Author's note: After a long absence and several chapters of my humorous fic, I'm back with the adventures of Thor and his familia. As I said before, action chapters are not my forte, but I hope you will find it enjoyable to read.
PS: there is an easter egg in this chapter, can you find it?
Chapter 23: Ocean's Fury
Ryuu had shared her thoughts with her goddess and Hestia's familia, convinced that Thor had to be followed to find Wyne. However, she failed to mention who had given her the clue that had put her on this path and put it down to intuition. Lili, who worked as a strategist for her familia, seemed somewhat dubious, as the elf's arguments were so flimsy.
In reality, she was as confused as the others. Her contacts hadn't taught her much, except for a cluster of assumptions suggesting that this was yet another resurgence of activity by the Evilus. But in reality, she had to admit that she had no leads. The behaviour of the kidnappers was anything but logical.
Maybe following Thor wasn't the worst idea. Because she had to admit that she was out of ideas at this point.
That morning, the small group composed of Hestia and her familia, as well as Ryu, thus set out to ask Thor where things stood. Astraea had stayed at the home of the goddess of the hearth to watch over the little Ishtar. When they saw Thor and his children in the distance, all walking with a determined step and equipped from head to toe, they understood that something was going to happen and so they followed them discreetly, to see where it would lead them.
They were not the only ones to follow Thor's familia. Aiz too was following them from the rooftops. She had arrived much earlier, but had spent hours procrastinating in her spot. She wanted to see Mei, but was also afraid of her reaction, thinking about what she might say. The problem was that talking and thinking were not the blonde swordswoman's strong points. By the time she had lost herself in her thoughts, Thor's familia was on its way, something she observed. Understanding that something serious was going on, she followed them as well.
This strange procession of people following each other eventually ended up in the underground of Daedalus, in front of a large and peculiar door. It was at this point that Thor's familia was called out by a small black haired goddess.
Thor!
The god of thunder turned to see his divine adopted daughter coming towards him, accompanied by her familia.
Hestia, what are you doing here?
What does it look like? I followed you, of course. I don't know exactly what you're up to, but we intend to come.
The warrior god let out a weary sigh before answering her.
Hestia, it's very kind of you to want to help, but I've already told you that this is only about...
I'm sorry, but this is about us too. she said, cutting him off. An important friend of my familia has been kidnapped, and everything suggests that it's by the same people you're after. So, you can stare all you want, you're not going to get rid of us on this one.
Thor was forced to admit that he recognized the Hestia he knew well, incredibly stubborn when she put her mind to it.
All right, all right. I don't have time to fight you anyway.
That's right! replied the little goddess with a mischievous smile. And concretely, how do you intend to enter?
The colossus said nothing, he simply took the spherical key out of his jacket and brandished it in front of the door, which triggered its opening mechanism.
Where did you get that?
Easy, I just sold my soul... Thor answered with a sad look on his face.
However, Hestia didn't have time to wonder about that, she had to think about saving Wiene first, the rest would come later.
Aiz hadn't shown up during this time. She'd recognised what she thought was a Evilus sentry and promptly neutralised him before she could raise the alarm. Thor hadn't even made her look for such details, so it seemed he wanted a direct, frontal confrontation. But that wouldn't stop the blonde from giving him a little help. Once the man was knocked out and neatly tied up, the blonde rushed after the others, passing through the door that was about to close.
As for the mysterious veiled goddess, she was having breakfast with Wiene. Well, the goddess was not eating, she had never taken off her veil and the little vouivre still didn't know her face. Still not finding an opportunity to act, she played the game of this strange goddess, currently amused to feed her. At least the food was good here.
A man in white arrived hurriedly, despite his masked face, one could easily guess the panic in his eyes.
Madam, an emergency!
Come on! What now? replied the goddess, annoyed to be disturbed.
It's Thor! He and his familia have entered Knossos, they're heading straight for us. Hestia and her familia are with him!
Bell! let out Wiene with a big, hopeful smile.
So that big beefy guy has found a way to come to us. It's an unforeseen event... but it's still acceptable. So be it, we'll just bring the operation forward by two or three days.
The goddess seemed prepared for this kind of eventuality and did not let herself be destabilised.
Distract them and lure them into the arena set for the trap. Then simply release the beast...
Y-yes, ma'am. replied one of her followers.
Out of the shadows, the strange, lanky man appeared in turn, a toothy grin on his face. The goddess noticed him and sighed in exasperation.
Yes, yes, go and enjoy yourself, but don't screw up the plan.
The man left, with the look of a predator on the prowl, and the goddess returned to Wiene, whose face she gently stroked in an almost maternal manner.
It's a shame, I was really starting to enjoy your company little vouivre, but all good things must come to an end... take her to her appointed place!
