On the platform, even Lilith could feel the electric vibe coming from the people.
“We will have peace!” Kamala declared. “That is our future. And today, we go forth to ensure that of both worlds.”
The roar from the people reached a fever pitch.
“Very inspiring,” Lilith said.
Kamala stepped back. “Let's hurry. We’re not giving the Pelasgians a chance to escape.”
“I'm counting on you,” Lilith said, as Kamala and Arloff stepped through separate portals.
Kamala emerged near the city's gate. In front of her was the army she had riled up. Behind her, the entire wall quickly disappeared into the ground.
The Pelasgians were not far, and Arloff was already closing in.
Kamala pulled her weapons out and looked back at her eager army before running fearlessly headlong toward the enemy.
No one thought twice about following Kamala's bold lead. The collision between both armies was a visceral mash of skin and steel.
From her platform, Lilith could hardly watch as it was now out of her hands and in those of her people.
CHAPTER TEN
“Doesn't look like we're going back to Vesuvia anytime soon, does it?” Janah asked. She and Nedim were standing in a crenel, watching a massive Pelasgian army march towards them.
Nedim rubbed his eyes. “I'm sure Sayar would be thrilled to hear that.”
“Hey, it's not my fault he's cranky all the time,” Janah said.
Nedim stood stoic, and then cracked a small smile. It was all he could do to keep himself from laughing.
“What?” Janah asked.
“We're staring death in the face,” Nedim replied. “And all I could think just now was that, yes, he is cranky.”
Janah waved her hand in Nedim's face to get his attention. “You're okay, right? Don't lose it now.”
“I'm fine,” Nedim said. “My apologies. I have doubts. In our time we've never faced a threat such as this. All we've known is peace, and I fear we may not be prepared to turn the tide this time.”
Janah ran her hand across the wall. “I need to study our history more. I mean, I read what happened in battle, but I didn't see anything as far as our cities were concerned.”
“From what I read, our cities were spared,” Nedim said. “After losing contact with the Prometheans, we linked up with the Fenrir south of Tiamat and reinforced the Khothu there. Two days later, the three of us swung back down to Vesuvia and drove the Pelasgians out of Rhea.”
“You don't suppose they plan on breaking through our walls, do you?” Janah asked. “I mean, why like this? They could have snuck in at night with a portal inside the city.”
“I suspect it is the same reason Lilith doesn't open portals haphazardly,” Nedim answered. “I'm fairly certain that Pelasgian creature is limited to what she can see.”
Janah scratched her neck and laughed. “Yeah, that would be funny if their whole army marched into a bottomless pit by accident.”
A soldier passing by stopped. “You two might want to step back. We're locking down the city.”
Nedim and Janah went down to the street to join an army being led by Sayar.
As the walls closed, thousands of torches were lit. The only openings to the outside were small crenels and passages leading to walkways along the wall, where hundreds of Anubians took cover behind a second set of crenels and began firing upon the Pelasgians.
Sayar handed Nedim two armlets. “Good, you're both here.”
“Wait, you're actually going to fight?” Janah asked.
“No!” Sayar said. “I'll be at the Palace. You're to remain here and help the Third Dune defend the southwestern wall. Nedim, you have rank and experience so I'm promoting you to Baivara of Wind Four.”
“It would be an honor.” Nedim bowed.
Sayar looked at Janah, and seemed as though he was about to say something before slowly shaking his head and leaving.
Nedim slipped one of the armlets on. “Janah, if things go wrong I'm going to need someone I can count on. If I may, I would like to appoint you as my Hazara.”
With a face beaming like she'd won a fortune, Janah crossed her arms. “I'll take it!”
“Thank you,” Nedim said, handing over the second armlet. “Now, let's assume the worst and plan accordingly.”
Janah immediately put the armlet on. “I'm not really one for planning. I think a good tactic is to kill them as soon as we see them.”
