Surviving the Simulation: The Grand Crusade

"Everyone stay back. It's a champion. Rex and I will handle this. Zoey, get ready because I think they'll swarm again once the champion dies," Xander called out. He didn't know the exact mechanics behind how the Simulation categorized enemies but the naming convention and sheer presence of this thing screamed sub-boss. Named enemies were never good news, and this one looked like it had clawed its way up through the ranks with blood and brutality.

The champion emerged from the back of the pack, wielding a two-handed sword that gleamed with an ominous energy. The air itself seemed to recoil as the blade cut through it, and an eerie hiss echoed with every swing as if the very essence of malevolence dripped off the weapon. It towered over its adversaries with a menacing grin and eyes that glowed with unholy fervor as it advanced on Rex and Xander, who stood resolute, ready to face the impending threat.

Rex tightened his grip on his dual-wielded axes, while Xander called upon radiant shield and prepared to trigger judgement and smite in the opening salvo of the battle. The air crackled with tension as the three combatants closed in, the scent of danger palpable.

Grothak lunged forward, its dark sword slashing through the air with murderous intent. The liquid shadows dripping from the blade left a trail of corrupted energy in its wake, sizzling and burning everything it touched. The very air thickened with oppressive weight, and Xander caught the ripple of fear passing through the defenders at his back in the form of the subtle step backward, the held breath, the tension rising like static before a lightning strike.

Rex skillfully parried the first strike, but tendrils of dark energy flung from Grothak's blade and wrapped around him, draining his strength and vitality. A cheer rose from the gnolls behind the champion, savage and celebratory.

Xander triggered his judgment on Grothak before smashing into its knee with his smite fueled mace. Radiant energy sparked out from the location. With a battle cry, Rex simultaneously unleashed a flurry of counter strikes, each swing of his axes accompanied by sparks of steel against steel. Taking several blows in the duel's first round, Grothak howled in pain, causing the defenders to belt out a cheer of their own.

Unyielding, Grothak swung its dark blade in wide arcs, its howl of pain morphing into malevolent laughter that echoed across the safe zone. Yet with each strike, Rex and Xander fought back, and the dance continued. Xander's healing spell was instrumental in countering the draining effects of the dark energy, and Rex's relentless assault wore down the champion.

As the battle reached its climax, Grothak delivered a powerful overhand blow Rex managed to parry, but the impact knocked him off balance, sending him stumbling backward. Rex's fall pulled the gnoll forward as his axes caught on Grothak's massive blade.

Xander seized the opening. He called upon his smite ability again, channeling a burst of radiant energy into his mace. The weapon lit with a golden glow, divine fire crackling around the head as he drove it upward in a brutal arc, slamming it into Grothak's side. The blast of radiant energy shattered its magical focus. Its corrupted sword flickered, then unraveled into nothingness with a high-pitched whine.

Grothak howled in pain, staggering under the impact. But even disarmed, it wasn't done.

With a feral snarl, the champion lunged forward, claws slashing wildly, dark ichor dripping from its ruined armor. Xander raised his mace just in time to catch the brunt of the attack, but the force of the blow knocked him back a step. Behind him, Rex was already scrambling upright, blood running from his temple where he'd struck the ground.

"Now!" Xander shouted, deflecting a second swipe as Grothak twisted toward him with renewed fury.

Rex surged forward with a roar, axes flashing. The first struck high, the second low, opening Grothak's guard. With a last howl of rage and pain, Rex brought both axes together in a decapitating arc.

The champion's head tumbled through the air, landing near the defenders, who erupted in cheers as one of them picked it up and hurled it back at the stunned gnoll pack.

Quest Update! You eliminated an enemy commander! Attacking forces will suffer a 10% reduction to damage dealt! The attacking force now receives a 20% damage reduction.

For a heartbeat, the battlefield paused. The gnolls recoiled, snarling in disbelief, their rhythm disrupted by the loss of their champion. But it wouldn't last. Already, Xander could see their formation pulsing with renewed fury. Their eyes bloodshot, muscles tensing, the line creeping forward like a slow, grinding tide.

"Pikemen! Reform the line. Press out four steps beyond my position. Quickly, while they're stunned. Get set before they regroup. Archers, shoot farther out. We don't want the frontline attackers to rally too soon!" Rex barked, his voice hoarse but commanding. Burns streaked his armor, and blood trickled from a swollen eye.

