The assault in the south was actually making some headway initially. Led by the apostles, the followers of the pantheon swarmed over the empty trenches, ignoring the casualties from the raking beams of the Obelisks of Light.

Then the metal legion of the Nexus came, and the price for the invasion was extracted in full. Operating solely on extermination protocols, Eversors, Centurions and Strigoi scythed through the swell of bodies and quickly reclaimed lost ground. With the Centurions acting as an anchor and long range support, the Eversors and Strigoi leapt into the fray to tear apart anything in their way. Bodies were torn apart or minced or crushed, and within seconds of the initial counterattack, the crusade forces had broken.

None of them made it back to their lines, and only the mutilated apostles were captured. The routed mob was chased back into the woods, and back to their camps, carelessly leading the robots to their bases. Very few managed to flee when the packs of Eversors and Strigoi descended from the heavens, and the Centurions blasted apart the most warded barricades.

Every base was rendered into charnel pits of torn bodies, enveloped in a haze of ash. Shrines were bathed in the gore of the faithful, and the ruthless Nexus guardians cared not that the enemy camps held non-combatants nor innocent family members. No corpse was intact, and the soil drank deep of the spilled blood of the many races who had heeded the commands of their gods.

By the time the non-metallic defenders of the Nexus redeployed, the eradication of the pantheon’s mortal army was complete. With the Sentinels returning to clean up, the human and demihuman citizens of the Nexus returned to their barracks.

Things died down to nearly peaceful levels again. The captured apostles were rendered mortal by Sev as expected, and joined the other prisoners in heavily guarded prison complexes. Eyebots kept an eye on enemy movements beyond the borders, spotting another forming mob several days away. After what they’ve dealt with already, few held any serious concerns about the incoming invasion anymore.

It would almost be a mistake, as the defenders actually had to abandon the first trench line for the first time.

“Holy shit, they’re actually all glowing?”

“Observe later, fall back to safety first.”

Delilah noted with growing horror how the new servants of the gods were all showing signs of potent blessing from their deities. It was an army of glowing figures, and enhanced enough that the white laser beams charred them to smoldering lumps instead of outright disintegrating them. These gifted mortals were also faster, though it mattered little when trying to dodge lances of light.

They still died in droves, but not at the insane rate as before. The usual weapons no longer tore through multiple bodies, barring the beams from the Obelisks of Light, and the devastating guns of the tanks.

As they withdrew in good order, the Nexus defenders would note how much more mindless these crusaders were. None of them faltered or stalled when their nearby comrades were killed, and they roared in blind defiance as they were cut down instead of dying with a pathetic whimper. They were still slaughtered eventually, it just took more time.

“Tougher bunch…glad the first group wasn’t like that.”

“Ehh. Sev would’ve just brought out the Warlords faster. We’re still safe, otherwise Sev wouldn’t be letting us stay to fight.”

The next wave stunned Delilah and the other auxiliaries into inaction. Twelve towering humanoids glowing with divine energy strode amongst the crusaders. They were all too beautiful, and each unique in appearance, yet Delilah and the other natives of Falmart recognized each figure, or could safely guess their identities.

One was definitely male, draped in a toga and wielding a shining blade in one hand, and a wrapped scroll in the other, similar to the more aggressive poses of the god Elange. His sister strode alongside him, looking just like the statues in Rondel with a staff and tome. Amongst a throng of frothing berserkers, an armored giant with a massive axe waded into the fray, the unmistakable form of Emroy.

The gods have finally appeared in the flesh, and their presence was utterly terrifying. If not for the many ludicrous sights witnessed from the Nexus already, Delilah and the others might have just broken down and wailed for forgiveness from the approaching pantheon. As it was, the Warrior Bunny was less concerned about her blasphemy and apostasy, and more worried about how impervious they were as enemies.

Lasers and heavy ordnance staggered the gods’ advance, but left no lasting mark on them. And to the native defenders’ horror, the bolts of divine magic or thrown weapons actually caved in or shattered the Obelisks of Light, allowing their mortal followers to surge up without their numbers being so heavily thinned out. The Nexus’ defenses were actually being overrun and silenced.

Edward’s orders came, and Delilah found it surprising that he didn’t sound as panicked as she was. “Full withdrawal people, fighting retreat to kill off the chaff. Sev’s on his way.”

Oh right. Sev was known to have killed gods before. But wouldn’t twelve at the same time be at least a matter of some concern? Delilah shook away her doubts and focused on the present. The Nexus has not failed to live up to expectations so far. If Sev says he’ll take care of it, Delilah will place her faith in her ruler to cast the gods down.

Robots came up to stall the enemy and distract the pantheon’s avatars from the retreating defenders. The Warrior Bunny caught glimpses of Eversors being flung aside in crumpled heaps, and Centurions being melted to slag by barrages of magic. What had once easily repelled the enemy back was now being cast aside like leaves in the wind.

They were making good distance in the orderly retreat before Sev finally appeared in a spectacular fashion. Massive beams of white laser engulfed some of the manifested gods, followed by a deafening barrage of lightning-wreathed plasma as the Kirov floated into view with its guns blazing.

Delilah craned her neck in time to see a small figure leap off the flying fortress to dive down towards the stunned avatars. Sev landed amongst them, and Delilah’s keen ears picked out his entry amongst the din of battle.

“Finally, I get to meet all of you face to face. I’m Sev, welcome to the Nexus, now take this last chance and fuck off.”

