Dawn, the next day and the rising sun shed its light on defences primed and ready to receive the full might of Kane's horde. Composite Infantry man the parapets and automated turrets are primed. Assembled they watched and waited the hour of battle as it drew near.

The General watched through binoculars from the gatehouse as he saw the forest get churned up by the encroaching horde. He turned on the scanner and saw a wall of identified signatures marching towards him.

"Open fire." He ordered calmly.

The air reverberated with the scream of a thousand guns. The world ignited with the light of a dying sun under the plasma bombardment. They forest seemed to shatter and vaporise under the immense heat.

Nothing survived the horrendous firestorm. Sentient and non-sentient alike all burned in the intense firestorm. The earth rumbled as huge columns of purple light shot up into the air. Masses of stone collected in clouds of dirt and rocks.

Soon they took on Titanic humanoid forms. Each colossal construct stood a hundred feet tall as they began to charge the walls. Lucas watched all this from his location and was unmoved.

"Get a message to Imperial Vessel Blazing Heart. Enter the fray. Target the big ones." He ordered.

Over the raging roar of battle came a dim drone that grew louder by the second. Then the earth shivered and quaked while the air within his very lungs vibrated as a massive ship descended through the Omega gate and charged into position.

Like a god, it unleashed the full fury if its firepower. Raining fire and death down upon the forest below. Its shadow blotted out the sun and in its place shone fiery vengeance as plasma batteries blasted away any sense of life.

In response, the skies were filled with all manner of flying creatures. They swarmed the Blazing heart's colossal structure without delay. Its shields flickered as it repelled the innumerable attacks throughout the hull.

Soon those who survived turned their attention upwards as the massive ship waded through the horde. Responding with herculean magical firepower. They fired beams of energy up at it with little effect.

Then the earth before Lucas shook as explosions deep underground erupted in great fireballs of damnation. All along the battleline underground mines detonated upon contact with burrowing gorgons.

Lucas frowned all was well. This was going too smoothly. So he turned to his adjutant. The man was on the radio directing fire like the good man he was. That is until the general caught his attention.

"Find Godfrey! I need him here!" He ordered.

"Aye, sir!" The adjutant responded.

With a salute, he took off with another taking his place. Something irked him about this. To any fool, this would seem like an easy victory. However, after a lifetime of war, he learned that there could be no such thing.

Even as the cries of the dead and dying go on unheeded. The scorched remains of thousands filled the earth and melded with soil. The Horde was shattered under the might of modern warfare. Let them despair in Blazing Heart's blazing might.

Time went on and the walls went quiet as so few survived the frigate's decent that they only need the snipers to finish them off. Every now and then an underground mine would detonate in the face of a sneaky gorgon.

Already the men celebrated a victory with cheers as sat back and watched Blazing heart to her bloody work. In their wake remained a scorched and scarred earth. Nothing but ashen wastes survived the colossal bombardment.

Soon a voice in the air shook the spines of humans all around. It echoed in the very thoughts of men and thudded in their beating hearts. They wailed and roared in fear and pain as magic coursed through them all.

Many died as the souls of the dead and living were drawn into a singular point. The mind blistering voice turned into a deafening screeched as mystical power gathered into the form of a beast. With a final magnificent detonation, a mighty elemental is born.

Taking on the element of water a mighty Kraken the size of Blazing Fire formed and roared to life. To Lucas' horror as Blazing Heart's guns were turned to the new threat it wrapped its powerful tendrils around the frigate.

Blazing Heart's energy shields blazed to life as they buckled under the crushing force of the elemental's attack. It was not long before they shattered and the tendrils ploughed into the ship itself.

Blazing Heart wailed and screeched in pain as thousands of tonnes of metal rusted and dissolved as the massive creature torn it apart. It was not long before the reactor self-destructed as the ship came crashing to the ground.

"Close the blast shields! Brace for impact!" Cried out Lucas as even he ducted.

Then the ship hit the ground and the very planet shook as the apocalyptic blast erupted from Blazing Heart's corpse. The shock wave hit with such force it threw Lucas and the other officers against the opposite wall.

Dazed, battered and bruised Lucas staggered onto his feet as moans and groans filled the air. This is not good. With the defences battered by that blast there in no telling what is coming next. He made it to his window and peered through the vision slit as the blast shield closed.

A massive ocean of mutants swarmed over the ashen wastes while the mighty element loomed above. The thing was thousands of meters tall and its tendrils reached far and wide. Death had come for them all.

He burst out the door only to find his men in ramshackle condition. Shaken by the sudden loss of Blazing Heart their morale dwindled. In an instant, he dashed out picking up the survivors with his bare hands and throwing them against the defences.

"You call yourselves soldiers of the UF? Look to the front! Mark your targets as they come!" He roared.

The troops recollected themselves and fought on. Now the real battle had started. The cries of the wounded filled the air as the stench of death filled his nostrils to no surprise of his own. This felt natural; this is the true form of war, bloody, dirty and deadly.

