“Fireworks!” Alexander shouted. “Fitz, you’re a genius!” They watched together as the sky around them was filled with drifting motes of light that fell across the keep and out past the outer wall.
A roar from a dragon alerted them first. One of those patrolling the sky above suddenly altered course and dove toward the lake. Alexander’s eyes followed its path and saw the outlines of several flying creatures. As more of the fireworks landed on them, their stealth was broken. The dragon wasted no time, breathing a long stream of fire that engulfed maybe a dozen of them.
Other dragons called out and dove in different directions. Gargoyles were appearing all around above the keep. Beams from the light cannons erupted into the sky, cutting at the exposed gargoyles while being careful not to strike the dragons. Players with ranged attacks were blasting at them with magic or arrows.
Alexander estimated more than a hundred of the flying monsters were still in the air above as he hit one after another with Wizard’s Fire. Fitz was doing the same, only at a much faster pace. He growled from deep in his belly as with each wave of his hand a group of gargoyles lit up. After a few moments, he used his staff to send another volley of fireworks.
The gargoyles dove, screeching angrily at being exposed. Dragons incinerated them or grabbed hold of them to rend them with claw and jaws. Arrows and crossbow bolts streamed upward to strike at them. And though they did little physical damage against the tough stone skin of the monsters, each projectile was blessed with holy light. The monsters screamed in pain and rage with each impact.
Still, several made it to the level of the wall. Citizens were swept off the wall by wings as others were savaged by the creatures’ talons. Those who were knocked off were the lucky ones. Some fell into the moat, while others fell the twenty feet or so to the ground inside the wall. They suffered a few broken bones and cuts, but none were killed.
Alexander witnessed one unlucky duergar get seized and lifted into the air by a wounded gargoyle. The monster’s wings beat rapidly as it soared into the sky. When it reached a hundred feet or so, it turned back toward the wall and released its prey.
Gargoyle Infiltrator
Level 80
Health: 59,200/60,000
The screaming duergar fell upon a couple of orcs. The impact killed all three as it knocked the orcs from the wall. Even as they fell to the ground, the gargoyle was diving to grab another victim. A dwarf this time.
As the dwarf cursed and planted his axe in the thing’s chest, it grabbed hold of his shoulders and began to lift. This time, a quick-thinking minotaur grabbed hold of the monster’s leg and yanked downward. The weight and strength of the minotaur threw the gargoyle off balance and it foundered as one of its wings struck the wall.
Several nearby citizens leapt to the attack, driving swords and axes into the monster and using them to drag it downward. It screamed as it came in contact with the wall, as the very stone itself was consecrated by the gods of light. Half a minute later, it perished from dozens of wounds, but not without inflicting more than a few upon the defenders.
All along the wall, the warriors of Elysia were learning to pull the creatures downward as they attacked. The dragons continued to massacre the monsters in the air, getting payback for the death of the hatchling. The gargoyle’s numbers were dwindling rapidly. Alexander could only see a couple dozen of them remaining, all of them attacking the walls. Too close to his citizens for the dragons to attack.
His people took another couple of minutes to finish off the attacking monsters one by one. But they were paying the price. He saw citizens ripped apart as the gargoyles struck the wall. The monsters had tough skin and plenty of health, and they dished out as much damage as they took. Blood ran freely down the interior of the wall in several places. Alexander saw the healers rushing toward the locations of each attack, casting even as they ran.
When the last of the enemy went down, Alexander called out, “Jeeves! Are any of our people still fighting?”
“No, Majesty. There are no attacks on the wall at this time.”
Alexander didn’t want to ask, but he had to. “How many did we lose, Jeeves?”
“Nineteen citizens have perished, Majesty. Forty more have been injured.”
“Dammit!” Alexander kicked at a charbroiled gargoyle near his feet. He began to cast heals on any wounded that he could reach. His healers had things in hand, but he needed to do something to help.
Sasha’s voice echoed through raid chat. “Gather the dead and bring them to the inner courtyard. Priests and paladins, we need you there. Let’s res as many as we can.”
