The Systemic Lands
Chapter 264: Day 538 (3) – Clarissa’s Trap

Clarissa

I watched the battle take place on the holographic map. Its level of detail was quite good. Naran was moving in across the city and General Smith had unleashed a last-minute plan he had come up with when the Ritualist had decided to siege us for such a long time.

Michael supported him by rushing back to the pillars and buying swords the moment he had seen Naran. He knew he couldn’t kill the super worm with his Acid Shot alone and was counting on Naran to stack up the damage.

I watched the massive swords get thrown and Naran slowly wound the beast. Then the Ritualist appeared from inside of it. I had suspected he was hiding within it. There was no other location he could hide within the city and our scouts had not reported any forces outside the city. Everything was committed to attacking the plaza.

Naran was somehow immobilized and picked up the Ritualist. That was all I needed to see. I took my hands off the pillar. “With me, quickly,” I said and left the Regional Map building and raced around to the City Shield. My guards were right with me and we entered the building without incident.

“Move the chests quickly,” I said as the doors were guarded. I heard the doors slam shut, but I was focused on cashing in all the points. This was what Michael had realized after looking at the books. I had been secreting away a reserve only I and my closest guards knew about.

“Lost control of my summons, something is taking control of everything,” my summoner guard said. It was the Ritualist of course.

“Cut your tethers,” I quickly said.

“Already done,” my summoner guard replied as I cashed in the last of my crystals. I put my hands on the pillar and was about to activate the City Shield when my body locked up. I couldn’t hear anyone moving either. My hands were still on the pillar. I quickly made the purchase. My body moved outside of my control, but the hum that sounded everywhere was all the confirmation I needed.

That had been a bit too close for comfort. If I was even a couple of seconds later, we would all be dead. Everything turned monochrome, and I stumbled and began breathing heavily. Why? Why were we doing all this? I shook my head, a mental effect. Focus!

“Execute plan black, Ritualist, now!” I quickly shouted out. All of my guards but four rushed out of the City Shield building. I quickly followed them. I needed to know if we won or lost and act on that immediately.

A roar sounded out from the plaza. I raced around and saw a monstrosity. A giant metal doll like figure with hundreds of white eyes, each of them crying. I felt the desire to give into despair. People were running away screaming. Champion Michael was dodging around the monster as it towered above him. Standing at least twice his height.

“Naran!” I saw him tossed to the side. Half his face was ripped off and the muscle was bubbling like liquid. His left eye had turned completely white. A low level of screaming tried to escape his throat. I forced myself to ignore the massive battle that was happening off to the side and rushed forward even as the ground shook and I felt an immense pressure on my mind.

My remaining guards had collapsed to the ground behind me. I reached Naran. His face was terrible. The ground shook some more, and the giant monster landed nearby. Several of the eyes snapped towards me and I felt my very soul was going to be cleaved from my body.

“Ahhh!” Michael leapt forward and drove the tip of a sword into the monster. It roared and tried to smash him, and Michael leapt away. I turned back to Naran.

I reached under his armpits and began dragging him away out of the danger zone. A severed head went flying by me, splattering my face with blood. That had been the Captain of my super squad. That wasn’t good, but I couldn’t think about that right now. I focused on my breathing and dragging Naran. The ground shook some more.

I managed to drag to the Champion’s House and opened up the main door with my key. I drug Naran inside and shut the doors as the ground shook some more. “Anyone!” I called out. It had been a while since I was truly alone.

Gretchen, the old maid came out from wherever she was hiding. “Chief-“

“No time, get whatever cloth and water we have. Doctor Katz?” I asked.

“Inside the panic room,” Gretchen said, keeping her calm.

“I will drag Naran, there tell him to get ready for him, go!” I shouted and Gretchen quickly raced off. I dragged Naran the rest of the way. He was so lucky I had invested some stat points into Body. Naran’s face wasn’t getting any better as it looked like metallic liquid and the eye was white.

I reached the panic room. “Help me, get him on the table,” Doctor Katz said. I helped lift him up. “What happened?” The Doctor asked.

“The Ritualist captured him. Then transformed into a super monster when the City Shield activated. Naran was like this when I found him,” I replied. A wave of mental despair washed over everyone. “Focus Doctor!” I shouted at him.

“Yes. Shit. This isn’t a wound Clarissa that can be patched up. This is energy related damage. I don’t know the types to counter whatever the Ritualist did, and it is on his head. If I try to counter the type, it will lead to an annihilation reaction and could erase his brain,” Doctor Katz said.

The entire building violently shook, and I got a mental alert of damage being done to it. “Well figure it out Doctor. Do what you think is best,” I told him hurriedly.

