"I be telling ye, Unklarn no be made to fly!"

"I hear ya, Golgy. And I would never expect you to," said Tom as he jammed a helmet on the short man's head. Then he lifted Golgarn like a child by the armpits from behind as the Unklarn fought against him. It proved pointless as Tom managed to plop him on the back of a Torquin, behind the beast handler that would be controlling it. "Hold on tight. It isn't the fall that's the problem, it's the sudden stop at the end that is."

"WHAT?!"

Golgarn's head whipped in Tom's direction and stared daggers at him. Tom was already walking to his own ride while putting on a helmet.

A voice from one of the troop commanders in the Sentinel Army came through the air, projected to all by the Rift Menu.

"We've reached our target. Halt island movement. Torquin, wave one lay down suppression fire and then withdraw. Wave two, wait until the courtyard is cleared before carrying down the combatants. Wave one, launch!"

Adam watched from the edge of the island as two dozen Torquin took flight. They first gained additional altitude before suddenly dropping. With a dive, they waited until they were thirty feet from the ground before each one released a fireball.

The magical attacks weren't large, but they burned with a higher intensity than spells from most mages. Upon hitting the invaders gathered inside the stone walls, and in front of the entrance to the mountain base, the fireballs exploded. Their power was far weaker than the alchemical napalm bombs that Adam had used before, and they didn't permanently burn, but it was enough to damage the crowded invaders and send them into a panic.

"Fireballs away. Wingsuits, deploy!"

Brittney smiled as she, followed by 26 combatants, leapt from the edge, pulling the flaps to open their own wings. The air quickly caught them and their descent slowed, as they glided down in a circular pattern to keep from getting in each other's way.

"Well, it's my turn now," said Adam to Lucas. "See you below."

"You know you're nuts, right, Adam?" responded Lucas with a head shake.

Adam stepped back to have a running start. Then, with his large sword in his right hand and Brittney's heavy shield in the left, Adam dashed forward. He jumped from the island, whooping as he did.

The weight of the shield and weapon caused Adam to immediately plummet. He was off balance and had trouble turning his body to streamline his drop. Very quickly he passed those in the wingsuits and the Torquin that were rising from their fireball run.

"Iiiiincoooommmmiiiing!" shouted Adam as he rapidly fell towards the invader army looking up at him.

Those invaders that hadn't been hit with fire watched intensely as the humans in wingsuits descended towards them. When they heard Adam yell, all their eyes turned to him. He came down like a bullet towards them, passing by those with wingsuits. Some of the hundreds of waiting invaders lifted shields and weapons. The rest began casting spells that were unlikely to hit.

With the additional weight he was carrying, even Adam might not walk away from the impact easily.

Directly below his falling trajectory, the waiting invaders scrambled to escape the expected impact site. Those a little further back were thrown off in whatever attacks they were using. They were jostled and shoved by the ones trying to avoid being landed on. There was too much chaos as the ones on the outside refused to move, unaware, or uncaring, of the mess that was about to be made.

Right before Adam landed, he used [Gladiator's Approach]. He appeared behind a large Horkus that was halfway between the middle of the courtyard and the mountain entrance. Before the horde could make a big deal about his disappearance mid fall, Adam used [Arc Shockwave].

The mass of invaders was blown away in a 30-foot radius around Adam. A third were shoved into a pile near the mountain entrance, while another third was knocked towards the far side of the courtyard near the walls.

That was when the Torquin arrived for their second bombing run. Fireballs fell upon the knocked over and bunched up enemies. Screams and the smell of burnt meat filled the air.

With a large clearing available in the previously crowded area, the Sentinel Army soldiers wearing wingsuits had an open place to land. Brittney unfastened her wingsuit while in the air and dropped the land twenty feet to be the first to the ground. Adam tossed her the heavy shield, which required her to use [Firm Stance] to catch without being knocked over.

Adam grasped his great sword with both hands and rushed towards the mountain opening, leaving the invaders near the outside wall for the landing Sentinels. Those invaders who had been knocked the furthest from him were still struggling to stand, and the ones further behind were pushing them forward to make their own space.

The sword swung, cutting through eight invaders at the same time. Flipping the blade, Adam took a step forward and swung the sword in the other direction, cutting another six invaders.

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As the sliced invaders screamed and those who saw Adam coming tried to back away without space for them to move into, Adam used [Explosive Strike] on the blade and lunged forward with a thrust. The blade was aimed between two goblins, causing the energy on the sword to only be discharged once it hit a Lebasanti further behind.

The explosion wasn't as effective as [Arc Shockwave] for moving the enemies around, though the power that Adam wielded did shatter the stone armor the Lebasanti wore. Shrapnel flew out as the force of the explosion jostled the nearby invaders around.

Before Adam had time to back up to make space for himself, the invaders on the sides that could cast magic opened fire on him. The ground erupted in multiple bursts, spikes thrusting out in all directions. Columns of fire and wind rotated to life.

The area became a maelstrom of different spells. Multiple fire and wind spells hit each other, combining into a funnel that was bigger and wilder than any of the casters had expected.

Wind blades, streams of fire, chunks of wood and rock, all expanded and pelted the disorganized invaders. Shrieks, roars, cried, and screams all echoed out as the different groups of invaders were damaged by friendly fire.

