"Silence!" Emanuel shouts as all the bickering generals immediately come to a stop.

"Dragon Emperor, we have fired on their wall for almost a month. Not only is the artillery ammunition running low but the damage their walls have taken is next to nothing," one of the generals speaks.

"Yes, I can see that. I am not blind," Emanuel snarls, causing the general to bow his head.

After a few moments of silence, Emanuel speaks up, "We have no choice. Time is running out. We must attack the wall with ladders and towers."

"What about battering rams to assault the gates?" another general asks.

"If their walls are this well designed that they can take so much of our bombardment without getting damaged, their gates will surely be strong enough to be able to withstand all the battering rams we can throw at them. The soldiers operating the battering rams will be sitting Psyducks for their archers to target and kill. We should look to conserve our soldiers wherever possible. Besides attacking the wall with towers and ladders will not be an inexpensive proposition," Arthur counters. 

"I agree with Arthur's assessment of the situation. We need to spend our resources and our men in the most effective way possible," the lead general speaks up.

"Agreed. But where do we concentrate our assault?" Emanuel speaks up.

"Father, I have isolated 3 spots. Here, here and here," Arthur says while pointing them out in the map of the wall placed on the table.

"Hmmm. There are only two towers adjacent to the spots. Thus, the casualties due to artillery and archers will be lesser compared to the other spots where at least three towers can attack our soldiers. Very well," Emanuel assesses the plan of attack before rising up.

"Then it is settled," he pulls out a dagger.

Everyone watches as he tosses it a couple of times before launching it right at the middle of the map, at the heart of the fortress, "We attack at dawn."

On hearing that all generals bow their heads and leave, to ready their troops for the battle which will be fought at the first light, tomorrow.

"You think we'll be able to break through their defenses?" Arthur asks.

"Maybe not at the first attempt. But we have no choice. Time is running out. The spell can't be allowed to be completed no matter the cost. I don't care if I have to sacrifice the entire army, if it means razing the fortress to the ground and destroying the spell, it'll be worth it," Emanuel replies.

Diantha and others are stunned at the response, while the Dragon Emperor stands silently observing their reactions.

"How can he say that, so lightly?" Cynthia asks.

"There's no other way to say it. The fate of the Pokemon world rests on his shoulders. Nothing, I repeat nothing, matters when the fate of the Pokemon world is concerned. No matter the stakes, no matter the sacrifice all is acceptable when it comes to the conservation of the Pokemon world is concerned," Dragon Emperor replies.

"I see," Oak replies.

"Now let us fast forward four months into the siege," Dragon Emperor says as he snaps his fingers and the scenery changes once again.

Everyone sees that the generals are back in Dragon Emperor's tent appearing to be deep in discussion. 

"The situation is not looking good," one of the generals speaks up.

"We have assaulted the fortress numerous times, using numerous tactics. We have taken countless losses and most of our siege towers and ladders have been destroyed," Arthur fumes as his fingers impatiently tap the table.

"What does our loss count look like so far?" Emanuel speaks up.

"Most of our ladders and towers are gone. Four generals, eight commanders, and almost 15 percent of our forces are gone," the Dialga battalion general speaks up.

"Despite all these losses, we are nowhere close to even setting a foot inside their walls," Emanuel takes a wine goblet and chucks it at the mirror, shattering it.

None of the other generals says another word, deciding not to accidentally incur the Dragon Emperor's wrath.

"One thing doesn't make sense," Arthur speaks up.

"What?" Emanuel turns around.

"Whatever prisoners we have managed to take, under interrogation have revealed the name as the fortress of Bassir. But in all my studies of the records in the archives, I have never even encountered this name, let alone the fact that an entire district in the Sinnoh region is named Bassir," Arthur remarks, confusion etched on his face.

"Yes, that is strange. Even I have never encountered the name before. But how can that be?" Emanuel takes his seat, deep in thought regarding his son's statement.

"I would like permission to return to Chateau de Chevallier. I think the answer to this riddle will be solved in the archives," Arthur speaks up.

