I know, Double post and all, and it's a small update, but an update nonetheless.
Shortly after Deccus had fainted, the blizzard had stopped. Both Deccus and Delia lay unconscious in the snow, lying, almost lifelessly.
“Delia?”
Delia awoke to the sound of her name being called. She turned around and saw Venra and his team closing in. Luckily, they hadn't seen her yet.
Acting quickly, she hid herself under the snow in an attempt to hide. She knew that if they saw her, they would take her back , and she still had a promise to keep for Deccus.
Venra and his team closed in on Delia's location and Venra ordered them all to stop. "I could've sworn I saw something around here." He said as he shifted his eyes from side to side, scanning the area.
"Awww come on, I'm hungry, and we're not gonna find em here! There's nothing here but Vahal, and that's a mile and a half to the east, plus Howler Hill, and that's out to the west a long ways! If they were here, we would have seen them already. It's flat land! There's no where to go!" Allouette barged out.
"He's right for once." Pix said in a sarcastic tone, only to be followed by a swift fist to the head.
"How many time's do I need to tell you to shut up, runt?!" Anita bellowed.
"Cut the chatter!" Venra yelled at them both, "We're here to find Delia, not to bicker with each other, so get back to looking for her!" He continued in his head, I can't believe that I got stuck on a stupid assignment like this....After that stupid badger kid beat me TWICE, they haven't taken me seriously...I'll complete this assignment, and get back to what I do best...
The team of Howlers eventually moved on far enough so that Delia was out of sight. She got up as quickly as she could and uncovered Deccus. He was still out cold; she felt his chest and head. He was getting colder by the minute.
"East...East...Which way is east?" She thought. And then she remembered, the sun rises in the east, and settles in the west, so she just had to figure out which was it was going now.
She stood for a moment, looking up at the sun, unable to figure it out. There were still clouds left over from the storm. Luckily, she saw a patch of light shining through. She watched it closely as it moved towards her.
"If it's moving towards me, then it's going west...Heh.” She then slung Deccus over her shoulder, and began trudging through the snow, towards the sun.
With the storm over, it was quite a bit warmer and much easier to walk in. The scar on Delia’s face still stung a bit, but it felt better than it did the night before. Perhaps the absence of the stinging wind made a difference.
Within an hour she saw the outline of Vahal. Her injured back made the trip there all the more painful to her. She eventually came within sight of the Guards atop the wall.
"Hey you!! Who are you-" He looked at her carefully. He noticed that she had on a Howler uniform. "You’re a Howler!! GUARDS!! Open fire!" he yelled. She began saying "Hey wait! Stop I'm just here to-" But she was hit in the stomach and arms 3, 4, 5 times, she lost count. Though the guard’s guns weren't powerful, in her condition, they were enough to cause severe pain. She crouched, let go of Deccus, and clutched at her stomach. She was hit again, and again, on her back, arms and legs. The guards wouldn't let up on her.
All of the commotion caused quite a stir in the town. And Delia was greeted by Deccus's whole team. Holly spoke to herself, "Who is she? And why is a Howler here at Vahal, all alone?" Ted noticed something that looked familiar, and he began pointing franticly at the limp body of Deccus. And Kaeden saw what Ted was pointing at and yelled "Look!! It's Deccus!!" he then turned his attention. He ran up to face her and pointed his new gun at her face. The simple shadow from it was enough to scare Delia. He bared his teeth and said "What have you done to him!! Why are you with him?" He fired a warning shot. "Answer me!!" he yelled while firing another warning shot. He had the power setting very low, so it was little more than snowball being dropped on her face.
"Kaeden, can it!" Kleth said to him, as he walked closer to Delia.
As he approached Delia, she breathed a sigh of relief. He came face to face with her and asked her "What have you done to Deccus?"
_Figures..._ she thought as she began to explain the situation. But Kleth stopped her after the first few sentences.
"This might take awhile, let's get you inside where it's warm....Guards!" he beckoned for a few guards to come over, and he ordered them to carry Delia and Deccus to the Infirmary.
After spending a few hours catching a nap, her interrogation was continued by Kleth, with Kaeden in the room and his new gun, which he stroked affectionately. He had practiced firing it in the Academy firing range, and he was very pleased with the results.
“So, Delia.” Kleth said, sitting on a high chair while she lay in her bed. “Start your story again.”
She leaned up on her pillow and cleared her throat. She couldn’t tell them that a Golem attack on Vahal was planned, so she said a slightly modified version of her account on things.
“Well, as you saw, I’m a Howler. But, don’t judge me by that. Clash said he had started some new weaponry theories, and he chose me to be the main test pilot, so to say. He said that with this new weapon, he would finally surpass all other Howler commanders and forge his name in the crucible of the best, to quote him. I don’t know why he chose me, but he did. I was the first one to learn this new weapon, and I helped develop it into its final form. All problems with it I could find before it was truly tested on the field, but even I don’t know what it’s fully capable of.”
Kleth leaned in closer to Delia and stared her in the eye. His expression was one that he never used, but in the circumstance he had no choice. “Delia, we know about the Golems. We know that you were the test pilot for them, we know that you and Deccus fought with them. Science has studied Deccus’s stolen Golem, and Drifter’s team had brought back the last half. We understand the mechanics of the Golem, and we are working on making our own version, but with more improvements. We also know of the coming attack on Vahal, where Golems are going to be used.” Kleth intensified his voice. “You hold no more secrets, Delia. You may as well tell us everything.”
She moved back, away from Kleth. She then sighed and hung her head, her hair hiding her face. If the Badgers knew of the attack on Vahal, then there was a chance that the Howler’s would fail.
