2291 - The Marvel
On a planet near the galaxy—
Thud
Alfred fell to his knees, his hands cuffed behind his back, blood dripping from his head, a deep gash in his liver area, and multiple injuries covering his face… His condition was like that of a man on the brink of death.
Yet—
Smack
Someone came from the side and punched him hard on the cheek. "You useless wretch!!"
"Pfft!!" Alfred spat blood and collapsed to the ground, but he struggled back to his knees, then looked up with a defiant smile.
"…."
The face of the person who struck him bore a deep burn mark, a fresh wound from the fight moments earlier.
In truth, behind Alfred were about 300 members of the Marley Family, all bound to the ground, either kneeling or lying on their stomachs unconscious, many having lost one or two limbs.
But they were better off than their siblings who had perished under cannon fire…
Yes.
When the clash began, they were underestimated, so an elite group was sent to capture them, but Alfred and his relatives burned them all. Then they attacked the vehicles that were beginning to unload their cargo, stormed them, and wreaked havoc among the soldiers unaware of what was happening, igniting the White Flame intensely inside the vehicles.
The army was forced to move, and the Generals themselves descended to drive them out of the vehicles and surround them, but that was not enough. The combat vehicles moved in and bombarded them directly.
The toll was approximately 14,000 soldiers killed and three space fighter vehicles destroyed, compared to 200 members of the Marley Family killed, with the rest injured and captured.
"Do you still have the strength to smile?!" The person who struck Alfred raised his hand, ready to deliver another blow.
What happened during that battle was an insult by all standards.
"Enough!"
A voice came from behind him, stopping him.
"I will not allow you to kill any more. These are not ordinary soldiers; they have proven that. Perhaps they are the sons or grandsons of Lord Human, which is why they were training here in isolation from everyone... We have caught big game this time, and we must preserve it."
"Marshal, what are you saying?! Just because they're descendants of that man, we're supposed to let them kill our men and burn my face?!" He shot him a venomous glare, then shouted, "Damn it!!" and turned away.
"...We... are... not... pup—!!"
One of the wounded almost spoke, but his brother beside him kicked him in the stomach.
"Don't worry, we'll make the best use of having them in our grasp." The Marshal flashed a wide smile as he looked in a certain direction. "...Prepare the vehicles. The space battle must have started by now, and we will begin the Invasion of Nihari through the back door in one hour."
"Yes, sir!" The soldiers took their seats, preparing themselves physically and mentally for what was to come.
Naturally, none of them had ever invaded a galaxy before, and they didn't know what they would find there, but one thing was certain...
There were countless treasures at the heart of that galaxy!
As for the Marshal, he smiled.
A mostly empty galaxy.
According to the information he had gathered in the last moments, in the absence of the First and Third Armies, the Second Army had advanced, occupied all the planets they had controlled, and fought all the wars they had managed.
The Second Army, or the Crimson Plague as he had heard, was now busy on hundreds of planets, and it was impossible for them to return in time. Even if they did return, they would not be able to organize themselves in time.
What remained inside the galaxy now was nothing more than a simple police force, and perhaps some defensive troops… Defensive troops that the Seventh Son and his men would take care of destroying.
This war…
It was guaranteed!
Swoooooosh
"Hmm?" The Marshal raised his head after hearing a sound. "What is…?"
Something was piercing the atmosphere at an incredible speed.
It didn't look like a shell, nor even a person…
Rather, it was a metallic body writhing in the sky like a meteor.
BAAAAAAAAAM
That object fell not far from their location.
"Be on guard!!" The Marshal raised his hand and signaled those around him to ready their weapons.
Huuuum
Something strange began to happen in that direction.
The strange metallic object started emitting unfamiliar sounds and lights.
Click
Then it opened, and began to change rapidly. The metallic parts inside emerged, floated in the air, and then started fusing with other metallic parts according to a specific formation, until in the blink of an eye, a structure resembling a bow took shape.
A massive metallic bow.
"What the…?"
Zzzzzzzzzt
The space inside the bow began to emit colorless lightning, then started to liquefy.
“…..!!” The Marshal’s mouth fell wide open, and he took a step back. “A Space Gate?!”
A Mobile Space Gate? A gate that could be thrown from outside the atmosphere and then activate itself?
This was the first time in his life he had ever seen such a thing.
And certainly the first time he had ever heard of it, too.
He had been to the Middle Belt many times, and had never seen anything like it for sale in the Spirit Society or anywhere else.
Did Intiras himself possess something like this?!
*Vwooom*
At that moment, something began to emerge from the gate.
It was a set of massive white claws.
*BAAAAAM*
The moment those claws touched the ground, they froze it solid!
“Fire! Fire everything at that gate!!” the Marshal shouted.
*BOOM*
*BAM*
*BAM*
The vehicles swiveled their cannons while still on the ground and opened fire toward the gate.
But…
*Swoooosh*
Frost Walls pierced through the earth and rose to block the first volley of bombardment.
Most of the walls quickly collapsed or were damaged, but their purpose had already been fulfilled.
A White Three-Tailed Fox appeared from behind the walls.
“AAAAAOOOOOOOOWWWWW—”
The fox let out a destructive howl that returned the land to an ice age.
*WHOOSH*
From between Devos's feet, something crawled across the ground swiftly—a Giant Five-Horned Snake that melted the rocks it passed over.
Then…
Whoosh
Above Devos, a Giant Seven-Colored Butterfly appeared, illuminating hundreds of miles around.
"Roooar—"
A massive roar shook the planet, as a Giant Pink Lion leaped from Devos's side, with a tail like a scorpion's and horns like a raging bull.
Bam
The Fox stepped forward majestically, and with each step, a new monster emerged behind it; each step struck terror into the hearts of the millions of soldiers watching this astonishing scene.
But the most astonishing sight was an Old Man emerging from the fur atop Devos's head.
That man pointed toward the Marshal, then shouted:
"Devos... bite."