by Eden Redd
Bryce’s large yellow eye stared at Wynter, “I will enjoy draining your beautiful body. With each orgasm, you will fall further and further in love with me until you give up your light just because I asked for it. You will beg me to take it with whimpers and moans.”
Black stalks emerged from over Bryce’s shoulders and under his arms. There were four of them, segmented like an armored worm. The ends pointed in Wynter’s direction and lids pulled back to reveal a yellow eye on each one. The female gazers produced stalks just like Bryce, yellow eyes opening one by one.
“Let the feast begin,” Bryce said with a wicked grin.
Eight
The forest crawled with stained life. Kai couldn’t shake the scent as he moved through the brush with ease. It seemed to grow stronger the further east he moved. Hidden under shadows and wide leaves, the ranger moved on with measured steps. Glancing off to the side, he sharpened his senses to gain any hint of the raid group. The occasional murmur and cracking of branches were the only sounds he heard. It was enough to know that they were still okay.
Pushing on, the roar of a waterfall grew closer. Kai made his way to the edge of a clearing, the foul stench of something otherworldly filling his nose. Brushing away a leafy branch, the ranger stared at the strange sight before him.
Water came down in a single torrent from the cavern wall. It crashed down on a pointed sharp stone, splitting the waterfall in half. The falling, thick streams framed something odd underneath the pointed stone. Kai stepped from the brush, his eyes drinking in a floating skull. It was human shaped but black and purple mist spiraled behind it. Hovering two feet above the small pond, it gazed forward, pearl like eyes glinting in the sunny cavern light.
Kai moved closer, noticing tendrils of spiraling darkness caressing the streams flowing on either side of the skull. The player stopped at the edge of the pond, water slick with oil like darkness. Mentally taking it in, he reached into a side pouch and pulled out a small crystal. Holding his hand before his lips, the red crystal glimmered in his palm.
“I have found Harkkon’s Eyes. I will attempt to remove them and send word if successful. If you do not hear from me in an hour, the Eyes are on level 88, to the eastern side of the cavern.” Kai whispered to the stone.
The stone glowed red before it winked out of existence. Kai let out a sigh as he eyed the skull floating ten feet from the ponds edge. The ranger questioned going in the water and tried to think of an alternative way of grabbing the skull. As his mind worked, a cry and a stark fluttering of birds caused the ranger to turn around. Senses open, he could hear the sounds of battle. Removing his bow from his back, the ranger bolted back the way he came. Running full tilt, he heard Wynter shouting and his heart tightened as trees blurred past.
***
Nikki moved like a dancer, slicing at a female gazer. The horrid, one-eyed creature dodged each strike. The knight pushed on, slicing and stabbing, trying to close the distance so she could do some damage. The gazer dipped and side stepped every attempt until Nikki switched her stance and brought her sword hard across. The gazer drove its arm down as the knight’s blade struck the black liquid covering it. Nikki pulled back and her sword sparked but there was no damage. The gazer let out a cruel giggle as it launched itself at the knight, slashing with five-inch claws.
Vell and his two soldiers threw themselves at a gazer. It single handily kept them at bay, blocking each blow coming in with its forearms and shins. The storm of swords and clubs rained down but the three trolls used their size to their advantage. Bullying their way forward, the gazer was forced to retreat but it continued its mocking grin. Vell slashed outward and the gazer moved low. The blade sliced through a nearby thin tree, causing the top to slide off and branches crashing down on the gazer. Gray hands grabbed branches and splintered with a twist of wrists. Vell pushed on just as the gazer stood up. The troll stabbed the tip of his sword into the Gazer’s belly. The blade sunk deep as the troll captain used all of his strength to drive it to the hilt. His fellow trolls were on either side of him, one stabbed a sword deep in the gazer’s chest while the other slammed her club against the creature’s head.
