SK4 - Chapter 27 - Nick and Luna - The Battle Begins

This battle needed to happen quickly, and it felt like Lord Tagron was stalling near the end with his negotiations. His reinforcements would arrive within an hour, and at that point, it would be Nick’s loss if his forces hadn’t won.

And Shak’terra already caught another hidden plot. Despite them stopping that ramp construction, a force of mercenaries and bandits had arrived at the unfinished land bridge from their kingdom’s side, and it appeared to be meeting up with the bandits from before. Since they had dashed through the cleared forest of monsters, they had managed to pass through quickly. 

They were to potentially make their way over and come up from the other side of the keep–and now, most likely, to join Lord Tagron’s army in the fight instead. If the lords took his bargain and gave up Lord Brightclaw, they would be lying in wait in that forest to ambush one of the lords on their way home and assassinate them, more than likely.   

Thankfully, Nick had an answer to these forces. But he doubted that Lord Tagron knew he did. Their party of ten plus two soul servants moved at a near jogging pace, catching up to their forces and moving toward the front of the ranks.

Nick noted, “Wish I could have discussed with you girls about my plan, but there was no time. We may have come up with a better one.”

Kaya’s ears were flat on her head. “It was a tough call. I don’t think we could have come up with much better and stayed true to your paths. I get that Lord Brightclaw isn’t real, but but he’s a good guy. If such a thing happened in Frosthaven, I know what you’re going to choose and I support it.”

Fang nodded, adding, “That’s why Boss is the Boss… isn’t it?”

Eirwen smiled over at Nick as she jogged through the mixed forest terrain easily. “It’s what I signed up for when I asked you to be our hero. From the beginning. We all believe in you.”   

Shara frowned. “I don’t really get this Orion stuff, but I think it’s normal for the patriarch or matriarch to make the final decision in the end. If advisors are not available, that seems like the king’s decision anyway.”

Rebecca nodded. “That’s right. Now, we do have a challenging fight ahead of us. There’s a reason why Lord Tagron accepted these terms–he believes he will win, and easily at that.”

“I still value your opinions, even if I know that. Now, let’s make this prick regret overestimating us again.”

Shak’terra suddenly appeared next to Eirwen. “We have about forty-five minutes before the enemy arrives with a much larger army. The arriving forces are larger than all of our coalition armies combined.” 

And that was without considering the forces here, which were already around half of their whole coalition combined and of higher quality. Nick asked, “Did you find out what was obscuring you? Was it the beast king, or why did you take so long to come back the last time? They weren’t that far, were they?”

“Oh, that? I had to give a lost angel some directions, and…well, we got in a bit of an argument. Anyway, yes, the beast king has a large domain, it seems, and melds with the earth. It made it difficult to read the area well. There may be something else, but I would need a lot more time to suss it out.”

Nick got a bad feeling about that, but they arrived at the fighting location, the enemy army already in lines in waiting on the other edge of the forest clearing. The enemy force was largely elves and humans, with a sprinkling of a few dwarves and beastfolk throughout. 

The other armies had contained their slave forces, and perhaps this was why the proxy war had only contained such members. Lord Tagron hadn’t wanted to risk his more important people, thinking he could win with his weaker forces. That he was forced to face Nick with his more valuable people probably had the man angry–he’d much rather use his slaves as cannon fodder.

Their battlefield of choice was a forest clearing some distance from the main path, a small meadow with flowers that was likely to be soon stained with blood and frozen with ice. It was enough space for the nearly a thousand combatants to face off. The lines formed, much like the proxy war, but Nick and his wives were just one row behind the front. 

Nick noted, “I am probably going to have to fight Lord Tagron one-on-one to ensure he cannot escape, but I may need to force a duel to ensure that. Well, I’m hoping he will say something stupid so I can incriminate him perfectly. I may need you girls to handle the beast king and any other elites among them.”

Jasmine held a polearm weapon, but she was in her caster form this time, the humanoid form with four arms and four spider legs on her back. She looked over to the monster, that stood a short distance from Lord Tagron at this moment.  “Master had the thought that this thing was near the strength of that demon that harmed him. It makes me want to kill it all the more.”

Kaya nodded. “They have some formidable officers in their ranks, but that is the only real challenge among the enemy aside from the monster. I do think Lothar, Agatha, Renzou, Elyra and Myron are a match for most of them.”

Fang nodded. “Yeah, Shara’s mom and dad kick ass!”

A shiver ran up Shara’s spine. “Please don’t call them that. Those two aren’t…them.” 

