“Undead—water goes right through me,” Damien said. “Guess so.” Ubi took a drag of water.
“You’re a good man, Ubi,” Damien said.
“Just a headstrong bear.” Ubi laughed as he grabbed a rock as big as him and carried it toward the wall where mages were fusing the rock together, recreating the wall.
*** Damien walked into the command center.
Cecilia stood with a hob Guardian on one side and Jaxus on the other.
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Other officers of all races stood around the table, looking at the map she pointed to, peering over one another’s shoulders. They all looked up as he entered the room.
Feels like the old days, when Dena was united. Seeing all of the races there, few cared where they stood, all of them focused on the fight ahead. Fighting alongside one another, the presence of the Guardians, hearing the stories of old, seeing the United Army fight- ing together.
First the humans and the beast kin were competing with one an- other as they couldn’t attack each other; then, seeing the United Army, they saw just how weak they were divided. There is still that competi- tive spirit, but when you rely on them in battle to hold the line, previ- ous per- ceptions can be changed and altered.
“Guardian Damien,” Cecilia said.
“I’m guessing you have a plan?” Damien walked forward, peo- ple parting for him and letting him get to the map.
“Part of one.” She pointed to the map. “I will be heading out with the eastern Combined Army and the United Army to hunt down the Drafeng and push them to the east. Our plan is to trap them in Cres- mond Peak, which is believed to be another strong- hold of theirs. We have a request of more troops to the north. The Drafeng is digging in, which is sure to make the fight there harder. You will take the remain- der of the Combined Army, now called the Second Eastern Com- bined Army, and head north to support them.”
Damien looked at the path north from Skalafell to the Stoha Mountains. “We’re going to need winter gear and food supplies. Have you coordinated with the Guardians yet?”
“Not yet. We’re currently securing the supply lines to the east.” “Okay, I’ll look into it. But if we make good time, we should be
able to make it in six days.”
“Six days,” Cecilia repeated. The two of them locked eyes.
If I was to leave sooner then I couldn’t bring as many with me. I wouldn’t have the cold gear, or food to support them on the march. We’d be marching them to their deaths. The Drafeng wouldn’t need to do any- thing, starvation and the weather will kill them as surely as any blade. If I don’t take enough fighters then we can’t turn the battle around that is already raging. Every hour people are dying to hold
the Drafeng.
Six Days. How many will day to give us the six days we need? Can they hold that long?
“Commanding is harder than just being a warrior,” Cecilia saw through him.
“How did someone so young become so wise?”
“I was stuck around old farts underground for too long. I’ll see if there is anything I can do to speed up the supplies, divert some from armies that don’t need as much. Might save a day or two.”
“Thank you. Every warm cloak and preserved meal we can get is lives not spent waiting on us,” Damien said.
“I’ll use your Guardian flame.” Cecilia turned and left, leaving Damien. He stared at the map, at the lists of required supplies, try- ing to find a new route or place to squeeze out some more supplies to push north.
***
General Sun Tao of the Ninth Island Alliance Army looked over his newest “reinforcements.”
“Not sure how much use they’re going to be,” Major Jassin said. Sun Tao was a human, but he had never felt that much attach-
ment to Radal. Ilsal and Epan had been his home, the open sea his retreat.
Jassin was much the same. Even though he was elven, his skin was practically glowing as he spent his days outside, upon ships or work- ing on the lands.
Epan and Ilsal were small areas but well populated. Still, the ma- jority of their military was on a volunteer reserve basis. They all went through their training then back to their regular lives until they were called up to serve, as the Ninth had done.
“Well, we’re going to need everyone we can get our hands on if we want to take Cheon. We’ve only been able to establish a beach- head so far. We need to push inland and see what we can do about these Drafeng. They must be hiding something up north.”
“Why don’t we make another beachhead?”
“If we do that, then we spread out our strength. We don’t have the numbers for it or the supply.” Tao sighed.
“So right into the enemy’s face,” Jassin said. “Right into the en- emy’s face,” Tao agreed.
A runner entered the building that they had commanded, be- ing checked by the guards before being allowed over to Tao.
“The admiral says that we’re ready to launch the day after next.” “Good work!” Tao said. “Then, in eight days, we will arrive in
Cheon. Major Jassin, take command of the old Army of Light. Make sure that they are organized. I won’t have a rabble on the ad- miral’s ships. Take a few of the Guardians with you and make sure that they are ready to set sail in two days. They’ll need their gear and weapons, nothing else.”
“Yes, General.” Jassin snapped off a salute and headed out of the command center. Guards followed him as he went to organize the old Army of Light that looked beaten and disheveled. The noble army that had rode on the backs of others to “victory” weren’t used to doing the hard work.
