While the main army of the Slane Theocracy was being psychologically dismantled, their elite strike force was moving with deadly purpose towards the Great Tomb of Nexus.
The team consisted of a dozen of the Theocracy's finest assassins and infiltration specialists, all members of the Clearwater Scripture. Their leader, however, was a being apart. Zesshi Zetsumei, the "Certain Death," moved with a bored, almost lazy grace that belied the catastrophic power she held. In a satchel at her side, wrapped in blessed cloth, was the World-Level Item, [Downfall of Castle and Country], a relic so powerful it could only be used once every few centuries.
"The target is five leagues ahead," the lead assassin whispered, his senses scanning their surroundings. "Our concealment is holding. The fools have no idea we are coming."
Zesshi yawned. "Are we there yet? This sneaking around is tedious. I was hoping for a fight."
"Patience, Lady Zesshi," the assassin cautioned. "Our mission is not to fight. It is to get within activation range, deploy the device, and retreat. The Pontifex was clear. We are the dagger, not the sword."
"A very boring dagger," Zesshi muttered under her breath.
They moved through the dense, murky Gloomfang Fen, the swamp that surrounded the Great Tomb. The air was thick and heavy, and strange sounds echoed in the distance. The assassins were on high alert, their hands on their enchanted blades.
They were two miles from their target when they entered a small, unnaturally clear glade. The ground was covered in soft, green grass, and the air was strangely peaceful. It was a pocket of serenity in the heart of the foul swamp.
The lead assassin held up a hand, signaling a halt. "Something's wrong," he whispered. "This clearing... it's not on our maps. It feels like a trap."
"Oh, it's definitely a trap," a cheerful, booming voice declared from above.
The Theocracy agents looked up in shock. Standing on a massive, moss-covered branch was the titanic, armored figure of Boom. He had his new shield, the Aegis of the Unbroken Star, slung over his back and was casually leaning on his warhammer.
Before they could react, another voice, this one sleek and sharp, came from their flank. "And you've all walked right into it." Blast materialized from behind a line of ancient trees, his Sonic Lance humming with latent power.
From the other side, Force stepped out from behind a rock, his arms crossed, his expression one of utter calm.
And in front of them, blocking their path forward, a patch of beautiful, exotic flowers bloomed from the ground. In their midst stood Flora, her smile as sweet and as deadly as the nightshade she cultivated.
The twelve assassins of the Clearwater Scripture instantly drew their weapons and formed a tight, defensive circle around Zesshi. Their concealment was gone. They were surrounded.
"Guardians of the False God!" the lead assassin spat, trying to sound brave. "You are outnumbered! Surrender, and your deaths will be swift!"
Flora giggled. "Outnumbered? Oh, you silly little man. We are not the ones who are outnumbered."
Boom laughed, a sound like an avalanche. "The boss said we could have some fun with you lot! So, who wants to be smashed first?"
The battle, if it could be called that, was over before it began.
Blast moved first. He didn't even use his lance. He simply pointed at the circle of assassins. [Kinetic Art: Concussive Pulse]. A wave of invisible force, no stronger than a gust of wind, washed over them. The assassins, braced for a deadly attack, were unharmed. But their weapons were not. Every sword, dagger, and bow they held instantly shattered into a thousand pieces, the force perfectly calibrated to destroy hardened steel and enchanted wood while leaving flesh untouched. They were disarmed in an instant.
Before they could recover from the shock, Flora clapped her hands. "Tag, you're it!" she sang. The ground beneath the assassins erupted. Not with thorny vines, but with thick, sticky tendrils that wrapped around their legs and arms, immobilizing them completely. The tendrils were strong as iron and secreted a mild paralytic sap.
The entire elite unit of the Clearwater Scripture, twelve of the Theocracy's best, had been disarmed and captured in less than five seconds, without a single drop of blood being shed. It was a display of such overwhelming, contemptuous superiority that it defied belief.
