Azarath the desert lord, master on the path of the dessert tempest and vassal of primordial Viaris the slumbering sands, sheathed his elemental khopesh as his gaze went over the position where the teleporter had deposited he and his diamonds. The wound through which the burning power of his lord Viaris had powered the teleporter healing slowly, the sounds of hundreds of light attack crafts battling the spored of the carnage striders in the darkness of space. Azarath glanced at the Bloodfiends that had been turned to sand, some crystallized into golden figures that crumbled once his diamonds spread out, smashing them apart. Pausing as he surveyed the area, he turned to the female mage next to him, her eyes wrapped with a piece of golden cloth, bright red runes inscribed on it giving veneration to his lord primordial.

In her hands were her mage staff, a thing of pure beauty, pure gold melted and forged into a staff with the Khemetian language inscribed beautifully into it and in her other hand, the glowing shard of his lords’ pure aspect, protecting him, or rather, the diamonds from the aspect of carnage and blood that the conqueror had infused into the flesh vessel. Drawing his khopesh, the curved blade glowing with golden runes of blade mastery etched into it, he spoke, his golden eyes surveying the area still,

“Spread out, secure a location, we’ll be facing the forces of the conqueror soon enough” he ordered,

His team of five diamonds nodded, spreading into a star shape around him as Azarath took a step and whispered a single whistle. A rune pulsed out of his body in front of him, taking shape into that of a scarab as his already toned skin took on a darker bronze hue, lines of pure golden aether etched around his frame in a vein-like mana,

Scarab's Resilience(L): Azarath's insignia, the scarab, grants him enhanced resilience and durability. It provides him with increased resistance against physical and magical attacks, as well as protection from various forms of harmful effects or curses.

With the glowing form of the scarab etched into his robe mantle, a flowing piece that deflected attacks effortlessly, Azarath’s strength had been boosted to well over ruler status, a boon bestowed upon him by his primordial after he had won Viaris’s daughters’ hand in marriage, a near suicidal task given that he had gone on the task as a diamond, to hunt a peak diamond sand wyrm. Hopelessly in love with the ruler ranked female on the path of the Sandswept blade, he could see her frown where he stood, her refusal to admit how much she’d miss him and her glare, promising him that should he leave her alone after making her fall for him, not even in death would he be promised safety from her wrath.

Azarath signalled for his team to start moving, carefully layering the ground with sand that crystallized, cutting off the fleshy ground from their feet, he knew well enough than to think he’s be safe within the domain of carnage, right next to their element,

“Any update from the forces of the titan blade?’ he asked, his voice coming as a rumble,

The female mage shook her head,

“Apart from the notice that they are within this abomination, nothing else lord” the replied,

He nodded,

“Then we make for the heart of the strider, if they are up to the task, they’ll make it there as well” he said,

“They better do, sending two masters and over ten diamonds, it’ll be a wonder if they don’t” another of his team said, a tall bulky man with vambraces on both hands,

“You underestimate the forces of the titan blade, need I remind you that he is on the cusp of becoming one of our lord’s peers” Azarath said softly,

Reaching a point, Azarath called a stop, frowning,

“something’s wrong” he said softly,

His men paused as they tensed,

“Where are the Bloodfiends?” the mage asked,

One of his diamonds lopped forwards, one scimitar in hand and nearly got decapitated by a shimmering presence. Azarath was there in a blink, master ranked strength fueled by aspect had his body imposed over the diamonds as his khopesh swung through the air, passing through flesh and bone as blood spurted out, a headless figure toppled to the ground as Azarath barked out a command,

“Shield!” he ordered,

The mage moved without a second to waste, a shout and the name of Viaris in her mouth, she slammed her staff into the ground, a burst of sound pouring out as their entire team were cocooned in an impenetrable ball of think sand. Azarath moved though, phasing out of the sand barrier as his senses revealed not the foes, but where tiny spots where the temperature had increased, his desert aura skill he activated the moment he stepped into view,

Desert Aura(R): Azarath emits an aura of scorching heat and arid air that weakens his opponents while invigorating him. The aura drains the strength of those nearby, causing fatigue and dehydration, while Azarath himself becomes energized and resistant to similar effects.

True to the skill, he felt trickles of power fuse his body as the hidden figures stumbled into view, their bodies growing desiccated by the second as they ran heedless at him. Light but made of pure flesh and sinews, the skull faced abominations with more sharp edges on their bodies than he could count hissed at him, the Bloodfiend assassins.

