There are many tales in the 5th Phyrexian War for Dominaria. Not all are mighty heroic deeds that are told around campfires. Some are simply the day to day attempts to survive in this war torn zone. One such bid was made by Oona, the Queen of Fae. Persuaded to join the Phyrexians in their invasion, she had spent 40 weeks marching across the plane leaving only death in her wake. Yet she would soon discover that even the greatest are not free from the twists of fate.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was a sad day for Oona, beloved queen of the Fae when the army she commanded lost control of the structure known to the inhabitants as Frank. She had it all planned and things were going her way, even though outnumbered when lady luck decided to show her ugly side. To make matters worse Oona's army was decimated and she barely escaped from the confrontation herself.
She took her refuge north-west of the battle site and traveled for miles hoping to escape her followers. When things seemed quieter she decided that a compromise is needed, and while knowing that the surrounded areas were filled with hostile creatures she knew that without properly regrouping and rallying the remaining of her forces she doesn't have a chance of getting out of this dreaded swamp.
Oona spent 5 days gathering the troops that retreated erratically from the battle and she actually struggled to find some of the rogue air elemental groups. But after carefully scouting the swamps she managed to gather whatever little was left of her once mighty army. She decided that one more night of rest couldn't hurt and thought that the glimpse of daylight that managed to find it's way into the darkest corners of the marsh is much greater an ally than the cover of the night.
On the dawn of the 6th day Oona ordered her troops to assemble and get ready to travel. Morale was low and most troops were still weary and more precious time was wasted but as the sun was directly above her Oona finally gave the order for the long walk home.
What was left of the army was set in motion and the few scouts Oona could spare that were sent ahead didn't report any major threat. Seldom swamp dwellers and a few coalition troops left without leaders were disposed of in battle at low costs and it seemed that luck has started to shine her way. Good omens were spotted along the way and morale grew a bit. Talking to her few remaining lieutenants Oona decided to set a course towards Tevish's monument, knowing that few enemies would ever dare get close to an area which they consider to be void of hope.
At dusk Oona set camp and gave her troops some of the left supplies and plenty of time to rest. There was no way she would hinder the army's morale even more. The night was pretty quiet and the only things the sentinels reported were a few critters getting close, probably curious of the camp fires but nothing hostile and definitely nothing dangerous.
The next morning things went a lot smoother and almost no time was wasted. A few early scouts even found a few trees with comestible fruit and that helped the dwindling supplies a little bit.
However, things were about to take a turn for the worst as a mere few hours after leaving camp Oona got a bad feeling. She ordered her troops to advance cautiously and assigned a few more scouts. But it was all in vain because before she could even decide the next move a swarm of legionnaires rushed at her army from above. It was a decisive moment because if the enemy managed to push through her army right then and there everything would have been lost.
In a moment of clarity Oona quickly gathered all the dominuses that were near and ordered them to take control of the beasts that the enemy soldiers were riding. Time and time again such tactics have failed both her as well as Phyrexia and it was a long time since they were last used but in a desperate act she made a good call. The roc mounds were not veteran soldiers... in fact they weren't soldiers at all, but mere beasts tamed by the enemy and the mind control worked just fine on them.
In the middle of the charge a considerable part of the enemy charge went crazy and started attacking the closest ally but it wasn't enough. Even if the force of the attack was considerably weakened groups still managed to push through and start picking at the lines. It all happened very fast and Oona simply went with instinct when she ordered all available troops to bulk together and form a phalanx as strong as they possibly can given the conditions. The troops complied and the accumulated strength proved to be enough to stop the initial charge but Oona knew there was more to come.
While occupied with the legionnaires even more troops made themselves visible above, advancing with considerable strength even though not as fast as the first wave. Oona knew that what she had dealt with up until that time was just a first wave of a much greater army. She also knew that while her chances were slim, things were not impossible and the time she won by fending off the first charge was very important.
With the entire army finally together she moved upwards, away from the ground knowing that it would increase her chances. After all a strong formation is much harder to attack in the air than it is on the ground.
The enemy threw themselves at Oona's troops and they were fighting fiercely. A clear advantage in numbers could only mean that they had morale on their side. But Oona still have a few tricks on her sleeves. The avatars were holding the line with large shield and with spears held forward so if anything was to bash into the formation they were going to take serious damage as well. The only problem was that the enemy was also using large shields to negate such a defense and the avatars were certainly no match for the enemy angels. Oona immediately ordered the air elementals to increase the air pressure around the avatars making sure that their line is sturdier than originally expected and while the enemy was charging forward enraged rocs, a few of the survivors of the few wave, still under control by the dominuses flanked into their left side.
The enemy formation held easily since the attack was not that precise and maddened beasts are no match for an organized formation but it still bought some more previous seconds during which the most experienced air elementals started concentrating on negating the enemy firebreathing abilities.
Meanwhile Oona kept her own dracoplasms hidden and they emerged right before the enemy could strike. Even if few in numbers the enemy was caught unprepared and the damage. Blizzard elementals also started burning the enemy eyes with extreme cold and as they dropped their guard a volley of ice shards flew straight into the unexpecting enemy.
The enemy formation had failed and his troops were in disarray wondering how this could have happened but the danger was still not over. Out of the blue a contingent of demons and dragons swept towards Oona charging like they were insane. There was little left of the defensive formation , definitely not enough to stop this charge but Oona prevailed again. With a small fleet of the enemy rocs still under control she broke into the charge and the blizzard elementals provided their support once more.
The enemy final charge lost momentum and the avatars finally charged killing them till the last but also suffering a great deal of damage themselves. There was nothing left for the enemy but retreat and Oona rejoiced at that sight. She had managed to pull it off once again and again her army could rest.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This tale written by Murica, Chief Praetor of Phyrexia in the War Game. The battle referenced can be found here.
