Lickity and Cixelcid both woke up to urgent messages in their notifications this morning, an unusual sight, as everyone in the Guild knows Lickity has her hands full with fast growing twins and trying to tame Neffie. It is a truly urgent matter though, the Green Orcs have taken most of western Landis in only two days time, and the Human Liberation Front has been bringing in higher level recruits from the Eastern and Northern Continents.
That's a clear violation of their treaty, and it's upset a great number of other forces, who don't want their enemies to gain territory on the Central Continent. Unless something is done in a hurry, the whole situation is going to spiral out of control and turn the Central Continent into a warzone more devastated than the scorched ruins that are now called the Great Desert.
The suggestion from Earl RhickJaymz is to have Cain intervene and help out with his high end summons. Currently the Guild Master is away though, either still at the Auction with Neffie and the Demon King, or off doing something with Misha. Lickity has heard that Cain has started carrying around a pet Lamia with him lately, but the rumors are a bit garbled by the time they reach her, so she can't tell if it's one of his Summons or if it's a transfer of the Lamia species.
She doesn't really want to bother him, but she fears that it might be necessary. First, she's going to check with Cid and see if there's anything they can actually do without getting bogged down in a giant mess though.
"Our best bet is to ask him to increase the capabilities of the Guild Skill to whatever his best summons are, and then take out the Capital of Landis and all the surrounding villages until the country collapses. If we wait much longer their reinforcements will arrive, thousands of level 300 and higher transfers, and that would totally change the war effort and drag in the reinforcements' enemies from their home continents."
Reluctantly they do message Guild Master Cain, who is happy to help out in order to bring things back to a somewhat peaceful state so that the Demon King can stop stressing out and leveling up Neffie. He informs them that the auction has ended, and that he's willing to change the Guild Skill for a while and send them a pair of Summons he calls the Echoes to help out. Neither of them know what his Echoes actually are, having not seen them in person, but if Cain says they can help, that's enough for them.
It's evening wherever he is, likely the Eastern Continent, but he sets the Guild Skill to [Blessed Summoner] and instructs them to call Seraphim into the Capital, since their skills can tell friend from foe. He says the battle should have started before they arrive, since he's already told the Echoes where to go, so the pair of leaders gets dressed to assemble the Guild's backbone, their highest level members, to form a raiding squad.
If the Seraphim are anything like what Sora, the Tengu Lieutenant can call, they will each summon an entire army of their own, so Numbers will be especially helpful. Cid, Lickity, Char, Kone, Belle, and a few more that are all over level 150 gather in the courtyard of the Castle to make their plans. But they soon receive a bunch of unexpected Guests.
"We have discussed our options, and we would all like to join with the Darklight Host Guild." Princess Gurda of Landis declares, leading Lancelot and the forty Knights they've managed to gather that are over level 175.
"You wish to join the Guild?" Lickity asks incredulously. That would be a huge shift in the power base, moving them up towards the peak of the continent, but it might also be a shift in internal power, away from Cain and towards the Princess, to whom all the Knights owe fealty.
"For the duration of the war, yes. If we win, you can expect that we will likely splinter off and reform the Royal Guilds for our attempt to rebuild whatever is left of Landis, but for now, a united front, along with the benefits that the Darklight Host brings to the war, are essential to our task."
Lickity turns to Cid, who Cain named Commander. He's the highest ranking Guild officer here, and she knows his judgement is sound, so this will have to be his call unless they wake up the Guild Master twice in one night.
"I'll have a modified contract drawn up that prevents you all from voting out the existing Guild Master, but that's all I ask. Welcome to the Guild, and I hope that we can have a short and brutal ending to this senseless war." Cid agrees after a few seconds thought.
With almost fifty of them over level 150 now, Cid is confident that they will be able to at least deal significant damage to the Capital City's defenders, so after a lecture on the proper Summon to call for this situation, they all set out for the Capital through the travel circle. They're expecting to be attacked by the guards at the other end the second they arrive, in Landis Royal Guard uniforms and Darklight Host Guild tags, but there are none on duty. Instead, the city is filled with the sound of battle, and the smell of smoke.
A pair of ten meter tall monstrosities are rampaging through the south end of the city, and they've brought an army of demons and dragons with them. All these attackers are shrouded in a thick layer of black fog, and Cid realizes that the giants are Cain's Echoes, so the armies currently destroying the city are their summons. The number is incredible, they've called on a number of Legendary Plague Demons, who called Plague Mothers as well as some form of flying insect the size of a horse. The plague mothers called even more Plague Demons to the fray, and now the whole city is awash in them, with the sounds of battle everywhere.
It doesn't seem that Cain gave them any directions other than take the Capital but they are at least refraining from attacking the rebels who have tied blue armbands over their armor to make themselves recognizable.
Cid's attack force quickly calls every Legendary Seraphim that they can, who spread out to the areas not clogged with Plague Demons and call for their armies.
For a second the Liberation Front thinks they are saved... Then the Holy Light starts spearing down from the sky.
