Chapter 85

Chapter 85

The fighting between the creatures and Rheas troops was growing tense as the seemingly endless wave of creatures pushed them back. More troops continued to drop down from above, and the priest and clerics had begun using magic to bring down the physically weaker casters to support the paladins and other melee fighters. Volleys of arrows rained down from above. But the number of creatures continued to increase.

Occasionally a few would slip past and attack Maxwell and me, but there were never enough for us to be worried, and I worked my way over to the side of the room.

Constant flashes of white and black energy filled the space, creating a strobe effect. Maxwell wasnt playing anything, for now we were moving as quietly as we could, not wanting to draw attention.

There was a surge of the tall black-and-white creatures that caused Rheas front line troops to buckle. I was constantly impressed by Rheas troops. Despite being lower level than the creatures on average, their coordination and teamwork kept them on even footing. But this sudden rush threatened to break their lines.

Deciding I was close enough, I raised Mercy above my head, reshaping it into a black skull. I emptied my mana pool, the headache that came was worth the cost.

Death energy built around me and channeled into Mercymy mass raise undead spell. Weaker in many respects than the spell I used in the crypt, since it did not create nearly as powerful creatures. The zombies would be far weaker, but the advantage of the spell was the large area it affected and the speed at which it took effect.

I targeted the spell at the center of the fight, it would not discriminate between fallen humans and fallen monsters, all would rise. I absorbed the few death cores I gained from the creatures that had attacked us and channeled all of the energy into the spell.

A beam of intangible black and purple energy fired from Mercy to my targeted area. As I winced from the headache, the magic spread, covering the entire battlefield. Immediately fallen bodies began to stir. There were far more slain creatures than there were humans, an advantage of the fallen creatures was that they were behind enemy lines.

Chaos erupted in the ranks of the black-and-white creatures as zombies began to tear at their former allies. Not all of the zombies were intact, some were nothing more than a head and arm scratching at the legs of the others. But it was enough.

While the zombies did not retain any of their powers, they did retain their resistances, and when combined with my own buffs from the Order of Equinox, it made them all but immune to the flashing black attacks of their former allies. In my mind, I made sure none of the zombies I raised would attack Rheas troops. The fallen humans behind her front lines pushed their way forward to get to the black-and-white creatures.

Unfortunately, the creatures were not stupid, they had sensed where the spell had come from and turned to me. Not all of them rushed me, but enough that I was worried for a moment. Then Maxwell began his song. As the electric guitar solo from Hail to the King from Avenged Sevenfold played out over the battlefield I shook my head, wondering what his obsession was with the emo songs, then I realized I was a Lich, it fit just too darn well.

I diverted some of the death energy in my body to repairing the armor and healing the damage dealt, making sure to keep Mercy moving, going back into a defensive position to deflect as many blows as possible.

The first creature I had stabbed through the chest with Mercy finally died. And it rose back to life as a zombie before it even hit the ground. It attacked the nearest black-and-white creature, also revealing its own gaping maw.

With two allies fighting alongside me, even if they werent a very strong, gave me much more breathing room. I struck out incessantly, and soon every single creature that had initially engaged me was either dead or a zombie. With a mental command, I ordered my new zombies to charge, and I followed along beside them.

I let my zombies get a ahead of me as I glanced around the battle. The group that turned to attack me had separated from the main horde. The zombies I assigned to protecting Maxwell stood around him like sentinels, nothing approached them. When I looked forward, it was utter chaos as zombie creatures tore in and bit at their former allies. Meanwhile, Rheas troops had rallied and were forming up, pushing in through the chaos.

A storm of golden projectiles hammered into the monsters from the priests and clerics. Rhea stood amongst a group of other priests and priestesses. She happened to look at me then, when I didnt have my illusion up, needing every scrap of mana available. What she saw was my true form, and her reaction It wasnt anger or loathing, it was confusion. I shook the thought from my head. This wasnt the time for distractions.

My contingent of zombies slammed into the side of the creaturesas much as any half-stumbling, half-shambling group could. The front opened up as the black-and-white monsters turned to engage us. I paused before leaping in, using another portion of mana to cast a spell that would enhance the power of all my creatures on top of Maxwells magic.

I was getting really tired of the constant headache, but the thrill of battle was allowing me to push it to the side as I plunged back into the fight. The magic on Mercy was potent enough that I raised more zombies as they fell before me.

By the time the spell ran out, I had enough mana to recast it. I reached an equilibrium, barreling into the endless stream until the horde of monsters pouring out of the tunnels began to dwindle, then cease.

With the reinforcements gone, the remaining black-and-white creatures were overwhelmed by my zombies and the paladins.

I began to gather up the still surviving zombies around me even as I prepared to cast another spell. I was uncertain what would come next, because Rheas troops were also gathering away from me. Theyd clearly seen the zombies helping them and never once attacking them. Obviously not something any of them expected.

Theyd all been told I was an evil, remorseless monster, and I just shown that wasnt true.