The preparations did not take long. As the caravan was getting ready for one last push, the three Masters briefly discussed the plan of the battle.
There was not a lot they had to do. If things went well, most of the Nightmare Creatures would be drawn away by the city defenders, and the mountain road would be cleared by the Irregulars. However, it was always a good idea to prepare a few contingencies, just in case.
At some point, Roan gave Sunny a studying look and said:
"...You look different, Sunless."
Sunny tilted his head a little, confused.
"Why wouldn't I? The last time we saw each other, I was still an Awakened. Oh… or do you mean my skin?"
Roan shook his head with a smile.
"No, I don't mean your appearance. You just seem... older."
Sunny blinked a couple of times.
"I am older, though? By about two years?"
The handsome Master chuckled.
"That you are. Anyway, I think we are as ready as we can be. Should I send the signal?"
Sunny nodded, prompting Roan to summon a Memory that resembled a waxed clay tablet. He simply drew a jagged line on it, then waved at them and walked over to his griffin.
Not long after that, the sortie that was supposed to lead most of the Nightmare Creatures away from the valley commenced. It started with a heavy missile barrage, which was then followed by a full company of MWPs appearing on the far side, accompanied by many cohorts of Awakened.
Sunny and Naeve silently watched as the sea of abominations rushed forward, then glanced at each other and dashed toward their vehicles. Abomination and Blackie rose from the ground and shook their gaunt bodies, preparing for a battle.
They did not have to wait long.
As soon as the horde of Nightmare Creatures shifted to the far side of the valley and spilled out of it, pursuing the retreating diversion force, the Rhino growled and lunged forward. The battered APC was functioning perfectly, as if it had gathered all its remaining strength for one last glorious charge.
The long column of vehicles followed the mighty machine.
The caravan rolled down into the valley. Before any of the remaining Nightmare Creatures could react, an onslaught of bullets, arrows, and magical projectiles fell upon them, tearing the monsters apart.
Further away, the tail of the deceived horde sensed that something was wrong. Scores of abominations turned around and saw the descending column of vehicles. Their howls and shrieks informed the rest of the creatures, and a mass of them staggered, struggling to change targets.
Before the tail of the horde could reorient itself, however, a rain of strange metal rods fell from the sky, piercing the ground in front of them in a loose line. Then, blinding arcs of electricity suddenly shot between the rods, creating a wall of lightning.
The first few Nightmare Creatures that tried to pass through the barrier were instantly turned to ash. Roan was holding them back, for now, but his reserves of essence were probably not going to last long.
Plus, the more powerful abominations could weather the damage and slip through the lightning wall. Others could simply leap over it… one was already trying, for that matter.
Before it could land, though, a javelin fell from the sky, piercing the creature through.
The Rhino was already heading for the distant entrance to the mountain road.
The caravan's Echoes were moving ahead of the vehicles, tearing apart those abominations that had somehow survived the ranged attacks. Even Crow was helping, diving down to rip into the weaker enemies with its beak and talons.
Sunny was sending one arrow flying after another. Each pierced an especially vulnerable spot on the bodies of the Nightmare Creatures, killing them instantly. His accuracy was scarily perfect… months of fighting in Antarctica had really honed his once rudimentary archery skill.
'Kai would have been proud…'
Shifting his aim a little, Sunny sighed. What was his friend doing right now? Probably staring at the anchored battleships and waiting for his turn to board them.
Chasing away all distractions, Sunny concentrated on the task at hand.
…By the time Roan's lightning barrier failed, the caravan was already climbing the steep slope, well on its way to leave the valley. Naeve had arranged for an improvised minefield to be set up in the way of any potential pursuers, so their retreat had a good chance of happening without a hitch.
And indeed, to everyone's surprise, nothing went wrong.
Higher in the mountains, Sunny was standing on the roof of the Rhino and staring at the familiar Gate up ahead. That was the place where he had slain the Gate Guardian, Defiled Witness, a few months ago. Very little had changed in this place.
The mountain road was suspiciously empty of enemies, and very soon, he realized why. A man in heavy plate armor suddenly appeared from behind a large boulder and effortlessly jumped to the roof of the Rhino, landing just a few steps away from Sunny.
His face was hidden behind the visor of a closed helmet, but Sunny recognized Ascended Dale — Winter's former partner and one of the captains of the Irregulars — by his steady bearing and equipment.
