They jumped straight into the edge of a gruesome battle.
“Traitors! Traitors to the prophet-king!”
There were screams and roars from up ahead. Finn saw that he was in a small natural tunnel. Ahead of him were the backs of the Lamakai they’d come with, and then ahead of them was a glittering red-and-purple firestorm inside a large cavern.
Keskul and his Lamakai were gesturing as they ran, creating a glittering wall of white energy ahead of them.
“Push, push!” Keskul roared.
Finn felt the shock waves of energy thrumming through the air and shaking the ground as they charged onward, straight into battle.
The magical shields that Keskul and his strongest warriors created couldn’t protect the whole line, and they disintegrated into smaller, personal spheres of white as Finn was faced with snarling Lamakai, leveling their spears and pouncing toward him.
You have been struck by the Level 18 Lamakai Warrior for 55 points of damage.
He whirled out of the way of one spear strike, only to be almost impaled by a second, but he wasn’t seriously hurt. He summoned his Mana as his blade flashed out, finding scaled flesh.
Ascension Path: Combat.
Enhanced Block. Cost: 100 Mana. You become almost impossible to hit for a limited time as you parry and dodge with an almost psychic skill.
Finn felt the power run through him, seeming to speed up his reactions as he hammered the pommel of his blade against the Lamakai he had just hit. Then, he was spinning again, catching the next blow aimed at his head and sliding the Pyrrhic Blade down the spear to finish the enemy.
This is almost too easy! Finn felt his mouth twist with a savage joy. He was Level 31, and these Lamakai were around half of that.
Another sweep of his blade before he turned, striking out again, and another two more Lamakai had fallen.
His luck wasn’t going to last forever, though.
Something wrapped around his torso, and he gasped, looking down to see shifting green-and-red tentacles squeezing him. He gasped as they constricted. They had been ‘thrown’ like ropes from the hands of one of the more advanced First Trine Lamakai, and Finn could feel all the oxygen being squeezed from his body.
You have been struck by the Lamakai Serpent’s Coil for 60 points of damage.
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It didn’t matter that he wore armor. The energy bands seemed to crush him even with all of that.
You have been struck by the Lamakai Serpent’s Coil for 60 points of damage.
You are constricted.
Finn roared, grabbing one of the energy coils and doing his best to pull at it. His Strength was high, the sort of high that could kill ogres, and the coil started to loosen, but it wasn’t fast enough.
You have been struck by the Lamakai Serpent’s Coil for 30 points of damage.
What was worse, there were two more warriors running toward the hapless Defender, spears raised and ready to skewer him. He struggled and managed to loosen the coil even more, but not before the first of the strike came at him…
And missed.
Finn saw in amazement that the next warrior missed too, stumbling in the moment before they took their strike.
Enhanced Block! It’s still working!
He hit the floor, rolling forward to take out the legs of the first Lamakai and bouncing up as he brought his blade around in a searing arc through the second.
You have slain the Level 16 Lamakai. Experience awarded.
Messages repeatedly appeared to Finn, but there was no time to even consider them. He turned, pointed his blade straight at the elder Lamakai who had used the magical coils to nearly strangle him, and activated the blade’s internal powers.
The Pyrrhic Blade.
Fire-Bolt. Convert Mana to Damage.
It was a big move, but it was a power move. In that moment, Finn realized he had a lot of Mana to spare. He had his own personal store, but he also now had three Hearthstones. It was enough to burn a hole through this battle. He used it liberally.
You have struck the Level 22 Lamakai Elder for 915 points of damage.
You have struck the Level 16 Lamakai Warrior for 725 points of damage.
You have struck…
A searing inferno blasted through the First Trime ranks like a terrestrial comet. The flames were ugly and dark as they hit the far side of the cavern. Lamakai were thrown everywhere.
“Esther! Where is my sister?!” Finn roared as the battle surged away from him on either side. There were still flashes of blue, green, and white lights, but the battle had leaped away from this titanic explosion in the depths.
“Destroy them! Destroy them all!” There was a powerful scream over the mass, and Finn turned to see a creature rising at the far side of the cavern. The creature was larger than the other Lamakai, and it was surrounded by a blue-and-white magic shield.
“Guess you’re the bigshot around here, aren’t you?” Finn’s hand clenched around the grip of his blade.
Nothing would stand in the way of him and Esther. Nothing and no one...
There were flashes of red and brilliant explosions at the base of the shield as Keskul’s forces attacked him and his defenders.
“Finn!” There was a shout from one side, and he saw Tobias. His magical shield was held in one hand and was projecting a green aura of protection. Rosa was behind him, and they were crouched over the body of another Lamakai.
“He knows where your sister went!” Tobias called.
Finn ran, vaulting over the strewn boulders and landing in the safety of Tobias’s magic.
“Where?!” Finn wasted no time in hissing. “Where is Esther?!”
The wounded Lamakai was one of their heroes, just like Keskul, Finn saw from their brow ridges. This one wore white-and-red robes under his armor, and his scales were a vivid orange and red instead of yellow.
“My sister. Human woman. Where is she!” Finn shouted.
Tobias grunted with effort. His shield was taking a battering from both direct attacks and everything that was flying around.
“Human…tool,” the Lamakai breathed painfully. Finn saw that his chest was ruined. He couldn’t have much longer to live. “My father, the prophet-king, had her…but she escaped. Escaped into the catacombs with the traitor, my first-brother, Prophet Sesuuk…”
His brother, Finn thought. This was Sesuuk’s other brother, and it looked like he had already come to the end of his terrible, vicious story.
“She will already be dead. They will both be dead. No one survives the catacombs…” He gasped hoarsely, but Finn had already heard enough.
“Leave him. I will not have his fate on my hands, and we will see just who survives these catacombs of yours!” Finn snapped, leaping up. He ignored the flashes of burning energy and the shouts of alarm as he raced toward the vast, open door. It was the only other exit in this place.
Tobias and Rosa ran after him.