Calm before the storm

The girls spend the days march in quiet conversation, processing what you’ve learned. Meanwhile, you spend time with each of your commanders, learning their battle plans. This fight will be different for you, as the most of it will be ignored for your mission. Once you break through, your goal is to take down the demon lord. Everything else is secondary.

It’s mid afternoon when Ochiba calls for a halt. “This is it, the best ground we’ll find. We meet them here.”

You look around. Beyond a slight rise to one side, the area is largely a flat plain, rocky and barren. “Not exactly a beautiful landscape, but we’re not here for a vacation, either.”

The general nods. “We’ll put the artillery on the small hill, and use that as our base to form off of. We’ll put you in the center again, same formation as before, except we’ll use the cavalry to screen our flanks.”

You nod. “If I nod along, it looks like I know what you intend, right.”

Ochiba chuckles. “Sometimes I forget you’re just a novice at this. I suppose it doesn’t matter, our main effort is punching a hole for you and your girls. Defeating the demon lord is the key. He dies, and everything crumbles.”

You sigh. “Yeah. Easy. Just need to take out a god of demons, no big deal.”

You hear footsteps, and turn to see Forgefather Unir approach. “Yes, it’s a bit of a task, Josh. But you’re the only one with a chance, you know that right?”

You nod. “So I hear. It’s all feeling very real at this point is all.”

Unir smiles. “It’s a lot of pressure, and a lot of danger.”

You shake your head. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think I could do it. It’s just…it all felt like a thing in the far future. Now it could be tomorrow.”

Ochiba nods. “Everyone gets nervous before battle, even the oldest veterans. Especially with stakes like these. I talk strategy to keep my mind off it. I’ll keep everyone busy to keep their minds off it.”

He gestures out as the army deploys, digging in. The artillery is already setting up, and you see Greg, Helja, and Hayley, along with a tiger girl and a lamia, guiding the placement of each engine. Most interesting is a contraption you don’t recognize, shaped more like a cannon than a catapult. In place of what would be a barrel is a large crystal, however. The lamia is resting her hands on it, and it seems to thrum with power. Meanwhile, Greg extends his hand, and metal spikes extend from the sides of the machine, burying themselves into the earth, apparently to secure it.

More traditional artillery is swiftly being assembled, and unit commanders are walking the ground, studying the area they’ll be fighting in. Racks of arrows are being set up for archers, and spikes of sharpened wood are set up to protect their flanks. To the rear, the camp is being assembled. Normally you wouldn’t want the camp so close, but retreat won’t be an option this time.

You turn to the general and nod. “It seems everything is well in hand. I’m going to talk to the girls, make sure I’m not forgetting anything. If something comes up, you know where I’ll be.”

Ochiba nods. “I’ll find you when our scouts report on the enemy army location.”

“Thank you, general.”