WorldCrafter - Building My Underground Kingdom

From distance away Ben watch everything that have happened. "Seem they will win, but I wonder is this the power armor that Elvira have said before? It look similiar with the one she show me."

He have watched the veteran nephirid fight against Malvek since start. At first his plan is to intervene if he see they have no hope to win. He wanted to see how capable they're now.

But unfortunately the moment Malvek activate the artifact called obisidian heart it's already too late. Different with the nephirid Ben could easily tell how the mana and energy flow. He could tell the artifact has melded with Malvek making it impossible to separate.

If it's just this Ben could still find way, like knocking him down. But the artifact move by his own will, burning Malvek life to fight back. Ben were sure it will self explode the moment Malvek fell unconscious.

Back at the battlefield The beast let out a metallic screech. Its claw wrenched free of Tharn's spear with brute force, flinging the Nephirid aside like a broken doll. Tharn crashed into a pillar of shattered stone, coughing blood, but still conscious.

Kaela's blade struck, sinking into the back of the knee joint, but not deep enough. The armor flared red.

BAM!

A shockwave blasted her backward, flipping her through the air before she slammed into the ground with a grunt. 'Dammit! it cannot use magic, but somehow could still use it's energy like this!'

Two Nephirid veterans come in next, one swung a hammer down onto the beast's shoulder, the other struck with twin daggers aimed at its armpits. The strikes connected, but the creature didn't even flinch.

It grabbed the hammer-wielder by the head and slammed him into the ground so hard the earth split beneath them. Dust and blood mist rose in the wake.

The second was caught mid-step, a claw piercing straight through his gut. The beast lifted him high, then hurled him with such force that his body crashed through a half-collapsed rocks.

Another came from the flank, a veteran armed with a glaive. He spun and slashed low, trying to sever the tendons at the ankle. The blade struck, but the monster twisted, its entire weight coming down on the attacker with a stomp.

CRUNCH!!!

It's bones cracked, the pain is so much making the veteran cannot move.

Kaela gritted her teeth, rising once more, arm half-numb from the last shockwave. Her eyes look at the armor.

"Strike that spot!" she shouted. "Those red channels, it's vulnerable there!"

Four Nephirid answered the call, moving in unison. One launched a weighted net toward the beast's arm. Another threw a grenade, a mana suppressant, that burst midair in a silver haze. The third stabbed for the ribs, while the fourth tried to wedge a hook-blade between the shoulder plates.

The beast shrieked again. It thrashed violently, tossing two of them aside, but the grenade had an effect. For a moment its movements stuttered, as if confused.

That was all Kaela needed.

"Tharn!" she roared, seeing him drag himself back up, one hand pressed to his ribs.

"I'm not done yet," he growled, pulling free another spear from a fallen comrade's grip.

With a battle cry, Tharn hurled the weapon like a javelin. The spear soared, trailing flame, and struck right between the glowing shoulder lines.

BOOM!

The impact exploded in a burst of kinetic energy, cracking the armor and staggering the beast back two steps.

It wasn't down. But it was slowing.

The beast screeched, claws slashing wildly as if to carve space around itself. One blow tore through a stone pillar, another cleaved a crater into the ground, but the Nephirid didn't back down. This's their opportunity.

A whip crack sounded as Kaela's chain-blade coiled around the beast's leg. She dug her heels in, anchoring herself behind a chunk of collapsed carriage metal. "NOW!"

Three warriors pounced at once. One slammed a hammer into its hip, another jammed a sharp stake into the exposed neck seam, and the third, a veteran with only one arm, leapt from behind, driving a molten spearhead into the back of the armor.

BAM!!!!

Sparks. Screams. The beast convulsed, and for a heartbeat it froze.

Then It exploded like it was in beserk, headbutting the hammer-wielder, grabbing the spear-thrower by the arm and swinging him like a flail into the others. The chain-blade snapped as it ripped free of Kaela's grip, sending her tumbling.

Tharn limped forward, blood trailing down his chin, both hands gripping his final spear. He roared, letting instinct guide him. With a sudden burst of speed, he ducked beneath a claw and surged upward, his spear raked through the already damaged neck joint.

