36 • The Onslaught Of Grimms

"Don't be foolish, Avatars!" Yograg laughed. "Using your powers inside this world is more of a disadvantage to you than an advantage."

Even with their powers in display, Spheris and the Avatars retreated cautiously as the Abyssians pressed forward. And yet, behind them, they could hear the approaching footsteps of the Gorgolith inside the cave.

Spheris wondered which would be a more gruesome death; to be stabbed by countless spears or to be eaten alive by a magma-spitting reptilian beast.

Neither of them being a preferable option was a decision that he arrived at quickly. He had to survive this. That was his only option.

"Don't you know that everytime you use it, you attract more Hellbenders your way?!" Yograg yelled, sitting on top of the convoy now. "Your powers emit vibrations of that Essence that's inside you freaks. And it sends signals to the creatures. You're merely hastening the approach of the Hellbender!"

Yograg erupted into an exceptional villainous laughter. "But don't you worry, so many other powered beings like you have met their end in the same way. You're not the first."

Glancing at his comrades, Spheris could see the fear reflected in their eyes, mirroring his own apprehension. It was only their inaugural adversary in The Abyss, and they were already outnumbered and outmatched, caught in a deadly predicament with seemingly no way to escape.

None of the other Avatars looked confident at all. Not even Thorin. Cerene proposed the idea of suppressing their powers, but they all knew it meant facing certain death. Nero kept yelling, demanding the Abyssians to stay back, brandishing his ice crystals as a threat. But the Abyssians were not backing down at all. Their chants continued and so did their progression.

With a sinking feeling in his chest, Spheris scanned his surroundings, searching for a way to escape... a way to survive this — like he usually did.

His gaze shifted to the horizon. Just over the advancing Abyssians and their wooden convoy, he could see dust settling over the sloping hill, causing him to squeeze his brows in apprehension. He felt a spike within him. A surge could be a better way to describe it. But the feeling was alien. It was like his instincts were warning him of danger ahead.

He felt shadows approaching from that direction — a multitude of them. But these shadows didn't feel like those of people; they seemed more primal, more predatory.

Like wolves.

Spheris's eyes widened as the realization dawned on him. If this strange instinct was correct, everyone, including the Abyssians, was in imminent peril. However, it also presented an opportunity to enhance his chances of escape.

The sharp ends of Abyssians' spears were a few feet away from them now, and Thorin had just suggested that they fight. It seemed between becoming Hellbender breakfast or facing fifty spears, the latter appeared marginally more survivable.

However, Spheris's urgent cry of "Wait!" halted everyone in their tracks, save for the Gorgolith steadily advancing from the depths of the cave.

"What are you doing?" Cerene whispered to him.

"What is it?" Yograg snarled.

Spheris lifted his gaze at him, he could barely see him now, as the crowd of hostile Abyssians were covering most of his view.

"You said whenever we use our powers, it attracts Hellbenders?" Spheris asked knowingly.

"That I did. They can smell it!" the captain affirmed with a smile.

"But it's not just the Gorgoliths, is it?" Spheris raised a witty brow. "It's still morning, and we're not that far from the mountains. Didn't you mention something about 'hunting time'?"

An ominous expression tore out of the man's face and he turned around frantically, gazing at the top of the hill where dust was rising.

From where Spheris and the Avatars stood, the ground trembled. The sound of a stampede growing louder and closer, echoing off the rocky walls of the canyon.

"Grimms!" Yograg yelled.

The entire army of Abyssians exploded into a frenzy. Linne, who seemed to be annoyed that she wasn't killing the Avatars herself, quickly pivoted and joined the rest of the Abyssians as they retreated to their wooden convoy.

The Avatars on the other hand, looked at each other with scared expressions on their faces. But didn't spend another moment discussing anything, they quickly began to run. They veered away from the cave where the Gorgolith loomed from, and ran to the side, jumping over the small streaks of magma on the ground.

"Go! Go! Go!" Thorin yelled.

Spheris didn't think anyone had to be told, the incoming threat was enough motivation. Looking back, he could see the Grimms much more clearer now. Gosh they were fast!

They zoomed through the barren ground, their wolf-like heads large and imposing as they snarled and bellowed. Their razor-sharp claws ripped through the earth, their muscular body resembling gnarled branches or twisted roots.. And their eyes, red with the same burning magma.

The Abyssians were clamoring about, trying to jump into the wooden convoy in a bid to escape the incoming onslaught. But it seemed their leader wasn't a very loyal one, as with just a few yells from Linne, demanding him to go, he spurred the mammalions into action, and the creatures began to pull the convoy, abandoning the other Abyssians who were still trying to climb in.

Spheris looked over at the Grimms. They were way too close now.

The Abyssians weren't gonna make it, and neither were they.

In an instant, chaos erupted. The Grimms collided with the Abyssians, diving first for the mammalions and causing the wooden convoy to topple over. People tumbled to their ground, their weapons and supplies scattering, their screams and yells of panic filling the air. Some of the Grimms feasted on the mammalions who had no way of escaping, while others feasted on the Abyssians — starting from Yograg — who were stuck under the giant convoy.

