x
Everything was shut down within the first hour. The University had exhaled all their students and teachers. The Port had undocked all it's ships towards Ferris, and Venit Ille's inside were under under full alert. Pomlik's factory, and other notable structures were also protected.
But, really. Wandering the streets, so few--each road having a dozen trucks loaded with soldiers, where every alley was full of patrolling soldiers, swords and lugers out. The whole city was protected and nothing would be able to enter, or to exit.
"What's happening?" Marrise declined in her seat, "you're evacuating everyone. This is… This isn't usual."
"Rebels have killed my men, they bypassed our defences without us being alerted. This is worthy of this kind of evacuation." Hierd rung the vehicle.
"You're causing fuzz, the people'll start worrying more. And you know where this leads Hier-"
"I know where this leads!" Hierd silenced the truck.
There was a few bleak minutes of silence, the bumps of the road ogling them awake, and the rhythmic chant of marches on the roads were keeping them on their toes.
She refused to break the silence, but as Venit Ille was just at the horizon, she spouted; "What's your resolve? Instead of doing this more silently, you're projecting your power. I'm not an idiot, unrest. This will cause unrest. People will think you're insecure."
"I am." He admitted, a calmer attitude than before, his face still stern and irritated. "Power is one of many in my arsenal. And I can use power… Powerfully. More so than some could. Unrest will not happen. It couldn't happen under my command, Marrise."
She sighed, the truck climbed the arched bridge and veered into Venit Ille. Hierd stopped at the barracks. "Go down, it's empty in Barrack A, you and the rest at the back will rest there. I need to be in the middle of the action, if you need help; go to Alrife."
As Hierd's passengers got off, he roared his truck down the road. A lead of tanks, cars, and other trucks coming with him.
"His expression, it's not typical to see him so… Irritated, angry over something. What nerve did this hit?" Marrise grin wrly, stepping over an ant trail, she entered the barracks.
---
"Platoon B-4, we've spotted something in Sector 6!"
"Respond, B-4." The radio operator on the other side said.
"Cave entrance, evidence of previous activity on the steps leading down. How should we proceed?"
"Radio your location, take a look down there. The nearest platoon should arrive soon. Before then, search the cave, eliminate enemies."
"Copy sir."
The radio call cut.
The soldiers looked at the radio operator, awaiting the orders.
"What did they say?" Questioned the Lieutenant, his eyes brimming.
"We proceed, but I'll need to stay to radio in our location to an upcoming platoon."
"Got it." He looked to his soldiers, "We're going inside! Leave your grenandes here, we won't be able to use them anyways! Bring more ammunition for your lugers!"
"Sir, yes sir!" Swiftly, they ransacked their bags, leaving them there and quickly sashing their ammunition on their belts.
The first few soldiers stepped into the cave, their swords drawn and their lugers aiming straight down. It was dark, too dark to see any further than five meters down. The soldier persisted, holstering his luger and getting out his flashlight sashed on his belt.
The soldiers slowly made their way down the steep and precarious steps, nearing the end, the sound of water dropping became louder and louder.
Tap.
The man's heel hit the solid rock ground. His flashlight shined the way forward. The ceiling was being held up by traditional wooden supports, an abandoned mine shaft. He clipped his flashlight onto his pocket, the others behind him doing the same.
"What's the situation down there?" The lieutenant yelled into the cave, quickly making his own way down there.
"Nothing so far, sir! Dark, it's a mineshaft."
"Continue onwards!"
"Yes, sir!" They rushed forward as quickly as it was ordered to them. Each corner was scanned, and each crevice was searched. The way the mineshaft was made was so maze-like, they left flashlights at some landmarks, keeping track of the directions.
Some sections of the mineshaft had been completely searched to it's bare ore, yet there was no evidence of any rebels being there. Until, one soldier spotted a blade.
"Weird." He said.
"What is?" The one behind him questioned, looking down at what he was refering.
"A blade, not rusted that is."
*clank!
"What was that!?" They aimed their lugers ahead, retreating back a little in case there were any magic users in the enemy forces.
"We're headed the right direction," he spoke softly. "Notify this to the lieutenant, see what we do in this scenario."
"Noted." The man left them there.
A few moments went pass and the crowd quickly grew larger. Oddly, there was this recurring sound of a 'clank.' So noticeably metalic, yet so forebodingly mechanic. It was something you'd only hear in Pomlik's factory or in the inside of a craft's guild.
A messenger panted their way to the platoon, still eyeing up the dark corridor, their flashlights not reaching the other of it.