Master Knight glanced at him and nodded curtly.
Sunny grinned.
"Hey, Dale. You really are a sight for sore eyes. Say, have you always been so mesmerizing?"
The ironclad warrior stared at him for a moment, then shook his head. A calm voice resounded from behind the helmet:
"...You're not too bad yourself, Sunny."
With that, he dismissed his shield and summoned a powerful longbow instead.
"Now, would you please concentrate? We did the best we could, but it will still be a bumpy ride."
…And it was, indeed.
But in the end, the caravan still made it safely to the gates of Falcon Scott.
As the Rhino drove past the mighty fortifications of the siege capital and approached a colossal, seemingly impregnable alloy wall, Sunny couldn't help but stare at it in wonder.
Back when they had left, the city possessed robust defenses… but not nearly as fearsome.
The alloy wall was at least seventy meters tall, surrounding the whole siege capital. Its many bastions housed devastating railguns, which seemed like they had been scavenged from decommissioned battleships. Thousands of turrets were placed along the wall's length, some aiming at the ground, some staring into the dark sky. Sunny could see lumbering MWPs patrolling the battlements.
The killing field around the city was littered with countless corpses, most of the abominations utterly torn apart. Teams of engineers moved among them, gathering soul shards and valuable materials.
The whole might of the First Army was gathered here, and the city itself had been converted into a fortress on such a scale that Sunny struggled to imagine the amount of effort, resources, and ingenuity that had gone into building these awe-inspiring fortifications.
Falcon Scott looked… like it was too large to fail.
Sunny's whole attention was concentrated on the massive gates of the siege capital, though, which the caravan was currently swiftly approaching.
As soon as the shadows of the city wall fell on him, he let out a quiet sigh and suddenly staggered, as if robbed of all strength.
An intense, overwhelming sense of relief flooded Sunny's entire body. He slowly lowered himself to the roof of the APC.
Hazy images of what had happened in the last few months flashed in his mind. The empty streets of LO49, the eerie darkness of the underground tunnel, the terrifying silhouette of Goliath rising from beneath the ocean waves… and so, so much more.
All of that was behind him now.
'We… made it?'
The gates of Falcon Scott started to open, as if to answer his question.
Indeed, Sunny was right.
He had finally managed to bring his people to safety.
***
All across the Antarctic Center, humans were retreating north, to the last bastion of their kind in this forsaken place.
…However, humans were not the only ones moving in its direction.
There was a vast, hungry cloud slowly moving between tall peaks.
Somewhere on the coast, a swarm of Nightmare Creatures was behaving strangely. Slowly and silently, the abominations were marching toward the murmuring waves. One after another, they walked into the dark water, only to disappear under its surface without a trace. A day later, the same eerie scene could be seen further north.
Far away, deep in the mountains, a river of darkness was flowing through a deep gorge. If anyone could take a closer look at it, they would see that the darkness was actually composed of numerous small, black beetles. Devouring everything on their path, the beetles were heading north, as well.
In some other place, a walking mountain seemed to be moving in the same direction. The stone giant was making its way across the ravaged landscape, the world shaking with his every step. His single eye stared blindly into the distance, as if capable of piercing thousands of kilometers to gaze at something hidden.
When the moon appeared in the night sky, the giant's eye closed.
There was also a blizzard raging somewhere far away. In its center, surrounded by a circle of absolute peace, a grotesque creature was hovering above the snow. Soon, the winds picked up, blowing furiously in a single direction…
North, north, north.
…And on a slope of a jagged mountain, a powerful abomination was preparing to feast on the remains of an adversary it had killed. Before it could, however, the shadows around it suddenly came to life, and a dark silhouette emerged from them.
The creature was tall and human-like, with jet-black bone plates covering its lithe and powerful body. Before the abomination could react, something moved, and a fountain of blood painted the snow red, soon followed by pieces of torn flesh and viscera.
The dark creature raised the abomination's severed head with its hand, which was missing two fingers, and stared at it for a few moments. Soon, disturbing crunching sounds could be heard, drowned by the howling of the wind.
When the creature was done with its morbid meal, it lingered for a few moments, and then looked north, its eyes burning with cold hatred.
Below it, in the distance, a large city sprawled near the ocean.
...Falcon Scott.