Chapter One: Ex Nihilo

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A war already thousands of years since its beginning, some worlds have already been devastated, but hope remains for those who wish to defend it... or destroy it.

Aeon's armies are amassing once more, though they emerge from the shadows of defeat against the Reapers in the service of Exitium, they hold courage still. Exitium sees this happening, and is already prepared to strike again, this time to kill. Merciless fighting shall take place soon.

Elsewhere, Anima creates her guardians, preparing to defend her creations still, even through the pain of death, she refuses to give in. Chaos's hordes are running rampant through the worlds though, creating pure discord in their wake, challenged only by Anima's warriors, they will, however, win if left unchecked.

Still, the gods are summoning their warriors, as more and more appear in the Sanctuary, a world otherwise known as the home of the gods, they appear in the respective thrones to each god, with the scenery equally matching their power. It is here where our story shall begin, and here it shall start to end, for out of nothing, out of Ex Nihilo, a story will start to weave itself together.

Shale finished the last of the preperations, and made sure the troops were ready. "Perhaps she'll give me some peace before we-" In a flash, Anima appeared. "Time to start the attack, Shale!" Anima said, seeming amused.
"alright, alright. Jeez, what are you, my mother?"
"You could say that."
"Heh. Fair 'nough"
As quickly as she appeared, she was gone. "I really don't understand why she and the other gods can't jus' discuss this calmly, rather than rip up the universe fightin' each other." Shale turned to the elf nearest him "start the signal. We need to begin the attack."
Shale sighed, a heavy sigh "And more death awaits us. yet another bloody battle we enter. I jus' hope I can keep my troops alive."
Auger began moving towards the castle "I move way faster now. with this speed, I will easily beat the dark wing person ... why do I feel as though I have made a pun? anyway, I better get moving. "Auger sped off into the distance of the coming war.

"This fortification is much to valuable to be lost. It contains the secrets of this civilizations past." Skaer spat as he spoke.

"War is upon us friends, Chaos never fails to predict something like this. I only hope there are more forces beyond our walls that seek to aid us... Aid beyond that of an Orc."

Angus, Skaer, and Hayle went to the front of the front lines and ordered the rest back, "This is our fight" Said Angus "And we will prevail" Returned Hayle. In a few moments a lone Orc came hobbling over the hill. "State your business!" Roared Hayle "the Orc kept walking toward them, speechless. Angus disarmed him and Skaer stopped him in his tracks and raised him a few feet with telekinesis. "Now will you state your business here Orc?"

He was still without speech, "Here" said Skaer to Angus, handing him a scroll "read it" It was a scroll for the Shield spell.. and on the back was the Ventriloquism incantation. Angus learned them quickly and stowed them in his pack.

Rain was already inside the castle, blending in perfectly, it seemed. He was looking around, casually, observing, and usually hiding about in crowds or shadowy places, camouflaging himself to avoid guards and whatnot from questioning him directly. It worked, so long as they weren't looking for him directly either. "The battle is coming soon, I think..." He says, noting Chaos's presence in the castle grounds. "And when it comes, no flame shall spare this place."

---

Jaxe walked up to Chaos, as she called him forth. She whispered in Jaxe's ears a specific order. "Spread disorder in all of their hearts. I shall return, with many more warriors." She spoke softly, so that others couldn't hear. Then, the same way she appeared, she flew up into the sky, her form turning into a black storm cloud, sort of like a tornado when it shot back up into the sky. The clouds remained, hovering over the castle, a sign of danger looming either for the men below or for the army headed toward them.

Jaxe stood there, silent, expressionless, as the five dragons that came with Chaos remained. He looked over at one. Curious, did they feel emotions? They aren't afraid, most likely. "Where is the leader of this castle? I would like to speak to him." He calls out, loud enough for the others to hear. He laughed at himself, in his thoughts anyway, wondering at the irony of this situation. He was DEFENDING people, instead of killing them.

---

The elf politely bowed to his commander and walked off, talking to the other elves and creatures, who spread the word. Immediately, the army was prepared to march, for their master and creator, they would die for Anima. Perhaps it is death that awaits them, or glory, or victory even, maybe. It would all depend on what happens during the battle. The dragons roared as the sky drakes took flight, flying around the camp. Dwarfs collected their armor, and Elves their bows and swords. A giant colossus walked over the mountain side, beside the camp, making no roaring sound or anything of the like, just standing there, the statue that it is.

---

Chaos, in her Sanctum Throne, was noting odd things that were coming forth from the other gods. Though being the god of discord, she knew it was not like them for the others, just herself. "...Only I can be disorderly, dammit." She comments, displeased by not knowing what the other ones were doing. She sighed, and went back to creating more warriors, to which would be used to further destroy Anima's forces.

Anima was also creating more warriors, and observing Shale's progress with great interest. Soon, she would come. Yes, she'll come to the aid of her followers. Death is unfortunate, it is a stain, it must end. Somehow, she'll find a way. The Armored Dragon roared as life was breathed into it, calming down as it landed in front of its creator. Anima smiled, and petted it lightly. "There is always hope."

Meanwhile, the odd power surges from the other gods were still occurring, non-stop it seemed, as the war was very much still alive. None of them were willing to give up, and the more they refused to relent, the more they became encouraged to fight for their dreams, their beliefs. It seemed that this war would be endless after all, though. It would take a miracle to save this world, this universe.