"How does that matter? Even if you manage to find the answer what good will that do? History books don't win wars, fighting does," the lead general objects.

"Normally I would agree with you. But there's more here than meets the eye. We are missing something and my instinct tells me that the archives are the place to be. I trust my instincts," Arthur replies.

"Are you sure about your decision?" Emanuel asks.

"You have always taught me to trust my instincts. Besides I am sure you can spare my absence for some time," Arthur replies.

"Very well, you may go. But go and return with the utmost haste. We need every last warrior we have, if we're to break through their defenses," Emanuel replies after a moment of thinking.

"I will bear that in mind father. Until I return, I would advise you to try to keep our casualties to a minimum. If there's any useful information at the archives, we will need the army to act on it," Arthur says as he puts on his traveling cloak.

"I still don't think, this will yield any useful information. But best of luck," the lead general says as Arthur takes out his Charizard's Poke-ball.

"I don't know what I'll find. But I hope I find something. We are taking too many losses. If the current situation persists, at this rate there'll be no one left to fight in a couple of month's time, assuming the fighting gets more intense with every passing day," Arthur says as he leaves the tent.

Emanuel and the others hear a roar followed by a huge swoosh of air as Arthur seems to have taken off on the back of his trusted Charizard. Emanuel sits in silence, contemplating his son's words.

After a while he says, "You are all dismissed for the night. Tend to your wounded and ensure the soldiers get their rest for the next assault."

The generals all get up, bow, and take their leave.

"My lord, if I may, do you think your son will find anything of use in the archives?" the squire speaks as he begins to undo Emanuel's armor.

"I don't know. But my son has good instincts. I hope it pays off. Besides, his absence won't cause that much problem. Had we been closer to breaching the wall, then I wouldn't have allowed him to leave, but we are right where we started, so all avenues and leads must be pursued," Emanuel relaxes in his chair as he sips his wine.

"Very well, my lord," the squire removes Emanuel's breastplate.

The next ten minutes are spent in relative silence as Stephan removes the armor completely. He asks if the Dragon Emperor requires anything to which Enamuel answers no and dismisses him for the night.

"So in conclusion the order of Pokemon masters was not able to break through the Resolute wall?" Diantha turns to the Dragon Emperor.

"Yes. Now, remember, already four months had passed. And if your memory serves you, then you remember Garundrum giving orders that the researchers of the League of Shadows double their efforts to ensure that the spell is completed as soon as possible, ahead of schedule. We now fast forward three months into the future," Dragon Emperor says.

"Wait. Three months?" Ash asks.

"Yes, three months," Dragon Emperor reiterates after snapping his fingers.

 "Dragon Emperor!" a soldier comes running towards the catapults from where Emanuel is inspecting a retreat of yet another unsuccessful assault.

"What is it?" he asks in a rather gruff tone.

"Word from your son, Emperor. He requests you withdraw for the day and cut your losses immediately. He'll be arriving soon, later today," the messenger gives Emanuel the scroll while bowing his head.

Emanuel reads the letter, turns to the general beside him, and nods. The general promptly takes out a horn and blows it, signifying the retreat. Emanuel turns around and walks towards his camp as his army retreats from the wall yet again.

A few hours later Arthur arrives, flying aboard his Charizard. He leaps off his Charizard, summons it back into its Poke-ball, and then goes to his father's tent.

"Father!" Arthur says as he enters the tent.

"Where have you been? I thought I told you to come back as soon as possible. You've been gone for three months?" Emanuel asks as Arthur takes a seat next to him.

"Apologies for the delay father. The task proved to be laborsome and time-consuming, but has borne fruits," Arthur replied as he pulled out a big dusty scroll from his bag and placed it on the table.

"What's that?" one of the generals asked.

"I'll show it to you soon. But before that, you all must understand the mystery of Bassir. Over my months of absence I have been able to piece together exactly what happened more than twenty thousand years back," Arthur says.

"You mean right around the time when the league of Shadows vanished?" Emanuel asked.

