Jonathan finally reached the outskirts of the forest. He hid behind a tree, watching the mountain base. He noticed the mercenaries entering the mountain through a cave. According to Walters, the mercenaries recently found a path leading to a tomb in the center of the mountain. She believed the tomb contained the eternal flame. It took the merceries a few months to draw a map of the maze within the mountain. They had lost several men in the process of creating this map. Without it, no one would be able to reach the center. According to Walters's spies, the mercenaries had finished the map and handed over the only copy to their leader.
"Huhoooo," Jonathan made a bird sound native to the forest. It was a signal for his teammates to regroup on him. He waited for them without making any move on the mercenaries. After a while, the twins joined him.
"I thought we were lost for a second," said Mini.
"Where are the others?" asked Jumbo.
Of course, their names were not Mini and Jumbo, but Jonathan preferred to use nicknames during the missions instead of real names.
"I am here," Cyclone joined them.
"I hope Ian didn't go nuts," said Mini, only to receive a deadly glance from Jonathan.
"Sorry GL, I am just kidding,"
"Shut up guys. Did you even bother to think Ian might be right and we are in danger? He's a mage, for god sake. He knows more than all of us combined,"
"Thank you for your kind words, Cyclone," They turned around and saw Ian walking toward them with a gentle smile. Jonathan heaved a sigh of relief inside. For a moment, he himself thought Ian might go rogue and try to find the other gifted one.
"What took you so long?" Asked Jonathan.
"Darkness and forest," said Ian.
"What's the plan?" Cyclone asked, looking at the mercenaries. As far as she could see, the mountain base was littered with mercenaries and a bunch of contraptions. Additionally, the mercenaries had trebuchets, cannons, and hwachas.
"Are they expecting someone?" asked Mini. They had enough men and war machines to fight a mini army.
"They shouldn't have anyone to fight right? They killed King Azim and the rebel leader if I am not wrong," said Jumbo. Jonathan was actually surprised.
"I thought you didn't read the mission briefing,"
"We may have skimmed through it," Jumbo smiled proudly.
Jonathan nodded as he looked at his teammates.
"Expect the unexpected. It's unlikely we can get into the mountain without getting detected. But if we can take over the hwachas,"
Hwachas were firework-based artillery units capable of dealing incredible amounts of damage in an area. Almost sixty to eighty arrows could be fired in rapid succession in just under 3 seconds. It was operated by the Hwacha Operator. Unless one kills the operator or destroys the hwacha, it would prove deadly and decimate the foes on a battlefield.
"We can use them to destroy the other machines and prevent the mercenaries from using them against us,"
"It's a pity we cannot shoot their asses with the hwachas," said Mini.
"We are not killers," Jonathan growled. Even the thought of taking a life disgusted Jonathan. He was a hero to the core, and heroes wouldn't take lives. Since he knew Mini was just kidding, Jonathan didn't bother to respond. Instead, he focused on the plan.
"Ian can cast the spell to help us navigate through the mountain once we are inside,"
"What about the mercenaries? I don't think they would be kind enough to let us walk into the mountain without chasing us down," said Cyclone.
"We can lose them inside the mountain. They can't follow us to the center without a map, " Jonathan said.
"But if we manage to get detected somehow, you're allowed to use your superpowers. But remember, no casualties. You're trained for this. I don't want to hear any excuses or deaths on my watch," Jonathan's voice was serious.
"I will shield you with my spells as usual. So don't worry. I am here to protect you," said Ian. Unlike the rest of the team, Jonathan felt a strange uneasiness and worry in Ian's voice. However, he didn't question Ian about it when they were about to head into a battle.
The team stretched their muscles, preparing themselves. They could count at least a hundred mercenaries in their sight. No one thought it would be an easy mission. If this mission was easy, UFH wouldn't have preferred the Supremes initially before Walters took over the mission.
"Follow my lead," Jonathan said before walking out of the forest. The mercenaries had no idea they were being watched by superheroes. Instead, the mercenaries were busy dragging carts filled with wood, arrows, and food to their camps. Almost no one tended to the war machines. Jonathan decided to stay hidden. He crouched toward the mountain base without making a sound.
Ian moved his staff as a dark shadow blanketed the team. The team moved under the dark shadow. Jonathan saw a couple of guards patrolling on his way. There were at least twelve meters between his team and the war machines. In addition to Ian's spell, Jonathan used the crates as cover.
Jonathan turned his gaze toward Mini and Jumbo. He signaled them to knock out the two guards. The twins didn't need further instruction. They waited till the two mercenaries were away from the rest and slowly crouched toward them.
