Chapter Eleven: "Coordinated Attacks"

Rohad hunkered low to the ground, laser cannon position on his shoulder. He pointed to the soldiers next to him and they took the same position. They all squatted in the bushes, watching as a convoy marched on the road not fifteen feet before them. The Horde was loading up their most recent base in the Evergreen Forest.

He lifted his hand to shoulder-height so that his soldiers could see it. He then made a fist. Five seconds later, laser fire and missiles went ripping through the area and went crashing against the convoy on the road.

"Were under attack!" shouted one of the Horde Troopers a mere second before his body exploded violently.

All around him, Horde Troopers opened fire at the emerging, armored soldiers. Rohad, the Man-At-Arms of Eternos, turned emotionally distanced himself from the cries of dead royal soldiers around him. He made for a tank behind three Horde Troopers. One Horde Trooper fell to a laser blast from one of the soldiers; Man-At-Arms' own laser destroyed the second.

The last one received a dagger in the top of its dome-like head. Man-At-Arms climbed to the top of the tank, one of his bones creaking just a little bit as he grabbed a rung. He was getting far too old for this, he knew. But his age wasn't going to stop him from fighting in this war.

Once on top of the tank, two other Royal Soldiers joined him. Man-At-Arms and the one soldier provided the cover fire as the third one opened the top hatch. However, before the three of them could leap in, a beam of magical energy sliced through the air. The top of the tank exploded and the trio were thrown violently onto the ground.

Rohad turned around watched as a man with blue skin and dressed in a purple cloak leapt over the burning slag to confront them. Carrying with him a ram-head staff, Rohad immediately understood that this was not one of the Three. This was someone else. Someone strangely familiar.

Man-At-Arms stood up, laser ready. He let lose. The man moved swiftly, avoiding laser fire. He recognized those moves. They were the same sort of dodge positions that he himself had taught. But who could it be? Those moves were fairly standard, but required almost Rohad's own mentorship to be executed so smoothly.

A voice came over the comm-set. It was his second-in-command. "Sir, we are being overwhelmed. The Horde Troopers must have been hiding some of their numbers."

Before Rohad could respond, a large, furry creature came bounding forth, snarling and growling. The two soldiers that had helped him get on top of the tank were ripped right through.

"Fall back," Rohad ordered, laying down some cover fire. A few of the other soldiers joined him as the entire unit started to recede into the forest, away from the road.

"Do we pursue?" asked a Horde Trooper.

"No," Keldor answered. "We need to get these reinforcements to the base. The river must be held."

Randor touched the key before him and Rohad was seen, looking sweaty and tired. "What happened?" he asked.

"There were too many of them. That base of theirs will be secure by nightfall. There's no way we can get divert enough soldiers up here in time," Rohad answered and wiped his wrinkled face with a rag. "If the Talya River is in their control, that means that the eastern half of the Evergreen Forest is theirs."

"Understood. Rohad . . . perhaps some of our new allies will aid us?"

"Worth a try."

Stratos watched as Prince Paw, son of the old King Carnivus, made a face of disgust on the screen. By Stratos' side was General Buzz-Off, who stared impatiently at Paw.

"Yes, we have attackers in that area," Paw said. "But do you truly want us to battle for you?"

"You misunderstand us," Stratos replied. "It's a joint attack. The eastern seaboard is filled with Horde activity. Between the Bats, the Ilkorts, and the Horde Troopers, it's a 30 mile swath of Horde invaders ready to attack."

"Correct me if I'm wrong," Paw began, "but that is only in the Mystic Mountains. The Vine Jungle is not part of their coastal holdings. I am not prepared to order my fellow Cats into battle for something that will not even harm us."

"It's only a matter of time, Paw," Buzz-Off argued. "The Horde aren't going to wait. With the Avions and the Insectoids attacking the center and the Cats attacking the south, that will bottle up their forces into the north."

"The Ilkorts will remain, and so will the Horde Troopers - despite the fact that their numbers will be severally reduced. The Bats, however, will most likely draw back to their homeland," Stratos explained further.

"I am seeing no guarantees here," Paw countered.

"You won't be satisfied until they're right on your doorstep, will you?" Buzz-Off snapped angrily.

"We are not ignorant of the war, General," Paw replied simply. "Our interest is only . . . defensive."

Buzz-Off gritted his teeth. "Why you - !"

"Buzz-Off," Stratos cut in calmly. "Prince Paw, if the Horde decides to move into the Vine Jungle, they will be able to with little difficulty. With the hold they have on the southern coast, the supplies line would be strong. Any incursion would be well supplied and very easily planned. They are counting on you not attacking, don't you see? They aren't expecting you to attack first."

Paw leaned back in his chair and regarded the pair of them carefully. After a long, drawn-out pause, he nodded. "All right. I will send Major Lex in with a squadron tomorrow at dawn. Satisfactory?"

"Yes. Very much so. You won't regret it, Prince Paw."