"Yes. Now when I went back to archives to see how what information we had on Bassir, I searched the archive records from top to bottom, multiple times for well over a month. I found out the reason why none of us knew about the fortress of Bassir or the district of Bassir in the first place was that there was no record of the district in the archives, to begin with," Arthur answers, stunning all the generals present.

"What? That's impossible! Our ancestors meticulously created the archives way before this fortress was even begun to be conceived. There's no way they missed an entire district in the archives!" Emanuel remarks.

"My thoughts precisely. Which is why I soon came to the conclusion that the records were not missing, instead they had been deleted from the archives so that the League of Shadows could build their fortress here without detection, in secret," Arthur concurs.

"But how is that possible? The archives are well guarded there's not been a single occasion where security has been breached!" the lead general counters.

"No! There has been an incident. Around twenty-seven thousand years back if my memory serves me. The spy tried to get away with some documents containing listings of our assets. But he was caught, interrogated and when the interrogation revealed nothing, he was executed," Emanuel says.

"Precisely. So I went into the archive and pulled reports pertaining to this breach. I researched everything from reports to the interrogation script. I came to the conclusion that the manner in which the spy had been detected and caught was very sloppy. Almost too sloppy to begin with. I came to the conclusion that getting caught with the documents was but a diversion. The spy's real objective was to get into the archive and delete the record of Bassir without raising any suspicions," Arthur concludes as all the generals look at each other, surprised by the revelations.

"That explains why we were never able to find the fortress, to begin with. All of our attempts to search for the League of Shadows were based upon data from the archives which we believed to be complete and pure. Since the records had been tampered with and the information of the district of Bassir was missing, no searching was done here, to begin with," Emanuel infers as he stands up.

"Yes, father. You're right," Arthur says.

"Damn it. I hate getting played like this," Emanuel slammed his fist onto the table.

"If the records are missing, then what's this?" one of the generals asked, pointing to the scroll on the table.

"Once I realized that the League of Shadows had played us, I was contemplating what to do when suddenly I got an idea," Arthur replies.

"What idea?" the general asks back.

"Even the League of Shadows know about our information archives. But there is something which they don't know, something which only the Dragon Emperor and inner council of advisors, of which you all are a part off, know. And that is that there is a reserve archive, a backup archive where every five hundred years, any changes made to the main archives, are updated. As you all know the reserve archive was a security measure against the possibility of losing information in the main archive. Since very few even inside the order of Pokemon masters know about the backup archive, I thought there is a good chance that the records that are missing might be present there," Arthur replies as everyone realizes that Arthur is right.

"And, you found the records?" Emanuel asks.

"Yes, father. I did. Even though many of the records in the backup archives are unkept, I found them nonetheless and I have spent the last two months, extensively researching them, getting to know everything I can from them. And it was then, where I literally, struck gold," Arthur said as he picked up the scroll he had placed on the table.

"Why? What is this?" the lead general asks, his curiosity peaking with every passing moment.

"What indeed?" Arthur says as he opens the scroll and lays it on the table for everyone to see.

"A map?" the general remarks.

"Yes but what is it a map to, is the matter of grave importance," Arthur remarks.

"Tell us," Emanuel says.

"From my research, I gathered that this site, where the fortress of Bassir stands, was where the fortress of another king stood once. His name is not important but the point is that the king was one of the primary vassals to the overlord of Sinnoh. But one day the vassal rebelled and declared his territory a sovereign land. The overlord of Sinnoh sent repeated commands to yield and admit his mistake but the king didn't relent, believing the fortress was strong enough to keep the overlord's forces out of his domain. This turned out to be a big mistake as the overlord sent forth an army and razed the king's fortress to the ground leaving nothing but a ruin, as a warning for any other ambitious vassal kings who were contemplating rebelling against the overlord as well. This map is the layout of the fortress which was razed by the Sinnoh overlord's army," Arthur answers.

"And this is important because?" a general asks.

"Because if the fortress of the Bassir is built over the same ruins of the old fortress, which was razed to the ground, then it is highly possible that the secret escape passages, which were built in every fortress, might still be intact. Which means ..." Emanuel says only to be cut off by his son.

