PART 6 - CHAPTER 9

There were multitudes of people running around the broken streets and burning homes, and it was as if the very infernos of hell had come to claim their very souls...

It was a sight that truly wasn't familiar for the young man known as Johannes, as the village he grew up in, a humble place that lied in the rural, southern outskirts of Roztoc, was currently being laid waste to by gigantic, green-skinned monsters with an unparalleled, herculean strength: the orks, or so Johannes heard from the ancient stories of his now-dead family.

Originally, Johannes thought that they were nothing more than rumours, creatures who were nothing more than fairy tale monsters that were used to scare disobedient children into sleep by their weary parents– it had now become apparent, however, that these monsters truly did exist within the folds of reality, and did not merely belong in the pages of a simple story, as these creatures were currently running around and destroying the very place where Johannes had lived most of his life in.

"... W-why is this happening to us? What did we do to deserve this?"

Everything happened so suddenly, and Johannes couldn't even begin to remember the exact chronological events of the disaster that was slowly ravaging his village– news of Roztoc's destruction as well as the defeat of the defending imperial army reached their ears, a lamentful tragedy that brought despair upon the southern village folk, though that would not be the end of it all, as the orks would inevitably descend upon their small settlement, and they immediately began setting fire to every house they could find, all while mercilessly cutting down any human that came within their sights with their dull-bladed weapons...

"T-there's nowhere left to run to... What am I going to do...?"

Alas, the poor boy had unfortunately been cornered into a dead end by the towering ork who had been chasing him for hours– it was the same monster who had torn into their humble little house of wood and straw, the same brutal fiend who slew his parents right in front of him with its sharp, bloody axe, and was also the same being who was about to put an end to his own miserable life as well.

"S-spare me... Please... You already killed my father and mother... Why would you want to take my life as well? What did we even do to you?"

The ork warrior remained unflinching as Johannes posed that question, as it slowly walked towards him while brandishing the same weapon it had used to split the skulls of the boy's parents– terrifyingly enough though, there also seemed to be a raw, barely contained rage within its fearsome eyes, and it was almost as if it exceedingly hated the very concept of Johannes' existence, and the young man could only begin to wonder as to why this monster utterly despised him, all while the ork slowly raised its battle axe to deliver the deadly, finishing blow.

"P-please... D-don't kill me... P-please, have pity... P-please-"

No mercy was shown despite the cruelty of the fate that the fell creature had forced upon the child: its axe swung downwards, aiming to split its skull in the same way it had finished off Johannes' father and mother.

And unfortunately for the young lad, no saving miracle would come to save him from his inevitable, oncoming death.

SLAASHHH!!!

At the very least, the death of Johannes came rather quickly– his fragile body was cleanly split in two by the greenskin's downward cleave, instantly wiping out any traces of life in his body, as the boy's soul would eventually soar into the afterlife that awaited him.

Similar to the brutality of his death however, not only did the village he lived in would be drowned in a sea of hellfire, but the entire city of Roztoc would be destroyed as well: after hundreds of years of being treated as mere monsters by the humans who had shunned their existences, their rage had finally built up to the point where they would gladly slaughter entire populations' worth of people in order to achieve the ambitions of their grand chief lord, and now there were only a few among the continent who could put a stop to their unstoppable conquest of Xathra...

And not even the imperial soldiers stationed within the vicinity would be able to put a stop to their rampage... At least for now...

...

...

It was truly such a desperate sight– the imperial soldiers of Fort Nox, whose forces once numbered as an army of 75,000-strong soldiers... After several days of endless, gruelling battles with the invading orkish army that had appeared out of nowhere, their soldiers by this point weren't even close to half of their original members.

Not only that though, but the place they were supposed to shield from the brunt of the greenskin forces: Roztoc, one of the Republic of Germania's major cities, had now been completely wiped off the map, its infrastructures reduced to rubble, with only a few of its citizens managing to survive the slaughter.

"Damn these monsters... They've driven us into a corner like a bunch of rats..."

Originally, General Matthias was merely the vice-commander in charge of Fort Nox's forces, and the true mantle of the defending army's leadership belonged to General Betran, but due to his death during the second battle against the orkish army, General Matthias had been forced to take up the responsibility of the departed general's role in order to maintain the stability of their forces, and so far, General Matthias had managed to do so with minimal success.

