[S5R12] Arena of Honor : UMBRA/ In the Shadows of Glory

[S5R12] Arena of Honor

UMBRA: In the Shadows of Glory

The team was back to full strength after securing a victory in Round 11. The atmosphere was different—it was good, but there was also a sense that the team was incomplete, and this time, the return to normalcy made them whole again.

The team, which had been made up for the most part of the same members of Arena de Honor for months, had managed to regroup after two of its longest-standing members—Ser Behemoth and Thegreybear—had been absent in the previous round. Despite the absences, they had still managed to win the match  while defending the colors of House Targaryen.

This time was different because they were all back together again

And this time, the group had its own identity—a new name.

“Starting today, we're UMBRA,” SCEPAL told Ardesign.

“It sounds classy,” Ardesign remarked. “It's cool.”

“And because we play at night,” Thegreybear added with a little laugh.

“Shadows... I like it,” said Ser Behemoth.

And so, the official birth of a team that had already fought many battles was born.

Suddenly, someone in the group made a remark to their rivals.

“Look at Stark…” said Demerzel.

“And Lannister isn’t coming in weak either,” added Ardesign.

Demerzel smiled… it won’t be easy, but we mustn’t lose heart either.

Nothing is impossible for us.

“Now let’s do what we do best.”

Final count… and the game began.

Immediately, the members began analyzing the rival teams’ troops while also determining what types of troops they needed to reinforce their own castle and fortresses.

“We need to decide which camps to set up,” said SCEPAL.

“Cavalry,” replied Demerzel. “Let’s go with cavalry camps.”

“Are you sure?” asked Ser Behemoth. “If they’re preparing spears…”

“I know…” said Demerzel

For a moment he remained silent…and said

“If they come out with lances, we’re going to suffer…but we also need to go all in. We can’t play with fear.”

The camps were rapidly being reinforced until they reached a state of protection.

Finally, a reinforced castle…only full cavalry.

Once the moment of protection arrived, they became cavalry camps as had been discussed.

Everything was going according to plan; they were in last place, but they remained calm—they knew what they were doing.

As they waited to catch up to the leaders, the second line of defenses began to open up.

“Hurry!!...” Ardesign kept repeating.

The first altars also appeared.

UMBRA—as it was now called...—spread out across the entire map.

They seized the altars, reinforced them, and captured them, driving out anyone from another team who dared to occupy them.

They went out in search of new targets to keep racking up as many as they could.

The secondary strongholds also ended up being converted into cavalry camps

The pace was steady.

But for them, it was business as usual.

“We’re used to this by now,” SCEPAL remarked as he checked the standings. “Move fast and always reinforce.”

“Exactly,” Behemoth replied. “That’s how we secure the top spots.”

“Unless the other side is monstrously strong,” added Thegreybear.

The standings already showed Lannister in first place, Stark in second, and Targaryen just coming in third, though there was still plenty of time left.

However, little by little, the leaderboard began to shift.

The altars became the constant focus of combat.

Troops clashed time and again as they tried to reclaim lost altars and, where possible, reinforce them as well.

The group coordinated every move flawlessly until, finally, the results began to show.

UMBRA managed to capture several enemy altars, and in this way, the points began to pile up.

The standings immediately reflected their efforts so far…

“We’re in first place!” announced Ardesign.

“For now, we still have to take City of Glory,” corrected Demerzel.

Despite that, the team was confident and enthusiastic after the previous match, and even more so because everyone was together again.

This is a great team… thought SCEPAL

For several minutes, the lead constantly shifted between Targaryen and Lannister.

It seemed that neither could pull away from the other.

“Let’s keep pushing; we can catch up to them—the gap isn’t that big,” said SCEPAL.

The tension rose when Stark made an unexpected comeback.

“Watch out… Stark’s in the lead—what just happened there?”

Demerzel looked at the scoreboard.

It wasn’t a big lead.

But it was a warning… they couldn’t let up!

The real battle was about to begin.

Everything would depend on the opening in City of Glory.

When it finally opened, everyone was already on the lookout to see who would claim it first.

“Get ready,” said Demerzel.

City of Glory opened, and chaos erupted in the arena.

The Lannister runners arrived first by a hair’s breadth.

Almost at the same time, Stark appeared and took his place for a few seconds, and the lead changed hands several times between them—first Lannister! then Stark!

But Demerzel had already made up his mind.

—And Demerzel's ETO arrived with his massive infantry force, taking control of the center.

—We've got her!

The City of Glory was finally Targaryen’s.

“Everyone inside to reinforce the defenses!!”

Troops began arriving rapidly, each player bringing whatever they could.

The attacks began immediately, one after another, endless waves of marching forces arriving from all directions as the defenses crumbled at a terrifying pace.

“They’re hitting us hard; now’s not the time to let up, everyone,” said Demerzel.

“We just need to reach a state of safety, and we hope to do so as soon as possible,” thought SCEPAL.

The Targaryen castle was not at peace either, for while the battle raged in the center, the castle was under attack from multiple flanks.

We had to constantly reinforce it, and it seemed like we could never get enough reinforcements.

The players were split between defending the center and protecting the castle.

The pressure was immense, and every minute felt like an eternity.

Until finally, the message everyone had been waiting for appeared: Targaryen had secured the protection status and first place.

A collective sigh of relief swept through the channel. Yes!!! Time to reinforce the troops!

It was time for a rotation, but this time Demerzel had switched to ETO and was preparing to send in his spearmen.

“I’m going to switch out the reinforcements; we’ll switch to spearmen,” Demerzel announced.

“Let’s hope it works,” said Behemoth.

And it did… the spearmen were the strongest unit on the team.

Meanwhile, other key objectives were also secured, such as the Mining Site, Dragon’s Well, and Mine Shaft.

Each building meant more points, and each point brought the team closer to victory.

No one let their guard down.

Not even when the lead began to grow.

“Let’s keep taking altars,” said SCEPAL.

UMBRA continued to expand.

They captured, defended, and reinforced their positions relentlessly.

It was a perfectly synchronized machine.

However, Stark was not willing to give up either, and they tried to follow exactly the same strategy.

“Eleven minutes left,” Thegreybear warned.

The lead was solid, though not yet decisive.

One mistake could change everything, even though success seemed within reach.

In Arena of Honor, eleven minutes could feel like a lifetime.

“We couldn’t let up; we had to keep going.”

Minute after minute, the attacks and reinforcements, the defenses, the captures, and the recaptures continued.

“I think we’re really going to win this time—not by a lot of points, but comfortably,” said Ardesign.

“Don’t count your chickens just yet,” replied SCEPAL.

But she smiled because she knew there was no chance anyone else could pass them and that it was practically decided.

The final seconds passed amid defensive plays and a few last-minute captures.

When the clock hit zero, an explosion of joy swept over the UMBRA team.

“We won again!”

“Great job, everyone!”

“UMBRA!”

“House Targaryen!”

Everyone was more than happy with the results.

The victory hadn’t come easily.

It hadn’t been easy at all, and they’d fought for every point.

Every altar and every building.

But one thing had been clear even before the match began.

UMBRA had entered the field convinced they could win.

And that conviction had remained intact until the very end.

Because some victories are born during the battle.

But others are born long before… from confidence, unity, and discipline.

And that night, UMBRA had proven once again why they remained one of the most feared teams in Arena of Honor.