AA3 50 - Pressure II

Verdan watched the ball of Malfease arc through the air towards them dispassionately. It was large and impressive, yes, but there was nothing to it beyond the intent to destroy and kill.

A single spell to break its integrity would shatter the projectile, but there was too much chance of it continuing forward in smaller amounts and injuring the town’s defenders, which was where Hedda and the sisters came in.

All three Hex Witches had been waiting for this moment since Gwen started to form the storm above them and were quick to move to the fore.

Hex Witches had been best known to the average person for the curses they could wield, but they also possessed the most direct control over Aether.

Against a Wizard, or indeed a Sorcerer, they could break apart spells and suppress magic by ripping the shaped Aether apart and controlling its flow.

The attack coming their way was formed of Malfease, abyssal energy sourced from the dark gods themselves. By taking hold of the ambient Aether, the Hex Witches could smother the attack, pitting the Aether against the Malfease directly.

Verdan could do the same, of course, but the Witches had an advantage that he didn’t; their magic was tinged with Exeon from their bond with Ceravwen.

Aether and Malfease might come into conflict and destroy each other, but the clash between the celestial Exeon and Malfease was a primal one.

Verdan felt the unseen ocean of Aether that surrounded them ripple as the Witches called upon it. Even three Hex Witches acting in concert could only achieve the slightest of ripples, but it was more than enough to smother the oncoming attack.

Flashes of blue and gold flickered around the projectile as the different magics clashed, and the abyssal energy visibly shrank as it was steadily destroyed.

In the end, the combined efforts of the three Bonecallers didn’t even get halfway to them, and Verdan saw more than a few of the nearby defenders stare with astonishment at the Witches.

Gwen’s attack had been impressive, but she was a foreigner. Watching three Kranjir Witches go toe-to-toe with the Bonecallers seemed to have driven home how things had changed.

Lightning flashed down from the storm above to sow more chaos among the charging enemy, but Verdan refrained from any more spells for the moment.

He was learning a lot about the capabilities of the Darjee spellcasters, and he wanted to avoid them doing the same in return.

Captain Galstar’s voice echoed down the wall as she called for the archers to fire, a volley of arrows flying down into the Thralls and Darjee.

Thunder rumbled overhead as more lightning was called down, this time striking at the Bonecallers directly. A shield of flowing black and green flickered into existence around them, protecting them from the blast.

“Damn it,” Gwen cursed with a growl, her hair trailing out behind her as the winds picked up around her.

“Pace yourself. There is more to come yet,” Verdan said as the Bonecallers sent a volley of smaller darts towards the wall, each targeting a different area.

The three Witches split their attention between the different attacks, and Hedda’s edge in experience showed itself as her chosen attack was swiftly nullified, with the other two faltering much closer to the wall.

The leading elements of the Darjee charge were nearing the foot of the wall now, with the Thralls congregating toward the gate, while the Darjee went for the wall directly.

Gwen’s attention had become focused on the Guzzgars, but each one took several bolts to kill, and despite her best efforts, the final one was going to make it to the gate.

“Raf,” Verdan conjured a slowing effect onto the huge creature, turning its steady pace into little more than a crawl.

Leaving Gwen to finish it, Verdan sent out lances of flame at each of the Bone Thralls, confirming that the charms grafted onto them were for protection against magic.

“Captain, the Bone Thralls are resistant to my magic!” Verdan shouted over to Captain Galstar, who nodded and called out new orders for the archers.

The Bone Thralls were naturally resistant to normal attacks, no doubt from the foul method of their birth, but they were by no means immune and one by one, they were focused down by the defenders.

“Rew drae ceis,” Verdan held out a hand, conjuring a dozen foot-long needles of ice that he sent flashing down to impale the closest of the Darjee.

“Is there no end to the damn things?” Kai muttered from beside Verdan as a fresh wave of Thralls began the charge up the hill.

Verdan launched a second set of ice thorns, making sure that no Darjee or Thralls reached the wall in the area around him. The majority of the attackers had fallen, and the few Thralls beating at the gate would achieve little.

If the Guzzgars or the Bone Thralls had made it closer, it might have been a problem, but without them, Verdan didn’t understand why their enemy was continuing the assault.

