Inexorable Chaos - Chapter 272: 144 Gaw: The War Begins

A bolt of azure luminescence sunders the night sky..

The wind screams and roars with unrestrained fury.

The earth rumbles and cracks in defiance of all that walks its surface.

And the waters quarrel violently against the earth.

Four elementals, awakened from their deep slumber, arise. They feel an intent and a purpose flowing with the world’s mana, concentrating at a place where the planet’s energy leaks forth.

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“What the fuck are those?,” Aodean curses. He lowers the telescope and glances at Thallum. The elf is staring at the elementals with a grimace on his face.

“This can’t be possible. They should be dead.”

“What’s not possible?”

“Them.”

Aodean goes cross-eyed. “Fucking cunt. Don’t just say one word. I need information.” he points, “Are those some kind of elementals or what?”

“They are the Primordials.”

Aodean groans, “Can you just fucking explain to me what we’re dealing with properly?”

Blinking, Thallums eyes cease glowing. He finally stops staring into the distance and faces Aodean.

“Apologies. Those things are indeed elementals, but not just any elementals. Those are True Elementals, the Primal Titans that manifest an element. They are powerful forces of nature and chaos that even the elder dragons feared.”

“If they are forces of nature and chaos, then why the fuck are they marching with an Aesir army?”

“Honestly, they should not exist. The books I’ve read tell of all six having been destroyed by the combined might of all the gods’ champions over a hundred thousand years ago.”

“Well, they seem pretty extant now and they’re tagging along with those Aesir assholes like besotted puppies, so how do we screw these pooches?”

“The same way that you deal with any elemental. Destroy their core and they will die.”

He raises the telescope again and activates the [Analyze] enchantment on it.

Hyperion, True Elemental of Flame- Level 1375

The first and brightest of them is Hyperion, blazing in the sky as a second sun, banishing the night.

Coeus, True Elemental of Wind- Level 1198

Below Hyperion, a massive thunderstorm boils around a gigantic tornado. It travels with the army, sheltering the Aesir from incineration and sparing them its fury.

Lapetus, True Elemental of Earth- Level 1233

A humanoid mountain of rubble taller than the walls of Camelot shakes the earth with every step. The great walls sway with every tremor, each one stronger than the last as the Titan approaches.

Oceanus, True Elemental of Water- Level 1150

The last of the titans flows across the land, a stream with no form or structure, suctioning the liquids in its path and leaving the desiccated earth.

“They’re all over a thousand in level. Do we even have any chance against that?”

Thallum grimaces. “We’re gonna find out soon enough. Follow me, we’re going to see if we can get some help.”

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Hyperion launches the first salvo. The ball of fire glows hot, the air crackles with its heat and mana. From on high, thousands of meteors fall from the sky, each with the strength of a [Siege Fireball].

The city’s pylons come to life. They glow. A translucent sheen stretches between them and merges with all of the Pylons around the city. A barrier of light forms above, just in time to block the fiery storm. Explosions rain upon the barrier, but none are strong enough to penetrate, though each strike drains a bit of stored mana.

The city’s siege engines return fire, magic and missiles soar out from the wall. They hit the incoming Lapetus, slowing it down somewhat, but not stopping it. Every impact cleaves small chunks off the walking mountain, but the damage is quickly repaired from the ground it walks on.

Behind Lapetus, Coeus hovers over the Aesir army, blocking and redirecting most projectiles that would strike them.

Oceanus, the massive river of water flows slowly to the lake to feast and strengthen itself.

Atop the ramparts, Donovan growls, “Lapetus needs to be stopped. Our walls aren’t made to withstand its physical force.” He turns quickly and points, “Darius, you’re up. Get down there and keep that thing occupied.”

“The Bulwark understands,” Darius replies. He rushes to the end of the ramparts and jumps down the wall. When he lands, he spreads his arms wide, releases his domain, and yells, “[Greater Creation: Elder Earth Elemental].”

The ground swells under his feet, Darius rises with the earth. In moments, a humanoid shell of rock half as tall as the wall steps forward, then steps again, and then its slow walk turns into a sprint. Arms turn to hammers as he rushes forward. The enemy army releases spells and skill at Darius, but the man’s Domain strengthens the rock of his Elemental, weathering the attacks with ease.

Darius leaps at the Titan and punches. His hammer fist slams into Lapetus’ head, striking the Titan hard enough that it shatters.

If the core of the Titan had been in the head, that would be the end of Lapetus, but since it is not, the head quickly regenerates and the true battle begins.

“It would be good if he can take out Lapetus on his own, but I doubt it. For now, it’s good enough to keep it distracted. Calidi, I want you to take out Oceanus. I don’t want that thing getting anywhere near the Lake.”

“Got it,” Calidi answers with a grin. Fiery wings sprout from her back and the Scorching Star takes to the skies. She rises up, dodging meteors until she hovers far above the city. Her wings spread farther and hotter. She points her spear towards Oceanus’ core, then tucks her wings and dives, glowing ever brighter as she descends.

