This chapter contains a lot of capslock and ̶͡Zà̛̕l̴͘g̷̵̴o҉͘ font.
Also: This is a battlefield chapter. I sure hope you guys weren't attached to some OCs like I have been. D:
The Chief Consul's Diary
By Bilbo-sama
Entry 33 - The Great Battle
Day 342/February 26, 20XX
"There it is," announced Evan as he viewed the Horned One from the relative safety of the Zippelin. Did it get larger since they last saw it...?
"Flip," yelped Lofty, "It's enormous! Hope it doesn't yank my soul..."
Evan looked down at him with a confused and incredulous expression, "But...you're a Kingmaker. You can't get your soul stolen and neither can the rest of us. Isn't that the point of you here?"
"Ah, right, sorry," laughed Lofty, "I forgot..."
They both heard a groan and turned to see Roland leaning against the wall. His skin was paler than ever and his bangs clung to his forehead from sweat. Being in proximity with the Horned One was obviously not good for his health but he insisted on going.
"Are you going to be okay?" asked Evan, concerned.
"I..." Roland grimaced, "I hope so. The Horned One thinks I'm here to join forces with it. It's...loudly ecstatic."
"I just got an idea," said Tani, "if it can talk to you, can you talk to it?"
"...I could try," shuddered Roland.
"Ask it where that swab Doloran is," suggested Batu. He looked at the other man with concern, "ye don't have to, of course."
"I might as well," said Roland, resigned, "I want to know where he is too."
He closed his eyes and concentrated on where the Horned One's voice was coming from. The source seems to be in a...corner of his mind. When did this happen?
Hello? he cautiously 'called' out.
Instantly, a looming presence emerged and with the force of an avalanche, its voice rang out louder than a jet plane:
HE̢̡͏L̷L̨O ̸̛̛R̸̡͘ǪĻA̕͝N̢D̵͘.̴̨ ͏̨͡AT̷̡ ͞L̸AST͡͞ ͏͝҉Y͜O͟U͝ ̸̢HAV̴̛͏E̴҉ ̕҉D͜E̵C̶̡ID̶͢E͞D͠ ͝͠͝TO ̢͘͞SPĘ͞A̡͢K̨ ̴̕͝T̸͜O ̵͠M͘͡E.
Immediately, Roland regretted this decision. Everything felt as though the Horned One was filling up the space and Roland was nothing but a mere speck that could be swallowed up in a mere instant.
But he had to keep going. He had to know.
Just wondering, where's Doloran?
HE'͞S̴ I̛N̸̵ ͞A̵LLE̛̕G̴̡̧Ơ̧RI҉͡Ą͠ W͏̧̨H̢͝͠I̧͘C̢̕͝H҉͠ ͘҉͞I͜ ̢͏H͡A͝V̛E̶͡ ̨̕K͏̸͜E̸P͡T͏ ̛͜͞S͠͠A̴̷F̶͘E ͠F͠͡O͘R ̷҉A͠LL̨ ͟͢T̢͟H̛͘E̡͢͡S̷̨̕E͞ ͘Y̨͏͡E̵̴A̕R̡͞S͢. ̨I H̛AV̢͏E͡ ̷̢HID̢͠D̢͘̕E͠N̕͝͠ T̨̡H͘EM͜͞ ̸W̵IT̕҉Ḩ̵IŅ̵͏ ̵M͟͡Y͟ S̸̨͝H̸͞E̵LL̷͜.
Your...shell? Roland mentally blinked. Doloran and the lost nation are inside it?
Y͘͢E҉̧̛S̨.̷ M̕Y̷̛ ̨̢TR͏͞U̸̴E͢ ͘F͝OR͢͜M͜͟ ̷͞I̡͝S̵Ņ̧̕'̵̴͜T̶̶̡ ̧R͜͞E̵A̸͜D̴̷Y̢̢ ̴̧̡Y͘͟E̛T̸̨͝.
When will it be ready?
̶̕͡SO̕O͟N̸.
Roland was pulled away by someone grabbing him and shouting. He opened his eyes and found himself on the floor. His colleagues were circled around him and all sighed in relief.
Every part of his body seemed to throb.
Batu handed him a vial of concentrated soreaway and said with a voice full of regret, "Drink this and never do that again."
Roland shakily grabbed the vial and drank it. Instantly, he felt better.
"What-" his voice sounded hoarse and his throat felt scratchy until the soreaway fixed it. As if he was just screaming.
"You collapsed and started to seize," said Tani quietly, "You came close to breaking bones."
"You were covered in a dark aura while this happened," reported Leander.
"I had to bring you back, mun," added Lofty, "before it could overtake you. You may flippin' have a pure heart but that protection has limits."