“And that’s not all.” Kleth continued. “There is more than Vahal that is going to defend us. Arcania and Perry are helping also. Arcania is going to move its tower cannon to Vahal, and Perry has dozens of top notch soldiers and equipment that is going to be used in defense. As you can see Delia, you won’t find us unprepared.” Kleth made his voice to sound as evil as possible. “You will fail, Delia. The Howlers cannot win against us. There is no chance your attack will succeed. You will be shot down in flames.”
Delia was almost spooked by Kleth. His expression showed no compassion, and his voice made it clear that he hated her guts. She was also frightened by the massive gun that Kaeden was holding, and she noticed that the power level on it was set to max….
“Delia, tell us all your secrets. You have no chance of getting out of Vahal alive if you try to escape. Kaeden has the door locked, and if you try to fight us he won’t hold back because you’re a girl. He has the orders to shoot to kill.”
Delia felt a vein in her neck clench in fear. Death? There was no way that Kleth was telling the truth. The Badgers never would stoop so low. Only Allouette enjoyed killing, and even he was evil for a Howler.
“You’re lying, Badger!” Delia yelled out against Kleth. He didn’t flinch or change expression. “The Badgers are supposed to be the good guys. You would never go so low as to kill!”
“Kaeden.” Kleth said simply. Kaeden came up, loaded his gun and pointed it at Delia’s face. The barrel of it was almost as big as her face.
“Who says I don’t wanna really hurt a Howler, huh?” Kaeden said with his well-practiced bad-guy voice.
Delia thought much differently about the Badgers when she was at gunpoint with one. She didn’t move, she only stared down the gun and at the holder of it, her eyes filled with fear. Kaeden liked to see that, somehow.
“Okay…..” Delia said and hung her head again in shame. Clash wasn’t going to like this… “I’ll tell you everything…”
Kleth gave an evil grin. Finally, some results…
Delia gave a sigh and launched into her story. “After Deccus and I fought on Howler hill and that ski-doo team managed to rescue Deccus, I tried to work my way back to the base I was at. But, I couldn’t climb the hill very well, since one of the legs of my Golem was broken, and a blizzard had just started up. I got too cold to continue, so I just lay in the snow and slept. When I woke up I was lying in the snow, and Deccus was beside me, about to freeze to death. He had tried so hard to save me, and I promised that I would do the same for him. But, a tree fell on Deccus’s ankle, and it had knocked me out with a branch.” She sighed again. “I don’t know what happened after that, but I woke up to find the Crimson Bandits looking for me, so I hid myself until they went away. Then I found Deccus and took him to Vahal, when your guards started shooting me, and you know the rest.”
Kleth nodded at this info, Kaeden still pointing his new gun at Delia. For the first time she noticed the words “Behemoth” printed on the side.
“Anything else, Delia? I know there’s more you know, and I will get it out of you. Why not save yourself further pain and tell me now?”
Delia hung her head lower and continued. “The attack on Vahal will start in 2 days. There will be 36 Golem units and 150 regular infantry. There will all types of war machines and siege weapons. The attack will be at 4:00 pm…”
Delia said those last words with a sniffle and she felt a tear go down her cheek. Why? Why was she betraying the Howler’s now? She had served them faithfully for years, and now she was giving secret information that could completely turn the tide to the Badger side. Did she want the Badgers to win? She knew what Clash would do if he got his hands on Deccus. She didn’t want that to happen…
“Thank you, Delia. This will prove very interesting to the General. I will make sure to allow you free passage to the nearest Howler base.” Kleth said and stood up, heading for the door.
“Wait!” Delia burst out. Kaeden pushed her back down with his gun.
“Quiet you! You’re staying here til the Man says you can go!”
“Let her speak, Kaeden.”
Kaeden looked at Kleth with confusion, then lowered his gun and backed to the wall. Kleth went to Delia and stood over her.
“What is it, Delia?”
“Can I see Deccus before I go?:
Kleth looked her over. “Yes, I would allow you. I’m not the one that decides, however. May I ask, why?”
“I said I would keep a promise to him, and I just wanted to tell him that before I go.”
Kleth nodded. “Very well. I will ask the General if you can speak to Deccus when he wakes up.” He said and headed for the door again. “Kaeden, see to it that she is well treated and doesn’t leave the room until I come back.”
Kaeden acknowledged this with a grunt and a nod. Kleth exited the room and shut the door behind him.
Kaeden took Kleth’s chair and sat down a ways from Delia. She simply lay on her bed, her back on the backboard. Her back didn’t feel as bad as before, then she noticed that she had several bandages on her spine.
“So, Kaeden is it?” Delia asked her watchdog. He simply grunted at this and remained adamantly silent. “Are you on Deccus’s team?”
“Yeah.”
“What class are you?”
“Fighter.”
“Have you fought much on the field?”
“Oh yeah. Many times.”
“Is Deccus a good leader?”
“Yeah, he’s great. He never tells us to do impossible things, he knows what we’re capable of, he doesn’t ask for much, he does a lot of the work himself, and he’s nice too. He just needs to learn to loosen up and have some fun once in a while. I haven’t seen him have fun once since I knew him. Sure, he’s happy enough, but he just needs to learn that there’s more to life than fighting.”
_Wow… So he can talk full sentences._ Delia thought to herself, and then said “Exactly how did you convince your parents to let you enter the Snowcraft Force?”
Delia remembered the fuss she and her brother had to go through in order to enter the Snowcraft Force.
“Eh, it was easy. My friend Ted entered, and I told my folks that Ted needed someone to protect him, so I was sent here with him.”
“This Ted… What is he like?”
“Very, very quiet. Now that I think of it, I haven’t heard him say a single word.”
“Mute?”
“I’m thinking so, but who knows. He hasn’t even made a single sound from my experience.”
“What does he do? Is he a fighter like you?”
“No no. He’s way too small for that. He’s a medic on the same team as Deccus and me.”
