It was now just one week before the battle was set to start, and the first few formations of the Arcfiran Confederated Tribes (ACT, for short) began to filter onto their side of the battlefield. They were arriving not all as one, but as a gradual trickle of groups, all coming in at essentially random times. The battle would not start until all were accounted for, and while the Great Tree could have ordered his loyal slaves to throw themselves in right now, the last vestiges of his sanity and common sense prevented him from doing so.

At first, their numbers were small, equating to, at most, an equivalent of 30% of Darksol’s forces in terms of bodies alone. However, as more formations arrived, they quickly equaled 50% of Darksol’s number, then 70%, and then soon after reached roughly 110%. Of course, that number, though constantly climbing, was not completely accurate. After all, Darksol’s infantry and artillery were being supplemented with the Naga, who even now prowled the ponds, rivers, and filled anti-tank ditches, just waiting for their chance to strike.

Likewise, Darksol’s numerical inferiority was partially counteracted by the fact that Darksol now had land mines, razor wire, firearms, and even some damn fine howitzers and mortars. Finally, those already strange odds were even further altered by the obscene numbers of undead that were just begging to be unleashed. They would, of course, be brought to the field, but that would have to wait until just a day or two before the battle was set to begin.

After all, if Darksol showed that card too soon, it might force the Great Tree to reconsider his absolutely moronic plan, therefore preventing his entire collective force from essentially being obliterated in a single, decisive engagement. Speaking of obliteration, the undead supergun that bore a similar name had already been set up ahead of time, hidden away in a special part of the Dungeon and given a number of Dungeon Exits it could shoot through. This would be a true example of ‘off-the-map artillery’, just like what you would see from certain RTS games.

As the elves and plantoids arrived and set up their camp, Darksolian forces continued to fortify their position and ad more deadly danger to the few easily available approaches to their location. Minefields were set in place, as were other traps, such as the old reliable bear trap, random divots in the ground, punji stake pits, and of course more lines of razor wire. By the time the last of those forces loyal to the Great Tree arrived at the ACT main camp, Darksol had already made its own position nigh impossible to storm in a frontal assault, at least not without taking obscene numbers of casualties in the process.

As the last day before the battle was set to start arrived, the undead that had been waiting just inside the tree line and out of sight flooded onto the field, taking up their assigned positions and readying themselves for the fight that would come in but a few measly hours. By the time the ACT forces loyal to the narcissistic overgrown bonsai realized that the numbers were now slightly less overwhelmingly in their favor, it was too late to do anything about it. Five full 20 stack armies had arrived to aid the mortals loyal to Darksol, and now the formerly 6-1 numerical odds were now roughly only 4.6-1 in the ACT’s favor.

Still, that meant that the combined ACT forces were overwhelming superior in the number of bodies to throw at this problem, but that did not mean that they were superior in terms of tactics, strategy, logistics, technology, or experience. Darksol had its Dungeon, and with it came the ability to bring troops, supplies, and more to nearly any location with minimal effort, bypassing the normal logistical lines that most other armies would need. It was essentially like they had the ability to make things back at home and then teleport them exactly where they were needed, with certain limitations, of course.

Because of all of that, both that which was listed in this chapter and what was told in the previous one, Darksol’s military men and women here in this place had no fear whatsoever that they would need to die on this field. After all, they had been given express permission by Kain himself to fall back into the Dungeons in the off chance that their defenses proved to not be enough and they risked being overrun.

Kain, despite espousing the idea that he was, in no uncertain terms, the ‘bad guy’, still cared for his people. He was not going to let this battle turn into a slaughter of his own side’s forces, so of course, he would prepare a contingency plan in the event that all of the planning and preparations proved to not be nearly enough. Having his mortal people withdraw under such conditions was merely phase one of such a contingency plan, and there was another part, phase two, that would happen regardless of whether the battle was being won or being lost.

That Phase two of the contingency plan wasn’t phase two of the main battle plan, but it did have a different place in that plan. If the battle turned out to be in Darksol’s favor and a retreat was not in order, that part of the plan would come into play when it was needed, which Kain himself partially hoped would not happen. Despite all of the planning and preparations that had gone into this battle-to-come, even Kain knew that no plan, no matter how well thought out or how well-orchestrated, survives contact with the enemy.

As such, the odds of him needing to put that part of the battle plan into motion would be small, but not zero. As much as he wished to avoid that, he knew that there were quite a few that desperately wanted it to become reality. Maybe he would have it enacted regardless of how things turned out, or maybe he would allow hope to be the first step on the road to disappointment. In the end, he could not see the future, but he could see that the upcoming fight would be brutal, destructive, and filled with more death, blood, and gore than many had seen in quite a long, long time.