Auger noted the warriors now gathering in front of the castle, and the vast strength that had been collected within.
"I'll wait till the battle is joined, so I can fight both sides" Auger remarked as he looked at the forces gathered. "This fight will be the best one I've seen in a long time". As he grinned, he remarked "ah! It seems as though the long-ears are planning something..."
Shale sent the orders to begin his attack plan. He had half of his hunters hide in various position on the battlefield, camouflaged and ready to cut down any bold charge that came. Shale ordered the remaining hunters to move to firing position. the hunters fired a volley of arrows, and the dragons fired their stone rays into the arrow swarm. the conjurers used their skill to bind the arrows and magic together, enchanting the arrows with the ability to turn those it hit into stone. "Charge!" Shale yelled, Sending his forces in. The battle had already begun, and he planned to win it.
If all went according to Shale's plan, a wall of wood, created by his conjurers, would burst out to protect his soldiers as they moved in, preventing enemy missiles from harming them before they reached the castle.
Meanwhile, his Hunters were all in camouflaged positions, ready to fire at any enemy that might burst from the gate.

The dragons flew high over the parapets, Fire flying past their mandibles onto the battlefield. "If we cannot see them, we will burn them" said the leading dragon.

Shale noticed the dragon fire into the forest. "Tch. I was hoping for more time before they attempted this. He looked at some of the advisors around him. "Get a small team of conjurers on fire suppression, and recall the hunters closest to the torched area". Turning to another advisor "Get the sky drakes attacking those dragons. they might not be able to kill the dragons on their own, but they can stall long enough until we can divert more forces to the problem." Roughly one quarter of the elf hunters were evacuated, the rest died in the roaring inferno the draconic beasts had created. Some of the hunters fired arrows, and true to their reputations, all the arrows hit their mark, but they did little damage to the massive behemoths, even when they were able to penetrate their armored hides. Suddenly, the sky drakes came in a swarm, firing volleys of energy missiles at the chaos dragons, staying evasive in their movements. they began splitting into groups, to surround and harass individual dragons.

Jaxe stands atop of the gate house, which was closed and barricaded to prevent entry. Arrows flew around him, missing him either through luck or Jaxe deflecting them with his mind. "Heh, is this the best they've got?" He asks, not impressed.

The storm above started getting more violent, as lightning struck the ground around Anima's army. Disorders came flying forth from the impact sites, speeding toward the enemy army, slicing away. The Chaos dragons turn their focus to the Sky Drakes, not going to bother with attacking them, they use their chaos ability to destroy the minds of the Sky Drake. Though damaged by the energy rain, they are still flying, as they chase the Sky Drakes. Several Vengeance angels take flight overhead of the enemy army, raining down magic spells and whatnot, while several black mages take to the walls with their other allies, bombarding the enemy further with magic. Chaotic Knights await the enemy behind the gate, anticipation almost overwhelming them.

Rain was inside the castle still, but standing on the wall, looking over it. Though he wasn't fighting, his presence wasn't noticed by the other Chaos soldiers. He looked over to see Jaxe standing on top of the gate house, and wonders to himself once more why they are fighting.

The trio had just finished killing a group of elves that attacked them, "It is time" said Skaer teleporting his two friends back within the walls of the castle. "This is my fight now" he said, a smirk growing hellishly on his bloodstained face.

The partisans lined the parapets and began firing volleys of lead into the advancing anima army.

Chaotic knights began coming up from blurred holes in front of the castle, arrows bouncing off their heavy armour as they advanced. The ground behind them turning dark as midnight and their gaze turning elves against their brothers

"Feh, it seems good so far, though the attackers are at a disadvantage now. i guess I will start with-" Auger stopped in midsentence as he noticed a familiar figure on top of the gatehouse. "I can't tell from here, but it looks like him. "Alright!" Auger exclamated, running towards the gatehouse "I can finally finish this!" Auger ran at top speed for Jaxe, moving so fast a slight blur was created. Suddenly, he saw a blur heading towards him, and barely got his longsword up in time to block. "Out of my way, small fry." Auger said, throwing his short blade into the creature before it could move away. Auger noticed a vengeance angel, building up energy for what he knew was an attack spell. He interrupted the spell by throwing the body of the disorder at the angel, hitting it soundly and interrupting the spell before he moved on. By the time the creature got the corpse off of its face, Auger was already gone, making a trail through the army.




"Seems like chaos got a good commander for herself" Shale remarked. "A'right, conjurers, do the conversion." The conjurers, working together, began making the earth shake. The spirits of the earth below the castle heeded their call, and a part of the wall began to feel the effects, as a small earthquake happened. the foundation still held somewhat, but the wall began falling. " bring in the reinforcements" Shale said to an advisor, who quickly made the signal. a portal appeared, allowing reinforcements to come in droves. The disorders were driven back by marauding hordes of werewolves, who made up the difference in speed with brute strength, endurance, and animalistic rage and reflex.

The elven warriors switched to using bows, finding the weak point of knights armor and firing. there were no longer any volleys, as the warriors, scattered, began firing at will. The conjurers began restoring some of the converted people to sanity, and created tendrils of wood to entangle the legs of their opponents

Elsewhere, a small group of 4 elf avengers were fighting while surrounded by chaotic forces on their own. despite this, they were killing anything that came near, their opponents were fearful of their quick blades. They moved like a tank, mercilessly destroying any who got in their way, as they fought alongside the army.

Colossi began destroying anything in their path, dragons attacking in turn, but only able to nick their tough hides.

Armored dragons tunneled out directly underneath the enemy forces, killing many just by their initial entrance. so close to the wall, they fired their rays, attempting to turn the castle defenders to stone. a few branched off, and attacked the chaos dragons.

Dwarven berserkers were sent to the head of the army, becoming whirlwinds of destruction. Meanwhile, the remaining sky drakes began attacking the partisans directly, seeking to get rid of the nuisance the muskets offered.

Anima was finally on the offensive, and her children showed the full might that life could bring to the enemy.

Jaxe saw Auger, and immediately, he started thinking. "The fool thinks he can take me on my home field, does he? We shall see. Send the 2nd Chaotic Knight squad to eliminate the target. Call in the Chaotic Furies as well, and initiate long-range bombardment measures against the enemy." He says, giving out orders to a Marauder that was standing close behind him.

