Chapter 44 - Horde
Sparks danced in the air as the battle continued. The Drake was a foe that seemed insurmountable at first glance. Legends of Dragonkin fire had dissuaded many an adventurer from challenging the beasts, but Stürm remained confident in the group's imminent victory.
"Don't be intimidated by the breath attack! It won't be able to perform another for a good hour or so!" Backstepping to avoid a sweep from the Drake's talons, he somehow found the time to manage the morale of his allies, "It's just a matter of wearing it down! We have the advantage in numbers!"
-So he said, but none of the warriors occupying the creature's flank seemed keen on the idea of thrusting a sword into its behind, afraid of having their bones reduced to dust by the spined tail swatting away whoever had the courage to stray too close.
"Simple enough for him to say…" Drayya's complaint could barely be heard over the chorus of battle, "It's no wonder he wanted so many people to come along at first. Why would you ever turn down the opportunity to prove your superiority to others?"
"Drayya… the others will hear you." Lieze replied, carefully stepping towards her position.
"Let them hear me. Am I wrong?" She posed that question fearlessly, "At least now I've got a fantastic reference if I ever plan to paint Drake arses for a living…"
Leaning into her ear, Lieze's voice became hushed, "...Noel has a mana potion."
"Hoh. You want to steal it?"
"Steal it, break it… I don't care. It doesn't look to me like they'll be needing it. And we don't have the thralls to kill those three twice over if she gets another healing spell in."
"Wait, don't tell me… you're in need of my transmutation magic again, aren't you?"
"I'm just telling you where to aim when Marché finally pulls his thumb out of his arse and sends the thralls in."
"He's biding his time. I can't imagine-"
The two broke apart just in time for a bearded fellow to land in the dirt between them, blood pooling from his mouth as he struggled to return to his feet.
"Bleedin' Drake…" He muttered, "Oi, aren't you two supposed to be healing us?"
"Who told you that?" Lieze blinked, "I'm not a restorator. Ask Noel if you want-"
"Lieze!" Drayya shook the girl's shoulder with a frenzied hand, "It's turning this way!"
The number of seconds she had to react could be counted on one hand. With surprising dexterity, the Drake's partitioned forelimbs spun around, revealing a furious row of dagger-sized teeth. Embedded between the scales of its swaying tail was the axe of the warrior who had just interrupted their conversation.
Foul screeches erupted from the Drake's gullet. A grating, esoteric language understood by few, but Lieze could interpret that it wasn't best pleased by the amateurish attempt to lop off its tail. Pouncing forward, Lieze and Drayya dived to either side as the beast tackled its assailant to the ground. Pinned to the soil by the strength of its jaw, the unlucky adventurer could manage little else but a horrified scream as his guts were plundered with a single bite.
Drayya was the first to recover. She wasted no time in leaping over to Lieze and helping the girl to her feet.
"Come on!" She pulled Lieze up with adrenaline-soaked strength, "It's time to relocate!"
Stürm and his allies hadn't allowed the opportunity to go to waste. While the Drake was turned, they attacked its exposed rear with renewed hostility.
Technique Observed (+30%)
Noel fired an unerring barrage of swelling projectiles from her staff. It was a spell so simple that even Lieze recognised it -- the ever-reliable Magic Missile.
Noel's MP - 140/810
Drake's HP - 6,819/9,915
Boiling blood showered the twin frontliners' chest plates as their blades each found purchase beneath the Drake's scales. Stürm's sword crackled with frost, spreading white death across the Dragonkin's rubicund flesh.
Drake's HP - 5,911/9,915
Lieze and Drayya looped around the beast to join the trio, trying (and failing) to hide their presence. Noel's affectless expression crumbled as she shot a displeased look behind her.
"What are you two doing here?" She asked.
"Well, you did tell us to stay behind the Drake, didn't you?" Drayya shot back.
"-You were also told to heal the others, not use them as bait to make a getaway. Have the two of you even contributed anything to this battle?"
"There are more pressing matters you should be focusing on at the moment."
Noel's attention was immediately recaptured by the incensed Drake, who had just finished feeding on their unlucky comrade and was about to resume its tireless assault. As soon as she turned around, Drayya placed a dependent hand on Lieze's shoulder.
"Wait until she begins casting a spell." She lowered her voice, "Step forward and take the mana potion at that moment. It's hanging by a thread. She won't notice a thing."
"Is that a wise idea?" Lieze asked.
"Didn't you say it yourself? We'll be in trouble if she casts that healing spell again. Believe me -- when she's concentrating, that potion will be the last thing on her mind."
Technique Observed (+30%)
Noel's MP - 120/810
As it turned out, Lieze's golden opportunity was only a few seconds away. Noel began preparing another Magic Missile barrage at the precise moment Drayya stopped talking. While the Drake's jaw snapped with an awful sound, she gave Lieze an encouraging shove, leaving the girl with barely a few seconds to make a decision.
Faster than she thought possible, Lieze sprinted to Noel's side and reached out a hand to yank back the flask of cerulean liquid from her waist, snapping the fragile length of twine connecting it to the clueless sorcerer before retreating to Drayya's side. Retrieving her Bag of Holding, Lieze dropped the solution into the enchanted abyss just in time to see the Magic Missiles colliding against the Drake's snout.
