Eleana had just finished explaining everything and prepared to carry additional armor setup when she noticed Caria smiling at her and trying to hide something. Caria applauded, "What a great delivery..."
As Eleana prepared herself, she tied a small, intricately designed head armor that had strange symbols and was completely silvery white. Two tails of flowery shape with ornamental designs seemed to extend to the back of her helmet and just covered up to her forehead.
As she prepared, she called her assistant knights and said to Caria, "I will lead there. You see if there is any issue here and do what is in the instructions. The rest of the captains will be joining shortly... it seems."
Caria nodded gravely, without a hint of her previous smile, as Eleana got down. There, at the edge of the walls, was a chariot. Someone was sitting, stirring the horses. There were five white horses tied to the chariot, and the chariot was overseen by a golden knight.
The chariots were specially crafted by the noble artisans of the state. They had several defense and attack mechanisms, helping captains and leaders reach any area they needed in war.
Eleana's chariot had just been delivered yesterday, and she took a moment to look at the marvel ahead of her. There was a flag of Drudar at its peak as she leaped into it. She said to the chariot driver, "Roanna, take us to the front..."
As the chariot moved through the army toward the front, there were choruses everywhere. Slowly and steadily, the chariot moved forward. Eleana sighed in her heart, looking at the vast army she was leading.
Just then, there was a loud crash as two knights landed in front of the arranged army.
One was a short knight, Marvis, who held two blades, and the other was a man with a greatsword — the infamous Laren, who carried the Zenith Greatsword.
As they landed, their pressure emitted and churned the atmosphere, raising another chorus among the army. "To war!! To war!!" they roared as they raised the flags and continued their slogans. Eleana reached the front amidst the cheers.
Eleana looked to her right, where Marvis stood, and she nodded. His armor was blue-black in color, and his head was covered by a helm that seemed a bit pointy; his face was completely hidden.
She then looked to her left, where Laren had lifted his greatsword and placed it on his shoulder. He was very large and clad in complete black armor. Even his armor bore the name "Damageless Armor."
They walked slowly ahead as the army also moved gently. On the walls behind, the automated arrow system was rising, and many other artifacts were activating. Then, a siren echoed throughout Drudar, indicating that within moments, the enemy army would arrive.
Eleana pointed her sword forward as her chariot moved. Laren started walking slowly, but it seemed as if he was running — some kind of strange movement technique. Marvis was on an armored horse. It seemed the preparations were complete.
As they advanced, the sounds of horses, weapons, and war cries resounded, making even the very air vibrate. Yojans away, the forest was torn apart as an army approached Drudar. It was so large that even the distant hills were blocked from view. As the last of the forests cleared, Drudar's army saw Breavan's army — and they saw Drudar's.
A huge shadow gradually covered the skies as Breavan's flags appeared. The surroundings filled with dust as both armies rapidly approached each other. Everything was happening too fast. There were very strong presences leading the Breavan army. Suddenly, time seemed to come to a standstill as both armies met — and boom!
There was a loud crashing noise as both armies collided. A large number of automated arrows and spells rained down from Drudar's walls, vanishing into the dark shadow. Huge pots crashed into the enemy ranks with strange, lever-like artifacts. Thousands of arrows poured down on the Breavan knights at the back from Drudar's walls.
Eleana led her chariot forward toward the strongest presence as she continued cutting down Breavan knights. Her moon shimmered as Eleana split into another clone and manifested among the enemy soldiers, attacking them fiercely.
Meanwhile, Marvis had drawn both swords as he moved rapidly, killing numerous knights and evading enemy attacks. Laren, meanwhile, allowed all attacks to land on him. With a roar, he jumped into the air, and wherever he landed, knights shattered into blood. It was madness everywhere. The strongest presences of Breavan were deeper inside. The three black knights of Drudar were on a killing spree when Eleana suddenly shouted, "The shadow is actually protecting them! That's why they're so hard to kill!"
But she didn't stop. The knights of Breavan didn't seem dispirited at all; they killed Drudar knights by grouping and ganging up. Chaos ensued. A Breavan knight with a hammer crushed a Drudar knight, sending him flying backward, only to be stabbed by a spear. But before the Breavan knight could celebrate, his head flew into the air. Just as the Drudar spear knight passed by, five Breavan knights jumped on him, impaling swords into themselves. Their bodies turned red as they exploded, taking the spear knight down. He was one of the golden knights under Eleana.
Eleana looked back as her presence radiated even more. The moon's glow shined through the looming darkness as she leaped toward the strongest Breavan presence she felt — a female knight clad in dark armor, wielding a red sword. As Eleana leaped from her chariot, her sword met not steel but a fist as the other knight grunted.
They started exchanging blows at a furious rate. Eleana's moon suddenly manifested as she appeared behind the dark knight. She thrust her sword, but the knight barely defended. A huge explosion separated them. Eleana glanced back — her chariot had been ravaged, and her driver was fighting elsewhere.
The dark knight removed her helm amidst the chaos as she continued cutting down Drudar knights. As Eleana advanced toward her, the dark knight said, "Eleana, I suppose. I am Merissa — sent to end you." She thrust her flaming sword toward Eleana.
The sword suddenly grew larger, and Eleana dodged, the strike killing both Breavan and Drudar knights nearby. Eleana muttered something as she counterattacked Merissa.
