Unyielding Resolve

Chapter 23: Unyielding Resolve

The battlefield was a cacophony of clashing steel, guttural cries, and the eerie hum of crude goblin magic. Surrounded by damaged and collapsing building structures, Aric Valorian stood at the centre of it all, his once-gleaming armour now dulled with blood and grime. He tightened his grip on his blade, every muscle screaming for rest. Around him, the remnants of his unit fought desperately, a half-circle of weary soldiers standing back-to-back against a tide of feral goblins.

The air reeked of sulfur and damp earth, heavy with the oppressive stench of death. The ground beneath them was churned to mud, slick with the blood of friend and foe alike. Above, a canopy of storm clouds churned, casting the battlefield into an ominous twilight broken only by the flicker of magical energy.

"Hold the line!" Aric barked, his voice hoarse yet commanding. A soldier at his side faltered due to fatigue and loss of momentary focus, a jagged rusty crude goblin blade cutting into his thigh. Aric stepped forward with a swift riposte, his longsword now clad in vibrating air cleaving through the goblin's neck in a single, practised motion. "Looks like this is all I can muster for now." He quietly spoke to himself before shifting his gaze to the injured subordinate. "You should be more careful around them." One missed step and you would have been a goner. Here take this." Aric scolded the injured soldier as he poured a red liquid from a vile on his injury. "Make sure you tend to it properly this will only help for a while and deal with any poison." the soldier thanked him after fastening the wound with a makeshift bandage and went to his post. The Goblins lost one of their own in moments, but that didn't change anything.

The goblins were unrelenting. These weren't mindless, scattered raiders. They moved with coordination—something Aric hadn't seen before. Their leader, a towering brute named Krorg Bloodfang, bellowed orders from the rear, his voice a guttural roar that carried over the din of battle. Beside him stood Snivrak Shadoweye his second in command, smaller and wiry, his yellow eyes darting across the battlefield with calculating precision.

"This is madness, Krorg!" Snivrak hissed, tugging at the larger goblin's arm. "Commander Grukk and Master Zivka Sharpclaw gave explicit orders! We're not to focus on any single target!"

Krorg snarled, shoving Snivrak aside. "Orders mean nothing if we can crush them here! Look at them, Snivrak—they're already breaking! One more push and their leader falls. With his head this time, we'll have glory beyond what Grukk promised! "As long as the commander remains unaware of our little escapade, nothing will happen." Snivrak attempted to stop Krorg, but he wouldn't listen. He tried to use force to reason with him, but before he could raise his blade, Krorg turned his head, exuding an ominous aura. 

"You wouldn't dare, Snivrak. You and I are leagues apart; remember that." He calmly turned and began walking toward Snivrak while speaking. "Although we disobeyed direct orders, I know we'll have to deal with that brown-haired kid eventually." That one straddling around the battlefield thinning down our numbers. If we don't do the same we will be next." Snivrak unsheathed his blade seeing as his words wouldn't reach his ears.

Snivrak's lips curled in a sneer, but he didn't argue further. He motioned to a group of goblins, directing them to tighten the encirclement. The goblins moved with unsettling synchronization, their snarls and cackles growing louder as they closed in on Aric and his men.

Aric could feel the pressure mounting. The circle was tightening, the goblins growing bolder. "Damn it," he muttered under his breath. He glanced at his men—wounded, exhausted, yet still defiant. There was no retreat, no reinforcements in sight.

As the goblins surged forward, Aric examined his glowing blade, still surrounded by mana. "If I continue using this spell, I might last a little longer, but I have no physical strength left to wield this blade. In just a few more minutes, all my endurance will be drained. I think this is it; I will have to use that. But..." disregarding his thoughts mmid-courseAric raised his hand, summoning the last dregs of his mana. Arcane glyphs flared to life around his palm, weaving together into a glowing sigil. "Crimson Tempest!" he roared. The Men around knew what to do upon hearing those words. Not a moment had passed and all of them stepped aside clearing a path. The Goblins took this as a sign of a clear opening on their enemy's defences and began to push through not knowing what was in store for them on the other end. The incantation was cast right when Aric spoke the words and there it was. Soon after the spell erupted from his hand, a whirlwind of scarlet energy tearing through the goblins before him. Bodies were flung like ragdolls, their screams drowned by the roaring winds.

