Exile came to a stop at the top of a sand dune and glanced at the chaos in front of him. There was a city with marvellous golden painted sandstone walls sprawling across both sides of the river. However, the noise coming from that area painted a much uglier scene than the grandeur of the walls and the city's location. 

Men, women and children were shouting and screaming amongst the sounds of steel clashing on steel and the thrumming of bowstrings. Exile took a deep breath as he analysed the scene. It looked like the Skardian army had not given up on the city yet, as they continued to pound on the gates with a battering ram. 

'This is a disaster. They're totally outnumbered...' The sand outside of the walls was dyed red with Skardian blood. But Exile's eyes focused on the people with golden halos surrounding their bodies. There were three amongst the Skardian army, but a quick count revealed nine on the city walls alone.

'There could be more out of sight... They need to retreat now.' Exile let out a sigh as he checked his DP. '14/17... We need to do something quickly...' 

With Avatar having a price of 3 DP an hour, he knew that it would run dry quickly. Especially if he had to intervene with Miracles. 'Which one is Harik?' Exile frowned before activating Clairvoyance.'

His vision changed as his consciousness flew through the air and over the battle, as if it were a bird. Before it shot down to hover around a man barking orders near the ram. Exile groaned as he returned to his body. Harik Eraldsen was right in the thick of the battle. Getting him out of there safely would be a tall order!

The good news was that it would be fairly simple to get there. Exile took off at a sprint, heading directly for the ram. He grit his teeth as the sea of warriors spread out before him. Without missing a beat, he ran straight through their packed together bodies. Although he did not see it, several of the people he passed through frowned at that moment. As if they had sensed his presence.

The eyes of the player on top of the wall turned to focus on him as he sped through the crowd. The player snarled as he raised his hands to point towards Exile. A golden orb appeared between his two palms and began to rotate violently. In the next moment, it released one smaller orb after another!

Ten orbs were sent flying at set intervals towards Exile. His eyes widened at the spell coming towards him. He raised his shield to intercept them as he continued running. His arms trembled as each one slammed into the shield. The force behind the spell was greater than anything he had experienced so far!

[You have been attacked by Player: Parthus]

[Divine Power Damage Check… Enemy Authority 21. Authority of area struck 17. Divine Power Inferior. -5 HP]

[-5 HP]

[-5 HP]

Exile's expression turned grim as a total of seven of the orbs struck him. The total damage dealt was -35 HP! 'What the hell kind of spell is that!' Exile's mind was racing, as he had never seen an option for such a powerful spell if he discounted Cleansing Flame. However, the system soon sent him another shock!

[Aggressive action has been taken against you by Parthus, King of the Mirage Pantheon. Do you wish to declare a Holy War?]

Exile's mind went blank as he read the notification. As he came back to his senses, he narrowed his eyes as he stared at the figure on the wall. It was only then when he realised where he had seen the name Parthus before. 'He was on the list the developers put out. He was somewhere in the lower twenties of the rankings!' 

Although he originally thought that he must have jumped up the rankings quite a bit, this short exchange told him otherwise. His attention shifted to the Holy War notification. 'What will happen if I say yes?' Exile frowned as he tried to figure out if it would bring any benefits or more problems. However, when he saw Parthus firing up another orb, just like before, he quickly replied yes to the notification!

[Local System Announcement! A Holy War has been initiated between Ragnarok Pantheon of Skardia and Mirage Pantheon of Sommerdan! Please choose a side to Ally with if you are not a member of either Pantheon!]

Exile froze as the few clouds in the sky suddenly parted! The sun seemed to become brighter as the sound of horns and war drums sounded from the sky! Golden lines formed above the battlefield until it took the shape of a behemoth gate. As the players stopped what they were doing to stare at the phenomenon, the NPC's continued the war around them as if nothing was happening!

Exile frowned as the gates swung open. Five golden beams of light shot down to land beside him, while another three landed on the other side of the city walls. He let out a slight smile as figures started to emerge from the golden pillars... Clay and the others had arrived! Just as he was about to call out to them. Another notification made its way into his mind.

[Select One Temporary Holy War bonus from the following:]

[Fanatical: All followers and non-believers on your side become fanatical in defeating their enemies. Non-believers sense your presence on the field of battle and become aware of your glorious name!]

[Heaven Sent: All players on your side receive a random +5 bonus to any stat!]

[Unyielding: All NPC's on your side are strengthened. Pushing them beyond their physical limits!]

Exile hissed as he read through the choices. There was only one among them that he had to have right now!

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