Shadow Slave

The preparations did not take long. As the caravan was getting ready for one last push, the three Masters briefly discussed the plan of the battle.

There was not a lot they had to do. If things went well, most of the Nightmare Creatures would be pulled away by the city defenders, and the mountain road would be cleared by the Irregulars. However, it was always a good idea to prepare a few contingencies, just in case.

At some point, Roan gave Sunny a studying look and said:

"...You've look different, Sunless."

Sunny tilted his head a little, confused.

"Why wouldn't I? The last time we saw each other, I was still an Awakened. Oh... or do you mean my skin?"

Roan shook his head with a smile.

"No, I don't mean your appearance. You just seem... older."

Sunny blinked a couple of times.

"I am older, though? By about two years?"

The handsome Master chuckled.

"That you are. Anyway, I think we are as ready as we can be. Should I send the signal?"

Sunny nodded, prompting Roan to summon a Memory that resembled a waxed clay tablet. He simply drew a jagged line on it, then waved at them and walked over to his griffin.

Not long after that, the sortie that was supposed to lead most of Nightmare Creatures away from the valley commenced. It started with a heavy missile barrage, which was then followed by a full company of MWPs appearing on the far side, accompanied by many cohorts of Awakened.

Sunny and Naeve silently watched as the sea of abominations rushed forward, then glanced at each other and dashed toward their vehicles. Abomination and Blackie rose from the ground and shook their gaunt bodies, preparing for a battle.

They did not have to wait long.

As soon as the horde of Nightmare Creatures shifted to the far side of the valley and spilled out of it, pursuing the retreating diversion force, the Rhino growled and lunged forward. The battered APC was functioning perfectly, as if it had gathered all its remaining strength for one last glorious charge.

The long column of vehicles followed the mighty machine.

of the remaining Nightmare Creatures could react, an onslaught

the tail of the deceived horde sensed that something was wrong. Scores of abominations turned around and saw the descending column of

tail of the horde could reorient itself, however, a rain of strange metal roads fell from the sky, piercing the ground in front of them in a loose line. Then, blinding arcs of electricity suddenly shot between the rods,

first few Nightmare Creatures that tried to pass through the barrier were instantly turned to ash. Roan was holding them back, for now, but his reserves of essence

the damage and slip through the lightning wall. Others could simply leap over it... one was

a javelin fell from the sky, piercing the

the distant

the ranged attacks. Even Crow was helping, diving down to

arrow flying after another. Each pierced an especially vulnerable spot on the bodies of the Nightmare Creatures, killing them instantly. His accuracy was scarily perfect... months of fighting in Antarctica had really honed his once rudimentary archery

would have been

doing right now? Probably staring at the anchored battleships and waiting for his

all distractions, Sunny concentrated on the

the steep slope, well on its way to leave the valley. Naeve had arranged for an improvised

everyone's surprise, nothing went

roof of the Rhino and staring at the familiar Gate up ahead. That was the place where he had slain the

enemies, and very soon, he realized why. A man in heavy plate armor suddenly appeared from behind a large boulder and effortlessly jumped to the roof

of a closed helmet, but Sunny recognized Ascended Dale - Winter's former partner and one of the captains of the Irregulars - by his steady bearing and

Knight glanced at him and

Sunny grinned.

a sight for sore eyes. Say, have you always

for a moment, then shook his head. A

not too bad yourself,

he dismissed his shield and summoned a

would you please concentrate? We did the best we could, but it will still be a

...And it was, indeed.

still made it safely to the gates of

Rhino drove past the mighty fortifications of the siege capital and approached a colossal, seemingly

they had left, the city possessed robust defenses... but not nearly as

capital. Its many bastions housed devastating railguns, which seemed like they had been scavenged from decommissioned battleships. Thousands of turrets were placed along the wall's length, some

around the city was littered with countless corpses, most of the abominations utterly torn apart. Teams of engineers moved among them,

been converted into a fortress on such a scale that Sunny struggled to imagine the amount of effort, resources, and ingenuity that had gone into building these

it was

massive gates of the siege capital, though, which the caravan

let out a quiet sigh and suddenly staggered, as if robbed of all