Seeing this, Spheris and the Avatars hastened their pace but more Grimms roared to their path, swooping over the throng of fleeing Abyssians and into the middle of the mayhem.

Spheris ducked as one lunged straight at him, the impact knocking him off his feet. Swiftly regaining its composure, the creature advanced towards him as he retreated, his back pressed against the ground.

The Grimm growled ominously, mouth watering and eyes burning red as it steadily closed the distance. Then, it pounced.

Spheris retaliated just in time, conjuring [Shaded Blasts] and hitting the beast with a burst of dark energy, sending it recoiling with a pained cry.

Still on the ground, he could see that the other Avatars also had their hands full.

Nero had created a giant hammer of ice, using it with precision to smash any Grimm that dared approach him. Beside him was Thorin, unleashing torrents and bursts of fire, which even though had little effect on the Hellbenders, was still enough to keep them away from him.

Cerene, who Spheris thought would have difficulties in situations like this, was handling herself quite well. She had two flagons strapped to her belt, and she manipulated the water out of them, creating liquid tendrils which entangled the attacking Grimms in their aqueous grips, or whipped them with force if they attacked too quickly.

Akemi, meanwhile, was the only naturally skilled fighter amongst the Royals as Spheris could see. She displayed surprising agility and speed as she darted between the Grimms, her movements fluid and graceful. She had created a katana with her reddish powers that Spheris still didn't quite understand, and she was slicing right through the creatures with deadly precision, fending off their attacks with a dancer's grace.

Spheris scrambled to his feet amidst the chaos, dust swirling around him. He watched as many Abyssians fell and were devoured. It was a massacre, an onslaught. Everywhere he looked, there was devastation.

Talon circled overhead, trying to evade the snapping jaws of the Grimms. While Spheris was still dazed by the sheer horror of what he was seeing.

Then, once again, he felt that spike right at the back of his neck. As though knowing what it meant, Spheris swiveled just in time to see a blood bathed Grimm advancing at him.

[Shaded Blasts] He struck it with the energy burst, sending it flying. Another one dived at him, but he sidestepped just in time and punched it straight on the skull. To Spheris's surprise, it completely shattered the beast's brain, causing its blood to splatter over his face.

'Ugh.' He made a face. When did he get so strong? Pulling his hand from the dead Grimm's head, Spheris saw that the dark energy was still pulsing around his fist.

'Oh,' he understood. 'So it amplifies my strength.'

What was this one called? Shaded Fists?

Feeling confident, Spheris joined the other Avatars in the battle against the Grimmish onslaught. Shaded Blasting and Shaded Punching any Grimm that he could get his hands on.

But despite their valiant efforts, the Grimms were completely relentless. Spheris knew they attacked in packs, but this was more than a pack, this was an army. They had lightning-fast reflexes and ferocious strength. They easily caught fleeing Abyssians, throwing them to the ground before devouring them with savage efficiency. Some of the Abyssians decided to fight rather than flee as it was a waste of time. They armed themselves with their spears and makeshift weapons, but they still ended up on the floor and torn to shreds.

Spheris caught a hold of two Grimms decimating and devouring a screaming Abyssian. After striking them off with his blasts, he walked over to the person to see who it was.

Vurunt. But somehow he looked even worse than before. His face was half-eaten, his second leg had been ripped off and his chest was completely open. Yet somehow he was breathing, his exposed heart pumping gruesomely.

'Yikes.' Spheris thought. 'Probably should have let them finish you off. Would have been for the best.'

In that instant, a roar reverberated through the air, sending shivers down Spheris's spine. Another followed, a roar much fiercer and vociferous than the first.

The ground trembled, and everyone was frozen on the spot. Even the Grimms had ceased their onslaught, some of them scampering away in fear.

Spheris, just like everyone else, gazed into the inauspicious mouth of the cave in fear. If it was two different roars that he had just heard, then that meant it was two Gorgoliths that were surging forth from the hollowing. Which made sense to Spheris, as he remembered that Gorgoliths lived in pairs.

Sharing glances at each other, the Avatars took slow steps backwards, retreating from the encroaching peril.

Spheris heard his glyph begin to whir. 'What?Right now?'

[Influence Unlocked - Umbric Intuition]

'Yeah, I figured out that already,' he thought. 'Horrible timing, glyph.'

[Influence Category - Tactical]

[Effectiveness - 15%]

'This is really not the time for this, you stupid thing!'

Silence reigned, and the ground stopped rumbling. Then in the darkness of the mouth of the cave, four orange fiery eyes appeared.

Spheris swallowed.

But once again, the glyph whirred.

'What could it want now?' Spheris thought through his frantic mind.

[Influence Unlocked - Leaping Shadow]

[Influence Category - Defensive]

[Effectiveness - 20%]

Spheris sighed indifferently. He had no idea what [Leaping Shadow] was, but it better help save him from what was coming.