[Bone Fortress, 2345 hours Ice Faction: 8,884 Undead: 412]

Jun Li has activated [Recall: Nix].

Morti sat on his haunches, watching the mound of dirt before them. In the two days since Nix left, they flushed out the rest of the opposition from the Peril Burrough mountainous area. Additionally, they claimed the graveyard and added nearly two hundred people to their forces. Instead of forging ahead, they paused to strengthen their position; once the prisoners from Peril were executed, it was likely they'd be attacked by both the Honor and Courage Burroughs.

The old fire mage gripped his staff, staring at the ground like everyone else in their small group. After two minutes, he glanced up at Semmi. "He's coming, right?"

The blonde officer shrugged and looked at Jun Li. "Did you get some kind of message?"

Jun Li nodded without looking up. "It said that 'Nix has answered the call.' Could he have been sent somewhere else?"

Edi shook her head slightly; the Inferno Leader's death had come as a surprise to everyone. Neither Pon nor Morti could offer a solid explanation for his death. Immediately they grabbed a cleric to see if he could be resurrected, the entire camp breathed a sigh of relief when they learned he was on the standard 48 hour counter.

Ronnie stood next to Fajii, one hand resting casually on her shoulder. "Don't worry; he's coming."

As if on-demand, the mound of dirt shifted slightly. A moment later, a black nose pushed upward from the grave; two black paws thrust clawed through the dirt as the elongated head of a predator made its appearance.

/Inferno: Pon: The fuck is that thing?

It was black as night, with four dangerous-looking claws and teeth that were made for rending flesh. Its body was long and ended with a flesh-colored tail. A menacing growl filled the air as it spotted Morti and took a step toward him.

"Huh?" The Titan cub turned his head slightly, making his helm slide to one side. He reached up with a giant paw to straighten it out. He eyed the giant rat-like creature as it took a handful of steps toward him before collapsing lifelessly on the ground.

An instant later, the ground exploded upwards, showering the group in black dirt. Standing in the hole was a powerful looking skeleton, bathed in pale green flames. He studied the group with yellow eyes before bursting into laughter. "Got you!"

Morti's rumbling laugh joined in immediately. "That was scary, Nix."

/Inferno: Pon: Lame... I wasn't scared.

/Inferno: Semmi: Stepped in front of me though, very heroic Pon.

Nix caught the [Thine Enemey] ring Jun Li tossed him and promptly put it on. Instantly the skelly vanished to be replaced with his human form. "Missed you guys."

/Inferno: Wind: Um... Boss?

/Inferno: Semmi: Naked Nix strikes again.

/Inferno: Ronni: Very impressive, that's how you show up.

Fajii approached with the armor that she had prepared, waiting until he equipped it before wrapping him up in a hug. "Welcome back."

/Inferno: Jun Li: We've been waiting for your arrival to have another meeting. Semmi has prepared a brief for you to look at.

/Inferno: Duran: Welcome back, Rat-King! What was that thing?

/Inferno: Nix: Cross between an Orion and a Nether Rat. Awesome right?

/Inferno: Morti: Scary.

Nix stepped away from the group to hug Morti's big head. "Still able to use chat?"

Morti nodded. "Yep. Figured it out. I have a guild tag now and everything."

Nix scratched the cub's ears, smiling when Morti stuck a wet nose in his face. "While I was in Haven, Tai'Qui explained about the Insurrection mutation that elementals could access."

Pon finished dusting off the dirt that he'd been sprayed with as he remembered the form Nix used when fighting the Putrid beast. "Was it part of the Salamander branch?"

Nix nodded. "Apparently, its expiration ends in your death. Every spell you use hits you with backlash, and when the fight is done, it terminates the user."

The old mage shrugged nonchalantly. "Hit's like a damn freight train, though. We could barely scratch that thing before you started using it." Pon favored his friend with a grin. "I'd say it was worth it. Got you two days off. Bet you spent those getting drunk and eating Hyai's cooking."

"Ya got me. That's what I did."

*******************

Nix read the briefing while half-listening as Jun Li and Semmi started the meeting. Morti was sitting next to his father; they were nearly the same size while in bone bear form.

[Situation]

We are currently in control of the Peril Burrough. We've been carefully guarding our prisoners while fortifying our position. As long as they are alive, the Courage Burrough to our east cannot attack us. This is also the case with the Honor Burrough to our north, although the mountains will impede honor's ability to attack us by land.

After discussing it at length, we've decided that Bali's strategy is the most likely scenario. We believe that both Courage and Honor are currently empty, and the moment we step foot into Honor, we'll be facing a large force consisting of troops from Courage, Honor, Dawn, Misery, and Agony.

