B2-Chapter 17: Iron is the hand V.
My knees unceremoniously crashed into the hard, packed floor of the pit. This close, I could smell the hunger that roiled off Le'rish's primal form as she loomed before me. Foreign energy writhed from her mouth and eyes, sigils of control writ into the walls of the pit.
Druids controlled monsters. Bent them to their will with sheer force and powers gifted by the Gods Above. She was not exempt from this.
All too familiar to me, I glimpsed a mindless rage inside her monstrous form as I rose. Fast was the glance was that confirmed Tehalis had no joined me in the pit, and quicker still was the action to unsheathe my weapon.
The orc had grabbed onto the warthen walls of the pit a heartbeat after the floor gave way, and now spider-climbed back over the top. Off to deliver death.
And I was left alone with a mindless, raging shell of someone I called a friend.
I called out, and received no answer. Only a snarling visage that gazed down at me even as she was hunched over. Ghostly chains fell away, and the Apex's metallic, draconic form rose. It was then that I became aware of just how cramped this small space was.
This was not Lerish in her right mind. This I could see. Whatever lurked behind this facade of control was tightly sealed away.
Anger bubbled within as I twisted and ducked under a feral swipe of the Apexs giant claws. This was my friend, chained and puppeted against her will.
They dared.
And now they would pay. This was no longer a detached, grim task of hammering down some distant problem. This was very real, extremely personal and demanded a price be exacted.
Ironhidestopped a rampaging claw from the Apex, backed with most of my strength as I held back the massive claws. My lungs bellowed dry as Cloven Crash froze Lerish in place. Backed by Gold is Power and funded by the stockpiles of wealth I now possessed, the skill was strong enough to instantly lock her in place.
There was no reason to stay here and fight a woman I considered my friend. Only one of us would emerge from this conflict, I knew with grim determination. This future, I rejected.
Primal Wroth worked in silence, my body transformed across the space of heartbeats. Longer, lankier, with a wry strength now. My vision focused, becoming blessedly free of the blur I had lived with for so long. A deluge descended upon my senses as sound became sharper and each strand of scent was now individual in my nostrils. Fur white as fresh snow, I bounded up Lerishs frozen arm, planted a foot on her head and exploded towards the pits edge.
Long arms caught the edge and lanky muscles hauled me over the edge with little effort.
Chaos reigned here as ghostly familiars fought flesh and blood beasts en masse. Spells snaked through the air, chasing Tehaliss sprinting form. Cold, unfeeling anger replaced all sensation inside me. Low to the ground, I sprinted across the distance as a human druid turned.
His eyes widened just in time for me to pin him to the cavern wall and ram the claymore through his chest.
Body tossed aside with a lifeless flop, I blurred across the short distance towards a beastkin about to cast something. A force struck me, and the world sped up. Everything moved at near extreme speeds around me as I found myself struggling to keep up. Druids flickered and blurred, barrages of fireballs and acid bolts hurled at me that I found barely avoid.
One after another, masses of force and magic slammed into me as I focused solely on trying to break whatever had just cursed me. Either everything had just been Hasted or-
My maw was filed with scorching flame that stung my throat and peeled skin as I ate a fireball to the face. The price of my distraction. I opened my maw to roar Cloven Crash but found only silence. There was a void around me, devoid of all noise. Battle was waged soundlessly around me. Wraiths and fleshen beasts crashed into each other, spilling blood in utter silence.
Earth shattered upwards as Lerish climbed out of the pit, her ghostly chains shattered. She blurred towards me, hunger in her eyes. Too fast for me to even react.
For a heartbeat, I watched the end approach. Then everything slowed once more, twitching from a blur to manageable as my heartbeat skipped. My longer, faster form let me cleanly avoid the silent behemoth as her emancipated form slammed down both claws.
Air rushed from my throat as once more I tried to bellow and call on Colven Crash. Nothing.
My enemies knew me. Sharpeend eyes focused on the bloodbath around me as I bounded away from Lerishs fury. Newfound strength in my legs, I leapt through the air and sailed towards a group of druids.
Thick, gnarled vines erupted from the ground to seize me, pillars of thorns that shot and curved through the air to follow me. Lengthened claws tore through them and crashed into the Thorn Knight that stepped forward to block me. A beastkin, overgrown with an armor of thorns and gleaming broadsword. Almost as large and strong as my base minotaur body.
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Not enough.
One hand adorned with claws shoved him back and the other came around, claymore gripped near the hilt. They Are Felled blurred the blade as it shore through the layers of tough, thorned armor with the surest of edges.
He fell, same as all the others. Those that remained behind him hurriedly wrenched the earth upwards to summon a golem. Sundering Wrathblade tore the earth apart even as the construct formed. It was crushed and blown apart as the crags exploded. Massive blade in one hand, I let it flick forward and gash through those that wished me death.
