Chapter 17: Invaders

The wind died down at last and the tiny mantids fell, still clinging to one another as they tumbled toward the forest canopy below.

[I can't take all the constant spinning, Michael! I think I'm gonna be sick!] Rihelah said weakly.

Michael replied, [No! Don't lose your breakfast! We'll need our strength to survive out here!]

Maybe if I... Michael stuck his hind legs straight out behind him to see if he could stabilize their fall. After a few seconds it worked, and they plummeted triangular-heads-first toward the upper branches of a large tree.

Heaving together with all their might against a heavy carpet to protect themselves from the cold, Bogdin and Gnuff managed to shift the frozen, blocked steel door to the inn's cellar just a bit. A heavy, grinding sound like the falling of boulders came from outside, and a thin shaft of sunlight peeked through the narrow opening into the lamp-lit stone stairwell. But it held no warmth.

A deathly cold mist rolled in, chilling their feet.

“What in th' name o' Mighty Auronox?” Bogdin whispered as they both backed away from the door and down the steps into the fermentation room.

“Th' bastards attacked 'afore we could prepare... We had a'most nae warnin'!” Gnuff clenched his fists as he paced back and forth, thinking of his family.

A small wooden board fell with a loud clatter into the door's narrow opening, blocking out some of the sun's light and causing Bogdin's ears to prick upward hopefully. The dwarves moved back into the stairway, and Bogdin grinned while walking up the stairs to place his hand upon the wood.

Bogdin turned to his old friend Gnuff while ancient dwarven runes flashed into being and glowed a deep, sepia brown while orbiting his hand from six directions. “We'll be out ther' soon, laddie. Th' others will be needin' oor help...”

From every entrance to the nest, small jets of flame bloomed outward like flower petals, slowly defrosting the ground as the ants crept forward in their effort to reclaim the village.

Inside the nest's cavernous and well-lit storm shelter, Sika and Edana huddled together upon a cool stone bench, fearing the worst as they were the only two humanoids who had made it in time. Edana sat gently rocking herself in a fetal position and whimpering while Sika hugged her tightly. Both knew from reports passing among the ants that their sister had been forced to freeze the entire surface. Neither spoke as they waited to hear further reports bearing the grim sort of news they both knew would almost certainly come down from above.

Zauna clenched her mandibles as she listened to Xochi's austere report.

[One-third of all ants including nearly two-thirds of soldiers dead. Slain by fire-resistance-equipped humans from New Freeland while attempting to secure the village. Petra and Lisanne dead. Doumi and Banum dead. All four slain by Freeland arrows before the frost. Fan and Leir presumed dead within the partially-collapsed ruins of Bogdin's Inn. Relynn, Bogdin and Gnuff missing. Lophos dead, found blown by the wind onto Starleaf thorns. All other non-ant enkelyn including newcomers Michael and Rihelah missing. Presumed blown away or onto Starleaf by the wind. Search ongoing. Reclamation of sufficient surface territory to facilitate evacuation is in progress. Lady Sionella last seen chasing after Paladin Rugar.] Xochi spoke mechanically, working hard to prevent emotion from coloring her voice lest she show weakness before the fire ant troops.

[Thank you, Xochi. Continue your operations to locate survivors and secure a path out of the village. Prepare our brood-]

[My queen! Lady Sionella has captured a high-ranking enemy soldier! She requires your aid within the shelter for interrogation!] A scout called from the entrance before darting away once more.

Zauna clenched her mandibles tighter, and the enormous queen began moving to answer Sionella's request. [Prepare our brood for evacuation! The colony must endure!] All ants present stood straight and slammed their mandibles together in deference to the queen while she strode swiftly toward the humanoid shelter.

Upon arrival, Zauna beheld a grisly scene. Rugar was being tended by Edana and Sika, who bandaged his stumps that were once hands. Blood had clotted against the right side of his face, and he shivered feverishly, his breath coming in irregular gasps.

