ARTISTS:
Vikk, Lachlan, Rob, and Preston- Kerushi Draws
Jerome- Iggy14
Mitch- LividToffee

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"A leader who knows defeat is wiser then one who does not."
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The ship rocked back and forth, anchored in place but drifting as much as the chain would allow them, on board was a crew working diligently; loading, aiming, firing, and repeat. A clockwork of sorts and what were they aiming at you ask?

Miles from the ship was their target, a kingdom that had holes in its walls from cannon fire, homes and businesses leveled and the once beautiful palace half destroyed from cannons. The Shivoa Kingdom, a once beautiful place now purged by war and famine leaving behind a painful reminder to the once peaceful residents, but as broken as it may seem, the residents there are still holding the line between the enemy and their homeland. Soldiers, young and old on top of the ways, mages either on the field or on the walls, the enemy was dark mages. But they weren't alone either, ships were lined up two miles from the coast, peppering the kingdom with cannon fire. The night falling on them, making visibility difficult for them as fog had started to layer on the ocean surface, the cannon fire had mostly ceased due to the fog, but the ships closer to the shores continued.

On board one of the ships, a crew member that was near the railing that was watching the battle that was taking place on the ground had looked at the ocean surface, seeing something peculiar, the once free moving ship hitting a dead and sudden stop making most of the residents stumble and fall, the member grabbing the railing for balance, peering closer at the surface as questions flew into the air from their shipmates.

"Did we hit a reef?!"

"No! Impossible, we would have hit it earlier!"

Their eyes narrowed, only to widen in horror. 'Is that...ice?! Oh no! It's him!' They thought to themselves. The railing turned cold to the touch, the crew member looking at it, seeing their own breath as they looked down.

"Get away from the railings!" They warned as they backed away.

"Why?"

"What is it?"

The Captain looked over the railing and at the ocean seeing the ice as well, they instantly backed away, grabbing their sword.

"Well played, King Mitchell." They mumbled under their breath. He looked at his crew. "Look alive! King Mitchell sent General Rob Wolfe after us!" The crew looked at their Captain before a large jagged piece of ice pierced through the ship's hull and starboard, striking at the center mass and ripping the sail, the air around it turning ice cold as icy fog start raiding off the large piece of ice and then silence overtook them. The Captain gripped the railing, gritting his teeth. 'Damn that ice mage, we've lost more ships than I can count to the General. But no more.' They thought before looking to his crew. A crew member went close to the ice, the icy fog overtaking most of the deck, the large ice growing up, ripping through the sail and stopping. Moments later, another large piece of ice pierced through the ship, striking at the bow of the ship, sharper than its twin.

"Where is he?!"

"I don't know."

Water flowed onto the deck, the two large pieces of ice grew, but twisted, the starboard mass taking damage from the ice, the mass creaking, swaying left and right. Before the Captain could speak, he heard a voice behind him.

"Three klicks, west of island shore, portal." They said before the Captain turned around, seeing a figure stood in front of him, they grabbed him as a portal ripped opened. "Don't worry, I'll take good care of your crew." The captain was thrown through the portal, the portal closing once they were through it.

"Captain!"

"Who is that?!"

"That's General Rob!"

He smirked under his hood, looking at the bewildered and fear-ridden crew.

"King Mitchell wants to have a word with your Captain, but don't worry, he didn't forget about the rest of you." He said before his eyes and hands started giving off a blue glow as he mumbled under his breath, chanting making larger pieces of ice pierce through the ship, water overflowing from below deck, the ship tipping to its left side, ice growing up its left side, the crew backing away, Rob slamming his foot on the flooring, a platform forming under his feet, he jumped backwards, ice forming under his feet as he moved to stand clear of the ship as he twisted his hands, large chunks of ice piercing into the right side of the wooden structure, pushing it to the left. But something caught his eye, he saw this on the way over and couldn't believe it. 'That's an Estron flag, they better not have betrayed us.' He thought.

