"Tower 7 is under attack! We need reinforcements immediately."

Rapid bursts of gunfire drowned out the static on the operative's line; the explosion of a nearby grenade broke the stream of crackling reports.

"What do you mean...?" One of the personnel manning the communications suite was looking at the Gray Fox.

"I don't know what happened. They were suddenly inside our zone. Two men were thrown out of the tower."

"What of the construct squad?" Winston Norton took the microphone from one of the communications personnel.

"All of them disabled. The attackers destroyed the control vehicle."

"How many of them are inside the tower?"

"One of the men saw three people going in. We can't push through the tower. They've set up some kind of wall... made of light. None of our weapons are going through it."

"Continue surrounding the tower." Norton turned his gaze to the Gray Fox and gave two nods to him. "Better armaments will be sent your way."

"Yes, Commander. Over."

†

Twelve disks arrived at a corner near the besieged Southwest Tower. Blue pillars of light went down and left. The first eleven columns were pretty much of the same size; the last of them was slightly larger. Trevalyn Faricy appeared in the lead; his left arm emitting a green glow that coursed like veins. A mask with two large flared air outlets covered his head. A coarse breath was released from the facial apparatus when the crime lord surveyed the area around the tower.

The report was true: the seventh tower was indeed taken over.

It was a sight of both disbelief and awe: what guarded the tower was a layer of bright light, sculpted before the doorway to the ancient fortification.

"No matter. Guide the disks to the wounded." Winston saw the operative leave the newly-arrived group. "This is a rather interesting turn of events Master, won't you agree?"

"Such power. Both wonderful and terrible to behold." Trevalyn stood still and stretched his right arm towards the wall of light. "I would rather not have an adversary such as this but, I am not letting anyone or anything get in the way of the dream."

Trevalyn's men stood still in front of it. A formation of constructs facing opposite directions was spotted; none of the units were responsive as the transport that supposedly housed their controls was reduced to a burning wreck beside the strangely-shielded structure. A pair of small cannons the initial guards brought with them was set aside; shell casings were littered around them. One of the men approached Winston Norton, who as at the right of the crime lord.

"Sir." A quick salute was made before he continued, "We have tried everything. This... barrier was too much."

Trevalyn gave the order, almost paying no mind to what the operative said:

"Knight, crush this barrier with your sword."

Behind the group was a large, tall and, armored man who walked ahead to face the barrier. No words escaped from him; only a slight groan was heard coming out of his helmed face. He raised a greatsword whose blade was made of a dark metal; a red glow converged at the tip, rapidly covering the weapon up to the hilt. The blade hammered at the barrier with a crash; its resulting shockwaves kicked dust up in the air and even caused some of Trevalyn's men to stumble. There was a gash formed on the otherwise perfect layer of light, and it faded in mere moments. The armored warrior wasted no thought and continued to strike at the wall of brilliance; his strength was met with equal defiance. The other warriors who were with Trevalyn seemed unaffected by the ear-shattering episode that was happening; red lights coming from a forehead-installed apparatus glowed even brighter.

"It looks that even your strongest puppet could not shatter this... inconvenience." Norton's voice ended with a hiss.

"They are surrounded. They will be forced to come out given their circumstances." Trevalyn continued to watch his minion work his way through the shield of energy. "I'm sure that they will not keep this to a standstill. There has to be a source of energy that keeps this barrier intact. It won't take too long before it is exhausted."

"Would it have been better if we used the nether monster to deal with this?"

"Our creature's task is to divert or weaken the Imperial Army outside the gates - a bigger and more immediate threat compared to this wall of light."

The warrior continued to pummel through; his strength never seemed to wane even as the steel of his blade began to show thin webs of pulsating red. Each strike caused everything nearby to tremble and rock. Trevalyn, Winston and the remaining nine warriors stood behind; only the protection of their headwear saved their ears from going completely deaf. The last blow managed to wound the wall of light; the tip of the armored man's greatsword pierced through, but could not finish the job of slicing all the way to the ground. A red glow was seen in the metal: the light barrier was attempting to consume this object attempting to break it.

An explosion was heard from the top of the tower, followed by smoke coming out of one of the crystals that empowered the Wizards' Walls' southwestern reach. Trevalyn saw sparks appear and dissipate from the barrier that sealed Luminberg's nearby exit. The wall that protected the seventh tower started to fade; small dots of light made an upward journey before disappearing.

"The condenser!"

"You have given your foes far less credit, Master." Winston looked at the top of Tower 7; small fires began to shoot out of the destroyed mechanism.

"This is not something you should make fun of, Mister Norton. Ready the men."

Winston pulled the bolt of this firearm and waved a hand for the rest of the Tower 7 guards to follow him. Figures shot out from two of the windows, sending pieces of glass and broken wood down below. One shadow landed and took to the main road; the other launched itself at Winston with a foot sole to his face. He was sent crashing to the floor; his rifle spun away beyond arm's reach. What happened took place so fast; his eyes lost sight for a moment. The one who kicked him to the ground held a boy's visage, but its voice was that of a gleeful madman saying:

"It's been a long time, Green Eye. Let's play."

