The trio is separated again. Kai to the west, Yust to the north, and Al to somewhere else.
Will they able to accomplish their own mission? Please enjoy the sixth chapter. Kai's story, and so the war begins >:D
~Alceus
Chapter 6
The Battle of Mothgue
The Battle of Mothgue
"Kai," The young icy-blue haired girl called out weakly as she stood before the open door. The room was quite barren consisting only of a bed, dresser, and a small workplace beside the window. Currently the bed was occupied with various parts of chainmail. A vermillion-eyed man stood impassively over them; his jet-black hair spiking out in the usual tolerable chaos. The Vates uncomfortable noticed that the young man did not acknowledge her as he deftly began equipping the chainmail.
"It's rather quiet with just the two of us here, isn't it?" As soon as the words left her mouth, Latte resisted the urge to face palm. Of all things she wanted to say…..why must that one came out! Kaistern raised an eyebrow at her, making her gulp. She shifted her center of balance nervously, hand coming up to play with her blue pendant without her realizing.
The swordsman went on to inspect his sword that he had polished the night before. "Are you saying that it's a bother to be alone with me?" The harshness of his voice pierced Latte's heart like a sharpened knife.
"N-No! I didn't mean it that way! I just—"
Kaistern stopped and turned to the female titania, smiling a smile that didn't reach his eyes. An involuntary shudder ran through the young woman. Kai must have noticed that because his eyes dimmed the way they always do when he's feeling unhappy about something. He rustled his hair before sighing in annoyance. "Well, I can relate to that. Even though we knew each other only for a day, it feels like we know that boisterous Al and happy-go-lucky Yust a long time ago." He placed a hand on Latte's shoulder, grasping it slightly. "Everyone has their own duty to fulfill. You can't keep them away, no matter how much you want it." He smiled in that particular way of his that made her heartbeat speed up.
Slinging his duffle bag almost nonchalantly over his shoulder, the swordsman stepped past Latte and started his way down the hallway. A sudden wave of dread surged over the Vates as she watched his retreating form. Without thinking, she encircled her arms on his waist. "You'll return … right?... Promise me you'll return!"
"I will. Don't worry… We'll all be together again soon enough. You can count on it," Kaistern replied as he turned to engulf Latte in his arms, his chin resting on her head. "I'll be off then. Please take care of yourself."
"Yeah," said Latte while trying her best to hold her tears as she gave him one last squeeze , "you too.."
--
The heavy storm that was the highlight of everyone's conversation has now been pushed backwards to the very back of their mind. It was as if the storm has never happened. It was to be expected perhaps as the High Committee of the Fighter Guild had issued orders to engage the opposing forces on the Cliffs of Mothgue. It was a sight to behold for all adventurers that were in the area of the Killer Bee Hill. Four different banners of different Factions were raised proudly towards the sky and with armors gleaming proudly under the sun, marched the best warriors of the fighter guilds, carrying all sorts of weapons that signified their profession.
"We're here everyone." The Swordsman master halted his troops, pointing to an area a few miles in front of him. "This is Mothgue Cliff. We'll make our stand here as discussed in the briefing."
A female general stepped forward, staring the panorama in front of her as if praising its beauty. "A vantage point for us archers. We can fully concentrate on aiming without the enemies being able to counter us. Mother Nature is always our best ally."
The last of the three leaders followed the female in observing the area. With a single nod, the Knight Master turned to the whole troop. "We still have some time before the enemy reach here. The vast ocean separating the Morg and Battleship Island is to our advantage. I expect all of you to use this time wisely. You may rest or restock if you wish. Our comrades from the merchant guild are available until the battle starts."
"With that said," The Swordsman Master continued, "our scouts are currently up in the front to track down the enemy's movement. Should one of them be seen near the camp, it should be known that means the enemy is not far behind."
--
As soon as the free time was announced, Kaistern leapt into preparing himself for battle. He had many things to do. He decided that stocking his potions would be his first priority and then he will immediately survey the battleground. It's best to familiar yourself with the battlegrounds, you'll never know if you need to use the ground to your advantage during your fight. "Tonics would be a good place to start. I'm confident that I would require a minimum amount of Tonics when I'm in a duel…but in a war? Better not take any chances here…Well then…off to tonics I go."
"Are you looking for tonics, sir?"
The swordsman turned to find a beautiful young woman standing behind him. Her long crimson hair was flowing down her waist. She undoubtedly stand out with that hair of hers anywhere she goes… A soft coo resounded from somewhere near the woman's back, Kai peered curiously. A mini carrier was standing close to her, carrying all sorts of goods on its back
"Yeah, I think I'll need some. "
"Great! I'm giving a special for all you brave warriors. You can take as much as you want, no charge necessary," said the red-haired merchant as she took a few tonics from her pet. "Oh, my name's Beyreiss by the way. May I know yours, sir?"
"Kaistern," he nodded respectfully at her as the merchant gave him the required tonics.
"Oh, what a nice name. It fits a great man like you." The merchant beamed, making Kai shuffle his feet uncomfortably, "can I call you Kai?"
"Yeah. You can call me anything you want." Kai nodded. Somehow seeing the girl in front in made him remember about the girl he had left behind in Acropolis… It tugged his heart and made him wonder what the girl is doing now… "You know… You look like my friend back in Acropolis. Something about you made me think of her."
Beyreiss frowned and her eye narrowed a fraction with worry, "Your girlfriend?"
