"It's fucking insane. How many did they actually send? Twenty? Thirty at best, I think? And they could kick out something like that?" Observation had been sketchy at best at the time the barrier had been opened. The order for all guns to open up had come shortly after the Magi had opened the barrier, but still had come too late. The tidal wave had already been launched before the shells could rain down on the Magi who had exited the barrier of NorthRend.
"It's not completely unusual. Most Magi on their own aren't capable of producing that much power, but a handful of them are, and those are our main targets. I'll bet that the tidal wave was only as big as it was because two or three of them were probably really powerful. And we probably didn't get any of them during this little scuffle. Regardless, as soon as you get those reports in, we're launching the real invasion on the wings first, which the Navy can cover using their guns to keep them from rushing out and trying this again."
The reports followed shortly thereafter. Of the sixty two decoy vessels which had been sent, all had been lost and had sunk to the ocean floor. Of the 46 vessels which had been hit by the tidal wave, five had been flipped over and were sinking, twenty six had suffered structural damage, and all ships had flooding which everyone was hastily clearing out. Already, from the first strike from the Magi, and thousands had been lost. As Johnson had been expecting, this was going to be a very bitter affair, and this was most likely only the beginning of what the Magi were prepared to throw at them now that war was here in the Magi's homeland.
It was fully understood that the safety of the farm fields of Nekropolis was the primary goal of the defenders of Nekropolis. However due to manpower shortages, the two major beach cities south of Nekropolis, Visigard and Heliopolis, were essentially going to be abandoned in exchange for more defenders at the farm fields, and they were essentially going to be free gains for the enemy. To attempt to defend these two minor cities from a major landing operation would simply cost far too many lives, and the barriers of the cities would seal them inside and prevent them from defending the farm fields.
So instead, the Magi had scattered themselves all across the fields and regions surrounding Nekropolis with a risky strategy that fully depended on the Magi's mobility. Since the exact location of the landings were still unknown, with the general consensus being that the fields would be the Tech's first target, and they would land on the beaches south of the fields rather than south of Visigard and Heliopolis.
The planned called for scouts to be scattered along the beaches south of the fields, a vast 120 mile stretch, while the main force of the Magi rested further inland, ready to spring on any invasion force that they learn of from their scouts, allowing the Magi to quickly focus their efforts where ever the Techs landed.
And one of these scouts was Scorpia Lexicon, the number six seed of the Graduate Tournament.
A little over an hour ago, everything had been fine for Scorpia. Well, as fine as she could be considering the overall situation. The Tech flyers have been making noise in the sky for hours, heightening the tension and the indication that the invasion would soon take place.
But they had been doing nothing for hours, instead simply flying around in the night sky, and not showing any other movements from what Scorpia had seen or heard.
Scorpia herself, along with a small number of other Dragoons, formed a single scout team that was stationed in the small town of Muriel, a small town with a total population of around 800 or so, one of many small time vacation/resort towns that sat just a little inland from the shores of the South Sea. Muriel itself had a spectacular view of the ocean, and one that Scorpia herself actually enjoyed, despite the thick and tense atmosphere of the impending invasion.
After all, there wasn't anything else for Scorpia or the other Dragoons to do, sitting still and twiddling their thumbs as they waited for the enemy to arrive, as the flyers continued to fly around in the darkened sky.
In fact, that was exactly what Scorpia had stopped to do when the chaos had begun.
Scorpia had been outside the central part of Muriel, patrolling the outskirts while watching the ocean when the explosions rained down just a few miles away.
Although the force of the explosions were not powerful enough to knock her off of her feet, she dove for cover regardless, and still managed to feel some force of the explosions as she covered her virgin ears, ringing from the overwhelming power of the sound of the explosions so close by.
Scorpia's heart threatened to beat right through her throat and out of her mouth as she cringed on the ground, her hands desperately trying to protect her fragile ears as she began to feel a slightly wet warmth that should not be there, which began to spread to her palms.