Alexander heard a commotion atop the gatehouse and teleported himself up there. “What is it? Enemies in the woods?”
Molgo, who had stationed himself atop the gatehouse, chuckled. “No enemies. Look.” He pointed down toward the moat. Alexander leaned over the crenellation and looked down. Rocky was swimming toward the bridge with a squirming dwarf gripped in his jaws. When he reached the bridge, he extended his neck upward and dropped the guard onto the stone section. The dwarf cursed and sputtered as he hit the ground. Half a dozen others were sitting on the bridge already, wet and slightly shaken. Healers were already taking care of any injuries from atop the wall.
Rocky looked up at Alexander, tongue hanging out to one side and looking pleased with himself.
Alexander laughed, along with several others on the wall. “Good boy, Rocky! Go fetch any of the others that might have fallen in!”
The moat monster disappeared without a splash. Alexander said, “Jeeves, open the gate and lower the drawbridge, please.”
As soon as the bridge was down, Brick, Grumpy, Lugs, and two of the stone golems moved out beyond the nearly-drowned citizens and formed a shield wall. Those who had been pulled from the water made their way inside. Alexander heard the dwarf grumble as he cleared the inner doors, “Damned water beastie tried ta eat me!” The others just nodded in sympathy. Alexander imagined it wouldn’t be a pleasant experience to be seized in a water dragon’s jaws. Still, when this was over, he intended to reward Rocky handsomely.
Brick and the others held their position while Rocky rounded up a few more stragglers. The last he brought up was a dead dwarf. The warrior had been wearing plate armor when he fell in and had quickly sunk to the bottom and drowned. Rocky looked apologetic as he gently laid the fallen dwarf on the bridge. He made a sad whining noise and nudged the body.
Brick patted the water dragon on the head. “It be okay, Rocky. Ye did the best ye could!” He knelt down and laid a hand on the dwarf’s head. The corpse was enveloped in holy light and a moment later the dwarf coughed out a lungful of water.
Rocky jerked back in surprise, his head lifting high above the bridge. He looked from Brick to the formerly-dead dwarf and back again. Trumpeting questioningly, he sought out Alexander up on the wall.
Alexander wasn’t sure Rocky was intelligent enough to understand resurrection, so he just shouted, “Good boy, Rocky! You saved them all!”
Those gathered along the wall started to cheer and toss treats down to the water dragon. Still confused, Rocky was quickly distracted by the chunks of meat and pastries that were raining down upon him. He began to catch them in mid-air, earning him more cheers.
Brick and others brought the stragglers back inside as the water dragon scooped up his rewards. Jeeves raised the drawbridge once again. A moment later, Sasha’s voice came across raid chat once again.
“This isn’t over, people. We haven’t received any notifications yet. This might be just the first wave. Get your shit together and keep an eye out!”
The mood atop the wall sobered quickly. Some looked toward the forest as others’ gazes lifted toward the sky. Most had been thinking the battle was won, and Sasha’s words had disheartened more than a few.
Alexander heard bursts from Fitz somewhere behind him and a moment later the sky lit up with more fireworks. His gaze lifted to the sky with everyone else’s, but no gargoyles were seen.<
br />
Alexander reached out in guild chat. “Grimble. How are things at the mine?”
“All quiet here, Alexander. No beasties nor demons in sight.”
“Alright, keep a close eye out. And stay close to the rock trolls. If a gargoyle appears, they can pull it down.”
“Aye, will do.”
Fitz shouted, “The roost!” just as twin roars from Kai and Lia shook the mountain above them. Alexander looked up to see three dead gargoyles falling and bouncing off the rocks below the roost. Seeing no wounds or burns on them, he realized they must have been killed by Fitz’s ward.
Fitz disappeared, even as three of the airborne dragons sped upward. The roost was higher than the umbrella of fireworks that Fitz had spread over the keep, so at least a few of the gargoyles had gone undetected. They clearly intended to strike again at the hatchlings.
