The Siege of NARAN – Heart of Resistance
On an ominous morning, smoke covered Naran's sky. The imperial drums had not ceased for three days. The siege had finally begun.
Imperial armies surrounded the city from three sides, and at their vanguard appeared twisted beings—the Mutants, colossal creatures walking on all fours, their entire bodies encased in armor.
Their sounds were unlike human cries—more like the shrieks of the dead broadcast through shattered bones.
Defense Command – Azar
Atop the citadel stood Azar, his eyes shadowed beneath his adorned helmet, watching the advancing tide.
Azar (sternly):
"This is the day injustice shall be uprooted and truth shall prevail, by God's will..."
He ordered cannons and catapults readied. Stones were soaked in fire, boiling oil poured into the passageways.
Behind the walls, fighters chanted ancient battle hymns, for the land that falls here… shall never be reclaimed.
The Battle of Conilmadran – Front Line
In the south, the situation was no better.
Conilmadran, the coastal city, teetered on collapse.
Imperial forces arrived by sea and land.
The first waves of Mutants surged under night's cover, scaling walls, sinking claws into stone, unleashing soul-shattering screams.
Qays shouted orders, directing archers to aim at the Mutants' necks, scattering the initial wave.
Meanwhile, Tir fought like a man purging sins, his sword unceasing, his body drenched in the blood of Mutants who'd scaled the walls.
At sea, an imperial ship attempted to advance but was sunk by cannon fire under Seran's command, leaving only five ships on the horizon.
At Conilmadran Command Center:
Tir (struggling):"They seem to be testing us."
Seran:"Even their ships don't attack—merely block our escape."
Qays (annoyed):"No time for such thoughts! All that matters is keeping the city standing until reinforcements arrive."
Tir:"I don't know... but something's amiss. It's as if we're mere pawns."
The next day, the ultimate weapons moved: ARKANISS and DRAUGTHBORN.
The empire bared its true fangs.
From the soldiers' ranks emerged Duke Cencia, while Draugthborn spread out, clad in massive black armor, each wielding colossal weapons—some riding Mutants—all embodying the empire's cruelty.
The DRAUGHTBORN SLAYERS prepared, appearing suddenly… men and some women wearing armor inlaid with animal hides, carrying strange weapons: crossbows, arrows tied to mysterious vials, short blades, and belts full of tools.
Their movements were swift, as if born to hunt Draugthborn.
They were the Sultanate's chosen hunters, each trained since childhood to hunt Mutants and modified humans.
They spoke little… and brought down their prey in silence.
In Conilmadran's square, Nuh saw the first Draugthborn leap over the wall.
Its body was deformed, eyes glowing, blood seeping from its wounds.
Tir (shouting):
"This is not normal…!"
The old Draugthborn attacked Tir, knocking him back, then embedded a strange stone between the wall's bricks before leaping away.
Tir:"Run!"
The wall began to crack and crumble.
Panic spread among soldiers and DRAUGHTBORN SLAYERS as stones slid. If the wall fell, they would be finished.
In that moment—when all thought the wall would collapse—
Nuh saw a man in strange armor beneath the wall, not attacking, surrounded by Draugthborn.
He drew a bow and fired. The Draugthborn tried to block but failed.
Suddenly, the earth rose from nothing, forming a shield around him—he was one of the Earth ARKANISS.
The Arkanis glanced at Nuh, then retreated under Draugthborn cover.
The wall's collapse halted, only small fragments falling.
Nuh (whispering):
"We're saved…"
The imperial armies withdrew. Though they craved the city, minimizing losses took priority.
The Earth Arkaniss returned to his tent. Jhon mocked: "Seems your plan failed."
He gave no reply, sitting in silence, until another Arkanis from the Duke's family entered and said:
"Better to wait for NARAN's fall."
Above the wall, Qays said to Tir:
"The city still stands."
Tir:"But supplies are scarce, and the men's hearts falter."
In Naran, gates closed each night with difficulty.
In Conilmadran, walls eroded.
Yet something had changed…
The lightning had returned.
Not in the sky, but in hearts.
In the Heart of NARAN
Where the siege's heat intensified and the city walls reached peak fragility, Sultan Azar stood firm on the citadel walls, his body covered in dust and blood, his eyes fixed on the horizon where Mutants and the imperial tide advanced toward the city's heart.
The sky rained ash, black smoke rising from burning homes.
The imperial drums had not ceased since dawn.
That day, all knew NARAN would not hold long… yet none expected its heart to fall with them.