The sand shield fell and his diamonds blasted out, weapons glowing as they hacked apart the already weakened Bloodfiends, Azarath pushing on through the hollow fleshy tunnels, blasphemous carvings and runes glowing, those he destroyed. Something niggled at the back of his mind, a disturbing thought that something still was not right, the strider should had ben teeming with thousands if not hundreds of thousands of Bloodfiends of all types, and yet, nothing short but a skeleton crew had attacked them. Waiting for his team to catch up, the female mage spoke first,

“My lord” she said,

“speak” he ordered,

“The aspect of our lord primordial has been resonating with something, I can only call it a synergy between another primordial aspect shard” she reported,

“The forces of the titan blade” Azarath said with a nod,

“Should we link up with them?” another of his diamond asked,

It was a bit embarrassing that Azarath had no idea what their names were, but they had been picked by his lord primordial and that had been enough for him. His only issue, was that they had only just reached the rank of diamond during their long war in the system of Remhu the afflicter, in his opinion, they weren’t ready yet for what was in this final phase. Still though, he had trusted the words of his primordial and that was it, besides, he was pretty sure Zahra had been the one to pick them out, judging by the way they fought, they were there to secure his life over theirs, something he was sure they would willingly do as they considered it an honor.

Azarath shook his head,

“No, we push for the heart of the heart of this flesh vessel, or we close whatever pathway ferries their forces into the strider itself” Azarath replied,

“If they are as good as they say, they’d catch up, but with the forces going in after them, I do not envy their odds” he finished grimly,

The team nodded grimly and pushed forwards, their enhanced bodies pushing them swiftly through the fleshy tunnels, taking out whatever Bloodfiend assassins or berserkers appeared, letting his diamonds do the work while watching their every move, nodding at what he saw. The closer they got to the heart, following the directions of the jades, he noticed the thicker aura of carnage and blood filling the air, and the harder it was for his diamonds to even move properly, the aspect of Vusal weighing them down with every step they took.

Their pure faith in the slumbering sands and the aspect of said primordial gave them the strength to push harder, but Azarath knew there was only so much that could do, without the primordial himself here or his emissary, Zahra herself, it would be next to impossible to get them within the heart of the strider, but that wasn’t the plan anyways. The heart would be taken by all three masters sent, the diamonds however, would hold the doors, barring any intrusion from what Azarath had heard would be thousands of Bloodfiends pouring into the strider through pathways etched with runes on the fleshy insides of the ship.

It was why Azarath had been crystalizing the very walls of the strider with sand, cutting off runes and the likes, but there were hundred of tunnels within the strider and their forces along with those of house titan blade were making haste for the heart, hundreds of pathways were left undestroyed and he only hoped their combined forces could hold the deluge of monsters enough for them to destroy the heart and be properly extracted. Feeling the aura go up another notch and the diamonds actually collapse to their knees, Azarath called a halt, drawing his khopesh as his scarab rune burned gold, his eyes glowing with the calm but deadly aspect of his lord.

He swung his khopesh, activating his skill, sand manipulation

Sand Manipulation: Azarath possesses the ability to control and manipulate sands with great precision. He can shape the sands into various forms, create sandstorms, and use them for both offensive and defensive purposes.

Sand burst forth from runes, his vaults stored with tons upon tons of sand taken from his planet of the Khemetian dominion, Zahra had always considered him a bit retarded for filling his vault, a gift given by her on his three hundredth birthday with sand, but Azarath considered it the wisest investment he could had ever done, and right now, it was about to prove its usefulness. Infusing the sand with intent in copious amount, the sharpened sand blades with a deadly edge screamed into the distance where a loud roar answered, Azarath feeling the attack impact on something.

“Stay here, cover for the forces of the titan blade if they should be harried towards this position, set up the beacon guiding them here, Viaris protect us all” he ordered as he shot towards the distance.

******************************************

Annika and her Stormwardens chatted along with Lucina and her captains with the two promethean diamond warriors as well,

“Is it true the great lord fought a sun wyrm with nothing but his hands?” Gaius Ironthorn asked,

Annika sighed,

“Gaius, I thought I told you it was a rumor, right, lady Lucina?” she said with exasperation,

The blade rain laughed, eyes flicking around as she watched the Prometheans lead the charge, intent arm guns barking bullets that tore whatever forces harried them towards their destination. She spoke, her main blade, a weapon reforged for her by the titan blade and a legendary ranked weapon at that glittered even in the near dark tunnels,

“No, nothing of such, but he fought both the elite of Molrik and the lord of the abyss by himself though” Lucina replied,

“Glory to his name!” Gaius whispered as Siris smacked his skull,

“What did we tell you about taking the titan blade for some deity?, you could get censored for that by the order” he hissed,

“Pontiff Matthew couldn’t care less if Gaius opened an alter to the titan within his city, so far as they remain true to the tenets and edicts of the titan, they are fine” lyra said,

Annika paused as Lucina did as well, Stormwardens going on alert.

“The beacon” the Stormseeker said,

“Spadas, form up, speartip formation, punch through!” Lucina barked,

The commanders of the Spadas moved as one, diamonds growling as they sheathed their melee weapons and produced large intent guns made specifically for the legion of the titan blade. It was also an experimental weapon made by artillery commander Ahib, on the orders of the titan blade himself. Known as the Aetherfire bolter, weapon was a formidable military-grade firearm utilized by the ascenders of the legion, it represents the perfect fusion of advanced technology and the raw power of intent drawn from the aether. This rapid-fire weapon delivers devastating rounds imbued with the focused intent of its wielder, and in this situation, it showed just how deadly it truly was.

