Stormforge (Rise To Omniscience Book 5)

by Aaron Oster

  “There are a series of circles on the far side of the slab,” Sarah said in a rush. “Place your hands on the outermost one, and don’t stop funneling your power into it until you feel the last section click. You’ll know what I’m talking about when you feel it. You don’t need to move from the outermost circle either, just funnel the power in and the scripts will take care of the rest.”

  “Be careful,” Morgan said, giving her shoulder a light squeeze before taking off towards the icy slab on the far side of the room.

  Sarah could already see the mist drifting back that way as she moved to take Morgan’s place. Their illusionist, the mage sitting back in group four, shrouded her body even as she went into position, covering her with Morgan’s likeness. She wasn’t sure if it would work against someone of Octagon’s power, or how long they could keep this up before he noticed, but any time they could give Morgan would be precious and invaluable.

  “Get ready!” Sarah called. “I’ve got a feeling that we’re going to be in for it now!”

  She had no idea how right she was. The mist cleared away from Octagon to reveal the Pinnacle King floating a few inches above the ground. His fur bristled along his entire body, standing on end. His teeth were bared in a snarl, and in each hand was clutched a scythe with six-foot blades protruding from either side.

  The Pinnacle King didn’t say a word, just let out a bellow that shook the room with his rage. Then he charged. However, it was a charge that none of them could even see. All Sarah had the time for was to blink, and then the King was on top of them. Ice Golems flowed from the ground to try and intercept, but the Pinnacle King wasn’t going for her group.

  Sarah whirled in place, firing off a barrage of icy spears at the Pinnacle King’s back, but his tail intercepted each and every one. Others tried to attack as well, but it was clear where he was aiming. Not that any of them could stop him. He was in the midst of group four in a blink, his scythe lashing out in massive sweeps and trailing freezing wind in its wake.

  Galig tried to put up some resistance, rallying his group and trying to force the Pinnacle King to back off. They managed to get a block of ice in the way of his first attack, Galig cracking the ground and another of the mages bringing it up. However, Octagon’s reaction speed was too great for them to hold out for even a couple of seconds. A new skill, one that had yet to be showcased, blasted from the blade of his scythe, a freezing wind that caught the entire group as he swung from both the left and right.

  His body pulsed, flaring brighter for an instant, then a wave of silvery water erupted from the scythe blades, engulfing the entire group. Sarah stood there, the moment in time frozen as she and the others tried to get the Pinnacle King to back off. One of the mages managed to snag Galig, and another sank a mage halfway into the ground. But the other three, including two healers who were sent to the back, were caught in the attack.

  Sarah had no idea what the silvery substance was, but the screams of agony coming from them were more than enough to tell her that it was bad. The silver water washed over them, sinking into their skin and beginning to bloat their bodies. Their skin was forced out, ballooning ever wider until, with an ugly squelching sound, they popped like overripe tomatoes.

  “Holy shit! That is so messed up!” Solveig screamed.

  Sarah couldn’t agree more, but they had bigger problems right now, mainly that the Pinnacle King was now bearing down on their group.

  “Defense!” Sarah yelled. “Keep your damn guard up!”

  A wall of water rose before her, attempting to snare the Pinnacle King as she rushed them. She couldn’t see his movements but figured that with a blanketed attack, she could catch him. She’d been wrong. There was a flash of movement from her rear and only Sarah’s reflexes saved her from being bisected like the rest of her group.

  She dove forward, coming out of her roll and whirling in place. Her palm slapped the ground, and her attack turned the ground before her into a river of knives. She ignored the falling corpses of her once-allies, focusing on causing the Pinnacle King some damage. A hard tug on her back yanked Sarah out of the way of a descending scythe. She felt a burning pain as the blade cut through her shield and opened a shallow cut in her forehead.

  It burned with cold, and when Sarah landed, one of the healers was on her immediately, working to stop the spread of ice that his strikes now seemed to be causing. She gritted her teeth in agony as she felt the healer fighting the spreading cold, slowly forcing it back to the source of the cut and then out of her body entirely.

