Chapter 56: Orclands (Part 4)

After Oren's reincarnation, a new group was made for him to lead.

The entirety of his group died. Some of them almost got away from the orcs but were mysteriously taken down by some unknown force.

All 500 of them dead.

There was a mass ritual for them. It was not the spell.

The Circle of Light went outside. They saw this "new" group organized outside of their tent.

Yob: What is this?

Ganz: Angels, I believe?

Hero: You're half right. This group is all of Oren's men reincarnated into Angels! I call them "Celestials."

They wear Angel's Full Armor and High Helms that cover their entire faces. They also have Angel Wings that allows them to fly.

Gnom: Did you fuse their corpses too? Instead of resurrecting them?

Hero: ... A lot of them had bodies that cannot be resurrected anymore.

Gnik: What in the world are you trying to do Hero?

Yuon: I think they're similar to Undead, aren't they?

Hero looked at Yuon intently. He was right.

These are not the same people anymore. We reincarnated them using holy energies.

Ironic as it sounds, they are like the Holy type of Undead.

Nep: Tero and I will be going back. We have no interest in this matter.

Those two never said a lot in these meetings. They just left.

Yobab: I believe this might turn good in the end. Instead of just burying our dead, we can just revive them as the Undead do.

Yobob: What? Do you hear yourself right now?

Yob: What has gotten into you, Brother?

Yobab: If we are angering the gods, they would have smitten us by now. I believe that they are approving Hero's idea."

Gnom: We are not sure of that.

Hero: Shall we test it?

Gnik: What do you mean?

Hero: Let's have them try to take down those orcs hiding in the forests.

Ganz is suddenly more interested.

Ganz: I think that's the best line you have said this night.

Hero: Oren.

Oren: Yes...

Hero: Go take down those Savage Orcs. They were the ones who killed you when you were human.

Oren: Yes... Retribution...

Oren's huge glistening body lighted up the night. The Celestials followed him as they made their way to the forests.

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(Orcs POV)

Savage Orc: "Ey... Wake up!"

Savage Orc 2: "What... Is it morning already?"

Savage Orc 1: "No..."

Savage Orc 2: "Then where the hell is all that light coming from?"

Savage Orc 1: "Unbelievable..."

Savage Orc 2: "Wha-!?"

A huge angelic figure came into sight. It floated above the forests.

Savage Orc Captain: "Sh-shoot it down!"

We fired arrows at the unknown monster, spells too.

! ! !

The orc mages that were with them released their most potent spells, but it didn't even scratch the armor of the Angelic monster.

Savage Orc Captain 2: "We're under attack!"

Savage Orc Captain 1: "To arms!"

Savage Orc Captain 3: "What!?"

Savage Orc Captain 2: "They're coming from the sky!"

They thought they were stars falling from the heavens. Countless angels descended upon them. They were cut down without mercy.

Yeknom: "Do not falter!"

Yeknom, the Savage Orc Lord, was present. He and his group of elite Savage Orcs were taking down the angels that came close enough to attack.

Yeknom: "Keep at it! Our army is almost here!"

They tried to fight stubbornly against the relentless Celestials that were raining attacks on them.

The orcs that were hiding in the trees cannot hide anymore. The light coming from the angelic figure above them was too bright.

The archers were wiped out in a few minutes.

Yeknom: "Damn it!"

A sword of a Celestial hit Yeknom; It was a holy element weapon that burns the skin of any mortal being.

Yeknom: "Grrr... Take this!"

He grabbed the sword that was stabbed into his left shoulder and pulled the Celestial close enough to be crushed by his right fist.

The Celestial's body vaporizes into thin air. It left only a few traces of light.

After a few more minutes, the fighting looked grave for the orcs. The Celestials would swoop down on the panicked orcs non-stop.

If the orcs strike back, they just fly away. The light that they produced also blinded these orcs that were used to the night.

Savage Orc Captain 1: "We have to go back!"

Savage Orc Captain 2: "Yeknom!"

Yeknom: "Hah... Damn it! Let's go back!"

The orcs were running.

Oren: You... are not... getting away...

!

He put his two hands together to produce a ball of holy energy. It grew brighter and brighter.

It was like a miniature sun.

Savage Orc 1: "What is that?"

Savage Orc 2: "Don't look back! Just run!"

The Celestials stopped their attack and flew beside Oren.

Savage Orc 3: "They've stopped?"

Savage Orc 4: "What's going to happen?"

Some of the orcs stopped in their tracks to check what was happening.

Yeknom: "Fools! RUN!"

....

From the ball of holy energies came thousands of Holy Arrows. It chased its targets mercilessly until they hit them.

Savage Orc 1: "Guhah!!!"

Savage Orc 2: Arghhh!!!!"

Savage Orc 3: "Noo-!!!"

The screams of the orcs were now the one resounding in the forests this time.

Yeknom: "Holy- What in the oblivion is this?"

Yeknom was able to move far enough from the range of the spell.

He saw the entire Orc Warband that was assigned to the forest, fall to the countless Holy Arrows.

The Giant Angel, who was like 20 feet high, floated mightily above them. Some of his men were scared enough to be paralyzed.

Yeknom: "We cannot beat that thing without help."

Savage Orc Captain: "Let us return to the camp, Yeknom."

