Last Drop of Hope, Chapter 16 (Patreon)

Chapter 16: Knight of the Living Dead

It had been a long time since the Corporations had gone to war. Not that there weren’t constant low-level conflicts, security forces and contractors clashed all the time over resources, real estate, and petty grievances. But the massive war machines of the Corporations hadn’t been deployed on Belzerg in generations. Now, the streets quaked, the citizens cowered in fear, and the Generals of old marched to battle once more.

The first pocket of resistance that the NyteTech forces faced was an illegal chop shop (meaning that it wasn’t corporate sponsored) that was home to a clan of dwarves, but had been fortified in the past day or so and reinforced by dozens of squatters. The hover tanks rumbled up, and without warning, simply opened fire on the makeshift barricade. The security forces didn’t even really care, taking a few pot shots and joking about picking off stragglers. A few of them took cover behind the tanks, but most didn’t expect more than pot shots with stolen or home made guns.

They were not prepared for what they got.

The first dwarf, buck naked and frothing at the mouth, jumped out of a hole in the ground and ran towards the line of tanks, two rusted hammers clenched in his fists. “SLAY THE DEMONS! DEFEAT THE-”

Three different NyteTech security officers shot the dwarf, one in the head, two in the center mass. The rounds were heavy enough that the kinetic force from the rounds stopped the dwarf cold in his tracks and sent him pinwheeling to the ground. The officers laughed, and looked elsewhere for targets.

Then the dwarf screamed, “DEFEAT THE DEVIL KING!” got back up, and charged the lines again. He did so far faster than anyone should have been able, and the shocked CorpSec officers didn’t respond quickly enough. By the time they did, the Axis Berserker was among them, and he tore through half a dozen standard officers and two heavily armed and armored blackhats. When a hovertank opened fire with its coaxial machine gun, the dwarf didn’t even notice the bullets, which were biting into his flesh, but doing far less damage than they should have.

Then the berserker tackled the tank. The tank was thrown back far enough that it slammed into the ground, though it was sturdily built and well armored enough that it wasn’t badly damaged. Then the berserker tried to rip the barrel of the tank's main gun off. He actually managed to dent the metal before he was so riddled with fire that even a berserker's legendary damage resistance and massive health pool couldn’t help him survive.

He had, after all, only been level three. But he did make an opening. And the Axis Cult was never known for playing defense.

A mass of rabid zealots charged the lines, all of them shouting praises to Aqua, wielding makeshift weapons, and laughing maniacally. While CorpSec officers were used to violence and shootouts, they were not used to having fire balls, wind blades, and balls of acid conjured out of nowhere to hit them. A more well-disciplined force would have held, and a better informed one would have known that a bunch of low-level mages and priests would run out of mana in under a minute of fighting and that those berserkers only got one rage a day that lasted only two minutes at most.

Corporate Security was a bunch of bullies used to having the edge in numbers, equipment, and training. They were also very much not used to fighting a foe that was so determined and motivated to fight that they would throw themselves at tanks to have even a small chance of killing just one more of their foes.

The lines broke, and while a few blackhats held out in pockets, the vastly numerically superior NyteTech forces turned and ran, and the hover tanks found themselves unable to deal with magically empowered opponents easily. They panicked and began firing on each other, doing far more damage and causing much more destruction than their opponents ever could have managed. They did also prove that HE shells and plasma bolts could cut down even a berserker, damage reduction or not, but it was a complete farce.

For a few minutes, it looked like the cultists would prevail, and that the advance of NyteTech would be utterly stymied.

Then the Death Knights waded into the fight.

Beldia was a seasoned campaigner against the Axis Cult, and he knew their strengths: Incredible power, unbreakable morale, no regard for casualties, and a zealous aggression that often overwhelmed their foes. But he also knew their weaknesses. No real coordination, a complete lack of tactical acumen, and relatively few numbers. Once he saw that the Cultists were getting bogged down and running out of steam, he sent in his elites.

The Death Knights did not make a sound as they rose up from the long shadows in the undercity. The first Axis Cultists to fall to their black blades didn’t even see their deaths coming. When the priests and mages did turn towards the new threat, the blackhats, used to fighting foes that didn’t just roll over, counterattacked. The cultists hadn’t even considered that they were over extended, and the enfilading fire from the flanks cut them down where they stood.

