~Part XII Verse ~ Soldier ~
~Saga~
“Siege Cannon Division! Load Giga-Cartridges… FIRE!!!”
As I ordered, the giant siege cannons, powered by an over-sized Belkan Cartridge System along with handler-mages, fired a continuous barrage of heavy and powerful blast of concentrated magical burst, perpetuating a blaze of flames, putting the front-guards of the opposition forces, their guardian beast, up in flames.
From beyond the flames, another surge of enemies rushed through, and the battles raged on….
Amidst the scenes of bloodshed, hidden in the sights of the rampage of gore and destruction… formations of magical circles can be seen as a small group of mages were chanting…
A summoning circle!
From within the crops of shrouding smokes…several knights were taken by surprise as they were brutally attacked and chopped into pieces by the summoned beast monsters… The most dangerous kind, brutal and carnivorous…
If it was 2 years ago… I would’ve commanded a reformation, but I have faith. These men…have fought with me, just as they understands me…I know, that they can fight accordingly.
However… I had seen this before. Yes, in one of my first battles as the General… I remember that day like a pained memory.
A growl, a monstrous cry, it shouted just as a gust of wind flew by…and a man was standing atop the gigantic beast, and within an instant.
“Load Cartridge!”
[Explosion!]
The monster’s head was decapitated.
Isdera… Just like that day, that night, that battle. Has it really been 2 years now?
The battles raged on, severed limbs, lost lives, screams of agony, the break-down of those whose hearts are weak, the resolution of those who have accepted death in the battlefield, life, death…time moved on, as the moments passes, waiting for no man. There is no one who will see to another’s death in battle, there is no one to offer condolences, there is only yourself, and your fellow comrades, all whom are struggling to live.
It seemed almost equal at first… but as the defense lines of both sides were slowly crippling, at the expense of the increasing corpses on the battlefield…
As expected, this battle is dangerous to us.
The terrain and landscape of this battleground is the enemy’s ground, that by itself is a major disadvantage to our conditional settings… What’s worse, the open plains of the terrain leading towards the capital are wide and long-reaching, making it a sheer impossibility to utilize more compressed tactics and strategy. The conditioning and morale of both sides are about equal… which means structure-breaking, command-disposing and attritional battles are the only ways that are truly viable.
But this battle…we’re outnumbered 3 to 1. And Wira’s not fit for battle, his blood supply still being at 60%... It’s too dangerous to fight a prolonged battle, which means the structural settings itself is not as strong as the Wolkenritter’s commanded lines… Only Astra, Isdera and myself…
Looks like…there’s no other choice, but “that.”
~Astra~
This battle…this is not good. The flux of energies in the field… it’s still stable, but the fluctuation is leaning towards the south…which means, that we’re being slowly, but surely pushed back.
Damn it…why must I be blind when it’s needed the least? It’s too dangerous to use my chains around the middle lines… since I can’t differentiate Linker Core reactions other than Isdera’s…
Establishing a mental link, I tried to call out to Saga…
“Sa-“
“Wait…Astra-sensei.”
My mental link was cut off, as Wira appeared behind me… I couldn’t sense his presence at all...
“What is it, Wira? As you can see, I’m busy. The one who’s half-dead is better off resting. Your strength will be needed later.”
“Half dead…You’re right. I might be dead soon…My life is very close to its end.”
I turned around following Wira’s lubricious suicidal talk only to see Wira…smiling, in a most sad way… his eyes, empty, without any sense of feelings. He…wasn’t joking.
“Why…?”
“The truth is…”
~Saga~
Standing atop the cliff…I am watching my comrades die. It’s painful, but it is my role. As much as I am a knight, I am also their leader.
Wait…Just wait… The time should be soon.
“General… Our flanks are losing. We cannot win with our current strength. Should we retreat for now?”
… I really cannot keep up my composure after all… I know what the strategist is saying, but if we fall back… we will really lose everything, emotionally and spiritually. To come back and fight again after this…there’s no doubt we’ll face an even more severe loss.
“Astra! In 15 seconds, teleport Wira, you and myself, towards Isdera’s coordinates. Make no mistake in the mass calculations.”
“Understood, General.”
After my mental communication to Astra, the strategist vehemently opposed my plans.
“That is too reckless, General! You are needed to be in command. The knights can be replaced, but your pos-“
I snapped as I grabbed him and held by his collar, pulling him up.
“Replaced, you say? My comrades are dying… All of them…are fighting for their lives, because they believe in a future that is possible from their sacrifice…
They are all fighting for their lives. And I will fight as well.
Stand aside.”
Soon…I teleported away to the battlefield with Astra’s magic… and before me, knights lashed out as the battle ensues directly in front of me, all of the Zerstroritter assembled as one.
“General! Astra! Wira..You’re all here.”
“Sorry for the delay…how’s things up front?”
“The left flank…has just been breached. The enemies are focusing their forces there…”
“Then, we should!”
“No… their focused attacks had left them open near the center….”
“Are you saying?”
“Yes…we’ll use this opportunity to strike the command post of the enemy’s.”
Clearly…none of us were happy with what we did. Just as our comrades, just below us were screaming, struggling and hopelessly dying from the concentrated enemy forces…we did nothing, but flew by them and took advantage of that even as their cries resonates deep and far beyond our ears, into our hearts, we can only bear that pain and responsibility…as the few of us, just enough as a forward strike force aimed towards the enemy epicenter.
We flew as fast as we could, myself holding Isdera, as Astra held Wira, evading enemy fires, striking down several stationary defense posts…we flew so hard, the winds were hitting our eyes, our skin, it was a feeling of pain that is miniscule, yet carry so much weight. It was something our armors could easily prevent with a thicker manifestation, but we chose to accept it… It was the symbol of the burden we bear.
That is why…we must win.
Soon… as we approached the command center... the Palace of the Night Sky…
[Schwalbe Fliegen!]
[Sturm Falke!]
An array of powerful attacks, digging out the dirt of the grounds before us…leaving behind craters of scorched earth… Our tracks were stopped as the 2 Knights of the Wolkenritter, stood before us.
“I’ll never allow any of us to get to the Princess.”
“Saladin! I will kill you!! I will avenge Tesla!!” (( No, Tesla’s not dead, but her injury’s too serious. ))
Just as I’m about to draw out Null… Isdera…and Wira stopped me.
“Go… we’ll hold them off.”
“You…”
Their eyes…they’re determined to see this to the very end. Isdera and the Blazing General…Wira and the Iron Count… how ironic, that the counterparts I chose to be the equalizer to the Wolkenritter will finally end it all here.
“Don’t die, the both of you.”
“Naturally.”
“…”
“Let’s go, Astra.”
This is the last hurdle. The flying castle of the Night Sky…, a lost relic of ancient times...soon, everything will end.
~Tiara~
It’s painful… This conjunction, of magical spells, maintaining its pressure… Unlike before, I can no longer put too much pressure on my body. Otherwise… my child, Saga’s child may…
But I need to complete it…combining the effects of Mandrake with Ragnarok Breaker’s status effects…
Saladin will be here soon.
And then… I must defeat him…No, I will defeat him.
And then…everything will end…