Bodanen: Cobalt War

Chapter 11: An Alliance is Born

Siegfried and company lowered their weapons as they stood in awe of the flawless motions the soldiers of the outpost took in their battle with the artificial mortals. They were also shocked at the ferocity of their foes, being able to cause such damage despite the almost clockwork precision of the castle's defenders. But for Siegfried, the most intriguing were those strange weapons the 'riflemen' used and the 'artillery'. Siegfried quickly processed enough of the fight to talk first. "That was...incredible."

"That precision was incredible. How was it that you and the entire defending force were able to work with such grace under fire?" Blake stood dumbfounded, staring at Talib.

"We've...had a lot of practice. I've been at this for nearly five years now, day in and day out, and usually multiple times a day. In fact, that was today's fourth attack. Come now, it appears as though we have some things to talk about." Talib breath was heavy as he recomposed himself.

"They never attack at night?" Siegfried looked down on the battlefield, watching the troops dispose of the remains of the blues.

"Ah, yes. It seems that their power is connected, in part, with the suns. Those monstrosities are stronger than their true mortal counterparts, have almost limitless stamina, and heal unbearably fast, but they are no different at night than true mortals. That is how our brigade was overpowered despite being three thousand strong and how both you and I were able to defeat those that remained of our pursuers. We fought throughout the night when their strength was lessened by a considerable amount; their stamina and healing still seems to be as powerful as ever at night, however. While not to lessen your efforts, you are also considerably lucky for the timing of the battle." Boris joined Siegfried, watching the battlefield.

"One of the few boons we have when fighting these beasts. If not for their reluctance to fight at night, we would have fallen long ago." Talib watched as Siegfried and Boris joined him again, ready to move on.

Siegfried frowned in deep thought. "I suppose we were lucky; in that aspect, at least...ah, well." Siegfried let out a soft sigh that only Boris caught. "Anyway, if I may, could you answer a few questions before we head on...? What was that magic you were using? And what were those weapons? The ones that those 'riflemen' were using. And those bigger 'artillery' weapons? I've never seen anything like that. It was like they were using higher-level spells in quick succession without incantations or a conduit of any kind. How are we losing ground with such devastating weapons?" Having returned to his senses, Siegfried began to rapidly ask question after question.

"You have never seen casters before, Sieg? Why am I not surprised?" with a slight smile, Boris patted Siegfried on his head, which is quickly pushed aside by Sieg with minor protests.

"No, I haven't seen those 'casters' before. Would you please humour me?" Sieg quietly fought to stop Boris from patting his head again.

"Hmm, well, I'm what some call a heavy caster. I specialize in largescale spells to deal a lot of damage over a wide area. The magic I used in question was light-based artillery magic. As for those weapons, they are portable casting devices, usually referred to as firearms or guns. They are used by those who have limited magic potential or for quick magic attacks without charging or chanting, though the troops have given it the nickname of...," Talib paused to let out a heavy sigh," ...caster blasters. Ugh, that name makes the technology of the devices sound so...barbaric." Talib seemed slightly dejected by the name, shaking his head as he explained.

"Firearm is a little on the nose, don't you think? And what does gun come from; it sounds familiar." Siegfried watched Talib intently, not wanting to miss a word he said.

"Hmm, well, they got the name 'firearm' because they were initially only used with fire spells before we discovered how to apply different spells with them. As for 'gun', if I remember correctly, it comes from one of the forgotten tongues; I believe it is derived from a word meaning 'tool of war' or just 'war'."