"Which means that there might be a way inside the fortress," Arthur says as all the generals look at each other, unsure of what to say.

"And in the plans, is there a way into the fortress?" the lead general asks.

"There are four secret passages leading out of the main fortress," Arthur says as he traces all four passages with his finger.

"I have checked the entrances of all four. Two have caved in and have been destroyed. The other two passages remain intact. It is my recommendation we act on this information, father," Arthur says.

"I agree. This has the potential to change our fortunes in the war. With this information, we should be able to get into the fortress, take a few explosives and blow a section of the wall or gate from inside out," the lead general says as all the generals murmur in agreement.

"Very well. But we must hurry. Time is running out and we need to break through that wall no matter what," Emanuel says before turning to Arthur.

"Arthur, you've done excellent work in locating the information. You started this, it is my feeling that you must see it to its completion. You will take whatever men you require and ensure you do your very best to find a way into the fortress," Emanuel says.

"Don't worry father, I know that we've lost a lot of good soldiers so far. Their deaths won't be in vain, that's my promise to you," Arthur bows in front of his father for being given charge of such an important assignment.

"What will we do meanwhile, Dragon Emperor?" the lead general asks.

"For now we will suspend all attacks. We will treat our wounded and stock up on supplies of arrows and artillery ammunition.  Furthermore, we will build more ladders and siege towers so that when the wall is breached and the power of the Resolute wall diminished we can blast open through their gates and storm the fortress, thereby sacking it," Emanuel says.

"But won't they get suspicious that we have stopped attacking Dragon Emperor?" the general asks back. 

"No, they won't. Their confidence is on a sky-high level. They will think that we are unable to breach their defenses and thus will mock us for not attacking again. Let them, for the moment, think that they've won, till the engines of war turn in our favor permanently," Emanuel says as the generals nod their heads.

"Choose your team wisely. A good blend of warriors and infiltrators. Choose while taking the utmost care. Remember, when you're down in the secret passages, you'll run into traps. Most of them will be fatal, so you will need to account for the men you'll lose to the traps as well. Whenever a new passage comes up, send your most disposable, least skilled man to scout ahead. This way, you'll ensure that you have the most competent men with you when you finally break through into their city," Emanuel lectures as he turns to Arthur.

"I understand father. I will be sure to take some cannon fodder with me," Arthur bows his head before taking his leave.

"Do you think Arthur will succeed?" the lead general asks after Arthur has left.

"He better. Otherwise, all of our efforts and sacrifices till now will have been in vain," Emanuel replies.

"I think he will succeed. He may be young but he is talented, not to mention wise beyond his years. He had the foresight to go back to the archives. None of the rest of us thought of that," another general says.

"I agree. We must keep our faith in him. And more importantly, we must be ready to assault the fortress at a moment's notice. So ensure every man is fighting fit as soon as possible. Make sure there's no lack of ammunition for the artillery and work on those extra ladders and siege towers double time," Emanuel orders.

"Yes. It shall be so, emperor," the generals bow their heads and dismiss themselves without delay.

"So now you see that the order of Pokemon master has found a potential way into the fortress of Bassir. if we keep watching you'll see how Arthur takes eight hundred soldiers with him and a month later after sacrificing several soldiers to traverse the labyrinth he manages to find a path leading inside to a trap door inside a wine cellar in the city with only fifteen soldiers left alive," Dragon Emperor says.

"Only fifteen?" Diantha asks, aghast that out of eight hundred only fifteen survived.

"You have to understand this Diantha, the secret passages were meant to lead people out but they were also booby-trapped to keep people out as well. What's the point of a secret passage if anyone can just come and go without any problem?" Dragon Emperor asks back.

"Anyway, now Arthur is about to enter the wine cellar through the trap door. Let us see what happens," Dragon Emperor snaps his fingers.

One of the soldiers gives a couple of sniffs and says, "Smells like a wine cellar."

"Shush. Quiet. Someone is coming," Arthur says as all the soldiers go silent as the grave.

Arthur very cautiously lifts the trap door bare millimeters just so that he can see what's going on. He sees that they're inside a wine cellar and two maids are picking up crates of wines.

