Sinister Knight: Dawn Of A Sinful Calamity

Chapter 63: Long Gully

"Going for the swift approach is the best, if we let this battle play for long, we will be forced to battle our opponents in the deep dark." Marzel who had just rode up to Hannah said as they both stood in front of over 2000 men who had spears and shields in their hands, the men lined in neat formation and staring down at the valley where a red and black hue had begun rising.

Hannah nodded her head to her vice's words though she doubted they could avoid the night.

Looking left and right, Hannah noticed the few incomplete trenches, the ballistas, two make-shift catapults to the far sides and 6 military units who were all in formation and ready to battle, three of the units looking down at the valley, while the other two stood behind and then the last unit stood at the back.

"Is Rachira not yet back"

"No, but when I get back to my unit, I'll be sending someone to check on her."

"Do that"

Thinking of Rachira, Hannah thought of Blake, but then she could only sigh at the fact that she met this genius boy at such a horrible time and then further lament how stubborn and unyielding he was.

With the best of her abilities and even to her shame employing the use of her bountiful cleavage, Hannah had tried to get Blake to join the support unit which was Rachira's unit, an action which was clearly meant to protect him but he had vehemently refused choosing to want to fight on the front lines.

"Urghhh, he had better not die, I have a lot on my mind right now and won't be able to protect him.

Speaking a few more words with Marzel and making adjustments as she received updates on some of her army's current capabilities, a few minutes later, Marzel left her side and a few more minutes later, the shallow valley below which had been releasing more and more red and black hue suddenly began trembling, the ground cracking and splintering as pure evil mana that had a shiver going through everyone was released in copious quantities.

Many of the soldier's eyes widened and narrowed as they tried to see where the red bubbling mana which was now filling the valley was from.

The men tightened their grips on their weapons, their hearts heavily beating as they thought about the fact that they were about to be the first to fight beings from the underworld in thousands of years.

"Why are we the one here, the country has far stronger and more elite units that they could have sent."

"Damn it, I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye to my children, "

"If this battle goes sideways, I'm so going to run away, I'm going to turn the other way and get out of here. I'm just 28 and became a first-order being, I still have my whole life ahead of me."

All throughout the army, as the vile suppressive aura from the valley spread out, doubts and fear in the hearts of the soldiers were brought to the surface of their minds, a distressed and fear-filled atmosphere filling the air.

Hannah observed this but stayed silent, her eyes remaining glued to the valley whose bottom was soon swallowed in the thick red bubbling mana which kept on increasing.

Spreading fear and doubt, the red mana kept rising and just when the soldiers atop the valley were looking down and beginning to wonder if they would be swallowed by it, like a large mouth had opened at the bottom of the valley, all the red mana was sucked back down, disappearing into thin air and then seconds later when everyone was steeling their nerves and preparing for what next was to come, the valley trembled harder and the sharp high pitch sound of something being torn rang in everyone ear making.

First, it started as a small wide black line appearing in the air, and then like a zipper being open from both sides, the black line began rapidly elongating, covering several meters within a second and expanding as it went and by the time it stopped, the floor of the valley had been covered by a deep black tear in space.

"So, this is what a rift looks like," Hannah thought tightly gripping the reins of Winstrel but then to her shock the huge black tear which had appeared in the air fell down to the floor of the valley, smashing it apart like it were glass while also breaking apart itself and with the release of a black light transforming the floor into a long deep dark gully that pulsed with mana and released a red hue.

"What is this, this isn't how the books described rifts to look," Hannah thought racking her head to remember the few books she had flipped through the past days but unable to come up with something that explained what had just happened.

Inside the long gully on the floor of the valley, with the help of the bright red hue, everyone could see jagged rocks and stones, which could be climbed down to go into the cave or come out of it.

"This is bad, I can't predict anything, I was taught to deal with a rift in the sky, not this," Hannah thought, but she had barely finished processing this thought when guttural screams and roars began sounding out from the long cavity in the valley floor and before her eyes, black 5-foot creatures which walked on all fours began rushing up from out the cavity in the valley floor in their thousands climbing the crack and in no time reaching the surface, their sharp screams and cries filling the valley.

"Archers Aim and fire" Hannah called, her voice thundering over the cries of the seemingly spawned creatures and sending the archer unit at the back into action.