Moyo stood with Idris and Josh, Annika behind him as they watched the recorded video log of the artillery division’s flagship itself, the one Ahib had been on during the incursion. With a wave of his hand, he cut it off, still staring forwards, ruminating on what he saw. It had all started off in its usual manner, scores of abyssal creatures manifesting aboard the ship, its defenders clad in Promethean battlesuits and ascenders wielding Aetherblasters unleashing hell on the creatures.

The defences held solid for a while, Moyo could even see legion ascenders from different cohorts like the diablos, the claws and even the reclusive Kaminaris in groups around them. Where it had all haywire was the moment where the defenders were retreating, blowing up entire wings of the ships in a bid to slow down the invaders. A bright white power had blinded the video, wiping out everything on screen for close to a minute, and when it cleared, the entire horde of abyssal creatures were gone.

Moyo had wondered how he hadn’t noticed that the Ahib hadn’t used a single offensive attack since when he joined his legion, even more was the fact that he hadn’t sensed the aspect of another primordial within his forces. Annika shifted behind him.

“You know something” she said.

“indeed” he replied.

“Should I assemble the Shieldborne?” Josh asked softly.

Moyo gave a weak smile,.

“The Shieldborne combined with their Valoris couldn’t hope to bring him down easily, at least, not if he wants to genuinely fight you” Moyo replied.

Idris’s eyes widened at that statement.

“Who or what is he?” he asked.

Moyo ruminated on the implications of that statement.

“Someone who works for someone powerful, very powerful” he replied.

“a primordial then, celestial or terrestrial” Annika asked again.

Moyo rubbed his face in weariness,.

“Summon the legion commanders, inform them that I’d like to meet with them within the hour” he said as he turned.

“Going somewhere?” Idris asked.

“Yes, to meet our erstwhile ruler” her replied.

“Then the Shieldborne come with you” Josh replied in a tone that brokered no resistance.

Moyo shrugged.

“Just make sure not to attack him first, if I’m right, then that man, android, whatever he is, is a one-man house to himself” he replied.

Josh nodded as they left.

Making their way through the city itself towards the weapons emplacements where the artillery division had transformed into a hub of deadly activities, they linked up with the Shieldborne who saluted their lord before blitzing away, no doubt to take up positions around Moyo and Ahib who was working on a large looking vehicular construct.

The ascenders of the division noticed the mood, gently moving out of the way till Moyo gotten within a few feet of the android, pausing as he surveyed the large war construct.

“I wondered when you’d come” Ahib said softly, his eyes still on the construct as a hundred mechanical arms worked on all parts of it.

“what’s it called?” Moyo asked, walking closer.

“Oh this?” Ahib said as he tapped the vehicle.

“I have no name for it yet, what it does though, is to deliver a team of Prometheans into the thickest parts of a battle, create a landing platform the Defiance can hone in on to teleport the rest of the forces, cohorts, or even artillery” Ahib explained.

“Sounds ingenious” Moyo replied.

“You honour me, lord titan blade” Ahib said, bowing a little.

“Then I suggest you do so for me as well” Moyo responded.

“I’ve had nothing but the utmost honour for you, lord titan blade” Ahib said.

“enough” Moyo said with gritted teeth.

Ahib rose from his bowing position, staring into the raging eyes of the titan blade.

“I’m not in a good mood, not now, so please, explain to me why one of the cosmic dragon’s people decided to infiltrate my forces” he said.

“Not infiltrate lord, protect” Ahib said softly.

“Protect, is it?, is this one of the schemed Kairos and Eses hatched together?” Moyo asked.

Ahib stood straight.

“I am not privy to the schemes and plans of the primordials lord titan blade, I merely do what is and was asked of me” Ahib replied.

“And that was the protect me?” Moyo asked.

“Indeed, lord titan blade, from what?, I do not know, but I was told I would know when the time was right” Ahib replied.

“Then you’re aware of what’s currently going on with your boss” Moyo said.

“Indeed, my boss as you call the primordial transcendent is the head of the organization, an order, if you will, to protect the archailect from that existence” Ahib said.

“Transcendent?” Moyo asked.