“Now, how about Deccus? Where does he come from?”
“Somewhere in Canada. He said it all, but I forgot most of it. All I remember is him saying he wanted to be a cook instead of a fighter.”
_Hm?_
“Really?” Delia said. “Sounds kind of like me.”
“What, you wanted to be a cook too?”
“Sort of. I more would have liked to be a waitress or something instead.”
“And you were too good of a soldier to pass up?”
“Something like that. I think it was a recommendation from a higher power or something like that.”
The door to the room opened and Kleth walked in. He shut it after him and faced Delia.
“Despite severe hypothermia, ankle broken in five places, a frozen hand and an acute case of depression, Deccus has come around and the doctor has allowed short visits with people.”
Delia jumped out of bed. “Really!? Can I see him now?”
Kleth raised an eyebrow at her excited behavior, but beckoned her to follow him and he opened the door. He walked out with Delia close behind and Kaeden following her.
Several nurses looked at Delia and pointed at her uniform, but they saw Kaeden close behind with his Behemoth gun and were not frightened by her due to her escort. Delia ignored all their gestures and kept her gaze straight forward, looking at the back of Kleth’s head.
Kleth stopped by a door and opened it. He put his head in, saw Deccus was awake, then opened the door for Delia to enter. She took the offer and quickly strode in, and she beheld a sight that didn’t reassure her.
Deccus’s face was covered in all sorts of bandages and heat packs, and what skin was showing was an odd shade of blue. His hands and legs were wrapped in a cast-like casing, and his body was covered in multiple layers of heat packs. All skin that showed was that same, sickly shade of blue. She noticed his left hand had the worst look to it, having many layers over it. His ankle was wrapped in a cast and it looked to be the least of his worries.
Despite these, Deccus’s face broke into a smile when he saw Delia. “Hey you.” His voice was terribly raspy and cracked, obviously freshly thawed.
“Hi.” Delia took a seat beside the bed and she heard the door close. She turned to see the view port open and Kleth’s watchful eye through the glass.
“Good to see you made it.” Deccus said with an unstoppable grin, which afterwards faded into a frown and his eye’s looking away. “I’m sorry that I failed.”
“Failed what?”
“I promised that I would save you, and I didn’t. You saved both of us. I didn’t do anything. I was useless…”
“No.” Delia moved closer and put a hand on his cheek, even though it was covered in heat packs. “You did more than you should have. You hiked miles in a raging blizzard, just so you could rescue me. You got me through something that would have killed me, and the start was the hardest part. I just helped finish the job.” She moved her hand to stroke a portion of his visible nose. “You saved me then, Deccus. I can’t forget that.”
The smile returned to his sickly visage. “Thanks, Delia. I guess I did do something right…”
Delia gave Deccus a smile, then sat back down. She noticed the size of the cast on his ankle. “So, how’s the foot doing? I saw it about to get crushed, but then something hit me and I was knocked out.”
“It’s pretty busted up, but the doctor said that I could get a walking cast for it and at least be able to move around. I think it’s the least of my worries…”
He looked down to his chest, which Delia saw was uncovered save for a few heat packs. She moved her hand towards it. “Can I see?” She asked quietly. Deccus gave a nod and she slid the heat pack to the side, revealing Deccus’s chest.
The sheer amount of blue made it look like he had been beaten, but the certain shade of it made it evident he had nearly been frozen to the bone. Delia looked away and put the heat pack back on.
“Not good, eh?” Deccus said simply, then coughed.
“Ugh… No. I’m sorry, Deccus…”
“For what? You didn’t do anything.”
“Yes I did. I dragged our fight out too far. I shouldn’t have tackled you and send us down Howler Hill. I should have tried to keep the fight on top of the hill, so I didn’t have to climb it to get back to the base. It’s my fault that you came back to look for me, and I’m sorry…” She tilted her head to the side and hid her face with her hair.
She heard a sigh come from Deccus. “Delia, I don’t even know why I went back for you. I mean, you’re a Howler, and I’m a Badger. It would have looked better to my superiors to just leave you out there, but I went back anyways. There was even a storm warning around, and I wasn’t even let outside of Vahal. I had to force my way out to get to you. I don’t have any idea why I did, but I did it, and I’m glad that I did.” Deccus gave a series of raspy coughs, then pointed to his bedside table with four fingers. “Can you pass me my water, please?”
Delia poured him a glass and handed it to him. He gave a small thanks and drank the whole cup with difficulty. He threw the empty glass on the floor, but it just bounced. “Delia… I never thought that I would be saying this, let alone to a Howler, but…” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I really enjoyed our kiss.”
Delia thought she heard a small gasp from somewhere, but she ignored it and smiled. “Me too.”
Outside of the room, Kleth muttered under his breath and went to find Holly.
“Deccus? Is it true you wanted to be a cook?”
Deccus nodded. “Yeah. I always had to cook at home, so I was always good at it. I could have been the head chef if they had let me stay, but they saw how I did in the physical exam, and said I should be a fighter instead. They made it sound like I didn’t have a choice though, so I became a Shield Joe fighter and eventually I graduated to a Valiant rank, and I’m here where I am, in the infirmary for life threatening injuries the second time around.” He coughed loudly, but only once.
“Sounds kind of like me. I wanted to be a waitress for the Training Center in Kalthus, but due to recommendations from a higher power I became a soldier instead. When they started making Golem’s, I was solely picked to test pilot them. After doing that for a few months-“
“They had Golem’s for MONTHS!?” Deccus yelled loudly.
“Well, yes, but very simple ones. They didn’t have any armor or anything, they simply wanted to make them as strong as possible and figure out the best design for the hydraulics. After that they put armor on and tested them fully. It took a long time to get them to the final model that we used.”
“Well, STILL! That was before Clash came in charge, right?”