“You dare, whelp?!” the incarnation of Hardy boomed. “Perish for your arrogance!”

“Right, Sev’s here. Let’s keep a safe distance from the action and prepare to hike it if things come our way. We’re just dead weight right now, so don’t go making Sev’s job harder.” Edward’s voice broke Delilah from her eavesdropping and stirred her to flee into the safety of a nearby trench that wasn’t there before. A pack of Sentinels were still expanding on it, carving a path away from the gods and the man who might as well be one.

Safe beneath several feet of dirt, Delilah peeked over the trench as her ears picked up the voices amidst the chaotic fight taking place.

“You will suffer for an eternity!”

“Stay still so we can get this paltry act of defiance over with!”

The gods were roaring and cursing as they tried to pin down Sev’s smaller and far faster form. Magical blasts and bolts flared out, but the gods were in each others’ way to effectively shoot the Nexus’ ruler down. He weaved amongst them, keeping their enraged attention on him even as they had to pull their strikes before they struck another avatar and they repeatedly almost ran into one another.

For his part, Sev only carried a sword in one hand, though he wasn’t making any attempts to use it just yet. He was simply gaining the ire of the pantheon, for some reason preferring to stay on the defensive than trying to land opportunistic blows.

“How is he facing them?” a Volraden beside Delilah muttered in amazement. All of the native auxiliaries had their eyes glued on the impossible sight of a mortal facing down twelve manifested gods. Sev used the face of Lunaryur as a springboard to avoid Emroy’s axe, then ducked in a blur of motion to evade lightning called from the heavens. He slipped between giant legs and jumped over grasping hands in a dance that would have been comical if not for the lethal stakes here.

After minutes of making a fool of the pantheon, Delilah’s ears picked up Sev speaking again, and he did not sound out of breath or taxed in the slightest, only irritated. “You know, you fucking gods need to reorganize your coding. Even across worlds, you’re all a mess of unarranged lines. It’s a fucking bitch trying to dig through your stats, I swear.”

And then the gods, as one, halted, and nobody from the trenches missed the confusion in their postures and expressions. The divine incarnations seemed to glow more brightly as they looked down at themselves and exchanged bewildered glances.

“What…what did you d-”

Sev leapt up and slashed Hardy across the neck, and the startled head fell away to a gush of light. Light that swirled and looked like it was being sucked in by the blade. As she watched on, entranced in disbelief, Delilah felt something in her chest swell and then deflate, leaving a lingering, indescribable emotion. Her ears twitched as she absently heard Sev’s voice again.

“It’d be way fucking easier to do this with a gun, but no…stupid macro limitations…can’t even shoot swords with it…”

Then he went on the offense, and the gods were utterly unable to avoid his strikes. Emroy parried a thrust, but screamed out in pain as he brought his hand hastily up to block the follow up slash, losing fingers as a consequence. Sev cut apart the avatar’s exposed arm before landing a decapitating blow. Divine light leaked out of the severed body parts, as it did with Hardy’s incarnation, and flowed into the blade.

Another surge of alien emotion rocked Delilah, and a glance to her side showed that she wasn’t the only one. The other natives were swaying and blinking in confusion. All of them also had tears trailing down their cheeks. A quick touch of her fingers confirmed that she was no different.

The resolve of the ten remaining gods actually faltered as they took cautious steps away, and tried to fend off Sev’s darting strikes. They failed miserably. Palapon lost his head, then Ral, and then Deldort…

Sev was severing the gods’ heads one by one, and as they sought to avoid him, they were slowly pushed back to the border. Each time a god fell, Delilah and the auxiliaries felt another gasp of emotion.

Delilah was sure that the sight of a god’s fearful face would be forever etched in her mind. Seeing the pantheon run like broken, terror-stricken mortals would be another memory she’ll never be forgetting.

“Why can’t I leave? Why can’t- aaghhkkk!”

“Parlay! I beg of you, parlay!”

One by one, Sev brought down the gods of this world, until finally, with Mirrita’s head flying from her neck, they were all nothing but mutilated corpses leaking light that was being drawn into Sev’s sword.

She was weeping now, she realized. Delilah was quietly sobbing as the alien feeling in her chest overtook her. She fell on her knees, joining the choir of sobs. What was happening?

One of the Sardaukar troopers voices rang in the comms, soothing and reassuring. “It’s okay, you guys. Let it all out… Don’t hold back, we’re here. You’re safe.”

Delilah broke into an ugly wail for reasons still unknown to her, crying her lungs raw as the foreign emotion swallowed her up and drew out an agony she never knew existed. The chorus of confused despair went on until the emotions melted away and was replaced by a cold void in everyone’s chest.

By then, Sev was among them, looking on with sad guilt. “Psychic feedback,” he explained, as if it made sense to Delilah. “The connection was cut, so your…energy evaporated since it had nowhere to go, nothing to feed.”

No, replaying his words again in her head did not help make any sense to Delilah.

Sev gave a shrug and offered a hand to a nearby harpy. “Simply put, your gods have been…removed from their existence, and you’re feeling the thankfully non-lethal effects of it.”

Murmurs rose in the trenches. Sev had really done it then, he’d killed the gods.

Delilah stared, with equal parts amazement and fear, at the glowing blade now sheathed by his side, and then back to her ruler. Edward was right, Sev was most definitely not a god, it would be insulting to him after he had just taken down twelve of them.

She then wondered what trials she would need to face in order to earn the honors of bearing his beyond-divine seed.

For the sake of her race, of course.