It was still dark outside when Seltana left her home, closing the door and heading to the station where a train was already waiting, rumbling like a snoring old man. It wasn't the still-popular and by now widespread steam engines, but one of the Avalonian exclusives, running on something the Sovereign called diesel. It was not only more robust, with a completely different design, but it was also stronger, able to travel much further without maintenance or refills, and it was, for now, strictly in military usage.

She watched as she walked past the long carts attached to it, especially the two, lying down mechs at the back, ready to be transported to Avalon's Pride. Scanning the platform, it was already alive with the motion, figures of soldiers marching and officers calling out names and cargo tallies, checking it all before boarding the passenger carts at the front. Wearing her uniform, Seltana adjusted the strap of her pack across her shoulder as she stepped through the checkpoint, leading her towards the assigned coach for officers.

"Identification," the sentry at the gate said, stopping everybody, even if he could recognize them by face. It was protocol, and the army took it extremely seriously.

"Here," she handed over her documents, which she had already at hand, perfectly folded. It took a few glances before she received a brisk salute in return as the guard checked and stamped her papers.

"Welcome aboard, Lieutenant Seltana. As per the orders, you are to be assigned to the command section, car three, cabin 10-B-1. The Sovereign Protects Us All."

"The Sovereign Protects," she answered, returning the salute, her voice just as formal as the sentry's as she began walking past him, entering the cordoned-off military platform.

Stepping inside the train, the air was noticeably warmer than outside. While strolling through the narrow corridor, looking for her cabin, she passed rows of officers who had already filled their seats, talking and working at the same time. From their clothes and patches, she could tell they were artillery specialists, mostly wearing brown coats. In contrast, the logistics clerks wore yellow, poring over ledgers as thick as a codex, while the dedicated medics she saw wore white garments with striking, red accents.

Finally, after almost making it to the second car, Seltana found her assigned seat and set her pack down. Through the window, she watched the lights of the city as Avalon was still asleep. She could help herself but smile faintly, remembering how she was when they arrived here... And how they all are today. With that in mind, she then drew the curtain as it was enough thinking about the past, and it was time to think ahead.

A moment later, the train lurched forward, being much more powerful than the steam engines many around the continent were still just getting used to. It took only a few minutes for the massive city to fall away, replaced by the dark, unlit plains. Leaning back, Seltana reached for her orders, going over what kind of role and life was waiting for her this coming winter. At least, she had the experience while serving with General Oleg, who was commanding the Third Pass this coming winter. Still, being sent to serve under a different general... she was a bit nervous. But it shouldn't be difficult. Reading, she had been officially assigned as Field Coordination Officer to the fortress, directly serving under General Lucca. Her job was to bring his plans to reality, ensuring that she translated his orders into action across the various departments. It included the artillery placement, supply distribution, and troop rotations, all of which would pass through her before reaching the ground officers. It seemed that the General was aware of her strengths and was already utilizing them as such...

By the time she finished reading, the landscape outside began shifting as the sun finally rose from the east. By the time the first sunlight shone into her cabin, the train had just entered the foothills of the mountains, overshadowing everything in her view.

It was also the home of the Sovereign, which she had never really visited before. What she knew, she knew from Oleg, having so many talks and nights spent with him, that Rashira was getting the wrong ideas. Still, seeing the old fortress that was Leon's childhood home, and the one that stood guard against the monsters for a long time, it was still a majestic fortress. Even if it had to change a lot... Especially in the past years, as their train simply entered from the south-facing gate, rumbling through the middle, exiting in the north, going past the first wall, and entering Avalon's Pass.

The land that, in the past, was often the same channel that funneled all the monsters towards Avalon was now utterly changed and transformed to the better. The reinforced railway was heading straight ahead, cutting through the previously deadly landscape. Looking out, she could see the sentry outposts, towers built on the cliffside, leading up right to the Gods' Formation... To something very few on the continent even know exists.

"By the Gods..." She muttered, seeing it for the first time. The gigantic, slowly rotating and glowing spell, that was said to be the work of their Gods... It was incredible. Even more so than the favorite toys of his late father.

And to ride through it was an experience in itself, even if she could feel nothing. The fact that Leon was not only daring to go back and forth, traversing it without fear, was one thing. To establish a foothold beyond it? Now that was something else, but she liked the idea. She liked the thought of defying a barrier made by the Gods and erecting your own, telling them their work no longer operates as intended. When the train finally rolled to a stop, the rumble of its brakes echoed strongly within the mountain walls. Listening to it bouncing back and forth, Seltana stepped down onto the platform and felt the much colder air hit her face immediately.

"Lieutenant Seltana!" a voice called from near her. As she turned, she saw a young adjutant approaching, and by the markings on her shoulders, she was a lieutenant like herself, but at least a few years younger, a notebook clutched to her chest.

"My name is Rose," She stated, smiling while saluting, her black hair tucked under her military cap. "I am assigned to be your personal aid! Please, follow me. General Lucca awaits you in the command tower," she explained, "He asked me to escort you there the moment your train had arrived."

This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

"Then let's not keep him waiting," she nodded, falling into step beside her.

The path into the fortress was an interesting one, as they directly entered the wall itself, which was hollow inside, housing not only the troops but also at least a hundred corridors and stairs, leading from one place to another. It was... an exercise in itself to reach from A to B... But at least it kept everybody fit. It took them fifteen minutes to go through the labyrinth, forcing Seltana to start memorizing the route before they reached the upper level. She found Lucca already waiting near the observation platform, his greatcoat flapping behind him in the strong wind, his posture straight, as he watched the massive, open planes before them, bathed in the golden morning sunrise. It was... a beautiful sight, if one managed to ignore the fact that this was the place from where the beasts were coming.

