"Crimson Reavers!" The 5 Reavers carried their heavy rifles over to Commander 151. They carried those weapons as if they were nothing, shouldering those heavy weapons to face their Commander.

"Sir."

"Crimson Reavers. You will be deployed into a B-Rank Spire. Elimination of Dark Elves and ice trolls. The dossiers will be given when you arrive on the target location." The 5 Reavers nodded as they left the base, where they boarded the helicopters.

"Hi, my name is Theodore Misk. People call me Ted. I'm one of the Venerators that will be going on this mission.So here are your dossiers, for you to look into the finer details. Just the 5 of you?"

"You asked for Crimson Reavers. We're it." One of the Reavers said, checking the tablet for more details. Magazines were at the ready, their heavy armor and their newly made helmets were enough to cause even a demon to shriek. It was shaped with two horns on their heads, along with a skull of different shapes and sizes. When they arrived, they stepped out without much of a fuss but their appearance had the eyes on them.

"Ted, these are the guys from Midnight Wind?" A tall man walked on over to look at them, taller than the Reavers and muscular yet. The prime difference was how the Reavers perceived him.

"Just 5 Crimson Reavers? I thought you guys have a whole company."

"We're what's left." The leading Reaver spoke, his voice was hoarse and eerie, it was like a demon was speaking to them and not a human.

"What's the situation inside?" Another Reaver asked, looking at the spire that was before them. It had opened inside a university complex.

"I've sent a few teams inside, but it's turned into a defense mission. We're waiting for the Spire to let the new people in. My team's on the inside are struggling to keep the hordes off. The other teams should be coming in a bit." The tall man said, touching his chin as he put a cigar to his lips.

The 5 Reavers shouldered their weapons as they walked to the door.

"You going in without waiting?"

"The job said to take care of it. We'll take care of it. Tell your team on the inside to focus on staying alive." The Leading Reaver said, the man chuckled at the sight of the Reavers heading into the spire. Where they could see a few corpses of humans thrown around. The ice trolls, dark elves, ice orcs and gryphons were trying to break into the building. Only to stop and turn to the 5 Reavers that stepped in. It was a horde of a few hundred, maybe nearing a thousand.

"What's the plan, Ace?" The fourth Reaver asked, taking a moment to breathe in the air.

"That building won't be able to take much more of that beating. The barrier they blanketed it with is going to break soon." The third Reaver remarked, looking at the cracks that was forming over the building itself. They could hear screams of the people inside from where they stood.

"Load up on high heat magazines. We'll burn them." They followed their leader's orders, reloading the rifles. Then taking aim as they heard the energy canisters charging the rifles to full. They took aim, firing off the shots at the ice trolls. A single shot was enough to blow the limbs of the ice creatures as if they were nothing. They turned their attention to them. Where the ice orcs, dark elves that rode on gryphons moved to their positions. The Crimson Reavers grabbed their rifles by the stock, as the underbarrel blade extended into its sword mode. Swapping energy canisters that was located by the grip, as the gears began to shift within their weapons.

The blades glowed crimson as they waited for the horde to come to them, the ice orcs roared to attack them. The dark elves readied their spells. Ice spears and freezing the ground to stop the Crimson Reavers from moving. A white mist exploded as a result. Silence enveloped as the dark elves laughed at the mist. Truly believing that the Crimson Reavers were dead. Only to watch 5 pairs of eyes glow back at them from within mist.

When the mist was blown away by the wind, the corpses of a hundred orcs were seen. Their crimson armor was now stained with the blue blood of the ice orcs. The dark elves began to chant, only for them to have holes blown through their chests by one of the Crimson Reavers. One wielded a revolver, putting his rifle down as he reloaded it. Ace went on ahead first while the other three remained with their friend. Not doing anything as they watched Ace wreak havoc.

Swinging his weapon to tear through a dozen Ice orcs at once, and when an ice orc swung the club. Ace ducked and then went from below. Driving his blade through the orc's neck, right hand pulling the trigger as his left hand drew out a machete. Parrying an ice orc with a claymore with ease. Then ripping his rifle free, throwing a machete into the head of an ice orc that was wielding a bow. The other ice orcs watched the impact caused the ice orc to fall down. Ace swung his blade, cutting through the ice orcs like hot knife through butter.

The cadavers that was flying through the sky. Thrown around like toys after a child was done playing with them. The ice trolls turned their attention to Ace who was mowing the horde of ice orcs down. Where he soon reached the end of his fight, grabbing the machete off the ice orc's head. The other four Reavers followed suit, their attacks tearing through to their leader within seconds.

