WorldCrafter - Building My Underground Kingdom

A massive hole burst open, chunks of stone crashing down into the tunnels below. From the darkness, shadows surged upward.

Zarnak was the first to emerge.

The Nephirid warrior landed with a crash, his runic spear dragging sparks across the ground. His sharp gaze turned toward Varnak and Malvek like a beast scenting blood.

Behind him, hundred of figures in armor streamed out of the hole. All of them were engraved with Vlontera symbol. Mixed species led by the Nephirid. Each one bore weapons enchanted with flame runes.

"Zarnak," Ben called out casually. "Try not to kill them too fast. Let them feel it."

Zarnak's response was to raise his spear and slam into the ground. The force shook the stone around them as he let out a roar that echoed through the streets.

He was very excited right now, not in his wildest dream he will ever have the change to do this. To attack

Varnak's eyes narrowed. "T'Zarek... you brought an army into Gravenhold?"

Malvek took a step back. "This is an invasion."

Ben pointed his dagger forward. "Correct. And I'm taking back everything you stole with interest!"

Taking a deep breath he than shouted, "Attack!"

The two forces collided like tidal waves crashing into each other.

Shields splintered. Blades screamed. Flame and steel clashed in a chaotic, thunderous uproar that shook the cavern floor.

Gravenhold's soldiers, move forward with discipline. Despite the surprise attack they quickly move in formation, spears braced, shields glowing with protective enchantments.

But the Vlontera army met them with feral momentum. Fire-imbued weapons sparked and flared with every strike.

Axes lit with runes carved molten arcs through enemy shields. Swords surged with crimson flame, carving trails of ember through armor. Spears thrust like burning stakes, punching through magical barriers with raw, reinforced heat.

A Draknir berserker roared, engulfed in flames, as he slammed into a shield wall. His molten gauntlets crushed the first line, sending Gravenhold soldiers flying.

Behind him, a Shavralk battalion swept wide, hammers and tower shields ablaze as they pushed deep into enemy flanks.

Gravenhold's elite retaliated hard. Varnak's command squads unleashed coordinated counters, flash barriers popped up in waves, and counterspells burst like sonic booms to disrupt flame enchantments.

Their halberds struck with brutal efficiency, their edges enchanted to cut through spell-forged steel. One Nephirid commander lunged forward, his blade drenched in blue energy, cutting down three Vlontera warriors before being tackled by a Velmora fighter and dragged into the firestorm.

Dozens fell on both sides. Bodies collided, limbs locked, blades slid across throats. Flames roared as spellblades clashed with Gravenhold wards. The very road cracked beneath their feet, molten lines spreading from firebursts, cratered stone from explosive parries.

Zarnak charged through a group of defenders, goring one through the gut before spinning his spear into a flaming arc that seared four more.

"Hold formation! No mercy!" he bellowed, his voice cutting through the roar of war.

From the rooftops, archers rained enchanted bolts down, some melting midair from the ambient heat. Firemages hidden among Vlontera's lines unleashed bursts of napalm-like flame, catching entire shield lines ablaze. Gravenhold mages responded with shields of energy, but the constant barrage kept them on the defensive.

Every corner of the street became a brawl. A Nephirid lieutenant duelled with a beastkin warrior, their weapons locked as both growled, eyes wild.

Around them, Velmora rebels stabbed from the shadows, setting fire to supplies and blocking reinforcements. Blood sprayed across walls, coating stone in sizzling crimson.

Every corner of the street became a warzone of pure chaos.

A Nephirid lieutenant locked blades with a Draknir beastkin twice his size. The two warriors snarled like animals, strength and speed colliding in savage bursts.

The Nephirid's twin sabers hissed as they clashed against the beastkin's curved war-axes, flame runes sparking across their edges. Every blow sent shockwaves through the ground, stone cracking beneath their feet as they exchanged blows faster than the eye could follow.

The beastkin roared, swinging both axes. The Nephirid ducked under the swing and stabbed upward, only to be caught mid-thrust and thrown clean through a half-shattered stone wall.

Dust and rubble exploded outward as the Nephirid staggered back out, armor scorched, but still burning with fighting spirit.

Elsewhere, flames consumed a weapons depot. Group of Ben's army hurled firebombs into stockpiles, the resulting explosions sending chunks of glowing metal into the air.

Smoke filled the streets, and in the flickering haze.

A barricade of overturned wagons ignited behind enemy lines, cutting off reinforcements. Screams echoed from both sides, but the Vlontera forces pushed harder.

