Codename: Freedom - Book 4 - Chapter 19

The hobgoblins finally neared. They were split evenly between each gate with ten without psionics and one boss. The normal ones weren’t as normal as they seemed. Even in Freedom, there had been a large difference between the named hobgoblins and the generic ones. These were not of the generic variety. Destiny estimated they’d have a rank C Attack and rank C Defense. As for the boss, it was at the same level except with rank F psionics enhancing its body.

Looking down upon the coming mobs from the inner rampart, I stood with my Captains to my right. Mel, Barrell, and Ma were watching as I was. I could feel the restless energy coming off them.

“I want the front line filled with volunteers first,” I began. “Use your best judgment to remove any that might be too exhausted to keep up. Destiny, mark their willingness so I can reward them later.”

She gave me a thumbs up from her window in my peripherals.

“If we play this right, we might earn back some of the viewers we lost. Wrong, and we could gain our first casualties in Vanguard. Don’t let that happen.”

Ma grunted his approval.

“How are we going to play the boss?” Barrell asked without removing his gaze from the coming horde.

“I’m thinking we should remove the lesser ones first, then take turns,” Mel replied.

“And you’ll be going first, will you?” Barrell nudged him with a laugh.

“I’d like that, yes.”

As was so often the case, Barrell’s look of concern reflected my own. Before I could voice it, we were interrupted.

“I’d like to give it a shot,” Isamu said, ascending the last few stairs to join us. He hesitated, then added, “Major.”

My first thought was to reject him outright. It was a knee-jerk reaction to past grievances though. As much as I worked for there to be peace between us, there was some lingering bitterness that was still working its way out of my system.

Mel, his most direct commanding officer, responded, “You’re aware it has rank F psionics?”

“I do.”

“Are you going alone or with backup?”

“I’ll be keeping him company,” Ma replied, pulling our attention.

Seeing the giant’s smirk, it was clear he’d been expecting this.

Isamu nodded to the man.

Looking back and forth between them, I realized they both had a thing for swords, even if Isamu was a kendo practitioner and Ma was into historical European sword arts. The dynamic between them filled me with great interest, but I’d have to leave my questions for another time.

“Would you mind, Major?” Mel asked.

Glancing at Barrell, he just shrugged.

“Then you’ll get the first shot at it,” I said.

With a bow, Isamu thanked me then went to stand next to Ma.

***

As the goblin soldiers’ numbers dwindled, they fell even faster than before. It was going to be impossible to face the hobgoblins on their own, and separating the boss from them would be equally difficult. That left us with few options.

Against the normal goblins, a shield wall was more than sufficient to deal with them. Against the size and weighty pole weapons of the hobgoblins, however, trapping a number of them in a small space would just make my men easy targets.

My men retreated backward in formation to create more open space in the courtyard between the inner and outer gates. We stood near the back, waiting for everyone to move into place. I could see the first couple hobgoblins through the open outer gate already. Only about a hundred of the goblin soldiers were left—some mixed in with the hobgoblins.

I stilled the energy inside me to a weak Petra, then let it stir again in its own gentle currents. After a bit of healing, Victoria had insisted that I not use rank E psionics again unless I had to. She’d mentioned that this boss fight might not be the end but wasn’t entirely sure. No other mobs had spawned.

I was letting the front line of our formation finish as many of the goblins as they could before the hobgoblins entered the courtyard. Jerrek and his men were doing their best from the ramparts of the outer gate to remove any odd goblin left amongst the final wave of hobgoblins. I knew they were exhausted, but they did their job well.

When the first hobgoblin stepped through the outer gate, I knew it was time. “Switch,” I said calmly enough, but my Captains stirred to loosen up.

Destiny carried my words to the ears of my men. Those on the frontline took a step back into a low defensive stance. The men behind them sent a flurry of spearpoints over the row of shields, forcing most of the goblins back. They then communicated with one another depending on their current context, and the defending soldiers moved backward as the fresh ones took their place.

My idea had been to fill this final line of men with only those that volunteered, but my Captains had said it caused more problems than good. Sometimes I still forgot that they were all top-of-the-line competitors.

“How’s it look?” I said under my breath.

“Consider the hobgoblin’s approach, and the rate that the goblins are falling, twenty-one seconds,” Destiny replied. A countdown clock appeared to the side. “Any later than that and the Jerrek’s casters will likely be their first targets.”

“Share the timer with the front line. At zero, we charge.”