On a good day these invaders would have fought each other to the death to gain territory and levels. However, having been forced together by an oppressive Scyrric, the level of concern for each other was nonexistent. It was a free for all as they wanted their own gains while disregarding those they fought with.

Before the combination of magic even had time to dissipate, more shouting happened from one side of the courtyard where the casters had been, safely away from the spells. They fell as a six-foot-long triangular blade bisected them, followed by Adam stepping out, blood of various colors and consistencies splattered on him. The leader of the Sentinel Army became a thing of nightmares to the invaders. Yet, they didn't just roll over.

The blood that coated Adam suddenly pulled from him and formed spikes. Larger goblins stepped out of the shadows within the piles of bodies. Once more the ground began to rumble as spikes prepared to emerge. A few lava streams came from invaders that didn't care who got burned from them.

Adam winked and used [Arc Shockwave] again. The magic was blown away from him along with the spells, jumping enemies, and even the blood spikes. Then he roared.

The enhanced power of his [Incapacitating Shout], fueled through his increased stats, filled the invaders and caused them to tremble in place. With Adam receiving a class and increased stability with his river and heat, all his pseudo-skills had become stronger.

Before Adam even attacked the horde again, dozens from the Sentinel Army spread out and laid into them. Brittney led the 27 who had come down on wingsuits. Torquin that were carrying passengers swooped down and allowed more combatants to drop off. Those all either charged forward with skills or used spells to attack.

After only twenty seconds it became a slaughter. The invaders didn't coordinate and barely fought back as they cared only for their own wellbeing.

Meanwhile, the Sentinel Army formed up. Protectors headed to the front with shields and defensive skills. Warriors and agility-based melee fighters rushed in to get a hit or two before hurrying back behind the shields. Spells and arrows came from mages and archers, who took their places in the formation after arriving on a descending Torquin.

Some invaders escaped into the mountain entrance while others managed to get the gate on the wall open and retreat through it, but that only represented a few.

"That was fun to watch," said Tom, sitting on a Torquin flapping in place above Adam. "Truly the glory of the boss on full display."

"Glad I meet your approval, Tom," said Adam sarcastically. "Now get down here with Golgarn."

"You got it, boss! I'll keep the little guy safe until we see some more of his munchkins."

"We no be that small," complained Golgarn weakly, already on the ground on his hands and knees, practically hugging the earth beneath him.

"Anyway, keep back until the Torquin deliver more troops. The hallways in the mountain don't look large enough for an army, so we'll go in waves. Stay close enough to the front that you can slip away, but far enough back to avoid any spells they might use."

"Rodger, dodger, boss," saluted Tom before he roughly grabbed the back of Golgarn's leather armor and yanked him to his feet.

Adam turned from them and strode towards the mountain entrance. It looked like there had once been large doors in front of the neatly shaped tunnel. Places for hinges were cracked and broken, and parts of the edges were crumbling.

The hallway itself was nine feet tall and twelve feet wide with smooth walls, ceilings and floors. It was a welcoming shape, clearly meant to encourage visitors. Decorations were carved into the tops and middles of the walls, like molding used to enhance the visual appeal.

When Adam stepped into the entrance, Brittney came to his left, and a large man with a shield almost the size of Brittney stepped to his right. There wasn't a lot of space to swing his large sword, so Adam put it in a brace on his back and then pulled out a long sword from his waist.

They didn't travel far before they reached opposition. Two Horkus stood in their path. They had levels in the beginning of Tier 3. Their bulbous bodies had been shoved into metal armor, with some of their excess skin and weight spilling out from between the plates. They were just the front line, as the hallway behind them was crowded as far as Adam could see.

"We've encountered opposition," said Adam, feeling the rage from his river as heat pulsed through him. Without breaking strike as he continued forward, he snarled, "make sure to slay them all."

"Yes, SIR!" shouted the Sentinel Army enthusiastically behind him.

"You no pass," the left Horkus chuckled, lifting a wooden club that had rings of metal and spikes around it. The circumference of the club was wider than Adam's torso.

"That isn't your decision," growled Adam.

When he reached the eight-foot-tall ogre, the club swung at him. Adam didn't even dodge as Brittney used [By Your Side] to arrive next to him. The ability propelled her next to him and put a light barrier around both of them. The barriers were unnecessary as Brittney caught the club on her shield, only taking a single step backwards from the invader's strength.

A soft glow surrounded Adam's right foot as he used [Kinetic Impact] on it. Then he kicked forward with the sole of his boot. The Horcus was solidly stomped in the armor covering his gut and was then thrown backwards from the pseudo-skill.

The second Horcus watched his partner fall into those behind him, his eyes going wide. It was a poor decision to look away, as Adam's sword slid into a gap in his shoulder armor. The Horcus bellowed, dropping his club, blood streaming down his side. Adam spun away from the wounded creature and roundhouse kicked him in the neck, [Kinetic Impact] still applied to his foot.

The two large invaders bounced off the invaders behind them and rolled, disrupting any appearance of order the invader army might have.

Adam stepped backward as the invaders that collided with the Horcus had [Kinetic Impact] imparted to them as well. Throughout the next twenty feet down the hall, enemies pinballed around.

Then the warriors behind Adam rushed forward to overwhelm the off-balance invaders.

"This seems too easy," muttered Brittney while keeping her eyes on the humans that her class was meant to protect.

"These are just the fodder," said Adam. "There is only one I'm worried about."

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