"..." He turned when he heard their arrival, watching as the two saluted, his expression remaining unreadable. "Lieutenant," he nodded finally, focusing on Seltana, "welcome to Avalon's Pride."

"An honor to serve, General," she answered promptly, examining the ancient man's expression, knowing something that many civilians did not: he had been alive for hundreds of years already... It just made her brain tick, wanting to know how it was back then, but she was unable to ask such questions, at least for now.

"I hope to live up to that honor," He nodded, gesturing toward the horizon. "Make sure you remain on your toes, Seltana. I demand vigilance from all my troops... Your duty will be to keep every piece of this place moving as it should: supplies, artillery, and communication. You'll answer directly to me, and you will decide the order in which to present the reports and complaints from those under my command. Serve well, and you will be fast-tracked to a commanding position."

"I understand," she answered, her heart beating faster all of a sudden. It's no wonder she was assigned to this position, despite her somewhat lower rank. "You'll have my full efficiency. Always."

"I expect nothing less," Lucca replied, then, after a pause, his tone softened slightly. "I am afraid we will have an eventful winter ahead of us... so be prepared."

"General?" Seltana asked, flinching when hearing him.

"The First Sovereign is going to stay here this winter... And I will be honest..." He shrugged, turning towards the treelines in the distance, "Usually, wherever he is, something always seems to happen. I fear that he has an undiscovered ability to feel when he is needed to solve an issue..."

"So... we are expecting a massive issue this winter?" She asked, stepping next to the General, watching the beasts' homeland.

"We aren't... but I do. I usually do..."

"Meaning, we all do."

"Heh," Lucca chuckled, finally nodding his head, "True..."

... .... ......

Back in Avalon, Arthur sat in his father's chair, occupying his old office, which now belonged to him. Many times, he couldn't help but touch its surface, where he could still see the scuffs left by his drafting tools, the indentations where he must have struck his pen against the edge when thinking... doing it repeatedly... Whenever Arthur imagined it, he felt that it was impossible to live up to his Father's legacy.

"Son, make it your own." He said, grinning as he left it to him, and since then, he never barged in, not even from habit. Not once... He actually handed down Avalon to him without question. "Haaaah..." He sighed, "Dad... Your Shock & Awe mania, to even shock me... Tsk...!"

Shaking his head, he forced himself to focus, looking back at the charts of tedious calculations before him, mostly about prices, fuel ratios, and production models for the first line of Avalonian cars. It was boring work, but necessary... He couldn't let them be too cheap, but he also couldn't make them too expensive, and it was perhaps the most challenging part to finalize. For the first time, Arthur finally understood why Leon had always called governing the most uninteresting part of being a ruler...

He was just about to pick up his pen again when... The room grew… stiller. He couldn't hear the faint noise from the courtyard outside anymore... Even the ticking of the clock in the room had stopped... Then came the pain.

It struck him like a spike of ice entering through the back of his skull, coming from the rear of his nape, sliding inward... slowly. It was sharp, immediate... Cruel. Arthur's hand snapped to his temple as the pen between his fingers fell out, clattering onto the desk, making him almost fall out of his chair. Yet, no matter what, the pain kept coming as it deepened, radiating downward through his spine by now, turning from cold to white-hot, searing and unrelenting, until his knees finally gave out. Falling over with the chair and all, his vision kept blurring, and he saw two at the same time, then three, then everything began to rotate... He wanted to call for help, but his voice was caught in his throat, turning into a choking sound. As he struggled on the carpet, the world around him seemed to dim, all the colors bleeding away, but it didn't turn either black or white... It was turning crimson.

"Blood... Human...? Mhmh... Your blood... Stinks..." a voice called out to him, and at first he thought that it was the old candy-man returning... but no. This voice was... inhuman. Deep and rough, like it learned to speak the human language despite not having the throat for it, "Servant... Bow to... me... Dominate... My world... Mine... Perish..."

Arthur couldn't tell who this one was, but it was evil... Pure... Evil. There was nothing in that voice that he could identify, only the roiling, animalistic desires coming along with it. Whoever it was, they wanted to have everything for themselves. This voice believed that it was its birthright in this world... Because everything was his. That he... or it was this world's rightful... God. Arthur almost blacked out when, finally, a breeze washed over him, pushing down the heat he was feeling, burning his marrow, helping to soothe the feeling, and also bringing along a new voice. One that he finally recognized.

"You can hear me now! Good… Good... Damn it...! I never expected it to find you... Damn it all!"

Arthur's lips parted to speak, but he couldn't talk, only gurgle, foamy saliva coming up his throat while blood flowed from his nose as he fought with himself to stay awake.

"We are running out of time…" Zah'Ratil's voice continued, "The control I have over Ignis weakens with every year... Arthur... I cannot hold it down for long... I cannot come to you..." The voice in his head wavered with exhaustion, as though it had been fighting to just keep the contact going, expelling the foreign mind from their connection, "I will send my… emissaries... Listen to them, Arthur. Hear them out… I beg you… For everyone's sake..."

Then, everything shattered, and the pain was back, but at least it was neither cold nor searingly hot. What Arthur saw through his swimming vision was the door to the office blasted open, a figure rushing in, as he began to feel Leyla's panic enter his consciousness.

"Arthur! Arthur!" She yelled over and over again, picking her brother up from the ground.

The thought that even though he couldn't cry for help... Yet her sister still heard him and rushed to his aid... It was enough to make him relax. And the moment he did so, Arthur had finally fallen unconscious.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.