Clearing a path for their forces with the Stormwardens grimly marching towards the direction their mistress led them to, they carved their way in a hail of intent, mana and pure destruction, scouring the walls of any sort of blasphemous inscriptions or runes. Pushing with all haste towards the beacon, Annika felt the increasing aspect of carnage and blood in the air, Voren Stormcaller spoke with gritted teeth as he weaved lightning and pure aether together in a barrier to lessen the effects of the aspect,

“by the titan blade” he hissed,

Siris struggled with the frothing sounds coming from his throat, Annika glancing at her warden who nodded to her, fighting the urge to go out in a bloodless rage of carnage. She dragged him back within the protection of the shield and the aspect of the titan shard, his body shuddering with relief,

“Thank you my lady” he gasped,

She glanced at Lucina who nodded at her, her own commanders well within the shield and the promethean guards closeby as well,

"’'ll scout ahead, lead my wardens and your forces as close as you can, if not, make a stand and wait, we’re close to the heart, I can feel it” Annika said,

“My lady!” Lyra Windrider protested,

“I do not have time for this, stand with your brothers and sisters of the legion, we wipe out this vessel or our forces will be held down!” she hissed,

Gaius nodded, hefting his hammer as he spoke, his voice rumbling,

“Then we shall mount a defense that even lord titan blade himself would be proud of” the Ironthorn said, his conviction exuding with his frame,

Siris nodded quietly, the look in his eyes showing it was the last thing he wanted, Annika understood their sentiments, but they didn’t have time. With a nod at her Stormwardens, she and Lucina moves, Annika activating her skill, Thunderstep,

Thunderstep(R): Skill to teleport short distances by merging with the soundwaves created by thunder.

Space warped with but a clap Of lightning and Annika appeared among the hordes of Bloodfiends that appeared from pathways, activating her skill thunder’s resilience.

Thunder's Resilience(L): Enhanced durability and resistance to physical and elemental damage, bolstered by the Titan Blade's protection aspect. It also bestows Augmented strength and endurance granted by the Titan Blade's aspect, allowing Annika to endure challenging battles.

Her only legendary ranked skill given to her by the archailect when she became a master, tying her invariably to Moyo, it gave her the one thing she had been looking for,

Pure unbridled strength,

Coupled with the natural strength she had gotten on her ascension to master rank, it gave her the edge over other mages proper, turning her into a tank on the battlefield. Landing with a boom, lightning exploding out of her, light flashing, blinging her enemies, and then the skill thunderclap was next

Thunderclap(R): Capability to generate powerful shockwaves of sound and concussive force, stunning or disorienting enemies.

Sending them reeling again, Lucina floated in the air next to her,

“Go!” she said,

Annika needed no other prompting, tearing forwards, Asagai reaping bodies left and right, lightning leaving them nothing but charred pieces. The wet sounds of flesh being rend apart and the screams of both pain and pleasure from the Bloodfiends let her know that Lucina had things in hand, she saw a cluster of Bloodfiend berserkers in the distance fighting with what she realized were sand golems and other animated sand creatures.

The forces of the primordial Viaris, she didn’t stop though, Channeling lightning through her entire form, she churned her power into a vortex, pointing Asagai into the crowd, the team of ascenders seeing her and immediately taking cover,

Only a fool would see a master charged up with power and stay to watch,

“STRIKE!”

She commanded, thunderclouds churned in the air and lightning fell like bombs, turning everywhere white and bathing the area in concussive blasts, burning the very flesh walls of the strider that screamed again, its rapid healing coming into play again as the wall healed, but it had done its job and Annika saw the team of five ascenders, each with the base affinity of sand. They bowed hastily at her,

“We greet the master” they said together,

“we’ve set up a barrier in front, I’ve scourged the walls clean of runes, join the other forces” she ordered,

They hesitated, no doubt the jarring though of saying no to a master, one that had wiped out an entire horde of Bloodfiends like they were nothing. The female ascender with a blindfold on stepped forwards,

“We beg the mercy of the master, but our lord and master has gone in the direction of the heart, we stand guard till the dessert lord returns” she said,

Annika paused, noticing the look of subtle defiance on their faces and nodded,

“Fine, but you would face no foe here and another master comes, your lord would be safe with us, better to stand in strength than alone” she added,

The diamonds turned to stare at themselves quietly before a loud boom came from the direction the master she had been introduced to as Azarath the desert lord came from. Her powers snapped back to life as she spoke,

“Go!, do not tarry, something strong rampages in the distance, inform the master, and be strong!” she said as she shot with all the speed of lightning and a clap of thunder as well.

The ascenders stared in awe as she disappeared before shaking off their shock and making their way to the said defense line, charred corpses smoking in their wake.