From the devastation, an Earth ARKANISS carved his path—a giant encased in moving stone armor, eyes glowing like basalt, footsteps causing small earthquakes in the streets. Behind him, dozens of Draugthborn, Mutants, and thousands of soldiers.
Larem and the DRAUGHTBORN SLAYERS tried to stop him. Palisades didn't scratch him. They rained arrows and traps upon the earth, but this creature was like carved rage itself.
Catapults and cannons slowed the army's advance but couldn't stop it from reaching the gate. Mutants hurled themselves against the gate until it shattered. What awaited them was a massive wave of cold that exploded in their faces. Many Mutants and Draugthborn perished in the attack's fury—even Draugthborn armor cracked. Yet strangely, a stream of water extinguished the flames on the path.
All retreated toward the inner square where Azar waited.
Azar (heavily):
"This is a day we die standing, not kneeling."
He dismounted, advancing with steady steps through the debris.
A wound in his side bled, but he did not stop.
Larem shouted:
"My lord! Let us handle him!"
But Azar raised his hand in silence.
Then he raised his sword.
The Confrontation
As the Earth ARKANISS approached, it seemed the earth itself tilted.
He roared, hurling a massive stone boulder toward the Sultan.
Azar dodged skillfully, leaped onto wreckage, and struck at an exposed joint with his sword.
A clean strike.
Sparks of stone, and a deep roar of pain erupted from the giant.
But this did not slow him.
With his heavy fist, he struck the ground, unleashing a tremor that threw Azar onto his back.
Yet he rose and attacked again.
An uneven battle raged—man versus a creature embodying nature's elements.
Amidst this, the battle intensified between the armies. Soldiers fell like flies, while Draugthborn and DRAUGHTBORN SLAYERS suffered devastating losses.
Every blow from Azar left a mark; every blow from ARKANISS left a wound.
In a fleeting moment, the giant's hand rose and slapped Azar with force that hurled him against a wall.
The Sultan fell.
Blood streamed from his head, one rib broken, his sword far from him.
He crawled toward his sword slowly, as the giant's footsteps shook the earth with their approach. Azar looked to the sky.
Azar (whispering):
"O You who planted earth's honor in us… let not my death be without price."
He stretched out his hand, grasped the sword, and rose unsteadily.
The Final Clash
Azar lunged at the beast, and with his last ounce of strength, drove his sword toward the heart. His blade pierced stone and flesh, breaking ribs, finally scratching the ARKANISS core.
A thunderous scream shook the square.
The giant staggered, swayed, began to crack and collapse. But with his last remnant of stone armor, the Arkanis attacked. He raised his fist… and smashed Azar's chest.
The sound of shattering bones echoed, and the Sultan fell to the earth.
Larem ran to him, knelt beside him, lifted his head from blood and dust.
Larem (trembling):
"No… it cannot end this way…"
Azar opened his eyes, blood trickling from his mouth, smiled faintly.
Azar:
"Grieve not, for death in battle is God's grace…"
Then he closed his eyes.
He died.
The Sultanate's flag fell from his hand… but Larem lifted it.
And raised it high.
In that moment, Tir attacked without thinking, striking the unconscious ARKANIS, but a water shield deflected his sword.
… Duke Cencia entered the battlefield.
And everything changed.
His presence was like a shadow of an approaching storm, his steps confident amid smoke, his gleaming blue armor wrapped in engraved steel lines, his sword unlike soldiers' blades… it resembled a death sentence.
He stopped before Azar's corpse, gazed at the blood staining the earth, then at the unconscious Arkanis, and lifted his eyes toward Larem, who stood as if his soul had just been torn away.
Duke Cencia (coldly):
"The shepherd has fallen… what becomes of the flock now?"
Larem did not answer. He gently lowered the Sultan's body, closed his eyes, placed a hand on his chest, then rose… and raised his sword.
Larem:
"The flock has become wolves… and they will tear your flesh with their fangs."
A Sultanate officer shouted from the wall:
"The Mutants advance!"
The massacre began.
The city's southern gates exploded, Mutants storming through with colossal bodies, sweeping away all in their path. Imperial soldiers and Draugthborn followed, leaping between buildings like ghosts.
Larem shouted:
"All remaining Draughtborn Slayers, with me! Retreat! Protect the Sultanate's flag!"
The city's rear passages teemed with civilians—children, women, the wounded… all unable to fight. The goal was now clear: escape NARAN… at any cost.
Through charred streets, amid women's screams and soldiers' footsteps, Larem carved his path like an arrow, leading the remaining Draughtborn Slayers in a heroic wave of despair—confronting death not to win, but to grant the others a chance to flee.