[Time left: 23 hours 35 minutes]
The vast landscape slowly lost its sparkle as the sun's orange glow slowly but surely were replaced. A curtain of darkness dimly lit by the night stars made its way over, and should completely envelop everything in an hour.
At the moment, Emery's figure could be seen standing on top of a ten-meter stone wall. His gaze was fixed on the far distance, staring at the sea of bloodthirsty creatures that seemed to fill the horizon endlessly.
With the natural rock cliffs that stood on the back side of the base acting as an infallible obstruction, there were only three directions to watch out for the attacks of the Abyss creatures. Correspondingly, three gates were built in those three directions.
The Main Gate, that faced north where the yellow plain was; the West Gate, that faced a rushing freshwater river; and the East Gate, that faced a forest that led to where the transport was.
Emery actually had nothing much to do as Julian had all the work cut out for him.
The Roman had built and prepared all necessary defensive measures as well as positioned all the available manpower - acolytes and survivors alike - accordingly.
The able-bodied survivors who volunteered to help the cause were instructed to help with the logistics and maintain order among the survivors during the imminent battle. As for the acolytes, Julian had divided them evenly to stand guard over the three gates.
The distribution was as follow:
Main Gate: Squad Julian, Squad Trish, Squad Arcana;
East Gate: Squad Sigurd, Squad Wage, Squad Ryan;
West Gate: Squad Roran, Squad Orion, Squad Rayne.
The base was a 2-mile-long double-layered stronghold made mostly of polished stones with numerous metal spikes protruded from the walls. At a glance, the outer wall looked very much like a porcupine.
In addition, there was also a deep moat outside the fort that was filled with sharp metal spikes, stretching all the way from one end of the fort to the other.
The stronghold looked far less sturdy and equipped compared to the one Emery had seen the Nephilim have built. However, he could see that a lot of thought was put into planning and building this place.
With the double-layer wall set as the yardstick, the acolytes were divided into three lines.
The first line would be called the Vanguard, consisting of those who excel in combat using melee weapons or short-range spells. Meanwhile, the second line was where people who utilized ranged weapons and spells were during the battle.
As for the third line, it would be the place where the acolytes who withdrew from battle rest their tired bodies and recover their depleted Spirit Pools. Apart from that, it was also the last line of defense to ensure that no Abyss creatures passed through and entered the base.
After the three established lines, there was an empty field about 20 meters long where a thousand of Andora native fighters would stand guard together alongside the last squad led by Lyndell. These people would be on standby with all the healers.
***
Loud screams and electrifying cries echoed through the air around the Main Gate, where a group of people were seen battling dozens of murderous creatures. With a hammer in his hand, Julian was seen darting at a nearby Abyss creature, puncturing through and continuing onward until he smashed several abyss apart..
A group of Abyss creatures swiftly shot towards him, wanting to carve their sharp claws into his flesh. However, a violent wind suddenly swept over them and when it subsided the several creatures leading the charge had been cut in half horizontally.
The imposing figure of Thrax inflicted a sense of fear within the Abyss creatures, causing them to come into a temporary halt. Seeing a golden opportunity, the Thracian stomped on the ground and lunged at the creatures with his weapon brandished.
A group of people with striking features swiftly followed Thrax. The Akanda Warriors, with their exceptional cooperation and combat prowess, provided the Thracian with much-needed cover, allowing the latter to rampage among the Abyss creatures as he pleased.
While Julian, Thrax, and the Akanda Warriors wreaked havoc in the midst of their ranks, the Abyss creatures were beset by another disaster as a torrential shower of arrows and spells rained down upon their brethren in the skies like judgment.
Chumo with his many Shadow Warriors relentlessly shot arrow after arrow at the Flyers that were flying towards the stronghold. His actions alone brought about destruction as Flyers's dead bodies started to fall from the sky.
However, the number of Flyers was simply too much for him to handle alone. Even with the help of his Shadow Warriors, he couldn't kill the hordes of Abyss creatures fast enough. They would eventually enter the base if nothing else was done.