At the last moment, the Titan pulls its core out the way. She plunges into Oceanus and vanishes in an explosion of steam. When the air clears, Calidi stands alone on the scorched earth. The Titan was blown back and lost a third of its mass, but the core itself is still unscathed.

“Seems like Oceanous is weak without a water source. Calidi may be able to winnow it down and defeat it on her own, which means,” he looks at the last three domain users. Famela, Rob, and Hannibal.

Famela the Detonation is a tall, slender Cat-kin with a domain that he really doesn’t understand well, but apparently she can make nearly anything explode. She carries thousands of tiny needles, all of which are deadlier than a [Maximized] [Siege Fireball].

Rob the Flesh Saint is a dwarf [Surgeon] that can work literal miracles with flesh. He carries a long bone staff that if it touches direct flesh, then he can extend his domain to command the body to do anything, including die. For those of flesh and blood, Rob merely needs to touch direct flesh to end you regardless of level or species.

Hannibal, though not named by the world, is the leader of the Gentleman’s Guild and a user of a sound domain. Considering he’d only recently found out about the man, his combat capabilities are still quite unknown.

“I don’t suppose any of you have the skillset to combat the other Titans?”

They shake their heads.

“I figured as muc-Hm?”

A portal opens next to Donovan. The [Warfare General] quickly unsheathes the legendary greatsword, Excalibur. The sword thrums in his hand. He points it at the portal, ready to act.

He relaxes as Aodean exits the portal alongside Thallum and two elven women.

“Donovan,” Thallum nods, “I’ve brought help.”

Donovan raises an eyebrow at the two elven women.

One of the elven women, dressed in green leather and wielding a staff, grimaces when she sees the Titans.

“Well, I’ll say this, the Titans look weaker than in the dusty tomes, though I believe that will change once people start dying.” she points a finger up “Siberia, you go deal with Hyperion and I’ll see what I can do against Coeus.”

“Wait-,” Dominous words go unheeded as Siberia jumps into the air and creates a falcon of ice and snow that ascends towards the Titan.

“She’ll be fine,” the woman grins at Dominous who still has his greatsword out.

“Who are you?” he asks the green-eyed woman.

The woman continues grinning. She curtsies, “I am Sylvia, the reigning elven elder. Thallum informed me you have a Titan problem, so I’ve come to assist.”

“You’re the Emerald Mistress!”

“So I’m told. I hope I am not a bother.”

Donovan sheaths his sword. “If you’ve come to help, then I’ll accept.”

With no more words, Donovan shifts his focus to the incoming army and the last Titan. Though Lapetus is distracted, the Aesir army continues marching under the cover of Coeus’ protective winds. With the Titan’s protection, most of Camelot’s ranged defenses are rendered useless.

He watches a beam of violet energy streak towards Coeus, only to travel through the incorporeal Titan and, somewhat attenuated, strike the army behind. A somehow sentient undead weapon system stomps one of its eight feet in frustration at the marginal effectiveness of its attack.

“Coeus needs to be stopped or suppressed. Can you do something about it?”

Sylvia stares at the Titan of wind, and grimaces. “Not at this range. I can handle the army, but not the Titan.”

“We could ask Franky to-” Aodean begins.

“Absolutely not!” Sylvia interrupts, “He’s already lost an arm from using his skill. The next time he uses it, he could lose far more.”

“Then what the fuck are we to do? Can we activate the trap without ranged support?” Aodean asks.

Donovan shakes his head, “No, we don’t have the numbers to fight without the wall’s support. Coeus needs to be distracted.” he glances at Thallum, “if we protect you, can you suppress Coeus?”

Thallum raises his right hand. The Gauntlet of Elemental Authority thrums with divine power, fueling him with the ambient mana around him. “I can try, but I doubt my control over the wind will be equal to the Titan’s.”

Donovan grunts. “Then it’s decided, we’ll attack together. Sylvia and I will protect Thallum while he suppresses Coeus. Aodean, when we arrive, raise the golems. My [Captains] should already know what to do afterwards.”

“Good luck,” Aodean says.

Donovan nods. He turns, draws his sword, sprints and leaps off the wall with enough force to crack the enchanted stone.

Thallum wreaths himself in the wind and takes to the skies, flying directly at the Titan.

Sylvia rolls her eyes at the two men. She gives Aodean a wink, taps her divine staff, and teleports directly in front of Coeus.

Arriving first, she unleashes her domain, the physical manifestation of growth. Trees, grass, bushes and all manner of plants sprout around her, reaching their full size in seconds. The growth continues, the plants and trees swelling larger and stronger than they ever would in Nature, forming a thick miniature forest that stills Coeus’ winds around the Aesir.

Arriving from the sky, Thallum’s gauntlet thrums as the magic within strengthens his control over the wind. The turbulent air that was blocking projectiles calms and more attacks break through.

Coeus notices Thallum, but its attention is wrested away as it moves its core to dodge Donvan’s sword.

Aodean sighs. He reaches into his bag and retrieves a crown and a bottle of wine. He puts the crown on his head, uncorks the bottle, takes a big gulp, and then yells.

“AWAKEN!”

The earth below the Aesir army explodes and Golems come to life.