*Clang Clang Clang*
The noise of metal striking metal rang out from within the dust cloud that was caused by the explosion just now. The dust cloud then began to twirl at some places, and blue flames appeared. At some places, the dust cloud was vaporized by heat waves.
Even though Anson and the squads charged immediately after the explosion using it as a distraction, the cult members arrived in an instant. It was like they anticipated exactly how they were going to attack.
"Kill!" Anson cried out to the knights and threw a blue fireball with his left hand to a cultist approaching with a sword on his left while pulling out his bloody sword from the chest of a cultist with his right hand. All the knights were also in the same situation. for every one knight, there were two cultists that were attacking them.
As the dust cloud settled, they could see the dead knights and cultists on the path. Even though they were outnumbered, the knights were slowly pushing back the cultists towards the town's gate. "FORWARD!" Anson cried out once more, seeing as they were nearing the gate.
"HIYAAAA" The knights let out an excited war cry and pushed back the cultists. They continued pushing towards the gate by killing some cultists and injuring some. The cultists were also trying their hardest to hold the knights back, but they couldn't match the skills of the trained knights and were being pushed back. Attacking more ferociously, the knights finally made it to the gate of the town. Just when they neared the gate, a loud sound could be heard from inside the town.
*Zwoom*
A thin pillar of blackish white light shot up from the chapel. Once it reached a certain height, the light dispersed around all directions and started forming into a glass like substance. It covered the whole town into a pitch black dome-shaped shield. This happened all too quickly for the knights to react properly.
Looking up at the fast approaching shield, Anson's face went pale. "GET BACK!" He shouted out loud and rolled back from the gate, towards the path again. Price and his knights were on the gate and they rolled back towards the path with Anson. But Edana and Lonz's squads were already inside of the gate, fighting the cultists. Two knights from Lonz's squad looked up nervously and tried to jump back outside from the gate.
"NO!!!" Both Anson and Lonz shouted out loud, Anson trying to reach the knights, and Lonz, who could not do anything as he was blocking an attack from the cultist with his spear. The knights reached right at the gate when the black shield came down.
*Slash* Anson stopped on his tracks and stared in front of him with his eyes wide. Before him, the two knights stood straight, but it was only for a second. The body of both knights fell straight down on the ground, revealing their backs, which was sliced in half. Blood started gushing out of the bodies and they could see every organ sliced in half inside the body. "No..." Anson looked at the bodies and fell down on the ground. Price hurried and grabbed Anson. Anson was still in a daze, looking up at the pitch black dome which now covered the town.
---
Inside the dome, Edana and Lonz's squad were still fighting the cultists. After the dome closed, more cultists appeared and started fighting them. The knights were already at their limits, some injured seriously but still fighting, some already lying on the ground, their eyes blank and some still fighting with all their energy.
Edana was also pretty injured, blood dripping from her arm and stomach. She was fighting three cultists right now. A cultist came straight at her with his sword, which she parried and stabbed him on the stomach. Using the opportunity, another cultist flicked his hand and a wave of intense heat came towards her. Clenching her teeth, she dodged the attack barely by rolling to the side and counterattacked by throwing a ball of blue flame towards the cultist.
The cultist dodged the attack, but Edana had already reached the cultist and stabbed him through the chest. When she pulled her sword from the chest of the cultist, his body fell down and revealed another cultist coming towards Edana. The cultist stabbed forward with his sword. Unable to react to the sudden attack, Edana could only stand there, watching the sword's tip coming for her.
Just when the sword was about to pierce her skull, a spear appeared from behind her and stabbed the cultist.
"Haah... Haah..." Edana fell down to her knees. Turning her head back, she saw Lonz, who just saved her from certain death. "Thank you..." She muttered, her chest puffing as she was out of breath. Lonz nodded his head and looked around.
There were only 4 knights surviving, who were all tired and sitting down on the ground. The cultists that came after them were all dead on the ground. "Can you get up?" Lonz asked Edana in a heavy voice, looking towards her stomach wound.
"Yes.." Edana grabbed her stomach with her hand and got up from the ground. She looked around the area and then towards Lonz. "Now what?"
Lonz looked down on the ground, where many of their knights were lying dead, and clenched his teeth. "Hooh.." He let out a long breath and walked towards the gate. He readied his spear and thrust it towards the dome.
*Clang* The spear bounced off the dome, not even a scratch on it. Lonz clenched his fist which was grabbing the spear. In the next moment, the spear radiated a faint blue flame. He readied himself again and thrust the dome once more. *Clang* The spear bounced off, the same way as before.
"Looks like it's no use. We can't get out from here and Commander Anson cannot come in right now either. Let's trust in them to find a way inside." He looked towards Edana.
Edana nodded her head. "Alright. In the meantime, why don't we scout the town and see if we find something?" She suggested. "We won't approach the chapel, we'll only scout the outskirts and meet back here."
Lonz put his hand on his chin and thought for a moment. "Alright, sounds good. We'll each take two knights with us and meet here in half an hour." Lonz walked towards the knights and explained the situation to them. With a grim look in their eyes, they nodded. Two knights headed towards Edana and went behind her.
Edana nodded at the knights and looked at Lonz. "Then I'll see you in half an hour." Lonz nodded and headed towards the east of the town. "If we don't return by the specified time, do not come and look for us, just stay at the gate. We'll do the same." Lonz spoke one last time and left.
Edana looked at his back for a moment before turning towards the west of the town. "Let's go." She walked with a determined gaze, a destination already on her mind.