Gouts of flame erupted from the ledge outside the roost as Kai emerged and shot into the sky. Half a dozen more gargoyles appeared as they burned and fell screaming toward the ground. More flames erupted from the other dragons as they began to circle and execute a search pattern. The sky filled with dragonfire as more of the monsters were discovered and disposed of.
One of the dragons was badly injured when two gargoyles appeared on its back. They dug in with talons and teeth, tearing at the dragon’s flesh. The dragon roared in pain and attempted to reach back and bite them. But they were too far up its neck and the dragon couldn’t bend its neck enough to get at them. Instead, she rolled over and shook herself, trying to dislodge her attackers. Dragon’s blood rained down as they held on and continued to savage her.
Kai passed beneath her, snatching one of the gargoyles in his jaws. He reached for the second with one of his foreclaws as he sped past, but missed. His jaws tightened and mangled the gargoyle before he spat it out.
Another of the dragons managed to snatch the final gargoyle from their wounded cousin’s back. She righted herself but was too wounded to fly properly. She awkwardly spiraled down to the ground between the inner and outer walls of the keep, dripping blood in great quantities as she fell.
Several healers were already casting spells on her as soon as she got in range. As she landed, the bleeding began to slow, then stop. She laid her head down on the ground and closed her eyes.
When the last gargoyle died, players and citizens alike received an alert.
Quest Update: Hold What You Have
Stage One – Complete!
You have successfully repelled the first wave of invaders sent by the drow wizards.
Reward: 200 gold. 120,000 experience.
Quest Update: Stage Two will begin in one half hour.
At the same time, a message from Lorian came across raid chat. “My scout has just reported an enemy force moving out of the dungeon south of the mine.”
As Alexander was about to answer, a familiar gong rang out and fireworks erupted in the sky above the keep. Jeeves had just leveled up again.
“Congratulations, Jeeves.”
“Thank you, Majesty. It seems the points I received for the successful defense combined with the deaths of one hundred and twenty gargoyles were enough for me to reach level 23. Might I make an upgrade suggestion?”
“Of course, Jeeves.”
“In light of the recent airborne attacks, I suggest selecting Aerial Defense for my next upgrade. It will allow me to form a magic barrier encompassing the entire keep, extending out to the outer wall in a dome. I am afraid it will not be strong enough to hold out long against a large number of high-level monsters like the gargoyles. But it will force them from stealth when they come in contact with it.”
Alexander didn’t hesitate. “Jeeves, please activate Aerial Defense.”
A moment later, an opaque bubble began to form over the keep. It rose up from the walls and out from the cliff face, growing into a bubble that enclosed them all. The dragons who were still circling above passed in and out of the magic field without any apparent difficulty.
“Aerial defense shield is in place, Majesty. With my current power reserves, I can maintain the shield for twenty hours. That period will decrease as the shield absorbs damage.”
Alexander immediately teleported himself back to the control room. He removed two of his larger soul gems from his inventory and placed them on the control table. “How much time will these add to the shield, Jeeves?”
The two stones glowed briefly. “Approximately thirty additional hours of normal use, Majesty. Again, damage absorbed by the shield will reduce the shield’s available power.”
“Fifty hours. Just over four days. That should be long enough. Please alert me if your power reserves for the shield drop below twenty-five percent.”
“Of course, Majesty.”
With the shield up, Alexander felt a weight lifted from his shoulders. Even if it wouldn’t kill the gargoyles, breaking their stealth would at least give his people a fighting chance. Having to deal with an enemy attacking from the ground while invisible monsters fell on them from above would be a nightmare.
He teleported himself back to the keep. Immediately, he went to the dining area and took a seat. Pulling chunks of obsidian from his bag, he began enchanting them with the Undying and Healing Light spells. He hadn’t had time to make dragon pins for all of the orcs and minotaurs, and now some of them had paid the price. The pins weren’t a guarantee of safety. The duergar he’d seen dropped on the orcs was wearing a pin. It would have saved him from the impact when he hit the orcs. But the subsequent fall from the wall took the one percent health that the pin maintained, killing him.
