Seeds of Discordia

Liam watched as the Greater Bulldog Bat Patriarch lifted itself into the air and hovered above them like an angel of death. Its wrinkled and droopy face snarled as it took in some air.

After it took in as much as it could it released it with much force sending a shockwave down onto Artem and Blair causing them to drop to a knee and cover their ears.

To him he saw ripples in the air descend down in a cone angle. It extended wide enough to only be able to cover the two defenders.

Liam then gazed at Artem’s and Blair’s HP bar and saw it drop a bit.

That must be some sort of ability. Liam thought as he reassessed the EFM.

 

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“Greater Bulldog Bat Patriarch. 150/290 HP. 79/90 MP.”

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“Thought so,” Liam muttered as he went over strategizes in his mind.

After scraping up a plan he started ordering, “Defenders, take a moment to regain your health with potions. Attackers and Spell casters, use any ranged attacks you have. If you need to replenish your mana do so in turns! Shout out when you’re doing it so we’re not giving it any breaks between attacks!”

“Got it!” they all shouted.

Artem and Blair pulled out a potion and drank them as Ariyana, Avery, and Roman started chanting spells. Mercer aimed an arrow and released it as Liam threw a dagger towards the beast.

Liam and Mercer watched as the arrow and dagger sailed through the air towards the creature, but then slowed and was repelled from the force of the wind the EFM created from flapping its wings.

“Damn it!” Mercer shouted. “The wind is too powerful! Our attacks can’t reach it.”

A fireball shot towards the beast but was snuffed out by the gust of air inches away from it.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Avery shouted with frustration as she stomped a foot down.

The beast gave a smug look that caused Liam to make a confused expression.

“Did it just…,” Liam muttered. His confusion slowly turned to anger, but then disappeared as two violet balls slammed against its chest and mouth.

“Hell yeah! Take that you snot nosed son of…,” Roman started to celebrate until the creature sucked in another portion of air and moved its body forward.

Liam saw the direction it was moving and shouted, “Roman, Ariyana! Get out of the way now!”

The beast got closer to them while staying above and then released another shockwave at a downward forty-five degree angle with Ariyana and Roman in its path.

Roman sprinted forward and got out of the way, but as Ariyana hesitated before finally moving the blast hit her. The force collided into her side causing her to topple over onto the ground, land on her right shoulder and knee scuffing them against a solid piece of stone.

Her head luckily hit a soft patch of dirt. The impact cause slight disorientation, but nothing too harmful.

Liam watched as the Greater Bulldog Bat Patriarch fly over her then turn left and readied another sonic blast.

“Keep an eye out! If it’s flying in your direction, then get out of its line of fire. Don’t let that blast hit you!” Liam barked as he sprinted to his right. “Try and hit it with Arcane shot if you can get the chance!”

Avery and Mercer released the spells they had chanted and watched as the violet orbs sailed towards the flying bus sized beast. One of the balls collided against its body while the other zoomed slightly above it and into the darkness.

After repeatedly dodging any sonic blasts that came out of the creature’s mouth and pelting it with successful Arcane Shot attacks the Greater Bulldog Bat Patriarch moved towards the middle and then turned upside down. Its clawed legs reached out into the dark blanket above and gripped something.

The E.F.M.’s lower half was covered by the darkness while its wings folded into its sides like a protective barrier and its head snarled at its prey below it. It sucked in another gust of air and then sent a very high-pitched echo throughout the cave.

Confused, everyone stared at the creature since the noise didn’t affect them. However, their gazes shifted around the room as calls were answered back.

Six lesser Bulldog Bats appeared from the darkness above them. As they descended, they spread out around the group.

“Is the…is the poop moving?” Blair questioned with disgust pulling Liam’s attention towards her direction.

Liam rushed over to her to see what she saw down in the guano pit.

Four piles of the guano started shaking. After Liam stared at it, he realized those four piles were not actual piles of bat poop.