"Um.. not really. I just know her recently. But.." he sighed to himself and smiled fondly at the memory of the cerulean haired girl. He casted his eyes to the sky and it was as if an image of the Titania appeared in the midst of the clouds, along with a suspicious battleship "Wait… Battleship!?"
Unlike the popular airship, or the flying garden to be exact, that was invented by the Tonka engineers; the battleship was a few times bigger in size. The speed it was travelling is a living proof proves of just how advanced it was compared to their airship. 'Probably a technology from the Machine Age.' Kai mused quietly.
As if in trance, the fighter army stared at the ship that was coming towards them with frightening speed. And then all of a sudden, a group of DEMs jumped off from the deck, landing a few miles away from the camp. The said ship did not stop as expected however; it kept going on in the general direction of the capital city, Acropolis.
As if the enemies from above weren't enough, an army of robots emerged from behind the steep cliffs of the Mothgue, catching a lot of fighters unaware. Rains of missiles and guns happened soon after, eliminating more than a half of the total number of sentry sent on the battlefield.
"Fall back! Don't engage them on your own! Make the merchants as your top priority. Assist them as best as you can!" shouted the master of Swordsman guild from afar while fighting three DEMs at once," Retreat to Acropolis as fast as you can and let them know what happened here"
Not far from him, the master of ranged class was also fighting. She showed the skill and technique that made her the Archer's leader. With a practiced ease, she opened a path for the remaining fighters to escape, raining down a hail of arrows on the Foxhounds.
Looking at the masters who fought bravely for their sake, Kaistern felt compelled to assist them. If they fall here, then Acronia would lose her best fighters to this massacre. "I'll help too!"
Suddenly a man, the leader of the knights, grabbed Kaistern's shoulder and lifted him single-handedly despite his slim figure. "Don't play around, kid! Follow your master's orders. Your job is to protect people like her." he barked and flung Kaistern backwards to where Beyreiss was. "Leave! I'll take care of those metal junk!"
The young swordsman grudgingly followed the man's order. As a swordsman, he had a duty to protect and as an apprentice, he must obey his superiors. With haste, he grabbed the crimson merchant's hand and led her towards Killer Bee Hill.
Unfortunately for them, the hill too was infested with robots. The hill's original residents were scattered along with his comrades' corpses on the beaten track. The Machine Battalion had occupied the hill, blocking the only exit to the plains of Acronia.
"No way.. they're here too.."
"Then we'll have to force our way through," said Kaistern as he unsheathed his sword.
Suddenly a man jumped into the circle of machines. With a riffle that didn't really fit the needs of a short-ranged battle, he fired his rifle with incredible speed, making holes in the robot's armors.
The man jogged towards Kaistern and Beyreiss. "Don't be reckless. You can't force your way back to the city. It'll be suicidal!"
Kai watched the man carefully. He had seen this scene before, it was like when he and Latte encountered Yust… "So, I assume you're on our side, right? But that weapon.." Kaistern said as he sheathed his sword, looking at the riffle on the man's hand. It's somehow similar to the DEM's.
"This?" the man noticed Kaistern's curiosity, "this is something made with the remnants of Machine Age. The enemy is using this type of weapon too, albeit stronger. I'm on your side for the time being. The Archer Master hired me for this war and so until my contract terminates, I will remain your ally."
"I see.. Then thanks for saving us. So, you're going to help us enter the city, right? Mr.."
"Lien. I'm a sniper, so people usually call me SnipLien." The man introduced himself. "Going to Acropolis would be a suicidal act. The city would fall within noon according to my prediction. We can't possibly go there."
"Wait! Latte is there!" yelled Kaistern furiously, "She's waiting for me to return. I can't possibly abandon her."
Suddenly a bullet was shot in Kai's direction, missing his rear by a small berth. "I admire your bravery but you have no choice in this matter. We're going to the South through Fruit Forest and the Staff Desert. That way we can guarantee our survival." The sniper continued as he noticed the spiky-haired man aggravated stance. "Look even if we manage to enter Acropolis, we can't be sure that this Latte girl is still alive. There's a high risk of us getting killed in the process."
"But…She's waiting for me…." The swordsman managed desperately.
Through those vermilion orbs, Lien could see that this young man must held Latte in a special place in his heart. It was clear to Lien that this young man was calm and poised and his ways, he could see it from his stance and fluidity of speech when he first met him. It saddened him to see such proud man be reduced into a wreck of emotions. "Listen. If you're dead, then it all means nothing in the end. You promised your lady to return and you must uphold that promise. Don't break her heart if you have a chance to not to."
Beyreiss glance at the man beside her sadly, reaching for his hand. "Please Kai, listen to Lien. We can't force our way to the city just by the both of us. Let's go to the South and think of the best action to take next. I'm sure that Latte is still alive and is in someplace safe."
The swordsman nodded forlornly and slowly accepted Lien's and Beyreiss' words. He inwardly mourned for his weakness, if only he was stronger….. "Latte…" he whispered brokenly in the direction of Acropolis before following the sniper into the forest with the merchant right beside him.
In effort to lighten the suffocating silence between the three, Beyreiss attempted to strike a conversation by the facts that she noticed earlier. "I wonder how did the enemies arrived so fast. It was like they were expecting us to arrive when it should be the other way round."
"Then the answer is simple," Lien said without stopping to move, "the plan was leaked to the enemies. There is a traitor among us."
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