The Fusionist Book 4 -- Chapter 55

Chapter 55

“…and then this tunnel leads to where it is believed this Aperture is located.”

Larek looked down at the map that Gharix had meticulously and efficiently carved into the wall of their sanctuary, seeing the route that they would have to take to get to their destination. It was approximately 10 miles of tunnels that wound back and forth through the nearby area, filled with monsters and potentially Umbral Demons, the latter of which were something that Larek would have to take care of since he was the only one that could hurt them. The Combat Fusionist had mentioned his ability to manipulate his Pattern in such a way that it could be used offensively and defensively, but neither Pyluxa nor Hakkin had any talent in controlling their own Patterns in such a way. It was possible that they might be able to learn eventually, but for now they would be relatively useless in that aspect of their fight.

After creating a couple of Camouflage Spheres for the Drekkins to use, Gharix and Abarcen had gone out of their little sanctuary to investigate their route, only coming back when they were forced to. With the Spheres active, they were able to slip by the monsters they encountered, but when they came to a section of tunnels that were completely dark, the two of them had to leave rather than risk being possessed by an Umbral Demon.

“It looks doable enough – but what did you encounter along the way?” Larek asked, wanting to know a little bit more of what they could expect to have to fight against.

The Combat Fusionist, of course, hadn’t been idle while the two had been out scouting. He had spent the few hours they were gone creating additional Weaken +10 Fusions upon some rocks he carved out of the wall, filling his belt pouches to nearly overflowing. They were accompanied by many, many Adjustable Illumination +10 Fusions on other rocks (which essentially allowed the one touching them to dictate how bright it was when activated, up to Magnitude 10), as well as Directional Illumination +10 stone rods that all of the Drekkin would be carrying.

He nearly started creating more of his other offensive Fusions, such as Frozen Zone and Healing Shelter, but decided against it; while they would undoubtedly be useful, the group would already be straining the ambient Mana density as it was.  If he was to use them more often than in emergency situations, he could risk them all running out of ambient Mana even if they were on the move. They tended to use a lot of Mana, after all, and he’d rather have more options than less during any fights they engaged in.

“It’s… bad,” Gharix responded with a shake of his head. “We were barely able to avoid physically bumping into the hordes of monsters emerging from the darkened tunnel we located, even if we were rendered invisible by that Camouflage Sphere you allowed us to use.

“There are thousands of individual monsters – and those were just the ones we saw,” he continued. “Once they get to this junction,” he said as he pointed to a point in the map he’d carved that split into five different directions, “they would divide and start moving down them. From what I can tell by the markings on the tunnels themselves, this junction leads to different hubs in our underground system, which typically held our biggest cities. Most—if not all—of them have fallen to the monster hordes, other than Draverdin, so what they are doing from this point I have no idea. We do know that this is why there is a constant but manageable flow of monsters that attack Draverdin, but that could change if all of the monster groups suddenly all flow toward the city instead of branching off.”

Larek nodded along with the explanation, also wondering what the point of them branching off was when they could probably all swarm the Drekkin city and force their way in after a short while. He attempted to peruse the memories of the Demon mind that had connected to him for answers, but there didn’t seem to be anything relevant to this situation within them. Or at least nothing he could comprehend fully, as many of those memories were strange because they came from a viewpoint completely foreign to him. It was like trying to understand the Drekkin as they spoke in their own language; he might be able to pick up a few things based on context, but other than the overall plan of the Demons and the few larger concepts he’d been able to pick out already, the rest of it was incomprehensible.

“How was the strength of the monsters? Did any of them seem particularly powerful?”

Gharix and Abarcen looked at each other for a moment before turning back to Larek. “Not particularly powerful, no. Some of them were what we’ve faced before, and while there were many more that were unfamiliar, none of their groups appeared to be more than what we could’ve handled even before we received these incredible Fusions you’ve gifted us with,” the group leader answered with a thankful tone to his voice. Larek waved off the implied thanks, as he didn’t feel like he deserved it all that much, considering that he was conscious that he was using them to accomplish his goal, even if they didn’t see it that way.

“Then that must mean they have the stronger ones in reserve for some reason. I’m sure you’ve seen some powerful monsters over the last month or so, correct?”

“Oh, yes, we have; some of them required a much larger group of Mages and Martials to kill, and we were always forced to avoid them and warn those in charge of our defenses at home,” Gharix responded wistfully, as he likely remembered that he no longer had a home to go back to at the moment. We’ve even participated when the full might of our defenders in Draverdin were pitted against these monsters, but it was rare. As a result, we’re more accustomed fighting against the smaller, weaker monsters that infest the tunnels.”