"Why's your dress unmade and ripped in so many places? Your breasts are almost peaking out," the first maid says as the other maid.

"Ugh," the second maid said as she tries to tie her dress to cover up the ripped parts.

"What happened?" the first maid asks as she continues on with her work.

"I took the food to the king's chamber an hour back," the second maid says only for her to be cut off mid-sentence by the other maid.

"And the king fucked you. I know, it's happened with me multiple times as well. He's a lecherous, pot-bellied fat head. We all call him the king of lust. Let me guess, as you were about to leave, he silently came behind you, pushed you towards the wall, bend you over, ripped your dress to take each breast in one hand, and then took you with your face next to the wall, fucking you the way a Houndoom takes a bitch," the first maid answered.

The second maid merely nodded.

"Don't worry. The pain will fade, there's nothing we can do about the king. He's the king and as the ruler, he's entitled to do whatever he wants. Do you know once I went with another maid to serve food? After having his way with both of us, he left the chamber but not before giving me to his son who then had his way with me as well," the first maid replied.

The second maid didn't respond. She merely stood there, digesting the first maid's words who had uttered them as if they were nothing.

"I know this is very difficult for you to watch, especially the ladies like Diantha, Cynthia, Grace, and Delia. But these are primitive times and the League of Shadows still practices sexual slavery to this day. But pay attention to the dialogue which the maids are going to have next. Those are of fundamental importance," Dragon Emperor grimly answers as everyone sombrely nods.

"Why is the king having so many crates of wine moved to the main castle? We've already moved several hundred of them since yesterday," the first maid asks in an exasperated tone.

"I don't know the details but when he was ... fucking me, he did let a few things slip," the second maid says.

"What did the lecherous fat head say?" the first maid wipes the sweat off her forehead.

"He told me that something the League had been working on for thousands of years will be completed with ten days. And so he's organizing the largest banquet to commemorate the occasion. I asked him what about the army at our gates, and he replied they will be helpless soon. I don't know what he meant, but the wine's definitely for the banquet," the second maid answers as she picks up her crate.

"I see. Well, it's a good thing that this is the last crate for the day," the first maid picks up her crate and soon both of them leave the cellar in silence.

After the maids had left, Arthur turned to the other soldiers present, "Did you hear that? If what the maid said is true then it means that ..."

"We don't have time. They must have accelerated their completion of the spell, significantly. There are only ten days left before the spell is completed," one of the soldiers completed Arthur's statement for him.

"What do we do?" another soldier asks.

"Quiet. I need to think," Arthur says as he starts pacing the width of the passage.

"The problem is that we have too few men with us. Plus we don't know anything about how far is it from here to the wall. We have no clue as to what's out there. Without that information, making any kind of move is exceptionally risky because the odds of us getting caught are almost one hundred percent," he says after a few minutes.

"Then what do we do?" the soldier asks back.

"OK. Here's how I see it. It will take me a day to traverse the passage all the way back to the camp. So if I go, it will take two days. That leaves us with eight days. In these eight days, the army needs to breach the defenses, defeat all of their soldiers, traverse any additional defenses the League of Shadows might have, and then storm the castle, where most likely the spell is located and is being finished.  So here is the plan,  you ten are among the most skilled infiltrators who have been trained by the Order. I will go to my father, explain the situation to him, form a plan to attack. The two days I am gone, you are to leave stealthily and do surveillance. I want everything from paths leading to the wall to the timetable and movements of any patrols which are patrolling the streets. Remember, keep your aura levels to absolute zero. If any of their soldiers even feel a whiff of our aura then we're finished. Also, if you think you're going to be caught, then you know what to do," Arthur finishes.

"Don't worry. We'll die before being caught. And before dying we'll ensure we suppress our aura, making it look like we're ordinary citizens who died of some natural cause," the soldier answers.

"Good man. Remember, you have two days. Get a few vantage points, and above all else be stealthy as a Ghastly," Arthur says.

"Go. We have this," the soldier says as Arthur turns around and proceeds to run further into the passageway, till he vanishes from view.