It retaliated, slamming its head into Tharn's chest, knocking the breath from his lungs. Tharn fell, coughing, but rolled to the side just before a claw shattered the stone where he lay.

Kaela was back, blood across her eyes, blade gripped in both hands. She leapt high, aiming straight for the creature's head.

The beast caught her mid-air. Its claw crushed around her midsection. Kaela gasped, ribs groaning under the pressure.

"Let, me, go!" she hissed.

Her blade glowed bright. And detonated. Mana-infused metal shattered in a blinding flash.

The beast shrieked and stumbled back, its claws blistered from the blast. Kaela hit the ground hard, unmoving for a moment, but alive.

The rest of the surviving nephirid make their move.

A net launched.

A spear plunged into its side.

Two hooked chains locked around its legs.

The beast thrashed again, Its red eyes burned brighter. The red vein turned black, leaking a familiar foul energy that hissed on contact with air.

BOOM!!! it exploded outward in a frenzy.

Kaela had barely lifted her head when a backhanded claw tore through the air, striking her helm and sending her flying like a broken doll.

Tharn cursed, raising his spear, but the beast charged. It smashed through one veteran with a shoulder tackle, sent another crashing into a wall with a spinning strike, and stomped down hard, CRUNCH, on the leg of a third trying to crawl away.

"Fall back! FALL BACK!" a Nephirid bellowed. But it was too late.

The beast Mask opened as it roared like a daemonic besat. Energy pulsed from the Obsidian Heart in wild bursts, distorting the air around it.

It dashed forward, tackling two warriors into the ruins of a collapsed cliff. One Nephirid lost his arm with a scream, blood arcing into the dust.

Kaela groaned from the rubble, forcing herself up. "Tharn, !"

"I Know!" Tharn shouted, ducking under a claw swipe that carved a trench through the earth. "We're close! It's dying!!!"

And it was. Cracks spiderwebbed across the beast's shell, glowing white-hot. Its flesh underneath sizzled, steam hissing from every joint. The Obsidian Heart pulsed erratically, like a dying lamp.

Tharn set his stance, raising his spear. His eyes burned with determination. Then he charged.

The beast thundered forward. It smashed through the last line of defense like a siege ram with legs. One Nephirid leapt at its back, crack, was thrown down and stomped into silence. Another hurled twin axes, but they bounced harmlessly off its seething armor.

Tharn blocked a swipe with the shaft of his spear. The blow sent him flying, ribs groaning in protest as he rolled across the rubble. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he slammed into a collapsed pillar.

"We can't stop it!" one of the younger Nephirid shouted, backing away.

"Hold the line!" Kaela roared hoarsely, limping forward with one leg barely working. Her blade was cracked, her armor charred black.

The beast didn't care. Its eyes flared, red slits of death. It turned toward Kaela. Then it charged.

Tharn saw it all unfold in slow motion. Kaela, unable to move fast enough. The smoke curling behind its claws.

Slamming his foot into the earth, Tharn roared, "FOCUS ON ME!"

In that instant, every surviving Nephirid veteran raised their hands, focusing their flame energy, leaping from palm to palm, until it funneled into Tharn. His spear vibrated, humming with heat.

He gritted his teeth. Muscles tore. Veins lit up like fire. His vision dimmed at the edges. He thrust the spear forward, just as the beast leaped.

CRACK!

The air split. The Spear met his chest. The Obsidian Heart shrieked as if alive, black veins flaring wide. The beast roared, claw raised, and sank its claw deep into Tharn's shoulder, pinning him.

But Tharn didn't flinch. He keep pushing with all his strength.

The spear sank deeper, bursting through bone and into the twisted core. The entire weapon lit up like a lightning rod, consuming both warrior and monster in a pillar of silver-blue fire.

The beast shrieked, convulsed. Its claws retracted in agony. Its limbs spasmed, metal armor bending in unnatural angles.

Then, BOOM, a silent explosion of compressed force rippled out, flattening debris for fifty meters in every direction.

The beast fell to its knees, the light gone from its eyes. It's body still twiching, barely alive.

Tharn collapsed beside it, breathing raggedly, one hand still gripping the shaft embedded in the creature's chest.

Kaela limped toward him, dragging what was left of her blade.

"Did… we win?" Tharn rasped, while grinning.