I looked up at the sky nervously as thunder boomed overhead. I could not see the clouds through the thick red mist but I knew it was not a good sign. Rain always had an extreme effect on the blood mist. The water would never reach the ground nor did it disperse the mist as it would a naturally forming fog. Instead, storms only made the blood mist thicker. The myriad of faces would practically come alive as the mist became denser and more vibrant than ever. During exceptionally hard downpours of rain, even seeing your own hand in front of your face was difficult. For the monsters that called this place home, however, this was the perfect time for hunting.
Even now, Demonkin prowled through the fog, becoming more restless with every passing second. Roars and growls became louder and louder. They knew what was coming. When the rain started, they would finally get the opportunity to sink their teeth into the humans they had been following for the past two days.
I could only curse our luck as I rushed down to the army. Our domain warriors were strong but none of us could change the weather. Once it started, countless soldiers would die.
As I flew, I felt my skin crawl. I came to a halt as I peered into the mist. This was a feeling that was becoming all too familiar. The Demon Aym was watching me.
If Aym was here, the other Demons would not be far. They would not pass up this opportunity to attack in force while our vision was impaired. We had to get ready. This was not going to be an easy battle.
Ignoring the sickly feeling of being watched, I flew down to the center of the army where the others had already begun to gather. Every domain warrior looked nervous as another boom of thunder shook the air.
General Arthur stood at the front of the group. His bright red coat practically acted as camouflage in the crimson mists. “We need to move quickly if we are going to weather this storm. I am assigning everyone a section of the army. Use your domains to see where your eyes cannot. No matter what happens, do not break formation. With any luck, this storm will not be too bad.”
“Doubtful,” Dom said morbidly, “I feel it in these creaky old bones. This will be a slaughter.”
General Arthur frowned but did not refute the statement. “Unless you have a better strategy, we are going to have to focus on defense until the storm passes. So long as we keep our formations tight, we should be able to limit the casualties.”
“I do have a better plan, but first, Owen, if you wouldn’t mind,” Dom said with a nod towards one of the three warriors that followed us from Bellator.
Owen was a strange man. Constantly mumbling to himself, he always looked as if he was an escapee from a mental institution. However, I knew the truth. Despite what others might think, he was not crazy, at least, not completely. Owen was a telepath and once upon a time, he had been in charge of protecting the perimeter of the Thirteenth Division's headquarters. The Demon Aym might be able to see through the blood mist but Owen truly knew everything that happened within it. Every living creature, no matter how small, could not escape his notice. Unfortunately, this was also the man’s curse. He could not turn off his ability. The noise of it all constantly drove him to the brink of madness.
With how tortured the man was, I preferred not to bother him unless there was no other choice. I knew he would tell me if something truly important happened. Until then, it was best for Owen if I simply let him be. For Dom to call upon him now meant whatever he had planned was significant.
As soon as Dom spoke, the feeling of being watched vanished. Owen stopped mumbling to himself as his eyes started to glow with a pure white light. “You have ten minutes. That is as long as I can deceive the Demon before he realizes what happened and breaks free of my illusion. Until then he will think you are discussing a plan to fake a retreat and bait the enemy for a counterattack.”
“That will be enough. Thank you, Owen,” Dom said with a satisfied nod, “Alright everyone, listen closely. The Demons have avoided attacking us for the past few days but there is little doubt in my mind there will be a horde of Demonkin and Alphas charging us when the storm begins. There is no strategy that can prevent horrid losses.”
“What are you proposing?” General Arthur asked skeptically.
“What I am proposing is a preemptive strike. The storm has not started yet, and once it does it will take at least twenty minutes before the mist gets too thick. That will be enough time to deal a significant amount of damage.”
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General Arthur grimaced as he considered Dom’s plan. “If we get caught out when the storm begins, we would be out of formation. Our potential losses could be catastrophic.”
“That is why we have to move quickly. Aym will wake up from Owen’s trick as soon as we attack but before then, they will have no idea where we actually are. Our domain warriors can circle behind the enemy, striking the horde, and pushing them into our army. Then, our forces can engage the enemy without breaking formation.”
General Arthur paused. I could practically hear the gears spinning in his head as he considered every possibility. “Alright, go quickly. I’ll prepare the men for battle.”
Dom had a big grin on his face as he gave me a thumbs-up. “Ready for a fight?”