Rugar's eyes had been covered by a bandage, and Sionella placed a finger to her lips, implying Zauna should conceal her presence. The queen ant nodded her head once in understanding.

Sionella waved for her sisters to back away, then placed her hands upon Rugar's bloodied stumps and squeezed just hard enough to get his attention.

He gasped, and she spoke, “Child, thou hast attacked the peaceful village of Nytalis without warning. What was the purpose of thy rash action?”

He laughed and said hoarsely, “Hah... Heh. Ex-termination... Of v... verminn.”

Zauna nodded soberly.

Sionella continued, “From where did'st the order to exterminate the people of this village come?”

He spat, “Not-hnn... not people. Infes-tation. Just like... bloody elv-AAHHHH”

Sionella increased the pressure on his hands momentarily, then continued, “Answer my question, child. From where did'st the order come?”

“M-me.” He said, sounding certain.

Though her gesture was unneeded, Zauna shook her head. Sionella squeezed again, harder. The former paladin screamed.

“Do not presume me for a fool, fallen paladin. From this time forward, silence shall be met with pain, while each lie shall result in further appendages being removed from thy person. These shall be things thou shalt miss. I ask thee just once more. From where... did'st the order... come?” Sionella moved her hand to his leg, very near his groin, and Rugar whimpered.

“The... the identity of our... allies is unknown to me! It was by their... order, passed to me through my... superior officers!” He winced each time her hand drew closer to his groin.

Zauna nodded, and Sionella moved her hand back to his other stump while the man's breathing began to calm slightly.

“I thank thee for thy candor. Do thy “allies” perchance occupy the fallen city of Tarmek?” She asked matter-of-factly.

Rugar remained silent until Sionella moved her hand back down to his leg. He yelped, “Haaah... They do! They... do.”

She kept her hand there. Her tone turned deadly serious, and she added extra emphasis to her consonants while slowly asking her next question in a low voice. “Did'st thou know aught of my youngest sister's possession by that wretched demon, fallen paladin?”

Rugar shuddered, then fell limp while Sika and Edana looked at each other in horror as the terrible weight of what had occurred pressed down. Sionella sent a tiny blade of force slicing through his groin and the deep-voiced man screamed high and loud enough to break glass.

“I bid thee answer, lest my patience wear thin...” She moved her hand upon his leg once more and Rugar fell to wailing.

“I... that... demon was a gift! The allies, they...” He trailed off, and she shot another blade through the other side of his groin, causing it to bleed profusely.

Rugar's face twisted as he lost control and began screaming. “AAAHHHHH!! THEY HATE YOU BLOODY ELVES!! JUST LIKE WE ALL DO!! ALL OF YOU OPPRESSIVE, TYRANNICAL WITCH-BEASTS DESERVE DEATH BY THE POSSESSION OF A THOUSAND DEMONS, YOUR BITCH-CUNT OF A HAG-QUEEN MOST OF AL-”

Sionella's right arm flashed sideways in front of her, decapitating the man with a blade of force held in her hand. She quickly blew a tiny bit of frost across his freshly opened neck to staunch the bleeding, then let his body fall limply to the floor.

She raised her eyes to meet those of the queen ant. “I fear our ancient enemy hath returned. I thank thee for thy assistance, Zauna. Make ready thy people to flee this island for the nation of Fuutsuba. More invaders arriveth in Tarmek each day, and soon this isle shall be overrun.”

Sika called out to Sionella as the latter turned to leave, “Wait, sister! Where are you going?”

Sionella replied wearily, “The enemy doth march this very moment toward Nytalis. I go thus to delay their arrival, that you two and the peoples of Nytalis might escape.”

“I'm going with you!” Sika cried out as she moved to follow, but Sionella held up a hand without turning around, and she stopped.

“Nay, my young sister. Bloody not thy unspoiled hands, and assist instead with the evacuation. Nytalis hath need of thee, and so doth Edana.” Sionella disappeared into the passage leading to the surface, and Sika stood trembling in defeat while making tight fists and looking at her own feet in frustration. Stop treating me like a child! I'm old enough to fight...

