386 days until the Arkon Shield falls

A little later, eight of the ten overseers were dead, and I had gained another level.

You have gained in experience and are now a: level 21 Trainee.

The number of murluks attempting to hop over the wall had diminished considerably, and order had been restored inside the palisade. The only place the defenders and attackers now clashed in any sizeable numbers was at the open gate.

Despite the frantic commands of the two remaining overseers, most of the smaller murluks milling outside the walls chose to make for the opening where, unable to the bring the weight of their numbers to bear, they were held at bay by the defenders.

We were winning.

But I was running out of steam, and both my stamina and mana pools were low. I couldn’t go on for much longer. Pausing for breath, I took stock of the battle. Only one significant threat remained now.

The chieftain.

I studied the murluk leader’s approach. He was labouring up the upper bank, moving even slower than he had on the lower bank. From this close, I could see that the smaller murluks moved easily in and out of his shimmering shield of blue.

So, his shield is similar to Kagan’s. It appeared permeable to slow-moving objects, but acted as a solid barrier against projectiles.

I chewed on my lower lip, pondering my options. The chieftain on his own could easily turn the tide of the battle against us. But his defeat would do the same for the murluks.

I measured the behemoth’s pace and trajectory, trying to judge how long he would take to reach the gate. We had some time yet, and I estimated that—

I frowned.

The chieftain was not making for the gate as I had assumed. Tracing his path, I realised he was heading directly for the platform where the commander and I stood.

I turned to warn the commander. Jolin was leaning over the rear end of the platform, listening to a report from one of her messengers.

“Ma’am—” I began.

She held up her hand, stopping me. The old lady didn’t turn away from the messenger. Given her demeanour, whatever he had to say was important.

I limped closer.

“… there are thousands!” the messenger gasped. “Nearly all bear serious injuries of one kind or another. Nicholas says that many are beyond his help. But that is not the worse part, ma’am.” The messenger paused for breath, chest heaving.

“Go on, Devlin,” the commander said, her lips pressed in a thin line.

Despite the chaos around us, the messenger had Jolin’s full attention. Shifting impatiently from foot to foot, I wanted to interrupt, but the commander knew the stakes of this battle as well as I did. Whatever Devlin was on about had to be important.

“A group of about a hundred are attacking our own people,” Devlin said. “They’ve wrested away weapons from some of the other new fishes and are killing indiscriminately. The gate guards died trying to stop them,” he finished miserably.

I blinked, horrified as I began to understand.

“Did you say they are killing our own?” asked the commander, her voice dangerously soft.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Captain Marcus!” Jolin shouted. “Take two companies and go put down the trouble at the dragon temple. You will show no mercy. Cut down anyone who resists your orders.”

“Yes, ma’am!” Marcus snapped a salute, then hurried off.

Petrov stared upwards. “But ma’am, we need those men here!” he protested.

“There is no help for it, Captain,” Jolin barked. “Make do!” She turned back to me. “What is it, Jamie?”

I stared at her uncomprehendingly for a moment before shifting gears. “The chieftain is making directly for us, not the gate. We need to get off the platform.”

The commander peered over the palisade.

“Did I hear the messenger right?” I asked as she studied the chieftain’s approach. “Are the refugees attacking us?”

“Yes,” she said. “Earth is in its final moments and people are coming through the gate in droves. Most are in shock or injured from the natural disasters ripping apart the planet.” Jolin sighed. “If it was only the terrified and wounded we had to deal with, matters wouldn’t be so bad. But wherever there are large groups of people, there are crazies.” She turned to study me, taking in my exhausted state. “You out of mana?”

I nodded. “You’re going to have to replenish me before I can finish off the overseers.”

She shook her head. “Forget about them, the murluk army is in too much disarray for them to restore order now.”

Jolin closed her eyes, and a moment later, I felt restorative weaves of spirit reach out from the commander to me and all the nearby soldiers.

“Thanks, ma’am,” I said.

Jolin waved away my thanks and held my gaze. “Tell me truthfully, Jamie… can you handle the chieftain?”

“I must,” I said, resolute. I wasn’t certain the chieftain could be defeated, but I was determined to make the attempt.

Jolin measured my resolve for a moment. “Good man,” she murmured. “Let’s get down.”

“I think we should—” I began.

“Wow! Now that’s what I call a restoration spell!”

I broke off on hearing the shouts of glee. The voice was unhappily familiar.

“Come to daddy, you toady bastards! I’m gonna kill a whole lotta yah!”

My head whipped towards the gate. It was Lance, of course. The mage had pushed himself to the front of the spearmen cordon around the gate and, with a club equipped in each hand, was bashing away at the murluks.

“Damn it!” I growled. “How did that idiot get there?”

“The damn fool,” the commander murmured.

As we both watched, momentarily too stunned to act, a murluk thrust a spear at Lance.

He didn’t even see it coming.

The spear skewered the mage clean through. Lance’s eyes went wide and he crumpled to the ground, limbs twitching.

“Petrov,” Jolin called down. “Send John with a squad to go rescue our mage from the cordon.” Petrov’s gaze moved in confusion from the commander to me. “Not Jamie, the other one!” she snapped. “The blonde idiot!”

For a moment, it was all I could do not to scream. I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. Why did you have to do this now, Lance?