"Did..." Evan looked at him guiltily even though he didn't ask Roland to talk with the Horned One, "did it tell you anything?"
"...Yeah," replied Roland as he found the strength to bring himself into a sitting position, "What we're seeing down there is sort of like a cocoon. It's real self isn't quite awake yet."
"W-what?" said Evan.
"Doloran and Allegoria are inside the shell too," added Roland, "So we need to find a way to get inside and stop him and the real Horned One."
"How do we get in there?" pondered Bracken, "It's not like it will let us in if Roland asks it nicely. Especially once it sees five armies accompanying him."
"I could transform and carry you all in," offered Lofty.
Bracken nodded, "Yeah, that works."
Roland gripped at the cloth of his long coat as he took a steadying breath.
If they succeed, he'll be free from the Horned One's interest in him. He'll never have to experience this agony again.
W̕͟H̷A̷T̸ ̢͠͠A͢͠R̶̡͠E̕͢͢ ̴̧͞Y̛O̵̕͝U̸̢҉ ͏D̷̸͠OI̸͜NG?̡͘͝
Roland gritted his teeth as he swung his sword and landed a killing blow against a skeleplasm. The Horned One at first had seemed unbothered by the swarm of soldiers on the new continent. But once it saw Roland participating in the battle, it sounded...confused.
"What do you think I'm doing?" muttered Roland under his breath as a wraith born from a soul twisted into the Horned One's service swooped down at him. He grabbed his gun and cast a charged up Heavy Ammo against it. He watched as it faded away. He wondered whoever that wraith used to be was freed and returned to their body...or if they died instead.
He...he'd rather not think about it.
He pressed on, helping to create a path to the Horned One for Evan. His Majesty is...somewhere. Roland had lost track of Evan moments ago. Or, at least, he thought it was moments ago. There was no way to tell if time was passing. The clouds surrounding the small continent were an unnatural purple color. It gave the effect that there was a dark haze everywhere and perhaps there was. Who knows what will happen if everyone present stayed in the area too long.
A large creature approached the Chief Consul and demanded, Our Master wishes to know what you're doing.
He blinked. They can talk?
"I'm on my way to the barrier," he replied, "By the way, who were you?"
That doesn't matter anymore, said the creature before turning away from him. It suddenly raised its axe on a unsuspecting sky pirate. A Hydropolitan mage exorcised it immediately before the axe could swing down.
L̕E͢T͜ ́͘R̶͜͝O̸̧L̨AND̨ ̨P̀͏͜A̷͠͝Ś͜͡S̷̢̀.͠ H͜Ȩ͜ ͏Í̡Ś̢ ̕͞U̷͝҉N̵͠D̴̡E̸R̷͝͝ ͝MY͠͡҉ ̢͢P͏͞R̛͞O̷T͜͡ĘĆ̛͜T̛ÍO̷N͡.̛͢͟
To Roland's embarrassment, the wraiths didn't intercept him afterwards. The monsters who weren't under the Horned One's control, however, still attacked him. He could sense the Horned One's frustration at this.
All this did was delay his arrival to the barrier.
Roland wasn't sure what will happen if he ever got there. Perhaps it would be best if he procrastinated on doing so.
Roland had to stick his sword into the oddly purple ground to hold himself up as he felt the Horned One try to influence him.
Stop it! It hurts! he frantically thought to the Kingmaker. He faintly heard someone gasp. He must be producing the aura again.
S͞͞T́O̷̵P ͠R̴̡È̵̀ŚI͏̷́S̨͘͡T͡IN̵̴G̴̀!̶̢
"Never," he gasped aloud. He heard the Horned One growl before it retreated from his mind.
"Oh thank god," he said shakily.
He suddenly felt the cooling touch of a healing spell wrap around him. The cuts and bruises he received from encounters with monsters faded away. His energy was renewed. Roland looked up and saw a hooded mage whose facial features were obscured.
"Are you alright?" asked the mage with a Dellian accent.
"I will be eventually," Roland replied.
"You should leave this island before its too late," advised the mage.
"It's already too late for me," Roland shook his head, "I'd rather fight to the very end."
Cheers suddenly erupted. He and the mage turned their heads to see the barrier collapse. The Horned One roared in rage.
W͠͏H́O͞ ̷͡DARE͏͟S̛ ̡T̕O̶͡͠ ͜҉CH̵͝A͟͢L͜͡͞L͞͏E҉̵ǸG͟E ͝͏͠ḾE̸̴?͘
"WE ALL DO!" shouted Roland, raising his sword as he forgot that no one else can hear and understand the corrupt Kingmaker.
"FOR THE FUTURE OF OUR WORLD!" added Evan as he called forth Mornstar. He ran towards the Horned One and all five armies charged after him, yelling battle cries.