[Do you think it moved away? I haven't seen any movement for a few minutes.] Rihelah asked from her position just to his left, while the two of them stared from the slender twigs they stood upon toward a certain nearby branch, beneath which a long-legged, brown, slightly-hairy spider had hidden itself.

[Stay still. It's true huntsman-type spiders are usually active, but they can be very patient once they spot something. It's still there, guaranteed. If we remain still, it will lose sight of us. However, If we move first then it will have a better chance of attacking one of us successfully. Personally, I'm not interested in dealing with venom again so soon!] Michael cautioned.

[Roger that. I have no interest in venom, either!] She replied.

Seconds later, the spider's legs showed once again, and it crept carefully toward their position.

Michael tensed slightly while he spoke, [Go for the legs on your side and grip it near the cephalothorax. You pull left and I pull right. We only need to restrain its ability to bite!]

She readied herself as well, her forelegs ready to strike. [Roger, Michael!]

The spider continued to creep carefully forward, then began tapping its front legs around, likely trying to scare its difficult-to-locate prey into moving.

Michael began, [On the count of-]

[STRIKE!!] Rihelah cried out as the spider suddenly lunged forward.

Rihelah stepped further left and mantids struck, their forelegs quick enough to outpace the spider's movement as it careened toward the sparkly form of Rihelah.

Four raptorial limbs latched onto the spider's forward legs and it immediately panicked, pulling backward with its hind legs while biting at the tree bark in the hope of finding a stray appendage. But Michael and Rihelah had already pulled outward, locking it in place. The spider may have been twice Rihelah's size, but with two intelligent mantids working together it was simply unable to compete.

The spider's two hind legs suddenly reached up onto its abdomen and scraped furiously. A cloud of tiny hair-like bristles showered across and floated around both Michael and Rihelah.

[Damn! It's using urticating hairs! Stop biting and let those settle! If we get them in our mouths shit's gonna be ugly! I don't know about these, but I read about some of them from Earth being barbed or toxic!] Michael cautioned while the spider struggled frantically to no avail.

Rihelah looked up at him. [I studied insects and marine arthropods quite a bit while working on my degrees, but not so much with spiders. I think I remember something about tarantulas using them.]

[Yeah. They're defensive weapons for new-world tarantulas, like the Goliath Bird-Eater. Those tiny, barbed bristles can make small mammals incredibly sick or even kill them if they get into their mucous membranes. Like you said, some of them absolutely contain toxic compounds that are truly nasty if you ingest them or if they find their way into wounds. Not worth taking the risk of getting any in our mouths. This spider currently can't fight back, so let's be patient and cautious!]

Rihelah nodded thoughtfully, [Mm. So what do we do about these barbed hairs? They aren't sticking to us, but this spider's fuzzy legs are holding some...]

Michael replied, [We can't let go of it, or this thing will bite the hell out of us. How about we shake it around and see if that will dislodge the hairs? Lift the spider up together and slam it down on my count?]

A few minutes later, their teamwork had tired the spider out so badly it could hardly move, let alone fight back. The majority of the urticating hairs had fallen away like tiny bits of glitter.

With little choice other than to finish their battle with the large arthropod, they set about dismembering it.

Michael and Rihelah worked in silence, each severing legs and letting them fall away from the spider methodically until only its palps and chelicerae continued to writhe about. Every so often either of them stopped to dislodge the uncomfortable urticating hairs from within their mouths, working their powerful mandibles to crush them up before spitting out the remains. It was an irritating extra step for dealing with the spider, but neither of them felt like simply ingesting the barbed spines and experiencing the joys of attempting to digest them.

Rihelah gripped firmly over the front of its cephalothorax with her larger forelegs while Michael grabbed the rear portion and over its “waist” between the cephalothorax and abdomen. The spider continued to bite at the tree's bark, its fangs dumping their venom uselessly against the uncaring tree while both mantids chewed rapidly down into its vulnerable parts with their razor-sharp mandibles.

