A chilling silence fell as Marlus's blood sprayed from his throat, spattering beyond the edge of the command vehicle. All eyes snapped toward him, a dark realization sinking in: their fortress lord was dead.
Without a thought, Creed instinctively drew his dual pistols, blowing out the captain's brains in a flash, though his mind was blank as he squeezed the trigger—pure instinct driving his hand. As the Vascanian Iron Cavalry captain's body crumpled to the ground, his thousand men lifted their weapons, firing upon the fortress guards. In an instant, the top of the Leviathan command vehicle was transformed into a battlefield.
While the surviving guards shielded Carlveon and rushed him toward the interior passage, they were intercepted by Vascanians, among whom a dozen suicide bombers bound with heat-fusion explosives closed in on Carlveon, sealing his fate. Meanwhile, Klein's merchant guards fought valiantly against the Vascanians. They numbered fewer than a hundred, yet each, including the towering Ogrelin, donned powered armor.
One of Klein's closest allies, an Ogrelin, roared defiantly, turning himself into a living shield as he ushered Klein toward Creed's cover.
"Don't let your people die here in vain!" Creed urged, casting a quick glance at the twenty-odd transport craft closing in—it was the Vascanian fleet.
Gesturing toward the passage into the command vehicle, Creed continued, "The tunnel isn't far—let's fight our way through."
At this, Klein's resolve hardened, and he swiftly relayed Creed's orders to his guard through his communicator. The guards closed in, exchanging fire and standing shoulder to shoulder with the fortress guards still standing.
Klein drew his pistol and fired at the advancing enemy. Once all his guards had gathered around him, he and Creed charged forward, bursting from cover toward the passage entrance.
The five Ogrelins were the first to reach the enemy line. Their powered armor, with its formidable defenses, also amplified their brute strength, enabling them to smash through their foes, scattering them with brutal fists and hurling others aside. Those not crushed were taken down by laser rifle fire. With calculated ruthlessness, they fought their way through and finally sealed the gate behind them.
But even within the command vehicle, safety was an illusion.
Outside, the twenty transport crafts had deposited waves of soldiers onto the vehicle's structure. The sounds of gunfire, shouts of terror, and the clash of battle echoed in every corner.
"What the hell is happening?"
"The Vascanians… They've betrayed us? How is that even possible?"
"Emperor above! How can this be?"
Shock gripped the surviving fortress guards as they grappled with the events that had just unfolded. A dignified, humble Vascanian captain had slaughtered the fortress lord, and his men, without hesitation, turned their weapons upon their allies—soldiers they'd once fought beside.
Klein's merchant guards, equally dumbfounded, could make no sense of the carnage. Creed, on the other hand, felt a complex mix of emotions. He had foreseen treachery in a prophecy and had taken every precaution. But now that it was reality, even he struggled to accept it.
The Vascanian Iron Cavalry, the strongest force in the Gate of Kadia, had rebelled. It was unthinkable, yet here they were.
"We have to get out of here," Creed commanded.
"But this is the command vehicle!" A fortress guard gestured at the ground. "Are we just going to hand it over to the enemy?"
"I don't want to abandon it either," Creed replied, "but the whole command vehicle is in chaos. Some inside are being slaughtered by the Vascanians, while others don't even know what's happening. Holding this place isn't an option." He turned and began striding forward.
Passing a window, Creed saw the transport crafts lifting off and more descending in their place, bringing reinforcements to overrun the vehicle.
"Unless you all can single-handedly take down an army, follow me out. We'll regroup and take back the command vehicle later," he urged, continuing on. The others followed Creed in silence.
One guard jogged up to him, puzzled. "Don't you have a communicator? Why not just hunker down here and order reinforcements?"
Creed stopped, his tone sharp. "You think only the command vehicle is under attack?"
A second later, the thunder of cannon fire rolled through the air, confirming his suspicion. The Vascanian Iron Cavalry had turned traitor in full force, assaulting their former allies on the parade ground outside.
"The 8th Regiment should be fighting those traitors and securing our allies outside, not rushing to the command vehicle," Creed said firmly, pressing onward. With no further objections, the others followed in grim resolve.
As they moved, Creed issued commands through his communicator to the 8th Regiment.
"Form a defensive line, cover our allies."
"Don't worry about which company or regiment a soldier's from—reform them into squads on the spot and deploy them to the line."
"14th Regiment, are you hesitant? I don't care where your general is. Tell Commissar Aldred to execute anyone in the 14th who refuses to join the line—I'll bear the consequences."
After he'd finished issuing orders, Klein hurried over.
"So where are we heading?" he asked Creed.
Creed, caught slightly off guard, but replied, "To the hangar. We'll seize a transport craft."
Klein, puzzled, replied, "Can't we teleport? Not everyone has a teleportation device, but we could have my crew drop some down here."
Pausing, Creed asked, surprised, "Your merchant ship is equipped with teleporters?"
"Yes, although the precision isn't ideal…" Klein nodded.
"Why didn't you mention this earlier?" Creed's tone betrayed mild irritation. He'd thought teleportation was strictly military tech, unavailable to civilian vessels.
"You didn't ask," Klein replied, producing a teleport beacon and tossing it on the ground. Speaking into his communicator, he ordered his crew on the merchant ship, "Send down the protection devices, and then teleport us to the 8th Regiment's position."
Klein, after getting the coordinates from Creed, relayed them to the ship.
Protection devices arrived quickly, teleporting directly to the beacon's location. As the others equipped them, Klein gave further orders, "Keep the dimensional engine ready for immediate jump if enemy ships appear."
Creed, overhearing this, offered a final word of advice. "You're not bound to Kadia. You could return to your ship."
But Klein only smiled. "I'm the liaison, remember? Kadia stands firm, my friend."
Creed nodded, his face resolute. "Kadia stands unshaken."