Ten chaotic knights were standing in front of Auger as he was headed for Jaxe, weapons drawn and prepared to strike at him as he passed by them, or stayed to fight them, it didn't matter.

---

Suddenly, several hundred Dark Rangers took to the walls, and let loose a large volley of energy arrows, showering Anima's forces, while Chaotic Furies found in the back of the castle, inside the walls, started bombarding the enemy with long-range magic attacks.

Marauders poured out of the gate, that was broken open, as hundreds of Chaotic knights followed suit, rushing onto the enemy with combat magic and other melee attacks. They proved to be nothing more than a diversion, however, as a couple of much larger Behemoths charged out and ran after the Colossi, ramming into them. They were trying to at least knock them over, if not destroy their legs.

More Disorders continued to be summoned via the lightning strikes, equaling out their losses, seemingly an endless swarm, but such might not be entirely true. They gave support to the Chaotic Knights by distracting the Werewolves away while they charged.

A few more dragons appeared from the skies, swooping down on top of the armored dragons, all the while breathing an inferno on the enemy forces. The other dragons continue to divert the attention of the Sky Drakes, while Vengeance Angels continue raining down on the enemies. Both sides were taking heavy losses, but it didn't seem as if the battle would end soon.

---

Rain heard a scream and turned around to see a person about to get crushed by a large slab of rock. He jumped off the wall and sped toward the person at inhuman speeds, catching him and jumping far out of the way. "Gotcha." Rain said, as he carried her away from the impact. The lady looked extremely surprised, speechless, and unsure of what just happened, as one moment she was about to die, and the next, she was whisked away.

Skaer was tearing apart his foes with his Adminium blade in one hand and a formed katana in the other, a constant onslaught provided him with plenty of hearts to stop.

Angus, since he was back within castle walls sprinted to Oresias shack "We need it now!" He hollered "Need what?!" he responded "You know exactly what I'm talking about, it's time." Oresia just nodded as Angus rushed toward the open gates returning to battle.

Hayle meanwhile had already ran right back to the front lines of the battle. Fire was everywhere, incinerating everything alive. He hacked at any being foolish enough to oppose him, every single one was either flung to the ground or sent flying away from his blade. He was drenched in blood before long... "Surely you cannot hope to defeat us all foolish chaos worshiper?!" said one of the dwarves "I'm just getting started" he retorted as he thrust his blade into the dying foe.

Oresia had been constructing something, monumental. He climbed into one of the many passages he had dug. He ran through the underground tunnel as fast as his legs could take him. Finally he was in the control room... "This is going to be the end..." he whispered pulling a lever. The earth began to shake and out of the ground rose A Terrifying mechanical. "Raatsh is complete" he said, with tears of joy welling up in his eyes.

three of the colossal beings rose out of the ground...

A Raatsh:
Raatsh

Onyx couldn't believe his eyes. He saw fighting everywhere, creatures he could hardly imagine, massive things which made him feel so small. He also noticed his own people fighting amongst the other forces, currently terrorized by a group of elves. with a war cry on his lips and axes in hand, he moved to fight alongside his brethren, running as best he could.




Auger saw the group of knights currently in the past, pausing a moment to analyze his enemies. "Tch. I'll have to use the direct approach. A blade throw will just bounce off" Auger, contrary to what his words seemed to convey, seemed more excited than irritated. The first knight attacked. Auger blocked his strike, and quick as lightning, moved to his side,stabbing him in the neck. he narrowly dodged a swing from another chaos knight. All of a sudden, he heard an odd thought in his mind. "Serve chaos the voice seemed to say. "Chaos? the hell's that. What a stupid thought. " Auger said, the mind control ineffective against his utterly focused mind. "I can't waste time on this. you were interesting opponents, but I can't let him run again." Auger ran at the nearest chaos knight, twisting away from it's clumsy strike while simultaneously impaling him on his own blade. The knight next to Auger went to strike, but tripped, entangled in the chain of Auger's weapon. after withdrawing the chain, Auger withdrew at top speed, the knights incapable of catching up.




Shale grimaced at the battle. "Hope those reinforcements of Anima's get here in time. At this rate, I won' even be able to initiate phase 2 of the plan..." Shale's musing was interrupted by the slight hum of a new portal opened. "Master Shale, the reinforcements you requested have arrived." he heard from the elven avenger behind him. "Excellent" remarked Shale. "time to start phase 2 of the plan then.
Out of the portal came a small group of 10 elven warriors, 5 werewolves, and the Avenger himself. Even more impressive, however, were the larger groups of chimera and earth golems coming through. "how many Did ya bring with ya" Shale asked.

"roughly 50 golems, and twice the amount of chimaeras.
"alright then, I recommend you put the chimaeras poison abilities to use against those dragons, see what ya can do there, and those quick li'l disorders will be utterly ineffective against the golems, so do what ya can there. anyway, make sure to take control of the conjurers once we are done. can't leave an asset like that laying around. Heh" Shale stopped himself. "Listen to me, babblin' like a mother hen. I am confident in your abilitiees, commander, so just do ya' best."
"Y...Yes, master Shale" stammered the avenger.
"Anyway, are the conjurers done the portal?"
"It looks like it, Master Shale"
A'right then, I'm gonna need those warriors, and the werewolves."

Walking calmly to a large group of Conjurers, Shale prepared to enter the portal. "Good work. Chaos shields her castles heavily against portals like this, so I know what you must'a done to gain entry. I'm gonna need one of ya to come with me, and the rest of you to rejoin the battle, after taking some time to rest"
"Yes, Master Shale!" The elves said in unison
Shale and his force passed through the portal, leading into the inner part of the castle.

"Jeez, all this formality is killin' me" Shale remarked, before stepping through the portal.




Meanwhile, Anima's army was fighting hard against chaos's

One of the werewolves had apparently gotten to the partisan's wall section, and converted the wounded into a force of werewolves, ready to fight for their new lord Anima.

