69 New World XXXII
"I think we should send in an Elder Lich," Xyris suggested, his gaze fixed on the swarms of lesser undead as they poured into the cave.
"I don't think that's necessary. In the grand scheme of things, these lesser undead are not that important. Their only job is to create mayhem and panic."
Azrik spoke in a manner of factuality. He then continued to add,;
"We need to wait for their reinforcements to arrive; once they do, we'll send in the Elder Liches and one Skeletal Behemoth to deal with them."
"Hmmm," Azrik hummed in response.
"And what if she comes personally?" Krunui asked Azrik.
"We'll just attack her with everything we got. Honestly, that would make it a lot easier if she were to come here personally," Azrik casually replied.
"I am sorry, that was a dumb question," Krunui spoke with a downcasted look.
With that, everyone stopped speaking. Even though the size of the cave entrance was big, it still took a considerable time for the lesser undead to enter it.
~Inside the Cave~
As the lesser undead poured deeper into the cave, they were hit by various traps and magic spells aimed at them by a few Elder Liches.
The reason Azrik sent them first was for them to disarm any traps and find any hidden enemies. And they had done just that.
The spells fired at them by the Elder Liches were potent and were able to cull their numbers considerably. But, due to the small area of the passage, the Elder Liches didn't use any AOE spells.
This allowed the lesser undead to reach the Elder Liches and attack them. Even though they were high-level summons, they weren't that powerful in physical combat.
Sure, they could've defeated a few of them physically, but handling such a large number was impossible. And in due time, the Elder Liches succumbed to the superior numbers of the Lesser Undead.
After dealing with them, they continued their journey to the cave's depths. On their way, they met with more Liches and other lesser undead, but in far lesser numbers.
In the end, their numbers were reduced to merely 5,000. Then, suddenly, a roar resounded across the cave. Before, a ferocious beast made of bones moved toward the entrance.
It destroyed any undead in its wake, not even bothering to stop. Soon enough, it exited the cave.
"ROOWWR!"
It roared loudly, which sent a wave of panic through the living members of the Army of Death; the only exception was Clementine- due to her high level-.
"Hmm, a Skeletal Behemoth," Khajiit spoke while stroking his chin.
"Skeletal Behemoth, ATTACK!" Azrink shouted his attack, and the Skeletal Behemoth attacked the enemy Skeletal Behemoth.
Even though they were both Skeletal Behemoths, their anatomy was different from each other. Skeletal Behemoth was just an umbrella term for a lot of undead.
In simpler terms, when a monster's or an animal's corpse was raised as an undead, and they didn't fall into established types, they were then categorized into Behemoth Undead.
Granz used the corpse of a Fire Lion to raise a Skeletal Behemoth, while the Army of Death used the corpse of a Giant for theirs.
The giant moved toward the lion with its fist outstretched, and despite its massive body, its movement speed was impressive. It was able to close the distance in just two seconds.
However, before it could strike its target, the lion jumped and landed a distance away from the giant. The lion's agility was its best advantage, and it used it well. The two combatants circled each other, eyeing one another cautiously.
The lion crouched low, ready to pounce. The giant's eyes never left its foe, and it clenched its fists, preparing for the clash. The tension was palpable.
'I hope we win this; that will surely boost the morale of our troops.'
With a long leap, the lion lunged at the giant, claws extended. The giant met the attack head-on, using its sheer size and strength to try and overpower the beast. The clash was fierce, but the giant managed to push the lion back, sending it tumbling to the ground.
The lion quickly regained its footing, roaring defiantly. It circled the giant, searching for an opening. The giant, undeterred, charged once more. It swung its massive fist, but the lion dodged the blow with lightning speed.
The lion's agility allowed it to evade the giant's attacks repeatedly. It darted in and out, striking at the giant's legs and sides. The giant roared in frustration, unable to land a solid blow on its nimble foe.
As the battle raged on, the giant frustration grew, and it started to throw punches without much accuracy. The onlookers thought that the giant might have gone berserk.
