Chapter 817

Chapter 817: Onward onto Death

‘Fading lights at the end of the tunnel. It’s said following them leads to the afterlife,’ from the ground to the very pillars, pebbles shook, the unsteadiness gave birth to stray bullets, two of which made connections to comrades. The bodies fell, no life spark in their eyes, instant death from the moment the projectile made contact, ‘-I chose to ignore it, the fallen at my feet. I should have done more,’ the fist, unable to clench, grew to harbor a numbing tingle, ‘-I did my best,’ the light, bright as it was, and scarce as it seemed in-between cover of vehicles and sandbags, “-we’re left for dead,” said a hallowed man, the latter bore a heavy frown, “-fighting for the sake of the greater good,” he dropped on his bottom and held his elbow, the latter was blasted into a fracture. Not far to the left of the man, laid two bodies. Images of how they died, heroes who dove onto grenades to shield their comrades, nameless fighters recognized only by their tags and memories of those they worked beside.

“Run, Alio,” he said, “-you possess unlimited stamina – go now, we can’t hold much longer. They’ll close the tunnel after the mages have left,” he pointed at the outlines of robes being torn against the wind, “-go,” he gritted, “-NOW.”

“Not going to happen,” he leaned to grab a fallen man’s gun, “-we’ll defend to the death,” he said, ‘-I’ll ignore the light at the tunnel,’ he faced away, ‘-I don’t deserve to be granted Elysium, nor do I want it. This is the unsung ballad of nameless heroes, for the sake of my family and the people, I promise,’ he clambered into cover, took aim, and fired into a smoke-cloud, ‘-war will always be a part of our lives,’ he pulled, it echoed into a moan and scream, ‘-the longer I hold, the easier it’ll be to save them.’

Following the robed spell-casters, a specialist unit in the army, “-where is Second lieutenant?”

“Major,” they gasped, “-Alio’s still on the front lines. The men in his platoon have been killed, there remains five with him included.”

“Fool,” the head shook, “-begin the demolition,” he spun, ‘-I’m proud.’

*Bang, bang, bang,* explosion rattled the entrance, a controlled environment made it simpler to not cause excessive damage. Upon the last boulder falling into its slot, a puzzle’s last piece is placed, a pull of the curtains settled the rule of abyssal darkness. Sound amplified, footsteps, shuffles, hampered breathing of allies, and an innate howling of the cave – the sound, close to a gritted out-breath, seemed to be the murmurs of the mountain.

.....

Alio finally gave, ammunition emptied, he fell onto his knees, took notice of a burning sensation on his forearm, ‘-I had to be shot...’ he complained, ‘-no one’s left alive. The few who breathe will rejoin the cycle of life and death,’ the back of his head pressed against the cover, the eyes, acquainted to the darkness, widened to another head glaring down at him, darker than the darkness, oval-shaped, no hair, big-reddened eyes, and viciously sharpened teeth, the resting mien was one of utter horror, ‘-a demon,’ went across his mind, ‘-the end has come,’ the monster enlarged its mouth to be twice the size of his head, ‘-end it quickly.’

*Crack,* the warm sensation of liquid rained onto the forehead and against the uniform. Another silhouette ambled in his direction, “-still alive,” it said.

“Who are you?” he coughed, “-what of the monster?”

“A wandering traveler,” he returned, “-suppose that excuse won’t work. My name’s Igna Haggard. Why’s a second lieutenant on the front lines?” he dropped on one knee and unbuckled a sac and handed potions.

“I selfishly asked the major to let me lead the battle of attrition. The passage was supposed to fall four hours ago, the empires stopped their advances at the risk of it caving. After guiding them to the afterlife, seemed fitting the leader to die the last after ensuring the dead are properly sent off.” The faint glow of a healing spell, ‘-a white-haired man,’ he thought, “-why are you here?”

“To put an end to the war. If what you say is true, the passage has been buried from both sides?”

“Yes.”

‘The stench of death, I’ve missed it,’ he rose, “-Alio, you able to walk?”

“Yes,” he nodded.

“Take heed,” an orb of gentle yellow hovered onto weapons and unused ammunition, “-gather and take inventory. We’ll move forward.”

An hour elapsed; the darkness grew welcoming. Alio did much of his work, loaded weapons, separated supplies, and armed himself. Distant gunfire would frequently thunder in his direction.

“I’ve checked the other end,” said Igna, “-how are they?”

“Everyone’s dead,” he said, “-I’ve gathered them in a pile.”

“Good,” he snapped and conjured a heatless white inferno, the latter burn without using the air, latching onto the bodies as if parasites, it devoured till ashes, “-may death carry them to a greater plane,” he nodded and turned to the survivor, “-two choices present themselves. Either accompany me to the frontlines or return and relay the information. What will it be?”

“My life’s not worth much,” he said, “-allow me to follow.”

“Right,” the shoulders slumped, “-we’ll make straight for the outlook in the hills.” There was the reason why forces couldn’t advance, the northern entrance’s path splits onto three, one headed to the coast, the middle path heads into thick-woods whereby a few settlements were built by adventurers, and lastly, up the mountain to an observatory turned fortress. The latter held many views over the surrounding land, from there, snipers were able to set their sights onto the cave and fire at incoming threats. The multiple unsuccessful ventures culminated into a brief overlook of the enemy forces. The biggest threat was a lady in black, wielder of a scythe – not much else was known.

A few minutes’ walks brought the blocked archway into sight, “-breaking through will surely notify the enemy of our presence.”

