  One of them was ripping down a building across the street, its huge fists punching right through the stonework, whilst the other was stomping toward Ada.

  A single strike from a Dregg could kill a normal man, and while Ada was no doubt tough enough to withstand such a blow, it was still a dangerous fight.

  “Gwth!” Verdan turned to the side and sent out a blast of force that knocked a cluster of Cyth back, giving space for the defenders to spread out.

  The same space meant that the Witches could move out into the open and engage the Cyth. Thunder rolled in the distance as a storm began to gather and the cawing of crows filled the air as Macha began to conjure her flock.

  A flash of green and black drew Verdan’s attention to the side as a pair of Cyth Baynes made themselves known.

  Cyth Baynes were the spellcasters of the Cyth Host, less powerful than a Scerrd, but a little stronger than the average Sorcerer.

  The pair commanding this group had sent a flurry of abyssal darts streaking toward the Steel Custodians supporting Ada, but Hedda was ready for them.

  Of the three Witches with them, Hedda’s magic was the least visually impressive. She was a Hex Witch, giving her power over curses and incredible control over the ambient Aether of the world.

  Her curses could be seen here and there, redirecting force and sapping energy. One particular Cyth had the misfortune of striking a guard while under her full attention.

  Every ounce of force from the Cyth’s blow was stolen and redirected to the side of its knee, snapping it out of joint and leaving the Cyth vulnerable to its intended victim.

  For all that her curses were powerful, Hedda’s true contribution came from using her control over the Aether around them. She could lock down an area and fight for control over its Aether when contesting a Wizard or Sorcerer.

  When fighting a Cyth Bayne, however, she brought the Aether to life and crushed the Malfease within their spells.

  The two Cyth Baynes had sent over a dozen projectiles streaking toward the Sorcerers, and every one of them faded and vanished before they even got halfway to their target.

  Confused, the Cyth spellcasters barely had time to react before a bolt of lightning struck down at them from the storm above. The same magic that had crushed their attacks prevented them from creating any shields, and the fury of the storm claimed two more lives.

  While the Witches dealt with the leadership of the Cyth, Cullan and Kai had moved to help Ada with the Cyth Dregg.

  The huge Cyth was powerful and strong, but so were each of its opponents. Cullan was several feet shorter than the creature, but the strength of his ancestors was packed into his, comparatively, small frame.

  All it took was one misstep on the Dregg’s part and Cullan’s greatsword removed its left arm, hewing through flesh and bone with ease.

  As the huge beast staggered and roared with pain, Ada and Kai swarmed in at its flanks. Ada’s weapon became a barbed spear that she dug into its leg, while Kai’s punched up through the jaw of the beast as it fell to its knees.

  For a single moment, it looked like the Dregg would somehow shake off its injuries and keep fighting, and then a huge arrow of twisted metal plunged into its eye.

  Following the shot back, Verdan saw the noisy Sorcerer from earlier had strung his bow and was conjuring metal arrows with his Essence. Each one then sprang out of the bow with the same strength as Verdan had seen Branwen use.

  It was an impressive display of raw power matched with precision, and Verdan reminded himself once again to never underestimate Sorcerers.

  “Push them!” Ada shouted as the Cyth Dregg fell to the ground. “Secure the warehouse!”

  The emerging defenders redoubled their efforts and as more and more of them arrived, they began to make more headway against the Cyth.

  Verdan dispatched his construct to assist in taking down the second Dregg, but its aid was hardly needed.

  Barely a few minutes after Ada had led the way out of the tunnel, they had secured what was left of the warehouse.

  From the echoing sounds that came from every direction around them, this particular fight was just beginning.