Chapter 132: The Ancient Army
Smoke drifted through another ruined street.
An elderly Goblin woman stumbled forward, leaning heavily upon a cracked wooden cane. Every step looked painful.
Behind her, a Fire Lizard rounded the corner, its burning eyes locking onto the slow moving elder. It hissed, flames gathering inside its throat.
The old Goblin slowly looked back as her legs no longer had the strength to run. She closed her eyes.
The Fire Lizard opened its mouth.
"So this is where it ends," she whispered.
She remembered the day Raku had stood before everyone and talked about the Dawn Kingdom. "This kingdom will never abandon its people."
At the time she wanted to believe him. But now...
"...Looks like I won’t get to see it..."
Flames reflected across her wrinkled face.
She waited.
But then nothing came.
Then, booooooom!!
A gigantic stone shield crashed between them.
The flames exploded harmlessly against it.
The Fire Lizard barely had time to recoil before a massive stone sword swept downward.
Crack!! The beast split cleanly in half.
Silence filled the street. Dust slowly settled.
The elderly Goblin opened her eyes. Standing before her, a Goblin Statue, golden eyes glowing quietly beneath its stone helmet. For just a brief moment it looked toward her, then lowered its head, almost respectfully.
The elderly Goblin trembled. "...Volarian the Great?"
The Statue didn’t answer.
It couldn’t.
But for just a second, it placed one stone fist against its chest. The same salute carved into Dawn’s oldest monuments.
The elder trembled before she collapsed to her knees. "You... You guys really came back to help us... We really weren’t left on our own."
The elder then noticed the cracks on the armor as if he had been waiting centuries.
The Goblin Statue gently caressed her hair before turning and raising its stone sword. Then it took one step and then another before rushing towards another street where screams echoed.
The elder watched it disappear, tears slowly rolling down her wrinkled face. "Thank you," she said. "Our kingdom never abandoned us."
...
Elsewhere, several Titan Boulder Apes surrounded a damaged stone building. Inside, nearly a dozen Goblin teenagers huddled together. Some cried openly. Others desperately pushed broken furniture against the doorway.
Boom!! One fist struck. The walls shook, dust raining from the ceiling.
Another fist.
Crack!!
Stone split apart.
A young Goblin covered his little sister with his body. "It’s okay," he said. "It’ll be okay." Even though he didn’t believe it himself.
Another punch landed before the wall burst apart, and the lantern flooded into the room.
The Titan Boulder Apes grinned.
The teenagers screamed.
Then the golden mist quietly gathered.
One Spectral Goblin appeared.
Then another and then another.
Seven ancient warriors stood silently between the children and the beasts with their weapons shining under the lantern light.
One warrior slowly looked toward the terrified children. His deep voice echoed through the room.
"...The Kingdom still stands."
And for a moment, those words stunned the Goblins. All of them knew, even if years passed, nothing could make them forget those words.
One of the Goblin stuttered as he said. "...But. You’re dead! H-How could you appear!?"
"A warrior duty doesn’t end." The Spectral Knight said softly. "Until the last of his people doesn’t need protection anymore."
Then the ancient warriors vanished.
The room erupted!
A spear pierced straight through an Ape’s skull. Twin blades severed another’s arms. An axe crushed another’s chest.
Within seconds the battle ended.
Only the breathing of frightened children remained.
The Spectral Warriors looked back once and one gave a single nod. Then the mist carried them away once more.
The teenagers remained frozen.
One whispered, "Were those the heroes from the stories?"
...
Another district.
A deafening hiss echoed through the streets. Eight Crystal Serpents slithered after dozens of fleeing Goblins.
Among them were Goblins elders, parents, and children.
"Close the gate!"
"Protect the children!"
"Move!"
Everyone rushed inside a nearby stone warehouse. The heavy gate slammed shut. Parents immediately lifted children into their arms. Hunters pushed shelves against the entrance. Everyone breathed heavily.
Then the city shook as a massive tremor knocked everyone off balance. Dust poured from above. Outside, something enormous passed, its shadow covering the windows.
