Chapter Two - "Battle at the Borderlands"
King Randor was dead silent as he entered the Meeting Hall and faced those that were seated there. On one side was the Royal Council - Laslos, Tobias, Bertha, Daniel, and Thomas - and the other was Man-At-Arms, Commander Duncan, and Queen Marlena.
"Good morning," he greeted and sat down. "Twenty-four hours ago, the kingdom of South Eternos was being obliterated from the surface of Eternia. I think we should take some time here and have a moment of silence for those that died during that horrific massacre."
They all did so. As they did, the room silently sat for ten beats.
"Okay," Randor said at last. "I know we've all been busy the past few hours. I'm trying to round up all of the facts and get our information straight. First and foremost, Marlena, how is Captain Dekker?"
"He'll make a full recovery. However, he's stuck with only eye. Should be ready for active duty by next week," Marlena replied.
"Good to hear. I see no reason not to let him back into his old position if he's willing. Any objections? None? Good. Moving on. Counselor Daniel? How are things diplomatically?"
Daniel straightened some of his files. "We've been in communication with all major powers on Eternia. Avion and Insectia agree that there should be reparation on our part, but are reluctant to offer military services until the Horde fully reveals itself as a major threat. The Bears offer their condolences, but would rather see what plays out then join in. The Cats apologized, but other than that, have offered no stance on the Horde whatsoever. The other kingdoms of Men have isolated themselves and will only offer their assistance if pressured."
"So, it seems we're on our own," Randor grumbled.
"For now, yes, it seems so."
King Randor nodded a little. "Is that all?"
"Yes, sire."
"Tobias?" asked Randor to the counselor of Leadership.
"I have spoken just recently to King Stephen and Queen Johanna. Both North and West Eternos are in lock-downs. All the villages have been well-armed."
"Laslos? What of the survivors of South Eternos?" asked Randor. "Are they getting the attention they need?"
Laslos nodded. "Yes, sire, though it is more psychological than physical. We are dealing the best we can."
Randor turned finally to Thomas. "Thomas?"
"The entire kingdom is on highest alert. Volunteers have taken up arms in the hope of securing villages and towns. All Royal Soldiers have been pulled from leave time and are currently being armed. Right now, intelligence agents are scouring the energy trail that the Horde hid themselves in. We're trying to find an origin point, but that's more of Man-At-Arms territory."
"Rohad."
Man-At-Arms nodded. "So far, the energy trail reaches back into Desert, but we're not sure to what extent. I'll keep you up-dated best I can."
"Bertha," Randor addressed the heavy-set woman at the end of the table, "you spoke to some of the survivors. What kind of technology do they have?"
"Robotics, King Randor. Lasers. Tanks. Other energy based weapons. All of which is superior to ours."
"Commander Duncan, you spoke to the Elders this morning . . ."
"Yes, sire. The Elder could not have foreseen the return of Hordak, though they confess that they have been sensing great evil for some time now. They have recalled all Gunslinger-Rangers, as well as all clerks and other personnel."
"Including Teelana?" asked the king. Marlena blinked with some surprise. It seemed out of place, though neither had had the chance to even see Teelana for some time now.
"Yes."
"Good. She'll be safe there." Randor paused. "Okay, I want everyone to - "
There was a brisk knock at the door. Randor nodded and the door was opened. An aide came in and handed a computer pad to Man-At-Arms, then immediately left.
"What is it?" asked Randor.
"One moment, sire," Man-At-Arms replied. He handed it off Thomas. Thomas looked over. Everyone else waited in suspense.
"Thomas . . ." King Randor began.
"Sire," Thomas said then. "We have it. We've tracked them down. Our scouts have confirmed a base in the borderlands."
"What?!"
"Yes sire. It's the same base that the attack was launched from. From what we can tell, it was built from the ruins of Morgoth's old fortress."
"Can you get us an image?" Randor questioned.
Man-At-Arms tapped a few keys on the computer pad and then at a small on the table. The image of four rectangular bunkers appeared on the tabletop. Between the bunkers were vehicles, robotic soldiers, and weapons supplies.
