CHAPTER 53 – LANDFALL

The storm clouds grabbed a hold of the sky and the sun that fleeted east. A long time had passed since Malinor saw the clear blue sky. It reminded him of his humanity but only briefly, as the storm clouds proceeded to invade the sky. He pressed down on Mercinestor’s head with the flat side of his double-edged sword. Mercinestor squirmed beneath him, pinned down by not only the dark lord’s sword, but also his boot. Mercinestor managed to wrestle free of Malinor’s wrath for a brief second. Just enough of a moment to give his son something. Cipher listened very carefully.

“Run.”

Malinor and Cipher both shared a startled look. Malinor did not think the boy would have enough guts to go through with it. Sacrifice his own father? Cipher jumped up to the edge of the ship, cranked a switch on his wrist, and gave a cold look at the dark lord before leaping backwards into the water.

“No!”

The dark lord lunged to the edge to see for himself. Just before he hit the water, the Ignaleos Cor materialized in Cipher’s hand. The seawater smacked Cipher in the back of the head, chilling him to the bone. The proud son of the lion nation did not relinquish his stern affront towards Malinor. This kid would not go down without a fight. Malinor had no choice but to jump in after Cipher. The water felt like it froze onto his skin, before surging through his vanity mask, practically drowning him, but Malinor, fueled with rage, did not relent. The little brat had the gemstone the whole time! Malinor took something from the pouch on his belt and held it in his hand, muttering an enchantment underwater. He threw the clearstone and it slipped right through the water, almost unnaturally. The clearstone flew to Cipher and upon contact, all of the water in between the two of them vanished.

Cipher fell to the ground, which consisted of dense water, like walking in the shallow end. He got to his feet but could not pick the gem up. Now that it was back in the high seas, it behaved…differently. Cipher did not have time or attention to spare to identify what was happening. Options were running out. He knew the dark lord would give chase, but not like this. Thankfully, Cipher still had one more trick up his sleeve. He knew this was the only way to save his life and possibly the kingdom, although what could stop the armada above? Not right now.

“Give it to me, boy.”

“You will never win.”

“There’s limited oxygen in this little bubble I’ve created, so choose your final words carefully.”

Cipher cranked the switch again. Malinor reached into his belt behind his soaked cloak and pulled out three throwing knives. Cipher initiated something but the results of which had no clear bearing on the situation at hand. He kicked some of the shallow water onto the gem and scooped it right up, swiftly taking his wrist-switch off, and attaching it to the Ignaleos Cor. Malinor released the throwing knives at Cipher before charging him.

Cipher dodged two of the blades. He turned to shield the third throwing knife but Malinor found his mark. It hit the Ignaleos Cor and severed the wrist-switch’s strap. It mattered not!

Right before Malinor got close enough to harm Cipher he activated the wrist-switch once again and threw it, in tandem, with the Ignaleos Cor, at Malinor. The dark lord caught it and the gem imploded. The dark lord gruesomely purged from this realm in the blue misty haze. Who knew what happened to him? But, as soon as he was gone, the bubble burst and the pocket of air Cipher was standing in collapsed and flooded. The force of the impact thrashed him around. He had no control. Cipher washed away with the tide.

Back on the deck of the flag warship, crewmen dragged Mercinestor to the brig and Admiral Zorrowfold led the fleet in the final stretch. In order to understand the invasion of the port city you had to know the city on an intimate and fundamental level. Port Caliber technically consisted of two different cities. Across the Axis River was North Caliber City, an old settlement with a recent surge of growth after they built the Arbalest Bridge.

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All the major cities in MagnaThora had their marvels and Caliber was no exception; its massive seastone Arbalest Bridge pointing north across the river, with wing-swings to draw the bridge to make way for ships going down the river. There was also Seaport Village, part castle, part coliseum, its versatility only second to the Zepathorum Citadel, able to open its walls to the masses or seal up and host the kingdom’s financial market. Port Caliber was a shining example of the rise of the Pride in MagnaThora.

