***

--- Outskirts of Dalko, Great Plains Region ---

Date: August 25th, 2026

Feeling the tremble from the airframe, General Krysist looked around the large beast that the Terrans call a C-130 cargo plane. It looked gray and cold. A sight he has never seen and is surprised at how normalized hovering on such a large flying machine was to these Terrains.

Not just with the Terrains but also with his Apostle, Frayen, and his new bodyguard and guardian, Malena. This is not the first time either of them was on such a wonder-machine.

“Feeling nervous, master?” Frayen asked, who sat next to him.

“Not at all,” Krysist said as he held his strap tightly.

“It is okay,” Malena said with a smirk. “It is terrifying for everyone for the first time.”

The General gave the Warrior-bunny a glare, implying that he was not terrified of being eighteen thousand feet in the air. He had no idea why anyone would be comfortable this high above the ground.

“You should learn not to be so controlling,” Malena commented. “It helps.”

“Knock it off,” Krysist ordered.

“I do have to agree with the Bunny on this one, master,” Frayen said.

“Do not dare to side with her,” Krysist said.

“Yes, master,” Frayen said.

“And stop calling me that,” Krysist ordered. He then glanced toward Malena and saw a glare that told him that she would never call him master. He is now regretting sitting between them and wished for this trip to end.

Hearing from the pilots that they are making their final approach to the quickly assembled airfield. With the news, the nearly hundred warriors, American, and his newly established personal guard prepare themselves.

He could feel the uneasiness between the two groups which is understandable. Both sides just fought a war against each other and now they have to save the world together. Regardless, he is thrilled to see the reformed Republican Army consolidating around his sister's rule and willing to fight by his side.

Feeling a strong turbulence as the aircraft descended, it landed. Being the first of many more aircraft to do so.

Once the ramp dropped, everyone marched off the aircraft. Waiting for the General was Captain Bailey of Vanguard-5, someone he has yet to meet however knew that the captain was a close friend to Sharpe and Colonel John Yang, the Ranger’s leader. “Can I help you two?”

“Sorry to rush you but we have a problem,” Bailey said. “One of yours actually.”

“One of mine?” Kysist asked.

“Correct,” Yang said. “Yesterday we detected eight thousand Legionaries inbound to this position. They set up camp a few kilometers from here but if they regroup during the night. When they break camp, they should be here in a few hours.”

“Few hours?” Malena said. “That should be plenty of time to deal with them with your technology.”

“That is the problem,” Frayen said.

“Technically, we are allies now,” Yang said. “I wouldn’t want to kill them just because their orders are out of date. However, I have my orders and I will not allow them to risk this operation. If they get too close to this position, I will order a bombing run on them.”

“So,” Krysist said. “You want me to convince them that we are on the same side?”

“They probably would believe you over us,” Bailey said.

“That could be a problem,” Krysist said. “As you all know, we do not like to stand down or give up a fight.”

“We all know,” Malena commented as she crossed her arms.

“I do have the Imperial Decree,” Krysist said. “This should be enough; however, the question is who will they be loyal to. These are frontier Legionaries. They fight against the Dark Races and Beasts mostly and if they have been out of contact with Sadera for a long period of time then they might still think they are winning the war. They may not like the news it brings.”

“That is your responsibility, General,” Yang said. “Vanguard-5 will escort you to them. You have two hours to convince them, or I am pulling the plug.”

“No worry,” Krysist informed the Centurion to set up camp and be ready for the rest of the Legion to arrive. Once the orders were given and everyone gathered their equipment, Malena, Frayen, and himself got into an Infantry Squad Vehicle and joined Vanguard-5.

Sitting inside the passenger seat, Krysist heard Bailey over the team radio.

“I was thinking," General,” Bailey said. “How is the enemy able to respond this quickly?”

“What do you mean?” Krysist asked. “If they do not know we are allies now, no Imperial would allow an enemy to give an inch of our territory.”

“Not what I mean,” Bailey said. “We have only been here for two days. How would the Imperial commander even know to counterattack us yet?”

