Chapter 335: Fire Across the Sky

Edran and his two guests were far from the only people watching Divine Province.

The Homeworld’s newcomer Lords had turned their attention to Riftward once again. Influential Lords from the Varronian Dominion, the Peacock Dynasty, and the Norman Dynasty were following events from the upper Realms as well.

Several more days passed.

Across central Riftward, hundreds of thousands of Domains formed dozens of defensive lines around an area thousands of kilometers wide. The dozen or so remaining leaders of Divine Province had gathered behind those lines, joined by several Fenwick leaders.

Mira turned to Seren.

"On Cassian’s behalf, thank you for standing with us."

Seren had stayed on the Homeworld for this contest. She had brought five thousand Fenwick Lords to support Divine Province. Seven hundred were newcomers with Eclipse Chapterhouses; all the others were veterans who had descended from older sectors not long ago.

"You don’t need to thank us," Seren said firmly. "Look at everything Cassian has done for our family. If helping Divine Province costs us Southreach, we’ll still stand with you."

She looked over the defenses, then asked the question that had been troubling her.

"Why aren’t we holding the Region’s entrances? We’re giving the enemy thousands of kilometers of room to maneuver."

Lyra smiled.

"How are we supposed to trap them inside if we won’t let them in?"

Seren’s eyes brightened. Divine Province had another hidden weapon, then?

A civil officer hurried into the room before she could ask.

"The enemy has landed in Divine Province. At its present speed, the army should reach Riftward in another day."

"Understood."

Mira considered the report.

"More than ten thousand Epic warships, over a dozen Legendary ships, and thousands of Legendary naval troops. They learned from their last defeat at sea."

Even the Hurricanes and Ghost fleet together would have needed to avoid a direct clash with that force.

Seren’s expression suddenly sharpened.

"Riftward’s space has been sealed. They moved quickly."

"Hardly surprising. Who knows how many Shades they’ve slipped into Divine Province?" Mira took out a scroll and turned it between her fingers. "I’ll add something of my own when the time comes."

A Silence Scroll.

——

The following day, reports arrived one after another.

"Enemy forces at the western entrance!"

"The Eight Banner Army. Damn the Jade Court—they’ve joined the invasion too!"

"Phase activity at the eastern entrance. Possibly Leander Veylan’s Faerie Dragons."

"Flying warships entering from the south. They’re fast."

The staff officers sent their recommendation.

"Strike while they’re crossing. We should hit them before they can establish a position."

Mira refused.

"Hold your positions. Let them form up."

Apart from the few who knew the plan, the defenders could scarcely contain their anxiety. Leaving the entrances open was bad enough. Now they were being told to wait while the enemy assembled its armies.

Wait for what?

Before leaving, Cassian had repeatedly made it clear that Mira held command. Without his authority behind her, she would have struggled to keep so many Lords in place.

Some had begun to guess there was more to the plan. Beneath their anxiety, a little expectation grew.

The coalition’s army was vast, and the entrances were only so wide. Half a day passed before the entire force had entered Riftward. There were hundreds of millions of troops.

Mira judged the moment had come.

[Mira Calder: Riftward is about to be silenced. All Divine Province Lords, recall your reconnaissance units behind our defensive lines immediately.]

She tore the Epic Silence Scroll apart, then turned to Lyra.

"Your turn."

Once this battle began, the Five Elements Temple would be impossible to hide. That was not what the scroll was for. She wanted the coalition’s four advancing forces cut off from one another.

The effect elsewhere was immediate.

"What happened to the feed?"

At Highcrest, three great Lords stared at a dead transmission. Their anger found an echo among the newcomer Lords whose views of the battle had vanished just as abruptly.

——

Lyra’s eyes shone as she activated the Temple’s secondary administrator authority—the authority Cassian had granted her before leaving.

A map of Riftward opened before her. The Temple’s display marked living creatures as points of light, their brightness indicating their strength. Four enormous concentrations blazed to the east, west, north, and south.

"Let’s start with a few Cinderfalls."

More than a hundred million Aether was consumed.

Thousands of kilometers away, the Five Elements Temple shone. Energy poured toward the orb at its summit, gathering into a vast cloud of fire.

A Lord on the defensive line pointed upward.

"Look at the sky!"

Heads turned. A broad sheet of fire swept overhead and vanished toward the horizon, leaving a burning trail behind it.

"The eastern entrance!"

"That’s where the coalition is gathering."

"I’ve seen Legendary fire spells. That feels more than ten times stronger!"

"How can a spell reach so far?"

Before their discussion had gone any further, another wave crossed the sky.

"Again? Since when can someone cast Legendary magic that quickly?"

Seven or eight great sheets of fire passed overhead in rapid succession. Their red light filled Seren’s eyes.

"A range of thousands of kilometers. Power like that..."

She drew a sharp breath.

"A Mythic defensive Building. A World Wonder!"

Lyra was not finished.

"Cinderfall will do for the army, but the strongest ones might survive it. There are some bright points over there..."

She selected another spell.

"Wardsteel Array. Let’s try a few of those too."

Sharp Metal energy began gathering within the Temple’s orb.

——

At Riftward’s eastern entrance, ranks of troops stretched beyond sight.

Knights, shield warriors, and Nanowarriors advanced at the front. Mages, Starseers, and archers followed behind them, while Ninjas and Rangers moved along the flanks. Even the flying troops maintained their formations, shifting smoothly between straight lines and broad wedges.

Everything moved in order.

Nearly one troop in ten was Rare or stronger. With the newcomer Human Champions away, command of this enormous army had fallen to War Marshals from the older sectors.

Four were present in the eastern force: one from Western Beacon, two from the Black Banner, and one from the Jade Court.

Marius watched the formations with admiration.

"Absolute Discipline deserves its reputation, General Ashcombe. There’s a reason you’re among Sector 632’s top hundred Tactical Lords. With you commanding, we might have avoided those earlier defeats."

General Percival Ashcombe smiled.

"The Crown has an old saying. A Legion can only exert its full strength through strict discipline."

His gaze passed over the advancing ranks.

"Of course, Divine Province has been most accommodating. Letting us enter unopposed saved us a bloody struggle."

Beside him stood a Jade Court Lord with a long braid trailing down his back.

"Your learning is impressive, General. You understand Crown culture better than some of us who were born to it."

"You flatter me, General Bellgrave." Percival’s smile remained, but his next words were more pointed. "This descent cost us dearly. I trust the Jade Court remembers its promises."

Cormac Bellgrave answered at once.

"You and General Sorel have nothing to worry about. Once Divine Province falls, we will coordinate our forces with yours and remove Helena Grey."

"Good," Marius said. "That woman has interfered with cooperation between our nations often enough. She even wounded General Hale. It’s time Marshal Grey paid for it."

They spoke as though Divine Province had already fallen.

Suddenly, a piercing alarm shrieked through the army.