Sword of Dawn

Page 483

Claremont Dart stood on a high hill, overlooking the land that was still emitting thick smoke and flames not far away, looking at the wreckage and flags scattered among the black soil and white snow, I didn't say a word for a long time.

It was not until a few minutes later that a gust of wind howled and rolled up the loose snow particles on the hill, and the Typhon nobleman said to the mage attendant beside him in a deep voice: "Is that the damage caused by the weapons of the Cecils? "

"Yes, my lord," the mage's attendant bowed his head and replied, "according to information, the Cecils call it 'Rainbow', a high-purity, high-intensity arcane focused ray that can last for a long time, which is amazingly powerful and powerful. The range is extremely long. At this time last year, this technology was not yet mature, and due to heat dissipation problems, the Cecils could only install it on a fixed position or on a ship, but this year they installed it on their On the moving fortress of..."

"Moving Fortress..." Earl Claremont narrowed his eyes. In the sky above his head, a mage's eye was facing the direction of the defense line of Winter Wolf Castle. In the center of the indifferent and detached "pupil" of the mage's eye, a reflection The railway and bunker on the horizon in the distance, and the armored train moving to the south, "I can see that it is indeed an incredible creation."

"Yeah, it's unbelievable... That unbelievable thing has caused us several heavy casualties, and even directly destroyed several of our fortresses - it moves quickly, is terrifyingly powerful, and has strong protective capabilities. It is a steel fortress armed to the teeth, and it runs fast on wheels, we have nothing to do with it," the mage attendant sighed, "Earl Palin Winterhold once organized an air raid, We almost succeeded, but failed due to lack of preparation, and then the Cecilians immediately learned their lesson and began to use those flying machines to prevent our air raids."

Claremont controlled the Mage's Eye. He searched carefully in the distant sky, and finally locked on the small black spots flying through the clouds.

"It doesn't matter...we are here to solve this problem," he said in a deep voice, and at the same time raised his head and stared directly at the northwest sky with his naked eyes - in his line of sight, a large-scale cloud layer was rapidly forming and heading towards the winter wolf The direction of the fort defense line moved, "Is it a miracle of war... Go ask those priests, when will the 'miracle' they talk about be fully formed?"

"I asked just now, and the priest who presided over the ceremony said that everything is going well, and the gods responded very positively to this prayer—they suggested that you leave in 10 minutes."

Claremont nodded slightly: "Very good—inform the mages and the Griffin Knights to prepare in 10 minutes."

……

Near the hill where Claremont is located, in a large-scale assembly hall, the sacred ceremony has come to an end.

A War God priest wearing a priest's robe stood in the circular assembly hall, leading nearly a hundred priests to pray for the last chapter. The low and solemn prayer reverberated in the hall, even covering up the howling of the cold wind outside There was a sound, and in the center of the hall, on a platform slightly higher than the surrounding ground, the flames in the huge brazier were burning fiercely, and a layer of iron gray luster was gradually appearing in the constantly beating flames.

The Priest of the God of War walked around the flame for the last time, and stopped at an extremely precise position and time. He turned to face the flame, and turned his back to the priests who were bowing their heads in prayer. look.

He can feel that his Lord has cast a concerned gaze on this world.

This is a precarious period, a dark and depressing period, and the situation seems to be extremely bad. In Aldernan, in most places in the hinterland of the empire, public gatherings of the God of War and prayer activities have been brutally banned. Believers and priests try to Resisting, but unable to confront the Augustus family, which firmly held the military power, made many priests disheartened, and some were even punished for having the idea of ​​betraying the gods.

But here, the priest felt hope again.

After all, the tyrannical emperor didn't have the guts to completely abandon the gods. He still knew who had been sheltering Typhon for hundreds of years. Here, in this place closest to the front line of the war, the priests could still pray and carry out this kind of grand ceremony. Sacred rituals on a large scale, communicating with the gods... Is there anything more comforting and inspiring than this?

The northern front line is cold and miserable, of course not as comfortable as the warm church at the rear, but for devout priests, as long as they can get closer to the gods, they are the most comfortable places.