The captain had a point. While the old Imperial Army had a quick reaction time to the crisis compared to the other Kingdoms on Falmart, this was too quick. If a scout saw the first Airborne dropped on these lands the Legionary commander would only be getting the news now or tomorrow, depending on where they were stationed. This is too quick.

“Most likely the Legion was out here protecting the trade routes with Darlko and the other Imperial cities in the region,” Krysist said. “I was deployed here in my youth and our job was to protect the crops being transported to the coastal cities.”

“What if Darlko requested their aid in advance and they just happened to run into us?” Malena proposed. “We just got in the way?”

“Possible,” Bailey said.

Krysist could hear the hesitation in the captain's voice. While Malena's idea had merit, something about the situation did not settle well with him. In war, he found it is very rare when occurrences happen and this one was too big for him to stomach.

Hearing from Colonel Yang that they are getting close to the enemy position, Malena pointed to the sky, commenting that she saw the American drone. A small infantry size one that the General saw deployed many times throughout the war. That technology was one of the reasons he shifted toward trench warfare in Elies as he tried to hide his movements.

“We should stop here,” Krysist said.”

“This far?” Bailey asked. “We are pretty far.”

“I do not want to seem hostile. Remember, they have not seen any of your technology before. If anything, they are going to be just as zealous as the rest of the Army was early in the war.”

A short silence reigned through the radio before a reply from Bailey, “I see. Back to the moral superiority complex group. I hope they can pull their heads out of their assess and listen.”

While the General hated to think that low of his brethren, the Terran had a point. The Imperial Army gained that reputation and for good reason, one could stop them for the longest of time. It wasn’t until they faced a superior enemy and the survivors, that the surviving became humbled. Facing an honorable enemy restored the honor the Legionary once had. The question is, would these warriors feel the need to boost their superiority or be willing to put aside the old ways and embrace reform?

The formation stopped and everyone got out.

“Malena, make sure you grab the flag,” Krysist said.

“I have it,” Malena said. “I do not know why we need this though.”

“It is to warn them that we are friendly. Otherwise, they will just kill us.”

“Is that why we brought Frayen here? Just in case? I bet he could kill them all.”

“Because I can does not mean I want to,” Frayen said. “A peaceful resolution would be preferable.”

“Agreed,” Krysist said. “Now hold up the flag and let’s go. Captain, wait here.”

“Hell no,” Bailey said. “I cannot let you go out there alone. You are a General for god sake.”

“And as your General, I command you to stay here,” Krysist said. “If they see you escorting us, that will give off the wrong message. Now, let's go.”

It took a decent amount of time to cross the grassland and reach the Imperial camp. Krysist wondered if he had gotten used to being transported by Terran vehicle and that was why it felt longer than it should.

Seeing five Legionaries, three of them were men. Another is an elf archer and the last was a Volralden. The General could tell what their unit was, the Twenty-eight Legionary.

“Halt!” One of the soldiers yelled.

“Do not tell me to halt,” Krysist responded. “I am a Legionary General and you shall respect that or else.”

He could tell his response struck confusion among the five. To them, it probably made no sense why there was a legionary general alone with a dark elf and a warrior bunny. However, he remained firm.

A Centurion appeared with additional guards. “If you are a general, then where is your Legion?”

“Over there, where you are going,” Krysist said. “I came in peace because if you continue going, you all will be killed.”

“Impossible,” the Centurion said, placing his hand on his sword handle. “Over there are the Other Worlders, enemies of the Empire. I demand to know who you are.”

“I am the General of the Army, Krysist. Commander of the Northern Armies and Legat of the Elies Legions. This is your last warning to take me who is in charge here.”

“General Krysist… I have heard that name before. The Exiled General.” The Centurion thought for a moment and then took his hand off the handle. “I will take you to General Bigarass.”

Hearing that name frustrated the General. However, he did not complain and followed the Centurion as he knew he was doing his duty.

“Why are you angry?” Malena asked. “I thought the point was to meet the one in charge?”

“It is who we are meeting,” Krysist said. “A spoiled kid who was brought up in a wealthy family on the Avion coast. I was hoping for a common man or career General.”

