Skycloud’s four battalions marched indomitably forward in square formation, moving with impressive speed while also firing arrows toward their foes . Wave after wave of glimmering arrows peppered the battlefield, a torrent of deadly fire .

Each movement was precise, showing that the holy warriors had practiced this thousands of times . Two thousand warriors drew their bows and fired in perfect unison so that their arrows peppered the distant enemy all at once . Faced with this terrifying a.s.sault the wastelanders broke ranks and scattered .

Over the course of a few minutes the swamp became a miserable tract of corpses, bleeding into the fetid waters . Everywhere one looked was struggle and pain . Countless shafts of holy light traced the path of Skycloud arrows as they buried themselves in the flesh of Blackwater’s defenders . Resplendent though they looked, each one was a wastelander’s ticket to h.e.l.l . They could not run, only die .

All the while the two armies drew closer and closer, but Blackwater’s soldiers had long since ceased to fight back . Waves of arrows had collapsed their organization as well as their morale . Those that remained were only concerned with fleeing to save their lives with no thought to fighting off the invaders .

Augustus Cloude’s face split into a contemptuous smirk . He motioned to his left and right with a wave, then spoke in an almost flippant tone . “Kill them!”

Skycloud’s soldiers stopped, s.h.i.+fting from their long-range formation to a charge configuration . Even their bows underwent a miraculous change as bowstrings retracted of their own volition . The curved, carved jade bows bend at an angle and their sharp ends jutted out another half a foot . In seconds the bows transformed into six foot long melee weapons with blades on each end . The soldiers held them from the middle .

In fact these weapons had four unique forms . The first was the long-ranged bow, and second was the double-ended glaive . In addition it could also be detached at the center to be dual wielded, or affixed side by side as a double-headed broadsword .

These were works of art, masterfully crafted weapons of destruction . They were perfect for any situation; long ranged, glaives for charging, powerful two-handers . It put the holy warriors’ skill and ingenuity on display .

Skycloud’s army began their charge!

Two thousand soldiers arranged themselves in charge formation and as they raced ahead either side swept around to the defenders’ flanks . The two battalions in the center went straight in and started the slaughter . More than their training, it was clear Skycloud’s soldiers were of a much higher quality than Blackwater’s, even before one considered equipment .

How could a band of wasteland rabble hope to stand against them?

One of the Skycloud officers brandished his glaive and broke through the enemy ranks . Holding his weapon in its center he spun like a deadly steel dervish, leaving blood and severed limbs in his path . He was a tempest and where he pa.s.sed there were shouts of pain and misery . The rest of his battalion followed in his wake, easily destroying the wastelanders’ weapons and armor . Death’s own scythe would struggle to claim as many lives .

All told the battle lasted an hour . By the end the marsh was a graveyard, and the wastelanders’ weapons were discarded where they died like tomb markers .  To the warriors of the elysian lands these crude tools were filthy and inferior .

One of the Skycloud officers trotted over to Augustus Cloude . “Milord, the blasphemers have been destroyed . We’ve suffered no losses . ”

Augustus Cloude stood on the slope of a hill and surveyed the field . Behind him fourteen demonhunters clad in pure white stood in a line . None of them had reacted as the battle raged, for they were the champions of G.o.d, the greatest warriors of the elysian lands . In war they were deployed to handle particularly stubborn foes, thus their lack of partic.i.p.ation showed just how easily Blackwater’s defenders were defeated .

Augustus Cloude fiddled with the cuff of his right arm . “Have you found the entrance?”

Respectfully, the officer replied, “We have sir, but the gates have been shut . Our men are searching for a way through . ”

Blackwater Base’s defenses were designed around hydraulic systems . Forcing the doors would not be easy .  

Augustus Cloude swept his eyes across the scene once more then signaled with his hand . The officer interpreted the motion and relayed the order . “Everyone stand your ground!”

Like robots Skycloud’s soldiers froze, not moving a muscle . Meanwhile Augustus Cloude made his way to the thick door that barred their pa.s.sage . He merely had to place his hand upon the st.u.r.dy iron, and all of a sudden cracks began to appear from where he touched . Chunks weighing several tons split and fell away, creating an opening large enough for them to enter single file . The tunnel stretched all the way through the door, which was several feet thick, to the other side .

“Luna Cirrus, Raith Umbra . With me . ”

From the fourteen demonhunters, the two youngest stepped forth . From the looks of it Augustus Cloude was going to use this as a training opportunity .

Part of the base’s defenses included a defensive post with a turret, manned by a single soldier . Once the door was breached he began flooding the hall with fire from the chain gun, and no normal person could withstand the pain it put out .