“Yes, Spike was the one who originated the plans, but he didn’t focus on them too much. When Clash came into power, however, he made all available tech personnel work on the Golem Project.”
Deccus closed his eyes and mulled this over. If they had the Golems for so long, then why didn’t they use them earlier? Surely they would have used them in the Arcania attack, even if they weren’t to their maximum potential.
“Delia, can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“Can you stay in Vahal for a while? Until I’m fully healed? I know that they want to send you back right away, but I’m going to ask them to keep you here, at least until I can say goodbye properly.”
Delia looked at Deccus funny. “Well, if you want, of course I’ll stay, but if they don’t let me, then what?”
“Then…” Deccus sighed. “I’ll have to find you on the battlefield.”
Delia looked Deccus in the eye. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking… He kept his face as inscrutable as possible, and she couldn’t see anything in his eyes.
The door behind them opened. The doctor walked in and said “That’s quite long enough. Deccus needs his rest.”
Delia stood up and faced the doctor. “Can I stay in Vahal?”
Quite taken aback, the doctor lifted his head and looked down on Delia. “Absolutely not! I wouldn’t allow it! But it’s not my decision.”
“Then can you take me to whoever’s decision it is, then?”
“You and what army?”
Deccus spoke up. “Please, let her talk to the General. She can use my old dorm room in the Academy. Just until I’m healed.”
“Deccus!? You allow her to-“
“Please!”
The doctor stayed silent, his face looked deep in thought. “Well, I guess I’ll at least give her a chance.” He turned to the door and started to walk out, continuing to talk. “Still, a Howler living in the Academy? Kaeden, take her to the General. What will the rookies think? They’ll be at her heels left and right.” He turned a corner and his voice droned out from the distance.
Kaeden looked in the room, gestured with his head to have her follow him, and they left the Infirmary with him in the lead.
Outside in the sun, Delia saw that it was after school for the rookies, and they were all outside, enjoying the sun. Some were with friends, some took advantage of the warm weather by not wearing heavy coats, but all of them noticed Delia’s Howler uniform. They all either backed away from her, made small hand gestures, or looked at her with loathing. They knew she wasn’t going to do anything, what with the massive weapon Kaeden had in his hands, so they egged her on all they could.
It was a relief for Delia to be in the headquarters building and away from the rookies. Instead she had to deal with the looks the secretaries gave her. Kaeden was talking to one of them, to let Delia see the General. Apparently there was someone else he was in a meeting with now, so Kaeden gestured to a chair for Delia to sit in. She took the offer and Kaeden sat in the one next to her, his gun still trained on her general direction. The secretaries continued to work, though still wary of Delia’s presence.
The doors to the General’s office opened and out stepped a boy. But, somehow, Delia recognized him. She stood bolt upright and ran for him.
“Jaeger!?”
He looked up at his name being said. “Delia? What’re YOU doing here?”
Delia stood in front of her brother, slightly taller than him. “Is that any way to talk to your sister? I haven’t seen you for years.”
“Neither have I. This is just… Too weird.”
“What do you mean?”
“I was just thinking about you, wondering how you were doing, and here you are, right in front of me, still… In a Howler uniform.”
“Something wrong with that?”
“Yes, there’s PLENTY wrong with that. Delia, why didn’t you come with me to the Badgers when I joined?”
“I told you Jaeger, I make my own decisions. I wanted to join the Howler side, and it would take more than you to make me change that.”
Jaeger heaved a sigh. “Then I guess my big sister isn’t the same as before.”
Jaeger continued his path out of the building, leaving Delia alone with some very confused thoughts. Kaeden came up behind her and gave her a push.
“The General will see you now.” He said simply and pushed her again. She saw the gaping doors, leading into a very dark room. She swallowed her courage and stepped into the room.
The doors shut behind her with a bang as she entered, leaving her in complete darkness. She couldn’t see anything, not even a sliver from under the door.
_The Badger General controls through fear?_ Delia thought. She always wondered how the Badgers remained loyal to a figure that did not control through brute power.
“Delia.”
She turned to where the voice came from. She saw a pair of angled eyes, shaped like triangles and bright red in color.
Delia gasped and backed away from them.
“Stop.” The voice commanded. She obeyed immediately. “I know why you are here, Delia. And I know why you are going to ask it, also.”
Delia gulped. “You do?” She said very quietly, completely controlled by the fear she had for this invisible figure.
“Yes. I know what you and Deccus did, I know why he wants you to stay, I know that you want to stay, and against my better judgment, I’m going to provide a room in the Academy dormitories for you.”
The eyes grew larger and burned a brighter red. A sound almost like a bat was heard. She started backing up again, to get away from the fearsome foe.
She hit a wall, but it wasn’t the door.
She saw the eyes move closer towards her. “There is nothing you can hide from me, Delia. Not even the attack on Vahal is kept secret anymore. Not even the weapons being used on Vahal is secret.” The eyes moved ever closer. Delia slumped down against the wall, cowering and shaking. “I want you to know, there is no chance for the Howler’s to win. Even if Deccus cannot participate in the battle, we still will win. We’ve defended Vahal before, and we shall do it again.” The voice grew suddenly sinister. “You Howlers shall be crushed by our iron will.”
Delia gave a small whimper.
“Now, leave.”
The doors opened. From the sudden burst of light the General was illuminated, but like a vampire he moved into the shadows, a cape clearly visible as he swept his arms to hide his face. Delia left the room without hesitation.
“Kaeden, can I speak with you for a moment?” The voice behind her said, now in a completely different tone than was used on her. Kaeden quickly strode into the room and the doors shut again
Her eyes had not adjusted to the light of the receiving office, so she closed her eyes and knelt on the ground. Was that the General of the Badgers? No wonder they serve him without question.