Such explosions, the force and power, she had never witnessed or heard anything like it except only once before. The drastic power that had been put on display by Aegis, Angelus, and even the Grand Dragoon when they had used Fury of the Skies. It was overwhelming to Scorpia as her fear blitzed through her entire body as she shook and cringed more on the ground, praying to the Dragons that those explosions did not rain on her.
She then began to pray for her two younger sisters, Rachel and Crystal, and that was when Scorpia stopped herself.
Rachel and Crystal, they were more important to Scorpia than anything else in the world. More important than her mother, the Dragoons, the war, and especially more important than herself.
Scorpia opened her eyes and released her vice grip on her ears, still ringing in pain from the explosions. No more excuses, she told herself as she slowly stood, her fears still holding strong over her, but no longer stopping her movements.
So what if it was impossible? So what if she didn't survive, or lost all of her limbs? So what if it was her against the entire world, or even beings from beyond Magicka? Scorpia herself was still drawing breath, and as long as she could do that, she could do something, anything she could to keep her sisters away from this horror.
Think! She needed to think!
Her eyes turned to where Muriel was now burning, the fires lighting up what was supposed to be an almost pitch black night, and the explosions were slowing down.
Scorpia shook her head. No. Going back there at this point wouldn't do anything. Even if others had survived, Scorpia would be putting herself at great risk just to go back and find the miracles who had survived, something that would be even more difficult as screams of those who had not been caught began panicking as they packed up what little they could and began to run to the north.
On top of that, Scorpia's primary missions was scouting. It wasn't her job to try and meet the enemy here, but to fall back and deliver the news of the attack on Muriel, which Scorpia figured might be the prelude to the invasion. Even if it wasn't, someone needed to know what was going on down here.
Scorpia uttered a quick prayer for those in Muriel, alive or not, feeling guilty that she was, in a sense, abandoning those who might still be alive among the raging flames. But, the safety of her sisters was far more important, and she wouldn't be helping them by diving into those fires for what might turn out to be a fruitless effort. Once finished, she set her sights north and began to run, which was easy to figure out since it was in the opposite direction from the shore.
The explosions began to turn to low booming echoes that still shook Scorpia's core as she ran further into the night, catching of glimpses of others who had somehow gotten away from Muriel, or had been living along the outskirts and weren't caught in the initial rain.
Soon enough however, she ended up alone in the night as she sped past the other escapees, too focused on her destination and mission to allow herself to get sidetracked, and that was when things began to sink in, the environment doing little to help her.
As she went deeper and deeper inland, away from the destruction of Muriel, other explosions off in various distances were also going off, and Scorpia was catching the flashes of the explosions as they lit up in the night sky, as the creatures of the night wailed loudly in terror. Worst of all, as Scorpia began adjusting to it, it was the perfect time to allow Scorpia to think, and it was something she was not enjoying.
How...how do you beat something like this? They were attacking, but Scorpia had not caught sight of the enemy. Were they able to attack from this far a distance? How has this war lasted so long when the enemy seemed to wield greater magic than the Magi's own!? What could she, Scorpia, possibly do in the face of this!?
To make it worse, she now realized why her older brother had died fighting these people. He wouldn't have stood any more of a chance against such a foe than she will. Once ordered to attack, that will certainly be the end.
But...but...she will still try to fight it anyways. Rachel and Crystal, she was fighting for those two, and those two alone. If the enemy could not be defeated, then Scorpia at least possessed skill sets that would allow her to take Rachel and Crystal, run away and hide from the world. But, only as a last resort, for if she stained the Lexicon name by running in the face of the enemy, they would also have to bear the burden of the name NoName, one more to add on what would already be a huge load.
"Scorpia!" A familiar voice echoed from a short distance, causing Scorpia to stop as her eyes and head darted in every direction, expecting to be jumped by endless waves of enemies as her panic began to rise.
