In a large tract of open land which was silent save for the calls of carrion birds hoping for a feast, a majestic sight was visible which would take away the breath of any and all who had to fortune to witness it.
This area was actually at the intersection point between 4 Kingdoms: The Black Raven Kingdom, the Kingdom of Axelor, the Kingdom of Lanthanor and the Kingdom of the Elves.
This morning, as soon as the news had begun to spread regarding the army of Axelor marching out to war, many individuals who hoped to get rich had set off to the approximate point where the armies would meet.
They had various purposes. Some wanted to be witness to a war the likes of which might not occur in centuries. Others wanted to chronicle the war in a book and shoot to fame in the process. Still others wanted to do market research, as everyone knew that war was the most profitable business. If they could identify something or the other that might let them get a contract with the government of a Kingdom, they would be able to earn more than they could imagine in their wildest dreams.
Only, 2 people who had just appeared on an empty cliff 4 kilometers away from the site where the armies had congregated had completely different objectives than the typical ones that people usually thought about.
As soon as they appeared by stepping out of space, they began to sprinkle sharp metal shards all around them, which would pierce anyone's foot easily if they stepped on them without knowing that they were there.
Only allowing themselves a small area to stand in, they completed this task and then began taking out various trinkets.
Most of them were nasty-designed as traps which would target one's eyes or other private eyes. They weren't lethal- no, they would make one wish that they had never been born, but they would never go so far as to let blood spill.
Anyone would find their actions strange, but after a few moments, their objective became clear.
Right when they were about to finish up, a loud 'OW' was heard from behind them, which made them turn around and grin as they saw a bulky man wearing grey robes clutch his foot as he tried to hastily conjure a spell to either rise into the air or teleport himself away.
Before he could do that, one of the trinkets that was floating in the air saw its target: its formation allowed it to receive a location from its owner, before it zoomed forward and let out a light electric shock.
The area that they chose was, of course, the crotch of that man.
As he was distracted by the pain caused by stepping out of space and finding his foot impaled by at least 10 metal pricks, he had no option but to trust that his barrier would save him, but one of the two men shot an attack right before the trinket, that was shaped like a glove with its fist clenched, impacted the man.
This made the barrier break, and before another one appeared, the trinket expertly made its way through and mercilessly impacted against its target, before releasing the shock.
With a scream that sounded like it was straight from hell, the man shook where he stood and began to fall back, which would result in his certain death.
Before this happened, one of the men conjured a platform of air which saved him, but before he could rejoice, two wind blades formed in front of his crotch, again, threatening to sever his ties with the bedroom.
As he gulped and looked at the two identical men in front of him before recognizing them, he heard one of them speak.
"The Rosso brothers have occupied this spot. Let the others know, and don't even think about coming back. You know what happened to the last guy who tried, right? Even Lanthanor's Healer's Academy almost gave up on him. Now, f*ck off."
The man would have let out a retort if it weren't for the blades which approached closer and closer.
With a gulp, he could only look to the side and gaze at the armies, wishing that he had arrived at this perfect spot before these two who were known for being some of the most vicious in whatever business they chose.
Why did they even have to enter this business, of all the others which were much more profitable?
Cursing his luck and knowing that he wouldn't have a second chance, the man nodded, and teleported away.
With the area around them becoming tranquil once again, the two, who were twins wearing the same style of robes in different colors- one black, and one white, bumped their fists together before getting down to work.
The one wearing black took out a complex trinket and began to set it up. It had a long tube that was larger at one end, and at the smaller one, he placed an object that was like an eye.
After he was done, he took out a communication trinket and said, "This is Rosso. I've set up the trinket. The bonus is supposed to be for the one who has the best view. I think I win, right?"
"Yes, right now, you have the best vantage point. I'll let you know if the situation changes. The Network is grateful for your help. Payment will be done after the job is over."
Hearing this, he put away the trinket with a smile, while seeing his brother set up a canvas on which he began painting the extraordinary scene in front of him.
"You know, brother, times have changed. We don't need to follow dad's instructions anymore. Then, he couldn't have imagined that display trinkets would become this widespread. If we split up, you could cover the battle from another point, letting us get double the income. The Network pays lucratively, you know."
Without answering, his brother continued to paint.
He added layers upon layers to the canvas. First, he started with an empty landscape, on which he added the many figures who constituted the army of Axelor. They were all wearing their uniforms which were marroon for the most part, with only their shoulders and belts being painted black. The army was at least 60,000 strong, and for the most part, it consisted of foot soldiers who were all outfitted the same: they had a short sword, a bow on their back, and a trinket that could elongate into a pike. They also had armor, with defensive properties that would stop the blow of an Amateur Fighter.