The Chimeras worked together, hitting the dragons with neuro toxins designed to paralyze them, which, if they work properly will make them fall from the air.

The earth golems began battering at the forces of the disorders, as well as breaking more holes in the walls of the chaos fortress, the swarming disorders attempted to hold them back, but their weapons did little to the powerful avatars of stone.

The battle had become mostly equal, with pain and suffering on all sides. nevetheless, both sides continued to fight, with no loss in morale or enthusiasm,for the ideals their god had placed in them.

Jaxe smiles as Auger eliminates some of the Chaotic knights. Pleased that at least he was slowed down as more spirits became a part of him, increasing his power more and more by the second it seemed. He awaited patiently for Auger to reach him, as more chaos units blocked his way, slowing him down.

"The enemy continues to advance, sir, the fortress is doomed." The Marauder said to Jaxe, discouraged, obviously. "The battle is not over. The more we fight, the more that die. That is our goal." Jaxe replied coldly, as he knows full well it is not Chaos's desire to retreat from this fight. "This is an act of desperation only, relax, for soon, your goddess will join us."

---

More Chaos Dragons appeared, flying high in the sky, as they rained fire down on the enemies, and started affecting their minds, creating pure chaos within them. Some of the dragons directly engaging Anima's forces fall, but are still alive, and fight on the ground to the very end, taking as many down as possible.

The Chimeras would find themselves prime targets for the Disorders that finally stopped coming. They swarmed the winged creatures, avoiding friendly fire. The werewolves were free to attack the Chaotic Knights, or at least, they were until they started being flung about and crushed by magic powers from the now arriving Enforcers. Several more Behemoths rush out and charge into Anima's forces, crushing them under-foot and confronting the Earth Golems.

The Black Mages gathered together in one group, and started chanting, protected by what's left of the walls, meanwhile, Chaotic Knights continue to hold the line as best as they can. Dark Rangers showering the enemy closest to them with their special arrows still, poisoning everything, while the Chaotic Furies target the ranged units in Anima's army. Marauders supported the Chaotic Knights as best as they could, while what remained of the Vengeance Angels continued to shower the enemy with their magic attacks.

---

Rain stopped and let the girl back down onto the ground. He bowed and flew off again, his wings appearing as he takes to the skies. He notes that the storm was getting worse now, a symptom of the raging battle, perhaps, possibly. "This battle is claiming so many lives...I wish it would end." He says to himself, as a weird thought popped into his head. A familiar voice.

"If you fought to protect them, then you would be making a difference, wouldn't you?" The voice asked him. Rain couldn't tell where it was coming from but it was obviously a telepathic link from someone. "If I did," he replied via thoughts, "Then wouldn't it be against my beliefs? My desires?" He asks the voice, defending himself against the argument it presents. "What is it you believe in? Standing by and letting people die, or going to war so that others don't have to?" The voice said, hitting the mark exactly with Rain.

Rain flew, lost in thought and not concentrating on where he was going. However, subconsciously, he was analyzing the battlefield as he flew, appalled at the horrors he saw. "Do you not wish to save them, if possible? And if not, try anyway?" The voice asked Rain once more, wishing for an answer. Rain thought about it longer, still, but eventually, he saw what he needed to do. "... To save innocents... to shield them... yes... I shall protect their lives as best as I can, even if it is against my desires." He says to the voice, drawing his sword now.

"Then let the enemy fall before you, as you will be the shield of those who would destroy life, destroy innocents, and destroy the future itself. Fight for your beliefs, and show the gods this foolishness." The voice replied. Rain smiled, finally put on track, as he glowed white, leaving a bright white streak of light in his path. He suddenly changed direction, headed for the earth below. He impacted on the ground, right in the middle of the fighting between the Chaotic Knights and Anima's infantry. As he landed, energy blasted outward, in the form of swords, impaling enemies around him. "Let them learn what a true guardian is."

Rain stood up, white feathers hovering around him, as he himself stood like a statue in between the Chaotic Knights and the Werewolves/Dwarfs/Elves. He was silent, his expression serious, but emotionless. He held his sword casually, for now, as his white wings were spread out at their furthest length. "This war is filled with nothing but pain, but if I can prevent that for at least one person, then I have a meaning to live and fight." He says, taking a battle stance now. He was ready to fight, for once in a long time.

The Avenger leading the forces of Anima realized his troops were flagging. "At least I managed to get one last batch of reinforcements through the portal, but will it really make a difference?" The avenger mused "This fighting... It doesn't seem like it will end any time soon." An elf advisor suddenly broke his thought "Sir, our forces are flagging in one of our central divisions. if we don't reinforce, we will have a hole in out lines."The avenger looked over at the advisor with concern "What is left?" he asked. The advisor looked at the battle report, and, with shock, reported "It appears to be a single dwarf...How frightening he must be! So, should i send a division of warriors to support him?" The avenger, with sudden hope in his eyes, remarks "no...I will go... Give battle control to major Raik. It's time for me to stop acting as a mere general, and get out there on the battlefield, fighting and dying alongside my brothers!"
"v...very well, sir" The elf advisor stammered, but the avenger was gone before she could finish her sentence.

A collosi dueled with 2 shadow dragons, who attempted to destroy the colossi with their devouring flames. the Colossi gained many burns, but managed to hit one of the dragons with its stone blade, heavily injuring it and causing internal bleeding. Roaring in anger, the other dragon clawed out one of the colossi's eyes, and proceeded to shoot fire into the vulnerable area. Howling in pain, the colossi swung wildly at the dragon, but it had already went into the clouds.
A new division of elven warriors appeared, quickly firing a volley of arrows into a horde of chaos knights and disorders, killing most of that division. A few black mages, seeing the threat, cast a large fireball, which exploded and killed all but a few of the division. Those who survived attempted to get up, only to be hit by the arrows of a dark ranger, ending their lives.

