Assault

The fortress was burning.

But it had not yet fallen despite the amount of firepower they were pouring into it. Great blue pulses of energy soared in the sky and crashed against the walls, spitting fire and bricks and bodies everywhere as defenders were sent flying. But even then, they held, pouring plasma fire down onto the attackers as they died in waves trying to finally assault the battered walls.

The green hooded man standing on the crest of the hill noted this all as he made a few mental calculations, absently rubbing against his red colored leather armor. After a few seconds, he sighed and flipped open the blue circular item, watching the digital hologram build itself. A decision had to be made.

This had been going on from the last few days, this cycle of death with no gain from the besieging camp. Casualties were mounting up, and this fort was far too crucial not to take. He had to ask his master for advice.

Soon, another robed figure appeared in the hologram, and the two briefly exchanged words before the green hooded man nodded and flipped the device close. Time to get to work, he thought as he jogged down the hill and into the ever busy siege camp. He needed allies.

Two more hooded figures were already waiting for him at the base of the hill, another man while the other obviously female from her skirt under her coat as they fell in step behind him. Together, the three passed by the firing line that was their army trying to pick off any stray defender on the walls.

One person in particular, another green hooded lady, was of their interest. She was using a technological-looking bow, a black strip of metal with blue power lines pulsing throughout the weapon as she let loose arrow after arrow up into the battlements. Every shot was a kill, every arrow a monument to those she killed as she poured into the defenders.

Upon noticing her green hooded companions though, the archer quickly grabbed her quiver and slung it back around her waist, quickly running to catch up to the three. Once the main man glanced behind, the three gave slight nods, signifying their commitment to the cause. There was no turning back.

And so, the four began to run, not bothering to let out a battle cry or even a whisper of a sound as they dashed across the no-man's land. The defenders immediately targeted the dashing cloaked people, but it was futile as they each nimbly dodge each shot with athletic grace, dashing left and right as they closed the distance between them and the walls. That was the signal!

The remainder of the attacking army rallied and shouted as they followed the vanguard of four, leaping over the barriers and making their way to the fortress as well. A few laser bolts caught some of them, leaving them ominously motionless on the dirt as their comrades trampled over them. There was no stopping their zealousness for the cause.

A few feet away from the walls, one of the female figures skidded to a stop and slammed their hands down on the dirt. Immediately, a pale blue bubble of energy shielding rose and absorbed all the laser shots, be them targeted at the four or the main army. The archer stopped running as well as she activated her bow and notched three arrows on the string made of a light beam. She pulled all three back, paused, then released to watch the trio of projectiles explode on the walls, sending defenders flying everywhere from the explosive arrows.

Meanwhile, at the base of the crumbling walls were the two male hooded figures as they pressed their backs against the brick-like material. There was a moment of silence as they looked at each other before they both gave a brief hacking laugh. They had done this too many times for this not to be taken too seriously.

With a flash, the hooded figure with a different red leather armor called into his hand an odd blade, one that composed of three black diamond outlines in its shape. A quick flick, and his friend took out a stone dagger, running his finger along it as it glowed brightly, the light energy condensing and augmenting the small weapon into a blade of light. The two nodded, then leapt upwards.

The soldiers in blood armor up top were caught by utter surprise, and literal heads rolled as the two kept swinging and slicing as they secured a small foothold. The sudden breach was enough to cause nearby enemy soldiers to turn from their fire positions in an effort to kill the two assassins. That was a mistake.

Seeing the defenders confused and shocked, the archer yelled and gestured to the main army. Immediately, there was a hollow war cry as the sieging troops leapt from their foxholes and began charging over the open ground. There were a few quick snapshots that brought down a few figures, but the attackers managed to cross the no man's land and began to assault directly the walls with grappling hooks and plasma burners.

Meanwhile, the two warriors were quickly cleaning their section of the battlements of any final foes. The swordsman wedged his blade into the neck of an armored foe before leaning back, a dagger of light flying right next to his throat. Said projectile embedded itself in another enemy's chest, knocking the surprised soldier off the wall and down into the courtyard. With a quick slice, the final enemy on the wall was finished off and the assassins regrouped.

The two girls quickly scaled the damaged wall as the main body troops did so, the four quickly meeting up before directing the assaulting troops to drop down into the courtyard. The remaining enemy garrison was forming up in the massive square in the center, and the battle inside the fortress began. It would be hard and grim fighting...unless the defending commander was forced to surrender. Or, at the very least, killed.

Information feeds quickly located the man inside the fortress keep and the four assassins moved swiftly, darting through the main battle in the courtyard to reach the keep. Here and there they paused to give quick hand to their troops, be it a quick slash or a shout of encouragement. Upon reaching the end of the courtyard, the band quickly began climbing, ignoring and being ignored by the combatants below as the armies clashed.

The final defenders on the keep's walls were utterly surprised and cut down when the four got to the top. With a swift gesture from the assassin's leader, they split apart again, heading in opposite directions of their entry. The swordsman and the mute went together while the priest and the archer went the other way, both teams intent on taking down their target.

Bands of soldiers tried holding up the swordsman, but he danced and slashed through them all, dashing quick as fast as he could. But then, when he kicked open a door, he found himself staring down a firing line of plasma rifles trained on the now-open entryway. With a loud curse, he felt himself yanked back as the rifles fired.

His partner pulled him back and put herself in the way, quickly clasping her hands together. A pale shield rapidly emerged from her, absorbing the deadly hail of plasma as the soldiers fired. After checking to see that her colleague was fine, the girl viciously activated her blades and leapt into the enemy, tearing them apart in close quarters combat as they frantically tried to hit the nimble assassin.

Seeing the enemy in front occupied, the swordsman took a quick glance out of a nearby window and saw the other couple in the courtyard. But they seemed to be in a spot of trouble: they had found their target, a heavily armored man in black and red, but his subordinates were keeping the two assailants at bay. They weren't exactly losing as several lifeless bodies of the enemy were at their feet, but they weren't going to break through in time as new information was fed into the swordsman's ear. A small enemy fleet had broken through the blockade up in orbit and were heading to their location, possibly looking to extract their target. This could not happen.

Taking in a deep breath, the swordsman stuck his odd blade into the floor and raised his right hand. His gauntlet whirled and hummed before spitting out into the courtyard an odd canister, the item clattering on the ground and attracting everybody's attention. The two assassins immediately backed off from it, fading into the shadows just as the EMP canister activated, neutralizing all guards who were too close. Screams and the smell of cooked flesh filled the air as many of the living fell and those still alive were heavily disorientated. The commander, realizing that his life was truly in danger now, began to panic and tried fleeing up the stairs, to the highest tower in the fortress.

But the other two were already on him, cutting and shooting down all the dazed guards in their way. As they closed in, the commander frantically opened a door to escape through...only to find another assassin, the other girl on the other side, her hand blades drenched in blood as she slowly approached him. The commander, seeing no other way out as he looked between the assassin in front and the assassins in back, drew his blade-

Only to have an odd blade shoved in his back as the swordsman leapt from the window above and impaled his target from the behind.

A/N: A week without Internet is fun. But I hope you still are hyped!

Oh, and a colleague of mine to draw an illustration of our main heroes for the Protoss Rebirth! I hope this just riles you up even more!