Betrayal and Salvation
Kairos stood tall at the head of his army, his massive broadsword drawn and eager to taste blood. He pointed to the city, and despite his voice being barely a whisper every member of his army heard the command:
"Wipe them out. All of them."
"We're too late." Lyra whispered as they crested the hill. Ahead of them lay the massive city of Corvinus, its trio of ramparts dominating the landscape, yet rapidly falling to the Shadow assault. Giant Behemoths fired bolts of pure energy at the city, each impact leaving massive craters in the defensive line. It would not be long before the Shadow would be able to push through to the second ring of defences.
Lance swore under his breath. "Gunther's probably still a half a day away. Regardless we need to get in there."
"How? The entire city is surrounded!" Amber exclaimed. "We'd need a massive hole in the Shadow's forces to even make it to the walls, and then find a way through. There's no way they'll just…" Lance climbed off his horse. "What are you doing?"
"You'll see." Lance replied. "Lyra, if you will."
Lyra nodded, dismounted, and closed her eyes. After a few moments a small portal opened up in front of them and Lance and Lyra nonchalantly walked through. Flabbergasted, Amber hurriedly got off her horse and followed.
"Hang on, if you can make portals, WHY for the love of all things holy were we on horseback for the last day and a half?!" Amber exclaimed as she stepped through, finding herself on top of a massive spire.
"I didn't make it." Lyra shrugged, pointing to the robed man watching the battle not more than five metres from them. "He did."
Amber looked at the man, then back at Lyra. "So what…"
"I just asked him, that's all."
The man turned and addressed the three of them. "My name is Nishaven, Grand Master of Corvinus' Collegia Arcanus." He looked at Lyra. "You need to work on your technique, you were very loud."
"Apologies, Grand Master." Lyra replied solemnly. "I will tone it down in the future."
Nishaven nodded. Amber was surprised at how calm he seemed, despite the battle raging all around him. "I appreciate Gunther sending you on ahead, yet I fail to see how the three of you will make any lasting impact on the battle."
"We're here to help your captains coordinate the defence." Lance explained. "Plus assist in any other way possible."
"Very well, I shall notify Aldon and the other captains. If you coordinate the south, east and western lines, it shall leave me free to concentrate on the bulk of the assault to the north." Nishaven stated.
Lance nodded. "Very well." He turned to the two women. "Okay, one wall each. I'll take the south, Amber the east. Lyra, you're on the west, and I want you to keep us in contact at all times, that way we can more rapidly share defences if one side needs reinforcing."
As soon as Lance had finished four small portals opened up in front of them, each facing a different direction. Nishaven nodded and they all stepped through to face the oncoming horde.
Despite the best efforts of the human defenders, the Shadow forces were implacable in their advance. They breached the first ring of ramparts within two hours, the Plasma Behemoths and Molten Destroyers of the Shadow army tearing them down with energy, fire, or their bare claws. Void Leviathans formed out of thin air, electrocuting the human defenders before disappearing, only to attack somewhere else, growing stronger each time. And whenever a gap in the ramparts was formed by the larger monsters, hordes of Flayers, Gargoyles, Marauders and countless other smaller beasts surged through to butcher the humans in hand to hand combat.
The humans on the other hand never faltered, never gave an inch without selling their lives dearly. From the veterans to the freshest conscript, each knew the importance of this battle and each fought with grim determination and staunch resolve. For a time, the martial skill of Amber and the cunning tactics of Lance and Lyra held back the hordes; and each reaped more than their fair share of Shadow skulls. But it was not enough. It was never enough. Even the intense magical onslaught of Nishaven, visible from wherever you were in the battle, could not stem the tide. The second ring of ramparts fell at dusk, and a whole new wave of horrors appeared.
The Wraiths of the Darkwood began snatching the defenders with such ferocity, such speed, that many soldiers simply fled from fear. They were almost impossible to defend against, striking anywhere, anytime. While the other forces of the Shadow rested in preparation for the next wave, the Wraiths kept the tired defenders of Corvinus on edge, preventing them from recovering their strength and pushing them to the very limits of their terror. But they were not the only things that went bump in the night.
The Death Collectors and the Magma Jackals instilled almost as much fear as the Wraiths, but for different reasons. The Death Collectors absorbed the souls of those fallen on both sides, boosting their vitality and their power, and it took many soldiers to even combat a single one. The Jackals were ticking time bombs, charging at the human lines with wild abandon, which gave the defenders a horrible choice. Destroy them and have them explode on death, spraying the lava in their blood over all in the vicinity, or leave them to run amok through their lines. To counter these beasts, Lance cleverly had a war mage installed in every squad, to destroy the Jackals at range. In response, Kairos just sent more of them.
