The sound of metal footsteps woke the scrambling Shieldbearers.
The Ancient One coughed. He wasn’t in his best condition. When the shield cracked and the debris came crashing down, his men risked their lives to keep him safe. Thanks to them, he lived, but even so, a piece of stone hit him in the chest. Even now, he could still feel the blunt pain inside his dying body.
But he was luckier than most of his comrades.
When the battle started, there were 20,000 Shieldbearers in the city. Three fourth of them were in the open. Looking around, the most optimistic guess on the number of survivors was in the two thousands. Half of them were in combat condition. Thousands more were in the buildings and dorms, but judging from the fact that most of those buildings were no more than elevated fields of rubbles, the Ancient One decided it was better to just forget about them.
All around them, Warden units ten times their number converged. Their gun barrels started heating up. Their targeting algorithm went online. Slight adjustments were made so they could create a net of fire with the most coverage. All of them were in their best conditions.
The Ancient One slowly drew his blade.
“For our world!”
Ever since Jean unleashed her forces on Lance City, the Forge of the City has been working with maximum efficiency. Hundreds of Runecrafters worked tirelessly to engrave runes onto wooden arrows before sending them to the front. As the sound of gunfires and screams intensified outside, the engineers of the Shieldbearers did the best thing possible to help their people.
Deep down inside, these Rune-Crafters knew very well that their time was limited. Reports have came in about countless enemy targets whose sizes were beyond reason. Eventually, the arrow storage would run out. If they were the commander of the invading forces, they would cut off the arrow supply of the Runecrafters. Without suppressing fire, the invading forces could dominate the field with their firepower.
Much to their surprise, when the mothership fell down and broke the shield, the Forge was one of the few places that wasn’t completely wiped out. These Rune-Crafters had no idea Jean wanted their technology. All they did was praise their luck, and partially fate, and keep working.
Until they were visited by a group of unexpected guest.
Even at this time, the Forge held a squad of fifty Shieldbearer warriors. Most of them were on transport duty since they weren’t archers and couldn’t exactly contribute to the firefight outside.
They were the first ones to die.
One of the Shieldbearers picked up a stack of arrows before feeling something through his chest. He glanced down and found himself staring at a gaping hole right through his heart.
He saw neither a weapon nor an attacker as he collapsed.
Twenty other Shieldbearers suffered the same fate. Blades and shots came out of nowhere and cut through the unsuspecting local warriors with hardly any burden. Runes weren’t activated. Swords weren’t drawn. Elite Shieldbearer warriors who were trained to restore the glory of the past were slaughtered like sheep before Jean’s most deadly assassins.
Before she was beamed onto her flagship, Jean took out all her G-1 units and sent them on a separate mission: secure the Runecrafters. It has been a chaotic time, but Jean hasn’t forgotten about the objective engraved deep into her bones: gain power. Her Wardens and Purifiers have lost its overwhelming force in this new world, and the Rune technology in this world could certainly change that.
All 30 of the G-1s were runed, making them even more deadly than before. If Jean had to guess, she would say any one of them had a legitimate shot at assassinating the Queen of Blades. Of course, the chance of success was quite low, but it was still a possibility.
The Shieldbearer guards didn't stand a chance.
“Incoming!”
A captain was lucky enough to make a stand. As his body was shielded by a layer of purple, he closed his eyes and tried to sense where the attackers were. Runes on his body enhanced his senses as well. Suddenly, he felt a tiny turbulence from behind. He immediately turned around and focused all his energy onto his frontal armor and blade. He has seen what these assassins could do to Shieldbearer armors, and he knew he needed all the defenses he could get.
That was a good plan...until that captain got shot in the back by a red blast. As he was distracted by one G-1, another pulled out its rifle, charged it with red energy that originated from the red crystals, and pulled the trigger.
The squad of Shieldbearers were quickly slaughtered. Immediately, half of the G-1s, still cloaked, moved to the entrances. These Wardens have received information that the mothership has demolished most of the Shieldbearers outside, but they didn't take any chances. They were built not to.