Walking through the group, Krysist could see the bulk of the Legion. Half of them were the standard professional soldiers that one would expect while the other half seemed to be militia and other auxiliaries. Bailey was correct, the number of mix units here, there would be no way they could have assembled and arrived here in two days.

In addition, he could tell by the vast majority of this formation had not seen battle before. Outside of the filth that came from marching, their armor and equipment were too clean. Their skin and fur were smooth and clean. The spirit in their eyes was eagerness, looking for glory and not veterans who saw combat. The only one who acted like they had seen war was the Centurion who was escorting them.

Upon reaching where the leaders of this Legion, a Senior Centurion approached, “Hello General. You are welcome to see the General, however, the slave bunny must stay here. Direct orders.”

“I am not a-,” Malena angrily said before being cut off by Krysist.

“They come with me and that is final,” Krysist said.

“I am sorry, but I cannot allow that,” the Senior Centurion said. “The General has a thing against Bunnies. The General does not like to be around others who are stronger than him. I do not know how else to put it, but slaves cannot come forward. I promise nothing will happen to the slave while you are gone.”

“Master,” Frayen said. “I think we should play this game.”

Confused by Frayen's response, Krysist decided to trust his Apostle. He does agree that this did not make sense and that something must be up. While it was common not to allow slaves near the officer's quarters, it was common for personal slaves or assistants to stay behind their master. A total ban was unheard of, especially for someone from wealth. However, he was surprised that they were okay with an Apostle being part of the meeting.

“What?” Malena said with much frustration. “Fine. But I will be listening. I didn’t go to Ticerat just to have you die here. Fucking racists Imperials.”

Finally agreeing to the terms, Krysist followed both Centurions. Up ahead, he saw a dozen Centurions of different ranks surrounding the Wood-elf, General Bigarass as they finished a meeting. Probably finalizing their plans before attacking the American airbase. They all moved out of the way, and the General pushed back his thick robe and opened his arms with excitement.

“General Krysist,” Bigarass said. “I never fancied seeing you here in the middle of nowhere. I thought you were freezing your nuts off after your stunt in Sadera.”

“It was not cold enough, so I left,” Krysist said.

“Pity about your army though. It is never easy to be the sole survivor.” Bigarass said with a smirk. He clapped his hands and continued, “At least you still have one arm left. I do wonder though, is it the important one? Either way, by Legionary standards, you are only a half a man. Now, what brings you all the way out here? Another exile?”

All Krysist could feel was his blood boiling as he fully understood the game that was being played. Remember how Zorzal and his goons betrayed his entire army in Elies just to prevent him from possibly stealing the throne from the old Emperor - a right that he had no idea he had at the time. For honor stakes, he knows he should have died with the rest of his men, however, for duty stakes, he understands he must go on.

“We both know there is no exile that can hold me,” Krysist responded. “And be careful of your tongue. You are speaking to the newly appointed General of the Army.”

“Congratulations.”

Feeling only frustration, Krysist maintained his posture. “I am here to tell you all that the war is over.” He pulled out the seal by the empress and senate that officially marked the end of the war and change of government. “These are new orders. Peace between us and the Other Worlders has been established and the war is over. If you attack that base over there, you will be considered outlaws and will be punished by the Legion for attacking an ally.”

Krysist handed over the document. Bigarass glanced over it and tossed it behind his shoulder. “This is a fake.”

“A fake?” Krysist responded, confused by the strange mannerism from this general. “How did you become a General if you do not know the Imperial Seal? From the Throne and Senate?”

“Pina is a woman first off, and she is the new Empress of the Empire?” Bigarass loudly stated as he intended for everyone to hear. “And we are taking the word from an armless man who once rebelled against the Empire and abandoned how many Legionaries to be murdered by the enemy?”

Before Krysist could outburst, Frayen stepped forward. “May I ask, what was the last report you all received before our arrival?”

“That the one and true Emperor, Zorzal defeated the Other Worlder's armies in Elies,” Bigarass said in a bored manner. “That Rondel was attacked by these same Other Worlders however the Imperial Army repelled them. That Sadera withstood an assault recently and that Pina and her Knights fell to the sword as she tried to execute the Senate and her brother. I also heard that you and that bitch of a sister sided with the enemy with the intent to overthrow the Empire but was squashed. I assume that is why you are here alone. That is how I know that document was fake.”

