With all their preparations done, the hunters could do nothing else than to wait patiently. They picked one of the multiple shacks surrounding the mine entrances, where they sat down in the silent darkness.
Since even the adventurers were rather exhausted, the team decided to keep watch alternatingly while the others were allowed to rest for a while.
After a few hours it became apparent that it would take some time for a Bisera to appear. Thus, Groob even allowed everyone to converse quietly.
Unfortunately, in the darkness no one had noticed the incredibly tiny metallic device placed at the mine's center. Pretending to be an innocent stone it recorded everything happening around it, before sending it to into the darkness.
A few kilometers away three men rested with their eyes closed in a natural cave. Suddenly a specialized SMT on the young leader's wrist received a signal.
Narteik smiled lightly as he opened his eyes. He tapped his SMT as some messages appeared in his mind.
"It looks like they have become relaxed. We should start to act."
The young man whispered silently. It was unclear if he talked to himself or his bodyguards. A dangerous look appeared in his eyes again, as he gave an order through his SMT.
Deep in multiple mines around the EFM team some brittle bottles were placed strategically. A strange, lightly greenish liquid could be seen in them. It resembled a Bisera's slime, but it seemed to have been distilled and mixed. Naturally a similar bottle had been placed in mine #234.
Suddenly its metallic lid seemed to have received a signal. It exerted some pressure. A quiet clang rang out as the bottle easily broke, its content splashing on some rocks.
Narteik had a pleased smile on his face. He chuckled slightly before waving his hand:
"Let's go. We need make sure no straggler escapes."
While the ruthless youngster began to move, Groob was meditating in the mines. It was the team leader's turn to hold watch.
Suddenly his ears perked up. He seemed to notice a small sound. The bald man's forehead wrinkled.
He tried to push his sense to their limits, but he didn't hear more. Not convinced by those results, the warrior stood up.
His movements instantly startled the whole team. Even the sleeping Voro and Uramant shot up without hesitation. Their experience with dangerous environments was apparent.
Everyone hastily took on combat poses, raising their sense to their limits. They didn't dare to talk. Any sound could give them away in the darkness.
Their minds grew tense as nothing happened. A few seconds later Groob came to decision. He silently whispered:
"Come!"
Following their leader's order, the team carefully felt their way forward. They could only retrace the way from memory, as no one dared to turn on their SMTs yet.
Supported by his high perception, Groob placed every step with great care while he led the team towards the mines. Suddenly the bald man came to a grinding halt. His body tensed.
Groob's eyes narrowed. An unmistakable tone reached his ears. The experienced veteran would recognize this everywhere. He had just entered another's SMT range.
Not daring to hesitate the master warrior turned on his SMT while drawing his sword in a swift movement.
Solemn expressions instantly appeared on everyone's faces. The team turned on their SMTs. Everyone was ready for a fight in an instance. Uramant pulled Lilly and Iain back.
A group of strange people appeared in the siblings' vision. Their bodies were covered in long black coats, while weird masks hid their faces. It was hard to tell through the SMT, but their masks seemed to be painted with a single color, while a white triangle was placed in the center.
Fortunately, Groob immediately recognized the group that had suddenly appeared.
"Rebels? Are you coming for us?!", growled the burly man.
Groob grabbed his weapon tightly and raised his body, clearly threatening the other party.
An emotionless voice answered Groob. It was weirdly distorted, not allowing any guesses about the speaker's identity:
"What would we, the true children of light, want from you?"
Despite masking any emotions, the rebel still stressed the middle part of his sentence. It was obvious, that he or she didn't like to be called rebel.
"If you aren't here for us, what are you sneaking around here?"
"Why would you care?! Its none of your business."
A second of silence ensued as tension between the groups rose. Despite there being about a dozen rebels, they didn't attack on sight. Lilly felt some relief as she noticed this fact. As long as the opposite party wasn't bloodthirsty there was room for everyone to continue their ways peacefully.
Groob seemed to hold similar thoughts as he sunk his sword lightly. Keeping cautious of his surroundings the bald mercenary asked what was on his mind:
"Did you hear a quiet noise before you arrived here? Like something breaking?"
"Yes.", spoke the rebel's leader after some hesitation.
"This place might not be safe. Let's leave here!"
The EFM team nodded solemnly. They trusted Groob's judgment as they prepared to return to the checkpoint without even collecting their traps.
Suddenly the rebel's voice sounded out. A foreboding message spread in the darkness.
"Seems you are too late."
Shock appeared in Groob's eyes. He abruptly turned towards the rebels. Just as he opened his mouth to question them, a rumble reached everyone's ears.
A multitude of steps sounded from every direction.
Lilly and Iain instinctively stood closer to each other. A tremor spread through the darkness. It hit everyone's bodies, shaking their cores. The siblings felt nervousness spreading in their minds. Air left their lungs. It felt hard to breath. This was the first time they felt so much fear ever since the attack on their village.
"F*ck!"
Groob's loud shout brought everyone back to reality. The rebels seemingly also had some weaker members, who had a hard time dealing with the fear of death.
Both parties' leaders knew they had to act fast. They instantly put their differences behind as the rebel leader shouted:
"Let's fight together. We don't have a choice."
"Of course. Take position at the mine entrance behind you!"
Not coming up with any particularly good plan, the rebel leader didn't argue with Groob. He led the rebels towards the biggest mine entrance, while the EFM team followed directly behind them.
Meanwhile the tremors never stopped. Beasts could be heard closing in form all directions. The sound of wild steps preceded them like a deathly rope slowly strangling their necks.
Even the veterans of both parties could be seen shaking as they blocked the mine's opening. They naturally put the melee combatants in front, with ranged fighters behind them.
Lilly was among the best protected as she would take on the job of a healer. Only two of the rebels stayed close to her, obviously protected by their group.
Unfortunately, even Iain had to fight in this serious situation. The young man was placed towards the side among the melee combatants. He readied his massive hammer.
An unknown resolve appeared in his eyes. He knew he had to give his best here to keep himself and his sister safe. The young man felt his blood boiling as a will to fight spread in his mind. Some mana automatically gathered towards him.
No one noticed this phenomenon however, since the mages wildly used their mana to produce some last-minute fortifications.
Earth and Ice spikes shot up from the ground. Their dangerous tips pointed outward, ready to impale any incoming beasts.
Suddenly their enemies appeared in everyone's vision. Disgusting green slime dripped from them, as the combatants recognized the Biseras. Groob frowned slightly upon this coincidence, but he didn't have time to ponder deeply.
The Biseras growled and snarled as they approached their prey. They streamed in form all sides. Iain recognized the beasts, but he also spotted some differences. As he knew about the Bisera's hierarchy it was easy to put two and two together. The streamlined Biseras with longer limbs and sharp horns had to be Bisera soldiers.
Not allowing anymore time for useless thoughts the beasts quickly closed in. Small, rank one beasts made up their vanguard. They dashed mindlessly into the forest of spikes.
Normally even the most mindless beast would evade an already existing spike. The mages only placed them to slow the Biseras' momentum anyways.
Something seemed off this time, however. The Biseras almost had crazed expressions as they focused on their prey. Storming into the dense spikes, they constantly pushed each other, seemingly trying to be the first to rip those humans apart.
With such brutal behavior the beasts kept impaling themselves, as their colleagues didn't grant them the space to evade. Some Beasts tried to stop in time. Unfortunately, they were stabbed to death under the continuously advancing crowd's pressure.
Listening to the painful roars and watching the carnage before them, solemn expressions appeared on every combatant's faces. They readied themselves for a hard fight as the first beasts faced the melee warriors.