That’s good, Alex thought. If they are acting this way, it means they believe in themselves.
He didn’t prepare for the transfer of the ability. It happened by itself. He siphoned strength from a dark, bottomless magical source, took a deep breath, and pored this sparkling substance onto the heads of his charges, announcing with thunderous intent, “I bless you with True Sight!”
To an onlooker, it might have seemed like a tanker filled with sparkly oil had emptied over the crew. This close-knit crowd stood firm, as if willing to stand their ground for centuries in this place of power if need be.
Alex watched the results with fascination. Surprisingly, the squad was awarded only the Druid specialization, and all their characteristics and achievements remained in the visible field.
I wonder… was I the only one who received such a cardinal transformation?
He examined the stats of the female druids, all of whom had received similar abilities.
.
Attention, Daga sa Daga!
Supreme Druid ability obtained
True Sight
Seeing what is hidden (randomly)
Epiphany (randomly)
Source: Dark Druid Phoenix’s Blessing
.
The rest of his clanmates received only True Sight, but it was enough for all to see the enemy’s distant approaches to the square.
“Spread out!” Alex ordered. “Fire when ready!”
Within moments, shots rang out. The undead had radically changed tactics this time. They seemed to be attacking from all sides, jumping chaotically like oversized fleas, thus making aiming difficult. Alex quickly realized hand-to-hand combat was inevitable.
“We’re surrounded!” someone yelled.
“Ice Vigors!” Alex bellowed, so loudly that the whole space shuddered. “Ice Vigors! Those in the center, continuing firing! The rest, to the front! AK-47’s group, shields up!”
Several zombies had edged dangerously close to their human prey, their flow seemingly incessant.
Howls, the crackle of weapons, the unbearable stench, screams, and the patter of pouring rain reigned in the square. It was an eerie, unreal sight. From above it might have looked as if the undead hordes were crawling towards the mouth of a volcano to smother its fire. AK-47’s group activated their energy shields at various intervals to prevent the flaming corpses from falling on the squad. Minutes seemed to last hours, but finally, mercifully, the enemy retreated.
Anxious thoughts arose in Alex’s head. Why are the Mallorns not helping us? Why?
They’re just trees.
Anna broke into his reverie. “Commander Phoenix, look.” She gestured with her hand.
He looked in that direction, “Thank you, Anna, well done.”
Alex shuddered inwardly. A short distance away, the undead were efficiently stacking themselves in piles, creating a veritable puff pastry of rotting flesh, bones, and fierce hatred. The zombie with the glowing skull and scraggly hair continued to screech, clearly the one in charge.
Alex couldn’t make sense of these actions. The undead hadn’t completed their maneuver yet, but he knew if his people let then succeed, his squad would be in serious jeopardy.
He closely studied his people. Many were barely keeping their emotions in check, but as one, they charged their Khorts in preparation for the coming clash.
“Keep it straight, keep it tight! Stand firm, even if I go to respawn,” Alex said, jumping through the portal into the horde’s throng, then struck his heaviest blow at them. It was like a sudden flash of pain, weakness, and timely life-saving activation of the first aid kit.
Apparently, my health indicators have greatly decreased, flashed through his mind.
Coming to his senses, he found himself neck-deep in the stirring mass of undead, almost fainting from the sickening stench. He activated his shield at full power, the energy crackling deafeningly.
Finally, Alex was able to breathe in cool, refreshing air. Numerous zombies had disappeared, hundreds more scattered in pieces as far as the eye could see. These scraps of stinking flesh knocked down other undead like cannonballs.
Flash’s thunderous roar spurred Alex like a whip. He turned toward the sound and froze.
The undead lead stood atop a nearly building, pointing a mocking, bony finger at Alex. From somewhere on his body, he produced a shining bow. It had to be at least double a normal human’s height. Before Alex could react, the creature drew the string back and fired.
An enormous arrow of energy ripped the air towards Alex. Instead of dodging, he raised his shield.
It passed straight through, piercing Alex Phoenix’s heart.
Chapter 8. Packing
“That’s hardly happened to me before,” Alex quipped as he entered the wardroom, where the Ice Vigors gathered in low spirits and brooding silence. Flash followed him noiselessly, like a huge white shadow. “I mean the respawn,” the man added, smiling. “So why the long faces? That was an epic beating. We fought the good fight, we lost. We’ve all been there. So, take a deep breath, and let’s move on.”
The leader’s charismatic presence and comforting words seemed to have an impact on his clanmates. Within minutes, their smiles had returned and much of the tension had been sucked from the room.
That’s better, Alex thought.
“What’s next, commander?” AK-47 asked.
Alex thrust out his jaw determinedly. “We are going to wage guerrilla warfare against the aliens. Above all, we need the skull of that glowing undead bastard. Iss, show us what’s happening around the Dark Mallorns.”
Iss created a hologram so realistic half the crew moved to pick up their guns and resume shooting. Unfortunately, the horror movie continued. The bare skeletons of the magic trees looked the most depressing. The Mallorns’ trunks towered above the city like the masts of a burned-out sailboat, all sporting traces of claws and teeth marks. However, despite the might of the undead army, they had failed to topple or and completely destroy the Mallorns. This gave people hope and
