Walking back and forth across the endless white sands, Damian had a lot of time to contemplate his next actions; he had come to this dreadful land against his will, pulled here by some distant power and forced to play by the twisted rules set out by the trial. He still didn't know the reason why, why had it dragged him and countless others into these dreadful situations, he had guessed countless other infected like him, past present and regrettably future alike, were all being forced into their own twisted trials, with most never making it back alive.
It was impossible to know what others had been through, but considering that he had yet to hear news of anyone waking up, it couldn't be any better than where he had found himself, but if there were none so far, he was determined to be the first to return alive, afterall who else would protect the ones he cares for?
Placing a small pile of shields on the floor he walked away to go gather many more, as his next plan was only something he could have thought of, since joining the battle in the desert he had only focused on the future, trying his best to make the best out of a terrible situation by using what he had at his exposal, however he had failed to account for one thing since coming here. As far as he was aware, he was the only person from his world here, which means he knew things about warfare and how people effectively took each other out in ways that these people could not possibly imagine, so by using that knowledge he would succeed.
He spent hours, dragging shields towards where his enemy would approach, he couldn't see their encampment, but he had seen them go this way twice now, so he knew they would come, he hoped that his ambush, would work, because if it didn't, there was no chance for him to ever see those he cherished ever again.
After he was done, he stood up and wiped his face to clear it of sweat and grime, it was a strange sight indeed, in front of him, lay a plain of endless white sands, discarded and broken weapons scattered randomly across the ground, broken bodies baking in the sun, filling the air with a delightful smell which made his stomach turn, as he looked down to his feet and moved the last piece of sand to cover the final shield, buried in the ground.
He didn't know how long he had until the final cycle began in earnest, looking up at the beautiful sky to hope to catch a glimmer of understanding but falling short, the sun shone in the sky directly overhead as it always did, never moving over the horizon. Moving back over to the dune he started his day on he looked down at the broken corpse of the Feasting Fiend, its bones broken and scattered, the surface becoming darkened by the intense heat, he had originally thought to use one of its claws as a makeshift weapon, but after trying to life one, he realised it was a futile effort, even with his newly acquired strength it was too unwieldy with just one hand, detested he picked up his spear and stared into the distance and began to walk forward, it wasn't long before the sky began to change once again.
In the stillness of night Damian walked, he knew it would take some time for the legion of War and the Army of Truth to converge on the battlefield so he continued his solo march, with each step the oppressing heat of the day was being broken by the chilling winds of the night, he felt like a walking corpse, the first soldier to return from death and continue the dreadful battle, he had seen the fate of these people but couldn't help but chuckle softly to himself at the thought. He didn't know what consequences his actions would have on the outcome of this war, but it was his hope that somehow, taking out the commander would prevent both sides from succumbing to their fates, but that was just wishful thinking.
After some time he felt it, it was subtle at first but growing more voracious with every second, the ground was starting to tremble, as he looked into the distance he saw it in clear detail, the Legion of war approaching, with their commander at the head of the formation, seeing this and knowing it was only a matter of time before he was spotted he did the only thing he could, and laid down, pressing his back against a dune and resting his arm to the side, still clutching his spear he watched as the legion grew closer.
He couldn't see the army of Truth form where he was positioned, but he knew they wouldn't be too far behind, he was hoping to provide them with the perfect opportunity to attack by breaking the enemies momentum, as he watched the Legion approach he counted down, hoping he had his timing right he counted and counted, and once he reached zero, all hell broke loose.
He watched with glee as he saw plumes of white sand begin to rise into the air, as curses were bellowed across the sands, watching as the powerful mounts and frontline of foot soldiers all toppled, as the Legion suddenly halted, as their momentum came to a sudden stop. The plan was a simple one really, he had realised the difference between himself and the other people here was knowledge of war, and by using that information he had created something that no side of this battle had ever seen before, by using the shields and burying them in the sands, he had effectively made an improvised minefield, with each step they took meaning they potentially get knocked back by the reflective properties of the shields.
It was a simple thing, but in no way truly destructive, at best this may injure a few of the warriors here and there but wouldn't cause any lasting damage, but what it had done, was effectively halt the enemies in their tracks, making sure they couldn't position themselves into having an advantage over their enemies, in ancient battles the terrain and the knowledge on how to effectively use and control it had always been a major factor in deciding the victor, but now he had essentially transformed the environment into something new, they would pass it eventually but by then, the army of Truth would hold a better position.
It was a sight to behold, even the commander seemed uneasy about the sudden change in their environment, she had ordered the slaves to walk out first, to clear a path through but that would take time , and in a battle like this every second mattered, however as the slaves walked out onto the sands with uncertain steps, with most of them being blown back, eventually a few found their way into the heart of the old battlefield.
With each step countless slaves were being blasted away, with the main legionnaires following close behind, but as they stepped onto the battle of the previous day, the army of Truth made their way over the dunes, watching the sight of the legion in front of them filled them with a mix of joy and caution, joy because they had gained a crucial advantage in this pinnacle battle, but caution as they did not know what had caused this miracle
As the soldiers of Truth marched over the dunes, Damian waited for them to rush past him before joining the charge, no one even noticed the corpse seemingly rise from the dead to aid them in the battle, marching forward with the others,a wide grind painted across his face, it wouldn't be long before the Army of Truth reached the edge of the minefield themselves, even with the wall of slaves blocking the path it would not be long before his own men fell as well, but that was alright, that was the final step of the plan after all, the trap had never intended the entire army make it through afterwall, all he needed was cover, he needed to cause as much of a distraction as possible in order to slip through to gain a chance at the commander, she usually hid herself away in the middle of the formation, but now she didn't have a chance to properly position.
As the first Soldiers of truth stepped onto the field it was like the desert itself was screaming, countless blasts with people and sand going flying through the air, it was pure chaos, the perfect opportunity for a sneak attack.
It wasn't long before the air was thick with sand, it was difficult to tell friend from foe in the fever of this battle the dust and blood making it hard to see where one side started and another finished, but with his keen sight and understanding of where he could and couldn't step, Damian quickly broke past the enemy line, in the heavy dust he moved without notice, passing past dozens of enemies without them ever knowing he was there, it wasn't long before he saw her, looking out towards the battle unable to effectively use her bow she instead had an elegant longsword drawn instead.
Circling around the commander in the hopes of striking her from behind Damian rushed forward hoping to end this all with a single strike, but as his spear thrust forward towards her head, she quickly turned to face him, deflecting his strike, as a devilish smile covered her face as she stared at him, with a look of both respect and annoyance in her honeycomb eyes, eliminating a soft golden glow.