Drake's HP - 5,841/9,915
"Not bad." Drayya complimented, "It's still too early for the attack, however. I do hope Marché is keeping a close eye on us, because I certainly can't see him."
"Think about the logistics for a- oh!?" Lieze's reply was interrupted as the group lurched backwards to avoid a sweep from the Drake's forelimbs, "-Er, the logistics. Moving all those thralls at once. I can't imagine Marché has the strength to control them as a cohesive whole."
"...You're right." Realisation dawned on Drayya's face, "He'll have to send them out in groups."
"You didn't consider that?"
"Well, if it was me in charge of the ambush, I could have given them orders simultaneously." Half-bragging, half-concerned, she paused for a beat, "...I doubt it will be a problem. We'll just take control of thralls as they appear, I suppose."
"Are you two finished exchanging pleasantries!?" Stürm's voice waned beneath the chorus of the Drake's wings, "I've a wonderful idea - why don't you focus on winning this battle before you enjoy a casual conversation!?"
His confidence in Lieze's… well, confidence, wasn't quite as pronounced then as it was during their meeting in the tavern. There was a tinge of disappointment in his tone. Not that Lieze or Drayya minded it. As far as they were concerned, it wasn't worth keeping a swell relationship with a man who was going to be dead shortly.
The two of them were focused on one thing: their own survival. Heroic clashes fed the egos of would-be saviours, to be sure. They desired the death of evil and the rise of virtue. Necromancers preferred to see both abstractions disintegrated. Neither Lieze nor Drayya had to lift a finger as the battle unfolded. Why would they bother? Not when its outcome was quantified in front of Lieze's eyes.
Drake's HP - 4,710/9,915
Drake's HP - 3,899/9,915
Stürm's HP - 1,446/3,001
Louanbona's HP - 3,900/5,240
Fire and death. Blood pooled in the pits of the soil. Lieze took note of it.
Drake's HP - 3,093/9,915
Noel's MP - 95/810
Drake's HP - 2,755/9,915
Stürm's HP - 888/3,001
Louanbona's HP - 2,832/5,240
"Noel!" Stürm demanded.
"My potion…" Feeling for something that wasn't there, a panic settled within the mage's core, "What… where did that potion go!?"
The moment was drawing near - a tension which boiled the blood was thick in the air. The Drake frenzied. Spatters of scarlet waxed from its hide as its movements became wild and unpredictable. Stürm and Louanbona, too, descended into beasthood, sinking their blades into every surging limb in desperate attempts to put the beast down for good.
Drake's HP - 2,012/9,915
Stürm's HP - 300/3,001
Louanbona's HP -1,598/5,240
The ground shook. Hundreds of feet threatened to fell the entire forest. Lieze's gaze went to the treeline, darting between straits of canopied darkness until finally - and suddenly - silhouettes began to emerge. Gravewalkers, shambling. Flesh Elementals, undulant and formless. The battle screamed with so much ferocity that their appearance didn't even register with Stürm's group until the thralls were far too close to go unnoticed.
"What the-" Catching a glimpse of the horde, Stürm's assault came to an abrupt halt, "Undead!?"
Another scream echoed across the clearing as the Drake's barbed tail came close to tearing a member of the rear guard in two. A flash of something like desperation crossed Stürm's face, attention suddenly split between the Dragonkin in front of him and the corpses shambling out from the woods.
"Noel!" He called, "Take those two simpletons with you and delay those Undead! Louanbona and I will see to the Drake!"
"Eh?" The sorceress blinked, "What? But that's-"
"There's no time to argue! Just move!"
Taking the initiative, Drayya put on the most concerned expression she could manage while grabbing hold of Noel's wrist, "He's right. We won't be making it out of here alive if we can't clear a path through those monsters."
"But where did they come from!? I don't have enough mana to-"
"They're nothing but walking corpses! Lieze and I will do most of the work!"
Noel's apprehensive stare was met with a confident - yet somewhat uncertain - nod from Stürm. His attention returned to the Drake. The mage found herself alone with Lieze and Drayya.
"...This must be the Order's doing." She muttered, "Could Sokalar be returning so soon?"
The undead legions only swelled as the seconds ticked by. Drayya's fabricated outrage sold the peril of their situation. The sight reminded Lieze of simpler days. Though she narrowed her eyes, it was impossible to discern Marché's outline in the chaos. She stood with both hands behind her back, hiding the mana potion from Noel's frustrated gaze.
"We'll be overrun in a matter of minutes." She said, "What's the plan?"
"Well, we could just retreat." Drayya suggested, "There's no guarantee that the group would be able to separate themselves from the Drake, however."
"They just need a few more minutes!" She replied, "The beast is nearly dead!"
Desperation. Greed. Honour. Lieze enjoyed witnessing the girl's bravado crumbling. If she so desired, Noel could retreat to Tonberg, but that would mean leaving her allies to die. She desired a faultless solution, no matter how unreasonable. The fantasy she'd cultivated over a long and fruitful journey across Fanrae was being tested. Like all prospective heroes, her final sin would be pride. It was Lieze's duty - and her pleasure - to hammer the nail into Noel's coffin.
"We're not going to do that." Furrowing her brow, Lieze rejected Drayya's proposal, "The three of us can hold off the undead long enough for Stürm and the others to slay the Drake."
"...Do you think so?" Noel asked. Her tone was pleading.
No. The answer was no.
"Absolutely." She lied.