The Systemic Lands

Chapter 255: Day 535 (4) – Viewpoints 21

The Astrologer

I frowned, since there was no opening to act. After I had spoken with Michael I had been planning to act immediately, but the Ritualist was well protected. I needed to strike as close to him as possible. Using Astral Projection the way I was using was not simple. I was not worried about taking physical, mental, or curse damage.

Still, this form was quite fragile. One mistake and I would not be able to come back any time soon. Another setback to pile up on my plate. She was going to make a move soon and every day spent on these minor distractions, was another day closer to my eventual capture, torture, and death.

I focused on the current situation as I floated in the sky, invisible to all. I was carefully scanning the Ritualist’s actions. I frowned as there was something odd with the tethers. He had moved them deeper into the energetic layer, harmonizing with the surroundings.

It was a minor improvement anyone could work out. I continued to watch, and my frown got worse as the battle progressed. That was when I almost puked blood. Both sides were idiots, using crafting crystals as bombs.

When the wall was exploded and the ensuing counterattack, I wanted to cry and scream and the constant stupidity. If I wasn’t needed to counter her probing attempts, I would have taken control of the city myself and run things.

That much energy released into the air would send out ripples far and wide. The diviners under her command know something major had occurred. The treaty still held, but the paper it was written on was fraying.

My current plan had to be completely tossed. I had to take a much more active role going forward. The hands-off approach would no longer work. It would be impossible to guide things completely from the shadows to completion and my freedom. I would need to speak to Michael directly and give up information. That would lead to uncomfortable questions and some of machinations would be exposed.

An unfortunate outcome, but I had screwed up with the Ritualist. It hurt to admit I had miscalculated, but that was the problem with using garbo ingredients. You would get a carbo cake and would be forced to eat it. I didn’t want to eat the garbo cake, but the current plan could be salvaged, hopefully. First things first, killing this idiot.

The Ritualist was moving out of his little bunker. I scanned the position of his monsters. I frowned when he began summoning. How was he tying off the summoning? I had never seen that before. I stared at the Ritualist’s coffin or box. It was the same thing really.

He was leaving himself exposed to me. It was clearly a trap, but that didn’t matter. Once I struck I would win. Even if this projection was dispersed, I would eventually return just a bit annoyed. A trade I would make without too much worry.

I dived down from the sky right for the Ritualist’s box. Null Refraction! The double silence upgrade was critical. The energy didn’t even tremble as I made the hand signs. There would be no sign. One could get the same outcome with two upgrades into gestureless but shouting out attacks made me cringe. Also with Astral Projection, I could attack from stealth. Hopefully I could win this without having to exert myself.

Kenisha

“Form up! Form up!” The Captain shouted. “We are going to be moving to the-“ A soldier rushed up to the Captain who stopped shouting. He frowned and he slumped as the soldier told him something. He then straightened back up with a much grimmer look on his face.

“No panicking!” The Captain shouted out. “The city has been engulfed. If you can shoot a bow and won’t hit the person in front of you, go to the left. Only ten arrows per person. Make them count. If you shoot a person in front of you, you will be executed. If you can’t shoot straight, then a spear to the right. Move!”

I hurried to pick up a bow. I would just aim high, so I didn’t hit anyone. I got my bow and a handful of arrows. A soldier formed up twenty of us archers on top of the row of buildings that made up the inner wall. I noted that the buildings had been moved to seal the roads into the plaza.

“Archers at the front, spearmen right behind them. Once the monsters reach the wall. Spearmen to the front,” the soldier leading our unit commanded.

“I can’t let me-“ one man began to scream and was stabbed in the head by a soldier, killing him instantly.

“No retreat! No panicking. Form up and stand ready!” I quickly obeyed, not looking at the cooling corpse. It was quickly pushed over the side of the wall and hit the street on the other side with a splat. “If you need to puke or piss yourself, go right ahead! But you will hold or die!” The soldier shouted.

All along the row of rooftops people were lined up. A couple more people were killed without hesitation to maintain order. I could tell that even the soldiers were deathly afraid. A Captain gathered several soldiers on the wall, and I was close enough to overhear what they were saying.

“The East wall has shattered. The General is in pulling back to the plaza. We are to hold no matter what,” the Captain said.

“We are buggered then. What about the Champion?” One of the soldiers asked.

“Still fighting at the East gate last I heard. We need to hold as long as possible before the City Shield is used. No matter what, we can’t break, we need to lure more in. Force composition, are 8 super worms. Skills and bombs are useless. Energy absorption apparently. About 400 mentalists and heavy combatants. Beam attacks likely. Then around 500 to 800 level one summons, a mix,” the Captain said and I felt fear grip my heart. I touched my chest, where I had put the picture of my family.

