Daniel's POV
The horns ripped the sky apart.
Not practice horns. Not drills.
War horns.
Daniel's eyes snapped open before the sound even finished. He was already strapping his blade to his side as his men scrambled awake. Outside the barracks, the walls shook with the pounding of enemy drums.
"TO ARMS!"
The cry rolled through Fort Karion.
He burst into the courtyard, and the sight burned itself into his mind — black banners rising from the horizon like a storm tide. The enemy had come in full force. Siege towers, flaming catapults, and endless lines of armored infantry pushed across the valley.
Karion was surrounded.
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The Walls
Soren Vask was already there, standing on the front wall like a stone idol, barking orders. BAM fighters were pouring onto the battlements, their wild shouts drowning out fear. Soldiers rushed into position on the towers, crossbows loaded, oil cauldrons tilting forward.
Daniel climbed up, his own men falling behind him with disciplined steps. His heart pounded, not with fear — but with the weight of what Chris Blackwood had left unspoken:
This was the test. Unity or ruin.
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The Clash
The first wave hit.
Enemy rams smashed against the iron gate. Arrows blotted the sky. Fireballs from catapults slammed into the outer wall, showering stone and flame.
Daniel's soldiers unleashed volleys of bolts, cutting down ladder-climbers by the dozen. BAM warriors leapt onto the wall edges, hacking at any enemy daring to reach the top.
But the tension cracked fast.
A BAM fighter shoved a soldier aside, snarling.
"You fight too slow! Move!"
The soldier spat back.
"At least I don't fight like a wild dog—"
An arrow buried into the soldier's chest mid-sentence. He collapsed.
For a heartbeat, chaos flared — insults turned to shoves, discipline breaking.
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Daniel's Choice
Daniel roared, voice cutting through fire and thunder.
"ENOUGH! FACE THE ENEMY, NOT EACH OTHER!"
Soren's head turned sharply toward him. For a breath, it was unclear whether the general would rebuke him for daring to shout across command.
Instead, Soren's voice thundered back in perfect sync.
"BLACKWOOD UNION! KILL TOGETHER OR DIE ALONE!"
The words slammed into both armies like a hammer.
Discipline snapped back into place. BAM and soldiers pivoted, shields locking, blades rising.
For the first time… they struck as one.
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The Inner Gate
The ram finally cracked the first layer.
Daniel was already there, leading his unit into the breach. He met the enemy head-on, steel ringing against steel. Behind him, BAM fighters surged in, covering the flanks.
And somewhere in the chaos, Daniel swore he glimpsed that nameless soldier again — the one with the calm eyes, cutting through enemies with terrifying precision.
Chris Blackwood. Watching. Judging.
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By midday, the battlefield was drenched in fire, blood, and shattered stone. Karion had not yet fallen — but the real war was only just beginning.
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