In total, the battle had lasted only mere minutes, and the enemy was completely wiped out, to the last man. But the previously inexorable advance of the NyteTech forces had been stopped, and their morale shaken. If a bunch of corpless scavengers could do this, what would real opposition do?

Before his troops had time to fully grasp the situation, Beldia strode onto the battlefield. He had kept his distance, having learned his lesson against Axis Cultists a long time ago. There was very little left on Belzerg that could threaten him now, but even a low level priest was a greater risk than he was willing to take. Still, he could sense the energy, and an opportunity.

Taking out his black sword, Beldia extended it over the battlefield. Thanks to the Axis Cult, this place was now rich with mana. Drawing upon dark energies that hadn’t been profaned in centuries, the General spoke a single command to his fallen troops.

Rise.

With a groan like that of an opening coffin, the fallen NyteTech forces slowly got back to their feet. Skeletons that had been broken knit back together, and spirits that had been attempting to cross over into the choked afterlife were re-bound to their mortal forms. Dead eyes stared at their CEO, minds muddled by death unable to process what had happened.

“You see? They cannot hope to stop us! With our new ReLife technology, even should you fall in battle, you will rise again, now immortal and unstoppable!” Beldia declared. “No matter how many times you fall, I shall bring you back to crush our foes!”

There was a moan that half sounded like a cheer from the newly minted undead, and their living counterparts gave a shaky shout themselves. Then, at their general’s command, they advanced once more.

Turning to one of the Death Knights, Belida gave one other order: “Burn the Axis. Don’t leave anything for Aqua to raise.”

Flamethrowers were brought out, and the corpses incinerated until there was nothing left but smoldering ashes. Beldia turned toward the buildings of ShopWiz, and grinned, clenching a gauntleted fist. A black necrotic aura formed in the air around the metal, slowly corroding it.

“So this is the power Sylvia had all this time. Well. Her loss…my gain.” Laughter like the echo of the grave rang out, and Belida boarded his personal hover tank. He’d crush the Axis Cult, and do it properly, unlike that damned slime. Then…well. They would see how long the others lasted against the endless ranks of the dead.

For hundreds of years, the Crimson Demons had worked alone. Occasionally, they had worked with allies and friends, but over time that became less frequent as the betrayals mounted and the Clan became increasingly paranoid and suspicious of outsiders. When your eyes were worth a literal fortune, it was tough for even the most upstanding of individuals to not turn you in. Having seen for herself time and again people betray her and her family if they caught even a glimpse of red eyes, Megumin was naturally inclined to distrust and hate anyone who wasn’t in her immediate family.

Which was why it was so odd that she was having to work harder and harder to keep her guard up around Aqua. It wasn’t just that Aqua had helped her and been kind to her, or even that she’d given Megumin hope she didn’t realize could exist. Aqua was just so…innocent. Guileless. Megumin didn’t think Aqua could lie if she tried, and even if she did it would be easier to see through than Komekko’s attempts at prevarication.

It was nearly impossible to understand how someone like Aqua could ever survive. People SHOULD have been taking advantage of her kindness and loving nature at every turn. But instead…

“Here, try it on!” Aqua said, smiling brightly and holding out the outfit to Megumin. She took it, examining the piece. It was in black and red, and made of leather, and not the fake stuff. Megumin had no idea how much this much genuine animal hide would cost, but it had to be millions and millions of credits.

“And Rain just…gave this to you?” Megumin asked dubiously. “For me?”

“I told her I needed materials to make you a set of armor! Normally, crafting armor isn’t my domain, but I decided to think about it as a fashion statement, and then I just got inspired! It will be super durable, and give you some nice buffs! After all, it’s a legendary item crafted by a goddess!”

“I don’t know,” Megumin said hesitantly. Sure, Aqua had made her clothes before, clothes that were much more comfortable and fit better than  cast off rags they replaced…but this was a kingly gift. “Am I gonna like, owe you, or something?”

“You can make me an eyepatch! I always liked getting them from the Crimson Demons,” Aqua said happily.

“But…you have both your eyes, and you could heal if you lost one, right?” Megumin said, feeling puzzled and slightly dizzy at the idea of getting this for a measly eyepatch.

“It would be special because it was a gift from a friend! Even if it’s not an eye patch, maybe we could just hang out and get some drinks sometime!” Aqua said, still smiling as though she didn’t have a thought in her head.

