Bonded Summoner-Book 5 - Prologue

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Jake arrived next to Ophelia, his [Reverse Summon] completed. He fell through the air for a brief moment, before she caught him with a smile. Overlooking the siege on Lakemere, Jake was surprised how well the defense was organized.

He wasnt sure how many Rifts worth of enemies were in front of him, but the enemy was substantial. Aside from there being no bone dragon, the assault was nearly the size of the one he destroyed by calling Hestia when he first arrived on Highlands.

The city of Lakemere appeared to be highly defensible, the back of the city up against the mountain. From what Jake could tell, a strong barricade had been built out of clay and stone, and defensive siege engines were gathered.

The lake aided in funneling the large army in their assault, but Jake could tell the defense was planned. Summoning Fhesiah and Tanda since they could fly, the two appeared in a mere instant. However, he waited to summon Bloodberri and the Hound, as while he knew they could cast their runic feather-fall-type spell, it was better to bring them in near their target.

Jakes party was positioned to strike the enemy army from the rear. It appeared that they too were forming up some kind of siege equipment of their own, but some attack had already wiped out several of them.

While they were looting, Jake had recuperated quite a bit. Despite Ophelias rapid pace, it still had taken her fifteen minutes to arrive at their destination. He gathered his mana, and summoned his Garuda knowing it would be efficient for this fight as well.

The bone catapults or trebuchets were left in a pile of bone, but three Necromancers were casting a spell to reanimate or repair the odd constructions. Just as Jake saw one be completed, a man strode to the top of the battlements, wielding a large bow.

His body was tall, but his figure was compact and thin. At the top of his head, extremely long, thin horns that curved and tapered back slowly. If Jake had to guess, he would say the mans beast parentage was some kind of gazelle. Numerous beastkin guarded him with shields, as the undead fervently tried to stop his attack with arrows and spells.

The gazelle beastkin drew the bow, it being filled with auril from the surrounding areathe man was an Auril Hero. The blue auril in his body then changed as it filled the bow and entered the arrow, becoming a powerful white as he fired.

The Necromancers and many mages covered the trebuchet with a black barrier, but the arrow pierced right through the shield and crashed into the structure holding up the siege equipment. It began to topple, and the man looked tired, several warriors dragging him off the battlements.

Jake was surprised to see such a decent defense, but could tell it couldnt last forever. The defenders were definitely on their last legs. The city had gathered as many as they could in a small area, and he doubted they could rest long.

In addition to the three Necromancers working on the siege equipment, there were two near the front. They were gathering dark energy and bone was piling on top of it into a coffin. This appeared to be the target of the catapults and ballistas of the defenders for now.

Flaming debris and bolts of Hearthtribes construction were slamming into the enemies that appeared to be powering up.

Ophelia brought Jake close enough that the army detected them, and dropped Jake to the ground. Summoning Bloodberri and the Hound, he hopped onto the girls battlement the moment she appeared. There was an army of tens of thousands of skeletons. To Bloodberri, they might as well be an army of ants.

Jake tried to feel the resonance between himself and his lovely sage, as Fhesiah and Ophelia prepared their runes. His covenant for [Runebound: Sage] activated, as he gathered his empowered Nordic runes and added them to Fhesiahs and Ophelias.

Raising up her orb of flame above her head, the fires took on the truths of Fhesiahs dao. The flames of creation were inviolable, protecting life and defending it by taking it away.

Fhesiah launched it at the three Necromancers as Tanda fired her bow. Bloodberri and Jake charged at the forming coffin in the middle of the army, her snake body destroying skeletons left and right as she snaked toward it. The Garuda helped cut through the creatures, and the Hound with its vines and frost breath also carved a swath through the enemy army as they traveled in parallel.

Fhesiah began her dance of the Sun against the nearby army of bone at the rear, her fan sending wide waves of flame and engulfing many. Ophelia blazed straight in after the orb of fire. Tanda had targeted the battlements, adding seeds with [Rampant Growth] quite similar to Jakes thornwood field.

The sun flame arrived at the Necromancers, and exploded in a wave as it arrived at their black barriers. The powerful explosion shattered them as the wave of flame consumed all near in a dozen meter radius, Ophelia following in its wake with her shield in front of her.

Arriving in their center in a near blur, she activated [Hearth of Hestia] and [Consecration] in one go, lancing into one of the Necromancers skulls in her approach with her powerful polearm.

