The grounds were still quiet...but their faces compensated for the lack of screams. Even children knew of the Hydra. Squad 209 was no different. Even Rei had an expression of fear. "At this point I'm sure you can put two and two together. Every Vanguard in Asfáleia...is to defend against this creature." Âme said in a downcast tone. "The creature is larger than the Hydra, and emits a white fog which causes death. It is slow moving...but this fog constantly surrounds it. We are to stop its movement and either kill it or bait it away from the city. Here are the battle plans."

A young man in typical Vanguard armor, all black, came up with a board. "I'll start with our layout. The demon is incapable of moving quickly. So we have planned an all round a.s.sault. Arrows will be fired and trebuchets will launch at it. If this is ineffective, we have plan B." Âme said, as the knight put another sheet on the board. "A full out attack by knights wearing elite Vanguard magic armor. Whether or not this will work shall be discovered on the battlefield. Luckily Sofóz has been kind to us. Before the battle starts, we shall use our greatest a.s.set."

A young man whose head had been shaved and decorated with runic markings, wearing a long black cloak that was tied at the waste with a rope. "Our force stronger than a thousand soldiers, the mage, Kýklos Anémou! With him on our side our enemy's fog means nothing!"

There were murmurs in the crowd. Some had felt that with a mage they could win, but others still imagined the horror of a beast comparable to the Hydra. They thought they were cannon fodder. "We shall be victorious with my presence...for I control the wind and shall blow away this deadly fog." the bald mage said smiling. The atmosphete calmed down. "Starting from tomorrow, in the fields northside of Asfáleia, a wall shall be constructed out of wood. Attack towers will be made, and special launch towers will be implemented. A magic barrier will be set up, so defence will be high. As of right now exterminations will be handled by...the adventurers."

The Vanguards faces turned grim. Adventurers had existed before them but had long been rendered obsolete. They were usually just normal people with no formal training, who wanted to make a name for themselves. They were the only job with death rates higher than the Vanguard. While an exceptional may come now and then, rather than wait for a single hero, it was deemed more effective to train a thousand. Adventurers still existed, but only those who felt that the Vanguards were too harsh for them joined the Adventurer's guild.

"Oi...you sure about that...we can still handle exterminations you know..."

"I'd rather have a few idiots die, than a city of twenty three thousand." said Âme. "The wall should be completed within ten days. And several 2 meter pits should be dug. Poisonous spikes should be at the bottom of each pit. We shall also have oil and flaming arrows on standby! We shall have many more defences! Because this is Asfáleia! The city that stood against the Hydra!!!!"

The knights roared in agreement. They were no longer scared. Whatever this demon was, the measures stated were enough to hold off a two eyed demon. They could definetly kill a single one eyed monster, even if it had a 'death fog'. Even squad 209 saw victory as possible with these measures, and went to sleep.

As early as 3 in the morning, construction had began. With the abnormal strength of the older vanguards, trees were cut down at demonic speeds. They were made into usable pieces by the mage and the wall was being built, even if it was shoddy. The citizens were evacuating so it was a bit rowdy, but the Vanguards-in-training helped with the carrying of goods and other commodities. Before the merchants had left, Gars had gone out of his way to buy a black sword, which the merchant he purchased it from claimed to be made of a material stronger than iron. "I hope that thing is useful." said Morte. "It should be." said Gars as he carried a bag of wheat to a chart.

The next day, the construction speed of the wall had risen due to extra hands on deck, and the holes were being dug. A large stone altar had been brought in, which the mage claimed to be the magic barrier. A group of Vanguards transporting the poison of Direwolves, Yggris Spiders and Devil Frogs had arrived covered in blood. These poisons were to be applied to spikes made of wood, and were kept on site. When asked how they got it, they responded 'We hunted the beasts down, how else?' In any case, the day went smoothly.

Days 3 to 5 consisted of the construction of the attack and launch towers, and the wall was 70% complete. The trebuchets and special armor had been brought in, and the trebuchets were arranged in an arc formation.

On day 7 the wall was completed, and tests began. Archers fired at specific angles, and people were launched by the towers and cus.h.i.+oned by the mage. On day 8 these tests continued and day 9 to 10 were no different. 10 days remaining, the soldiers used it to train themselved physically and mentally. They would rest two days to the battle, so why not train with the remaining 8?

Day 15. Maintenance of the wall in certain areas. Over 2000 soldiers had been dispatched to the field. The mage had built his own tower and now meditated on it. The soldiers did laps across the battlfield, avoiding the holes, while some diehards went around the circ.u.mference of the field. "The air is getting dry..." May said. The other seemed to agree. The temperature had gotten hotter.

Day 19. Slight tremors were felt. The sun was burning today for some reason, and the clouds seemed to move in one direction. A little fear creeped in but was quickly dispelled when the mage said 'That's all?'. The army calmed down and prepared for the enemy. That night was uncomfortable. Sleep came hard.

Day 20....Tremors wake the army. In the distance an abnormal sight walked. It was ludicrously tall and stood at least 20 meters. Covered in white fog it walked forward...while clouds were being pulled into it. It stopped a good distance from the army and the Vanguard stared at the ma.s.sive fog.

The battle was about to begin.