The Last Divide

Around the tents, Maeryn and the twins ate while the rest sat around a low table, thinking.

"If we want to stop this," Alvis said, "we have to move fast. We can't let their army march on Numeria."

"I don't like rushed plans," Gorran muttered, "but I agree with this one."

From a corner, Vada added, "They have a huge, monstrous hound too. The last commander controls it."

Kazuki spoke up. "Tonight, when the gate opens, we strike the patrols, slip inside, and take out the Demon Lord and his commander. With their leaders gone, their army will be leaderless."

Caliondur's jaw tightened. "That could go very wrong. Sneaking nine people in unnoticed is one thing — fighting a whole army in cramped halls is another."

Ardent nodded. "Kazuki's plan is missing pieces."

"What if," Alvis interjected, "we draw them out and sneak in at the same time?"

Gorran leaned forward. "Tell us more."

Alvis explained, "We split into two groups. One draws the main army and the commander out and the other team sneaks in to take the Demon Lord and the mage. I've been studying Ahura's staff for days. It can summon troops shaped by the wielder's affinity and mana. I'm the only one here with the mana and the dual affinities to make that work — aside from Kazuki."

"Wow," Zephyr breathed. "That staff is truly a gift from the Gods."

"So, as long as you have mana, an army of mixed affinities will fight for you?" Caliondur asked.

"Yes," Alvis said. "Exactly."

Gorran smiled. "That settles it. Alvis takes the front. I'll go with him and see what this hammer can do."

Caliondur nodded. "I'll cover Alvis from range and handle any attackers trying to flank him."

Verena stepped up. "I'll strike from above." Vada answered, "I'll join the sneaking team and help them get inside."

Ardent added, "Kazuki and Zephyr are our key against the Demon Lord. I'll protect them."

Gorran began to suggest Maeryn go with the infiltration team, but she stood and cut him off. "I'll be on the front with you."

Gorran shot to his feet. "This is not something to argue about. It's dangerous."

Maeryn's voice was steady. "It's dangerous for me as well as for you."

"You have a child on the way," Gorran said, panic rising. "I don't want anything to happen to you."

"There's no guarantee the sneaking team will be safer," Maeryn answered. "And I won't risk you. Remember our promise."

Gorran ran a heavy hand down his face. "I'm going to take a walk."

Alvis stood. "Rest. Tonight, we start the battle."

Kazuki, meeting each of their eyes, said simply. "It all ends tonight."

Night fell like a curtain. One by one they said their goodbyes.

Vada hugged Verena, cheek to cheek. The twins whispered something silly and the two of them laughed, wiping at quick tears. Maeryn hugged Zephyr hard. "You owe me a baby shower," she said through her smile.

Gorran gripped Kazuki's shoulder and pulled him in for an embrace. "When Kael left, I thought I'd lost a brother," he confessed. "But you came to us. Gods gave me a little brother to teach the ropes to."

Kazuki's smile was steady and warm. "And you showed me what it feels like to have a true older brother."

Ardent clapped Alvis on the back. "Till we meet again, old friend."

"Indeed, my dear friend." Alvis replied with a gentle smile.

Caliondur lifted his chin and addressed them all. "There is nothing more sacred and beautiful than the bond among friends. May Gods protect us all until we reunite."

They parted. Ardent, Kazuki, and Zephyr fell in behind Vada as she led the sneaking team to the right side of the castle. Caliondur, Alvis, Verena, Maeryn, Gorran—the assault group—moved up to a low hill that gave them a clear line across the plain and a view of the iron gates. They took positions: Gorran at the far right, Maeryn center, Alvis and Caliondur far left, Verena sweeping the skies.

When both groups were in place, Alvis turned toward Maeryn. "Do the honors," he said.

She met Gorran's eye and the two of them nodded. Maeryn smiled. "With pleasure."

She conjured a great fire-bomb and hurled it. It burst in a blistering bloom at the heart of the enemy formation, a column of heat that swallowed dozens of demons and yanked every eye toward the flare. Their attention broken, the patrols surged like a tide toward the blaze.

Alvis planted Ahura's staff in the earth and poured mana through it. The ground shivered. A second later armies of elemental soldiers—earthkin and fireborn warriors—formed behind the assault group, ranks rising from soil and spark. They charged down the slope with thunderous steps.

The castle gates groaned open. A flood of demon forces poured out, a black wave that streamed across the plain. And at their head walked the commander.

He was a mountain of iron, as tall as Gorran—if not taller. Plates hammered and welded into a nightmarish armor. His helm bore no crest—only a visor carved into a skull's permanent leer. Two cold embers burned behind the eye-slits. He moved like an executioner carrying inevitability.

Chained to his side lunged a beast that should not have existed. It was the size of an elephant, its body stitched from many creatures: a lupine torso, a scaled forelimb like some great lizard, a clawed bear's arm, hind legs mismatched—one hoofed, the other padded and feline. Patchwork fur clung to blackened hide; a long jaw gaped with mismatched fangs. One eye glowed faint red; the other was pale and sightless. It inhaled the night air and snarled.

For a heartbeat the hound sniffed the air and turned its blind eye toward them. Its master tugged the chain and the hound obeyed. "This way, you dumb creature," the commander's voice grated.

As the last of the demon swarm flowed out, the iron gates began to swing shut. Vada's hand went up. The sneaking team ran inside.

The gates slammed closed. A chill went through the air as the echo of iron dying against stone faded. For a breath they were sealed within the castle's belly.

Then—clapping.

Slow, deliberate hands, applauding from the gloom.

They turned.

Right before them stood a tall, perfectly muscled demon with a long sinuous tail—dark as midnight and dreadful as a carved idol, Set into the hollow of his chest glowed a relic like the one Kazuki had—applauding with a grin that split too far across his face. "Bravo," he said with a voice deep and amused. Beside him a slim cloaked figure watched, red eyes glittering from beneath the hood. Around them, on the bailey and along the battlements, demon forces stood in rows, watching the intruders with cold amusement.

Their stomach sank. This was no accident—they had been expected.

When the clapping stopped, the tall demon stepped forward into the weak torchlight and bowed with theatrical courtesy. "Greetings, heroes. Welcome to your doom."