It was a choke point, and in theory one man could hold the gate against a whole slew of attackers .

Augustus Cloude came prepared, however . While the turret was too much for the junior demonhunters, he could hold out against it for a time . Before the turret gunner had time to react, Augustus Cloude let a small black metal orb slip from his sleeve . It was a relic, and as it floated into the air an invisible force field sprang to life . Bullets thick as carrots were met with a repulsive force that held them fast like they were caught in glue . Each bullet struck with hundreds of pounds of force, only to instantly stop . But while their forward momentum was cut off, they began to turn red and smolder from an intense heat .

In a brow-raising display, the bullets were arrested in mid-air to create a curtain of red-hot lead . They were so hot that they began to melt, but not a single one got close to the demonhunters .

How could this be? The turret gunner gaped in shock, for he had never seen a living creature able to survive his heavy weapon . Nor had he ever seen a power strange as this that could stop bullets .

The female demonhunter, Luna, shut her eyes . She reached out with her will and used it to scan the area like a radar . After a moment she pointed toward a direction, and that was when her male counterpart reacted . Raith lifted a primitive-looking bow that was vastly different from the sort normal soldiers used . It was an una.s.suming weapon, but for the runes etched along its pitch-black length .

Without knocking an arrow he pointed the bow and pulled back the string . But an imposing gathering of energy coalesced before the weapon and an arrow appeared from the air .

His fingers relaxed . Tw.a.n.g! 

The arrow effortlessly penetrated the turret gunner’s cover and lodged itself in his gun, culminating in a loud thud followed by an explosion . Shrapnel tore through his body, even blowing his eyes from his skull .  

Augustus Cloude didn’t waste any time . Just as he had from the outside, the master demonhunter approached the inner door and placed his hand upon it, reducing it to rubble . The other demonhunters entered once the coast was clear . Fifteen figures in white lead the way into Blackwater Base .

Skycloud’s soldiers were close on their heels . They exploded through the base, leaving behind a desolate vision of blood and mangled flesh . Those from the elysian lands gave the wastlanders no quarter . The old, the young, and the sick were cut down without hesitation for anyone with the blood of the wilds in their veins was the sp.a.w.n of evil . Killing them was no sin, on the contrary it was an act of faith and honor .

Blackwater Base knew they were coming, the most important materials were already gone . Their leader had also vanished, leaving no trace or body .

Augustus Cloude scowled . He ordered a hundred survivors spared, but this was worse than a death sentence for them . They were beaten, abused and tortured until they gave him the information he wanted .

Before very long an officer returned to Augustus and reported the situation .

“The base’s leader fled a day ago, taking the evil technology with them . Our interrogations revealed three separate escape routes, but we aren’t sure which they took . We also learned that this base had produced a batch of those intelligent monsters but released them into the wild several days ago . No one knows where they went . ”

“Hmph . Even for blasphemers I would not have expected they would do something so despicable . ” The young female demonhunter spat the words with disdain . “We can’t let those wicked experiments reproduce, or for that evil research to get out . ”

Augustus Cloude nodded then spoke to the officer who gave him the report . “Any other information?”

“A few of them, well…”

“Out with it!”

“Yes sir . A few of those we interrogated claimed that a demonhunter had appeared in the camp . He helped the base’s current leader revolt and take over, he stayed for about twenty days . They claimed he left a few days ago . ”

Astonishment appeared on the faces of the younger demonhunters . Their order had nothing but the most devout warriors, how could something like this be true? Was he some sort of turncoat? That would be a crisis for the entire demonhunter community!

“Our primary concern must be that research and those monsters they created . As for the demonhunter, from their description he is not very skilled – a novice at best . ” Augustus Cloude absently played with a ring on his hand as he spoke to the two demonhunters beside him . “Luna, Raith . I leave him to you . Can you handle it?”

“Yes, sir!” Both of the junior demonhunters perked up . The one called Luna confirmed, “We will certainly complete the mission!”

“Take a hundred soldiers with you . ” Augustus Cloude nodded as though the matter was settled . “This is your first mission in the wastelands on your own . Convey yourselves well, don’t disappoint me . ”

Raith’s brows knit as he spoke . “Milord, the two of us should be more than enough for some piddling renegade . You should keep the men for chasing down blasphemers, we can do this without support .

“These evil lands are more dangerous than you think, and what’s more we know neither the ident.i.ty nor true strength of this stranger . We must ensure that you remain safe throughout the a.s.signment . ” Clearly he had made up his mind . “Very well, you have your orders . You have seven days, bring that turncoat back here dead or alive . ”

“Yes, sir!”

With their task made clear the two young demonhunters selected a hundred men and left in search of the traitor Cloudhawk .

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