This battlefield is the place closest to the gods, and every devout God of War priest can feel this here: as the war continues and order is re-established, they are on the front line of Winter Wolf Castle-Winter Castle. Feeling the aura from the gods more and more clearly, there is no doubt that this entire area has become a sacred place - just like the "sanctuary" mentioned in the classics, this battlefield closest to the truth of God, It has become the closest place to the Kingdom of God in this world.

A smile appeared on the face of the Priest of the God of War. He stared at the brazier in front of him. The six eyes and three gaps on his face were filled with smiles. In the blazing flames, he saw the pope he had always loved— — Malm Dunit was standing there, showing a gentle and loving smile to the devoutly praying priests in the assembly hall.

The surrounding prayers have finally reached the last stage, the invisible bridge has been established, and the connection between the world of gods and the world of mortals has become stronger than ever in this assembly hall.

Without hesitation, the priest took out the iron dagger and cut a deep gash in the palm of his hand. Before the wound wriggled and healed, he sprinkled the blood into the brazier.

The blazing flame rose suddenly, and the iron-gray color in the flame spread rapidly. In the next second, the flames in the entire brazier were dyed with this steel color, and a majestic and majestic aura descended on the assembly hall.

"Lord! Please send down a miracle!"

Chapter 1008 "Miracle"

The Dust Serpent and the iron scepter armored train serving as the escort mission are speeding along parallel tracks. The two war machines have left the plain and entered the mountainous area near the Shadow Swamp a few minutes ago—the rolling small The mountains passed by quickly outside the car window, and the sky became dimmer than before.

Maryland came to the window and saw that the sky as far as he could see outside the car window was completely covered by iron-gray clouds. The weak sunlight barely penetrated the clouds, and there was a disturbing pale glow in the depths of the clouds.The cold wind whistled outside the car window, and the snow and dust in the distance were blown up by the wind, forming a floating and cloudy curtain, and the depth of the curtain was deserted.

This is a typical no-man's land on the northern border, and similar desolate scenes are very common here.

The current cloudy weather is also common in these days.

However, a vague uneasiness still lingers in Maryland's heart. He can't tell what the source of this uneasiness is, but his experience on the battlefield makes him never dare to describe this kind of anxiety. The "intuition" thing is left behind at will - he has always believed in the philosophy of Falman, a great scholar in the First Dynasty of Ansu, and this scholar once had a famous saying: Behind all intuitions is the consciousness of the surface Ignored clues.

This sense of unease should not have arisen out of thin air. It must be something inappropriate around him. He hasn't noticed it yet, but his subconscious mind has noticed these dangers. Now it is his accumulated years of experience in life and death that is subconsciously calling the police. .

"General," the adjutant at the side noticed Maryland's gloomy expression, which seemed particularly abnormal after a smooth military mission, "what happened?"

"Did the aerial reconnaissance find anything?" Maryland asked with a frown. "Any news from the ground reconnaissance force?"

The adjutant was stunned for a moment, not understanding why the officer suddenly asked about this matter at this time, but he immediately replied: "I just made contact 5 minutes ago, and everything is normal-we have entered the long-range artillery cover area on the 18th highland, and we are ready to Fengren has suffered a loss here before, so he probably won't do the same stupid thing again."

Then he paused, and then continued: "In addition, the dragoons just sent a message that the clouds in the sky are increasing, which has affected the effect of visual detection, and they are lowering their altitude."

"Clouds..." Maryland repeated the word subconsciously, and his gaze fell on the thick cloud in the sky again. Suddenly, he felt that the shape and color of the cloud seemed a bit weird, not like what it looks like under natural conditions , This made the vigilance in his heart suddenly rise to the peak, "I feel that the situation is a bit wrong... Let the dragoons pay attention to the movement in the clouds, the Typhons may use the clouds to launch air strikes!"

The adjutant's eyes widened slightly. He first quickly carried out the officer's order, and then returned to Maryland with a hint of doubt: "Is this possible? Sir? Even with the cover of the clouds, flying mages and griffins should not be the opponents of the dragoons." ..."

