As the idol shattered the cultists all broke formation fleeing in every direction except towards the crazy wolf and its rider.
Turning around Chronos saw that Gregory had managed to kill another cultist but the last two had used magic to escape below ground before he could deal with them.
He sensed them entering his awareness and fiercely chomped at the ground.
"Aaah."
An entire chunk of dirt and rock disappeared into his mouth as a scream came from below him then their presence was gone.
"Did you get him?" Gregory asked as he jogged over.
Chronos shook his head spitting out the dirt as he turned back into a werewolf.
"I only bit his arm off. He was moving much faster below ground than above it."
Lyla stepped off his back and threw a flaming gavel at the remains of the idol.
"It's better if that doesn't exist. So, what now? Do we keep chasing them?"
"In this storm? We'll lose them before the hour is out, I'm already having trouble seeing them. Let's leave hunting them to the crucible knights, it's time to go back to the plateau." Chronos said.
Jogging back an advancing knight called out to them while tapping the communication item on his shoulder, "I've got Commander Magnus on the other end. What's the situation?"
"We killed a couple of them and shattered whatever idol they were using to control the dark beasts but the rest of them scattered before we could stop them. They have some earth-based escape magic that lets them move rapidly underground." Chronos replied.
"I see, come back to the plateau and we'll talk more. As for your unit Jamal, continue to sweep the area, kill all dark beasts and secure anything else that remains before returning." Magnus's voice came through the communicator.
Jamal agreed as he led his unit further out and Chronos walked with Lyla and Gregory back to the plateau.
At the base of the plateau, they found a levitating lift waiting to take them back to the top. There were already two units of engineers waiting to get back to work onboard.
"Well, this is fancy." Chronos commented as he stepped onto the lift.
"The Crucible knights work fast and do good work. I'm glad they're on our side." Gregory said.
"Does anybody know if any of the dark beasts made it to the grove?" Lyla asked as the lift carried them towards the top.
"I was on reporting duty and there have been no messages about dark beasts making it past the plateau." One of the knights reported to her.
"Oh good, but just because we didn't see them doesn't mean they didn't get past us. Have someone check on the grove just in case and make sure to ask if any attacked the grove. If we aren't specific the matron will only tell you half-truths." The knight nodded, moving to obey Lyla's command.
At the top they found that Magnus was inside a tent, busy commanding the troops and recording what they had found. Taking a seat they didn't have to wait long before he turned to them.
"Alright, you three were the only ones close enough to see what the cultists were doing. I need you to report what you saw and what happened." Taking out a recording crystal and a notepad, Magnus began his record.
Chronos volunteered to go first.
"I don't have much to report. By the time me and Lyla were close enough to see them, the cultists were already retreating. Three of them kept Gregory busy, they were priests or mages I couldn't tell which, while the rest ran away dragging a cart with an idol in it.
When they saw us coming, they sent three people to slow us down, but we bypassed them and shattered the cart and idol first. I think they work in teams of three normally.
I didn't get a good look, but I saw the idol for just a moment when the cover was blown off. It looked humanoid but it had far too many limbs and they were much longer than natural limbs, on its back there were broken wing-like parts. Unfortunately, it was sitting down so I wasn't able to see the lower half.
When the idol shattered all of the cultists fled." Chronos reported.
"Can any of you add to this description?" Magnus asked.
"Yes, I saw divine seals on its body before it shattered. It looked like there were multiple divine seals from several different gods." Lyla stated.
"Hm alright. What about you Gregory?"
"I never saw the idol; they were already cleaning up by the time I arrived. I did have a chance to see the ritual circle they were using and can draw that for you. As for the cultists themselves, nearly 30 percent of them were mages and I counted 10 skilled archers with them. The archers were the ones shooting down the bolts coming from the warships."
Magnus handed Gregory a notepad so he could draw the ritual circle then continued with his questioning. By the time they were done answering him they had told him about their looks, the smell of them, and even where Chronos had left the arm he had bitten off.
However, Magnus wasn't very happy with their answers.
Even after an hour they were still nowhere near understanding who these cultists were or where they had come from.
As they turned to leave Magnus called out to them again, "If I have any other questions I'll call you back. For now, go back to your regular duties and Chronos Old Tobias wants you back in the tunnels to finish what you were working on."
Nodding Chronos walked towards the tunnel entrance while Gregory and Lyla went to find Sariah before returning to the grove.
"Hey Old Tobias, I'm back. What did you want me to do?"
Old Tobias pointed at three large slightly curved spikes near the bore hole which had a new ring of metal at its top.
"Mount those around the hole and align them with the spatial element. Using those we will extend the power of the pyramid to the castle above and eventually to the outer walls. They will also hold the pyramid in place above the bore hole." He explained as he worked on a platform Chronos assumed was for controlling the castle.
Seeing how much he had already completed, Chronos realized he hadn't come above ground during the battle.
"You know there was a battle above, right? If we had lost, you would have been buried alive during the retreat." He reminded Old Tobias in a concerned voice.
"If things had really gone south then I'm probably the last person you need to worry about. Are the spikes placed properly?"
Old Tobias ignored his concern, but he might be right. Despite how sharp his senses were Chronos was unable to tell how powerful Old Tobias was. That meant he either had no power, or he had so much power that he could easily hide it from Chronos.
Chronos was betting on the latter.
"Yes, they just need to be charged but shouldn't the platform be completed first? Other people won't be able to use the pyramid to the same extent I can."
"I'm almost finished with the important parts; the appearance and final touches can be done later. I want this part of the castle operational by the end of the day."
"Good idea. We don't know when they'll attack next so the early warning from the pyramid could save many lives." Chronos was proud of Old Tobias's care for others, but he practically fell on his face at his next words.
"Hm, who cares about attacks, I want to see the other layers as soon as possible!"
Chronos sighed as he saw Old Tobias's sparkling eyes. This old man was too selfish!
"At least be concerned about your own men's lives!" He shouted at him.
"Why?" Old Tobias looked at him with genuine confusion.
"Well, aren't you worried about them?" Chronos asked.
"Look here kid, having trust in someone means that I don't worry about them and let them do their job just as they trust and expect me to do my job. If I don't focus on doing my job to the best of my abilities, then that is a betrayal of their trust. And worrying about them will prevent me from doing my best.
I trust the crucible knights to handle anything that happens outside and I will respond by doing my job in here. Now hand me that railing, once it's in we can power this thing up and begin exploring other layers."
Passing over a railing covered in hundreds of runes Chronos charged the spikes with spatial energy as he considered Old Tobias's words.
He wasn't wrong. If Chronos was worried about others while fighting, then he couldn't put 100% of his efforts into the battle. But saying it like Old Tobias had just felt wrong somehow.