Kar'eth Fortress - Dawn of the Fourth Day
The war horns sounded at dawn.
Not the desperate blaring of a surprise attack, but the measured, rhythmic calling that meant: Prepare for battle.
Arden was already awake when the sound echoed across the fortress.
Had been awake for hours, actually, reviewing defensive positions in his mind.
The Overlord's testing us. Wants to see what the reinforcements are made of.
He dressed quickly, strapping on his armor with practiced efficiency.
The fortress was already stirring—soldiers moving to positions, commanders barking orders, the organized chaos of a garrison preparing for combat.
Jeremy found him in the corridor.
"Is this it? The real attack?"
"No," Arden said, checking his sword. "This is a probe. The Overlord wants to see what Michel and Voss brought. How we coordinate. Where our weaknesses are."
"How do you know?"
"Because that's what I would do."
They reached the walls.
Michel was already there, cape billowing dramatically in the wind, looking like he was having the time of his life.
"ARDEN!" he called out cheerfully. "Isn't this exciting? My first real battle with my favorite student!"
"Commander, please focus," Lieutenant Harkan said wearily.
"I AM focused! Focused on the excitement!"
Voss appeared from the ranger section, looking annoyingly composed despite the early hour.
"Morning, partner," he said to Arden with a grin. "Ready to show these new kids how the fire-and-shadow duo works?"
"If you don't do something stupid."
"I never do stupid things. I do brilliant things that look stupid initially."
"That's the same thing."
"Is not!"
Michel bounced over. "Voss! When did you get so cheerful in the morning?"
"When there's a battle to look forward to. Gets the blood pumping."
Commander Thorne strode up, looking tired but alert.
"Reinforcement commanders. The Berserker force is assembling beyond the northern ridge. Estimated numbers: five hundred. This is a probing attack."
"Only five hundred?" Michel sounded almost disappointed. "That's hardly a challenge!"
"Five hundred War Essence-enhanced Berserkers is plenty of challenge," Helena said flatly. "Don't underestimate them."
"I never underestimate opponents! I just overestimate my own abilities!"
"That's worse, sir."
The rangers were already lined up on the walls.
Three hundred from Kar'eth's original garrison.
Three hundred from Voss's eastern patrols.
All standing ready with bows and crossbows, faces grim but determined.
Arden studied them.
They know what's coming. They've held these walls for weeks.
But the reinforcements... they're about to learn.
Jeremy stood beside him, gripping his sword tightly.
"First real battle?"
"Yes."
"Stay close to experienced soldiers. Follow orders. Don't try to be a hero."
"Says the person who killed an Overlord commander."
"I had help. And nearly died. Learn from my mistakes."
Michel walked along the wall, his cheerful demeanor shifting as he addressed the knights.
"Wire Knights! Today you stand with the Rangers of Kar'eth! These men have held this fortress against impossible odds!"
His voice carried across the battlements.
"They've fought when exhausted! Bled when wounded! Stood when others would have fled! Today, we prove that the Wire Knights are worthy to stand beside them!"
A cheer went up from his two hundred knights.
Arden watched, impressed despite himself.
He knows when to be serious. When to inspire.
Voss was doing the same with the rangers.
"You know what they say about eastern rangers? That we're soft. That we haven't seen real combat like the northern troops."
He paused for effect.
"Today, we prove them wrong. We show the Berserkers what coordinated fire discipline looks like. We show Kar'eth why Commander-General Cross sent US to reinforce them."
The eastern rangers roared approval.
Helena leaned close to Arden.
"They're both good at this. Getting troops motivated."
"They've had practice."
"You could learn from them."
"I prefer not to give speeches if I can avoid it."
"That's because you're thirteen. Give it time."
The Berserkers appeared on the northern ridge.
Even from a distance, Arden could feel them.
The War Essence radiating from five hundred warriors.
Not as overwhelming as the four thousand that had attacked before.
But still dangerous.
Still deadly.
Michel appeared beside him, his playful demeanor completely gone.
"That's a lot of angry monsters."
"Five hundred. Like Thorne said."
"How many did you face before?"
"over a thousand."
Michel whistled low. "And you won. That's... impressive doesn't cover it."
The Berserkers began their advance.
Not a wild charge.
Organized. Measured. Testing.
The Overlord's in control. This isn't rage-fueled. This is tactical.
"RANGERS!" Voss's voice rang out. "HOLD FIRE UNTIL COMMAND!"
"KNIGHTS!" Michel called. "DEFENSIVE POSITIONS! LET THEM COME TO US!"