Nick had made this plan because just like the real Frosthaven, his people understood him. He didn’t need to give a speech; his people moved to the battlefield without hesitation. They had learned the same thing that Nick had learned–that their home could not be safe unless Lord Tagron was defeated. And it would be the same thing against Blackthorne.

Still, he did. He gave a quick speech reminding them all that the enemies in front of them were responsible for the many plots they thwarted recently. He also mentioned the dams, getting the frogloks all riled up. They croaked in anger and bounced up and down, causing Nick to chuckle. If Nick had some way of bringing them home with him to Frosthaven, he totally would.

In the real Frosthaven, Nick was capable of protecting all of his soldiers’ lives, able to revive those who fell. In this one, the diversion structure he had previously purchased in his real city, which covered most climbers, existed and allowed people to start over from scratch for a cost here in this odd Test. 

A small benefit that he was happy for, the diversion structure paying off within the Ordeal in a strange way. This was part of the reason they were so willing. Death was not necessarily the end, and they were all protecting their homes and keeping themselves from becoming slaves under Lord Tagron.  

The two armies stood across from each other, and the two lords signaled to attack. Lord Tagron, from on top of his mount at the back of his army, swung his sword down. And Nick, from the front, gave his own wordless battle cry as he did the same.    

Nick empowered his drakans, moon gnolls, and froglok soldiers on their diregator mounts with his Encouraging Voice, drawing in essence from the surrounding area and strengthening them with a thin layer of essence as they began their charge. 

Numerous spells were launched at the diregators by the enemy mages in the middle lines, and a rain of arrows fell down on Nick’s army. The drakan archers and shamans did the same, with icicles and bolts of lightning flying across the field. But many of his casters held their spells back, totems and other spells going off to add protection and warding against enemy magics.    

The froglock and drakan shamans countered the mage’s spells with barriers of fire and lightning, totems pulsing and protecting the front lines from their magical onslaught. When Nick’s Aura covered the oncoming enemy, it slowed them down as frost began to spread, allowing the diregators a significant advantage–one that they hardly needed to be deadly. 

Soldiers were lifted into the roaring maws, the gators’ mouths chomping and their heads shaking as their teeth dug deeper into their flesh before tossing them aside. With nearly forty diregators in total, thanks to the few joining them back at the keep, they were a formidable fighting force all on their own.

And Nick could see that Lord Tagron was seething from this. Those were his diregators, in his mind, and now they were destroying his front lines. Probably, he had counted on the mages to soften them up, but the riders enhancing them combined with their protections made their spells wash over them like water over a duck’s back–at least, for now.  

The enemy lord signaled for his knights to prepare their attack, and they moved to build up speed in another direction, and Nick noticed they had brought out some special lances. With over a hundred of these powerful men and women on mounts, it was certainly a dangerous force.

But when he knew where they were going to go, they were not as scary of a threat. He called out to his warriors nearby, “Prepare for the charge. Show them your might.”

The drakans and moon gnolls readied their spells and abilities. The frogloks were ready, seeing the enemy’s mounted column charging toward them.  

The beast king leaped over the army, the immense creature moving way too fast belying its size. It crossed nearly half a football field in a single leap and sent a diregator and several warriors near Nick flying as it landed before it came after him. 

And it wasn’t alone. A few powerful warriors followed behind the terrifying monster on mounts or sprinting on foot moving through their lines and preparing to cut through his allies and the diregators between them. Prince Tagron was also among them, riding on a powerful mount.

Lord Tagron laughed, his voice carrying across the battlefield. “You fight from the front? How foolish of you, Lord Noblefrost. I’ll make you pay for this foolishness.”

Nick shook his head as he prepared his chains of the fallen, building up his frost and darkness into them. “My dominion of frost reflects the true nobility of Orion. That means leading from the front, never backing down from battle.” 

Lord Tagron sneered at him as he flicked his arm, a haze suddenly covering the beast king. Numerous things happened all at once. The beast king launched itself forward again, and its fist thundered toward Nick, and the knight’s charge was arriving at the front line of diregators from the right side.

In unison, numerous diregators leaped into a spread position in a line facing the mounts, roared, and swiped their tails at the oncoming knights as froglok shamans finished their spells. A wave of water splashed out at nearly head-level of the knights like a river somehow just appeared on the battlefield, crashing into them, nearly bringing the stream of knights in the front to a halt.     

