April 17, 2056

Approximately twenty minutes after the declaration was made, Tyranian forces crossed the border and into Federation-controlled provinces. For the most part, it seems like their main objective is still the Feds but reports are coming in that indeed Tyranians have already engaged with Rams, albeit in small skirmishes. I know that won't last long however, and neither does Atlis.

As of right now, Atlis is busy at work attempting to calm the two giants down before things escalate even further than they already have. In the meantime, we've been gathered together to discuss a new piece of intel Atlis has obtained.

"Is everyone here? Great, let's begin," Macy says as she gestures for our attention towards the tabletop we surround. On it is a detailed map showcasing the northern terrain of Rambell.

"Up until the attack on the wall, The Federation has been careful with their movements. This included everything, from logistical routes and radio transmissions. Luckily, Rambell intelligence finally caught a break and intercepted a transmission being broadcast on an open channel. And with that came the voice of a man who goes by the name of Shuan Dorosh. Leader of the Federation."

Her last words catch me off guard and just about everyone else in the room.

"That's a bold assumption to be made. How are we sure?"

"For starters, he openly stated it himself," Macy says in the most matter-of-fact way possible, "also, Mr. Dorosh has been missing ever since the bombing of the Federation rally and that's when the Feds began to have a change of heart. Call it coincidence all you want but Atlis wants this guy bad. Which brings me to my second point." She pauses to take a quick breath before continuing. "There's no really easy way to say this... but that silver light we witnessed during the attack has been confirmed as UnHoly Divinity."

UnHoly?

I look around and see a majority of the shards are also confused with the term... but when I look closer, I can see that some of the older shards have dread and fear written all over their face. They stand paralyzed from just hearing the word be spoken as I feel a shiver begin to crawl up my spine. I'm completely unfamiliar with this word but whatever it means makes me feel a certain type of fear that I've never felt before.

"I know most of you aren't familiar with the term, but all you need to know is that it is the same form of Divinity that was responsible for the Vicerole Incident. It was also thought to have been eradicated from all forms of existence... until now that is."

There is a deafening silence that haunts the room now. Whether or not you know what this 'UnHoly' word means, you certainly know what the Vicerole Incident is. And if what she said is true, then this UnHoly Divinity is no laughing matter.

"Upon further investigation, it was discovered that Mr. Dorosh possessed numerous amounts of UnHoly knowledge within his residence. Something that should be impossible to find no matter how hard you look. So, leader or not, Shuan is a person of high interest on the radar of Rambell and Atlis. It is imperative that we retrieve him alive to find out more about his UnHoly affiliation."

"So, we're saving this guy now?"

"If putting him in a cell for the rest of his life to rot is saving him then yes, we are," She replies.

"How come we're just getting all of this information now?" Flash interjects, "If Atlis is so keen on acquiring Shuan then why didn't they inform us much sooner? They do know that Tyran is blitzing across the Federation as we speak right? And why specifically under Atlis custody?"

"That's because everything I just said was acquired by Atlis via a leak made by a Rambell insider yesterday. Rambell is planning a raid of their own on the Federation's main HQ and Atlis wants us to extract him out of there before that happens."

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And here I thought Atlis and Rambell were finally getting along. Not only that, but now it's a three-way race onto who can get to Shuan first.

"They know where he is?"

"They were able to pinpoint the origins of the transmission sent, which would be here." She points to the map to a section of dense forests. "They're fairly certain that he is still there."

Fairly certain? We're risking starting another conflict with Rambell based on fairly certain? I already have a bad feeling about this.

For the next hour, she goes over the plan that we'll be executing which in summary all comes down to this being a Black Operation. The secrecy of this operation all depends on us Black Shard being able to successfully extract Shuan without leaving any traces of Atlis involvement.

Essentially, we are to play the part of nonaffiliated mercenaries conducting a hit against Shuan Dorosh. It sounds stupid on paper but there are at least ten other false flags Atlis has conjured up to easily shift blame and create confusion.

We also have to deal with the, not specifically stated but heavily implied, restriction of any Divinity use during the operation. This also carries onto the use of our blades as it would draw too much suspicion of us being Shards.

Somehow, I get the feeling all this is directed towards me specifically.

Ignoring all that, once we extract him out of the HQ, we then have to trek across the forest towards an exfil team that will be waiting for us in the nearest town. And if everything goes smoothly, we'll drive to a secured location where we'll finally be lifted back to the Carrier.

Easier said than done. And doesn't account for the craziest part of all this.

The way we'll be inserting is by air, but currently, there's a no-fly zone in effect over the Federation and there's no way Rambell is letting anyone in. The solution? Well, let's just say it requires a bit of shard ingenuity.

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"We're approaching. Slow us down." Macy says to the pilot and reaches for the radio on her shoulder.

Under the guise of two unmarked helicopters, we've successfully been able to fly over the majority of Rambell with ease. All that is set to change however as we near the Fed-controlled provinces. We'll be sure to be shot down if they detect us on their radar. It's the same reason why Tyran has so far stuck with ground forces in their invasion.

Then again, it's hard to shoot something you can't see.

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She lets go of her radio and then proceeds to turn it off as the rest of us follow suit.

"When the Enhancement goes off, stay as silent as possible," she says turning to us. "With the Enhancement, we'll be hidden but their radar still might catch something if noise is detected. Understood?"

"Understood!" We say in unison.

She takes a deep breath and begins to start the Enhancement.

"Grant me and the ones around the gift of protection from sight. For none shall be seen or heard by the doers of evil.

Divine Cloak!"

Around us, the area around the helicopter begins to lose its color and proceeds to turn to a dull grey color. Sound also becomes affected as it slowly withers away, until finally settling on a low pulsing noise being admitted from the Enhancement.

Within this space, we're completely distorted to the outside world but that still doesn't stop us from holding our breaths as we cross into Fed airspace. Any second we could be detected and be blown to ashes.

Looking outside, I notice the numerous dots of light that sprinkle the ground below, a stark difference from the pitch-black Federation province. Now that I think about it, I remember hearing about Tyran destroying a dam being a couple of days ago which this area's main source of power. They aren't showing any remorse towards their enemy.

We're halfway to the safe distance range from Rambell radar and so far, so good. I turn away from the window, starting to ease up when all of a sudden, the helicopter gets hit with turbulence which throws us around in our seats. A Shard next to me gets thrown back and the radio on their back unhinges and turns on with static blaring through the cabin. He frantically grabs for the radio and turns it off within just a few seconds.

I stare back outside waiting for the inevitable for what seems like an eternity, but nothing happens. A breath of relief goes through the Heli and a minute later the Enhancement wears off and the thumping sound of the rotors begins to fill my ears once again.

Being inside that Enhancement space makes everything sound more audible. I could even hear the blood flowing inside my ears and even the different beats of everyone's hearts all at once. It felt so surreal. Definitely not the most pleasurable experience I've had, that's for sure.

"Dane... you owe us all a beer for making everyone shit their pants after your fuck up."

"I agree, and these were my favorite underwear as well..." Macy seconds a shard's statement before speaking into her radio.

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