Return to Jorgaldur Volume V: Reunion (2)

Fight at the foot of the mountain (I)

"Living?" the shadow looked worried and excited.

Some losts had felt or seen them. It wasn't easy to discern the difference due to the lack of intelligence of their subordinates, but there was no doubt that there were enemies.

"Do they have something to do with the disappearances?" the other shadow that was there worried.

The presence of the living was something they always detested and desired. They wanted to kill them, corrupt them, torture them. Like all corrupted spirits, both hated the memory of what they had been, what they had loved, what they had lost.

On the other hand, many shadows had disappeared in recent times under unknown circumstances. They didn't know if it had anything to do with the newcomers.

"It doesn't matter if they're the culprits or not. We have an army. We'll crush them before they can do anything," the first one assured.

"I guess so," the second agreed, somewhat more fearful.

"Let's gather the troops!"

Immediately, hundreds of losts began to get up, awakening from the lethargy they had sunk into. They had received orders from the shadows, so the army began to march in the required direction.

Soon, an imposing gathering of corrupted beings took place. In no time, they would attack the living.

"Father, they've detected enemies. The shadows have mobilized their losts to attack them," a vampiress informed.

"Any information on those enemies?" Warkmon asked.

"Not yet. Ltjio has left to explore," she reported.

"Let me know as soon as you know something," he ordered.

"Yes, father."

Immediately, Warkmon called Kan Golge to inform him.

"Mmm. At least this time we know there're enemies. It's important to identify them. I'll send a couple of my children to supervise them. Let me know right away when you have more information," he ordered.

"Yes, father," Warkmon complied.

Kan Golge cut the connection to call the same children who had been exploring empty areas over and over again.

"I have a new mission for you. This time, they've detected enemies. I want you to observe, and intervene if you see it necessary. Report to me when you have visual contact. I want to know who they are. Talk to Warkmon for the details," he ordered.

"Yes, father," the vampiress complied.

As soon as the connection closed, she looked at her brother.

"Don't tell me. Another mission to find ghosts," he resigned himself.

"No. This time they've seen enemies. We have to monitor, and attack if we feel like it," she smiled fiercely.

"Really? Finally something interesting! Let's go!" he ran off to his mount.

She followed him. Both were excited to have something to attack, perhaps bite. The last missions had been quite frustrating.

"They're coming!" the lookout warned.

"Are the preparations finished?" Menxolor asked.

"We need a couple more minutes," another Guardian of the North replied.

"Squad three, prepare defenses. Squad five, ready to attack at range. Squad two, in front of squad five. The rest, stay on standby," Menxilya's father ordered.

They all moved with the coordination that came from fighting together for the past few weeks. They had traveled through the corrupted lands, and fought continuously against its inhabitants. Sometimes, it was only small skirmishes. Other times, it was against powerful armies.

Evidently, they were no match for the latter, just as they were no match for those approaching. However, they knew how to coordinate and make the most of their resources. That had allowed them to buy enough time to escape on a great number of occasions. Not infrequently, it had been by the skin of their teeth.

Now, they had to buy time again, even if it was only a few minutes. After that, they could only pray that everything would go as planned.

They had been traveling between ancient forgotten tunnels, and hidden Gates. The former allowed them to walk relatively long distances underground. The latter, to teleport to another Gate that had managed to remain hidden and operational.

The biggest problem was that they didn't know exactly where the tunnels would lead them, or how many Gates had remained intact. Therefore, they were forced to go through the Lost Forest again and again, thus putting their lives at risk.

This was one of those times. The last Gate they had reached was operational, but not those to which it was supposed to be connected. Therefore, they had to decide on one of the directions. They were going towards one of the forgotten tunnels.

Maxlir, the locksmith's son, could now open the entrances with ease. His mother's demonstration first, and practice later, had given him such expertise. Therefore, they only had to reach one of them and protect him briefly, before being safely inside.

What they hadn't known was that, on the way, there were two shadows and their troops, as well as some vampires. If they hadn't received the warning, they might have gotten into a dead end.

Now, they were at the foot of a hillside, ready for the confrontation. A few were digging a small cave to enlarge it, while the others surrounded them, ready to protect them. If they had no other choice, they would go inside to withstand the offensive of the corrupted beings.

"Enemies coming from the other sides too! They've surrounded us!" another lookout reported.

"It was to be expected... One and six in defensive positions. Four at the entrance of the cave. Seven and eight ready for relief," Menxolor ordered calmly.

"Boss, they are ready," a healer reported. There was a Bat on her shoulder.

"Good. Now all that's left is the cave. I can see them now. Ugh... There're a lot of them," he said out loud.

A cloud of black dust rose behind the hundreds of losts. Perhaps, it could bother those coming from behind, but if so, it wasn't shown by the corrupted beings. They had orders to advance, and they did so whether they could see or not.

The losts ran towards them, without stopping for anything, and even razing the corrupted trees. Their only mission was to destroy the living.

"Fire!" Menxolor ordered after a few seconds.

Dozens of mana rays came out of their positions to reach the horde of enemies. Multiple fearsome explosions were heard on the battlefield, although there were also other, quieter skills.

Some of them were designed to hinder enemies, and were especially effective in this situation. If those in front slowed down, even slightly, they were run over by those coming behind. With luck, it could cause a chain reaction.

However, their enemies were too numerous to be eliminated or contained by that alone.