Despite herself, Megumin found she was having to scrub back tears. “F-fine. I’ll see if it fits…”

Stepping into the room she’d been given, Megumin stripped off her clothes, took a hasty shower with real water, then dubiously started to put on the armor. To her shock, it fit her perfectly, fitting snugly to her body while still being entirely comfortable. She examined herself in the mirror, and at first was quite taken with it. The mostly black armor had an eye pattern on the chest that looked similar to Crimson Demon eyes, and flattered her form rather nicely while still being tasteful. However, she then realized that the armor did nothing to hide the fact that she was still as slim as a boy despite being sixteen. She blamed the lack of nutrition.

She flexed a bit and moved around, and to her shock, the armor did more than not impede her movements. Indeed, it enhanced them, making her steps lighter and swifter and her strikes with Gram surer and harder. When she looked at her Adventurer’s card out of curiosity, she saw that the armor offered a huge bonus to all her stats, but especially her Strength and MP, with the bonus effect of extending the duration of all her enhancement spells. It also offered a long list of resistances to various types of damage, including physical damage.

Feeling slightly self-conscious, Megumin stepped back out, only to find Yunyun and Komekko waiting with Aqua.

“Wow, Megumin! You look super cool!” Komekko said eagerly, running up to her and grinning. “How do I look?!”

Teary eyed still, Megumin knelt and gave her little sister a big hug. “Completely adorable.”

Indeed, Komekko was now sporting a wide brimmed witch’s hat with red eyes sewn into it, along with a set of robes that matched Megumin’s in color palette, but had red ravens embroidered on the hem. It also fit Komekko perfectly, and Megumin was certain it also had some crazy bonuses to stats that didn’t make any sense, but actually worked anyway.

Then Megumin stood and turned to Yunyun, who was fidgeting nervously. A scowl crept over Megumin’s face as she saw that Yunyun’s outfit wasn’t shy about the fact that puberty had been far more generous to her than most girls. The outfit itself had a great deal of lace and ruffles, though the shortened skirts that came down only to Yunyun’s calves probably meant it wouldn’t hinder her movement at all. It was far more ornate than either Megumin or Komekko’s outfit, though it did suit Yunyun perfectly.

“Um, A-Aqua said these are the t-traditional robes of the Chief of the Crimson D-Demons,” Yunyun stammered, blushing and looking down. “M-maybe…maybe you should be the Chief, not me…a-after what happened…”

“No, it looks good on you,” Megumin made herself say, giving her adopted sister a smile. Then she gave her a hug. “It’s…it wasn’t your fault, Yunyun. We’ll get our revenge.”

Wordlessly, Yunyun gripped Megumin in a tight hug, and a moment later, Komekko latched onto them too. The last three members of the Crimson Demon Clan silently cried together for a few moments.

Then, someone else joined the hug, making all three of them start in shock.

“Hugs are nice,” Aqua said happily. “I’m glad you three made up! Sisters should be friends!”

“Uh, yeah, I guess we have,” Megumin said, and on an impulse hugged Aqua as hard as she could. “Thank you. For everything.”

“You’re welcome!” Aqua said, apparently oblivious to the moment. “Now, let’s go kick Beldia’s stupid boney ass!”

They headed out of their chambers and down several halls and elevators to the ground floor, where the forces of ShopWiz were assembling. Megumin spotted treaded tanks, assault walkers, heavily armored hover cars with mounted guns, and dozens of blackhats in heavy armor, along with a large number of security forces.

It would have been impressive, but Megumin was also well informed enough to recognize they were nearly all armed with last gen equipment. Treaded tanks did have some advantages over hovertanks, but with the debris and rough terrain of the cityscape, and the multiple layers, they were simply inferior in most situations. The walkers had similar problems, and the armored cars were basically target practice for NyteTech forces. ShopWiz blackhats would be skilled, but not to the degree NyteTech operatives were, and their gear wasn’t as good.

“Are we seriously supposed to fight NyteTech with just this?” Megumin said, looking around with a critical eye. “This is a bunch of junk.”

“It’s what I have. I spent too much money and resources on keeping people alive, and not on my military forces.”