****Author's Note***

Going to recommend you reference the Bone Fortress Map in discord. There's a small error, where two Burroughs are named Honor. Only the snow Burrough should be Honor; the other would be the Courage Burrough. https://discord.gg/tCJXKTxCAU

*********************

[Objective]

We will take control of the Courage Burrough but will steer clear of the Honor Burrough. If both Burroughs are empty like we think, then we can use the Courage Burrough as a staging area without worrying about an attack from the three Burroughs bordering Honor. As long as we don't cross Honor's border, we can't accidentally claim it.

Nix finished his reading just as he felt the nudge of a soft muzzle against his arm. He stroked the Orion's sleek fur, causing it to purr like a house cat.

[Whisper: Nix to Del] Have you tried crossing the borders in Orion form?

[Whisper: Del to Nix] Yes. Semmi had me try it a few days ago. Unfortunately, I'm anchored here the same way everyone else is.

/Officer: Nix: I want to scout those two Burroughs to make sure they are empty. That's why I brought the puppet back with me from Haven. Puppets don't follow the same rules as far as borders because their owners aren't crossing.

/Officer: Semmi: In that case, you should do it now. We can hold off on claiming Peril while we gather intel.

/Officer: Jun Li: Wait... You stripped down and emptied your inventory to ensure you'd have a puppet?

/Officer: Nix: Yep.

/Officer: Wind: That's dedication, Boss.

/Officer: Sharl: Impressive work, Nix.

/Officer: Jun Li: What kinds of abilities does that puppet have?

/Officer: Nix: It's a Ravager, the loving union of Nether Rat and Orion. It should have Ice, Nether, and Pestilence immunity. Add to that a standard stealth and self-destruct. Honestly, it's only the second mutation puppet I've made. So I don't know what it can even do yet.

/Officer: Bali: I petition to test it first, Boss! As the only ranger here, I'm most adept in the woods.

/Officer: Nix: Petition noted and denied.

/Officer: Semmi: Once we take the Courage Burrough, we'll control another Graveyard. The next group of 12 Pillars will be able to come through. It's not ideal, but they should do what Nix did.

Ronnie laughed suddenly, her white teeth flashing a full smile. "This I gotta see."

/Officer: Jun Li: It sounds funny, but the ability to cross borders is going to change this war for us.

/Officer: Semmi: Going to make contact with Ducky?

/Officer: Nix: I'll scout the Burroughs to the North and East of us. After reporting back, I'll have Soup transport me to the Keep.

After the meeting, Nix walked back to his tent. Morti and his father were doing some sort of drill with Gil while the rest of the officers went their separate ways. It was decided they'd reconvene at Nix's tent at 0100 hours.

Del fell in step beside the Inferno Leader, her soft fur brushing against his leg while they walked. As was his habit, Nix stroked her sleek head. "When will Shae return?"

Nix shrugged slightly. "Not sure." In addition to acting as a liaison between the forces in and out of the Bone Fortress, the Salamander was regularly using her Meta flames on the hybrid egg. "Tai'Qui asked me to fuse Sindi and Nihlus with the Titan puppets they are inhabiting."

The Orion's green eyes focused on him for a long moment. "What would that entail?"

Nix entered his tent and took a seat on his bunk. There were two other cots close by, he assumed they belonged to Shae and Fajii. "I'd animate a puppet with the Dragon egg you are currently in."

"Do you want to do that?"

Nix shook his head and reclined on his bunk. "No. You'd be vulnerable again. I think it's a stupid idea."

Del eased onto the bunk near his feet and curled up in a ball. "Why would they want to do that?"

"They don't reside in a normal Emperor puppet like you. Those are Titan animations that I constructed at Khalam'Zur. They would combine the Titan/Dragon bloodline." Nix placed the large Ravager puppet on his chest and stared at it for a moment.

Del watched as the Ravager was inhabited, it stared at himself for a long moment. "What are you looking at?"

"Holy crap." Nix stared at the list of his own abilities. "This guy is badass."

[Ravager]

Abilities

Enhanced Vision: Thermal/Night

Complete Stealth.

Dominate: Rodent/Feline

Resistances

Immune to Pestilence

Immune to Fire Damage

Immune to Nether Damage.

Immune to Ice Damage.

The Orion watched as the Ravager jumped onto the floor of the tent. "What would you say if I wanted you to fuse me with a puppet?"

The Ravager spun in circles a few times and then began a series of complex movements. "This thing is agile." Nix stopped after a few minutes and turned his yellow eyes toward the Orion. "I'd say you should wait until we've dealt with Khione. If you still feel like that after the Ice Bitch is dead, then I will put you in something way better than that Orion."

"You will?"

Nix-Ravager nodded. "Sure... Now, jump down here and fight with me."