"So, they're out of time?" Serena turns to the Dragon Emperor.

"Yes, they're running out of time. This forces them to escalate their timetable immensely," Dragon Emperor agrees before snapping his fingers again.

"I thought we would have more time," Emanuel says as Arthur reports everything back to him.

"Dragon Emperor, what do we do?" the lead general asks.

"Wait, let me think," Emanuel says as repeatedly taps the table with his fingers.

"Father, if I may?" Arthur says as Emanuel gestures him to go ahead.

"We need to break through their defenses at the earliest. So while I was on my way back through the tunnels, I had time to think regarding the best strategy. I devised a tentative plan, if I may share it," Arthur asks.

"Before you do, all the generals are to leave immediately, no matter what plan we come up with the army must be and on standby. Go and ensure this," Emanuel orders as all the general bow their heads before leaving.

Ash, Serena, and everyone else watches in silence as Arthur tells his plan. They watch as Arthur and Emanuel debate back and forth and after three hours of discussion, the decision is made following which Arthur leaves with ten thousand men, back through the secret passage, into the city.

"What's the report?" Arthur asks as he arrives at the secret entrance into the city.

"We have gone around and taken a good look. There are patrols everywhere and curfews as well. Right now, we are almost halfway between the castle, which is at the center of the entire fortress, and the Resolute wall. I saw myself, the security of the castle has been tightened manifold, which seems to confirm that the spell is nearing completion. Regardless, one of us managed to infiltrate the palace and return. He tells me that there are almost a million soldiers inside the castle alone. Assuming these are the reserve troops and the ones guarding the wall are the main forces, accounting for everything including the patrols, the enemy army should be around three million soldiers in its entirety," the soldier, left in charge by Arthur, says.

"Well, that's good. We have almost a million soldiers more. So we have an advantage there. What about the patrols? The timetables and the routes?" Arthur asks.

"We observed continuously and made extensive notes. This notebook contains two days' worth of timings, schedules, and patrol movements," the soldier says handing a notebook back to Arthur.

"Excellent work, captain. You have done well," Arthur says as he starts scanning through the notes.

"I thought this was particularly important," the soldier with his finger points out an entry causing Arthur to smile.

"Yes. This will work. Now listen up everyone, the attack is going to commence at first light tomorrow. If all goes to plan, more than half of those patrols shouldn't be there to bother us. Did you map the way to the wall?" Arthur turns to the soldier.

"Yes. It's on this scroll you gave us," the soldier gives the scroll to Arthur.

"I see. So if I am reading the map you've drawn correctly, there are four paths to this section of the wall," Arthur says after examining the map for five minutes.

"I suggest we avoid these two routes. Several patrol routes share a lot of common routes with these two routes. Since we want to avoid detection, it's best to avoid these two routes," the soldier remarks.

"OK. Tell me about these two routes, anything to keep an eye out for?" Arthur asks.

"There are only three patrols which share some common route with this route. And there are two patrols that share some common route with this one. To maximize our chances of getting to the wall I suggest we split our troops equally in these two routes. Assuming the attack will commence at dawn, I would say around noon will be the best time to approach the wall," the soldier answers.

"Noon? In the middle of the day?" Arthur asks.

"It's when the patrols, in general, are scattered around the fortress. With the attack going on, the patrols will be even more scattered, thus giving us the chance to get to the wall, relatively undetected," the soldier replies.

Arthur didn't say anything for a few moments as he looked at the soldier. 

"You do realize, that the strategy to get to the wall, will make or break the fate of the world," Arthur says.

"Yes sir," the soldier replies, as he begins to internally panic on hearing Arthur's statement.

"That being said, I agree with your suggestions," Arthur says causing the soldier to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Very well. We have almost four hours till dawn. So everyone, get some shut-eye, it's going to be a busy day tomorrow. Tomorrow we'll be in the fight of our lives, so I want everyone rested before we sack the city tomorrow," Arthur announces as everyone proceeds to get down on the floor to rest themselves. 

