Timebreaker

Imbuka watched with a satisfied glee as the rebel cavalry charged through The Huntmaster’s scattered forces. The fool had hardly maneuvered his troops, too comfortable relying on the power of adventurers to make up for his lackluster strategies. Without them he would surely fall, and The General would be the only one left leading the troops to victory. His gaze dragged at the approaching infantry from his homeland. The shimmering green and gold of their armor caught the sun in the most irritating way.

What gaudy traditions, Imbuka thought. I was right to leave the burdens of that world behind.

As he watched the approaching units, he noticed the distant siege weaponry on the backs of the thunder lizards. Each one fired in turn, sending great stones hurdling towards the lines of defending troops.

“Brace!” shouting one soldier, as the stones collided into the formation. Imbuka watched one stone as it swirled through the air towards him.

“General! Look out!” called one soldier. Imbuka’s lip twitched as he stared forward again. The stone crashed into the ground next to The General, causing dirt to lift from the ground and spray across his armor. He remained still, eyeing the throne-beast that King Mnguni rode on.

“Form a shield wall,” he said calmly. “And prepare the fire line.”

Soldiers scrambled around him as they carried out his orders, the clattering of Ubuk weapons on shields slowly growing louder and louder with each step of their military.

“Sir?” a commander called out.

“Steady,” Imbuka replied. Closer and closer the soldiers came, with the throne-beast lumbering behind them. Imbuka could almost see the smirk on King Mnguni’s face. With spears down, the Ubuk line charged towards the metallic line of Capital defenders. Imbuka held his hand high before making a chopping motion towards the attackers.

“First line!” he shouted. Behind The Capital shield wall, a line of soldiers stood with The General’s newly crafted fire lances. The soldiers aimed and fired at the approaching soldiers, causing a majority of the initial shield wall to collapse from the impact. The green and gold shifted as new shields were raised to fill the gaps.

“Second line!” barked Imbuka. The first set of soldiers crouched as the second line stood, aiming and unleashing their volleys. Another sizable chunk of Ubuk soldiers were taken down in the firestorm.

“Third line!” Imbuka grinned as the third volley began to create a panic in the approaching lines. Parts of the shield wall faltered, aware that whatever was being fired could cut through the heavy scales that protected them.

“Fourth line!” he ordered. It was upon this final order that the shield wall before him parted to allow the throne-beast forward. The thunder lizard began to charge with King Mnguni standing in front of his throne, spear at the ready. Whatever projectiles hit the beast did not seem to provide any damage, as the creature lowered its horns and barreled into Imbuka’s defensive line. He crouched as the beast approached and leapt into the air, landing on the frill of the creature as it bucked its head up to dislodge him. Imbuka used the momentum to leap again, landing on the top of the golden throne behind King Mnguni. He held his sword to his side as he stared down at the invader King, who turned around to stare up at The General.

“It’s funny,” the King said. “There was once a time when I would never have had a second thought about you having my back.”

“And yet you didn’t have mine!” Imbuka barked down to the King. “You were so worried about tradition, so consumed by fear that you had no problem at all casting me aside.”
The Ubuk soldiers clashed with The Capitol defenders, the melee consuming the ground around the throne-beast.

“You were never discarded, brother,” Mnguni offered, raising the tip of his spear towards Imbuka.

“The only one who cast you out was the demon whispering in your ear.”
Imbuka spread his arms wide, motioning to the war around them.

“Do you see this? The progress I’ve made with this backwater kingdom? We have taken the North, the East, and the lands leading to the wastes. Soon, we will march on Ubukhazikhazi too. We will burn your tradition down with glorious progress,” Imbuka said with a smile.

His grin faltered as he felt a stinging sensation on his neck. Wiping at it with his hand, he moved his palm into his line of sight to find the offender to be a grain of sand. A torrent of grains blasted into his side as he fell from the throne-beast. Imbuka wheezed as his armored form hit the ground, though The King did not seem to notice. Nobody did, he realized. It was as if the world has stopped altogether, bodies suspended mid-fall, projectiles hovering in place, and faces staring at nothing in particular. Imbuka stood and looked around, sword at the ready.

“Is there really only hate left, Imbuka?” a voice said. The General spun and cut at nothing, his eyes meeting the hooded figure standing between him and King Mnguni.

“There you are, warlock,” Imbuka hissed. “Come to taunt your failure?”

“No, child of Hazi,” The Chronomancer said. “I’ve come to bring you home.”

“Home? This is my home!” The General said, waving his sword around him. “A home I built from nothing! From the status of trade good, to the strongest commander the continent has ever seen! You wish for me to return with you to live again in chains?” He spit upon the ground, the globule freezing midair before it could land.

“Your brother, he will forgive you,” the hooded man assured. “He is a wise King, a kind King. I have seen his reign, and I know his hand to be of mercy.”

“Mercy? What for…” Imbuka said, his eyes alight with a fire unlike any he held before. “I regret nothing. I apologize for nothing. Everything I did, I did for our people. For our family! And I was left to rot. No longer,” He steadied his blade at The Chronomancer. The wizard pulled his hood back, shoving the wrinkles of his face as he frowned at Imbuka.