Chapter 78: 76
A swing, another swing, and I fly up, right to where there are only clouds. The wind whistled in my ears, blew through my wings, and walked between my feathers. The feeling of flight, freedom, happiness, and also power, like the king of heaven who decided to look around his own possessions with a keen eye. That's exactly how I felt.
Cutting circles around the camp, I waited for the action to begin. A copper ring glittered on my "claw", the same one that Flitwick gave me. As expected, it shrunk to my size. Having sent a thin stream of mana into it, he began to wait for an answer from the other side.
- Yes? Did you notice anything? — the professor's voice was heard in my mind. As if he was standing very close, and not half a kilometer away.
"Everything is clear so far," he will mentally answer him. It's good that this method of communication is provided by the creator of the artifact, otherwise my form is somehow not very suitable for this. - Remind me why we are doing this?
A tired sigh was heard in response.
"Calder, we've already discussed this," he answered me somehow doomedly. — The placement of the draugr is too dense, too deliberate. We just can't get any further. That's why we have to do this.
— And this is what the contract pushes you to do?
"In a sense, yes," the professor said, a little thoughtfully. "Although we could simply continue trying to penetrate, and then with a clear conscience refer to the danger and impossibility of this task."
- But?
"But then we will lose the lion's share of our reputation," came the answer somehow sadly. - Understand, our squad has existed for a very long time. Yes, our composition is changing, but this does not make our reputation among other mercenaries worse. We had to spend a lot of effort for this, and I really don't want to lose all this overnight...
—Are you ready to put your lives on the line for the sake of your reputation? Why is she donating to you? And you yourself said that the location of the draugr is very thoughtful, therefore, our enemy is much smarter and more dangerous than expected - only a deaf person would not have noticed the causticity in my voice. I said the second part of my sentence in a much more serious voice. Still, this is not a joke.
"Eh," another sigh, and then a short period of silence. - If you were older, then perhaps you understood us. For us: me, Croco, Al and the rest, our squad is the meaning of existence. Without it, we see no meaning in our lives. We gave too much, as, indeed, we received.
Somehow I can't believe these words. Doesn't see the point? I understand that the squad is a kind of family, but no one is stopping them from communicating further. Or are they afraid that their relationship will disappear along with the squad? Then another question, are they really magicians?
Magicians are those people who, in order to achieve their goals, will do, if not everything, then a lot. The only question is how much they are willing to sacrifice moral principles. For them, knowledge and magic itself are the meaning of their whole life. That's how magicians are, or that's how I imagine them. It is quite possible that I am now deluding myself.
But still, I can't understand Flitwick and the others... And Filius is a professor, so why not the meaning of life?
"But you are a professor," I decided to tell him about it. — More than one generation has come out from under your wing. Most of them still remember you with kind words. Couldn't this be the meaning of life?
Having finished, I "froze" waiting for an answer, but there was still no answer. There was deathly silence on the other side, although the connection was not interrupted. It took me several hundred meters to finally wait for an answer.
"It's all too complicated, Calder," the professor answered sadly. - Let's leave this topic for later. Perhaps in the future we will understand each other, but now... We are not capable of this.
Having heard the answer, I did not answer anything. It wasn't necessary. Glad the professor decided so, then I will no longer meddle in this topic. Perhaps he is right in some ways, or perhaps I am right too….
*****
"Calder," a sonorous voice brought me out of my thoughts. It was the professor. "We're leaving, report anything suspicious." Any detail, even the most insignificant, can radically change the course of the entire battle. Be careful.
- Fine.
Glancing at the ground, I saw that our detachment had set out. Having descended about seventy meters, I saw that our camp was covered with a grayish dome. It seems Crystal has cast protection against both the living and the dead. Which is logical in principle; who else but a necromancer would know how to kill the living and calm the dead?
The combat detachment moved forward briskly. They arranged themselves in a sort of rhombus. At the forefront was Croco, who confidently looked forward. He was flanked by Al and Ed. They, armed with wands, as well as a dagger and a one-handed sword, respectively, covered the dragonite from the side. Further, moving slightly to the center, there were two sisters. Our necromancer was located in the center, and the professor and the gnome brought up the rear.
In principle it is logical. Crystal is the most vulnerable in a direct collision, but if you give her time, her enemies will not envy her. There was a sort of "tank" in front, with "security forces" on either side of it. True, I still don't know what kind of magic our brave gnome uses. It even became interesting...
Ahead of the squad, somewhere at a distance of half a kilometer, two hounds were moving, which were modified specifically for detecting the dead. They were also "made" in such a way as to be attractive, in a gastronomic sense, to the dead. I wonder how many more developments our sweet necromancer has? It feels like she has a solution for everything in life.
Well, I was flying from above. Thanks to me, the squad will be able to react faster to the appearance of enemy reinforcements. Well, also warn if any force majeure arises.
The first half hour of our journey passed without incident. The squad quickly moved forward; sprinters would envy their speed, although for them it was not very difficult.
Step by step, meter by meter, kilometer by kilometer - the path rushed into the distance. The giant castle, along with the tree, became clearer and clearer. We were getting closer and closer.
"Draugr for ten o'clock," as soon as I noticed the enemy, I immediately informed the professor about it. - Hidden from you by a hill. The approximate distance is a kilometer.
I never heard an answer, but I understood from the actions of the party members that they were ready.
Their combined attack was terrifying. A quick coordinated attack by three "blizaviks" neutralized the unlucky draugr. Croco's planned move to cut off the head of his enemy. Al and Ed cut off the enemy's hands with a synchronized blow, and the suffocating flame of the two elves became the final act of this play.
