When the morning sun rose over the dozens of black tents spread across the open field near the bright green forest, people were already awake and moving.
I was among them.
My brother led thirty guards into the forest ahead of us. Sir Rickon, clad in his heavy armor, moved even farther ahead with ten guards of his own.
That left Venula Zen and me with only three guards as we followed from the rear.
My brother had already alerted our father, who had deployed a small blockade of battle cruisers into orbit. If these people intended to flee, it was already too late unless they had an exceptional pilot and an extremely fast ship. Considering it was a trade vessel, I doubted it could even break orbit without being shot down.
After walking for about an hour, I heard my brother and his guards come to a stop ahead of us. Before I could give an order, Venula acted first.
"Move to the right and ahead," she said.
I barely glanced at the three guards in their black overcoats as they obeyed immediately, moving between the trees without waiting for my input. We had already agreed that if my brother halted, we would circle around and advance ahead of him. Still, the human did not even let me speak. She was already moving, and I followed after her.
The forest ended abruptly. A wide beach opened before us, with pools of water scattered across the center of the isle. Sand, then water, then trees again. Beside the water sat a ship.
It was large and bulky, its side open with a gray metal ramp extending down. The ship itself was a dull, dirty silver, scarred with burn marks from cannons and turret fire along the hull. It did not look like it had been cleaned in a long time.
"Okay. That's bigger than I thought," I muttered.
We stood on a small ridge overlooking the scene. The guards had already taken sniper positions, crouched beside trees with long black rifles, adjusting their scopes.
Below us, Sir Rickon was speaking with someone. Even from this distance, I could tell the man was human. Whatever was said turned into an argument. Sir Rickon raised one armored hand and struck the man. The blow sent him flying across the sand, blood streaking behind him as he landed hard and barely moved, crawling weakly while shouting.
Dozens of men poured out of the ship, firing upon the armored knight.
The black and gold helmet absorbed everything aimed at his head. Metal rounds could not dent the thick armor. Spellblood knight armor had a trait many forgot. The spellblood within the suit created a strange barrier around it. Bullets slowed inches before impact, losing momentum before clinking harmlessly against the metal.
The guards in black overcoats and flat caps had already moved, taking cover behind rocks and returning fire.
"Where is my brother? He should have joined in by now," I said, as a loud shot rang out near me.
The three snipers began firing in rotation. One fired as another reloaded, never leaving a pause between shots. These rifles were meant for hunting and could bring down entire trees. They fired once per reload, but the reload was quick.
The metal casings were coated in spellblood dust. Instead of melting spellblood, it was crushed and packed into the rounds, giving them immense power. Like ancient gunpowder weapons, but far deadlier.
The poachers below felt it clearly. One by one they collapsed. Some simply ceased to exist, thrown violently by the force of impact.
Then I saw my brother's troops advancing from the opposite side of the ship. My brother led them, shouting orders as they rushed forward and opened fire.
The men from the ship deployed self growing metal barriers. Old technology, but still used because of its simplicity. Drop a heavy bag, press a button, and within seconds a solid metal wall grew five feet tall and six feet wide.
It did not serve to help against the monster that loomed over each of their very lives.
Sir Rickon moved with terrifying speed. To my Solrein eyes, he was fast. To a human, he must have looked like a blur of black and gold death. His sword was not metal. When activated, the blade was wrapped in an electric field. Being struck by it was like lightning. for barley instance one would feel pain, the next nothing at all. Death followed immediately.
The voltage alone could stop a heart. Sometimes it took two strikes, but rarely. The blade still existed beneath the field, burning through armor and flesh alike thanks to the electric feild allowing the metal to reach target.
The fight was horribly uneven. Not a single guard of house Margave had fallen. Sir Rickon reached the metal ramp of the ship, throwing men aside like rag dolls as my brother's guards followed him inside.
But something was wrong. Why had my brother approached from the other side of the ship? To block escape routes? Then why had he arrived so late? He should have coordinated with Sir Rickon.
My brother was near the ridge edge above the sand, surrounded by guards. He was moving. Yet also was not standing fully as he leaned against his nearest guards.
"Shit. The idiot got ambushed," I muttered.
That explained why he had stopped earlier. But then why had we not heard any gunfire? Too many questions. Below, guards were already clearing bodies and dismantling the metal barriers. They were easy to deploy but single use. Another ship would be required to collect and melt them down later.
"Target sighted on eastern ridge," one of the snipers said.
I cursed internally. We had not brought personal communicators. My brother refused to risk the ship intercepting our signals before engagement. That decision now haunted us. I turned toward the eastern ridge. I saw them. Two tall figures.
"Fire. Damn it," I said.
They were not poachers. Bright green overcoats. Gold trim, maybe. Too far to see clearly.
"But sir, they're House Calvar men. That's an act of war unless we confirm they're working with the poachers."
"I said," I began but was cut off.
Venula spoke over me "They are on this world without our knowledge, and they are present during an active engagement with poachers. Soldier, shoot!"
Her voice was sharp and final. My tongue froze. Two shots rang out. One man was hit and thrown backward a dozen feet, dead before he landed. The second ran.
"Phase barrier on the second. Bullet deflected before impact."
The third sniper fired. The man was struck again, but it did nothing.
Phase barriers could not be pierced by metal rounds, no matter the force. They were nearly invisible except for a faint shimmer around the body. Similar to spellblood armor, but designed specifically to counter ranged attacks.
The barrier did not stop the bullet, so say. But rather It forced it aside and off course like when two magnets meet and repel each other.
"Damn it. I'm going after him. They must have a second ship."
I leapt from the ridge, dropping thirteen feet to the sand. My legs absorbed the impact as I sprinted forward. Blood stained parts of the beach where guards were still checking bodies.
"With me. Anyone who can keep up. One target escaping. House Calvar."