Opening my eyes, I reached a decision. “Ma’am,” I said, “I need to get to him. I saw the way that spear cut through him. The medics won’t be able to help him.”

Despite my dislike for the young idiot, I knew we couldn’t afford to let him die. The Outpost, and humanity, needed every mage it could find.

Jolin’s eyes darted between the approaching chieftain and the gate. It would be tight. If I went to Lance’s aid, I might not get back in time to stop the behemoth before he reached the wall.

Indecision froze the commander.

It was the first time I had seen her mask of certainty slip so completely. I knew she was weighing the lives of her soldiers against Lance’s. It was not a choice I envied, but I couldn’t wait.

“Ma’am,” I urged.

“Go get him,” she ordered, her expression clearing as she made her decision.

It was the right call. Lance was too important to abandon. If the mage’s reckless tendencies could be controlled, he would be an invaluable asset, and in the long run it would save many lives.

I hobbled down the platform ladder. “After I see to Lance, pull back the spearmen if you can,” I shouted to the commander, who was following me down the ladder. “Don’t engage the chieftain unless you are forced to. It will easier for me if I don’t have to worry about injuring any nearby friendlies!”

As I reached the bottom of the ladder, I skipped towards the gate, dragging my hobbled foot behind me.

✽✽✽

It took me only a few seconds to reach the back of the cordon defending the gate. I pushed my way through to the front. Most of the spearmen, recognising me, gave way easily.

“John,” I shouted when I caught sight of the big man and his squad. They were a few yards to my right and hovered protectively around Lance’s form, still stretched out on the ground. “Is he alive?”

John glanced back. “Barely,” he yelled over the sounds of the battle. “But we dare not move him.”

I hurried to John’s side and ducked into the circle of men. Dropping to my knees, I examined the mage. The offending spear was still in place and the wound was oozing copious amounts of blood.

Lance was alive, but his health was draining fast. I spun mana through my hands and laid them onto Lance’s open wound. The blue glow of life magic disappeared from my hands and sank into the mage’s body, repairing damaged arteries and organs.

Some of Lance’s lost vitality returned, but not all of it. The spear, still embedded in his side, stopped him from healing all the way. I hadn’t removed the spear earlier, fearing the mage wouldn’t survive the shock of its removal.

“Pull out the spear, John,” I said to the lieutenant hovering over my shoulder.

“You sure, Jamie?”

“I am. Hurry!”

The big man yanked the spear out. Lance’s back arched but his eyes remained closed. Channelling lay hands again, I slapped my palms over the open wound.

This time the wound closed all the way, leaving pink and healthy skin behind. Lance gasped and his eyes snapped open. I grabbed the mage by the shoulder and forced him to look at me. “Lance, are you alright?” I asked.

The youth’s eyes were still a bit dazed. After a moment, they focused and met my own. “I think so. Thanks—”

“Good,” I said, cutting him off harshly. “Now shut up and listen,” I ordered. “This little stunt of yours may cost a large number of men their lives. This world is no damned game. Do you understand me?!” I glared at him, daring him to repeat one of his fool utterances.

Lance lowered his eyes, not meeting my gaze. “I do now. I’m sorry.”

“It’s a start, but you have a lot to make up for,” I said, my face still carved in hard lines. I wasn’t sure I believed him. “Now, do everything John here tells you. Exactly as he tells you, when he tells you.”

I rose to my feet and turned to the big man. “I have to get back to the battle, John. The murluk chieftain is nearly at the wall. Get Lance to safety and don’t let him anywhere near the murluks again.”

“You got it, Jamie.”

I nodded in farewell and swung away. I was slipping back through the ranks of spearmen when my world was rocked anew.

A Trials message, with flashing red text, filled my vision.

Flash alert: To all human players,

Earth is no more. The planet’s core has been extinguished, its surface rendered lifeless, and its lifeforms subsumed into Overworld. All humans who have not pledged themselves to another Dominion are now citizens of the Human Dominion, which will remain protected until the Arkon Shield falls. Days remaining: 386.

Live, strive, and grow, humans! The day you will have to fight for the survival of humanity is fast approaching!

My face drained of colour.

I had known it was coming. Yet the reality struck me harder than I’d expected. Humanity had been orphaned and thrown in a bigger pond, where the sharks were numberless, and the odds of survival questionable.

Around me, I saw others had been similarly affected. Not the murluks though. The creatures were making good use of the defenders’ distraction, and injuries were mounting.

“Snap out of it, people,” I bellowed. Then, I quickly dismissed the Trials message before making my way back to the palisade.

“Jamie, wait!” Lance cried out.

Sighing, I turned around. I had no time for this. The blonde man’s face was pale and his hands were trembling. It seemed he, too, had been hard hit by Earth’s demise.

Rising to his feet, the mage licked his lips. “I want to help,” he said. “Let me help, please!”

I exchanged a quick glance with John before turning back to Lance. “Alright. You felt that spell I used on you?”

He nodded.

“It’s a life magic spell called lay hands. You should have read about it in the wiki.”

He nodded again.

“Good. Go to the dragon temple, raise your life magic, then try spellcrafting the spell if you can. John will take you to the medics after that, and you’ll be able to help with the wounded.”

John nodded his agreement and I swung around, limping away.

“Thank you, Jamie!” Lance called after me. I didn’t turn back.