They were creatures with white fur that blended in with the feces camouflaging themselves perfectly. They turned their bulbus bodies with four sharp spiked legs to reveal a nasty looking head.

The creatures had the face and ears of a bat; except they had no snout and some sort of cover where their eyes were. It gave their new prey a razor-sharp toothy grin as its long drooling tongue licked its lips. By its head were two short extended claws.

Liam assessed one.

 

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“Vicious Bat Mite. 75/75 HP. 0/0 MP.”

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“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Artem shouted with complaint as he, Liam, and Blair slowly backed away from the angled pit.

“What’s the plan Liam?” Blair asked as she shifted her gaze from the oncoming enemies that slowly scurried the ground and the ones that hovered above.

Liam wracked his brain. He started fumbling his words as he tried thinking things over. “We need to…we need to.” He looked at Ariyana as he thought of something. He looked to her MP gauge before asking, “Ariyana, can use cast Dancing Lights on as many as you can?”

Ariyana turned to look at him. She then looked at something before counting each mob. “I think I can get at least half of them before I have to take a mana potion,” she said.

“Half is fine…,” he said as he looked at the monsters that were now on the same level as them.

“Start with those Bat Mites first.

Ariyana pointed her wand out at one and started chanting, “Oh, dancing wisps of light. I call upon you to help me distract this creature with your delight. Have fun and be merry. Dance around to a beat of your own making without being wary. Dancing Lights!”

The lights danced in the air as they flashed towards their target. As they circled around the creature once they suddenly disappeared.

“Crap!” Ariyana cursed.

“What happened?” Liam asked.

“I got a notice saying the spell failed,” Ariyana replied.

“That might be because their eyes are covered!” Blair yelled out sounding frustrated.

Mercer let out an arrow before jumping away from his spot. As the arrow flew pass his target, he suggested, “If it doesn’t work on the Mites then try the flying ones. We need some sort of plan to handle these.”

“I’m on it!” Ariyana shouted as she chanted and shot forth her spell again towards the Lesser Bulldog Bat swooping in around Mercer.

The lights spun around the creature and stayed this time.

She used the spell on three more of the Lesser Bulldog Bats. This caused not just the ones hit with the spell to be distracted, but the two that were to fly over to the closest light and try swiping at them.

“Well, that’s helpful,” Liam stated.

 “Could use some help here!” Artem yelled as he parried a slash attack from one of the Vicious Bat Mites.

“I know! Hold on!” Liam shouted back. He then ordered, “Roman, Avery, and Mercer try and take down the two Lesser Bulldog Bats that weren’t hit by the spell as fast as you can then take out the ones that were!”

“Got it!” The three responded as they started their assault.

Liam looked at Ariyana and then hesitated.

Ariyana stared at him knowing he wanted to ask or say something. After a moment when he didn’t say anything, she shouted, “Are you kidding me!”

Liam looked shocked at her, “What do you mean?”

“I know what you’re about to ask me to do. I’m already cringing at the thought of it,” Ariyana complained.

“Look I know it’s something you don’t want to do but…,” Liam started to argue until she raised a hand to stop him.

“I’ll do it,” Ariyana stated, “However…you owe me a few rounds at the Dancing Baboon. Got it!”

“You got it,” Liam replied as he let out a sigh of relief.

“And not the cheap stuff either. You make a girl do something like this and you have to make it up to her appropriately,” Ariyana protested.

Liam faltered for a moment as he let out a groan.

“Don’t you dare skip out on taking responsibility for this,” Ariyana quipped as she closed her eyes and started mumbling to herself. “No sane woman would do something like this.”

“Fine,” Liam contested as he watched a hint of smile appear then disappear.

She suddenly opened her eyes and stared at one of the Vicious Bat Mites. It was standing a little farther back to Artem’s side and was charging up for a run.

Ariyana felt an involuntary shudder and thought she mimicked a gag motion before placing her hands on her inner thighs and started chanting with a sweet and mesmerizing voice, “Listen to my voice as you fall under my spell.”