As he pushed his hands down the ice retracting away from the ship, leaving large holes in its once-stable structure, letting the water do the rest of the job as the ship sunk into the depths of the ocean. The platform under his feet went down, letting him stand on a sheet of ice on the ocean surface before a device around his wrist beeped. He pulled his sleeve back, a black watch like device flashing red, he pressed the button before a voice broke through the air.

"The other ships are turning towards you, Rob, you need to get out of there! You've been using magic nonstop for the past two days, you need to take a break so your magic can restore itself!" A voice spoke before Rob's eyes flickered up, seeing the ships nearby that saw the destruction turning their cannons at him making him smile.

"I'll let Seto know if I need a portal escape, Lachlan, so calm down," Rob said before he let go of the button, Lachlan's voice cutting off mid-sentence. Rob heard a blast, his eyes peering up seeing a cannon had fired at him, he leaned to the right, his feet sliding along the ice as it formed under his feet, the cannonball flying pass him and hitting the ocean surface behind him, displacing the water. He heard more blasts, he bit his bottom lip, leaning backward, letting the cannonballs hit either ice or the ocean. He took a deep breath, seeing them loading the cannons. 'Alright, let's see how far this can go on.' He thought.

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The Captain hit the hard ground, yelping as the portal behind him closed. As he pushed against the floor to sit up, he picked his head up seeing a pair of black boots stood in front of him, the boots having a red cape that touched the floor behind them, his eyes flickered up, gasping when he realized who the boots belong to, seeing a golden crown sat on in their hair and the black and red checkered hoodie they wore along with golden dog tags that hung around their neck belonged to only one person that he knows of.

"K-King Mitchell." The Captain stuttered before a blue-headed battle-ax struck the floor in front of him, cutting between him the King, making him jump.

"Are you going to back up or will I have to force you?" A voice snapped. The Captain felt fear ring as he realized how close he was to King Mitchell. He recoiled, scrambling to his feet as he fell backward.

"I-I'm so s-sorry, your majesty!" He stuttered. He sat up, looking at the weapon. 'Only one person has a blue-headed battle-ax.' He thought as his eyes followed the weapon as it was pulled from the flooring, his eyes landing on a man with long brown hair covering the right side of their face, their fingernails sharpen to appear as if they were wolf claws and sharp fangs. 'Lord Jerome Aceti, the King's personal bodyguard, one of the Four Defenders of Shivoa.' He thought. The King crossed his arms as hands grabbed the Captain's arms, pushing him down to his knees by guards, the guards crisscrossing swords in front of him. The King smiled a bit seeing how tense the Captain was.

"What are you so afraid of?" The King asked him. The Captain stared at the King.

"N-No offense, your majesty, but your reputation perceives you, you aren't known as n-nice in the Dark Mage territory." The Captain said making the King lose his smile, shifting his weight to one side, his eyes glanced at Jerome who stood beside him.

"And please amuse me as to what rumors spread of me in that foul place." He said as he looked back at the Captain. "But I think I already know them, people can state facts all they want but rumors can kill an innocent person. I know the Dark Mages see me as some cruel tyrant and yet I don't care what they think of me since I could care less about what happens to them. I know you are not a part of Estron's Navy force, they wouldn't recruit pirates even if it was the last thing they did. So I can only assume you are working for the dark mages or someone else, like King Izic,"

"W-Why are you telling me this?" The Captain asked nervously. Mitch's eyes narrowed at the Captain.

"You pirates have been a thorn in my side but I have been forgiving since you all help Shivoa time to time, you guys have helped us through this famine and I'm grateful for that...but you all have clearly chosen your side." King Mitchell stated before another portal opened, another person flying through it and the portal closing behind them. Guards grabbing the person, the Captain recognizing them as another ship's Captain. The Captain looked at King Mitchell.

