Alex stood in the courtyard of Oakenfort in the centre of a giant magic array he had carved into the soft earth of the ground. Using a spear he pilfered from a guard on break, he cut a rough map of the town below.

“You sure this will work, sir?”

“Hmm? Oh yes, sure, as cake.”

“It’s just we may have gotten permission to destroy the town, but…” the soldier's trepidation was evident in his voice.

Alex looked up from his task and let out a sigh. “What is your name, soldier?”

Jumping at the question, the soldier audibly gulped. “I am Opoe, sir.”

“Well, Opoe… this here is an illusionary displacement array. It is a nifty toy that will let me spread my illusions over the entire town and cut the mana cost significantly.”

“But why illusions? Surely we can easily eliminate that force with our few thousand here?”

“Sure, I guess… but where is the pizazz? Where is the showmanship?”

“Showmanship?” Opoe parroted now, even more confused.

“Yes, I want these invaders to go to the afterlife filled with terror unrivalled. I want them to despair.”

“So that’s why you are going to use illusions?”

“Exactly. I am even using a little know trick to make them harder to see through.”

“To hide the siege engines?”

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“Corectamondo. You are a clever one. Yuu gave me a few of her failed toys to use and dispose of here.”

Opoe paled at the revelation. “T-those are failures?” He still shuddered at the memory of seeing how one of the weapons quickly sliced a tree in two.

Seeing his reaction, Alex let a playful smirk spread across his face. “You should see her successes. Hoo boy… regardless, I have placed illusions over the whole town to conceal where they are hidden.”

“And they are layered?”

“Oh gods no,” Alex replied, chuckling. “The layer will be after they have entered the kill zone.” He explained, gesturing to the spot on his rough map that corresponded with the town square. “If you make an illusion so obvious anyone can tell it's a fake, even if they pierce it, they won’t be able to pierce the relatively normal illusion underneath.”

“And you are doing this to hide the weapons?”

“Precisely, now next to limber up, gotta dance and sing my heart out for this next bit. Gaia does love her dancing and music.”

“Next bit?”

“Well, they can just run out of the town. I will be using a shape earth spell and create walls. That’s Why I’m using this map. It helps to have a reference.”

“What is going to stop them just climbing over the walls?”

“Silly boy… They will be moving obviously… hmmm… here watch…”

With a stomp of his foot on the ground, miniature walls rose up around the town map below. The walls themselves had nasty-looking spikes along their interior.

“Then, with a flourish!” Performing a graceful pirouette on his spot in the middle, the walls began to mimic him, with them slowly closing in on his left leg.

“You see young Opoe… now imagine that moving in towards a force…”

Opoe felt the blood drain from his face as he looked at the man in front of him. He, along with many other soldiers, had been unsure of the man. He had many accolades to his name but assumed it was all apocryphal. But their notions had become less fanciful when he arrived accompanied by several hundred skeletons.

Now seeing him ready to bring death and terror to hundreds, Opoe was sure of one thing. He was glad this madman was on their side.

Walking away from Opoe, Alex clenched his fist and muttered to himself. “I will make this land safe for my daughters. Even if I have to become a monster to do it.”