But the spell took its toll. Aric staggered his vision swimming. "Sir, more coming from the northwest!" one of his soldiers called out.

Before Aric could respond, a deafening explosion erupted behind the approaching hoard of goblins. Flames surged into the sky, bathing the battlefield in an eerie orange glow. From the smoke, a figure emerged, his dark cloak billowing as he stepped forward.

"Eamon," Aric exhaled, relief mingling with irritation.

Eamon Greystone grinned, his staff crackling with residual energy. "You look like hell, Aric. Thought I'd drop in before it got worse."

Aric wiped the blood from his brow. "Took your sweet time. Next time, maybe bring a chair so I can sit while I wait."

"Noted," Eamon quipped, already preparing another spell. "Here take this this should help you restore your mana reserves," Eamon mentioned.

"Thanks, we were already in short supply as we were caught off guard not long after we ran out of these. Much appreciated." Aric spoke while clenching the small mana crystal in his dominant hand, still on his knees.

"I am afraid that's all I have on me as well. So make it count." Eamon spoke worriedly but didn't let any negative emotions show on his face.

The goblins turned their attention to the new threat. Krorg bellowed, rallying his forces. "It's him just as the scouts described. Kill the Knight-commander and the B-Brown-haired knight! Tear them both apart!"

Eamon responded with a smirk, pointing his Blade at the advancing goblins as he swung his from his sheath. "Infernal Barrage!" he shouted, unleashing a torrent of molten flames that surged into their ranks like an ever-growing wave. Each swing lay with the incantation of the same spell all cast in a successive manner sending shockwaves rippling through the ground, scattering the goblins like leaves in a storm.

Aric, revitalized by Eamon's arrival, joined the fray with renewed vigour. "Formation! Push them back! Defend the blind spots as you charge forward." he ordered, his voice cutting through the chaos. "As you command knight-commander." All the men shouted in unison as their dwindling morale was now raised sky-high and it was this raised morale that kept them from faltering.

The fight became a whirlwind of steel and magic. Aric's blade danced in deadly arcs, each striking an arc of violent but precise and lethal wind shockwaves moving across the enemy lines disrupting their cohesion. " this is it, Radiant Surge!" he shouted, unleashing a wave of blinding light that disoriented the goblins.

Eamon, meanwhile, worked from the rear, his spells turning the tide. "Chains of Binding Inferno!" he intoned, summoning chains made from molten earth and fire that coiled around a group of goblins, immobilizing them. "Shatter!" he added, and the chains exploded, sending shards of energy through their ranks. "It didn't work as intended. I need to work on it when I get the time." Eamon smirked as the spell damaged the target, but it did not achieve the intended outcome he was hoping for.

Krorg looked around and noticed that his goblin companions were fleeing the scene. He clenched his weapon and charged towards the wind and fire duo. He fought furiously, his massive cleaver cleaving through soldiers with brutal efficiency as he dealt with any that approached him with ease. But even he couldn't withstand the combined might of Aric and Eamon. When Aric's blade found its mark, piercing Krorg's chest, the goblin leader heard a final roar before collapsing. His last words were fleeting attempts to call Snivrak to aid him but he was nowhere to be found. 

Seeing their leader fall, Snivrak made his choice. With a snarl of frustration, he slipped into the shadows, disappearing before he could meet the same fate as Krorg.

As the battlefield fell silent, Eamon approached Aric, handing him a sealed letter. "Orders from the Base Commander," he said, his tone suddenly serious.

Aric nodded, taking the letter. "Stay a while," he said, glancing at his men. "We could use another set of hands. Considering we haven't regrouped and we are out of steam for the most part."

Eamon smirked. "I'll stick around—for now."

While the eastern wall and surrounding areas burned, the central zone of the base was still left intact. However, due to the current chaos, the defences of this area were relatively thinned out. One could say there were none to be found, as most, if not all, the forces from the central zone had been pulled to defend the eastern wall. The goblins' initial attack had completely decimated the chain of command stationed there.

While the pursuit team was assembled, their leader, Mogrul Blackfang, and the vice leader, Rukla Bonecrusher, engaged in an important discussion about their next steps. After concluding their talks, they agreed that Mogrul Blackfang would venture off alone in search of the fragment. The rest of the team, alongside Rukla Bonecrusher, would remain behind to defend their position, doing everything they could to buy Mogrul as much time as possible to complete his mission.

