Slowly, the sun retreated behind the horizon, casting the world in shadow. The world quieted down, slowing. Even as hundreds of soldiers were still awake and working or patrolling.
Alaster meditated until a servant came to fetch him.
The man was smaller than most, which must have made Alaster look like a giant to him. However, he didn’t hesitate or flinch. He confidently and resolutely led Alaster deep into the City Lord’s castle.
Past several guarded iron doors, they delved. Alaster noticed that the doors were guarded from both sides. He was quite surprised at the strength of the guards. Not one was lower than High Adept, and each one was clearly tested.
Soon enough, the Servant led Alaster to a much larger and thicker steel door. Standing at over twice Alaster’s height and thrice that wide.
A dozen men in thick steel armor guarded the door. From the way they stood, they were prepared for threats coming from behind the door, and from the castle.
Not one of the Guards turned to acknowledge the Servant, but all of them tensed when Alaster entered the room.
They had all heard of his strength. Heard how he could summon an army of Minions capable of defending an entire section of sieged wall.
Alaster was alone, at the moment, all his Minions in his Domain. Though his body was covered in the Pact armor, leaving his head exposed.
Alaster didn’t spare the Guards more than a moment of attention. The gate was impressive. Steel was pricy. It was incredibly difficult to produce if one did not have the proper Class, Abilities, and equipment. When it was used, it was typically in small parts. It was a strong material, but unless it was reinforced with magic, a strong Adept or the average Expert could rip through it with their bare hands.
Alaster took a moment to examine the Mana Streams of the gate. He was not yet capable of knowing what each one did, but he could tell by the countless streams that the gate was reinforced and enchanted extensively.
While Alaster stood, studying the gate and pondering at its cost, the Servant walked up and knocked on the gate. The thuds resounded through the stone room, echoing slightly.
The Servant then turned around and left the room, ascending the stairs once more. Silence consumed the room. Not even the four Mage Lights made any sound, nor did the Guards.
Several moments passed as Alaster simply stood there, unimpressed. He had conversed with Sedall, who knew more about modern enchantments, and learned that while the gate would provide an unbreachable obstacle even for most Experts, Alaster could rip his way through, though with difficulty.
Alaster struggled to keep his face expressionless as he imagined how his numerous types of Minions would attempt to breach the gate.
The Blackguards would probably attempt to use their polearms to pry the two doors apart. The Night Children would try to burrow through the stone underneath the gate. The Minotuars would just ram into the gate until either the gate gave out or they did, and they would.
The War Born would likely attempt to weaken the joints of the gate. While the Dread Knight would simply swing its sword at the gate, then when blade broke, it would resort to furiously clawing at the gate.
Without warning, the gate started to open, and with it came a storm of noise. The room on the other side was a copy of the room Alaster was currently in. At least three dozen people were rushing about, though Alaster suspected there were even more. He couldn’t get an accurate count as the people were weaving between each other too quickly.
Against the back wall, Alaster spotted a portal, just large enough for him to walk through. Alaster spotted three types of people in the room as he walked in, the gate closing behind.
Haulers, Healers, and Soldiers. The haulers carried bags of food, weapons, armor, and what appeared to be explosives through the portal.
Most of the soldiers wore leather armor dyed a mirage of grays and purples. Many wore bandoliers of knives and explosives and had painted faces. All who wore the leather armor were clearly experienced, grizzled, veterans. Even those being treated by the Healers rarely cried out in pain, only grunting in pain and no small part annoyance.
The entire process, despite appearing chaotic, was clearly well practiced. In just a few minutes, the haulers had moved an incredible amount through the portal. The healers got most of the injured back to fighting shape, calling over fresh Saboteurs to replace those that couldn’t return to duty.
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There was no rank insignia on any of the Saboteurs, though it was easy to spot those in charge if one looked closely.
Each of the Saboteurs were filthy, and tired, but the fire in their eyes told a story. Most had dirty bandages wrapped around various parts of their bodies.
In just ten minutes, the rush seemed to be dying down. The Saboteurs began funneling through the portal. One of the commanders came up to Alaster.
“Are you the one we are supposed to take with us?” He asked.
There was no accusation or joy. Just an honest question. The man was too tired to care on way or another.
Alaster nodded, “That would be me. Just tell me where you want me.”
“Follow me then.” The Saboteur instructed, already walking toward the portal, uncaring if Alaster actually followed or not.
Alaster joined the procession of Saboteurs through the portal.