However, as General Matthias and his subordinate, Marius, stood from the high balcony of one of Fort Nox's sturdy walls, their eyes witnessing the beautiful, verdant fields of green beyond that were about to be trampled on by the march of orkish boots, the general couldn't help but grievously lament about the dire situation they were in, as his forces began to prepare for the stubborn last stand they were committed to hold until the very end: 2 battles with those barbaric greenskins had already taken place, and each of them ended up in total failure, with the last failed battle leading to the complete annihilation of Roztoc from Germania's lands. Because of that, the imperial forces stationed in Germania had now been pinned at the last and only imperial bastion within the area, which was the doomed Fort Nox that was about to fall prey to the orkish armies in a very similar fashion to Roztoc's ravaged lands.

"General... You're aware of what's the likely conclusion of this battle, right?"

"That we'll be torn to shreds and annihilated by those barbaric brutes? Yes, Marius, I'm well aware of that. What of it?"

"... Well... They're supposed to have sent reinforcements by now... Haven't they received the message we sent? It's been days since we last sent our request for back-up."

"That, I am not certain of... Hell, I'm not sure if they'll even send any. Given how terrifying the enemies we're facing are, they probably chose to sacrifice us so that they can stall for time and make more preparations."

"... That sounds bad, I wish that wasn't the case at all... Especially for us."

"I know, and I can only hope that this possibility isn't true. I'm honestly leaning on the possibility that they actually did send reinforcements, because it's a definite fact that we'll lose if this battle gets prolonged."

Normally, such a casually informal conversation with a superior officer would have warranted some light repercussions, but ultimately, there were 2 major reasons as to why Marius wasn't being punished at all: the chaos of the oncoming battle had removed the necessity of any formalities in order to avoid wasting any time, and Marius was also the general's good friend from childhood. With these 2 reasons at hand, it was no wonder why Marius could casually speak informally to such a high-ranking imperial soldier without receiving some scoldings.

"In any case, the soldiers have finished their preparations. We'll be able to hold them off for a while, but in the end, we won't be able to last very long..."

"That's good, to say the least. Holding the line is the only thing we can do after all."

"You're right, general... I can only hope that Nox's walls will weather through the coming storm."

As the 2 men continued to converse with one another, a bewildering point of interest would quickly catch their eyes and garner their complete attention– from the fields of grass beyond, a dust cloud born from the thumping of savage, marching boots, a heralding symbol of destruction that the imperial soldiers were all too familiar with due to having witnessed it countless times before the gruelling battles they would often undertake against their monstrous enemies.

The orks... Their armies were now steadily making their way to their location, and they would now be locked into their final battle that would determine the fate of Germania's lands.

"…"

"... T-they're already here, general..." Marius mentioned nervously, stuttering a bit as he spoke. "... Do you think we'll be able to hold out long enough?"

"I'm not sure Marius, but..." General Matthias replied, the uncertainty in his voice being clear as day. "We must try. For the empire's sake, and for our's well."

"We can only hope that reinforcements are on their way... Because we'll all inevitably perish otherwise..."

________________________________________

It had been hours since they began their march, and now their target was finally within their sights– the imperial fortress known as Fort Nox, the last remaining imperial presence within these lands they had sought to conquer, and laying waste to their stronghold would put them one step closer to achieving their chief lord's desire to make the entirety of Xathra bend to their will.

And so, Tharok, the closest aid among the chieftains who swore loyalty to Khaarnak, would immediately give the order to unleash their all-out attack.

"BEGIN THE ASSAULT, WARRIORS! FOR THE GLORY OF THE CHIEF LORD'S WILL!!!"

Vice Chief Tharok had been chosen to lead the brunt of the assault, and the old warrior happily chose to commit to the order that was given to him– he looked up to their great chief lord after all, as he saw him as the ultimate pinnacle of their kind, the divine prophet who would lead them into a golden age where their species could finally achieve a greater form of glory for themselves.

The plan they formed was a cohesive strategy that the greatest of the chief Lord's tacticians formed with their great minds: their 800,000 strong force had been divided into 2 equal halves, with the first half continuing their push into Xathra's central lands, while the other half would proceed to eradicate the last and remaining threat that had been the first line of human defence to respond against their assault– the tired and battered imperial forces, who were once quite the prevalent, bothersome enemies in their first skirmishes against them, had now all been reduced to cowering weaklings who were trapped in their doomed, brittle castle.

