Observing the situation, Ian discovered that the world is slowly crumbling the floating platforms seemed to fall into the abyss below, luckily, none of my NPCs were safe. However, I don't know how much longer they will be safe. Kingston reassures me that everything will be okay for another two minutes, trusting Belial's skill.
Devel is seen bouncing from one platform to another, with his sword glowing vigorously. The pulsating flames from Belial are shot towards Devel, but with a swing of his sword, he slices the flames away creating an explosion in the area as he approaches Belial. Meanwhile, Kingston and I run towards David, Gibing, Gopopo and Stella, who were amidst the crowd of enemies.
David can be seen punching Travys's shield, with his body already covered in flames. Travys's spiked shield draws blood on David's fist piercing through his gauntlets. Staggering from the pain David retreats a few steps and sees Kingston and me approaching. Gibing who also notices us approaching, covers for David, furiously attacking Travys to stop him from interrupting.
"What are you doing here? I thought you were going to fight Devel." - David
"We were, but he was too strong for us, forcing Belial to cast this skill. Without it, I'm sure we would be dead." - Kingston
"We are going to need yours and the other's help for this battle. We have no chance of killing Devel unless we all work together." - Ian
"What about Travys and the others? Weren't they trying to stop us?" - David
"We have no choice, the guy is too strong by himself not even Kingston's strongest attacks could phase him even though we tried something different we were blasted away. I still have the Code of Hammurabi which I can use, however, Devel already knows about this item which makes it extremely hard to just pull out and use." - Ian
"We don't have the luxury of choices at the moment, but one of the plausible strategies is to bait out a big attack and then let Ian use the Code of Hammurabi to counter it." - Kingston
"Alright, I understand but right now the ones in the way are Travys and his troops, not Devel. How do you propose we get out of this situation?" - David
"Where is Howard? I thought he was going to deal with Travys?" - Ian
"I'm not sure. He was with us before… Maybe something happened to him when the skill was activated." - David
"He might be lost on one of the platforms and is unsure about how to move. It is quite difficult to understand that gravity works differently here." - Kingston
"What's gravity?" - David
"My point exactly." - Kingston
"It's fine, the plan is to attack Devel the moment the skill ends anyway. His main focus will be on Belial, but once Belial disappears, then you guys will have to draw his attention." - Ian
"Alright, Kingston, Gibing, and I will be in the front attacking him with everything we got. That should keep his eye on us for a bit." - David
"Let's hope so. We should get ready, the skill is ending soon." - Kingston
"We need to let the others know of the plan as well." - David
"Don't worry. I'll command them to move the moment the skill ends. You two, start moving toward Devel and be careful with any stray flames coming from Belial. I'll stay here for the remaining minute." - Ian
"On it. I'll see you soon." - Kingston
"Be careful as well Ian." - David
The both of them dash off, running toward Devel who was dodging flames while trying to traverse the floating platforms, slowly coming closer to Belial. Looking away, I search for Gibing and Travys, and once I found them, I lock on to them. Kicking off the ground, I charge at Travys aiming my spear at the side of his face immediately. Noticing my attack, he jumps back, bringing his shield up and curling his legs together, becoming smaller and hiding behind the shield.
"What brings you here, Ian? I thought you would be battling Devel, or did you already lose? " - Travys
"None of your business, Travys. I'm just here to take out the trash." - Ian
"Hah! Say that after you beat me." - Travys
Dashing toward me, Travys holds up his shield, attempting to ram into my body. Smiling, I grab Gibing by the arm and whisper into his ear before pushing him away. Stopping Travys's charge with my spider legs, I glance in Gibing's direction, seeing him run toward Devel. Using the butt of my spear, I push Travys back, separating us. Continuing my attack, I strike at him three times with the tip of the spear, all of which were blocked expertly by Travys.
Taking a step forward, Travys swings around my left side as he pushes my spear to the right. His ax scrapes along the floor creating sparks as he swings it up at my chest. Commanding my spider legs to block the attack, I force my body to spin around with my spear, thrusting it at Travys's exposed head. Narrowly missing, the spear cuts his cheek, drawing a thin line of blood, making Travys wince slightly.