[Despite that cloud of nastiness, this thing doesn't actually taste too bad!] Michael noted.

Rihelah replied, [Indeed. A pity we wasted its legs. Those are usually my favorite...]

[Mm. The spider legs I've tried are kinda like eating freshly-cooked king crab legs from that special event vendor down at the wharf in Santa Cruz when we were little! You remember that?] He reminisced.

[Ohhh. You just had to remind me of that joint family trip! Did you remember that was my favorite meal?!] She glanced up at him in mock annoyance. Michael nodded quickly, using his antennae as if he were waving eyebrows at her.

[Jerk! Now I want to find another of these, keep it from rubbing those off on us, and try the legs!] She gushed.

Michael's head snapped up to look at her, but he held his tongue. Barely.

Rihelah paused from biting into the spider for a moment and looked down. [Its legs fell so far below, I doubt we can recover them. Such a pity...] Still, being around him again is... She blushed inwardly.

Michael chuckled. [I doubt we'd enjoy eating legs coated in the equivalent of tiny, toxic fish-hooks, no matter how good they taste...]

Rihelah shrugged her forelegs a bit while trying to appear calm, and they both resumed chewing.

Group Kill of Bristleback Huntsman Spiderling Level 21. Experience Split.

Stalking Reaper Mantis has reached Level 14! +5HP, +2MP.

HP: 138/138 (+10HP/min.)

MP: 78/78 (+4/min.)

STR 20

AGI 23

INT 25

Michael spoke his thoughts aloud while eating, [Leveled up to 14 from that. You know, levels themselves seem a little lackluster, to be honest. All I gain is a bit of health and mana.]

Rihelah blurted out, [Same! What I need are spells... This body's like a goddamn fishing lure, Michael! You've no idea how envious I am of your ability to use camouflage... You suck.]

Michael let go momentarily with his right foreleg to give her a half-shrug, and she groaned.

[I wish I could have learned something about magic in Nytalis! Now here we are, far from the village. Far from anyone who could teach magic...] She pouted for a moment, then resumed feeding while pondering to herself.

[What if that big ol' Lophos guy mentioned something you can use?] Michael mused aloud.

[Wait. What?] Rihelah looked up at him incredulously.

Getting a hair up his ass, Michael replied, [You know... He did rant about things like, how mmagic is creationnn of ann elemmmennt-]

[From its components rather than simple manipulation... Maybe! Michael, this could be what I've been missing!! What if I have to create fire and water by willing their building blocks into existence, rather than trying to grasp at that which is already extant?! Perhaps... If mana somehow provides the components on command... Michael! Maybe this could work!] Rihelah trembled with excitement.

Her forelegs let go of the spider's remains and she began to move away, at which point she realized her mouth had refused to let go. Her maxillae gripped tender flesh while her mandibles continued scooping away chunks of spider at the behest of her tremendous appetite. Rihelah felt conflicted. She wanted to berate herself for giving in to lower instincts, but then she considered the delightful flavor along with that near-empty feeling in her stomach, and she relented.

Damn this body and its infernal bug-brain!! Ahhh! Why are spiders so tasty?!

Michael's antennae swept back and out to either side when he had a disturbing thought. He pulled himself up for a moment and looked at Riheleh. [You aren't gonna try casting a spell while facing directly toward me... right?]

[Michael! I may be a mantis. I may be hungry. This body's mind may have its own ideas about where my priorities should be. Hell, I was even fool enough to choose an evolution that made me look like I should be a piece of costume jewelry... But do you really think I'd do something like that?! Come on! I know I'm a mantis, but I'm still me!] She sounded hurt.

[Well, I know. But I got to thinking... I sometimes have violent thoughts in this body, Rihelah. Scary-violent, like I want to tear my enemies apart and consume their still-twitching pieces. Even in cases where it would make more sense to run away or just let something go... This new life changed me somehow, and I'm having a little trouble adjusting. Since you're a mantis too, I thought maybe you also-]

[No! That sounds terrible! But no, Michael! I absolutely do not!] She said quickly.

