HPDBC Chapter 8: Invictus
Chapter 8: Invictus
Chapter 8: Invictus
Nero walked through the wall of darkness, wooden spear in hand, ready to face any danger. He did not have armour, or any other kind of protection, which was the primary reason for him to take the spear as it would allow him to fight from a distance. The fact that it would have also helped the other Herald was secondary. The third was because... well, Nero was an expert with the spear, much more than any other weapon.
His decision to help deliver the card case, too, was based on a number of factors he had considered in those brief moments.
First of all, hiding was not a pragmatic solution to the situation. Yes, there was a chance that whoever the enemy was, they would quietly withdraw after fulfilling their goals. But if Nero were to plan a strike on an enemy base or building, he would blow it up afterwards. Not only would that make it difficult to track his original goal, but the ensuing chaos would make it easier for him to escape.
With hiding in the shadows leading to potential death, Nero was not going to opt for it. There was always the possibility that he was wrong, but he had to make a choice and he preferred action to inaction.
Secondly, every advantage the local forces received would work against the attacking forces. Nero was not conceited enough to consider his aid an overwhelming advantage, but if he could aid a trained professional in regaining their maximum capabilities, he would count that as a win.
Thirdly, though this reason was the greatest gamble of all, he wanted to build a connection with the so-called best of the Heralds. There was nothing that fostered friendship greater than fighting a battle together.
This was not really the situation to be thinking of networking, but Nero had too much to gain if things worked out this way. His personal enemy was the most influential man in this city, and one of the most influential men in the country, so he was in desperate need of allies. Though he was not going to take any unnecessary risks to make that happen. He was very pragmatic about what actions to take.
As soon as he walked through the darkness, he found himself in what looked like it had once been an office. There were smaller, compartmentalised rooms to the side, while the main hall contained countless tables and chairs, all now overturned and reduced to rubble.
The room was not nearly as dark, though many of the chandeliers had broken during the fights. Even now, many fights still continued.
There were several groups of Heralds, all in what was called an enomotia formation, which consisted of eight spearmen standing in a line led by a leader against a more powerful foe. Their formations weren't perfect, for they lacked a shield, and their leaders were supposed to be a rank above them, but they managed, given the circumstances. Any form of trained combat where they could respond flexibly and support one another in this dangerous situation would increase their odds of surviving drastically.
It seemed to be working, for there were only a few Herald corpses on the floor compared to those of the attackers. The AAB naturally had guards as well, who were managing most of the fighting.
Nero, still undetected, crouched in a corner behind an overturned table and searched for his target, but saw no one with metallic grey hair, alive or dead.
The scale of this fight was too intense for Nero, so even if he wished to help, he would not know how. Initiates were moving much faster than Neophytes, and abilities and spells were flying across the hall left and right. It was absolute chaos.
Before he could figure out what to do next, an attack struck the ceiling in the room and caused a portion of the building to collapse. Even Nero was forced to dive aside to dodge falling rubble, but that brought him right to the centre of the room.
Nero, too, was affected and could not help but grunt, though his card muted the sound. Whatever had blocked his spear caused some unseen force to travel up the length of the spear and into his body. He felt his muscles pull, as if on the verge of rupturing. Fortunately, the feeling did not last, and he did not sustain any actual injuries.
He did not continue attacking, and instead hid behind a nearby table, ever analysing the situation in the room. His slight disruption had drastically changed the situation in two fights! The Heralds landed a few hits on the enemy as well, while the guard was not allowing his opponent to recover his advantage.
It was too soon to say that the fight was over, as the enemies both seemed to shift their position, attempting to regroup with one another. Perhaps they could hold out for a little longer, or even make a comeback.
Either way, the fighting in the room was moving towards the centre, clearing the way for Nero to slip through the second hole.
As much as he would like to provide more assistance, it was clear that he was outmatched. He had done what he could do, so he had to focus on his current objective, which was to find the Herald with grey hair.
As he escaped the room, what lay before him was a trail of destruction. Whoever was causing these holes had gone through a few more rooms, only a few of which contained more Heralds still fighting. Some of them were already empty, leaving only corpses, most of which, unfortunately, looked like civilians.
Through maintaining his stealth and clever use of timing, Nero managed to avoid getting pulled into any fights and followed the destruction. Nero could only assume that the person responsible for the holes was his very target, for he could not be found anywhere else.
But the fact that the trail led deeper and deeper into the bureau caused Nero to become even more cautious. This deliberate attempt to lead the fight away from everyone seemed mismatched with the objective he had been informed of earlier.
The so-called best Herald had already left many of his companions behind, and not even in a safe location. Each of them were fighting for their lives, which was not really an issue since they had the training to do so. The problem was that this behaviour seemed to make the purpose of leading the enemy away from everyone invalid.
Just as Nero was beginning to suspect that the Herald was actually an accomplice, and had led the fight away for more sinister intentions, he finally caught up to him, and dropped all his earlier speculations!
In what very much looked like a massive auditorium, Nero found a lone Herald with metallic grey hair fighting against one of the attackers.
The scale of this fight was very much greater than any of the ones he had seen previously because... because the Herald was fighting an Arcanist! Hadn't he been told that the enemies were Initiates?
Nero quickly huddled into a corner, not even daring to renew his Muted Self, which had just expired. He knew from spending time with his parents that Arcanists were much more sensitive to aether flow, and could detect enemies through it. In fact, he was even afraid of continuing to use the Darkness innate card, but at the same time, he did not dare to stop and reveal his body.
"Give up, Invictus," said the Arcanist, his voice filled with taunting amusement. "The sooner you die, the sooner this will all be over. Some of your companions may even be still alive. Why put them through this? If the fight ends here, they may still have a chance to live!"
Nero's eyes narrowed, and his grip on his spear tightened. Invictus... he knew that name.