Night stretched as far as the eye could see through the Pacific Northwest. Rolling hills and mountains, stiff sprawling Douglas Fir trees. A stereotypical scenery most certainly, perfect for camping with open forest floors and small clearings with no roofs of branches or leafs. Yes there were eyes, there were critters, they moved and danced the night away. Truly nothing was out of place without taking a much closer look.

Trees obstructed much from above though from within it was a little more obvious. A faded path, old and not used for years now overgrown. Snaking between the trees and marching through the forest for miles upon miles, connecting to a normal highway in one direction while to the other end it led to a run down power plant on the water. A simple complex, gates now down and overrun with trees growing right through them onto the property- plant life sprawling up the plant. Moss, dirty rock, broken windows, the distinct colors of rust and rot.

A railroad sat behind the facility, mostly covered over just as well with grass sticking up; though the metal of the tracks still more than visible. Of course this forest and abandoned plant were not the only things out here, there were people as well- several people. All of them appearing more like goons in general gang attire, black hoodies and face masks, torn jeans and boots, all of them armed with rifles and shotguns, side pieces at their sides or in actual hand. There were several up on the roof, several down by the tracks, and several patrolling the grounds.

The eyes of a couple glowing, illuminated amber or red or orange from the shine of the moon’s brilliance upon them. Those eyes though were not omniscient, scanning only the horizon rather than the verticality. The floor of the woods, very clear; though the high up branches and tops not so much. Shadowy figures zoomed like blurs on the outskirts, clonking down on the branches and tops without disturbing the trees greatly. A slight shimmering though nothing major.

Several stopped several trees back from the beginning of the compound’s clearing, a distance of half a kilometer or so back. These figures were scattered around, several facing ahead, several armed with gunnery of their own. Most of them were dressed in SWAT-like attire and cloaked with hoods. Face masks up, helmets on; though not one had normal eyes as all of their eyes were glowing however dimly they might’ve appeared at a distance. The glows of amber, orange, yellow, and silver or white.

A man held position ahead of the pack, his silky black hair blowing in the wind, his green eyes locked ahead with the slightest of amber glows around the green. He wore simple clothes as opposed to the others, basic blue jeans and black combat boots, a ragged open black coat with no shirt. One of the SWATs had a hand up to his right ear for a short period as they locked their focus ahead at a patrolling group from the compound. Soon enough though, there hand would be lowered and would grab hold of the rifle that hung around their neck & shoulder by a strap as they properly took hold of it.

“Vulper, the orders are clear,” the man spoke to the man at the head.

That man at the head, Vulper, then side stepped and turned around- his gaze cast back upon the entire division behind him, “Alright, listen up. We do this, we do this fast- and we do this heavy. Units two and three will engage after the side units lay down cover fire and deploy rockets. The objective is the same, eliminate the enemy. Remember what this victory will mean everyone, liberation!”

He turned his head, scanning the lot of them from left to right as he continued on with his speech- “We’ve come a long ways since the Azala-Hive conflict. Not only will Vulfax be freed after this; but as will all of you who chose to serve, and your friends, and your families. With this strike we prove that we are not the same fear feasting monsters as those who serve Arkaza. We prove that we are people!”

At once, every single individual there flung their right fists up, weapons left held by left hand only. There was no sound aside from the shuffle of arms and fabric. Vulper himself smiled ever so as he witnessed this.

“To victory,” he spoke.

BANG!!!

An explosion of flames, an explosion of the debris, an explosion of the roof. A huge section of the plant roof blew high into the sky and broke up, debris flying everywhere along with the freshly minced bodies caught and flung by the blast, many pieces of which were in flames. Three guardsmen fell from the roof, wailing as they fell to the ground with one even striking their head on a balcony before tumbling to the ground. The front doors blew wide open with one man walking out of the inferno with their arms flailing, completely engulfed by flames- their screams going unheard due to all that was going on around them even as they tripped over the steps and fell to the ground.

Vulper swung around with both of his arms flying up crossed before his face, squinting at the huge burst of light and the spreading flames. Debris rained down like hail, striking the branches all around them and tumbling through to the forest floor.

“Ger- what devilry is this?!” he grunted.

The sound of gun shots echoed through the air shortly thereafter. People on the compound’s grounds were shot and gunned down, shots to the head and chest, pinpoint accurate. And then not long after came the sound of shots from within or beyond the plant, the true origin point obscured by the crackling inferno and the shots out in the open. Then they came into view, individuals in colors of red and blue and white wielding swords and guns of their own. Vulper’s gaze narrowed sharply, viewing the cross necklaces dangling down in front of the chests of these newcomers as they hacked away at and shot down more of the facility’s guards.

“It’s the damn Church, they have snipers eyeing the plant. All of you get back now!” he yelled out.

“Oh please, if we wanted you fuckers dead we would have blown you up to,” came a voice echoing out from Vulper’s right.

All heads turned immediately towards a tree not far off, where there upon a branch stood a man not seen prior. He wore a black trench coat, dark blue pants, a dark blue vest. A necklace with a huge cross dangled in front of his chest. The figure turned to face them, dark sunglasses worn, their short brown hair slicked back. The man wore a white band around his neck, unlike those down below.

To this man’s sudden appearance, Vulper tensed up and growled out, “A Priest-”

“We’ve had our scopes on your people here for awhile now, could’ve taken some shots at any time. Only thing saving your worthless hides is the fact that you’re working with the Confederacy AND the UN,” the man spoke, “However if you intend to interfere with our operation, I’ll happily clean you lot out as well.”

“And you are?” Vulper growled.

The man smirked, his posture adjusting to a more casual stance as he then spoke, “Castersin, Deker Castersin. And you would be Vulper. Vulper Arloo Gornetraof. It’s a bit of an honor I must say, my mentor told me a lot about you.”

“Mentor?” Vulper muttered, glancing back as his SWAT bound folks raised their weapons, a couple taking aim right for Deker.

The whole while as they did, Deker appeared to watch with his smirk turning into a shit eating grin immediately.

Vulper looked to him and then glanced back, quickly swirling around, “DON’T!”

Shots rang out, and immediately four of Vulper’s men fell from the trees and fell to the ground. Blood splattered from their faces, some blood even splashing Vulper’s left cheek as they went. His eyes sharpened and the glow turned his eyes from green to pure orange, shifting over his shoulder towards Deker. The man began to chuckle as Vulper swung around, his coat flapping.

“I warned them, did I not?” Deker chuckled.

A low growl left Vulper, his hands flexing and crunching into fists. Deker’s head raised ever so along with a brow.

“Yes, that’s right. Come and show me your power Drachen, show me what my master foretold as the unyielding power of your kind!”

Vulper’s gaze narrowed even further as he looked over Deker’s face, muttering out, “Almec eh…”

The branch beneath Vulper’s feet shook violently and split, the hulking figure of the Drachen Leader launching forward at Deker with one fist raised. Deker took a step back with a single foot and threw his arms out to his sides immediately, embracing the attack with an ear to ear smile, his mouth hanging open.