XI
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Arc XI Chapter 14
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The enemy advanced. The army of snakes was in sight in all its might. The once distant metallic rumble of armours and weapons grew louder, and louder. What once felt like a distant threat, had now become a grim reality, a grim reality they were now sharply reminded of. The banners of the snake clan fluttered in the wind. The ground quaked beneath the weight of their slithering march.
“...” His subordinate officer gulped, his face etched with a mixture of fear and doubt, before a furtive glance met him. “General ...”
“NOT YET, soldier! NOT YET!” The red panda general rallied his courage, unwilling to let mere fear dictate the course of the battle. It was here now that they had to stand their ground and fight. The time had come for everyone to protect their clan, their families, and all else they held dear. “Not yet! Hold your positions!!! Wait!!!”
...
“Wait!”
...
“Wait!”
...
“Wait!”
...
“NOW!!!” The red panda general shouted from the depths of his lungs, loud enough for everyone surrounding to hear. “Everyone!!! Retreat!!! Retreat up the mountain pass! Now!!!”
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“Ssss, what isss happening? What are they doing, ssss? They are running ...” The snake emissary looked confused, unable to understand the mystery that was transpiring before his eyes.
The snake general grinned, flashing his teeth openly. “Sssss, perfect!!! This isss esssactly what we need! Thisss our chanssse! They are fleeing! They have broken their ranksss! They are routed! We mussst strike now when the iron isss hot! We mussst not miss this opportunity! We must hunt them down like prey!”
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“Captain!” the general barked.
”Yesss, General!” a snake officer reported.
“Order the troops to pursssue the enemy! Sssshow no mercy, no quarter! Eliminate everyone and anyone in your way! Today, victory will be oursss!”
“Isss sssuch wissse, though, general?” the emissary shared his doubts. “It might be unwissse to pursssue the enemy. Ssshould we not act with care and patience inssstead? It would not be the first time that essssesssive eagerness led to failure, General.”
“Your worriesss are appreciated, but misssplaced, emissary. Thisss isss an opportunity that we cannot allow to go waste. Our mere sssight has routed the enemy and sssent them running with their tails between their legs, but victory isss not yet ours. We have broken their morale, but unless we desssstroy their army here and now, they will live to fight another day. That isss why we mussst pursue them now before it isss too late. We cannot allow them to rally and regroup. We must take the mountain pass before they are able to turn their arms againssst ussss once again.”
The emissary merely nodded. “True wordsss indeed, General. May the day bring usss victory!”
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“Look, Katsuki, our plan ... It is working! They are pursuing us! They are walking right into our trap!” Yuki clenched her fists, radiating undiluted enthusiasm. Their plan ... Their plan was truly working. Of course, Nee-san's wisdom would never fail her! Everything was going according to plan! “Soon it is also time for us to strike! We just need to be patient and wait! Our moment will come!”
“...” Katsuki nodded, as did the surrounding cat warriors. Armed to the paws, each of them were prepared to fight and give their lives for nekohood.
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A narrow path allowed the snake army to advance through the rugged terrain, through a desolate land of stone and rock, but it was a treacherous path, much to the discomfort of the common snake soldier and officer. It was quiet. Too quiet. There was no enemy in sight, and yet all of them had the feeling that they were being watched, a feeling that was unwilling to leave them. Each of their steps was observed by unseen eyes. Their movements closely monitored. Their keen senses warned them, and yet their orders demanded them to advance.
A snake soldier gulped, his restless eyes straying around, ceaselessly observing their surroundings, the stone, the rocks, the high cliffs around them. “Captain, do you ... Do sense it too? Sssomething isss not right here.”
The officer did his best to maintain a calm façade. Something was not right, but it was better not to think about it too much. “Courage, sssoldier. We are all proud warriorsss. We are sssnakesss. Fear will not cloud our judgement ...”
“GRRHGRRGRGHRGHRGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHRRH!!!”
An earthshattering cacophony of calamity echoed through the entire valley like a lightning splitting heaven apart. The whole mountain trembled, shuddered deep down to its very core, as if the mountain itself awakened from its eternal slumber only to rise. A chorus of crashing, splintering, and grinding rock erupted from behind. A massive rockslide crashed downwards at the foot of the mountain, destroying anything in its path in a maelstrom of dust and debris. The masses of unmoveable rock and stone blocked the beginning of the valley and their only exit.
“Captain, what ... What is going on here?” Confusion was written across the soldier's face.
“...” The snake officer paled in an instant, immediately realising the full implications of what has transpired. The pass was blocked. Their only escape route was completely cut off. They were now ... They were now all trapped. The entire army was trapped. “...”
“WAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!” A roaring war cry filled the air.
The snake officer turned his head and he was greeted by the sight of a charging enemy. The alliance forces were charging down the mountain pass, meeting them head on with full force.
“Dammit!” the snake captain hissed. “BATTLE FORMATION!!! FORM RANKS ...”
A stray arrow cut him short, shooting right past his head into the ground. Archers. A volley of arrows rained down upon from the cliffs above, piercing armours and scales alike. Red pandas, hedgehogs, otters, beavers, rabbits, squirrels, weasels, tanuki, they all stood together drawing their small bows. And it was not just arrows. Javelins, rocks, boulders, wooden logs followed in an endless hail of projectiles, all hurled down upon them from above without relent.
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“... ... ...” The snake general stared the settling dust cloud, his blood boiling, his tongue hissing. “I have underessstimated the enemy. It wasss a trap. It wasss a trap all along. We played right into their handsss. They lured usss in and ssstruck. ”
The emissary spoke first. “What ssshall we do now then, General?”
The general gritted his teeth in fustration. “Nothing. The army isss lossst. The battle isss lossst. All that remainsss for usss now isss to retreat ...”
“Nyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaa~!!! For catnip and nekohood! For the Empress, BANZAI!!!”
“Nyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaa~!!!” A roaring nya resounded across the plain.
The general froze. This sound ... From the tree line emerged an army of fierce warrior cats clad in armour and with swords in their paws , their numbers uncountable. The cats covered the ground with feline speed, their armoured paws trampling down the earth. They charged right towards them.
This was the end ...
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