Vell waited, expecting the creature to burst into light a second later. Instead he stared into the gazer’s eye as it turned to look to him. It brought its arm to its chest and lashed out. The backhand sent Vell through the air. The captain landed on his back, fifteen feet away. When he raised his head, he watched as the gazer glared at one of his trolls. A beam of gray light burst forth, hitting the troll in the face. Stumbling back, she let go of the blade in the gazer’s chest and fell to her knees. The gazer turned her attention to the other solider. The eye stalks glowed as gray light burst forth. The troll was in the middle of swinging her club again when multiple shafts of light struck her. The club slipped from her hands as she was thrown into a nearby tree. Sliding down, her eyes began to close and she slumped to the cavern floor. Vell stood up as the gazer pulled the swords from her chest and stomach, letting them fall to the ground.
The captain rushed the gazer. The gazer’s eye glowed as it centered on the incoming troll. Light burst forth but Vell twisted his body to the side. Light burst from the eye stalks but Vell continued to twist and roll. Slipping back to his feet, the troll on her knees grabbed both blades from the ground and tossed them to her captain. Vell jumped up and grabbed them from the air, bringing both blades down hard on the gazer. It let out a grunt as blades sunk into its shoulders. It grabbed the captain by his shirt. Vell’s dark eyes widened as he was pulled off his feet and thrown at his soldier on her knees. He crashed into her and they both rolled. Before he was back to his feet, the gazer pulled the swords from her shoulders and let them drop again, the wide wounds closing right before his eyes.
Daven eyed the gazer as she stepped forward menacingly. Letting go of his staff, it shifted into the wood nymph. Tara wasted no time as she bent her knees and came at the abyssal creature. Hands forming into sharp wooden points, she attacked with contained fury. Daven took three steps and laid a hand on a tree. Speaking Gaia’s tongue, he called on the tree’s life force. Despite the madness the tree endured, it gave up its life willingly to end its own pain. The druid whispered an apology as he pointed his other hand. Green energy glowed before emerald light blasted out. Tara and the Gazer were locked in battle as the green light struck the monster. Moss and green lighting arced along its body as its movements slowed. Tara slammed wooden points over and over again into the monster. The gazer’s eye glowed as its smile faded. Before it could unleash its power, Daven lifted his hand slightly, blasting the creature’s face with green natural power. Moss sprouted on the eye as the gazer screamed. The tree Daven was draining withered each passing moment. The druid wanted to let go so the tree would recover but he knew he had to pour it on or the gazer was going to regenerate. Leaves fell away as the bark turned black. The gazer’s eye was covered in burning light as moss covered its head. Tara continued her assault on the abyssal creature, stabbing over and over again. Daven let out a sigh as the tree died and the green light faded from his hand.
The gazer clawed at its face, removing huge swaths of moss even with the wood nymph stabbing it in the mid-section over and over. Daven stepped to another tree. The moment he touched it, the gazer pulled off a large chunk of moss and blasted Tara point blank with gray light. The eye stalks unleashed their paralyzing stare as five streams struck Tara. Daven’s heart leaped in his chest as Tara fell to the ground, the gazer already on top of her.
“Die child of the forest!” The gazer cackled as black hands took hold of Tara’s head and twisted.
The druid cried out as he unleashed another emerald stream of life force. Tara’s head fell with sadness in her eyes before shattering into light. Her body cracked and burst into shards of greenish light. The gazer stood, raising an arm. The life force blast struck the gazer’s black forearm. It licked its lips as it pushed against the stream of light, moss growing along its forearm. Daven poured on the power as the
monster slowly moved toward him, a hungry look in its eye.
Wynter kept a healthy distance from Bryce. The male gazer took a step forward, eyeing the necromancer with sickening desire. Hand slipping into her side pouch, she pulled out two greater soul shards between her fingers. They were roughly the size of small daggers. With a flick of her wrist, they stabbed into the ground before the gazer.
Wynter knew she couldn’t hold back. Whispering arcane words, black circles appeared around her out stretched hand. The shards in the ground flared and faded away as she finished the summoning spell. In their place, black arcane symbols swirled and black bones rose up. Wynter felt her strength and stamina points decrease a few points as her ebony dead rose up from the ground. Purple energy flared in their right skeletal hands, forming into ghostly purple blades.