Two more men appeared and quickly grabbed Wiene, who, though she tried to struggle, could not get out of their grip and was forced to follow them. The goddess sat back down in her chair and with a snap of her finger called up her divine mirror. The actors were all in place, it was time to raise the curtain on the last act of this absurd comedy.
The first sentinel of the Evilus died without having time to understand what was happening to him, promptly murdered by Ekkrit, who had come out of the shadows. By the time his two allies woke up, the rest of Thor's familia had reached them and executed them as well. The other Evilus were not prepared to stop them and retreated behind a heavy metal door. Unfortunately for them, it was an ordinary door, and it soon shook under what must have been terrible blows from an angry dwarf.
This artificial labyrinth was supposed to be their territory and yet, despite the words of their new ally, they felt that they were the prey here. On the other side of the doors they heard a loud scream of rage, then the heavy metal doors were ripped off their hinges and flew into the room, not without crushing some poor guy in the process.
Knock knock, you motherfuckers! shouted the god of thunder as his forces swept into the vast area. Go forth my children! It is time for our enemies to pay the price of blood!
The deusdea concluded his sentence with a mighty war cry that seemed to galvanize his familia and the carnage began. Clearly, the Evilus had some good fighters and mages among them, not to mention a clear numerical advantage. But this was not enough.
Mei struck with her blade and lightning with deadly grace. Ekkrit, though still weakened, was an assassin's shadow with surgical precision. Thargar was a veritable steamroller, crushing his enemies with raw power, while Ygannea rained down icy death. The twins had recovered well and were now taking revenge on those who had manipulated them, acting with their supernatural timing, bringing their enemies down under their blades or arrows. Vasati the Cat People, though not as powerful as Thargar, crushed enemies at her level with the mighty blows of her great sword, while Cayope the amazoness performed a deadly dance with her chain.
Purhaan, more measured, stayed behind with Bricaena and Adriel, protecting her god, who was still as fragile as a normal human at the moment.
As for Hestia and her familia, they were good at keeping score, completely overwhelmed by the fury and violence of Thor's children. The Evilus were completely overwhelmed. The spectacle before them was as grotesque as it was macabre. There was no heroism, it was a war of revenge, and once again the boy was forced to admit that the gods were in some ways very human.
For her part, the veiled goddess watched the spectacle from behind her divine mirror. Nothing in her betrayed the slightest nervousness, even as her allies were being slaughtered. But for her, all these people were nothing more than vulgar pawns, whom she sacrificed without the slightest hesitation. She then took a simple crystalline sphere, a communication artefact, and transmitted her orders through it.
Begin the retreat, bring Thor and his allies to the water tank, and then proceed with the second stage of the plan.
The orders were relayed and put into effect. Given the state of panic already generated by the violence of the assault, the retreat would be just disorganised enough for Thor not to suspect the trap.
And so it was, in the corridors of Knossos, the Evilus were retreating in an unorganised manner. All they knew was that there was a plan, but the mere pawns didn't know the details. When their leaders called for them to retreat, most of them did not hesitate, urging Thor to continue.
Forward my children! We can no longer tolerate their presence!
Thor had once heard a wise saying in the far east: 'Enemies you threaten take up arms, those you crush dig graves'. He could not afford to be half-hearted, or the Evilus would one day come back and make him pay. No, he had to crush them, destroy the organisation or at least inflict such a violent defeat that they would never dare come back to him.
The flow of fighting led them to a large room, a gigantic hall. The place was huge, with high ceilings and lines of columns stretching across it.
Thor's children quickly realised that something was wrong and stopped their advance.
It's funny, it looks like the perfect place for an ambush. Mei said in a tone of voice that mixed seriousness and cynicism.
I was thinking the same thing. Ekkrit replied.
It looks like an underground water tank, I didn't expect to find this here. Ygannea said.
The conversation stopped and they all went back on guard when a loud roar was heard, followed by a tremor.
Something is coming... Everyone get ready! the Shivati captain shouted to her brothers and sisters in arms.
And then it appeared, a beast like they had never seen before. A serpentine body, dozens of meters long, with deep blue scales and long fins in places. But instead of a head, there was a humanoid body, as if mixed with the monster. It was difficult to determine whether it was a man or a woman, as its long azure hair hid a large part of its body.
Oh fuck, Loki... you never told me about that... said Thor from the back when he saw the thing. Beside him, Hestia was just as shocked.
By the creation... This... this thing, this is...
It's a fucking corrupted spirit! shouted the thunder god, enraged at what they had done to such a noble being. He exudes so much power and he's just an inferior spirit. I understand now why they want Elenarda, if they could do that with one of the great spirits...
Hey, Thor, what are we supposed to do now? asked a Hestia not at all reassured by this turn of events. Her familia had come to save Wiene, not to mess with a beast like that.
