Preparations for Battle

Inian's eyes were drooping. They had been traveling for four days, and they were exhausted.

Under the cloudy night, Inian noticed some lights in the distance. His exhaustion melted away, and he woke Janae up from her slumber. "Look! Is that the Fort right there?" He asked. Janae stretched and looked at the growing lights. "It is! We've finally made it!"

Inian had Ebony land outside the view of the fort. He wasn't sure how they'd react to strangers landing right in the middle of it.

He told Ebony to wait outside the fortress until he calls for him, and so Ebony spread his wings and took off into the night. Janae walked in front of Inian so that the guards would spot her first.

The red-uniformed guards outside the gate pointed rifles at them. "Who goes there?" They called out. "I'm Corporal Janae Reark from Galbury Castle. We need to speak to the General immediately regarding important matters."

The guards looked at each other, "Reark...as in General Reark?!" They stood in shock but then clicked their heels together in a salute. "Welcome, Corporal Reark, please enter."

The gates opened and Janae stepped in with Inian on her heels. The fortress was in absolute chaos, even in the middle of the night. Men were loading Caro cannons on the walls, which were only one step down from Hiro cannons. Soldiers were digging trenches, and many were looking at maps and filling out paperwork.

Inian could see one cry a bit as he was writing on a piece of paper. 'Perhaps a letter to his loved ones?' Inian thought.

They soon reached a solitary keep in the middle of the fortress. It was made of sturdy steel and was guarded by soldiers in version 1 exosuits. They stopped the pair from walking inside. "Please state your name and business, asked one of the guards."

Janae sighed in annoyance, "I am Corporal Janae Reark from Galbury Castle. I have traveled to and fro to get to this dang fortress! Let me in so I can speak to my father now!"

The guard began sweating and stepped aside. Inian and Janae walked inside. They climbed a set of spiral stairs to the next level, and on that level was a grand opening like that of a chapel. Large stained glass windows stood in the back, and below the windows were a few large men listening to one huge man. He was a heavy-set man with pointy ears and stark white hair. His eyes revealed his years of experience and wisdom. He looked up at the newcomers and began tearing up.

"My daughter! You're okay!" His serious appearance dropped, and he ran up to his daughter. Janae hugged her father with love but released her embrace abruptly.

"Father, there are dangers on their way here. A whole army of Imperial soldiers is on their way!"

General Reark nodded his head. Some scouts have warned us. "Galbury Castle was completely defeated. I'm glad to see you are safe though, as we hadn't heard from any other survivors."

Janae looked towards Inian, "It's because of this man that I stand here today. His name is Inian, and he helped me escape from the clutches of the Empire."

General Reark went and stood tall in front of Inian. Inian was a big guy, but the General was much bigger. He was wider, and he was taller by at least another head.

Looking down at Inian, he finally smiled after conducting a visual inspection on him. "Thank you for saving my daughter; I believe rewards are in order."

He looked to Janae, "What reward do you think we should give one such as him?" Janae thought for a moment and then smiled slyly, "well...he has agreed to fight with us, so maybe that certain equipment would be good!"

The General nodded in agreeance, "you are right; THAT would be perfect!" He grabbed Inian by the shoulders and guided him to a back room.

Inian was pushed and was confused and annoyed that he wasn't in the loop about what he was getting. 'Perhaps I did the wrong thing by coming here.' He thought. Suddenly he was pushed into an open room with a stark black suit shining in the center of it.

"This is your reward, my good man!" The General proclaimed proudly. Inian pointed at himself and then the suit, and the General nodded to confirm Inian's suspicion that the suit is his.

He went and got a closer look. The black suit looked flexible and felt strong when he touched it. The boots were smaller than those version 2 boots he saw, and it had short swords strapped on its back. The helm's shape was like a wolf's head, and the eyes looked like they wanted to devour the whole world.

"This is an early prototype of the version 3 exosuits." The General began, "the Empire is the only one so far to mass-produce version 3 exosuits successfully. This one is better, however, but it's the only one of its kind. Now, it's yours to use against the Empire."

Inian began laughing as he saw how great the suit looked.

The suit glowed and opened up when General Reark tapped it. Inian stood still in shock. The General laughed then, "the suit is extremely powerful. I would be careful about where you leave it. Are you excited to use it?"

Inian nodded vigourously. The General then patted his back, "let's go get some sleep first, though, you and my daughter have been on a long journey." They both walked out, Inian still longingly looking back at the suit.