ALL NOVEL Chapter 210. Peak of diplomacy
"Leave," the massive Terrontaur at the front hissed, its deep, male voice filling the silent forest. "Return to where you came from, child of the Void. We won't allow your presence to taint this place any further. Leave!"
Leo frowned and raised his hands in a show of peace. Those guys seemed even less accepting of his form than the humans of Earth. He probably should have expected that, as not a single creature before him carried any marks of the Void's influence. They all had chosen the Ascended evolution path.
But they didn't attack me yet. I call it a win. Maybe there is a way to salvage this. If they have an army like that, they could be useful... He hummed, a plan forming in his head. It can't hurt to try.
"Listen, I didn't come here to cause trouble," he said, earning glares from each Terrontaur in the area. He ignored their glowing green eyes and continued. "My name is Leo Hale, and despite my appearance, I'm not on the side of the Void. I come from Earth, home to humans who suffered through the 64th Outbreak just like you. My evolution came from the desire to survive, not to serve the Void."
This time, some of the centaur-like creatures looked at each other, unsure of how to proceed. Yet, the ones in the front remained the same, standing firm and still glaring at him.
"This is your last warning, Leo Hale. Return to your home or draw your weapons. Your kind is not welcome here," the Terrontaur spoke again.
Leo sighed, lowering his hands. He could accept the creature's offer and go back, but he didn't want to. This was an opportunity for everyone involved, he just had to make them see it this way instead of hyper-focusing on his evolution. Letting go of a planet with a thirty percent survival rate wasn't an option.
"You're aware you can't win against me, right?" He asked, his voice filling the entire area. "There are over twenty levels between us, and as you have probably noticed, my evolution isn't exactly what you would call normal. Why not skip the useless fighting? Let us talk like civilized beings."
"Your power doesn't matter to us, child of the Void." The apparent leader of the army laughed. "Our kind has defended this place longer than most of us have been alive. We won't falter now, even if it means our death. The hearth of Terlasfor won't be tainted anymore."
Ah, so it's like that. They are honor-bound to fight me. That makes a bit more sense, even if it's still fucking stupid. Hopefully, a quick beating will change their minds. Most of them already look like they don't want to be here. He noted and reached into his mind. Nyx! Tell Holden and Lily to come through. Look through my memory and explain the situation to them.
'Will do, but are you sure about this, Leo? You could just close the gate. That was the plan.'
I know, I know, but this might be just what we needed in case things go to shit on Earth. If we can cultivate a good relationship with the natives from the get-go, it's all the better for us.
'You are planning to fight them,' Nyx pointed out, her voice as dry as desert. 'How is that cultivating a good relationship? I think you skipped a few lessons in diplomacy.'
Leo gave her a mental shrug. Call it an ice-breaker. I have to rough them up a bit so that Holden and Lily can swoop in and take over the negotiations.
The feline sighed. 'I really don't think that's how those things work, but whatever. You do you, I will talk to your sister.'
Thanks! He shouted through the link and closed it just in time to see the Terrontaur in the front signal the rest to start the attack. Instantly, arrows the size of an average javelin flew right at him, followed by streaks of leaves made out of pure Essence.
Leo rolled his eyes and summoned a massive wall of shadows in front of him. While he definitely wasn't too proficient in the defensive use of his affinity, it would be a cold day in hell if he couldn't stop some attacks from beings more than twice weaker than him.
Once the arrows clattered to the ground and the Essence leaves dissipated against his shadows, he dismissed them. He then looked at the leader and grinned. "Come on... Is that all you've got?"
The Terrontaur narrowed his gaze and nodded to the creature next to him. At once, their hands and hoves lit up in a deep green glow. The rest of the army mimicked this action, illuminating the entire area in a matter of seconds.
Interesting, but what's that supposed to do?
The earth beneath his feet shook in answer as the entire forest came alive. Massive roots exploded out of the ground while tree branches extended, going right for him. At the same time, bushes and other plants awoke from their slumber and slowly combined with each other, forming small nature monsters.
Okay, I have to admit, that's impressive. Leo chuckled as he danced between the roots trying to skewer him. His blades snapped out, and he threw himself back into the fray, slashing at anything that dared to come close. This brings back memories of the second Cataclysm. Only back then, I was fighting against the Void and not nature. Ironic...
Yet even when the plant constructs and projectiles from the Terrontaurs joined the fight, he still didn't use any Essence. In the time it took a single root to come close to him, he was already far away, slicing through the soldiers of nature. Hell, and even when he let something hit him, it barely scratched his scales.
I'm just too fast for ya all. Unlucky.
Tired of facing the endless waves of alive flora, Leo let a bit of Reinforcement seep into his body. With a quick Hunter's Pulse, he identified the position of the nearest Terrontaur and dashed in that direction. Nature's wrath tried to stop him, but he just sped up, destroying everything in his way with his body alone.
The first Terrontaur to appear in his sight had no time to act as he landed a punch to the side of its body. He then flashed next to another creature, grabbed it, and, like a bowling ball, threw it at a group close to them.
Leo didn't stay to watch what happened next and threw himself at more forest centaurs. He punched and kicked everything in his way, always limiting his strength to not kill anyone. As he told Nyx, he just wanted to rough them up a bit, nothing more.
The battle continued as more and more Terrontaurs fell to the ground, crying in pain. As the army dwindled, the force of nature also grew weaker, and soon, he hardly had to try to avoid the roots going for his head.
And here I hoped they would show more. Leo sighed, knocking out another Terrontaur. None of them even had a chance to raise their weapons against him or use more skills before they joined their kin on the ground. The gap is ju—
"Leo! That's enough!"
Thanks to that single shout, the entire battlefield froze. Leo quickly released his next victim, spun around, and began walking through the field of squirming Terrontaurs. The few still-standing creatures dropped their weapons and laid down, refusing to look in his direction. The forest also returned to its dormant state, its wrath vanquished by a single ex-human.
"Lily, Tony!" He spread his hands. "How nice of you to join me. What do you think? Nice place, hmm?"
While Holden's only answer was to massage his brow, his sister didn't disappoint.
"What the fuck, Leo!?" she shouted, stepping into his personal space. "Nyx said you want us to negotiate with them. How the hell are we supposed to do that now? Please tell me you at least didn't kill anyone..."
Oh? I definitely told her what I was planning. Anything you have to say, Nyx?
'Must have slipped from my mind.'
Of course... He rolled his eyes and returned his attention to Lily. "Oh, come on. They didn't want to talk but looked friendly enough that I decided to show them why it's worth it to rethink their choices."
His sister raised an eyebrow. "Yeah? And how did that go? All I'm seeing is an army of broken and terrified aliens. How are we supposed to work with that?"
Leo grinned. "Easily. Watch this." He turned away and glared at the Terrontaurs, who were trying to listen in. "Which one of you is the leader again?"
Instantly, all who managed to avoid an encounter with him pointed towards a centaur lying not that far away from him. "Thanks!" He nodded and approached the fallen leader.
The alien groaned when Leo picked him up, but its green glare reignited when he spotted who had captured him again. "You!" it hissed, grimacing.
"Yep, me. Ready to talk now, or do I need to break a few more bones? Both options sound good to me."
"Oh, for fuck's sake. Stop scaring the poor alien," his sister cut in. "Let Tony and I deal with this mess."
Leo shrugged and dropped the Terrontaur at Lily's feet. "Be my guest. Have fun, I will be around."
With that, he disappeared under the cover of Stealth Shroud, his feet already carrying him away from the fallen army.
Finally, I can explore this place. That was tiring...
