Ends of Magic

Chapter 37: Wait for it

Nathan engaged another one of the strike constructs, dodging through the blows from its armored legs to grapple with the central body. He wasnt strong enough to penetrate their smooth armor, so hed first tried to strike at the joints of their six legs. However, they had some kind of self-repair capability that enabled them to fix that damage.

Now he was trying to drain the magic that powered the constructs. It wasnt a particularly smooth process given that they possessed six legs tipped with sharp tips that could crack stone, and a spike-thrower that was more reminiscent of a railgun than a crossbow.

Nathan dodged a bolt from point-blank, wrapping himself around the bottom half of this construct. He was trying to sap the magic that powered the lashing limbs first, wincing as a scout construct cut a slice from his butt with a lashing tail. He had to suppress an urge to act, to release his grip and crush the thing that had wounded him.

[Battle Meditation] saves the day. Once again, Im busy being a magic-sucking limpet. Glad I heal so quickly, though these clothes are once again shot.

From his position, Nathan had a good view of Aarl, now dressed in his dark form-fitting armor and wielding his new greatsword. The [Master of Many Weapons] was absolutely demolishing his opponents. A spike deflected from the armor over his ribs with a flash of light, staggering Aarl. Three strike constructs leapt forward, but with an elegant sweep of his blade Aarl sliced them all in half.

Theres some kind of spatial thing going on there. That blade shouldnt reach so far. Not sure if its a Talent of Aarls or the blade itself. Hes been pretty close-lipped about his Talents.

The construct Nathan was holding onto slumped to the ground as it was finally drained of magic. He rolled to his feet to see another construct bull its way into view, slower to arrive on the battlefield than the rest. While the scouts were the size of large dogs with long tails and the strike variants were the size of a delivery truck, this thing was the size of a two-story building.

The other constructs had thin metal legs holding up a larger central body that housed weapons, somewhat reminiscent of a thick-bodied spider. But this new construct took that farther, with only a small central body and twelve heavily armored legs. Each limb was about forty feet long, eight feet thick and moved with unstoppable momentum.

Nathan glanced back towards where hed left Khachi and Stella. The mage had her back turned to the battle, arms up and blazing with lightning. She was busy managing the hidden mana-capacitors, whose flickering light was reflected off the landscape around them.

Khachi stood in front of her, a hazy half-dome of golden light protecting him and Stella from any spells or projectiles. A scout construct charged him and Khachi crushed it with his hammer almost dismissively.

And I cant see Sarah. Shes probably moving from position to position on top of those rocks, so they cant get a bead on her. Everythings good, so long as we can keep this giant armored spider thing from closing on them. I hope this is the last bruiser in this wave before the main force arrives and we get back our heaviest hitter.

Nathan squared up against the giant metal monster, which had picked up some speed now that it could see its foes. Nathan charged straight towards it.

I kind of wish Id picked up [Magicsunder Siegebreaker]. This seems like the kind of foe itd be great for. As it is, Ill need to get a little clever.

The other war-constructs were giving the new appearance a wide berth, and Aarl stayed back as well, taking the cue from the scattering foes. A bullet pinged off the central body and a field of energy fizzed into place all around the spider-construct, extending fifteen or so feet in every direction but down.

Nathan grimaced as he entered the field. It was a familiar sensation, and not one that was pleasant.

Disintegration field. There goes absolutely every speck of my clothes! Its not as strong as a disintegration beam, but itd take apart a body in seconds, and ranged weapons probably dont stand a much better chance. Normally youd need magic to penetrate this, but thats why its so heavily armored. Wonder how it doesnt disintegrate itself.

The construct didnt act surprised that Nathan hadnt turned to dust, merely swinging multiple of its legs in a scissoring pattern that would be nearly impossible to dodge. The limbs werent sharp or especially agile, but they were moving quickly and heavy enough to pulp a Siegeboar.

Nathan threw himself into a high diving roll, his fury- and stamina-assisted leap leaving him fifteen feet in the air. He twisted in midair, leaning on his new [Strenuous Agility] and the combination with [Tumbling] to thread the needle through the creatures crushing legs.

Oh, I can spend stamina with [Strenuous Agility] to generate new angular momentum while in midair. That works amazingly well with [Tumbling].