He could not tolerate the number of lies that were just spoken. His younger brother Zorzal, who tried to kill him out of spite. Order the slaughter of his entire army, men who were loyal to him. Stole all the success from what he accomplished in Elies and saved the Empire from destruction. Even in death, Zorzal still robbed him of his earned glory and reputation.

“Very interesting,” Frayen said.

“Very interesting, what?” Bigarass asked.

As the three-spoke, additional guards appeared around them.

“Master,” Frayen calmly said. “I have noticed that all his facts are not lining up. For example, he first mentioned your deeds and acknowledged that the Elies front was defeated by the Terrans. However, he now just changed his story, stating that Zorzal led them to victory.”

Kyrsist smirked and nodded, seeing what Frayen also saw. The more he thought about what was said, the more he realized every detail since the conversation started was meant to gain a response out of him.

“He has also made a point that would be impossible for him to know by this stage of the war,” Frayen added. “There is no way for anyone here to know that Sadera was attacked two weeks ago.”

“You are correct,” Krysist said. “Somehow you have knowledge of events that only recently unfolded, and you have been twisting all the facts to trick these men to ride into a slaughter.”

He noticed a frown on Bigarass. The frown quickly went away with a laugh. “Men, arrest them. They are traitors to the Empire. Not once but multiple times.”

One of the Centurions tried to grab Krysist's arm; however, with a very precise threat the Centurion backed off out of fear for his life.

“Legionaries,” Krysist said. “Do not throw your lives away like this. As this man likes to bring up, I was in exile and a traitor once. However, if truly have the heart of the warrior than deep down inside, you know what I did was just. I was in Elies, not Zorzal and I did achieve a great victory there but at a high cost.” He then intentionally made sure everyone could see his missing left arm, pointing out that he also suffered from the war. If Bigarass wanted to keep bringing that point up, he decided to exploit it himself.

“We have all been betrayed, by people like him. My army was wiped out but not by the Other Worlders but by our comrades, the Oprichnina, and disloyal Legionaries. We fought and died to protect the Empire and we were slaughtered for it. And sadly, this was not an isolated case as another Legion was almost purged. Rondel and Sadera were also burned by the previous Emperor not by the enemy, but again, by the ones we called allies, Darlko. You are about to die, protecting the ones who committed high crimes against our people?”

Krysist saw many of the Centurions chatting with each other. The Senior Centurion stopped anyone from following through on the arrest order. It seemed that he wanted to see how events played out.

“Interesting story, but not believable,” Bigarass said.

“General,” the Senior Centurion said. “We should hear him out and confirm this before waging an offensive. It has been a long time since we received a proper update on the status of the war.”

“No,” Bigarass said. “We have our orders and our duty. We are talking about a man who betrayed the armor he wears. I will prove this.” He then pulled out his sword and marched forward.

A ring formed as Krysist realized what was happening. Nothing about this man made any sense. Even if he was as hard-headed as Herm and Calasta, this was too over the top. Either way, the General made a grave mistake, challenging him to an arena duel.

Pulling his sword and taking a step forward, he calmed Frayen's concerns.

“I know about your reputation in arena fighting,” Bigarass said. “I do wonder if your reputation can withstand your current status.”

The two Generals clashed. The elf had agility, able to dance around however Krysist had experience and was able to quickly maintain the aggression.

Dodged the swing from his opponent's sword and was forced to block. To his shock, he was thrust back.

A feeling of frustration flowed through his veins, Krysist found himself going on the defensive. The sheer strength from each impact of their swords always ran the risk of him dropping his sword. He could not figure out if he had become much weaker or if missing an arm had thrown off his stance.

Feeling that he could no longer go back, Krysist allowed himself to be open, allowing a strike. As his opponent's blade came, he allowed the impact of the blade on his side plate of armor. However, this allowed him to duck around and slide around, bringing his sword to the side of Bigarass, knowing that he couldn’t reach around in time to block.