Still, he wanted as many of his citizens to have the protection the pins offered. As he cast the spell again and again, he called one of the apprentices from the forge over to add pins to the stones. He didn’t waste time having them shaped into dragon form. They could take care of the aesthetics later. Ugly and functional was fine by him.
It took him about twenty seconds to enchant each stone. Having less than an hour, he was only able to create a hundred and fifty of the pins. He charged the apprentice with distributing them. The young dwarf grabbed the bag and ran off toward the outer wall.
As the clock ran down again, he moved to the top of the outer gatehouse. Molgo, Dawn, Brick, Sasha, Lorian, and an elder orc whose name he didn’t know were standing there looking out toward the forest. Lorian spoke quietly.
“My scout says we should see them any minute.”
“Is it a large force?” Sasha asked.
The half-elf got a wry grin on his face. “Well, yes. And no.”
Sasha’s face darkened and she balled her fists. Lorian didn’t wait for the lashing she was about to unleash.
“The scout says there are… giants. Several of them. Along with orcs, hobgoblins, were-beasts, mountain trolls, and the drow commanders driving them. The force is only about six hundred strong, so not large in number. But… giants.” He shrugged and tried a hesitant smile.
Sasha snorted at him. “You need to work on your jokes.”
“Why would they send such a small number?” Alexander asked, thinking out loud.
This time it was Sasha who shrugged. “Maybe they assumed the gargoyles would still be softening us up?”
Dawn added, “They may not be aware that our people and the orcs have joined your forces. Without our warriors, the gargoyles and six hundred dark ones would have had you outnumbered.”
Alexander nodded his head. “I suppose. But they had to know the dragons would be here. One dragon should be able to wipe out their entire force.”
Sasha disagreed. “If they’re coming from the dungeon, they may have been sent before the attack on the hatchlings. So they may not know about the dragons.”
“Or they be havin’ some nasty plan ta deal with our dragon friends,” Brick added.
They were interrupted by the sound of cracking and splintering wood. The treetops about a hundred yards back from the forest’s edge began to shake. A few moments later, the sound of ha
mmering could be heard.
“Are they buildin’ catapults?” Brick asked. “Mebbe siege towers? Be tough to make ‘em big enough to reach across our moat.”
Molgo spoke up. “If it were me, I would build a bridge. One that I could drop in place of the missing drawbridge section. With giants to carry it…” His voice trailed off as he let the others picture it.
“How big are these giants?” Sasha asked.
Lorian answered, “The scout says they’re mountain giants. A dozen of them. They’re about fifty feet tall. Strong, but stupid. They don’t follow orders well. But if they see an enemy, they will attack without pause or mercy. Very hard to kill, with skin tougher than rhino hide. They are vulnerable in the same places as you or I – the eyes, ears, under the chin, armpits.”
Sasha’s eyes had gone wide as saucers. “Fifty feet? Fifty? C’mon, man… how are we supposed to kill something like that?”
Brick pointed upward. “Dragons.”
Alexander shook his head. “This smells like a trap to me. It’s too easy. The dragons could burn out the forest and all the monsters in it without breaking a sweat. There has to be something we’re missing.”
“Well, the drow have the dragon poison. The one that almost killed Kai. Maybe all their weapons are coated with it? I’m thinking a fifty-foot tall giant could throw a spear pretty high into the air. High enough to hit a dragon before it got close enough to flame them,” Sasha mused.
“Shit! The poison. Please tell me you have some antidote?” Alexander pleaded.
Sasha nodded. “Fitz gave us the recipe. Lydia, the druids and I made a ton of it. All the healers have some vials in their bags.”
“Don’t forget that shit-weasel thing they shoot at us,” Brick pointed out. “That be a horrible way to die. And it’ll keep on eatin’ whoever it hits, so the dragon pins won’t save ‘em.”
Alexander grimaced. He’d felt first hand what it was like to be hit with those things.
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