While everyone else goes to sleep Arthur stays awake, going through all the information collected, crossing every T, and dotting every I. Almost four hours later, the captain wakes up to see Arthur wide awake and deep in study.

"Sir, you didn't rest?" he asks.

"No. I don't need it, my father taught me the art of sleeping while running. When I was coming back from the camp, I rested my mind, more than required," Arthur replies.

"I see," the captain says.

"That being said, tell everyone to wake up. It's almost dawn. We need to all be on the alert," Arthur says as the captain carries out the task given to him.

"Alright everyone, listen. I have gone through all the information and considered all the pros and cons. I have decided that I will take fifty men with me to breach the wall. The rest of you will stay here and wait," Arthur says.

"Sir, only fifty men?" a soldier asks.

"Yes. If we go out in greater numbers, we'll be spotted sure as daylight. One should never use a sword when the task can be accomplished with a needle. Most of you will stay here and wait," Arthur replies.

"Wait and do what?" the soldier asks back.

"If we are successful in blowing up the wall, the enemy will send for the reserve troops in the castle towards the wall. This can be a problem for us because my father needs to get to the castle as soon as possible. And it is our job to clear the field, to remove any obstacles in his path, keep their army engaged so that they don't hinder my father's path. The troops in the reserve are a problem because they are fresh troops who haven't been fighting on the wall. So if they reinforce the defending force of the wall, it can cause problems. Thus whatever we plan we have to take the reserve troops into account," Arthur explains.

"And how will we staying hidden here help with the reserve troops?" the captain asks back.

"The ones who are left behind will stay hidden here. When the battle breaks out, the reserve troops will rush out of the castle to reinforce the wall defenders. Since there are almost a million of them there, even down here you'll be able to feel the vibrations of the reserves running on top of us, to get to the wall and reinforce the wall defending force. You will let them pass and then once the coast is clear you will all exit from here and in the middle of the battle you will come from behind and attack their flank. Doing so should give us a strategic advantage. But I still want five hundred soldiers to remain down here to guard this entrance. Is everyone clear on this?" Arthur says as the soldiers give their confirmation.

"Your strategy is without flaw. But all that will fail if the wall isn't breached. What's plan B?" the captain asks.

"If it seems like we are unable to make it to the wall, then we switch to plan B," Arthur says.

"And what is Plan B?" the captain asks.

"In plan B, I will blow this horn," Arthur takes out a horn, "three times. If your lookout hears the horn it means the plan has gone south. In that case, you'll forget about plan A and all of you will launch an attack on the wall. I will be leaving half of the explosives here so you'll launch an attack as fast as possible, get to the wall at any cost, kill anyone who tries to stop you, and blow it up with the explosives," he finishes as everyone nods.

"And what's the route we're taking?" the captain asks.

"So first I'm going to choose fifty of our most stealthy capable soldiers. I have made a list, so the rest of you can cool your heels for the moment," Arthur says as he hands the captain the list.

The captain calls out all the selected soldiers and the rest of the soldiers retreat deeper into the passage. 

"So they've finalized a plan to go to the wall. What's happening in the camp?" Delia asks.

Dragon Emperor smiles on hearing that, "You took the words right out of my mouth." and snaps his fingers as the scene changes yet again.

"It's dawn. Now we begin the assault.  Remember, stick to the plan. We're attacking the left side of the wall. Our forces will use the swarm maneuver," Emanuel says.

"Dragon Emperor, we will take huge losses with the swarm maneuver," the lead general remarks.

"Much must be risked in war. If you want to hook the right fish the bait needs to be not only juicy but also needs to dangle in a tempting manner. Like it or not, the swarm maneuver is the only way to overwhelm their defenses. When they see the defenses being overwhelmed they'll call for reinforcements to handle our increased numbers. The more reinforcements come, the better it will be for Arthur who will head for the wall," Emanuel replies.

"But if we attack only the left part of the wall, won't that raise suspicion? I mean, they'll realize that it's a diversion, that we intend to draw their attention away from the right end of the wall," another general says.

"I am counting on that," Emanuel cryptically replies.

