AA. 183

“No!” Selia’s opponent burst into a blood-curdling wail as soon as the magic circle lost its luminosity, pausing its attack. She took advantage of the opening, expanded her soul weapon to its full length, and swung, separating the heads from the fused neck. They fell as one from the platform atop, where they fought and rolled to Nil. She returned the spear to dagger length straight away, making it less noticeable.

Team Forge has scored 1 point and needs 1 more to make it through the next checkpoint.

A barrage of long-ranged attacks bombarded Nil’s barrier. Shiver Shield stole kinetic energy, extinguishing fires, freezing some fluids, and stopping all solids, but it did nothing against the lightning bolts and energy attacks. The Source Gauntlets blocked the former altogether, whereas the latter splashed off it, singing his clothes and hair. He looked cool as a cucumber, eyes sharp and brows furrowed. 

It was damage Selia was sure he could manage, and Meatball would have no trouble healing, but she hated seeing her person hurt. She wanted nothing more than to dive into the fray and pull him out of the chaos. Then, Broodmother’s lessons came back to her.

A spider shows restraint. A spider sees chaos and resolves to quell it without ever leaving her web.

Given the overwhelming defense of Nil’s silver barriers and its recent developments, thanks to his newest technique, she trusted him to hold on while she analyzed the scene. A team of four descended on the duo, and three of them utilized ranged attacks. Her new echolocation spell helped identify summons and spirit companions slowly positioning themselves around the canyon. Selia hoped to end the confrontation without ever dealing with them. So, connecting creatures to their masters was her first job.

The enemy team’s final member carried a shield and spear but also had a mace strapped across his back. Selia didn’t make the mistake of categorizing the enemy by the traditional knight or brute archetypes. She knew well long before her time with the Weave that such things mattered little, especially after a couple of ascensions. While the ranged attackers bombarded Nil, trying to break through his defense, he analyzed their surroundings. Selia was sure the attackers had caught a glimpse of her. She ended the final creature in the seconds following their arrival, after all. Phase shifting and her pseudo invisibility had helped avoid notice.

Since the man looked like an annoying opponent to take on, Selia targeted the others. The soul weapon turned semi-translucent when she phased, but the benefit didn’t extend to the Sunmetal. So even though the chains would make her life easier in the short run, she resisted using them until necessary and got in position.

“We’ve been tracked, and Nil got jumped,” Selia whispered, broadcasting the information to her companions. “He’s holding out just fine, but I can’t tell how long he can sustain it.”

“Already en route,” Shawn said.

“Nil sent out a double ping,” Zora added.

“I must’ve missed it. Was finishing off an enemy.”

Phase shifting seemed to interfere with some of the badge’s functions. Andrew had failed to iron out all of the kinks in time. It was still a valuable tool. Working with the Weave’s Spiders had taught Selia the value of seamless communication during a conflict. It often separated the victors from the losers.

“They’re scanning for me, currently,” Selia stated. “There are a couple of dangerous figures that need taking out immediately. I’m getting started. See you soon.”

“Take it slow,” Shawn said. “We’re almost there, and Nil can deal.”

“Shawn’s right,” Nil whispered. “I can deal with this. It wouldn’t be the worst thing if you took out Lightning Girl. She’s more than Galvanized can handle.”

After taking a deep breath in and a slow exhale, Selia activated her soul weapon’s ability. She touched her dagger’s hilt to the ceiling. When she pulled it away, a Sunmetal Chain remained fused to the stone. The Spider dropped, leaving her dull silvery grey webstrand in her trail. Her translucence faded as she solidified, and the melee fighter’s eyes locked onto her. The man threw his spear like a javelin, but it just about missed her. The weapon grazed the chain, starting a wave of clinks.

A warning cry burst from the enemy party’s vanguard, but they heard nothing over the barrage, still bombarding Nil. They had successfully eaten away at the stone around him, but his footing remained intact. A green glow filled the pyramid, condensing around Nil’s silhouette. She couldn’t see the degree of his injury from her current angle and during the fall. Selia didn’t have time to focus on much else but her target.

You’re a good girl, Meatball.

The enemy team’s numbers dropped by one following a flash of metal. Selia’s dagger ripped through a throat before she phased through the floor. Her arcane echolocation pulsed, and she pushed through the dense stone ground, changing trajectory. The next targeted mage moved. No more magic flowed from her or the other ranged attacker. 

Selia imagined that the ambushers had seen two melee attackers locked in combat and timed their attack for when the confrontation was almost over. They attacked Nil from the rear and likely thought the lone woman wouldn’t be much of a challenge. He looked like a brute that also used energy attacks but phase shifting wasn’t an easy power to discern at a glance. Now, they were all going to die. Her boyfriend wasn’t a fan, but Selia didn’t believe in taking the non-lethal route. The first attack she felt thrown at Nil was meant to kill him. She intended to reply in kind.

