It was only a few hours before the sun reached its peak when the subjugation force was lined up outside of the impromptu military encampment.

Close to 800 militants stood in formation in the morning shadow of Stone-Eye mountain. Joining them were numerous branches from other forces, sent in support as a sign of goodwill both towards Cinapul and the magic council.

Nothing in this world came free. If the various institutions in Cinapul wanted to be able to use one of the few teleportation magics available, they had to show they were willing to help secure it at the very least.

Within the encampment the various clerics and medics stayed behind to watch over the supplies and provide support and healing if needed.

Sally, Raelith and Feylin could be seen standing near the front of these people, each having volunteered as a ‘runner’ or someone who would dash back and forth between the back and front lines to heal and transport the injured.

Feylin shifted from foot to foot as he looked around for Tobias and Sarah and Noone.

At this moment though, the three were nowhere to be seen.

Noone and Tobias were standing shoulder to shoulder at the frontmost line. Next to the moderately sized soldiers they stood like statues, however in a force of such large numbers they were not the only ones who stood out.

Thanks to the unrelated units sent to help, numerous non-uniformed individuals speckled the ranks like burn marks on white canvas.

One of these people was Sarah, who stood in the middle of the ranks along with another woman dressed completely in black.

Sarah and this woman stood at the same height and even wore their blonde hair in the same tight braid Sarah had grown used to through the years.

Actually, the only difference between the two on sight would be their weapons, and the other woman was many wrinkles older than Sarah. But she wore her age well, constant physical activity and the blessing of Hoar giving her many years of youthfulness.

This was the only other Vengeance paladin Sarah had found amongst the ranks of the army, and unlike last time there was no divine intervention leading Sarah and this woman together.

Upon meeting, they immediately bonded. Sarah couldn’t help but feel this woman was a very kindred soul to herself.

They both stood silently with their arms crossed.

“First and second Unit! Move out!” The gruff and battle-hardened voice of General Armuu called over the silent crowd of soldiers.

Immediately 200 people took a step forward in sync. They easily slipped through the trees of the forest heading towards the base of the mountain.

Each unit was responsible for 100 people, falling under the direct orders of an officer. In this case, Tobias and Noone were a part of the first unit, under the command of a calm and somewhat distant dwarven tactician. Every Unit was briefed beforehand what to expect for this subjugation. Unit one was a mix of experienced soldiers and new recruits at a ratio heavily in favor of the experienced soldiers.

Noone and Tobias were also a part of this unit.

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Noone thought about the strategy that they had been told a day before moving out.

Unit one was to take the first strike at the inside of Stone-Eye. They would hit with a bang and cause as much chaos as they could while scoping out the cavernous city within. Once things get even remotely too dangerous, the dwarven officer would give the command to retreat out of the mountain.

Upon breaking out from the caverns they would slip through the ranks of the second unit, which would be waiting in a defensive formation with shields ready to withstand the full archery onslaught of the dark elves.

After a while of this, they would rotate with unit 3 and 4 who would repeat this. The plan was to continue all day, each time whittling down the dark-elf forces and making further progress into the city.

The goal was to completely overwhelm them, and leave them with no chance to fight back, by nightfall.

Noone carefully controlled his expression as they advanced, however his hearth thumped in an odd excitement. This plan couldn’t have been more perfect for him. He had tried contacting Alaviv multiple times, however he had yet to get through. He figured the gnome would notice him once he was within range.

Tobias was frowning and constantly adjusted his weaponry. The large axe on his back glinted dangerously in the morning sun. His heart was also beating hard, however, unlike Noone he had a bad feeling about this whole plan.

Tobias looked around while they walked, but no matter what he thought about – he couldn’t figure out where his own nervousness was coming from. After decades in battle, Tobias had learned to trust his gut – and thus he placed himself as close to Noone as possible.

Tobias didn’t actually suspect Noone was planning anything, instead he felt it was a leftover anxiety from his last run-in with the dark-elves of Stone-Eye. But Noone did not know this, so he reacted carefully trying to probe whether or not Tobias knew what he was going to do.

“I don’t believe Tobias would be able to restrain me in the midst of a battle in a foreign location if I really do make a run for it.” Noone’s eyes narrowed slightly as he discretely glanced at Tobias. “But… on the other hand he might have some magic I’m not prepared for…”

Noone’s mind was moving at a million miles a minute as he prepared for every possible scenario.

“Alaviv…” He thought to himself. “Please contact me soon.” Ultimately, Noone knew this entire plan hinged on Alaviv leading him to the teleportation magic… without Alaviv, the best Noone could do was escape into the mountain or out in the forest. This was also a contingency Noone was prepared for.

“Noone.” Suddenly Tobias’s deep voice penetrated Noone’s thoughts. Noone looked over nonchalantly.

“Yeah?” he said. Noone casually readjusted his great-axe as he turned to face the large paladin.

“You remember what I told you about dark elves?” He scratched his heavily bearded chin. “You must be careful. I have a bad feeling. Ultimately, I am here to make sure you get to the capital safe. We are not a proper part of the subjugation force. Stay close to me.”

Tobias whispered the second sentence, not wanting to draw unnecessary ire from the nearby soldiers.

Noone merely nodded, keeping his face carefully neutral as they walked forward. Tobias continued looking at Noone for a few more moments before finally looking back towards the mountain. “I don’t want to lose anyone else…” He thought to himself.

“I’m sorry Tobias.” Noone couldn’t help but apologize in his mind. Tobias had been nothing but good to him since they crossed paths almost a year ago. Not just Tobias, but the entire party with the exception of a few. Noone truly would miss traveling with them, but he didn’t want his future in the hands of someone else. Especially not this diviner - Elize. “I hope that you don’t get in too much trouble.”

Finally, after a few minutes the entirety of unit one stood at the only entrance to Stone-Eye with unit 2 at their back.

The entrance itself was an extremely wide archway carved directly into the stone face of the mountain.

The faint tracks of hundreds of thousands of carts which used to pass in and out of the city were etched into the stony earth beneath their feet.

At one point, Stone-Eye had been a bustling economic hub… but no more.

“Enter.” The heavily accented voice of the dwarven officer called out.

Line by line, soldiers moved into the cavernous mountain. Tobias and Noone were at the very front.