Rukla Bonecrusher immediately took charge, ordering his men to lay an ambush. The mysterious figure, whose towering aura was ominous, had yet to locate them. The fact that he was walking at a calm and normal pace gave off this gesture. Normally, Rukla Bonecrusher would have avoided engaging the target, as they were significantly outclassed. However, the beast was moving toward the location of the fragment. This was one of the reasons why the group had decided to split in the first place. As far as the detection spell went, there was no major threat except for this one, all around them, including in the vicinity of the fragment.

Hence, the plan was set into motion in earnest. "This is bad. He is moving in the same direction as Mogrul. If their paths meet..." Rukla cast aside his concerns and presented a thorough action plan to ambush the mysterious individual. "All right, everyone, here is the plan. Do not deviate from this plan by even a step, or we are finished." Rukla Bonecrusher was concise yet strategic. Shortly thereafter, the plan was put into action.

The mystery man stepped into the ambush zone, and it did not take him long to notice something was off. He shouted, insisting that the attackers reveal themselves. As it happened, Rukla Bonecrusher and his men lunged at the figure with full vigour, ready to forfeit their lives and give it their all in the attack.

Grukk Thornscar and Zivka Sharpclaw stood on the scorched rooftop of a barracks, the flickering glow of fires reflecting in their cruel, gleaming eyes. All around them, the chaos of battle raged—clashing steel, roars of pain, and the guttural war cries of goblins echoed through the smoke-filled air. The scent of burning wood and charred flesh hung thick, choking even for the hardened warriors.

Snivrak, the vice leader of one of the attack parties, approached them cautiously, his hunched frame trembling as he delivered his grim report."L-Lord Thornscar, the encirclement unit... no my attack party..." Snivrak stammered, his voice barely audible over the din of the battle. "They... they've been wiped out. The brown-haired knight arrived at the scene. The knight-commander we were pursuing survived."For a moment, Grukk Thornscar didn't move. The hulking goblin commander stood like a statue, his claws flexing slowly as the weight of the failure sank in. Then, his rage erupted like a volcano."grr... Wiped out?!" Grukk bellowed, his voice rising above the cacophony. He turned on Snivrak, his massive clawed hand shooting out to grab the smaller goblin by the scruff of his neck. "You mean to tell me those useless worms couldn't handle one group of humans? And what is this encirclement unit you speak of? Did you disobey my direct orders?..."Snivrak squirmed, gasping as Grukk hoisted him into the air. "My lord, the humans were—stronger than expected. We had them surrounded ready to deal the finishing blow. But...There was that brown-haired knight with them! He—he tore through our ranks! "grr.. Excuses!" Grukk roared, slamming Snivrak down onto the floor. The stone cracked beneath the impact, and Snivrak yelped in pain.

Zivka Sharpclaw, standing a few paces away, watched the scene with a mixture of disapproval and cold calculation. "Commander Grukk," he said, calm but sharp as steel, "killing your subordinates won't undo their failure. And we don't have the time to waste."Grukk snarled but didn't release his grip on Snivrak's throat. "Time?!" he snapped, glaring at Zivka. "Do you know how much this blunder has cost us? We were told we required at least 45 minutes to clear this objective and are almost reaching that time limit yet we have not located that thing. That fragment is slipping further from our grasp by the second!""And murdering Snivrak will only cost us more," Zivka retorted, stepping closer. His cold eyes bore into Grukk's. "We're stretched thin as it is. Let him live—for now. He's still of use."Grukk's lips curled back in a snarl, but after a tense moment, he relented, tossing Snivrak aside like a broken toy. The smaller goblin coughed violently, clutching his bruised throat."Speak, Snivrak," Grukk growled. "What else do you have to say for yourself?"Snivrak scrambled to his knees, his voice trembling but urgent. "Before I came here I was informed that The fragment's location team had entered the central zone... however no further intel has yet been recovered so far."Zivka's eyes narrowed. "that sounds concerning habit but it seems we are still going as planned and at least that bunch has not encountered any trouble."Grukk sneered. "More failures cannot be tolerated. Snivrak, I am giving you another mission as a way for you to make things right, Don't betray me. this will be your last chance." Snivrak accepted the mission as Grukk began to speak Take a few of your surviving men and check up on the fragment pursuit team. Lend them a hand if needed."

Meanwhile, what is Arc up to... 

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