Come the morning, and many of Corvinus' army had not slept, they were tired and stretched to breaking point. The Shadow on the other hand were refreshed and invigorated, having slept and feasted during the night. They surged forward and began cutting down the beleaguered defenders with renewed ferocity. It would not be long before the final rampart fell. But the sound of cavalry indicated vengeance was at hand.
Gunther's troops stormed over the hill, the famous Riders of Ellos taking point and smashing into the back of the unprepared Shadow forces. Thousands of foot soldiers followed, ordered into phalanxes. Spearmen of the Yari, Barbarians of the Gaderi tribes, and the loyalist Braxnorians pressed forward, and pinned the Shadow between them and the defenders of Corvinus. Forced to fight on two fronts, the Shadow took time to reorganise, and that time cost them in blood. Yet blood was something that they had an unlimited supply of.
Despite this setback, Kairos showed he was a master general and maintained discipline, allowing the Shadow to begin to push back the second wave of troops. He also had a surprise of his own, Rust Weevils began bursting out of the ground in the middle of the human lines, corroding and destroying armour and weapons with their breath and touch. Gunther's troops fought on, but it soon became clear to all that it was not going to be enough. As he called the retreat, Gunther was struck down by Kairos, who had taken advantage of the general's momentary distraction. As Gunther fell the resolve of his troops fell with him, and they fled the battle in droves. The Shadow forces did not let them, hunting down and tearing apart the humans in cold blood. As the Corvinus defenders watched this grisly display, they knew all hope was lost. Nishaven called a retreat to the entrance of the mine for a last ditch defence. If they could funnel the Shadow into a single killing zone, their numbers would mean little and Corvinus may yet triumph.
With the humans retreating as fast as they could, the Shadow attempted to halt their progress before they reached the mine. The massive monsters smashed through the ramparts into the city, or in the case of the Void Leviathans, simply appeared behind them. They cut down hundreds of fleeing troops without pity or mercy. As the Shadow horde approached the mine, victory was assured.
Gorgus moved forward with the rest of Majiya's faction as they closed on the mine, though he was constantly knocked around by those Shadow forces more eager to kill than he was. He had done his part, launching magical assaults at the humans as was expected of him, yet every time he ended the life of another his mind flashed back to that fateful day when his sight was restored. But his atonement was at hand.
Gorgus began muttering the incantation, and slowly power began to find its way to his body, enveloping him, infusing his very soul. With each second passing he grew brighter and more powerful. In the last moment before he unleashed the Supernova he could see Majiya realise what he was doing, and the look of horror on her face as she began to run.
It was a fitting end.
The explosion rocked the Shadow army, engulfing hundreds of their troops. Kairos spun around to survey the damage. While it was a clever ploy, he still had more than enough of a force to take Corvinus. He turned back to order his troops to press forward, but a searing pain stopped him in his tracks. Looking down he saw a sword embedded in his flank, wedged between the segments of his armour. Tarick forced the sword further into Kairos' body and he groaned in agony, before the tip of the blade punctured his heart. As Kairos hit the ground dead, Tarick smirked.
"Sorry my Lord, but this is business."
Like the humans, the death of their leader had a profound effect on the Shadow. Seeing that Kairos had fallen, the remaining captains began to quarrel over who would succeed him, and those quarrels broke into all out fighting. With the Shadow army disorganised, the defenders of Corvinus lunged forward to take advantage. They exacted their vengeance on the Shadow with steel. Lyra contacted the surviving troops from Gunther's army and they surged back through the ramparts, striking the Shadow from behind once more. The Shadow still vastly outnumbered the Corvinus defenders, but without cohesion they could not fight in more than small groups, and they began to be pushed back.
For the first time in the battle, the Shadow forces felt fear. But no one instilled more terror in them than Amber Rain. She was a dervish of destruction, a bladed hurricane that spun and twirled through the battle. Her swords glowed with eldritch power, Crystals from the Corvinus Mine infusing them with arcane energy. She continued her deadly dance as she pressed further into the enemy hordes, every swing from her swords finding its mark, and every strike taking another life.
Only when faced with an oncoming Behemoth did she take pause, albeit for the briefest of moments. She ran at it and the Behemoth launched plasma in response, but the monster was unable to hit the lithe warrior. As she came within range, she sliced through the monster's foot with her blades, causing it to drop to one knee. Roaring in agony, it swung at her, but Amber easily avoided the attack and severed its other foot, forcing it to support itself on its hands. Now defenceless, the Behemoth could do nothing as Amber forced her enchanted blades through its blackened heart, a great cheer erupting from the human defenders as she did so.