To his surprise, Bigarass quickly countered, blocking his attack. Before he could reach it, he was kicked by the elf and fell to the ground. “Impossible.”

“You are getting old,” Bigarass said.

As Krysist stood up, he blocked a few attacks, being forced back again. He realized that each attack had an additional weight behind them, nonnormal for an elf.

“Krysist!”

Hearing Malena's voice, he looked over as both heard a commotion from the crowd. Four Legionaries grabbed her as she tried to force herself through the soldiers. However, all the Legionaries' armor glowed and was thrust back from Frayen.

“Thank you Frayen,” Malena said. She then looked directly at Bigarass with such hatred. “Krysist, he is a shapeshifter.”

“A shapeshifter?” Krysist mumbled before looking back at Bigarass. He could see a frustrated reaction now that he saw the Warrior-Bunny. Now everything made sense regarding how this elf could easily dodge his attacks and twist around to block. How his strength to be multiplied while looking so physically weak. Malena, being a bunny, was the only one who can see the sensitive changes a Shapeshifter could make. “No wonder you kept blocking and reacting in an unnatural way. You can flex your body in any direction you want.”

“It explains why he did not want Malena to come with us,” Frayen added. “If she came, he wouldn’t be able to discredit you as she could see through his disguise.”

“Please,” Bigarass said. “A slave bunny is accusing me of being a shapeshifter? How laughable. You cannot win an arena fight, so you must falsely attack my honor. This is over.”

“Master?” Frayen asked.

“Do it,” Krysist responded.

A blue flame wrapped around Frayen's arm, something that shocked everyone as this was an invention from Lelei’s earth-based knowledge. Without warning, the Apostle fired a bolt at General Bigarass.

The bolt missed and ignited the ground upon impact. The heat ignited parts of Bigarass's clothing and melted parts of his armor. However, what shocked everyone was that Bigarass's body was weirdly shaped to the side, that being the only way he could have dodged the intense magical spell.

“He… he is one of them,” the Senior Centurion said, pointing toward Bigarass.

As Bigarass transformed back into his elf form, holding his burnt side, he started to laugh. “I see that you discovered me.”

“You are working for Darlko,” Krysist stated. “You were going to sacrifice everyone here in a blind charge against the Other Worlders, distracting them long enough to open the Demon Gate.”

Bigarass stood quietly, glaring at Krysist.

“Demon Gate?” someone in the crowd said.

Frayen quickly explained what has been going on and that they are working with the Other Worlders to stop Darlko before they open a second gate. If they fail, all their lives, families, and villages would be destroyed like Rondel and Sadera.

The crowd began to get uneasy as they all started shouting at the shapeshifter, realizing that they were played.

With a loud laugh, the shapeshifter jumped and turned into a large bird. Malena thought quickly bounced high enough and slashed one of the wings. The bird fell to the ground and transformed into its natural, fur-like beast form.

Once Krysist approached, he saw the beast on the ground, holding his armless arm. Not wanting to take any risk, he quickly sliced the head off and then picked it up.

Seeing the demoralized soldiers, Krysist held the head into the air. “Everyone listens. This represents everything that I have fought against. Twisted. Lies. Corruption. Always pretending to be one thing public but having alternative motives underneath. This is what the Empire has become, and this is why hundreds of thousands of our comrades died.”

He then tossed the head onto the ground. “The only thing that always withstood everything this represented was the Legion and no one tricks the Legion. All of you are Legionaries but not of the old Empire, who Bigarass represented. You are Legionaries of the Republic. Now, if you want a war. Follow me and show your worth. We have demons to hunt.”

---

Date: August 26th, 2026

Seeing the back ramp lower from the C130 cargo plane, Sharpe, the girls, and the rest of Vanguard-7 unstrapped and gathered their gear, and walked off.

“Wow, this place reminds me of my road trips through the Midwest,” Frost commented.

“Don’t get used to it,” Randy said. “This is not a vacation.”

“When was the last time we had one?” Alicia asked.

“Last night for me,” Scott said with a smooth voice.

“That explains the claw marks,” Sofia said.