Waves of divine flames of Hestia washed over the undead, many of the skeletal mages meant to support the Necromancers crumbling to dust in a mere instant. The lanced Necromancer died as its core was pierced, and the two covered in flames seemed to scream wordlessly as they hastily cast spells at their interloper.

A hazy green skull from one, and a beam of necrotic energy from the other slammed into a barrier formed by Ophelias [Hearth of Hestia]. She empowered her halberd with Jakes Aura and her own [Mana Blade], and with a swing cleaved right through another Necromancer. The other tried to put up another barrier, but it too was cleaved through. Ophelia began to work through the skeletal army, supported by Tanda and Fhesiah.

Bloodberri and Jake had made their way through the enemy army, Jake now building up his flames into a [Scorching Ray]. Just as he finished condensing the flames within his [Champions Staff], the coffins of bone opened.

Out stepped powerful Death Knights, and both were already covered in a black barrier. They each raised a hand, and dozens of skeletons exploded into nothing but bones, and the bones began to orbit the boss monsters.

Jakes [Scorching Ray] pierced through the bone shield and burned a line into the Death Knights black barrier, but he could see the creature was not overly harmed. However, it had expended a lot of effort in its defense, and it was not ready for Jakes echoed [Hearth of Hestia] from Ophelia.

His extra flames slammed into the creature, as Blood cast [Absorb Strength], and Berri attacked it with a runic spell she finally crafted: [Holy Smite]. White light flashed, erupting and engulfing a Death Knight; adding to Jakes flames. It wailed in agony, Berri giving a proud smile for her efforts.

Eat that! Then, eat this!

Berri and Blood worked together, coalescing their holy light and dark mana together. Jake felt as they swirled the two unique mana around each other and into her maul, forming their [Maul of Hestia-Echidna] attack.

The two girls were getting even better at this, and Blood even used [Telekinesis] to wrench an opening through the swirling bone as they surged forward the last dozen meters. The death knight brought up its sword to block, but Blood smiled viciously as she slowed its parry with the same ability.

Their maul slammed into the death knight unimpeded, the explosion of light and dark immense. Jake saw with his [Arcane Eye] that the darkness had even more golden flecks in it than usual, transferring onto the undead knight. Its armor dented in heavily, its shoulders protection impairing usage of the arm.

The creature was already wounded heavily from Jakes flames and Berris holy smite, so the powerful blow nearly shattered the bone within the armor. Bloodberri wrapped their tail around the boss monster, tearing and shredding it apart.

The other death knight moved to attack, but the Garuda and Isolyn had interposed themselves between. Vines filled with frost and a wing blade blocked the bones as the Death Knight attacked with its sword, the Garuda easily blocking with its shield.

Meanwhile, Jake prepared a chain of spells. He still couldnt create a true Tier 2 Runic spell by himself, but he had worked out something nearly as effective. Preparing two spells in his spell bubbles, he released an empowered Tier 1 spell: [Runic Magic: Wave of Flames]. This spell was like the cone of cold spell, with powerful flames instead.

Hot flames radiated out from Jakes staff, pointing at the direction of the walls and the Death Knight. Isolyn and the Garuda dodged to the sides, the Death Knight being covered in flames. For nearly two dozen meters, at least a hundred skeletons were engulfed. Then, Jake released his two prepared spells, which generated turbulent winds.

When it came to wind or air based magic, they simply werent that powerful for their Tier. A wind blade type spell was possible, but it was just not as effective for their mana spent. As they used higher quality mana at higher Tiers, this was going to be more effective to change or influence reality more heavily; to make wind something that was more harmful.

Adding fuel to the fire with his powerful winds, the flame easily spread. What covered only a hundred skeletons before, doubled and tripled as the flames burned hotter and nearly leaped to engulf additional targets.

The bones covering the Death Knight were eliminated, and the four of them quickly converged on it to destroy it rapidly. Bloodberris maul and Garudas wing blade easily crushed and sliced into the creature, as Isolyn froze and held it down.

From there, it was mostly cleanup. Isolyn along with Garuda fought through the forward portion of the army. Attacks from the bone army were mostly ineffectual against them with Jakes protection, the two stomping and slashing through the enemies.

Fhesiah, Tanda, and Ophelia had destroyed most of the skeletal mages and then the Necromancers, the army oddly missing anything resembling the golems of bone. It seemed the army was mostly composed of them for some reason. They worked through the rear of the army, the skeletal army fighting aimlessly at whatever came near.

