CHAPTER 54: 54: DEALING WITH A TRAP PT 6

In front of the tattered doors of the castle, clouds of light particles floated around the area, creating a shining fog-like appearance.

The gargoyles fought with their swords, sweeping violently back and forth. It wasn’t enough, not nearly enough. The young heirs and their beast fought with ease. The longer they fought, the more powerful their strikes became.

Their numbers were dwindling; over half of them were already gone. There was nothing they could do but fight.

The leader of the soldiers, brought with the gargoyle king, stood staring at the battle before him. With every second, more of his men vanished in clouds of light particles. On the ground, piles of flesh and bone lay strewn around the courtyard, killed by their beast.

As he scanned the battle, his eyes locked with the young heir, his green eyes glowing brightly. The boy smiled as he slashed his whip, taking out six at one time. ’The damn whip and its double strikes. How can the boy be so strong so soon? He hasn’t even completed the quest to gain his power!’ he seethed.

Scanning further, he found the swordsman, his glowing sword crackled with lightning that shot up and down the blade. His strikes struck true. His powerful blows were severing his men in half with one strike. The boy’s eyes shone brightly with an electric blue light, exactly as the lightning, crackling up and down his blade. It was something that had never been seen before. Only the dimension master had glowing eyes.

Looking toward the archer, his arrows struck true, glowing softly as they glided smoothly through the air. One after the other, they flew, hitting targets with flawless aim. The boy’s eyes gleamed with a soft white light.

The beast was leaping through his men, its brightly glowing eyes shining with an emerald light. It belonged to the young dimension master heir. It was the only explanation. Beasts are not green. There are only five levels, and none of them are green.

The fog-like cloud of light particles thickened, as silence fell. Not a sound could be heard. Only the heavy breathing of his men. Those who had survived so far.

Slowly, the cloud dispersed, clearing their view, but only a little. Just enough to see a bit through the cloud.

A long, thin green line was heading toward him. It was too fast to avoid. He tried to block it with his sword, but it sliced right through, slamming into his chest with two consecutive strikes, and everything went dark.

***

Drake watched the leader of the horde turn into light particles, then continued taking out the rest. Mike was with him, swinging his crackling sword. Chad’s glowing arrows flew smoothly, hitting their targets, glowing brighter than ever. Each shot finding its mark with ease, a flawless strike.

Renn was busy, eating her last target, energy pulsing through her fur. It flickered red before going back to green. Her form grew, her claws lengthened. Her long fangs grew serrated, gleaming with the blood of her enemies. She had leveled up again.

{Your familiar has evolved: Renn is now level 3}

Drake smiled at the notification. Renn was growing powerful, just like he and his friends. There was a slight pause in the battle, as the gargoyles noticed the change in the beast. Their eyes widened in fear. The boys looked on, their eyes shining brightly, confidence radiating. Only ten gargoyles remained.

Chad shot arrow after arrow, taking half of them seemingly in one go, while Drake’s whip slashed, taking out the rest. Mike stood back, taking a breath, patting Renn. He had seen her evolution, too.

It took only moments to finish the task. The remaining ten gargoyles, gone in clouds of particles of light.

{Gargoyles defeated 255/267, 12 remain}

"There’s only twelve left," Drake informed. "They’re all in the throne room. I believe the king is with them."

Mike smiled widely. "I know...I can see them too."

Chad nodded. "Me too. I can see them. The humans are clumped in the middle, surrounded by eleven gargoyles. There is one more that is standing back away from them."

Drake looked up at the sky and closed his eyes. The serene look to his features returned as Chad and Mike watched. They exchanged a look before moving their attention back to Drake. Drake stayed that way for a few minutes before opening his eyes and looking at them.

"We can’t enter the throne room. I think there might be some sort of enchantment on it to prevent us from leaving once we step inside. We have no choice but to wait for them to come out," Drake told his friends. "We can rest a bit while we wait."

***

Back in Drake’s room, the dimension master and his friends watched as their sons battled with the gargoyles. The longer they fought, the easier it seemed to be for them. They grew stronger with each kill.

Their eyes glowed brighter the longer they fought. There was nothing but a calm confidence as they battled the gargoyles. It was like they fought like this every day. They made it look easy.

Then the beast evolved again, her colors flickering from green to red and back to green. She was now a level three beast. The shock of it paused the battle.

The dimension master counted only ten gargoyles left. Before he could point that out, Chad shot his bow and Drake his whip. Seconds later, there were none left.

"They did it...They really did it!" Mike’s father said in disbelief. Pride swelled.

Drake and Chad’s fathers remained silent. They wanted to hear the conversation. They watched as Drake looked up at the sky with an angelic, serene expression. Moments later, he looked at his friends.

They listened. There were only twelve remaining, and one of them was the king.

"Do you think they’re right? Do you think the throne room is enchanted?" Chad’s father asked the dimension master.

Drake’s father thought about it for a moment as he watched the three boys and their beast rest. They were keeping an eye on those in the throne room, yet also on their surroundings. There were hidden tunnels and entrances in Storm Town. The men who brought them in had only shown them one of them. "Yes, I believe they are correct. It doesn’t make sense any other way."

"Do you think they’re strong enough to take on the gargoyle king or any shaman that might be in the throne room?" Mike’s father asked, pushing his brown hair back. His eyes kept moving to the screen.

Chad’s father sat back in his chair. "I wonder what Drake’s trump card is that he mentioned. I also want to know why he keeps looking up at the sky like that. Can he control the weather now?"

"I don’t think he can control the weather. I know his emotions can change the weather, but control it intentionally; I can’t see that happening. As for his trump card, I haven’t a clue. I want to know that too. We’ve been watching, and I haven’t seen anything that could point to what that is. As for the gargoyle king or shamans in the throne room. All I can say is that I hope they are strong enough," the dimension master answered.

***

In the throne room, the lone gargoyle paced on the dais, waiting for his men to bring the bodies of the heirs. Each time he sent someone out, they didn’t return.

He had decided to send the rest, except the crucial amount needed for keeping the humans in their place. They needed to stay where they were.

He pointed to one of his remaining men.

"Go see what’s going on. Don’t leave the castle. See what you can find out and come back to report." The lone gargoyle ordered.

The gargoyle rushed out to see what was going on. After a long time, the one on the dais realized he wasn’t coming back.

***

Drake watched the castle, seeing one gargoyle heading out of the throne room.

He grinned. "I get this one."

The boys chuckled as they watched Drake enter the castle, who immediately hid in the shadows. He blended perfectly, unseen by the passing gargoyle. With the monster’s back turned, Drake stepped out of the shadow he was hiding in and slashed his whip. He didn’t even fill it with energy. He didn’t need to, not against only one.

The whip sliced through the gargoyle’s neck, its head falling toward the ground. It turned into light particles before it even touched the ground.

{Gargoyles defeated 256/267, 11 remain}

Drake smiled, then calmly walked back to his friends. "Only eleven more," he informed, still smiling.

He turned and assessed the throne room. Ten gargoyles were surrounding the humans, while the last one was standing further back. The one separated from the others was pacing frantically. That one knew that he failed. This made Drake’s smile widen.

"I think they’re going to wait us out. Something tells me that guy isn’t going to send any more of his men out. Is there a plan to speed this along so we can get back to what we need to do?" Chad asked.