We kill this thing while we can. To battle, my children! Wipe out this monster!
The order was given, there was no turning back now. Everyone was aware of what would happen if such an abomination was released in the upper floors of the Dungeon, or worse, in town. And unfortunately, it wasn't as if they could afford to go looking for other powerful familias for backup.
Without further delay, Mei took charge and began to give her orders.
Thargar! To the front with me! Ekkrit! Bell! Go around him, look for openings! Ygannea, Ryu, prepare your magics to restrict its movements! The twins, harass him from the air! The others! In the rear line, protect the gods and stay in support! Make sure the Evilus do not take us by surprise.
Although she was not their leader, even the members of the other familias accepted her orders, relying on her experience. To defeat such a monstrosity, they would have to work together.
Everyone started moving at the same time. Thargar the dwarf followed Mei as she charged forward. At the same time, Bell and Ekkrit went their separate ways, while Andil and Linda used their previously undisclosed skills to materialize black spectral wings on their backs and fly away.
To attract the attention of the monstrous creature, Mei took the lead. In the midst of her run, she raised her hand and called upon her magic.
Lightning! the lightning bolt struck Demi-Spirit's body, but lacked the power to do any real damage, but it was enough to get its attention. The monster charged towards the human and the dwarf and tried to swipe at them with one of its large fins.
Mei dodged with an agile pirouette and tried to strike with her blade, but the creature's scales were more resistant than expected. Thargar, on the other hand, did not have the agility to dodge such a blow so he intercepted it with his axes and pushed them back with pure strength.
The homunculus twins flew around their target and shot arrows at him to hinder him. The sea serpent body was strong, so they aimed at the human part of the demi-spirit to try to distract it. And that was enough to give Bell an opening.
Firebolt! the fire shot out of the young man's hand and went towards the human part, but was intercepted by one of the large fins which received only a superficial burn. The monster was about to counterattack, but instead had to turn around to prevent Ekkrit's throwing knives from reaching him. He launched his great fin towards him in a vast circular strike, but the nezu anticipated the attack with his Eye of the Norns and modified his position to dodge at the last second and lean on the great fin.
Lightning!
Firebolt!
The demi-spirit was forced to forget the assassin for a moment to defend himself against the two fast spells. Ekkrit took advantage of this distraction to slip behind the human part of the monster and was about to strike. But unfortunately, his attack was abruptly stopped by a sudden pain in his muscles. He was still paying the price of his fight with Allen and the combat drugs he had to use.
This was enough for the monster to realise his presence and to get out of the way before attempting to strike the nezu in mid-air with his serpentine tail. But the blow was intercepted by Thargar, who had been forgotten, and had just jumped to repel the attack aimed at the nezu.
On the rear front, the other members of the group were reduced to a position of observers for the moment.
He's quick despite the size of his body. Thor said, calmly analysing the situation.
Lilisuke, what do we do? asked Welf while preparing a magic weapon.
Lili did not answer, observing the situation carefully. She was reviewing all her options. The creature was quick, powerful. The best course of action would be to call upon Haruhime's magic, but on whom? Amplify those at the front and leave the creature to a small elite group? Or on the contrary, give more power to several level 2s to increase the numbers at the front?
In any case, Thor must have sensed her hesitation, because he came towards her. And incidentally, he had seen the looks she was giving Haruhime without realizing it. He put a hand on her shoulder and spoke in a firm, calm voice.
Not just yet. It's not a monster in the classical sense of the book. We don't know the extent of his abilities yet.
Despite the frustration of not being able to act at the moment, Lili agreed with him, the creature was unknown and they still didn't know anything about its real abilities. Rushing would only spell their doom, especially since Haruhime was quickly exhausting herself by calling on Kokoneo.
At the front, Mei glanced back and saw that Ryu and Ygannea were finishing their incantations.
Now, all together and move back!
At her command, everyone got into position. Bell and herself launched a discharge of their fast magics while the twins fired a fast volley and Ekkrit sent several of his portable bombs. Then everyone withdrew from the two elves' line of fire.
The Fangs of Niflheim!
Ygannea's magic was the first to strike, frost fangs came out of the ground and hit the sea serpent, causing it to scream in pain, before locking it in the ice. This offered a perfect opportunity for Ryu to run forward and jump in front of the monster, also finishing to concentrate her magic.
Luminous Wind!
The powerful wind magic struck. Ryu showed no restraint and put all the power of her level 6 on it. Luminous Wind was already a powerful spell before, but now it had become a real miniature storm. Everyone in the underground had to concentrate on their footing to keep their balance. As for the demi-spirit, he screamed under the pain that assailed his body from all sides.
When the magic finally subsided, they could see that the monster was still alive, though in pain.
