Chapter 180 - 180: Battle of the Shattered Maw
Two figures stood at the bow of the floating ship. Jason crossed his arms and looked down at the blood-soaked summit with absolute boredom. Chloe leaned against the wooden railing and twirled her glowing sapphire staff.
They wore the pristine, silver-trimmed garments of the Fourteen Heralds.
"Looks like the local garrison completely failed," Jason called down from the sky. His voice projected clearly across the summit through magical amplification. "I guess we actually have to get our boots dirty today, Chloe."
"Just make it quick," Chloe sighed, aiming her glowing staff at the Vanguard troops. "I absolutely hate the smell of wet scales."
Up in the void, Red sat perfectly still in his sanctuary. The visual feed from the Vanguard forces projected across his main monitor to show the floating vessel and the two arrogantly dressed figures.
Red leaned forward on his throne. His eyes widened slightly at the sight of his former classmates wielding the very magic stolen from his own chest. He recognized the smug grin on Jason's face and the way Chloe talked.
'Oh, what's this?,' A dangerous smile crept across Red's face.
He tapped his fingers against his armrest and let out a small, amused huff.
"I certainly did not expect to see any of them this soon," Red muttered to himself. He watched the golden aura of his own stolen soul mass radiate from Jason's armor. "The war hasn't even properly started yet. You really are eager to die."
Chloe pointed her glowing sapphire staff directly at the clustered Vanguard troops. A brilliant blue light erupted from the ornate gemstone and rained down a relentless volley of explosive arcane missiles.
The magical projectiles slammed into the stone summit with thundering kinetic force.
Hawl grabbed Vane by the shoulder and threw the local spearman behind a massive boulder just as the ground where they stood vaporized into a smoking crater. Dust and shattered stone sprayed violently across the peak.
'What kind of magic is that?' Vane thought in absolute terror while coughing on the ash. 'Our royal mages take several minutes to cast a single spell of that magnitude.'
The Vanguard forces completely lost their momentum under the sudden bombardment. A towering Troglodyte attempted to deflect a blue missile with a thick slate slab. The arcane energy pierced right through the makeshift shield and blasted the giant warrior completely over the cliff edge.
The elite Kobold assassins scattered immediately. They deployed their clockwork grappling spools to rapidly swing down the canyon walls and evade the endless explosions.
Jason laughed loudly at the scrambling mercenaries. He drew one of his custom-forged longswords from his hip. The metal blade ignited instantly with a radiant golden aura fueled entirely by Red's stolen soul mass.
Jason swung the weapon in a wide downward arc to unleash a massive, crescent-shaped wave of pure energy.
The golden slash cleaved effortlessly through the remaining wooden barricades and incinerated a squad of Grey-Fin warriors caught out in the open.
Hawl gritted his teeth and peered around the edge of his boulder. He watched the flying vessel drift lazily above the battlefield.
'We cannot fight an airborne target with bare fists and short swords,' the human Vanguard operative calculated quickly.
The enemy possessed absolute aerial superiority.
"Fall back to the canyon floor!" Hawl yelled over the continuous explosions. "Get into the crevices and stay out of their direct line of sight!"
Vane did not need to be told twice. The Second Continent soldier scrambled toward the cliff edge and grabbed a discarded rope to slide down the rock face. Hawl followed right behind him to dodge another golden sword beam that completely melted the boulder they had just used for cover.
Up on the floating ship, Chloe watched the Vanguard troops retreat into the shadowy depths of the Shattered Maw. She let out a highly disappointed sigh and lowered her sapphire staff.
"They are already running away," Chloe complained. She brushed a speck of ash from her pristine blue robes. "I thought King Voranthar said these mercenaries routed General Boros's entire cavalry."
"Boros was clearly just incompetent," Jason replied with an arrogant smirk. He rested his glowing sword on his shoulder and looked down at the canyon with entirely unearned confidence. "Let us flush the rest of these pests out of the rocks and head back to the capital for dinner."
The flying vessel descended smoothly toward the canyon floor. The levitation crystal dimmed as the wooden hull touched down on the rocky dirt at the mouth of the Shattered Maw.
Jason and Chloe stepped confidently over the railing, expecting to find terrified stragglers hiding in the crevices. Instead, they walked directly into the center of a massive encirclement.
Commander Novus stood atop a large boulder with his star-iron longsword drawn. Thousands of Vanguard infantry, feral Troglodytes, and Second Continent spearmen poured out from the shadows of the canyon walls. They formed a massive ring of metal and bone around the two Heralds.
Jason looked at the surrounding army and let out an amused chuckle. He rested his glowing sword on his shoulder. Chloe wrinkled her nose and flicked a stray piece of ash from her pristine blue robes. They could not care less about the overwhelming numbers closing in on them.
"Look at this," Jason mocked. "They actually think crowding together will save them. This just saves us the trouble of hunting them down."
From a commanding position further back in the canyon, Iron-Scale analyzed the two glowing targets. He quickly calculated the destructive output of their stolen magic.
"Bring up the alchemical cannons," Iron-Scale ordered his artillery crews. "Target their position and prepare to fire."
The Vanguard engineers immediately began hauling the massive star-iron cannons over the uneven terrain. Positioning the artillery on the rocky canyon floor required several minutes of precise calibration. They needed time to lock in the firing coordinates without hitting their own frontline troops.
Iron-Scale drew his sleek blade. He needed to keep the Heralds occupied until the cannons were ready. General Gulag let out a fierce battle cry beside him and charged forward with her bone club raised high. Iron-Scale darted past the giant Troglodyte in a blur of dark scales to close the distance.
Jason swung his sword in a wide arc. The radiant energy clashed violently against Iron-Scale's star-iron sword. Bright sparks rained down on the dirt as the two forces collided.
A familiar, commanding voice suddenly echoed directly inside the Kobold's mind.
[ Be careful with those two, Commander, ] Red projected from his orbital sanctuary. [ And do not kill them. ]
Iron-Scale grunted as he parried another devastating strike from Jason. He flipped backward to avoid a blast of blue arcane energy from Chloe's staff.
'That is a highly difficult request, Sovereign,' Iron-Scale replied mentally. He landed gracefully on his feet and tightened his grip on his hilt. 'This isn't a simple battle like we have fought before. They possess an immense amount of mana. Holding back will cost us casualties.'
[ Do you require my direct intervention? ] Red asked smoothly.
'Absolutely not,' Iron-Scale answered with fierce pride. 'The Vanguard can handle two arrogant children. We will break them.'
[ Good, ] Red replied. His voice dripped with cold, calculated malice. [ Ensure they survive this battle. Those two deserve a deeply painful death. A quick execution in the dirt is far too merciful for them. ]
Iron-Scale flashed a vicious, toothy smile. He finally understood his Sovereign's intent. The supreme commander signaled Gulag to flank the blue-robed spellcaster while he focused entirely on dismantling the arrogant swordsman.