That made sense to Larek, based on what he knew about the group, which was more like a scouting group that would only fight when they had an overwhelming advantage. With only two Mages in the group, they were a bit more mobile than one with a larger complement, and there were technically no defenders like Bartholomew had been; in other words, none of them had a shield that would be necessary to fight against something a little more powerful. They were designed to use their overwhelming force to quickly destroy groups of weaker monsters and then flee before they were set upon by something that would give them trouble.

All of that meant they were perfectly poised to absolutely tear through the weaker monsters they would encounter on their way to the Aperture, but once they were there, they would be at a slight disadvantage after rarely ever fighting anything too strong for them. Fortunately, they had quite a few advantages that they hadn’t had before, which would hopefully be enough to get them through.

“Fair enough,” Larek said in confirmation. “Do you need to rest before we leave?”

The two Drekkin who had scouted the pathway to the Aperture shook their heads. “No, but we should probably discuss how we’re going to sneak in and close the Aperture. These Camouflage Spheres are powerful, but there are so many monsters that—”

The Combat Fusionist immediately interrupted the group leader. “We’re not going to sneak in.”

“—we won’t be able to avoid—WHAT?! No, going in any other way is suicide!”

Larek shook his head even as the others agreed with Gharix. “Have you ever closed an Aperture before?” he asked after the protestations died down somewhat.

They all looked at each other before the group leader responded. “No, but I’ve heard about it from some others who participated in the closing of the smaller Apertures before they all disappeared, and it seems pretty straightforward.”

Sighing, Larek explained why they had to kill as many of the monsters on their way in as they could. “The reason they all disappeared from elsewhere is because this main one somehow absorbed them, due to the influence of the Umbral Demons – or at least that is the impression I get from the Demon’s memories in my head. It’s because they are all now tied together that we need to thin their numbers on the way in and not leave any behind us.

“If we don’t, as soon as we even touch the Aperture, every single monster that has spewed forth from that portal into the world of Corruption will rush back to defend it. I don’t know about you, but I don’t particularly fancy fighting what are undoubtedly very strong monsters defending the Aperture while we are rushed by thousands of weaker monsters from behind.”

Larek could see right away that they hadn’t known this fact, and they once again looked around at each other in trepidation. Rather than let them reconsider and back out, he said as cheerily as he could, “Then it’s settled! Let’s get going and close this Aperture!”

Without waiting for them, he strode toward the entrance of their little sanctuary, mentally deactivated the Secure Hideaway that had been blocking off the passageway into the cave, and picked up the stone it was on as he walked past, sticking it in one of his belt pockets. His staff knocked against the floor as he used it as a walking stick, striding out of the entrance without fear – though he had to admit that he felt a little trepidation about what was to come. Running headlong into hordes of monsters was still as frightening as ever, even if he felt a desire to kill them and absorb their Aetheric Force, but he quickly tempered that fright with his need for revenge. The violation he had felt when that original Umbral Demon had attempted to take over his body, mind, and soul was still vividly in his every thought, and only by destroying every single one he could find down in the underworld would he be satisfied that they could never do such a thing to anyone else ever again. Of course, preventing them from overrunning the Drekkin and breaking out into the wider world in order to destroy every living being was also a goal of his, but it was secondary to ensuring that the Demons and their insidious ability to possess people were wiped out in their entirety.

He was slightly worried for a moment when he didn’t hear anyone following him out of the sanctuary, but before he had gone more than two dozen steps from the entrance, he heard the soft scuff of scaly feet against the ground behind him. He looked back to see Gharix and Abarcen handing the Camouflage Sphere Fusions to the pair of Mages, and he mentally nodded at seeing this. Even now, they were smart enough to protect the most vulnerable of them, though with their available defensive Fusions, they were a far cry from how vulnerable they were even just the day before.

As the smaller tunnel where their sanctuary had been located was only somewhat connected to the main thoroughfares where the monsters traveled out to the rest of the tunnels under the desert, it wasn’t surprising that it took them about 10 minutes to encounter their first monsters. When Larek saw that it was a group of approximately 150 Fanged Rabbits, he thought that this was the perfect opportunity for the group to practice with their new Fusions.

As the 3-foot-tall, dark-furred rabbits spotted them from approximately 250 feet away down the tunnel, they screamed in fury at their appearance as they bared their teeth – including their 6-inch-long fangs that they were named for. The scream seemed to startle the Drekkin, who stopped immediately upon seeing the vast array of monsters that were now steadily eating up the distance between them.

“These are all yours – let me see what you can do now. Don’t be afraid to practice with the Fusions you have, and spread out so that you don’t hurt each other,” Larek warned them. “I’ll be by the Mages in case you need help, but I imagine you’ll be fine.” So saying, the Combat Fusionist retreated until he was nearby where he could sense both Pyluxa and Hakkin, who were both invisible underneath their Camouflage Spheres. Larek, of course, could sense them and the Fusion they were using, but they were effectively hidden for the moment.