One of the limbs clipped him in the leg and would have sent him smashing prone into the dirt - easy prey to be crushed by a follow-up attack. But Nathan used his movement skills in concert, stabilizing his tumble with[Strenuous Agility], slowing down with [Slow Fall] and landing in a smooth roll with [Tumbling], while [Dodging Footwork] let him spring to his feet and dance around the follow-up attack that shattered a six-foot crater in the stone.

Congratulations, you have developed the [Mid-tier Tumbling] utility skill into [High-Tier Tumbling].

Utility skill: [High-Tier Tumbling]

This skill will help you use unorthodox movements to take advantage of your momentum. Especially useful to avoid attacks and compensate when you are struck.

Then Nathan was beneath the construct, at the very nexus of its disintegration aura. From here he could see mana conduits threading along the bottom of each of the machines legs, guiding and controlling the disintegration spell. The conduits terminated in a greenish-black crystal on the underside of the body, which pulsed in time to the disintegrating aura.

Its always a fuckin crystal. Well, time to employ the patented Nathan crystal response tactic.

Without thinking about it too hard, Nathan crouched and leapt, grabbing hold of the central body with his left hand while he punched at the crystal with his right hand. It cracked with a surprisingly deep sound, and the spider construct jerked and made a keening sound.

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It retracted the crystal into the central body, trying to fold an armored panel across the opening. Nathan wedged his shoulder into the gap as his arm groped around the creatures exposed innards, draining magic from every part he touched. The creature pulsed the disintegration aura fiercely at point blank range, even as the crystals surface was crazed with cracks. It looked one light tap away from shattering, but the spell blazed. Hair burned off all over Nathans body and his eyeballs itched, but his skin was inviolable.

Damn. [Improved Antimagic] is pretty great.

Nathans shoulder was being crushed by the vicelike strength of the panel trying to close, but he was getting more than enough Stamina to stay topped up - from both the disintegrating aura and also the immensely magical guts of the construct.

Its almost like cursebreaking, except the entire thing is a enormous mobile curse. Now Im just trying to shred this enchanted giant from the inside out.

Then Nathans questing hand found the motherload of magic, some kind of circuit directly connected to what had to be the constructs brain. His magical senses spread through the link as the mana swirled into him. The central control unit for this thing was complicated - Nathan tried to understand how it worked, what its priorities were. But it was like trying to understand code by looking at hardware activation - while Nathans antimagic was destroying the underlying framework like a spreading acid.

Even so, he got a sense of panic from the construct - there was some form of awareness in there, though it didnt seem to be on the level of a human. Nathan suppressed a flash of pity for the thing.

High-tier Identify 4 achieved!

Its a war-construct from a long-dead empire thats been unleashed on Gemore. Its attacking a town, and not willing to talk. Pity it all you like, but it needs to be put down.

The creatures long legs had been trying to curl to hit Nathan during this process, but their armor meant they lacked the flexibility to reach the central body. Now they were jerking spasmodically, and as the rapid-fire thoughts of the magical brain were disrupted they stopped altogether. The construct didnt topple, seemingly locked in place.

Nathan vaulted atop the frozen body, using its twenty-foot height to survey the battlefield.

Aarl was just mopping up the last of the scout-constructs as they tried to swarm him, blasting a pack of them back with the lightning-saber. Six-legged strike-constructs lay slumped across the battlefield, either shot precisely through the eye by Sarah or diced to pieces by Aarls new disintegration-sword.

Stella and Khachi were beyond, though Stella was now limned by a bright aura of flickering lightning. The mana-capacitors were still hidden behind a stone outcrop, but the blue-white light reflected from the surrounding hills, like Stella's spell was a hidden but unimaginably powerful disco ball.

They were surrounded by the pulped remains of scout constructs and a single larger strike construct that had tried to go for Stella and met Khachis hammer.

Thats a weird shape for metal to take. Oh yeah, Khachis new hammer deforms metal.

Nathan turned the other direction, looking over the hillside that sloped down to the valley around Tarren.

Oh shit, thats a lot of constructs. A goddamn army.

They hadnt gotten all of the war machines from this wave, and a number of them were retreating to join the encroaching horde. And it was a horde. The scout constructs covered the slope like an angry metal carpet, punctuated by maybe a hundred of the strike constructs. There were nine more of the giant twelve-legged armored creatures like the one Nathan was using as a watchtower, but most worrying were four even larger constructs that looked like giant metal bricks, each supported by eight stubby legs that powered them over the ground slowly but steadily.

