Divine Apostasy Book 7 - Chapter 83

Chapter 83

Ruwen debated wearing the ring for a moment, but it wouldn’t work against the Aspects, so he dropped it into his Inventory. Fractal would love the Legendary item.

Stone Echo detected a slow-moving mist on top of the outcropping. Poison had rejoined the fight, and Survey displayed the terrible news that Ruwen only had fifteen seconds before the poisonous fog spilled over the outcrop’s edge and onto the Masters.

Ruwen triggered Insect Repellant and pushed the ability to is maximum of one hundred feet. He hoped it would slow the advance of whatever Poison sent.

Using Chat, Ruwen spoke to Sift. Are you feeling okay? Poison is on top of that outcropping.

Sift exploded into the air, and Ruwen took that as a yes.

Gate Runes? Ruwen asked Overlord.

Hard to tell exactly. I’d guess another three minutes.

They definitely didn’t have three minutes.

Do you think the Masters can get away from that outcropping? Ruwen asked.

Negative, they are barely moving. We could use the last Fallen Hero to move them, but we couldn’t move them all in time.

Ruwen started the two second cast for Worker Wagon and circled toward the trees, forcing War to turn as well. Hopefully that would stop him from interfering.

Ruwen’s Mana dropped by two hundred fifty and a wagon appeared. The Fallen Hero immediately picked up the closest Master and placed them in the wagon.

We need to address the disease, not the symptoms, Overlord said.

I know.

Ruwen began the one second cast for Shed. He planned to build a barrier above the Masters to buy more time to move them.

For a moment, Ruwen touched the immense guilt he held for allowing this situation to occur. He had left these servants of Lalquinrial alive in the Infernal Realm. If he’d made another choice, killing them, this situation would not exist. His friends and classmates were in dire jeopardy, and he owned that.

A fifteen-foot Shed appeared and Ruwen immediately cast another.

“What if I surrender?” Ruwen asked War.

War nodded at the Crazors. “I thought you didn’t like swords. What did you call them? Arrogant weapons?”

“I’m trying new things.”

“That’s good. Our Lord also wishes to try new things.”

“There is no reason to harm the others. They have nothing to do with this.”

War tilted his head, the effect exaggerated by the plate helm. “They are Bamboo Viper Clan. Their lives and belts were mine the moment I saw them.”

“But you’re here for me.”

War pointed his sword at the outcropping but kept his attention on Ruwen. “We already have you. All you’ve done is delayed the joy of killing all these grass snakes.”

A beam of energy surged from the sword, and the Fallen Hero loading the Masters dived to intercept the attack. It disintegrated but saved the life of an unconscious Master. Now only Overlord remained.

I have some bad news, Sift said.

How can this get worse?

Those two you snatched with your band just burst out of that snow covered city. They’re riding their sky horses directly toward us.

How much time do we have?

A few minutes.

With no one to move the Masters, there was no reason to keep distracting War. Ruwen needed to kill the Aspect quickly, and then do the same if Poison still lived. When Pestilence and Plague arrived Ruwen might survive it, but the Masters certainly wouldn’t.

Poison’s fog pushed through the Insect Repellant barrier, as Ruwen only had his Mana based version. He tried using Harmony to create enough wind to blow the poison away, but the distance exceeded what he could effectively unbalance.

War tilted their head a fraction, as if listening to something.

Ruwen leaped at the Aspect taking advantage of the distraction. He needed to kill War quickly.

Harmony allowed Ruwen to feel the small imbalance of the telepathic communication War currently had with the other Aspects. Likely he had just learned of Pestilence and Plague’s arrival.

Ruwen traveled at immense speed toward War, but it wasn’t faster than thought, and War triggered an ability that instantly teleported him away. A thread of energy remained, and it led directly toward the top of the outcropping.

The thread of magic reminded Ruwen of a trip wire for a trap, and he stepped away from it. He didn’t want to trigger anything that might complicate things further.

Stone Echo confirmed War’s new location, standing next to Poison.

Oh, no, Sift said in Chat.

I know, War teleported to Poison.

He did?

Ruwen winced as Sift cursed for a couple seconds. He interrupted Sift’s outburst. What was the first “oh no” about?

Those other two did something to the sky and it will arrive shortly, Sift replied.