She then ran the tips of her fingers across her stomach crossing them as they ran under her breasts to the top of her shoulders. “Let loose your mind and allow me to be the conscious to guide you.”

She then rolled her right arm out away from her body to point at the creature with her index and middle fingers as she winked and finished the chant. “Fall victim to my charm and ways so you can do my bidding. Charm!”

The Vicious Bat Mite sprinted towards Artem as the spell echoed into its ears. Right before it collided into him, it swerved left and crashed into the creature that was attacking Artem. The collision knocked the attacking creature into the other Vicious Bat Mite that Blair had distracted.

The fourth enemy turned to look at its brethren and then jumped at the one who made the pile up.

The two Vicious Bat Mites that were hit were on their backs. Their bulbus body made it hard for them to turn right side up.

To Liam the scene looked a lot like turtles when they get flipped to the shells and struggle to right themselves.

“Attack the ones that are down while the Charmed beast is distracting the other one!” Liam ordered.

Liam then charged towards them to help and muttered to himself, “If only I could do more damage. I wish that my…”

 He came to a sudden stop as he looked at his free hand. He then cursed himself out loud, “God damn it Liam!”

He pulled out a second dagger and continued running at the toppled enemies as he chastised himself, “Mistakes like that can get you killed you dolt!”

As he approached the struggling Vicious Bat Mite on his right he started striking with both daggers.

Left, right, left, right, up, down, side to side.

He felt a bit more comfortable swinging with both arms instead of using only one.

The enemy laying on its back screech with pain as it struggled to right itself. Each strike dug into its skin deepening each wound being made. After several successful attacks it let out one last pained gasp of air before its body slumped.

Liam breathed heavily as he stared at his daggers. He gripped them tightly as he said quietly, “Finally I can do a bit more damage.” He then turned to a Vicious Bat Mite inches away from him. Wide eyed he went to dodge but felt his leg muscles tighten and a blinking red Stamina Bar. “Crap,” Liam swore as he brought his arms up to brace the impact coming.

Before the collision happened Artem rammed his shield that had wooden spikes protruding from it into the left side of the creature moving it out of Liam’s path and into streams of violet colored arcane power finishing it off.

As Artem pulled his shield away from the dead creature, blood dripped off the wooden spikes. The spikes then pulled back into the Kite shield as Artem said with a playful grin, “Tired after killing one monster by yourself? Maybe you should work out more.”

“Ha, ha, very funny,” Liam said as he pulled out a yellow liquid vial, popped the cork and drank it. After drinking the liquid contents, he gagged and watched his stamina bar rise back up.

Liam then looked around to see all the mobs were dead. He turned his gaze up onto the Greater Bulldog Patriarch to see it start to stir.

“Crap we’ve got to move!” Liam announced.

Artem and Liam ran away from underneath the Greater Bulldog Bat Patriarch. They reached a safe distance as it dropped down onto the spot they were just at. It let a loud cry of rage out and started to crawl towards them.

“Back to work,” Liam muttered as Artem charged at it and slammed his shield against its right claw to prevent the attack from hitting anyone.

Blair swung her great axe around and used the momentum of it to bring it over her head and slammed it down against the bone of the left wing.

Avery rushed in and swiftly struck three times against the side of its body. Nasty purplish-green liquid snaked into its wounds as Roman threw a four punch combination against its rib cage on the other side.

Ariyana released the Arcane Swarm spell as Mercer shot as many arrows as he could.

The Greater Bulldog Bat Patriarch, feeling overwhelmed, extended his wings out.

“It’s going to try and fly off. Ariyana try to stop it from taking off with Entangling roots!” Liam ordered.

Ariyana started to chant, “Seeds waiting sprout release what’s inside. Grow your roots strong and long. Pierce through the tough ground and wrap around the target. Entangled Roots!”

