Using each other to stand up, Mike and Lecca took the lead outside. The settlement was well beyond in a state in collapse, the place they stood was once the invisible fortress line for the frontier. Brave men and women stood up to the plate, many being owned by the Volunteer Corps, took to the battlefield in daring raids against criminal and unknown hostile elements. Each group answered to a member of the Royal Guard, yet the kingdom was unable to provide any extra manpower.
It was a never-ending conflict between the people and the monsters beyond. The destruction of this settlement could've very well spelled the close of the war.
"These lands have withstood both time and the numerous strikes made by the Demon Lord. This, one of eight settlements, provided a once unbreakable fortress that stood and protected the kingdom." Mr. Que spoke to the two as he and his men walked behind. "The foolish nature of the king, he and the former members of the Royal Court have stalled all progression in colonizing the frontier. The damned bastard killed any hope the people still have."
The princess remained silent as she alongside Sergeant Randall with his arms hung over her shoulder. She never dared open her mouth; it was imperative that she kept her identity as the "Crown" Princess hidden. She was no more than a Chieftain in the Royal Army, anything else would be catastrophic to the safety of her men.
Two tents were hastily set up under the cover of the wall. The surviving sixteen members of the Corps stood tending their wounds or finding something to settle their churning stomachs. For them it was a miracle that they survived the onslaught of the unknown aircraft that had long passed. To the Rangers, it was just luck; there was once a time where each of them stood under the constant raid of SU-57s and long old, but capable F-14 Tomcats during the campaign in Africa.
With Mr. Que dispatching the men behind him to check in on the others, Knights Marco, Anne, and Eugene followed behind the princess and her rangers as they climbed the weathered wall that guarded the settlement. As they ascended, the brunt-tattered Corps flags still flew under the dark blue skies. The cold wind blew across the destroyed fields, the stench of death emanated from several large craters just on the other side of the walls.
At the peak, the wall stretched for miles around. Lecca stood at the forefront of the group, her dirtied-silver hair fluttering in the wind. She looked out to the brunt fields. A small army of what looked to be one-thousand soldiers of an unknown army had made camp not far away, less than five-hundred meters.
The seconds she stood their taking in the agonizing silence was broken by her soft breaths as she contemplated what her and her subordinates next move should be. "Captain." She said turning on the heels of her boots.
Already looking afar with his binoculars, Thompson nodded. "Yeah, I see them. Looks like a whole battalion waiting to storm this fucking city."
"Why haven't they occupied Stratega?" Knight Eugene asked as he placed his hands on the crumbling wall.
"It's like the battle of Stalingrad." Simon interjected. "They don't want to sit inside a ruined settlement with no way to receive supplies, thus, they are staying outside for logistical reasons. It's a siege."
"S-talingrad?" Anne parroted.
"We got people moving, captain!" Green called out. "Is anyone capable of short-range artillery magic!?" He asked alarmed.
"Huh?" Lecca hummed turning around.
"I need: Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, Short Range Air Defense, Anti-Aircraft-Artillery, Airburst Rounds!" Green suddenly ranted making the men around look at him in confusion.
"Are you hit?" Patterson asked.
"Patterson he's right." Thompson said firmly taking control of the situation. "Chieftain, I need you to gather all the mages the Corps have capable of hitting targets well beyond three-hundred meters! We're going to take these fuckers to hell!"
She did not know the words PFC Green spoke. She did not know what, nor did she care for what her future held. The orders given by Thompson; it was for survival. There was no choice, it was fight, or die. Turning on her heels she tapped Mike on the back. Without another word he followed his commanding officer, their boots crunched against the dirt and gravel. Her fears tried to control her, yet she would finally fight against them after ten years.
"I need all available mages up on the wall, now!" Her sudden shouts attracted the attention of the Corps members that were tending to themselves in the scattered-makeshift tents. "If you can cast a spell more than three-hundred meters, get up there!"
No one moved. Each one of them looked at her with suspicion.
Then, the guild attendant stood up and walked up to the princess.
"Who are you really?" She asked in a violent tone. "You come into the guild with theses men that obviously don't belong here, then you go on a campaign with the Volunteers? Who are you!?"
"Lecca-" Mike was cut off.
"I am the First-Born Princess, Leccamaradel Emma Arish! Daughter of the displaced king!" She said placing her left hand over her heart. "Beside me is a Holy Knight, a Reclaimer!" She announced making Mike freeze. "He is one of the men that successfully drove back the attackers during the raid on Bishmark!"
Hushed whispers grew around the camp.
"Were it not for them risking their lives the city would've been lost! Yet now is not the time for recollection! A force much greater than ours is preparing to march on this very settlement! This is your home! Fight for it!"
Several men let out cheers startling the guild attendant. One-by-one the men pooled to the top of the wall surprising Mr. Que and the Reclaimers. Following up the rear, Mike was confronted by a smiling Thompson. He simply patted him on the shoulder as Lecca stepped once more to the forefront of the group of fighters now under her command.
"Rangers! Move it out and keep them boxed in! Shit will get real when bullets start flying!" Thompson bellowed kicking his men into action as they set up kill zones around the gate below them.