Path of Dragons - A LitRPG Apocalypse (BOOK TWO STUBBING AUGUST 15)

A massive troll took Sadie in a shoulder charge that, despite her abilities, sent her skidding backward into a thick-trunked tree. It shook with the impact, sending a cascade of moisture raining down upon her head. She barely felt it. In fact, she couldn’t remember the last time she was completely dry. Not since before she’d entered the forsaken swamp that had been her home for most of the past year.

It hadn’t been so bad in the fortress, though that had come with plenty of issues that didn’t include the pervasive moisture. In a contest between that ever-present damp and the constant battle, she wasn’t certain which would win. All she truly knew was that she was very much ready to leave the Primal Realm behind.

Hopefully, the Red Marsh wouldn’t be her tomb.

It was a dim hope, considering that it had been almost a month since they’d enacted the last-ditch plan to end the Primal Realm early. She had no idea if Miguel, Helen, and Solomon had reached their destination. More likely, they were dead, like so many others who’d already given their lives for the cause.

Not for the first time, she wished she hadn’t been so arrogant as to send Elijah away. With his help, their chances of victory would have increased exponentially. She certainly wasn’t blind to that fact, and she couldn’t help but reprimand her past self for what had turned out to be an incredibly bad decision. Despite the justification she’d given voice, it was a choice based not on what was best for her people and her mission, but on her own personal hangups.

Sure, she’d couched her reasoning in real concerns for her soldiers’ ability to progress. With Elijah there, they would never gain as much experience – both in the system and more mundane sense. Yet, now, she was forced to confront the reality that a few extra levels didn’t matter much to a dead men and women.

And there were plenty of those.

By the time they’d decided to retreat from the fortress, they’d already lost thousands. That number was mostly populated by the dregs of the army. People who’d never truly committed to their training, to their own progression. It was easy to look at it as separating the wheat from the chaff, and the army as a whole hadn’t lost much with their deaths.

Yet, they were still people.

And what’s more, they were Sadie’s responsibility. She mourned them all, with their deaths weighing more heavily on her shoulders with every waking moment. At times, she could only think about the people they’d left behind. Friends. Family. Settlements that depended on them for protection.

Now, they were gone, their bodies either rotting in the swamp or consumed by the wildlife. They deserved better.

But for now, Sadie couldn’t consider their fate. Nor could she spare any thought for the hundred other groups that had scattered across the Red Marsh. Instead, she could only concern herself with the current battle.

She welcomed that clarity of focus.

Resummoning Aegis of Faith, she braced for the troll’s next attack. The creature was much larger than her – taller by more than a foot and double her weight – but when it hit the ethereal shield, its progress was stymied. She pushed back with a front kick that sent it sprawling into the shin-deep water. It hit with a splash, only to find itself on the wrong end of a hastily summoned Righteous Storm.

Blood, hair, and bits of flesh went flying as a half-dozen blades erupted from the stagnant water to rip into the creature. Sadie knew it wouldn’t be enough to kill the thing. With enough time, it would regrow every piece she’d just separated from its body. But for now, it was out of the fight, which allowed her to turn her attention to the rest of the battle.

All around her, men and women fought. Bogged down by mud and stagnant water, they attempted to maintain their formation. Most were members of the Ironshore Legion, so they managed it well enough. However, the attacking trolls were far too powerful for their foes to keep orderly lines.

Gaps had already begun to appear among the Legion’s front ranks, and the trolls were more than eager to take advantage. They rushed in, only to be met by the second line of defense. Most of these people were Rangers or less defensive Warriors, and it showed. They couldn’t stand before the troll force’s charge.

Sadie rushed forward, already embracing Blessed Bulwark to plug one of the gaps. Trolls hit the free-standing ethereal shield with all the fury they could muster, but it held. They rebounded, only to find themselves subjected to vicious counterattack from a squad of ranged attackers.

Spells – mostly fire-based – fell upon the trolls, setting them alight. Arrows pierced their most vulnerable bits, destroying eyes and embedding themselves in the trolls’ brains. Anywhere else, and the attacks would be useless. And finally, the Legion’s beam-based attacks scorched the attackers, filling the air with the smell of singed hair.

It wasn’t enough to ensure victory.

Not by a long shot.

But it did give Sadie a chance to reach the front lines, where she used Divine Momentum and Faith’s Reckoning. Neither spell was meant to harm the trolls. Rather, their purpose was to enhance Sadie. Wings of light spread from her back as she felt a surge of immense power envelope her.

She attacked.

Her glowing blade whistled as she plunged into the mass of trolls. With every passing second, she swung her sword a dozen times. Each arc of her blade severed limbs, searing into the trolls with righteous fury. Every felled enemy infused her with more power, and her damage skyrocketed.

She used it to carve a path through the trolls and to her true target.

Three blood priests had accompanied the force, enhancing and healing the more common footsoldiers. Sadie hit them with everything she had, casting multiple instances of Righteous Storm along the way. Her increased power lent those blades even more strength, and in moments, there were dozens of massive blades sheering through troll bodies.

At the same time, she used Bell of Faith, stunning every creature within a hundred yards and ensuring the blood priests couldn’t counter her attack. And finally, she used her latest spell, called Beacon of Judgement.