It was the first time he was hearing such a term, unsure of what it meant.

“I apologize lord titan blade, but I am not at liberty to explain more than that word” Ahib said with a bow.

“Your boss is far from here, do not make me angry” Moyo said as his eyes burned purple and gold.

The skies ahead turned purple, the aura of the titan permeated the air, adding untold pressure around even as the entire city rumbled, ascenders wincing as they felt the power of the titan blade.

“I do no such thing lord titan blade, please, in your mercy, spare the ascenders around” Ahib pleaded.

Moyos' eyes flicked around to see the diamonds and golds frozen where they stood by a pressure, struggling just to stay upright and withdrew his power, guilt flashing over his face. Josh was at his side in an instant, staring with cold eyes at the android.

“Lord Valoris” Ahib said in greeting.

Josh merely stared at the ruler, Ahib shaking his head softly.

“And this organization, where have they been throughout this war?” Moyo asked.

“Our mission is to protect the archailect from the worst of threats and existences, not the abyss, that is the job of the brigade and the jade clans” Ahib replied.

“And where are they now?” Moyo repeated.

“Again lord, I cannot divulge such secret, I was merely told to stay with you and await further instructions” Ahib replied.

“Who else knows of your presence?” Moyo asked.

“As far as I know, the terrestrial primordials” the commander said.

Moyo gave a short bitter laugh.

“Kairos, figures” he replied.

He turned his gaze back to Ahib.

“I do not like being made a fool of, I trusted you with everything I had” Moyo said.

“And I am eternally grateful lord titan blade, never did I thought of betraying such trust” Ahib replied.

“a ruler masquerading as a diamond, are you even from the construct empire?” Moyo asked.

“I have lived countless centuries, my home is the empire, it is sad to see what it has become in the hands of the harbinger of constructs” Ahib replied.

Moyo stared at the man of mithril and metal for a few more seconds before nodding and turning away.

“Whatever your decision is, I will respect it, lord titan blade” Ahib said behind him.

Moyo gave a snort, shaking his head.

“My decision, would it overrule that of the dragon?, If I ordered you banished from my house and all its holdings?, would you simply pack up and leave?” Moyo asked as he roared in anger.

Rage burned beneath his skin like boiling oil, Josh standing like a statue, hand on his Warhammer and Ahib frozen to the spot.

“Yes lord, I would” he simply replied.

Moyo breathed heavily, fighting back the raging tears within his eyes, his power, begging to be unleashed, and yet, he knew it would be wrong. Ahib hadn’t hurt his house, hadn’t hurt him, he was raging at the wrong person, he was angry with himself. Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself, noticing the stillness around, seeing Annika floating some meters away, her eyes wide as a pathway opened up, Ashira stepping through in a haste.

She froze as her eyes surveyed the situation, realizing what was going on.

“Moyo?” she said softly.

He raised one finger, still taking deep breaths, eyes turning to Annika.

“Is this your doing?” he asked her, implying Ashira’s appearance.

“Yes, lord” she said with a nod.

Perhaps the gravity of the situation made her so formal, perhaps the ascenders gathered before them made her reply that way, Moyo hardly cared. Ashira began walking towards him, her voice like steel.

“Ascenders of house titan blade” she spoke.

“We have a war to prepare for, move” she said.

The diamonds and golds around turned to the titan blade, perhaps confused on the hierarchy of power.

“She speaks with my authority, move, apologies” he said softly.

The entire area became a bustle of activities as they moved with dizzying speed, anything to get them away from their current area. He rubbed his eyes wearily.

“Is there anything else I need to know Ahib?” he said softly.

“No, lord titan blade” the android replied.

Moyo nodded wearily.

“I’m done being the playthings of the powers that be” he said, almost to himself.

“You can stay, no use you chasing you off in the middle of a war, but the moment I so much as suspect you of manipulation” he said as he turned to gaze at Ahib.

Unfathomable rage coated his aura that spread between himself and the ruler, pure undiluted rage lancing straight at the android whose knees buckled and eyes went wide. He nodded in understanding, bowing to Moyo who turned to Josh.

“let’s go” he said softly.