Only Zesshi Zetsumei remained untouched. The tendrils had not even tried to grab her.
She looked at the pathetic state of her escort, then at the four beings surrounding her. Her bored expression was gone. It was replaced by a slow, spreading smile, a look of pure, unadulterated excitement.
"Oh," she said, her voice a low, eager purr. "This is much better than I expected."
She ignored her captured comrades completely. Her eyes, filled with the thrill of a predator who has finally found worthy prey, scanned the four Guardians. The big, armored one was a mountain of physical power. The sleek one was impossibly fast. The smiling girl held a terrifying command over life itself. And the monk... the monk was a void of disciplined energy that was perhaps the most intriguing of all.
"You are Kaelus's strongest, aren't you?" Zesshi asked, a genuine curiosity in her voice. "The ones he keeps close."
"We are the Guardians of the Great Tomb of Nexus," Force replied, his voice a steady baritone. "And you are our prisoner, God-kin."
Zesshi laughed, a clear, ringing sound. "A prisoner? Silly man. The game has just begun."
Her body exploded with an aura of immense power, a mixture of divine energy from her lineage and the raw physical power of a warrior who had reached level 100. The sheer force of it blew the leaves off the nearby trees. "My name is Zesshi Zetsumei. Tell me yours. I want to remember the names of the first interesting toys I've found in a hundred years."
Boom grinned. "I'm Boom! And this is gonna be fun!" He charged forward, his warhammer raised for a devastating blow.
Zesshi met his charge with a smile. She drew her own weapon, a bizarre, multi-bladed scythe, and met his attack head-on. The clash of their weapons created a shockwave that tore the clearing apart.
The real fight had begun. Zesshi was a prodigy of combat, her God-kin heritage giving her stats far beyond any normal human. She fought Boom to a standstill, her scythe deflecting his mighty blows. She dodged Blast's kinetic bolts, her movements fluid and unpredictable. She even managed to avoid the worst of Flora's grasping vines.
But she was fighting four of them.
Force chose his moment. As Zesshi was locked in combat with Boom, he appeared at her side like a ghost. He didn't aim a killing blow. He aimed a precise, open-palm strike at the satchel at her side. [Monk Art: Sundering Palm].
Zesshi's eyes widened in alarm as she realized his target. She tried to move, but it was too late. Force's hand connected with the satchel. The blessed cloth disintegrated. The World-Level Item, [Downfall of Castle and Country]—a pulsating, crystalline orb—was knocked free, flying through the air.
Before it could hit the ground, a single, shimmering strand of spider silk shot out from the trees and wrapped around it, yanking it into the shadows. Spidy, who had been watching the entire time, had completed her mission. The trump card was secured.
Zesshi screamed in frustration. She had failed her primary objective. Now, all she had left was the fight.
"You'll pay for that!" she shrieked, her combat prowess increasing as her rage grew.
"No," a calm voice said from behind her. It was Gravity, who had teleported to the scene now that the primary threat was neutralized. "The payment has already been made."
Gravity raised a hand. [Absolute Field: Gravitational Prison].
The space around Zesshi Zetsumei instantly warped. She was caught in a cage of pure, crushing force. Her movements became sluggish, her immense strength useless against the fundamental laws of physics that were now being used against her. She struggled, her muscles straining, but it was like trying to fight the weight of a star.
With their target immobilized, the other Guardians closed in. Boom, Blast, and Force stood ready to deliver the final blow.
"Remember," Flora said sweetly, holding a flower that pulsed with a sleepy, purple light. "The master wants her captured, not broken. We need her... information."
Zesshi, trapped and helpless for the first time in her life, looked at the five beings surrounding her. Each one was a monster of unimaginable power. And she had tried to fight them all at once. Her exciting game had turned into a humiliating defeat.
Her last thought before the paralytic spores from Flora's flower washed over her was one of sheer, incredulous disbelief.
What kind of god has monsters like these as mere servants?