Chapter 98

“Word from Birry. The Vultoqi are there in massed numbers. Mission is a go,” Roxanne announced to the meeting.

Kordanta merely nodded and glanced at a Loegrian who began relaying orders through their secure radio network.

Roxanne raised a glass and quoted Montrose’s toast. “He either fears his fate too much, or his desserts are small, who dares not put it to the touch, to win or lose it all.”

“Aye,” all those in attendance replied and raised their own glasses in salute.

In the cleared ruins, where the Yr’ch city of Grmmar had been, a series of portals opened and a fleet of armoured personnel carriers drove out, one of the first of which contained Jemima and Abi, who immediately began jamming ... for want of a better word, the Vultoqi communications. The APCs were followed up by nearly a hundred Loegrian special forces in their heavier armour who, directed by the Seers, immediately moved to interdict any Vultoqi forces in the area, taking out over fifty ghosin and a good few adelshaut who were working on an energy storage structure.

Once this was done, the rest of the Allies poured through and prepared to move against the echtra; sorting themselves out into their various units, though each contained a Gorgon as well as a couple of medic Mages from Earth.

Kordanta, flanked by Roxanne, Arch and Crnnch, was with the command group and was trying to look calm as he worried away at getting the advance moving in formation.

“They know we’re here,” Jemima announced over the radio.

“Slower than I expected, good,” Kordanta nodded.

“Last units through,” Abi added.

“Start the advance. The last units are the rear-guard. They know what they have to do,” he ordered.

The blesséd of Athena led the way, flanked by the Craebh Ruadh and the Æsir, followed closely behind by the Mazdani containing the Athenian volunteers commanded by ex-Adept Pugard.

Kordanta had opted for simplicity. The advance would focus on a narrow front aimed directly at the echtra but passing close to the abandoned outposts the Allies had maintained when the Yr’ch had still been mostly in charge of Vultoq. The Psiontials had informed us that much of the original fortifications were in place and Kordanta was hoping to use them as a backstop for as and when the Vultoqi attempted to stop them.

“Patripures! The enemy are here and attacking towards the echtra!” the senior adelshaut warned frantically.

“Recall our forces from the attack against the destroyers of the research centre!” the senior patripure ordered.

“We cannot, my Liege. The Power manifesting itself has cut off our portals and our forces are trapped there!”

“Move what forces we have here to contain them. The high energy plasma weapons can be unleashed upon them. Open the vaults of liberation and use the special weapons there. The echtra must be protected!”

“At once, my patripure!”

The caveatra carefully scanned the approaching enemy, though were hampered by a lot of mental interference from within the enemy and also from beyond their universe. They were able to ascertain that their remaining adelshaut easily outnumbered the enemy and also released a wave of troichin as well as what few Klarven remained.

‘We have detected both troichin and Klarven approaching, ‘ a message from Una reached Kordanta.

“Target this area with fuel air explosives,” he pointed on a map to Abi.

“Drones are on their way,” Abi confirmed.

Whatever advantage the patripure had hoped to gain from the troichin and Klarven was stripped away in seconds by a set of massive shockwaves generated by a series of fuel air explosive bombs. These annihilated the troichin and caused the few Klarven survivors to race for the assumed safety of the echtra, despite the urgings of the patripure to attack. This left the adelshaut to clash with the leading edge of Kordanta’s formations, where, for once, they found their enemy not giving way and hiding behind fortifications. They also found that their enemy were, in a lot of cases, equal physically to the adelshaut as well as able to bring them down at a distance.

“We’ve brushed past the leading edge of the adelshaut,” Abi reported. “Advance is continuing to push them back.”

“They’re coming at us piecemeal,” Roxanne commented. “They’ll firm up soon.”

“Yes, and they’ll be bringing some nasty weapons to the party too, I expect.” Arch added.

“Yes, well, we have a counter to the plasma hammers ... I hope,” Kordanta acknowledged. “As for that wrath-bringer, let’s just hope we’re too close.”

“We should be, Marechal Kordanta,” Jemima replied.

“I’ll take your word for it,” he nodded.

