Chapter 62: Orc Scouts

The first day within the Graveshade Expanse finally came to an end.

​Not that anyone would have noticed. The silver and crimson twin moons had remained suspended overhead throughout the entire twenty-four hours, bathing the land in an endless, eerie glow.

If not for the clock displayed within the Lord’s Ledger, Cassian would never have known a full day had passed.

​In fact, he had begun to suspect that the Graveshade Expanse was a realm trapped in eternal night, a land where darkness reigned forever beneath twin moons.

​Then, the second day arrived.

​And with it came a surprise.

​The silver and crimson moons slowly descended beneath the horizon, their radiance fading from the sky as though retreating from an unseen ruler.

Moments later, a new celestial body rose.

​A sun.

​Yet it was unlike any sun Cassian had ever seen. The massive star resembled a colossal emerald suspended in the heavens, its verdant light cascading across the world below and painting the entire expanse in alien shades of green.

​The dead forests, the silent graveyards, the bone-littered plains, everything was blanketed in a faint emerald sheen.

The scenery was simultaneously breathtaking and deeply unsettling.

​Cassian stood staring upward, mesmerized. Not only were the day and night cycles separated into entirely different planetary shifts, but the heavenly bodies themselves defied everything he knew about physics.

​The Lord’s Domain truly was a place beyond common sense.

​And he knew this phenomenon wasn’t universal. The Lunarwoods from his previous life had possessed completely different celestial phenomena, and countless other territories across the continent held their own unique skies.

​Their own moons. Their own suns. Their own laws.

​The realization made Cassian appreciate the sheer, terrifying scale of the Lord’s Domain, an endless expanse filled with countless races, civilizations, and worlds, all struggling for the exact same things.

​Power. Glory. Wealth. Immortality.

​Eternity.

​A faint, quiet sigh escaped his lips.

​’Is it because I’m about to go to war? Is that why everything suddenly feels so mesmerizing?’

​Cassian couldn’t answer the question. Perhaps it was simply the electric tension of anticipation, or perhaps standing at the precipice of grand conquest made one appreciate the world just a little more before plunging it into fire.

​Eventually, his gaze lowered, landing upon the vast army gathered behind him.

​A sharp, satisfied smile touched his lips.

​Nyxara stood at his side, as elegant as ever. Her dark violet hair swayed gently beneath the emerald sunlight while her dark scythe rested in her slender grasp, looking less like an undead champion and more like a noble executioner awaiting her sovereign’s command.

​Before the main legion stood the five Commanders:

​The Deathmark Commander

​The Gravewall Commander

​The Dreadlance Commander

​The Nightveil Commander

​The Soulpiercer Commander

​Each stood proudly before their respective battalions, silent, disciplined, and ready for war.

​The Special Elites held their positions as well. The Gravewing Reaper rested atop a mound of bleached bones, the Dreadroot Stalker stood deathly still like an ancient predator waiting to pounce, the Nightfang Wydra prowled through the ranks with predatory patience, the Giant Bone Worm coiled through the army like a living river of ivory, and the Umbral Mothkin stood quietly with her wings folded tightly behind her back.

​Behind them, the diverse Special Units formed crisp, terrifying battle formations.

​To one side stood the Support Division, the Death Chanters and the Death Speakers. Beside Cassian himself stood the lone SSS-Grade Death Speaker, its deep cerulean soul flames burning steadily as it gripped its bone staff.

​Cassian surveyed the entire force.

​This legion had not even existed twenty-four hours ago. Now, it stood ready to conquer a dominion, carve its name into the history of the Graveshade Expanse, and bring an absolute end to the Kragmar Dominion.

​A dark, unshakeable smile spread across his face.

​Cassian turned his gaze toward the distant northern horizon where the enemy awaited.

....

More than a hundred Orcs stood watch around the perimeter of Lord’s Hollow.

​They crouched behind dead trees, broken boulders, and patches of twisted, withered vegetation, doing their absolute best to conceal their presence.

​As much as Orcs could, at least. Their massive physiques and thick green hides were hardly suited for delicate stealth operations.

​Still, they remained vigilant as they observed the translucent barrier surrounding the territory.

​At the forefront of the scout unit stood their captain, a battle-hardened veteran.

Unlike the younger warriors around him, he had personally monitored several Starbound Intruders throughout his lifetime.

He had watched them appear, watched them struggle, and watched them inevitably die.

​Which was precisely why he felt Chief Morghanna was being absurdly excessive this time.

​Over a hundred Orcs assigned to observe a single intruder? It was ridiculous.

Previous intruders had spent seven entire days cowering behind their barriers and still managed to gather no more than thirty subordinates.

The Orcs had no idea how the intruders summoned followers out of thin air, attributing it to some strange, ancient magic.

​Regardless, this new intruder had only been here for a single day. What could he possibly accomplish in twenty-four hours?

​The veteran Orc grunted softly in disdain. ’It seems the Chief is becoming more paranoid by the day. This is what happens when an abomination is left in charge.’

​Naturally, he kept those treasonous thoughts strictly to himself. If the Chief ever learned he had uttered such words—even in passing—his body would be flattened into bloody paste before he could blink.

​At that moment, one of the scouts rushed through the underbrush. "Captain!"

​The veteran’s brows furrowed. "What is it?"

​"We noticed movement along the northern perimeter barrier!"

​The captain narrowed his eyes. "Show me."

​The scout quickly led him through the dead woods until they reached a raised ridge. The captain followed the scout’s pointing finger, and when he saw the source of the commotion, he nearly burst out laughing.

​Only two figures could be seen riding atop a single, monstrous beast.

​The mount resembled a colossal wolf with leathery wings folded tightly against its flanks and a writhing, living serpent serving as its tail.

​One rider sat at the back, completely concealed beneath a dark robe. The other sat at the front, a young man clad in pitch-black armor that seemed to absorb the emerald light of the strange sun.

​A skeletal face was carved upon his chest plate, its hollow eye sockets glowing faintly with traces of necrotic energy, while matching dark pauldrons and greaves protected his limbs.

Dirty-blond hair framed a face that would have been considered handsome by most civilized races, while sky-blue eyes calmly surveyed the surrounding woods.