"Ah! NO!"
"Help me!"
Although Therim dealt with the shadow spell, he still kept an eye on his surroundings, remaining vigilant of the shadow demon's ambush. He knew that for the spell to unfold such a power Iss'ir couldn't have gone far. However, splitting his attention like this was difficult even for him. Iss'ir was no ordinary opponent. The spell he cast couldn't be blocked that easily. Thus, Therim missed some of the shadow spikes.
The terrifying attacks rushed upwards and brought terror to the soldiers. In front of them the barriers might as well not exist at all. Within seconds the soldiers suffered hundreds of casualties.
Inwardly Therim felt the pain but someone of his stature naturally knew how to set his priorities. If he placed all his attention on the spell below, Iss'ir might just take the opportunity to sneak attack the crowded army, causing thousands to die.
"Don't panic, work together to defend!"
"We are here to help!"
The two generals tried to bring some order to the army. If 30 or so soldiers worked together, they might be able to block a shadow spike. However, the shadows moved too quickly. The soldiers often couldn't react in time. Meanwhile Blood Axe and Phey rushed left and right, trying to intercept the shadows. But even they didn't dare to block the attacks with their bodies and only struck from a distance.
While the NPCs struggled against the shadow spell, the players were watching with fearful expressions. None of the players had stepped onto the bridge yet, thus they were not targeted by the shadows. However, after getting over the momentary stupor some players tried to help. Yet their success was rather limited. The likes of Therim and Iss'ir were above level 90. Their power was not something the players could contend with yet. Only if multiple shields were placed on a single soldier, it might be enough to save a soldier's life.
With the help of the players and the generals the casualties among the soldiers could be reduced at least a little bit. Around thirty seconds later the shadows gathered below the bridge were thinned out. The soldiers slowly lost their tension, feeling relieved after surviving the worst part of it. However, just as everyone dropped their guard, a black streak flashed, golden light exploded, the world trembled, the bridge barely holding on.
"AH!"
When the first screams rang out, the situation had already passed. The river below roared tumultuously. Above the bridge Therim's treasured staff hung in the air, surrounded by dense golden magic, creating a suffocating pressure. And in the sky was an enormous black sword woven from shadows, its size almost as large as the bridge below.
Only after piecing everything together did the soldiers understand what had happened. As they already dropped their guard, the enemy struck again with a surprise attack. Luckily Therim remained vigilant, sending out his staff to deflect the shadow blade, saving thousands of lives. Some people shivered, some were drenched in sweat, but everyone looked at Therim with eyes brimming with admiration and thankfulness.
"Hehe, indeed, worthy of your reputation, Therim Riverbell."
Iss'ir's eerie voice spread through the surroundings. At this time the shadow spell below the bridge stopped as the shadows returned to their original positions, creeping along the ground. Yet Therim still didn't dare to relax. He knew all too well the trickiness of those of the chaos faction. If Iss'ir still lingered around and caught Therim off guard, the consequences might be disastrous. While others might think he had the advantage in the clash just now, only the mage himself knew how difficult it was for him to block that attack. If this weren't the Southern Wasteland but Hell instead, the result might have been different.
"This campaign…"
At this moment Therim was extremely solemn. Only now did he realize how perilous this war would be. Even if they were to emerge victorious, the losses would surely be devastating. Their order faction would definitely be weakened. And if they lost…
"Commander?"
Blood Axe's voice rang in Therim's ear. Although the mage looked to be deep in thought, he had never stopped being vigilant of his surroundings. Now he took one last look before floating above the bridge, grabbing his precious staff and giving the command to continue.
Order gradually returned to the army as they crossed the bridge. Yet their speed was somewhat faster than normal. The fear of another surprise attack couldn't be completely erased. Thus, even if Iss'ir had really disappeared, he still influenced the army, showing the terror of a powerful member of the chaos faction.