"Who are you?" Winston felt another foot digging on his chest, causing air to burst out of his mouth.

"Catch me, and you'll find out. You're not that slow, are you?"

The boy leapt, tumbled and landed at different places, leaving Norton's men unable to fix their sights on him before he disappeared into an alley.

Winston collected himself on all fours, gulping more air before he picked up his gun from the ground. He stood up, looked at Trevalyn and got a nod from the crime lord to go after the one who kicked him. The crime lord's nine personal warriors then moved to pursue the second shadow that went the other way. All that were left with Trevalyn were some of the original Tower 7 guards, and the one he called 'Knight'.

†

There were three intruders, he thought. Two of them fled, which meant the last one was still inside the structure. He raised his right hand and revealed an open palm; the remaining men responded by surrounding the entrance to Luminberg's southwest tower. Guns were aimed at the door. There was a click heard, followed by the door revealing a little opening. A wave of brightness suddenly escaped.

They wasted no time. The men opened fire at whatever was behind the doorway; bullets pierced through the frame, punching several holes at once. Sounds of objects being singed made a cacophony of destruction that echoed in the tower interior. The doorway, riddled with so many bullets, crumbled on its own. A figure of a robed, or cloaked person drowned in complete light was revealed; its hands hidden by large sleeves. Holes made by bullets that failed to pierce the entity inside what was shown as a bubble of light disappeared and transformed into several thin lances that surged outward.

To everyone's shock, bright beams headed towards their firearms at such speed none of their eyes managed to follow. Their weapons became too hot to continue handling that the men screamed as they threw their guns away. They knelt in sheer terror of looking at their scalded palms and seeing their weapons go up in flames, becoming something that resembled molten slag. Some of them ran pell-mell, flailing their hands as they sped. The rest lay on the ground in pain.

"How foolish of I to think that you and your company were swept away." Trevalyn aimed the gun component of his mechanical arm at the figure. "I should have dealt with you accordingly back in the forest."

"That creature. Was it your doing?"

The light around the figure decreased in intensity, revealing a woman's face dressed in what seemed to be church garb. She continued:

"Are you the one also responsible for what is happening?"

"Oh." Trevalyn lowered his weapon. "Aren't you here to stop me?"

"I do not know what you are talking about. If all this is your doing, then I have to."

"I am a humble citizen of the Empire who wishes the best for this country. This is only a small price to pay for the greatness we will all share."

"Why resort to villainy, if your aims are for the good of all?"

"Because no one will understand. My vision is the best this empire will have. I am the one who will awaken the sleeping power we have all ignored, unlike you who hid from the world."

"This is all... this... this is madness!" The woman spoke as if she kept herself from raising her voice higher.

"Madness, you say? I beg to differ. Perhaps you will understand once you see the future yourself. Seeing this power of yours, I have no intention to waste your talents as my enemy. Why not join me? You and your friends will benefit from this alliance."

There was silence; the woman stared at Trevalyn, trying to meet his gaze. Her expression was stern and constant like her stance. Both stood still: moments passed as neither uttered a word. Trevalyn proceeded to feel for his left arm before he resumed speaking.

"I take your silence as refusal."

Trevalyn was treading on dangerous ground; one wrong move and this illuminating stranger could incinerate him the way his men's weapons were destroyed. It was not possible for him to make this enemy look the other way. He failed at the conversation; there was one thing left for him to do. He pulled the bolt on the cannon component of his metal arm, chambering a single shot. This woman's shield of energy could be pierced point blank - or so he hoped.

"Since you will stand in my way, I will have to get rid of you!"

The crime lord fired his weapon; a sharp-pointed canister flew fast towards the woman. There was an explosion, followed by an envelope of fire that engulfed the adversary's body. That should have taken care of this problem; it was simply impossible for anyone to survive a hit from such a close distance.

Until a beam of light came for him at an upward slant.

A keen swish was heard before Trevalyn realized that the light has cleanly cut off his entire lower left arm. The cartridges stored inside cooked off; the resulting shockwave threw him off his feet. Trevalyn tumbled thrice before he settled. He pushed himself up using his remaining arm and looked at the sparks and small fires that came out of the mechanical stump he had.

Trevalyn was close to paying dearly for that foolhardy decision. He should have just used his pawn to deal with the woman; it may have done the job with no problem or at least, but buy him time to escape from this monster that he infuriated. He got up, knees shaking from the shock he received. He most likely sustained burns, and thought that he called it right not to store too many explosive bullets.

Not a sign of injury could be seen on his enemy; the shield of light was raised unblemished. The woman stepped forward; she kept the softness in her voice when she said:

"I am sorry. I mean no harm to you, but you left me with no choice."

There was no way he could live to see the demise of this impossible opponent if he stayed too long. A quavering, ringing voice was forced out of Trevalyn's breathing mask saying:

"N... n-Knight, protect me."

The towering man who had been inert all throughout lifted his sword and charged at the enemy.