The Prime Beacon's Address

They hadn't had much time to enjoy the view from the top of the walls after completing the path up or grant much attention to the new winds buffeting them with a vengeful strength. Hair would've made that experience much more unpleasant.

A couple of officers were waiting, and upon arrival, they split them into a group of engineers and a group of techs before herding them off to separate sections of the walls. While the techs disappeared back beyond the edge, their destination one of the many compartments built into the interior face of the walls, another two officers came by to divide their remaining number further.

She found herself in a crew with the same engineer--whose name was Fa-2, and another two who her HUD marked as Ve-8 and Yl-4. Their guide directed them east, walking parallel against the walls' edge before coming to one of the oddities in the terrain of the wall. The officer stopped before its reinforced entrance and turned to them.

"This is one of the many depots dispersed along the walls. Although you wouldn't need to access them unless, in an emergency, there are a series of cargo doors in the rear leading to one of the service lifts that bring supplies all the way up from the base of the walls. You'll move freshly deposited storage containers from the loading bay to the shelves in the adjacent space and catalog them. Your roles will be to maintain a perfect record of everything moving in and out of this depot before, during, and after each attack," she noticed how he implied they would survive several attempts, "and to deliver fresh munitions, power cores, and anything else the engineers assigned to servicing the WAVs or emplacements place a request for. I don't think I need to remind any of you this is not a role for those slow on their feet."

Without pausing for questions, he dismissed them and began marching to the other end of the walls. They watched him go, then entered the depot to begin their assignment. Ve-8 and Yl-4 began canvassing what the immediate stores within the depot already held, while she and Fa-2 continued deeper inside the structure until they came to a space with an open alcove at the end connecting to the edges of a lift track.

Noticing a red light flashing near the lift, Fa-2 said, "A lift is coming up now. Let's clear some space."

"Mm-hmm." They separated to cover twice as much ground, starting at opposite ends. Utilizing carts and anti-grav nodes, the task became trivial. They had every storage container waiting inside the loading bay moved in neat stacks for the others' convenience by the time the lift crested into view, laden with dozens more.

Before they could attack the new arrivals, Pa-5's communicator beeped. Hers wasn't the only one, as Fa-2 pulled his free from his pocket when she did. Her fingers spasmed as she retrieved hers, and she masked her wince. It wouldn't leave her be, would it?

Her eyes skimmed the screen, then widened. A universal communication? This was going to every person in the Last Light! She looked over at Fa-2's communicator; it was identical to hers. They shared a glance and thumbed over at the same time.

A new screen, one that showed a counter, one rising every second. It must've been the total number of people already watching. After fourteen seconds, the number stopped growing and flashed, leading to another transition.

This time, a yellow background projected. It reminded her of the first yellow-fur she'd had a close encounter with since it wasn't hard on the eyes either. The screen remained vacant of activity for a short duration before she heard footsteps in the background. She blinked when the Prime Beacon entered into view, stopping and turning, smart with his military precision.

"Hello, everyone. I'm sure there are plenty of you who don't know who I am, but," he paused to fish out his yellow band from a pocket and slip it over his bicep, "this should amend that." It matched the background behind him. Across from her, Fa-2 sucked in a breath.

"I've come forward today to provide humanity with bad tidings. And an apology, both from the One-Light Directory and myself. You see, we have not done well in implementing transparency into our governance policy. A month ago, Fort Io fell. Not long after it, so did Fort Rhea, leaving us on our own. There are no more human settlements out there. No more bastion outposts, no more cities, nothing. The Last Light is the final remnant of what humanity once was…and yet, we may not even have this in another month's time."

"The forts fell because we underestimated our enemy. The Aud were once thought to only be instinct-driven beasts with a craving for human blood and flesh, but recent experiences have turned this sentiment on its head. There is intelligence among their ranks, as potent as ours and perhaps more than that. It could be they all have it, or only their higher tiers; we don't know the specifics, but the matter stands that we do know they have it at all, which changes things."

"Some among them can reason, express aversion to pain, and strategize. And whatever force drives the movements of the Aud has brought them to do one last task: try to finish what they started three hundred years ago when they followed us down here. Approaching the Last Light isn't a horde of Aud, but an army of enemy soldiers millions strong. They bring with them a conflict that has kept us locked in its grasp for generations, longer than our grandparents' parents lived."

"The Directory and the military were aware of this, of course, and have been diligent in their preparations to meet this Aud army in battle. Not a skirmish, but a battle, for there is no longer anywhere for us to run. This will not be a fight for territory, a fight for honor, or a fight for resources. Our enemy cares for none of those considerations and never has. No, the most recent challenge that has landed at our feet is ironically of the same nature every other confrontation has been: survival."

"I will not ask that every one of you take part. Far from it. Many of the Last Light's residents have already done humanity a great good through their decade-long service. Many still provide the Directory's servicemen with needed weapons, tools, and materials to perform the defense we will need in the coming hours. And many of you are too young to understand what such a decision would warrant. But I would ask each of you to stay safe, and that you cooperate with the directives of the One-Light Directory in this trying time before us."

"It may look that way, but none of us are alone in the Gaiss Hollow. Look to your right and left, in front and behind you." Pa-5's and Fa-2's eyes collided for a moment before returning to their communicators. "The men and women near you will be your armor, as you will be their weapon. There will be no stars, no sun, and no gods to bear witness to our struggle, but there will be each of us. And I'd argue that is the only thing we need."

"That said, please don't commit the mistake of underestimating our foes because they are encroaching into the heart of human territory. We can plan and plot and scheme all we please, but the Aud will most definitely tear through half of what we can muster against them without feeling it. A large number of the valiant defenders will fall. Many civilians will likely join them even if we are victorious in the end. I advise you to say farewell to your loved ones now, to have everything covered in advance." The Prime Beacon chuckled under his breath, drawing his speech to a close. "It's in futility, I suppose. In futility, only we remain."