This impossible act filled the hearts of the human defenders with renewed purpose and determination. Employing similar tactics they began to take a toll on the heavy artillery of the Shadow forces, and those they could not fell with tactics, Nishaven brought low with brute force. Whilst he had been calm during the early stages of the battle, he was now fury incarnate, fire and lighting incinerating all that stood against him. To try and save themselves, the Shadow launched a last ditch effort to overwhelm the Grand Master with sheer numbers. Nishaven's response split the heavens, the maelstrom of lightning arcing through the Shadow horde and burning them to cinders in a violent display of divine retribution. His fury was such that even the twin pronged assault of Majiya and Gravebone could not halt his advance.
The Shadow's time was up, and they knew it. Without a cohesive leadership and against the renewed vigour of the humans, they had no chance. The remaining captains ordered the retreat, and the horde began to flow out of the city like a tide retreating back into the oceans. The humans gave chase until they were beyond the city walls, then settled in place to prevent further loss of life, and to begin the long process of clean up and rebuilding. They had done the impossible.
They had saved Corvinus.
Amber sat amongst the ruins of a household as the clean-up slowly but surely progressed around her. After the Shadow had retreated the strain of the last 36 hours had taken its toll, and she had collapsed from exhaustion. At first the fear was that she had taken a mortal wound in the battle. However the attending priests and healers had confirmed it was simply fatigue, and she had been moved away from the front lines for a well-deserved rest.
In the distance she could hear Nishaven addressing the surviving troops, congratulating them on their efforts and reiterating the sheer importance of this day. Even as far away as she was, his booming oratory filled her with pride, and she was glad to have done her part. Maybe now the ghosts of the past would forgive her.
A familiar figure in black made his way over, Lance smiling with pride and relief as he sat down. "You know you're going down in history don't you? Amber vs the Behemoth."
Amber smiled. "I just did what I had to."
"I think you did much more than that." Lance replied. "Even now Nish is calling your actions nothing short of legendary."
"Really? I should be over there." Amber remarked sarcastically, though she couldn't deny it made her feel good. "Anything else worth listening to?"
"Nothing much, something about so few, so many, blah blah blah. I've never been big on speeches."
"Do we know what happened with Kairos?" Amber asked. "Who got to him?"
"It wasn't one of us, one of his mercenary bodyguards turned on him." Lance replied. "We found the guy in one of the buildings after the battle, calmly cleaning his sword. An old warrior named Tarick."
"Change of heart huh?" Amber said.
"He said it was just business." Lance replied. "I have no idea who brokered a deal with him though; it certainly wasn't one of our people."
"What about that explosion?"
Lance nodded. "Yeah, that was one of mine. Poor guy perished in the blast though. I get the feeling he wanted it that way."
"Well, seems like luck smiled on us today." Amber replied as she lay back.
Lance did the same, finding himself staring at the buildings opposite. Standing on top of the rooftops was a young woman in a black jumpsuit, overlooking the clean-up efforts. As she turned to face him, Lance could see the whip at her belt, and she gave Lance a small salute before moving out of sight. "Yes, yes it did." He whispered.
Two days later the clean-up in Corvinus was well underway. Lance had taken up accommodation in one of the surviving hotels, all expenses paid by Nishaven. Lyra and Amber had also been given similar lodgings, in return for their efforts and their continued help in rebuilding Corvinus. Lance rolled out of the overly opulent bed in response to a knock on the door. Probably my breakfast. Nish certainly knows how to look after people.
He opened the door to the sight of a pretty young waitress holding a hot breakfast of bacon, sausages and eggs. She put the meal down on the table and headed out the door without a word, though she did give Lance a little smile over her shoulder before leaving. Smiling to himself, Lance sat down to the hot meal before what would be a hard day's work.
About to tuck in, he almost didn't notice the envelope under his plate. Inside was a message written in a very neat hand:
Lance,
Just a friendly note to see how you are. I'm glad you made it out alive, I must admit even I was concerned that there wouldn't be a Corvinus at the end of it, despite my insurance policy. Take care and I'll see you around. S.
P.S: I've got to say, you and Amber would make a cute couple.
P.P.S: You owe me 400 gp.
Lance grinned and quickly finished his meal. Grabbing his gear, he headed out to the clean-up.
And maybe meet up with Amber along the way.