At least until they unleashed a barrage of projectiles that spewed forth from the tips of their swords, spraying Magnitude 1 Flaming Balls and Icy Spikesat the incoming monsters that were bounding along the stone flooring. The Rabbits that were hit – and there were many of them – screamed yet again, this time in pain rather than fury, as they were burnt or stabbed by icicles from extreme range. Only a few of them died immediately as a lucky projectile hit them in the eye or somewhere more vulnerable like their necks or chest, but more than half of them were at least slowed down after taking some noticeable damage.

Not to be undone, the Martial Drekkin finally reacted by spreading out and preparing themselves for the charge of the Fanged Rabbits, their weapons at the ready and their stances clearly ready for whatever was going to happen. Larek noticed only the slightest hesitation in their movements at the onset before they took their positions, aided by the fact that they were able to move twice as fast as they normally would because of their new Agility stats. Thankfully for them, they appeared to acclimate to the higher stats than Larek had in the past, as it seemed as if it was simply normal for them.

When the front lines of the Rabbits arrived, they immediately focused on the four Martials out ahead of the two Mages, despite the fact that the barrages of projectiles continued to pour out of the invisible spheres that hid Pyluxa and Hakkin. Whatever it was that made them concentrate on the melee-focused Drekkin, the monsters mistakenly encountered an extremely stalwart resistance as Gharix and the other Martials absolutely tore into them.

Black-furred body parts went flying through the air as they were chopped, sliced, and stabbed in a flurry of attacks by the Drekkin. Here and there, Larek could see a few ice blocks suddenly appear out of nowhere when the crowd around one of them became too much, which sent the Rabbits that were much too close flying backwards with a crunch of a solid block of ice smashing against their faces. Gharix activated a Battle Art that somehow made him even faster, and he became a whirlwind of blades that absolutely chew threw his opposition, while the others used Battle Arts to aid in their movement, dodging the assaulting Rabbits with fancy footwork while they struck back.

When the first use of a Variable Elemental Gust Sphere (VEGS) was used by Abarcen, the resulting explosion of the Rabbit from the inside was powerful enough to trigger his Automatic Ice Repulsion Field to block the body parts from hitting him. The Fusion worked so well that the suspended sphere was powerful enough to shred another Rabbit that attempted to hop through it to get to the Drekkin, nearly showering him with the half of its face that was ripped off in the attempt.

Despite the screams of the dying Rabbits and the slightly disturbing sounds that accompanied the wholesale slaughter of the monsters, Larek heard Abarcen chuckle as that happened – and the other Martials took note of it as well. In the next few seconds, multiple usages of the VEGS were used by the others, and joyous laughter accompanied it from the entire group.

As disgusting as it was, they were obviously having fun. Their newfound strength and speed, along with the other Fusions they possessed, was enough to make the fight completely one-sided, which brought with it the knowledge that, unless they were really stupid, they were practically invulnerable against these particular monsters. It was a feeling that Larek had felt before when he had developed the Repelling Barrier originally, but now that feeling was amplified in the entire group.

The Mages hadn’t stopped their barrage until nearly a minute went by, where they sheathed their shortswords and began casting their own spells. It wasn’t technically needed because of the Fusion on their weapons, but Larek could tell that they wanted to contribute their own strength against the monsters, not wanting to rely on the Fusion despite it being as powerful as it was. He wasn’t disappointed as he watched them deftly maneuver their spells around their groupmates to hit clumps of Rabbits, absolutely obliterating the monsters when they hit; it showed that they had a familiarity with working with each other to avoid friendly fire. Their teamwork was impressive even though they were still getting used to their new stats and Fusions, and Larek was further confident of their future success.

In the end, it was a slaughter – as he figured it would be. As for the Drekkin, when the last Fanged Rabbit fell to a spearthrust through its head, nearly decapitating it in the process, they all froze on the field of battle as they looked around at the carnage – only for the remains of the Rabbits to quickly disperse into dark-green and black clouds of smoky shadows. It was only then that they all hissed loudly as they raised their weapons above their heads, the two Mages dropping their Camouflage Spheres to join in the celebration.

They had won, and won handily. Right now Larek knew they were feeling invincible, but he would have to temper that with the dangers they would be facing in the future. Right now, if they were only fighting these weaker monsters, they would have no problems; it was only when they were forced to fight something much stronger, such as a giant scorpion, that they would find that they were far from invulnerable. They would be protected quite well at least, but he’d already told them that his Fusions were perfect and had weaknesses that they would have to learn about through experience.

However, that was for a later time. The Combat Fusionist let them have their celebration against the Fanged Rabbits, because before too long, they would be facing one group of monsters after another… and he wondered if they would have the same feeling of exhilaration after hours of constant fighting.