The World at War
Chapter 9
"This is an outrage!" Ethelbert exploded, "Damn Norad to the deepest hell!" he slammed his fist, "That's it! No more games! The Empire of the Sechs has declared war on the Kingdom of Norad!"
he yelled, "Bring all my commanders, we're going to surprise the Noradians the same way they did us!"
"Sir!" Wilkes said, "Are you really sure you want to do this!?"
"They kill my men and raid my secret facility!" Ethelbert roared, "Yes! Send the word to the Representative in the Council of Nations!" he told a wizard, who relayed his message.
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"This meeting is now in session." the Grand Chairman said as the Representatives of all the nations of the continent sat, however, the Sech Representative stormed in last. "What is it with this sudden appearance?" the Chairman asked,
"In the morning.." the Sechs representative said, "One of our facilities was blatantly and suddenly attacked by a force of Noradian soldiers... As a response to such an audacious attack... Ethelbert, Great Lord of the Sechs Empire and all her holdings, has declared war on such a pathetic and cowardly nation unless certain agreements are met!"
The representatives started to gasp and yell,
"The Noradians must give back all they have wrongfully taken!" the Sechs representative started to list the terms, "They must turn over the commander who was responsible... And the King of Norad must make a formal apology in the Grand Council.."
"This is buffoonery!" the Noradian Representative yelled, "We will not heed to such humiliating terms!"
"Then you will pay!" the Sechs Representative responded and stormed out, and the whole council entered into anarchy.
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"We're marching off to war! Hurah! Hurah!" the Sechs soldiers chanted as they made their way into Noradian lands, "We're going to through the Nisan Pass, to boot that old Noradian King's Ass! Hurah Hurah!"
"Men!" the Sechs commander told his chanting legions, "We will reach the walls of Nisan and cover them with Noradian blood!"
"Hoorah!" the soldiers yelled,
"We will show them Nories the might of the Sechs!" the commander continued as tanks steamrolled past them,
"From the shores of Alvarna,
and the Mountains of Nevee!
Well boot the Nories out of the land,
and drive them to the sea!
Their ships will never save them,
we'll kill them before they're there!
And if those sails should come,
We'll blast them from the air!"
The soldiers sung as Sechs War Balloons flew over head in formation.
The Sechs War Machine had sprung into action!
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"Here we go!" the Noradians turn to chant,
"We fought them once, we will do so again!
The Noradians rule now and then!
There ain't no Sechie we can't beat,
We'll block 'em out and give 'em nothing to eat!
We rule the seas and rule the land,
We are the King's powerful hand!"
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"What is going on?" Raguna said as he saw an army of soldiers march off in the distance,
"This is really odd." Ivan added,
"I haven't seen so may soldiers move at once." Kings mumbled, "Except... No..."
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"They took everything, sire." a soldier reported to Ethelbert as he came out of the Black Eclipse citadel,
"There was evil going on in that lab." Mikoto grumbled,
"Look, girl." Ethelbert turned to her, "I don't think you understand.. The Sechs were trying to save the world!"
"They didn't take the Pseudos, though.." the soldier added, "They are still in their capsules."
"Pseudos?" Wilkes asked, "What?"
"It's part of the program." Ethelbert said, "Now... If you want to see your friends again, I suggest you leave now, lest the fighting around the borders gets to dangerous.."
"Alright, sir." Wilkes said, "We must regroup..."
"Sgt. Wilkes." another soldier came up, "Commander Styx wanted you to have this." he said and handed him a little stone,
"Thank you.." Wilkes gulped as he acquired the memento, "the Commander was a great man."
"He was." Ethelbert said, "Now... go... I-"
"Wah!" a voice yelled and five figures crashed to the ground,
"Camus?!" Mikoto said in shock as the four figures stood,
"Damn I love magic!" Ivan said, "This is great!"
"How.." Wilkes mumbled,
"I still had a runic link with Mikoto." Ivan said, "I just did a warp spell!"
"Raguna!?" Ethelbert said in shock,
"Ethelbert!" Raguna took a fighting stance, "I know you are behind this!"
"Behind what!?" Ethelbert yelled,
"Abducting the Earthmates!" Raguna said, "You're as bad as Gilbert!"
"Don't you dare compare me to that coward!" Ethelbert roared, "For once I am the good guy!"
"How!?" Raguna argued,
"I am trying to stop Gilbert's plans!" Ethelbert said, "He want's world domination! I want to save it!"
"What!?" Ivan said, "How silly! You're evil!"
"No!" Ethelbert said, "Look.." he sighed, "The Black Eclipse Program is not about making Earthmates weapons... It's about making others Earthmates.." he sighed,
"Huh?" Wilkes said in confusion,
"Our spies have shown us that Gilbert was planning to make the Earthmates a weapon." Ethelbert informed, "I.e, the Dark Moon Program.. The Black Eclipse program was meant to counter that... We were trying to make other races have Earthmate capabilities! Elven Earthmates, Dwarven Earthmates! Human Earthmates!" he continued, "We needed the blood of true Earthmates to transfer the Runic Energy unto the others... We are trying to make people that can fight against Gilbert's Great Earthmate Warriors!"