"Have you heard from the boss?"
"Something feels off here,"
"Yeah. It's not like Boss to skip the weekly meetings. It had been some time since I saw him,"
"Is it true he went into the mountain and never came back?"
"That's bullshit. Boss has the map and genius. He is not a kid to get lost inside the mountain. Probably someone else eyeing for his chair spread that rumor,"
"You're probably right,"
The two mercenaries conversed, having no idea Mini and Jumbo were slowly moving toward them. When the twins were just a few inches away from the mercenaries, they quickly wrapped their arms around the mercenaries' necks and squeezed them until they passed out.
The twins dragged the bodies behind some crates. After the twins knocked out the two of them, Jonathan, Ian, and Cyclone, continued to head toward the mountain base. Only a few crates, a group of soldiers around a campfire, and three mercenaries practicing their swordplay on dummies stood between Jonathan and the war machines.
"Put out the campfire," Jonathan ordered Ian. Ian rose to his feet and closed his eyes. A couple of runes glowed in his staff before a gentle breeze was sent to the campfire from the staff. When the breeze of wind blew past the camp, the wind snuffed out the flame. As a result, the mercenaries lost the light, and darkness enveloped them.
"Suck it, wind,"
"Damn it,"
"Hey, light the fire, morons. I can't see shit here," The mercenary who fought a wooden dummy shouted at his comrades around the fire.
"Who made you the boss?" a mercenary near the campfire shouted with an annoyed tone Despite his tone, he walked toward the campfire to light the fire again.
"Now," Jonathan ordered as the team sped up their pace. Jonathan signaled the twins to take over the hwacha on the right while he decided to take the one on the left. Ian stayed behind to aid them with his spells from behind. Cyclone followed Jonathan behind. Cyclone counted four soldiers around the campfire. One went to light the fire again while the three sat on wooden logs facing the campfire. The mercenaries practicing on the dummies were approximately four meters away from the campfire.
Jonathan took the mace from his back and clenched its handle tighter. He slowly moved toward the mercenaries. Cyclone looked at Jonathan for his next order. Looking at the mercenaries, Jonathan signaled her to take out one. Cyclops nodded as she grabbed the mercenary from behind. She quickly covered his mouth with one hand and squeezed his throat with another. Meanwhile, Jonathan knocked one mercenary with the mace. At that same time, Ian cast a spell that created a bubble around Jonathan, preventing any noise from reaching the others. The mercenary next to the one Jonathan knocked out was startled. But Jonathan knocked him out with a single punch before he could react.
The one who tried to light the fire suddenly turned around only to recover a mace to his face. The force of Jonathan's throw knocked out the mercenary cold. Unfortunately, he hit the ground, making a thud sound. The three mercenaries practicing were alerted by the noise. Ian hit the ground with his staff without wasting a second as the golden mace flew straight back to Jonathan's hands. Ian also quickly cast the noise cancelation spell around the campsite, covering the three mercenaries.
"INTRUDERS!" The mercenaries shouted, but no one heard them because of the spell. With a short flap of his golden wings, Jonathan closed the gap between them. The mercenaries were startled by Jonathan's appearance. All the golden armor and the helmet freaked them out as they had never seen heroes or strangely dressed people like Jonathan before in their lives.
Still, they managed to swing their fists. Unfortunately for the mercenaries, Jonathan was well versed in hand-to-hand combat Hence, he swayed his body to the side and swung his mace, knocking out one in a split second. Before the first one hit the ground, he swung the mace again at the second one. Meanwhile, Cyclopes leaped into the air. With her superpowers, she could leap higher than a typical human. She dived down from above, landing straight on top of the third mercenary.
On the other hand, Mini and Jumbo stealthily knocked out the three mercenaries guarding the hwacha. Since those three were drunk, Mini and Jumbo had it easy. After knocking out the mercenaries, the team quickly climbed onto the hwachas. Mini operated the one while Jonathan took control of the second hwacha.
"FIRE!" Jonathan's thunderous roar echoed through the mountain base as they fired the arrows at the other war machines.
Hundreds of arrows shot out from the hwachas at the trebuchets and cannons. The mercenaries were completely caught off guard. Cyclone ascended to the sky, waving her hand. On the ground, several mini tornadoes appeared out of nowhere. These tornados rooted the mercenaries from the ground and threw them away from the near vicinity of the war machines.
It was hers and Ian's job to save the mercenaries from getting blown by the explosion.