Riding on Bloodberri, Jake and her went over the battlements, the defenders gasping in awe at her easy circumvention of their defenses.

Jake gave his usual intro speech proclaiming he was Hestias Champion and that he was here to help from atop her back, and the gazelle beastkin man strode ahead to meet. Jake began to give their Chief the beastkin greeting, but he interrupted with a laugh.

How can your heart be so calm, after such a large battle? I am Chief Brenin of Lakemere. Its the will of the world to meet you, Chief Jake.

Weve gotten used to the conflict. If you have wounded, we can see to them. Bloodberri can even resurrect your fallen.

Brenin grimaced. We havetoo many of those. Our healers have kept up well with the wounded, but I suppose We can get started on those that initiated. First, you should get Nolan. He succumbed to his wounds after taking down the last Bone Golem.

He gestured to the crowd, which parted as he did. On the ground was a massive beastkin man, and Jake thought he was some sort of rhinocerous. However, he was certainly some dinosaur version of one, or something like this.

Berri hummed. It looks like hell take a bit more mana. Hes strong.

Jake knew that with their recently improved mana regeneration, Berri could actually accomplish a lot more resurrections per hour. Him having a new Hearth Bond and thus [Energy Vacuum], plus each of their Cores increasing meant instead of every four or five minutes, Berri could resurrect every two or three. It did look like that would be more limited as beastkin raised themselves in level, though.

Jake exited Bloodberris battlements landing on the ground, as she resurrected the rhino man. The wind of the world shifted as his eyes snapped open, his heart beating powerfully once more as he was left standing. Despite his large size, his demeanor was much subdued, having a far away look.

Jake asked Brenin, I dont expect people to take dying too well, but he seems a bit different.

One of his mates died yesterday, with child. She did join the Framework, but only drawing out some rage against the monsters from him makes him coherent.

Jake felt quite a bit of sympathy for the man, though another mate was doing her best to comfort him. Seeing a smaller squirrel beastkin woman comforting the massive rhino-like man was odd, but he pushed forward.

This was quite the defense. We passed thousands of refugees on the way, several cities were emptied?

Brenin nodded. There were just too many attackers. After we received the Nodes two weeks ago, things were going well. People were training and purchasing pills, weapons and equipment, using what we gained from the enemy. But eventually, Rifts started spawning rapidly. Our communication was cut off.

Jake sighed. As part of the build up for the two Greater Rifts, it seemed communication was hampered more than usual. Part of it was conquest ownership. Only Nodes with contiguous ownership could communicate with one another. Then, if the city was simply too close to a Rift or assaulted by a Rift Challenge monster, the same could happen.

This included the ability to teleport, so if Cascadia was under attack by a Rift Challenge, Jake would be unable to teleport there even through his Refuge portal. This was one of the reasons he was so glad to have the option to teleport to Lifes Haven which was so near.

With Ophelias speed, they could arrive from either one to each other within about twenty minutes or so. The odds of them being able to assault both at the same time and prevent teleportation from Jakes Refuge was minimal. Valtor had even paid extra to solidify or improve the HQs Conquest Ownership at Lifes Haven to make it harder.

It was also one of the reasons why Harmony Peaks would need a powerful defense. They would have to fight to keep the portal open by destroying any Rifts that popped up, keeping the conquest ownership from being flipped or contested. The distance was simply too far for them to provide meaningful aid if the worst happened.

Jake confirmed that he did in fact have ten Rift Challenge clears in his notifications.

You might find that communication will open again soon. Between this fight and the last we just did, we just defeated ten Rift Challenges. Were going to have to help collect the refugees, too.

Brenin started. Did they make it out? We had feared the worst for Riversong. Unfortunately, we couldnt do anything about it. We were being hit from every direction.

Tanda flew over the wall, Fhesiah and Ophelia not far in tow. They had looted the boss monsters, but left a majority of the bone army alone for now. Once again, they knew that many of the bones would need to be buried.

Clan-uncle Brenin! Tanda quickly joined him in a hug, surprising Jake. Some wolf ears popped up from somewhere in the crowd, and he saw a woman approaching the two. Clan-sister! It is so good to see you! Tanda continued.

Jake and his family prepared their blimps, teaching the people of Lakemere how to use them. The refugee operation would begin, and training on how to use these devices as Clan Hart protected their new allies. They had thousands of refugees to collect, but combined with their efforts, it wouldnt take too long.