Twas not long before the hallowed celestial knights surged overhead. With ease, they spread death and destruction before them. With their combined power they engaged the elemental without hesitation.

Lucas fumed with anger at the sight of the knights. He knew they wouldn't so he didn't bother doing anything about it. The general thought they were too eager, too reckless and too overconfident. Lucas would not be surprised if this would be their downfall.

Tens of thousands fell; as yet again the godlike might of the celestials was unleashed. Caught in the moment they advanced upon the enemy paying no heed to safety and restraint. Sensing victory they channelled their relentless fury into crushing their foes.

Tendrils of blue and gold flickered through the air and light flashed as shields strained to stay active. The very atmosphere trembled in the face of this mighty death match. The elemental construct held its own for some time but buckled under the combined might of five celestial knights.

With a final ear-piercing squeal, the elemental degenerated into a small sun then detonated. The knights braced themselves as a shockwave battered against their titanic hulls. In but a moment the terror was no more.

Yet for that was death had filled the air with ethereal energies as the souls of thousands lingered. Reinvigorated with the magical potential the terran mages called upon their newfound might. They set the world alight with their energies while the endless horde charges into their death.

The light formed great runes in the sky and tore it open to release the energy of the slain. Dozens of colossi fell from the heavens, each one the equal of the elemental. Not even the might of the celestials could them back.

Some arose from the ground. One even spawned within a knight. The celestial's death screams could be heard throughout the comm channels as a water elemental burst out of her exploding knight. The detonation of the knight's reactor sent a violent shock that broke the shields of the other four.

A city cowers in fear as the other four knights are torn asunder. All now knew the sheer horror of Kane's wrath as he made his appearance in the wake of the titanic detonations of the knight's reactors. With pleasure and gladness, he stared down at the cowering city.

From his elevated place in the heavens, he could see it all. He could see the burning husk of Blazing Heart. He could see the blasted walls and he could sense his bride awaiting him. This, this is what power his and this is justice.

Lucas sighed as he watched the celestials' downfall. He looked around at his paralysed army. Distraught at the sight of great monstrosities and great loss they began to quake and shiver. In the face of such a show of force, they reverted to frightened children.

He turned to one who hid behind cover shivering in fear.

"Soldier, give me your gun." He ordered

"It's no use, sir! Nothing can stop them!" The trooper cried.

As he took it he reflected upon his whole life. An entire life filled with war. From the toxic wastes of Mars to the paradises of Venus and Mercury he had been at war his entire life. Perhaps now the end might finally come he wondered.

He then checked the clip and primed the weapon. He reflected on all the great times of crisis he had lived through. Then he found that nothing ever changes in war. He smiled grimly and prepared to die. Without hesitation, he thrust it into the air.

"Death for glory!" He roared.

The instant every single Martian heard those ancient famous words their hearts turned to stone. With all their strength they stood up and roared back at him.

"DEATH FOR GLORY!"

With renewed will, they threw themselves into the defence and the guns resumed firing. One by one the Venusians joined in the desperate defence. These monsters cannot be allowed to prey upon the populace of Nova City.

One cowering Venusian stared at one of the titans. One made of stone.

"How can we possibly fight these things? They're so big." he uttered in fear.

A Martian smacked him on the back.

"It means we can't miss. Now Come on! Death for glory!" he roared.

Elsewhere a warden blasted off the arm off of another stone construct. All around it cheers of approval echoed among the rejoicing troops. At the gatehouse, Lucas fired away as a particularly aggressive water colossus charged ahead.

"Focus fire on the closest one!" Lucas ordered.

The obedient soldiers turned the guns upon it without thought and fired. Extremely hot plasma blew into the water, evaporating the creature piecemeal. It ground to a crawl, riled by the pain it roared in anger.

It got very close, almost within tendril's reach of the walls but the toll was too high and it fell apart. Water vaporised into the blowing wind as it collapsed in on itself. Yet more were to follow. There were still another ten still out there.

Out from the massive columns of steam roared a stone titan. Plasma fire was blasting off its right arm so it swung left and flung it over the defences. Several tonnes of rock went slammed into Nova City behind them.

Then something took flight and at high speed smashed straight through the beast, shattering it utterly. Then it took off to smash through another one. Followed by a beam of light vaporising a water-based construct and then the being flew into a wind construct and dissipated it.

It was Minerva. Unable to withstand the torrent of souls flowing through the world she went berserk. With the overwhelming emotions of the endless thousands dying before her permeating through her body, she quickly lost her ability to reason.

The anger, despair and outrage of a million souls overrode her mind. Now she sought out the blood of the murderer who forced this horror upon them all. This she found in Kane. She roared with all her might and she surged straight at him.

Kane looked down and found her, his bride, his love but something was wrong. She was broken in disgust and despair he started to weep as he met her in battle. His own wife twisted and perverted into a raging beast. He must end this.