Sharpe shook his head with a smirk from the bantering. He was thrilled to see that everyone still had a good spirit going into this mess.

“Rory, have you ever been out here on your travels?” Andrew asked.

“No,” Rory replied. “This region is not easy to get to and Emroy does not have many followers out here. Farmers and tribal folk do not really follow the arks of war and love. They prefer Flare or Siflis. The truth is my god really is more related to civilizations.”

“Well, you got those two checkboxes right,” Sharpe said. “Randy, get everyone settled. Rory, I will meet you at the CP in a moment. Andrew, mind if you come with me for a moment?”

“Sure boss,” Andrew asked, confused.

The two walked away and walked along the line. They could see the engineers hard at work finishing the runway, which seemed to be almost complete. As their aircraft was landing, one took off an hour earlier, creating a non-stop air route between Alnus and here. Air tankers on station so the C-130s do not have to waste time on the tarmac.

“Can I ask sir,” Andrew asked. “Does it feel heavy?”

“What? The spear?” Sharpe said as he pulled it out from his vest. “Not really. It has almost no weight surprisingly.”

“Very cool,” Andrew said. “So, what can I do for you?”

“I have been meaning to bring this up to you for a while,” Sharpe said. “From the very beginning, you have always had my back and been my friend. Even when I didn’t deserve it.”

“It is no problem, sir. None of it ever made sense to me so I figured something else had to be going on. Either you would get into shape, or the Army would pull you out.”

“True is true.”

“Is there a reason you are bringing this up now, sir?”

“Yes. We are about to go up against something that is far more powerful than us. We barely made it the last time and I doubt we will get that lucky again.”

“Don’t worry about it, sir. We all trust you. We all pretty much have gotten used to this type of fighting. Everyone wants to kick our ass, but we always dish out.”

“That is why I like you. You are always up. But that is not what I mean.” Sharpe took a deep breath, placing both hands on his hips. “When we face Valker, I need you to watch my back again. I know they are going to come after me, Rory, and Lelei, and us three will have our own fights to deal with.”

Andrew looked at the Lieutenant Colonel with some confusion. He replaced his manner with his usual confident smile. “No worries. I got your back, sir.”

“Good,” Sharpe said. “I need to hear that. Before the battle, tomorrow, meet up with me. Now, I need to get to the CP.”

After they shook hands, Sharpe walked toward the command post. As he walked, he noticed a large number of Legionaries scatted throughout the airfield. While he knew that the Air Force was breaking some weight regulations to squeeze as many troops as possible here, he couldn’t fathom the time allotted. Additionally, while the brass wanted a melee force just in case a second Sadera situation developed, they wouldn’t want this many as this could have been more riflemen.

Deciding to ask Colonel Yang about the manner, he saw three Griffin II Mobile Protected Firepower or otherwise known as by the troops - light tanks - lined up with the fourth one being offloaded from their aircraft. First time in combat and just in time to hopefully stop a demon invasion.

Inside the tent, Sharpe saw Colonel Yang, Brigadier General Smith, General Krysist, Captain Bailey Robinson, and Rory all around a table. They seem to be finishing the assault plans toward the city.

“Hello Colonel,” Yang said. “Welcome to the war. I hope your R&R was eventful.”

“You could say that,” Sharpe said. “I ran into Brad Pitt.”

“Ahh,” Rory said as her cheeks turned red. “That was the best part. He is so dreamy. Those abs and that sword of his. Impressive.”

“Shut up, Rory,” Sharpe ordered.

“I see,” Yang said. “As long as you have the objective, we are good to go.”

Sharpe noticed how no one reacted. While the events of what happened in Israel were classified, they were informed about the Holy Spear and the importance it was to stopping Valker/Zufmuut. Their reactions showed how everyone got used to the supernational element of this world.

“We are,” Sharpe said. “First, what is with all the Legionaries outside?”

“Darlko convinced a Legion and militia south from here to attack us,” Krysist said. “Their leader was a shapeshifter, posing as an Imperial officer.”

“Do I need to ask what happen to the shapeshifter?” Sharpe asked.