Dominator and Killing High, the two skills that showed itself. Where the ice trolls froze in place, the dark elves watched as their gryphons became uncontrollable. Was it fear or was it anxiety from what they have seen. Any creature that witnessed the massacre by the 5 Crimson Reavers would be traumatized. It was a new skill, one that was recently awakened. A skill that had not earned a name yet but it was linked to Dominator, it will soon take shape. For the 5 Crimson Reavers stood in front of the building, like rulers that have returned to their castles.

An ice orc chieftan went after Ace, swinging the battle axe. Only for the other ice orcs to watch their chieftan on their knees, reduced by a human who held the chieftan by the throat. The chieftan gazed into an unrelenting abyss, one that was plagued by war. It was like the chieftan watched the lives of the Crimson Reavers. Watching how they tore demons with their hands if needed, clawing through demons like beasts that were lost in their berserker's rage. A state of rage that could not be tamed and the chieftan could see the difference. A speck of dust when compared to the Crimson Reaver known as Ace standing before him.

The chieftan's hands went limp, as Ace dropped the body. Leaving his rifle behind, stretching his fingers like sharpening his claws for the slaughter. The lambs were the targets before him. The Venerators and the students were able to see what had transpired by the windows, whether they were in awe of the power of the 5 Crimson Reavers or were they just fearful.

For what drives the Crimson Reavers? Was the shame of being defeated like ants by a giant. Even ants could fight back, yet when they watched their Lord of Thorns fall to despair over the lives that were lost. The lives that could not be saved, their wrath was their Lord's wrath. Their sorrow was also their Lord's sorrow. Ace's rampage was brutal as the ice trolls fought with desperation. Their very touched froze him, yet Ace braved through the element of ice by his armor's energy canisters that forced itself to heat his body to move. Melting through the freezing touch, then ripping the limbs of an ice troll, then impaling its chest with it.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

Ace leaped to the head, ripping the horns off. Stabbing the ice troll's eyes, then pulling out his machete to hack the neck. Sawing through the hide as the ice troll screamed, hacking through Ace then readjusted the machete to puncture through the spine. Snapping it as the ice troll fell to its knees. The other four Crimson Reavers went at it with their rifles, tearing through the ice trolls like their leader, Ace had done.

The dark elves began to panic, their minds could not process it. Their bodies tried to flee but it was all for naught. For they could not escape as the limbs of their former allies being thrown at them.

"Any one of you know magic?" Ace turned to the audience to his left, which a few Venerators nodded.

"Pull them back down somehow or make a path. Whatever as long as we can reach it." Ace said as he watched roots of the earth form into a vine that tethered the gryphons and their riders back. Where Ace ran on top of the roots as he pounced to a gryphon, slashing its throat and then forcing his bodyweight over the dark elf. Where she screamed, trying to claw its way through Ace's armor, even using a knife to stab Ace's helmet. Where the knife shattered and the dark elf gave up, realizing that this was all pointless. Surrendering to her fate, as Ace smashed her head to the ground repeatedly. Then he made his move to another target. The other Crimson Reavers were merciless, firing away into the enemies. The upgrades that the 5th Bellwitch had made to their equipment made them even more potent than before and with the strength of the Lord of Thorns increasing, so did their devotion and powers to serve him as well.

They were not knights, they were soldiers who knew nothing of war and their foes were demons. Everything was permitted, where they watched how a Crimson Reaver threw a grenade at a pack of gryphons and their riders. A shot from the rifle and the grenade unleashed a corrosive chemical that burned through the skin. They dropped to the ground like flies, where a dark elf turned to them.

"Please, st-" Whatever words that were uttered by the survivors of the attack fell on deaf ears. For the Crimson Reavers ripped off their limbs and beat the survivors to death with it. Another flight of 10 gryphons and their dark elves were exposed to a gas that caused their insides to melt from within. Their skin and flesh melted, leaving behind skeletal remains of whatever that was supposed to be the gryphon and dark elves that had threatened the people in the university.

A dark elf surrendered, dropping its weapons. Only to watch a Crimson Reaver grab its shoulders, then ripping it in half with his bare hands. The gryphons? They were spared for when they surrendered, the Crimson Reavers did not do anything to them but not the dark elves. The ice trolls and ice orcs that surrendered did not suffer any kind of death. The job was halfway done, they checked their tablets.

Seeing that another 3 waves were coming, where the 5 Crimson Reavers took off their helmets. Ace grabbed his flask and drank water, while the others were either eating some biscuits. The next wave was coming in a few hours. Where the Venerators used the opportunity to evacuate the university's residents. However, there was a catch. They could only evacuate a certain number at times and when their is a penalty to the time for them to prepare and the building would disappear. Piece by piece they evacuated until the number was left. They did what they could, but out of the 30 thousand. Only 5 thousand was evacuated. Despite the Venerators coming in by the droves. They were still unsure if they could protect this many people.