_Those eyes… They looked like they were from some creature… They weren’t human._ She thought as she opened her eyes again.
The office was empty, save for the two secretaries on both sides of the door. They both worked nonchalantly, as if the General hadn’t spooked Delia half to death. They knew his methods of dealing with Howlers in person, and they didn’t fear for their safety, since they knew that after speaking to the General a Howler would be in no condition to fight. They simply left Delia to lay there, all alone in her thoughts.
The doors opened behind Delia and Kaeden strode out.
“C’mon! Follow me.” He nudged her with his barrel and she followed obediently.
Outside in the bright daylight the rookies were still out. They regarded her with caution, but knew that they were in no danger due to Kaeden and his hefty gun. He led her into the Academy, and up the staircase that led to the dormitories.
Kaeden stopped at one that had the numbers “17” on its door. Kaeden took out a key and unlocked it. He opened the door, pointed to it and said simply “In.” Delia obeyed immediately.
The inside was not glamorous, but far better than many Howler dorms. It had a bed, bookcase, a simple weight set, and cupboards of food. A door led somewhere else, Delia didn’t know, but the large window gave a great view of Vahal. Normally a Howler dorm had only food and a bed, maybe a window or a few books, but this was extravagant compared to that.
“Wow. It’s nice.” Delia nodded her appreciation. Her dorm certainly didn’t have a weight set.
Kaeden laughed. “Nice!? We put you in one of the crappiest rooms! Anyways, I’ll have this door locked. There’s a bathroom through that door, and you are not to leave here until someone comes to get you. You will not be moved during the attack on Vahal, and if you jump out the window you’ll probably break a leg. So stay here, even if the building is about to come down. Got it?”
Delia nodded. She didn’t see a problem to not leaving, especially since they didn’t look kindly on her, and the room was very nice compared to what she was used to.
“Thank you, Kaeden.”
Kaeden grunted and nodded, then shut the door. Delia heard a key at work and knew she was locked in from the outside.
She strode over to the window. She saw a few rookies wrestling in the snow, and she wondered what Deccus would do during the attack…
“Holly, there’s something I need to tell you.”
Holly looked up from her workout and looked to Kleth. She replied fiercely “What is it? I‘m busy”
“You know that Howler that we captured?”
“Of course. Everyone in Vahal knows of her.”
“Well, what would you say if she and Deccus did more than you thought they did when they were out in the blizzard?”
“You’re not making sense. Either explain yourself, or leave me alone. I’m busy.”
Kleth rubbed his head. How would he say this without her going berserk?
“Let’s see… They were out in the middle of a storm, saving each others lives one time after another, and let’s say that Deccus did her a favor. Well, she naturally would want to reward that, right?”
“Start making sense before I start hurting you.”
“Deccus and Delia made out in the blizzard.”
Holly dropped her weight on the ground. It made a bang on landing, but she didn’t notice.
“They WHAT!?”
“You heard me.”
“Deccus did that with a Howler? Is he INSANE!?”
“Why don’t you ask him yourself?”
Holly stood bolt upright. “No, I won’t ask him. I’ll talk to Delia instead. Where’s Kaeden? He has her key.”
“He’s in the cafeteria, as usual.”
With grim determination Holly left the weight room and made her way to the cafeteria.
For nearly an hour Delia did nothing but watch the rookies at play in the city square, watching the sun go down for the night. It made such a picturesque moment that she wished she had a camera.
_This place is so much nicer than Kalthus. The rookies can do what they want, they don’t have to worry about higher authorities coming in and making them do more work, they can just run and play, free from cares._ Delia sighed. _Maybe Jaeger was right. The Badgers are better than the Howlers. Maybe I should defect from the Howlers and join the Badgers. At least then I won’t have to fight Deccus every time I see him…_
There was a knock at Delia’s door and the sound of a key at work. She leaned up from the window and turned to the door.
It burst open for a second and Holly came in. She quickly shut the door in Kaeden’s face, then locked it again from the inside. After that she turned to Delia, anger on her face and fury in her eyes.
“Okay, Howler. I’m gonna ask the questions, and you’re gonna answer them. FULLY. Got it?” Holly came up and stood over Delia. They were almost the same height, but Holly was much more intimidating.
Delia nodded simply, afraid to talk.
“What were you thinking when you kissed Deccus? Didn’t you think that maybe you were on different teams?”
Delia stepped forward. “I don’t know what I was thinking then. He had risked his life to save me, and I wanted to do the same for him.”
Holly narrowed her eyes. “Not enough. Explain it again, but better!”
Delia racked her brain. “What’s to explain? He had tried so hard to save me and he was failing, but I knew I had to help him, for both of our sakes.”
Holly reared her arm and backhanded Delia across the cheek. “Still not enough! Say it again!”
Delia was knocked back from Holly’s hit, but she soon stood again. “I already told you all that I can! That’s all that happened!”
Holly reached and grabbed Delia by the throat. “I think you’re hiding something still. Tell me, or I’ll gut you like a fish.”
Delia gasped for breath. What was she doing? “I… Already told you… gurk… I…”
Holly’s grip tightened and she lifted Delia off the ground an inch. “TELL ME!”
Reacting to baser instincts, Delia thrust her fist into Holly’s kidney. She immediately dropped her, and Delia took in a few breaths of air while bent down. Holly fell to her knees in pain.
Holly stared at Delia in the face. “Tell me you just didn’t do that.”
Delia looked at Holly with a gaze of equal contempt. “I just did it. What’re you gonna do about it?”
Holly reached out and gripped some of Delia’s hair. She countered by taking hold of Holly’s other wrist and twisting it. Holly let go of her hair, but instead tried to punch Delia in the face. She blocked by putting her forearm out, then punched Holly across the cheek. Holly took the hit then grabbed Delia’s nose, then twisted it so hard that Delia spun around and her head was upside down. She reached for Holly’s ankles and pulled, sending Holly crashing to her side.