The earth golems and behemoths fought, a rough, uneven brawl, that destroyed all around them who came too near. A dark ranger attempted to aid her fellow behemoths in the conflict, but before the ranger could fire her first energy arrow, was crushed underneath the foot of a golem, who took no notice, enthralled as he was with fighting his opponent.

A lone dwarf berserker fought through a group of disorders, a veritable whirlwind with his axes. An enforcer appeared in front of him, chanting the words for a fireball spell, and he prepared to meet his end... Only for the fireball to be blocked by the blade of an elvish avenger. aided by the dwarf, the avenger went on the offensive, and put all his strength into attacking the enforcer. the enforcer cast a sleep spell on the dwarf, knocking him out, and attempted ot do the same to the Avenger, but before he could cast, he had to block the gargantuan blade of the Avenger, speeding towards him with eyes filled with anger

Auger was a whirling dervish of destruction, his movement so fast it was not possible for the average civilian to track him, as he moved towards Jaxe, cutting down all who came before him without even stopping.
Grabbing a Disorder with his chain, he spun it around like a flail to knock out a group of knights, before hurling the unfortunately still alive disorder into the flames of a shadow dragon. "I'm finally getting close" Auger remarked, heading on his way "My blade is destined to meet his once more."Auger grinned, noting only a few more soldiers stood between him and Jaxe. "hey" Auger yelled, seeking to get Jaxe's attention. "It's finally time for us to continue that fight of ours!"

Shale and his small force moved through the castle, Destroying what few guards remained within. "Alright, who has the Charges. we need to put one on this pillar. Shale's mission was simple: He was to use charges, infused with life energy, to destroy the castle in a covert operation. Doing so would rob the Chaotic forces of the advantage the thick stone walls offered.
The second was to deal with the terrifying mechanical being said to have been created within the castle, to prevent it from joining with chaos and changing the momentum of the battle.
"Stay back" Shale said, hearing the dim footsteps of an enforcer. "If we all attack this guy at once, we'll just be signin' our own death warrants. let me handle this one."
Moving entirely silently, not even the noise of the wind giving him away, Shale moved quickly and silently, before decapitating the enforcer from the back. "I really am sorry about this, ya know?" Shale apologized "I really do hate all this fightin' "
"let's move out already" Shale remarked, giving the O-K signal to his team, moving to destroy the castle, and the terrifying power that is Raatsh.

Jaxe turns to look at Auger, and laughs at his foolishness. "You, my boy, have been so much of a help in reaching my objective." He says to him, smiling evilly. "All the destruction, all the death around us only strengthens me further." Jaxe walks toward Auger, sword out, and surrounded by a dark purple aura. "If you want a fight, I shall give one to you, and then, you shall die."

---

The Chaos forces struck at Rain first, annoyed at his entrance into battle. Rain's response was quick, in a flash he struck the first Knight in a weak point, slicing off his head, and then punching the second one next to him, as flame consumed it. The elves jumped at Rain now, two with swords flew at Rain, one struck, but Rain jumped over it, as he went for the archers behind them. As he landed, he spun around, slicing an entire group of them apart.

"Like the wind, be swift." He thinks to himself, remembering the training his master, his trainer gave him on his graduation when he was 13. "Like the flame, be merciless." An arrow shot past him, as he turned around to block the elf swordsmen who quickly did a u-turn. The two groups were still separated where Rain was at least, as both sides saw a bigger threat in Rain.

Rain threw back the swordsmen, as he was shot in the back with an arrow. "Like the earth, be strong." He thinks again, shrugging off the pain as if it were nothing. He spun around and struck another elf archer with a fireblast, as he back-flipped into the air, dodging the elf swordsmen again. As he landed, he, once again, found himself around the Chaotic Knights, who wasted no time in striking at Rain before he landed. He was cut on his leg, but shrugged that off too.

"Like the water, be agile." He thought, as he spun around before another sword impaled him, he landed on top of a knight, and impaled him in the head, breaking the helmet entirely, as he jumps off, and flipping in the air, carrying the knight with him, he spun it as well, catapulting it at the enemy. He sent a blast of energy after the knight which, when it impacted against it, exploded, consuming the knight and a few surrounding units in a blaze of light.

"...So, that is how your strength works, taking it from others" Auger's smile, once wide, dissipated and became a frown. "One who fights cowardly, using the strength of others, and still continues to be so arrogant."auger quickly moved past the knights, with a broad sweep, and before another second had passed, the knight were all killed by the strike "One who uses such cowardly tactics, and dares to call himself strong. Strength is something born with, bought with blood, earned and fought for. The shape of one's strength exemplifies who he is. Your strength-" Auger stops and grabs a flask of water from his belt before continuing" is nothing. you are merely borrowing power from others. You have committed the only sin which will cause me to fight seriously."Auger puts down the flask of water. "Water is a precious resource on my planet, and symbolizes the continuation of life. me putting down this water means that, either I or you will lose here." Auger charged forward, moving at twice the speed he has thus shown before now "And that I put my life on this match." Auger slashed with his blade, at again twice the normal speed.
"hmmm, what is this weird feeling? it's not the battle lust I normally feel. just like back at the arena, what Rihanta Killed that guy who called me friend. Anyway, I can't lose, not now.



"A'right, the charges are set and ready to go off in 5 minutes. All that's left is to exterminate the Raatsh" Shale moved forward through the rest of his team. his mission had been mostly a success, encountering only light resistance. it was only a matter of time before their presence was noticed, however, so they moved as quickly as they possibly could. Looking in a room, Shale noticed a man who appeared to be cheerfully celebrating an accomplishment, followed by a robotic giant whose look was extremely alien to Shale.
"get the mini charge ready, and then run. I'm the only one that can throw th' charge and run in time. If you get away now, it'll be a'right. just make sure the charges go off."