Elsewhere, Laren continued his rampage like a wild beast with his greatsword. No attack seemed to injure him. It was as if a demon was rampaging. Twenty simultaneous attacks struck him from various knights, but his armor remained unscathed. He muttered, "Split the darkened sky..." as his greatsword fell and the ground around him cracked. Even the darkness above his head seemed to fade. He continued to advance.
Marvis continued on his horse, killing, when suddenly his pupils constricted — his horse's body was gone. He crashed and barely landed. A knight stood not far away, wielding a spiked weapon. Marvis turned, roared, and leaped into the air. He vanished and reappeared, slashing through the figure.
Suddenly, Marvis seemed to move back a long distance, then attacked again from nowhere. He was too fast for the Breavan captain. The Breavan knight roared, "Kandra will kill you!" Suddenly, Marvis felt as though he'd been seen through. The spiked mace struck his breastplate, sending him crashing into the chaos. As he tried to stand, two of his comrades' arms fell nearby. The battle raged everywhere. He screamed and broke through the enemies, his speed increasing frantically as he resumed trading blows with Kandra.
Far to the north of the battle, a group was heading toward the center. One was a short-haired beauty in white clothing, another was a red-haired woman, Nyelle, and the third was a man in black armor. Nyelle said, "Rhaelle, Symon — I don't know why there's misinformation in the commands, but we need to take control quickly."
They nodded and cut through the battlefield. Symon casually wielded a spear that tore through Breavan knights, while Rhaelle's long whip pierced enemies with precise strikes as they advanced toward the captains.
In the middle, Eleana and Merissa were engaged in a fierce battle. The shockwaves sent tremors through the dark battlefield. The darkness seemed to spread over a vast area.
Other powerful presences appeared as Eleana realized the gravity of the situation — there was something more at play. Merissa smiled as she attacked. "I don't even know why you're commanding the battle... just a black knight."
Eleana didn't respond as her mind drifted to her last conversation with the commander — one of the grey knights — who had said, "If I can't make it before the war… you will command."
As Laren moved toward the growing presences near Eleana, he tried to reach her, but suddenly the battlefield vanished from his view. A blindfolded lady stood before him, dressed in black robes. Her blond hair fell back, and her face reminded him of something. As he prepared to strike, she vanished and appeared behind him, throwing him back. He muttered, "Cheap tricks… Canthia."
"Just because I didn't kill you and let you go doesn't mean I'll do the same again," she said. He leaped and clashed with Canthia.
The three other knights — Rhaelle, Nyelle, and Symon — reached Eleana as three more presences emerged and clashed. The darkness above was doing multiple things — shielding auras and strengthening the army. Rhaelle clashed with Neigrel, Nyelle split the void with her rapid fist attacks, creating loud booms, but her opponent, Sethsi, remained unaffected, shifting positions like a shadow and even injuring Nyelle with her long spear, while Symon clashed with a knight named Vridga.
As they fought, the darkness above began to distort as Breavan soldiers automatically adjusted themselves, forming a structured pattern. Gradually, a spiral structure formed with knights, rotating continuously. It completely blocked any outside attacks from Drudar's forces, trapping Eleana and the others inside the formation.
Eleana and the others grew grim as Symon muttered, "It's the Breavan Artoynvyu Formation… oh no." Eleana expanded her moon to an immense size to disrupt the formation, but it was instantly swallowed by the darkness above. Countless small, hollow, insect-like creatures devoured Eleana's attack. She spat a mouthful of blood, staining her silvery white armor, which still shimmered faintly in the darkness. Merissa laughed, "A pity..."
She attacked Eleana again, who was out of breath. By now, the spiral had completed, and only Laren was outside. It was completely sealed by Breavan's soldiers, with spiked shields forming its edge. The formation rotated continuously. The Drudar knights trapped inside were killed rapidly, their screams filling the air. The captains' and Eleana's faces grew grave as they continued to fight but could not break free. The Drudar knights outside struggled as they attacked desperately, but the formation was unbreakable.
Nyelle screamed as her body grew, her red hair flowing as she turned and unleashed a devastating attack that erased hundreds of knights. Just then, a palm burst through her abdomen. She screamed, and a severed arm remained lodged inside her. She turned to see Sethsi's arm cut off — done by Marvis. He was once again entangled with his opponent as the dent in the formation slowly reformed. Nyelle bit her lip as she clashed again.
Merissa smiled as she continued her assault. "So now what…?"
Eleana noticed something — there were Shura arts being used by many knights, and the darkness grew stronger with every death. More and more of the strange hollow insects appeared. As she parried the flaming sword and launched another counterattack, she suddenly saw the formation breaking. Knights were being bombarded by massive pots and flaming furnaces from far away. A powerful presence was cutting through the enemy lines — fire raged everywhere.
Everyone's eyes widened as the five captains looked ahead, stunned. The golden knights were scattered as a figure broke through the formation. He carried a massive flaming sword, and in his hand was the severed head of a formidable enemy — Canthia.
The figure hurled the head, which fell near Merissa, as he made a jump.
He landed beside Merissa and looked at her with a smile. "I will kill you..."
The figure was very familiar to Eleana and the others. It was none other than John. He carried a red flaming sword on his back, his hair now turned red. Most of the army around them lay defeated.