26 – The Fortress
Carrying a steaming mug, Nathaniel walked between the army tents. After waving to those on guard duty, he stopped near the powered armors covered in black cloth.
He stood in silence while sipping his warm drink, then a woman came to him.
"You should sleep already. You are the main star for tomorrow." The woman with curly brown hair smiled.
"You're on guard duty, Sheila?" Nathaniel responded.
Sheila chuckled. "Did you forget, all pilots don't get night watch duty? They want us to perform at our maximum."
"Ah, that's right… You're a pilot too… I forgot…"
They then fell silent, looking at those armors. A question nagged Nathaniel's mind, but he hesitated.
But in the end, he asked. "How does it feel after wearing this armor several times? Is it like my big sister said…. You know what I mean, right?"
Sheila chuckled. "You are referring to Miss Hawke's question to me? Don't worry, it's not as bad as she said. I can still use this armor. My breasts will be fine."
"I'm not worried about your breasts..." Nathaniel was silent again for a moment. "That sounds wrong. Just forget about this discussion. It's not important anyway."
Sheila chuckled again, then took a deep breath. "How does it feel, Nat? Like I said, you will be our star tomorrow."
Trish's little brother walked over to one armor. "Honestly, it's too fast for me. It feels like just days ago I was the weakest and bullied.
"But you've proven yourself, Nat. You are the most skilled at controlling this powered armor." Sheila patted her friend's shoulder. "I'm sure tomorrow you will lead us to victory."
"I hope so." Nathaniel finished the rest of his drink. "But I hope the rumors are false. I hope Zashrend Kingdom can't really summon monsters from the underground realm. That would be terrible."
***
The sun was high in the sky. Celestenia's troops marched. Some of them carried symbols of their pride: red flags with the symbol of a woman and a gold crescent moon.
Their goal is to reclaim a fortress that was captured by the Zashrend kingdom. It used to be the outermost region of Celestenia, housing a small town.
After Zashrend seized it, they expelled the residents and turned the town into their giant military base.
"What the hell is that?" Commander Desmond used his binoculars to check his opponent from the top of the fort.
He found several things covered with black cloth among the opposing troops. Their height is far above ordinary humans, and their steps are a bit different from ordinary humans.
The commander sensed the danger of those unknown things. Celestenia wouldn't send things like that without any purpose.
He then glanced at a wizard standing next to him. "Do it now."
"Certainly, sir." The wizard bowed and went down the stairs.
Desmond then gave orders. "They are still quite far away, but archers get ready! They have…."
An archer fell with his head bleeding. Desmond was too shocked to speak.
Then, several other archers also fell.
The commander checked the Celestenia troops again and found marksmen with scoped rifles among the ordinary soldiers.
"Retreat!" Desmond knew that he and his men would have no chance. From a great distance, the Celestenia troops could kill the archers easily.
The Zashrend troops had no defense against it. Even so, they still have one hope left.
Desmond ran down the stairs, finding several wizards and witches opening portals. "We don't have time anymore!!! Get those monsters out right now!!!"
***
A Celestenia soldier uses binoculars to check the fortress. His mouth let out an arrogant chuckle. "The archers are retreating. They were scared."
"Then this will be easier." Another soldier replied. "They don't dare to fight, especially when they see our powered armors later."
But Nathaniel, who was walking behind them, had a bad feeling. There was no way that Zashrend Kingdom wouldn't do something after seeing those rifles defeat them back then.
Faint buzzing sounds echoed from a distance. The Celestenia army commander raised his hand as a sign for his troops to stop.
The buzzing sound became more intense, then humanoid beetle monsters flew past the top of the fortress.
"Pilots!" The commander gave the signal. "Attack them!!!"
Nathaniel and the other pilots removed the black cloth covering their armor.
The powered armor users shouted while raising their swords or spears. With high speed, they advanced to fight those monsters.
Some monsters continued to fly and tackle the powered armor warriors. There are also those who land and fight with special units.
Meanwhile, Nathaniel ran behind them, dragging a giant sword that was even taller than his armor.
He sped up and jumped high.
While in the air, he slashed several monsters. Pieces of those creatures' bodies landed on the ground, splattering their white body liquid.
And of course, Nathaniel's role doesn't stop there. He continued to defeat the monsters that came his way, sometimes assisting his friends.
"Those magic users control those monsters!" The commander shouted again. "Shoot them!!!"
Even though they were crouched down, several witches and wizards from Zashrend still fell because of bullets from Celestenia's troops. The monsters that escaped their control became wilder.
"That controlling magic restrain their bodies, so they will go berserk when they are free!!!" The Celestenia's commander informed the pilots. "That is the basic principle of control magic, which is usually used on wild animals!!! This is an advantage!!! Their movements are so chaotic that they become easy targets!!!"
The Celestenia troops continued to advance, with the pilots being their backbone.
"Ugh!" Sheila fell because a monster tackled her. But Nathaniel swiftly slashed the creature before it could do something else.
"Thanks, Nat."
"It's not over yet." Nathaniel helped his comrade get up. "We still have to fight. Let's go…."
Nathaniel choked when he realized they were only a few meters from the fort's giant gate.
Their progress is much faster than expected.
"Excuse me, sir!" Nathaniel turned to his commander. "I think it's time we break down that gate!"
Without hesitation, the commander replied. "Do it!"