"W-We're sorry! But—"

"Tell that to the dozens of innocent civilians you killed." The King said before looking at the guards that held him. "Hang him." The Captain flinched, horror crossing his face, he scrambled to think of something to tell him as he started getting dragged away and then it hit him. He looked at the King.

"W-Wait! I'll tell you what Skaldia is planning!" He said.

"Hold it." The King told the guards, the guards stopping as the King turned to them. "I'm listening."

"King Izic wants to burn Shivoa to the ground, he doesn't care about this place like he does for Estron, he wants you dead. He already gained control of Estron—"

"What?" Jerome said shocked. The King crossed his arms, listening.

"—Prince Anthony told us to capture General Rob Wolfe and General Jordan Maron alive, and to look for some kid named Sky. We were told that General Maron would be heading to Shivoa with this kid and Prince Tyler was at Citis, recovering from injuries during the invasion of Estron. There are dark mages heading straight to Citis right now to kill him!" The Captain said. The King stared at the Captain as Jerome looked at him.

"Mitch..." He mumbled. Mitch sighed slightly, looking past Jerome and at Seto that stood a few feet away from them, opening portals.

"Master Azdel." He spoke before Seto looked at him.

"Yes?"

"I want you to validate his claims, have some light mages go to Estron, if he speaks the truth, have them head straight for Citis." Mitch said. Seto nods.

"No problem." He said as the King looked at the guards that held the Captain.

"Put him in chains, lock him in a room close by, guarded." The King said. The guards bow.

"Yes, your majesty." They said before they dragged the Captain out. Jerome looked at Mitch.

"You really think he is telling the truth?" Jerome asked.

"I don't know," Mitch said before he looked at Jerome. "But it isn't like King Nathan to ignore the call for aids we sent. And he stopped sending supplies over, something had to have happened. I rather regret believing him than not believing him." The King said before a voice broke through the air.

"Six klicks, Seto, west of the island shore. I need an escape now." A voice spoke before Seto's eyes glowed, snapping his fingers, a portal ripping open and General Rob jumping through it seconds later, tumbling backward onto the floor. Three dark mages coming through it before Seto could close the portal. Jerome's eyes widen a bit as he saw the mages look directly at Mitch. Rob looked at Jerome.

"Jerome!" He shouted before the mages attacked Mitch. Jerome swung his axe into both of his hands as he moved in front of Mitch.

"Ventus." Jerome chanted as the battle-ax head glowed blue, Jerome swinging it to the right, gushes of wind striking at two of the mages and flinging them back, Jerome swung his battle-ax to the left, striking down the third mage, killing them, Jerome yanked his axe out of the mage, holding it towards the remaining two mages. "Killing the King ain't gonna be that easy, gents. But that was a valiant try." Jerome jumped at the mages, Seto helping him as Rob touched his head, blood trickling from his nose as his vision blurred, he gripped his hair, closing his eyes as he panted steadily. 'Lachlan was right, I'm not telling him that but...I need a break.' He thought as the two killed the two dark mages.

"Rob, you okay?" Mitch asked him as Rob wiped the blood from his nose with his sleeve, Mitch seeing Rob's paled skin.

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine." He panted. Mitch nods a bit.

"Alright, if you need a break, take it, you've been using your magic non-stop," Mitch spoke before guards came running through the pair of side doors.

"Your Majesty, dark mages in the palace! They are coming from the old portal room!"

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*Ten Minutes Earlier*
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"The four defenders of Shivoa, who are they?" Ian questioned as they ran through the Nether. Jordan leading them as he followed a map that was on the portal device. Quentin answered Ian, only glancing at him.

"Shivoa may be the smallest kingdom in Etora but it is the oldest standing kingdom with quite an interesting history actually, they are a self-proclaimed monarchy, meaning the Hughes doesn't have royal blood at all. They took the throne five generations ago and have held it since. But they have done better at governing the nation then the previous dynasty did--" Ian narrowed his eyes at Quentin.