[O-oh...] He said, crestfallen.

Why did I lie to him just now?! I'm scared of him running away from me, but is this really the way? Mom always said a relationship based upon lies is nothing but a house of cards... Damn it, Rihelah! Use your head!

[I do feel different, though. No thoughts of tearing others apart, mind you!] She added. Thinking a bit more on it, she continued. [I mean, when it comes to food, yes! But yes, I have to admit I also feel a change. Violence feels more acceptable to me than it should, and I don't feel good about that.] She said quickly and quietly.

Rihelah breathed a small sigh of relief. Better. Still not completely honest. But I acknowledged some of it! I can hardly tell him that I nearly tried to eat him alive! Baby steps, I guess. Tell him when the time is right, Rihelah. Some day...

Michael tensed up a little and resumed eating. She's obviously bothered by this. I shouldn't have just blurted that out! Fuck. I hope she doesn't look at me like I'm a monster, now...

With curiosity finally overcoming her stomach's call, Rihelah carefully moved a few body lengths away to face herself toward a nearby tree.

Damn. She's distancing herself already... I'm an idiot! Michael stopped chewing and stared sadly for a moment.

Securing herself to the small branch with her tiny foot-claws, Rihelah settled in to meditate on the idea of creating her own elemental magic out of nothing.

Michael saw her tense up, and his mind raced. I have to say something! I need to fix this before it gets out of hand and she decides to leave... Fuck, just say anything, Michael!

He called out, [Rihelah... You won't go setting fire to our tree, right? ...R-Rihelah?]

Her head snapped up while her antennae swept forward as if to slap him.

[Michael... Why would you say something like that? I turned away to keep you safe while I figure out how to use magic! Moreover, it'll be pretty difficult to set fire to a tree with water! I was a scientist for fuck's sake, so maybe give me a little credit?!] She tried to keep her voice calm while she rotated her head to look at him, but annoyance bled through anyway.

[Shit. Sorry... It's hard to read the body language of a mantis. Especially since we've only been here for about a week.]

[Ah. That's true... Anyhow, let me concentrate, Michael. I gotta figure this out.] Rihelah turned her attention back to the space in front of her.

Creation of an element, hmm? Water molecules are two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. What if I imagine trillions of those forming en-masse in front of me?

Nothing. Damn it! Hmm. Maybe I have to push with my mind also? Force it to coalesce?

Nothing again! Wait. I think I remember something about there being truly enormous numbers of atoms in a single drop of water. Okay, how about 100 quadrillion water molecules instead?

A tiny sphere of water appeared and hovered in front of her, so small it was barely visible save for the light it refracted. The creation of that droplet used a single point of mana.

MP: 131/132 (+5MP/min.)

[YES!] She exclaimed loudly.

[What?!] Michael looked up while tensing at her sudden outburst.

Rihelah's concentration broke and the droplet fell away.

[Nothing yet! Shaddap and let me concentrate!] She barked.

Right, 100 quadrillion molecules create something that tiny... So, how about 100 septillion molecules?? Better create that farther away...

A sphere of water large as a dwarven head appeared instantly and floated in front of Rihelah, its surface almost near enough that she could touch it.

[Holy shit! Did you make that, Rihelah?!] Michael exclaimed, but she ignored him.

MP: 66/132 (+5MP/min.)

Oh crap! That used a huge amount of mana! I guess that makes sense, since the sphere is enormous compared with me... How can I make use of this? Dad cuts thick steel plates with waterjets pressurized to 60,000-pounds-per-square-inch in his metal fabrication shop... I wonder if I can do that with magic? Better try with lower pressure than what that machine uses! How about 10,000-psi, then? Safety first! Rihelah smiled to herself.

While maintaining her concentration over the sphere of water, she looked at a small branch just below them and willed a flat, blade-like stream of water to blast out from the sphere toward that branch under high pressure.

Three things happened in rapid succession.