“Then we need to wait and attempt a restoration at the store, once he awakes,” the Doctor said.

“And if he doesn’t wake? If that stuff impacts his brain?!” I shouted.

“I don’t know! Give me a second to think,” he shouted back, and I was quiet. The screaming of the children was a distant background noise. Naran needed to live no matter what. If he died, then Michael would be loose cannon.

“Alright, the coloration is either shiny gray or silver. Construct or metal. What monster is this from?” the doctor asked me. I tried to think if Champion Michael had said anything. “My treatment depends on which type this is most likely from. If it is wrong, it will get much worse and Naran will probably die.”

“Not construct or machine. It would be like those metal men that repelled energy. The Ritualist would accept nothing else,” I made the best educated guess I could.

“Alright. Metal and resist. Think, what is the opposite of that type of energy?” Doctor Katz began pacing back and forth next to the table. That was when the entire world seemed to tilt. I grabbed onto the table Naran was lying on top of as my sense of perception swung wildly around, I felt like I was going to fall upwards.

There was more screaming as people who were standing fell down. There were more tremors immediately afterwards. The Good Doctor kept a hold on the table. “Can’t be void or death. Not life. Think. Not radiance or light. That seems like it would on the wrong axis. Not sound or sheer. Maybe sheer though.”

Naran let out a louder groan and then began to shake violently. “Hold him he is seizing,” Doctor Katz said. I held down Naran’s arms, but it was impossible. Even with the smallest tremors his massive Body stat was ripping into the table and pushing me back. I was going to bruise heavily after this.

The table broke and I landed on top of Naran. Doctor Katz raced off as Naran continued to seize. “Dammit, hold on you idiot!” I shouted at him. That seemed to help slightly as he finally stilled. A minute later Doctor Katz was back with a pack, Gretchen was with him carrying bowls of water.

“Good he stopped seizing. Get off him,” Doctor Katz said and I got off Naran as he knelt next to his head. “Stupid voodoo healing magic mumbo jumbo,” the Doctor muttered and pulled a bright red crystal out of his back and dark orange one as well.

He tossed both into a bowl of water and poked the water. He then quickly dumped the water on the side of Naran’s head. “AHHHH!” Naran screamed and his he jerked his head side to side. His hands hit the floor and cracked the stone, turning some portions into powder. S~ᴇaʀᴄh the n0vᴇl(ꜰ)ire.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Just as quickly, the screaming stopped. The silver portions had disappeared for the most part, exposing the muscle underneath. The Doctor let out a sigh of relief. The eye was still white. “That was the stupidest medical procedure I have ever done. Don’t touch the water. Let’s move him away.” I helped move Naran away.

I stumbled as a wave of pressure hit me. Many people just collapsed unconscious. Doctor Katz collapsed to his knees. The pressure went away. I finished dragging Naran onto a bed to the side of the panic room. I had set this room up at the bottom and center of the Champion’s House so people could shelter here in the event of an attack.

After the Sky Worms it had seemed prudent. A fortified location for everyone to gather. Doctor Katz came over and looked at Naran. “Thank you, Doctor,” I said.

“I did what I could. But it was basically throwing what I could at the issue. There may be deeper lingering effects,” the Doctor said with a sigh. “If his life wasn’t on the line, and he had a good chance of dying, what I did would be malpractice. At the best it is witchcraft.”

“It doesn’t matter, he looks better, and his breathing is steady,” I replied.

“He needs a restoration. I don’t dare bandage up the wound either, since that might cause complications from what I did,” the Doctor said.

“What did you do?” I asked trying to take my mind off the battle that was happening outside as another minor tremor shook the ground and the building. How long could a fight last?

“I used flesh and life type. The disappearance of the metallic sheen indicates that flesh was the opposite since the opposite of life is death. Regardless, his flesh might slowly come back on its own. Or their might be weird growths. Or he might explode,” the Doctor said.

“Explode? Weird growths?” I asked.

“Clarissa, I am a medical Doctor, not a witch. I have been studying energy types, and one thing I can tell you, is that they make absolutely no sense. Whatever logic governs them is opaque to me as quantum mechanics is. It is witchcraft for all I know,” the Doctor pulled out a small metal stick and poked Naran’s face with it.

“I am just checking the flesh and muscle. Watch him. If anything changes call for me or send someone right away. I need to see my other patients after everything,” the Doctor said.

“Thank you. Sorry about my lack of composure earlier,” I replied.

“No worries. I have seen far worse. At least you kept your head,” Doctor Katz replied. I could only hope that the battle would end quickly, and Michael would win.

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