Return to Jorgaldur Volume V: Reunion (2)

Coordinated attack (I)

"They're late," a vampire worried.

"Those fu... Surely, they're taking advantage to drink all the blood they can," another vampiress cursed them with envy. She would have done the same.

She barely paused her work for a moment. They had to meet very strict deadlines, and the punishment was severe if they didn't meet them. The project supervisor was one of their father's most powerful sons. If in a week, when he returned, they hadn't finished the assigned work, they would have serious problems.

The base had to be operational in two months, although operational didn't mean finished. Only that it had sufficient defenses and escape plans. Finishing everything that was planned would take years.

In fact, initially, it was planned to finish this first phase in a couple of years, but for some reason, the deadlines had been shortened. There were rumors about Krovledi's death, and problems with a special squad. However, they were only rumors. No one dared to ask openly.

"Booom!"

Suddenly, a loud explosion was heard. The fluctuation of the mana shield protecting the palace was evident.

"What's happening!? Are they attacking us!?" a vampire was alarmed.

"Send the beasts! Let them inspect the surroundings! I want to know where it comes from!" another ordered.

"Booom! Booom!"

The shield fluctuated dangerously. Not only were the attacks powerful, but the defensive power of the shield was limited. After all, it was still provisional. They were still preparing the chamber to house the mana core.

"Booom! Booom! Booom! Booom! Booom! Booom!"

Finally, the shield gave way, after which there was only solemn silence. Many vampires were frightened by the attack of some mysterious and undoubtedly powerful enemies. Despite being temporary, the amount of power needed to overcome the mana shield protecting the building was quite high. It wasn't something that could be done so easily. They didn't understand how those enemies could have gotten so close and attacked without being detected.

Little did they know that an elf on the back of a Growth goshawk had reached the top of one of the watchtowers. From there, she had simply dropped a not inconsiderable number of explosive potions and rocks.

The tower was deserted, and the entrance and stairs were ruined, so there was little point in watching it. Who would have thought that someone would fly in an underground city?

"Emergency evacuation plan! The craftsmen leave! Ask for reinforcements!" the manager ordered.

Most vampires were valuable experts with low combat ability. Their father had made it clear that their safety had to be prioritized. It wasn't easy to locate, kidnap and subdue such specialized workers.

The combatants were in charge of controlling the toads, the traps, and checking security in general. Two of them were missing. In fact, they had fallen into the hands of their enemies, although that was something their companions were unaware of.

Quickly, the vampire workers ran to the teleportation circles, uneasy at the sudden events. Precisely, one of the factors that had most delayed the start of work had been the creation of said circles, which allowed the movement of personnel.

Their escape and the arrival of reinforcements would undoubtedly overload them, thus making them impossible to use for a while. The work would have to be postponed, but it was better than the alternative.

They imbued mana into the circles, which as always glowed when activated. However, the final sequence didn't appear.

"What's happening!?"

"You too? Shit! Come on! Work!"

"Come on beauty! Don't leave me here!"

"The circle works, but it doesn't connect, and it happens to everyone. It doesn't make sense, unless... They've blocked the space! It's... We're trapped...!"

The vampiress' explanation terrified everyone. She was the expert in those circles. She was in charge of its maintenance, apart from other work in the future fortress.

No one knew what to do. They were specialists in different fields, and they weren't used to that type of situation. In fact, apart from when they had been kidnapped and enslaved, most hadn't experienced anything like that.

They didn't know what to do, how to react. Whether to stay there, whether to keep trying, whether to run. Of course, they didn't know where to run either.

"What's that!?" one of them suddenly exclaimed.

There were little black bugs that were crawling down the walls. At first, no one had paid much attention to them, but soon, from a couple, they had grown to dozens, to hundreds. They were everywhere.

Frightened, the workers remained still, not daring to move, afraid of attracting the attention of those strange beings. They may have been small, but there were too many of them. There was no need to be a genius to understand that they hadn't appeared there by chance. This wasn't a casual attack.

They didn't even dare to try to attack them. They didn't want to get their attention for anything in the world.

"What's up with those beasts? Why don't they leave?" a vampiress asked irritably.

"I'll check," her assistant offered.

He peeked out among the toads. They had already left through the main entrance of the palace, but weren't advancing any further. He discovered in disbelief what was holding them.

In front of them, there was a small dwarf regiment, led by a couple with more conspicuous shields than the rest. They were Hortun and his wife. They hadn't been interested in joining the expedition, going through tunnels and fighting some "damn bugs." However, when the couple had been informed that they intended to face powerful enemies in "shield formation", they had practically demanded to go. In fact, without "practically."

Now, the dwarfs were smiling from ear to ear. They were raising their rectangular shields, protected by their helmets and heavy armor. The spearmen were right behind them, ready to skewer their enemies.

The toads had disappointed them a little, but that didn't mean they had let their guard down. Until now, they had limited themselves to blocking Lick and Spit. It was when they saw the vampire appear and perceived his power that they finally smiled.

"Finally a fucking enemy worth it," Hortun exclaimed.

"A beer that the fucking coward doesn't dare attack," his wife bet.

"Ha, ha. That's damn clear. Get ready! It won't take long for more damn vampires to appear!" Hortus encouraged the dwarfs.

"Leave them to us! We'll leave them in shit, like a fucking sieve!" one of the spearwomen exclaimed.

"I bet I make more fucking holes than anyone!" another boasted.

"Damn presumptuous! I'm going to win the fucking hole contest again!" another challenged him.

"Whoever wins can ask the most excellent master for the type of beer!" Hortun announced.

Goldmi had promised them whatever beer they wanted, which had lifted the dwarfs' spirits even more.

Surprisingly, that didn't spark another verbal battle. On the other hand, the solemn sound of armor hitting with fists invaded that battlefield for a moment. They had taken it seriously.