Khan had never suffered from mana shortage, and unlocking his new ability further eased that consumption. The symphony was his ally, allowing him to use the energy in the environment rather than his own.
That ability was incredible for many reasons. The spells' power was often below what Khan cast with his own hands. Yet, their range and flexibility were far superior, enabling unpredictable attack patterns Khan had never been able to deploy in the past.
Of course, a trade-off existed. Khan didn't really benefit from the lower mana consumption but paid the full price of the new technique anyway. The effort drained his mind, tiring him in ways normal training couldn't.
Luckily for Khan, Cegnore provided inputs that kept his mind awake, clear, and screaming. The overwhelming Nak's presence made him unable to stop, rest, or feel tired. The absolute lack of internal conflict gave birth to a fuel that pushed Khan beyond his physical limits.
Khan gazed at the gorge's edge while his senses pushed his vision past it. The symphony shone inside his mind, creating a detailed picture of the environment above and far away. The area was clear, but the night had just begun.
The pointless inspection eventually made Khan lower his gaze. The sea of fur invaded his vision, filling it with blood and gore. Thousands had died in that massive battle, but he couldn't feel any pity for mere beasts. Part of him even held a grudge against them.
Nevertheless, a sudden faint flare of mana touched Khan's senses, and his legs moved. He teleported before his allies, violently stomping the ground to crush the neck of a seemingly dead wolf.
The creature released a hoarse screech while its throat crumbled, and death soon arrived. The scene with Khan at its center had interrupted the search for surviving opponents, making that specimen slip by.
The Thilku before Khan understood what had happened, but no gasps or surprised noises left their mouths. They had managed to follow Khan with their eyes, and those organs remained on him. His appearance was almost monstrous, but he embodied strength more than any other warrior they had ever seen.
Khan felt conflicted about the emotions conveyed by those Thilku. On one side, his pride flared since the awe flying in his direction confirmed his new social status.
However, power could lift walls, especially when its sources were mysterious. Khan was too strong for unknown reasons, making him unapproachable in the eyes of those alien soldiers.
Khan's first instinct was to say something, but drops of blood suddenly fell from his hair, running over his forehead and threatening to end up in his eyes. He quickly wiped the liquid away, but that only updated him on his appearance.
Flying left and right among explosions of dust and gore wasn't exactly a clean business. Blood, body parts, and more had often fallen on Khan during the battle. He disregarded that while fighting, but the break allowed him to notice the issue.
Khan was drenched from head to toe. His shoes released squashing noises on the dry patches of the muddy ground, and his uniform felt heavy due to all the dirt and blood it had absorbed. The battle didn't spare his hair either, hiding its blue shades and applying a dark dye.
The Thilku snapped back to reality after Khan wiped the blood away and began searching for survivors. The army took life, clearing any threat still lingering on the battlefield. No one dared to involve Khan in the task, so he could only oversee it.
The following orders were unclear. Usually, the building would replace the Thilku who fought on the frontline, but the plan had changed. The Empire was advancing right now, and Khan wondered what role he had to play in all of that.
Since the army was searching for survivors, Khan gracefully stepped into the air, slowly flying toward the gorge's edge to resurface. The corpses of the mutated Thilku and humanoid wolves appeared in his view, but he ignored them to focus on the areas past the red halo.
'It's usually peaceful after such a big deployment,' Khan thought before gazing at the other side of the gorge.
The vehicles in the distance were illuminating the battlefield, and the two spherical machines were slowly approaching them. The Thilku seemed to have deemed the area safe enough for those robots to advance.
It was unclear how much the trench would advance after the battle, but another curious event happened while Khan pondered on the topic. One of the vehicles in the distance turned off its headlights before riding toward the gorge, accelerating to reach it as fast as possible.
The vehicle parked at the gorge's edge, and a Thilku came out of it to shout orders to any team leader nearby. The army was making a ruckus while searching for survivors, but that voice still echoed into the channel and reached the intended ears.
Khan also heard those orders, and his gaze instinctively snapped on the horizon past his shoulder. The advance would continue, which probably required his voice again.
As the news spread, Naoo and part of her team approached the gorge's edge and began to climb its brittle wall. That surface was by no means stable, but the Thilku directly stabbed their limbs into it to lift themselves.
Khan knew what was happening, so he moved to welcome his companions. Soon, Naoo and five Thilku resurfaced and straightened their backs to stand before him.
"[We have new orders]," Naoo directly announced. "[The offensive must continue]."
"[Should I use my voice again]?" Khan wondered, curious about the outcome of that action.