Feeling the atmosphere, Therim knew he had to say something to lift morale. He called his two generals, saying:
"The shadow blade conjured by our enemy was no ordinary spell. By deflecting it I caused the enemy some injuries. Spread this among the army."
"Yes, Sir."
The generals didn't question the truth of this statement. They were glad to receive some means to raise morale. The words spread swiftly among the soldiers, stabilizing their spirits.
Liam and his friends watched everything happening from the other side of the river. When Iss'ir first attacked, the chaos faction players had already been nearly eliminated. Thus, they could observe the entire scene. They were on tenterhooks the entire time since Therim was some distance away from them and no one could guarantee that the shadow demon wouldn't suddenly attack them. Fortunately, Iss'ir didn't care for such a small group of players and instead aimed to cause as much damage as possible.
"This time we suffered quite the casualties…", said Balm with a solemn expression.
"Yes. Out of our group of 1500 players I guess at most 800 remain.", agreed Silver Blade.
"At least we still have revives. But the NPCs aren't that lucky. How many of them might have died? At least 4000 alone due to the shadows."
Everyone nodded lightly, their hearts still shocked. Although under C's care there were no corpses on the bridge, but the blood stains remained, telling the tale of a desperate struggle against an overwhelming enemy.
It took a while until everyone was able to move on from the battle. The army advanced for a bit until they found a place suitable for rest, the ruins of an old fortress. The soldiers couldn't advance endlessly. The mages had to recover their mana and refill their mana potions, the archers had to replenish their arrows, some warriors' weapons needed repairs. Thus, even in the world of Crunaboul wars couldn't be fought without logistics. Only the method to transport logistics was somewhat more convenient than in the outside world.
As the army rested, some specialized mages stepped out to create a temporary teleportation platform on the open ground. As soon as they were done, lights flashed and bull-like beasts carrying all kinds of supplies appeared together with their handlers. The players who had previously died also wisely grasped the timing to respawn now, appearing randomly in the camp.
Meanwhile Therim had a new task for everyone. He sent out the players to scout their surroundings and block the enemy should they plan a sneak attack on the resting army.
"He really treats us like cannon fodder… Not much better than the chaos faction."
Some players grumbled in displeasure, but they still took on the task. The points were just too enticing. Fortunately, there was no movement from the chaos faction. It seemed they had fully retreated. Even Therim didn't feel the invisible threat brought by Iss'ir.
The army didn't rest for too long before moving on. They made their way deeper into the Southern Wasteland. Their path was fraught with dangers. The chaos faction didn't hesitate to set up sacrificial ambushes to deplete the order faction's strength. The players saw it clearly as the red bar indicating resources was constantly shrinking. And yet their army was one of the largest and strongest. One could only imagine how things were going in other places.
As they moved deeper into the Southern Wasteland the atmosphere became more oppressive. There were quite a few towns and cities housing many infernals. The order faction adhered to their principles and didn't attack these cities. However, when the chaos faction used this to their advantage, hiding warriors in the city and attacking the army from behind, even Therim boiled with anger, attacking mercilessly, wiping out the more than five hundred chaos faction soldiers by himself.
Subsequently the army had no choice but to avoid cities, slowing down their speed. However, this was worth it as they were able to dodge quite a few ambushes this way.
Hours passed like this, and fatigue affected everyone. Yet the higher-ups of the order faction knew that their campaign had to be swift. They couldn't grant the armies too much of a rest. Thus, when Therim's army arrived at a massive fortress everyone stared at the towering walls with trepidation. The soldiers were not in the best state to fight another big battle.
However, Therim's words lifted their spirits somewhat:
"Righteous soldiers, please, show your strength and conviction once more. This fortress in front of us is the last obstacle before we reach the Entrance to Hell. Furthermore, I don't ask you to fight alone…"
Therim's words were still lingering in the air when rapid footsteps could be heard from two directions. Looking around everyone felt a surge of strength when they noticed reinforcements appearing in the distance. The armies led by Chieftain Ogruz and Second Princess Oniarohl had arrived.