The Blirdoth roared as it emerged from the ice encasing it. His face showed rage; it was weird for a thaid to be that human-like, but that was what was really scary about sentient thaids. They were intelligent. The Blirdoth's massive size and strength already made it a formidable opponent, and the fact that it possessed human-like traits only added to its danger.
As the creature came out, it looked at the humans with contempt. Not even Principal Van Dyke's black flames were enough to make a difference. However, this didn't mean that the creature did not take any damage; in fact, its fur showed that it suffered a lot due to the black flames, as the ice made the fur fragile, and it quickly fell off while the beast got out of the ice.
The problem was that it became apparent there wasn't anyone among the presents which could kill it once and for all. However, it was clear that if not even Principal Van Dyke could do anything against the beast, then no one inside the Red Palace could do anything about it. This beast exceeded Frant's expectations.
As it finally freed itself, the beast charged at the barrier with all its strength, shattering it as if it was made of glass.
People gasped in shock as the beast made its way toward them, leaving destruction in its wake and shattering all their hopes. The students started trembling, and a look of resignation appeared on all their faces. If even the principal could not stop the creature, then they were doomed. The sound of breaking glass and crumbling concrete filled the air as the beast drew closer, and the crowd began to scatter in all directions, desperate to escape its wrath. Panic set in as they realized there was no way to outrun it.
The beast then began madly swinging its paws left and right, slashing and tearing everything with its razor-sharp claws. Its poisonous mist remained ineffective due to the other students and teachers, who were not targeted by the beast, using their attacks to repel the miasma. Still, the unfortunate people who ended up behind the creature were instantly liquefied in a puddle of goo.
The Blirdoth's claws cleaved people in half; it was something scary to watch, but there was not a single person who missed it. Not looking at the monster would lead to certain death.
The principal, the workers, and the free students were still trying to damage the creature with all the power they could muster. Unfortunately, aside from the principal's, all the attacks were useless.
Besides, most students had weapon-conjuring powers, meaning they could do little against the powerful thaid. Approaching it in close quarters was akin to suicide at that moment.
Erik found himself in a pinch. If he combined his powers, he could maybe weaken the beast with Logan's power. The problem was that he wasn't confident it would work, and he wasn't sure that if he used the mana he had available, he would be able to survive later. There was only one thing the students could do now, and that was to run. If they split, the monster would have to choose who to follow, meaning that the others would be able to survive.
As he battled the Blirdoth, Principal Van Dyke decided he had to try one last time to kill the beast, and this time he decided to pour all his mana into his next attack. That was his only way to kill the creature, and even that was unknown.
However, that would put him in a dangerous situation, as he wouldn't be able to fight back against the beast later from a safe distance, and he would be forced to engage in melee combat while severely weakened. The problem was also that the principal was unaware that many powerful people had already tried to kill the Blirdoth while it was still on the walls and that they had failed. They were weaker than him, yes, but they were powerful nonetheless.
He then started channeling mana and prepared his black flame again. This time he poured his entire mana reserves into the attack, hoping it would be enough to kill the beast. Though, that required a little bit of time.
"Keep the creature at bay the best you can," he shouted to the others.
"Yes," the students and the workers replied in unison. They knew they had to hold on until the attack was ready and prayed that the principal's efforts would be enough to defeat the beast. With determination in their hearts, they stood their ground and prepared for battle, but with a heart full of fear.
Soon after, attacks rained on the beast. Even the melee students tried to stall for time. They guessed that if they were going to die, regardless of what they did, they could at least try something; however, fighting the fear of death wasn't simple. Trying to keep the creature at bay by constantly moving around it, the students successfully distracted it and were able to make its focus shift to them, leaving Principal Van Dyke free to channel mana. However, most of the students weren't strong enough to avoid the creature's attacks, and many ended up dying.
Erik did the same, but it was clear that he had an advantage compared to his fellow students and came out of the confrontation unarmed. However, his mana wasn't sufficient to make the Flyssa sharp enough to wound the Blirdoth.
One by one, the students fell. Some tried to kite the Blirdoth, but it wasn't easy as the creature was too fast and agile for them. Its razor-sharp claws and beak made it a formidable foe, and no amount of defense could save the students. The one with the power to create shields protected them as best as possible, but it wasn't easy.
There were many of them, and the Blirdoth's attacks were too powerful. The thaid grew more aggressive as the students fell, seeing its prey dying and the number of opponents decreasing.
The principal yelled for everyone to retreat to safety once he sensed they were going to be hit, but it was too late for some. The Blirdoth's attacks were causing a lot of damage, and the students were having a hard time fighting back. Tom knew he had to be fast.
All in all, the strategy was working. The students were keeping the beast at bay, but only a small number of them remained. There was, however, no attack that got past its defenses.
As Principal Van Dyke was ready, he channeled enough mana to power his black flames. He hoped that was enough, but he was skeptical.
"Stay away from the beast!" he shouted out loudly again. The thaid roared and charged toward him. Principal Van Dyke stood his ground, his eyes fixed on the charging beast.
At that moment, everyone backed away, making backward jumps and retreating far away from the beast; they accomplished their mission, but fewer than fifty people were now alive.
Principal Van Dyke unleashed his attack, the black flames. His neural links were pumping mana at an astounding speed. A black fire horizontal vortex appeared on the battlefield, directed toward the humongous beast, which was still cleaving in half every student in sight who couldn't back away on time.
A strong, fiery gale threatened to throw the creature in the air while freezing it alive. The attack's power was enough to inflict significant damage on the creature. Coupled with the wounds it had already sustained in the previous battle, it seemed that the situation was finally taking a positive turn.
The beast resisted with all his might, trying not to be swept away by the vigorous attack created by Principal Van Dyke. The black fire was quickly freezing it, stopping its movements, and destroying its cells at an alarming pace. The Heniate knew that an attack of such calibre could kill its avatar; it had to do something to prevent this outcome.
The creature backed away, but the flames were already on it. However, the frost fires were so many and so powerful that the attack started to affect even the humans.
"Fast, conjure another barrier," Principal Van Dyke said to his colleague, Luke Yera. He and the one with the shield conjuring power started immediately pouring mana into their bodies and releasing it into the air through their neural links, and the barriers finally appeared.
Principal Van Dyke had used all his mana. He hoped that was enough. Maybe the attack would scare the beast and make it run away. It was clear that this was the right time to make the students run, so he ordered.
"All the students, you have to go to the closest shelter; a couple of them are inside the buildings on your left and right. Go now! Get the hell out of here!"
Erik knew he had to run away, but the problem was that the closest shelter was the Yellow Palace's, and it was clear that wasn't enough to stop the Blirdoth's miasmas. The Red Palace's shelter was too far, so the only thing the students, Erik included, could do was leave the Red Palace's garden and head into the streets.
He wasn't the only one who had this thought, and the kids all headed toward the gates leading to the city, and Erik took his time to split from the group. He was faster and stronger than them; staying with them was only detrimental.
"What the hell are you doing?" Principal Van Dyke shouted as he saw the students going away. The workers stayed behind to help the principal.
"The Yellow Palace's shelter has problems. It couldn't stop the creature's gasses!" Luke Yera said.
"FUCK!" Principal Van Dyke shouted.
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