Endless Horde: Through the Eyes of a Godking

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It's that day again...

All cadets were gathered by the Knight Captains. Each one arrived in time and by looks of it, they're ready. Some did look nervous but that can't be helped, after all, they are about to go on two consecutive shifts.

They have no choice in this matter, it's what the army decided for them. That said, the cadets could decide whether to complete two shifts at once or space them out with a couple of hours of rest.

So, they either go out there for 8 hours, return to rest for a bit, then go out again for another shift. Or, they could complete all 16 hours at once. The Knight Captains asked the Squad Leaders to make the decision after talking to their teams.

Cedric already talked to his team. He let them decide, saying that he was fine with whatever. In the end, they decide to choose the latter. Completing all 16 hours left of their shift at once. Cedric accepted that decision, and so did Silverwing.

There really wasn't a 'better' choice between the two. Not with how chaotic and unpredictable the world is outside. However, their choice did change their patrol routes. And Squad #1, along with other squads who made the same choice as they did, were finding that out now.

Silverwing wasn't sending them to the previous route they went through before. He gave them a completely new route to follow this time. Still, their responsibilities remained mostly the same: record everything they notice, eliminate anything that poses a threat to the route along the way, and return.

They would just be going out there longer. But Cedric thinks that they should be fine.

The transmission circle lit up and swallowed them. They felt everything spin for a bit before stopping. The next thing they knew, they were outside the walls and into a completely new territory for them.

There's no mistaking it; the stench of corruption, the thick killing intent and madness in the air, the horrifying sights, and the disgusting pitch-black soil...they're at the Black Lands again.

This time though, their start was a bit different.

Squad #1 didn't fall under the spell of corruption. Their willpower has been tempered and disciplined a lot to fall for something like that. As soon as the transmission was over, every member immediately performed Ki Pulse even before they realized they were doing it.

Pulses of pure and strong Ki swept over the team, getting rid of the corruption that was trying to take hold of them.

After that, they immediately went into a formation with Cedric in the lead. Their eyes were sharp and alert, they scanned their surroundings, assessing any threats that may be hiding from them.

The defenders were already in position with their shields up to defend their teammates. The scanners were already taking note of their surroundings, the fighters were also assessing their immediate vicinity.

Cedric wore a thin smile as he watched them move. He has yet to utter a syllable since their arrival yet his team already went over the prepatory checklist on their own. Such was the effect of his conditioning.

"We've got company." One of the scanners alerted the team. "Two packs of Imps are heading towards us."

"Handle it. They're too close for comfort. Keep alert just in case there's more." Cedric replied.

He already saw the imps way before their scanners did but he didn't say anything. He let them do their jobs since that's what they're here for.

With the alert, the team readied themselves. Not even a minute passed and they saw imps flying towards them with the majority being underground.

The Defenders placed themselves in between the Imps and their team. The attackers already sent out volleys of ranged attack to reduce their numbers before they even arrived, and the scanners kept alert.

When some of the imps came close, with some even throwing their pitchforks at them, the defenders absorbed the impact, not letting any go past them because that would injure their teammates.

One used a 'Taunt' to claim the hostility of all imps, his fellow defenders wouldn't let him take it alone though, so they worked together to lead the imps around and make it easier for the attacks to pick them off one by one.

Shortly after that, the ones from underground appeared, but the scanners were ready for them and had already alerted the team earlier. Their element of surprise was rendered useless because of the scanners.

And because of their harsh training, their detection range improved by a lot. The scanners already located the pack leaders of the imps who are hiding deeper underground. A Magic user aimed her staff toward their location and blasted the two with a pure burst of mana which penetrated all the way to their hiding spot. Killing them before they could do anything.

Just like that, Squad #1 eliminated two packs of Imp Demons in less than five minutes. This was a great sign of their improvements since during their 1st patrol, it took them longer and Cedric helped them eliminate the pack leaders.

These results weren't missed by the members of the squad. Deep down, they're astonished as well but celebration has no place on a battlefield like this so they piped down. They can't be complacent after all.

"Heads up! There's more!" One of the scanners alerted the team once more. "Gorgons, two of them! ETA, 30 seconds."

"Same deal as before. Take them down."

"Affirmative, Sir!" The Squad responded.

Cedric stayed back and observed their performance. Once again, he already saw these two before the scanners did, around the same time as the imps. The Gorgons were attracted by the smell of corpses and the sounds of battle.

His squad operated like a well-oiled machine. Their teamwork and communication were smooth and uninterrupted. Cedric didn't even have to lift a finger to help because he could tell that they could handle it.

Instead, he just kept observing the situation. Extending his field of senses as far as it could reach. It's still suppressed but that's not surprising at all, it's just the nature of this place.

Since the team decided to complete their remaining service all at once, Cedric had to pace himself here. He's prepared to take out extra measures in case of emergency, but if it's not necessary, he would just do what's expected out of him.

By hook or by crook, he will bring back his squad alive and intact, even if their mission is to be compromised. That's a promise he made to himself.

The Gorgons were more challenging to fight than the Imps, but with the combined effort of the squad as well as their recent improvements, they went down without any fanfare. The demons were suppressed the entire time. Nobody was injured or grazed, even the defenders were fine.

They held the position for a whole minute with the scanners furiously scanning their surroundings in search of more threats. Not finding any, they turned to Cedric to receive instructions.

"All nearby threats neutralized. Great work team." He said, "We maintain this formation as we go. You have your objectives to do, keep it up. I already taught you what you need to do. If you have any concerns, talk to me, and don't delay."

"Since we chose the long shift, we'll be out here for a while. Pace yourselves properly. We will take breaks occasionally but that will depend on our immediate environment. Are we clear?"

"Yes, Sir!" His teammates replied.

"Alright, let's move."

Upon his order, the squad moved out. They have a long way to go, and that's reflected in the route assigned to them.

Instead of going towards the depth of the Black Lands though, Squad #1 will be following a route parallel to the walls. The length of the route assigned to them was 500 kilometers, which was greater than the 100 kilometers assigned to them during the first time they were sent out.

Of course, this was done under consideration. They will be moving close to the walls so the dangers were bound to be lesser around these parts, that's why they're going on an extended route.

But just because this route was predicted to the less dangerous than the previous one, doesn't mean that they're completely safe and should be complacent.

The Black Lands are chaotic and unpredictable. Anything could happen here and if they're not careful, their deaths will be a certainty here.

Cedric drilled this idea in their heads since day one. He also conditioned them to never be too confident about themselves so there shouldn't be any problems, but just in case, he will still look after them. It's his duty as their leader to do so anyway.

"Gee...it's too silent." A squad member muttered softly. But because it was too quiet, everybody heard it. "It's giving me the creeps."

Everybody, including Cedric, agreed with the remark. For a place like this to be too quiet...is unnatural. It wasn't like this during the last time.

"Brace yourselves." Cedric suddenly said, which alerted the team. They moved just in time to hear—

BOOOOOOOOM!!!

— an explosion that seemingly rockets the very foundation of the Great Eastern Walls. They then saw a large mushroom cloud appearing a few hundred miles away from them, followed by a staggering impact that nearly blew them all away.

As the impact subsided, each member of the Squad - save Cedric, looked at the guy who spoke earlier. They saw him wince and say:

"...should've never opened my goddamn mouth..."