The fortress fell silent except for the tramping of Berserker feet.
Five hundred warriors approaching in loose formation.
Testing the walls.
Testing the defenders.
Testing the reinforcements.
Jeremy stood frozen, watching them come.
"They're huge."
"Yes."
"And there's so many."
"Yes."
"Are we going to die?"
"Not if we fight smart."
Arden's hand rested on his sword.
Not the shadow transformation. Save that for when it's actually needed.
This is just a probe. Don't reveal all capabilities.
The Berserkers reached optimal range.
"READY!" Voss commanded.
Six hundred bows drew simultaneously.
Kar'eth rangers and eastern rangers together.
The sound of creaking wood filled the air.
"FIRE!"
The sky darkened with arrows.
Six hundred projectiles launched as one.
The coordinated volley was devastating.
Berserkers fell by the dozens, bodies crumpling as arrows found flesh.
But they didn't stop.
Didn't slow.
Just kept coming, roaring their fury.
"RELOAD!" Voss shouted. "SECOND VOLLEY! FIRE!"
Another wave of arrows.
More Berserkers fell.
But not enough, Arden thought grimly.
War Essence makes them tougher. Harder to kill.
The Berserkers reached the walls.
Siege hooks flew.
Ropes caught on battlements.
Warriors began climbing.
"KNIGHTS!" Michel's voice boomed. "CUT THE ROPES! DON'T LET THEM GAIN THE WALLS!"
Wire Knights rushed forward, swords flashing.
Ropes severed.
Berserkers fell screaming.
But more hooks came.
More ropes.
More warriors climbing.
A Berserker head appeared over the wall near Jeremy.
Yellow eyes. Twisted features. Corrupted mana radiating from it.
Jeremy froze.
The Berserker started to pull itself up—
Arden's blade flashed.
The head separated from the body.
Both fell.
"Don't freeze," Arden said calmly. "Kill or be killed. It's that simple."
Jeremy nodded shakily, gripping his sword tighter.
All along the wall, combat erupted.
Rangers firing point-blank into climbing Berserkers.
Knights cutting ropes and kicking enemies back.
The defenders holding through discipline and coordination.
Michel fought like a whirlwind—blade moving so fast it was almost invisible.
Every strike killed.
Every movement perfect like art.
He wasn't lying about being terrifying in combat.
Voss created fire constructs—phoenixes made of flame that swept along the wall, burning away siege hooks and scorching Berserkers.
"THAT'S MY PARTNER!" he shouted gleefully. "ARDEN! WANT TO TRY A COMBINATION?"
"NOT YET!" Arden called back.
"Saving it for later?"
"YES!"
"SMART! I LIKE IT!"
Despite the chaos, Arden smiled slightly.
Idiot. Absolute idiot.
But a competent idiot.
The probe lasted thirty minutes.
Thirty minutes of relentless assault.
Berserkers testing every section of wall.
Looking for weaknesses.
Finding none.
Finally, a horn sounded from the Berserker lines.
The withdrawal call.
Warriors disengaged immediately, falling back in organized retreat.
Leaving behind perhaps one hundred dead.
Four hundred withdrew in good order.
Silence fell over the fortress.
Broken only by heavy breathing and the groans of wounded.
"CASUALTY REPORT!" Thorne bellowed.
"Eight dead! Twenty-three wounded!" came the response.
"Wire Knights?"
"Three dead! Eleven wounded!"
Michel's face was grim as he surveyed his fallen knights.
"They fought well."
"They did," Harkan confirmed. "Held their positions."
Voss appeared, slightly singed but grinning.
"Not bad for a probe! We held them easily!"
"We lost eleven men," Michel said flatly.
"Against five hundred Berserkers? That's excellent ratio." Voss's smile faded slightly.
"I'm not minimizing the loss. But strategically, we won decisively."
Michel nodded slowly. "You're right. Just... hate losing men."
"We all do."
Arden stood at the wall, watching the Berserkers retreat.
They learned what they wanted to know.
The reinforcements are competent. The coordination is solid.
The Overlord knows what he's facing now.
Jeremy approached, looking shaken.
"That was..."
"Your first battle."
"I froze. When that Berserker came over the wall."
"Everyone freezes their first time. You didn't run. That's what matters."
"But you didn't freeze."
"I've been in enough fights that the fear becomes... manageable." Arden looked at his cousin.
"You'll get used to it. Unfortunately."
"I don't want to get used to killing."