As for the other, elite parts of the Army, they were hidden from sight using formations, but his brother drew them anyway from the facts he knew regarding them.
The Elite Fighter army was only 2,000 strong, but they were terrifying foes, with each being at least an Eminent Fighter. They had specialized trinket blades that could morph into any weapon they wished, and they even carried defensive trinkets.
Of course, the Mage army was pitiful, standing only 300 strong with most of them being Amateur Mages, with very few Eminent Mages mixed in.
This was only a portion of their army, with the rest staying back in their Kingdom to defend against anyone who might want to target them while they were at war.
Yet, just this was enough to match the armies of the three Kingdoms in front of them.
In front of the Army of Axelor, there were three portions of armies with each being quite different from the other.
First of all, the total size was merely half that of their opponent.
Only…here, quality was emphasized more than quantity.
First of all, the Black Raven Kingdom had deployed 12,000 foot soldiers, which was almost their entire force.
Of these, a minor number of elites had Black Ravens on their shoulders, and there were also 300 Mages who were also mostly Amateur Mages, as they had been severely weakened recently.
Next to them was Lanthanor: 16000 Amateur Fighters, 500 Elite Eminent Fighters and just 100 of their Legendary Mage Corps, as the rest had been incapacitated in their recent mishap in Eldinor.
Of course, they were bolstered by Eminent, and even Exalted Mages from Eldinor. Just 200 of the former and 6 of the latter were enough to make a major difference, which tipped the scales into balance.
As he finished inking in all the details, the one who was watching couldn't help but shake his head, once again in awe of his brother's almost godly talent.
If one gazed at the painting, they would even feel the atmosphere of tension that was present between the armies, where a single command might result in the deaths of thousands of people who all had families waiting for them back at home.
His brother finally answered his question after carefully rolling up the canvas and setting it aside, before propping up a new one.
"Mark my words, brother. Some day, all of these trinkets might stop working, but my paintings will live on, and be admired by generations. The name 'Navar Rosso' will become known to all, just like our Father wished for it to happen. I cannot forget his dying wish, and I know that you can't either. I'll tell you what. I'll take care of this spot- why don't you head to another one?"
Hearing this, the other man shook his head and levitated a boulder nearby to his position, before sitting down and saying, "No thanks. Let me just feel lucky that I can gaze at my brother while he is making these pieces of art that will surely make our name known throughout the continent. Besides, others will be expecting us."
With a nod, remembering the times when his brother had used to sit just like this while cheering on his painting, no matter how ugly they had looked, Navar smiled and began another work- this one, with a perspective from above.
As he continued, little did he know that right above him, a meeting that would decide the fate of the soldiers he was drawing was taking place.
…
Daneel and Katerina were standing on the two sides of Faxul, while King Safiros, who had a smile on his face, stood alone in front of them.
He was dressed for war: with various defensive trinkets on his belt, along with a robe that was made of the strongest of materials that might even block the blow of an Exalted Human.
"What is the meaning of this, King Safiros? There will be no winner if we fight. Turn back, and I am ready to forgive you."
Hearing Faxul say this, the King of Axelor laughed out loud and said, "Forgive me? You truly are as inexperienced as they say you are. There will be no forgiving. Today, I will not return without subjugating the Black Raven Kingdom, and forming an alliance that can battle against the other one in this continent. Even the Big 4 will not stop me, as they know that this is fair. But…there is a way for this to be resolved without too much bloodshed."
This made the others wait with bated breath, and as King Safiros spoke again, his voice actually…reverberated throughout the area where the armies were assembled, and also in all the major places inside the Black Raven Kingdom where the citizens were assembled.
Clearly, he had planned this beforehand.
"I, King Safiros, challenge you to battle as I deem you unworthy of your role. If you wish for me to turn back, then fight me and show me that I am wrong. But if you're too scared, then my army will attack. Choose. Will you let your soldiers die for you when you have a way to avoid that, or will you finally be exposed as the coward you are?"
This resulted in a silence, with everyone unable to believe what had just been proposed.
A battle between Kings? But…why?
As Katerina saw Faxul waver, she realized that he was in a tough position.
On one side, the battle would be unpredictable, and very dangerous.
On the other, if he stepped back, he would lose the support of his people, which would be disastrous in the current state of things.
As she began to ready herself for either outcome, she got a message from the King of Lanthanor, which made her widen her eyes and wonder whether he was joking.
"Don't worry about this. I was busy, so I didn't have the time to tell you. Anyway, I'll explain in detail later. For now, prepare to be attacked by these two. After that, get ready to be 'routed' when their forces combine and attack us, but make sure that there are no losses. Engage all defenses. It's fine if we look like we are being beaten to the curb. Just make sure to act shocked, all right?"