The answer was partially given when the Darjee reached the wall and jumped straight up onto it, their claws extending and digging into the cracks in the stone before starting to climb the wall.

Verdan knew the Darjee had strong claws, but even a slight penetration into the stone wall was impressive.

The archers pulled back, and shieldguards armed with long spears stepped to the fore, stabbing down at the Darjee and driving them off the wall.

A flicker of Aether from further up the wall drew Verdan’s eye as Dirk used his air blades to cut several Darjee down as they climbed. Benlen and the other Mhorgain thearns were following suit, using their enchanted spears to easily knock the doglike Darjee off the wall.

Verdan relaxed slightly when he saw that Barb and Benlen were both staying close to Dirk, ensuring that none of the climbing Darjee could get close enough to attack him.

Turning back to the battle, Verdan absently noted that the Bonecallers were still sending attacks up at the wall and that the Witches were countering them.

The two sisters were looking somewhat strained by the repeated use of their magic, but Hedda looked as stoic as always, which was reassuring.

The second wave of Thralls was making steady progress, and Verdan was in the process of forming his intent to drop a fireball among them when he realised that there were fewer than before.

Looking further down the hill, Verdan saw a dozen of the Thralls were busy hauling the dead into the trees. In particular, there was a group of four that were salvaging the corpse of the first Bone Thrall that had fallen.

“Thanr bel,” Verdan spoke the Words of Power, conjuring the bead of flames for him to send shooting down into the largest band of Thralls.

Verdan went to move on to doing the same to the next target, but there was something about the Thralls reclaiming the dead that made him suspicious.

Stretching out with his Aether senses, Verdan felt the same concentration down among the trees as before, as well as the smaller concentrations of energy within the Thralls that were still living.

Verdan’s brow furrowed as he realised that the dead Thralls had only trace amounts of Malfease within them. In fact, now that he was examining it more closely, he watched as a Thrall fell with an arrow in its eye and the abyssal energy within it was drained and taken elsewhere.

Exactly where that energy was going, Verdan couldn’t see, but it couldn’t be far.

“The damn corpses, they’re just making more,” Verdan said, his eyes going wide as he looked around for Kai. The Sorcerer was helping to clear off the remaining Darjee climbing the wall. “Kai!”

“What’s wrong?” Kai waited long enough to make sure his spot would be covered before hurrying over.

“I think the Gormagyr are here, just out of sight in the trees. That’s why they’re taking the bodies, so they can keep creating new Thralls and sending them in. They might even have more Darjee and beasts as well but are trying to wear us down with waves of Thralls.”

The Sorcerer went still, his body tensing as he turned to look down the hill. “Are you sure?”

Kai’s voice was harsh and angry, a long way from his usual calm demeanour. Then again, Verdan remembered how he’d reacted to the last Gormagyr they’d encountered.

“No, but I think it’s likely,” Verdan said, pointing down to the hill where a smattering of Thralls were emerging to reclaim more corpses. “The town is well supplied, but we have limited arrows and only so many defenders.”

“You think the flanking groups and that initial assault were to put us all on alert and that the real attack is yet to come,” Kai said, his eyes narrowing in thought before he nodded slightly. “I think you may have a point. Have you spoken to anyone else?”

“Not yet. I just put it all together after watching those Thralls.”

“Understood. I’ll head down to Ciaran and get his opinion. Can you and Gwen hit the Gormagyr from up here?”

“Maybe,” Verdan said, grimacing in frustration as he looked down at the Bonecallers, who were still duelling with the Witches. “The Bonecallers are making it hard to tell where they are, but even if I knew, we’d be limited on what we could attack with.”

“And if you were to take down the Bonecallers?”

“Then I’d be able to find them more easily, but the Bonecallers are surprisingly well-defended. Dealing with them and the Gormagyr would be expensive.” Verdan paused as he turned his focus to the Aether in his reserve. He’d used a good amount so far, but he’d been preparing for this. “I can do it, but I’d be limited for the next few days.”

“I have a score to settle, and this Gormagyr will be a good start,” Kai said, his eyes turning cold as he gave Verdan a wintry smile. “You just need to get me a location; I’ll do the rest.”