AGNOMAKHOS
by Ulquiorra9000
Chapter 19
"GET OUT OF MY WAY!"
Snarling, Jaina sprinted her way up the city hall's wide front steps, sweeping her favor-infused swords across the armored guards. The spear-wielding men and women didn't even have a chance to cry out before Jaina's powerful strokes blasted them aside like rag dolls.
The sounds of battle in the main road grew distant as Jaina smashed open the city hall's front doors and hurried down the hallway. She didn't stop to admire the expensive vases or wall-mounted paintings, just tore up another flight of steps and toward the council chamber. More guards, these ones heavily-enchanted, raised their shields to block Jaina's mad charge.
Perisophia must have corrupted them somehow if they're standing up to me! Dismayed, Jaina reluctantly slashed her left sword across the guards' interlocked shields. Heliod's favor snarled and sputtered against the shields' tough enchantments, and for a moment, Jaina stood her ground, feet digging into the marble floor. I forgot how strong their enchantments are!
Encouraged, the guards counterattacked and thrust their enchanted spears right at Jaina's head. With only a split-second to react, Jaina broke off her assault and ducked the blows, then scrambled backwards. She panted heavily, staring the guards down. I don't have time for this! So, she sheathed her swords and held out her hands, as though grasping an imaginary rod.
I hate to do this to my fellow people, but I must. Heliod, Ephara, forgive me. Concentrating hard, Jaina brought her mission to the forefront of her mind: how the city was about to tear itself apart, how Heliod and Ephara were clouded by a dark force, how Jaina had endured a swamp of red tape trying to expose Perisophia. She alone stood against the real enemy, and consequences be damned!
A brilliant gold spear, a minature of Heliod's own spear Khrusor, materialized in Jaina's hands, composed of white mana. With a twirl, Jaina pointed the spear at the stubborn guards and channeled her favor's considerable energy into it.
The guards shouted as a wall-shuddering beam issued from Jaina's spear and tore through their enchanted shields with ease. The leftover energy threw the guards across the floor, their armor smoking and shattered.
"Sorry," Jaina huffed as she ran past, spear held tightly in her hands. Her heart raced as she approached the council chamber's shut doors, and she could feel the dark presence's energy coming from the door's other side. So, with finality, Jaina sliced the doors apart with her spear and jogged inside.
Perisophia stood alone, her back to Jaina as she watched the battle from the room's large windows. She wore her usual cherry-red robe and gold arm clasps, her hands held together behind her back. "Sun Champion," she said without turning around. "Why are you here? The rebels are nearly on my doorstep! The Reverent Army needs you."
"No, this city needs me. Big difference there," Jaina spat. She pointed her spear at Perisophia. "I've been looking for you, and I need answers! What is going on here? Why did you let everything go this far?"
Slowly, Perisophia turned around, looking confused. "We're on the same side," she told Jaina urgently. "The rebellion will destroy everything we've worked so hard to build! Agnomakhos... how fitting. The rebels would put an end to our democracy and freedom without a second thought."
Jaina ground her teeth. "They named themselves that to express how the council has abandoned freedom, most of all you! Now you're going to tell me why."
"Stop this, Sun Champion!" Perisophia demanded. She stamped a foot in frustration. "End this battle quickly, and we can talk. I won't have you neglecting your duty."
Something snapped in Jaina's mind. "Okay," she said grimly. "I'll do my duty and end this battle, just as you asked."
Taking a deep breath, Jaina narrowed down the mana in her spear and diverted its destructive abilities. Instead, a chunk of purifying mana collected in the spear's point, humming and rattling with pent-up energy. Suddenly, a thin line steaked out and pierced Perisophia's heart.
Perisophia shrieked as the beam hit her, and she stumbled back, clutching her smoking robes. She hunched her shoulders as though straining to hold something in, but her body shook and gave way. Her arms snapped out and she threw her head back as black and blue mana seeped from her skin.
Just as I thought. Something was controlling her! And it's finally coming out, Jaina thought, satisfied. But as she watched, the blue and black mana didn't flee the room. Instead, it poured into Perisophia's eyes, clouding them. Perisophia relaxed, and a cold smile crossed her face.