"Thank the Dragons, it is you. I wasn't sure if anyone made it out." Scorpia heard from behind her, and saw that it was Krieger Solomon of all people (his white spiky hair easy to recognize), and now understood why the voice was familiar.
"What the fuck is wrong with you!? You scared the shit out of me!" Scorpia snapped, not at all pleased that she was now apparently stuck with rich boy Solomon.
Oddly, however, Scorpia saw that he winced at her words, something she wasn't expecting.
"Sorry, but to be honest, I was going kind of crazy running in the woods like this by myself, and I was hoping that you were at least a familiar face to be around." Kreiger now felt himself flustered a little at the situation as he suddenly remembered that Scorpia did not like him at all, and was too busy on just wanting someone around.
It was something Kreiger was used to. Being a Solomon, his family was viewed with absolute resentment by those who were less fortunate, whether it is called for or not, and Scorpia was probably just one of those individuals.
It was a bit of a heartbreaker for Kreiger, for Scorpia was a beautiful woman in his eyes. She was strong, proud, determined, and most certainly would not bow to either his name or his money. She would most certainly stand as his equal with a stubborn will that probably was even greater than Krieger's own.
Although he couldn't see Scorpia too well because of the darkness with flashes of light, highlighting her fierce face which showed no fear despite the situation, causing Krieger to feel a bit of shame. He probably wasn't doing a very good job hiding his own fear and uneasiness in the situation as a whole, despite his acceptance of it.
Kreiger, however, was doing a better job than he appreciated, for Scorpia was feeling similar to what Kreiger was feeling about Scorpia. Except that Scorpia felt even more resentment towards Kreiger rather than feeling shame. Big strong rich boy Solomon apparently has the situation entirely under control, that was how Scorpia was looking at Krieger.
"Dammit! Thanks to you, I lost my sense of direction!" Scorpia said as she turned away from him, feeling annoyed about a new feeling that was swelling quickly within her. She was actually thankful for his company, and no longer felt as alone as she did just moments ago before he had arrived.
Now she had hit an all time low, desiring the company of some privileged rich kid who lived a sheltered and safe life, having no understanding of how the real world worked.
"Actually, north is that way." Kreiger said with a little uneasiness, pointing in a direction (the correct one, actually), and unsure as to how Scorpia was going to react.
The gesture annoyed her further. Fucking know it all rich kid.
Unfortunately, she had no idea where to go at all, making his suggestion the best. Great, now she was going to be following the rich kid.
"If, if it means that much to you, I can just go away if you want." Kreiger suggested, causing Scorpia to turn and blink at him several times, both in anger, and in astonishment.
Yes! She would like him to go away. She was doing just fine without him. Yes, a little shaken up, yes, feeling alone in this darkened and dangerous night, the flashes in the sky and the distant echoing explosions relentless, a reminder that the chaos had only just begun.
Not receiving any answer from Scorpia, he assumed that she meant yes, which still hurt Kreiger despite expecting it, now having to venture back out into the night alone. As he turned to leave, Scorpia caught his arm.
"Just...stay the fuck out of my way. I don't give a shit who you are, or how much money you have, or what you threaten me with. Solomon or not, I've got my own business to take care of, and it certainly isn't anything that involves you." Scorpia snapped, not wanting to sound like that she wanted him there with her. Yet, despite the fact that Scorpia would not admit it even to herself, she did want him to stay, not wanting to be alone in all of this. And...he was...well, he was-
"Yeah, sure." Kreiger responded, nodding, cutting Scorpia's thoughts short.
"Which way was north again?" Scorpia asked, thankful that he had cut her short. The last thing she needed to admit to herself that she was attracted to him.
Scorpia blinked, not paying attention to where Kreiger was pointing a second time. Fuck!
No! She wasn't attracted to him, but to the name, Solomon. Scorpia was better than that. Neither his name nor his money meant shit. He is nothing more than a Solomon, the type of person that Scorpia should stay away from, the privileged people who step on all of those around them without a second thought.