Yeknom: "Yes..."

After the small victory they had earlier, they suffered a crushing defeat a few hours later.

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(Hero POV)

Hero: "What do you think of them now?"

Ganz: "That Angel... It did not have that spell before."

Yob: "They turned out to be more powerful than their original states."

Hero: "You see, this is the evolution of the Paladins. They learn unique spells, depending on the ones they had when they were alive. This form is what awaits us once we finish our human lives!"

The other Paladin Lords is now being wary of Hero's real intention. Nevertheless, he was still the commander of the army.

Yobab: "You have my vote. I agree with this. If I die, I'll happily become a Crusade Avenger."

Yobob: "What are you thinking!? He might have sacrificed Oren for this insanity!"

Yobab: "I'm old, Brother. I cannot fight like I was 40 years ago. I feel it... My end is near, but I don't want to rot in the ground."

Yob: "Let him be, Yobob. I'll think of it too. We can't just dismiss the entire idea."

Yobob: "You can then speak to me when you decided to cancel this whole plan, Hero."

Yobob went back to the beach camp.

Hero: "Gnom and Gnik?"

Gnom: "Hmmm... We came to the Circle of Light to gain strength."

Gnik: "We accept your plan. You have our approval. We will serve as Crusade Avengers when we die."

Ganz: "Do not worry about my answer, Hero. I won't die. Hahaha!"

Hero: "I didn't expect you to give one, anyway."

Ganz laugh echoed into the night. I think this whole thing amused him. He sees everyone around him weaker than him.

Seeing his comrades trying to get more power must look desperate from his point of view.

Yobab: Yob, talk to our brother Yobob. He must be angry because of I accepter all of this easily.

Yob: "Okay."

These three are brothers that came from a powerful Paladin family.

Their fathers and grandfathers are legends that took down mighty Undead centuries ago.

Some of them even fought against the Skeleton Kings of their time.

Hero: "Yuon?"

Yuon: "Yes?"

Hero: "What was bothering you earlier?"

Yuon: "I let my guard down before. That Savage Orc Lord put me in a near-death situation. I never felt it before, so I was terrified."

Hero: "Then I suggest you calm down now. Because you know... You already have a life after death."

Yuon looks at Oren floating in the night sky.

Hero: As a Crusade Avenger.

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(Orcs POV)

Rogar Axelord has come.

Yeknom's group meet their Warband.

Their group looks like a squad compared to an army. They lost a considerable number of their fighting force.

Rogar: "Yeknom! You fool!"

Yeknom: "Who are you calling fool, small bastard!"

Rogar was not an average orc, and Yeknom was bigger than most Orc Lords.

Rogar: "How could you let them take the Forest of Gugnar!? That is the only way to get into the Orclands!"

Yeknom wanted to get angry, but he knew this was his fault.

He calmed down and explained the situation.

Yeknom: "We still have the Fortress of Rog. You need to help me push them back from there."

Rogar: "That is my father's legacy. No foreign army has been able to breach the Fortress of Rog. That is where my father fought 3000 Sea-people with his army of 1000."

Yeknom: "A mighty feat, but we might need to do a much greater one this time."

Rogar: "What is it that you are so worried about?"

Yeknom: "They have a monster on their side... A huge Angel that rains death on our army from above."

Rogar: "Did you not try to shoot it down?"

Yeknom: "Spells... Fire and arrows did not hurt it at all. We might need to take it down with something else."

Rogar was thinking. You can see him tapping on his two battle-axes.

Rogar: "I think... I have something that can take it down."

Yeknom: What is it?"

Rogar: "Do not worry. We used it before to take down a huge hydra that came from the beach. That was years ago."

Yeknom: "If you don't want to say, it's fine. Just don't screw it up. We can't go back to the Orclands if we get beaten here."

Rogar: "You're damn right; we can't."

Yeknom looks at the sky. The morning sun was just rising.

Yeknom: "Any news from the Warchief?"

Rogar came from a small town near the border of the Orclands. He must've have gotten in touch with the Warchief's men.

Rogar: "It seems like he is already making his move."

Yeknom: "What do you mean?"

Rogar: "He's gathering his old allies. It seems like his spies were able to relay the story of the huge angel monster."

Yeknom: "Are you talking about-"

Rogar: "It's better to keep it to ourselves. We don't know if the spies are listening to us from somewhere."

Yeknom: "Yeah, sorry."

Yeknom's group joined Rogar's Warband and went to fortify the Fortress of Rog.

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(??? POV)

A mysterious cloaked person was running around the Forest of Gugnar.

???: "I knew it..."

He looked at the corpses of the Orcs that were littered around the forest.

???: "They would fall because of their carelessness. The orcs had the chance to get themselves a secure homeland. Instead, they just fought against each other all these years."

He looked at the sky.

???: "Now their end is near."

Celestial: "..."

A Celestial spotted him.

???: "Hmmph."

Celestial: "...!"

It rushed towards him at an inhuman speed. Holy sword in hand, it would strike down the cloaked person.

Except it did not.

???: "You are too young."

Celestial: "guhhh..."

An unknown substance penetrated its body, and it was decaying into nothingness.

???: "I wonder if their leader is worth fighting with..."

He took off. It was as if no one was there. The body of the Celestial disappeared.