How shortly.

Less than a minute.

Ruwen leaped to the Shed on top of the outcropping. Overlord, give me some good news.

The chalk isn’t immediately flaking away anymore. Maybe another thirty seconds and I can draw runes that will stay.

They needed a minute. Ruwen frowned as Survey displayed the odd-shaped tunnel that had formed when he’d fallen from the sky. It connected the top of the outcropping with the clearing below. If he didn’t refill it, the poison would use it to flow downward and fill the area around the Masters.

From this height, Ruwen stood above most of the trees, and he could see what Sift had observed. The sky roiled with something that looked like ash and a strong wind powered it toward them. Lower to the ground a mass of flying insects approached, unnaturally fast. Survey calculated twenty-one seconds.

The Health bar under Nymthus had returned to a healthy level because of Ruwen’s Bonfire Regen buff. He spoke to her with Chat. How are you doing?

Just really thirsty, but other than that, everyone is recovering, Nymthus responded.

We are still in trouble, but I just had an idea that might protect you all long enough to escape. There is a hole down there from when I struck the ground and Melted it. Gather everyone and quickly get in that tunnel. I’m going to seal it from both ends to keep out whatever the Aspects throw at us. Overlord will have the portal home done within a minute. We just need to hold on.

I’m on it.

Ruwen turned off Glow and dropped the Crazors into Inventory. Then he jumped to the tunnel opening on the outcropping side and opened his Void Band until it covered the hole completely. Using fifty Energy, he sucked the air upward out of the tunnel, and out the back of his Void Band. He had pulled a bunch of poison into the tunnel with him earlier, and he didn’t want to accidentally kill everyone if any of it remained.

When Nymthus neared the tunnel entrance below, Ruwen closed his Void Band and used Dig to seal the top exit. He jumped down next to Prythus and Nymthus and hurried the last few Masters into the hole.

Ruwen dropped three seeds into his hand. “Sorry I don’t have anything better to give you light, but I don’t want to use anything magical that might give your position away. These are flash seeds. If you crush them, they will blind you for ten seconds, so don’t chew them. Instead, swallow them. They’ll make you glow from the inside for six hours. Better than sitting in the dark down there.”

Prythus and Nymthus both swallowed one and Prythus took the remaining seed. “Thank you for protecting us. We owe you so much.”

“Go,” Ruwen said as his guilt threatened to surface.

The two members of Rung Four slid down the steep slope of the tunnel and Ruwen quickly closed and smoothed it flat with Dig. He leaped over to Overlord and picked up the Baton of a Thousand Uses. He closed the scoop and dropped the tool into Inventory. Nymthus must still have the Fastidious Blade.

The rock hissed and steamed as the blessed paste neutralized the desecration. Ruwen cast a Shed around them, leaving most of the rock wall side visible, and then Hardened it into diamond. He pulled the Class Symbol of Radiance Sift had given Ruwen after the tour of the mine during Big D’s camping trip and channeled ten Energy to it, making it glow brightly. With five Mana, he attached it to the Shed’s ceiling.

The Shed should keep out the nasties for a bit, Ruwen told Overlord. Good luck.

Overlord remained focused on working the blessed paste into the stone but nodded at Ruwen.

Channeling twenty Energy into Melt, Ruwen sank into the ground six foot and then moved forward at a shallow downward angle. It took him ten seconds to meet the tunnel the Masters were in. Turning off Melt, he quickly returned to Overlord and using Melt and Harden created a thin rock covering over the tunnel entrance.

Nymthus, Ruwen said using Chat. I created another tunnel to Overlord and the door back home. I’m going to leave a thin stone covering the exit to keep you hidden and safe if the Shed gets compromised. But if I tell you to go, run up that tunnel, smash the cover, and jump through the portal door.

Got it.

Ruwen channeled five Energy into Melt and placed his back against the rock wall. Instead of vaporizing the stone like before with twenty Energy, the granite turned into a thick paste, and he pushed himself backward into it. Pausing, he briefly switched to Harden to reseal the cliff wall that protected Overlord.

Walking through the semi-liquid rock for a couple of feet, Ruwen turned and exited the cliff wall on the outside of the Shed. He resealed the exit with Harden and leaped to the top of the outcropping.

Now to finish this.