A pathway opened as the Shieldborne appeared around Moyo going through the pathway along with Ashira and appearing within the large hall where the ten commanders of the legion were assembled. The usual jovial mode deadened to a still quietness as the titan appeared, the smile on Idris’s face slowly wiping away as he glanced at Josh and Annika who were behind Moyo, no doubt communicating silently between themselves.

Moyo moved to the middle of the round chair sitting the commanders had taken, his body disrupting the holographic display of the continent and the real time movements of the abyssal troops. He noticed Urne seated among the commanders, nodding to her also as she bowed a fraction, confusion etched on her face, he would clear things up soon enough. Standing in the middle, he stared at the display for a few seconds as the room remained silent.

“Commanders of the legion of the titan” he started.

His voice brokered no interruption, his very words hitting like authority itself, arms folded behind his back, he turned slowly to look at all of them.

“We stand alone, completely alone in the face of overwhelming odds” he continued.

“With the forces of the abyss coming down on us, suffice to say that we either end them, or they end us, and as such, we have no need to hold back any longer, I won’t anyways” he said.

“Three abyssal lords’ elites and their forces with one high brother of the undying hands and whatever creations he has with him, anything I’ve missed?” he asked.

“The shorting out of the archailect systems and our inability to rank up” Lucina pointed out.

“Yes, that, we currently have a lead on that, or rather, I do, but its not going to be of much use to us here and now, so we push on, next?” he said.

“Full deployment or precision strikes?” Yemi asked.

“Both, the full might of the legion would strike here and now, considering this is your last battle in the war front, you might as well go wild” he replied.

“so it’s true, we’re sailing back home?” marcel asked.

“Yes, to Ibere, and for those who want to, Gaia, word in the air is that a greater threat is coming and I want the bulk of my forces protecting the planets of the house and its citizens, have no fear, if it’s a fight you’re spoiling for, you’ll get it” he replied.

Hajin crossed his arms.

“I’m guessing no golds?” he asked staring at the hologram.

“Indeed, they will remain to man the defences of the city, long ranged attacks in coordination with the Defiance” Moyo replied, glancing at Urne who nodded in understanding.

“I will go straight for the head of the beast” Moyo said as Ashira cleared her throat.

He glanced at her.

“I and Ashira Chimera would head for the high brother himself” Moyo repeated as Idris and Josh cleared their throats.

He sighed, fighting a smile.

“you guys do know it’s meant to be a precision strike right?, besides, you’ll be needed elsewhere on the battlefront” he said.

“They have a clan leader, the Stormseeker and her wardens with ten complete masters, correct me if I’m wrong, but no other house currently around sports such numbers of masters, do they?” Idris said,

“House Kairos may” Moyo replied glancing at Ashira,

“No, they’ve all been deployed back to Tartarus, as of this moment, only the masters closest to the primordials and the rest of the forces remain” Ashira said.

Moyo nodded.

“Well, there you have it, you only have one order, unleash total destruction, go wild, but ensure the legion realizes that they fight for each other, we move as one, one solid line of unbreakable, unyielding defence” he said.

“You face a foe you can’t defeat?, call my name or Idris’, no bouts of heroics, ensure every single ascender within the legion puts their names down before going to war, I need to know those who would inevitably fall, their loved ones will know of their heroics, I won’t send them to their deaths just like that” Moyo said, his voice cracking,.

The room went silent again, seeing the mood of the titan fall again.

“We, I, have been played, I was warned repeatedly to not trust wholeheartedly, but I suppose it’s in my nature. Make no mistake, for while we may fight with the rest of the forces of the archailect, we’re genuinely on our own” Moyo said again as they nodded,.

“Time grows short, go meet with your cohorts, coordinate with Idris, let’s get this thing over with, I have a war to end” Moyo said as they stood, bowing to him before leaving.

Josh walked up to him.

“How ready are the Shieldborne?” Moyo asked.

“Awaiting your orders lord” Josh replied.

Moyo nodded.

“Good, see to your brothers, I need to talk with her” he said as he glanced at Ashira.

