The Savage Brawl [Round 5: Battletopia]

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

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The reanimated partial bodies were not very effective individually, but collectively they were able to slow Hoss down, delaying his advance.

It wasn't much, but it was enough time to give Konka Rar a chance to prepare a spell.

"Circle of Despair!" he cried out. A ball of darkness flew out from his staff, and towards Hoss. It started flying in circles, creating a shadowy ring around the cyborg.

Then the ring began to shrink, moving closer towards the center. Had Hoss retained his sanity, he might have been more concerned about the magical circle; as it was, he only sought to continue towards Calm, who was standing just outside the original boundaries of the spell.

This was a mistake on his part. As soon as he touched the shadows, pure darkness flowed through his body, and he was caught in the ring, as it continued to close.

"Pretty impressive-looking," Calm said, turning to the lich. "Doesn't look like it goes all the way to the ground, though. If he'd crouched down low enough instead of letting it catch him..."

"I am well aware of the limitations of the spell. I cast it because he seemed in no condition to dodge properly, and because it will not harm the corpses I have reanimated. It is fundamentally the same form of magic that flows through them."

As if on cue, the "warrior" Gormand had armed ran through the edge of the ring, unhindered, and began attacking Hoss, who was struggling to free himself from the still-closing shadowy wall.

"So, I guess it's gonna hurt like hell when that ring closes?" Calm laughed a little.

"Yes. I would advise keeping your distance from it. There's something of a ranged effect when it finishes."