On the fourth day of the ground war on Atium I, the city of Soem was in tense preparation.
Nick, captain of Lord Kraft's guard, ended his day's duty with a gloomy face and headed to the bar.
"Give me a large drink."
The waiter glanced at Nick's dark expression, the bruised corner of his mouth, and the faint scars on his neck, marks of Lord Kraft's brutality.
Not wanting trouble, the waiter quickly said, "Right away."
Two hours later, when the waiter saw Nick leaving, he sighed in relief, but didn't notice a tall figure in a black bodysuit stepping out of the shadows behind him.
As Nick staggered home, a hand suddenly tapped his shoulder.
He froze, spine cold; he hadn't heard a single footstep.
Reaching for the weapon at his waist, he heard a deep, magnetic, and strangely persuasive female voice:
"Don't be afraid. I'm here to help you."
He turned to see a tall woman, even taller than him. Her face was hidden beneath a hood and mask.
Her Atiumian speech was mechanical and strange, but her voice carried an inexplicable charm that made Nick instinctively trust her.
It was the "Instigator," Maria, whose mission was to plant thoughts in chosen targets.
"Kraft is a tyrant. His end is near. You must deliver him death. Do that, and both you and Soem will be reborn."
Images flashed in Nick's mind: Lord Kraft's whip of thorns and crackling electricity striking his face.
"I'll kill him," Nick muttered, brows furrowed. "But that fat pig is afraid of dying. He wears mastercrafted armor at all times. No weapon can pierce it."
"This can pierce any armor. You will succeed."
The "Instigator" had already tested the Fra'al Glass Blade against damaged power armor, it pierced clean through. She knew Nick could do the same to Kraft.
Nick accepted the blade without thinking. When he came to, the tall woman was gone.
He stared blankly at the weapon in his hand until a cold wind blew by, and the words "kill him" echoed again in his head.
Nick didn't go home. He walked straight toward the tyrant's palace.
At the gate, the next guard captain on duty asked, surprised, "Nick? It's not your shift yet, why are you early?"
Nick, having prepared his excuse, quickly replied, "I was at the bar and got this alien weapon from an outsider. You know how much the lord loves rare things."
The captain's eyes lit up with envy. "Lucky you."
In the Atium Alliance, there were no restrictions on technology. Anyone who found rare artifacts would gain immense prestige and wealth.
Nick forced a smile and feigned excitement as he walked inside.
Inside the palace, he saw Lord Kraft laughing as he whipped a woman.
Nick's face stung at the sight. He tightened his grip on the glass blade and stepped forward.
"Nick," Kraft frowned, raising his whip. "You interrupt my fun. You'd better have a good reason."
"My lord," Nick said, bowing, "I've acquired an alien weapon. Only you are worthy of it."
He approached, holding the Fra'al Blade in both hands.
Kraft, his drunken, cloudy eyes widening, was instantly captivated by the shimmering, smoke-like crystal weapon.
"Bring it here!"
"Yes, my lord."
Nick walked quickly forward, and in an instant, changed from presenting the blade to plunging it into Kraft's abdomen.
"You dare, dog?" Kraft roared. He wasn't afraid; no weapon had ever pierced his armor.
But as the glass blade struck, its edges fragmented into countless razor shards that burrowed through the armor and into his flesh.
Kraft felt a burning pain in his gut. "Impossible…"
He looked down, seeing blood gush from his abdomen, and his consciousness slipped into darkness.
"Die, you fat tyrant!"
Nick stabbed again and again, laughing hysterically as the alien blade disintegrated into dust.
Ratatatata!
The guards finally reacted, opening fire on Nick, riddling him with bullets.
The news of Lord Kraft's death spread through Soem City like wildfire.
Rumors swept the taverns and streets that black-armored giants had already conquered four lords' fortresses. Chaos consumed the entire city.
In a weapons factory within the city, Maria received her subordinates' reports.
"Mentor, per your command, we've spread the word that the Shadows of Order breached four fortresses, not two."