Maryland didn't answer, he just stared at the sky outside, in the iron-gray cloud, snowflakes had already started to fall, and in just ten seconds after that, these falling snowflakes rapidly increased in number and density, and the car The cold wind howling outside the window became more and more violent, and a word flashed across Maryland's mind like lightning-blizzard.

At this moment, he suddenly had a seemingly absurd and chilling thought: In the northern regions in winter, wind and snow are normal things, but if... the Typhons use some powerful miraculous power to Man-made a blizzard?

What if this blizzard wasn't just a blizzard?

"Sir!" A technical soldier suddenly reported loudly from the side, "The magic sensor device on the vehicle has failed! All sensors have been interfered!"

"Call the Shadow Swamp Base and request air support from the Dragoon Special Operations Echelon," Maryland ordered without hesitation, "We may be in trouble!"

……

The wind was howling outside the shield, and the high-level air flow was so cold and strong that even high-ranking powerhouses would be discouraged. Ice crystals as sharp as blades were engulfed in it, and the thick clouds rolled in all directions like a mass of silt that was too thick to melt. Every time there is a faint roar and crooning sound - this is an environment that is difficult for human beings to live in. It is difficult for even a strong military griffin to fly in this kind of cloud, but Claremont did not Feeling the stress and damage of the bad weather, on the contrary, he just felt like a spring breeze in the source of the blizzard.

The hundreds of battle mages flying beside him and the even larger number of Griffin Knights seemed equally relaxed.

The terrible strong wind and low temperature seemed to actively bypass these Typhon soldiers, and the substantial blocking force in the clouds did not affect them at all. Claremont flew in the strong wind and thick clouds, and the clouds not only did not stop him Instead, it was like a pair of extra eyes that allowed him to clearly see everything inside and outside the clouds.

He lowered his altitude a little bit, looking at the Cecil flying machines lingering in the distance from the edge of the clouds, and at the same time overlooking the armored trains driving on the ground from the corner of his eye, endless magic power surged around him, he felt Every breath he takes is replenishing himself with strength, which is something he has never felt in the past few decades of his mage career.

This is one of the miraculous rites of the God of War - Hosts in the Storm.

As a mage, Claremont doesn't know much about the details of the God of War sect, but as a polymath, he at least knows about these famous miracle rituals and the corresponding religious allusions behind them.Among the descriptions of the many great deeds of the god of war, there is a chapter that describes the image and actions of this god: He marched in the storm, and the wicked looked at him with fear, and saw only one standing in the storm and wearing a cloak. A giant in gray armor.This giant is invisible in the eyes of mediocrity, only the ubiquitous storm is his cloak and banner, the warriors follow this banner, in the storm they are given endless power and three lives, and finally win the doomed victory .

Now, these mages and griffin riders flying in the blizzard and preparing to carry out air strike missions are the "warriors" in the fable.

Claremont took a deep breath, feeling the surging magic power in his body, and activated the communication spell: "Spread out the queue, group into groups according to the plan, and get close to those flying machines—destroy those damn machines first, the mobile fortress of the Cecilians It's easy to deal with!"

The battle mages and griffin knights in the clouds quickly began to carry out the commander's orders, approaching the flying machines that were so clear in their field of vision in the form of a mixed team, and at this moment, the blizzard had completely formed.

……

Within the curtain formed by howling winds, turbulent clouds and mist, and ice, snow, and water vapor, visibility is rapidly declining. Such bad weather has begun to interfere with the normal flight of the dragoons. Enables additional environmental protection.

More solid and thicker shields than usual shone around the aircraft. The power spine of the aircraft hummed, transferring more energy to the protection and stabilization system. The "dragon wings" on both sides of the tapered body Slightly retracted, the edge of the wing-like structure lit up with additional rune groups, more powerful wind blessings and elemental affinity spells were attached to these huge steel machines, and under the effect of temporary enchantment, they were bumped by air currents The aircraft gradually regained its stability.

The commander of the Dragoon Squadron clenched the joystick in his hand and concentrated on observing the surrounding environment. As an experienced Griffin Rider, he had also carried out flying missions in bad weather, but such a big blizzard would not allow him to fly. It was also the first time I encountered it.The communication from the surface made him more vigilant, and the sudden strong airflow seemed to confirm the chief's concern: this storm was very abnormal.