In short, all that Tharok's forces had to do was to destroy the imperial stronghold before them and slaughter every single remaining imperial, and with the various preparations that the orks made beforehand, it was going to be an easy task that would only take them several days to accomplish...

"Fire the catapults! Pulverise their measly fortress!"

The wooden siege weapons they brought with them fired their massive projectiles of stone into the air, all of which came crashing down onto the imperial stronghold's walls like meteorites that descended from the sky, and the sheer size of the lobbed stones would have already proven enough to destroy the walls in one fell swoop...

Fortunately however, that had not been enough to bring down Fort Nox in one fell swoop, as the attacks were stopped by the massive blue shield that manifested to protect the stronghold from the deadly rain of stone.

"Ready the catapults again! Prepare for another salvo!"

More projectiles would be hurled into the sky, each of which was already powerful enough to level the stronghold's walls with one hit, yet all of them were harmlessly deflected by the azure shields that easily endured the attacks– seeing how futile it was though, Tharok would decide to proceed with the next phase of their attack to wrap things up as quickly as possible.

"Damn it... We'll destroy that damn shield from the inside then! Warriors, charge and raise your shields! The humans will be raining arrows upon us, be on your guard!"

The orks finally began their charge, their warriors rushing towards the fortress like savage berserkers in search of blood to spill, with their leader Tharok leading from the front as clouds of dust rose into the air due to their frenzied rush.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

"Is this all those fleshbags can muster?!"

"Such paltry attacks! We don't even need to use our shields in the first place!"

As expected, the humans began unleashing arrows from the safety of their walls, and there were so many of them that they managed to blot out the sun's shining light for a very brief moment. Unfortunately though, the arrows struck none of the ork warriors fatally, as the wooden shields that each of them carried did the task of protecting them from harm perfectly– even though those arrows were enchanted with various magick spells, they were ultimately unable to penetrate the strangely durable shields that the greenskins brought with them to battle.

... However, that would not be the only attack that the imperials would launch from afar.

"The humans have fired their own catapults! Spread your numbers, don't group up together!"

In retaliation, the imperials fired their own salvos of massive stone projectiles into the ranks of the charging orks, and as soon as they made landfall, the attacks would quickly claim hundreds of orkish lives, crushing many of them in an instant due to the sheer size the projectiles had, as well as the tremendous impacts they made as soon as they landed upon the ground.

However, while the bombardments did do a significant amount of damage, it was not enough to momentarily put a stop to the steadily closing-in army: in truth, the casualties they sustained were but a drop of water compared to the ocean that was their numbers, and there were still far too many orks that were maintaining their charge with a savage ferocity.

[Hellfire Bombardment.]

[Lightning Storm.]

[Cyclone Twisters.]

The surviving imperial mages, though their mana had been severely drained after all the previous battles, were still able to unleash several more spells upon the rapidly approaching tide of greenskins– surging blasts of fire, followed by luminous bolts of lightning and massive tornadoes began engulfing their ranks, and although the orks had a small degree of resistance to the likes of magick, the sheer destructive forces that the spell-borne disasters carried were still able to claim scores of orkish lives the moment they were cast.

"Those damn meatsacks...!!!"

"W-We're getting torn apart...!"

The brutal magicks instantly killed off many greenskins in the process, allowing a brief respite for the imperials who grew increasingly nervous of the oncoming storm of savage, charging brutes– it was an inevitable truth for the magickal assault to end soon due to the imperial mages having already drained most of their mana reserves, and so they chose to pour every last ounce of their mana into the arcane spells they had just cast, and as a result of this, the orks were momentarily forced to halt their charge for a moment.

"Take cover! Take cover, warriors!"

"We're getting blown away! Don't waste your lives meaninglessly!"

"Stop charging, you imbeciles! Stop running around like fools and take cover!"

As it was fated to be though, the temporary wall of carnage would never be able to last: 30 seconds... The disastrous spells could only last that long due to the imperial mages having already become tired after the multiple battles they underwent, and so they were unable to sustain the carnage they unleashed any longer...