Then, Agatha, Eirwen, and Luna together sent powerful blasts of cold, washing over the oncoming knights and freezing the mounts and knights alike, halting their charge. Jasper and Ishkara each howled and shrieked, sending an impressive wave of frost to join the river, ice spreading deeper through the river and covering a dozen more knights. 

The knights behind the front line of knights tried to avoid crashing into their allies, but the events came so suddenly that they were moving far too fast to stop. The chaos from the charging knights was significant as they collided with one another, horses crying out and neighing as others reared up or attempted to stop, digging furrows in the ground. A wall of jagged ice, downed bodies, and powerful gator maws filled their view.

Then, moon gnolls leaped from the sides deeper into the column of knights, the large males bringing powerful clubs to bear down onto the slowed and stopped knights. Dull thuds or metal being banged sounds echoed as horses screamed and warriors tried to defend themselves with their weapons from their now awkward, downed, frozen, or stopped positions. The gators now launched forward to bite into the stopped knights and their mounts, devastating them as their froglok riders leaped and stabbed into the knights.  

And Nick’s chains of ice and darkness wrapped around the incoming beast king’s fist and body; a prepared, anchored, woven net launched from out of view and slowed the monster’s approach, nearly bringing the beast king to a complete stop as the monster tripped over itself. 

Full of starlight, Shara leaped forward with her club over her head, sailing through the air like a comet, and her club smashed into the monster’s open face, finally stopping the creature’s momentum. Kaya’s axes cleaved into its body deeply as she chopped into its hind leg like she was felling a tree, spinning and attacking repeatedly as she hamstringed the beast.     

Activating his Monstrous Transformation, Nick’s bulked-up arm whipped, extended beyond what anyone would think was possible, and slashed the tall monster across its chest with his blade of white light. This caused ice and blood to scatter onto the ground in front of the beast king. It roared from all the attacks hitting it at once, and Rebecca, Fang, Sable, and Jasmine had rushed forward to meet the other powerful warriors in combat.

He whipped his sword attacks several times, cuts landing across its body as the beast king roared, and it struggled to remove its arm from the bindings. It swiped to the side with its free claw at Kaya to stop her from hurting his leg, but Jeffrey buzzed in with his two shields, blocking the attack and reflecting damage back into the monster. 

Frost was already traveling up its arm and leg, and the woven knots were specially designed to distribute the tension and actually strengthen the more it pulled on the chains and brought it further off its balance. The darkness mixed with the empowered frost of his Concept restrained it; the monster had leaped right into his trap.

And it happened while Kaya and Shara wailed on the beast, weakening it. It had a thick skin, however, and Nick could tell, despite annoying the creature greatly, it hadn’t actually been significantly hurt. 

A third stratum monster simply had tremendous stores of essence, its body thick and stocked full of it making it far more durable. He could tell that if he let his frost go for a mere moment, its essence would remove it from its limbs quickly. At the same time, damaging it was costing it much of its offensive potential. 

Then Ishkara and Jasper joined the fray, the demonic frost phoenix and frostwarg alpha crashing into it. They shrieked and howled as their spells of ice crashed into the monster’s side, claws and fangs tearing into its muscles.

Nick looked at the incoming warriors, the ones Lord Tagron sent to assassinate them. Once again, the elven lord was underestimating him if he thought these men would be a challenge at all.

“Girls, I’ll leave the beast king and these elite warriors to you. I’m counting on you.”

Luna’s frost covered Nick and his allies’ armor from her special totem, providing a thin layer of additional protection that would dull the monster’s blows. He could feel her resonance, her will for him to be better and stronger. He grinned at her before taking off, Fang, Luna, Rebecca, Sable in the shadows, and Jasmine following to take on the elites. This left the monster to Kaya, Shara, his soul servants, and Jeffrey to keep distracted.

Leaping into the air, he dashed across the battlefield at an angle those approaching could not even follow. He sent several blade waves at the mounts as he dashed and flipped, not even slowing down as he moved across the battlefield and wounded enemies. 

In all, his wives had come a long way these past few months. While Nick was a Lord of Orion and stood at the top in strength, part of the reason was because they had all devoted themselves to him, creating a core meant to empower him rather than themselves. If not for his kingdom feeding into his strength and that, perhaps they’d be much closer to him. But in the end, a kingdom was often only as strong as its lord. Nick would need to be the one to settle this.

Thanks to their strength, he could fight without worry that they could handle whatever threat he put in front of them. In this case, it would be a man who was not quite as strong as Thresh or the Devilsaur Matriarch he faced. Only this time, Nick may have to face him almost entirely on his own to ensure their victory.

