Chapter 12: War
The skies above Varis Primus trembled as the celestial armada of Kael Atris emerged from the vast Solmara internal realm. His warships, each an imposing fortress of steel and divine power, blotted out the sun as they surged forward. Tens of aircraft-carrier starships, hundreds of destroyer and cruiser-class vessels, and a legion of 1.5 million two-winged heavenly soldiers stood ready for battle. Their gleaming silver and golden-clad armor reflected the light of the heavens, their mythical weapons radiating divine energy.
Amidst them, 15,000 four-winged heavenly soldiers floated in formation, their radiant forms burning with celestial fire. Each of these beings wielded weapons infused with the power of Castellion Arisium himself—halberds that could sever reality, spears that sang with divine resonance, and swords that glowed with a star's brilliance. Their faces were calm, their wills unwavering. They were the vanguard of Valtheris, an unstoppable force set to carve through the armies of their foes.
Across the battlefield, the opposing alliance of four nations braced themselves. Dravengarde, the mightiest military force on Varis Primus, stood at the forefront, its soldiers clad in dark iron armor, their weapons crackling with enchanted energy. Xeran Thalor's shadowy assassins and spellcasters lurked in the backlines, weaving arcane traps. Khal'Zir's desert warriors rode upon massive sand wyrms, their curved blades glinting with poisoned edges. Norskar's barbarian hordes mounted frost-breathing direwolves, their berserkers howling with bloodlust.
Above them, dragons and wyverns soared, their immense wings beating against the sky, their roars shaking the battlefield. The coalition had summoned their greatest champions, beings capable of challenging even the mightiest foes.
Yet Vayrannis, the kingdom of balance and wisdom, chose to remain neutral. Their numbers were too few to risk extinction. Instead, their leaders watched from afar, waiting to see which side would emerge victorious. If Kael Atris triumphed, Vayrannis would join him; if Dravengarde prevailed, they would oppose it.
A tense silence settled over the battlefield. Then, with a command from Kael Atris, the heavens split open.
The celestial host descended with divine fury, their weapons igniting the sky as they clashed with the armies below. Four-winged soldiers crashed into the heart of enemy formations, their strikes shattering entire battalions. Each of them was a force of destruction, an immortal warrior capable of slaying a thousand foes with a single movement. Their two-winged brethren swept through the enemy ranks like a hurricane, each strike felling a hundred soldiers.
The sky erupted into chaos as Valtheris' fighter jets streaked forward, launching precision air-to-ground missiles that tore through enemy fortifications. Destroyer and cruiser starships unleashed bombardments from above, their cannons raining fire and destruction upon the battlefield. The very earth trembled beneath the might of their barrage.
Dravengarde's elite knights met the onslaught with unyielding discipline, their enchanted blades clashing against the heavenly warriors. Xeran Thalor's assassins attempted to strike from the shadows, only to find their attacks useless against beings who could regenerate their bodies from pure mana. Khal'Zir's sand wyrms reared back in fear as the celestial soldiers turned invisible, striking from unseen angles with devastating force.
It was an unholy slaughter. The heavenly soldiers could not die. Even if their bodies were torn apart, they reformed from mana, their essence indestructible. Their eyes burned with the unwavering resolve of Kael Atris, their master and god-king.
The battlefield became a nightmare for the enemy. As the four-winged soldiers cut through entire legions with divine precision, the two-winged warriors annihilated rank after rank of soldiers. The enemy's war beasts, dragons, and wyverns fell from the sky, impaled upon the divine spears of Kael's army. The celestial warriors moved as one, their discipline and efficiency unmatched.
In the midst of the carnage, Kael Atris stood on the bridge of his flagship, his gaze fixed upon the war below. He extended his hand, drawing in the essence of every fallen enemy, their power surging into his own. The battlefield was not merely a war zone—it was a feeding ground, and Kael grew stronger with every soul that perished. The energy swirled around him like a vortex, his level rising at an exponential rate.
Then, something unexpected happened. The soldiers of Khal'Zir faltered. The sight of the unstoppable divine host crushed their will to fight. They had entered the battle expecting a fierce contest, but what they witnessed was a massacre. In terror, they turned their mounts and fled, abandoning the battlefield entirely. The alliance's cohesion shattered as Khal'Zir's forces disappeared into the distance, leaving only three nations to face Kael's wrath.
Dravengarde, Xeran Thalor, and Norskar now found themselves fighting a war they could no longer win. Their numbers dwindled, their morale shattered. And yet, they fought on, knowing that surrender was not an option. If they were to fall, they would do so with honor.
Kael Atris, however, had no intention of letting them escape. As he absorbed the last remnants of Khal'Zir's fallen warriors, he turned his gaze upon the remaining nations. His celestial heart pulsed with power, and with a single command, the next phase of the battle commenced.
The sky darkened as even more heavenly soldiers emerged from Solmara, their numbers seemingly infinite. The battle was far from over. The true conquest had only just begun.