We're attacking again, don't let it recover! shouted Mei, launching the attack on the monster. The two elves' double magical attack had given them the advantage, they must not lose it now.
But the demi-spirit was not done. The creature straightened up and the human part opened its arms as it began to speak.
Rise, ocean!
Swallow this forsaken land!
To the shock of everyone present, it was not speaking, it was chanting a spell.
Damn it, can this thing do magic? shouted a stunned Thargar.
Stop him! Don't let him finish his chant, concentrate your attacks on his head! Mei shouted to all the adventurers there. Even those in the back in support began to move. A monster that did magic was not a good omen at all.
Surge, tides!
Crush, waves!
The demi-spirit was no fool, he knew full well that his enemies would try to stop his magic, so he concentrated on defence and used his large fins to repel the onslaught against him. Much to the frustration of the adventurers present.
Let none be spared!
Ocean Rage!
With horror, Thor and his allies found that the creature had already finished chanting. And a blue hell was unleashed as the water rose violently and a circular wave swept around the demi-spirit. Relentlessly, the water swept over everyone and all were swept away by the violent magic.
Even when flying, the twins could not avoid the attack, which rose to the top of the underground tank, and they were brutally brought back to the ground. Ekkrit chose to go with the current to minimize the impact, but in his state, he was not spared either. By instinct, Ryu grabbed the person closest to her, namely Ygannea, to try to protect her. The two elves were swept away, but the magician avoided being swept away thanks to the blonde warrior.
At the back, the situation was no better. Thor grabbed Hestia in his arms and rolled himself into a ball to protect her. The colossus saved the little deusdea from being hit at the cost of a few bruises on his own body.
Cayope the amazoness quickly anticipated the attack and with a nimble movement, she wrapped her chain around the nearest pillar so that Vasati the Cat People and Puhraan the hume-bunny could also hold on. But the three young women overstretched themselves and were swept away in their turn.
Adriel, the human carrier, and Bricaena, the prum healer, had no chance of escaping such an attack and were thrown violently against the walls of the room.
It was the same for Mikoto and Haruhime. The eastern warrior tried to protect the fox girl, but they were also swept away and thrown against a wall.
Welf stuck his big sword on the ground and grabbed Lili against him, but he didn't resist anymore and was thrown against a wall by the big wave. Ironically, the little supporter was luckier, because despite the violence of the impact, her large backpack served as a shock absorber.
Bell used his agility to try to avoid the worst of the attack, but was swept away by the current. With no support to get up, he was dragged along and found that the water was leading him straight into a water spillway. Luckily, Thargar caught him and stuck one of his axes in the ground to serve as a hook.
Gotcha kiddo!
Bell did his best to hold on to the dwarf, the slightest slackening and they would be swept away by the water again. Unfortunately for them, the violent wave had weakened the ground and it cracked. Thargar's axe came loose and the two lost their only hold.
Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!
The young man and the dwarf were swept away by the current and disappeared into the spillway, sinking into the darkness without anyone seeing.
Mei tried to swim with the current rather than against it, but despite her flexibility, she had overextended herself and lost her balance before being tossed by the water and thrown straight down a pillar. However, someone caught her in mid-air and broke her fall. When the water finally subsided, she realised that she was half lying on top of someone. Someone she knew well, with long blonde hair that the water was pressing against her face.
Aiz!
Indeed, it was the blonde swordswoman who was there. She had followed them discreetly, but had been slow to arrive because of the Evilus' reinforcements who were about to attack them in a pincer movement. She had neutralised them, but by the time she had reached the water tank, the fight was well underway and she could do nothing but instinctively move towards her friend to try and protect her. Aiz was still afraid of finding Mei, especially after the disaster of their last meeting. But to her surprise, her friend gave her a tender smile.
Loki's going to get your ass for this.
I don't care.
Oh, you know I love you! Mei said happily, placing a kiss on her friend's cheek, who blushed at the gesture.
M-Mei, this is not the time...
Yes... get up! We still have a job to finish! she said with seriousness and determination.
Kid? Hey kid! Wake up!
When Bell came to his senses, it was under the calls of Thargar. His first instinct was to cough up the bit of water that had seeped into his lungs.
Are you all right, kid?
Yes... I'm fine... thanks.
He then looked around at his surroundings, he was on the edge of a small pool, which he had probably fallen into after his fall into the spillway.
It's impossible to get back up that way. said the dwarf, pointing to the hole in the ceiling from which water was still flowing. Ha damn it! That's why I prefer alcohol to water.
Where are we? asked Bell, who was just getting up.
I don't know, but we must have fallen much lower.
Around them, there was only darkness and the sound of flowing water. The place was very dark and frankly not very reassuring.
Come on, kid, we have to find the others. And I don't think we should stay here.