The rest turned to the Runecrafters, who were looking around in shock. Just like engineers in the terran army and phase smiths in the protoss faction weren’t known for their abilities to fight, Runecrafters weren’t good combatants either. They didn't have the senses to know what took out their armed comrades.
One of the G-1s sent a message to Jean. Moments later, a power field was projected into the Forge. Hundreds of droids appeared, but these weren’t combatants, and they weren’t here to kill. Instead, they leaped onto the confused Runecrafters and knocked them out with electric charges. Some took longer while others went down without a fight, but in the end, with the slight help from some G-1s, all the Runecrafters were down for.
In the meantime, dozens of Shieldbearers have wandered into the Forge. None of them lived to see what was going on.
The Purifiers attached some devices onto the Runecrafters before both them and the Runecrafters disappeared in beams of lights.
The 30 G-1s remained still for just moments as they received a follow-up order. Quietly, they sneaked out of the Forge and into the battlefield between the Wardens and the last remaining forces of the Shieldbearers.
The Ancient One didn't know how long he has been fighting. A pool of metal wreckage has formed beneath his feet, but it was useless. In the age where he was from, slaughtering dozens of enemies meant the rest would think twice before attacking. Right now, slaughtering dozens of enemies meant the rest needed to elevate their guns slightly. Apart from that, there was no difference.
The Shieldbearers alongside him dropped like flies. After all the bombardment and narrowly surviving, most of the Shieldbearers’ energies were exhausted. Their shields and armors quickly gave out. Many managed to drag a couple of enemies to hell with them, but something told the Ancient One the enemy commander didn't value her soldiers as much as he did.
Every second, countless rounds landed on him. His armor was in pieces, but it was still sticking tightly to his skin. Right now, all he could do was tank the hits with the rune energy from his own body.
His unit count went from 2000 to 1300 to 900 to 700 to 500.
Is this the day the Shieldbearers fall? Is this the day the last legacy of the once glorious past disappear?
Suddenly, all the Wardens took several steps back, disengaging from battle. Their guns stopped firing. The Shieldbearers gradually realized it as well. After a few men, covered in rage, tried to push forward and were gunned down, the rest decided maybe living for a few extra seconds wasn’t a bad idea.
They decided to hear what the enemies wanted to say.
A beam of light came down from the sky. With it, came Jean Turner.
Neither Jean nor the Ancient One has seen each other in real life. After Jean was captured and taken into Lance City, she was brought to the dungeon immediately. Adam’s betrayal happened before the Ancient One could learn more about Jean.
Yet immediately, they knew who each other was. Jean learned it from her observers. As for Ancient One, well…
“Outsider.” The Ancient One stated, jamming his sword into the ground to stable himself. “I can smell your stench miles away.”
Jean might be a young woman, but to the Ancient One, she was an outsider sent to exterminate them, and that was all he needed to know.
Jean grinned, not affected by the insult. Given the situation, the Ancient One’s words only made him look like a beaten dog who couldn’t accept its defeat. However, she did have a few questions.
“How did you know when we entered this world?”
She couldn’t forget what she discovered while searching through Benedictine’s memories. The Shieldbearers knew when the Voyagers entered, and they made defensive measures. She wanted to know how that happened.
“What makes you think I will talk?”
Jean smirked and looked around. Suddenly, behind her, thousands of Wardens stepped on the ground.
Bang!
It was as if the ground itself shook, and a beast was emerging.
The Ancient One wasn’t intimidated. Instead, he smiled. He smiled so widely that it turned to a laugh. Under his helmet, his head shook as he laughed out loud.
“You think I’m scared, girl?” He tilted his head. “I have lived for two hundred years! I have seen empires rise and dynasties fall! Do you think I’m afraid to die?” Suddenly, he grabbed onto his helmet and removed it.
“Now what do you think?”
A wave of gulps came, but not from Jean. It was from the Shieldbearers...for an obvious reason.
The helmet came off...so did the head.
But the Ancient One was still standing. A wave of purple energy connected his severed head with the rest of his body.