***

The deafening roar of the Beast King, a creature of raw earth and blood, sent a tremor through the very ground, and Luna’s hoarfrost-covered armor felt as though it vibrated with the impact. 

Her pale blue hair, usually a serene frame for her tender expression, was now whipped about by the chaotic winds of battle. Around her, the forest clearing, which moments ago had been filled with orderly ranks and a meadow of flowers, was now a maelstrom of shouts, clashing steel, and the sickening thud of bodies. Ice and blood now covered much of the ground, the battlefield transforming as their combat waged on.

Nick said, “Girls, I’ll leave the beast king and these elite warriors to you. I’m counting on you.”

Luna followed Fang as she dashed forward to follow their Alpha’s orders, but her gaze snapped to where Kaya was a blur of crimson fur and axes. She launched herself towards the gargantuan monster. Kaya’s three tails, each wielding an axe, spun with devastating speed, and Luna could feel the sheer sharpness of Kaya’s Concept as it cleaved deep into the Beast King’s hide from the side, and it wailed. 

Beside her, Shara, a streaking comet of starlight, brought her heavy club down on the Beast King’s side with a thunderous impact, causing the chained monster to stumble. They are magnificent, Luna thought, a familiar swell of pride blooming in her chest. 

This was the strength of their pack: fighting together as one. Her own small totems, carved figures pulsing with essence and mana, activated around her, showering Kaya and Shara with the strength of the earth and a vital vigor from her water totem, a constant undercurrent of support.

But the Beast King was not the only threat. Prince Tagron, mounted on a powerful mount, and his elite warriors, equally swift and deadly, were cutting a path toward Nick. 

Luna watched as Fang, small but resolute had blitzed ahead with her prodigious strength. She slammed her ice-covered shield into Prince Tagron’s mount, bringing it to a halt despite her tiny size. The girl was smaller than most adults, and the prince on top of his mount was higher than even Elyra’s normal form. And yet, the tiny girl a quarter of the height had stopped them. 

The prince countered with his saber, and Fang blocked with her shield, the clash ringing out across the field. Fang’s ice cleats found purchase on the grassy floor, her body covered in the protective layer of her frost armor, resisting the prince’s blows. 

She was a small shield, but an unyielding one. Shoving again, this time she bowled the mount over, forcing the prince off the mount entirely as he leaped and landed on the ground with a scowl on his face. Two elite warriors were on foot, and they stood protectively next to their prince now that they had arrived.

“You dare get in our way? You’re just a tiny thing,” one of the prince’s warriors sneered at Fang.

“Bring it! I might be small, but I’m buff enough!” Fang retorted, rapping her spear against her shield twice, her tail wagging.

And then, from the deepening shadows, Sable moved. A flash of darkness that emerged from a warrior’s shadow, her spear darted out, piercing deep into his thigh. 

“And she’s not alone, boys,” Sable chuckled, her voice deep and playful, yet laced with the promise of swift, cold death as they tried countering at her fleeting form.

The warriors flinched, spreading out to watch for further attacks from the shifting darkness, and one even struck out at it, ineffectually. The master of surprise and shadows only sent knives of ice and shadow in response, the knives piercing into their armor and freezing them, forcing them to be distracted from Fang and Luna’s approach.

Meanwhile, Rebecca met some other warrior in combat, the end of her staff coated in light as she twirled it and swung. This enemy appeared to be a talented spearman, while a mage prepared a heavy spell above their head, a fiery meteor from on top of the mount.

A blast of light pierced through it, dispelling it from the air, and another beam took out the leg of the mount, causing them to fall to the ground. Two more mounts were covered in webbing, tripping them.  

Jasmine shouldered her polearm with her two arms on one side and turned to Luna. “I’ll take these scrubs on, Luna. Go ahead and help your pack sisters.” 

With all the elite enemies stopped from chasing Nick, Luna was able to focus on helping Fang and Sable.

Luna’s breath hitched. Her pack sisters were engaged, holding the line against the king and the prince's elites, preventing them from reaching Nick. Her own role, as a Frostborne Shaman, was to support, to empower, and to ensure their survival and victory. 

She remembered her recent minor enlightenment in the Path of Kings, how she’d realized her Concept wasn’t about her leading, but about her aiding and empowering her Alpha and her pack as the pack mother. The devotion core near her heart thrummed, and the Concept within her Soul Core flared to life.

