The hivemind is conquering for me?

Approaching the fortress was bloody.

Unlike my first siege. The defenders had all the ammo they could spare and they used it. Thousands were dying on our side a second from the overwhelming firepower coming from the Drakoshi.

And then there were the thermobaric annihilators, the boomsticks, there were multiple firing their specialised ammo into the ranks. Psionic individuals were powerful, but even I knew I couldn’t survive a blast from one of those things. In an instant thousands more die in a clean line. Leaving nothing behind except a burnt landscape in the shape of a large tear.

As we continued forward, I saw one turn its barrel towards us and I gulped. Almost immediately the Nymphs began to activate their armours, shields began to manifest just in time as the weapon fired.

Heat. I could feel the heat. Painful heat. Something I had forgotten since my resistance to flames was so high due to Sol.

However, the shields held up and after a few moments the explosion ended. Many behind us were dead, but more survived and the gap from the weapon was filled up quickly by the endless tide of Phalanx.

The repetition continued for ten long minutes of running before Phoebe started sprinting at full pace. We were making the charge, finally.

We crossed the gap between us and the Drakoshi in no time. Barely getting shot out due to our speed. Crashing into the frontlines, the Drakoshi attempted to surround us straight away. But six praetorians outclassed everything in the vicinity and with backup, they were unstoppable.

Once in the fray I lost myself in the battle as usual. Allowing instinct and reflex to dictate my bodily movements.

Hours must have passed before I felt an itch at the back of my neck. Danger. I pulled back and brought Zircon into a high guard as I checked my surroundings. We had made a small clearing in the Drakoshi line. A semi circle of sorts so I had a moment to think. None of my allies seemed to sense the danger. No. One did.

Gabrielle looked at me and even with my helmet on, she and I knew we both had the same facial expression. Something was amiss. Where was the danger coming from? It wasn’t around us. It was...

”Praetorians! Fall back! ABOVE!” My voice amplified on reflex, cutting through the cacophony of the battle.

My words cut through and everyone present managed to escape backwards a few dozen meters.

Seconds later a blazing meteor crashed exactly where we were, a powerful shockwave hitting us and toppling over countless on both sides.

As we were recovering, I noticed something. The Drakoshi nearby, as they rose their feet, their actions were different. They weren’t yelling, they weren’t angry. They weren’t rushing back into the fray. They picked up ranged weapons of their own and the Phalanx and began firing on mass, in tactical fashion.

They even began pulling back to their walls whilst firing, but I couldn’t focus for long as the meteor began to move out of its impact crater.

It began to show itself. Bipedal. At least twenty feet tall holding a large Warhammer in its hand. It was wearing some pants, but no shirt, or it might have burnt out in orbital drop. It was a monster. Its muscles were as big as tree trunks, even bigger. Brimming with so much energy.

Then, with a simple wave of its hand, it dispersed the dust around it before placing its Warhammer casually on the ground as it looked around, ignoring all the fire it was taking.

Just looking at it now, I could feel my brain screaming at me to run, I couldn’t beat this. I knew what it was.

A warlord.

The Praetorians began to charge towards the behemoth without hesitation and for some reason I found myself following them like a madman.

The Warlord lazily turned its head towards us before its little eyes, in proportion to its body, widened a little.

It suddenly began to speak and I felt an itch at the back of my brain as my new power began to kick in. I didn’t understand everything it just said, but I understood three words.

Queen. Surprise. Revenge.

It then used its clawed foot to kick the head of its Warhammer up back into both hands and suddenly moved with haste in a counter charge.

It was fast. Beyond fast. It chilled the mind to see something so large move that fast. It raised its hammer above its head and looked like it was about to strike down with full force at its main target. Phoebe.

Or so I assumed from a Drakoshi, but this was no run of the mill. This was a Warlord. In a feat of strength, it changed the trajectory of the hammer that was larger than any of us here and swiftly fainted, changing its strike towards Aeteos.

The speedy Nymph was able to dodge the blow, but just barely and allowed the others to begin attacking the Warlord. I attempted to flank around it, but it seemed aware of all of us all at once and it struck out at me with the pommel end of its weapon.

I practically jumped out of the way of the weapon before slashing at it with Zircon, her blade flaring up with a twinge of energy as she struck, a gift from the axe of the war boss we killed a while ago.

Her strike took a chip out of the weapon’s hilt, surprising me as the new edge cut through metals with even more ease than before. However, it the Warlord also seemingly felt the chip happen and turned to me and grunted while looking at me

”Oh?”

It then began to use its weapon with one hand as it pulled out a piece of technology from its trouser pocket and looked at it when it had a chance.

”Purple Reaper? Ah. My contract target.” It spoke in lesser Drakoshi, sending chills down my spine. It then suddenly spoke in perfect Spartari after chucking the device away, all while continuing fighting and looking directly at me.

”Thank you for saving me the trouble of hunting you down, Purple reaper. This backward galaxy is no place for me. The sooner this war ends, the sooner I can leave. So perish.”

It then turned its back on the others and darted straight at me. My eyes widened, my adrenaline spiked. I felt myself become cornered. It was covering every direction I could retreat or dodge into.

All expect one. As it brought its weapon down upon me I jumped up towards it, past it and continued on.

The Warlord was fast though. With an outstretched arm, It swatted me on the back. I could feel my ribs break as the force bludgeoned through my armour. I was sent hurdling towards our own lines.

*SPLAT SPLAT SPLAT SPLAT SPLAT SPLAT SPLAT*

The sounds of squelching, the cracking of bones breaking as I passed through dozens of Phalanx were excruciatingly loud.

I swiftly got up to my feet and looked around to get my bearings, only to spot the Warlord sprinting directly towards me.

I got myself in a defensive stance, but had lost Zircon momentarily so I was just squared up. I wasn’t going out like a bitch.

I ignored my shaky breathing that was the cause of my weak ass left lung collapsing and got ready to throw down when all of a sudden I heard a wail of pure unbridled rage that shook my very soul followed by a pillar of purple energy erupting behind the warlord.

The next thing I saw, in less than a blink, was Gabrielle in the air behind the Warlord. Her face was covered in purple stained tears to the point it was almost all purple as hundreds of wispy tendrils were shooting out of her back.

She had caught up to the Warlord while its defence was down and proceeded to swing her two hook swords with so much power that they cleaved deep into the Warlords neck past the spine, forcing it to keel over as its head was being held on by sinew.

She then began to carve the being up, hundreds of cuts in a matter of seconds before instantly turning towards me.

The moment her eyes made contact with mine, a wave of visible relief washed over her. Her tendrils began to diminish at a rapid rate, but her eyes remained purple. But they looked happy, relieved that I-

*SWOOSH!* *BANG!*

A large object suddenly collided with Gabrielle, sending her out of sight. The blood pouring off the flat surface of the Warhammer had my eyes go wide in shock.

”That was interesting. Quirks really are disgusting.” The Warlord spoke in Spartari again after pushing its head back onto its neck.

”To think something so pitiful could harm me?” It then turned around towards the others that were closing in. I didn’t just let it do that and fired a torrent of flame towards it, at which point it held out its hand as a shield to absorb the torrent. It then turned back to me and watched in fascination as its burnt arm began to heal instantly.

It then rolled its neck and flashed a wicked smile towards me as it spoke with a twisted pleasure on its lips.

”Perhaps I will enjoy this mock war after all?”