"I had better not."

The screen clicked off.

Buzz-Off let out a long breath. "I lost my cool back there," he confessed.

"It's understandable. The Cats are difficult to work with even under the best conditions. These are far from it."

The Insectoid Bee sighed. "I'm still very new to this. I still am very unsure of my self."

"I know, but time will bring nothing but experience. And I have a feeling this war will be long enough to give you more than enough."

"It will end someday, won't it?" Buzz-Off asked, sounding weaker than he wanted to.

"The war . . . yes. It will." Stratos didn't quite believe those words, but he made it sound like he did. "But let's not sit here and muse. Tomorrow, the Cats are attacking the southern compound of the coast. Which means we need to attack the center two hours before hand."

Buzz-Off nodded. Back to business.

"The wind is stiff tonight," Keldor said simply.

Calyx glanced at him, but said nothing at first. They stood in the shadow of the Horde compound that sat a good fifty feet from the Talya River.

"Something wrong with that?" Calyx asked finally.

"No, not really. I'm concerned, though."

"Why is that?"

"Eternos will attack again. I know this."

"And just how do you know?"

Keldor gave Calyx a look that told the rock-man not to ask that question. Calyx pressed no further and instead just concentrated on their environments. Around, the sounds of the night were quiet. The river was quiet too.

"Something's wrong," Calyx muttered.

"I'm getting' an odd scent," Beast-Man said then. "From the river."

Calyx glanced at Keldor and Beast-Man, then pointed to twenty Horde Troopers. Keldor, Beast-Man, Calyx and the Horde Troopers walked away from the compound (which, really, was no different looking than just a tall, wide box) and came to the edge of the river.

"What is this?" asked Calyx as they took in the sight of the river.

Small boats, each about ten feet in length, were floating slowly by. There were a good thirty of them - each one completely devoid of activity and movement.

"I am getting some strange readings, sir," one of the Horde Troopers said.

"What kind of readings?"

"My sensors seem to be detecting bizarre amounts of natural energy along with vague life-signs."

"Ghosts?" asked Beast-Man innocently.

"No."

Suddenly, the boats began to rock violently. There was a burst of sound and - in mid-air - Bears came into view. They crashed onto the shore, immediately engaging the enemy. A memory came sailing back to Keldor. Bears were well known for their mining skills and chief among the minerals that they minded was a substance called Bambite. Bambite was the key to invisibility.

In the heat of rage, Keldor let loose energy bolts from his Chaos Staff. A few Bears went searing back, falling into the river. But for every Bear that was sent backwards, two more would come right out of the boats.

Splashing through the water, these Bears were ready for a fight. Among their weapons of sword and staffs were clubs that could produce small bolts of lightning. These Lightning Clubs were quite destructive against the Horde Troopers, whose armor sometimes went flying off when struck by one.

Calyx, Beast-Man and Keldor went rushing back to the compound, where Horde Troopers were emptying. Laser beams sizzled through the night air, striking a few of the Bears that came bounding up from the river.

"Line up and move forward!" shouted Calyx.

There came a sound from the forest and then even more Bears appeared. Weapons on the ready, they all came colliding with the Horde Troopers with the ferocity that only these creatures could have. Despite trying to be as peaceful as possible, none could argue that the Bears weren't without their own form of destruction prowess.

The Horde Troopers, in short, didn't stand a chance.

Though the Bears took casualties, the Horde was wiped out, the robotic bodies torn apart. Beast-Man, Keldor and Calyx said nothing as they pulled back towards a Horde transport. Explosions were now beginning to erupt near the complex.

"This is insanity," Keldor uttered as the trio entered the hovercraft.

"Hordak himself must be involved in the war now," Calyx told him. "This war is falling apart without him at the front lines."

Beast-Man growled. They were at the tree line and below, the complex was now aflame with small explosions bursting out here and there. "I could have taken 'em," Beast-Man grumbled.

"No, you couldn't have," Calyx disagreed.

Batros and Haramesh emerged from their tents as soon as the sensors detected the army. Haramesh looked out upon the pre-dawn horizon and watched as a huge flying army of Insectoids and Avions were making their way towards the coastal Horde territory.

"How many?" asked Batros.

"Eight hundred," replied Haramesh.

Behind them, Prahvus emerged. "That is nothing," Prahvus told them. "I have activated all of our Horde Troopers here. All Ilkorts and Bats are ready for battle. This will be a short battle."

There was a sudden roar as Bat-Mechs took the sky, heading right for the on-coming army. Prahvus and the others smiled as victory became so very clear to them.

Stratos and the Avions launched their rockets at the Bat-Mechs, which resulted in the fiery destruction of two or three. However, the Bat-Mechs were moving too fast. As soon as they were all in firing range, the Bat-Mechs let loose and opened fired. Beams of intense energy came shooting out, ripping many of the Avions apart.

