The Pillar of Enera

[Book II Chapter 74] Silver: Crystalids and Righteous Sun Zealots

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Allan Gorge wandered back the white buildings and touched the exterior. After the wall slid back, he stood aside and glanced back. This was the signal.

They rushed forwards, each masking their presence in their own way. Kate bent light around herself with her aura, achieving a chameleon-like affect. Silver fused with a sylph, relying on the greater air spirit’s invisibility to cloak him. Filia used her Slushpup’s ability, ‘transparency’, to virtually disappear. Sana followed, a flickering shadow. Her stealth wasn’t on the level of the assassins they’d encountered on the Isle, but it was damn close. By the time the gemstone porcupines noticed something amiss, they’d slipped inside.

“Those are the crystalids.” Allan calmly pointed out two creatures milling about in the corridor ahead. He’d warned them earlier that a different type of summon guarded the interior. About the size of a man, crystalids were living quartz in the shape of a praying-mantis. They were agile and fast with razer sharp upper appendages.

“Water whip.” Filia called out. A stream of water smashed one into the wall, splitting its head. Kate lunged at the other, snapping it in two with a bear hug.

“Nicely done.” Silver activated the jammer. “Let’s move.”

They were in building 2, the medical center, and their first priority was to rescue Allan’s coworkers confined in offices on the second floor.

Rounding a corner, they spotted a pair of Righteous Sun zealots accompanied by more crystalids. The two immediately tapped their sun emblem on their black combat suits, and full-body golden armor materialized around them. They raised their fists and jets of fire poured out.

“I’ll deal with the guards.” Silver rushed forward. This was a chance to evaluate what they were up against, reducing the number of unknowns. His body grew with each stride, turning reptilian. He easily powered through the flames and knocked both out with quick jabs to the head.

As the others finished off the crystalids, he touched the sizzling scales on his chest. The heat had not penetrated deep enough to burn, but it would have with a couple more seconds. Considering his dragonforming and aura’s defense, this was impressive. Allan was right about the power of their flamethrower gauntlets. He glanced down at his fallen foes. They’d reacted instantly, without panicking. These were soldiers familiar with battle. Although weak even with their golden armor, they might be dangerous in a large enough group, especially if supported by crystalids.

His time in the Flux Planescapes had ingrained in him a sense of caution. He’d led many smaller scouting excursions himself, and the early ones had not gone well. Unable to rely on his budding sense of fear, he’d developed the situational awareness and judgment to determine when to retreat and when to press on. Thanks to this, he now felt anxiety when he lacked information, something he hated.

Five zealots were gathered in the office common area, together with a dozen crystalids. They appeared to be debating their inoperative wristals. Good, the jammer is working. The device at his waist not only shut down long range communications, it also had a powerful dampening effect in its immediate vicinity.

“I’ll leave this to you.” Allen said, running off.

As they battled, Silver paid special attention to Sana. The wolf girl dodged nimbly between the crystalids, smashing them to pieces bit by bit with a black morning star. When necessary, the shadowy weapon would transform into a shield to parry blows. She’s holding her own. Initially, he’d planned for Sana to wait on the sidelines, but her swiftness leading them here had impressed him. Giving her a chance to participate had been the right call.

Filia ended the confrontation by slamming the last zealot to the ground so hard they heard bones break. Silver was taken aback at the disdain on her face as she glared down.

“That was overkill.” Kate reproached.

Falia’s features softened. “Sorry, I’m familiar with the Righteous Sun. It’s hard to hold back.”

“Just try not to kill them.” Silver said.

After releasing the staff, they left them behind and split up to do a sweep of the building. As predicted, Silver only encountered small patches of resistance. He was rapping up on the fifth floor when a crash from above shook the entire structure.

They all rushed to the top floor to find a chaotic scene. In a large central room, crystalid shards littered the floor, and broken equipment lined the walls. Sana stood by a smashed up operating table with several motionless bodies at her feet.

“This is a bad place.” She said coldly before bringing her morning star down again.

Silver experienced a pang of worry. “They’re alive, right?” He gestured to the zealots.

Sana nodded, pausing her rampage. “They’re only sleeping. I don’t kill because that would be murder. I only use blunt weapons…”

“Good.” Silver ignored the unsettling wording. Instead, he appraised their surroundings suspiciously. “You took out a lot of enemies in a short span of time… Are you really an A rank adventurer?”

Sana shrank at the question. “Margaret is A rank, and my card says I’m the same rank as her.” The half-hearted response fooled no one.

“I’ve heard of this happening.” Filia said. “It’s a unique property of those gifted with darkness. Their channeling is less noticeable compared to other affinities, which can give the impression they’re weaker than they actually are. Sana is likely a saint, despite what her card says. Not sure why she’s hiding it though.”

“Sorry.” Sana whispered. Her tail then bristled, and she glared at Allen as he entered the room.

Surveying the damage, he shook his head. “Everything here is easily replacable. To shut down Frieden for good, we must target the harnesser.”

“Did you close the blast doors?” Silver asked.

“Both passageways to building 3 are sealed.” Allen reported. “I hope you realize the order we chose will make things difficult later.”

When planning their assault, Allen had explained the facility’s layout. Building 1 was the guest quarters, rec room, and cafeteria. That was where those kidnapped were being held. Building 2 was the medical center, where they currently were. Building 3 housed the summon generator, power plant, and harnesser. The control room was also there. Building 4 was the docks and storage.

Allan’s proposal was to head straight for the generator. Sana had objected, arguing safeguarding the captives in building 1 should be their first priority. The rest of them had agreed.

Accepting their decision, Allen had revealed the trump card he’d been saving. Thanks to his last bit of authority as the previous administrator, he could manual close the blast doors between the buildings in a way the Righteous Sun wouldn’t be able to open. Freshly summoned crystalids now had to travel the long way around to reach them.

A siren went off, and the ceiling lights began pulsing red. Allan looked over nervously. “They’re going to focus entirely on producing crystalids, shorten their durations, and crank output to the max. We’ll have fight our way through hordes to reach the generator.”

“We’ll manage somehow.” Silver responded. “For now, we must secure the prisoners before reinforcements make their way to building 1.”