"... It stopped? Why would they stop all of a sudden...?"

"Bahahaha! Those meatbags! They've run out of tricks now!"

"Their magicians must have grown tired after all those battles!"

The orks didn't waste the opportunity to continue their assault, as their warriors quickly rose back into battle and began their reckless charge once more– this time however, there was nothing else left that could stop them from approaching and climbing the walls with their raw strength, and the imperials desperately sought to prepare for this inevitable moment as they gathered their numbers atop the walls for a final stand against their enemies.

"Ignore your wounds, warriors, we're almost there! We shall climb their walls with our might, and then shall we finally enjoy the thrill of bloodshed!" Tharok announced proudly. "Spare none of these worthless meatsacks! Kill every single one of them without pity!"

Victory was almost within their sights, as only the stronghold's walls would prove to be their last obstacles: climbing such towering infrastructures was nothing too difficult for the orks though, as their tribes used to climb entire mountainsides in search of food, and the walls before them would prove vastly easier for them to ascend upon with their monstrous strength...

However... Before their victory could truly come to pass in reality...

________________________________________

It was over... General Matthias and his soldiers had already pulled out most of their tricks from their sleeves, and yet the orks by this point were about to climb up their walls with ease due to their brute strength– granted, while they could still stall for time by using the boiling oil they prepared to slow them down, it would only be a matter of time before it would all devolve into a vicious melee atop the walls in order to determine the battle's victor, and the general was all too aware of the physical superiority that the greenskins had over them.

"Marius, gather all the available soldiers to the walls. We'll do everything we can to prevent those savages from climbing up with their bare hands."

"W-what? How will they climb the walls if they don't have any siege towers with them? They don't even have ropes-"

"Believe me, Marius, those greenskinned bastards will scale the wall with that bewildering strength of theirs. I've seen them doing it before, and they'll definitely do the same thing again."

Matthias was speaking from a first-hand experience that he had directly witnessed with his own 2 eyes, as he could remember several years ago in the battles for the southern plains, back when he was nothing more than a humble recruit, that those damn orks could easily invade entire strongholds by climbing upon the walls like a bunch of crazed mountaineers, and it was a sight that his mind had never forgotten throughout the years– how unfortunate though, that his several years' worth of experience of battling against orkish warriors wouldn't even be of use right now, as the odds that were against against them were so terribly large that no amount of strategy or planning would save them now.

"... Wait a second, general... I'm seeing something from the west... It seems to be another army of... W-wait a minute..."

"What do you mean, Marius? Where are they exactly? Out with it now, you bastard, don't stop speaking all of a sudden!"

Another point of interest caught Marius' attention as he observed the verdant fields that were being trampled on by the massive, orkish army charging towards their bastion: there was another group of marching formations that was steadily drawing close, and at first glance, they would seem to be another army of orks that would come to join in the chaos...

Upon closer observation however, as both Marius and Matthias concentrated their worried eyes upon the approaching army, a rush of relief would suddenly come from their lips, as the faint symbol of hope they desperately wished to arrive had finally come to offer salvation from the hell that was about to claim them.

It was the reinforcements they requested all those days ago– though they appeared to merely be another greenskin force from afar, as their ranks gradually drew closer into their line of vision, the approaching army was actually a contingent of soldiers bearing imperial armour, with the standard imperial flags being raised high into the air as they marched towards the destination they were meant to arrive at.

"L-look over there, general... They really did send reinforcements... Even though it took a while, I really feel relieved..."

"Well I'll be... You're right..." Matthias replied, as he too finally saw what his friend had been referring to. "... Let's not put too much faith in this though, Marius. While they did send back-up, I'm having doubts if they'll actually be enough to help us finally stand a chance against those monsters."

"Haha, you're right, general, but... We'll only truly know once we've witnessed it firsthand, right?"

...

...

They had finally arrived, and the scenery that met their eyes would instill a sense of terror into their eyes for just a brief moment: a massive army of orks was laying siege upon Fort Nox, though thankfully, the imperial reinforcements who had come to assist their troubled comrades were greatly prepared to take on the teeming numbers of the orkish army despite their fewer numbers.

"We're nearly there, Marcus... You sure you're ready to wield that thing in battle? I heard you missed most of your shots in training."

