Pebbles and stones rained from the skies as another roar unleashed several shockwaves. To my right the stalwart presence of Loki was blasted back into the distance. Whilst on my left Jester was slammed into the dried dirt below and then thrown across the acrid landscape as if she were a flat stone being skipped across water.
"Ugh!" I grunted as every single ounce of power from whatever was attacking the army pushed me up against the solid steel rampart behind me. It was fortunate that I had been able to slow down my perception of time enough to prepare for the attack.
*RRRRRRRRRRRGRAGHHHHHHH*
A blood-red axe whistled past me and imbedded itself in the cliff face several hundred metres behind us. Blinking away the sand and detritus from my eyes I watched as the blue armour of Crusty was ripped apart and torn asunder. Inside that armour was a growing glow of pixelated colour that slowly flecked apart; a common occurrence when a player died here.
"Holy shit...!"
"Is that a fucking raid-boss!?!?"
Panicked players fired off spells and abilities in wild abandon, hoping that their efforts would afford them some shelter from the thing's ire. This failed spectacularly as over a hundred players were flung into the sky and then crushed into pulp moments later as a black absence of everything wrapped around them.
Tony Stark- What was that sound? Are you guys okay over there???
Jester Lavorre- Nooooo.... everything hurts.... 😥😥
Shiroe of Log Horizon- Did the king die?
Drecarios Frost- Raid boss has turned up, It is ridiculously powerful
Shiroe of Log Horizon- Oh fuck
Loki Odinson- I've only ever been struck by Odin in such a way
Resurrection glows suffused the entire battlefield in such quantities that they were comparable to the sheer volume of spells being focussed on the unseen foe. I shook my head whilst stepping forwards, my senses spreading into the molecular structures below me and beyond me.
It took me less than a second to find the absence of everything that I could manipulate. A hollow, blank, void consumed every single molecule, atomic structure and universal constant. My matter manipulation was failing to even comprehend what the creature was let alone scour into its existence.
Drecarios Frost- Whatever this thing is, it isn't made up of matter or atomic structures
Shiroe of Log Horizon- That would mean it is an energy-type boss
Tony Stark- Damn, even if I came over I don't know if I could fight that
Loki Odinson- I only have a few Seidr spells that could aid me in binding such an enemy. Even then, it would only keep the beast stationary for a few moments
Jester Lavorre- I will TRY to use my TuRn UnDeAd spell, NO GUARANTEES THOUGH!
I joined in with the various spell casters by throwing spears of compacted earth in the creature's general direction. Every single attack was consumed by the void of onyx that haloed around the creature's form. A nimbus of energy was leaking upwards into the sky but quickly soared down back into the greater aura. All of us shuddered as death caressed our spines and minds alluringly.
"TURN UNDEAD!!!" Jester was running up towards the nimbus of nothingness holding forth a symbol consisting of a door and a cape whilst shouting. It was an awe-inspiring sight as, In an instant, a massive green blast of energy, or radiation, flashed forwards and stabbed into the absence like a porcupine sprouting it's spikes. What followed was devastation.
*RRRRRRRRRRRGRAGHHHHHHH*
Her entire body, including several hundred players' bodies, were lifted back and then upwards in an intense moment of pain and retaliation. I gulped as the shockwave pushed me back into my rampart. In a stab of pain I gained clarity, my eyes tracking all of the airborne players and Jester. Gritting my teeth and clenching every muscle in my body I reach out with my power. Solidifying the air was a complex process that involved gaseous to solid transformations, it was a complex usage of my powers... Unfortunately for me, it was my only real option on such short notice.
Every ounce of my mind groaned in effort as my neural pathways and capillary veins stretched to their absolute limits. My previous fight had drained me of nearly every reserved scrap of energy I held, this threw me over the edge once more. Blood leaked from my nose and ears once again, making me nauseous. With that sickening grasp of power I condensed the air around every single player, including Jester, to such a point that they slowed down and merely trundled onto the ground in a heap of armour, robes, swords and various other pieces of equipment.
Like all good saving plays though, the consequences were steep. The first punishment for my tomfoolery was the fact that I had dropped to my knees in a fugue state of exhaustion. The second was soon made apparent to me as my senses were bubbling in the background of my mind, the very act of perceiving those aspects of my existence straining my consciousness. Lastly, my vision receptors within my skull had distorted under the pressure and the world soon became a malaise of static, waving particles and stuttering pictures. If anyone were to ask me what hell was, I would reference this one single moment of sheer agony.
Loki Odinson- Jester's attack hurt the beast but she has been knocked unconscious. Drecarios has expended himself in saving her... I am now having to face this beast, if you lose contact with me, understand that this creature is beyond mortal ken.
Shiroe of Log Horizon- Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck it! I'm coming onto the battlefield, just survive for two minutes!
Loki Odinson- I would wish to survive for longer than that my friend, but I shall try to delay this beast in that time period
Tony Stark- I'm coming over, be there in a minute
Jester Lavorre- I, I'm here
Shiroe of Log Horizon- Thank god, are you able to use that spell again?
Jester Lavorre- No? My head is bleeding~.... 🤕🤕
Loki Odinson- Wish me luck
In my state I could only clarify the chat, something about it focussing my wounded essence in a way that allowed me to comprehend what was occurring. Blinking in an effort to clear my vision I watched the blurry glow of green, that I surmised was Loki, step between me, Jester and the creature.
"Listen here Beast. I am LOKI, God of Mischief, God of Magic and divine arbiter of noble purpose! Vanish back into the abyss in which you came or suffer my Wrath!"
