Touch of Fate

Chapter 206: Finishing Up

Sergeant Pierce absently scratched at his beard while looking back at the tower the higher ups wanted them capture. When that proved difficult and costly, the commander had decided to destroy it instead. Unfortunately, it's built-in magical protections made that problematic.

A few of their mages were plugged into the very base, and had been doingsomething for the last twenty minutes. So far, it didn't look like they were any closer to taking down the structure than they'd been when they'd started.

It was a little disconcerting that they were having so much trouble here. The other tower had been quickly overwhelmed and taken without too much issue.

[If we make it out of here, we're going to catch shit about being slow. Speaking of which...]

Thinking that it was about time for him to return to his place in the cordon, Pierce picked up his spear and the waterskins he'd been filling from the public tap, before walking back. On his way he saw a pair of officers bickering nearby, and started listening out of curiosity.

"Commander, I need more soldiers, specifically higher tier ones. We're so close to taking the gate. Just another big push and it will be ours." The battered looking officer was saying as Commander Harris consulted his map.

The grizzled veteran glanced up with a grimace. "That's what you told me before the last push, and here you are again."

"The Almirans have been more stubborn than anticipated, especially after they were reinforced by group of thugs from the slums. Among them is a powerful Tier 3 warrior that is almost singlehandedly holding the line. If we had a few of the more skilled fighters at our disposal, it wouldn't be long before the gate fell." Replied the increasingly desperate man.

"Be that as it may, I simply don't have the troops to spare. We are already having trouble keeping the Almirans penned up here. If we slacken, even for a moment, they will regain control and our comrades assaulting the walls will be the ones to suffer for it. Any high tiers we have are currently facing off against the Almiran Royal Guard, and they are the only thing keeping those monsters from tearing the rest of us to pieces. I cannot help you right now. You'll have to make do with the troops you have." Harris answered firmly, evidently seeking to bring the conversation to a close.

The other officer gritted his teeth before spinning on his heels and marching back the way he came. "You'll regret this, commander." He yelled his shoulder before passing through the picket line. Pierce noticed the insignia on the man's chest as he walked by, a shield emblazoned with an anchor.

[A coastal marine? What are they doing on this mission? I thought we were supposed to be drawn primarily from the infantry, augmented by the usual auxiliaries from the Mage Hunters and Mage Corps.]

Pierce stared after the man, feeling puzzled, but decided that it wasn't his place to question. As he passed by Commander Harris, he gave the man a salute accompanied by a sympathetic smile.

The officer replied with a friendly, if distracted nod before he started yelling at the liaison from the Mage Corps about how much longer they needed to be playing with that tower, and if they would be so kind as to hurry it up so that the rest of us could get back to the task of winning this war.

Chuckling, Pierce returned to his squad and passed off the filled waterskins he'd been tasked with collecting. Harris wasn't his favorite officer, but he was close. Despite commanding what amounted to a suicide mission, the man had nevertheless succeeded in driving the Almirans into a corner. With a little more effort, it felt like they could carry the day.

"Did I miss anything?" He asked his squad leader, a bear of a man from the Ash Mountains, who defied all stereotypes by being a soft spoken intellectual.

"There have been a few probes, but nothing serious. Judging from their equipment, it seems like an enemy militia unit has started pushing in our direction from the north. We might see a more coordinated effort in the near future." The squad leader replied absently while watching an ongoing fight between one of their Tier 3 fighters and an Almiran Royal Guardsman on a nearby rooftop.

The pair had apparently been engaged in a long and difficult battle, and both were at the limits of their stamina, gasping for breath as they fought in brief, high intensity exchanges. Casual observers might wonder why Pierce and his squad didn't help their ally, but veterans would know better.

The Tenundian strike force had been assembled with offensive power in mind. As such, the vast majority of its component members were skilled veterans of the border wars. Most were also Tier 2, and as a result they had been able to overwhelm the inexperienced Almiran defenders without too much difficulty.

That being said, there was still a world of difference between them, and the Tier 3s who formed the core of the strike force. Trying to get between them and their Almiran equivalents would end poorly for people like Pierce.

While it was still possible to overwhelm a higher tier opponent with superior numbers, a commander had to be prepared to lose a large majority of his troops in the process. It still happened, and was currently happening if the coastal marine could be believed, but usually only in extreme situations.

[Still] Pierce thought while watching the exchange. [It's frustrating.]

He didn't notice the knuckles of his right hand whitening on the haft of his spear.

Sighing, he looked back at the tower. Hopefully, they could bring it down soon

As he was looking an explosion rocked the area, and Pierce could feel hot wind blowing from the direction of a dust cloud forming around the tower's base. Stunned, he could only stare for a few seconds before he heard his squad leader shouting.

"Pierce! Take two of the others and check for survivors. The rest of us are going to hold this position." The large man ordered he took up his position.

Pierce could see the Almiran militia already massing at one end of the street. From the looks of it, they were building the courage necessary to attack.

Shaking off his shock, Pierce grabbed two other soldiers at random and started running. He wasn't sure what he was getting into, but he had a bad feeling about the whole situation.

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Mike shook the dust off of himself, slightly regretting his dynamic entry and the dust cloud it created. It seemed like everything he did nowadays was accompanied by an explosion, and he was starting to get tired of constantly suffering from the aftereffects. Besides, even if his arrival was cool, it's not like anyone could see it.

[Not to self, Explosive Cannonball of Doom (Name Pending) will require fine tuning before I can roll it out. Perhaps I need to reduce the force, while adding Light Magic for the visual impact.]