Not sure I want to know what those do. Heres hoping Stellas lightning can take them out and I never find out!

Nathan turned to yell to the rest of the Heirs, shouting as loud as he could. Incoming horde! Weve got a couple minutes. Get to cover! Ill try to get them to bunch up

He was interrupted by the loud hiss of an incoming spell before the construct he was standing on was nearly vaporized by an explosion. Nathan was thrown into the air as shrapnel from his erstwhile perch sliced into his skin, shredding his lower body. Pieces of enchanted metal embedded themselves in his legs and gut, and his right arm was torn half away by a particularly large chunk of enchanted armor.

Rude. I was talking.

Lines of shockingly powerful light mana locked onto him, staying precisely focused and on-target no matter how he adjusted his trajectory. Nathan stabilized his spin and slowed his fall to look down on the encroaching horde as he started healing through his extensive wounds. Each of the light spells focused on him were powerful enough to melt metal in a moment, but they felt about as impactful as a hairdryer pointed at his skin.

And they'll provide enough Stamina to heal through all that shrapnel. Need to keep in mind that even if an explosion is caused by magic, any material it propels can still hurt me. Despite me being safe from a blastwave? Weird.

Nathan had to pay attention to ensure that the alien objects were ejected from his body. But with his skills he could focus past the pain, the hostile spells and the fact that he was fatally wounded and hovering over an AI alarmists worst nightmare. He cataloged his injuries and started controlling his healing to push out the foreign pieces of metal, giving his body the attention it needed to restore itself.

Battle Meditation 4 achieved!

Perfected Body 4 achieved!

Now in better condition, and still hovering over the battlefield, Nathan surveyed the army in front of him. It was still some distance away, though steadily closing the gap. The light beams were emanating from the corners of the brick constructs, their aim impressive across such a long distance. A hatch in the center of the closest of the bricks opened up and a ball of condensed purple plasma zipped out of it. Nathan felt some kind of targeting spell try to lock onto him, but it slid off and he juked sideways. The ball of plasma flew off into the distance before exploding like a battleship shell against a far-off hill.

Then the strike constructs opened up with their spike-throwers, and Nathan had to dive for the deck, yanking himself toward the ground with [Slow Fall] to avoid staggered volleys of projectiles.

Im immune to magic, not metal spikes. Though if I keep leveling up and empowering [Unarmored Resilience]and [Raging Thrill] thatll change.

Nathan broke line of sight to the attackers, diving behind the crest that still blocked the army from the Heirs.

Though the swarm will be coming into sight in just a few minutes.

He confirmed that the rest of the Heirs had regrouped, with Sarah and Aarl standing next to Khachi as he maintained the half-dome of golden force. Stella still wasnt looking this way, and Nathan wondered if he needed to signal her when the moment to unleash her spell was nigh.

Naww. Trust my teammates to handle it. They dont have too much more to do. My job is to prevent the smaller constructs from overwhelming them until we get as much of the army in range as possible. Lets hope this works!

Soon enough the outriders from the swarm piled over the hill, and Nathan engaged them. He slammed his fist through the weaker armor of a scout construct, then grabbed a barbed tail headed for his neck before using the attached construct as a bludgeon.

A strike construct crested the hill and drew a bead on him, but Sarah fired first and the metal figure dropped like a puppet with its strings cut. Then three more came into view, and Nathan was tied down with a crowd of sentry constructs. One of them fired a spike at him while the other two fired on Khachis dome.

The projectiles deflected with faint ripples of golden force, pinging off into the hillside beyond. Sarah fired again, dropping another construct while Aarl stood there, looking frustrated and ready to deal with anything that reached them.

Then the constructs stopped, withdrawing from Nathan and formed a battle line at the crest of the hill. Sarah shot another strike construct and the last one withdrew, hiding behind some rocks. The scout constructs stayed, seemingly daring the [Headshot Gunslinger] to waste ammunition on them. She proceeded to do so, firing as quickly as she could reload the masterwork rifle to scythe through their ranks.

Im glad the new one is enchanted to not overheat. I wonder if shes getting back more Focus than shes spending on that ammunition. Probably not, but shes been stockpiling.

Nathan eyed the line of sentry constructs as more shuffled atop the hill to replace those Sarah had shot.

Theyre waiting for the heavy hitters to arrive. The scout and sentry constructs are fast, but they want combined arms to fight us. The brick-shaped ones are probably for direct fire support and the twelve-legged armored ones are linebreakers. Or wallbreakers. That disintegration aura is potent.

