Charge

Perrikos should have expected this from Odin. He should have seen that the old King would never surrender the advantage of the walls and yet, he didn't. As the Asgardian ships flew through the air, firing blasts of magical energy and arrows that slaughtered their forces, Perrikos realised that they were far too exposed.

The wide-open plains left their soldiers in full view, easy pickings for the Asgardian Skiffs and the archers upon them.

The Union did what it could, firing energy blasts at the ship and while he had brought down a few ships, the vast majority of the Asgardian ships were still flying. They were just too quick and manoeuvrable. Not to mention their small size made them extremely difficult to hit and when they did, they brushed off most of the blasts due to the Uru they were crafted out of. Yet, more and more kept coming as well, the naval and aerial battle over the Sea of Mamora all but lost to them, their fleet destroyed and their creatures dying in droves.

Gritting his teeth, Perrikos knew that the longer they waited the worse things would become for them. The fleet was a minor loss, they were meant to serve as a distraction, same with the aerial forces. But losing both of them, was a blow to them and the continued losses they suffered in their main force only worsened it.

Hearing the sound of something popping followed by something dropping to the ground with a thud, Perrikos looked to see that his mother was floating in the air, the palanquin on the ground and the slaves that had once been carrying it, decapitated by her tail.

"Kill them!" She snarled angrily glaring murderously at Odin and the Asgardian as her power rose up in response to her emotions. "I want them dead, I want them all dead! Every last one of them! I'll make Odin pay for this mockery! This insult!"

Adva bowed and quickly rushed forwards to carry out her Majeston's wishes. Meanwhile, Perrikos remained back with Tokkots as Majseton Zelia ordered the rest of the Dark Gods to fuse with Union.

All around him, he could hear the sound of thundering footsteps as the ground shook under the force of tens of thousands of charging soldiers.

He watched on as their worshippers charged forward with howls and inhumane roars as they rushed towards the Asgardian army. The Dark Gods themselves rushed to fuse with Union, the already grotesque beast that was deforming and growing in size as more parts fed its growing power.

Yet Perrikos remained back.

His mother was already rushing forward, driven mad by rage at the perceived insult dealt to her by Odin, what insult he had given even Perrikos did not know.

Yet even as nearly a hundred thousand cultists closed in on the Asgardian forces, they never moved, Perrikos knew why.

The archers.

Unlike most space-faring races, the Asgardians had never changed their ways from the basic weaponry such as swords and bows and arrows. While most races had guns that fired smaller and weaker versions of the energy blasts that the Asgardian ships were firing, the Asgardians themselves had not.

Why would they? Due to their great physical durability, they could shrug off those attacks like they were nothing, the ever-growing Kree Empire had discovered that the hard way when trying to conquer Nidavellir. On top of that, with their great physical strength, Asgardians could fire arrows that flew further and packed far more power behind them than any weapon the space-faring race possessed.

That is why Perrikos had been wary of getting too close to the walls. He knew they would have to get close in order to conquer the city, but he had hoped to draw Odin's forces away and engage them at a distance either where the archers could not reach them or could not fire without also hitting the Asgardians as well.

However, his mother was never the most patient of individuals. She was always so eager for revenge against Odin for humiliating her centuries ago and at the end of the day, she was in command of the Dark God forces.

They would follow her, even though he knew how to actually lead.

As the Dark Gods rushed forwards, the Union, a huge, hulking beast easily fifty feet in height thundered across the battlefield, its large feet crushing some worshippers underneath them. Perrikos knew that the losses they would incur would be high, especially when a wave of arrows was fired from the walls.

They flew high into the air to the point they disappeared from view, the sun blinding anyone that looked up.

It was the whistling they heard first before the arrows landed. The very front of their army dropped like flies as more and more arrows were let loose from the wall and slaughtered their worshippers.

Even from this distance, he could see that the arrows were aimed perfectly at the very front of the charging army. With one wave of hundreds of arrows being released followed closely by a second and then a third. Then there would be a lull of less than a second before it repeated the process all over again.

It was methodical and timed perfectly, a testament to the skill, dedication and discipline of the Asgardian army that left thousands of Dark God cultists dead upon the ground. The ships flying overhead and firing, some concentrating fire upon the Union, but mostly focusing on further causing disruption amongst their ranks.

However, Perrikos could see his mother flying up in the air, her great power and physical strength destroying a single Asgardian ship with a few blows and then moving on to the next, grabbing it out of the sky and throwing it into another, both erupting into flames as they crashed to the ground. The Asgardians upon them jumped to the ground, drawing free their blades, axes and spears as they landed in the horde of cultists.

They didn't last long despite fighting to the best of their abilities.