The Typhons may be hiding deep in the clouds.

Visibility has been reduced to a disturbing level, and the situation in the distance can no longer be seen clearly with the naked eye. The mechanic activated the additional filter around the cockpit. Present in the squadron leader's line of sight, it was not clear, but at least it served as some kind of forewarning.

In the direction of the surface, the sweeping wind and snow are also seriously obstructing the line of sight. The figures of the two armored trains look hazy, and it can only be vaguely judged that they are gradually accelerating.

At this moment, the squadron leader suddenly saw a flash of fire in the clouds in the distance.

In the field of view of the distorted filter, it is obvious that a large area of ​​spell fluctuations suddenly appeared in the originally empty midair.

"Visual sight of the enemy!" In the internal channel, the squadron leader's loud warning sounded, "Southeast direction——"

"No. 12 is under attack!" "No. 6 is under attack!" "Under attack! This is No. 7!" "Exchanging fire with the enemy! Ask for cover! I'm bitten!"

A dazzling red light beam shot from a distance, fortunately, he had raised his vigilance in advance, the power spine of the aircraft had already operated at full power and activated all the protection systems, the light beam hit a ripple on the shield, the squadron leader controlled While adopting the posture of a dragoon, they began to use the airborne Arcane Missile Launcher to fire a dense barrage of bullets forward, and at the same time continuously issued orders: "Scatter to the two wings!" "Second and third teams, strafing the clouds in the southeast direction!" "All Turn on the identification lights, and distance yourself from the enemy!" "Call for ground fire cover!"

Fierce battles broke out suddenly, and countless enemies suddenly appeared in the blizzard like ghosts - Typhon's battle mages and griffin knights surged out of the thick clouds, and the dragons made of flesh and steel The cavalry aircraft started a fight, and compared with the Typhon Air Force in Cecil's impression, these enemies that appeared suddenly were obviously abnormal: more agile, faster, and more fearless.The harsh environment of the blizzard made the dragoons feel constrained, but the Typhons, who were supposed to be more vulnerable, seemed to gain extra strength in the storm, becoming fierce and powerful!

The battle mages and the Griffin Knights began to attack the flying machines with missiles, lightning, and high-energy rays, and the latter responded with more violent and long-lasting dense barrages. Suddenly, the dark sky was illuminated by continuous fire, high Explosions in the air blew away the clouds and snowstorm again and again, and in every flash, countless shadows fighting in the storm could be seen. This scene made Claremont's heart surge.

He has never witnessed such a scene, never experienced such a battlefield!

Flesh and steel machines fought to the death in a blizzard. Missiles, lightning, and light beams pierced the sky. Two armies competed for dominance of the sky here. Regardless of today's outcome, this unprecedented air battle is destined to be recorded in the history!

High-intensity lights suddenly swept across the sky, and the figures fighting in the sky were reflected in the sweeping lights. In the next second, there were continuous explosions and whistling sounds from the direction of the surface—the light blue shell tail Scars and red high-energy beams swept across the sky, and the bursting shrapnel and deafening roar shook the entire battlefield.

The anti-aircraft guns of the Iron Scepter and the Montana Serpent fired.

Earl Claremont frowned—he and the battle mages he led were still not close enough to attack the armored trains.

"Allegiance to our empire!" In the force field formed by the wide-area communication technique, he heard a fanatical griffin knight commander utter a roar, and in the next second, he saw a griffin in front of its master. Driven by forceful mind control, the brave knight walked through the anti-aircraft barrage and air-to-air barrage, but his good luck soon came to an end: a magic crystal shell from the ground flew past him. However, after sensing the passing magical breath, the shell detonated in the air, and the terrifying shock wave and high-heat air mass easily tore apart the protective aura around the knight, and tore him and his griffin apart.

A second later, the shredded knight and griffin once again condensed into shape, appeared at the place where they died before, and continued to charge downward.

The god of war made a miracle, and the brave warriors who fought bravely in the storm will be given endless power and...three lives.

