Chapter 641: Selia |
Gathering
Selia glanced at the piece of Ryun’s leg that got cut off as he jumped through the barrier. She reached down to grab it, then looked up and saw that the group that had entered was already gone, moving toward their goal.
Her connection with Ryun and Erdania was immediately muffled. She could tell that they were alive, but not much else. She glanced at the piece of his leg feeling a slight tug on her bond with Ryun through it. It was as if he was in two places at once, which he actually was. The piece of his leg contained a part of his Soul. She wondered if it could sustain itself or if it would collapse eventually. Ryun hadn’t experimented at all with splitting himself apart this cleanly, it hadn’t even occurred to any of them.
He could operate multiple vessels, but all of them were still just physical manifestations of his being within the whole that existed as a background. His Soul and being had always been connected into a greater whole.
She didn’t have the time to ruminate on the specifics. She put his leg under her armpit and then turned as Reki approached her.
“Orders?” He asked.
Behind her, Berion was already trying to figure out how to take the barrier down completely.
Selia flicked her tail in the minotaur’s direction. “Get a group on him, high tiers, keep him safe. I don’t know if the enemy has teams on the outside but…”
“Understood,” Reki said.
Reki nodded and walked away, already yelling out orders.
Selia rushed over to where a large tent was already set up. Inside, Anrosh stood over a large desk covered with Far-link Orbs. She put Ryun’s foot on an empty corner, then turned to Anrosh.
“Who’ve you been in contact with?” Selia asked.
“Sects,” Anrosh answered as she put down an orb on the table. “And our forces on the front. I’ve taken the liberty of pulling us back from every battlefront.”
“They’ll punish us for that,” Selia said. “Retake territories.”
Anrosh nodded. “I’ve left some defenses but it won’t be enough to do anything other than slow any type of a counter attack, if there is one. This here seems like their big swing. It’s chaos out there, almost everyone is able to feel what is happening by now.”
Selia glanced behind her through the small gap in the tent’s entrance, seeing the barrier beyond. The sheer number of enemy forces within would suggest that they’d put all of their hopes on whatever this was.
“It doesn’t matter, we can’t afford to hold back,” she shook her head.
“No we can’t,” Anrosh agreed. “I’m sending out orders to have them organized for quick transport, and I’ve ordered anyone who is on a front close to this position, and have the capability, to head here on their own. Berion should be able to transport large armies, but it would be best if we make it easier for him.”
Selia nodded; almost all of their armies had support from their air ships or palaces, but only a few would be able to carry a larger amount of troops across in any reasonable time frame.
“I’ll start contacting old friend,” Selia said as she pulled out an orb out of her ring. Her eyes turned toward the gap in the tent, and the barrier shining beyond. With every passing moment, things were getting worse. She could feel it.
Kri jumped in through the hole in the stone wall, dropping into the bunker. The turrets on the ceiling immediately opened fire, lances of concentrated light moving to strike her. She used her |Greater Deflect| alongside her |Of Winter Spear and Dance| to defend and move out of the way of most of them as she pulled on her Qi and used {Cold Expansion} to drain the surrounding of all the heat. Her stats rose and she jumped forward, cutting with her spear and splitting the turrets apart.
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Her squad entered behind her, quickly catching up. She continued forward reaching a large, fortified door that she hit with a {Frozen Breath}, then stepped aside for her second to charge through and break it to pieces.
She followed behind, jumping over him as the enemy hiding within opened fire with their weapons.
Her spear danced, cutting through her cthul soldiers, spilling their blood across the metal floor. Her team charged behind her, spreading out and handling the stranglers.
Once they were all dead, she moved to the command station and quickly pulled out a small formation. The sect didn’t quite have the capability to break through the Exalted Empire’s computers, though they had learned much. For now, they relied on more brute means.
The formation pulsed, pushing Qi straight through the strange contraption. Lights above them flickered then died, and in the distance the deep thrum of the enemy artillery stopped for the first time in weeks.
“Good work,” Kri said. “Send up a flare.”
Kri rushed to the command tent, still covered in blood and grime from the assault on the enemy bunker in the mountains. A runner had rushed to her position with orders to retreat, which was baffling. They’ve just made the first real progress in the battle. They’ve finally managed to take down the enemy’s suppressive fire; now was the time to push and take the territory.
She entered the tent and looked at her commander.
“We’re retreating?” She asked, her tone incredulous.
Nemek raised his head and arched an eyebrow. If it was anyone else charging into his tent in such a way, his response would’ve probably been a lot different. Granted, no one else would’ve been able to get past the guards in front. Kri had some advantages in that regard, being the daughter of a Sect Leader. But also, Nemek was family, in a way.
Her commander was her “step-mother” Nayra’s older brother, so some familiarity was allowed.
“Orders from your mother,” Nemek continued.
Kri blinked. “What?”
“There’s little information,” Nemek answered. “But we are to pull back and gather all of our able forces into a single formation, be ready for transport and immediate battle.”
“That… That doesn’t make any sense—”
Nemek interrupted her before she was able to continue asking questions. “You know as much as I do. Something’s obviously happened. We’ll know soon enough.”
“I’ll start gathering our warriors,” Kri said finally.
She could be patient, sometimes.
Dracael Brownscale glared at the Far-link Orb in her hand. Sometimes, she wished that she could just sail away and forget about everybody else. She knew that people did it, that they just picked a direction and vanished. But she never could; she was too powerful, and she knew better. It didn’t matter how far you ran, there were always idiots around who could wreck your day, no matter the distance between you.
The sensors of her ship had been screaming at her for over an hour, telling her that something was wrong. Now at least she knew what. Always some idiots playing with things they should know to leave alone.
She turned to her First Mate. “Send word to the fleet, we are changing course. Full speed for the Sahka Pass, we’re going up the Ashen River.”
Umon’s pale blue eyes flickered in the dim light of the command center. “What is it?”
“What it always is, war.”
Umon grimaced. “Do you want us to surface?”
“No, not yet, the Exalted Empire’s net might still be looking over the coasts after what we pulled before. We need to be fast, can’t afford to get drawn into a battle.”
“As you say,” Umon said then started relaying her orders.
“Oh,” Dracael added. “Let every ship know that we’ll leave them behind if they can’t keep up.”
Dracael took a deep breath and settled in her chair; it was going to be a long day.
Gemheart walked over to the window of his office and looked out. He had felt the strangeness in the air, and had almost thought that he was losing his mind, until now at least.
He and his people weren’t fighters, not really, but the nature of the Infinite Realm was such that all had some ability in such matters.
When the Exalted Empire came, they’d largely ignored his lands, small as they were. Most of his territory stretched in the Under, and the cthul cared little for it. Simple trade had been established, but little other contact; the Empire preferred to rely only on itself.
They had been isolated from conflicts and needs to make drastic decisions. They focused on their work—mining. Now… Now he had a choice to make. They were close enough.
“Father?” A voice brought him out of his thoughts, and he turned to see his daughter, Genissa, peeking into his office. “You called?”
It's been a long time since the incident in the Feltower and her experience there. She had grown into a fine woman, and a great miner. Though, her experience did change her. There were dangers in the Under, and Genissa had pushed for a lot more preparation and growth of an entire combat department within the Unbroken Mining Company. A department she was the head of.
“Yes,” Gemheart sighed. “I did.”
If what he was told was the truth, the choice they had to make was no choice at all.