Skaer looked dreadfully to the skies, a live dragon falling mere feet from him. "Those chimeras are really starting to piss me off" he exclaimed He began firing energy into the sky wildly, hitting some before they could begin dodging. "This is their last chance" he thought, welling up enormous amounts of energy, and then... "time never really stops, but if i had to choose when it did..." He released the massive amount of energy directly into the flock of chimeras, devilish grin on his face.

Hayle began charging through his foes, not caring if they opposed him, swinging with speed and precision as he charged. Enemies looked at him, shocked as he ran for the colossus. When he arrived it tried to crush him with it's foot "Not today you piece o' scrap metal" He thought, as he lunged onto his feet, climbing so fast it looked like he was soaring up the behemoth from onlookers below. Now he was at the head. "These look important" he said, hacking at the machinery on the back of it's head.

"It... it is all futile..." Thought Angus, he lay battered on the ground, bleeding from several wounds. "If I just had time..." An elf avenger stood over him, blade raised, ready to finish him off. Suddenly the elf was struck in the head with a knife, it was Skaer's, the elf looked enraged, as he turned to face Skaer the blade ripped out, taking half his head with it. Skaer walked over to Angus, "Get up, this isn't even close to being over."

Oresia spoke slowly "I know you're there, despite the war above I can still hear you breathing." He quickly turned to see a man with brown hair in the doorway. "Do you know what this is?" he said, pulling the pin on a grenade. after a few moments of silence he answered for him "It's one of my inventions, I think you'll see that it was a mistake coming here, what I hold in my hand is only a small piece of what I've hidden around MY KINGDOM" before he finished speaking he was punching buttons and pulling levers "prepare for your end." said Oresia, whom just, disappeared from the room, grenade falling from the now non-existant hand.

"My, my, what an impatient guy" Remarked Shale. Quickly, he moved towards the grenade and disarmed it. "now then" Shale began disassembling the grenade as he talked "I guess I can't slow down. I'll just join up with the squad, and figure a way out of here." Suddenly, a loud Boom was heard in the distance. the earth buckled as the castle itself began collapsing. Tremors could be felt and rubble began falling from the ceiling. "The charges went off already, eh? GOtta trust the squad made it to the evac point on time. I'm getting out of here before anything else happens." Shale ran out, moving so fast he could not be properly tracked by the naked eye, leaving copies of him as optical illusions behind him as he ran.

Jaxe smiled, as he dodged the attack easily, matching Auger's speed, and then tripped him with his foot, sending Auger flying forward toward the ground most likely. "Those who cannot use their strength don't deserve to keep it." Jaxe replies to Auger's statements. "But you, oh, you are so intriguing... a defiler of fate, perhaps? No, maybe something else." He says, as he blocks another of Auger's strikes, most likely. "I can see inside your heart. Filled with... nothingness. Would you like it to be filled with anger? No? How about sorrow?" He says, pushing Auger back again with a surge of energy. "Come at me then, and I shall give you an everlasting gift!"

---

Rain jumped up into the air again, dodging an attack from an elf again, as he got showered with arrows. Most of them he deflected with his sword, but was hit by two. One in the arm and another in the leg. He shrugged off the pain again, as he flipped in the air, and came down, sword poised to impale the area around several knights and elves. "Like the light, be blinding and glorious." He thought again, as he impacted into the ground, energy flying out of his sword and tearing apart the earth around him. The energy flew upward, sending all the knights and elves in about a ten meter radius around Rain flying into the air.

"And like the shadows, disappear." Rain fades into nothingness, camouflaging himself, the knights and the elves get back up, or at least the few that are alive from the attack. They would see air where Rain was, and a small crater from the impact site. Suddenly, though, one of the knights was sent flying, as a faint silhouette was seen rushing by. Then another knight, as the silhouette continued its rampage, another knight fell, and then an elf, before the silhouette was hit with an arrow and stopped. Rain phased back into existence again, kneeling on the ground, coughing up a bit of blood. My body can't take much more of this punishment... the more power I use, the weaker I become now... He looks around as the knights start to surround him again. And it doesn't look like this is going to end any time soon.

Auger sprung up on his hands, avoiding the fall, only to be held back by the surge of energy. "Strength is gained to protect and represent what you are. it being twisted into your goals is the most vile of things you could do." Snapping the chain off of his weapon, Auger charged at Jaxe with a swipe, moving even a slight bit faster than he did initially. from there, he continued to assault Jaxe with a flurry of swordplay, scarcely noticing when the Roof and walls began to collapse, and certainly not stopping, even despite the numerous earthquakes going on around him. A rock collapsed from the ceiling, which Auger kicked at his foe, before charging once again, a low stab ready, while he kept his short sword close to his chest, intending to use it like a parrying dagger.

"The clock is ticking, twenty minutes" said Oresia "It's time to fly" he said hailing a dragon from the sky. As they flew Skaer spotted Hayle, He began waving frantically, as they flew past the colossus he jumped on.

"It's over patchwork..." said a voice in Skaer's head. "That hasn't been my name since... Chronos!" Distracted, he nearly missed the colossus his energy beam was intended for, knocking it over. Time began to warp, the grass was green and the castle was rubble. "What the hell is this?" "It's to show you what will soon become of these lands, as you can see they are no longer affected by war." "Where are we?" "it's 'when are we' Skaer, this is long after the present..."

Oresia, Hayle, and Angus were falling, with no-one who knew who to ride a dragon they couldn't fly much further. They managed to land him on a grassy knoll away from the fighting. "Where the hell happened to Skaer I-" "From here we can watch it happen" Said Oresia. "watch.. What happen?" asked Angus. "The glow... you will see it soon... the wonderful glow....." his voice trailed off.