“No...no,” Nedim said, stroking his chin. “Once the Pelasgians are inside, there will be little to stop them, unless we barricade the streets and keep them in bottlenecks.”
Janah narrowed her eyes. “Are you asking what I think you're asking?”
“Unless you can think of a better way to keep the Pelasgians from rolling over us, I see no other choice.”
“I thought you'd go with the tried and true method of bait and kill.”
“Out in the open I would,” Nedim said. “But inside the city, I don't want to risk being overwhelmed and cornered.”
Janah looked at her soldiers with confidence. “No worries, we can handle it. If the Pelasgians we fought in the Shadow Realm are anything to go by, it shouldn't be too bad.”
“Thanks,” Nedim said, walking around to see the layout of the area. “I know I am asking a lot of the Persians but, if it works, it should stop the Pelasgians dead in their tracks.”
“Just make sure you aim high,” said Janah.
At that moment a loud explosion from outside shook the city wall.
Janah cringed. “What was that?”
“Wait here!” Nedim said running towards the sound.
“Hey!” Janah yelled.
On the second tier outside, several Anubians were still getting back up when Nedim arrived. As some of the dust settled, he could see Vela preparing to fire another large ball of energy.
“I shot a few at her,” an Anubian covered in blood and dust said. “But she's way too fast. She dodges them like nothing, and up here we don't have much room to maneuver.”
When Vela fired, Nedim immediately took aim and shot an energy blast to intercept it. The explosion threw up a torrent of sand.
For a few seconds it was hard to see anything.
Nedim never saw a volley of three smaller energy balls until it was too late. One killed an Anubian as the others hit the wall to his side and below him. The blasts were strong enough that Nedim was thrown back through the passageway.
“And you call me hasty,” Janah said, grabbing Nedim's arm and pulling him inside.
Nedim nearly coughed a lung up as he stood. “They've got a Myrmidon out there.”
“That's...not good,” Janah said, concerned. “At least we came up with a plan that'll work, right?”
The wall was rocked by another explosion.
Nedim grabbed Janah by the hand and ran down the stairs to his group of warriors. “Fall back two streets,” he ordered.
The Hegirans rapidly moved with discipline. Almost as soon as they were in place, a large section of wall suddenly collapsed.
Seconds later, another blast could be heard further down. Under Vela's onslaught, the Anubians outside began to close the passageways as they retreated.
“Persians,” Janah called. “Pelasgians are outside the city. Any moment now they will be upon us. Our task is to barricade them here at all cost. Kill many, and kill quickly.”
A quick, sharp growl in unison was the Persian soldiers' way of showing they understood.
The Anubians spread themselves out on the city's second and third tiers along the roofs and open spaces overlooking the streets below.
“One line,” Nedim ordered. “We have Hegirans down there counting on us. Now focus!”
After several explosions blew more holes in the wall, the ominous sound of marching could be heard.
“Stay steady,” Janah said.
As the Pelasgians poured into Siriso, they immediately ran at the waiting Persians.
“Take aim,” Nedim commanded, watching as the Pelasgians came within a block of the barricade below, and giving the order. “Fire!”
A hail of yellow energy balls tore into the Pelasgians, slowing them down enough for the Persians to withstand the brunt of the charge. But as effective as it was, the full weight of the Pelasgian army was pressed against the Persians within moments and it became a pushing contest with shields, spears and swords.
“At the barricade, the barricade,” Nedim yelled, telling his men where to concentrate their fire.
Several Pelasgians took aim and unleashed a barrage of arrows.
Nedim quickly took cover behind the ledge, though some of his men were hit. He stood up to continue shooting, and almost instantly, an arrow struck him in the hand.
Falling back into cover, Nedim cradled his hand. When he felt the pain of trying to pull the arrow out, he instead took aim at the Pelasgians and fired an energy blast. The arrow in his hand disintegrated, leaving nothing but a small bloody hole.
Janah ran up to the third tier and found Nedim wrapping his wound.
“How is the barricade holding?” Nedim asked.
