Cypher crept low as he moved through the heavy foliage around the Estate. Windhowl Manor stood silent against the grey sky behind it, and Cypher could see several sentries walking around the grounds. He was too far away for them to detect him as long as their Conduction level was accurate to the reports. As it was, they were only in the middle of the second rank. Of course, Cypher couldn't tell from here either given that his Conduction level wasn't much better.
As he looked on, Cypher felt no danger of being spotted from his current location. He had trained hard in his ability to remain hidden against several dangerous creatures back in the training rooms at his home in Seven City. Stealth was something he was quite familiar with, at least when it came to beings in the human ranks.
The Red-Scaled Viper was quite adept at detecting prey or enemies. It had a special ability that allowed it to enhance its natural ability to detect body heat and collect chemicals in the air with its tongue. This made sneaking up on one quite difficult, especially when it was hungry. All of the ones that spawned in the training room were programmed to act as though they were starving, which increased their desire to kill and consume thus making it a more challenging opponent.
Of course, he also trained against other Zightbeasts adept at detecting prey and other enemies. All that said, Cypher had learned the skills he needed to avoid such detections and humans were much easier to hide from. Without the advantage of a higher Conduction level, he would be practically invisible to them.
From what he could see, several Conductors patrolled the grounds from high vantage points where guards usually kept a lookout. He could also see the main building but of course, the forces inside would be a mystery to him. He would have to get much closer to detect them from outside, but that would also reveal his own presence.
His plan was to infiltrate quickly and quietly but that would depend on the forces Lord Fayaldin had provided. They would act as a distraction. Once most of the forces were focused on the troops, Cypher would slip inside and defeat their leader. At that point, it would only be a matter of cleaning up the remaining Conductors and securing the vault.
He wasn't too worried. In a worst-case scenario, he would use the Ark Cradle. That would put him at a level high enough that Rank-Three Conductors wouldn't be a problem. Mostly, this was an annoying but fruitful mission that yielded fairly decent rewards. Through it, he could finally reach the second Rank in full. Training his Orrium wouldn't be difficult if he had time either. It was only a matter of getting down to it.
From what he could tell from the forces outside the manor, their entire battle strength should consist of only about the seven Conductors outside and perhaps ten or fifteen inside. From what he knew, breaking up their forces too heavily would be foolish, and in order to maintain control of the estate of a Noble, they would have to make sure that their power wasn't spread too thinly.
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One had to know that if you seized the estate of a Noble, you'd have the entire caste of nobility in that area clamoring to regain control. Losing even a single estate diminished the noble's overall power and that was the last thing they wanted.
In any event, Cypher felt confident that he could handle this little mission without much difficulty. He spent a few days memorizing the guard rotations, and when no other Conductors emerged from within the manor, he knew that his estimation was probably on point.
These Conductors were smart enough to have several different sets of guard rotations. Each set patrolled differently and consisted of several different Conductors. However, only five different Conductors came out from the ones he had already seen. It seemed as though they were being quite cautious and trying to lull any onlookers into believing that their force was smaller than it was.
However, Cypher could see through their plan and knew that it wasn't so cut and dry. They were obviously more Conductors inside who were saving up their strength and helping to break through the incredible Wards on Fayaldin's Vault. Something like that would take time and lots of effort. A single Conductor at this level wouldn't be able to handle a task like that.
The protections on the vault were the best money could buy. Royals from the capital of Farnor had personally seen to the enchantments upon it. Each layer was well within the fourth rank, and those that acted as the final line of defense were in the early stages of the fifth rank. Breaking such Wards would use up a monstrous amount of Zight. If these Conductors were working non-stop it would still take about ten Conductors several weeks to break through.
Of course, the estate itself had protections on it as well. Most of them were fairly standard, but some new ones had been clearly thrown together. Barbed wire laced with acid spells shimmered green in the sunlight. Low-level ballistae were mounted on the walls every few feet and were likely those of a Magickal nature.
If they popped off, they would let loose with powerful energy blasts of pure Zight. Cypher wasn't wholly confident that he could dodge all of them if they all aimed at him at once. Still, it was better to know that they were there in the first place. He wouldn't have noticed them if he had simply barreled in until it was too late. They were carefully hidden and disguised as gargoyle statues.
With his, initial examinations of the estate complete, he felt ready to deliver his report. He quickly returned to their camp and informed the Vice-Guardsman Lent, of what he had discovered. Cypher had opted to go alone. The human guards wouldn't have been able to hide their presence as effectively as he could.
"So it's like that is it? Well, then I'll make sure my men have the necessary Wards in place before we attack. If it's only a small force like that we should be just fine using the Warding charms Lord Fayaldin provided," replied Lent after Cypher was done explaining.
"They'll serve as a nice first line of defense against the Wizards. We might not be extremely powerful in comparison, but we ought to be able to hold up long enough for you to do your thing!" he continued.
Cypher nodded and leaned over a table with a map of the inside of the estate stretched across it. I have a plan," Cypher began, "and if we follow it to the letter with few deviations we should be able to recapture this place within a single day. I hope your men are ready because, for them, this will be quite a dangerous mission!"
Lent smiled and raised an eyebrow, "Dangerous missions are their specialty!"