Part 7: Obscure War

Driving throughout the night, Seth, Aaron, Ejiro and Snoid passed the mountains east of the Obscure Guild, followed the wastelands, and finally arrived at a temporary military base in the Wandering Lands.

They went on the single gravel path to avoid landmines and stopped at the entrance. There were barbwires stacked on the electric fences. The gates were closed, and soldiers guarded on each side.

There weren’t many defences. For instance, there wasn’t an enclosing shield like many cities in the major guilds, a giant dome.

However, there was surveillance. A small white drone with an explosive stuck to it descended in front of the vehicle.

"It's not often that unannounced guests come to the frontline,” said the person flying the device, “You need a permit to enter."

Seth opened his window and showed him his identification on his watch’s screen.

The man standing in a monitor room, overlooking countless cameras, didn’t bat an eye as he glanced at the driver.

"Seth Rayn. DA agent?"

"Yes, but I've retired. I'm a teacher now."

They waited a short moment in silence for the drone’s speaker to say something.

"Alright. Come to the command post. My superiors want to meet you."

The gates opened.

They drove to the parking lot and left the vehicle. Other than cars, hundreds of aircraft, tanks and robotic machinery were parked, each appropriately sorted in rows.

They walked along the barracks. It was still early morning, so most soldiers rested inside their pointy tents. They exchanged looks with some soldiers and went onwards.

The four left the barracks and arrived inside Lope village. Once the war had begun, most citizens had migrated away. With its strategic position and being a ghost town, the alliance had set a temporary base there.

Approaching the centre of town, the current state of the war became apparent. Some walls were full of missing posters, soldiers and citizens alike, queries, and pleas from loved ones.

The buildings were old and grim, the streets hard and uneven, and the few journalists on the pavement held their cameras toward Snoid warily. He didn’t look much different from regular people, but his slitted piercing eyes, green hair, and the fact he was a prisoner made it clear he was a cursed.

They arrived at what seemed like a plaza, only it was just as run-down as the rest of the city, the fountain dry and cracked, and the commercial buildings had all closed down.

It was alarming how two weeks of the war was all it took for a once cozy village to transform into a lonely and sorrowful place.

Breakfast wasn’t ready yet, so the cafeteria, now the mess hall, was also locked. Near there, a few soldiers were checking their equipment, some speaking, meditating, or sleeping.

One of the soldiers arrived at the plaza and found them. He walked over and saluted. “I’ve been tasked with bringing you to the tactical operations centre. Follow me.”

He brought them inside one of the closed buildings. They passed the computer room In the hallway and arrived at a small office beside it.

Seth entered the wooden, cozy room while the rest stayed in the corridor. It was the commander’s office.

"What brings you out here, Seth?" Said a 50-year-old man who was stroking his grey beard.

“Hello, James Rack," Seth sat on the couch left of him.

"It's Commander Rack now. I've risen in ranks since we last saw spoke in person."

Seth gently tapped the floor with the point of his staff. "Sorry, it has been a while, Rack."

"19 years, to be exact. So, what did you come here for? I already told you what happened to your disciples." The commander wasn’t happy. He made it clear he didn’t like Seth showing up out of the blue.

"We're not here to grieve. At least I still have Ejiro. We took a trip to the Obscure Guild with the DA's permission and came back just now."

“Ejiro,” Seth called him in.

Aaron wanted to follow after Ejiro, but as soon as he stepped towards the door, the soldier who guided them promptly stopped him with an intimidating stare.

Ejiro arrived inside the office, dragging Snoid with him in anti-magic shackles. A distant racket from the command post combed the silence as he walked.

"This is Snoid, one of the Five Seats. Not only have we captured him, but we've also eliminated Theodoric Rivampe and Frederic Locus."

"So much for retiring… wait what?!" Rack rose from his seat.

"You've heard him right," said Seth. "And there's more. We left some of us in the Obscure Guild. One of them is Gabriella Rivampe, a pure vampire. They plan to make her the queen so we can use the vampires."

Sitting back down, Rack sighed. "Relying on vampires, this isn't like you, Seth."

"Well, we can't win this war just by defending."

They stared down at each other, not blinking once as the commander frowned.

Footsteps came from the command post in the hallway and ceased just outside the door. James Rack then looked at the ceiling and guessed who it was. "Deputy Kray. Come in."

“Hello, commander.” Her pink hair and short blue robe woman seemed unfitting for a military base. Her slender arms further proved that she wasn’t a soldier but an advisor.

“Hello, commander,” she smiled as she turned her microphone away from her mouth.

“What’s the matter?”

“I’ve spoken to the DA about reinforcements and equipment. They said they’ll send another batch of robots tomorrow.” There was a hint of anger in her tone.

Rack nodded.

“This is Seth Rayn. He’s proposing to take down the Obscure Guild. The West DA has infiltrated some people inside.”

“Some people?” That number wasn’t convincing, and the DA’s intention seemed too ambitious. “Are you speaking for the West DA?” she asked Seth.

“No. We only obtained a permit to go on a mission inside the Obscure Guild. This mission was a success, and I’m here to convince you to help. If you do, with my name and pressure from the Western Alliance, the DA will no doubt accept to provide support.”

“Oh, then what has the DA been doing since the war began?” Olivia Kray complained. “We haven’t gotten any official troops and barely enough weapons from the Democratic Alliance. Are you all planning to wait until the Wandering Lands burn to take it all yourselves and act like heroes doing so?”

Ejiro wanted to fight back, but Seth stopped him. “Trust me: they will help. You were probably too young to remember, but the same situation happened in the Topaz War. The Western Alliance convinced the Western DA territories to launch an attack, and even if it remained a monarchy, the Amon Guild, we still won that war.”

“I’ll present our findings now,” he followed, spreading the large map over the wooden table at the centre of the room.

“These are secret passages in the Obscure Guild that, as far as we can tell, no one but him knows about.” He pointed at Soid, who remained unfazed.

Then, he put down his all-purpose watch and projected the Tech-Think company’s map onto the wall.

“We’ve also found an interactive, detailed map of the Obscure Guild. With it, we can find the precise coordinates of most places in the Guild, including the Five Seats’ residences.”

“Finally, as I told Rack already, our people currently inside the guild plan to take control of the vampires, the Vampiric Queen is on our side. And only 2 of the Five Seats still stand.”

Despite this, Olivia remained uncertain. “So you want to launch a coordinated attack from the inside and outside? That’s not a bad idea, but it’s risky, especially with the Dark Faction around the corner.”

“You know about their resurgence?” Ejiro was stunned.

“The faction’s involvement is the most logical reason for our last defeat. I was only guessing, but it seems I’m right.”