“Done. Should I add some sound effects?”

“Something appropriate?”

She winked at me from her little popup window.

As the seconds changed, a mechanical tick sounded. The closer the countdown got, the louder it was. Destiny was right. The first hobgoblins that made it through the gate were shielding their faces while looking for a way to get up to Jerrek and his men.

The hobgoblins weren’t shielded with psionic or energy fields, but they did wear white ballistic vests and shorts of the same material. Their weapons were a little more varied. Most had thick, straight-bladed swords as long as a man, while a few others had single-edged axes that were just as long. They were made of modern alloy, and not the random uprooted trees like their Freedom counterparts. The only one that wielded anything resembling a tree club was the actual boss. It was anything but a makeshift weapon though. It was almost an exact replica of the massive golden scepter the goblin king had used, except it was pearl white with a glossy sheen.

My command group made sure we were armed as the countdown grew near. With a few slow jabs of my spear to feel loose, I turned to those at my side.

Barrell was ready with a snide comment. “No jumping the start this time, cheater.”

I snorted. “No promises.”

“If you do I’ll shoot you in the foot,” Mel warned. He didn’t glance at either of us as we gave him an apprehensive look. The corners of his mouth slowly turned up in a grin.

Bursting out laughing, Barrell shook his head. “You’ve been waiting to do that all day, haven’t you?”

“Maybe.”

I gave Mel my best Kline swat to the shoulder which he rolled with. The smile didn’t leave his face.

The timer’s click intensified into the brashness of a battle snare. Just a few seconds now.

Glancing back, I gave Isamu and Ma a firm nod. They looked ready.

The growl of bass was added to the sharp clicking of the clock.

Three.

Two.

Deep bass thundered. It was quickly drowned out by the howl of men.

Those of the front line drove forward, killing or pushing past the last bulk of the goblin force to descend upon the stragglers.

The formation opened down the middle, and this time I had no intention of going off on my own. Seeing Barrell watching me, I knew what he intended to do.

As we charged forward with orange auras burning, it immediately became a race we both intended to win. To our pleasant surprise, Mel was right there with us. The distance wasn’t far enough for me to reach my full stride as we reached our men’s assault, so we arrived at almost the same time. It was a beautiful thing.

There was one goblin soldier between me and one of the closest hobgoblins. Taking a hard step, I cycled my energy downward, giving the ground a little Othisi push. It was little more than a hop, but as its sword neared, I kicked out, driving my foot into its chest. As it slammed into the ground, I pushed off its chest without losing a stride.

Mel had come shieldless, but it didn’t matter. His bolts were already flying at a rapid pace that I couldn’t match. He’d somehow figured out how to cycle the energy inside him so that it shot out one hand then the other far faster than it could build and repeatedly fire from one.

The nostalgia of the event hadn’t been lost on me. Seeing a hobgoblin closing in, I had a sudden urge and went with it. Reaching back with my spear, I stretched back to the limit. With ten yards between us, I let loose. My spear flew from my grasp at a range difficult to miss.

Even if I didn’t practice it often, my technique was far superior to what it had been that first night in Freedom. The defense of these monsters was many ranks higher than those early hobgoblins, but even so, it was still just a hulking beast without any psionics.

My spear caught it high on the chest a hands width below its throat. Not only did it strike true but seem to meet little resistance and its shaft quickly disappeared through its entrance wound.

Sidestepping the dying beast, I caught Barrell’s charge out of the corner of my eye. He didn’t use his spear at all, but lowered his shoulder, and slammed into his hobgoblin’s knee. It snapped backward in the entirely wrong direction. I didn’t have time to watch it play out but then found there were none of them left except for one we were here for.

“Clear,” I howled, only to see Isamu flash past me with a curved blade cocked low and dragging behind him. His aura glowed angry orange

A second aura came in lumbering behind him. Ma was also wielding his two-handed sword without a shield but ran with it in one hand and out to the side.

Isamu closed in first when the boss’s aura flared. With speed obscene for a creature so large, it swung down.

Swerving to the side, Isamu sprang away while keeping his feet.

The monster was already correcting its scepter’s trajectory when Ma arrived with his sword in both hands positioned high overhead. With his height and the length of his blade, it towered above them both.

Bringing his sword down, the man used all his leverage. The hobgoblin brought up its scepter in time, but the weight of the attack drove the scepter down. It wasn’t enough to stagger the brute, but it hadn’t expected anyone to match its strength.