Luna closed her eyes for a fleeting second, focusing her will. Her Packbound Resonance activated fully, a profound connection linking her not just to her pack sisters right beside her, but she could even feel Kaya and Shara in the distance, their fighting spirit blazing. 

Luna willed it with every fiber of her being: for her pack to become stronger, for their essence to blaze, for them to be unstoppable as they fought as one.

The essence within Fang and Sable suddenly pulsed brighter, their movements becoming even more decisive. Luna could feel the surge of energy being drawn into them from the surrounding area, and an almost visible haze surrounding her sisters, reminiscent of Winny’s Omni-Barrier. Fang’s ice armor thickened and strengthened, her shield bash carrying more weight. Sable’s shadowy movements became even more ethereal, her spear thrusts carrying a deeper chill.

Luna didn't just feel their enhancement; she felt herself change, too. Her own traits, like Icy Tranquility and her Frost-tempered body, felt improved. Her essence and mana flowed more smoothly, her focus sharpening. 

She channeled mana into her ice totem, which then sent a volley of spears of ice at the advancing warriors surrounding Fang and Sable, rather than just a mere blast of cold as she stabbed out with her spear toward one of the warriors as well. 

The warriors were unable to deal with her spears and Fang’s howl, a blast of ice echoing outward at the same time, and Sable’s iceshadow daggers erupting from the darkness. The elite warriors protected themselves with essence, but they were disoriented by the unexpected barrage, giving Fang and Sable the opening they needed to press their advantage. 

Their spears pierced forward, finding purchase in their torsos, all three warriors taking damage as the pack attacked as one. Ice and shadow spread into their targets, the three not ready for the unexpected coordination and power from the tiny adversaries.

This was Luna’s strength, fighting together with her pack. Hers was to watch over, to aid, to empower–just like Eirwen. To be closer to her mate, to make an opening for him to achieve victory. She would gladly give her everything to her pack and her Alpha. The prince’s elites, surprised by the sudden surge of power, were pushed back as the three continued their spear thrusts and icy assault. 

Prince Tagron activated a convergence skill, essence rushing in as his body and sword was filled with essence. Eirwen’s Omni-Barrier arrived on Fang, and an arrow sparkling with stardust shot across the field and struck the unaware warrior in the throat. Eirwen was supporting against both the beast king and the elites, with Shak’terra hexing and cursing the beast king.

Once again, Luna felt herself become more, and she and her pack sisters moved as one.

The prince thrust out several times in quick succession. It was like he had five swords all at once, each one brimming with a violent red essence. Luna, Fang, and Sable’s spears struck as one in response. Three of the strikes were deflected from their attack in a heartbeat. Two of the prince’s blade copies struck Fang’s frost armor, the hoarfrost protection from Luna and Winny’s Omni-Barrier shattering–but the bite was taken out of the blow entirely as a large portion of the essence was expended. Their counters also shot out a wave of frost, each of them infusing frost essence into their spears.

The sword strikes didn’t pierce Fang’s armor, and while one warrior struck out with his sword in defense of the prince, he was unready for the three smaller girls to each move in synchronicity. They fanned out and surrounded them even as they struck out with attacks again, filled with essence. 

Luna’s spear pierced deeply into the man’s gut, and Sable’s Heartseeker landed from behind him, next to his spine. The shadows rushed into his heart, killing him. 

And Fang howled, shattering much of the frost that had gathered and blasting it into Prince Tagron, sending him flying. To their chagrin, suddenly, Councilor Robins landed from the sky, surrounding the prince in a barrier of light.

“Leave this one. If Lord Tagron falls today, chaos will rule his kingdom. The prince may be necessary to save countless lives, as is an Heir’s duty.”

Fang growled. “What are you talking about, you dummy! That guy’s a bad guy! He tried to kill Boss!”

The councilor sighed and put her hands on her hips as Luna frowned. The man was clearly not a good person; she could see it with her eyes, her Advanced Soul Sense. But this stupid angel wouldn’t believe her and would argue–and who knows how long that would take? “Leave him, Fang. We need to beat the beast king; we can’t worry about him for now.” 

Rebecca and Jasmine were already rushing back to help with the beast king. Luna had been vaguely aware of how Rebecca had fought the spearmen and Jasmine beat the wizard. The fighting sister mixed thrusts filled with spiritual will and beams of light, breaking down the man’s defenses and covering him with bruises. 

While her body was nearly weightless, her strength and essence allowed her speed to be significant and her staff to strike hard. The light essence was perfect for protection and deflection, especially as her mastery increased.    