A flying machine passed by the fanatical knight, firing a series of dense bullet screens. The knight rushed towards the bullet screen without fear, and at the same time waved a long spear condensed by lightning power——Next Seconds later, his body was torn apart again, but the flying machine was also hit by the spear at a certain key position, and exploded into a bright fireball in the air.

A moment later, Claremont saw the knight reappeared, his torn body reunited in the air, and he was flying in the strong wind. Behind him, the tentacles-like hypertrophic tissue and the cloak formed of flesh and blood fluttered around. A ferocious monster rushed towards the anti-aircraft barrage again.

Miracles require a price—those who are close to God must not be human.

A dazzling light beam pierced the sky, and the hideous and distorted knight was hit again by the anti-aircraft fire from the armored train. His flying flesh cloak and tentacles all over the sky were instantly ignited and evaporated by the high-energy beam, and the whole person became a Several pieces of charred wreckage fell from the sky.

This time, the knight never appeared again.

This is the third time—miracles are limited, and those who exhaust them will return to the gods.

"It seems that the three lives given by the gods are not enough in front of the 'new gadget' of the Cecilians."

Claremont laughed and raised his hands high, calling for the power of storm, lightning, frost and fire, and rushed forward again.

1009 Blizzard

The anti-aircraft artillery roared, and the high-heat air flow rushed out of the heat dissipation grid. The snow was evaporated by the heat flow, and the steam and smoke were engulfed in the blizzard together. The low-hanging clouds and the blizzard opened a fire net—in the flash of the fire net, countless shadows were fighting and fighting.

Flesh and steel machines, flying knights and modern soldiers armed with magic technology, this scene seems to be a fierce collision between two eras in the sky, the sparks and fragments generated by the collision are scattered and splashed, and melted into the roar of the blizzard middle.

The image in the sky was transmitted from the external monitor above the car, and Maryland watched this tragic scene with a livid face—he had seen this kind of collision before, this kind of violent conflict as if the era had changed, but the last time the collision happened On the ground, and this time... in the sky.

"Sir! Those Typhon people are abnormal!" The observer shouted and reported, "They seem to be resurrected! And the fighting power is far stronger than the guys we met before!"

"If you can resurrect, kill a few more times, if you are too strong, concentrate your firepower, use all the anti-aircraft artillery firepower, and take out those individual missile launchers - flesh and blood are weaker than machines!" Maryland stood on the podium. , ordered loudly in a calm tone, "How long will it take us to break out of this blizzard?"

"Sir!" Another communications soldier in charge of contacting the air force immediately reported loudly, "The high-altitude reconnaissance plane reported that this blizzard has been following us—we are always in the very center of it!"

"Damn it...it really was the work of those Typhons..." Maryland cursed in a low voice, his eyes looked at the car window beside him, through the strengthened crystal glass and thick shield, he Seeing the iron scepter armored train escorted by the side was fully fired, the small forts set up on the roof and on both sides of some sections kept shooting at the sky, and suddenly, a huge ball of fire fell from the sky and hit the train hard On the shield at the top, there were three consecutive fireballs—the shield flickered violently for a moment, and although the gap closed again the next moment, a fireball had already penetrated the shield and hit the car. body.

The powerful force contained in the fireball exploded, and the roof of the iron scepter burst into dazzling light. Amidst the huge roar and the harsh noise of metal tearing and twisting, an anti-aircraft gun and a large piece of armor structure broke away in the explosion. Hulls, flames and smoke rose from the midsection of the armored train, and between the broken armor plates, Maryland could see that train's damage control team working quickly to extinguish the spreading flames.

Some of the enemies are already close enough to directly attack the armored train, which shows that the dragoon squadron in the sky is in a hard fight and has been unable to intercept all the enemies.

Obviously, this weird blizzard is not just as simple as obscuring sight and interfering with flight.

"This is probably a 'miracle' level magic..." Maryland gritted her teeth and looked at the adjutant aside, "When will the reinforcements from the Shadow Swamp arrive?"

"The special warfare formation took off a few minutes ago, but the weather conditions are too bad. I don't know when they will arrive," the adjutant quickly reported. "In addition, the scope of the blizzard has expanded again..."

