"Are you insane? What are you even saying?"
"Watch, Zephyr," Helena interrupted him.
Zephyr turned towards Night Terror. Annette stood in front of the monster, with Ellis too, who did the talking.
He said:
"Sir Night Terror, I know you have been busy protecting me. And this guy really pissed you off. But please, can you let go of your grudge and protect all of us today?" He bowed.
Night Terror let out a low growl and exhaled almost like a sigh.
Ellis raised his head in joy and smiled heartily.
"Thank you so much, Sir Night Terror."
Annette turned her head to Helena and nodded.
"There... you have it."
Zephyr was still looking towards the monster, his expression puzzled at what just happened.
'It really is a monster that understands communication.'
The realization made him want to fight Night Terror more. Moreover, the monster had grown tremendously since their last fight; he wanted to brawl all the way.
But Helena was right. He raised his head.
'I guess surviving comes first.' Then he looked at her. "Drop your damned barrier."
In that instance, the sky above them gave another ominous groan.
The crack had widened to a gaping maw, and through it, they could now clearly see the writhing forms of countless monstrosities.
Night Terror's attention was drawn upward, his four eyes widening in what could only be described as recognition.
He let out a series of low, guttural sounds, his body tensing as if preparing for battle.
Zephyr, following Night Terror's gaze, cursed under his breath. "I've seen rifts before, but nothing like this. What's causing it?"
Helena stepped forward, her staff still thrumming with energy as she maintained the barrier.
"We are not entirely sure, but we think something or someone is forcing rifts open and intentionally collapsing a certain barrier."
"What? That makes no sense! You can't force open a rift!"
Helena shrugged. "Yeah, well, that's what we have, and we only have this information thanks to the Saintess' premonition."
Zephyr glanced at Helena and stared at the monsters.
As if on cue, the first of the creatures began to slip through the widening crack.
It was a massive, serpentine thing, its body covered in iridescent scales that seemed to shift and change color with each movement.
Multiple heads, each adorned with razor-sharp teeth, snapped and snarled as it descended toward the ground.
"By the sacred constellations," Gilbert breathed, his face pale. "What manner of abomination is that?"
More creatures followed, each more horrifying than the last.
Winged monsters with too many eyes, amorphous blobs that seemed to devour the very air around them, skeletal monstrosities that clicked and clattered as they moved - it was as if every nightmare had been given form and unleashed upon their world.
Zephyr's expression hardened, his earlier rage replaced by grim determination. "Drop the barrier," he commanded. "We need to form a defensive line, now!"
Helena hesitated for a moment, looking to Annette for confirmation. At her nod, Helena lowered her staff, dispelling the energy dome.
Night Terror immediately sprang into action, his shadowy form expanding outward, creating a dark mist that obscured the area around them.
Within the mist, his four eyes glowed like beacons, scanning the sky for incoming threats.
Zephyr's red scarf unfurled once more, but this time, instead of lashing out at those around him, it spread wide, creating a canopy of crimson tendrils above their heads.
"This should slow them down," he growled. "But we need a plan."
Annette quickly took charge, her tactical mind racing.
"Gilbert, gather your strongest fighters. We need a front line to engage these creatures head- on. Arlem, can you maintain a protective barrier around our more vulnerable members?" Arlem nodded, sweat beading on his brow as he expanded his barrier to encompass a larger
area.
"I can hold it for a while, but not indefinitely. We need to find a way to close that rift." "We would have to enter that thing, wouldn't we?" Helena asked, hesitation dripping in her tone.
"Even I don't know what exactly we are going to do. What I do know is that we need to fight those monsters."
As Annette responded, her fist ignited with a flare of flames that extended to her hands and danced like a cloth moving to the tune of the wind.
She looked at all the others.
"This might be the beginning of the end, so don't die, guys."
Her feet suddenly ignited with a torrent of flames that sent her flying into the air.
She collided with the serpentine beast in an explosion of flames that covered the air for a while, preventing anyone from seeing what was going on.
Others didn't need to be spectators; Annette boldly flying into the disaster descending upon them had served as enough motivation that they could push through this.
All of them began to arm themselves with their items and talents.
And as some monsters dropped, they launched themselves like savage beasts and slashed at the creatures with determination and ferocity.
Their faces, their cries, as they took swings at the monsters, blocked themselves from attacks, bashed through the line of the monsters, and plunged their weapons into them.
There was a sudden crash that shook the entire ground. The serpentine creature had taken a huge fall.
Annette dashed towards it, flames propelling her legs. She collided into the monster again and began to batter its form, her fist clothed by searing hot flames that burned even her own
skin.
The serpentine creature managed to move despite her turbulent onslaught. Its multiple heads struck out in different directions, making it nearly impossible to approach.
One of Gilbert's men, a burly warrior wielding a massive axe, managed to sever one of the heads, only for two more to grow in its place.
The battlefield was chaos incarnate. The sky, once a comforting expanse of blue, now churned with darkness as more monstrosities poured through the widening rift.
The air filled with the cacophony of battle cries, monstrous roars, and the clash of steel
against otherworldly flesh.
Zephyr's crimson scarf danced through the air like a living thing, lashing out at airborne
creatures and pulling them to the ground where they could be dispatched.
His eyes blazed with an intensity that matched the ferocity of his attacks.
Each movement was precise, honed by years of combat, yet there was a wildness to his strikes
that spoke of desperation.
Night Terror moved like a living shadow, his form constantly shifting and reforming as he engaged multiple enemies at once.
His four eyes glowed with an eerie light, and wherever his darkness touched, monsters withered and crumbled.
Yet even the powerful entity seemed to be straining against the endless tide of horrors.
Helena stood at the center of the maelstrom, her staff a blur of motion as she spun and lashed
out attacks at her opponents.
Black bolts arced from her rod, slamming into creatures and leaving smoldering craters in their wake. Sweat poured down her face, her teeth gritted in concentration. Annette, still locked in combat with the hydra-like serpent, managed to glance upward at the
swirling vortex above them.
Her flames had scorched large swaths of the creature's scales, but for every injury she
inflicted, it seemed to grow stronger and more enraged.
Gilbert, his armor dented and splattered with ichor from a dozen different beasts, fought his
way to Zephyr's side. "We need to get into the rift, find its guardian, and close it from
within."
Zephyr's eyes narrowed as he considered the proposal.
It was risky, borderline suicidal. So much was pouring out of the rift; how much more was inside, waiting their turn to fly out? But they were rapidly running out of options.