45: Star Child: Dunes of Tolapo XI

"Ascended what?" I exclaimed. Indra'a turned and hushed the child. Seeing the panicked look on my face she decided to explain.

"There is a Ascended among the Dr'idi'saiyo. It is probably leading the others. When the beasts first attacked there were three other teachers beside myself…they thought to try and go get help…the Ascended struck without warning…" She said.

"Oh…" I muttered then translated what she said for Iris and to her credit she managed at lot better than I did to not look worried in front of the kids.

"Chase don't translate this but a Ascended is a massive problem. I've seen what an Ascended can do. The damage they can cause with their hordes of evo followers."

"Trust me I know what an Ascended can do. A ascended thrad attacked my hometown, there were…a lot of casualties." I said in universal standard then a thought suddenly struck me. I turned and spoke to Indra'a in Torapos. "Wait if the the other teachers were attacked when they were leaving the school then where was the ascended?"

"It was laying in wait inside the well outside." Indra'a said. "The moment they crossed the road it struck, shooting out of the we'll and screeching at them…"

"Fuuuuuck!" I said in universal standard.

"What?!" Iris asked. I held one finger up to tell her wait.

'Bone-lasher. Are you up?' I thought.

<Danger>

I felt a wave if anxiety and anger rush over me as well as a fit of nausea. There were so many Dr'idi'saiyo in such a close proximity it was over taxing it's sensory abilities.

'Bone I need your help. Is there a extra big version of those sonic vipers laying in wait?'

I felt another wave of nausea hit me as a image flashed into my head. Everything around was pitch-black but highlighted by a static haze. This was how Bone-lasher saw the world. My vision traveled across the courtyard and through the school to a well across the road right next to two partially destroyed buildings. Inside the well I could easily make out the massive head of the ascended Dr'idi'saiyo waiting just below the rim of the well. My vision then traveled up the alleyway next to the road to two figures about a half mile away running straight toward the school.

'Jane and Astrid!' I thought.

<Pain!>

'Thank you!' I thought then turned to Iris.

"The ascended is still in the well! Plus Jane and Astrid are coming this way! It'll ambush them before they have a chance to protect themselves." I said. Iris eyes widened.

"No lady Jane!" she cried then rushed out of the building.

"What is wrong?" Indra'a asked.

"Our friends are heading towards the ascended Dr'idi'saiyo's trap. We'll be right back I swear!" I explained in Torapos. She reached out and grabbed my wrist in a vice grip.

"No don't! You'll be killed! It's too strong!" she exclaimed. I grabbed her wrist gently and looked her in the eyes.

"I'm not dying today. I swear on my star that I will be back with all my friends and we will protect you and the children." I said seriously. She hesitated then let go of my wrist. "Thank you!"

With that I turned and ran put of the building heading towards the main school building. Just as I reached the courtyard door a monstrous roar echoed through the area and sent a shock wave that rocked the foundation, shattered windows and took doors off the hinges. One of those doors slammed straight into me and sent me flying back several feet.

"Fuck!" I groaned then looked up. "OH SHIT!!!"

I rolled out of the way, just barely dodging a huge chunk of stone that would have crushed my head like a walnut.

"CHASE!!!" I sat up and saw Jane, Iris, and Astrid running out into the courtyard waving their arms at me.

"MOVE!" Jane screamed. I scrambled to my feet and as I did I saw a shadow come over me and the sound of heavy wing beats above. I glanced up and saw a large heavy figure barreling towards me. I screamed and ran, just barely jumping out of the way before the massive figured tried to dive bomb me, it crashed into the ground sending shockwaves through the earth and knocking me into the air.

As I was falling a tail snaked out of the dust cloud created by the dive bomb and smacked me square in my stomach. I wheezed as I was sent soaring higher into the air.

"Fuck!" I gasped.

