Rockets, missiles, and energy beams were unleashed from the ranks of the Resistance. It was as if the stars themselves suddenly came from the dark cosmos that surrounded the ranks of the enemy. Hit after hit, each projectile slammed itself into the shield that surrounded the position of the Reclamation Army. The entire enemy army disappeared behind the rising sea of flame. Even at the shield station's wall, the smell of smoke and the strange smell of ozone could be felt. Flames licked the edges of the humming shield, forming a half sphere before the forces of the state. Energy spheres were unleashed from the enemy ranks, running across the grounds and detonating mines hidden in the ground.
Then the Reclamation Army batteries started talking back. Aranea was unsure if this was because enemy forces had begun moving, because someone had received data from radar, or because someone panicked. But the flame in front of the shield was torn asunder as massive shells charged inside, bypassing the shield as if it were never there to begin with. Following the artillery rounds came fire from missile batteries located on three crawlers, massive mobile vehicles located behind the main base of the Reclamation Army in Chokepoint A. New explosions became visible among the swirling smoke on the horizon. Aranea felt violent shaking underneath her legs. And yet, even through this infernal cacophony, she could sense the strange tremors from before, slowly increasing in strength. The fiery hell of fire, explosions, and smoke was on the horizon, as the enemy continued to fire at the shield in vain. The state's technology allowed objects to leave the shield while blocking everything coming in at high speed from the outside.
This was the key word. Rapidly. The news was delivered via radio chatter. The enemy force was advancing. Through the rain of shells, explosions of missiles, and fire on the ground, enemy forces were moving out. The troops advanced on the state's positions, shielded by their own shield carriers. Here and there, shells bypassed the smaller shields of the enemy, maiming and killing some of the soldiers within. Beams of energy were unleashed from the land troops of the Resistance, exploding hidden mines across the enemy's path. Aranea looked at the foes in disbelief. No matter what else these people were, they were not cowards.
Aranea blinked when a text message came to her helmet.
"Sorry for being an asshole. If I end up dying, please ensure that they cremate my body, say sorry to my dad and mom, and please keep an eye on my pack. Stay safe." This message was from Olesya. Aranea quickly messaged her, asking how she was, but no other answer came from her friend.
A loud buzzing was heard when the numerous shields from the carriers came into contact with the main shield across the Reclamation Army’s positions. Despite the blinding light and sounds from explosions on both sides, the light show and buzzing sounds that happened as a result of this encounter dwarfed everything else. Places where enemy shield carriers tore through the shield of the state reminded Aranea of times when she looked directly at the sun, back when she was just a stupid cub competing with other children. The bulk of the carriers pushed through the shield, some of the mighty machines were blown up by the state's precise fire, but the vast majority of them pushed forward. Countless soldiers marched along with them. The warriors of the Bento tribe ignored the most grievous injuries, some of them lost limbs, some had their heads dangling from their shoulders. And still on they come, unafraid, cheering themselves up with loud screams. They were advancing directly toward the center of the Reclamation Army, to the place where Janine was making her stand.
The figure in the blue power armor marched before the forces of the Bento tribe. The shell pierced the shield above her and hit directly under her legs. As smoke cleared, Aranea saw that Jekaterina barely noticed this explosion, she advanced without stopping, her scythe in both hands. Followed by her royal guards, she marched toward the trenches. She was met with overwhelming fire as rows of soldiers rose from trenches, firing their weapons. Gunfire, discharges of energy weaponry, grenades… Everything was tried. The massive cyborgs near Jekaterina unleashed their own portable shields, overlapping and forming another bubble around the form of Jekaterina and themselves. Like the tip of a spear, they charged forward, breaking into a burst of movement from their slow advance. When Jekaterina appeared above the soldiers, the Reaper of Lies made a blinding motion, slicing through both armor and bones, leaving dead in her wake as she charged forward, seemingly uncaring about the countless foes before her. She sliced through the wall of the bunker, stepping inside for a moment. And at that moment, all life inside was killed, and she moved forward.
The tank, entrenched in the ground, took aim and fired at Jekaterina, but with a single swing of her scythe, she sliced both incoming projectiles in two. Cyborgs charged forward, hitting the tank with enough force to move it back, breaking the armored glass window and killing the soldier before it. Next came the swing of the scythe, a cruel strike that sliced through armor. People inside the tank screamed for mercy, and Jekaterina heeded their pleas, slicing the tank in half with a single great swing of her weapon, allowing the mighty vehicle's remains to fall as she moved on. People who surrendered were ignored by cyborgs of the Bento tribe, the soldiers in the forward trenches, meanwhile, were swarmed by enemies and were either taken apart or shot to death. Only those who surrendered were left alive. Flying drones arrived to rain death on the advancing enemy forces, but cyborgs from the heavy assault team merely threw their fists up, and energy was unleashed from their hands. The drones suddenly experienced a malfunction and began raining on the ground.
Aranea heard a growl on the Wolf Tribe channel as Janine moved out. This was not a growl of anger. No, instead it was a growl of anticipation, the warlord saw a target worthy of her notice on the field of battle. The large form charged forward, toward the center of the defenders. Jekaterina was like a knife that was slicing deeper and deeper into the body of the Reclamation Army. While other places held on, none could stand against her. No more. The warlord abandoned her post in the passage, charging at the single foe who could present a threat big enough to the state. Two guards of Jekaterina stood in front of the warlord, two enormous cyborgs whose power Aranea knew all too well. And yet they were nothing to the warlord. A single slice of the axe cleaved through both bodies, breaking through shields and reaching vulnerable brains inside the massive bulk of machines. While her guards fell to the ground, Jekaterina turned to face her new opponent.