Before the adjutant finished speaking, a blinding flash of light suddenly erupted outside the car window. Maryland saw a blazing fireball falling from the sky in the distance, and a light blue halo of magic energy shone in the fireball. Among the flames, the twisted and deformed cockpit and dragon wing structure can still be discerned—the remaining power is still functioning, it slowly descended in the blizzard, but the falling speed became faster and faster, and finally it hit the east side of the The mountain ridge exploded violently in the dark sky.

The pilots of the Dragoons are equipped with emergency escape devices. Their special "armor" is embedded with small weight-reducing runes and wind element blessing modules. The pilot of that aircraft may have escaped from the aircraft in advance, but In this terrible snowstorm, their chances of survival are still slim.

At the same time that the flying machine fell, the torn remains of Griffin Knights or Battle Mages continued to fall from the sky.

Maryland watched this scene, but soon he withdrew his gaze, and continued to calmly command the huge war machine beside him to face the enemy in the blizzard.

This level of "miracle" magic cannot be released in an instant. Such a large-scale air force also needs a certain amount of time to mobilize and adapt, as well as the preliminary intelligence investigation and the selection and judgment of the ambush site. All of these must be detailed. The result of the planning—the Typhonians had probably been planning this attack for a long time.

Obviously, the "steel propulsion" of the armored trains really put a lot of pressure on them, so they will go to such lengths to destroy these war machines.

The loud sound of the magic cannon kept ringing, and even across the barrier, there was still a continuous low roar in the tactical section of the car. Two armored trains were speeding between the mountains against the strong wind, and the anti-aircraft artillery swept more wreckage from the air from time to time. Falling down, this process lasted for an unknown amount of time, and at the edge of the blizzard, towards the direction of the Shadow Swamp, a formation of dragoons with black paint was flying at full speed.

The clouds in front showed an obviously abnormal iron-gray color, which was beyond the scope of normal "clouds". Instead, it was more like a solid mass of iron slowly rotating in the sky, and the violent hurricane engulfed the blizzard in Roaring in the distance, it was a daunting sight - if it weren't for the special shields and wind element-friendly enchanting technology of the Dragoon fighter, this extremely bad weather would definitely not be suitable for any flying missions.

The formation of dragoons with black paint did not slow down or hesitate in the face of this terrifying celestial phenomenon. After a slight increase in altitude, they rushed straighter towards the area where the storm gathered, like a carnival.

Inside the aircraft serving as the captain, a female pilot with short black hair tightly held the joystick in her hand. She stared at the cloud wall that was approaching in front of her eyes, her eyes narrowed slightly, and the corners of her mouth turned up.

The voice of the wingman came from the communicator next to the console: "Captain, we are about to enter the storm!"

"I see, I see!" the short-haired woman grinned, with an excited smile on her face, "wuhu—this thing is much more exciting than the breeze in the simulation training!"

"Maximum output!" The pilot who was the mechanic shouted behind her, "We will enter the snowstorm range in 15 seconds!"

The short-haired woman turned on the communication of the whole team and shouted loudly: "Girls and boys! Go in and have a dance! Your eyes are wide open - those who are left behind and lost should find a mountain to kill themselves and don't come back. !"

In the next second, there was a burst of excited cheers from the communicator: "wuhu—"

……

Another flying machine was engulfed by flames in the distance. The blazing fireball rolled continuously in the strong wind, and slowly slid down towards the distant ridge. Before the fireball detonated, two faint figures came from the thing. Jumped out of the cockpit, falling like fallen leaves in the snowstorm.

Claremont stood high in the sky, watching this scene indifferently, and did not choose to make up for the final blow-this is his moral code as a nobleman.

He knows that the era of traditional aristocracy and chivalry has passed, and the current war seems to be a more unscrupulous thing. His persistence has long been the laughing stock of many people-but let them laugh, on him, That glorious era is not over yet, and it will truly end only when the end of life comes.

What's more, falling into such a terrible snowstorm, it is impossible for those who escaped from the flying machine to survive a few.

The cold wind howled in all directions, and the flames of the explosion and the pungent smell filled all senses. He looked around the battlefield and frowned involuntarily.

Before today, no one had imagined such a sight;

Before today, no human country could support this kind of air power;