"I want to attack it," Kind Randor told them solidly. "I want to attack it and I want it rubble." He looked up at the group assembled before him. "What can we do to destroy it?"
Duncan glanced between Thomas and Rohad.
"Well, sire, the three of us were thinking of a basic strategy if and when we discovered the base. It looks like the terrain of this area will allow us to execute it," Duncan returned.
"Tell it to me."
They did - all of three of them - and when they were done, Randor sat silently for a long minute in thought before giving his full approval.
Sweat glistened on his blue skin as Keldor reached back and retrieved both sickles. He crossed them before his chest and glared at the three Horde Troopers that came rushing towards him. Keldor leapt up at the first one and slashed straight its head, sending sparks into the air.
The second and third Horde Troopers came forward and Keldor slipped his sickles into both their chests, small explosions blasting out from their backs. He then yanked the sickles out and slashed off their domed heads.
"That was nothing," Keldor told Calyx, who stood at the edge of the room. "Barely even worth breaking out a sweat over."
"Perhaps. It's been 48 hours since hostilities began and while you may think that you are ready for true combat, I know better." The rock-man stepped forward. "This war has only just begun."
"Of that I have no doubt. But I have grown much stronger from my days as a younger man with a weak heart."
Calyx nodded only a little.
They left the training room and entered into the courtyard that sat in the center of the four bunkers. This was once Morgoth's fortress some fifty years ago and Hordak had insisted on re-building it exactly as it once was. Keldor didn't seem think much of it, but he knew that Calyx had thought it to be a good idea. Something about the Horde picking up from the ashes . . .
As they walked between Bat-Mechs and Tanks, a lieutenant came running up to them.
"Sirs! We have a development!"
"What is it?" asked Calyx.
"Several of our scouts have been destroyed. And we are currently detecting what appears to Battle Hawks heading to a series of ridges north of here," the lieutenant reported.
"They've found us, then," Keldor assumed.
"Indeed. Have the Battle Hawks landed?"
"Our latest report showed that they had dropped altitude at the ridges and were making for a landing."
"Lock onto their current position and prepare a brigade to march there immediately. I will remain here with Keldor."
"Yes, sir."
The lieutenant scurried away.
"I should go back to Snake Mountain," Keldor said then, glancing out upon the Desert that lay out before them. "If they find me here . . ."
"You doubt our success?" Calyx said, his eyes studying Keldor's demeanor. "You doubt us too easily."
"Perhaps, but I know the forces of Eternos."
"Did you really?"
Keldor didn't answer. The truth was that he really didn't. When he was living at the Palace, he spent most of his time locked his room - ignoring everything else. This was one of those times that he really regretted doing that.
"I'll be in the Command Center, Keldor. You set-up the Troopers along a perimeter around the fortress. I don't want anything getting in here. Just in case."
"Of course, Calyx."
The massive rock-man entered into the command bunker. Keldor took a deep breath, nerves a little uneasy. The battle at South Eternos had been exhilarating, but this one was going to be dangerous. He wasn't sure why, but he had a feeling that something was wrong here. Some small detail that Calyx was overlooking . . .
As he watched the Horde Troopers march across the barren land towards the ridges that stood on the far northern horizon, his heart skipped a beat. There was trouble. Great trouble.
Duncan glanced at his communicator one last time. There was a single beep, which indicated that Man-At-Arms' end was going successfully. The Horde Troopers had taken the bait. The plan that was laid out before King Randor only twenty-four hours was now unfolding just fine. Now would come the hard part.
He thought of Teelana, in one of the highest rooms in the Hall of Wisdom and thought of his child she was carrying. He hated this war for forcing her to stay with the Elders. He hated it even more for the possibility of himself getting killed.
"I must survive this," he muttered to himself. "For my love and for my child, I must survive all of this."
The unit of soldiers followed him up the next dune. Two more beyond this and it would be battle. Repayment for the lives lost at South Eternos. He gripped his weapon in preparation.