Fortunately, Chumo was not alone. Among those who were struck down by his arrows, there were Flyers that were killed by something else.
The culprit was the person standing beside him, Trish the water element master had incessantly conjured spears and droplets of water, sending them en masse to the Abyss creatures. Those who were unfortunate enough to be hit had nothing left, as their bodies were blown into pieces.
At the East Gate, the figure of Anas was seen on top of the towering wall. Loud shouts containing instructions never stopped coming out of his mouth. His eyes were locked on the entire battlefield, while his brain worked rapidly thinking about the most appropriate course of action.
On the field, a spectacular scene unfolded among the sea of Abyss creatures. A lone man with muscular build, a massive ax gripped tightly by his hand, carried out a scene of destruction and slaughter.
The Abyss creatures that had just come out of the forest were quickly greeted by their God of death. The earth shook while the terrain reformed as Sigurd killed multiple Abyss creatures at once by destroying the ground with his fierce strikes.
The Abyss creatures could only helplessly watch as the ground hoisted by the man's attack killed and devoured their brethren like a pack of hungry predators. The area around him was like a dead zone, filled with countless corpses. Terrified, some tried to escape from the man's surroundings, but their fate was no less unfortunate as they were quickly intercepted and killed by Kaleos acolytes.
From the second line of the East Gate, loud noises continuously rang out as the Zaiueo brothers fired their firearms at the Abyss creatures within their reach. The Abyss creatures on the ground that the two of them were targeting quickly fell prey to their shots, while those in the sky were even more pitiful because their bodies that had been shot and fell to the ground had also killed their kin.
Finally, high in the sky, various kinds of spells adorned the vast expanse as the battle against the Abyss creatures heated up. The brothers Wage and Ryan Saga displayed their awe-inspiring prowess, several pillars of flame appeared and swiftly shot forward, incinerating every creature they passed through.
Some distance away from the two brothers, dark stormy clouds could be seen gathering. A figure of a beautiful girl appeared in the eye of the storm, unfazed by the crackling lightning and deafening thunder around her.
The horde of Abyss creatures in front of her seemed cowered by the intimidating display. A few tried to fly out of the storm, but they were immediately struck by purple lighting. Their charred bodies fell down like broken toys.
Those who remained in the storm seemed to finally realize that their only chance was to kill the girl. With one unified cry, they pounced at her with a bloodthirsty gaze. A bright flash of light passed by and the Abyss creatures were no more. They had all disappeared and the girl was alone in the air, as if everything that had happened before had been an illusion.
On top of the walls of the West Gate, Roran and his Harlight warriors were seen casting offensive spells one after another. Various kinds of elemental spells appeared and went crazy on the battlefield, killing Abyss creatures indiscriminately.
Meanwhile, at the forefront, an eye-catching figure could be seen among the creatures of the Abyss. Sword in his hand, the figure flickered across the sea of creatures, weaving through them flawlessly as if they didn't exist. In his wake, a line of dead bodies was left behind.
On the other side, two huge figures with conspicuous horns on their heads were moving through the Abyss creatures as if they were unstoppable. The two of Goat bloodline, Ivan and Igor, smashed every creature that stood in their way.
Then, while all this was happening, a figure was seen streaking across the air while screaming in excitement.
"Burnn!! Burn them all!!" A rather maniacal laughter ensued, before the voice was heard once again. "None of you will pass, as I, Garry the Violet Flame is here!!"
The increase of the Calamity level was reflected in the number of Abyss creatures gradually increasing. As time went on, the difficulty of dealing with these creatures increased and if they were not careful, they would be injured by their sheer number.
However, on the brighter side, the acolytes were extremely motivated dealing with these Abyss creatures, since they could clearly see the rapid increase in their points as they continued their killing.
If this continued, at this rate, every acolyte including the privileged ones would reach and pass the required points simply by defending the base.