Buzz-Off moved his forces in, using lasers on the Bat-Mechs. But the young General found himself surprised at just how much of a pounding the Bat-Mechs could take. Scores of his own men were being seared into pieces by the on-going Bat-Mech onslaught.

"PRESS FORWARD!" cried Stratos, trying to keep his people organized enough to avoid the Bat-Mechs.

As the Bat-Mechs veered off to swing in a few minutes for a second attack, Stratos and Buzz-Off took their men to the heart of the Horde's coastal holdings. It was there that an army of Horde Troopers had just formed. Laser beams went burning through the air, striking an Insectoid or Avion here and there.

The Avions and Insectoids dove down and some of them began to engage the Horde Troopers on the ground. Weapon sounds filled the air. Between lasers and rockets, the rising sun was greeted by the heated area of battle.

The battle was fever pitched and both Buzz-Off found it too chaotic to get a grip on anything one thing going on. The Horde Troopers and the Ilkorts were making it difficult for the Avions and Insectoids to catch any sort of breath.

And then the Bats came.

Major Lex pulled out his long, curved knife and let the way. Behind him and beside him came two hundred Cats, each one with their weapons out and ready for battle. Ahead, the Horde Troopers opened fire. Some of his soldiers were killed in the opening barrage, but Major Lex didn't stop. With remarkable speed, he and his soldiers were right on top of the Horde Troopers.

The battle broke out immediately and at first, it appeared to belong to the Cats. They sliced through the first, second and third lines of Horde Troopers. The strongest resistance they met was from the fourth line, which was also the fullest. Even then, though, the fourth line seemed to pose little threat.

And then . . . a transport arrived, carrying Calyx, Prahvus, and Keldor.

"What is this madness?" cried Keldor in the full sunrise.

"It seems there has been a coordinated attack," Calyx commented. "I was just receiving reports from the north. The Avions and Insectoids are currently battling up there."

"This is insane!" shouted Keldor, fury rising within. "How dare they try and stop? Don't they realize that nothing stops the HORDE? THAT NOTHING STOPS EVIL?"

Rage filled Keldor and that rage became energy, and that energy fumed in the Chaos Staff . . . and then was unleashed upon the Cats below. It was Keldor's first solo act of mass murder. It would not be his last.

It felt glorious to him.

Stratos slammed his fist into a Bat soldier, and then tossed him into a Horde Trooper. With the brief second he had, he blasted off into the sky and engaged a few of the Bats that now screeched and circled the battle below. It was all turning into a mess fast. A bloody mess.

Suddenly, a body grabbed him, claws digging into his flesh. Batros pulled Stratos down from the sky and slammed his against the rocky ground. Stratos could feel new wounds opening and bones breaking from the impact. Stratos attempted to stand, but the ear-piercing sound of Batros' sonic scream sent him crumbling.

"I won't lose another battle to you."

"You will," returned Stratos. "You will lose every battle until you stop walking this path of evil."

Batros's clawed hands sliced up Stratos. Blood, flesh and fur went flying. Stratos got in a good punch or two, but Batros was the victor in a matter of seconds. He kicked and snapped Stratos' wing.

"Tell you friend Randor that sparing my life and letting me go will be his greatest mistake," Batros whispered into the beaten Stratos' ear.

Batros then lifted Stratos and tossed him back into the battle. He landed on a number of Insectoids. One of them grabbed his limp form and looked desperately at the nearby Buzz-Off. Buzz-Off's eyes widened. After taking out a nearby Ilkort, he pressed a key on his wrist communicator.

"Retreat! We are pulling out! All Avions and Insectoids - pull back!"

At noon, King Randor entered into the Situation Room alone. Silently, he pressed a few keys, turning on a series of monitors that connected him with a number of places on Eternia: a MASH unit in the Mystic Mountains; Palace Felinus of the Cats; Avion; and Castle Thrum of the Bears.

"I can not believe this happened!" shouted Prince Paw. "I sent out 200 hundreds warriors and only 30 returned!"

Buzz-Off, who was at the MASH, snarled. "It was a loss. We've all had them."

"Speak for yourself," said King Jade of the Bears. "Our victory in the Evergreen Forest allowed for the Horde to redraw some of their forces from the area. We did a job that even Eternos could not do."

Lady Hawk entered the conversation. "Had you joined when the war first began, we could have expelled the Horde from Eternia altogether by now."

"Stop it. Right now," Randor cut in. "There will be no more of this bickering." All eyes fell on King Randor. The leader of Eternos continued. "Prince Paw, I would advise your father to begin stepping up defenses. Consolidate your power base. I personally advise that you join with the Bears in creating a stronger alliance between the two greater powers of the Evergreen Forest and the Vine Jungle. Eternos is spread too thin right now to maintain a strong presence, but we will do our best.

"Buzz-Off, Hawk - it would probably be a good idea to hold as much ground in the Mystic Mountains as you can. The Horde must not claim any more territory. People - we will not win this war by bickering with ourselves."