D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

--- Kat ---

[Do you think they’d follow us if we made it through the portals?]

*I’m not sure. It seems like you can go back and forth... but they might be limited by orders to remain on this side. Could go either way honestly.*

[Hmmm... can we get to the portal?]

*That’s more a question for you I think. I can survive the hits, and block them so I personally cane make it to the portal. Can your shield hold up?*

[No.] Lily didn’t love to admit it but she knew her own limits. There were quite simply FAR too many squirrels to properly block with her shadows, and her paper shields weren’t enough to block such fast moving projectiles. Perhaps if they were normal lightning spells she could force them to ground against the paper, but with them simply being supercharged projectiles her spell had a poor matchup.

*What about if I clear out some of the squirrels? Would that be enough?*

[Still no... I think. The issue is they have such range. We’d be out in the open and I can only dodge so much while protecting Appoline and you’re in the same boat.]

*What about if she used more ice?*

[I get the feeling the ice isn’t actually that sturdy. If they wanted to I’m pretty sure one or two shots would crack the whole structure.]

*Ah I see that’s not good. I... I’m still not sure how we’re meant to get through in that case. I think heading for the portal is still the best thing we can do.*

[Well... how big can you make a fireball?]

*Depends? If we’re just talking about size then pretty big? Might be hard to control at the top if I’m trying to keep it strictly symmetrical, and if it’s meant to be dense then that’s a lot less I can do with my energy... but I’m sensing that’s now what you want? What’s the plan?*

[I hate the idea of you getting shot at... but I think we need to make a big scare. If you stand just behind the top of the hill and start obviously charging up a super move, one that looks huge and powerful, and then you throw it? We can charge in directly behind it and hopefully get through the entire thing after it crashes down.]

*Heck, we can run through it while it’s burning. I might not be able to perfectly control the whole thing but there’s no way I’d hurt you, and even Appoline is a friend at this point. As long as you guys are firmly within... probably about the area my aura covers by default? The flames shouldn’t be able to do anything to either of you.*

[Oooh, I see the vision. Alright get ready then. If they shot at you too much I’ll defend you. Just make sure the orb is huge AND that you take your time with it. We need to sell this.]

Kat nodded and threw a few more splinters in the direction the squirrels on her side had been fleeing. Sprinting back, Kat slid behind the hill while raising her hands up and already beginning the process of summoning her demonic fire. Kat could have simply summoned it from the centre of the orb and expanded out... but that wasn’t the show she was going for.

No, instead Kat focused on her fingers, letting demonic energy rise up from her fingers and into the orb as she pumped the size up. Constantly ensuring that it didn’t start to fill in, simply getting larger and larger as more demonic energy was pressed inside. This caused the flames to get a bit rowdy, but Kat didn’t need to fix that. She let them shift, flex, and almost break free.

Grasping fingers of fire stretched out, and Kat only smacked them back into place when they started to peel away from the structure. It made the bundle of demonic energy look far more dangerous. Of course, it’s not like the squirrels were just letting this happen. At first they shot acorns through the fire, but that barely moved it. Simply punching small holes in the fire before it recovered swifter than before and still growing in size.

So instead they tried to bombard Kat. The ice was broken by a hail of acorns and while Kat could’ve taken the hits... Lily decided to further sell the illusion. Shadows had formed under Kat’s feet and they were moving her around. Not too fast, but just enough to dodge. Lily made it seem like this was delicate work.

The squirrels from the front changed tactics, bombarding the top of the hill. Throwing dirt and debris upwards, clogging the air and even getting some in Kat’s eyes. Well, assuming she’d kept her eyes opened for that. It wasn’t even a minor annoyance... except they were slowly tearing away at the hill. Kat soon had her head and shoulders exposed to the main firing line while the squirrels from the right were still firing and the ones from the left she’d chased off were likely returning.

*Do I throw it yet?*

[Not quite. When I can’t keep up with the dodging anymore then we go.]

Lily and Appoline were pressed against the ground, mostly forgotten at this point. A wall of acorns shot out from both sides and Lily raised Kat up on a thin platform of shadows. The acorns mostly missed, but one did take out her shadows, snapping the thin bit keeping Kat in the air... so Kat just glided downwards. Lily had warned her and was completely prepared.

The next volley from the squirrels in front seemed to be ready, you could hear them charging up when you were listening, and Kat found she was starting to struggle with having just so much demonic fire out and about. It wasn’t impossible, it was thin, and maybe only twenty percent of her reserves... along with her regeneration. The problem was the size. It was spread out over such a large area that it was reaching the limits of her control.

Lily, sensing this, gave the order, [NOW!] And so, Kat threw. The orb left her hand, and as if sensing its purpose, was willing to keep in shape to inflict more fear and destruction. Kat and Lily sprinted off behind it, as the descended towards the squirrels. They all immediately broke ranks. Some of the more disciplined ones still got shots off before breaking out into a full sprint, but the uncoordinated, rushed attacks weren’t enough to cause them issues. They were easy to dodge and block.

The flames ravaged the land, freezing it over at a moderate place. No one area with enough concentrated demonic energy to instantly freeze things, but the burning didn’t stop. The entire field was alight and some of the squirrels that had been closest to the centre had their tails and fur burning even as they tried to rip those chunks out to be safe. Truthfully they were likely doing more damage by rushing. Each bit of demonic fire was low in power. Simply carefully plucking away the few burning hairs would’ve saved them in short order...

But these were squirrels. Squirrels that were on fire and could feel the danger of the flames. Uncoordinated grabs tore huge chunks of fur from their hides and tails, some even took out chunks of their own skin in an effort to avoid the slow freeze. It was an extreme reaction, but they simply did not know any better.

This meant they had a clear shot for the portal, or rather, portals they could now clearly see. One looked to be similar to the area they were currently in. A mostly grassy are with at least one hill they could see. The other seemed to be filled with snow, though the portals themselves were grey-scale, and didn’t give them a great idea of what was on the other side. Which was the better one to aim for?

They didn’t know... but both Kat and Lily were angling for the snowy one. New dangers their might be, the chance that the hilly area contained yet more overpowered squirrels was too great a worry. Sure individually they weren’t a problem, but they could clearly group up and work well together.

This was evidenced in the fact they hadn’t quite given up yet. The squirrels that had been in the back at made it to better positions and were firing on the group. Appoline threw down another potion but as soon as the ice wall went up it was shattered. The elf clicked her tongue as Lily used her shadows to toss Appoline out of the way... where she was shot at yet again. Lily had to be careful moving Appoline around to avoid the shots while not allowing any to shatter the shadows she was using to do this.

Kat was blocking the acorns that came near her, but otherwise focusing on the goal. The issue was that some of the acorns that had sped past them had exploded into dust. Potentially toxic dust. So just before they reached it, Kat pulled out her fans, and SWUNG. It rooted her in place for a moment, and gave the critters a chance to slam three acorns into her back, and one into her legs, but Lily soon pulled Kat along. Yanking two behind her, Lily dove for the snowy portal, and felt the world shift around them, signalling a successful transition.