Entangled Roots was a Plant Focus Point Ability from the Field of the Elements. It grows roots from the ground that wrap around a target’s feet. Making them stop moving forward or backwards for ten seconds.

After Ariyana finished her chant several thick vine-like roots shot out from the stoned ground and wrapped around one of the EFM’s legs right as it lifted itself off the ground. The vines straightened out as the monster was pulled back.

The Greater Bulldog Patriarch still hovered a bit in the air barely out of reach of Avery’s, Roman’s, Liam’s, Blair’s and Artem’s weapons.

The Greater Bulldog Bat Patriarch swiveled its head towards the vines and tried swiping at them with its free foot. One of the vines snapped off.

“Blair! Use Force increase on it!” Liam shouted.

Blair slammed the bottom of her Great axe down as she started chanting, “O Gravity, powerful and dangerous. Become heavier and stronger. Bring the Force down upon my enemy slowing and hindering its movements. Gravitational Force Increase!”

A dark purple glow washed over the creature as its body dropped a bit. Its wings slowed its beating but still pushed hard trying to keep it afloat in the air.

Liam could see the strain the spell caused on the Bat as it struggled to keep in the air while clawing at the vines.

Liam stared at the creature as he thought of something. “I wonder if it could work,” Liam muttered to himself.

Artem turned to him and asked, “You wonder if what could work?”

Liam gave him a devilish grin as he replied, “If this works like I want it to then this could end the fight.” He then turned his gaze over to Roman and yelled, “Roman! Cast a Stone Pike under it!”

“It’s too high up for it to hit though!” Roman protested as he gave Liam a confused look.

“I know, but I want to try something out,” Liam replied as another vine snapped leaving two left.

“Alright then,” Roman shrugged as he extended his right arm out and gripped his elbow with his left hand.

The fingers on his right hand gripped the air looking like it was holding tight onto something as he started chanting, “O Earth, strong and deadly. Shift and form anew. Bring pain to my enemies as you show them your pointed Anger. Stone Pike!”

The stone floor beneath the EFM light up a dark brown color as a wave rippled inside a medium sized circle. Shortly after finishing the chant a spike shot up from the ground and stopped after reaching six feet tall with a thick diagram.

Stone Pike was an Earth Focus Point ability in the Field of the Elements. A stone spike surges from the ground underneath the target and penetrates through anything in its path.

“See!” Roman started to protest giving him a I told you so look. He was about to say something else but then watched Liam start to chant.

“O Gravity, powerful and dangerous. Become heavier and stronger. Bring the Force down upon my enemy slowing and hindering its movements. Gravitational Force Increase!” Liam chanted.

The last rooted vine disappeared allowing the Greater Bulldog Bat Patriarch pushed up one time with its wings before a second layer of Force Increase washed over it. The pressure of having both spells on it was too much stopping it from moving any further.

“You can stack gravity magic!” Blair shouted with her eyes wide. A bit of excitement growing inside her.

“Now Roman use Electro Orb!” Liam called out panting.

Shaking away the disbelief from the gambled attempt her got into position and chanted, “O orb of sparks form before pure and true. Shoot fast and engulf the one in your path. Ripple through the muscles and make them lock. Electro Orb!”

Electro Orb was a Lightning Focus Point ability in the Field of the Elements. It conjures a baseball sized ball of electricity and shoots towards the target. The electric orb shocks them and tightens their muscles for 5 seconds causing them to flinch or locks their movements.

An orb of electricity the size of a baseball suddenly appeared to in front of Roman’s hand as sparks of lightning discharged a bit around him. After it fully formed it shot towards the EFM and crashed into its face.

As electricity rippled around its body, it let out a pained cry while its wings locked into place and stopped flapping. The force from the double gravity spells slammed the creature down towards the ground. As it crashed down a dust cloud blew out blinding everyone and making them cough.

After the dust settled and their coughing fit stopped, they quickly looked at the creature to see the stone spike protruding from the bottom jaw and through its skull.

It wasn’t moving and was slumped over.