Reincarnated As A Plant Life

Chapter 279: Minecrawlers [XIX]

His entire being screamed this singular thought, this… intent. There was nothing more he so desired, than for all the falling rocks to stop in place.

He had his eyes closed in wait, for the -no doubt- excruciating pain that accompanied being crushed to death. However, it never came. There was a silence all around him, even the Morrentor's screaming had died down.

Though, this peace was short-lived. The excruciating pain did come, however, it was not from falling rocks, but rather from somewhere deep within himself. As he fell to the ground in agony, he caught a glimpse of what was going on. The rocks were suspended mid-air, each and every fragment of rubble glowing in the same golden brilliance as much of his spells.

~Who?~ he wondered, as his vision flickered. Who did he have to thank for this?

The look on Pagan's face gave him his answer. It was him.

~Now you decide to help, ~ he thought to himself, giving his thanks to the true elmando tail.

However, things weren't over just yet.

On the other side of the 'floating' rubble, an energy presence surged, sinister and grotesque. This presence wasn't a mystery to Lucius. No, he had gone up against something like this before, back at the woodlands mansion, back when he almost died fighting Eiknyr.

"Get back!" he shouted, trying to pick himself off the ground. His skin sizzled from the heat of the Rena chains trying to restrict his movements.

His body swayed back and forth as he tried to regain his balance. The world spun around him, and despite his best attempts, he could not stop his head from throbbing.

"Move away," he shouted, staring at Ghost. Though from the steeled look in her eyes, he could tell she wouldn't listen.

"Pagan, get the others to safety," he shouted now. However, Pagan's only response was to move in front of him.

A massive pentagram appeared on the floor in front of them, and a moment later dozens of crimson chains erupted from deep within it.

Pagan tried firing a solar beam at it, but it did little but act as a light show. Lucius tried to call out kumulipo but could barely focus enough to even link to it.

The black-robed venari corpses were dragged towards the pentagram, and once in the centre, a beam of crimson light shot out of it.

When the light subsided, only Eilphyr's corpse remained, the hole in its head had disappeared.

It remained motionless on the ground, however, it wasn't fooling anybody. Everyone there could sense the sinister energy that writhed and squirmed within it, even the furtong seemed aware.

Eilphyr began to rise, like a puppet on strings.

Ghost disappeared from view, and only a breath later she was behind it. She thrust one of her auxiliary legs at Eilphyr's head. ~ Good girl,~ Lucius thought to himself.

However, a set of chains appeared seemingly out of thin air, and Eilphyr was dragged away, to someplace behind 'floating' debris. Well, in reality, the rubble wasn't 'floating', true elmando had just created a weblike system that kept them from falling to the ground. So right now, there were dozens of places where Eilphyr could be hiding.

Lucius's body was still steaming from the overuse of Rena, however his psyche was recovering. In a minute or two he would be able to call out kumulipo. Though, Ghost couldn't wait a 'minute or two'.

Her entire body began to radiate with golden energy, and before Lucius could even say anything, she disappeared towards the floating rubble.

She was fast, in fact, faster than Lucius. Although the rubble blocked much of his vision, he could see the crimson and golden energies clashing against each other. One moment they blazed on the left, the next on the right. It was as if he were watching a light show.

All the while, he attempted and failed to call out kumulipo.

The flashing lights stopped, and Ghost appeared in front of Lucius and Pagan, completely out of breath, with cuts and bruises all over her body.

Lucius was livid, but anger would not make him recover faster.

"Where did it go?" he asked, and Ghost pointed towards the Morrentor and the mind mages who seemed to have been frozen in place.

A massive pentagram appeared beneath them, and a moment later, Eilphyr's figure was right in front of them. Chains emerged, dragging the Morrentor into the ground.

Pagan fired another solar beam, however, a crimson chain swatted it away as if it were only a minor inconvenience.

"We know you," Eilphyr said, however, its voice was different this time. It sounded like a sinister choir speaking all at once, hollow, hoarse, and ancient.

"You were the thing who purged the other vessel. We didn't like that," Eilphyr continued. Lucius tried calling out kumulipo once again. Another failure.

Pagan fired another solar beam, and yet again it was swatted away.

"But we hold no grudges. We will make up for losing one vessel, make up for it with another," by now, the Morrentor and all but two of the mind mages had been devoured.

One of the mind mages tried to run away, however, a chain grabbed it by the ankle and dragged it in as well.

"Your vessel will serve them well," it finished, just as the pentagram disappeared.

Its power doubled in that instant. The air became so dense with sinister energy that Lucius could barely breathe. The furtong had all passed out from the mere pressure that Eilphyr was emitting, and the others were barely standing.

"But first, you will entertain us, as you entertained the other," it said with a smile, before turning into a crimson sludge and phasing into the ground,

A pentragram appeared right beside Ghost.

She dodged to the right, however, a pentagram had been forming there as well.

She jumped into the air, and a set of chains chased after her.

Lucius used his tail to block a few of them, however, they tore through him like wet paper, rushing towards her and wrapping around her neck.

She screamed out in pain, struggling to get them off her as they tightened around her.

Lucius could hear his head throbbing, and each of her screams seemed to intensify it. He slashed at the chains with his claws, tearing several of them off in his fury, however it did not put a dent in them.

Pagan fired what little was left of his solar energy, and Ursa, who seemed to be in a magically enraged state clawed at it as well. Yet nothing.

The chains tightened, and Ghost screamed even louder.

Laughter echoed throughout the tunnel.

"Yes, you will entertain us well."