The Black Tide

The third bell had not yet finished tolling, when the flood gates broke open.

The beasts hit the walls of Tristan like a flood. Claws scraped against stone, fangs gnashed against shields, talons sliced through armor, their bodies stacked atop one another, clawing towards the battlements, like a fleshy avalanche.

The air echoed with the clashing of steel against bone, screams of wounded defenders, and the guttural roars of beasts perverted beyond recognition.

Archers let loosed until their fingers dripped blood, mages scorched the tide with multi-colored spells burning and scorching flesh. But for every beast that fell, it seemed like ten more took it’s place, clawing their way forward, breaching the walls.

The defenders began to stagger, weapons slipping from wet hands, mixture of blood and sweat.

Despite the reinforcements of adventurers and knights, it was like trying to block a flood with a few meager grains of sand.

Within half an hour, the defenders of the wall faltered. The first knight dragged over the wall by a massive claw, his shield slipped from his grip as he over extended parrying a talon. Tumbling over the walls, his body disappeared in a mist of red, torn apart by the tide of monsters below.

The moment a gap appeared in the shield wall, the other knights rushed forward, trying to plug the gap, but the beast was faster. 

Seizing the opportunity, a python like tail lashed out, toppling the knights efforts, and just like that, the walls were breached, a opening carved in to the parapets.

Climbing onto the walls, a mix of monsters climbed over, the one leading the charge had a lion head, a wolfs body and a snake for a tail, that was now covered in black veins, and wriggling muscles, it’s core glowing purple through it’s muscles. 

The chimaera swatted away the Shielded Knights in the area, its giant claws slicing through their armor, its tail lashing in the opposite direction, sending the rushing knights and adventurers flying over the walls. Luckily, only a few of them flew into the tide of monsters, some of the others smashed into nearby buildings, saving their lives.

Multiple quick spells are launched at it, by the mages in the back line, fireballs, icicles, and lightning bolts blast into the Chimaera, a cloud of dust obscuring it from view. The knights and adventurers quickly form up ready to push it back down, but a sickly violet flame burst forth washing over the knights and mages, incinerating them into piles of ashes.

Following the chimaera were multiple corrupted Werebears and corrupted Direwolves, each one causing their own chaos on the defensive line.

“Tch.” Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Reiji Blitz towards the breach, appearing in front of the Chimaera. His Ki igniting in black and white, as he unleashed Howling Storm, Smashing the jaws of the Chimaera shut. 

“Enough!” He roars, as he unleashes a barrage of strikes, forcefully pushing the Chimaera back towards the opening. The Chimaera struck back, it’s tail repeatedly lashing at Reiji, fist and fangs met in mid air, creating mini shockwaves of energy, as Ki and corruption collided.

Feinting, Reiji grabs the throat of the python, crushing it in his Howling Storm skill, tearing it apart. The Chimaera roars, pain streaking through its body, losing the other brain, but Reiji moves faster than it could retaliate. Rushing forward, he unleashes a Rending Strike, staggering it, then tackling it over the walls, out through the same opening.

Unleashing his Beast Fang, he blast the Chimaera downwards, toppling the climbing monsters from the wall, smashing them with the Chimaera, as a make-shift bludgeoning weapon. It’s cries of indignity echoed out its unwillingness.

Descending downwards, his boots slammed into the beast’s back, with Stunning Blow, bones cracked underneath, its core crumbling under the strike. A house size crater, formed upon moment of impact, blasting away the surrounding beasts.

Grabbing it’s head, his aura flared again, ripping out its head with brute force, black ichor spraying all over.

“Oi, oi, oi-“ His voice carried over the chaos, brash and sharp, like a challenge hurled across a schoolyard back home. “-what the hell do you think you’re doing?” Only this time, he was challenging a tide of beasts.

The beasts surged towards him, jaws wide, claws bearing down. Grinning like the devil, Reiji crack his knuckles and neck.

