Rise of the Devourer

Chapter 47: Battle Traps

Noah watched the world fly by in a blur beneath him from atop the Wyvern’s back. Open fields, forests, villages and such all meshed into a giant canvas as they flew amidst the clouds. Noah kept a tight grip on the edge of his saddle, trying his best not to slip an inch. Despite the fast speed they were moving at, the journey was surprisingly quiet, with a pocket of air diverting the harsh torrents of wind.

“You don’t seem too excited about flying? People tend to have a much stronger reaction when they fly this high for the first time,” Aurelia asked, glancing back at him.

“We had airplanes, so I’ve flown before. This is just more windy and life-threatening,” Noah said, glancing downwards as he tightened his grip once more. “Say, how often do people fall off these things?”

“Just don’t let go and you won’t need to know,” Aurelia said with a smile.

Noah didn’t reply, simply keeping his grip as he watched the clouds fly past. The temperature was cold, with the wind pocket around them being the only thing that kept warm air in circulation and stopped the three of them from freezing to death.

“How close are we?” Noah asked.

Aurelia opened her palm as the tracking device manifested, a golden glow shimmering across its many revolving rings. “Close. We should start landing so that we don’t get spotted.”

Erwest nodded, steering the wyvern downwards, as they rapidly began to descend. Slowly, Noah saw the tiny village start to expand in size, as they flew closer and closer still. Flying around the village, the wyvern settled down in the nearby forest, flapping its wings to create powerful gusts of wind as it touched down on the ground.

Noah jumped off first, feeling his feet firmly planted. “Ah, how I missed you, solid ground.”

Aurelia rolled her eyes, climbing off behind him. Erwest stepped off last, tying the wyvern to a tree nearby, before he produced a bucket full of meat for the creature to eat.

“Where are these heathens?” Erwest asked, glancing at Aurelia. “We should not be wasting any time dilly-dallying here.”

Aurelia touched the device, which lit up, displaying a glowing map hologram above it. “They’re here, in this cavern. There’s a pocket here leading to a section of water mana stones that's the source of one of the many water channels around Aquaris. The marker shows them here, near the pocket.”

“So, what’s the plan? We go in, rush them down, tie them up and bring them back?” Noah asked.

“No, we don’t. We ambush them instead. Look here,” Aurelia said, zooming in on a section of the cavern. “We move in and head towards this section and find our way in. Then, once we have a good vantage point, we’ll catch them off-guard and take them down one on one. As discussed before, I’ll handle Garett, Erwest can take care of Evans, and Noah, you can take on Alta.”

Noah nodded, and Erwest gave a grunt. Aurelia put the tracking device away, nodding as she put on her gauntlets, sparks flying off of them as a golden blaze erupted in her eyes.

“Let’s bring them down.”

***

Noah looked at his mini map, finding the cavern slowly start to fill in. The area was damp, water dripping down and echoing through the dark caves as they walked through the twirling and twisting tunnels within. Streams of water flowed through the cavern, making Noah frown as he glanced at the glowing blue stones filling the area with water mana.

The party moved in a three pronged formation, with Erwest at the lead, Aurelia on his right and Noah on his left. Walking just a little further in, Noah paused when Erwest raised an arm, signaling for them not to move.

A moment later, the Paladin rushed ahead, sword drawn with a golden fury of light as he turned the corner. A muted gasp came, the sound of flesh being sliced by metal, and then a few seconds later, a final thud.

Noah waited, gripping his spear tightly as he remained around the corner. Aurelia stayed next to him, crouched low, with her fists ready to strike.

Erwest walked back around the corner, blood now covering his pristine sword and armor as he motioned for them to move closer. Walking ahead, Noah saw the corpse lying on the ground. A clean strike had cut through the man’s neck, piercing it all the way as he’d died. The man wore a deep red robe, marked with the symbol of a crimson heart stabbed through by a sword visible upon it.

“Crimson cultists,” Aurelia whispered, glancing sideways as she frowned. “Has there been crimson cult activity in these parts?”

Erwest frowned, before glancing up. Signing he signaled two more further ahead.

