Chapter 117: Flood

Chapter 117: Flood

The quarry was a set of giant steps carved into an artificial valley, the limestone had been dug away in layers that resulted in the quarry being like a funnel. Water had fallen from layer to layer, finally accumulating in the innermost point where it pooled into a small, roughly rectangular lake.

Foremen gathered around the uppermost lip of the quarry, looking down at the lake with troubled expressions. Former members of the enslaved legion likewise stood around, tools in hand gazing blankly down into the quarry. They were eerily still, none making a sound even as regular labourers wove between them to attend to an assortment of tasks. The sight made Leif’s blood run cold, there was something incredibly wrong seeing the enemy he had once fought and died to protect his old home from being treated as additional hands for a workforce.

They had been enslaved once, forced to fight for monstrous overlords. And now, over a decade since that war had ended, they were prisoners of war, still slaves. Maybe that’s all they can ever be. He thought, an unexpected stab of pity biting into his heart as he saw one of the quarry workers gesture at a group of enslaved, the men silently moving to obey whatever the order had been.

Leif noticed then, as he watched them from afar, that several had the distinct markings of monstrous heritage. Obsidian carapace covered the hands of one of the enslaved, another had dark markings on his cheek. So they are demikin. He realised, pity quickly being subsumed by a chaotic collection of emotions he wasn’t in the right state of mind to analyse.

“Man.” Said Tollumi, “there are more of them than I thought, usually places like this would only have a handful at most.”

“It’s wrong.” Leif said, his voice barely audible, but the adventurer heard him nonetheless.

“Yeah, poor bastards. It’s not like the Ahle-ho government doesn’t realise they’re just victims of those ant monsters, but it's impossible to rehabilitate them, whatever the enslavers did to their minds makes them unable to function in normal society.”

“They wither away.” Nayet said solemnly. “Unless they’re told to work, they will just stand there and slowly die. It’s horrible, they can’t even feed or clothe themselves unless they’re given orders to do so.”

“You mentioned they acted strangely a year ago.” Leif said. “What did they do?”

“They stopped responding to orders. Some of them had seizures and others went catatonic” Tollumi said gravely, running a hand through his short cut hair.

“But they’re fine now?”

The man nodded. “Most of them recovered, but some never did.”

There was too much wrong with this situation, too many reasons why he wasn’t sure what to feel. His memories from before his death were almost entirely absent, more impressions on his soul than detailed images and scenes. But it didn’t matter what he thought, there wasn’t anything he could do about it. Free them? Kill them? Help them? He didn’t know what he wanted.

He saw a group of four enslaved, each standing in silence as they stared down at the pool. Other groups worked around the perimeter of the quarry, but none ventured within, even when directed to do so. It seemed that as reliant on direction as they were, the demikin had engraved instincts that prevented them from getting any closer to the monster lurking below.

Tollumi tensed, his hammer held at the ready. Then the monster burst from the pool, its maw of sharp, arm length teeth stretched wide as it let out of trumpetting bellow of rage. Leif threw his spear with everything he had. With his [Might] attribute increased with [Grand Action] the force behind the throw was terrifying. He aimed the spear’s trajectory as best he could with [Wood Manipulation], but with the sheer speed the projectile was travelling it was almost impossible to guide.

Fortunately it struck just off his target, the merfey jerking to the side in an attempt to dodge his attack. The monster reared back as Leif’s spear shattered dark blue scales and penetrated muscles, he had been aiming for the eye but this was almost as good. Tollumi rushed forward before the monster could withdraw, with a battlecry that shook the quarry he struck at the merfey with his warhammer, a projection of the weapon appearing right to the side of his attack.

The monster was sent flying back, its large form crashing down into the pool of water sending waves splashing up and over the next lowest layer. Leif ran around the outside of the artificial lake, aura pressing down into the monster’s own with all the force he could muster. The impression he got from the merfey was sharp and predatory, a hunter through and through. Even as it twisted within the pool, reorienting itself and preparing its next move, the monster shoved back against his aura.

Invisible power rippled in the air, savage ferocity against a bulwark of authority. Twin jets of water erupted from the pool, but they weren’t aimed at the scion. Instead they cut towards the two human adventurers with incredible speed, both blades of water condensed with enough pressure to cut a line through the stone as they bore down on their targets.

Nayet clapped her hands, and a pulse of heat and fire expanded out in front of her, dissipating one of the jets in an explosion of steam. The second missed by an inch as Tollumi dashed to the side, his physical attributes enough to just barely avoid the attack. The limestone wall behind where he had been standing cracked, chips of rock flying in every direction. Nayet reached up and added the debris to her orbiting ring of stone, but there was obvious strain on her features.

Leif reached out with his will and tried to pull his spear free from the monster's face, in response two jets of water lashed out at him. The golden barrier of [Amber Aegis] flickered around him, but it wouldn’t be enough to stop the attack.

“Steady.” He commanded, voice hanging in the air as if to command the world itself. The buckling shield flickered, then held back the cutting force of the water.

The merfey launched from the water a moment later, its serpentine body arching with predatory grace as it hung in the air, yellow eyes burning with fury. Leif’s spear flew into his hand, the sharpened tip stained in bright red blood. A barrage of stones came from the opposite side of the pool, each impacting the monster’s side with sharp cracks. It twisted in the air, observing its opponents, large sails stretching out to grant it the ability of flight. Then its form shimmered, and the monster vanished from sight.

Tollumi let out a yelp of surprise, he backed away, eyes scanning the air in search of the monster that had been there but a moment before.

“It’s invisible!” Nayet called, bringing more stones towards her to recreate the orbiting ring of rock she had just expended. “It shouldn’t be able to do that? It shouldn’t be able to do that!”

But there was an even bigger problem, the water from the pool was rapidly rising, quickly overflowing its container to flood the quarry step they were fighting on. Leif cursed, trying to pinpoint the monster with his esoteric senses, he could tell it was still there, but its emotional presence was muted, as if intentionally blurred.

Water churred at it splashed around his shins, rapidly soaking his boots and lower cloak. Then the world was stained blue, as if everything was suddenly underwater. Leif felt his aura come under a sudden increase in hostile pressure as whatever skill the merfey had just used pressed down on everything. Moving was difficult, the water around his legs suddenly doubling in weight.

Shit. Leif thought, casting a glance at the two humans. Nayet had fallen off her feet, her husband having rushed to her side to steady her. This thing is way stronger than we thought.