Nobody dared breathe.
"A Behemoth," someone whispered.
One mother covered her child’s mouth. "Hurry!" a Hunter said, struggling to reinforce the barricade.
Before they could finish, craaaaaack!!
Crystal spikes erupted through the floor.
The walls burst apart.
The Crystal Serpents had surrounded the building from every direction, hissing echoing everywhere, their crystal covered bodies reflecting the lantern light.
One after another they spat razor sharp crystal projectiles. The lower halves of several Goblins became trapped beneath crystal. Parents screamed. Children cried. The trapped Goblins desperately pulled at the crystal. It wouldn’t move.
The Crystal Serpents slowly approached and then one opened its jaws. Then another before soon, all Eight were leaning over the trapped Goblins. All ready to devour them as tears continued rushing down the Goblins face.
Then, whoosh!!
Something whistled overhead.
One hiss stopped.
Then another.
Then another.
One Serpent screamed and then another. Then another as stone arrows struck with incredible force, blood splashing across the floor.
Everyone looked upward to see standing atop the rooftops were Goblin Statues! Each carrying enormous stone bows, golden eyes overlooking the battlefield.
One Statue lowered its bow.
Another raised a stone shield.
A third pointed its sword forward.
Without a single command, every Statue moved together. Like hunters who had trained together for centuries.
Boom!!
The rooftops collapsed beneath them.
The ancient army entered the battle once more. Stone swords met crystal scales and the building erupted into another fierce battle.
The trapped Goblins could only stare.
One child whispered, "The city came to save us."
...
Nearby, a squad of wounded Goblin Hunters escorted injured Healers deeper into the city. Most could barely stand and every step hurts.
Behind them, two Behemoths charged, their footsteps shaking the streets. Nobody had enough strength left to fight.
One Hunter quietly smiled. "Guess this is it," he said.
Before the Behemoths reached them, booooooooom!! A Stone Guardian crashed into the first Behemoth. Both monsters tore through two buildings, stone exploding everywhere. Another Guardian intercepted the second, gigantic fists colliding, the shockwave shattering nearby windows.
Neither side gained ground. The Behemoths roared. The Stone Guardians answered with silent determination. The streets became another battlefield.
One exhausted Healer looked back. The Guardians weren’t winning. But they weren’t losing either. They had stopped the Behemoths. Long enough.
"Keep moving!" the Hunter shouted.
They resumed escorting the wounded while the Guardians remained behind, holding the line.
But then as one wounded Goblin looked back. He saw a Behemoth’s fist rushing toward him and the others around gasped.
He couldn’t move.
But the nearest Stone Guardian already noticed. Without hesitation, it stepped between them to the wounded Goblin disbelief.
BOOOOOOOM!!
The fist slammed into the Guardian’s back.
Cracks spread across the ancient stone.
The wounded Hunter stared upward. "...You protected me."
The Stone Guardian gently pushed the wounded Goblin forward. The goblin blinked before he was started to be dragged by those behind him.
And then the Behemoth roared.
Another fist crashed down.
BOOOOOOM!!
More cracks spread.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Each impact echoed across the street but the Guardian never moved. Not one inch as though protecting the wounded Goblin mattered more than protecting itself.
Only after the last wounded Hunter disappeared around the corner...
Did the Guardian finally turn.
Its stone spear lowered.
Then it charged.
...
In another district, the Goblin Statues were already clashing with the beasts after saving some Goblins.
A young Goblin boy peeked out from behind a collapsed wall. His tiny hands trembled. He watched a Goblin Statue cut down another beast."Mom... Are they here because of the Prophet?"
His mother looked toward the ancient defenders and then smiled. "No." She gently placed her hand on his head. "They’re here because the Prophet make them realize we were in trouble. And they couldn’t allow us to be bullied anymore."
The little Goblin eyes widened before he watched the ancient warriors charging through the streets.
For the first time since the siege began, he smiled.
...
At the wall, Mithra watched the chaos continue. The breach still existed. Beasts continued pouring through. The Goblins were exhausted. Many fought with broken weapons. Others had switched to stones after losing everything else.