"Woah..." Raguna muttered,
"Gilbert is planning to make the Earthmates so powerful that even an untrained child warrior can be a match for the most elite soldiers of the regular species." Ethelbert sighed, "I guess I'm just misunderstood."
"But where would Gilbert be hiding.." Camus mumbled,
"There are two facilities for the Dark Moon project.." Ethelbert informed, "There is the one by the capital and the other, the larger one, is unknown..."
"Let me see.." Ivan tried to concentrate, "I can't get a Runic signature on Gilbert... He must have masked it..."
"He burnt down the latter one." Kings informed,
"Then he must be in the greater one, were the real test subjects are." Ethelbert muttered, "I wish I could help you with a military force, but we are at war..."
"Can we at least provide the rest of the Dragoons?" Sgt. Wilkes asked,
"No..." Ethelbert mumbled, "We need palace defense... But I can spare you 8 teams... If that's enough."
"More than enough.." Wilkes said,
"Thank you." Camus agreed,
"You have to storm the Dark Moon Facility to stop that Mad King's plans." Ethelbert warned, "Now if you all excuse me, I have a war to handle." he said and departed with his posse of military leaders.
"Well then.." Raguna turned, "We leave ASAP."
0(Greater Dark Moon Facility, Unknown location in Norad)0
"Newcomers!" King Gilbert said in glee as Aden, Sonja, and Kyle were brought in, "Are you ready to be bestowed in glory?"
"Let us go!" Aden growled as he tried to fight back the soldiers that siezed him,
"I'm afraid that's not possible.." Gilbert chuckled,
"Then let me stay and they go." Aden bargained, "The child has no need to be here! Nor my wife! She isn't even an Earthmate!" he informed,
"What?" Gilbert said in shock,
"That's not right." a scientist argued, "The studies of the Sechs showed that she gives off the Runic signature of the Earthmate species."
"I'm not an Earthmate!" Sonja spat, "I am a Dragon Priestess! I do not associate myself with Earthmates!"
"But the man, your husband, is an Earthmate.." Gilbert said, "Unless... Close intimacy with Earthmates allows some of the runic forces to stay with you..."
"I am not an Earthmate!" Sonja continued, "Let me go!"
"Wah!" Kyle started to cry, "I wanna go home!"
"Well you're not!" Gilbert told him, "Take them to the lab! We need to convert them! And study her!" he pointed at Sonja, "I want to know her deal!"
"Aye sir!" the scientists and soldiers responded, however, two stayed behind.
"Is the Transcendalizer almost complete?" Gilbert asked on of the scientist,
"It will be ready for the first run during the evening." the scientist responded, "Also.." he turned back,
Commander Viscen slowly limped inside, accompanied by soldiers,
"The damn Earthmates..." he growled, "Sire! I have a suggestion!"
"What is that, Commander?" Gilbert asked,
"You need to blot out their emotions." Viscen answered, "Your nephews attacked me because of their strong familial links... Raguna's paternal instinct overrode the Earthmate Mind Scepter.."
"Hmm..." Gilbert mumbled, "Taking away their humanity... Their emotions... Will make them even ruthless fighters!" he smiled, "We shall increase the power of the Earth Stone!"
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"Ah..." Aden moaned as he was put under heavy sedation,
"This will only hurt a lot." one of the surgeons told him as he pulled out a saw,
"Damn..." Aden drowsily said, "You..." he was knocked out.
"Hah!" the sugeon said and started to cut through Aden's chest.
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"Stop it!" Sonja screamed, "I don't want it!" she saw the large needle headed her way,
"No one does, dear." a nurse chuckled, "But you need it!" she neared the point to the Priestess' elbow
"AH!" Sonja screamed when the injection entered her, sending a burning pain coursing through her body,
"Let's begin the operation!" the doctor said and raised his scalpel/
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"Let's go, Let's go!" the Dragoon units Ethelbert promised our heroes said as they arrived,
"I am under Sgt. Wilkes!" the main force leader said, "Where to?"
"We are going to raid the Dark Moon Facility." Sgt. Wilkes told the man, "Not the one by the capital, but the undisclosed one!"
"Alright." the leader said, "We'll travel with the main force and then branch off from there."
"Sounds like a plan." Camus nodded, and they went off.
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0(?)0
"Are you sure you want to do this?" a female voice asked,
"Yes..." a male voice responded, "I must find my sons."
"But.. Alright.." the female sighed, and lit up a cockpit, but not any regular cockpit, it was super advanced and showed the glory of space through it, "Preparing to enter atmosphere.." the voice said,
"It's time I meet you two again." the man, who was the pilot, mumbled and looked down at his hand.
The exterior of his surroundings revealed it to be a space ship, which lazily hovered over a planet.