  Solveig had moved in to cover her and had likely been the one to drag her back. Sarah’s group was gone, now leaving the remains of their groups to crowd into one and try to hold back the Pinnacle King’s onslaught. Their forms moved around before her as she rose, clutching at her still-itching head.

  “It’ll pass soon,” the healer said, looking pale. “Try and focus on the fight.”

  Sarah nodded before going to do just that. The remaining few supers and mages, led by Solveig, were doing their best to hold Octagon at bay. They weren’t having much luck in that regard, as the Pinnacle King flashed around them, taking swipes at any openings and avoiding any counterattacks.

  Within seconds, their group of seventeen had been reduced to nine, and Sarah found herself wondering about how long they could hope to hold out.

  “Chesterson!” Galig yelled, pressing his hand to the ground.

  “You got it!” Chesterson replied, holding both hands forward and beginning to gather energy there.

  Sarah wasn’t sure what they were doing, but judging by the beads of sweat rolling off the both of them, this attack was going to be a big one. Solveig and the other remaining four were doing their best to keep Octagon busy and were having some minor success in holding him back. The last healer still stood next to her, sending out blasts of green towards the group any time someone took a small wound.

  Is it just me, or is Octagon getting slower? Sarah wondered.

  Then, as Chesterson’s attack began to grow, and the ground around them began to tremble, she finally understood what they were doing. They’d clearly been the ones responsible for the earlier massive attack, and they were attempting to do it again. Something like that would give them a bit more time. Hopefully, it would even enough time for Morgan to finish what he was doing.

  Not wanting to be useless, Sarah began preparing a big attack of her own. If they were going to try dropping more of the glacier on the Pinnacle King, then she would do her best to add to that. A mass of ice began to form overhead as she prepared her Glacial Impact. The mass of ice and water started flowing into existence as her MP began to plummet.

  There was no point in reserving her power if they would all die before she could use it. So, Sarah figured now was as good a time as any to go all-out.

  “Just a few more seconds!” Chesterson called. “I’m almost there!”

  His face was beet red with the effort of holding the pulsing ball of white light between his fingers. This skill was clearly one that would grow more powerful the longer he charged it, and if Sarah wasn’t mistaken, he was throwing everything he had into it and then some. Chesterson clearly felt that his last blast hadn’t been powerful enough and was giving this one his all.

  Galig was similarly straining, fighting to bring down the entire glacier on their heads. Sarah really hoped that they could survive this blast, because no matter how much they put into it, the Pinnacle King would survive. The fact that he’d suffered some minor damage in the last attack was proof that they could hurt him, though, and maybe they were hoping that an attack like this could do some serious damage.

  “Alright!” Chesterson called after a few more seconds. “I’m ready!”

  Solveig wound up, unleashing a massive punch and sending a pulse of something into the air before her, somehow managing to time Octagon’s arrival. As the Pinnacle King swooped in, he collided with the attack and was bounced back. Sarah still wasn’t sure what she’d done, but it threw Octag
on back a good ten feet, clearing their group to make a retreat.

  “Back! Back and down!” Solveig yelled, ordering her group to run.

  Octagon righted himself midair, his massive wings flapping hard to catch him before he traveled too far. The violet glow around him flared even brighter, his icy blue eyes taking on a purple tinge. He roared, the soundwaves visible as they echoed from his powerful chest and reverberated through the room.

  “Now!” Galig screamed at the same time, slamming his palms down hard.

  “Take this!” Chesterson yelled, extending his arms outward and sending the attack flashing across the distance towards the Pinnacle King.

  Solveig and her group dropped to the ground, and a much smaller green shield sprang up around them to blanket them from the blast. Sarah used the opportunity to hurl her own attack, the twenty-foot chunk of frozen water and ice moving much slower than the blast from Chesterson. Still, it would only add to the damage and hopefully pin him for at least a minute. However, it seemed Octagon wasn’t as naive about the attack as they’d believed.

