Perspective : Thor Gild
I tightly gripped my sword, ready to face that giant ant engulfed in flames. With every step, I felt the weight of Ron on my back, limiting my movements. Without any wait that ant charges towards me, its burning presence sending waves of heat towards my face.
Sensing the danger, I swiftly sidestepped the ant's ferocious attack, narrowly evading its scorching flames. The ground shook beneath me as the ant's massive pincers clamped together, attempting to catch me in its fiery grip. With a quick reflex, I lunged forward, my sword slicing through the air, aiming for the ant's vulnerable underbelly.
However, the ant was relentless. It retaliated with a powerful swipe of its flaming limbs, forcing me to leap backward and narrowly avoid getting caught in the scorching inferno. My movements were limited due to the weight on my back.
" I refuse to let that hinder my determination".
Summoning all my strength, I channeled lightning into my blade, infusing it with electrifying power.
I poised for a strike. With a powerful upward swing, I stroke the ant's exoskeleton, the lightning surged through its body, causing it to convulse and emit a high-pitched screech.
Taking that opportunity, I pressed on, relentlessly hacking and slashing at the ant's burning carapace. Each strike brought me closer to incapacitating it, but the ant fought back with a renewed ferocity, its fiery aura intensified.
"But my resolve... didn't waver". I unleashed a flurry of strikes towards its joints, hoping to overwhelm it.
Breathing in that smoky air emanating from its fire, I focused my aim towards the joints on that ant's limbs. With precision, my blade swiftly cut through the thick smoke and engulfing flames, successfully striking the target joint. Upon contact with the ant's armour, the reverberation of the impact sent a jolt through me, that's how hard it was.
Undeterred, I repeated it again, and again, attempting to breach its hard armor until I finally success.
At last, with a final strike fueled with sheer frustration, I plunged my blade deep into that ant's neck, delivering a decisive blow. The giant ant crumbled to the ground, its flames were now extinguished, defeated by my unyielding pride.
Meanwhile,
Emilia, Ikbal and Keira were surrounded by those ants.
Keira vented in pure frustration,
"Where the fuck are they coming from?".
Ikbal responded by directing Keira's attention to the small pores on the walls, from where those ants were flooding in the room.
"It's because of those ... isn't it?".
Keira responded,
"Good heavens ... how do we stop that?".
That was the moment, when the ants started emitting loud, piercing noises, almost like a signal. The echoes of their clamor resonated throughout the room.
Emilia commented,
"Keep your eyes peeled...".
Keira responded,
"The hell are they doing, now?".
As the ants unanimously marched towards them in unison.
Keira shouted,
"Quickly... behind me".
Emilia and Ikbal took cover behind Keira's Golems, as they formed a protective circle around them.
The ants were now attacking with coordinated ferocity. Their movements were impeccably precise and calculated, with each ant moving in perfect unison. They skillfully covered each other's vulnerable flanks, ensuring their safety.
The gollums defended with resolute strength, their rocky bodies absorbing all the powerful strikes.
Emilia fluidly maneuvered between the gollums, her sword tracing elegant arcs that cleaved through the air.
The ant's glowing mandibles were clashing against the Golem's, sturdy form, creating sparks that illuminated the battlefield.
Among those ant's, a distinctive ant stood out, radiating a captivating green hue. Surprisingly, each ant, despite their fierce fight, emitted a faint yet discernible glow of the same kind.
Emilia said,
"That one ... it's odd ... why is it hanging back there?".
"Target that one ... Ikbal".
Ikbal responded,
"On it .... ".
Ikbal drew back his bow string, imbued his arrow with the essence of wind magic. As he took a moment to steady himself, he released the arrow with a resounding cry of "Zephyr Strike!" .
The arrow surged forward, piercing through Keira's Golem in an instant. Continuing its path, it penetrated every ant it encountered until it reached that peculiar ant. Upon impact, the ant burst like a gory explosion, its insides spilling out in a spectacular display.
The death of that ant, caused a state of disarray among the remaining ants, resulting in them losing their formation and becoming disoriented.