“Tell me, Alio, do you know why they opted to bury the remains?”

“Perhaps they were scared of us launching a desperate attack?”

“Wrong,” meanwhile he spoke, the hands wrote spells onto thin-air, “-the arrival of an army their size is a double-edged sword. The more time passes, the stronger they become, their size means a change in leadership – the militia at present are from the church. The cave had to be shut to give time, they most likely want to focus their attention on unloading supplies and changing leadership instead of worrying about an attack which may or may not arrive,” by the end, a purple portal opened to the right, “-let’s go, I’ve linked the cave with the outside,” he fixed his glasses and the duo stepped. Darkness from the night seemed akin to daylight, a surveying truck rode across the dirt path, Alio and Igna subconsciously dove into the bushes. The distant headlights flashed in their direction, the path rumbled, a gunner looked to and fro, continuing their survey, backlights of red soon made down the slope, “-fortunate,” escaped a sigh.

“Perfect timing,” said Igna, “-here,” he threw a binocular, “-climb the tree and look towards the observatory.” The thick-outlying foliage provided cover, “-you’re right,” he said, “-there’re snipers under the antenna, I see a lot of movement.”

“They’re looking towards the beach, aren’t they.”

“Yes,” he said with a rise in tone, “-can you see them too?”

“No, I only assumed. The truck probably delivered supplies. Let’s take the observatory.”

“Pardon?” he blinked, “-even if we make it up there, they’ll spot us from a mile away.”

“Who said we’re sneaking?” he leaped onto the path, “-you need but follow, Alio, for I represent an army on my lonesome.”

“Conceited muc...?” the brows rose in astonishment, *Heed my voice, comrades in war, heed my will, comrades in death, I, Igna Haggard, Watcher of the Shadow Realm, call upon the immortal army, the guardians of the Shadow Realm, the strongest entities known to our worlds, make thy presence known, migrate thyself, possess the vessels of which I grant. Pity is for the weak, salvation is for the worthy, we represent none, god or demon, may they all perish in the sluthering darkness of Chisn. Summoning – Puppet Army,* miasma filled fractures in reality’s fabric brought on dozen of men clad in black-uniform, from helmets to armored boots, the attire was in many ways the description of futuristic soldiers, great emphasis was on the weapons, rifles with long barrels, assault-rifles known to be restricted, borderline being banned from importation and distribution.

“Majesty,” they bowed, “-how may we be of service.”

“Tis a war,” he said, “-fellow comrades, we are to fight a war. My orders are simple, kill anyone who’s remotely a threat, I care not if they are civilians or the enemy – I want complete extermination. Infiltration of the settlements is the priority. I want three squads, one under my command, the remainder will work jointly. The rest will be reported after the battle. There is the risk of death by curse and soul imprisonment. Long as thou art careful, I guarantee safe passage home. If reinforcement is needed, please inform me right away, have I made myself clear?”

“Yes Majesty,” they saluted.

“I will take command of Alpha unit,” said a helmed man, recognized only by a number on his vest, “-call me 01.”

“And I will take command of Beta unit,” said another similarly dressed man, “-call name, 02.”

“I shall be in charge of the Gamma unit. Call name, 03.” All and all, fifteen men split three ways in five. No time was wasted, the fighters took the road and headed for the would-be battlefield. In order to capture the observatory, Alpha and Beta unit will make noise at the coast, striking at the heart of the operation, an explosion, of which, Igna casually handed a bomb – crafted on the principle of Maicite’s amplification, to 01.

“Where are we headed?” inquired Alio, “-I’m confused.”

“Alio,” said Igna, “-are you skilled with a sniper rifle?”

“Yes?”

“Good, you’ll join the Gamma unit,” the nonchalant proposal begot a glare from the unit leader, 03 – well, between the pitch-black helmet, the stare was very much imagined and subjective. It took a few hours, time read midnight, the sky cleared into a canvas of purple and blue sprinkled with spots of white, “-a lovely sky,” said 03, gazing upon the stars. They rested atop a rivaling hill-top, on it were remains of a campfire and used containers. Igna kept watch onto the beach, smoke puffed under the starry night.

“Sorry to bother.”

“Alio?”

“Yes, I have to ask, where did these men come from?”

“My soul,” he said, “-they’re part of me, and I’m part of them. Please refrain from prying into my personal life.”

“Sorry, I mean no disrespect.’

“I know, curiosity is an untamed beast. What did you want to ask?”

“How are ten men going to win against the imperial army?”

“Don’t get me wrong, we’re not here to wipe the opposition, the goal is to reach an armistice, there are many ways I can think of reaching the desired outcome. Easiest would be to strike at the mothership, destroy the fortress of the sea and limit the Empire’s movement. Harder said than done, conjuring such firepower would need the help of my guardian deities. I know one who’d love to bring chaos. No matter,” he exhaled, “-there are many advantages in cleanly disposing of a threat.”

*Incoming transmission,* “-report.”

“The bomb has been planted, majesty.”

“I presume the supply truck’s headed to the beach?”

“Yes, the sister system estimates thirty minutes until they reach the desired location.”

“Right, I should make the necessary preparations myself,” he moved to 03’s makeshift hammock, “-01 and 02 are readied for the attack. I’ll give the signal,” he slid down the side of the cliff, “-03.”

“Yes Majesty,” returned via the coms, “-Gamma unit’s ready to fire at any time.”

A murderous gaze washed his visage, the tall observatory approached with each step, ‘-onward onto death.’