"[The army has to resurface and take a new position first]," Naoo explained. "[Your voice will come afterward]."
Khan nodded before facing the dark horizon again. He wasn't exactly taking things slowly but was still avoiding being completely reckless. Yet, it seemed Onp was eager to advance more than him.
That decision worked in Khan's favor. The farther he was from the building, the higher his chances of escaping the scanners. The opportunity might not arrive that night, but the time to leave would draw closer as long as the army kept advancing.
The army finished checking the gorge before moving toward its wall to climb it. Needless to say, that surface couldn't endure the troops' weight and crumbled, lifting a cloud of dust.
The event helped the army since the wall transformed into an oblique surface the soldiers could cross. Soon, almost everyone stepped outside the gorge before rearranging themselves into different teams.
The army had suffered casualties, and the injured had remained inside the gorge to wait for medical attention. Most of them could still fight, but the threat of mutations was too big to ignore.
The advance resumed once the army was ready. The various team leaders led each group forward, and Khan remained at Naoo's side to wait for further orders. He almost expected her to scold him for his previous sudden offensive, but she didn't mention any of that.
The silent march into deeper parts of Cegnore was bound to push the army into the darkness, but the vehicles behind it advanced, too, keeping the soldiers inside the red halo.
The plain didn't change, but the various team leaders eventually stopped, launching cries that even Khan understood. The army settled into its new area, and Khan lifted his hand since he knew what the soldiers expected from him.
Khan performed the call, and utter silence returned. The troops weren't at their best, and some groaned to express their exhaustion, but no one dared to sit. Even Khan remained on his feet, tightly wielding his knife to wait for more opponents.
However, no matter how long the army waited, Cegnore didn't answer. Three hours passed in complete silence, and boredom began taking over the generally tense atmosphere.
At times, Naoo glanced at Khan, and he reperformed the call, but the silence didn't break. Cegnore didn't want to send anything to the army, but the latter didn't move either. Both the planet and the building had unwavering intentions.
Khan performed the call two more times before slight clarity began to spread in the dark sky above the red halo. The vehicles started to turn off their headlights due to their futility and completely retreated once morning arrived.
A cold but soft breeze blew on the army as the morning took control of the area. The Thilku inspected their surroundings in confusion, surprised that even Khan couldn't bend the planet under his will. After what they had witnessed, they couldn't believe Khan could fail at something, but the reality was different.
Of course, no one tried to put the blame on Khan. The Thilku weren't even disappointed about that development. Except for the lack of additional fights, they also gained more information about Cegnore, which was the whole point of the offensive.
The team leaders began ordering everyone to retreat once the morning unfolded. The massive army crossed the gorge once again to return to the other side of the plain.
Meanwhile, the spherical machines crossed the army to follow the opposite path. A few teams of Thilku had joined them to accompany their trip to the other side of the gorge. Khan had long since jumped into the air, so he spotted those robots digging a trench on the new frontline.
Khan inspected the scene for a few seconds before diving toward the building. He was in no mood to wait for the army's slow march, and his curiosity didn't get in the way of his return either. He was the first to arrive before the main gate, and its doors opened even if the other Thilku were still far away.
The event alone could tell Khan many things, but he stepped forward and waited for the building's insides to answer. The decontamination process started and ended, and Khan found Vaasa waiting for him once the doors opened.
"[Captain Khan]," Vaasa announced before Khan could say anything. "[Onp is waiting for you]."
Khan didn't even bother to nod. He strode forward, and Vaasa had to hurry to lead the way. Both knew where they were going anyway, and the path showed no surprises.
The two crossed the main hall, the corridor, and the control room after that to enter the small meeting area. Onp was already inside, tinkering with the interactive desk, and Vaasa remained outside while Khan approached the table.
The meeting room closed, leaving Khan and Onp alone. The latter didn't lift his head, but Khan could sense his attention on him. He was buying time, but not out of disrespect or due to political strategies. The alien was simply hesitant.
"[I can still fight]," Khan announced, willing to join the following offensive.
"[Ah]!" Onp exclaimed, lifting his head to glare at Khan. "[I know. You'll fight every night from now on]."
Khan could only smile at that order. That was exactly what he wanted.
"[The Empire will use you until you aren't useful anymore]," Onp continued. "[Is that fine with you]?"
"[Of course]," Khan replied, even if far different meanings shone behind his eyes.
Onp's last words didn't sound like a question, but Khan couldn't complain. He had gotten his desired role. Being at the forefront of the Thilku's offensive would grant him the opportunity he sought. Something even told him it wouldn't take long before his chance arrived.
