Chapter 115: Monster Wave Attack (2)

The open field was vast.

Emeric had seen it on his first survey of the land. A natural bowl. Surrounded by low hills. No trees. No houses. No people.

Perfect.

He rode to the center, turned and watched the herd approach.

"Form a line!" he shouted. "Spread out! Don’t let them pass!"

The knights formed a line. Two hundred men. Horses. Weapons.

The herd came.

They entered the field. Their hooves shook the ground. Their eyes burned red. They stampeded forward—and then stopped.

The line held.

That was a gamble but it worked.

They milled. Turned. Pushed against each other. Confused. Agitated.

"Now!" Emeric shouted. "Dig!"

The knights dug as fast as they could z

They had no shovels. They had no tools. They used their swords. Their daggers. Their hands. They clawed at the earth. They carved a trench. A circle. Around the herd.

The beasts watched. Snorted. Stamped. But they didn’t charge. The trench was too deep. Too wide. They didn’t understand it. But they wouldn’t cross it.

The knights worked with desperation. The circle grew.

The natural bowl was already enough but for extra security. They had to make sure that they were not leaving. Emeric would have them erect a fence around the edges of the bowl they had dipped into.

An hour passed.

The trench was complete.

A perfect circle. Several tens of feet wide and about six feet deep. The herd was trapped inside.

One hundred and seventy magic beasts. Pacing. Snorting. Stamping.

Emeric dismounted. Walked to the edge of the trench. Looked at them.

Something was wrong.

Their eyes were red and it was not natural. Something had riled them up. Something had driven them here.

He turned to Gaius.

"Something’s wrong."

Gaius nodded. "I see it."

"Their eyes. They’re red."

"Something spooked them. Something sent them running."

Emeric looked at the herd. At the three species. At the red in their eyes.

What are you running from?

---

The system pulsed.

---

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[FIRST MONSTER WAVE — CONTAINED]

[HOSTILE COUNT: 170]

[STATUS: TRAPPED — CIRCULAR TRENCH]

[ANOMALY DETECTED: MAGICAL INTERFERENCE]

[SOURCE: UNKNOWN — APPROACHING FROM THE NORTH]

[SYSTEM NOTE: THEY ARE NOT THE THREAT. SOMETHING ELSE IS CONTROLLING THEM.]

---

Emeric read the notification. He noticed a few odd things. The system said the first monster wave. Maybe he was reading into it.

The herd was still trapped in the trench.

Emeric stood at the edge, watching them.

Gaius approached, his face was grim.

"What now?"

"We investigate. Something spooked them. Something drove them here. We need to find out what."

"And if it comes?"

Emeric didn’t answer.

He raised his head up to see that the sky had darkened.

It was not clouds nor was it nighttime. No, this was something else.

Emeric looked up.

A shadow spread across the sun. Thousands of locusts filled the air. Each one the size of a fist. Their bodies glowed with a faint green light. Their eyes burned red.

The same red as the herd.

The locusts hit the village like a green tide.

Emeric saw them from the field. A living shadow spreading across the rooftops. Thousands of wings.

"Locusts," Gaius breathed. "Gods above."

Emeric didn’t think.

He mounted his horse.

"Gaius! Hold the line! Don’t let the herd escape!"

"And you?"

"I’m going to the village."

"My Lord—"

But Emeric was already riding. A small smile crossed his lips. This was the first time he had heard Gaius refer to him as his Lord. It was a small victory he would celebrate after this nightmare was over.

The village was chaos as expected.

Locusts everywhere. In the air. On the ground. In the houses. People were running, screaming and swatting as much as they could.

The locusts were eating everything. Wood, thatch, cloth and crops. Anything they could chew was fair game.

Emeric rode into the square. He had noticed a sword strapped to the horse he had taken. He pulled it out and began swinging as hard as he could. The locusts fell around him. But there were too many.

A man ran past him, screaming, covered in locusts. Emeric grabbed him. Pulled him down, stabbed the locusts in him. The man gasped, stared at him.

"Get to the Estate! Now!"

The man ran.

Emeric turned.

The Estate was fairly elevated and the locusts would take a while to migrate towards that area so for now, it was safe up there.

He picked up the speed, and happened on an elderly woman on her knees. Locusts covering her. She was screaming. He rode toward her. Leaped from his horse. Killed them and pulled her to her feet.

"Go! The Estate! It’s safe!"

She ran.

He turned and saw a child getting attacked. She was no more than seven or eight. He quickly killed them.

"Hey!"

She looked at him. Her eyes were wide and terrified.

He ran, dove and covered her with his body as more were gunning for her. The locusts bit into him. He felt their teeth claw into his body, but he didn’t move. He held her in a protective embrace

Then he reached out and grabbed one, swatting the rest with his full forearm.

He grabbed the girl.

Her mother was a few feet away from her, watching in horror. He handed her over and yelled at her.

"Get to the Estate!"

The girl pulled at her mum and they began to run. .

An hour passed.

The locusts kept coming.

Emeric fought. His arms ached. His body bled. The locusts bit him in several places but he was healing. He kept fighting.

The knights fought beside him. Gaius had split his forces. Half remained at the trench. Half rode to the village. They cut. Slashed. Burned. The locusts fell. But the end was nowhere in sight

The sky was dark with them.

---

The system pulsed.

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[LOCUST SWARM — ONGOING]

[CASUALTIES: 3 DEAD — 27 INJURED]

[VILLAGE DAMAGE: SEVERE]

[SYSTEM NOTE: LOCUST REPELLANT AVAILABLE]

[OPEN SYSTEM SHOP?]

---

Emeric pushed the notification aside as soon as it popped up and continued fighting.

He needed to focus on the fight.