Using Air Magic, he dispersed the cloud with a wave of his hand, revealing the shattered city square surrounding the base of the 1st Division Headquarters' tower. The few Tenundians that had survived his initial appearance were slowly getting to their feet.

He hopped out of the crater he'd made during his landing, and channeled his mana into his hand, creating a crackling bolt of lightning. With a flick of his wrist he threw it at four figures clustered around the base of the tower. He wasn't sure exactly what they were doing, but it seemed like they were probably the cause of the building's strange shaking.

One of the faster thinking individuals tried to throw up a quick mana shield, but the lighting tore through it without difficulty, and all four of them were reduced to steaming corpse after a few seconds. Glancing around at the remaining troops, Mike used quickly executed wind blades to finish them off before they had a chance to shake off the shock.

He was just about to head into the tower when a trio of soldiers rounded the corner, a bearded man with a spear in the lead. As soon as he caught sight of the square, he stopped, momentarily taking in the carnage Mike had wrought, before motioning to the two following him. "Get out of here! I'll hold him off!"

While his subordinates turned and fled, the man charged forward, battle cry on his lips. Evidently, he was trying to buy time for his men to escape. It was a simple and heroic act, the kind that shows up in the midst of battle, done solely for the good of one's comrades.

Mike understood all that with a glance, so it was with a pang of guilt that he launched wind blades to cut the fleeing pair down. He watched as the man's look of determination shifted to one of sick realization, but by that point it was already too late.

Mike dodged the charging soldier's attack before ramming the Fang of the Primal home.

For a second the Hero stood there wordlessly as the brave man clutched at his arm, tears of frustration spilling from eyes that slowly lost their light. Once he slumped forward, Mike slowly laid him onto the ground.

Pulling his weapon free, he took one last look at the fallen soldier before walking into the tower, thoughts of dramatic entries forgotten.

Now he just wanted to end this.

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Emmanuel stood on the roof of an apartment building, watching as the dragon delivered single combatants to two critical locations before heading out towards the walls. He guessed Mike was really pushing to bring this conflict to a close.

Judging from the way dozens of Tenundian soldiers at the gate were being sent flying every so often, he felt assured that the situation was now well in hand. Assuming his student managed to liberate the command tower and reestablish control over the units fighting on the wall, encircling and crushing the remaining enemies would be relatively simple.

Now he just needed to work on the next step.

Glancing around, the old mage saw that the coast was clear, and removed a square pane of glass. He held it up to the light briefly, making sure the almost invisible runes were still there, before breaking it in half. Strangely, the two halves shattered into a fine mist of glittering particles, which slowly formed into the ghostly image of a woman's face. It regarded the mage for a second, seemingly surprised.

With a oddly flat voice, the face spoke. "Emmanuel. I didn't expect to see you."

There was some warmth in the tone, but it was almost overwhelmed by the venom that accompanied it.

Wincing slightly the old mage replied. "I know I'm not someone you'd want to talk to, Vera, but I have no other choice."

The face was silent for a moment, before sighing, "I take it this means that the rumors are true? Alexander really isgone?"

Emmanuel just nodded in reply.

Vera's face grimaced for a moment, as if holding some intense emotion back, before smoothing into professional indifference. "What do you mean you have no choice? What do you need?"

"In a short time, the first battle of this siege will come to a close. As it stands now, it should be an overwhelming victory for the defenders, so much so that it will call the Tenundian Marshal's competence into question. Once that happens, the Duke's faction will try to have him removed."

The face nodded. "They'll try, but I'm not sure how well it will work. Kiertesan is popular with the Council of Lords. It would take something particularly damning to remove him."

Emmanuel smiled grimly, "What if he mistakenly kidnapped a distant member of the Dovistani royal family, with the intent of torturing her for information?"

"That would probably be sufficient. Dovistani royalty, why would theyAre you saying they really tried to kidnap that disaster? Why in the hells did he think that was a good idea?" Vera asked, shocked.

"Ah well, it seems she's taken a shine to our Dragonknight ally, so much so, that they are actually sharing the same suite of rooms, but that's not important right now. You are still embedded with Tenundian high command, right?"

Vera frowned. "That's...whatever. I'm not sure if being a handmaiden for the wife of the Logistics Minister counts as being embedded, but my cover hasn't been blown, if that's what you are asking. Are you wanting me to try and make sure that Kiertesan remains in power? I think you overestimate how much influence I have here."

Emmanuel shook his head. "No, I want you to do the opposite. Make sure everyone is aware of how he failed, and how his actions might lead to war with Dovistan. We need to make sure the Duke's faction takes charge."

"You read my reports, surely. You should be aware of what they've brought with them, right? Thethings they've allied themselves to? Only Kiertesan's influence has prevented them from taking action so far. Remove him, and this little conflict will escalate into a nightmare."

The mage took a deep breath while scanning the battlefield. "Vera, the Tenundians were on the verge of a complete victory today, and only with the direct involvement of the Dragonknight and by the grace of the gods were we able to salvage a win. Yet, in doing so, we had to show almost all of our cards and expend the vast majority of our fighting strength."

Looking back at Vera, he gave a sad smile. "If we continue on this path, I can only foresee a battle of attrition that will inevitably favor the one who brought a larger army."

"I see...You want them to burn out in one big attempt to take the city, using everything at their disposal. I take it you have something in mind to throw them back? Something you can only use once?"

Emmanuel only smiled in response.

"Hm, there you go again with your secretsVery well, I will do what I can." Vera replied caustically, before her tone softened slightly. "Stay safe, you old fool."

With her words still ringing in the air, the cloud of glass dispersed, leaving the old mage to his thoughts as the battle started to wind towards its conclusion.