A short, terrifying sound like a rocket engine assaulted their ears while the water was blasted away in the direction she had chosen, causing the entire sphere to drain away rapidly.

The deafening sound was followed almost in the same instant by an explosion of shrapnel containing bark chips, wood fibers, and water droplets that radiated outward from the stricken tree branch fast enough to cut through nearby stems and punch holes through adjacent leaves.

And then the world felt like it was falling.

MP: 0/132 (+5MP/min.)

[Rihelah! What the hell?!] Michael yelled as their perch plummeted toward the forest floor.

[Sorry!! I didn't know that was the branch we- craaaaap!]

The branch held enough broad leaves to orient itself thick-end-down like a massive shuttlecock. Both mantids were shaken free from their perches upon impact. Two tiny bodies bounced lightly off the carpet of dried leaves before coming to rest while the branch teetered toward them ominously, then toppled away, its leafy-end coming to rest against the trunk of the tree.

Michael had landed upon his feet and rushed over to her. [Rihelah! Hey! Are you okay!?]

Rihelah lay upside-down, legs tucked in and unresponsive. She made no move to right herself. She just stared in awe with her antennae twitching, thunderstruck with elation at the notification in front of her.

New Spell created!

Spell: Hydro Burst

Instantaneously creates a brief, 10,000-psi, magically-propelled blast of water originating from a point 10cm in front of your face. The blast is targeted precisely in the direction you are looking, and will travel up to one full meter plus one additional meter per 100 INT before it begins to lose power due to air friction at a rate of 25% of its initial power per additional meter of distance beyond its full-power range from the cast point. The pulse of water moves in a 5cm-wide, flat and magically-stabilized pattern oriented horizontally in the same plane with your vision. Within its full-power range, the blast is powerful enough to cut through wood, flesh, and soft stone. Will erode through up to 4cm of softwood, 3cm of flesh, 2cm of hardwood, or 1cm of soft stone.

Beware: This spell may harm or kill allies if they are struck.

Upgradeable. (Requirements Hidden.)

Cost: 100MP

You may now add Spell: Hydro Burst to one of your 4 remaining spell slots. (This action cannot be undone. You have one 26-hour day to accept or decline, after which the spell will become unavailable until the conditions for its creation are met once again.)

Add Spell: Hydro Burst? Y/N (25h 58m 48s remaining.)

Michael had turned her over, but she lay prone with her legs folded beneath her. Only now did she notice he had been yelling at her.

[RIHELAH?! Please... tell me you are okay...] Michael shook her once again, and she looked at him.

[Sorry... I was uhh... distracted.] Her voice shook just as much as her legs while she stood up.

[Don't you fucking scare me like that, girl! Damn you! I don't wanna lose you again...] His relieved voice grew just as unsteady as hers.

[I did it, Michael... I created my own spell.] She whispered.

[Okay. That's great. But next time don't fucking act like you are dead after something dangerous happens!!] He looked her in the eyes as he rapidly closed the distance, stopping less than 2mm away.

[Okay! I apologize! Just... can you give me a little space please? Too close, man!] Rihelah backed away while consciously preventing her instinct-driven mantis brain from attacking or assuming a threat display.

[Sure. Have all the space you need. Fucking hell...] He moved away, climbing onto the fallen branch with his camouflage active to keep watch. Damn that careless girl...

[Are you even gonna ask me what my new spell is, or are you just gonna be pissed off?? I finally figured out how to do the only thing that could make this stupid evolution I chose worth the trouble, Michael! The last few days have been... They've been hard...] Her voice broke down toward the end, and she buried her face in her forelegs.

A loud crack was followed by the roll of thunder. They both looked up. Pleasant, sparse, cottony clouds suggested anything but a thunderstorm. Michael looked back at her.

[Look, I'm only mad because I was worried! You're my friend, and that means you're important to me! I wasn't trying to upset you, dammit... Come over here with me and hide beneath this branch. You're a sparkling, green beacon down there in that patch of sunlight. And sure, I'd like to hear about your new spell...] Michael's voice had softened considerably. Thunder rolled over them again, slightly closer. The loud, familiar sound of frost breath that followed immediately after filled them both with dread.