Megumin turned to see Wiz stride out, looking pale but not at death’s door anymore. She was wearing the same purple robes, though now she had on a dark mantle, and was wearing a hood with two curved horns poking up at the side. Next to her, a book with icy blue runes on it floated, and she was flanked by Rain and a bare chested man with a blue waterwheel freshly tattooed across his body.

“That’s not really the sort of thing a CEO does,” Megumin said, frowning. “You seem pretty bad at this.”

Wiz laughed, and actually smiled at that. “I’ll take that as a compliment. I think most people think of CEOs as monsters…and we all are, of one sort of another. Maybe I’m just bad at being a monster.”

“I…I don’t think you’re a monster,” Aqua said, shifting from foot to foot and looking down, her forehead wrinkled. “It doesn’t make any sense, but…then again, neither did there being good lizard people. I guess…we’ll just have to work together.”

“Thank you, Lady Aqua,” Wiz said. She turned, and gestured to the assembled forces. “Your army awaits.”

“My army!? But…but I’m really bad at leading armies!” Aqua cried, taking a step back and sounding panicked. “I always had Zesta or Mitsurogo do it!”

“Mitsurugi,” Wiz corrected. “And, well…don’t you have a champion now?” She turned to Megumin, who blinked in surprise.

“Me?! I don’t know how to lead armies! I can slay any foe you show me, but not lead an army!”

“Um, I-I don’t really know much about leading armies either,” Yunyun said nervously.

“I’m six,” Komekko added, which was enough of an argument on its own.

“Ah, yes, um…I was having Mr. Hauz Warez, my chief of security lead the army,” Wiz hastily explained, waving her hands in reassurance. “He’s, ah, been trained for that. I just meant…”

“We all are here to serve you, Lady Aqua,” Warez said, kneeling before Aqua. “I was one of the ones you blessed at the farms. We are all eager to serve.”

“Oh.” Aqua considered that then produced two paper fans which spouted water, jumped up on the railing near her, and posed on one leg. “I only have one command for my valiant troops! Slay the Demons!”

“DEFEAT THE DEVIL KING!” the ShopWiz forces roared back, and Aqua giggled and did a few more party tricks, including somehow juggling eleven balls for several minutes and pulling a few extinct species out of a hat to the audience’s awe. None of them even knew what a dove or a rabbit was.

Reports were already coming in of attacks by NyteTech forces all along their border, and Santomon Chemicals was massing security forces as well. Warez had determined that the only possible way to survive was to hit one force and drive them back before they had time to coordinate an assault and crush all of ShopWiz under their boot heels. Since NyteTech had already mobilized, they were the priority target, and the army surged into motion.

Traveling back through the city, Megumin looked around warily for more people taking pot shots, but this time, the civilians and shopkeepers had been cleared out ahead of the upcoming battle. It left Axel eerily quiet, save for the tromp of boots on cracked pavement and the rumbling of the tanks.

Then, ahead of them, they heard a distant thunder. Aqua went pale, and let out a horrified cry. “They’re killing my followers! We have to do something!”

Hauz Warez looked over, shifting the absolutely enormous axe he’d gotten from somewhere on his shoulders. “We can’t advance any faster than we are. I’ve got scouts out, including some with that interesting new ability that makes them invisible, and we’ll make contact soon. NyteTech is reducing a squatter camp on the outskirts of the undercity. It’s tragic, but it’s buying us time.”

“But, but we have to help!” Aqua protested, tears in her eyes. “I…I can feel the necrotic energy! He’s raising the dead!”

“Well, that’s not so bad,” Yunyun said, though she sounded uncertain.

“No,” Wiz said quietly. “Belidia is a dullahan. He’s raising an army of zombies. There’s enough residual mana now for him to manage that. They’ll just be low level undead, but…”

“But it’s evil and we’re the good guys, so we have to stop him!” Aqua declared, pointing forward. “Let’s charge!”

“Aqua, what happened the last time you ran a battle?” Megumin demanded, putting herself in front of the goddess.

“Um…” Aqua shrank back, looking guilty. “W-well, I…”

“You lost the last war. Let this guy figure out how to use the army.” Megumin hefted Gram and looked to where the sounds of distant fighting echoed. “And I’ll sweep up the rest.”

The advance continued in an orderly manner, with Warez maneuvering the army into a position that stood above the lower portions out ahead of them, and had several less decayed buildings as cover positions.