Reacting to well trained reflexes, Delia jumped on top of Holly and began to punch her in the face, many times over and in quick succession. Holly couldn’t block the attacks, but instead she reached and gripped Delia’s throat. She grabbed Holly’s wrist and pulled her hand off, but by then Holly’s other hand reached Delia’s head at high speed. Delia was knocked back and off of Holly, and Holly had gotten up and tried again to strangle Delia. This time she succeeded in getting both hands around Delia’s neck, and she squeezed. Delia tried to get Holly to let go, but she had too strong of hands.
Delia had her head against the wall, being pushed against it by Holly’s savage attack. Delia lifted her foot quickly and hit Holly in the shin. Holly’s grasp loosened enough for Delia to pull them off, and she gasped for breath. Delia put both on Holly and pushed her off, sending her careening across the room and into the cupboard. The door to the cupboard was knocked open and food of varying sorts fell out and piled on top of Holly.
Delia dashed in and was ready to attack again. Holly stuck her foot out and it contacted with Delia’s face. Holly’s boot had heavy tread on it, and it made Delia’s scar open again in several places, making her bleed again.
Holly grinned at the successful attack and took a heavy cardboard box full of food and hit Delia across the face with it. Delia took the hit and attacked Holly again by grabbing her throat. Holly had one hand trying to pry her grip from her neck and the other had Delia by the hair. Delia’s other hand was on one of Holly’s wrists, trying to her hand off of her hair.
The door opened sharply and Kaeden saw what the two girls were doing to each other. He ran over quickly, knocked Delia back and caught Holly from falling. Delia slid on the floor, her face bleeding violently and making one of her eyes sting.
“What the hell were you two doing!?” Kaeden yelled, still holding Holly up.
“I don’t know! She came in and started yelling and hitting me, and I just fought back!” Delia yelled out, still confused as to why Holly got so angry.
“Fine!” Kaeden yelled to Delia, who was holding her face scar to prevent further bleeding. “I’ll take Holly outta here, and you better learn to control your temper! Remember, you’re not in friendly territory!” Kaeden pushed Holly out of the room and shut the door sharply.
Delia lay on the ground, still utterly confused as to why Holly got so infuriated.
_Does she feel the same for Deccus as I do?_ She wondered. She hoped not, since she was on the same team as Deccus and had much more opportunity than she did.
Delia decided to pack up the spilt food. It had been spread all over the room, and some had been torn open.
_I wonder if they’ll try to rescue me when they invade Vahal…_ Delia thought while she worked.
News of Delia had spread throughout Vahal like a wildfire. The thought that a Howler was here, in Vahal, not only that, but in a dorm room? It was unthinkable to the rookies. However, Deccus had wanted her to stay, and the General made sure that no further harm would come to her. He also insured that Delia was still good and afraid of the Badgers, due to his impressive display, along with Holly and Kaeden.
However, for the next two days, the General ordered all available personnel to train to fight against mechs. Heavy rifles were being made in massive numbers by Dagor, and the tower cannon from Arcania was successfully transplanted temporarily to Vahal. Perry had sent five dozen of its finest and most elite soldiers, all equipped with heavy weapons and armor to combat the Golems. Medics were trained in how to treat broken ribs, since there were sure to be many ribs being hit with Golem punches. The Elite Eight and the Arsenal Legacy had been equipped with special weapons, uniquely made to combat very heavily armored foes. Each one was different and sated each person’s abilities and preferences. Anton’s twin cannons had been modified for extra hitting power, an electrical charge would be fired through Holly’s and Meg’s snowthrowers, and when aimed properly at a Golem pilot’s face, would cause confusion for the pilot. Hadrian had been equipped with heavier armor and a larger, thicker shield, Kleth had upgraded his tazer to actually be able to stun a foe for several moments, and a new type of unit, named a “Disabler” had been made to specifically disable the hydraulic system in a Golem, effectively making it useless. Kaeden’s new gun was powerful enough to knock a Golem right onto its back, even though it didn’t do much damage to it, it made it knocked back for easy access for a Disabler to reach it.
Dozens of soldiers patrolled the top of the Vahal wall, each carrying the special anti-mech rifles. Anton and Wedge were on the wall, ready to lead and command all roof soldiers. On the ground Disablers and fighters were ready for the attack, but didn’t look towards it with enthusiasm. Even with Kaeden and his Behemoth gun, and Holly with her enhancements still didn’t increase morale too much.
Vahal had been turned into a literal fortress, all to counter this massive threat that the Howler’s posed. Its focus had been entirely on defense, and in two days the entire city waited and watched, dreading four o’clock, when the charge would begin.
On Clash’s end, he was very excited. He watched his Golem’s prepare for battle by flying over them in his crude helicopter. Each pilot had been trained extensively to pilot a Golem with ease and power. His additional war machines and siege weapons would insure victory, and his 150 infantry soldiers would be more than enough for the battle.
Clash would cement his name within the history of Howler commanders, being known as the only one to surmount Vahal. He waited excitedly for the battle to begin, but he waited still for all his soldiers to finish preparing. Why they had to take so long was beyond him, but instead he increased his helicopters height and looked over the hill at Vahal.
“Strange flying object in the distance, Anton.” Wedge said to the squad leader beside him. Anton had command of the entire Badger force, but mainly commanded the general infantry firing squad. Wedge had control of the snipers, Kaeden and Holly did the ground troops, and Kleth and Raijin oversaw the systemator tasks.
Anton looked at the direction Wedge pointed at. Anton’s eyesight was never that great, but he did indeed see something hovering over the hill.
“I think I’ve seen it before.” Anton said. “I don’t know where or what it is, but I just know I’ve seen it.”