"What is it?" They questioned.
"The lieutenant told us that we should continue forward, the platoon should be here at any second, but he said it'd be better to reap the benefits."
"'To reap the benefits,'" they chuckled, "let's give the lieutenant a promotion today."
"Aye!"
They slowly charged forward, the ground was uneven, they couldn't go any faster than a walk. And sooner than later, the ceiling began to close down, they needed to crough down a little to continue moving forward.
The sound of the clangs began to rang more powerfully and more resoundedly in the cave. Closer, and closer still. The reverberations from hitting metal to metal were more felt, each vibration causing shockwaves around the cave. And as they came closer to the source, they prepared for… Something.
A light!
At the end of the tunnel was a shine of orange light. And, noticeably, it was more hotter. Slowly creeping his way forward, the fore man turned off his flashlight and inched closer to the oriffice, step by step, he could see a landscape begin illustrating itself.
Indeed, it was a factory. A large hot forge. Each batting was not from some machine, the rebels didn't know how those things worked anyways. The soldier gasped, looking at the massive behemoths. They were more akin to monsters than humans, yet they appeared so human-like. The room was so big, yet; in their presence, it seemed that he was the small one.
The other soldiers got in to get a closer look at it. Each and every single one of them as shocked as the first one. And as bewildered and confused. What were they going to do next? Retreat back and report what they found? Or continue onwards and fight those beasts?
"What are those guys?" The soldier questioned in a low soft whisper.
"I do not know. But if they look human, they'll have the same weaknesses anyways. Right?"
"Right." There was doubt in that voice.
Louder, "Did anyone bring a rifle?"
It took a second for his voice to reach all the way to the back of the chain before someone said yes.
"Hand it over to me!"
From the back to the front, the STG-44 was passed to the soldier. He rocked the bolt back, the bullet primed. He pulled safe down.
He made his way beside the foreman, "I kill the one on the right, you on the left."
"..."
"Got it?" He looked at him, bewildered by what he was doing.
"Right. Left." The man had both his hands up.
He groaned, he reached for the soldier's left hand. "That one, that side."
"Ah, yes, sorry. I'm a little dyslexic."
"I see that."
The foreman unholstered his luger confidently, and aimed at his target.
The soldier smiled, looking at the foreman, now reassured that that guy actually was a trained soldier. He took his aim.
The monster's face was dwarven in a way. Squished up and a whole meaning of masculine to it's shriveled muscles. It looked like something he's seen in the old folktale drawings of wild monsters of Auferstehen that were defeated by past heroes.
They both fired at the same time. Their heads, penetrated by two powerful pieces of ammunition. Their bodies turned limp and fell, the whole cave reverberated it's dying thuds.
"Forward." He said.
They creeped down, there were small manmade stairs, so precariously built that they thought it was going to fall by the slightest misaligned weight. Thankfully, they all reached the bottom floor.
The giants were about five meters tall, the soldiers thought theses giants wouldn't be so fragile as to die to one headshot to the head, but they did. And that was confusing. "We're going to bunker here, we await orders from the sargeant before we continue onward."
"Agree."
They sent a messenger upwards.
( * )
The Hesians have been cooking.
Not food. Not even water.
They were preparing for… Something. Recently, Hesia and the Betelions were in a bit of a small race. To see who can make the best warship. They were both given expensive and powerful ships, all they needed now was to copy the machinery those warships had to make new ones.
Hesia had just recently given out ore mines to the Germans in exchange for help with building. So the Betelions were on their toes.
The SMS Baden worked wonders on her first sea trials with trained crew. There were some German ambassadors onboard to supervise them. Everything worked like a charm; now to replicate it…
The Hesians had just unleashed their passenger-liner, the Lady Black. Though it wasn't as extravagant as the German's RMS Majestic, however, it's trips round far east benefitted the navy a lot. They were in line for another project, this time. A warship.
The Jeane De Arc, a small destroyer. The engineering closely modeled to the Cesare. It measured about the same as the German's K-3 Gunboats. Though the Arc was faster than the K-3s by just one knot.
It's flush hull and black-gold color scheme, as well as the two small funnels midship were perfectly balanced with the two light naval guns situated aft and bow. The superstructure was small yet efficient, offering coverage for spotters whilst making commanding of the Arc effective.
She could house a crew of about seventy-five men, and had a thinner armor belt, the deck armor was the same thickness.
The Betelions needed a way to fight back.
They looked at the Atago.
