Consuming Darkness, Arising Light

Chapter 44: Get Through The Odds

Craig

"Master Craig, How Do You Feel?"

Craig blinks, nearly jolting at the sound of Stripe's voice. After his friends stopped talking, he's been in a daze ever since. He presses his lips into a line when he feels a dull pain in the bottom of his feet. "Fine, but my feet are starting to ache." It feels like he's been standing for hours.

"Ah, Well, Half An Hour Has Gone By Since We've Begun." No wonder. "You Can Ask One Of Your Friends To Soothe The Pain For You."

Craig would rather not do that. They might think Stripe's magical energy is starting to effect him. "Is it okay if I move around a little?"

"Yes, But Be Sure Not To Step Out Of The Aura's Perimeter."

Craig looks down and around. He's got a good amount of space. He raises his head while looking over at the others within the aura, and frowns. Wendy, Cloud, Ingrum, and Henrietta look so focused performing Enhanced Purification, their eyes are closed. Craig feels like he's slacking off. Well, he hasn't been doing anything to contribute to begin with, he's just acting as a source for Stripe to channel his magic out. He guesses that counts as helping in some way. He lets out a quiet sigh and decides to sit down instead. The second he bends his knees, he hears someone gasp.

"Craig! Are you okay?!"

Craig feels bad for wanting to laugh, Clyde sounded genuinely concerned just now. He sits down crossing his legs on the damp, hard, and cold ground, not worried about his pants getting dirty and wet since the raincoat will absorb the rain stains. "Relax, I'm fine. I'm just resting my legs."

Bebe huffs. "Don't scare us like that, jeez," she grumbles, although relieved to know Craig is okay.

"Sorry," Craig says. As the ache in his feet start to abate, he notices the multiple screeching of monsters sounding over the slow falling raindrops. This seems like good progress so far, given only half an hour has passed. Perhaps after another hour or so, the rain will stop completely. The monsters, on the other hand, might prove to be a problem once they break out. Craig gets the feeling that nighttime is-

"Ngh." That pained grunt came from Ingrum. He chuckles weakly. "Seems they've managed to destroy my barriers."

The monsters can be heard rushing up to the rooftop based on the increased volume of their shrieking.

Night was a lot closer than Craig expected it to be. He hopes his friends will be able to hold out.

//

"Ready yourselves," Raven says, her eyes narrowing.

"Right," Yuna says. "We mustn't take the monsters lightly now that night is upon us, and we don't have enough time to devise a strategy." She summons Kenny's Dark and Light gloves around his hands, the black glove covering his left hand and the white glove covering his right hand.

"Our main goal is to protect them at all costs," Kyle says, looking at Cloud, Craig, Wendy, Henrietta, and Ingrum within the radiant aura.

"Against a whole bunch of monsters at that," Leopold says nervously, making the teens tense up. This won't be his and Tweek's first time fighting monsters during this time of day, but it will be for the others. They are at a great disadvantage in terms of strength and numbers.

"We're just gonna have to do the best we can," Kenny says, earning nods from the group.

The monsters are steadily approaching at high speed.

"I'm More Than Happy To Fight In Your Stead To Relieve You Of Your Stress."

Stan almost huffs. Chris' eagerness couldn't have been more obvious. Stan closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. He summons his sheathed katana in his hand while opening his eyes. "I got this, so don't you dare try to take over."