Jean rose her eyebrows as the Ancient One explained.
“My body...it was dead long ago. I tried to keep it together, but eventually, no medicine or rune could heal me. I could feel it decaying every single moment. Can you imagine that?”
Jean was quiet.
“It took me years of going through past record to find something. A forbidden research. After a few very painful trials, I was able to merge myself with my armor. As long as the armor stands, so do I. I survived in this wretched form!” He smirked. “Those who have learned my story have envied my eternal life! Even your comrade was interested! But they didn't know the price to pay! I couldn’t eat! I couldn’t sleep! I couldn’t do anything a human being can do! For every second of every minute of every day of my endless life, I could feel my flesh and my bones slowly falling apart! I have became no more than a weapon! Can you imagine that?”
Jean silently watched the Ancient One’s outburst.
“So, tell me, outsider, do you think you can frighten me or torture me into giving you what you want?”
The field was dead silent. Some Shieldbearers gripped tightly onto their weapons, fully expecting Jean to feel insulted by the Ancient One’s response and have them blasted to pieces. But they were wrong.
Jean wasn’t insulted.
She was happy.
A wild smile climbed onto her face as she looked into the Ancient One’s crazed eyes. For this moment, she knew what her enemy’s weakness was.
“Then why are you still alive? Why haven’t you chosen to end your misery already?”
The Ancient One has been in this condition for at least decades. In other words, he has been under constant torture for what might be the full lifetime of a person. Personally, Jean knew she could take it as long as she physically could, but most people...well, let’s say they could call themselves mentally formidable if they lasted a week.
It took a special source of power to make someone go through this for decades willingly.
And she knew exactly what it was.
“You feel a sense of duty toward your people.” Jean tilted her head. It was her standard thinking stance. “You lived while all your fellow people perished. In fact, how did that happen? The Protectors aren’t known for letting those who stand against them live.”
The Ancient One didn't answer, but Jean keenly noticed his body shaking slightly.
“Of course. Anger could be a generator of duty. You feel angry toward the Protectors, so you wish to destroy them, and this kept you alive. But...but emotions like anger don’t last long. Within hundreds of years, you anger would’ve had enough time to wither down and die. But what else could it be…” Her voice trailed off. She knew the answer to her own question, but she wanted to let the suspense right.
“It’s guilt, isn’t it? Guilt is different from anger. While anger perishes with time, guilt festers.” After a few seconds, she suddenly smiled. “You survived the Protector because you didn't fight him at all. What did you do? Desert your own people?” She took a step forward. “You abandoned your own brothers and sisters, and this guilt has been tormenting you since. You feel like doing this, building up an army to defend against future outsider invasions, will be a path of redemption? A way to leviate your sin?”
The Ancient One quietly rested his head onto, well, his neck.
“It doesn’t matter.” Honestly, he didn't understand why this outsider girl was bothering with all this talk. She had the absolute advantage. Why doesn’t she just gun them down like she did with tens of thousands of Shieldbearers? Unless...
“Oh it most definitely does.” Jean smiled wickedly. “Your source of power, what drives you, is the guilt toward your people. You want to preserve their legacy.” She suddenly turned to the rest of the Shieldbearers. “Is that how you’re doing it? By sending the last of their descendants to death?”
There were still hundreds of Shieldbearers. Anyone who was still alive now were so because of their skills. This tiny fraction of Shieldbearers represented the best of the best. Try as they might, the Wardens couldn’t take them down easily even with superior firepower.
At the same time, with the Lance City in ruins, they were the last legacy of the once glorious past. If they die...that’s it.
“We will gladly die to expel you intruders!” One of the Shieldbearers cried out in fury. The notion of being used as leverage made him infuriated.
Jean ignored him. Her eyes were trained on the Ancient One. Suddenly, she landed the killing blow.
“Of course, we all know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking if you and your people can hold this ground long enough, I will send more troops here. And then, you can detonate the explosives planted fifty meters under where we are standing right now and wipe every single one of us out. That will be your last contribution to this world.”