Sun Tao looked out of the window at the docks. There were hun- dreds of masts out there, with people calling out to one anoth- er as they loaded and readied the ships that would take them west across the top of Ilsal, where they would meet up with a merchant convoy
filled with ammunition and supplies for the front before they crossed into the northern waters and up to the isle of Cheon.
“It’s going to be a cold journey.”
***
Fysher looked out from Shivernsin. He was shivering now and he could barely see more than ten meters in front of him. The snow was coming down sideways and the pass was covered.
Using those practiced in divination, the commanders could see through the covering snow.
“Fire,” Logan ordered.
Dwarven mortars fired across Shivernsin, retreating back into the small hill-like fortress. These cannons were as wide as a man and only two men deep. Many smaller cannons poked from between the walls, creating two firing lines between the five mortars that faced the northern approach.
The mortars were released and dropped forward. Familiars rushed in, clearing the barrel before beast kin stuffed hob-checked powder into the barrels. Cannonballs rolled down a metal frame from above, rolling down an extended arm.
Elves and gnomes checked it before the beast kin pushed it for- ward and into place.
They moved the arm out of the way and gears under the mas- sive mortar pushed it back out. A dwarven team on the moving platform used different wheels and cranks to elevate the mortar to the right position.
Fysher heard the rumbling in the distance as the mortar’s can- nonballs landed and exploded. A blue and white light could be seen among the blizzard. He looked to the diviner’s mirror.
The cannonballs landed among the chaotic beasts, hitting the ground. The enchantment activated, sending blades of wind and shrapnel through the chaotic beasts.
Dozens died from each impact. They were spaced out to weak- en the effect of firepower and long-range AoE spells.
The casualties weren’t that impressive, but the power of the shells left Fysher feeling a different kind of shiver running down his back. He was intimidated.
Assaulting Shivernsin would’ve been the end of anyone who dared to attack.
The mortars took longer to reload due to their mass, but their range was impressive. They got in two more volleys
before the can- nons started to fire. They were shooting blind; explosions could be seen in the distance as gun crews worked mechanically: firing, clean- ing, reloading, setting, and repeating the process again and again.
Each of the battery commanders had a seer and their mirror with them, allowing them to call out corrections, even in the bliz- zard.
Fysher looked at the Drafeng chaotic beasts that were running forward. They looked like ants crossing the white valley. Cannon and mortar fire landed among them; explosions of blue, white, and shin- ing metal tore through ground and left deep craters.
It went on for five more minutes before the Drafeng chose to re- treat.
The gunners continued to fire. The battery commanders used the guns at their command to saturate areas where there were more chaotic beasts.
After another ten or so minutes, it was all over.
“Clean and ready the guns for the next group,” Logan said. “How many probing attacks do you think that they’ll make?”
Fysher asked.
“As many as it takes. Now that they have the mana for it and the conversion towers, manpower is not an issue to them. They on-
ly care for the Drafeng—chaotic beasts aren’t anything special in their eyes, unless they evolve,” Anthony said.
“We’ve got plenty of powder and steel to greet them with,” Lo- gan said.
“Once we have the reinforcements led by Damien, then we can use the mana restricting formation, cut them off from their ability to birth new troops. Then the armies can advance forward, slowly grinding the Drafeng down.”
***
“Looks like we’re going north!” Su said, talking to the gathered beast kin traders who had turned into part of the supply train for the beast kin army. When Anthony and the Guardians stopped the war be- tween the races, he had run supplies for the Combined Armies, then the Island Alliance Army, the United Army, beast kin, human, and Combined Armies all in the last few weeks.
“North? Why?” Gus asked, his trunk moving in curiosi- ty. “Second Eastern Combined Army needs winter gear and sup-
plies. We need to get supplies from the human city of Civia.” “Those three really stirred up all of Dena,” Gus said.
“Ain’t no one believe me when I tell them we were saved from cultists by them.” Another merchant sighed.
“Well, we know the truth. Now quit yer bitchin’ and get up on your carts!” Su said.
They grumbled and turned around, heading back along the sup- ply train.
Chapter: Under the Cover of Cannons
General Axion patted the cannonball in the middle of the com- mand center with a proud look on his face.
“So, this...smoke cannonball is how we’re going to hit the Drafeng?” Mora asked.
General Kolvar—an elf, leader of the Third Army—and Nagithar—the dwarven general of the Seventh Army—both frowned, waiting for Axion to explain.
“With this, we will be able to obscure the eyes of the Drafeng. They can protect themselves while we use the time to rush forward. We use the cover to use those mobile fortress enchantments that we have been holding on to. We plant the fortresses. They grow up; then we put cannons into the fortresses, using them as a base of fire for us to attack the Drafeng and soften them up. Then we drive for- ward into their defenses, cut them down. If they pull back, we don’t give chase—we create another fortress there, push cannons up to it. Then we continue, pushing forward and erecting fortresses as we advance, using one or two to cover the others. This will secure our rear line and allow us to have defenses moving forward.”