  The scythes vanished in puffs of mist, and the Pinnacle King drew his arms across his chest in a cross block. Then, he took in a deep breath, the muscles in his body bulging mightily. An instant before Chesterson’s attack hit, the Pinnacle King roared, unleashing an attack that Sarah hadn’t even known was possible.

  “Absolute Zero!”

  The world around Sarah froze. Everything was frozen, from the attacks they’d launched to their bodies to the very air they breathed. Everything. The Pinnacle King floated on the other side of the room, chest heaving as he reached out and shattered Chesterson’s attack. The frozen skill didn’t go off, didn’t detonate. He thrust his arms outward next, veins standing out, even through his thick fur.

  He then slapped his hands to the walls behind him and the room shuddered. Still, no one could move as the Pinnacle King floated away, his eyes blazing a bright violet and his chest heaving with the effort. Nothing bad had happened to any of them so far, though their attack had been effectively halted. However, judging by the effort it was taking, Sarah had a feeling that the Pinnacle King would be forced to release his hold on them soon. And she was right.

  The world remained frozen for just a moment more, and then, abruptly started up once again. Sara staggered, finding that her hold on her attack was now gone. Looking up in confusion, she saw that the mass of water and ice she’d been about to throw was now frozen to the ceiling.

  Octagon fell from the air, landing hard on one knee and simply stared across the intervening space. The violet light shrouding his body flickered a few times, then vanished completely, leaving the Pinnacle King without his precious reiki.

  “Now’s our chance!” Sarah said, “We have to…” She trailed off as she turned, her eyes going wide in shock.

  What Sarah had thought of as a harmless attack had been far from true. There, frozen like statues, eyes lifeless and dead, stood Chesterson, Galig, and their last healer. Their bodies had been frozen stiff, leaving Sarah to face the Pinnacle King with just the last few who’d been under the shield.

  However, when the shield flickered and vanished, only two people stood. Solveig, whose body was partially covered in frost and the mage who had the power to shoot acid. He seemed perfectly fine, though the same couldn’t be said of the others. Solveig looked back to Sarah, her expression grim. That single look conveyed more than anything she could have said right then.

  Her gaze flicked back to the fading mists surrounding the cold slab of ice where Morgan was working. It would be clear to the Pinnacle King now that Morgan wasn’t here, and after that, it would only be a matter of time before they were found out. There were only three of them left standing as it was, though she couldn’t for the life of her figure out why she’d been unharmed. However, with no healers and only them between the Pinnacle King and Morgan, they had little choice but to stand and fight.

  51

  Katherine slashed out with her Reality Blade, cleaving a monster in two and sending it toppling off the walls. There was little time to celebrate such a paltry kill, as more were swarming up around them at an alarming rate. The East and Central’s involvement had very obviously been found out by now, and the monsters were pushing them as hard as they possibly could.

  Thousands were already in the streets below, swarming up against the barricades and fighting to break through. Le’vine, Hilda, and Fuza fought alongside her, pushing back against the endless tide of white, gray, and red. Blood covered them from head to toe, freezing on their bodies as the snow whipped around them.

  Katherine spun and slashed, stabbed and parried, fought with all she had to keep the walls as clear as she could. Even with her astonishing speed and strength, there was only so much one person could do. The monsters were pushing hard and were obviously gaining ground. The walls may as well not even be here for all they were worth by now.

  Word from the eastern front wasn’t too good either. They’d already lost nearly a tenth of their forces and more were falling by the minute. This battle was brutal, unforgiving, and with every death, a new soldier would rise to fight for the enemy. Katherine growled, then swept out with a powerful slash, invoking one of her skills and shearing the section of wall she was on with a wide sweeping slash.

  Monsters fell into pieces by the hundreds, collapsing to the ground below and leaving the wall temporarily clear. And by temporarily, that meant about three seconds before more were swarming up. However, this time, the new swarm was joined by a few very familiar faces. Hu Shane, his body now twisted and deformed, climbed atop the wall, followed by his top general, Sneer.