I scanned the field and saw only a few of the hobgoblins still standing. Unsure whether to go and help the others or to stay close to back up Ma and Isamu, Destiny chimed in. “Everything else is handled. I’m interested in seeing what tricks these two have up their sleeves.”

Before I could question her, Isamu had darted inward on the boss’s flank. Slicing at its calf, he retreated to its rear.

The hobgoblin bellowed its complaint but kept Ma its target. Its wide arching swings should’ve made the monster slower, but its strength-enhancing aura sent the scepter blurring.

Ma had taken several steps back and used a high outstretch guard to keep it at length.

Using my hand, I singled for my gathering men to move back, but most of them already were.

A spike of energy caught my attention. Taking a few steps to get a better angle, I saw that Isamu and cut his aura, but his katana was gleaming orange and only getting brighter.

“What—” I started to say, but Isamu slashed down at a diagonal.

The action made little sense. Weapon bolster could increase a blade's damage output, but Isamu was many yards away. A bolt could reach, but he only had rank F psionics that wouldn’t do it any harm.

As his sword flashed, the energy flew from the blade in an arch. It connected with the hobgoblin’s back in a blink, and the mob visibly recoiled.

A miniature Destiny appeared in my peripherals clapping while she bounced up and down. “That’s new,” she squealed.

I almost contacted Victoria but didn’t want to interrupt her. Three other boss fights were happening or getting ready to happen.

Instead, I heard from someone I hadn’t all day. “It’s a mixing of bolstering and bolt casting,” Peter advised.

“I see.”

This time, the hobgoblin turned to meet Isamu’s threat, but he’d rushed forward in the same direction as the monster spun.

It allowed Ma to close in while staying on its flank. Swinging his sword low, he swept the boss’s foot out from under it and the hobgoblin sprawled.

Somehow it kept its footing, but Isamu had already moved back a few paces and was charging his attack.

The monster brought its foot around and found its balance. It wildly swung at Isamu, but Ma’s sword was already falling. The creature shifted mid-swing to block and even managed it. As another psionic arch flew at it, it shifted again, and it looked like it would block the energy attack. Unlike a physical blade, however, the crescent of energy wrapped around the scepter. The two halves that weren’t blocked collided directly with its face and gut.

There were visible gashes where the energy connected. Especially on its face where there was no armor to defend against it.

The hobgoblin flickered its eyes wildly and it started to swing with the same zeal. One of its eyes was damaged.

Neither man had stayed still. They’d gained some distance and were circling in opposite directions. This was a textbook battle of skill against brute strength. As strong as Ma was, his attack ferocity was mostly because he expertly used his leverage. His defense was just as impressive. Isamu worked with the Captain as if they’d done this a thousand times before. I hadn’t kept a close eye on him. Maybe they had?

When the hobgoblin recovered enough to spot Isamu, it took a large stride toward him, which Ma had been waiting for. He’d been slightly flanking the mob, so stepping in the same direction, he chopped down like a lumberjack. His blade rang as it cut into the back of its knee. There was a loud clang like it had struct stone.

The creature fell to its knee. Bracing itself with a hand on its good knee, it held the scepter out like it was going to defend with it.

Isamu hadn’t moved out of its path until that moment, when he sidestepped and slashed with a shimmering blade, severing its hand at the wrist.

Numerous voices lifted, and I found all three companies had drawn near. The rest of the enemies was dead.

“The last attack he used was normal weapon bolstering,” Victoria said.

The other boss battles must be going well if she’d felt confident enough to pull herself away.

“How is the mixed of the two abilities so powerful?” I replied, not expecting an answer. She knew it, of course, but what she was allowed to let on publicly wasn’t always clear to me. It must not be that rare, for she answered. “It’s because he can use the full length of his blade to frame his attack unlike a normal bolt that is limited to the palm of one’s hand. It can be almost as powerful as bolstering itself, but it can also overcharge a blade and shatter it. He’s quite skilled for someone that had to develop the ability recently.”

“Thankfully these bosses had no other abilities, like shielding.”

“One did,” she said to my surprise. “Bolt casting, but Kline got it.”

“Seriously? It’s like they just set him up to look good.”

Her laugh was airy with relief.

As I watched Ma and Isamu slowly pick apart what was left of our hobgoblin boss, I had Destiny pull up a screen of the other gates. Kline’s was already clear, and shockingly so was Harrisons. There was a giant pit in the middle of his courtyard that he’d somehow lured the boss into. It was one I’d have to go back and watch later.

