Thump. Thump. Thump. The rhythm continued as the darkness stirred, and then I realized it was not the earth that was shaking, but me. In fact, we were all quivering, and yet I didn’t feel that afraid. My Inner Calm passive was clearly working overtime in the moment.

  My hands shook ever so slightly, but any associated mental fear that might have overwhelmed me wasn’t there… just a nervous tick that annoyed me ever so slightly. My judgment was perfectly fine.

  “It’s a mental attack. Keep your calm,” Lucas shouted to warn everyone before I had a chance.

  The new group didn’t fare nearly as well as the rest of us. A few had even fallen to their ass and clutched their head nervously. I looked around and noted the four whom stayed standing. Lidya had managed to keep herself in readiness as well, albeit with the help of a wall to support her.

  “There can’t be enough demons to shake the earth from a mile out,” I said, “we’re safe within the walls, so get a hold of yourselves.” It was easy enough to call out with a clear mind, but I remembered that fear well. The fiend had scared me in such a way once, so much so that I didn’t dare to look at it even from a distance in case it could sense me staring towards it.

  Still, there was logic to my words that I hoped would be reassuring. It would take thousands of enemies to create this effect, and a level of jump to cross the walls that was too insane even for this hell-hole of a world.

  “They’re in range now,” Jessica said merely moments later. A silence reigned over our entire camp as we tensed up.

  “What’s that then?” Marcus suddenly asked. The ground had actually started to shake a little, and this time it wasn’t an illusory mental attack.

  “At least fifty enemies,” Jessica announced, “No… more.” She paused in concentration: “maybe up to eighty, and something big.”

  Alan started to slap his shield in anticipation, and Richard quickly joined him. Even I started to feel my blood boiling. Eighty enemies was… a lot. “Look alive boys,” Richard howled. “I need three meals a day, and I’ve only had one so far today!”

  “Looks like no dying for you then.” Alan laughed as the two moved side by side and positioned themselves in front of the opening.

  “Let’s make it quick and we’ll go for an early lunch.” Lucas joked. I could see some faces further back lighten up at the sight of their easy going attitude. My friends showed no fear in the face of an overwhelming force, and the constant gonging and rattling of their shields and laughter helped stave off the anxiety I felt from the other groups.

  The rumbling grew louder though, and eventually no amount of shouting or banging could dampen its growth. Everyone who needed to be at the front was there and waiting:Alan, Richard, Marcus and Nicole stood side by side, each with a shield and weapon in hand.

  The new group had two tanks as well, but they weren’t required to jump in right from the get go. When and if needed they could show their mettle. I didn’t want anyone to risk death today if they didn’t need to.

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  Alan and Richard stopped banging and the entire frontline grew silent. The time for being playful had passed as the atmosphere took on a suffocating level of oppression. A darkness in front swirled and churned, and took on an even deeper tone of black as our enemies approached.

  The rumbling beneath our feat dwindled and the sound of their march came to a stop. A pin drop could be heard through the gaps in the breeze. It felt like an eternity had passed in just a few seconds. What were they doing?

  A foot came through the darkness, and then an entire creature. I recognized it instantly… a Behemoth similar to the one I had fought, but on top of it was a saddle-like instrument, and a disgusting demon sat atop it. Not any regular demon though. This one was bulkier, fatter. Its body was grotesque and covered in spikes and scab-like protrusions. Its eyes rested far apart on its head, yellow and menacing like a snake’s. I could tell the mouth could fit a man’s body inside just by the crease that went ear to ear.

  “We have to fight Jabba the hut?” Alan made an annoyed mumble. There was something quite disgusting about the demon, actually, almost worm-like in appearance, and I understood Alan’s pain—it’s guts would be just as disgusting as it looked, no doubt.

  The demon’s eyes seemed to glow in the dark as it stared at us silently… contemplatively. I couldn’t see any emotion, just indifference. It was clear there would be no conversation or talking, just a fight to the death. Right. I was ready, as demons began to rush past it and towards us.

  Our setup was ready, and the first few demons didn’t even make it to our tank-line before falling to the massive amount of AoE we released. It was overwhelming now, as even the new members who were ranged could safely pelt mobs from a distance.

  The gaps and slits in the walls worked marvelously to bolster our defense and confidence. Almost no one was idle as the wave of demons rushed upon us, and yet the massive AoE and spells weren’t enough to stop them completely.

  They crashed into the tank line like a wall of solid meat, and that’s literally what they were. Their sheer number brute-forced through to our tanks. The resulting collision sounding like hundreds of football players plowing into each other.

  My melee undead and generals were in the thick of it as well,filling each side of our tank line and bolstering the defense. The zweihander, the cleaver, the ivory lance—they struck out through the shields and stabbed blindly into the wall of meat.

  Every strike sent a demon falling, and every second had another demon dying. Yet the numbers didn’t dwindle, and the charge didn’t end. The demon boss, as I referred to him, watched silently for a moment, but only a moment.

  It suddenly opened its mouth wide and then reached its fat stubby arm into its gullet. Jessica and I stood side by side studying our enemy carefully, this was our responsibility while we were not being assaulted in melee combat.

  I channeled Rot without restraint. The effect of the skill without my holding back at all was immense, and the upper body of a demon grayed, and then rapidly disintegrated a moment later. King Spikey merely punched the area and it exploded into a dusty mess that blew away with the wind.

  Still, my eyes remained locked on that freakish creature. Ever so slowly, so carefully… it pulled a white, long mass from within its mouth. Only after it hoisted it could I see what it was.

  A spear of bone no shorter than eight feet rested in his flabby hand, and then he flung it. There was surprising speed in that pathetic-looking arm. It seemed from appearance to contain no strength, yet it released like a rubber band and sent the bone spear rocketing at such an unimaginable speed I almost couldn’t get the words out, “Watch out!” I screamed at the top of my lungs.

  But it was to no avail. The bone spear tore through the air unimpeded toward the edge of the shield wall. I only saw his face for just a moment—one of the new members in the larger group—before his torso exploded on impact. The spear literally cut his body in half with the force of its impact.

  “Holy fucking shit,” Jessica mumbled beside me.

  I couldn’t find any words except, “Yeah.”

  We might be in trouble.