No longer was he in the deepest and most secure part of Onigas. Instead, he was in a dark forest, surrounded by resting and preparing Saboteurs.
Alaster had thought that those on the other side of the portal were the only Saboteurs. He was severely wrong. The Saboteurs easily numbered over a hundred. Each one was sharpening blades and arrows, preparing explosives and poisons, or getting what rest they could.
Despite the large number, there was not a sound louder than a whisper. They were all practiced. Alaster was not, and he could see several of the Saboteurs cringe at the amount of noise he made with each step.
Alaster’s pact armor was perfectly suited to him. It made very little noise. It was simply his way of walking and breathing that caused so much noise.
The Saboteurs were all over the place. Some were sitting in the dirt, others were on rocks, but Alaster spotted quite a large percentage of the veterans in the trees. Even when he knew they were there, their armor made it quite difficult to spot them in the foliage, even when the sparse moonlight made its way through the overcast sky.
The only shelter was a small tent, only large enough for maybe four people, if they were comfortable with each other and ducked.
Alaster made his way towards the tent, paying special attention to his movements, trying his best to keep quiet. Crouching down to see into the tent, Alaster opened the flap and shuffled in.
There were only two people there, one of whom Alaster was quite familiar with. Colius looked at Alaster with a warm smile, clearly wanting to say something and welcome his old pupil properly, but he contained himself. The other occupant of the tent was a grizzled Saboteur. His body was covered in sheathed blades of various types and sizes. On his belt, he wore a dozen explosives, which Alaster imagined he would light easily with the cigar in his mouth.
The man looked at Alaster with dead eyes, motioning for him to sit, like them. There was no cushion, nor was there a table for the map between the men. Alaster sat down, filling any remaining space in the tent.
“I am the commander of the Saboteurs, Veo.” The man introduced himself, speaking in a strange whisper. It was just as quiet, but much less harsh, like he was breathing out the words.
“Alaster.” Alaster spoke, attempting to emulate the voice.
“Here is the situation. We are stationed here,” Veo pointed to a spot on the map, “The main force of the Tarian Force is here.” The location he pointed to could not have been more than five miles away.
“Why so close?” Alaster asked.
“It allows us to act quickly. And as you might have noticed, we don’t have anything with us. This tent is the only thing we would have to pack, allowing us to go anywhere and do so quickly.
But you aren’t here to help us sabotage the main army. You are here to help us harass their reinforcements.”
“Somewhat.” Alaster corrected, “I am here to sort through the reinforcements, and if there is a person I know, extract them, before we wipe out the reinforcements.”
“Kid we can’t just wait for you to look at every single soldier before we attack. There are hundreds. We have to attack quick and hard before we retreat. We don’t have the forces for an actual attack.”
“But I do.”
“What do you mean Alaster?” Colius spoke up.
The old man had only grown older in the years since Alaster last saw him. His usually short, trimmed beard was long and unkept. But despite his advanced age, he sat straight, if tired.
“Right,” Alaster shook his head, “Out here you wouldn’t have heard the news.”
“No, all we know is that you suddenly showed up in the city, helped to repel several attacks, and are extremely powerful,” Veo informed, “But all power is useless if it isn’t utilized correctly.”
“I can summon several hundred Undead, but between my Undead and myself, the enemy will prefer facing the Undead.”
‘Except maybe the Dread Knight.’ Alaster mentally added.
“And what’s your plan for finding, let alone extracting your friend?” Veo asked, clearly not a fan of the idea.
“I was thinking of sneaking in while they sleep and then my Minions would attack, creating a distraction for me to get away.”
“There are still several hundreds of soldiers, it would take several hours to look through them while remaining undetected. How are you going to find them?”
“I have my ways. All you have to do is wait until my Undead attack before you begin your Sabotage.”
Veo thought for several moments, scratching his stubble, “The reinforcements are still a day away from the main army. It takes time for any sizable group to travel through the woods, even if they are taking the roads. I suggest attacking tomorrow night. They will be closer to the main army, so we will have to be quicker to get away, but it will allow us to set an ambush better.”
Veo pointed to a spot on the map, “They should be around here tomorrow before they stop for the night. We should be able to bury some explosives under them, focusing on the road itself to further slow their progress. When we actually attack, we will focus our hand bombs on priority targets such as supplies, officers, and especially healers.”
Alaster nodded along, paying close attention and finding no fault in the man’s plan. Unfortunately, his plan didn’t suit Alaster.
“No. We will attack tonight.”