Michael's head snapped upward to follow a small flock of dark gray birds with blue wings as they silently and deftly wove through the upper reaches of the forest canopy.

Fuck. This damned evolution... She began to move carefully toward the branch while they both watched the ground and sky warily. Chirping loudly en-masse, a much larger flock of smaller black-headed brown birds flew high above the forest canopy in the same direction.

[I'll tell you about the spell in a bit, but... Will you just stay near me for a bit? I...] Rihelah trailed off, unsure how to explain what had happened to her. If I tell him, he'll try to kill Kaleb for sure. He was always so protective of me... Like the time I screamed for help when Ryan Abrahms tried to force me to kiss him on my 9th birthday, and Michael just ran up and busted his nose... Or when he kicked the side of Joey Miller's knee when he wouldn't stop chasing me! Yeahhh...

I have to protect Michael from himself right now. Just turn it off, Rihelah. You can avoid dealing with this right now. Just focus. Focus on the magics.

The ground shook a little, heralding the arrival of frantic hoof-beats. A mother pig-like beast ran far off to Michael's left in the same direction as the birds, trailed closely by a line of scampering piglets.

[Sure... Just work with me, okay? Let's do our best to survive together in this damned world. I think we should probably climb a tree before whatever is scaring the animals reaches this place...] He muttered quietly. A pair of enormous dark-brown, elk-like creatures with impressive antlers raced past. Blade-like tusks jutted from either side of their lower jaws, and the larger of the two bellowed loudly as they raced past. Those were followed by dozens more that lacked antlers just a few seconds later. The ground shook with their hoof-beats, unsettling the mantids.

[Shit! I wasn't even thinking about-] Rihelah began.

The deafening crack of lightning sounded closer than before, and they began to hear the distant shouting of men in combat. They both started to move cautiously toward the trunk of that same tree.

The patter of many small feet became audible, and increased rapidly. A herd of bipedal, birdlike lizards rushed through the forest and rapidly approached their position. The sounds of battle also grew closer with each passing second.

[Fuck! We need to go, Rihelah!]

The pair broke into a dead run, racing as fast as they could up the fallen branch and onto the tree trunk. Their tiny clawed feet provided excellent grip as they ascended.

The first of the lizards shot deftly past the tree with panic in its eyes, and the rest flooded past in quick succession. The sounds of the approaching battle continued to intensify. Nearly two meters up the tree trunk, both of them were slightly stunned when a bright orange flash was followed by a loud shockwave that slammed into the tree, causing it to shudder. Their single ears briefly rang with extreme tinnitus as they dodged bits of bark cascading down from above while continuing to run upward.

As Michael and Rihelah ascended, their hearing returned to the sound of many feet charging through the forest. The trees far off to their right were inundated by a sudden, billowing fog just before the horrifying sound of frost breath screamed over them. The scale and power was at least two orders of magnitude more powerful and terrifying than what they had witnessed with Edana.

In a single instant, hundreds of trees had their extremities frozen solid. Battle cries from the advancing army were partially replaced by wails of pain and pitiful cries for help.

Another bright flash illuminated the ice-fog, followed by a shockwave that nearly knocked both Michael and Rihelah unconscious. Their ears rang once more as they crested the initial crotch of the tree and scrambled down within the split where the trunk split in twain before its two halves ascended toward the canopy.

Both of them hid within a the deepest crevasse they could find within the bark, just 20cm from a terrified spiderling like the one they had dispatched not long before. It cowered in place, its legs drawn up tight while the forest shook repeatedly from the nearby battle.

Their hearing returned to the sound of a commanding voice shouting. “Eyes open! Find the bloody elf-witch and burn her! She cannot last forever!” “Maintain barrier magic! Thermal assistance for those caught in the evil frost!”