“I thought we were supposed to be hunting them,” Megumin said, glaring out at the darkness of the undercity. She could see just fine of course, but the various passages and ruined buildings obscured her view more than a couple hundred meters out.

“Never let your opponent choose the ground you fight on,” Yunyun said, looking around. “This location has a low ceiling, which limits the effectiveness of the hovertanks. At the same time, that’s solid bedrock above us, so a sustained bombardment won’t just bring the roof down on our heads. And though there’s cover past 100 meters, those tunnels will create natural choke points, and we’re holding positions above us too, right?”

“I’ve got a full battalion of tanks, and most of my assault cars and anti-air up above us on the surface,” Warez confirmed, looking at Yunyun with interest. “You seem to have a pretty good head for this stuff.”

“W-well, um, I…I did study battle tactics, to, um…one day lead the Crimson Demons back to greatness,” Yunyun admitted, cringing nervously.

A part of Megumin wanted to snort at that nonsense, but when she looked out at the army, and over at Aqua and Wiz, who were having tea next to a parked tank of all things…she did feel like maybe, just maybe, they could do this.

Giving Yunyun a quick hug, she said, “Don’t worry, I’m sure you will one day.”

Yunyun beamed at her, and they settled in to wait. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long.

“Enemies!” Komekko suddenly called, pointing to a ruined section of piping leaking foul sludge of some sort. “There! Hoost can spot ‘em!”

“ZEPHYR STEP!” Megumin cried, and raced off in that direction. She covered the hundred and fifty meter distance in moments, her eyes seeing through the camo cloak in the darkness and finding a squad of blackhats. Her sudden movement caught them off guard, and they swore and fired at her when she was mere meters away. She managed to dodge that, then she was among them, swinging Gram with a fury.

The first foe she took out was in thick and heavy NyteTech power armor, but her magic blade cleaved through it easily, slicing through the torso diagonally and killing the blackhat instantly. Her next cut was low, slicing her foe at the knees, and sending them toppling over, gushing blood.

To her shock, the next of her foes swung a dark, rusty blade at her, and when she parried it, Gram rang like a bell, and the other sword didn’t part. She even found herself forced back, the counter stroke nearly taking her head off.

Swearing, Megumin danced back as her opponent advanced. When she saw the white skull on the visor, her blood ran cold. Beldia’s personal guard.

Another of the survivors fired at her, and Megumin was forced to dodge again, even as she had to parry another attack by the elite. He didn’t pursue her out of the sewer pipe though, retreating back, his blade held high.

Snarling, Megumin went in again, activating her stealth ability and swinging furiously. Somehow, her foe knew right where the attack was coming from though, his blade rising unerringly to strike her. The other blackhat fired, and Megumin cried out, bullets striking her leg. She staggered, and had to retreat again as the elite struck out at her. Her blow this time was clumsy, Zephyr Step unable to help her as much now that she was wounded, and her opponent was inhumanly strong. Thankfully, her armor had held, and while she was bruised, she was able to recover quickly, and she wasn’t losing blood. She wasn’t sure how many more rounds she could take though, and she clearly couldn’t overpower this foe.

Stepping back out of the pipe’s entrance, Megumin hoped the elite would follow her, but they continued to fall back, more rounds snapping out and forcing Megumin to take cover at the side. Feeling frustrated, she unclipped a grenade she’d made, and tossed it into the tunnel. After the blast, she raced in, but there was no trace of her foes. She briefly considered pursuing them, but she didn’t know these pipes, and Aqua was still behind her.

Grimacing, she fell back, even as a team of ShopWiz operatives raced into the tunnel to pursue. Returning to the command post, she shook her head. “I got two, but one of Beldia’s Death Knights was there. He was too strong, too fast, even for me. I didn’t think anyone could keep up with me now that I had these powers, but he could. His tech must have been insane.”

“Not tech. Magic,” Wiz said grimly. “Death Knights isn’t just a title. They’re powerful undead, ones that have held together all these years even with all the mana drying up. It’s incredible you survived at your level.”

“Wait, they have magic too?!” Megumin gasped, turning to Aqua in horror. “But-”

“They always have,” Aqua said, clenching a fist. “Don’t worry, Megumin. If that filthy undead rears its head again! I’ll cleanse them right away! Oh, um, no offense, Wiz…you don’t stink too badly, honest.”