Port Caliber had a very sharp, slightly above sea level, northwestern corner, pointing back into the Barren Sea. South of the curve, nothing but sandy dunes ran down the coastline. Docks and piers covered most of the northern tip, save for the beaches south. East of the tip, along the riverbed consisted mostly of ranchers for the city and the king’s army. Just like the beaches, a heavy suburban area developed creating their own districts within Caliber. In between the stables, the harbor, and the beaches centered the city’s greatest populous, a true example of the surging growth of a budding metropolis referred to as the downtown district. Downtown resembled the towers of Zepathorum City, housing a great many people, but where Zepathorum City’s skyline was symmetrical, Caliber’s was pure chaos.

There were more people living in the downtown district than the beaches, the stables, the harbor, and North Caliber City combined. Downtown was the only district that bordered every other district, making it the central hub of the city. Admiral Zorrowfold focused the entire might of the fleet on the western coastline. The pointed tip of the bay almost looked like it corralled the dark warships into the port.

Each ship at the front of the fleet contained a boarding party, armed and ready to catch the Lion Kingdom’s defenses completely off guard. Before anyone could rally, the dark fog snuck the warships right in. Only those with a perspective either right up close or far enough away would be able to see the black sails through the shallow clouds. The first wave of ships crashed into the docks, releasing bands of raiders ready to wreak havoc. Anilithyìstad was right. The dark fog was an ancient trick of the dark forces. In actuality, it was the exhaust of an ancient sentinel of the deep dark. An ancient beast the dark lord Malinor enslaved. Not only did it provide the proper cover for their attack just by polluting the air with its exhale, but the effects of its fog would infect the entire city, unleashing malignant spores of black algae, unseen to the naked eye, until it was too late. That was just the first wave.

The Admiral had quite the onslaught planned for this invasion. The ship that landed right next to the flagship was that of the Mad Genius Spangalore, one of Malinor’s closest advisors. The crew of both ships were already busy at work bringing the supplies down to make camp. Admiral Zorrowfold advanced to survey the landing zone. After the dock was a massive castle built into the cliffs of the cape.

“This will do fine. Begin setting up headquarters.”

“I brought a special gift for our master. Will he be long before joining us?” Spangalore asked.

“He was last seen fighting Cipher Casterosi down in the sea.”

“Oh bother, I will have to release my experiments without any further delay then. I will need access to the ground forces before they are mobilized.”

“As you wish. You should also know that we have a prized hostage, Lord Mercinestor Casterosi.”

“Oh marvelous! I will take over as his keeper. Nothing would please master more than to learn of a mutilated high lord of the lion kingdom. Ha!” Spangalore laughed.

Admiral Zorrowfold spat and nodded to his subordinates. He tucked his hand into his coat and walked back onto the ship. He would see to the prisoner exchange himself. Zorrowfold was not fully convinced that Spangalore had the right to make such drastic decisions about integral members of the enemy force. They both had their own idea of the dark lord Malinor’s mission.

In his absence, they would continue his work but only to a certain degree. Admiral Zorrowfold was the one who would hold that line. He alone out of everyone in Malinor’s inner council had the temperament fit for a successful military attack. Not all members of the dark lord’s council would land with the first wave, but they were out there within the rest of the fleet, still traveling through the fog waiting to stake their claim on the day. Admiral Zorrowfold wanted to be here for strategic reasons. Spangalore was here because he was an absolute mad man.

Admiral Zorrowfold would oversee the permanent installation of their base of operations. It was an important distinction for him. Storming the beaches in the first wave was the obvious option. It was wide open for the taking, but for that same reason it would make a horrible base camp. He knew if he could sneak the fleet into the harbor, like a thornet’s nest, it would be impossible to uproot them.

The harbor would remain their stronghold even after they take the city. From here, they would begin the extermination. Admiral Zorrowfold knew they would have to combat a rivaling force assembled by the native kingdom, so instead of releasing the full force of his army onto the city he took his time, and properly prepared for the siege of a nation. The first step was securing a foothold.