It was too late.
The order to retreat came seconds too slow, and the Shinras were already caught in the trap of the darkside spirits.
"Listen to me! Mages—teleport all courts to my location. Now!" the Captain bellowed, his voice heavy with urgency.
"We can't teleport them all at once, sir!" one of the mages replied. "They're not linked together!"
"Then tell them to hold hands, you fool! Don't wait for orders for everything!" the Captain snapped.
"Understood, sir!" the mages responded. "All Shinras—hold hands with your court members! New plan: we're regrouping with the Captain's court!"
From across the battlefield, two courts responded with strained voices. One court captain shouted, "Connect me to the Head Captain—this is serious. We can't regroup! We have fallen Shinras and the wounded. We can't just abandon the injured and leave the dead behind!"
"That's the least of our problems!" another court captain cut in, voice filled with panic. "A new darkside spirit just appeared here... and it's not a regular beta! I don't know what this thing is, but it's far beyond anything we've seen. Tell the Head Captain—we need reinforcements or we'll be wiped out. If we fall, these monsters are heading straight for the town!"
"I hear you just fine, captains," the Head Captain's voice echoed through the telepathic link. "Mages, prepare for combat. This is life or death. Send me and the Vice Captain to the unknown darkside spirit's location. That one's clearly leading this army."
He continued with urgency, "As for the court with injured Shinras—regroup the survivors and fall back to my position. We'll need every fighter we can get. We cannot let these creatures break through."
"Yes, sir!" the mages replied. "We're teleporting the wounded court to your location now."
In a flash of purple light, the remaining Shinras—injured and battle-worn—were teleported to the Captain's position. Falco stood among them, steel in his eyes.
"Captain, "once we are done, whose court are we to join?" One of the mages asks.
"Mine," he answered. "I can sense a Renshi force approaching from underground. You feel it too, don't you, Falco?"
"Yeah, I can hear it," Falco said grimly. "But it's not as strong as the force that the other court is facing. We need more Shinras in both directions." The captain added
Falco glanced around. "What about the other two courts? Can't you reach them?"
The Captain shook his head. "You haven't noticed? They're gone. Completely wiped out. Most likely by those unknown darkside spirits. No time to grieve—we carry our fallen comrades' will. We fight for mankind's survival."
He reached out to the Vice Captain. "Grab my hand. Let's end this."
The mages acted fast, teleporting the Captain and Vice Captain toward the unknown enemy's location, where the other struggling court awaited. Meanwhile, the court with injured Shinras, plus the mages, joined up with the main unit.
"Don't break the telepathic link," the Captain warned. "Keep communications open at all times."
"Yes sir!" the mages responded.
Now, with the regrouped forces and remaining mages, the count stood at 43: thirty six Shinras still able to fight, seven injured, and the rest slain. Falco was among them, sword ready.
Suddenly, Falco shouted, "This isn't a wave—they're coming all at once! Get ready for battle!"
One of the mages gasped, "The powerful Renshi signature underground—it just shifted. It's joining the darkside spirits!"
"You really helped us there," another mage said to Falco. "Without your sensory ability, we'd all be dead. Ours don't work underground."
"No time for praise, kid!" the Shinra with the second dark cape snapped.
"For once, you're right," Falco muttered, stepping forward. He approached the other court's captain. "You're in charge here. I suggest you start giving orders."
The court captain nodded, impressed. "I like your spirit, Smith. You would've made a great Shinra."
He raised his voice. "Listen up! We fight as one court from here on. No more splitting forces! All Sage Shinras—take offensive formation with me! Cyborg Shinras—hold counter formation! Mages, cast defense spells on every fighter—including the smith. We're going all out!"
"Not bad for a regular court captain," the dark-caped Shinra said(all Shinras wear capes but this Shinra who have been in disagreement with Falco,his cape is different). "
"Above us!" Falco suddenly screamed. "And below—get ready!"
Before anyone could react, 152 darkside spirits dropped from the sky. Another 97 erupted from beneath the ground—249 darkside spirits, surrounding the Shinras.
Without hesitation, the Shinras drew their blades and launched into battle, fighting with every ounce of strength, determination, and Renshi they had left.