The twang of a few bowstrings rang out in quick succession, followed by the whistling of arrows and more orders from that same voice. “Save arrows for the inhabitants of the cursed village! Do not waste them against the elven! Ready to move! We go forth to cleanse this isle of infestation!” “Company, advance! Onward, for the salvation of men against the darkness of foul tyranny!”

Thousands of boots abruptly marched together as one, shaking the huge tree with each step.

“LEFT FLANK BRACE!! SHIEL-” A voice called out before the terrible screech of frost breath surged from very close by, howling loud enough to vibrate their tree. Above, they witnessed a bluish-white dragon fly accelerating away like a small missile.

A huge ball of flame shot after after the dragon fly's retreat, impacting somewhere nearby and bathing the entire area in terrible heat and light. The bark outside their tiny crevasse began to smoke before the intense flash ebbed. The shockwave impacted the tree, causing it to vibrate while making their single ears ring once again.

Both of them tried to tuck their antennae even tighter away from the terrible smell of smoke. It quickly became so strong that even their palps could taste it.

The top of the spider's legs were too tall. Those had sizzled and burst open in the terrible radiant light and heat from the blast, leaving the creature completely immobile. Michael and Rihelah did everything they could to huddle down further, flattening themselves into their hiding place while they watched in horror as the tree's previously lush leaves visibly withered and died. Some of those had briefly caught fire before extinguishing themselves.

The muffled sound of shouting could barely be heard through the high-pitched scream of tinnitus from having lost their hearing once again. Both of them tensed while awaiting the next ball of fire that would surely end their lives.

The tree shook rhythmically again. Their hearing returned to the sound of thousands of boots stomping along at a rapid pace together. The cries of the wounded and dying rang out much closer than before.

“Continue the charge! Give no quarter to the unholy spawn! Elvenkind and its allies shall all perish along with their foul oppression of men!” Boots stomped past for nearly a minute before slowing to a stop. Cries of battle came from farther away before the cycle repeated.

The cry, “BRACE FRONT!!” Rang out rapidly and repeatedly. Another terrible blast of frost rolled over the forest, followed by a bright flash that came from a less-favorable angle. More leaves caught fire and this time they stayed lit much longer. The spider's body cooked further, and both mantids took damage from the heat this time.

-63HP. Your mobility is decreased! Your vision is impaired!

+10HP Minor Regeneration.

-78HP. Your mobility is decreased! Your vision is impaired!

+10HP Minor Regeneration.

Rihelah took more damage since a larger portion of her body had been exposed due to her greater size. Both of them experienced the agony of having their left walking legs instantly cooked to bursting along with a portion of their left compound eye, a bit of their thoraxes and their entire left antenna. The shockwave ruined their hearing yet again.

Neither could feel their destroyed legs or antennae in the first instant, but those quickly began to itch bad enough to make their minds writhe. However, the agony in their eyes and thoraxes was far worse. That pain bore a soul-rending intensity that was made instantly and inexplicably worse by their regeneration.

Both of them were too terrified to scream out in pain for fear of alerting the human army all around them.

Just ten seconds after the horrible blast of heat, a wave of cold slowly rolled through along with a light fog. It was not enough to cause damage, but the few leaves that remained burning were now able to extinguish themselves.

Hearing returned. Regeneration eased their pain slightly while increasing the itch. Boots marched while orders were yelled from farther away. Another exchange of deadly magics occurred, this time far enough away and from behind enough cover that there was no further damage to Michael or Rihelah.

The cycle repeated a few more times before the blasts were far enough away that their hearing was no longer deafened. Legs and antennae had regenerated enough to be usable once more. All that remained was the horrible smell and taste of smoke, the constant stomping of boots, the cries of wounded being carried past in the opposite direction of the main march, and that terrible itching in their eyes and thoraxes as each of them regenerated while gazing up at the charred remains of the tree's foliage.

More than an hour passed before the army had finished marching by their tree. Michael and Rihelah huddled close to one another after they had healed, their foreheads pressed together while they braced against the terror of their harrowing experience with warfare and the tremendous, deadly power of magic.