Noise returned as the Silence spell was ended. Roars and screams sounded through the cavern, heralded further by Lerishs struggling calls of hatred. She struggled against the magicks that bound her to the covens will, every dead druid further slipping her leash.
Happy was I then, to help her with this task. Cold, hard anger tempered emotion inside me as I rampaged through these monsters in human skin and their summoned familairs. A massive Mossdeer stag sent dozens of curving lances of force towards me, summoned from its horns. Low to the ground, I darted underneath the barrage, broke a crystal growth from the beasts back and stabbed the thing with it.
For a moment, the druids hold on the creature faded as it screamed and tried to bolt away. It fell soon, trailing blood, and my attention turned away.
Roars shook the cavern as Lerish turned and focused on me. The Apexs massive form bolted towards me, legs blurred to kick down and crush me. All my senses screamed at once, and instinct carried me out of the way. She stomped past me, towards the corpse of the mossdeer. Claws scrabbled against the corpse as she ripped the crystal growth free. My eyes widened with some vague horror as she began to stab herself with it, aimed at spots that her metallic exoskeleton did not cover.
Axes whirled past me and buried themselves in the skull of a fanged spiderbeast the charged towards me. Back to the slaughter. Tehalis showed little mercy, and even littler emotion as she moved with the efficiency of a butcher. Axes flashed and swarms of ghostly familiars tore through the coven that she found herself allied against.
Lances of stone crashed down from above as the ceiling began to break.
A singular druid stood, arms upraised as she attempted to bring down the cavern on top of us all. Steel slashed across the distance as I hurled the claymore like a spear. Guided by muscle memory and instinctual memory, it caught her clean in the gut and toppled the druid backwards.
It was over. This bloodbath had taken but minutes. No quarter given, nor asked for. The entire coven had been eradicated. Extreminated. Fanatics in life, and in death. My thin, lanky form panted with to regain lost breath as I stood, covered in blood. Tired legs brought me up to the still-living druid as she lay clutching at the sword inside her.
Mercy. She gurgled. Too far gone for any healing magic.
I regarded her with cold, dead eyes.
I offer you the same leniancy and mercy you bestowed upon my friend. With that, I yanked the blade from her body and left her to die. Let her go to whatever god she worshipped cold and scared as the light faded.
Lerish was slumped against the mossdeers body, her Apex form gone. She did not so much as crack and expression as I drew near, hurriedly pulling out a flask of healing milk. She barely had enough energy to drink, letting it spill past her lips.
Drink. I urged. How long had she been in that pit? Starved and controlled against her will. Anger flared once more as I regarded the legion of corpses that surrounded us. I pulled dried vension from my pack and helped her devour it. Strength slowly returned as she slowly consumed food with one hand.
The other clamped firmly down on the crystal she had ripped from the mossdeer corpse. Blood leaked from her grip, so tight was it.
Drains several types of nature magic. Tehalis remarked as she stood beside me.
The type the druids used? I grunted, body aching as Primal Wroth faded and I became shorter and wider once more. Claws faded and fur returned to its darker color. My sharpened eyesight was the last to go, replaced by the dull haze I had grown used to.
Likely. She sounded angry. Makes sense, doesnt it. Shes half-monster as an Apex. Druids can forcibly control monsters. Probably took the entire Circle to keep her locked away for when you would come looking.
Wind howled through the still cavern now as I crouched and waited. Tough as Lerish was, she needed time. Slowly, carefully, I fed her what rations either us carried. A task that became faster as she regained strength and began to tear through everything we had packed. There was nothing left for me, but I would rather starve than keep any from her.
I found myself throwing glances as the corpse-covered cavern behind me. Before there had been simply a quiet dread that conflict had led me to this. Now, disgust and actual hatred filled me. I had, in my ignorance, not cared enough to feel any great emotion towards these people. If I could call them that.
Now, I depised them.
Even in death, there was a part of me that wished I could hurt them more.
So apparent was my bloodlust and hate that Lerish shuddered and Tehalis regarded me carefully.
Everything will be alright. I promised Lerish. Not right now, but once we get you back home.
Ishilas waiting.
I had never before seen my friend cry, and Gods willing, I would never again.
Tired arms helped her up and supported her as finally, mercifully, the storm above began to clear. Drab and dull were the days remnants as we set off, leaving a cavern filled with death behind. If the journey before had been long, this was now almost tortuous.
We moved at a crawl, supporting Lerish through the thick foliage and over the rough terrain.
Evening had already fallen before made it to the farm. We came around the bend with nightfall to our backs, and the first sound I heard was a shriek as ishila caught sight up us. The half-orc came racing down that road at speeds I had never seen her move and crashed into Lerish, scooping her up and pulling her right from my grasp.
And this, finally, put a smile on my face for the first time on this wretched day.
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