The firelight danced across their weapons, illuminating snarling faces, painted war-helms, and blood-slick armor.

In the heart of the chaos, Zarnak impaled a shield-bearer on his runic spear, lifted him off the ground, and slammed him down like a meteor.

Three more rushed in, Zarnak met them head-on, parrying one, ducking the second, and driving his flaming gauntlet into the third's chest. The body ignited instantly, collapsing into smoldering ruin.

More clashes erupted: a Shavralk juggernaut spun a war hammer the size of a boulder, clearing a full squad with one brutal arc.

Gravenhold elites chanted in unison, casting defensive runes into the air, but rebel mages countered with pure firepower, beams of searing heat carving through magical sigils like paper.

On the eastern flank, a Shavralk locked arms with a commander from Gravenhold, their muscles bulging with strain. Sparks flew as their greaves scraped the ground.

With a growl, the Shavralk twisted, breaking the enemy's stance and hurling him through a merchant stall, flattening it into kindling.

Farther down the main avenue, Vlontera flamethrowers rolled in on tank-tread carriages, pumping pressurized fire through reinforced nozzles. Twin streams of liquid flame swept across defensive lines, forcing Gravenhold battalions to scatter and regroup, if they could survive the heat.

This was one of the military devices Elvira had developed to bolster Vlontera's strength. With the golems now off-limits, Ben had decided to deploy them instead.

A group of Gravenhold assassins attempted to retaliate from the shadows, darting through alleyways and slashing at support units. But they were quickly intercepted by Zarnak's troops. One rebel caught an assassin mid-strike, twisted his arm backward with a sickening snap, and plunged a burning blade straight through his ribs.

Chaos engulfed both the inner and outer sections of Gravenhold. Despite having fewer soldiers, Ben's strategy had succeeded in blinding the enemy. Everything he did was calculated to keep Gravenhold off balance. Even now, it was a miracle that some among their ranks had managed to assemble defensive formations at all.

"How is it? Do you like what you see?" Ben said calmly. "The flamethrower tanks are still new... but they seem to be working."

Varnak's face twisted with rage as he watched his city burn. 'Working? That damn flame even burns Nephirid flesh! That's no ordinary fire!'

With a snarl, he brandished his weapon and charged. No more words. Just fury.

Varnak came in like a thunderbolt, his halberd howling through the air in a wide arc, glowing with runic fury. The blow carved a trench into the stone, but Ben, still masked as Tzarek, wasn't there anymore.

He was already behind him.

A flash of silver, Ben's dagger scraped across Varnak's armored back, drawing sparks, not blood.

"Too slow," Ben whispered, moving back with a taunting grin.

Varnak roared, spinning, stabbing with the butt of his weapon, then swinging the blade horizontally like a guillotine. Each blow came with enough force to break bone, but Ben moved like liquid shadow. He dipped low, hopped over the next slash, and kicked off the wall to flip overhead.

From midair, he threw two curved knives downward. One struck Varnak's shoulder, the other pinged off his helm.

"Still too slow."

Varnak snarled and stomped. The ground cracked, and a line of jagged rock erupted where Ben was about to land, but Ben twisted, letting the shockwave carry him in a side-spin mid-drop. He hit the ground rolling, came up behind a pillar, and flicked another dagger around it.

CLANG!

Varnak parried this one, charging through the debris. "Enough games!"

But Ben only laughed. "Oh, I haven't even started."

He vanished in a blink, reappearing to Varnak's left just long enough to slice the side of his thigh, then disappeared again before the Nephirid could retaliate.

Blood trickled down Varnak's leg. He growled, furious. "You think this is a joke!?"

Ben appeared again, this time directly in front of him.

"I know you're one."

Varnak struck fast. Faster than expected. His halberd arced up, Ben blocked with both daggers crossed. The impact sent a shock up his arms, but he rolled with it, twisting to redirect the force and redirecting the haft aside.

Then his knee drove into Varnak's gut.

CRACK!

The Nephirid reeled back, coughing. Ben followed up with a spinning elbow to the jaw, then flipped away as molten blood sprayed from a gash across Varnak's chest.

Cheers erupted from nearby Vlontera soldiers. Some paused in their skirmish just to watch.

Varnak steadied himself, rage boiling in his eyes. "I'll crush you, Tzarek! You'll die screaming!"

Ben casually spun his dagger once, then crouched low again, one hand dragging across the scorched stone. "You can try."

Then he vanished again.