Sarah continued to harvest the scout constructs in view as they kept an eye on the Heirs, before Nathan saw the first telltale silhouette of one of the disintegration-aurad spider constructs come into view. Nothing was visible except for heavily armored legs, and it was clear that Sarah wasnt going to be able to take it out from range.

Sounds like a job for me! We need to get them to commit everything.

The sentry constructs gave the spider a wide berth, and Nathan jogged sideways to put himself in between it and the Heirs. The construct slowed for a second, and Nathan could almost feel its attention shifting between him and the pile of jagged scrap which was all that remained of an identical war machine.

Yeah. Thats right. Bring it.

It decided not to bring it. Nathan engaged in a short staring contest with a sixty-foot wide twelve-legged metal spider, and wondered when his life had gotten so strange.

Probably about when I got yanked through a portal to a fantasy world. But thereve been a few additional weird steps to get to exactly here.

Then three more of the spiders came over the hill, and Nathan started backpedaling slowly. He wanted to slow them down - convince them to commit more of their firepower. But not try to take them all out single-handedly.

I mean if I could, then sure, that would be great. But I got a bit lucky not getting pounded to paste by the first one, and my impression of their intelligence is that theyre smart enough to work together and prevent me from doing the same thing. And they might not even give me a straight shot to the core this time. I might be stuck slowly disenchanting and then ripping off individual pieces of armor. No, Im mostly reduced to posturing right now.

The constructs were still advancing cautiously, fanning out across the slope of the hill and starting to slowly descend, matching Nathans steps backwards with their own. They were soon joined by the other spider-constructs, until a line of eight of them slowly advanced. Sarahs shots dwindled away as groups of the smaller sentry constructs hid behind each spider construct, using them as cover.

They could definitely just charge, and theres not much we could really do. Well, aside from unleashing Stellas surprise. Are they waiting for?

The spider constructs picked up their pace, with sentry and strike constructs pouring over the hillside behind them in a wave. Then the top of the four brick-shaped constructs became visible over the hill, and the swarms advance turned into a charge.

Nathan wasnt too far away from the Heirs, and he leapt into the air like a baseman trying to catch a high line drive. Only what he was catching this time was an explosive plasma projectile aimed at his teammates. It was about the same size as a baseball, though it didnt stay that way for long. The ball of sun-hot plasma detonated in his fingers, and Nathan was very glad for [Improved Antimagic] as the raging explosion washed around him.

I probably would have been blown into the bedrock without it. As it is, all Ive got now is excess Stamina.

Another ball of plasma streaked by and collided with Khachis shield, hiding the Heirs behind a roiling ball of purple fire.

What are they waiting for? I know Khachis shields got a lot stronger after his level 81 Development and all the divinity shenanigans, but much longer and theyre going to have giant disintegration-spiders knocking on the front door.

The fire cleared, revealing the barrier intact and the Heirs safe behind it. Khachi was on one knee, hands clasped in prayer as his shield of golden energy blazed. Stella had turned around to inspect the battlefield. Her eyes blazed with lightning that extended off the side of her face, like the brightest and most dramatic winged eyeliner imaginable.

Then incandescent beams of light mana struck the barrier, and Stella smiled.

Skill comparison:

Utility skill: [Mid-Tier Tumbling]

This skill will help you use unorthodox movements involving rolls and handsprings to take advantage of your momentum to avoid danger.

Utility skill: [High-Tier Tumbling]

This skill will help you use unorthodox movements to take advantage of your momentum. Especially useful to avoid attacks and compensate when you are struck.

Status of Nathan Lark:

Permanent Talent 1: Magic Absorption 9

Permanent Talent 2: Perfected Body 4

Talent 3: High-tier Slow Fall 8

Class: Implacable Antimage level 91

Stamina: 3030/3030

Antimages Impassivity

Antimagic Momentum

Raging Thrill

Implacable Inertia

Unarmored Resilience

Improved Antimagic

Strenuous Agility

Hand-to-hand Expertise

Utility skills:

Battle Meditation 4

High-tier Earnestness 8

Mid-tier Sprinting 10

High-tier Spellsense 8

High-tier Notice 3

High-tier Identify 4

High-tier Dodging Footwork 3

High-tier Enhanced Memory 7

Mid-tier Lecturing 8

High-tier Tumbling 1