Year 2: The Gathering Fires - Chapter 4

Eris has changed the rules again.

That was the first thing that David thought when three stone tablets fell into his lap inside a hollowed, grey world.

After Hermes was summoned, I was told that I could only summon a new general every six months and now I have a choice on my hands again. Why? And why didn’t she tell me?

As confused as he was, David had diligently read each one in turn and made his pick, although it seemed like Eris was almost leading him to making a choice this time.

Who would ever pick Caligula or Jean-Paul Marat as a general? The man who burnt Rome or the man who was confined to a bath-tub for his entire life - this doesn’t make sense. Even the general I went with doesn’t make sense - why would she be a candidate for one of my generals?

Before David could continue his thoughts, a figure emerged before him in a new, suspended space, although this time the world turned a pale green. A harlequin emerged and greeted him with a bow.

“It’s been a while, David Athelward.”

“Loki - why are you here?”

“I came because I wanted to see if you liked my present.”

“What?”

Loki giggled as she summersaulted onto David’s bed, landing before him and bending at an unnatural angle to meet his gaze. “Those generals weren’t Eris’s picks - they were mine.”

“What?!” David shot out of his bed and cursed. “Why would you do something like this, you idiot?!”

“That’s not nice, given how I did this to help you.” Loki pulled her head and body beneath her legs and slowly scuttled towards David like a spider, her limbs aching and bending as she twisted her body into even more unnatural positions. “I even got permission from Themis to do this and you throw it back in my face? I’m hurt, David Athelward. Oh, wait. It might not be you that hurt me.”

In a second, Loki was stood up right again, her bones snapping unpleasantly loudly as her body readjusted itself into the correct position. With a crack of her shoulders, Loki removed her mask and smiled. “Call this a little bit of payback for Eris kicking me out so early last time we spoke.”

“I’m surprised she hasn’t come to kick you out again,” David said. “If I’d known you had sent me those tablets, I’d have never chosen one.”

“Hmm, but then you’d have been stuck in that animated space for quite some time.”

“Eris would’ve noticed it quite quickly I imagine.”

“Oh, I didn’t realise you knew so much about how my best friend behaves.”

“Of course, that sadistic woman is your best friend.” David sighed. “A trickster and the goddess of chaos - I don’t suppose the god of drama’s spectating too.”

“You got some nerve to talk so disrespectfully in front of a Greater God. But.” Loki snickered. “I don’t hate that. However, are you sure you want to turn down my help? I know she might not look it, but the general you picked today is far more powerful than you think.”

“Why was she even a choice? It doesn’t make-”

“Last time, I came without getting Eris’s permission and she angrily warned me not do so again. Honestly, a scary Eris is something I’d rather die than have to face, but I just can’t help myself.” Loki’s eyes glazed over a little as she licked her lips. “It’s in my nature, David Athelward, and I can’t deny who I am.

“So, I thought, what could be more fun than spicing up Eris’s already exciting game? And the answer I arrived at is helping you sew chaos into it without her knowing.”

“She’ll realise that you’ve helped me the moment she sees X-”

“That’s not what I mean.” Loki’s form changed again to the one David had seen the first time they met. “I came to offer you a once in a lifetime deal, David Athelward.”

“Not interested.”

“You don’t even want to hear me out?”

“It’s already bad enough that I’m speaking to you without her knowing you’re hear, let alone considering whatever shady deal you intend to offer me.”

“Yet, you accepted Eris’s offer to become the Demon Emperor without much of a fight, or so I hear.”

“Then, you’ve heard incorrectly!”

“Oh?” Loki smirked. “Did I?”

“…Just go before you make this even worse for both of us."

“Even if it means I can help you operate outside of Eris’s all-seeing eyes?”

David paused and frowned. “What do you mean?”

Loki laughed. “David Athelward, I am Loki, the Greater God of Trickery. If you want, I can help you in more ways than you know. However!” Loki held up one finger. “Just once. I will help you with one thing and one thing only; once that’s passed, that will be it. And I think you know exactly what one thing I’m referring to.”

David narrowed his gaze. “How do you-?”

“We’re Gods, David Athelward - don’t judge us by your standards,” Loki said threateningly.

***

Gradually, Willa had begun looking forward to going to work each morning.

At first, it had been a terrifying prospect to even step outside of her home, but now she often left with a smile on her face. Her brother, in turn, had also started to smile more, although Willa could see the exhaustion in his eyes from time to time.

When Willa had first started working as one of the empress’s maids, she had been too scared to say much of anything. She kept quiet, even when she and the others were off duty and enjoying sweets and tea, but, the other day, she had finally gathered up enough courage to speak.

It had been nothing more than a simple, loud greeting, but it made her coworkers smile and the empress happy. Over the course of that day, Willa had become much more talkative and friendly, and the other maids showered her with kindness and care. They hadn’t heard all of the details from the empress or Willa personally, but they were smart enough to put the pieces together.

Even though it had just been five days, Willa felt like she could call her fellow maids friends.

Illya, Anne-Marie, Noa and Palma all came from noble vampire families, yet they treated Willa as their equal.

“Willa.”

“Yes, your majesty?”

“Lady Lilith.”

“Y-y-y-your majesty, I-I-I couldn’t-!”

“Your majesty, please don’t bully Willa,” Illya lightly joked as she tied Lilith’s hair into a single braid.