His staff was held aloft at his side, the orange glow of the centre stone billowing outwards like a fetid umbra of power. My senses were so shot that his voice sounded almost 'godly', the bass in his voice echoing into the distance like a massive explosion. Reverbed words repeated inside my fugue state as I barely felt the trickle of blood drip from my lips in a stringy line of viscera.
*RRRRRRRRRRRGRAGHHHHHHHKKKKKKKKKK*
Another wave of pressure soared out from the distance before it was quenched by the vibrant green tendrils of Loki's Seidr, his magic repelling the shockwave upwards as bullet-like blasts began pelting out from the freshly summoned dome of energy.
Cries of pain were never heard, much to my chagrin. All there was, was the silence of absence consuming everything that sought to fill its void. Loki hissed in displeasure, something that was communicated to me by the chat room. That hiss was short lived however as the roiling mass of nothingness blitzed towards him, inky black tendrils of the energy slapping towards his Seidr.
Tony Stark- Holy shit, that thing is fucking insane
Shiroe of Log Horizon- What do you see
Tony Stark- There's no thermal, no electromagnetic, no sonic, no radiation, just nothing... It's as if this thing is the complete antithesis of everything in existence!
Jester Lavorre- It, is an abomination... It's what, we call, these creatures, in my world 🤢
Drecarios Frost- I'm useless, gyus i cawn bawerly conc'trate
Shiroe of Log Horizon- Don't try Drecarios! Just stay down, I'll be there soon
Drecarios Frost- ughhh'rwight
My attention was consumed by the new sight of energy beams raining from the sky, Stark's aid no doubt. Once again, however, the attacks carried little effect against the creature, the majority of the beams either siphoned away or simply consumed by the darkness.
"VA'EL THA'NA ANA:UL UL'KUR·MOR."
(Author Note- Translation: The Void is aware. The Pattern governs the scene. Permission is given. The cost is inevitable.)
The sound that followed could scarcely be called speech. A harsh, guttural pressure rolled out from the heart of the umbral mass, alien and perverse, carrying a wrongness that scraped at sanity itself. It was at once the deranged cackling of a broken mind and the sickly-sweet murmur of a mother's lullaby. My ears felt violated. Worse still, my soul recoiled, as though something vast had brushed against it and found it wanting.
"EL'VA EL'THA UL'KUR."
(Author Note- Translation: Awareness touches the Void. Awareness subsumes the Pattern. Will rejects deviation. [Essentially the entity found out about the Chat and is pissed])
The mixture of sensations turned aggressive. If the previous line was the wailing of a siren from the rocky shores of a coastline this was akin to the full screech of a banshee inside my ears. Blood was now soaking into my hair and face, a small torrent pooling along my chin and dripping down to the ground.
Gandalf The White- Á lasta, ar istan i nórë lyen. Mal úva nanwa. Hecë ar auta i yá metelya túnes. Á ista i rainë i Vairëllo pella, aná i nár Anúro tuluva lyë. Auta ná!
(Author Note- Here is the Translation: Hear me. I understand your intent. But it will not be. Disperse, and return to where you first came from. Know the peace beyond the Void, before the Fire of Anor comes upon you. Go now!)
The umbral mass recoiled as if in disgust or perhaps fear as the barely understandable text, words, thoughts, whatever they were, emerged inside the chat. Obviously whatever Gandalf had said didn't work however as the creature just thrashed around in a tizzy. Players died right and left and Loki began shaking in sheer effort to subdue the monster.
"Whatever that Gandalf has said has only managed to enrage it!!!" Loki shouted in frustrated agony as he batted a tendril of blackness away with his staff, his Seidr grinding against the nothingness as if they were direct opposites of one another.
Gandalf The White- I have spoken with the spirit, but it will not cease its attacks until the source of its hunger disperses from its mortal plane. I fear the man with the magics of the Ainur will need to flee back to where he came from lest the spirit consume the very land that you are upon.
Tony Stark- We have Gandalf in this bitch??? WHAT IS THIS DAY!?!?
Shiroe of Log Horizon- Can you aid us Gandalf?
Gandalf The White- It is not my place to interfere with that which I am not charged with. If it is the Valar's will, you shall survive this encounter and be the better for it. Now excuse me whilst I go save Middle Earth...
Tony Stark- Honestly, fair
Jester Lavorre- WhAt A bUm!!!😡😡
Loki Odinson- I believe he is speaking of me. I need to abandon the quest for us to succeed and for this beast to disperse
Drecarios Frost- I believe... That we... Have completed... The mission... Anyway...
Loki Odinson- Have we?
[FIRST MISSION HAS BEEN COMPLETED!!]
[REWARDS PENDING...]
[CHAT MEMBERS MUST RETURN BEFORE REWARDS WILL BE DISPENSED]
Tony Stark- Now it tells us... 🙄🙄🙄🙄
*RRRRRRRRRRRGRAGHHHHHHH*
Loki Odinson- That's me out then! Bye everyone, see you on the next mission
The god vanished on the spot and the entity before him suddenly stopped moving. Tendrils of blackness scooped the air from where he once was before a crooning cry of some emotion leaked out from the creature. Within moments though, the creature burrowed down into the ground and vanished from sight, its interest already faded.
Tony Stark- Apparently all you need to quell a massive Godzilla-sized energy being of nothingness is to take away its toys... Who knew?
Drecarios Frost- I need... A shower... And a sleep...
Tony Stark- Aren't you on your way to a barbecue?
Drecarios Frost- Ffffffff-fuck
Jester Lavorre- HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHA 🤣🤣🤣🤣
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