Selia slowly but silently rose from the ground behind the second mage. The first had slung lightning and energy attacks. Her new target seemed to alternate between lava and other arcane fluids. A fluid coating seemed to cover most of her body like a suit of armor. Instead of testing the soul weapon’s blade against it and drawing out the fight, Selia slipped the Sunmetal chain around her opponent's neck and pulled backward sharply, forcing the woman to bend backward and drop through the floor. She trapped the woman in the ground, folded in half with head, shoulders, and most of the arm up to the elbows buried.

Legs flailed and kicked. Magic went wild, but Selia didn’t stick around to deal with any of it. She didn’t know whether the arena construct would intervene and teleport the mage out and didn’t care. Little critters—likely soul companions—rushed to her rescue and tried to pull her free, but it didn’t help. The awkward, disorienting position and panic ensured she was out of the fight.

Two opponents remained, and both were now focused on her. Unfortunately for the melee fighter, Nil had dropped his barrier. A spiked wooden sphere shot at the shieldbearer like a cannonball, striking the side of the head. He staggered but didn’t fall, displaying incredible strength and durability. Meanwhile, Selia targeted the final ambusher.

Team Forge has scored 1 point and has met the requirements to unlock the sector’s door. Please make your way to the beacon.

The fight ended before backup could arrive. Nil took a handful of minutes to take down his foe. The man’s ability seemed to involve charging his weapon, shield, and armor with energy or magic, enhancing their strength and durability. The Chaos weapons and crimson lightning singed and warped but struggled to disintegrate. In the end, it was Nil’s superior grappling skills and relentless assault that won him the fight. His opponent failed to deal with the seemingly endless endurance and fuel for techniques.

Meanwhile, Selia’s final target was a telekinetic with illusory abilities. His fake constructs and ability to briefly turn invisible suggested he was the reason why Nil and Selia had failed to detect them. The pair had scanned their surroundings from elevation, scanning for anyone trailing them or setting up an ambush. The team hadn’t just stayed out of sight but somehow also avoided two detection abilities.

The mage successfully hid from view and also stumped Selia’s arcane echolocation. Her arcane signature jumped all over the cavern and, on a handful of occasions, disappeared altogether. In the end, it was greed that lost the mage the fight. He snuck up on Nil and attempted to use some sort of Mind spell, probably trying to enthrall him temporarily. Selia had read that it was a popular tactic amongst such spell casters.

Unfortunately for the man, Nil had seen the move coming. The man called himself a meathead but excelled at reading his opponents and predicting their moves. Her boyfriend’s inability to identify his innate awesomeness often frustrated Selia. In classic Nil fashion, he didn’t immediately remove his opponent, even though it would’ve been like snapping a twig. He caught the mage in an armbar and forced him to forfeit. There were no fatalities except for the woman Selia took out first.

“Are you hurt?” she asked, checking on Nil. Most of his sleeves had burned away. Burn holes also marked his jeans and boots. 

“Nothing Meatball isn’t already repairing,” he answered, petting the drakeling in his arms. She wiggled like a puppy as Nil scratched the scaled belly. “That was unexpected.”

“You can say that again. We would’ve had a harder time if they knew our capabilities.” Selia kicked the left-behind shield. “It's almost underwhelming. They’re weaker than what I expected of a Cleansing team. Bastards came in with the element of surprise but still got squashed like bugs.”

“They’re the strongest Bronze Realm team in their world. What if the people there are just generally weaker? Not everyone has had the privilege of cultivation, either. We might just be a step ahead of the competition.”

“Or we just got lucky,” Selia said. “They overestimated themselves and underestimated us.”

Pulses of energy burst from where the enemy team had fallen. They were warming and comforting. Selia felt revitalized, and her energy stores rapidly regenerated. Her core resisted when she tried cultivating it, but the Cosmic Spider’s Circulation Technique won in the end. Void energies lingering after the ritual’s end rapidly dispersed. 

The others arrived just as the couple exited the cave. 

“That was quick,” Shawn suggested. Sweat dripped from his scalp. The man wore his dreads in a high ponytail. The strained nerves suggested he had pushed himself, forcing his barrier board to move at top speed. “No major injuries, I hope?”

“No minor ones either,” Selia replied. “They were pushovers and saved us a whole lot of trouble.”

“Let's not get cocky,” Zora commented. “But this is good. We can make a beeline for the gate now. The beacon is intact. We might be the first ones there. I assume neither of you need a break?”

Selia’s stomach fluttered when Nil shot her his doe-eyed look of concern. She loved the way he made her feel. “Are you sure you’re okay? You pushed hard there and—”

What a dope.

“I’m fine,” she replied, standing on tiptoes and pecking his cheek. “The Cleansing seed or whatever they dropped got rid of the tiredness. I feel like six billion credits. Let’s go, finish the challenge, and then we can take a short rest.”

“You two can take a back seat during the challenge if it's not too difficult,” Zora said. “Most of the points came from you, and we didn’t have to work too hard.”

“Let's not make any such decisions yet,” Nil replied. He kissed Selia’s forehead, leaving her tingling. “Selia and I will get there first, scan the surroundings, and check out options.” His attention shifted to Shawn. “Take your time. Don’t push an untrained technique too hard.”

The party's guardian only grunted in response.