Jaxe sliced the rock in half as he jumped up into the air, after sending a beam of energy at Auger, which was mainly meant to distract him. “Honor? There is none, nor hope, nor life, nor light or joy. They are fantasies, illusions, legends, and myths you and your kind created to battle the shadows I was born from. There is nothing, nothing but sorrow and anger!” He yelled out at Auger as he started spinning, his blade held out as it sliced stone like a hot knife through butter. He was falling toward Auger. Jaxe was also channeling energy through his body for a counter-strike, which he knew was coming.

---

Rain dodged an attack from a knight, back-flipping into the air, and coming down on an elf warrior, stabbing him, as he catapulted him into the knights. He channeled energy into his arm as he blocked another knight and punched him, setting him ablaze. “You all create nothing but pain and devastation wherever you go. I will not have it anymore!” Rain yelled out at his enemies as he lifted his arm to the skies. Energy shot out of it and did a u-turn in the air, splitting into multiple beams which impaled knights and elves alike, killing them in an immediate area around Rain.

---

The storm seemed to grow more violent, as a tornado fell out of the sky and hit the ground, right on top of some of Anima’s soldiers. Lightning shot out of the tornado, impaling even more enemies, as Chaos appeared inside it. (Chaos, form 2) The tornado dissipated as she appeared. She seemed to be channeling her energy for another, similar, strike.

Suddenly, though, a majority of the soldiers that died by Chaos’s attack were revived. A glowing green energy consumed their figure, lifted them up as life was breathed into them, and then disappeared, allowing them back into the fight with renewed vitality. Anima appeared, walking out of the forest, wielding a wooden staff with a glowing green crystal at the top. (Anima, form 4)

Chaos yelled out, as she sent energy waves at Anima, and flew at her, channeling energy into her arms for an overwhelming strike at her enemy. She kept sending energy wave after wave, meant mainly to distract the goddess as she approached. (Anyone wishing to control Anima should post her reaction soon, otherwise, I shall control her.)

---

Suddenly, the Vengeance Angels were under attack by two Evraes that pierced through the skies and came on top of them, attacking them with their mystic attacks. The sound of a trumpet could be heard clearly over the battlefield, as light started piercing through the stormy skies. Over the horizon, where a bright light appeared, nearly blinding anyone who looked upon it, marched another army, with Aeon leading it. (Aeon, form 3)

However, at the opposite side, the skies darkened even further, as an army, whose armor was as black as the night sky, appeared, marching toward the battlefield. Exitius could be seen leading it, at the head of a variety of different creatures. Three Shadow dragons flew out of the black mass, headed straight for Aeon’s forces, who countered with several Starlight dragons, who assaulted the shadow ones with the same momentum. (Exitius, form 2)

The two armies charged forward, colliding into the battlefield, creating even more chaos and destruction in their wake, as it was now a four-way battle between the gods, massive armies appearing left and right, as the battle reached its peak. The castle was surely doomed to obliteration now.

Shale ran with his team, stopping occasionally to fight pockets of enemy resistance. they were nearly out of the gates of the castle, when a young, frightened guard stood in front of him "I-I-I-I will s-s-stop you here, you murderers!' It was obvious to anyone around that the Man was frightened, and holding only a musket at close range, outmatched as well. "now, now, we won't be causing any trouble, if you just be so kind as to let us through, we won't do anything to harm you..." No! said the guard, firing his weapon at Shale. "now now, youngin', we don't want to hurt nobody here" Said Shale, standing behind the guard. "I am proud to die this way!" Screamed the guard before Shale stuck his finger into the guard's neck. The guard fell to the ground, unmoving. " alright, someone grab him, we need to take him with us" Shale commented.

"eh, sir, are we to take a corpse...?" Remarked one of the elven warriors, somewhat perturbed at the notion. "No, he isn't dead. I merely knocked him out. there will be more than enough death later today, killing such an innocent soul would be wrong. There are refugee tunnels near here, we will leave him near the entrance. He'll wake up in about 5 minutes, and hopefully hid in the tunnels, if he has any sense." One elven warrior stepped up face to face with Shale, Anger in his eyes. " You knew about these tunnels! If you knew about them, why did you make no action towards them! We could have armored dragons break them, or cut them off, or-" Shale, waggling his finger, cut him off "And kill everyone inside, yes? Including the young children and women and men too old or infirm to fight. We are fighting on the side of life, warrior, you should remember that. leave slaughter like that to exitius, or chaos." The elven warrior did not back down. "We are the defenders of life! We have the right and authority to cut down-" Shale quietly and simply said "If Anima were to see you cutting down innocent women and children, who were simply trying to run, what expression do you think you would see on her face?" The warrior looked as shocked as if Shale had slapped him in the face, and quietly stepped back. "We need to get moving" Shale moved forward, ready to move "we can cut through that thin line of troops, and rejoin the main force there. After stopping by the tunnels, of course."
Without objections, the team moved out.




Auger stopped the attack with a two handed blow from his longsword, putting the short sword in its sheath. " My sword is merely metal and magic, bound together by smiths. it has no meaning beyond what it was crafted to have. It makes it no less real."drawing his short blade out, he charged, intending to stop whatever block jaxe intended with his shortsword to slash with his longsword. "I-" Auger stopped as he noticed a being outside, white wings outsretched, and recognized him as the man he thought a weakling he had met a few days before.
I thought this wasn't his fight? he seems to be losing though. It's a shame he is losing, after finally finding the will to take part. ...I don't want him to lose this fight. Are these weird thoughts what that old man called feelings? If I don't save him now, I don't think I will find out.

Auger's focus now shifted, from destroying the opponent before him, to protecting the warrior outside. "Sorry, I don't have time for this fight anymore." He said, intending to charge and continue on past.