"Oh shut it, will you? I only missed a few of them, stop over-exaggerating things. I've gotten a lot better since then anyways..."

"But I also heard the princess' guardian knight scolded you because of your carelessness. Was it because you nearly fired it on one of our own men?"

Both Marcus and Kaecilius had fortunately been chosen to be a part of the legions equipped with the famed weapons, and it was a task that gave them a bit of pride as they held onto their guns dutifully– though the training had been quick, yet brutal, both of them were now capable of using the weapons competently, and their pride as warriors would not allow them to make a single, major mistake as soon as they were to engage in battle with these weapons on their hands.

"T-that was 2 days ago. I've become a better shot since then. I bet I can shoot more of those green bastards than you ever could."

"Really now? They why don't we make a bet? Whoever shoots more of those savages gets to order the loser around for an entire month. What do you think?"

"Deal then, you slimy bastard. I won't lose to the likes of you."

The 100,000-strong imperial reinforcements, commanded by the imperial princess herself as well as her guardian knight, would finally join in the chaos of the battlefield, bringing along the singular, yet massive advantage they had been preparing for several days– half of their numbers were equipped with those 'guns', the accurate, long-ranged and incredibly powerful weapons they were given to handle, while the others were equipped merely with their standard gear of swords, shields, bows, and spears.

It would've appeared to be a disadvantage at first, but it was actually more of a balanced composition in a strategical sense: arming all of the soldiers with guns would be severely impractical, because although they would have a massive advantage in terms of firepower, they would immediately be rendered completely helpless once the orks managed to get close to their ranks, and given how large their numbers were, getting into close quarters was something that would be bound to happen the moment they joined in the battle. Fortunately though, the soldiers equipped with the standard imperial melee weapons would be able to deal with such a potential threat, as they would at least be able to fend off approaching greenskin warriors from the front, allowing the soldiers equipped with the guns to continue unleashing their horrifying firepower unperturbed upon their enemies.

"Halt. Cease marching."

The blonde knight, who led the imperial force from the front with the princess as both of them rode their armoured mounts, would suddenly raise her right hand, a symbol that quickly signified to the imperial soldiers to immediately halt their march and remain steady in their positions...

The strategy was composed of various steps, yet it was ultimately simple enough for most of the soldiers to understand: they would catch the attention of the orkish army, making themselves the new point of interest for the greenskins to charge towards, and as soon as their enemies got within the suitable range, their guns would immediately begin firing upon them to tear them apart and swiftly gun them down by the masses.

However... As for the way they were going to catch their attention...

"General Gaeus. Order the archers we brought along to begin drawing their bows. Tell them to fire 3 volleys of arrows upon the enemies, and make sure to enchant the arrows with fire magicks."

Though he would heed the guardian knight's order, a sense of curiosity quickly invaded the general's line-of-thought, which quickly began urging him to ask a question to satisfy a thought that had formed within his mind.

"I will do so at once. However... May I know why we even brought the archers in the first place? And why we are making them fire upon the enemy? The long-ranged weapons that Her Highness provided us are far superior to-"

"I understand your point, general, however, you are failing to look into the bigger picture." the blonde knight began to explain. "The arrows are merely meant for gathering the attention of those savages. They won't be able to pierce through their skin anyway, unless they hit a vital spot like their heads."

And it was at that moment that Gaeus understood– what the guardian knight was ordering them to do was to prepare a form of bait for the orks to take, to gather their interest and make them charge towards their location instead... And as soon as the greenskins proceeded to charge at them..."

"... I understand now. The archers are meant to merely make the orks interested in us instead of Nox's walls... And after they've begun directing most of their forces towards us..."

"Yes, general. That's when we'll be using our real advantage." the guardian knight confirmed. "One more thing, tell them to try to aim for the siege catapults that the orks brought along with them. Setting them on fire will definitely catch their attention more effectively."

The general made a light bow, as he now fully realised the plan that the guardian knight had in mind.

"I shall do so at once."

________________________________________

They were so close... The walls were but a stone's throw from them, and their numbers would easily allow them to overwhelm the defenders that stood atop the walls to push them away. While it was certain that they would lose some of their warriors however, it was nevertheless a necessary risk in order to ensure their complete victory over their enemies.

