Combining Forces

All of a sudden a shudder runs through the spider lord’s body, shaking so violently it flings me off. I fly a few metres, landing with my back against a rock. For a moment, all the air is knocked out of my lungs.

When I look up, the spider has collapsed into the hollow. It no longer draws in the clouds and the spawning has ceased. I can only hope it’s the only one on the battlefield today. I can’t imagine it would hold out indefinitely, but it might have been too much for even Suzu and Pym to beat.

The miasma, previously collected underneath the spider lord, streams out all at once, rolling over the ground like a flood wave.

Oh.

Oh no.

I left a protective blessing on some of the people, but if this concentrated mass hits them… Fuck.

“Poru-in!!” I yell as I jump up.

My whole body hurts from the impact, legs shaking, but I have to bear it. On the other side of the collapsed spider, Poru stands, hands outstretched. He has heard me. One nod suffices as communication. I wait for whatever he conjures up and try to match it.

From Poru’s hands, waves of glowing light, like white smoke, sink into the hollow. It fizzes where it comes into contact with the miasma, both cancelling each other out. I imagine the same, but it doesn’t work.

“Why?”

[Manipulation of Demon Spider Lord skills exhausted magic power. Any more exertion and use may fall unconscious.]

“Thanks for the warning…”

[…]

“I’m going to get help!” I shout.

Poru doesn’t acknowledge me, just continues in his task. It’s just as well. His efforts are keeping the spreading miasma somewhat at bay, but there’s no telling how long he can hold out. With the summoning quelled, the strain on the battlefield should lessen and I remember that Char’s army seems to have some light mages too.

I don’t have to look for Suzu, I can spot her immediately. The battlefield explodes around her, Pym still like a fiery ghost on her heels. They fight together like they’ve known each other for eternity. Each god seems to have their own style. Pym is very much hands-on, as opposed to Erya.

The smaller spiders seem repulsed by my aura as the Light’s Hero, but a few bigger ones are bolder. My sword skills are still nothing special, but they are sufficient to hold the blade securely and slash at whatever stands in my path. It just needs to be good enough to reach my goal.

Still.

Having to climb over bodies of both demons and humans alike makes my stomach turn.

“Suzu! Suzu!”

She whips her head around in an instant. Her awareness of the battlefield is astounding. With a leap she stands next to me. With as few words as I can, I explain the situation to her. She nods and runs away.

Sometimes I think my whole reason for being in this world seems to be the delegation of tasks. But that’s what I’m good at: Finding the ones who can take on the work and build a team that can do it together.

While she runs to bring together the relevant troops, I do what I can where I am. I’m not a fighter, but I need to be more familiar with the act, so I brace myself and join the fray.

——

I emerge reasonably unscathed. Previously, knocking my toe on a corner would have already counted as a major injury for me—now I am bleeding from cuts and scrapes and am only happy not to have lost an arm. How quickly humans can adapt…

With terminal exhaustion, I can barely raise my blade when a straggler emerges from the beaten vegetation. I don’t have to cut it down—Nono is there, doing it for me. With emphasis, she ignites the spider’s body, the core cracking even without light magic influence, the resulting scream mingling with the countless others all across the battlefield as the cleanup begins. The cacophony of painful voices wash over me, dampening the elation of victory.

“You’re still here,” I say.

Nono doesn’t look at me. She doesn’t run either.

“Are your orders from above that absolute?”

She looks at me then, eyes wide for a moment, then once again composed.

“You wouldn’t understand,” she replies.

“Then explain it to me. Make me understand.”

She fidgets. “Not now. Just… I… I’m not your enemy.”

“You might not be, but these demons are.”

“I hate them as much as you do.”

That would explain why she doesn’t hesitate to slaughter the troops that are supposedly on her side.

“Why?”

Nono sighs. “They are a means to an end—not what anyone wanted.”

“Not even the Demon Lord?”

She stays quiet then, but her silence says more than any answer she could have given. Then why does he use them? I want to ask, but the moment passes as Gale appears at my side. Nono eyes him with knowing suspicion. Of course she also knows. She won’t give herself away in front of the King of the Cats.

“Meow.”

“I think he’s fetching us,” Nono says.

“Then fetch away.”

Nono helps me to stand. The difference in appearance between us makes me glad for the magic clothes I received from Erya. No matter the blood or dirt, it cleans itself off neatly—even my skin beneath it. We don’t talk as Gale leads us across the hilltop, navigating the furrowed earth of the torn up battlefield.

