The creatures were quick and chaotic in their movements. The tendrils on their bodies appeared to shift in different directions simultaneously, seeking targets. The one below Shirik grasped the ancient Iriad’s foot with one of these tendrils before it was engulfed in fire. A whirlwind of black flakes exploded in every direction. The force of the magic blast smashed it back into the water. A large bowl of steam blew outwards and for a brief second the riverbed below was visible. Then the water rushed back in.

Silbermine and his Glen were much heavier than Mallory, so they merely turned and shielded themselves from the massive blast. Upon opening his eyes, the Lord saw the [url=https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/c26f282e-334c-461d-9eb7-c440030cdea2.jpg]tendril beast[/url] unfurling itself from the nook it’d been hiding in on the bridge. It began advancing towards Mallory.

Letting forth a belligerent snarl, Silbermine drew his sabre from a flank scabbard. By Human standards it bordered on obnoxiously large at over 1.5 metres with a slight curve towards the end.

“We fight together! Lets see your mettle, mage!”

Clopping unsteadily forward on the partially submerged bridge, Silbermine slashed at the creature’s tendrils from the opposite side to Mallory but the same side as Shirik.

Two sizeable tendril-tips came off and slapped onto the watery stone beneath. They immediately began disintegrating into the bridge in a flutter of black grit. At the same rate, the creature’s tendrils started to grow back.

The horrific thing screeched and turned quickly away from Mallory to face Silbermine and Shirik. Losing its quadrupedal shape, it formed something like a black fleshy tornado of fast-moving knives. Without delay it moved quickly towards the space between Shirik and Silbermine where it could slash them both.

“My Lord!” A soldier bellowed from behind Silbermine and Shirik (towards the goal-end of the bridge). He moved forward to assist, but a fourth creature leapt from the water in the form of one giant corkscrew. With pinpoint accuracy, it pierced the Glen soldier’s armour and knocked him to the floor. The corkscrew drilled through to flesh, spraying blood everywhere as the Glen honked in pain and fear. Tendrils unfurled from the back of the corkscrew to engulf the soldier.

Further forward on the bridge, the first creature that Shirik had dispatched crawled back out of the water and up the side of the bridge. It was wreathed in flames just like the Iriad that had cast the spell on it. It went to attack another of the Glen that was hemmed in on the bridge just next to Itxaro as Shirik’s meteor approached the Human.

“Mallory, can you move? I’m coming over there.” Eva called over comms. Her mech wasn’t particularly well suited to this ruined bridge but there was just enough space for her to try and barge past Glen soldiers towards the middle. However, many of the loyal knights had the same idea and were rushing to assist their leader.