The Fell War - Chapter 17 (Patreon)

There were times when Ren wished she’d picked a class with a bit of range to it. As a monk, she basically had two options: punch something or kick something. True, she had her monk abilities, but those still required her to get up in someone’s face to hurt them.

Which, in the end, was why she was stuck down in the middle of the square, facing down a dozen Granato knights who all wanted to cut her down and get to the cathedral.

But she wasn’t about to let that happen.

The knights rushed her, lances out and dangerously sharp. Ren smirked. Like they were going to be able to hurt her with those. Three knights fell before they could reach her; necks pierced with arrows and poisoned needles. Another was taken down by a water elemental pulled from some unknown plane of existence by the summoner.

Ren charged the rest, fists clenched and ready to strike, her royal armor light as a feather against her skin. She slammed mithril covered knuckles into a knight’s nose, sending him prone before turning and sweeping the legs out from another. She gathered her mana in her hands, sending out two energy strikes with quick jabbing motions. She ducked out of the way of a lance, using the opportunity to uppercut the knight in the jaw. One knight was smart enough to abandon his lance and charge at her with his short sword. His armor, however, made him far too slow to get any good hits on Ren. A nick to her cheek, a strike to her abdomen that was completely absorbed by her armor, the man grew more frustrated by the second.

“How the actual hell did you chumps manage to ravage this city so thoroughly?” Ren mocked. “You guys suck.”

“They’re like ants, Ren,” June called down from the cathedral roof, sniping the knight Ren was engaging with an arrow. “They may be weak, but if they have superior numbers that often doesn’t matter. They just keep throwing bodies at the problem until it goes away.”

“Plus, we haven’t faced any of their pet Fell,” Silver reminded her. “Those are a much bigger problem.”

Ren took note of Spica uncomfortable frown at that. “Spica? Were those two guards Fell?”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” she answered, flinging a dagger at a knight. “They were only level thirty, hardly what I would call a problem.”

“Gotcha,” Ren acknowledged, sending a knight flying with a well placed jump kick. “Good to know.”

The sun was rising high over the city, by this point. Citizens, Fell and Wonderlander alike, peeked through their windows and gathered on balconies to watch the skirmish. Wonderlanders murmured amongst themselves while Fell cheered from the safety of their balconies, urging Ren and her squad on. Ren could even feel the warm tingling of a low-level healing spell that she was fairly certain had come from a young cleric from one of the lower balconies.

“Citizens of Heart!” Ren shouted to the crowd even as she continued to fight. “This is your city! This is your home! These bastards have taken it from you. They’ve forced you to hide away while they tear down your walls and burn your city to the ground. But don’t you worry. The Fell of Spade, Diamond, and Clover are with you! We’re going to fight to get your city back. We’re going to drive out these bastards and show them what happens when you mess with the players! My only question is, are you going to fight with us?”

“Your Majesty, watch out!”

Ren dropped into a crouch, a blade that surely would have taken off her arm instead skimming across the top of her shoulder. Ren hissed at the pain, feeling the wet, sluggish warmth of blood spilling over her shoulder. She rolled away, clutching at her wound. ‘That’s what you get for not paying attention,’ she scolded herself.

All of a sudden, the small, high voice of a child rang out over the din. “Leave her alone, you big bully!”

With a crack, a thunderbolt cascaded down from one of the Fell balconies, striking the knight that’d just injured Ren and turning him into smoke. Ren turned to look up, catching the gaze of the same little cleric she swore had healed her earlier, along with the older sorcerer that clutched at her shoulder protectively. The sorcerer smiled down at her, nodding. The little cleric girl raised her staff, and Ren could feel the healing magic pool in her shoulder.

Ren grinned, wild and triumphant, at the two of them. She grinned even wider when their actions seemed to spur on the other Fell, and even some of the Wonderlanders, gathered to watch. Hunters notched their arrows. Magicians rained fireballs upon the knights. Clerics and other healers nursed the wounds of Ren and her fighters. Those without range shouted down encouragements and threw whatever trash they had on hand down at the knights.

In the distance, there was an explosion and suddenly everyone went silent. Ren’s head snapped in the direction of the noise, a battle cry carrying into the eerie silence.

“Bide and Fecht! Bide and Fecht! An Gòrdonach!”