“Always,” I replied.
An arm suddenly appeared around my shoulder and bright purple hair filled my vision. Mare looked absolutely delighted as she hung onto my shoulders energetically. “Finally, I have been waiting forever for this! Everyone, get onto the floating island. I will fire the opening shot.”
I raised an eyebrow at the hyper child as she led the way. Normally Mare would be making excuses to avoid the battle right about now. However, ever since she gained a body of her own, she seemed much more impulsive. This was far from the first time Mare had started clamoring for a fight recently but it would be the first time Dragon’s Nest would act since its power-up. I did not know how much power the Preateritum remnant had regained and could not help but smile as I considered the surprise in store for the Demons.
Mare took a deep breath as she landed on the floating island. The fake image of a mansion began to shimmer and disappear as the true form of Dragon’s Nest was revealed to the world. Four tall towers pierced into the sky as if declaring their majesty over everything below it. The symbol of a dragon was prominent above the central door, radiating power no weaker than any of the domain warriors present. The entire building radiated a purple glow that seemed to be omnipresent.
Several of the domain warriors gasped when seeing the majesty of the building for the first time. My own eyes were immediately drawn to blank spots near the top of the towers before giving a sigh of relief. When I first saw the building, that was where the symbols of the Preateritum had been carved. Luckily, Mare did not reveal that portion of the building, instead leaving the walls bare.
“What are you doing?” I hissed at Mare.
“Whatever I want,” Mare replied with a shrug. She then glanced at Svend who had landed on the roof of one of the towers. “You’re not going to want to stand there.”
Svend got the hint and quickly hopped down. Once all the domain warriors were atop the floating island, it bucked forwards like a wild animal. Slicing through the blood mist, Dragon’s Nest began to move at a speed greater than any I had seen from it before. It was easily comparable to Svend or Sebastion flying at full speed. Everyone except Mare was knocked off their feet by the sudden acceleration.
I scowled at Mare as I rubbed my sore bottom but she purposefully ignored my gaze. Mare had a big grin on her face as the island soared high straight up into the sky. The air started to get thin and I felt a headache from the sudden change in pressure but before I could complain, the island began to drop down again. In less than a minute after it began to move, the floating island came to a stop.
Thunder rumbled through the air again as Mare looked down at the void of red mist below. Her smile had taken on a more wicked shape. I heard her whisper under her breath. “This is payback for blowing me up before.”
Once again, the island began to shake but this time it was not because it was moving. The rock and stone that perpetually covered the bottom half of the Preateritum building began to shudder and crack. I had to leap into the air as the ground under my feet fell away. Everyone else was forced to join me as bit by bit the floating island crumbled away.
Everyone’s gaze was focused on Mare now. Her laughter rang through the mist and I had no doubt the Demons could hear her as well. I felt a sense of dread building inside of me at the sight of her maniacal delight.
Before I could do anything though, the last of the rock tumbled away from Dragon’s Nest. For the first time, I was able to see underneath the floating rock and dirt. I paled at the sight. I always knew Dragon’s Nest continued deep underground but I never expected it to be like this.
The four towers continued down below the front entrance, surrounding a large cylinder pointing straight down. It took me a moment to understand what I was looking at but once I did, my entire body went cold.
I grabbed hold of Mare’s shoulder in a panic. “Is the entire building a cannon?!”
Mare continued to laugh in delight. “I told you, when I was at full power, I could crack a planet in half! Did you think I was lying?”
I did not get a chance to reply before a loud whirling echoed from the cannon. The tops of each of the four towers opened like flowers. A strong suction force began to draw air into each of the four openings. I did not even need my connection as an Adept to see the raw power being absorbed by each tower. Purple lines began to spread like vines from the top of the towers down until the entire building was covered. So much energy was being absorbed from the atmosphere that even the blood mist began to thin. I could see what lay below us for the first time.
The horde of Demonkin was vast. Hundreds of thousands of squirming creatures covered the earth like a carpet. The falling debris from the floating island had caused chaos. Several dozen Alphas were rushing up towards our location like a swarm of angry bees.
Three of the four remaining Demons stood at the back of the army. I could see the glowing red as their eyes went wide at the sight of the castle-sized cannon.
The world seemed to freeze as everything fell still. A sound like cracking glass echoed from the cannon, followed by a blinding flash of purple light.