Shadow Slave

1039 The Fall of Falcon Scott (57)

Bloodwave reached them just a moment later. The mighty Saint looked… spent. Sunny shivered when he noticed that his armor was torn, and there were ugly injuries covering his body. Out of the three Echoes, only the monstrous crab remained… the other two had either been destroyed or dismissed to save them from perishing.

'Even the Transcendent Echo is gone… gods. What could have destroyed one of those and severely injured a Saint? The Heart of Darkness… just what kind of creature was it?'

He felt a bit of dread, and a bit of curiosity. However, now was not the time to ask questions.

Their small party had to hurry and fight their way back through the boundless horde of Nightmare Creatures. Five Awakened, two Masters, one Saint… as well as two powerful Shadows and an Echo. They were an exceedingly formidable group.

Granted, all of them were wounded, tired, and low on essence. Still, cutting through the horde while keeping everyone alive would not pose a problem.

In theory.

Bloodwave studied the rest for a moment, then sent his Echo forward and growled, his voice husky, low, and domineering:

"Move!"

Saint spared the mighty Saint an indifferent glance, then mounted Nightmare and sent the dark destrier into a gallop, the spearhead of the Cruel Sight igniting with the incandescent white glow in her hand, a shield made of pure darkness weighing on the other. They moved ahead of the party, cutting into the horde as a fierce vanguard.

just behind, accompanied by the members of Sunny's cohort. Bloodwave and his Echo flanked the Awakened,

took up the rear position, dragging his tired body along and preventing the abominations

abominations. Blood,

damn it,

was weak, and some of them were truly powerful. However, the horde that Goliath had brought to the walls of Falcon Scott was simply too vast. Countless Nightmare Creatures were throwing themselves at the exhausted humans in a rabid frenzy, every moment, from every direction. Slowing down meant being buried under a mountain

of abominations faster than the

awkward, because he had to move backwards at considerable speed while slaughtering the mass of Nightmare Creatures pursuing the party. By now, they were deep inside the horde, and the abominations were surrounding them on all

managing somehow, for now, but his battered body was hurting all over. Even though the Marble Shell had yet to succumb to

not his entire body. A sufficiently powerful strike would send a concussive shock through his insides, potentially causing internal organs to rupture. That hadn't happened yet…

it just never

might have been

plunging the whole place into an inferno of immolating flame, both mundane and magical, did

its place with a resigned expression, her wounds starting to bleed again. The somber glaive was nowhere to be seen,

increasing. By now, he was forced to support himself with Shadow Manifestation from time to time — his already pitiful reserve of

continued to cut through the horde unimpeded,

slaughter, the party finally reached the melted ruin of the

Awakened force in charge of the southern section was holding back the ocean of Nightmare Creatures… what was left of it, at least. A grim expression settled on Sunny's face when he realized that of the initial seven hundred, perhaps only two

soldiers gave them a moment of respite, and gave the desperate soldiers a