"Very well, all the troops are ready for the attack, Dragon Emperor," the general replies. 

"Blow the war horns and attack the fortress," Emanuel says before the war horns are blown and the horde moves towards the wall.

"They're coming with the swarm maneuver!" the lookout on the wall calls out.

"So they've become that desperate that they'll try the swarm maneuver, now that every single assault strategy they tried before has failed!" Jonathan laughs.

"But sir, they're coming full tilt at us with sheer numbers. We might actually get overwhelmed!" one of Jonathan's commanders says.

"Yes. Summon half of all the patrols in the city. That should more than compensate for the incoming assault," Jonathan answers.

"Yes, at once," the commanders turn around to walk away when he's stopped by Jonathan.

"Once you are done, I want you to take a thousand of our best men and go and patrol the west side of the wall. If they're concentrating their attack here in the east then it means there's something which they don't want us to see on the west. Maybe a surprise counter-attack to sneak over the wall," Jonathan says.

The commander nods before leaving as Jonathan turns to the defenses.

"Alright, boys. You know the drill. Kill them all," Jonathan says as torrents of arrows are fired on the incoming army.

"So the fighting has begun at the wall. And as planned half the patrols in the city have been recalled to the wall as reinforcements," Serena summarizes the attack so far.

"Yes. The attack will continue till noon. While the assault is going on at the wall, Arthur and his trusted men are sneaking towards the wall, all the while trying to avoid any patrols to ensure they don't get spotted as they make their way towards the wall. So let us fast forward to 11:45 in the morning. It's going to be noon soon and both of Arthur's groups have successfully managed to traverse the labyrinth of a city and now near the wall. Thus they've merged into one massive group," Dragon Emperor snaps his fingers again as the scene changes.

Arthur, who's the closest to the wall, observes silently as he sees the guards stationed at the gate and on top of the wall. He turns around and opens and closes his right fist in quick succession, three times. The soldier who sees Arthur's signal turns around and repeats the same signal as he passes Arthur's message ahead. Within a minute the message reaches its intended target who takes out an object from his bag. The object appears to be a kite of some form. After making a few changes, the soldier lets go of the kite which starts to climb in altitude slowly but steadily.

"Let me guess. The kite is a way of sending a message to the Dragon Emperor that we're about to attack the gate and blow it up, without the League of Shadow noticing anything?" Lance remarks.

"Yes, you're right. Since the kite doesn't use any aura so it's the perfect way to send a signal to the other side, once it climbs high enough into the sky that is," Dragon Emperor answers as the scene changes once again.

Emanuel and several others are ceaselessly looking through their telescopes for any signs of the kite. Emanuel's sight falls on Jonathan who is looking at them with his own telescope. Jonathan on seeing Emanuel smirks as he wags his index finger back and forth, daring him to come closer to the wall. 

Emanuel puts down the telescope and summons his squire, "Give the order, Stephan. That cheeky bastard is mine. Anyone who encounters him must leave him alone. I'll put my sword through that smirk and drive it out the back of his skull."

"Of course. I will circulate it immediately," Stephan hurries away to carry out Emanuel's command.

"My lord. I can see the kite!" one of the observers emphatically says.

Emanuel peers through his telescope and sees that the kite is indeed visible.

"Very well then. Let us proceed," Emanuel smiles as he puts down his telescope.

< Author's Note Begins >

Sincere apologies for not updating sooner. I am in the middle of exam prep and interviews for a long time. Yesterday I had an interview with several managers in the US. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know I was planning on this to be the concluding chapter but I realized it's much more manageable if I split this massive chapter into 2 smaller chapters. Therefore I have decided that in the next chapter you will get to see the climax of the Battle of Bassir and with the next chapter, the history of the story will come to an end. Then comes the present. Everything, I repeat everything about what has transpired in the previous chapters will finally start coming into the light. You will understand why the events which took place in book 1 took place in the first place. 

All the secrets the Dragon Emperor has been hiding and guarding will begin to be revealed after the next chapter. So as always, ensure you COMMENT and VOTE if you enjoyed this chapter. 

<Author's Note Ends >