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The axe, known as the Taleteller, crashed against the Reaper of Lies. Two weapons from a bygone era collided and neither broke nor bent. An incoming boom of sound was heard across the entire battlefield. The incoming shockwave from the terrifying clash caused even cyborgs to move backwards, leaving traces on the ground. The cyborgs quickly recovered as Jekaterina and Janine still tried to match each other's strength. Their large frames moved out, aiming to kill the warlord. And then they backed off when ten new black forms joined the carnage. Ten shamans, personal guards of Janine for this mission, joined the combat, crashing into the massive metal forms. Smaller cyborgs were to them what normal soldiers were to giant cyborgs. Ants are to be crushed underneath their feet. And crushed they were. The heavy assault team of the Bento tribe came face to-face with shamans of the Wolf Tribe, and neither side would back down. Sounds of tearing metal were heard in the place where both opposing forces faced each other. Blood, oil, and sparks were splashed in all sides.
And in the middle of this, the leader of the Soultakers faced Janine. The Taleteller was telling his story, only to be blocked by the Reaper of Lies. Each swing of Jekaterina was matched by a hit from the warlord, and each cleaving strike of the warlord was blocked by Jekaterina. Aranea could not believe her eyes. They were evenly matched.
No. The wolf hag came to a realization. Janine was pushed back after taking a full scythe swing at the axe shaft, leaving traces in the stone ground. Jekaterina was stronger. Janine growled in approval, looking at her foe.
The warrior in the blue armor stopped. Her left hand reached for her helmet, removing it from her head and placing it on her belt. Her long hair was gathered into a tight knot behind her head. Jekaterina's face still had the same cold beauty as before. She was just like Janine now, also without a helmet. The warlord looked confused for a moment, seeing how Jekaterina took the scythe in her right hand. Instead of a double grip, she was holding it with one hand now, mirroring the way Janine held her own weapon. The cold, emotionless face looked at the foe before her.
This was a challenge. The soldiers nearby tried to take aim at Jekaterina, but only found their hands sliced off when the Soultakers’ leader moved her weapon with a blindingly fast speed, creating a trembling afterimage in the air with her weapon. The giant cyborg that tried to sneak behind Janine for a sudden attack, only found himself crushed under the warlord's feet, right after Janine turned around and sliced through his knees. Jekaterina could have easily tried to injure Janine during this, yet she patiently waited for the warlord to turn back.
A circle of free space appeared around Jekaterina and Janine when the two leaders faced each other. Two warriors used their two-handed weapons with a single hand. Their forms became statues for a whole two seconds as each opponent looked for an opening while around them the chaos of battle reigned. None was found by either of the fighters, and so they attacked each other. Even with the crimson eye of Aranea, she utterly failed to notice their initial movements. To her eye, they both became tornadoes of steel, one black, one blue, and crashed into each other, causing an explosion of sound that threw away the nearby soldiers, cyborgs, and shamans. Violence honed by centuries faced the cold perfection of Jekaterina. Janine was excited at the prospect of facing an equal opponent, yet there was just a look of boredom on her opponent’s face. Each cruel strike of the axe was blocked or parried, as if a spear the scythe was approaching, leaving small scratches on Janine's armor. With just one hand, Jekaterina matched the warlord blow for blow, the Reaper of Lies and the Taleteller failed to overcome each other. Janine threw her left arm forward to cover the enemy in the searing hot flame of the flamecaster, two red diamonds were moved above the flamecaster's barrel. Jekaterina grabbed Janine’s hand with her own, not allowing the weapon to be aimed at her. Both melee weapons were locked in a struggle between two fighters, not allowing Janine enough space to bite her opponent.
The warlord growled angrily and pushed, causing Jekaterina to take at least one step back. Jaws spread wide, releasing a roar filled with hate into the face of Jekaterina, hoping to stun her with sound long enough. Instead, the enemy used this very moment to push Janine back. Both opponents were now far away enough to use their weapons again, and a whirlwind of roaring steel and loud noise once again appeared between the two foes.
Jekaterina was strong. Aranea had never met anyone who was more powerful than she was. Was this a result of her power?
I am wrong. Aranea had understood. This was not power. These were the skills, polished to the very highest level. Supported by one of the strongest abnormal bodies that Aranea had ever seen in her life, the combination of innate talent, persistent training, and physical ability came together to produce such an incredible result. The wolf hag wondered if even legendary warlords like Alpha or Foulsnout could match this physical strength. What Jekaterina was doing right now appeared to be impossible, and it should have been impossible. Janine trained her right arm each day. She had been fighting since her birth. Before, only two opponents could stand up to the full force of her axe swing. Now the warlord has met a third person, someone who is far younger than her. The center of battle began to move south again, as Jekaterina was efficiently and calmly pushing Janine back step by step with mighty swings of the scythe. Jekaterina grabbed her scythe by the shaft, near the blade, and used it as a close ranged weapon now, closing in on Janine. The Soultakers' leader was still stubbornly not using her left hand.
Meanwhile, the attack of the Soultakers was slowing down. Initially, their hover tanks crashed into the ranks of Reclaimers, using their weapons to cleave the path for infantry. And yet, the soldiers of the state refused to back down, supported by the fire from artillery and from the nearby vehicles, they held their ranks. Flying UAVs moved from the skies, taking advantage of the fact that the enemy lacked an efficient air force.