“Honestly, no one but Allaric and Rebecca call me by my name anymore.” The empress sighed a little. “When we were children, Illya and Noa used to call me by name.”

“We still do, Empress Lilith.”

“That’s not what I mean, Noa, and you know it!”

Everyone laughed and enjoyed the light-hearted atmosphere of the empress’s bed chambers in the morning. It was a long process to get her ready for her day, but it was a time that Willa looked forward to more and more with each passing day.

“Willa, please, you can do it for me, can’t you?”

“Your majesty, shall I report this to Lady Rebecca as workplace harassment?”

The morning continued in high spirits and, once the maids were excused from work, Willa was approached by someone she didn’t expect to ever speak with.

“Forgive me for disturbing you, Willa, but would I be able to speak with you in private for a small while?”

Dame Chelsea, one of the Demon Emperor’s newest hostages, had approached her.

***

Abaddon enjoyed fighting.

He enjoyed the heat of battle, the thrill of a fight to the death and any chance he could get to show off his impressive strength and magical powers.

However, for the last few days, all he had done was stand upon the battlements and observe the defences of the northern border forts.

The Free People’s Alliance had started sending small scouting regiments and vanguard battalions, in tight formations and with heavy armour. They would emerge, put the whole fortress on alert, slowly move towards the walls, and then retreat after a short skirmish. At most, they would fire arrows and magic at the battlements, hoping to score a few kills on the undead, demons or human soldiers that manned them, though few people ever died in these skirmishes.

Had Abaddon wanted to, he could have jumped down and slaughtered the hundreds of invaders by himself, but he had strict orders from the Demon Emperor himself on what to do.

Observe, the Demon Emperor instructed. Just as we have learnt from them and their mistakes, so too have they. Our probing strikes have made them just as curious as we are. The war will begin soon enough, Abaddon, but we want it to start on our terms, not theirs.

“But the war’s already started, Lord Emperor,” Abaddon grumbled.

It started the day we arrived here and has continued ever since.

“Lord Abaddon, the enemy forces are retreating!”

“It’s not a retreat - it’s a tactical withdrawal.” Abaddon grabbed his sword from off the wall and stormed away, the attendant struggling to keep up with the demon’s brisk pace. “These attacks are nothing more than probing operations, designed to test us like we’ve done to them.”

“Then, does that mean-?”

“It’s highly likely that the Free People’s Alliance is trying to find a good place to invade. They haven’t lost more than a hundred soldiers and learnt what our initial defences look like. Quite valuable information for so few loses. Now, all they need to do is decide the best invasion point along the northern border and strike it hard.”

“I shall increase our patrols and efforts to-!”

“You will do no such thing,” Abaddon warned. “You will maintain your posts as normal until instructed otherwise. Is that clear?”

“…Yes, Lord Abaddon.”

“Good. Initiative is not a bad thing, but it’s something that can scupper his majesty’s grand plans for Aangapea. I shall retire to the Dread Keep for the night - I expect full reports on all of the skirmishes they’ve launched at us in the last few weeks.”

“It’ll be on your desk before dawn, my lord.”

Abaddon smiled. “Good. If you do that, I’ll put a good word in for you with Mímir and the others.”

The attendant smiled gratefully and bowed deeply, before Abaddon opened the portal home.

The Free People’s Alliance is getting ready to invade. However, it remains to be seen where exactly they intend to strike. With the Demon Fleet greatly reduced in size, our coastline is vulnerable, so it’d make sense to strike near the shoreline where they could attack us on two fronts.

Alternatively, they could use an attack on the mainland to distract us from a great host of ships sailing past our borders and deep into the empire, or vice versa. If it’s the former, that runs the risk of leaving thousands of soldiers stranded without supply lines. If they intend to live off the land as they fight, then they could rally support from the more rebellious citizens and they might be able to live off our resources for quite some time.

Regardless, it’s imperative that I speak to the Lord Emperor as soon as-

As Abaddon stepped out of the portal and into the courtyard, he dropped his great sword in horror.

The Demon Emperor’s private garden, one only he and the other council members could ever enter, was drenched in blood. Lying unconscious beside the small pond was Fenrir, her snow-like fur dyed crimson. Mania, bloody and bruised, was leaning uncomfortably against a broken bench, trying to force herself onto her feet.

“Mania?! What-!”

The demon saw it - the woman standing in the orchids that had been white when Abaddon saw them last, but now had red dots spread across their petals.

She was wearing an elegant dress that Abaddon had never seen before, grasping a halberd gently in her left hand. Unlike the other women, she didn’t have so much as a scratch on her, let alone a single drop of blood.

“…Oh?” The woman titled her head down from gazing at the heavens to meet the demon’s gaze, a small smile on her lips. “Are you here to challenge me too?”

“…You, you’re the Lord Emperor’s newest general, right?”

The woman’s smile grew ever so slightly. “A pleasure to meet you, senior.”

“Why did you do this?”

“They asked to see my strength and I obliged.” Then, she was before his face, her halberd resting against his throat. “Would you like to test it too?”

I didn’t even see her move!

Abaddon swallowed his pride and said, “I believe you’ve proven it enough. I trust you got the Lord Emperor’s permission for this?”

The woman relaxed her arm and shifted her weapon behind her slowly, purposefully, a demonstration of how little Abaddon threatened her. The demon hadn’t felt so humiliated in his life.

“Don’t worry - I won’t do something like this again. Goodnight, senior.”

And then, she was gone.