“It looks kinda like that weird helicopter thing Clash had at Arcania.” Wedge said, since his eyesight was better and he had seen it before also.
Anton sighed. “He must have his force over that hill and out of sight. He probably thinks we can’t see him.” Anton got an idea. “Say, do you think that you can hit him from here, Wedge or Gizmo?”
The two said snipers readied their rifles. Gizmo had a single firing rifle that was extremely accurate over long distances, whereas Wedge’s was a semi-auto firing rifle that made up for the lack of accuracy for the number of shots it could fire. Gizmo peered in his viewing scope and saw that he could indeed hit Clash. Wedge couldn’t get as accurate a shot, but he could fire three shots before Clash noticed, and one of them was bound to hit.
“I can take him out, yeah. It’ll be hard, cuz his little machine thing moves up and down a lot.” Gizmo said to Anton.
“Good enough. Take your best shot, you two, and fire at the same time.
Gizmo trained his aim to follow Clash’s erratic movements, while Wedge aimed for somewhere in between the path.
“On three.” Anton called. “One, two, three.”
The two snipers pulled their triggers at the same time. Gizmo’s rifle fired one densely packed projectile, while Wedge’s fired three. All four shots were true to their aim, but Gizmo’s was the most accurate.
The round hit Clash on the side of the face. His sensitive balance was knocked off and he was sent careening off the side of the helicopter.
On the ground, Hime and Otherun prepared the medic team to help Clash. The damage to his face was small, but if left alone the wound would freeze and could be life threatening. Quickly the wound was swabbed, cleaned and bandaged. All danger had passed, but the damage had been done.
It was clear that the Badgers were desperate to win. They had taken advantage of Clash’s unawareness, and he had paid for it. Now it was time for revenge.
“HOWLERS!” clash bellowed to his minions. “The time is now to attack! Every Golem, every soldier, every war machine, EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE ATTACK!”
“Uh, Anton?”
“What is it, Wedge?”
“I think we made them mad.”
“No kidding. We sniped their leader. What’s happening?”
“Um… You’re not gonna like it, but they’re sending every Golem, infantry and siege weapon at us in one wave.”
“Oh, sonuva…”
Anton brought out his twin cannons, then yelled to his troops. “EVERYONE! OPEN FIRE ON THE HOWLERS! NOW!”
Every Badger on and in front of the Vahal wall heard the order, pointed their weapons to the Howlers, and fired.
Nearly hundreds of shells were flung towards the attacking Howlers. All the lighter shots just glanced off of the sides of the Golems, but heavier shots knocked them onto their backs, forcing the infantry behind them to step over to continue. The war machines followed up at the back, lurching forward.
The Howler infantry’s returned fire with their own blasters. The hapless soldiers in front of the wall were the most vulnerable, but the soldiers on the wall could duck and be covered.
Kaeden felt a shot hit his head. He had his helmet on, and all it did was make him angry. His massive Behemoth gun was firing away, knocking back Golems and felling Howlers left and right. Many of the Howler’s noticed the damage Kaeden was doing and focused their fire on him. Kaeden never wore much armor, and this time he wished he had something more. He was taking several hits a second, but he continued firing off in random directions, knowing that he would go down in a blaze of glory.
But then it stopped. He risked opening his eyes and saw that Shed had his new shield support system at work, helping keep the shield straight up to properly deflect attacks.
“You alright, guy?” Shed said without turning his head.
“Yeah, thanks.” Kaeden said and aimed beside the shield.
Then a shadow came over the two of them. A Golem had reached them, and it was preparing to punch over Shed’s shield and at his face. The arm as reared back, and it swung.
Kaeden gripped his Behemoth, aimed at the Golem’s head, and fired. The massive shell flew with extreme force and it knocked the Golem clear off its feet. Another Howler was behind him and he helped the Golem to stand, but Kaeden fired at the Golem while Shed used his new pistol to fire at the infantry behind the Golem.
Holly’s new enhancement seemed to work wonderful. The electrical charge flowed through soft snow with ease, adding a slight blue look to her fire. It didn’t work nearly as good on Golem’s, but on infantry it was great. Holly and Meg were back to back, turning in a circle to cover as many Howler’s as possible.
A Golem broke through the waves of infantry and tried to knock Holly and Meg out. They both fired on the Golem, but the snow just reflected off of its side. It managed to grip Meg’s gun, but Holly jumped up and stuck her own into the Howler’s exposed eyespot. She felt it mash into soft flesh, but then she fired, sending electrically charged frost right into the face of the Howler. It reached up with its hand and tried to force Holly off, but she pushed in all the harder, eventually making the Howler lose focus. He gave up and backed off, too injured to continue. By then two more Golems were upon the two girls, but instead of fighting them they just ran.
Wedge noticed that Holly and Meg were having Golem problems, so he took careful aim and fired several rounds. One of them went right into the eyespot of the Golem, making the Howler inside screech in pain. The other one continued relentlessly on the girls, and Wedge didn’t get another lucky shot into the eyespot. Knowing that he couldn’t help the two, Wedge gulped and focused on the infantry soldiers, dearly hoping to not hear any screams.
Anton, however, could help the two girls. He took a running jump off of the top of the wall, his cannon’s blazing into a crowd of infantry. He had aimed himself just right so that he was heading straight for the Golem threatening Holly and Meg. He stuck his foot out and kicked it with extreme force, knocking the Golem right into an infantry, crushing him under the weight of the Golem.
Anton landed beside Meg. She had almost looked death in the eye, but Anton had saved them both.
He ran up to the fallen Golem and fired both cannons right in the face of it. The fire from both cannons shook the Howler’s head violently, knocking him out.