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“I’ll take care of it,” Noah said, stepping forward. Standing near the corner, Noah watched the two cultists standing guard. Blink whirred as he teleported ahead. Bleed and Obliterate moved in a frenzy as he stabbed through the first cultist, piercing his chest from behind, killing the man instantly.

Before the second man could move, Noah leapt and grabbed his throat. Necrotoxins flowed down his clawed hand, as he used blood drain, the man struggling in his grasp for a few seconds, before all life was drained from his body.

You’ve killed [Abyssal Cultist lvl - 47 (Common)].

You’ve killed [Crimson Cultist lvl - 52 (Common)].

Noah turned around, signaling for the rest of them to move closer. Aurelia and Erwest walked by, taking glances at the corpses before they moved ahead. The mana in the chamber began to grow denser as they moved further in.

Turning through a section, the party found itself making their way into a cross section, with a giant man standing at the entrance to a massive gate. A massive curved sword held in his hand, as he patrolled the corridor.

Noah used identify.

[Abyssal Executioner - ??]

They remained hidden around the corner, and Noah glanced at Erwest, who looked at the giant man with a frown.

“I’m going to draw him out,” Aurelia said, glancing at Noah. Touching her gauntlets, she put them in her storage ring, before quickly replacing her armor to the simple garb she’d been in when Noah had first encountered her. Taking out a dagger, she nicked herself in a few spots, letting blood drip onto her clothes, before throwing her hair into disarray.

Noah understood her plan, nodding at her. A moment later, Aurelia stumbled out into the open area.

The Abyssal Executioner turned, eyes glaring through his helmet. Aurelia looked at the man, as color seemed to drain from her face she stumbled back, before turning as she ran. The Abyssal Executioner moved without a word, rushing ahead with his massive sword raised overhead as he gave chase. Aurelia continued to run, then stumbled, turning the corner where Noah and Erwest laid in wait.

They waited only half a breath, before the giant man turned, and the two leapt into action.

Obliterate blurred through Noah’s spear, Bleed coating it in a red glimmer as he struck. Erwest moved rapidly, his own sword slicing through the Abyssal Executioner's armor.

But their enemy was fast. Moving with surprising speed, the executioner blocked Noah’s spear with his sword, while taking Erwest’s attack with his thick arm, protecting his neck.

Noah cursed, heart beating rapidly as he pulled his spear back. The Abyssal Executioner opened his mouth, ready to scream and alert the entire area when a flame covered fist planted itself in his face.

The impact was powerful, launching the giant man into the cavernous wall, before Aurelia jumped in, crushing his windpipe with another well placed strike. The man sunk to the ground, eyes wide in horror as he stared at Aurelia. With a final strike from Erwest’s blade, the Executioner’s life came to an end.

You’ve killed [Abyssal Executioner lvl - 117 (Uncommon)/Abyssal Warrior lvl - 32 (Uncommon)].

Panting, Noah turned to face his teammates, nodding to them. Together, they moved to the giant entrance, pushing it open ever so slightly, before they peered inside.

A massive cavern was set within, not too dissimilar to the one Noah had first opened his eyes in. Five figures stood around in a circle atop an altar, with cages set beneath the stairs.

Noah saw the people tied up within the cages, in varied states of undress and injury as he felt his anger rising to a tide.

“It’s them. The Iron fists. Standing on the altar with the cultists,” Aurelia said, her own eyes burning with flames as she looked at the party that had betrayed her.

“Two of them are D ranked cultist chiefs. Abyssal and Crimson both. Three hostages, all shackled.” Erwest said, glancing sideways. “How’re we doing this?”

Aurelia bit her lips, looking through the gap. “Let’s wait and watch for now.”

“We need to act before someone finds the corpses and starts screaming,” Noah said, glancing back in the direction they’d come from.

“I’ll stand guard here, you two enter and find a quiet location near the altar. See if you can free the hostages before we strike,” Erwest said.

Nodding, Noah moved. Slipping through the gap at the entrance, he crouched around the shadows. Void Hunter’s Eyes activated, as he saw lifeforce brimming around him in all directions. With a blink, Noah teleported further, hiding behind a pillar within the cavernous chamber. Standing as still as he could, he let his breath settle down, and waited.

“You said you would bring five,” a man barked from above the Altar. “There’s only three of them here, and one does not even qualify!”