Without hesitation, the black bones silently launched themselves at the gazer. Bryce met them half way and chaos erupted. Purple blades struck out as the gazer blocked each one in turn. Leg kicking out, it slammed into thigh bone. The ebony skeleton did not falter as it pressed its attack. Wynter knew her Ebony Skeletons could take and dish out a lot of damage. She watched as Bryce tried to keep up while the skeletons pushed him back step by step. A blade sliced across the gazer’s exposed thigh and another cut across his chest. The gazer continued to fight but losing ground with each slash.
Wynter glanced around to see the rest of the team locked in battle. Nikki was fighting to a standstill with her gazer. Daven poured emerald light against another gazer getting close and closer. The third gazer unleashed a stream of gray light on Vell. His soldier threw herself in front of him, taking the blast and slumping to the ground. The battle was turning bad and the necromancer needed to change the tide.
Wynter pulled a handful of lesser soul shards. She wanted to summon more of her ebony skeletons but she was limited to two at a time. Tossing the soul shards in the air, she whispered incantations. A gray arcane circle appeared around her hand and it turned blood red an instant later. Red symbols glowed from the ground as four bloody bones rose up. The red skeletons rushed to aid her fellow raid companions all at once.
“Pull back to me!” Wynter commanded.
Nikki nodded as the bloody bones joined her side, slashing at the gazer. The creature spun, trying to deflect the undead attacks. Nikki took the advantage and drove her sword into the gazer’s gut. It didn’t make a sound as it slashed at the red skeleton, sending cracked rib bones through the air. The knight activated a technique. With the sword buried in the creature, she slashed the blade upward with blazing power. The gazer screeched as its left side was nearly cleaved off. An eye stalk pointed at the bloody bones, white lightning blasting out. The skeleton moved in as lightning struck it dead on, shattering the bloody bones to pieces before flashing away. Nikki kept up her assault as another eye stalk pointed at her and unleashed a lightning attack. The knight was struck dead on and sent crashing to the ground.
Daven couldn’t move as he pulled life force from the tree and continued to blast the gazer getting closer. A Bloody Bones moved in as the gazer pulled off shreds of moss from its nearly covered arm. The skeleton slashed but the gazer stopped pulling off moss and fended off the incoming attacks.
Wynter realized the paralyzing touch of her bloody Bones had no effect on the creatures. She hoped it would slow them down but they were adapting to their attacks. Vell was backing up as his gazer’s eye began to glow. She saw that the troll captain was weaponless.
“Vell!” The necromancer shouted.
The troll turned to see Wynter throwing her skull staff like a javelin toward him. The captain side stepped and grabbed the metal staff right from the air. Whirling around, he brought the staff down hard on the gazer. The creature blocked with its arms but opened its eye wide. Gray light burst forth but Vell blocked the beam with the staff and whirled away.
Wynter pulled greater soul shards from her pouch and turned to see one of her ebony skeletons crumple to the ground. It burst into a dark colored light. Bryce’s eye stalks unleashed lightning bolts in rapid succession, striking the black skeleton and cracking supernatural bone. It slashed again and again but the gazer blocked each blow. Wynter pointed a hand and unleashed her soul drain attack. Black lightning burst forth from her hand and struck Bryce in the chest. The gazer let out a laugh as he unleashed several lightning bolts at the last ebony skeleton. It shattered and fell to the ground before bursting into shards of light.
“You cannot soul drain something that does not have a soul,” Bryce smirked as he stalked toward the necromancer.
Wynter threw two more great soul shards to the ground. Black symbols appeared around her hands and on the floor, two Ebony Skeletons rose up, purple fire blades in their hands. Wynter looked to the corner of her eye as her strength and stamina drained away. She couldn’t keep up this pace much longer and dread crept into her heart.
Nikki backed up as her gazer’s eyes began to glow. It unleashed five beams of gray light. The knight blocked three of them but two beams struck her. The knight stumbled back as her limbs felt like dead weight. The gazer took a step forward, shapely hips moving as the eye stalks fired again. This time, Nikki blocked two but three hit her. The knight fell to her knees, sword falling next to her. She barely lifted her head as the gazer peered down. A shadow appeared next to the creature as it turned its eye. Wynter drove her fist into the creature’s cheek. The player saw that she did only 2 points of damage but she hoped it was enough for Nikki to recover. There was no way she could take a monster like this in hand to hand but every second counted.