Command Unit Alpha-0-3-1-2 halted the Horde Troopers behind him as they entered into an area between two tall cliffs. Sitting before them were twenty-five Battle Hawks. Sensors indicated that it had not been long since the Battle Hawks had landed - exhaust was still rising from their thrusters.
However . . .
"Where are the pilots? Where are the soldiers?" asked Sub-Command Unit 4-4-3-3 of Command Unit Alpha 0-3-1-2.
As soon as those words were voiced, the edges of the cliffs were suddenly filled with activity. Man-At-Arms appeared above them.
"FIRE!" Rohad shouted, pointing down at the enemy.
All around him, Royal Soldiers that had been in hiding opened fire. Laser beams sliced down from the top of the cliffs and struck the Horde Troopers. However, Command Unit 0-3-1-2 was no pushover. He returned fire, along with the rest of the Horde Troopers. Energy fire crisscrossed the air, striking at both air and land.
Man-At-Arms ordered the Royal Soldiers to pull back. As soon they did, he pressed a key on his communicator. The Battle Hawks below suddenly exploded, blasting a hefty portion of the Horde Troopers into scrap metal.
In the chaos below, the Royal Soldiers spun back to their previous positions and fired once more upon the remaining Horde Troopers.
Man-At-Arms sent a pair of beeps to Command Duncan.
Keldor stood behind three lines of Horde Troopers, still not able to shake the uncertain feeling. As he ordered the last of the Troopers into position, his comm-link with Calyx buzzed.
"Keldor. What is it?"
"We have a situation. We've just received a scattered transmission from the Horde Troopers we sent to find those Battle Hawks. There was some kind of ambush."
It clicked. Keldor suddenly realized that the Battle Hawks wouldn't have been able to take down the Horde scouts from the air. There would have to be a ground force . . . there would have to be someone on the land that would -
"CALYX! We have a problem!"
Before Keldor could continue, he watched with horror as Royal Soldiers of Eternos came up from a nearby dune on horseback. Over half of them were looking up. Keldor quickly followed their gaze . . . and his eyes widened when he saw the black mass about to rain upon him and the Horde Troopers.
Hundreds of arrows came striking down, slicing through the all-too-slow first line of Horde Troopers. As the horsemen came to the bottom of the dune, a second volley of arrows struck, ripping through even more Horde Troopers.
Keldor ducked and rolled for cover. By now, the Horde Troopers were firing back, but the Royal Soldiers weren't stopping.
"Keldor! Report!" shouted Calyx.
"WE NEED MORE TROOPS OUT HERE! NOW! THEY CAUGHT US OFF-GUARD!"
Keldor dove for the entrance and slammed the door behind him. He rushed down the corridor and into the Command Center. Calyx's jaw dropped when as he watched the horsemen came crashing upon the Horde Troopers outside the fortress walls.
"Secure all bunkers!" Calyx ordered. "Pour out all reinforcements!"
One of the techs looked up from his station. "Lord Calyx, we are getting feed from the ambush area! One of the Horde Troopers is still active and they're sending us a live feed! It looks like Battle Tanks, sir!"
Keldor looked at the monitor and watched as Man-At-Arms was leading a force of Battle Tanks from the ridges. They were outnumbered. Horribly. Both Calyx and Keldor could see this.
An explosion rocked the Command Center. It seemed it wasn't just arrows they were packing.
"Order the evacuation!" Calyx shouted. "Pull out and regroup at Typhoon Canyon!"
"Hordak's going to be furious . . ." Keldor muttered.
"Would you rather remain here? MOVE OUT!"
Explosions shook the base, blasting section of roof and wall into the desert floor.
"Beta units - maintain full assault on that western bunker!" Man-At-Arms ordered. "Duncan!"
The commander looked over Rohad and smiled. "The northern bunker is secure!"
There was a blast of heat from above as twin ships blasted off from the courtyard headed northeast.
"Where are they headed?" Duncan asked.
"The Dark Hemisphere," Rohad replied as he fired a few blasts at the remaining Horde Troopers. "Where evil resides."