"Victory is near, warriors! Climb their walls! Skewer any human who tries to quell our advance!"

And just like Matthias had anticipated, the orks easily began scaling up the walls with only the sheer grip strength of their bare, muscular hands– their fingers gripped onto the tiniest of cracks and crevices from the bricks that laid out its foundation, as their green bodies steadily climbed up in height, almost as if they were experienced mountaineers who did not need the assistance of climbing gear to scale entire cliffs.

Tharok himself was already about to climb the walls along with the warriors, and the moment he reached the top would instantly spell doom for the imperial defenders– there was a reason he had been their great leader's closest aide, as he was the second strongest among their united tribes, only ever truly being surpassed in power by Chief Lord Khaarnak himself.

However, before he could use his massive arms to climb upon the towering framework of stone in front of him...

"Vice-chief! The snivelling cowards, they're attacking us from behind! The humans are firing arrows from our backs!"

Tharok frowned upon hearing that, as confusion immediately formed in his mind– these meatsacks, weren't they supposed to have been cornered in this little fortress of their's? If so, then how were they able to attack them behind their backs in the first place?

"... Those damn fleshbags... How dare they...?!"

As he looked back to his army of warriors, a terrible sight dawned upon his eyes, and in anger, he gnashed his teeth as he punched the ground, leaving a sizable crater upon the area he struck with his fist: a hail of flaming arrows were raining upon them from the back in successive volleys, and the siege catapults, the glorious weapons that the chief lord entrusted him with, their wooden bodies were being greedily consumed by crimson flames that were slowly eating their wooden bodies away without mercy...

Not only that though, but some of his warriors had also fallen prey to the cowardly attack, as a few of the unfortunate orks were pierced in the head by several stray arrows that managed to perfectly hit their marks and slay their targets in one go.

This wouldn't do... If there was one thing that the orks disliked, it was the act of cowardice, regardless of the fact that it was being used aggressively or defensively– to add insult to injury though, the siege weapons that the chief lord generously gave to him in order to make the battle easier had now all been destroyed, and there was no way that Tharok would simply stand by and ignore the vile, dirty trick that had been used on his glorious forces.

"WARRIORS! WE SHALL HALT OUR CHARGE! THE IMPERIALS HAVE ATTACKED US AT OUR BACKS, AND WE SHALL NOT STAND FOR THIS ACT OF COWARDICE!" Tharok bellowed, to which the orks immediately obeyed as the ones who had already begun climbing immediately dropped back down to the ground to heed their leader's orders.

"WE SHALL SLAUGHTER THE DEFENDERS OF THIS MEASLY FORTRESS LATER! FOR NOW, WE SHALL SLAY THOSE MEATSACKS WHO HAVE DARED TO ATTACK US FROM BEHIND! CHARGE!!!"

And so the orks, who had now taken notice of the imperial reinforcements, would immediately begin charging towards them, not knowing that this was a bait meant to lure them in for a trap that was about to be sprung...

...

...

"They're getting close! Form your lines! Ready your weapons!"

The imperial soldiers hurriedly formed several lines, as the internal mechanisms of their weapons began whirring to life– it was the moment they had all been training for, and the true power of the weapons they hold would finally be revealed once they begin firing en masse.

The ones who weren't equipped with guns stood up front, forming a wall of shields that served to defend their more vulnerable comrades behind them: meanwhile, the gun-wielders positioned themselves near the small gaps of the shield-wall, allowing them to aim their weapons at their approaching enemies as they carefully awaited the order to begin unleashing their firepower.

"Steady! Hold your fire, wait for them to get within the effective range!"

Their enemies... They were like a surging wave of water that was steadily closing in on their location, though in their eyes, it would be a deadly tide of green monsters wielding crude, barbaric weapons of slaughter that would be rampaging towards them: a few of the men felt unease building up within their hearts, as if their bodies wanted to relent and run away, but ultimately, they all knew that they had no choice but to fight now.

"Prepare to fire at any moment now! Don't hesitate for even a second!"

And so... As the orks got within the effective range of their guns, the order would finally be given for them to let loose...

"Begin firing, all at once." the guardian knight ordered as she raised her right hand once more, signifying the soldiers to immediately begin opening fire. "Light them up until only ash remains."