Seizing that opportunity we all sprung forth in complete unison and decimated what remained
of their formation.
Emilia gracefully twirled, her movement tracing a horizontal arc through the air. The arc emitted an ethereal essence of blood as it swirled through the air. Upon contact with the ants, it erupted in a captivating display of red energy, engulfing a total of 17 ants simultaneously.
Even that wasn't enough, those ant's were relentless as they were unstoppable, with no signs of retreating.
Sheela, her speech slurred and exhausted, managed to utter,
"This will make them stop," as she weakly waved her hand horizontally. Countless small embers of fire were released, scattering all around. Upon contact, the embers burst into flames, scorching nearly all the ants in a torrent of heat. However, despite her efforts, more ants emerged from the smoke. Overwhelmed and drained, Sheela reluctantly retracted her previous statement, whispering,
"Or not."
With that, I heard a voice coming from someone standing right beside me.
"Seriously, these things just keep coming," said Brandon, Marcus, and Robin in unison. In an exhausted voice, I mustered up pure curiosity and asked,
"Huh... where were you guys?"
Brandon replied,
"We were there... just fighting right beside you."
I responded,
"I didn't notice you at all." Everyone exchanged tired glances.
And I, Emilia, Sheela and Keira replied in unison,
"Like hell you did!".
Exhausted and barely able to lift our hands, we all stood there, gasping for breath, our eyes fixed upon the army of ants. Their sharp mandibles glimmered with an eerie and deadly shimmer.
We waited for our inevitable demise.
From the start, we had the odds stacked against us, but we fought.
As, hard as we could, defying fate we fought, but in the end fate trapped us, in it's grasp and we were sitting ducks.
As, I prayed to Arngrim, I closed my eyes.
(I hope, I made you proud... grandfather.)
The ants were just moments away from reaching us, when we heard.
"Total Freeze."
A gentle sound of a water droplet hitting the ground reached our ears. The ripples expanded, and a whirlwind of white engulfed the entire room, freezing everything in its path. The walls, the approaching ants, all transformed into stunning icy sculptures, glistening like a starry night sky. Within that frozen tableau, the intricate beauty of hundreds of ants was preserved, like mesmerizing statutes suspended in time.
However, as fleeting as that frozen moment was, everything eventually returned to normal. Each and every ant's lifeless carcass fell to the ground, their solemn fall accompanied by it's echoing noise of them falling in unison, that reverberated through the air.
An overwhelming mix of awe, surprise, and relief washed over us as we found ourselves rescued from the jaws of our impending fate. It was Yuna.
I didn't believe in miracles before, but that sure was a coincidence, that resembled a miracle.
As Yuna stood there, clutching her wand, a wave of overwhelming relief washed over me. It was an indescribable moment that brought me to my knees, the weight of gratitude and reassurance permeating every fiber of my being.
Keira shouted,
"HOLY CAW ! ... I can't believe... I am still alive".
No one believed their eyes, for a moment there Yuna became our one true saviour.
However, the threat had not yet subsided. Ants were still flooding in through those pores in the walls,
We had to seal it somehow.
Emilia with a voice filled with exhaustion and yet a flicker of re-owned determination said,
"Don't give up .... We aren't done yet".
As she uttered those words, my body regained it's energy to resist.
Sheela suggested,
"First let's find a way ... to somehow block those tiny tunnels in the wall".
"But how?".
Despite Yuna's limited grasp on the situation, she felt an overwhelming sense of urgency and said,
"You all hold them off... I will seal those tiny holes." Following her instructions, we made every effort to keep the ants at bay. Meanwhile, Yuna focused on her task of sealing the small openings.
Harnessing her ice magic, Yuna summoned a sphere of glistening white, ever-shifting ice-like substance. With precise wand movements, she directed the sphere towards the holes, causing it to transform into solid ice, effectively blocking each opening. One by one, every hole in the wall was sealed, preventing any more ants from entering the room.
Meanwhile, the rest of us finished dispatching the ants that had already infiltrated.