The prodigious Kingmaker found itself surrounded by five armies. The first wave ran in and began to attack its hard body. The soldiers near Evan were driven by how deep Mornstar cut into the rocky hide.
Roland stopped running when he noticed that the Horned One was leaning back. It's maw widened and a red light began to form.
"Retreat!" he shouted, "It's about to attack!" Similar shouts rang out from the more distant soldiers and generals.
The first wave heard the warning and most were able to get out in time. The rest wasn't so lucky. They were engulfed in a red beam that consumed them as it burned a trench into the ground. Some have managed to survive but were gravely injured.
"They're...they're gone..." whispered a Goldpaw archer.
"Xander!" cried out a grimalkin. "Xander, no!"
"M-my tail! Oh gods...W-where's...where's my tail?!"
"Yu Sei? Where are you, Yu Sei?"
"R1-K33 I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU AND YOUR CO-UNITS LET THAT FLESHY VAPORIZE YOUR BACK-UP DRIVES."
"ERROR. SHIELD ARM NOT FOUND. I BELIEVE THE PHRASE IS 'WELL THIS BITES.'"
"By the seas! It carved a line into the earth!"
Voices rang out in the air as survivors discovered which of their comrades have fallen to the Horned One's wrath. Evan looked on, horrified.
"I'm sorry..." he whispered. He knew that there was a possibility that some would never return home but the reality of it...
"Come on, you teething pups!" Gao Jia roared, "You're just going to give up?!"
"But sir!" protested a dog folk warrior in Evermore armor, "that thing just...!"
"And that is what will happen to the world if the Horned One leaves this island!" Gao Jia countered, "Do you think that rabid rock will stop after zapping us? No! Your loved ones will be next!" He pointed to one soldier, "You there! Isn't your wife pregnant?"
"Y-yes."
"Then its your duty to make sure that there's a world for the next generation to come into!"
"No pressure or anything," said a nearby mouse sarcastically.
"He's right," argued another mouse, "it's not just us who are in danger! And I for one am not letting my people down! For Ding Dong Dell!" He then screeched a battle cry in his species' language as he ran while drawing his sword out of its scabbard. His foolish bravery somehow sparked a second wind in others and slowly more began to rejoin the battle.
̷̨͢Y͟͠OU ͡S͝T̨͘I̢L̨͠L̵ ̧͢Ḑ͡AR̷E D̛͢E͡͞FY ̡̀M̴E̴?͏
Sure, why not? Roland decided as he raised his gun and channeled as much magical energy he had into a single bullet before firing. To his surprise, it left a crater in the Horned One's side.
̷̷R̵̀Ǫ͞L̡̡A͘N̡D̷̴͜.̛..̡̢!̵͏͟
A wave of the Horned One's shock at his sudden 'betrayal' rolled through Roland's mind. Why did it think he was on its side the whole time...?
There was no time to wonder about that. Roland yelled over his shoulder, "NOW, EVAN!"
"R-right!" Evan regathered his wits as he concentrated on channeling his own energy through Mornstar. If he can do it through a wand, then why not a magical sword of legend. He can't fail on this now. People are counting on him. He promised Nella...!
He raised the sword over his head, not realizing he was glowing orange. The swell of energy raised him from the ground and with a cry he swung the sword down with all his might.
A wave of energy emitted from the sword and himself shot out and slammed into the Horned One. With a groan, it collapsed, seemingly unconscious.
To Roland's relief, the presence in his head became smaller, as if it was mostly banished. Well...at least he can think by himself again while on this cursed rock.
Cheers erupted all over the island as Evan's ministers found their way to him. They aren't done just yet.
"Now, Lofty!" shouted Evan, sword glowing as it responded to the Kingsbond.
"Righty-oh!" Lofty leaped into the air, also glowing. "ABRAAA-KAZAMMO!"
He transformed into a dragon and paused to allow Evan and his ministers to climb on.
"Tidy! Let's get going!" He flew into the opening left by Mornstar.
It was time to stop Doloran.
I got confused while playing this part. How did they know Doloran was inside the Horned One? So my solution was to have Roland ask.
I had planned to give the four pillars their own guards for the rulers to fight but all I can think of was Mausinger vs Vermine and nothing else. In the end it became Roland vs The Worst Migraine Ever. orz
Guy with baby on the way definitely survived this chapter. So did Grimm (who was in this chapter like the other skirmish generals but offscreen) who was initially slated to die but he seems like the type who would have a dramatic speech before kicking the bucket. Death by super fast energy beam would result in his ghost bitching about this insult for eternity.
I'm sorry if any of you liked my OCs. :O
(RIP a bunch of nameless Broadleaf battle bots)