Austronesian Empire, Imperial Maharlika, Manila, Malacanang Palace.
1st Year of the New Age, New Sabbath, 3rd Week, 3rd Month of Abraham.
"YES!"
A roar of cheers erupted as politicians and officers watched what happened through the choppy video stream from the Tempest Scions' actions.
The grainy stream showed the Necromancer get shredded by the mines, and in an instant, the entire conference room rose to their feet, cheered wildly and applauded.
"Excellent work, Omega-141!" the Communication Officer congratulated the team for a successful mission.
"Hold on," Emperor Maximo said as he raised a hand. "The mission isn't over. We still need to confirm whether the Necromancer's death affects the Undead army."
Everyone in the room fell silent as their eyes returned to the screens, feeling their hearts pounding as they waited and hoped that with the Necromancer destroyed, the dead would finally no longer rise up.
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Austronesian Empire, Imperial Majahapit, New Guinea, New Guinea Highlands, Ambush Site B
1st Year of the New Age, New Sabbath, 3rd Week, 3rd Month of Abraham
Coughing through the gun smoke, Specialist Sergeant Riley pushed himself up from where he had shielded Tavish, who was groaning on the forest floor. Without hesitation, Riley motioned for Mason to assist and treat Tavish, then turned and headed back into the clearing.
Dark red blood splattered across the ground, mingled with the remains of the Orcs they had just fought. Riley readied his weapon and scanned the area for the Necromancer's last known position. The robed figure had been shredded beyond recognition by the claymore mines, only the upper half of the torso remained, with its female elvish face still lying there.
Riley grimaced and looked away from the face, recalling what had happened to Tavish when he stared too long at the creature. Steeling himself, he drew his mithril-steel combat knife and hacked it down with all his strength, severing the head cleanly from the body.
He quickly reached into his Spatial Ring, retrieving a bag of kosher salt mixed with holy water, and liberally sprinkled the mixture over the torso and the decapitated head.
The final touch was a flask of alcohol, which he poured onto the body parts before setting them on fire.
Salt and holy water, even from local churches, worked as powerful purifiers, dispelling dark energies, and were surprisingly working. The flames that followed would make sure that there was no chance of reanimation.
"Squad Three, what's your status, over?" Riley asked as he watched the fire consume the Necromancer's remains.
[We've pushed them back for the time being, they are still confused about where our location is,] Price reported. [But we got a huge bunch of really angry Orcs here!]
"Roger. Extract yourselves and meet us at the designated rally point Alpha, copy?" Riley responded.
[Copy that. Bugging out now,] Price responded as he fired a few rounds before disappearing into the thick cover of gun smoke, using it to mask their retreat.
"Squads One and Two, head to rally point Alpha, now!" Riley barked into the comms. He took one last look around for anything useful left behind by the Necromancer, but apparently, the claymores had obliterated everything. "Move it, people!"
At that moment, the sound of a war horn echoed from the Orc camps.
"Detonate the rest of the mines at the other sites, keep them busy!" Riley commanded, supporting Tavish's limp body as he hauled him over his shoulder.
The enhanced strength of his MK-I armor allowed him to carry Tavish and his gear with ease. With a quick glance around, he broke into a jog and disappeared into the forest.
Price and Polites were leading a group of enraged Orcs straight into Site C, where the ambush had been set.
"WAGHHHH!!"
"WAAGGHHHH!!"
The Orcs cried out in bloodlust and excitement at the fleeing two soldiers, screaming vulgarities as they chased after them.
Price and Polites hopped over a fallen log where they had hidden the detonator and timed it perfectly. As the Orcs entered the kill zone, the trap was activated.
BOOOM!!
When the dust settled, nothing remained but blood, gore, and shattered equipment. Not sparing a moment to check, Price and Polites sprinted toward the rally point.
By the time they arrived, the rest of the team was already assembled. Squad Two kept watch, keeping an eye on the surroundings for any sign of pursuing enemies, while Woods from Squad One was providing medical aid to the mentally stunned Tavish, who was slowly recovering his wits.