The people we pass defer to me as if I was an actual hero. I believe it more with each passing day, since I’ve started to perform tasks that may get me to this status someday. But then I lay eyes on Suzu, shining and strong. A fighter and a leader. I am none of these things. I crawl and I cheat my way through this, hiding behind my party.

“Yuki!” Suzu beams as she spots me and beckons me closer. “Thank you!”

I am momentarily confused.

“Thank me? For what?”

“Had you not disabled the summoning ritual, we would’ve lost many more.”

“I also unleashed the miasma across the battlefield…”

“And you worked to contain it, so where’s the harm?”

She pats my back forcefully. I swallow. Boundless optimism is a quality I don’t possess. But Safrim does. He joins Suzu, laughing and patting my back too. Their combined force almost knocks me over.

“I am good at charging ahead, but I miss the finer details. Your keen eye saved us a lot of trouble today.”

I open my mouth to refute her, but then I catch Karina’s eye. She stands proud and resolutely shakes her head. I get her message.

“I am happy to have been able to contribute.”

Finally, Suzu seems happy with my answer.

“Pym?”

The fiery apparition appears once more. They exchange glances, and in the end the Fire God looks at me before fading out of sight.

“He needs to rest. The battle feeds him, but also exhausts,” Suzu explains. “Pym receives his power from people fighting in his name.”

“Huh. Erya receives her power from people worshipping at more temples,” I say.

“They’re all different, then. Come on, we need to find a place to rest for the night that’s preferably not this hilltop.”

——

Night has fallen as we make camp between the high trees in the valley. Shielded from aerial view, the forest is filled with small encampments made by Char’s people, every nook and cranny transformed into a campsite to rest and recuperate. They are different from Atol’s army. Less centralised, more like a large group of adventurers. I am looking forward to seeing the city that created these people one day.

My party is invited to stay in the main encampment with Char’s commanders. We discuss anything and everything over a simple dinner and then come together around a large map of the region, set up on a boulder. Suzu points at a hill in between Atol and Char on the map. I recognise the valley next to it by the succession of waterfalls recorded nearby. We passed them on our trek towards them.

“We march onwards to meet Atol’s army. They should be able to reach this hillside in the next few days. Even if we can’t defend the whole corridor between our cities, the diverted attention may open windows for other forces. Besides, their attacks have gotten weaker.”

I look at Suzu. “Weaker? This flood of demon spiders is unlike anything we’ve encountered so far.”

“What’s Atol’s situation right now?” she asks.

Safrim takes it upon himself to answer, describing the refugee situation inside the city walls and the precarious stalemate around the fields on the outside. Suzu’s face falls slightly upon his description, but she smiles at the end.

“Atol fares better yet. Char has lost the lands surrounding its walls. There is no more land to grow crops on, except the few gardens and parks inside. Our population has halved. The men and women you see here are volunteers, driven by desperation, seeking out a saviour. I took them under my wing to search for you, and bring back a force to secure the lands around Char once more.”

The future I feared for Atol has already happened in another city. Whatever precarious peace is currently upheld may shatter easily. Maybe I will see Char sooner than expected.

“Atol is marching to support your efforts,” Safrim says. “They are advancing every day to join you. We are here to tell you that.”

Suzu puts a hand on his arm. “This is an unreal opportunity only made possible by your initiative.”

“We owe it all to Yuki,” Safrim says.

“We do,” Karina adds and Poru nods.

“And when we find the other heroes, we will come out on top,” Suzu states.

“Then it’s decided. We meet up with Atol’s people and combine our forces to retake whatever is left of Char’s lands. We can only stand against the darkness together,” Safrim states.

I see the resolve in everyone’s eyes. Suzu is grimly determined, her lips hard but her eyes shining. Next to her, an afterimage of Pym flickers in the falling light of day, as if to give reassurance by his presence. The commanders of Char’s army defer to them.

My own party is exhausted—the satisfaction of a successful mission and the knowledge of another, even bigger one following warring for dominance. For now they can rest, but the next morning will bring another quest, another fight, another chance of never making it back.

I had a lot of time to think during our journey. I’ve done many things I never expected myself to be capable of. I have seen suffering and joy beyond my narrow horizon. And so I resolved to use my powers to support these people as much as I possibly can to keep them alive.

Even if that means redefining what makes them human.