"You remember the plan?" Perrikos demanded and Tokkots nodded his head, his eyes closed in concentration as he focused entirely on stretching his power to its limits. With a nod that Tokkots could not see, Perrikos spared one glance back into the forest before following the charging army.

As Tokkots remained there on the mountain, hundreds of eyes peered out from the shadowed forests.

-X- Line Break -X-

As Odin stood, watching as his archers systematically released wave after wave of arrows into the enemy. He remained indifferent, the Asgardian army had stopped cheering very soon. Even as their faces were hardened in preparation, there was muted sense of horror at watching the worshippers being slaughtered by the arrows.

They had seen men, women and children die, seen thousands of bodies scattered over a bloodied plain and buried members of their families. Yet, they had never seen such undying loyalty in anyone to such a degree that even as they watched their fellow comrades die and could hear the whistling of hundreds of arrows raining down upon them, they kept pushing forward.

Even Asgardians would halt, tactically retreating to regroup and plan a way around this obstacle. It was what made them so effective as a military despite their small size in comparison to some space-faring empires.

But the worshippers just kept on charging. They climbed over the ever-rising mountain of dead bodies as they rushed forwards.

And as horrific as it was to watch, it was working.

The Dark Gods had the numbers, more soldiers than the Asgardians had arrows, so it was only a matter of time. Even then, that brief second between the third wave and the first was all the Dark Gods needed to have hundreds of worshippers break through and continue to charge unimpeded by arrows raining upon them.

But that was fine, Odin closed his eye and allowed himself to stop holding his power inside of him.

His power rushed through him, opening his eye it glowed white with pure power and Odin slammed the butt of Gungnir into the ground. The ground rippled and hundreds of spikes protruded from the ground that the worshippers could not avoid. Unable to stop or move around in time, the worshippers could do nothing to avoid their fate as spikes made entirely of earth ripped through their bodies killing them.

Even then, while it slowed down the charging army briefly, it was not a complete fix.

And so, Odin walked forwards.

Raising his spear into the air, he let his power explode out of him and the Asgardian army clutched their weapons tightly in one hand, feeling the All-Fathers power wash over them.

Swiping his spear down, Odin began walking forwards once more, this time the Asgardian army followed behind him. Slowly their speed gradually began to increase from a slow march to a slow jog.

The cultists could see them, but they were too busy trying to climb over the body of thousands of their fellow worshippers and the earthen spikes Odin had formed as well.

And as the Asgardian army closed in on them, Odin banished the earthen spikes sending hundreds of fanatics to the ground and leaving the rest off-balance. It was too sudden and too late for the worshippers to regroup and meet the charging Asgardian army, only able to raise their crudely forged weapons in defence and scramble to their feet before Odin and his army were upon them.

With a battle cry, the Asgardians cut through the worshippers with ease, bashing them to the ground with their shields and following up with a stab. They kept going forwards, the archers having ceased fire momentarily, instead focusing on drawing back their arrows to their full length and releasing them with as much power behind it, the Sorcerers using basic wind magic to give them an extra push that sent them flying further and faster.

Odin fired a blast from Gungnir wiping out hundreds of worshippers in an instant, but they were not his target. Even as the battle went into full swing, his army meeting the bulk of the Dark Gods' army, they held the line as best as they could. But no matter how skilled, they were being pushed back, he could feel the presence of his soldiers disappear as they were killed. But not before killing ten or twenty fanatics themselves.

However, Odin kept pushing forward, aiming directly for the Union and Majeston Zelia who had smashed a hole directly through his forces on the northern flank. The beam he fired was aimed for them and they sensed it.

Both turned around and while Majeston Zelia used her ability of flight and the great speed she possessed to move around it, the Union was not fast. Even then, as the beam struck him and left a large circular hole directly through its body the Union reformed.

Still, Odin did not think on this long, instead spinning Gungnir round and blocking a clawed hand from Majeston Zelia and staring at her with his lone glowing eye.

"I'll have your head, Odin!" She snarled angrily trying to put as much power as she could to force Odin back, it worked for a few seconds before Odin used masterful footwork and mastery of his spear to use her own momentum against her.

Majeston Zelia flew forwards off-balance, caught surprised by the lack of resistance she suddenly met only to cry out in pain as a deep cut formed on her back followed by a blow to the back of her head that sent her face-first into the ground.

Odin would have liked to follow up even further, but he not only sensed the presence of the Union but also saw the shadow upon the ground.

Spinning around, Odin fired another blast of energy at the swarm of black, oily shadows that rushed towards him, only for the substance to curve around the blast and continue heading straight for him. Seeing this, the old King slammed his spear into the ground just as the Union came within a foot of reaching him and a shining, golden shield rose up.

