Volk's eyes narrowed as he stood among the rubble, towering over the remains of the collapsed buildings.
His muscled fra cast a long shadow across the cracked pavent.
He scanned the sky, his keen senses imdiately spotting the helicopters approaching on the horizon.
The loud whup-whup-whup of the choppers' blades grew louder, and with it ca a sense of anticipation.
Suddenly, a familiar ding echoed in his mind, and a system screen flashed before his eyes.
Ding!
| Mission: Murder all the Ranked Pillars within an hour.
| Ranked Pillars: 0/25.
| Reward: Travel to Orzaroth.
| Failure: The host will no longer be able to use Nuclear Devastation attacks in Grum-Gar form.
| Mission Status: Ongoing. |
Volk's heart skipped a beat.
No more Nuclear Devastation Strike?
He clenched his fist, with reality slowly sinking into him.
That attack was his most powerful weapon, the one that had turned the tide in battle against the Warlock. But worse than losing the attack, it ant sothing deeper—it ant his chance of seeing Solluha'r, his wife, would be lost.
A scowl ford across his rough features, and his yellowed tusks glinted in the dying sunlight.
The thought of being cut off from Orzaroth, from Solluha'r, was unacceptable.
A slow, calculating smile spread across his face, revealing his sharpened teeth. "I won't let that happen," Volk growled, his voice deep and guttural.
His glowing eyes flickered as he turned to face the Horde of orcs that stood behind him.
"Into the city!"
Volk bellowed. His voice bood through the desolate streets like thunder, and the orcs behind him stirred, their massive shields clinking against their armor as they prepared to move.
"We can't afford to be out here in the open. If those flying insects rain down fire from above, we'll be crushed."
The orcs grunted in agreent, so snarling, eager for the bloodshed to co.
Volk raised his hand, motioning them forward, and the Horde began to move.
The ground shook beneath their feet as they made their way into the part of the city where buildings still stood intact, tall and looming, their windows shattered but their walls mostly undamaged.
The sound of their march echoed in the ruins, a rhythmic thud-thud-thud as their boots hit the pavent.
Volk kept his eyes on the sky, watching as the helicopters circled like vultures.
He could feel it in his gut—those weren't just soldiers.
Sothing else was coming.
Sothing eerie.
The ranked Pillars.
He could sense their presence even before the system mission had appeared. The Pillars were near.
As they entered the deeper part of the city, Volk's instincts flared.
The buildings here were perfect for cover, but also for an ambush. He knew it, and so did his Horde.
The tension in the air was thick, the orcs moving cautiously now, shields raised, ready for anything.
Their heavy breathing mixed with the distant whir of the choppers, creating an eerie symphony of impending conflict.
And then it ca.
Fwoosh!
A blur of movent, too fast to track with the naked eye, cut through the air.
One of the orcs stumbled as his shield was struck with blinding speed.
CLANG!
The impact rang out like a bell, reverberating off the surrounding buildings.
Volk's head snapped toward the source of the attack, but before he could process what he'd seen, another strike hit.
BANG!
Another shield, this ti from the right. The attack was relentless.
The orcs tried to defend, but the speed of the enemy was overwhelming.
They were under attack from all sides, but their enemies were invisible, re shadows darting between the buildings.
"Hold the line!"
Volk roared, his voice cutting through the chaos. His Horde responded imdiately, shifting into defensive formation, shields interlocking like the scales of a dragon.
Their hulking forms created a near-impenetrable wall, but the attacks kept coming, faster and faster, like a deadly rainstorm.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Every blow was blocked, but the sheer force of the strikes was pushing them back, step by step.
Volk's mind began to think of sothing else.
These weren't ordinary soldiers. No human could move that fast. His instincts scread at him to think quickly.
This had to be the Pillars. He needed to act before his Horde was overwheld.
With a sharp grunt, Volk raised his massive hand. "Set the trap!"
The orcs, well-trained and battle-hardened, moved swiftly despite their size.
They began positioning themselves, spreading out along the narrow streets and alleyways, using the intact buildings as natural choke points.
Volk's plan was simple—lure the attackers into a false sense of superiority and then crush them with brute force.
He'd seen this work in countless battles before, and it would work again.
But these attackers were different.
As the last orc took his position, a mont of silence fell.
The attacks stopped.
Volk's eyes darted around the area, searching for any sign of movent.
For a mont, everything was still. The air was thick with tension, every orc bracing for the next wave.
And then, it happened.
SWISH!
The first attack ca from above, straight down from the rooftop of a nearby building.
A glowing blade sliced through the air, aid directly at one of the larger orcs in the rear formation.
The orc raised his shield, but the speed of the strike was too fast.
CLANG!
The shield held, but barely.
The orc stumbled back, his arm shaking from the impact.
Volk's eyes widened. These weren't normal attacks. They were coordinated, precise, and deadly.
Before Volk could issue another order, three more figures appeared, darting between the buildings, their movents so quick they were almost a blur.
These were no ordinary warriors.
These were Pillars that the system speaks of!
How is he gonna kill them if they were these damn fast?
BAM!
A second orc was hit, his shield knocked aside by an unseen force.
The orcs tried to close in on the attackers, but the speed and agility of the Pillars made it impossible.
They slipped through the gaps in the defenses like smoke, striking and retreating before the orcs could retaliate.
Volk growled in frustration. "Trap them! Close in!"
But the trap was useless.
The Pillars moved too fast, too unpredictably.
Every ti an orc swung his axe or slamd his shield, the Pillars were already gone, a blur of motion disappearing into the shadows.
The Horde was growing desperate.
Even Volk could feel it—the frustration, the anger. His plan was failing.
One of the Pillars, a figure in a sleek, dark uniform with a glowing sword in each hand, stood atop a nearby building, looking down on Volk with a smirk.
"You think you can trap us?" the Pillar sneered, his voice dripping with arrogance. "We are the ranked Pillars. Your brute force ans nothing."
Volk's teeth ground together, his blood boiling. He had never faced opponents like this before, not even Zenveil.
These were foes that couldn't be overwheld by sheer strength alone.
They required sothing more.
But Volk was not about to give up. Not now.
Not when he was so close to completing his mission, to seeing Solluha'r again.
With a roar that shook the very foundations of the city, Volk charged forward, his massive axe raised high.
He would crush them.
He would rip these Pillars apart with his bare hands if he had to.
But as he swung his axe, aiming for the figure atop the building, the Pillar vanished in a blur of motion, reappearing behind him in the blink of an eye.
"Too slow," the Pillar taunted, his sword flashing as he slashed at Volk's back.
Volk spun around, his massive fist swinging out to et the Pillar, but once again, the attacker was gone, slipping through his grasp like water.
The battle was turning into a ga of cat and mouse, and Volk hated it. But he wasn't going to lose.
Not here.
Not now.
"Co at , cowards!" Volk roared, his voice echoing through the city. "Face head-on, or are you too weak?"
The Pillars paused, their movents slowing as they considered Volk's challenge.
For a mont, it seed like they would accept. But then, in a flash, they vanished again, leaving Volk and his Horde standing in the ruins of the city, their trap useless.
And for the first ti in a long while, Volk felt doubt creeping into his mind.
How to kill them?
Did the system miscalculated?
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