Xander triggered a healing spell on him with the last of his mana, the light flickering weakly from his fingers. Then he stumbled back toward the doorway, followed closely by Rex, collapsing against the wall with a cough. He barely caught his breath before a cold bottle of soda appeared in front of his face.

He blinked and took it, nodding vaguely in thanks before taking a long pull. The fizz hit his throat like clarity.

"Somebody please tell me we're holding our own, or at least winning a little. I won't be happy if I die on the doorstep of the high school where they relentlessly bullied me for four years," he muttered, pressing the bottle to his forehead.

He almost laughed at the irony. The kid who once tried to disappear into the back row was now part of the group, calling shots in a war zone.

"Seems as if we're pushing them back. The twenty percent reduction will help, but it's still a battle of attrition," Victor replied, stepping into view with another soda in hand. He glanced toward the edge of the line, where the gnolls were regrouping. "Should we consider collapsing back into the building?"

Xander looked up and finally registered it had been Victor who handed him the soda. The man always seemed prepared, always ready with the right thing to say or the right item to offer. His smile was practiced, like a politician's, and his movements showed he was used to being in charge, yet he'd clearly avoided getting involved in the nitty-gritty.

Xander took another sip, trying not to read too much into the gesture. Just because someone was helpful didn't mean they were trustworthy. Especially now.

He turned toward Rex instead.

He didn't want to retreat. Not if they could hold the line. But he wasn't the tactician here.

"We have two options, and both require us to figure out how many commanders are left and where they are," Rex said, groaning as he stood. "I don't want to curse it, but if they've got more casters or another champion out there, we'll need to make a break for it."

The gnolls, now fully recovered from their moment of hesitation, surged forward again. Thier formation was less organized, more feral, but no less dangerous. The defenders gripped their weapons tighter, fear still in their eyes but now, finally, they had something else to cling to. Hope.

A towering brute with mottled fur and a bone necklace barked orders and raised its blade to call for a charge. Savage snarls from the recovered raiding party sent shivers through the defenders.

The second clash erupted at the main entrance in much the same fashion as the first. The defending pikemen impaled initial attackers. Attackers in the next wave again engaged the remaining defenders, whose meager arsenal consisted of baseball bats, rusty pipes, and weapons scavenged during the initial fighting.

"Burn, you mangy bastards!" came the rooftop shout, followed by the hiss and crackle of a Molotov cocktail sailing into the crowd of gnolls. Its flame streaking like a comet, trailed by two more in quick succession.

"Rex, we found the senior stash of booze! We only have two left though," Zoey called down with manic glee.

The bottles shattered, releasing their fiery contents onto the gravel and gnolls. The flames greedily embraced the spilled accelerant, creating a patchwork of intense heat and dancing embers. Dry and porous, the gravel parking lot allowed fire to seep into its spaces, creating small pockets of intense heat that sent plumes of black smoke into the air. Those attackers in the immediate area who were not set ablaze were choking on the generated smoke.

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The irregular surface caused the flames to flicker and dance in unpredictable patterns, casting eerie shadows across the parking lot. Navigating the additional hazard was challenging for attackers, hampered by uneven terrain and burning gnolls desperately trying to extinguish their fiery fur. The crackling sounds of burning liquid and wails of burning attackers echoed through the air, adding a cacophony of chaos to the battleground.

The intense heat broke apart the two battling armies, with each side retreating to their respective starting points on the battlefield. The archers continued to harass the fleeing mob of monsters until they were out of range, while Zoey refrained from using any of her arctic warden abilities, which may have counteracted damage from the flames.

"Okay, hold those last two. I'm glad some enterprising youth could fess up to having a secret stash, but we should have saved those for a better tactical advantage. Hindsight is twenty-twenty, so I will not beat anyone up over it. Good work!" Rex called up to Zoey.

Xander caught the tight set of Rex's jaw as he looked toward the rooftop. The attack succeeded, but Rex clearly didn't like how it was handled. Still, these weren't trained soldiers; they were survivors improvising, like the rest of them.

Xander filed that away that bit of wisdom for later. Fire was powerful, but timing mattered more. An excellent weapon used at the wrong moment could still cost lives.

"Alex, do you think you can slip out there and see how many named monsters we've still got to deal with?" Rex said, a note of desperation creeping into his voice.

"Can do. I get what you're saying about the Molotovs, but this may actually give me the best chance to find out what we need to know," Alex said, before trotting off and vanishing into the deepening shadows.

Xander tracked his teammate's silhouette for a moment longer before it disappeared entirely. The light was fading fast. The battle had raged most of the afternoon, and now the sun was low. Shadows stretching long across the ruined streets.

It was perfect for Alex. Rogues thrived in low light, and so did Xander, thanks to Cat's Sight. But most of the defenders weren't so lucky.

"While I can see in low light, it's going to be a problem for everyone else soon," Xander said quietly to Rex. "If this drags on another hour, we may need to pull back inside and fortify."

"I'll go back inside and have people set up some blockades," Victor said before turning to go back inside.

Once Victor was out of earshot, Rex leaned over to make a comment only Xander could hear: "I'm sure he's better than the delusional folks that were trying to run things at the start, but that guy gives off some serious used car salesperson vibes."

Xander chuckled and hid his smile behind his hand. "True, but he brought me a couple sodas. So, there's that."

"Cheap date," Rex laughed. "Seriously, though, you're right. We need to wrap this up, and quickly. I've got a couple of ideas, but we need some intel."

The two stood in silence, watching the flames continue to rage but dying down. Various howls, barks, and growls from up and down the line showed the gnolls on the other side were extremely agitated by the break in the battle. Every couple minutes one brave gnoll would attempt to run across the burning field, only to be cut down by the waiting defenders.

Five minutes had passed before Alex reappeared.

"We may have caught a lucky break. I found the boss," Alex said, putting on as much bravado as possible. "It's big and ugly, but it's by itself on the roof of one of the neighboring buildings. We can get to it if we take a side exit from the school and then the entrance to the building it's in. Money says that at the first sign of a fight, these assholes will run to protect their boss, trapping anyone on the roof."

"Doesn't matter. We hit it now," Rex said, already shifting gears. "We'll fall back to the main hallway and draw the gnolls inside. That should give your team time to flank the boss while their attention's on us."

He didn't wait for questions, just turned and started barking orders, rapid-fire and efficient. The flames needed to last just long enough.

"Xander, take your team and one of mine. Hit the boss. Don't give it time to dig in."

Major Rex didn't waste a second. The defenders positioned themselves a hundred feet inside the main hallway, leaving the school doors open. Meanwhile, Xander's trio slipped out a fire exit along the side of the building, making their way toward the rooftop Alex had spotted earlier to wait for the signal.

The last of the flames hadn't died away before the gnolls broke into a run. Each wanted to be the first to enter the building and end the stinging pests they had been trading blows with all day.

As the howls and pounding footsteps echoed behind them, Xander, Zoey, and Alex slipped out the fire exit and sprinted low across the alley. The shadows stretched long across the crumbling pavement, heat still clinging to the air like smoke.

Xander's legs burned, lungs aching with each breath, but the rhythm of battle had taken hold. Fight, move, fight again. There was no time for recovery, only momentum. If they stopped now, everything behind them would fall.

They climbed the stairwell two at a time, boots thudding against rusted concrete. No chatter. No jokes. Just focus.

Once the gnolls committed to the assault, the trio abandoned stealth entirely and rushed the last stretch to the rooftop access.

[Analyze] Brakka Deathhowler | Level: 10 Boss | Status: Hostile | Class: Ember Warden.

Brakka Deathhowler, the Ember Warden, turned from the edge of the building as the trio burst through the roof access door. Its heavy two-handed maul blazed on its shoulder, and the air shimmered with the heat of its fiery aura. Unlike the gnolls below, Brakka didn't charge blindly. It strode forward with chilling purpose.

The fighter Rex had sent, armed with a sword and shield, took a defensive stance to meet Brakka's wide arcing swing and two follow up swings. Deflecting the fiery strikes with the shield, Rex's fighter created openings for Xander to counterattack with his own smite powered attack.

Farther back, Xander heard the now familiar zip-thwap sound of Zoey's arctic infused arrow leaving her bow and striking a monster. What he was not prepared for was to have the arrow split right between himself and the tank.

"That was a little close," Xander barked after jumping slightly at the attack.

"Sorry!" Zoey called back before another flashed between them.

The projectiles streaked through the air, forcing Brakka to dance around, avoiding the chilling impact while keeping a vigilant eye on his melee opponents. Working around the outside of the roof edge, it placed the two melee fighters between Zoey and her target, causing her to have to abandon her attacks to find a better vantage point. No longer having to deal with arrows, Brakka charged back into the fray, bowling over Xander with an underhanded strike, catching him in the hip.

Xander caught a flicker of motion in the heat distortion. It was Alex, moving like a shadow, circling wide behind the Ember Warden.

Then Brakka turned sharply, flames flaring at his feet in a sudden pulse of magic. The air snapped, and for a split second, Alex was no longer hidden.

In a blur of movement, Brakka's massive maul swung wide and then Alex was gone, hurled from the rooftop like a rag doll.

"Alex!" Zoey shouted, a flash of panic cutting through her usual composure.

Xander's stomach dropped. He didn't see where Alex landed, just the sound of impact below, sickening and final. A brief, aching silence followed, pierced only by the crackle of Brakka's aura and Zoey reloading with shaking hands.

Pivoting back to the main fight, Brakka and the tank traded blow after blow. The tank's shield was bending and warp both from the strength of the attacks and the heat coming off the maul.

Xander had recovered and cast a quick heal on the tank before joining back into the fray. He attempted to use his disarm ability, but he failed several times against the high level opponent before returning to the combination of judgement and smite.

The sound of battle came from the high school and no additional support had shown up to join the fight on the rooftop, causing Xander to pray that their plan had worked. Now all they had to do was survive the fight with Brakka before time ran out. There were no clever tricks that were going to save the day. It was going to be a down and dirty street fight the entire way.

Xander took three steps back from the melee range to cast several heals on the tank and creating an opening for Zoey. Her attacks had been much more effective against the ember warden, leaving Xander to take more of a support role. As soon as his first heal went off, the zip-thwap repeated as each shot landed true.

The rooftop was a furnace of ruin and chaos. Smoke curled off Brakka's armor in thick black tendrils, the scent of scorched metal and blood clinging to every breath. Arrows jutted from its torso and shoulders, half-melted shafts trailing embers. Its molten aura sputtered with every labored breath, flickering like a fire on its last log.

Zoey and Xander circled wide, synchronized in desperation, not design. The tank Rex had assigned fought to keep Brakka pinned, shield cracked, armor scorched, barely holding the line. There was no backup. No timeouts. Just the fight.

Xander's arms ached. His lungs burned. The headcount behind him didn't matter if they lost here.

One wrong step, and Brakka could still wipe them all out.

The Ember Warden broke loose from the tank and turned toward Zoey with a snarl, dragging its maul behind it like a reaper's scythe. Its movements were slower now, but still deadly. Xander caught the hesitation in Brakka's step, the falter in its fire.

"Make it count," he whispered as he locked eyes with Zoey.

Zoey didn't hesitate. She notched another arrow, her fingers trembling but steady. The tip glowed with a biting blue enchantment, frost curling along the bowstring. She exhaled slowly, then loosed.

The arrow cut the smoke like a frozen whisper striking just above Brakka's breastbone. A crack of ice surged across its chest, freezing the aura mid-burst. Brakka howled, less in pain and more in fury, and reeled back, staggering.

Xander rushed forward. He called on the last of his divine energy, his smite igniting around the head of his mace in a burst of radiant fire. It wasn't clean. It wasn't heroic.

With a roar of his own, he slammed the mace into Brakka's chest. The impact rocked through his shoulders, and something in the boss cracked. Xander couldn't tell if it was armor, bone, or resolve. Maybe all three.

Brakka dropped to one knee, the fire in its eyes guttering. Its maul slipped from its fingers, clanging once before it tumbled over the edge of the roof.

With a final, guttural roar, Brakka lifted its head and let out a call. A dying war cry that echoed over the battlefield below.

Then it collapsed, motionless, steam rising from its broken form.

Quest Update! An enemy war boss is down! Attacking forces will suffer a 30% reduction to damage dealt! All damage dealt by the attacking force is now reduced by 50%.

"That was just a quest update, not a completion. This isn't over yet," Xander said, then he cast another on the tank, who was inspecting the lump of metal that used to be his shield.

"We've got gnolls coming this way, but it looks like Rex and the rest of his crew are right behind them. I'll pick off what I can, but if you two can hold the doorway, Rex should be able to clean them up from behind. Just hang in a few minutes more," Zoey called as she took back up her bow. "No sign of Alex, though."