There was a splat as the Union slammed against the shield and exploded outwards around the area and as Odin stood on the shield, he noticed the screams. Looking around he saw that both the Dark God worshippers and his own Asgardians screaming out in pain as they slowly rotted away, each of them having the black substance of the Union coating their bodies.

Releasing a breath, Odin watched as Majeston Zelia floated menacingly in the air as the Union slowly reformed behind her. He had already attempted to reach out and banish the two from Asgard, but their strength of will was impressive, somehow capable of resisting the power of the Odinforce.

But while concerning, Odin would not let it cloud his judgement.

Even less so when he felt the gathering storm above, followed soon by a powerful and large bolt of lightning that rushed directly towards him. Dodging was impossible, yet Odin had no intention to do so, Gungnir thrusting up and meeting the bolt on its path. A twirl of the golden staff and Odin launched the lightning across the battlefield, striking against the Union that roared out in pain, bits of it lashing out and striking against numerous cultists, killing them instantly.

Yet that was not the end of it, King Rugga thundering across the land, Majeston rushing at him from the same direction.

Turning to face them fully, Odin pointed his spear at them and let his power rush into the ground and from it, pillars of the earth rushed forwards towards the two. Majeston swiped angrily and let her own barrier appear as the pillars slowly exploded into debris as they ground against the shield. King Rugga himself swung his fists around, striking out with immense power that broke the pillars apart, debris showering those behind him.

Yet, that was fine, it was never his plan for that to work.

It was a distraction.

The ground underneath the Union rumbled and then opened up and the creature roared as it plummeted down leaving just Majeston Zelia and King Rugga who looked down at it in shock. Then Majeston Zelia's anger returned in full force.

"You think that will hold the Union?!" She roared and Odin said nothing, remaining quiet as Majeston Zelia let her power rise to its fullest. It was impressive, compared to most individuals, but it was nothing compared to Majeston, Odin could tell that her arrogance had clouded her mind. She was only slightly stronger than she had been centuries ago.

Certainly, she was strong, there was no denying that. However, compared to what she had been, it was obvious she had barely trained herself, if she had she might have been a cause for worry.

As if stood now, Odin was not in the least concerned, not even when her son, Perrikos appeared behind him.

Sparing a glance at the Dark God out of the corner of his eye, Odin instead turned his attention to where a portal had opened from above him. Out from it dropped the Union that roared in anger as it fired a blast of energy at the King of Asgard.

Caught off guard, Odin quickly summoned a shield before him, but while the beam exploded against the barrier, it also was destroyed in the explosion.

Still, even as smoke clouded his view, Odin was not helpless. Reaching out with his senses, the King waited and listened not only with his hearing but also with the Odinforce. And so, when Perrikos rushed forwards with a fist drawn back, Odin masterfully parried the blow downwards causing the ground to crack under the power of the blow.

A slam of Gungnir to the temple sent the son of Majeston Zelia stumbled back while Odin caught Zelia's clawed hand in his own grasp. Sensing the Union and King Rugga coming towards him, Odin flung Zelia at Perrikos sending the two skidding across the ground then disappearing from the spot just as King Rugga brought both fists down, shattering the ground where he once stood.

The Union itself spun, the first to recognise his returned presence, but a swipe of Gungnir removed its hand. Even then, Odin jumped backwards as some of the substance belonging to the Union landed upon his armour and it rotted away.

King Rugga closing in, rushing in from the sides. Yet he was halted when the ground all around him rose up, rising up and crashing down upon him like a tsunami. King Rugga fighting against the oncoming earth that barrelled him into the ground with such force that it left him stunned.

A quick burst of power and the corrosive substance was gone leaving Odin once again watching as the Union's hands reformed, while Zelia and Perrikos got to her feet. Another bolt of lightning striking down destroying the cocoon of earth that had trapped King Rugga, the Storm Giant King rising to his feet with a scowl. All around him, Odin could sense the battle raging, even with the archers on the wall having drawn their swords and joined the battle, it was not enough.

More and more Asgardians were being killed and pushed back further and further to the wall.

Which just so happened, to be exposing their side, just like Odin had planned. 'Now Heimdall.' Odin ordered calmly and a beam of light slammed into the forest to the far southeast, at the very fringes of the battlefield. All fighting ceased as everyone looked, including the Dark Gods before him to turn to where the light was.

The ground shook and then they heard the battle cry and from the tree line burst the entire might of the Asgardian military. They slammed into the exposed side of the Dark Gods' army and cut a line straight through.

The tide of the battle had turned and now the Asgardians had the advantage.