"Then you're in the wrong profession."
Jeremy was quiet for a long moment.
"How did you change so much?"
"Necessity. And a lot of pain."
Michel called a commanders meeting immediately after.
The briefing room was tense.
"Assessment," Thorne said without preamble.
"Probe attack. Five hundred warriors. Testing our response time, coordination, defensive capabilities."
"They learned we're competent," Voss added. "The reinforcements integrated well. Fire discipline was excellent."
"But we took casualties," Michel noted. "Eleven Wire Knights. Eight Kar'eth soldiers."
"Acceptable losses given the numbers," Helena said. "But it proves they can hurt us even in probing attacks."
Arden spoke up from his position at the back.
"The Overlord knows what he needed to know. The reinforcements are skilled. The coordination is solid. We won't crumble under sustained assault."
"So what's his next move?" Michel asked.
"The real attack. Soon. Within two days, probably."
"How many?" Voss's tone was serious now.
"Everything he has left. Three to four thousand warriors. All at once. Overwhelming force to break us before we can fully fortify."
Silence.
Then Michel laughed—sharp and slightly manic.
"Well! That'll be exciting!"
"Commander," Harkan said weakly.
"What? It will be! We'll either win gloriously or die horribly! Both options are dramatic!"
"You're insane."
"Functionally insane. There's a difference."
Voss was studying the map intently.
"If he commits everything, we need to be ready with counter-tactics. The fire-and-shadow combination we've been developing..."
"Save it for when it counts," Arden interrupted. "Don't reveal it in a probe. Save it for the real battle."
"Agreed. The element of surprise is valuable."
Michel bounced forward. "What about my knights? How do we use them optimally?"
"Counter-assault," Arden said immediately. "When the Berserker line commits fully, we open the gates. Knights charge. Break their momentum."
Everyone turned to stare at him.
"You want to OPEN THE GATES?" Thorne looked incredulous. "During a full assault?"
"Yes. When they're committed. When they can't retreat without breaking morale completely."
Michel's eyes gleamed. "That's insane."
"It's tactically sound," Voss corrected, though he was smiling. "Berserkers rely on sustained pressure. If we disrupt their rhythm with an unexpected counter..."
"Their War Essence destabilizes," Arden finished. "Morale breaks. The whole attack collapses."
"It's risky," Helena noted.
"Everything's risky," Michel said cheerfully. "But this? This is the kind of risk that wins battles!"
"Or loses them catastrophically," Harkan muttered.
"That's what makes it exciting!"
Thorne looked at Arden. "You're confident in this strategy?"
"I am."
"Then we'll prepare for it. Gate assault team. Michel's Wire Knights lead the charge. Voss provides ranged support. Arden..." He paused.
"What's your role?"
Arden met his gaze steadily.
"Shadow support. Disruption. Assassination of key commanders if the opportunity presents."
"The twelve-foot form?" Voss asked quietly.
"Only if absolutely necessary. Otherwise, standard Integration abilities."
"Good. Save the transformation for emergencies."
The meeting concluded.
Strategies set.
Preparations beginning.
That evening, Arden stood on the wall alone.
Watching the northern ridge.
Where the Overlord waited.
Two days. Maybe three.
Then the real battle begins.
The one that determines if Kar'eth stands or falls.
Jeremy appeared beside him.
"Can we win?"
"We can. If everyone does their job."
"And if they don't?"
"Then we die. All of us."
Jeremy absorbed that.
"You're very calm about it."
"Panic doesn't help. Strategy does."
"Is that what you learned? From whatever changed you?"
Arden was quiet for a long moment.
"I learned that fear is natural. But it can't control you. You use it. Channel it into focus."
"How?"
"Practice. And surviving enough times that you realize fear won't save you. Only action will."
They stood in silence, watching the snow fall.
Tomorrow would bring more preparation.
More training.
More waiting.
And then...
The real battle.
The one that would test everything they'd built.
Everything they'd prepared for.
The Overlord's patience is running out, Arden thought.
He knows the longer he waits, the stronger our defenses become.
So he'll attack soon. Hard. Fast. Overwhelming.
And we'll be ready.
We have to be.
Behind them, the fortress settled into another night of uneasy rest.
Soldiers checking weapons.
Rangers practicing formations.
Knights running drills.
Everyone knowing what was coming.
Everyone preparing in their own way.
And on the northern ridge, the Overlord watched.
Waiting.
Planning.
Preparing his own counter-move.
The probe had told him what he needed to know.
Now came the real test.