“It seems resource and time intensive,” Nagithar said.
“It is, but we are getting the Sixth, Ninth, and the remainder of the Army of Light soon and we will have the full support of the is- land’s merchant navy now that Radal and Selenus are relying on their own internal supply means.”
“We can fight them on the ground, but we need the numbers. Our army is a light army used to fighting along the shores, clearing ships—not face-to-face engagements like the mainland armies. The cannon fire will weaken and shock them,” Mora said. “A bit crazy, but it could work.”
“You know this battlefield better than I do. Before we send out people, I say that we have earth mages firm up the ground. We roll
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out the cannon batteries on these roads. Then, if our people are at- tacked while making the fortresses, with the cannons we’ve pushed up we can strike them,” Kolvar said.
“That will make it faster to get the cannons into the fortresses as well,” Nagithar agreed.
“We can use the sailors and navy to man the fortresses. They’re good with cannons, defenses, and pike—that way it gives us greater strength pushing forward,” Axion said.
“All right. Well, sounds like we have come to an agreement,” Nagithar said. “When do we carry out this insane plan of yours?”
“Tomorrow midday. Not many armies attack in the middle of the day, so they should be thrown off. I’ll take any kind of confu- sion that we can possibly get.”
“Tomorrow at midday it is then,” Kolvar said.
The meeting ended and people were briefed; orders were passed down and the armies were reorganized. Engineers and those able to create enchantments were shifted to the supply camp, pro- ducing can- nonballs with enchantments like the one Axion had patted.
***
“You sure that this is going to work?” Mora asked Axion.
“I’m pretty sure. If not, then we can pull back,” Axion said.
First and Second Army were down behind the gates that had been created in the defensive wall. Sailors from the fleet were man- ning the guns on the wall with support from the Seventh. The Third Army was in the rear, ready to support as needed.
A whistle sounded out. The midday sun, cold and impartial on Cheon’s shores, was greeted by rolling cannon fire.
Axion looked through an archer’s slit in the wall. The cannon- balls landed and sent up a spray of rock, snow, and smoke that cre- at- ed a gray cloud in front of the defensive crystal wall.
The firing went on for three minutes. Axion and Mora separat- ed and went to command their own armies.
Another whistle sounded out and the gates were pushed open. Shield bearers went out first. They were followed by mages, who solidified the ground and created roads that the cannons could move on and fire from if they needed to. The cannons were loaded but they didn’t have a firing string and had a stopper over
their fire ports.
The First and Second Army crept forward out to the wall. They moved between the roads, clearing the line of sight for the
cannons.
With the cover from the smoke cannonballs, they couldn’t see the enemy. There was only a wall of cloud in front of them. It was nerve-racking; they knew that the enemy was just over the hill, that they would be able to see them if a stiff breeze came and cleared the cloud out of the way.
At any moment, they could be found out.
They advanced quickly and in order, speaking to their training that they didn’t falter; they didn’t slow.
It passed slowly as they reached the location for the new castles.
Axion moved to where the right flank castle would be. Mora was on the left. Axion looked at the enchanted plate.
The guards hauled it out from the cart that they were towing it in and laid it down on the ground. Mages and engineers went to work; there were several pieces to the large formation that needed to be connected. In just a few minutes, they had the formation con- nected and readied.
Axion organized his troops, getting them in place, ready to charge once they had the towers up.
He looked over as the formation activated. The wind picked up and he nervously looked at the cloud wall that separated them from the enemy. More cannons to the rear seemed to see the issue and in-
creased their rate of fire. The cloud density increased rapidly, keep- ing them hidden from view.
The army
started to dig in. Half of them watched the clouds; the other half used their magic, or their own shovels and picks, to clear through the snow and stone.
The enchantment lines and runes started to glow with more and more power. The ground around it rippled out, flattening and com- pressing before the stone from the ground started to grow up- ward like vines.
Walls grew unevenly before meeting up at crucial points, where they grew sideways instead of directly upward.
Floors were created, cannon ports formed, archery platforms and mages’ casting balconies generated. The fortress took ten min- utes for the skeleton to be outlined. After ten more tense minutes, the fortress was complete.
Cannon crews, archers, and mages who were meant for the fortress were rushed inside. Mages used spells to reduce the weight of the cannons and floated them up to their positions. People called back for supplies—arrows, powder, and cannonballs—runners head- ed out from the main fortress and rushed forward to fill the new fortress’s magazines.
In just a few minutes, the fortress was manned. In a few more minutes, they were getting a steady stream of supplies from the rear. Axion looked to his troops. They had been able to make a rudi- mentary trench structure in the ground. It gave them something to focus on other than the clouds of smoke in front of them and the
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