Major Tarok turned around after hearing a commotion only to be faced with the open maw of an ice borne serpent. Its breath freezing the very air as it lunged for him and those by his side. He was unluckily the prime chosen target of the new commander's 4th circle spell [wrath of the ice serpent].
Out of the present Majors and B-rank adventurers he was not only the easiest target distance wise but also sported wounds on his legs thus limiting his ability to evade.
Tarok wasn't the strongest Major here, but he was strong enough to react in the brief time he was given. He instantly summoned his aura and pushed away those he could before desperately lashing out with his battle-axe.
Clang!
A loud clanging erupted as Tarok's battle-axe made contact with the mana formed serpent before almost instantly Tarok was blown off his feet and his battle-axe was knocked to the side leaving his torso and shoulders exposed.
Douglas watched on in horror as the massive ice serpent crunched down on Tarok's left shoulder, swiftly tearing his arm from his torso with a violent jerk. Halgrave and Maggie moved fast but they weren't fast enough.
Not only was Tarok bitten by the serpent others in the area were catapulted into the solid northern wall by its powerful body. Many suffered broken bones from the crash whereas a couple were even immediately killed, their heads smashing apart like pumpkins against the impenetrable surface.
Those who escaped the physical attacks were however not in the clear, the ice serpent brought with it a freezing air that made even these veteran warriors shake in their skin as the ice invaded their nerves and gradually froze them in place, siphoning out their internal heat.
This was a devasting attack that arrived at the worst possible moment, no one was in the right place nor were they prepared to defend against such magic.
Tarok who was falling from the air after having his arm ripped off glared with bloodshot eyes at the serpent as it swallowed his arm with delight, his blood coating its lips.
His aggressive eyes met with the serpents, and it seemed to smile before moving in to finish the job. It was a construct of mana, so its death meant nothing but once Maggie and Halgrave made their way on scene it wouldn't be able to do its job thus it moved swiftly, ignoring the chaff in the surrounding area to once again come face to face with Tarok.
Tarok felt the spectre of death grip his heart and he could see the eyes of the caster within the serpent's eyes, looking at him as if he was but simple prey that had fallen into his trap. He felt a strong sense of fear from those eyes, enough to chill his heart and delay his reactions.
"Tarok!!!!" Maggie screamed out at the top of her lungs as she descended but it was too late, her hammer wouldn't slam down in time, Tarok would have already been crunched by those fearsome teeth.
"[Wyvern's maw!]" However, she and Halgrave weren't the only ones who could intervene. Frost who noticed the change in the air first made his move.
Frost who used the already draining skill without the addons collapsed to his knees with laboured breathing, his legs and arms trembling from the sudden overexertion, but a wide smile adorned his lips.
"Made it." Tarok had been successfully saved, he unfortunately lost an arm but that was far better than losing one's life, hell if he's lucky he may even get a chance to regain it. Northrend had some pretty high-level potions and healers within their military and Tarok was a B-rank Major, using such a high-quality merchandise on him would not be a waste.
The ice serpent violently shook off the remnants of the wyvern head as it began fragmenting and turned to face Tarok still aiming to complete its intended mission however Frost's aim was never to destroy the ice serpent no, all he needed to do was force it away from Tarok and buy time for the big guns to land a blow. And land a blow they did.
"[Tectonic slam]"
"[Sundering of the earth]" Halgrave and Maggie both utilised advanced level skills as their weapons crashed upon the head and neck area of the giant ice serpent.
Maggie's hammer filled with her rage slammed upon the beast's head and blew it apart like a watermelon whereas Halgrave's great sword cleaved into the harshly bitten neck severing the beast in twain.
Their fierce attacks immediately destroyed the remaining mana structure within the ice serpent. It fragmented apart and returned to natural mana, vanishing without a trace.
The freezing chill that surrounded it and started freezing the retreating the soldiers and adventurers thus vanished as well. Many were strong enough to break free from the ice covering their bodies but for the rest the magic corps cast a wide range warming spell that melted the ice.
"Everyone behind the wall now!" Douglas roared out causing everyone who had stopped retreating to come to their senses and make way for the protection of the town.
Tarok was rushed immediately to the command centre where Gilianna was currently wrapping up the last stages of Hamon's treatment since she was the best healer around.
Frost was assisted once again by Bagua behind the wall before the two of them made their way to the command centre to attend the strategy meeting.
Douglas, Ryuu and Bastion remained on the northern wall for a few minutes to make sure there was no surprises before cautiously summoning the clean-up and dismembering teams. They reminded them to keep an eye out and to retreat at the first sign of danger while also assigning a few extra elites to serve as watchers during the lapse.
This new commander couldn't be trusted to act per the usual routine.
Once everyone was present in the command centre the dreaded meeting began and it was not a pretty sight.