"Mentor, confirmation from multiple sources: Lord Kraft is dead."
Hearing that, Maria felt as if a star had shattered within her chest. She whispered to herself,
'I've become a true Instigator.'
When the Honor Guard launched their assault, they were astonished to find the resistance far weaker than expected.
The first wave alone broke through and stormed the city.
At the same time, another beheading strike began on Atium III.
Theo and Laurent, drawing on their experience as elite guards, analyzed the defenses of Lord Ladt's palace.
"Shadows of Order 7th Chapter, 2nd Company's offensive has already drawn the defenders' attention. Now's our best chance," Theo said.
Laurent nodded, studying the holo-defense map.
"The palace has twelve entry points, one main route Lord Ladt uses daily, and three emergency escape routes…"
"Total of 3,500 palace guards, 3,000 more in the outer defenses rotating in shifts. They're armed with live weapons…"
"Five hundred elite inner guards, armed with flamers and swords."
After finalizing their plan, the two Lucifer Black prepared for the strike.
Laurent led three platoons, attacking from the north, west, and east simultaneously.
He carried a Triken-class riot shield, activating its protective rune field.
He couldn't help but think:
"This is the finest shield I've ever used, far superior to the Arbites' riot shields.
Never thought I'd wield it not to protect an Imperial official, but to execute a beheading.
Either way, I'll be under fire."
A hail of bullets rained toward them.
"Defend!" Laurent shouted.
Forty-nine Lucifer Blacks formed tightly around him, shields interlocking magnetically with no gaps for the enemy to exploit.
Rounds sparked off the shimmering energy fields, falling uselessly to the ground.
"Advance!" Laurent ordered with excitement; it had been far too long since the Lucifer Blacks had gone on the offensive.
Their steel line crashed into the defenders and split into strike teams.
Each team of five moved with flawless precision,
shields opening and closing rhythmically as charged blades slashed through the gaps, cutting down foes.
"Defend!"
"Advance!"
Laurent alternated the orders as the shield line steadily pushed forward.
Ladt's guard captain stared in disbelief. The black-armored soldiers moved like a tide, unshaken by superior numbers.
Ten times their number couldn't stop their advance.
From a palace tower, Ladt looked down and roared, "Useless! All of you!"
"Ten times the men and the defense still keeps breaking!"
Only after his rage subsided did his attendant speak, "My lord, the northern wall has been breached. Those black-armored giants are in the city. We must retreat."
Ladt glanced at his palace one last time, unwilling to part with it.
"We'll retreat through Route II."
Escorted by his inner guard, he exited through the southern gate,
only to see a hundred black-armored figures blocking his path.
Ladt's cybernetic eyes flared. He sneered coldly.
"Attack! Burn them alive!"
His guards raised their flamethrowers, releasing waves of fire.
"Raise shields! Charge!" Theo shouted.
The flames struck the energy fields, crackling violently.
Unlike Laurent's shield guard, Theo's sword guard lacked the same tight defense.
Under fifty flamers, they struggled; three Lucifer Blacks fell, rolling on the ground aflame.
The sword guard hurled their shields, toppling the front line of enemies, then drew power swords and charged.
Theo's charged blade flashed like lightning, piercing an inner guard's abdomen.
He saw only movement, angles, strikes, and light. The blade's disintegration field roared.
The sword guard followed, cutting down enemies in synchronized rhythm.
"Wilson! Go!" Ladt ordered, fear creeping into his voice.
Wilson, dual blades in hand, charged. Atium's greatest swordsman, slayer of countless assassins.
But Theo's swordsmanship was supreme.
He ducked low under Wilson's swing and struck upward. The disintegration field screamed as it cleaved through Wilson's arm and then his neck.
In one swift motion, Theo stepped forward and decapitated Ladt.
Fifteen days after the Shadows of Order seized the Atium system,
Gabriel discovered an STC of an armored tank amid the ruins of the arch-techno-heretic Lord Ladt's fortress.
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
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