Just a second and the enemy was destroyed. It was that fast.
However, I did not forget about my duty.
"Get ready, they're approaching," signs of movement began to appear from all sides, and the snow began to swell as if alive.
Enemies began to arrive from all sides. At first the usual friends were visible. The conversation with them was simple - even as they approached, they burned out, crumbled into dust, and simply disappeared, as if they were not in our world.
Others began to arrive after them. Trolls, orcs, gnomes and many others. They all attacked the detachment in a stormy wave, but it stood.
Croco cut through several enemies at once with powerful blows. His sword trembled with excitement and joy. A variety of spells flew from his hands, mostly curses. So, the dead bodies rotted literally in a second. The remnants of something that replaced their blood were tearing apart their physical shell. Some even attacked their relatives, like dolls that had come under the control of another conductor.
Ed just floated into the air. I lacked the ability to share what he was doing, but I could see the consequences. The enemies were scattered into small pieces, they were cut with bloody swords, sickles and scythes. Now another row of enemies was pierced by one thin but very sharp bloody spear, which exploded a second later, destroying the enemies. In the rare moments when I had a chance to see the vampire's face, I could see a bloodthirsty grin on his face.
Al was much simpler. If at the beginning of the fight he was still wielding a sword, then literally a couple of minutes later he threw it away. Instead, he turned into a humanoid wolf, two and a half meters tall. He tore, tore, tore, and also ate his enemies. A real wild beast, but on our side.
Sol and Lis. The two elves were like one organism. One inflicted incredible magical blows on her enemies using fire magic, while the second skillfully supported her in this. Kindling an already weak flame into something grandiose, and also from time to time saving his sister from another enemy "saboteur". Strength and power, as well as smoothness and grace. The perfect combination.
Krystal was causing chaos. Her blows were not as fast as the others, but this did not make them any less powerful; on the contrary, each of her attacks had significant weight. A wave of the staff and a gray wave simply absorbs an area of one hundred meters in diameter, leaving behind only "gray" snow. Another swing and a whole crowd of enemies begins to attack their own relatives. Another swing and giant necrochimeras, appearing literally out of thin air, attack a discordant row of enemies. Each chimera was somewhat similar to each other. They were the kind of "constructs" that an evil genius assembled in a fit of creativity. The head of some kind of beetle, the body of a giant cat, the paws of either a dragon or a horse, as well as giant wings torn off from bats. And all this was dead a long time ago.
The professor created real magic. The wand fluttered in his hands, and the sword that had previously rested behind his back was reaping its harvest every second. With the help of magic, he not only attacked and defended himself, no, he also accelerated himself, created barricades of snow, and also teleported enemies onto them. In a word, he didn't give anyone a break.
But the most incredible thing was Ogrim's fight. At the very beginning of the battle, he threw some balls into the snow, at first I didn't understand what they were, but then... In just a couple of seconds, he created several dozen ice golems. But as if this wasn't enough for him, each of them was covered with a hundred runes that pulsated with the movements of the minions. Each of them had a different but deadly form: a dragon, a manticore, a troll, giant tank tops, lions, and also wolves, of course of gigantic size. Without knowing fear, they rushed into battle, straight at their enemies. Their step was a death march for the undead.
However, one should not write off the gnome himself; he also made an invaluable contribution to the common cause, not counting the golems. Each of his attacks was accompanied by the shine of runes. Together they created incredible effects. How about, for example, the complete annihilation of everything that a ray of light touches? Few? Well, what about the volcano that arose out of nowhere, erupting and taking the "lives" of many hundreds of enemies. Still not enough? What do you think of the gap in the sky, from which a destructive light poured out for all the enemies of the gnome?
Each of those participating in the battle rightfully bore his rank and was here. They seemed to work separately, but at the same time did not forget to cover each other's backs. Their overall coherence was simply amazing. It immediately becomes clear that they have been through a lot.
Of course, they didn't immediately increase the pace, no. The battle went on as usual. Slowly, slowly, they turned into a death machine.
Even though I couldn't personally participate in this truly incredible battle, I did make my contribution. I broadcast every movement of the enemy to my companions. Each reinforcement, each new type of enemy, the time of arrival, the side from which they will arrive - I noticed all this and much more, and then reported it. In general, I was doing something educational for myself and also useful for the group.
Slowly but tirelessly our group moved forward. Gradually this fight became a routine for them. The enemies did not shine with intelligence, or variety (if you get used to it, of course). With every passing minute the battle became more mechanical, or what? Practiced ligaments and movements, proven tactics. All these were the key to victory. At least that's what it seemed at first glance...
- They are retreating.
- What? — the professor asked again belatedly.
"The dead are retreating," I said, not believing myself.
The avalanche of the dead that had been attacking us for several hours subsided in an instant. In a single stream, they rushed somewhere deep into the territories, but as if this was not enough, they were also joined by those who were still hiding in the snow.
This picture struck me so much that I fell into prostration. But after a few seconds it dawned on me: Only one creature can force them to retreat, and that is the Lich. How strong must he be to force absolutely all the dead to retreat, despite the hunger that has been accumulating in them for centuries.
- I don't like this, professor. I suggest retreating.
- Why did you...
- Lich.
One word, but no questions followed. The entire detachment suddenly became wary and began to retreat back. Well, I continued to fly from above and look out for enemies...
Oh, how I don't like this.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone