Seed Of Speed

"Come on, Celita, I told you, it was a challenge from Katalina..." Diego pleaded.

"And I said that I did not care. We simply need to focus on our objective," Celita retorted without looking at him.

"I have to agree with Celita, this is hardly an appropriate time for a conversation," Nala said.

"But she has been dodging me for a day! This is the longest she has been out of the shadows since the mists!" he complained.

"Don't you have enough to focus on right now, or would you like to handle the formations too?!?" Katalina yelled at him from the body of one of his [Speed Clones].

Diego could only give a wry smile and shut his mouth. Celita, Nala, and four of his six bodies were carrying two children each as they led a charge of the beastmen at their fastest group speed. His fifth body was playing "Run Boy Run" by Woodkid, using a recently evolved bard skill, {Horn of Swift Retreat}, which weakened the regeneration effects while granting a boost to everyone's speed. The six was being controlled by Katalina, who was working the formations with more skill and finess than anyone to hope to achieve.

The demonspawn waited for the caravan to completely enter the valley pass before launching the first wave of their attack. An avalanche of rock and fire came tumbling down from both sides in an attempt to seal the exit. With the control disk in hand, Katalina snapped and a giant, cross-shaped ice spike exploded from ground, able to span the whole width of the valley pass. It took some damage from the falling rocks, but the core of the ice spike was still intact yet melting fast in this hot world which would leave an easy route back for those staying behind.

(Holy shit! Why haven't you been teaching me how to make formations like that?)

::Because formations like the ones I put down are an incredible waste of resources if exploited::

The next attack was released, this time the boulders were aimed at the center of the group. Katalina struck a few glyphs on the disk then snapped once again. The edges of the pass flashed with a soft blue light then ice pillars erupted from odd angles, creating a cage to deflect the stones away.

Before the beastmen could clear the pass, they would have to breach the army led by six Lesser Demons, but they had made a miscalculation. Technically, they were just within the boundaries of the formation placed within the valley of the tree which was the strongest. Katalina poured mana into the disk then hit the center glyph.

A massive blizzard sprang to life under Katalina's control. Bands of freezing energy wrapped around the Lesser Demons, dragging them to either side. A gale of ice and wind ripped through the ranks of the demonspawn and threw them out of the way.

Then, they were through. The blizzard pulled away from the beastmen, choosing to inflict its fury on the demons, so their path was unobstructed. No one stopped until Celita reached the proper zone.

The entire group screeched to a halt as the warriors formed a protective half circle around the non-combatants while they waited on her. Diego dropped off the children he had been carrying then headed to join up with Horsin and the rest of the war council. Since Katalina was focused on the formations, he was restricted from venturing too far from the [Speed Clone] she was piloting, but his new bow skill and an old Spell-Song would allow him to contribute plenty.

"Allow me to get things started," Diego said as he pulled out his keyboard.

It was a little complicated to run and play the keyboard, so only his guitar had been out. The two bodies started playing John Cash's "Riders in the Sky" while other three started creating {Golden Lightning Clones}. When the black bulls rushed, they stopped making clones and pulled out their bows.

Diego had only unlocked the second level of his new skill, but it was more than enough to be deadly with his perfect affinities. [Nine Nova Arrows] imbued elemental chi into the arrowheads used in the skill which explode in a nova of the element. What made the skill so powerful was that with each progressing level, the archer could combine multiple arrows of differing elements to create a stronger attack. The ultimate version of this technique would combine all nine elements in perfect balance, but only the original creator of the skill, who's affinities were identical, had ever achieved it.

That did not dishearten Diego because the number of arrows combined, multiplied the power of the explosion. He had spent the last rest period within his mental plane, attempting to use his multiple bodies to get around the restrictions of his level. While he did have some luck, it was few and far between.

The three Diego's lined up, each holding two arrows in their hands, and drew the first arrow, the tip shining with white light. He activated his [Speed Sight] and, as the world slowed to a crawl, he released the Light-arrow at three-quarter draw. Crimson-gold energy started wrapping around the arrowhead before he draw his second shot. He released the Thunder-arrow at a full draw and it chased after its white counterpart.

Although he wanted to see it, it was still too much to combine his skill in a battle, so three separate arrows shot ahead of the bulls. The novas exploded, sending a wave of Light and Thunder energy expanding outwards that killed all of the demonspawn it touched. While they were reeling from the initial attack, the bulls arrived and, hiding inside them, the clones. They rushed out with only one thought in mind: explode in the most densely packed area they could find.

Of course, the demons did not remain passive and moved to counterattack. A sea of fire was shot from the demonspawn aimed at the bulls. The Lesser Demons made their move and charged the defenders, but the War Council members moved to stall them.

Horsin took on the two larger Lesser Demons, leaving Khan, Tirano, Zajo, and Zozo to take on one each. The beastmen warriors followed after their leaders, showing no fear, as they took on more than five times their numbers. Diego focused on breaking up cl.u.s.ters of demonspawn, so that they would not be overwhelm.

When Celita finally opened the portal between, the battle was turning in their favor. The beastmen warriors were pushing back the horde while the non-combatants evacuated to the other world. The ice from the blizzard had already forced the imps to the ground, removing whatever tactical advantage they had. The warriors were overpowering the demonspawn, and the War Council was pushing the Lesser Demons back.

"You two need to get going," Nala said as she walked up to Diegos playing music.

"Are you sure you guys can handle everything?" Diego asked.

"Look at the condition of the Lesser Demons, they are only still alive because Horsin doesn't want a shift of power in the sector. If we weaken the Fire-Acid Snake too much, another force will come and take his place. Go, we'll be fine. Take care of my people," she said.

Diego sent off the last of his clones to detonate while storing away his weapons and dropping down to two bodies. "Of course. The beastmen land is beautiful and amazing. Everyone I've met is happy."

"I'd like to see it one day when I have an heir to take care of this crazy lot. Safe waters and gentle currents, friend," Nala said as she strolled foward.

Diego gave her, and the rest of the beastmen warriors, one last look before he turned around. The dashed back to the teal and silver gateway next to Celita before dismissing his final [Speed Clone]. The blizzard broke without support of the formations, but the damage was done to the demons. Diego ducked into the portal followed closely by Celita, the last two to go through the portal.