"I asked who the four defenders were, I didn't ask for a history lesson," Ian said. Jordan smiled a bit.

"The four defenders protect the kingdom and its interests, they are tasked with the protection of not only the royal family but the citizens as well. You'll get to meet them all soon, there are five defenders, not four, the fifth is not know since their role in the kingdom is meant to not be known." Jordan said not looking away from the map at all.

"Who are the four known members?" Ian asked. Sky looked at them, curiously listening as Quentin spoke.

"Since Sky needs to speak with the King, you'll probably run into Lord Jerome Aceti, he's a defender and the King's personal bodyguard. He's a sort of you need to see to believe since he is half demi-creature, half human. He stands out well, if you don't still see him, he's perhaps the only man I know who wields a blue-headed battleaxe. And I'm pretty sure that General Maron has mention General Rob Wolfe around you two, he's a defender as well, tasked with being the General of Shivoa's Army, he's an ice mage as well and one of the three great generals of Etora." Quentin said. Sky looked at him.

"So...he's like Jordan?" Sky asked. Jordan shakes his head.

"No, he's nothing like me. His ice magic is powerful but limited and he wasn't born with it either. He was cursed with it, and because of that, Laenadur doesn't see him as a mage. We're close to the portal by the way." Jordan said. Quentin nods before continuing.

"The third is Admiral Lachlan, he's the head of Shivoa's Navy. He's a nice guy, I've only met him a few times, he's much like Prince Tyler I guess but Lachlan's actually in charge of the entire fleet while Prince Tyler is only in charge of his crew. Lastly is Preston Fraggs, the likelihood that you two will meet him today is low since he is kind of like the King's squire of somewhat, he has no real position in the military but don't doubt his swordsmanship skills, he's just as skilled as the others. He tends to do a lot of different things for the Kingdom." Quentin said.

"Who's the fifth?" Ian asked Jordan, looking at him.

"Don't worry about him, you'll get to meet him later. The portal is up ahead." Jordan said. Jordan put the device in his pocket as he ran when they came up to the portal, Jordan quickly grabbed Sky. "Hide!" Jordan yanked Sky towards the wall, Quentin pushed Ian towards the wall beside them.

"What the nether? What--" Jordan put his hand out towards Ian, looking around the corner of the wall, at the portal seeing figures around it, a camp of sorts. "Dark mages. This isn't good, that portal leads to the heart of the Shivoan palace."

"What should we do?" Quentin asks before Jordan drew his sword from his sheath, holding it in his hand. He looked at the three.

"Pretty sure you know the answer to that, Quentin," Jordan spoke.

"What's your plan?" Ian asked him. Jordan looked back at the mages, he gripped his sword handle, counting the mages in his head. 'Thirty-five mages give or take. That's too many for me to take on by myself, and I don't know their abilities, black magic is harder to fight typically.' Jordan thought. He looked at the other three again.

"Here's the plan," Jordan said as Sky looked around the corner, at the mages, looking at them all. Sky looked at each of them, each one looking different from the other but all of them had a symbol on their arm, one that looked familiar to him. He felt Ian's hand gently hit his back making him snap his attention back to them. "Everyone got it?" Sky stared at Jordan, about to speak before Jordan pulled his hood up, jumping away and to another wall, pressing his back against it. Sky looked at Ian.

"What's the plan?" Sky asked. Ian looked at Sky.

"You weren't listening, were you?" Ian asked. Sky shook his head, Ian was about to explain it when his eyes widen, a dark mage had walked out towards them. Sky pushed his back against the wall. He tensed up seeing the mage walk passed him. Quentin lightly hit Sky's arm.

"Sword." Quentin whispered to him. Sky pulled his sword out, holding it loosely in his hand.

"Anything?" A voice asked. The mage shook their head, Sky looked over at Jordan not seeing him at the other wall anymore. The mage turned around, their eyes instantly landing on Sky, but before they could speak, they are yanked down to the ground, Sky flinched, seeing their feet get dragged out of his sight.