Josh nodded, turned and bowed to both Moyo and Ashira before opening a pathway and disappearing through it, Annika and Idris talking quietly as they went through as well. Moyo turned to Ashira, the heir of Kairos moving closer.

“they’ve been trying to get in touch you know, both of them” Ashira said softly.

Moyo glanced upwards, staring at the stars of the void above the planet through the reflective glass dome of the hall.

“Do you remember how we met?” Moyo asked.

Ashira paused mid speech.

“yes” she said softly.

“I remember it clearly as yesterday, you stumbled into the clearing where I was training, passing out” Moyo said as he wrapped his hands around her.

She froze for a second, unsure of his intentions as he continued.

“I called for help, carrying your body, and then I learnt that you were probably someone important from house Kairos” Moyo said.

“What did you do?’ Ashira asked.

“Dumped your body down as fast as I could” Moyo replied as she gasped and laughed, smacking his shoulder.

“it’s not my fault, the way Killian and…Ajax said it, you were probably related to the main family, that wasn’t an issue I wanted to be in” Moyo replied with a laugh.

Ashira had heard the pause in his tone though.

“Is he alive?’ she asked.

Moyo paused ruminating on his words.

“Alive is putting it in a complicated manner” he replied.

She sighed.

“I could care less, he harms you and I’m putting him in the ground, nothing will remain of his body and essence” she spoke as her eyes flared green.

“rawr” he replied.

“Excuse me?” she asked.

He laughed.

“Nevermind” he replied.

Grabbing her tightly he spoke.

“I want to show you something” he said as they began to float up, her tail swishing softly behind her.

“don’t tell me you did something outrageous” she said raising one eyebrow.

“In what way?” he asked laughing.

She narrowed her eyes at him as he kept on laughing, the glass opened up, letting them through as it sealed itself back, both their feet landing on the glass dome. He pointed skywards.

“See those stars?” he asked.

“Yes, glowing bright, wonder how beautiful this system would had been without the taint of the abyss” Ashira said softly.

“My heart burns brighter with love for you, I promise to be there for you Ashira Chimera Kairos, we’d journey the stars, see the wonders of the archailect, and if you want, create overpowered children to terrorize the archailect, in a good way of course, can’t have brats like Kenuran now can we?’ he said with a smile.

Ashira froze, eyes wide as her breath hitched, Moyo frowning.

“Ashira?, did I say something wrong?, was it too much?” he asked.

She merely made a non-committal grunt.

“I’m sorry, was it too early?’ he asked.

She gripped his head, locking her lips with his fiercely as Moyo relaxed his grip on her, the two of them floating skywards above the city of Defiance, enjoying the moment.

∞

The abyssal clouds drew ever closer in the next few hours, the cities of the primordials burned with power, raw primordial power. Thousands of diamonds all assembled in one place, led by hundreds of masters of the different houses, and in front of them, the primordials, floating in the air, awaiting the forces of the abyss. Over at house thousand blades, another thing ensued, the diamonds were lined, the entire legion of the titan brought to bear against the forces of the abyss as roars could be heard coming from the incoming horde. In front of the diamonds were the ten commanders of the legion, and in front of them stood Idris and Annika, both clad in armour, both holding arcane ranked spears.

Their lines held steady, Idris however, could feel the eyes of the primordials on him, searching, wondering where the titan blade was. He hid a smile.

“you’d think he was their captain or something” Annika whispered to him.

“He tends to find himself in that position” Idris replied.

The skies began to turn pale green, the roiling and sickly power of the abyss beginning to permeate the air.

“Legion, ready!” Idris roared as his spear glowed to life.

Annika’s spear crackled with pure lightning power as a loud roar echoed behind him.

“Show no mercy, burn the filths, wipe them from the face of this planet, for the titan blade!” Idris roared, a lance of purple aspect shooting to the sky.

∞

“where’s he?” Kairos asked softly.

Then the entire area detonated with a force that blew itself to life deep within the lines of the abyssal creatures, the high brother snarling as he turned, lances of light burning from the middle even as Kairos bursted out in laughter, pointing his sentient monster blade forwards.

“Onwards!, to the titan blade!” he said as the primordials moved.