The leading edge of the Allied force was now meeting serious resistance, though still driving forward; the blesséd of Athena, the Craebh Ruadh and the Æsir having fallen back to regroup with the Rutasi. The Nosferatu and Fae were advancing to replace them, with the Earth and Loegrian Special Forces moving in to bolster the Mazdani and pick off any Vultoqi stragglers. The wolves were also ready in strength to take down any stubborn pockets of resistance. Over two hundred of them had answered Adok’s howl of requirement, with more coming in every hour and being funnelled into the attack formation they were preparing.

“Plasma hammers!” Abi warned.

“Psiontials are ready!” Jemima confirmed.

To the front of the advance several adelshaut set up the advanced plasma weapons, unaware that their enemies, via the Seer group, had detected the tracking telemetry emitters they used. It was only when they raised the massive flare of plasma that the Psiontials acted and changed the data and had the flare fall directly on the approaching adelshaut masses.

“We are struggling to stop their advance,” the senior adelshaut confessed to the caveatra. “They have destroyed the troichin and the Klarven will no longer respond to our commands. They also appear to be able to circumvent our special weapons and guide them down onto our own forces.”

“Push our main body of adelshaut towards them in a mass formation. Until then, merely try to delay them,” the senior patripure ordered after a gestalt discussion by the caveatra. “Bring the border guardians from the edges of the echtra and form them into an attack force to hit the enemy when we stop them.”

“It shall be done, my liege!” the adelshaut acknowledged and hurried out.

“This is a most dangerous time for us, my patripures,” the senior stated.

“Agreed, this enemy are most cunning and have read us well.”

“Yet we shall prevail!”

“We had better,” another patripure stated.

“They’re digging in,” Jemima reported to Kordanta. “We suspect they’re bringing up everything they can to stop us, but need to hold us in place.”

“Start digging in ourselves,” Kordanta ordered. “Casualties?”

“Light. Mostly from their plasma weapons. Their main aim so far has been to close with us, which was a tactical mistake due to the new ammunition and the Mazdani and Athenian volunteers being more than capable of taking an adelshaut down.

“That’s going to change soon; I think we have their attention now.”

“Aye,” Roxanne nodded. “Permission to join the Mazdani?”

“By all means, Mage Roxanne. They’ve been waiting for you since we came through. Seems you’re quite a legend with them.”

“Probably because she practices her blade work with them and they struggle to keep up with her,” Arch chuckled.

“They’re perfect speed training for me as, other than Oonagh amongst our forces, there’s no one else fast enough to do that.”

“Is she ready?” Kordanta asked.

“As ready as we could get her in the short time we had, yes.” Roxanne confirmed.

“Good, now off you go and have fun,” Kordanta chuckled grimly.

“I’m gone, good luck.”

An hour later the entire column was dug in and under fanatical attack by the Vultoqi who were for once not just charging in, but constantly probing for weaknesses.

Casualties also began to mount on both sides as quarter was neither asked for nor given. Outside the column, the wolves were, for the most part, using their dash and slash tactics. They were causing the adelshaut no end of problems because, initially, they did not see the wolves as a threat ... or intelligent. Yet casualties were mounting for the wolves as well, mostly in the inexperienced pack members. Their numbers were however bolstered by the trickle of volunteers still coming through the open portal that was being, for now, ignored by the Vultoqi as they tried to get in amongst the Allied troops and essentially kill them all.

‘A large mass of adelshaut are coming around the side of this echtra thing and will intercept the column, ‘ Nadja informed Marja.

‘How big a mass?‘

‘Several thousand. If they hit the flank of the column in strength, they might breach it, ‘ she replied after a few seconds.

‘This is our time; they go this far, no further!‘

‘Lead us, my Alpha!‘

The entire expanded pack turned as one and raced towards where the adelshaut were moving rapidly towards the column and coalesced around Marja until they were all together and then put on a burst of speed as they charged en-masse into the adelshaut’s unguarded flank.

“Wolves are attacking a Vultoqi flanking movement,” Abi announced to Kordanta and Arch in the increasingly tense command group.

“How many adelshaut?” Arch asked.

“Estimated three thousand, with more coming around the edge of the echtra.”