"What happened?" Price asked, nodding towards Riley and Woods.
"He nearly got his brain fried by some chaos or dark magic," Riley answered. "Mason saved his ass just in time."
"We got the target?" Price asked again.
"Beheaded and purified," Riley confirmed with a rare smile. "Alright, set up the comms array. Let's see what further instructions Command has."
Price gave a quick nod and gestured to Polites as the two moved toward higher ground to deploy the portable comms array in their backpacks, while Riley made his way over to check on Tavish.
"How's he doing?" Riley asked, watching Woods as he examined Tavish.
Woods pulled back one of Tavish's eyelids and examined his pupils. "He'll be fine after some rest. His brain couldn't handle the backlash from the raw chaos magic. Lucky for him, his willpower's strong enough to resist the worst of it," he explained, stowing his medical supplies.
"If not," Woods mimicked a bird flying away with a shrug. "I gave him 10 ccs of a tranq-shot. He'll stay sedated until we can get him to proper medical care."
Riley nodded and headed up to where Squad Three was setting up the comms gear. A small foldable antenna disk stood atop a compact device with dials and wires. Price was adjusting the dish and aimed it toward the sky where the recon UAV was scheduled to pass.
"We've got a connection," Price called out, nodding toward Riley. "All yours."
Riley adjusted his helmet's comms set and spoke into the mic. "Scion Actual to Thunderchief, do you copy? Over."
[-derchief reading you loud and clear. Over.]
"Scion Actual, requesting further orders. Over."
[Thunderchief here. Command advises standby for confirmation on undead activity. If the threat remains, proceed with a secondary mission. Over.]
"Scion Actual copies. Out," Riley groaned quietly as he switched off his mic. He was tired and so was his men. "Alright," he said, addressing the squad over the all-team channel. "Pack it in. We'll lay low until nightfall."
Switching back to the local channel, he briefed the team. "Command wants us to assess the undead situation. If they're still active, we'll move to the secondary mission. Belinski, you'll hold the rally point and take care of Tavish. Squad Two will reinsert and standby at the mass grave site, while Squad Three and I head toward the Necromancer's suspected tent."
"Questions?" he asked, scanning the faces of his team. Seeing none, he added. "Rest up in rotations. We move out when night comes."
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Jiak the SkullKrusher stood on top of a cliff while staring on the battlefield below, barely flinching at the "pow pow" of human weapons.
His attention was locked on a trio of Orc stone-throwers hard at work. Sheltered behind thick log walls, the Orc crew heaved the ropes of their massive trebuchet and launched a boulder the size of a full-grown Orc toward the enemy lines.
"Warleada! Warleada!" a scrawny Orc messenger came from the rear, panting as he approached.
"Wut iz it?" Jiak growled while his eyes were still on the battlefield.
"Someth'n 'as happened at 'da kamp! Smoke an' fire!" the messenger frantically stammered wide-eyed.
"Slow down!" Jiak snarled, using his fist to thump the messenger's head, causing the smaller Orc to stagger and clutch his head, but Jiak wasn't in the mood for babbling. "What happened at 'da kamp?"
£Uh... don't know," the messenger shrugged his shoulders as he rubbed the growing egg-sized lump on his head. "Just see'n smoke where 'da Elda was headin' ta."
"The Elda?" Jiak frowned, why has this idiot come to disturb him with such matters. "Da shamans can take kare uv demselves. Don't disturb me unless da kamp's unda attack or on fire!"
The messenger blinked and scratched his head in confusion, then nodded hurriedly.
"Okey dokey," he mumbled and scrammed off.
Jiak grunted as he shook his head and returned his focus to the stone-throwers at work. Just as another boulder flew toward the humans, the same scrawny Orc came running back, flailing his arms.
"Eh, Warleada-"
"Wot now?" Jiak snapped, feeling his irritation rising. This war wasn't going the way he had planned, and his temper was growing shorter by the day.
