RISE OF THE SWARM

The battlefield lay silent, except for the crackling of dying fires and the hum of sentinel drones. The sentinels quickly flocked towards Horizon, kneeling before awaiting further directives. Horizon stared down at Ghorruk's corpse. Something had changed within him mid-fight. He had entered a sort of berserk state, increasing his strength massively. His scanners had shown that Ghorruk was burning his own blood to temporarily increase his strength. It had been effective as he had taken down two sentinels before falling.

Horizon shelved this experience for later he would find a way to replicate what this orc had done and apply it to his forces, although they had no blood he didn't believe he couldn't work around it, such an ability would prove invaluable to his forces. He stepped over the lifeless body, staring at his surroundings, the land was marked with the scars of battle. Shells littered the ground, together with large craters caused by the repeated explosions.

But the work wasn't done. Horizon turned his head towards a certain tree, his scanners informing him of a figure still alive. His silver tendril lashed out, wrapping around a figure. With a yank, he brough the figure up to him. It was the orc-goblin hybrid. He tried wriggling out but it was futile, Horizons tendril tightly coiled on his neck suffocating him.

"Pl....plea...please let me live.....I'll be your slave. Please," He pleaded with Horizon.

Horizon stared at the wriggling creature. He couldn't understand the creature's tongue, but he could guess it was rambling something about freedom. All organics resorted to begging when faced with death. But he would be granting it no such mercy.

He had seen this creature leading the orcs through the earlier spy probe he had launched. He had assumed it to be the leader because it rode at the front, but now, seeing how weak it was, he assumed it to be some sort of scout.

The creature began crying as it pleas became louder. Horizon released the thing, watching it fall to the ground, and scrambled to reach a dagger on its back. With a lunge, it tried to stab Horizon's midsection, only for the blade in its hands to shatter as it came into contact with Horizon's body.

Horizon looked at the creature's pitiful attempt to harm him, and he retaliated by whipping the creature across its face with his silver tendril. The goblin was launched back, smashing into a nearby tree, breaking it in half. Blood poured from its mouth as it scrambled, standing back up and began running.

The sentinels turned, unsheathing their blades, ready to give chase, but Horizon raised his hands, halting their movements. Horizon's eyes glowed brighter as it watched the orc thing disappear into the shrub. This battle was far from being over.

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Back in the orc village the orcs prepared a grand feast expecting their warriors back, ever since the village was founded it had never suffered a defeat, they expected this time to be no different. Fires raged in the night, as meat roasted on spits above them. Young orcs ran around carrying makeshift swords, dreaming of the day the two would join the battle. Teens spurred against each other the other orcs cheering them on.

One child though didn't participate in the festivities, he stood in front of a makeshift dummy a wooden axe in hand. He practiced his swings on the dummy relentlessly. Suddenly a group of young orcs approached him.

"Well what do we have here, Orion son of Bollock the strong, practicing alone?"

The other orcs laughed at this, but Orion didn't care he continued attacking the dummy unbothered for their taunts. The leading orc boy growled in anger at being ignored.

"Hey how about you, practice some real fighting." He said maliciously knocking over Orion.

But right as he was about to pummel Orion. A small figure burst through into the encampment screaming. All the orcs turned to the small figure, it was the scout, but it can't be he went with the warriors, if he was here they were also supposed to be here, but they weren't.

"Where are the warriors goblin." One orc asked.

"DEAD.....ALL DEAD..KILLED BY METAL DEMONS!" he sputtered in between breaths.

The village went silent, their warriors dead? Impossible, there was nothing that was their match this side of the forest. Surely the goblin was lying.

One of the orcs came grabbing the goblin by the head, green veins popping up on his face, clearly enraged at the goblins words.

"NONSENSE, there are no metal demons in this forest, so what happened." he asked

But before he could answer a bang sound could be heard. A second later the goblins head exploded into mist, piercing through the other orc, causing a hole to appear on his forehead. The orcs stood there surprised at the sudden attack but it didn't last long.

"WERE UNDER ATTACk!" one of the orcs shouted.

The orcs scattered each rushing to grab a weapon to defend themselves from the unseen invaders. One of the orcs quickly climbed into a watchtower aiming to find any signs of the enemy, but a plasma round struck the watchtower instantly killing the orc and showering the camp in burning wood. The thatch houses immediately caught fire.

A second plasma round was fired this time striking the gates blowing them apart. Swarms of sentinels burst into the place, their visors glowing a bright red. With a blur they disappeared. Chaos quickly consumed the village as the sentinels ran rampart on the village, killing every orc they came across.

The mothers quickly scrambled looking for their kids only for them to be shredded apart from gunfire. The lesser shamans tried casting wards for protection only for them to be shot down instantly.

Horizon walked through the village, his silver tendrils wildly whipping about impaling any orc that dared foolishly charge at him, his goal the complete eradication of every orc here. It didn't matter what came before him.