And Jasmine had merely crushed the wizard and two warriors. Her stonelight curtain absorbed a powerful, fiery blast from him, the stone webbing becoming superheated and shattering. But with a wave of Jasmine’s hands and shooting of her webbing, she connected the burning stone and dropped it onto the men as she charged in with her polearm. Her four armed swings combined with her monstrous essence cleaved through them easily, making them a joke for her to kill.  

With the the elites mostly defeated, the party rejoined Shara and Kaya, who were still doing their best to hold on. Jasmine shot some stonelight webbing to wrap around the beast king’s tail and leg, tying them together and restricting them. Rebecca’s staff slammed into the back of the monster’s head, sending disruptive spiritual will like her shouts into its brain, stunning it.

Combined with the frost that had built up, the creature was nearly crippled.

Luna could feel the truth, however. The monster had at least half of its essence or more, the danger still present. It roared as it fought against its bindings and activated some kind of skill, pulling essence from the earth beneath them. The ice around it shattered as its blood boiled and its body heated up, and its fist shot out powerfully at Shara.

She was already in motion, however, having taken a graceful step toward dodging just as the punch was thrown, and then leaped to the side, evading the blow entirely. Shara then leaped into the air and brought her club down on the extended arm, bringing the tied-up creature further off balance.

Then Fang crashed into it like a meteor. Her frost armor exploded, sending hoarfrost shrapnel into the beast king, sending it tumbling to the ground.

Having prepared her attack for some time, Kaya released her Charged Strike and added on her Sharpness Concept into the attack. The girl had reached Middle Mastery allowing her to combine them, and this deep wave of essence cleaved deep into the monster’s shoulder diagonally down to its stomach, removing one of its arms which it had brought up in defense–unfortunately, this meant nothing critical had been hit.

Kaya had used her Whirlwind ability earlier, and Shara had used her Convergence skill as well, which had fractured its leg. Ishkara and Jasper had left to help Nick–because a trial barrier surrounded Nick and Lord Tagron, the two fighting. The battlefield had changed significantly as they fought, and now, Luna and her pack sister’s all focused on the devotion cores near their hearts.

Essence once again rushed into the beast king, and the earth exploded around it, forming into a crater as the monster was lowered within. Large stones shattered and started orbiting the beast king, its eyes gleaming red in hatred. 

Its one remaining claw was covered in blood and stone, a deadly implement brimming with essence. Striking out toward Rebecca, Luna’s heart clenched in worry for her. With her will, she pushed as much of her mana into her protective totem, the frost protection increasing for her whole party. Sparkling stardust covered the party and enhanced it, thanks to Eirwen’s efforts from her arrow.

Jasmine’s webbing connected to Rebecca’s back, and she was partially tugged out of the way–and Jeffrey buzzed in a blur, arriving with his two shields and covered with shimmering essence–having received Eirwen’s Omni-Barrier. The beetlefolk put everything into his defense, prepared to take this blow for his friends. 

The monster’s arm struck Jeffrey powerfully but off-center and was redirected away from Rebecca. The angle of the blow just sent Jeffrey flying higher through the air as all his defenses shattered, and the reflection of damage actually broke apart the monster’s arm. 

Using her wraith form, Sable passed right through the orbiting stone, stabbing deeply into its back with her shadow monster’s maw–her Concept. It tore through the creature’s spine, and iceshadow shredded its body from within. As the beast king lost control of its protective shield, it seemed Shak’terra, the spirit ready, tore a hole in the orbiting earth near its chest. 

A powerful beam of light from Jasmine blasted outward from her necklace, piercing through the hole and into the monster’s torso. She had targeted the monster’s core, and while she hadn’t killed the beast king, the family’s assault wasn’t quite done as the protective earth began to crumble uselessly to the ground.  

Kaya and Shara’s powerful blows struck next, the girls having leapt upward and striking powerfully in the torso from both sides. Luna and Fang arrived next, their spears stabbing into its back and releasing frost as they howled. The huge monster fell to the ground, and it was finally defenseless. It tried biting out with its mouth, but its lower body’s movement was cut off thanks to the damage to its spine.

The light left the monster’s eyes as Kaya’s axe cut powerfully into its head, its defensive essence completely expended.

It was a tough battle, but after confirming the beast was dead and surveying the battlefield, their gazes all turned to the trial barrier. Their devotion cores had blazed during that battle, and they could tell that their husband’s spirit was vibrant as a result. All who still stood watched, waiting for the outcome of the fight. 

Victory was in the hands of their Alpha now.