"Scorpia? You alright?" Kreiger asked, genuinely concerned.
"None of your fucking business!" Scorpia snapped back without thinking, causing Kreiger to jump back slightly.
Women are fucking crazy.
Scorpia, however, softened. "Sorry, just got a lot going on in my mind right now with all of this shit going on. Never mind, just-just lead the way." She said as she mentally sighed.
Fucking Solomon. And now she was stuck following him, all because she was no longer able to find the way on her own, yet another unsettling feeling that Scorpia was now feeling once again, just as she had so many times in the past while she had been the primary caretaker of her two sisters.
The sun had finally begun to show it's rays of light, and yet, the light hardly brought any comfort to Beasley as she continued to pour her effort and power into the obelisk that was before her, the blue hue of the barrier still holding strong. However, Beasley felt that this was only allowed because the enemy has not tried to directly attack the barrier yet, despite the forces that were gathered at the shore who were able to land without harassment since everyone was currently sealed within the barrier of NorthRend.
No risks were being taken, since the main objective of the force at NorthRend was simply to stay alive and harass the enemy as they pushed in, since most of the Magi fighting force was stationed at Nekropolis, the force at NorthRend were not expected to make a stand against the enemy.
Yet the barrier did not make Beasley feel safe at all for two reasons. One, what would happen if the enemy attacked the barrier with all of their power? Could they possibly hold against such a concentrated attack, considering the demonstration of their capabilities which they had shown just an hour or so ago when they had rained their weapons on those who had launched the tidal wave?
The second, and far more prominent reason Beasley did not feel safe within the barrier is what has been happening for the past ten, fifteen, or maybe even thirty minutes. (Beasley was having a very difficult time trying to measure time, since most of her concentration was being used to do her part in holding the barrier strong. The rest was being devoted in keeping herself as sane as she possibly could.)
The enemy, Beasley was starting to believe, was trying to surround them. For some time, several of their low and slower flying machines, the ones that could easy land and take off into the air despite their strange design and having no wings had been flying around and even past the barrier, dropping enemy troops and equipment around NorthRend.
They were slowly being trapped within the barrier, both by the enemy, and by their own hands. And how long were the geniuses here going to hold out? Were they actually going to allow everyone here to be completely surrounded by the enemy?
Beasley herself was getting a little tired, having helped power this barrier for the past three hours or so. While it's true the powering the barrier did not require much, she did not want to enter into battle against an enemy while already tired out. She would be less than useless at that point. And if they held out here for too long, that will be exactly what will happen. Not only herself, but everyone here, all of whom were helping to power the barrier. (Except for the initial strike team. They were still being rested, which Beasley considered fair when taking into account what they did.) If they all tried to fight the enemy after being worn down from powering the barrier, especially when surrounded, Beasley understood that would most likely be the end for all that were here in NorthRend.
Beasley watched a three more of those low flying machines flew past her towards the rear of NorthRend, and for some reason they seemed to be going agonizingly slow, as though mocking her and all of the Dragoons here in NorthRend over how powerless they really were as the enemy continued to land behind them.
This is fucking stupid! Why the hell were they just sitting here, watching all of these machines fly and land behind them, dropping off enemy troops and equipment for the sole purpose of surrounding and trapping them inside their own barrier!? For the past fucking thirty minutes they have all just stood there and watched all of this like a bunch of little kids watching shooting stars!!
Regardless, orders were orders, and as of this moment, her sole purpose was to help everyone power the barrier, despite how suicidal it was starting to look. So what if they got surrounded? Apparently, they would be able to break out of a full blown siege easily.
Beasley shook her head. This wasn't like herself at all. She was better than that, having been born in a Dragoon family. It wasn't her place to question or judge her orders. Her place was to follow orders, and have faith in those who were looking at the larger picture, which Beasley was not currently seeing.
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