Yet the Crimson Reavers seemed calm, they walked on over to the residents of the university. Seeing their panicked faces, the 5 Crimson Reavers just continued to eat, drink without much care in the world. Their biscuits were dry and lacked moisture. The students noticed Ace's face, especially the ones who were in their 20s. They could not help but wonder about him. Ace looked at the timer above the university, it was set in half an hour. The Venerators began preparing what they could for the oncoming wave.

Ace looked at a girl who was crying, shaking in her boots. Ace knelt before her, where their eyes met. He took out a small teddy bear keychain and gave it to her.

"Hold on to it."She held it as Ace put his helmet back on, where a Venerator came with a box of ammunition for them. Ace gave her a smile.

"This was given by Commander 151... Don't you need any backup?" The Venerator asked as the Crimson Reavers grabbed the ammunition and boxes of energy canisters. Then sharpening their blades.

"We're the backup." Another Crimson Reaver said as he took a seat. They all looked young, the eldest among them was in their early 30s.

"How old are you?" The girl asked Ace, who paused.

"27? I don't remember. Been doing this since when I was 12 years old." Ace said as he put on his helmet, strapping it in tightly.

"How... How do you do it? Aren't you... Afraid?" The girl asked the question, only to watch Ace grab his rifle and stood ready for battle. The other Crimson Reavers took positions in front of the Venerators that began their defensive line. Forming barriers, creating spiked walls to stop any of the enemies from getting closer.

The next wave began, as the 5 Crimson Reavers stood tall and ready to fight. The horde of enemies began chanting their war cry, buffing them up but as they took a step forward. They froze in place unable to move any closer. The 5 Crimson Reavers were in their path and that was a large deterrent for them. The 5 Crimson Reavers went after the hordes on their own, another massacre was seen. Brutality at its finest on display for all to see. Some of the Venerators that watched ended up vomitting, Ted who watched everything from where he stood was already feeling the unnerving air that was surrounding the area. The Crimson Reavers were literally reaping the lives of the horde as if they were nothing.

A horde being mowed down as if they were just weeds in a garden, they were losing their morale. The amount of destruction caused by 5 humans was suffocating them into their own state of panic. Confused, dazed as they all watched the glowing blue eyes of the Azterian Valor take their lives away without much thought. It was a butcher coming to cut down his meats, the wave of threats began to fall to despair. They were sent here to die by their masters and they all know it.

The horde could not do anything, they could not even fight back. Frozen in fear because what they saw was not human, rather beasts on a rampage. No screams, no war cries. They had nothing to speak off, yet the violence they had shown was enough to scare even the bravest of the ice orcs. It led to the wave surrendering within seconds. The Crimson Reavers did not kill those that surrendered, they left them alone and stepped back as the second round of evacuation began. They took off their helmets, ate energy bars and biscuits.

The girl who was holding Ace's teddy bear kept watching him, she wanted to speak but fear had taken away her words.

"Don't force yourself to speak. Just focus on surviving." Ace said which surprised her as he grabbed his blade, then the Crimson Reavers gathered together, bowing to a figure that appeared. Joshua with his cloak.

"Can you handle this on your own, or do you need assistance?"

"Only assistance we need is someone who can use a barrier to help keep the civilians form harm's way lord."

"Tyrant Trickster will join you." Tyrant Trickster appeared, sitting on his blade and nonchalantly turning the faces of a rubick's cube.

"Thank you, lord."

"Do your best, Crimson Reavers. I allow you to do what you deem necessary." The Crimson Reavers nod to their Lord's word as Joshua vanished into thin air, leaving behind Tyrant Trickster who was playing with the cube, then playing with other puzzles. Floating over to the students, casually reading books in his hand.

The Crimson Reavers turned to Tyrant Trickster.

"Ah, yes. You Reavers do what you do best, I will focus on making sure that they cannot break the barrier. Oh Venerators, I suggest you stand and watch how they fight." The Venerators listened to what the Tyrant had said. The Tyrant's chuckles were heard as the next wave began with the 5 Crimson Reavers heading into the fight. Throwing grenades to break their formations. Then slashing through the horde with their blades. The might of their own strength and the steel that was once wielded by their brothers and sisters.

To the eyes of the untrained, it was as if they were fighting alone. To Tyrant Trickster? He could see the other 45 that was said to have passed fighting by their side. They were fighting with their entire company of the Crimson Reavers with them.

"Ah, I do love a great group of fighters against crazy odds."