He fought with reckless abandon, fists, feet, knees, head-butts, and elbow, raw defiance against impossible odds, his main weapon, his unyielding spirit. The first charging beasts was met with a straight punch that caved its skull, spinning into a roundhouse that tore through another claw and arm completely, before tearing apart another jaw with an elbow. 

Every strike was a statement of his unbreakable will, and his unyielding heart. I don’t care who you are, how many you’ve got, what god you serve, I’m standing right here.

A rallying cry that came not from words, but from action.

From the walls, Nraltia’s voice rang out, “Haste! Sylph’s Breath! Moonlit Pulse!” Support spells flared around Reiji, his movements sharpening, his body glowing with healing lights.

He laughed, wild and reckless, as he mowed through the horde, wading deeper into enemy grounds, leaving behind a river of black ichor.

“Damn right, Tia! Bring it on you beasts!”

The defenders of the wall stared, slack-jawed, enchanted by the sight. Where they had struggled and faltered, Reiji plowed through, like a diabolical hurricane, chewing up enemies, and spitting out their corpse. His crimson jacket snapped in the wind, his fists tore through the corruption, his yell unyielding, louder than the beasts.

For the first time, the tide faltered. 

Not because they feared death, but because they met something they didn’t fully understand. A destructive impulse, a beast like human, wilder than any should be. 

From the wall, the defenders stand bewitched, as Reiji carved a path through the tide, his body glowing white and black, clearly marking his position. The further he went, the brighter his Ki flared. 

What should have been a suicide mission, one man leaping into a sea of monsters… ignited something in their hearts.

“That damn fool…” a knight muttered, eyes wide as he saw Reiji head-butt a beast, caving its skull. “… but he’s not falling.”

Murmurs erupted, spreading like wild fire. Adventurers who mere moments ago, trembled with fear and exhaustion, now leaned out over the battlements, fists clenched around their weapons.

Then two figures moved, vaulting over the walls, Souma and Nraltia, an orphan and a stranger to the city. Sharing a short glance, their lips smirked in unison, the two members of the party, following their leader. Landing with silent and deadly grace, the two charge forward, aiming to catch up with Reiji, their manas burning brightly against the dark. 

Then more followed. Starting with Lieutenant lance, his armor clanged as he landed, using a beast as a cushion, his Ki blasting it apart. A silver rank adventurer, followed by his party, his sword slicing through a beast.

“Don’t let him steal all the glory!” 

“Get down there!”

One after another, they jumped. 

Three group of knights, stronger and more capable, trained personally by Lance, their weapons shrouded in Ki and Mana, moving together as a unit.

A few more adventuring parties joined in, five Silver Ranks, and two Gold Ranks. Some with polished armor, others with cloth and staves, but all carrying the same fire, reignited by Reiji’s unyielding spirit.

The battlefield shifted.

The beasts, once a surging tide of black, now slammed against a wall of defiance, not just the city’s, but a line of defenders, moving shoulder to shoulder in the grime and blood of the front. 

The Crimson Crow party was at the center, his fists like hammers, shooting out endlessly, each strike a lethal force, his clothes tattered and bloodied, but his smile still persisted, a blade against fear.

Above the parapets, the remaining knights and adventurer’s reformed along the battlements. A new shield wall, stronger than ever, arrows rained down from their back line, as the mages in the middle cast in coordinated burst, leaving devastation on the field. 

The defense had mounted, from a desperate scramble, to a full fighting force.

The black tide snarled, crashing forward, again and again, but their rhythm faltered. The defenders no longer just endured, they struck back, every blow carrying the echo of mankind’s unyielding spirit.

In the heart of the chaos Nraltia’s eyes shone as she watched Reiji’s broad back. She whispered another prayer, not to gods or fate, but for the stubborn brute who refused to bow.

Her magic flared, a halo reaching out, binding the defenders on the field into something greater. All the events transpired under the watchful gaze of a translucent blue goddess.

The night was still black, the tide endless - but Tristan no longer stood on the edge of despair.

Now it stood on the edge of defiance.