They noticed it had a different sillouete than the German's Leberect and K-3. And it being their largest and faster warships was one of the kickers for them to try and copy how it worked.
Betelionic students still studying in the German University were sending back letters about how ships worked and how certain things behaved differently than others. Each letter was something the Betelionics prized, each week was like Christmas for them (even if christmas didn't exist there).
The Betelions got drawing plans of the Atago--it was different. To say the least. The bow curved upwards, the bridge was tall, and there was a whole lot of technology they knew nothing about. But it was decided that the ship's hull design would be replicated a little.
The BSS (Betelionic Steam Ship) Apple. Named after the king of course. Just before the rebels kicked off their whole parade down south, the ship's keel was just being made.
Tensions were rising.
The Betelions had just announced that their newest warship, the BSS Apple, would be a cruiser--with a backbone that'd sprint faster in water than usually possible. It was a hit, a hit towards Hesia. And the Hesians were answering the beck, the race. The race to see who can make the biggest, best warship possible.
( * )
"What the fuck?" The seargent looked at the dead gigantic bodies, his eyes were amused yet his face was grimacing. "I noticed my balls drooped lower this morning, this was the reason why." He snickered.
"What do we do sir?"
"Have you continued forward?"
"No, sir."
"The platoon's at the top, they're going to be here any second." He looked at his soldiers; "I want five squads exploring this shithole; make this place a base for communication, and contact the Mining Department and Adventurer's Commission to widen the cave."
"Yes, Seargeant!"
Without a second word said, the five of the platoon's better squads went into farther of the mineshaft. It was through this shanty of a door; it's hinges broke off after the first squad stormed inside.
There was this large empty room. Many barrels, no people, and most definitely weren't there any monsters. The next few rooms were nothing to talk about, hallways bleak with the gray addition of the walls, the floors, and of course; the ceilings.
"Judging by the way these plates of food were left." He touched the half-emptied plate of meat, "still warm, and that furnace yonder should still have some hot to touch coal." The soldier noted.
"They heard us, meaning they retreated further in." One said, "if we don't hurry, they might be able to escape."
"Escape." Someone repeated sarcastically.
"Or gather a militia. Either the two may be plausible." The soldier said, irritated a little by the sudden jab.
They scouted further in, each step and each wooden creak felt uneasy. They trained the guns forward, yet their minds were futures ahead. A different door. Casted out of iron, yet so easily unlocked that they thought it was a trap.
Cautiously, they opened it…
A huge chasm.
What seemed like hundreds of meters down were these giants working in cahoots with these men in shining armor. The rebels (they whispered amongst eachother). As did the two at the entrance, these ones were clanging away, seemingly being forced to do these repetive slams day in and day out nonstop.
The squad was hidden in the darkness up above their location; this sketchy wooden catwalk so high up and precariously built that they creeped slowly near the sides.
The giants were being led through some gate, the rebels themselves were preparing for a fight. They probably have yet to witness the soldiers enter the huge chasm from up above, but that would change very soon.
"We don't have any rifles, just my one. But we could still do damage firing here."
"Agreed." He cocked his luger, "we shoot from here, luck have you two squads that goes down."
"Aye."
The quick and silver-smooth, this sleek sound of metal exiting a metal scabbard.
"THEY'RE HERE!" The rebels screamed, pointing at the entrance; "Ready your swords! Release the giants! Destroy the bridge!"
The two squads ran down as far and as quick as they could; ignoring the occasional arrow shot like it were nothing. Shots were being fired, the rebels just down the steps inching forward, retreating many foots backward.
They cried in pain as bullets seared into their flesh like they were butter to a hot knife, their leather armor was nothing, neither were the few unfortunate souls with anything heavier than that.
Arriving on the step's bottom, the squads formed an impregnable line of defense. Hiding behind small crevaces on the stone walls and staglatites and whatnot, arrows were dangerously cutting corners and they were afraid to even get a cut in that scenario, you'd be better to turn yourself dummy and storm fighting freely.
The rebels failed in their attack, the squads inched closer to the field where the giants were once being held, the soldiers up above still firing their lugers, even more careful now as to not hit their comrades.
It was silent at first, almost chillingly silent. For after such a large commotion, only the last gunshot and the most recent yell were heard reveberating around the large chasm's walls like they submerged underwater.
Then, this eerie yell climbed the walls, steeping higher and higher. It was at first unrecognizable, only enough to draw their attention towards the big black outline of a door infront of them. Then, the noise creeped closer, it was that of a man!