The dust cloud was suddenly blown away with a powerful gust to revel the ascended Dr'idi'saiyo. It was gigantic, at least thirty feet long and its head looked to be the same skze as my while body. It was covered in head to tail in pitch black scales except on the leathery bay wings that make up the viper hood. Fully stretched it looked like the wings were about fifteen feet wide.

As I started to fall back towards the ground it coiled tightly before launching itself at me, its large gaping maw open ready to swallow me whole in one bite.

'If you're the big boss then taking controlling you controls all of them!' I thought as I held my hand out. I started cycling mana into my farm crystal. Time started to creep to a standstill as chains of mana shot out of my crystal and wrapped around the Dr'idi'saiyo and drove into its brain.

I was overwhelmed with sensory the sensory information of millions of basic Dr'idi'saiyo. The ascended was actively controlled the movements not only of the tens of thousands of Dr'idi'saiyo that remained in the village but also the millions of them outside the village resting in caves all over Niger. I gritted my teeth and fought through all that and found the ego of the ascended.

I dug my chains in deeper to try and control it but I felt push back, like I had struck a wall. I felt another presence there with me, not another Dr'idi'saiyo but rather a human, a splicer. In that instant I felt a powerful rush of magic surge through my chains shattering them as it crawled along them. Fearing what would happen if it reached my farm crystal I cut the connection.

Time sped back to normal and the ascended snapped it's jaw shut a few moments too soon. I crashed into the top of its head then rolled down the back of its neck down its body. I went crashing onto the ground as I reached the first coil and skidded for several feet.

"FUCK!" I hissed. I felt a few of my sealed wounds reopen again.

"Chase!" Iris and Jane screamed as they ran over to me.

I quickly sat up and eyed the ascended. It was shaking its head widely from side to side and hissing angrily into the air. It looked like it was fighting to have control back from whoever was controlling it.

"Chase? You're bleeding!" Jane exclaimed as she and the other girls reached me. I stood up and shook my head.

"Worry about that later. We have way bigger problem right now." I said then pointed at the massive evo. "That ascended is controlling all the other Dr'idi'saiyo in the village as well as in Niger but someone is controlling it. I felt their presence for a split second when I tried to take control of it."

"That means this entire attack was orchestrated by someone!" Iris exclaimed

"I knew something was fishy!" Astrid exclaimed. "Swarm patterns for animals are random but there is a elegance to them. But all the swarms we've seen so far have just been moving in a circle. It's way too precise to be natural!"

"What do we do?" Iris asked. I looked at the girls and posted at the ascended.

"We either need to kill it or damage it enough to make it retreat and take all its buddies with them." I replied. Jane and Iris looked at me expectantly.

"You have a plan?" Iris asked.

"Yeah…but you three aren't going to like it…" I said. I pointed to the stone building that the Indra'a and the kids were hiding in. "…Jane, I need you and Iris to protect that building. There is a teacher and very scared kids inside that need protection. Your spell specialties are tailored to that."

"Okay!" Jane and Iris exclaimed them started towards the building.

"You're just going to do what he says! No objection!?" Astrid exclaimed.

"WE TRUST HIM!" Iris screamed over her shoulder.

"Astrid, you're with me."

"Are you crazy!?" She screamed. "Just the two of us against that! You're injured already and I don't have any evos!"

"Can't use mine either. Plus larger evos would be a easy target for the smaller Dr'idi'saiyo fangs and venom if it summons them." I said.

"So what is your plan!?" Astrid growled.

"If I can keep its attention long enough can you to use that light sword restraining spell?" I asked.

"What are you going to do then?"

"I'll take care if it." I said pulling my last two sigil papers out of my pocket.

"Okay…" Astrid said.

The ascended Dr'idi'saiyo shook its head one last time before it and it snapped in our direction. Whoever was directing this attack was completely taking control of it now. The ascended locked its gaze on me.

"Astrid I'm putting my life in your hands right now. You fail, we a die." I said then glared at her. "You got my back?!"

"Yeah! We're not dying till we have our duel!" Astrid exclaimed!