"DRAGON'S ROAR!" - Travys
Opening his mouth, I see a mirage of a dragon flying at me, paralyzing my body as it passes through. Slamming the back of the ax into my side and pushing me to the ground, Travys attempts to end my life. However, the stun didn't last as long as he expected. Jerking my body to the side at the last moment, I dodge the attack and kick Travys's body away from me, before leaping up from the ground.
"Sneaky move. Using a CC in a 1v1" - Ian
"What do you mean? It's just part of my kit. Can't deal with it?" - Travys
"Oh, I can deal with it. I get stronger the longer we fight but here is where I end things." - Ian
Positioning myself as I glance around, I see that everything is in place. Turning around, I bolt off in the direction where Devel was currently fighting Belial and the moment I do, the night sky shatters. Large cracks form and the floating platforms, disappear, replaced with the original floor. In front of me, were Gibing, Gopopo, and Stellar, running away from Song and Tsugi, as per my instructions.
Previously I told Gibing to go to the other two and deliver my message while I distract Travys, and the plan worked out perfectly as I see everyone approach Devel. Kingston and David were already there helping Belial as he casts Hellfire around him. Kingston's trident creates a chain of explosions as he does lightning-fast thrusts at Devel's lightning armor, only to not even breakthrough.
Likewise, David attempts to stop Devel in his tracks with a tackle, only to be shrugged off like a child. Not even David was strong enough to rival Devel, but it was enough, he was focusing on attacking all 3 of them. With only 2 more minutes before Belial disappears, I had no choice but to move the plan forward. I can't afford to lose Belial's firepower against Devel since Belial is without a doubt the strongest amongst us.
"Gibing and Stellar, attack the moment you get in range. Gopopo attack from a distance, provide cover for us as we run in. Wait… Is that Howard on the stairs over there?" - Ian
As I tell the others their orders, I notice Howard attacking the archers and mages on the stairs. I did notice that the mages were quite annoying for the normal troops as their magic skills were usually AOE and there was no way for them to reach the mages. However, with Howard charging straight at them, it seems there will be no more difficulties on the front line. Only Devel, Travys, Song, and Tsugi will be a problem, but we need to eliminate the biggest threat first.
"Shadow Bind!" - Stellar
Approaching Devel fast, Stellar activates her skill, creating 10 small child-like hands coming out from the shadows. These hands reach for Devel but with a swing of his electrifying sword, he disables the skill instantly, slicing the hands while also defending himself from Kingston's overhead attack.
"Pinpoint! Demon Lash!" - Gopopo
Engulfing his arms in Demonic Energy while also concentrating on Devel Gopopo uses his whips to attack Devel's calf, neck, wrists, and head. Foreseeing each attack, Devel dodges them by the skin of his teeth but fails to retaliate at Gopopo, as his sword hits the air instead of the whips.
"Heighten Reflexes! Demonic Battle Pact!" - Gibing
Jumping at the opportunity, Gibing envelops his fists in Demonic Energy, throwing a flurry of fists at Devel. However, the monster that he is, Devel, weaves through each attack counter punching Gibing several times and knocking his jaw at the end. Helping Gibing, Kingston attempts to sweep at Devel's feet, only to hit into what seems like a pole.
Grinning at Kingston's sorry attempt to do damage, Devel pushes Gibing away with his hand before swinging his sword down at Kingston. Barely enough time to block the attack, Kingston grunts as the weight of Devel's strike pushes him to the ground. Coming in as reinforcement, David, Stellar and I simultaneously attack Devel. David's flaming fists punch toward Devel's liver as he roars in excitement, while Stellar's knife seeks Devel's throat. Aiming my spear at his heart, I push forward with the other two but…
"Close but not close enough. Shift!" - Devel
David's fists pass through Devel's body hitting the air.
Stellar's knife slices nothing.
My spear narrowly misses Stellar's body.
And Devel's body disappears.
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m