"I see why Heliod chose you," Perisophia commented, holding up a hand and flexing the fingers as though testing them. "A purifying beam, one that strips away deception... very clever. So you exposed me. What will you do about it?"
Jaina knew who she was talking to at once. "Phenax, god of deception," she growled, not lowering her spear. "I should have figured."
Phenax laughed. "Do not blame yourself, child! How could one mortal understand the machinations of a god so easily?"
"I think I get the general idea," Jaina retorted. "After the Shadow League's invasion, there was chaos and fear, and the council tightened its control. Then you took your chance to slip in and make things worse. Perisophia's the strongest individual in this city, so you put yourself in her and played up both sides of the civil war. Those rebels think they're being patronized by Purphoros, evident by their red robes. But I bet that was really you!"
"You get smarter all the time," Phenax leered. "You figured it out. That's right, those simpletons have no idea whose power really courses through them. Disguises are my specialty."
"And once your rebellion wins and overthrows the council," Jaina realized, "your influence will mushroom. After all, you thrive on betrayal, plots, and usurping authority. Then, you'd make a new government that you directly control. Meletis would be yours."
"I always envied Heliod and his precious city," Phenax admitted. "Erebos did too, but he put too much stock in that Rafael fellow. To win, you have to control your enemies from the inside! Never expose yourself to them."
Jaina grinned triumphantly. "But I broke your cover, and with this evidence, I can end the civil war and start peace talks with the rebels and other councilors. You're out of luck, Phenax. You lose."
"Don't take me lightly." Snarling, Phenax extended Perisophia's left arm and channeled his black and blue mana across her skin. The mana shot out, extending into a long tentacle that aimed itself right at Jaina's head.
Shocked, Jaina tumbled out of the way and knocked the tentacle aside with her spear. She winced as she felt the tentacle's dense, dark power; just how much mana had Phenax built up in Perisophia's body?
There was no time to lose. Jaina aimed her spear at Perisophia's body and charged it to the maximum, them released a deadly white mana beam. However, Phenax's agility matched Jaina's, and Perisophia's possessed body leaped to the side. The beam blasted through a window and through empty air.
Then, the dark tentacle came around again. Jaina was too slow this time; it coiled around her like a snake and pierced her head. There was a moment of darkness and agony -
"Where... by the gods..."
Jaina stood on the city hall's front steps. She didn't have Heliod's favor anymore, just her armor. She stared at the scene: black clouds drifted by on a red sky, while burnt bodies and skeletons littered the streets in pools of blood. Buildings stood ruined, cracked and shattered by some terrible force, and some had collapsed entirely. A freezing wind drifted across the scene.
"Is anyone out there?" Jaina hollered, but no one answered. Her throat tightening, Jaina ran down the steps, her body feeling numb and her mind racing to reject what she saw. Everyone couldn't be dead, they couldn't -
But Jaina had failed. Chaos and evil had swept the city, and not even the Sun Champion could stop it. Sobbing, Jaina made two helpless fists and realized that she stood alone. Heliod appeared in the horizon, but his face showed only disappointment and shame. Then, his skin turned papery and brown, his eyeballs fell out, and his flesh corroded away to reveal bones. The skeleton collapsed.
"NOOOOOOOOO!" Jaina fell to her knees, her face buried in her hands as she sobbed harder, tears burning her face, despair filling every square inch of her mind.
She didn't know that Phenax was watching the whole scene.
*o*o*o*o*
"Whoa!"
Alex instinctively covered his head as the machine's mana dish spat out another fierce beam, the strongest one yet. The machine swept its head slowly from side to side, raking its monstrous red mana beam across First and Fourth Battalion's ranks. Even the interlockng shields and white mana barriers couldn't hold up for long, and Alex saw more hoplites and battle mages flung into the air. Melted street bricks were blasted everywhere.
Encouraged, the rebels charged with a collective shout, their swords, spears and spells ready. Alex ran with them, keeping Argryos and Lakram in sight. He also scanned the enemy formation for Kulla, grimly determined to make the other man pay. No way would Kulla get away with throwing Alex in prison and defending the tainted council!