"More smoke... an' boom booms an' shootas 'n 'da forest!" The messenger waved his arms wildly, trying to emphasize the size of the explosions.
"Shootas?" Jiak scrunched his face in confusion.
Then it clicked. Boom boom, the sound of the 'umiez's tiny cannons.
"Where?!" he roared, grabbing the messenger by the scruff.
"Back at 'da kamp!" the Orc yelped, trembling as he pointed toward the rear.
Jiak paused, sensing his ears twitching as distant cracks followed by thunderous booms echoed through the forest, and his face twisted in fury. Shoving the messenger from his path and sprinted back toward the camp with his warriors fell in behind him.
The sharp cracks of human cannons rang in the distance, growing louder with every step.
As Jiak entered the camp, chaos surrounded him as many warriors were standing around aimlessly with confusion contorting in their faces. The ground beneath his feet trembled as another sound of claps echoed through the camp, sending a small shockwave that ruffled his cloak.
"Dis way!' Jiak bellowed, rallying his warriors. "Ta me!'
Following a well-worn path deeper into the forest, he found the bodies of Orc warriors scattered along the ground, dead or in agony. Jiak knelt beside one and shook him awake.
"Wot happened?" he demanded.
"The 'umiez…" the wounded Orc rasped as blood spurt from his mouth. "Dat way…"
"Go!" Jiak roared, sending his warriors ahead. Grabbing a nearby Orc, he growled, "Alert 'da kamp! 'Da 'umiez are attackin', prepare for battle!" He released the Orc and sprinted after his men, just as another series of explosions tore through the trees, closer this time. The shockwave hit him and his warriors hard, causing them to stumble.
"Wot iz happenin'?" Jiak cursed, clenching his teeth as he ran. "How did 'da 'umiez appear without 'da patrols noticin'?"
The forest opened into a clearing and Jiak gagged at the stentch of blood and death in the air. The ground was blackened, scorched by whatever powerful magic had ravaged this place. His eyes scanned the carnage, twisted limbs, smoldering corpses, and fragments of blood-soaked robes scattered like leaves.
"Where iz 'da Elda?" Jiak growled as he tried to piece together what had happened here, while his battle-hardened warriors, upon seeing the scene, were speechless and their faces became pale.
They looked at him and shook their heads in helpless silence as they were unable to answer Jiak's question.
"Find 'da Elda! Spread out!" he roared which shook the terrified warriors from their hesitation. "GO!"
The camp was in disarray, but despite the best efforts of his trackers, no trace of the Elder Shaman could be found, even the fellow Shamans remaining in the camps as they were unable to sense even a small hint of the Elder's presence.
"We kouldn't feel 'em at all," one of the hooded shamans muttered to Jiak in a trembling voice. "Not even 'da Spirit…"
"Kurses!" Jiak spat, feeling his frustration boiling over. "How about 'da 'umiez? Any trace?" His lieutenants shook their heads while avoiding his gaze.
"Wot have ya been doin' all dis time!" Jiak roared angrily.
One of the lieutenants scratched his head sheepishly. "We... umm... found 'da sky nice…"
Jiak's temper cracked. "Nevermind! Use da squigs or da vroom vrooms! FIND 'DA 'UMIEZ AN' DA ELDA NOW!!" He waved madly at his warriors, making them flinch back in fear and respect.
His warriors bowed and turned to their subordinates and started handing down orders and instructions, using kicks and punches to drill it into their thick skulls.
Jiak returned his gaze at the bloody site and the sticky blood already turning dry in the sun, attracting hundreds of insects and small creatures to feed on the mess.
"'Da Elda kouldn't have been stomped…" he muttered to himself. "No... 'da Elda iz protected by 'da spirits. Even if I match against 'da Elda, I won't possibly win at all."
But yet a doubt remained in his heart. He looked at the charred patch of grass in the middle of the clearing again, wondering what had happened here.