"Azrik, please tell me you are still in control?" Clementine asked- now mostly recovered from exhaustion- as she stood beside Azrik.
"Don't worry, I am still in control. It is just acting on its instincts," Azrik replied.
The lion, sensing an opportunity, leaped and managed to land a clean hit on the giant's back, resulting in some bones falling off of its body.
But before the lion could land, the giant turned and grasped its tail and threw it toward the cave entrance at an incredible speed.
The giant also started moving toward the direction where it had thrown the lion.
The lion struck the rock wall above the cave's entrance and fell down; the giant boasted incredible strength, so the collision caused much damage to the lion- evident by the many bones that fell to the ground after its impact.
Before the lion could stand, the giant landed near it and delivered a powerful punch on its back. The lion kept trying to stand up, but the giant placed one hand over the lion's skull and pushed it down while its other hand kept punching the lion's spine.
The giant continued its assault for a few minutes until the lion's eyes lost the flames- that were dancing there before. This meant that the giant had won.
"WOOOOOWWWR!" The giant roared out loudly on his victory.
"Let's get you healed up," Khajiit moved near the giant and raised his left hand, which contained the Orb of Death.
A second later, all the giant's broken bones began to glow in purple color before flying toward it and reattaching themselves to its body.
In just a few seconds, it was healed.
"Now, let's move on to the second phase," Azrik spoke and commanded all the Liches, one Elder Lich, and the giant to enter the cave and find the main room where their prime target was hiding.
The lesser undead were able to discover quite a lot of the cave's interior; however, before they could reach the room with the prime target, all of them died- due to traps, Liches, Elder Liches, etc.
As they received their command, the Liches, Elder Lich, and the giant entered the cave's entrance and began their descent.
~Scene Change~
The dragon-giant hybrid punched the side arms of the throne room and shouted in a guttural tone.
"THOSE BASTARDS!" As the summoner of the lion, she already got the information that it died.
'No, I need to calm down.' A blue aura enveloped her being and calmed her down.
It was a degraded version of the Momonga's passive, which dulled his emotions whenever he got excited. Granz acquired this when she ascended to a Chimeric Undead.
'The best way would be to wait down here and let my summons and undead reduce their numbers and strength.'
Thinking this, she ordered everyone in the room, which included 7 Elder Liches, 12 Liches, and 1 Skeletal Behemoth, to go and attack the enemies present outside the cave's entrance.
Hearing her command, everyone in the room ran toward its exit.
'Let's see how would you deal with this. Hahahaha.'
She thought while leaning back on her throne.
~Inside the Cave~
The troops of the Army of Death reached a point in the cave where they had to decide from two ways. After some deliberation, the Liches split up into two even groups- each having 5 Liches- and entered one of the two ways.
While the Elder Liche accompanied one group, the giant accompanied the other.
As they moved deeper into it, the cave became more and more dark. However, it didn't hinder their advance because all the undead possessed the passive known as Dark Vision.
The group, led by the Elder Liche, continued to tread deep into the caves. After a few minutes of eerie silence, a distant sound reached their ears, echoing through the tunnel.
It sounded like a lot of things were running toward them. The Elder Liche immediately became alert and readied its spell.
A magic circle formed at the helm of his stretched-out skeletal hand.
*Tremor Sense*
A 4th tier spell allowed someone to sense even the smallest amount of tremors, enabling them to find an opponent's position. It was more effective on land, but a floor could work as well.
However, it couldn't detect movements done through the air, such as someone using the spell *Fly*.
The fire in its sockets dimmed for a few seconds before returning with the same luminosity.
"Get ready! The enemy is on our way!"
It shouted and took an attacking pose. It also contacted Azrik- with whom it shared a connection- and delivered the information.
'My lord, several enemies are approaching our group. The enemies include Elder Liches, Liches, and a Skeletal Behemoth. I believe our path leads to the target; please command the other group to come and help us.'
The Elder Liches send Azrik messages through their shared link.
'Stall for time; I am sending 3 Elder Liches and the other Behemoth.'
To Be Continued...