Onyx had been fighting towards where his orc brethren fought, fighting past any elf or other creature in his way. Wielding his axe, he crushed the head of those in front of him. A Dwarf berserker stood in front of him, holding a axe larger than Onyx's own. he two fought, blades clashing, both fighting with their full strength, never quite being able to land a clean blow on the other. slight cuts and bruises appeared all over their bodies as the fight continued.

The dwarf tried an overhand blow, Which Onyx blocked with his own axe, and he made a grab for the dwarf's weapon. A dwarf's strength matches even that of the strongest orc, however, and The two ended up fighting over the grasp of the weapon. The berserker wrenched the axe free of Onyx's grip, only to get a kick to the face. Onyx brought down the axe, intending to smash the dwarf's head, but the dwarf managed to get up his weapon in time to block. Onyx smashed the dwarf's "Vulnerables" with his knee, and Cleaved the dwarf's head off as he dropped the axe in pain, a quick blow that ended the conflict quickly.

Before continuing, the Orc looked over at the dwarfs corpse, parting with the words "You were a mighty warrior. I honor you and your strength." Then, the Orc bellowed a battlecry and continued fighting, all his mind resting on the preservation of his people.

Jaxe smiled as Auger ran past him. He didn’t try to stop him at all, as odd as it sounds. “And the first piece clicks into place…” He says, as he looks around now, looking onward at the battlefield. It was far from being in Chaos’s favor, despite the chaotic fighting. All four gods were here, and so, it was likely time to leave before they stopped pulling their punches. “This isn’t at all a good situation…” He said, then turned to the Marauder, which was still there, and just got done killing a Warrior Angel that tried to kill him. “Sit-rep. Now.” Jaxe ordered of the man. The man scoffed, as he replied saying, “We’re getting our butts kicked from three different angles.” Jaxe just shakes his head in dismay, annoyed at the obviousness of his statement. “Alright then, I’ll be specific, what’s the status of the gate defenders?” He asks, restating his question.

---

Another arrow hit Rain’s shoulder, as soon his body started to fail on him. This isn’t good... crap… not now… He managed to keep going, despite his injuries. Though he felt no pain, he knew his body couldn’t take much more punishment before failing and his nanites couldn’t keep up with the demand due to fighting the poison found in some of the arrows. He jumps back, dodging a swing from a Knight, as he retaliated, slicing off the knight’s head. He jumped back again, as several arrows flew by. He may be slowed down by a degree, but he could still fight regardless.

---

Anima conjured up an energy barrier, preventing the waves from impacting onto the ground, as the barrier in turn blasted forth, hitting Chaos and sending her backwards. Anima jumped up into the air, as she sent a wave of energy ahead of her, originating from her staff. Chaos recovered, not even scratched, as she quickly channeled her power and sent out a surge ahead of her. It impacted against the wave, as a fight ensued, Anima increasing the wave’s energy, and Chaos on the other hand, trying to overwhelm Anima with her power. The backwash was bolts of said energy, and blasts that came outward from the impact that damaged any units near it, possibly even killing them.

---

The two newly arrived armies collide with the current two, increasing the magnitude of this battle drastically, as fighting ensues even well away from the castle grounds. Aeon and Exitius are fighting at the front lines, tearing apart enemies as they charge at them. One after another, more and more died in this battle, as it soon became very bloody. The worst part to think about of this battle, was that it was just one of several occurrences that were even larger in scale.

Auger carved a path through his enemies, a destructive missile heading through the crowd.
A chaos knight attempted to slash him, he dodged underneath it. A disorder came at him, he impaled it on his blade with the force of the disorders' own momentum. A behemoth attempted to bite him in two, he jumped onto the back of its head and stabbed his blade into its neck before moving on. Finally, all that stands between him and Rain is a single chaos knight, readying himself to stab at Auger. 'Oi, you with the wings" he says, as he dodges the chaos knights clumsy attempt to impale him, and cuts off the exposed arm. "you look like you could use some help" Auger said as he decapitated the knight. walking into the middle of the circle Rain had been surrounded in. "I don't know how they taught you where you come from... But in my time, the preferred position for when 2 fought many... was back to back!"




Shale fought with his team, cutting a path back to Anima's lines. A small, elite force, they fought past the forces coming after them, intending to push through as quickly as possible. A group of chaotic knights in front of them suddenly died, as they were cut up from behind by a blademaster of Exitius.

Shale knew he could defeat the blademaster, but he couldn't finish the battle before other troops took notice. A plan forming in his mind, Shale looked at what was left of his Squad. the conjurer, about 6 warriors, and three werewolves. "I have a plan" Shale said, using his connection with the wind to silently utter everyone's part to them, while the blademaster couldn't hear a word.

Shale charged the blademaster with all his speed and strength, driving the blademaster back. The blademaster responded in kind, attacking with his own blade, pushing Shale on the defensive with fast, furious swipes. The werewolves sprang on him, stopping him from charging forward and pushing Shale back further. Mere werewolves were no match for him, however, and he drove them back with his attacks, only their animal reflex kept them alive. one werewolf gained a nasty cut on his face, leaving a deep, bleeding wound. Shale sent swipes of wind at the blademaster, but he deflected them all. Expressionlessly, the blademaster began to move forward...Only to stop short, realizing his feet had fused with the earth.

While the Blademaster had been occupied with Shale and the werewolves' attacks, The conjurer had been spending his time entangling his feet with strong, powerful vines, pulling him down and trapping him. The Blademaster only struggled a little longer before 6 arrows hit every weak point in his armor they could find, killing him before he understood the blows had struck. "Cooperation..." Shale mused "If we did that more, maybe this war wouldn't have occurred in the first place..."
The party moved on in high spirits, and made their way into Anima's forces, working to reinforce any weak points the lines had.





Shale looked over at where Anima was fighting the other gods "All this time, and they still can't just sit down and cooperate... well, I suppose there's no helping it" Remarked shale as he continued to fight, Stopping a blast of fire meant to hit one of his elf warriors with a wind slash of his own.