“I gave the body to the dogs,” Krysist said. “However, this gave us an additional eight thousand melee force.”

“No one is cannon fodder, Krysist,” Yang said. “We don’t operate like that.”

“Respectfully,” Krysist said. “If that Gate opens, everyone will be fodder and we all know it. I am not going to be shy about that reality.”

“We are off-topic,” Smith said. “Glad you are here Colonel as we are attacking tomorrow.”

“I expected,” Sharpe said. “What is the plan?”

Bailey reached toward the map. “We will be attacking through this path here from three directions. We don’t have the numbers to properly flank as we would be stretched too thin. The enemy knows this and has turned all these hills right before entering the valley into a chain of fortifications.”

“So, they’re digging in?” Sharpe asked.

“That is correct,” Bailey said. “It seems they are using earth-ground magic to accelerate the construction process. Vanguard teams have been harassing them but nothing major to report.”

“What about the Demon Gate?” Sharpe asked. “Last report said there was a temple or something?”

“Correct,” Yang said. “It looked like the enemy built a temple. We detected a large energy source coming from it. The temple has been protected by some kind of enchanted stone or marble. We honestly have no idea, so we have to do this the hard way.”

“It is why they pay us the big bucks,” Rory said to ease the tension.

“However, there is another situation,” Bailey said. “Coming from the city is this creep-like organism. From this point here the entire ground has been covered by it. To me, it seemed like they are changing the ground to make it more habitable for the demons but that is just a guess.”

“One that Soredin and the other mages here agree with,” Yang said. “We don’t know what effect this will have on the operation, but we have to press forward anyway.”

Sharpe did not know what to make of the news. It seems that the enemy is acting, and they are running out of time. “Then we have to attack as swiftly as possible.”

“Agreed,” Smith said. “Get a good night's sleep as everyone will need it. I am trying to arrange a second platoon of Griffins to help with the fortifications and have the bomber fleet soften them up. Now, dismiss.”

Sharpe left and shook his hand of Bailey. He then saw Krysist and said, “See you on the front.”

“You will see me there,” Krysist said. “As I am always the one ahead of you.”

“Prick.” Sharpe shook the general hand as the two gained a deep respect for each other.

Rory walked up. “So, now what?”

“Let's rejoin the team,” Sharpe said as the two started walking through the camp. “And Rory, whatever happens out there. Be careful. With everything that is going on, it is going to be hard to assist you.”

“That is fine,” Rory said. “It is probably best if you guys don’t. Leave the Apostles to us Apostles so you can focus on everything else.”

“Roger that,” Sharpe said.

Once they reached the Ranger tent and saw Vanguard-7 killing time, they all looked toward him once they noticed.

“Hey boss,” Scott said. “Are you here to tell us that the enemy surrendered, and we can go home?”

“Actually, you are correct,” Sharpe replied. “Everyone on the first flight home expects you. You are being transferred to sanitation duty with the occupation forces.”

After the group laughed, one even tossing a bag at Scott, Sharpe continued, “We are officially attacking tomorrow. I want to say, whatever happens, tomorrow, it has been an honor being your commander. All of you have faced many dangers and challenges and all have faced them. Some exterior while others internal.” Sharpe glanced toward Rory and Sofia for a moment.

“Thank you, sir,” Jerry said.

“Now, let’s go kick their asses once and for all,” Frost said.

“And go home and make victory babies,” Scott added before a pillow impacted his head.

“One of us already is ahead of the game,” Alicia commented, nudging toward Sharpe.

“I know,” Rory said. “He always has to be first.”

“Rory,” Sharpe said in a serious tone. “A good commander always goes first.”

“And steps on the landmine,” Sofia added.

“You have no idea,” Sharpe replied. He saw Tuka in the corner, giggling with Yao. Lelei, sitting quickly as her face was bright red from the conversation.

“Anyway,” Sharpe said, regaining control of the conversation. “In all seriousness, go out there, do your jobs. Watch each other back and we will get out of this alive. Out of everything we have faced, our teamwork has been the one thing all our enemies have underestimated. Once this is over, you all have earned your stories and worthiness to be remembered.”

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