However, the Army was ready. Archers from the reserve platoons aimed their bows high and released a cloud of arrows burning with enchanted fire. The rebels ducked under hastily-cast white mana barriers just in time; exploding arrows arced over the battlefield and rained down on them. Some barriers shattered at the arrows' explosive touch, scorching throwing aside dozens of rebel swordsmen.
Then, under the arrows' cover, the hoplites charged. Spears clashed with swords and maces as the two armies crashed into each other, and destructive spells flashed all across the battlefield.
Alex pushed through the crowd of rebels and saw Argyros and Lakram doing much the same. So, Alex found a few exposed hoplites and drew back a flaming fist. Before the two hoplites could react, Alex shot out his fist and released a jet of flame. The hoplites cried out as the fire jet threw them across the battlefield, their armor and flesh charred.
Nearby, Argyros whirled his unique sword, Lepida Akyrosi, in a complicated and deadly pattern. None of the hoplites or battle-wise mages around him could get close; instead, Argyros slashed them apart and allowed his fellow rebels to finish off the hoplites.
For a moment, it looked like the rebels carried the day, fueled by Purphoros' blessing. Alex grinned as he heard the machine's head charge up another beam, and this time, the beam flew right over the battle and carved into the city hall's white-stone walls. Smoke poured from the walls as the beam sliced open a considerable hole, and Alex marveled at the machine's operators for such long-distance precision. Once the rebels pushed past the Army, they could charge right into the city hall and capture the council!
Long jets of water suddenly issued through the sky. Alarmed, Alex backed up and prepared for defensive maneuvers, but the water wasn't aimed at him, or any of the rebel foot soldiers, in fact. The water wrapped around the machine's head and encased it like a liquid cocoon, and then froze solid in seconds. The machine's head bowed with the sudden extra weight, its neck and body groaning loudly from the stress. The legs trembled.
Terror tightened Alex's throat. No way! Who could have done that? Then, his eyes traced the water's source to one man in blue robes: Elias, Second Battalion's colonel. Of course. With Thassa's blessing, he had unmatched control over ice and water.
"What are we gonna do?" a rebel mage howled.
"Keep your head in the game!" Alex snapped, but the mage was right. Encouraged, the Reverent Army redoubled its efforts and pushed the rebels back with alarming speed. Kulla, Elias, Pierra, Olivia, and Mulos led the way, bashing aside any rebels who got in their way. With morbid fascination, Alex watched Mulos in action, the colonel brandishing his three-pronged flail, Manslayer. Red and white mana hummed in the weapon, from its spiked metal balls to the chains and to the handle. Mulos laughed loudly as armor and shields shattered under the weight of its blows.
The rebels crowded around the machine's legs for cover, but the massive construct was nearly powerless to help them with its head frozen. Its archers were intact, but from this angle, they could only shoot anyone on its flanks. They couldn't yet hit the incoming Army hoplites.
Suddenly, a flash of blue and white issued from a side alley, and a newcomer intercepted the Reverent Army's formations. An armored man, who had glove-like enchantments on his hands, threw expert punches that gave the hoplites pause.
Lakram frowned. "Who's that?"
Alex felt elated. "That's Teilos, colonel of Fourth Battalion!"
"How's that a good thing?"
"He always had doubts about defending the council. That's what I've heard, anyway, and it looks like it's true," Alex babbled excitedly. "He must have defected! Look at him go!"
Indeed, Teilos' status as a colonel was reaffirmed by his devastating blows. Whole platoons drew back from him, afraid of both his destructive power and the prospect of hitting a colonel. No doubt that Teilos had abandoned the Army, but being well-respected and renowned, the hoplites wouldn't want to strike him. Not at first, at least.
"Attack!" Alex shouted to everyone who could hear. "A colonel's on our side! Melt the machine's ice and we can win!"
The rebels shouted with renewed hope. Several fire mages joined with Alex, and together, they began melting Elias' ice on the machine's head. Meanwhile, the rebels, led by Lakram and Argyros, renewed the offensive. Alex smiled. How could I have doubted us? Justice is on our side today! Purphoros, watch over me.