“It's holding for now,” Janah answered. “I wasn't expecting this kind of pressure.”
“What are you doing up here?”
“Bad news. I saw a green glow in the distance. When I came up to the second tier to see what it was...well, have a look for yourself.”
They went over to the opposite side of the walkway where they had a view of Siriso.
Throughout the city numerous yellow plumes from explosions were erupting, and from those, the silhouettes of Erinies and griffins could be seen.
Nedim sat with his back against the ledge. “This is going to be a long night.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Nibiru sat motionless on his throne, admiring the night sky through one of the large openings in the roof. The insignificant light from the tiny stars entranced him, but when a perennially eclipsed sun came into view, his eyes ever so slightly twitched.
The moment was disturbed when Marduk opened the doors and casually strolled in.
“Marduk, what news do you bring?” Nibiru asked.
“Rhea is under siege,” Marduk said. “Reinforcements are awaiting your command.”
“Assessment?”
“There's some good news, and a bit of bad. Which would you like to begin with?”
Nibiru walked to a giant balcony with only a rail to keep one from going over. At a mile high, he peered down along the city's stacked, multi-ring-shaped structure. “Give me the good news,” he said.
“We've breached the Hegiran city, Siriso,” Marduk began. “The fighting is back and forth right now, but that should change soon. At Vesuvia, the battle is going according to plan. I expect it will fall within a month. And our armies are closing in on the human cities.”
Nibiru leaned against the rail. “The bad?”
“The humans' smaller cities should be easy,” Marduk continued. “But the bigger one, New Haven, may pose a challenge. It's along the coastline, and appears to be well-fortified with thick walls and several towers. It may be a week before we take it. At Tiamat, we're suffering heavy losses. If something doesn't change by the day’s end, we may need to send one or two waves of reinforcements with the new weapons we are making. And, our army in the Netherworld is-”
“Lost,” Nibiru calmly said.
Marduk said nothing for a moment, afraid of speaking out of place. “The army may yet survive. But it simply won't be able to accomplish the campaign. I was going to recommend either sending reinforcements, or attempt to pull them out immediately.”
Thinking, Nibiru returned to his throne and went back to his stargazing. “No need, really. It was a fool's errand. A simple miscalculation. The Netherworld nulls my Shadow Seed somehow.”
Marduk shifted with concern and said nothing as his eyes darted back and forth at the floor.
“You may speak freely,” Nibiru said. “It's not everyday I have a conversation with another. Tell me what you are thinking.”
Marduk chose his next words carefully. “I feel it prudent to remind you that we've never abandoned an army before. We have never lost.”
Nibiru almost laughed. “True, but they can be easily replaced. There's been a change in plan, so don't think of it as abandonment, or losing. I never planned on their returning any way.”
“Very well,” Marduk said. “If I may, what is the change in plan?”
“Same as last time. Terrorize, murder, raze. You know, the usual.”
Marduk was disappointed. “I see. All in the name of one man.”
Nibiru couldn't hold his laughter this time. “Are you jealous?”
“I'm not jealous,” Marduk said. “But I fail to see the logic of...”
“Of what?” asked Nibiru.
Marduk lowered his head. “Nothing,” he whispered.
Nibiru stood, placing his hands on Marduk's shoulders. “Do you remember the last time you saw a sunrise, or sunset?”
Marduk looked up at the eclipse. “Vaguely.”
“Don't you want to see that again? Don't you want to be able to stand and bask in the sunlight again?”
Slowly stepping away, Marduk's demeanor suddenly turned to anger. “I despise him more than anything.”
“Oh my,” Nibiru said curiously. “Come now, you shouldn't let your feelings get the better of you. If all goes well, Leon will be your brother and we shall be one step closer to immortality.”
“I don't believe he's worth it,” said Marduk. “Forgive me for saying, but Leon has made this much more trouble than is necessary. Valuable time and resources have been wasted, no thanks to him. Surely there must be other worlds.”