  Arnold vaulted over the wall next, landing with a soft crunch on the bones of his fallen soldiers.

  “Finally decided to show your cowardly face, did you?” she asked.

  “I will take great pleasure in ending you for good,” Arnold replied, drawing the massive blade from his back.

  Fuza was by her side in an instant, his hand extended, and red light flaring out to form a blade of his own.

  “Don’t worry about the pipsqueak,” Le’vine called back to them. “Hilda and I are more than a challenge for them.”

  Arnold’s face morphed into an expression of savage glee as he thrust his sword forward without warning, sending a condensed blast of ice right at Katherine’s chest. Fuza danced in, his arm whipping up and cutting the attack in two. Katherine retaliated, swinging her blade outward and sending a ribbon of rainbow-colored light right at Arnold’s chest.

  Arnold roared, using his own blade to parry and shattered the attack before charging in to meet her in melee. Not that Katherine minded in the least. She’d been waiting for this day ever since Arnold’s first attack on City Nineteen. He’d killed millions of her citizens, citizens who were even now trying to kill them. The dead had no control over what they did, and Katherine couldn’t blame them for their actions.

  Arnold, though… Arnold was aware of what he was doing and actively enjoyed it. If it was the last thing she’d do, she’d end him. The two of them met on the wall, their blades slamming into one another as a contest of strength began. Katherine shoved back hard, trying to force him to back down, while he did the same. She’d been conserving the lion’s strength of her power for this battle, and Katherine was as fresh as if she had just started fighting.

  Arnold, aside from taking a few dozen falls, was also fresh, though his cheekbone was broken from that first kick. He was intent on repaying the favor before he killed her. Fuza danced around behind Katherine, keeping any monsters off her back as she strained against Octagon’s second-in-command.

  Both of them had their teeth bared, each straining for all they were worth to gain even an inch. However, they were too evenly matched, and after just a few more moments, they jumped back. It was only for an instant though, as they moved in to clash once more, blades ringing as they exchanged a flurry of blows.

  Katherine swung for his head, neck, and chest in rapid succession,
only to have her attacks turned aside. Arnold tried a similar tactic, though he went for her legs. Each blow was parried, returned, then blocked once again. Katherine danced with her Reality Blade, swinging faster and faster as she looked for an opening.

  In her off-hand, she drew upon another attack, summoning a crackling ball of black energy that would wipe Arnold from existence. Arnold’s blade flashed blue each time he struck, trying to freeze her blade and, by extension, her hand. However, seeing as her Reality Blade was a skill, the cold damage that his blade imparted did nothing at all.

  Katherine stepped in, as though faltering in her attack. As she’d expected, Arnold took the bait, moving in to deliver a powerful attack to her throat. Her hand came up, cracking with black power, however, Arnold’s came up at the same time, rippling with distorted air. Their palms slammed into each other, even as their blades met.

  For just a moment, nothing happened as the opposing forces of their skills fought against each other. Then, their skills lost stability and exploded, blasting them both off their feet and tearing a massive chunk from the wall. Katherine was hurled back, flying past Le’vine and slamming into Hu Shane and shattering the once-man’s rib cage before flattening him against the valley wall.

  “Your Majesty!” Sneer screamed, whirling in the midst of his fight with Hilda, which didn’t turn out too well for him.

  Hilda’s fist flashed out, and the monster’s head exploded, showering the ground in blood and gore.

  “Yuck,” Hilda said, shaking her hand to clear it of the clinging bits of brain matter and skull fragments.

  “Huh, looks like you just couldn’t help but interfere in my fight, could you, Katherine?” Le’vine huffed as she pulled herself off the flattened monster.

  “Not like I intended to do it, that bastard Arnold…” Katherine trailed off as the smoke cleared, revealing Arnold standing there, his face twisted in rage.

  The fur on his shoulders had been partially singed off, and one side of his face was blackened. By contrast, Katherine was perfectly fine, having weathered the blast without taking any real damage. However, it was what Arnold had clutched in his hand that caught her attention.