Jordan sheath his sword, he turned the mage, looking at their arm seeing the symbol which made him tense. 'How did I not notice that? Damnit!' Jordan thought. Jordan took the bandana off the mage, tying it around his neck, pulling it up to the bridge of his nose. He looked over the ledge, at the camp. 'This complicates things, I'll have to take out as many as I can, I can't risk Sky's safety too much here. Quentin is good with a blade but he can't handle too many enemies at once, so it's up to me. I can't let too many mages go through that portal, I don't know the state of Shivoa right now and having dark mages go through could cripple them and not to mention put the King in danger.' Jordan thought. He stole the mage's sword, duel-wielding. His eyes scanned his surrounded, noticing an opening to the right of the camp. He put his feet under him, running low to the ground till he was out of sight, letting him stand up straight. He went to the opening, pressing his back against the wall, he went around the corner, going for cover instantly, hearing the mages talking, mostly about King Mitchell.

"I say we hold onto him, if King Izic wants him dead so badly, then we'll keep King Mitchell alive and torture him to death, make that King feel the same amount of pain that he has caused all of us for years and a little more."

"Princess Samantha is out of our reach as she and Princess Marley were both taken to Laenadur, so we won't have anything to hold against them."

"We'll decide what we are to do with him later, taking down Shivoa will not be an easy task even if we happen to already be inside the palace. The four defenders are likely going to be protecting the King, not only that, but we got word that Master Harvey Azdel is with them as well. So team up on Harvey, take him out first, left alone and he will be a huge problem for us, so he dies first." A mage said. Jordan was about to go when the next thing they said stopped him.

"And who is this Sky person that Prince Anthony wants us to capture?"

Sky froze in his spot, listening to them.

"I don't know, but he said that General Jordan Maron would be protecting him," Jordan gripped his swords, gritting his teeth together. He heard footsteps near him, his eyes flickering up to seeing a mage walked out to in front of him, he stood up halfway, his eyes peering over the equipment, at them. He walked up to the equipment, standing there for a second before he pushed it out of his way, grabbing the mage and driving his sword into their back before ripping his sword out, grabbing the mage, using it a shield from two spells that were fired at him. Jordan kicked the body towards the mages, jumping back, dodging a spell.

"Go through the portal now!"

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"I'll deal with the ones in the portal room and coming out of the portal, the rest of you deal with the ones already in the hallway!" Rob ordered the soldiers.

"Yes, sir." They said. The soldiers ran past Rob. Rob looked at Seto who was beside him.

"Think you can create a path for me to the portal room?" Rob asked making Seto smirk.

"Of course I can." Seto said his eyes shifted from a chocolate brown to a vibrant purple, he moved in front of Rob as he chanted a spell under his breath. His hands giving off a purple aura as he chanted. "Tolle carness ossibus." Rob's eyes widen a bit, recognizing the spell.

"Move out of Seto's way!" Rob warned the soldiers. They moved quickly before Seto finished the spell, stopping in his place and falling to one knee before speaking.

"Adiuuatur!" Seto shouted before he put his hand on the floor, the already broken floor under his hand sinking down an inch before the mages in front of Seto vaporized into thin air, Rob running pass Seto, ducking down to dodge attacks, two mages that stood in front of the doorway were about to attack him when they vaporized as well, Rob going into the portal room.

"Glacies murum!" Rob said before a wall of ice shoot up from the flooring, shield him from spells, he kicked the wall, the ice shattering, Rob's blue eyes glowing blue before the broken shards outlined and focus in on the mages, Rob put his hands together before taking them apart, the shards vanishing within an instant and plunging into the mages around him.

He tensed when he saw more jump from the active nether portal. Rob gritted his teeth, about to say a spell when he tasted iron, a sharp pain shooting up both of his arms right before he was hit directly with a spell, crashing back into the wall sinking to the floor as blood trickled down from his nose before he passed out cold.