The Ancient One’s eyes, or whatever was left of them, went wide. If anyone saw them beneath his helmet, they would be worried about them falling out of his eye sockets.
How did she know? How did the girl know?
Since the very first moment, Jean hasn’t underestimated the Shieldbearers. She physically was incapable of underestimating anyone. That was why she had her observers do a full examination on Lance City. They discovered what was hidden deep below the city’s earth: a gleaming purple crystal with enough energy to power a mothership.
In other words, it could rip through one.
Jean herself was the master of self-destruction and kamikaze warfare. It was her trademark move in the Starcraft world. It wasn’t hard for her to guess the intention of this crystal. Unfortunately for her, the information in Lance City was just too precious. The advanced rune technologies could potentially give her a way to do a full upgrading of her arsenal. It was the very definition of power. The Runecrafters have been abducted, but there were even more rune research inside the city. She couldn’t afford to let all of those burn when she had a chance to save them.
This was why she was standing here, wasting her words with a living dead.
“Set off the bomb, and I admit, my forces will take severe losses.” Jean grinned. “Congrats. You get the glorious death you desire, but then what?”
She tapped on her watch. As a few Shieldbearers activated their runes cautiously, a hologram projector appeared in the air. Jean quickly pulled up a map.
“This is a map of your world. The planet we are standing on is the only planet in this world with inhabitants. The laws of physics must be different in this world. In other words, this is the only point of operation. On this planet, the two Empires cover 70% of the ground and, well, 100% of the population.”
“That is a lie.” The Ancient One suddenly snapped. “I have travelled to outside the two empires! I have encountered people who lived in the mountains, nomads who live on the great plain…”
“I never said there weren’t any population outside the two empires. I’m just saying they no longer exist.” She glanced at the Ancient One. “My people are very efficient at what they do.”
The Ancient One held his fist tight. How could he be so naive? If two empires with giant armies couldn’t defend against the Voyagers, what could unorganized, unsuspecting villages or hordes do?
“I’m going to be perfectly honest. I have already conquered the Empire of the Moon. As we speak, my comrades are working to mobilize its forces. Soon, we will march them against the last stronghold of your world: the Empire of the Sun.”
“It will be a spectacular sight. The armies of your world clashing with other armies of your world while we Voyagers sit on the sideline. There will be a lot of casualties, but in the end, we will win.”
“You overestimate the Empire of the Sun! Adam…”
“How do you think I broke out?”
The Ancient One’s eyes couldn’t get any bigger. The last thing he heard, Adam went to check on Jean. Now Jean’s loose and Adam was nowhere to be seen…
“You...how dare you...he’s a mole!”
“Well, that is not wrong.” Jean shrugged. “Either way, my point stands. Your world is already lost. Even if you, somehow, kill me, the fact remains. Now, the only question is, do you want your people to be lost with it?”
“We will die before we surrender!” The same hot-headed Shieldbearer screamed. Once again, Jean ignored him. She was focused on the Ancient One. She was breaking through.
“By all means, die. But if you die, that will be the end to your legacy. No one will ever know you existed. No one except for a few old scholars will ever remember that, hundreds of years ago, an age of prosperity flourished on this planet. Is that how you want to make up to your people? By watching it burn down so you can die a hero?”
The hot-headed Shieldbearer turned to the Ancient One, expecting him to come up with a strong rebuttal. When he saw not a single sign of resistance, his heart sank.
When the Ancient One spoke again, it was the opposite of a rebuttal.
“What is keeping you from slaughtering us all after we lay down our weapons?”
“Sir!”
“We can’t surrender!”
“We will never surrender to these outsiders!”
A warm smile climbed onto Jean’s face.
“In the name of the Protectors, I, Jean Turner, swear that I will never lay a hand on any Shieldbearer that lay down their arms.”
The Ancient One sighed. He looked up into the air, but the blue sky that he has been looking at for centuries was nowhere to be seen. Instead, metal cities extending into the horizon covered his sight.
His blade slipped out of his hand and cut into the ground.