A few infantry had tried to tackle Anton and wrestle him to the ground, but he used his cannons as melee weapons and knocked them all back. They pulled out guns and fired at Anton, and he took the hits, using his arms to block his face. A group of infantry had surrounded Anton, preventing his escape. They all pulled out their guns and fired at Anton. He fired off in random directions, hitting soldiers and knocking them out, but they were always replaced with more. He couldn’t keep them back, and he couldn’t run.
Gritting his teeth, he ran forward, dashing head first into the Howler swarm. He took a few shots, but he ignored all damage that he took and simply continued to run for them. They saw the look on the face of the Badger, and started to run from him. He caught up to them easily however, and he pounded them mercilessly with fist and cannon.
A Golem ran by and picked Anton up by the neck. He struggled to free himself, but the grip was too strong. Anton swung a foot out and it connected with the chest of the Golem, doing nothing. Instead Anton pushed off and managed to free himself from the Golem, and he fired his cannons at the head. Another Golem came up from behind Anton and tried to hit Anton on the head. Anton knew it was there and he ducked in time. He let go of his cannons and grabbed the Golem by the legs, then pulled with all his strength. He managed to make the Golem fall to its back, where Anton picked up his cannons, lifted the faceplate of it and fired four shots at the Howler’s uncovered face.
The first Golem punched Anton in the ribs. The force of the hit knocked Anton back, but he managed to keep his footing. He fired both of his cannons at the Golem, not caring where they hit. The shots just hit the Golem in the chest, but Anton didn’t stop. He fired round after round at the Golem, but it simply walked up to Anton and tried to punch him again. Anton managed to dodge and he jumped up on the shoulders of the Golem. He used both his cannons to hit the Golem on the head, knocking the Howler’s head around inside. Anton reached and took the faceplate off, then hit the Howler on his nose, then again on the chin, effectively sending him unconscious.
By then Anton had attracted much of the Howler’s attention, and infantry and Golem alike tried to take him down.
CJ gave a whoop and fired his new blaster at the infantry around Anton, knocking them flat. He then ran to a nearby Golem and placed a sticky cloth pack onto its chest, He lit the fuse with an electric lighter.
“Courtesy of Kleth!” CJ said and the pack of cloth exploded, ripping the wood armor apart.
From atop the wall, grenadiers were throwing chemical compounds contained in cloth. The crude grenades exploded around the Howlers, sometimes knocking them to their feet. The Golems took some damage from these explosives, especially if the shrapnel from them went into the eyespots.
Skull was in his element here. He always was very good at using throwing weapons, and now his skills came into play. Kleth had mixed a batch of extra-powerful bombs, made specifically for Skull to use. He threw them gleefully into the Howler swarm, sending Howler’s to their faces in groups of five or more.
The siege weapons finally had worked their way through the crowd and now were at the wall. Rammers drew back their huge logs and flung them at the wall. It shook the very foundations of the wall complex with each hit. Catapults flung huge mounds of snow into the inside of Vahal. The Academy took heavy hits, and the Market was severely damaged, and even Dagor’s shop sustained a few hits.
Inside of the Academy Delia could hear the sounds of the battle outside of the city enclosure. She could hear the rammers hitting the walls, feel the catapults destroying Vahal from the inside, and even hear a few screams from outside of the wall……
_Is this what I’ve done? If I hadn’t told the Badgers about the attack, then the Howlers would come and the battle would be over in minutes. But, I guess it’s better if the Howlers lose. I don’t want to see them going through the infirmary, finishing off those that can’t walk, or anything like that. Not to Deccus…_
Looking back out of the window, she happened to see a soldier being flung over the wall and into Vahal. Then she saw that he didn’t land properly, and that he was a Badger. She saw him trying to get up and back up to the wall, but he slumped over and didn’t get up.
She heard a very loud crack. It was followed by another and one last one that caused the wall to shake.
The Howlers had broken the wall.
With a few more hits, the hole in the wall was increased to a sizeable amount. From there Howler’s started to pour into the city, infantry and Golem alike.
Some of the soldiers that came from Perry were behind the wall, in case they needed reinforcements outside the wall, but now they were fighting to the best of their ability to try and keep the Howlers outside of Vahal. Perry soldiers were a special branch off of Vahal, focusing mainly on physical perfection over academic excellence. And now their skills were paying off. They fought back all infantry soldiers that came in, and a few Disabler units managed to make the Golem’s weaker, and the flow of Howlers into Vahal was stemmed. A few engineers came and put a replacement portion of wall to cover up the gaping hole, but it wasn’t quite enough. The Golems simply were too powerful to hold back, and a group of five made it into Vahal. The Disablers couldn’t stop them all, and three managed to reach the hapless Perry soldiers. They fought back bravely, but no infantry could stand up to a Golem.
“It seems… That the Howlers have broken into the city.”
Deccus sighed. “Thank you, doctor. Anything else?”
“Well…” The doctor looked out of the window again. “The Howlers are doing damage to the city with their catapults, the soldiers on the wall are taking a lot of hits, and I can only imagine how it is for the ones outside of the wall…”
Deccus leaned his head back. If the Howlers were doing this much damage in this short of time, he didn’t like how it was looking in an hour.
Anton was exhausted. He was resting behind Shed’s massive shield, getting a quick medic attention. He had taken down nearly 3 Golems and 2 dozen infantry, and he couldn’t take much more. All he needed was a few minutes of rest, and he would be ready to fight again. His arms ached and he was caked with frost, but he was still fine. Nothing broken, at least.
“Heads up!”
“Huh?” Shed looked to the side, but all Anton saw was him turning his head and something hitting Shed in the face, sending him flying backwards.
Anton turned his head to see where Shed was looking, and he saw Allouette, one cannon still pointed at where Shed was.
Anton could almost feel his pupil shrink. “Allouette!”
Allouette’s face cracked into a savage grin. He raised both of his cannons to Anton, and prepared to fire.