"Do not move! Stay where you are!" Slowly, a soldier inched forward into the hole with his flashlight on, not being able to see anything infront of him.
"N-no! D-do not fire your metal arrows!" The voice yelled back in defiance, and in fear. A nerve of fear struck the corridor, a rumbling chill rumaging down the corridor the same distance yet maybe not the same pace as the man inside running anonymously.
"H-help!"
Crunch!
It was so loud, that bone-breaking crunch! The soldiers swore they heard each and every vertebrae in his spine break off into individual pieces.
"Retreat!" The soldiers yelled, the carelessly thunderous footsteps increasing in sound; "it's the giants! The giants are coming!"
Their bodies were flush with the lights now, so gigantic that when the soldiers looked up at their faces; they thought they were looking at gods.
Immidiately, the soldiers retreated; responding with their gunfire at the quickly running giants. Their hands were restrained, "the rebels failed to control the suns of bitches!" He commented, overlooking the battle from up above.
They were too far, accurate hits were almost impossible with the luger up above. The occasional hit to the shoulder, or even at the mi-torso did not hinder the giants in their pursuit. Their eyes looked blinded with this… Rage. The running soldiers looked at them, those eyes reddend with that furious gaze.
Those eyes...
It reminded them of the coldness, that frigid season. Auferstehen.
The soldier unleashed his sack of grenades, grabbing one and swiftly pulling the pin.
-3-
-2-
The throw, landing on the giant's feet!
*Boom!
The scream, that manly screech. Both the legs of the giant's were torn apart in an instant. The fragments reaching even it's face; it fell down in pain.
It's body was a small blocade for the giants behind the body, jumping atop it; slamming his head, pushing it out of the way. If that giant was injured, it were now a mortality.
Pounce!
"Shit! They're too fast, and if they reach the bridge, they're going to knock it down!"
"What do you suggest we do then!?" Panting, running was a challenge now, and walking seemed more like a gift than a suggestion.
"We lob every grenade we have, it's obvious our lugers don't do anything! Got that everyone?!" He screamed loudly, his voice being drowned out more so because of the giants.
Their pace was getting slower, and the bridge upwards was nearing quicker; they turned around in anti-climatic fashion, dishing out the pack of grenades they had stashed on their belts, one-by-one they pulled their pins. Not letting go of the lever yet…
Closer,
Closer yet.
"Now!"
It was too instant to count how many giants were there, just thirty meters infront of them. Probably twenty? They couldn't tell, they only saw the front, what of the back? Were there another twenty? But, in just three measly seconds, and this blast of explosion; dead bodies scattered the same ground where that first giant died.
Standing up from their prone; they saw a field of dead giants, walled-up in just one giant pile; the stench of sweat darted the air, and the same malice that was in the gloomy atmosphere of the air was… Gone.
A sigh of relief, "They're weak, but they're certainly powerful at the same time."
"What the fuck were those!?" The seargent cried out; he had apparantly ran all the way down. "And by the way, the second platoon is here."
"I suggest sir, that we should contact the Unchean Research Division, sir."
"I agree with that."
( * )
"We haven't seen variants like this… Ever." Jamie exasperated. "These giants reminds me of the stories of yore, when Auferstehen wasn't locked to just one month of the calendar."
"I remember hearing about that… Years ago already, when I was still captain of Venit Ille." Hierd smiled, thinking about those times. "W-what about it?"
"It's not good, that's what." Jamie said swiftly; "from the skinned dragoon in Fermont and the weird manor screaming sorceror, I believe we're dealing with something… Something else, lord."
"Don't need words to tell me that." He chuckled, "the caves are being checked top to bottom, no side's being left uncleared. We don't know where they got these giants in the first place."
She looked at him, her big red glasses ready to slip from the tip of her nose at just another second; "What if… What if they summoned them?"
"Summoned?" Hierd voiced his concern; "what do you mean by that?"
"Honestly, lord, we don't know how these Rebels have this much magical power. We here in the south don't have as much affinity to magic as those in the north like the Lottidenty Empire."
"So you're suggesting…"
"That the Lottidenty are a part of the rebels?" She said nonchalantly.
There was a moment of silence, to think about the statement just uttered. "Then… Then we'll research them. Those Lottidentians. They're getting crafty."
"How so?" Jamie asked, backing off and entering into her own world; examining the body of a giant's arm.
"They're using our technology more effectively than I thought-
"Almost as if they're preparing for war."
ns 15.158.61.42da2