The knight pulled a dagger and activated a technique. Her body burst forward, slamming into the gazer and driving the dagger hilt deep into the middle of the creature’s chest. The knight spit in the creature’s eye but it did not blink. Wynter tried to grab Nikki, to pull her back but it was too late. The gazer’s eye glowed for a brief instant before it blasted Nikki point blank in the face. The knight fell back, eyes closing and crashing to the ground.
The gazer turned to Wynter and leered. The necromancer managed to finish whispering a low-level spell. One skeleton rose up before the necromancer, just as the gazer unleashed its lightning gaze. Wynter dove to the side as the skeleton was blasted to pieces but managed to absorb the attack.
Energy flared as Wynter tried to get back to her feet. She watched as Daven’s green light faded. The druid took another step back to pull life force from another tree when the gazer pounced. The moss on its arm withered away as it slammed into him, sending him falling to the ground. Desperate, the druid knew if he used one of his powerful attacks, it would put them all in danger. The trees were not themselves and he couldn’t reason with them. With Nikki down, as well as some of the trolls, the three of them needed something to keep fighting. Activating his animate tree ability, he whispered Gaia’s tongue to a nearby tree.
A faint aura appeared around a tree before its roots burst from the ground. Branches and tree limps moved like a living animal as it roots crawled along the forest floor. The gazer over Daven turned to see an animated tree rush her. It unleashed lightning bolt attacks, blasting away patches of bark and burning deep holes. The tree was already insane as it continued its rush. Daven rolled away as the tree brought limbs down on the gazer. It screeched as branches broke and the sharp ends stabbed deep. Daven noticed the damage being done in the hundreds as the tree kept up its attacks. The gazer blasted out in all directions, lightning burning and shattering wood to pieces. A thick branch was blasted to pieces but the tree took the splintered end and slammed it into the gazer’s chest. It let out a long scream as it was impaled into the ground before shattering into shards of light.
Daven backed up as the animated tree turned to him. It paused before roots crawled along like spider legs. The druid knew it was going for him and bent his knees, ready to jump out of its way. The tree was feet from him when lightning blasted at its trunk. The smell of scorched wood blanketed the area. Fire flared as several more bolts splinter
ed the tree in half. Burning, it fell to the ground, branch limbs and roots crawling in every direction as it burned.
Wynter and Daven turned to see Bryce stepping forward, lightning blasting out from his eyes and destroying what was left of the mad tree. The players backed up as the gazer turned his attention to them.
Vell glanced over to see the male gazer step menacingly toward the necromancer and druid. Taking Wynter’s staff, he slammed the end into the gazer’s chest, sending it flying backwards to the ground. Twisting his body, he whistled as he launched the staff toward the players.
Wynter turned just as the skull staff was hurtling through the air. Hand reaching out, she grasped it with one smooth move. Vell smirked before gray light struck him from behind. The captain stumbled forward as several beams struck him again. Body weakening, the troll fell face forward to the ground while the gazer behind him slowly stood up.
Bryce eyed the necromancer and druid as they stood side by side, his fellow gazers surrounding them, “Please struggle, it will make the conquest tastier.”
Wynter dipped her hand into her side pouch and pulled out two greater soul shards between fingers. Daven prepared another tree animation spell as the male gazer stepped closer with a mad gleam in its eye. The forest was silent as a tomb as the three gazers inched closer, eyes stalks trained on the last two players.
“Beg for….” Bryce’s eye went wide and the words choked in his throat as an arrow struck his neck.
Wynter threw the shards to the ground and began her incantations. Daven moved to the side, hand reaching out to touch a tree. The gazers around them advanced but met with arrows to the chest and stomach. Several more arrows whistled from the trees as their points sunk deep into gray flesh. Daven’s hand was inches away from a tree when he turned to see a gazer’s eye glow toward Wynter. Fingers curling from the bark, the druid hurtled himself at the unsuspecting necromancer. Wynter managed to complete her incantation when something slammed into her side, sending her to the cavern floor. Turning onto her back, she watched as Daven was struck by multiple paralyzing beams.