Chronos and Varkesh were beating each other harder than before and some of those watching worried that they would break their bones or damage their organs before the fight was over.
The Orca Guard were still bragging that the captain would win when it happened again. He was punched in the gut and fell backwards gasping for air.
"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five..."
He jumped up ready to go again but a bit slower than before. Normally being slightly slower wouldn't make much of a difference but now he was fighting a werewolf. Speed was their forte.
Now that he couldn't move as fast as Chronos he was taking more blows instead of deflecting them. Despite how tough his body was he knew that if things continued like this, he would lose.
As they continued to fight Varkesh suddenly got a vicious gleam in his eye and jumped straight up, raising his hands above his head he brought them down on Chronos so strongly that the water at his feet was blown away again.
"Ugh."
Chronos was driven to the ground.
"Ten, nine, eight..."
Just 3 seconds later he got back up and took his stance once more with a massive, toothy grin on his face.
That was the first time Varkesh had felt despair in a long time.
Increasing the weight of gravity using aura to add damage to the blow was a desperate attempt to bring about a swift end and wasn't something Varkesh would use in a real fight, it was too easy to avoid. But right now, they couldn't step off the line, or they would lose making it a strong blow in the current situation.
Unfortunately, it looked like his opponent had enjoyed the attack instead of being seriously hurt.
Determination flared in Varkesh's eyes, he didn't want to disappoint the Admiral who had saved him in the past. Once more they traded vicious blows, but Varkesh was making more mistakes and leaving openings that Chronos took advantage of.
Then Chronos saw an opening and delivered a strong uppercut lifting Varkesh off of the ground and throwing him back again.
"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three..."
Through sheer strength of will Varkesh stood up and took his stance on the line with murky eyes. Chronos threw another punch then adjusted it to fly past his head.
Varkesh had not reacted at all to that last blow. Backing up Chronos waited for the Admiral to examine him.
After several seconds the Admiral made an announcement that was both disappointing and inspiring to the Orca Guard.
"Varkesh has lost the fight due to passing out while remaining standing. Chronos has won!"
He refused to accept defeat without a fight, and his determination deeply inspired the others. Even if they were destined to lose, they would do so only while pushing toward victory, no matter how far beyond their limits it took them.
"Priest, come heal Varkesh. I need him awake for this negotiation."
"Yes, Admiral."
A merfolk with octopus legs came out of the crowd. He was wearing priest robes that indicated he was a priest of the deep god, a rather unknown god to surface dwellers. All that Chronos knew was that he was usually represented by an octopus or squid image.
Exact records disagreed on which image was more accurate.
While the priest was casting healing spells on Varkesh, Chronos took the opportunity to get a better look at Admiral Kaelvar.
His first assessment wasn't far from the truth.
Admiral Kaelvar looked like someone had taken the head of an orca and placed it on a roughly human shaped body, similar to a shark fishman. His body looked like a bodybuilder's but it was too round, like an orca's body had been fused with a human's then had arms and legs attached. His tail was thick and strong with several scars from how he used it in combat.
Overall, in the eyes of surface dwellers, his appearance was a bit strange but in the eyes of the merfolk his appearance was near perfect.
His armor looked similar to the Orca Guards but more complete. It had the same black and white coloration and was layered and reinforced but the biggest difference was how streamlined it looked. With that armor he could move and strike faster and harder inside of water.
Even the water around his feet was changing direction to provide him with a current to walk through, though Chronos couldn't tell if that was from the armor or a skill he had trained.
He wasn't carrying a trident but at his waist were two serrated blades with edges that shimmered like water.
"Ugh." Varkesh had woken up.
"Admiral, he is conscious. There was no serious injury, just fainted from repeated blows to the face and I've treated the bruising already."
"Good." Admiral Kaelvar reached down to lift him up. "On your feet Varkesh, we have work to do."
"Yes, sir."
"All of you come to my tent. It seems we have much to talk about."
The Admiral led the way deeper into the inner camp with Chronos and the others following him. As they passed the Orca Guard many of them were giving them nods and showing more respect than they had when they first showed up.
Entering the Admiral's tent everyone took a seat while several more captains came in for the meeting. When the last one entered the Admiral started the meeting.
"Now that we are all here, I want to hear from the Matriarch first. What do the tribes of Dracon Fen want with my army?"
Standing up Vaelith spoke, "We of Dracon Fen wish to form an alliance with your army. We can repair and reinforce your fort here and provide 2000 warriors for the battle this afternoon. Once the war is over, we wish to discuss an international trade agreement between us, the Leighla kingdom, and your nation, the Trenchborne Empire."
"Hmm, we can discuss the trade treaty later, but can your tribes really provide much support for us?"
"With all due respect Admiral your army faces a troll army that is nearly three times your size. While I don't doubt that the Marshward host will win, your army will suffer significant losses in this battle. With our assistance it will be much easier to fight them and cut your losses to the minimum."
As he thought about how the lizardfolk and nagas fought Admiral Kaelvar realized that it wouldn't be an easy battle for his troops even with their help.
"You intend to use the Marshward host as bait and ambush the trolls while they attack us don't you?" He asked while glaring at her.
"Yes, however you will be inside of a reinforced fortress with many external traps. When combined with our ambush we can kill a third of them with minimal losses on either side. The battle after that won't be easy but it will be better than fighting them without us." She said without backing down.
"We are not bait. Why don't the lizardfolk act as bait instead?"
"How can the mighty Marshward host be bait? We should ambush the trolls before they get here and fight them as a united front."
Several captains voiced their complaints at being bait offering different strategies but none of them would bring about results as good as the Matriarchs plan.
After hearing all of their plans Admiral Kaelvar made his decision.
"We'll use the Matriarch's plan. It kills the most enemies while saving the lives of our soldier's."
"But Admiral, your honor..."
"Doesn't matter compared to the lives of my men. If others bother you due to this decision then blame me. I'll gladly endure some shame to preserve my men's lives." Admiral Kaelvar cut him off.
Looking ashamed of themselves the captains went silent.
Turning back to the Matriarch the Admiral continued the negotiation.
"I can accept a military pact now with my full support for a mutual defense treaty once the battle is finished. I don't doubt that there will be more battles in the near future and unfortunately, I don't possess enough authority to accept a full agreement while in the field. Is this acceptable?"
Vaelith had hoped for a more formal treaty but with the battle coming so soon and the possibility of a devil showing up it was better to agree first and be ready to fight the Marshward host later.
However, with how much pride and honor the Admiral had it was unlikely for him to betray them. Her only concern was how much influence he had in Trenchborne's royal court.
"I agree."
"Thank you, now I would like to know what the Leighla Kingdoms position is in all of this."
He turned to Chronos, waiting for an explanation.
"The Leighla Kingdom is nominally in charge of Dracon Fen but that's only on paper. The Tribes have governed themselves and provided potions to the kingdom in exchange for using our name to ward off other nations for a couple of centuries now."