“It’s alright, I would prefer to see them pass on as well. Someday…when everyone is safe…I’d like to rest myself,” Wiz said, looking exhausted. She shook her head, but put a hand on Megumin’s shoulder and smiled. “You did well. Don’t try to fight the Death Knights, not yet. You’d need to be at least level 40, and it would help to have a team with you.”

“Level 40?!” Megumin took out her card and looked at it. She was level 12 now, apparently having gone up again after that scuffle, but still… “I have more points…teach me another spell! One that could kill a Death Knight! Something to make me stronger!”

“Oh, I’d love to! I have several powerful Strength Enhancing spells!” Wiz said eagerly, digging out a grimoire. “Let’s see…Heroism, Boar’s Endurance, Bullfrog’s Strength…”

“Ugh, I hate giant frogs,” Aqua said, making a face. “They’re so icky.”

“C-can I learn some new spells?” Yunyun asked curiously, proffering her card.

“The traditional Crimson Demons would save up for advanced magic. You need 30 more points for that, but you do have good skill growth, so it shouldn’t be more than six levels for you,” Wiz said. “I’d be happy to let you copy some of my custom spells from my book once you learn that, but I do have some powerful Intermediate spells you could use!”

Megumin ended up learning Bullfrog’s Strength from Wiz and Blade Flurry from Aqua, which would hopefully give her a better chance against stronger foes. It wasn’t long after she’d finished and Yunyun had copied down some of Wiz’s custom magic that should help during the battle. Growing bored, Aqua started a performance before all the troops, doing shadow puppets with a spotlight that had everyone clapping.

“That’s dumb, and a waste of time. She’s just making herself a target!” Megumin complained.

Wiz shook her head, looking thoughtful. “Check your status on your card.”

“Huh? What would…’Inspiration?’ ‘Blessing?’ Wait, my stats went up by 25%!? And I can’t be ‘Feared,’ whatever that means,” Megumin muttered.

“She’s a goddess. Her performance will grant the army powerful status effects,” Wiz said, smiling happily.

“I like the puppets, they’re funny!” Komekko laughed, clapping excitedly.

Watching the show, Megumin grudgingly admitted those shadow puppets WERE really good. “Well…it’s not like she’s doing it on purpose I bet.”

“Uh…n-no comment,” Wiz said, looking flustered.

Megumin smirked, but didn’t have time to enjoy her small victory. General Warez got a call over the radio, which looked rather odd with his bare chest and giant axe, and he raised a hand. “Scouts have made contact! The enemy will be upon us in minutes! Make ready!”

Swallowing, Megumin went over to Aqua, and ushered her back.

“But my show! I have to finish!” Aqua wailed.

“Shh! The enemy will be here soon, and we don’t need you getting shot by a sniper,” Megumin hissed. “This is all for nothing if you go down!”

“But…but I’m going to fight! These are my followers!” Aqua declared, clenching her fist.

“And the best way you can fight is to heal the wounded and raise the dead. My job is just keeping you safe,” Megumin said, motioning to Yunyun and Komekko, who hurried over to her.

“I…I guess,” Aqua agreed, looking dejected.

“Don’t worry, you’re a great healer! That’s pretty important in a fight,” Komekko said seriously. “That’s why I always had the first aid kit! Here, you can use mine!” She dug out an old metal box, which was decorated with two red eyes, and a picture of Komekko and her family, including their parents, which gave Megumin a pang of sorrow.

“Thank you. I’ll treasure it,” Aqua promised, clutching the box to her chest.

Before long, scattered fire could be heard in the tunnels as the ShopWiz scouts and screening forces engaged the enemy. For long minutes, the sporadic fire slowly intensified. Then the tanks and heavy guns opened up, shelling various locations where the enemy had to appear. The first few shots just raised up dust and scattered rocks, but then one hit something, and there was a secondary explosion. A hover tank careened out into the open, burning and damaged. A second hit blew it in half, and there was a hearty cheer.

Then two bolts of plasma arced into the ShopWiz ranks, and one of their tanks and an armored car exploded in bursts of flame.

Megumin swallowed, and said a brief prayer as Aqua sobbed in horror. She held the goddess back, hissing, “No! Stay here! They’ll bring the wounded to us.”

Even as she did so, she could barely hear herself as the great cavern resounded with fire, screams, and filled with choking dust and smoke.

The Battle of Axel had begun in earnest.