Mithra herself breathed heavily, her sword arm trembling. Another Beast. Another slash. Another step backward.
Then, boom.
Boom.
Boom.
Heavy footsteps echoed behind them.
Every Goblin instinctively turned.
Through the smoke, Stone Guardians emerged. One. Then another. Then another. Their enormous bodies immediately blocked the breach. Behind them marched Goblin Statues, their formation never breaking. Golden mist drifted around them, and Spectral Goblins appeared one after another beside the living defenders.
For a brief moment nobody moved.
One Goblin whispered, "They’re here."
Another lowered his weapon. "The kingdom really answered us," he said.
An elderly Goblin Hunter slowly dropped to one knee as tears streamed down his face. "I... I thought we were alone."
One Spectral Warrior paused beside him and without speaking. It placed its hand upon the old Goblin’s shoulder.
Then continued charging.
The elderly Goblin laughed through his tears and he reached toward the fading figure. His hand trembled. "H-He’s from our family... Hahaha, I see no wonder... No wonder grandfather said our family has always been amazing..."
Then he picked up his weapon and charged beside his ancient ancestor.
A Stone Guardian stepped forward, lowered its spear, then charged.
The impact sent three Fire Lizards flying.
Goblin Statues followed immediately behind and were closing gaps wherever the wall had collapsed.
Spectral Goblins flowed between the living defenders like ghosts. One Spectral Hunter silently appeared behind a Crystal Serpent before piercing its neck. Another blocked an attack meant for an exhausted Goblin.
The pressure finally eased.
Every street, every breach, every rooftop, battle continued everywhere.
Mithra’s eyes shined as she shouted. "Don’t let them do all the work now. Keep on pushing through and show them that you guys surpass them!"
Every Goblin roared before charging alongside their ancestors.
Mithra then looked across the battlefield and for the first time she could breathe. Only for a moment. Then another Beast charged, and the fighting resumed immediately.
The battle continued.
Stone Guardians clashed against Behemoths.
Goblin Statues exchanged arrows with Fire Lizard.
Spectral Warriors cut through the beasts that slipped into the city.
The battlefield finally stabilized.
Neither side gained ground.
Then Mithra noticed movement far from the breach. The Fire Lizard Chief never looked back and neither did the Crystal Serpent Chief.
The wall...
The defenders...
The battle...
None of it mattered anymore as they wanted to cut everything off by killing the future before it grows.
"They’re avoiding us." Mithra’s eyes widened. "Wait. That area isn’t where the throne is. The civilians!"
She immediately tried chasing them.
But then a Crystal Serpent blocked her path. She cut it down and then another replaced it. Then three Fire Lizards and then another dozen of beasts surged toward her together.
The realization struck immediately. "They’re distracting me," she said.
She desperately tried pushing forward. But then a Behemoth blocked her way, making her pause and jump back as a fist came crashing down.
The two Chiefs disappeared into the smoke.
Mithra gritted her teeth so hard blood filled her mouth. "Damn it," she said.
Just then several Spectral Goblins noticed.
Three Spectral Warriors.
Two Goblin Statues.
Without exchanging a single word, they rushed from where they were and left the walls behind. They pursued the two Chiefs through the burning streets. One Spectral Warrior briefly stopped as he looked across the burning city.
The broken walls.
The smoke.
The cries.
For just one moment his expression became distant. "...Never again."
Then he vanished into the smoke after the two Chiefs.
Mithra watched them disappear. She slowly tightened her grip around her sword. "Please," she said. "Protect them."
The battle continued.
The Goblins had survived the collapse.
The awakened defenders had prevented Dawn from falling.
But victory remained distant.
Deep within the city, the Crystal Serpent Chief surged across another rooftop. The Fire Lizard Chief burst through a burning building.
Behind them were Goblin Statues leaping across rooftops and Spectral Warriors glided silently through the smoke.
One side raced to destroy Dawn’s future.
The other raced to protect it.
Neither side knew who would arrive first.