“Do you have any idea how difficult it is to capture D ranked adventurers? And we did get five, it’s not my fault they killed themselves when they realised what was happening,” another man replied, wearing leather armor and with a claymore at his back. Noah had a feeling he was Garett.

“This is insufficient. The ritual demands five sacrifices. Our transaction is not complete until you bring what was asked of you,” the cultist chief hissed, stepping ahead, when a man moved in a rapid step, dagger poised at his throat.

“Do not draw your weapons at me,” the cultist vibrated in fury.

“Let us not lose our temper. And you have to understand that all this preparation will be for nothing, if you do not bring us the right amount. Now please, withdraw your weapon,” the crimson cultist chief said, a high pitched female voice, with a graceful touch to it. Not the kind of voice he expected to hear here.

Garett glanced sideways as the ranger pulled back his dagger. The conversation continued atop the altar, but Noah did not pay it any further heed. He watched Aurelia slowly make her way to where he was. Nodding to her once, Noah moved ahead, using teleport to move right up to one of the cages set around the altar.

“Shhh,” Noah whispered as the woman inside stared at him in horror.

“M-monster?” she whimpered, and Noah realised how he must’ve appeared in a dark dimly lit cavern with his monstrous eye.

“Not a monster, no. I’m here from the guild,”Noah replied, glancing at the cage. Walking up, he checked the lock, finding no keyhole, but instead a strange rune encrypted on it. “Do you know how to open these?”

The woman stared blankly at him, but snapped out of her daze quickly. “They use a slate with a rune carved on it. It’s with that man. They use the same one for all the cages,” the woman pointed in a hushed tone towards the top of the altar.

“Is there any chance you can draw the rune for me?” Noah asked. The woman nodded hesitantly, before she slowly drew a symbol on the dirt floor.

Noah took out his single good dagger, copying the symbol onto the lock itself as he let his mana flow through the blade.

The lock vibrated, whirring, before clicking open. The woman stared wide eyed, before moving ahead. “But… these?” she said, pointing at the shackles.

“We’ll get those too. For now, stay here, and don’t make any noise. Find somewhere to hide if you can, and sneak out. You’ll find my teammate outside. He’ll get you to safety.”

The woman nodded, slipping out of the cage. As she slowly began to walk away, Noah turned to check on Aurelia.

He noted her standing with the other cage open as well, the man inside slowly making his way back towards the entrance. Glancing at her, Noah gave a signal, before turning to the last prisoner.

Using Blink, Noah teleported to the cage as he began to carve the unlocking rune on the lock. The drailith inside stirred but did not move, already having noticed the other two prisoners they’d freed. Moving with haste, Noah quickly unlocked the cage, as the lock opened with a click, freeing the man inside.

Instincts rustled as Noah sensed something move behind him. Before even thinking, he turned, spear appearing in his hand, but he was too slow. A dagger rushed towards his face, cutting through his cheeks before another blow struck him in the gut. Noah felt himself crumple from the strike, falling backwards. He tried to blink, but before the ability could activate, two arrows shot him in the chest one after the other.

You’ve been inflicted with [Paralysis - III]

You’ve been inflicted with [Toxin - III]

Lifeblood resists [Paralysis].

Lifeblood resists [Toxin].

[Paralysis - III] → [Paralysis - I]

[Toxin - III] → [Toxin - I]

Noah grunted, feeling his body turning numb rapidly as a cloud of smoke rose around him. He tried to move, but the man was faster, shooting another arrow that pinned him to the ground. Noah screamed, unable to hold his voice down as the ranger walked up to him, eyes looking down menacingly.

[Potioncraft Ranger - ??]

Noah glanced sideways, seeing Aurelia in a similar state with a woman holding her down with bloody chains.

Steps echoed from atop the altar, as the cultist chiefs and Garett walked down the stairs. Noah tried to move, but the ranger didn’t relent, his arrows keeping him pinned in place. A moment later, he felt his mana draining as shackles tied his arms together, locking his abilities away.

“Well well well, look who we have here. If it isn’t my dearest Aurelia,” Garett said, making his way down, as he crouched next to her. “Tell me something. Just how are you still alive?”