118 A Terrible Defeat

So here I am, once again hiding. I can even sense that I am losing some of my lich, because of all the assassins. But everything I do is useless. My [Blood Touch]? Countered by that strange poison created by Salazar, every single of those ratmen is infected and bearer of this thing. Meaning, no supply of healthy blood for me. My domain? Can't maintain it for more than two minutes, and I already did it for one and a half. I have a half of my mana pool, thanks to the weak absorption of the nearby blood. Anything else? My [Purple Moon] is too costly, my orbs are not really that effective against such a huge horde, plague won't even tickle them. The good thing is the fact that their artillery is useless for now.

(Are you sure about that?)

Oh no, please, don't tell me that bad news. Just, don't, seriously, I am already in a bad position, if you tell me that they are deploying once again their terrible weapons, we will really have to retreat.

(You will have to retreat. Right now, the machines guns and sorcerers are in place, you can't advance. The cannons are really too slow; it will take them at least a few minutes to join their former positions. As for the sniper rifles, they are already beginning to bring the ammunition. In a few seconds, they will reload and begin to aim at your lich, since you are no longer visible. You can't do anything. I suggest a new strategy, something bold, and quite dangerous, to be honest.)

That dangerous, or slightly dangerous? Because we really underestimated Salazar and his ratmen, I really thought that they were exterminated or something like that. So why do they have this much firepower, so many machines, and troops?

(I have no idea, I only have the news transmitted to my Agorians, nothing more. But I think that it is the fault of Aria, she probably destroyed a strong fortress and thought that it was the main base. Like I said, she is a young idiot and with just destroying it, and with probably the disappearance of the rest of the ratmen, she thought that she won. I am certain that Salazar tried to do everything he could to make her think that way, by sacrificing some of his stuff, just to fool her. And it worked. But for my plan, we will do something so stupid and irrational that even Salazar won't see it coming.)

Ok, I absolutely don't follow you, but let me hear that proposition. I mean, we can't do anything else, if we retreat normally, the assassins will keep stalking me and my army. No, I should say, all my lich are already doomed, they won't survive. Only I can, so I will be all alone once more. So what's your plan?

(Join the dwarf!)

…

…

Excuse me, but maybe I am wrong on that. There is just one tiny, little, small detail to prevent that. I AM A RATMAN! Or at least, I am shaped as a ratman, how can you say that stupid idea. They will fire at me when I will appear in their sight if I am lucky. And even if they don't do that, they will never believe me, or should I come and say that I am a gentle ratman? I am a pacifist one, no, I don't have thousands of plagues and acid that could destroy your entire race. I am not in charge of undead either, the enemy of all living creature. Seriously, how are you expecting this to work?

(That's why I said it is dangerous. Because we have to bet on the reaction of the dwarf. And even worst, we have to bet that they are still alive. But there is only one thing that is certain, in all my years of existence, no other race is capable of outranging the artillery of the dwarves. Meaning, those sniper rifles and cannons preventing our approach? They will be destroyed by the dwarves, and in compensation, you will fight in their stead. It's a win-win for both of you, if you manage to strike a deal, of course.)

During our conversation, however, my army is slowly crumbling under the number of assailants. Even after ordering to create zombies, that are more efficient to survive the waves of vermin crashing on them, I am still losing. And now, I even hear the deadly sound of a sniper shot. One more lich is destroyed. Damn, I have lost. I can't win anyway. But do I really have to listen to Oslo on that one? Because it is really impossible to predict the future. I don't know if the dwarves are still standing, I don't know if they have lost their strongholds and are just fleeing. I know nothing, nothing at all about that part of the world. And I have to bet my life on a good outcome for me.

(What is the alternative, tell me? Flee to the West, to Lucia, to Atria? Wait there, form your army once again? And what? Expecting that no one will bother you during the weeks that you are doing this? Because it will take weeks to create an army strong enough to face the ratmen. And I just say face, not even win against them.)

I can still try to go toward the barbarians or the vampires, letting them be my shield for a time. Well, never mind, by doing this, that would mean I let the ratmen focus only on the dwarves. And if they fall, the world will not react in time to survive the next assault of the ratmen. They can go whenever they want, destroy the elves, kill the remaining human empire. Hunt the orcs, trap the barbarians. For now, only I and the dwarves are openly fighting them.

(So you know it is the only way out. If you don't do it, you will have a much tougher challenge afterward. You can still do that, but I am not betting on you. So, leave this place and go North, I will try to guide you. I have no idea which mountains are still in control of the dwarves. I only know that they lost two during the Portal War, as for which, I have no idea.)

You are betting on the dwarves, but they still lost two out of the five mountains during that war. It is not a good thing, I mean, that would mean they are weaker than you think of them. Otherwise, it shouldn't have been a problem for them to do that.

(You forget one thing, previously, they didn't know the existence of Salazar of the ratmen. So, no preparations for the incoming fight, nothing at all. But, if you want to get rid of dwarves when they are defending a point and are expecting you, you will have a really hard time. By now, I am certain that in the last hundred years, they have developed, invented, and created many things only effective against the ratmen. Potions against their poisons, explosives capable of burning their furs. Many and many wonderful things, from our point of view. A group of dwarves in the open is an easy target, a group of dwarves behind mighty walls and countless weapons is a nightmare.)

So that means, they have probably the firepower capable of destroying me, right? Because, even if I am in an ethereal form, I am still sensitive to fire or stuff like that. I think so, otherwise, this form would be too powerful. I check one last time the connection with my army, while I am escaping to the North. Only 7 lich and 16 ghouls, all the zombies have already been destroyed. The sniper rifles are the main reason for the low number of my lich. If I could just get rid of them, it wouldn't have been turned into such a heavy loss.

(You still have the rest of your lich roaming in the holy kingdom of Aria, but I don't expect them to survive for a long time. Only one lich, that undead will be killed by a small group of assassins. I suggest you regroup them and make them guard the wall of Lucia. That way, the ratmen will still be wary of you and won't immediately march towards the dwarves.)

Fine, I will do that. I order all my undead servants, besides the spirits that are still following me, to reach the city of Lucia. Everyone, zombies, lich, ghouls, everyone should guard the eastern wall of that city. That should be enough, it will still be many hundreds of undead present. And with the continuous creation of zombies, more will be created. The bigger the army looks like, the better it is for me. I try to reach number one and three, that were part of my army near Ronta. No one answers I guess that makes that move even more logical. But betting on the survival of another race? I am not even sure of what I will discover.