Nibiru rolled his eyes dismissively. “Time and resources are two things we have plenty of. And I can assure you that Leon is quite unique. You, of all people, should know that, having seen the wonders of the universe I have shown you.”
“Of course,” Marduk said, giving up any further argument. “I stand ready for your next command.”
Nibiru waved his hand in the direction of the doors, causing them to open. “Have the armies at Siriso and New Haven withdraw before sunrise and head to Vesuvia.”
Marduk headed for the door. “It shall be done.”
“As for Tiamat,” Nibiru said. “Tell the army there to retreat outside the city in a short while. I have something special in mind.”
Marduk stopped. “Special?”
Nibiru smirked. “The Khothu are long overdue for their introduction to the Caidoz.”
“I thought the Caidoz wouldn't cooperate.”
“They'll cooperate,” said Nibiru. “I just have to give them the right push.”
Marduk turned to leave before pausing again.
“Is there anything else?” Nibiru asked.
“Eris,” Marduk replied. “I could execute your commands more efficiently if she didn't keep running off. I fear she's a liability.”
Nibiru rested against the throne. “As long as she opens the portals as needed, she may do as she pleases. She knows the futility of resisting me. If there is any discord, I will deal with it. That is all. Leave me.”
“As you wish,” Marduk said, then exiting the room.
After watching the eclipse disappear from view, Nibiru stepped out to the exposed, inner section of the city.
On every tier, hundreds of Pelasgian women and children were hard at work on siege weapons. Among them were shackled prisoners from the Netherworld being forced to help.
Nibiru shook his head with some disappointment before teleporting, bursting into small streaks of black liquid that quickly dissipated. In an instant he arrived at a cavern so big the ceiling could not be seen.
Magma permeated much of the rock. Stalactites, stalagmites and columns were plenty, and the ground was littered with glowing crystals.
Nibiru could see a large waterfall feeding a river that disappeared around a bend and into the shadows. There was a
sudden strong gust of wind that blew against him for a brief moment.
The distraction did not fool Nibiru. He quickly turned, dodging a six-foot staff that had dual-headed axe blades on both ends.
The man welding the staff was donned in gothic-style armor and a helmet that covered most of his head.
Nibiru dashed backward for some distance. “Nice try, Bilar. You didn't think that was really going to work, did you?”
With a burst of wind at his back, Bilar leapt forward, swinging his weapon.
Nibiru evaded and quickly materialized his sword out of thin air. He countered, impaling Bilar through the chest before grabbing him by the neck and tossing him to a nearby woman.
“Rovgi, what a pleasure,” Nibiru said, bowing in a show of courtliness.
Unharmed, Bilar got back up ready to attack until Rovgi stopped him.
Nibiru discarded his sword. “Not the welcome I was expecting. Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't there twelve of you? I distinctly remember the little tussle we had last we met.”
Bilar hit the ground with his staff, and in a flash of flame, an eruption of dirt, a splash of water and a gale of air, the rest of the Caidoz emerged, surrounding Nibiru.
Like Bilar and Rovgi, the others wore similar clothing with armor and a formfitting helmet. Their appearance was humanoid, but various parts of them resembled an animal. This was especially true of their heads.
The males had semblances of a ram, hawk, lion, horse and eagle. The females looked like a bizarre mix of a bull, crab, scorpion, goat and fish.
Nibiru held his arms out and slowly turned. “That's more like it.”
“Why are you here?” Rovgi asked.
“To get what I want,” Nibiru answered. “I require your assistance in dealing with the Khothu. An inferior species that possesses abilities you may appreciate.”
“We have no quarrel with the Khothu, or anyone else for that matter.”
“All I need is for you to throw a tiny scare into them.”
“No!” Rovgi declared.
Nibiru placed his hands behind him. “I'm not exactly asking you.”
Rovgi grabbed the hilt of her sword. “We exist only to serve the balance of power in the cosmos. Everything has its place. Even you.”
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