[Location: Verm Plains – Noon – Year: 1092 Ad Felicitas]
<div>
<div>
<div>
Drifter stared ahead, his gaze sharp. The heavy rain blurred his vision slightly, but his eyes remained locked on the approaching gray silhouettes.
Heavy footsteps echoed, growing louder with each passing second as the distance closed. Then, in an instant, dozens of blue sigils flared to life in the air—forming blue spectral swords in a deadly formation.
He noticed the Graklings and Graklors suddenly spread out, moving to encircle them.
"Damn it… They''re trying to surround us," he muttered, his voice tense.
<div>
Drifter vanished in a burst of blue particles, teleporting to his right where he immediately engaged the horde of gray creatures. His dark gray sword slashed through the air, leaving behind blue streaks, while blue projectiles shot from his left hand.
The smaller gray creatures, graklings with dark elemental claws, swiped at him. He dodged with expert precision, casting Exalt Barrier, a transparent blue barrier, to parry incoming attacks.
The more muscular Graklors stood steady behind, rarely stepping forward. The battle unfolded in a deadly rhythm of attacks, parries, and dodges.
Behind him, Nadia and Alma held their ground, launching fiery projectiles and golden-green crystalline shards. They were supported by Drifter’s spectral swords, which struck relentlessly. Some creatures fell, but the Graklors countered, their heavy weapons blocking and retaliating.
Drifter noticed the enemy formation tightening, surrounding them in a complete circle. One by one, the Graklors stepped forward, attacking with dark thrusts, slashes, and cleaves. Just as a Graklor’s dark spear lunged at Alma, and several Graklings charged at Nadia with dark energy claws slashing ferociously, Drifter’s spectral swords intercepted the attacks.
Alma responded with a fire tornado, incinerating the attackers, while Nadia summoned boulders that crushed the remaining Graklings.
It’s too many... I can''t protect them all... Drifter thought.
<div>
Nadia materialized stone barriers to block the incoming attacks, but the Graklor’s dark axes cleaved through them, shattering her defenses with ease. Alma raised his arm, his red sigil growing larger as he cast a barrage of large fireballs that tore through the advancing creatures.
As the remaining Graklings pressed forward, Nadia cast Petrifying Blossom, summoning a massive stone flower that radiated deadly energy. In mere moments, the wave of Graklings froze mid-charge, their bodies turning to stone statues.
Amidst the chaos, a deep growl echoed as heavy footsteps grew louder. Nadia quickly materialized a sturdier stone wall, but the enormous Grakthor emerged, its massive tusks glowing with dark energy. With terrifying speed, it rammed the barrier and Nadia''s stone flower, shattering them to rubble in an instant.
Drifter, Nadia, and Alma leaped aside just in time to avoid the charging beast. The Grakthor plowed through its own forces, sending horde of Grakling flying.
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Recovering quickly, Drifter unleashed Exalt Bolt. His left hand surged with blue energy, releasing a volley of blue bolts that ripped through the Graklings and Graklors. However, when the attacks struck the Grakthor, the beast barely flinched. It continued its charge, but Drifter evaded with Exalt Shift, disappearing in a flash of blue particles and reappearing closer to Nadia and Alma.
<div>
The remaining Graklors pressed forward, weapons raised. Drifter stepped into their path, cutting down any creature that came too close with his sword, Exaltare, while others parried and retaliated. As the Grakthor advanced once more, Drifter sent his spectral swords ahead as decoys, forcing the massive beast to change course. The Grakthor turned sharply, its enormous frame crashing into nearby Graklings and Graklors.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
<div>
Drifter''s grip tightened as he unleashed everything he had—Azure Tempest. A whirlwind of afterimages and blue streaks of slashes from him and his spectral swords tore through the battlefield. Hundreds of Graklors and Graklings were sliced to pieces in an instant. Another Exalt Storm surged, his sigils unleashing barrage of blue energy blasting through the air. Exalt Edge followed in quick succession, blue energy slash slicing through the creatures with deadly precision.
His breath grew heavier, each inhale sharp and shallow. Numbness spread through him, but his eyes still scanned the endless waves of enemies. The clash of his spectral swords, the grinding of black armor—each sound drowned out by the weight of battle. Behind him, Nadia and Alma’s ragged breaths cut through the air, their shoulders trembling with the effort to keep up. Sweat, mingled with rain, dripped down their faces, their hands unsteady as they fought on.
Seeing it all, Drifter''s heartbeat quickened—so fast he could hear it pounding in his ears. Should he gamble everything...?
In the silence of his hesitation, a memory stirred. A group of arcane sabers, like him, had unleashed their ultimate techniques. The very sky had cracked under the force of their power. For a brief moment, victory had seemed within their grasp, the echo of triumphant cheers already forming on their lips.
But then the tendrils came—remnants of the dark creatures, striking at those left vulnerable after expending all their strength. His stomach churned. The victory had felt hollow. The abyssal breach had been sealed, but there was no one left to celebrate.
<div>
No other choice... he thought, his brow furrowed in frustration.
With a decisive motion, he teleported to a grassy hill nearby.
"Exalted Evocata!" he incanted.
As the words left his lips, brilliant blue light erupted into the air, forming a massive magical circle. Its energy spiraled wildly, shaking the ground beneath it. Colossal blades of pure energy emerged, glowing fiercely, hovering like an unstoppable force of destruction.
At his command, the energy blades moved with blinding speed, slicing through the air. As they reached the horde of gray creatures, a resonating boom shook the battlefield. A circular shockwave shattered into sharp shards, obliterating the horde in an instant. The shards then burst apart with a sharp crack, releasing smaller glowing blades that whistled through the air, striking down the remaining gray creatures.
The remaining Graklings fell instantly, unable to resist the onslaught. Some Graklors raised shields and weapons, deflecting a few strikes, but the blades were too numerous, cutting them down one by one. The massive Grakthors held briefly, but their heavy bodies soon fell lifeless to the ground.
Drifter lifted his hand once again. The giant magical circle flared brilliantly, its radiant glow illuminating the battlefield. With a commanding motion, the circle unleashed a devastating wave of blue energy, obliterating the remaining hordes. The blast swept across the Verm Plains, carving craters and deep fissures into the earth, leaving only silence in its wake.
<div>
<div>
As the sigils faded, Drifter felt it immediately—the effect taking hold of his entire body. His sword and armor disintegrated into blue particles, vanishing from his grasp. His muscles locked, and he collapsed to his knees. A sharp pain pierced his skull, his eyes feeling as though they were being torn from their sockets. His breath came in ragged, shallow gasps.
He gazed out at the battlefield, now eerily silent, the rain soaking the shattered ground around him.
<div>
<div>
He slowly rose to his feet and turned toward Nadia and Alma, who were also looking at him. Their faces were wide-eyed, trembling, yet relieved.
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
A tightness in his chest eased as he saw they were safe. A faint smile touched his lips, barely there
But then, a sharp pain jolted through him, freezing him in place. Slowly, instinctively, he turned his head. His eyes fell to his left side, where blood poured from a deep wound, staining his black suit and mixing with the rain pooling beneath him.
What the...? he thought, his mind racing.
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
In his peripheral vision, a figure stepped forward—a wild, pink-purple-haired girl with a sharp smile. Her glowing eyes burned with madness as she raised a black dagger, blue flames licking its edges.
Drifter tried to move, but his body refused to obey. His vision blurred, and his hand trembled.
What… is happening...?
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
His head felt like it was sinking, his vision blurring at the edges. The world tilted, and then—nothing.