“That is just a probing force?” One of the soldiers asked.

“Yes, the main force is moving to engulf the city. There is no escape even if we all started running now. We have to make a stand. We only have one use of the City Shield, so we have to make it count,” the Captain replied.

“Everyone is going to die,” one of the soldiers muttered.

“A lot of people. But hold your sections. The ones with the worms can move to the side. Nothing we can do to stop the breach where they attack. The elites will move in on them. Hopefully they can do something,” the Captain said, but didn’t sound hopeful.

Elise

I stood nervously on the East inner wall near the North end of it. I could do this. I held a spear in my hand. I never wanted to fight and knew I was quite lucky to have the job and position and I did. I was one of the few people who had been an offered critical business exception to shelter in place.

But I refused. I would avenge Patrick. I missed the man and his spices. The new spices that were being developed just weren’t the same. I could stand and fight for my home. I could only hope Champion Michael could somehow seize victory, before we were all dead. If there was a god or a System, please aid him, I prayed in my heart.

I felt the ground shake slightly and saw a red glow in the distance to the East. I ignored the man next to me who pissed himself, a large wet spot spreading around his crotch and a dribble running off his leg to form a pool under him.

“Steady! Stand ready!” The cry went up from the soldiers monitoring different portions of the inner wall. I saw a swarm of large ants rushing in between the buildings along with other monsters. “Pick your targets! Carefully! Make each arrow count! Archers! Fire at will!”

I had nocked an arrow and loosed it. The ant turned to dust. I pulled out another arrow from my quiver and fired. “Brace for impact! Keep firing!” The worms slammed into the makeshift wall to the South. There were screams

“Fire!” I loosed another arrow into the horde. Then a fourth arrow. “Spears to the front! Spears to the front!” The cry went up all over. I retreated as large man stood in front with a long spear jabbing downwards over the edge of the building.

I saw something spinning in the air. I aimed upwards and released another arrow. It pinged off one of the blades. The soldier who had been shouting leapt forward and into the air, just as the monster was about to reach the roof top.

I could barely keep track of his speed as he blocked a strike with his shield and stabbed into the monster. He ripped the sword free to a spray of blood. He landed on the street below and I couldn’t see him anymore. I fired another arrow at the flying monster that seemed like a human that weapons instead of limbs.

The arrow sank into their wound. Another arrow followed after mine and the monster was coated in slime. It let out a cry and fell to the ground. The soldier who had leapt forward earlier climbed back on top of the building, looking worn with several small bleeding cuts, but still alive.

The ground shook again to the South. I glanced in that direction was several Radiant Beams were unleashed from the Airship Port far beyond the wall. There were several people on the worms stabbing into them as they trashed about. Several people had been crushed and more were screaming in pain.

I pulled another arrow out and stepped forward to the edge. I launched it at a scorpion on the street below. It seemed that was one of the last attackers at this section of the wall. “Anyone capable follow me!” The beat-up soldier cried out.

I quickly followed him along with several other people towards the breach. The pulsing red of the worms was scary, but I had to do this. For everyone who had protected me before. I wouldn’t let you all down!

Clarissa

I stared out at the battlefield from the top of the Airship Port. My personal guard was here in full force. All forty of them. This included the ones in dark blue uniforms and the special forces in black uniforms. The soldiers Michael had taken out before had returned and I used their Radiant Beams right away to target the mentalist hybrids, the biggest threat to our low stat people.

I nodded in satisfaction seeing the squads of hybrids melted or wounded. Summons were sent out with more crafting crystal bombs into the rear lines. While we had worked it had failed before, there was no other option. Everyone else besides my personal troops were all fighting.

I was not about to commit them just yet. They were my trump card and insurance. While I had faith in Michael, I was not going to depend on him to save my life again. General Smith’s plans were decent, since I had gone over them with him.

We needed to defeat this incursion on our own, otherwise the City Shield would just postpone or death sentence. Let people fight, win, lure in more troops, active the City Shield, and then recover in the day we would have. That was the General’s plan once the East gate was lost.

It would not be enough. The moment I had learned about consumption I instantly realized how it could be used to mass produce hybrids. I would have done it myself, but there was no one I trusted to control such an army or had the skill. There were also the critical weaknesses of summoners. These issues had been bypassed by the Ritualist, but I did not have his unique genius in that area.

At least there was no follow up wave and no summoner monsters had been committed into the city just yet. Even if we were engulfed, I would survive and save this city myself. Michael might be the Champion, but it was the city I had built and whipped into shape. I would not see all my work destroyed so easily.