Cornelius was the only one left and was facing off with the hobgoblin all on his own. His psionics were only at rank G, some of the lowest in the entire battalion, but his physical stats were also the most impressive. The hobgoblin had an edge overall in strength and speed, but against Cornelius’s spear and shield, it was being played with. Knowing him, he was using the mob as a form of training. As different as he and Achilles were, they were also the same.

Our boss fell soon after, and there was a round of congratulations going around as everyone started to mingle.

Approaching Ma and Isamu, Mel and Barrell took the lead in asking them many of the questions that I’d been wondering myself. All the while I kept an eye on the last boss.

When Cornelius finished it off, I noticed we’d climbed back up to second place in the standings. Colonel Edmond had climbed to first. It was still possible that we won the highest peak viewers, but it was too close to know if we’d have the highest average throughout the event.

“Well, that’s that,” Kline declared through the command voice channel.

“It looks like it,” Peter replied. “It looks like our fears for something more were unfounded.”

“I hope you’re—” Victoria's voice cut off.

A discernable wave of pressure swept over us all from above. I looked up and didn’t see anything when Destiny informed me what it was. “You’re just feeling the downdraft from what’s making it over the wall.”

The massive steel outer gate slammed into the earth with a sharp whoosh. My men were all ready off the wall, so how—

“Everyone retreat to inside the inner gates, immediately,” Victoria’s voice boomed over a battalion announcement.

I was already moving when another order came over the command channel. “Meet at the northern gate. Your Captains are to take command.”

The three of them motioned that they already understood and started calling out for the men to follow them. I started running in the same direction and called, “Destiny, I need eyes on what’s going on.”

“Lucius…” She sounded subdued.

She didn’t continue, but a window popped up high in my peripherals so as not to block my view while I ran.

It wasn’t what I’d expected. Instead of a hobgoblin, or maybe even something resembling the Freedom world boss, there was a person. Perhaps he was on the taller side, but he was in the field all alone so there was nothing of scale. He was shirtless and well built—more like Oliver than Kline. The only clothing he wore was a pair of pants that went down past the knee. They didn’t even look to have any protective properties.

At first, I didn’t notice it, but then Destiny gave me a close-up of his face. It was blocky and possessed many scars, but his skin… It had a very subtle purple tint. The bandit simulator flashed to mind, and I immediately remembered they were based upon Ekseliksi warriors.

It was then that I looked down at his feet. They were hanging there as if on nothing. There was a wide area beneath his of grass that was being pushed down and out. He was hovering there, just a few feet off the ground as if he couldn’t be bothered to stand on it.

“Victoria,” I said, knowing it probably wasn’t the best time to demand her attention. “Is he what I think he is?”

Still, she responded, “Yes. I’m guessing he a prisoner they persuaded to fight for them. Hurry to the north gate. I’ll tell you more.”

I did just that.

“Destiny,” I said. “It has to be using the push ability to stay in the air like that, right? Can you tell what rank he is?”

“Lucius, I—you can’t. I mean…”

At the speed I was going I already neared the north gate. Seeing Victoria with a group climbing the stairs to the outer wall’s rampart, I followed quickly behind.

Reaching the top, I saw many familiar faces searching for a place to look out. Peter, Oliver, and Olivia plus a few others. We didn’t have to wait long as the other Majors came racing up the stairs.

Finding a place next to the wall, I looked out and Destiny enhanced my augmented vision to zoom in.

Seeing us, the Ekseliksi crossed his arms over his chest.

“I want to thank you all for how hard you’ve fought today,” Victoria said, looking at each of us in turn. “Regrettably, it seems like a very powerful someone is determined for us to lose.”

“Perhaps, we’ve already won,” Harrison said, scratching the side of his beard. “My AI is telling me our viewers are climbing rapidly with this new guy showing up.”

“I wish that was the only thing that mattered.” She gave him a melancholic grin. “However, viewership isn’t the only way we can lose. If you’re killed during the event you’ll be logged out and be unable to log back in until it’s over…”

It was one of the few times I’d seen her struggle with words. Stepping forward, I drew everyone’s attention, including hers. “Just tell us plainly. What is he?”

Without moving her eyes from my own, she answered. “Ekseliksi elite with rank D psionics. They intend to wipe us out.”