by L. L. McNeil
‘Kill…’
‘Yes, yes. I want to kill you all, too,’ Seila said. She’d never beaten one of these things before, but felt confident that this was going to be her chance to do so. And then the power boost would be something far more substantial. ‘Come on. I’m waiting!’
The Marauder paused, sniffed the air, and waved its head. Its heavy tusks slashed the grass, sending blades floating into the air. It bellowed, pawed the ground.
Seila took a step forward, sword held high. She was going to have her prize. Finally.
The demon charged with an ear-splitting roar, and the ground trembled under its heavy gait as it built up speed.
She braced herself, watched, waited for the perfect opening to leap forward and—
Something heavy slammed into the side of Seila’s head, sending her crashing to the ground.
The force of the impact sent stars dancing in her vision again, but there was no heat of fire—only the roar of another Marauder—then the world went dark.
Something sharp dug deep into her side, and Seila struggled to open her eyes. An immense weight held her down, pressing her into the muddy grass, and still the sharp pain pressed against her ribs. She tried to push up against the weight, but there was nothing she could do to shove it off her. ‘Move!’
Her voice came out as a high squeak, and cracked with effort.
She felt the snarl of a demon, felt its hot breath over her throat, heard its excitement at having caught its prey.
Seila’s eyes snapped open, and she stared straight into the face of the Marauder. It had pinned her, one of its claws pressing against her ribs. It had ripped her top, but hadn’t drawn blood. Eyes wide, she looked left and right, but couldn’t see her sword anywhere. She realised she’d been shoved through the side of the hedge and into the maze. The hedge grew thick behind her, masking her view, but she heard the fire of the main garden continue to flicker and crackle.
Another deep roar joined the cacophony, and a shiver went down her spine. It had to be Tress’s dragons. She’d not forget that sound anytime soon.
The demon, too, was intrigued. It shifted its weight slightly as it leaned away, trying to get a better look at what had just joined the battle.
Seila took her advantage before she’d even realised she had it. She kicked out, rolled away, slipping under the bulk of the Marauder and coming up several paces away from it. She couldn’t see her sword anywhere in the undergrowth, but two other Marauders were already heading straight for her.
She leapt into the air, beating her wings furiously in her haste to escape. She cursed herself for her inexperience. If she’d fought them properly before, she’d have realised they worked as a pack. That one Marauder always had companions waiting to pick you off the moment your back was turned.
She hovered, faltered slightly in the air, then regained her altitude. Pain laced through her wings, back, and shoulders. The Marauder hadn’t broken anything—she didn’t think so, at least—but it had been pressing down on her, and that had left her tendons feeling rather delicate. ‘Damned demons,’ she hissed, scouring the ground below for her sword. Without it, she couldn’t do any damage.
Behind her, Tress’s dragons continued to snarl and attack, sending up enormous columns of fire and smoke. Seila forced them out of her mind, focused on her own challenge. But with the bulk of the Marauders all congregating over the same space, she could barely see the grass in between them, let alone her Sieken Blade.
After several minutes of frantic searching, she cursed. She wasn’t getting anywhere. Not with the damned Marauders and fire and smoke everywhere. She swooped back to the main gardens where crowds of demons had breached the walls.
Tress fought with both axes, defending Ashante from the attacking demons. She sent tar flying with every strike, and the demons were particularly wary near her. Claes and Damon worked to keep demons from getting close to the house, using their fire to create walls that blocked every demon’s path. Tej focused on the Dragora, using his crossbow to shoot them out of the sky the moment they came within range.
Seila dived down in the middle of them all and landed beside Ashante. ‘You okay?’
‘You’re hurt!’ Ashante replied, eyes wide.
Seila shook her head. ‘I’m fine. I dropped my sword. I’m not going to be much use here unless I get it back.’
Ashante nodded. ‘Where?’
‘Over there, just inside the maze. There are Marauders.’
Ashante shivered. ‘I hate Rage Claws. We’ll have to draw them here so you can get a clear view.’
‘Any ideas how we do that?’ Seila asked.
‘We’re only just holding up here, even with those,’ she said, nodding somewhere behind Seila’s left shoulder.
Seila followed her gaze and saw Tress’s dragons. The smokey grey one, Theramax, was crouched on all fours, tail lashing and driving away dozens of Lesser Demons with every strike. Malsiador, the red and gold dragon of fire, had its front legs on top of the wall to the grounds, and breathed wave after wave of fire over the wall and onto whatever demons were still trying to get in.
Tress, herself, was fighting both Prowlers at the same time. They had her in a pincer manoeuvre, but she didn’t seem the least bit concerned. She swung her axe, carved lines of tar into their flesh and drew anguished roars from them. Even their heavily armoured necks and chests were no defence against the might of her axes.
Tress almost danced, sliding between their claws like water. Every step was measured, every strike hit its mark. She never parried or blocked, like Seila would. She simply dodged and struck, dodged and struck, over and over, like a snake. She risked getting caught by a fast blow, but it meant that every time she moved, she did so to do damage—if not outright kill.
Though impressive, Seila wasn’t sure she could ever fight that way. It left her too exposed. She was used to wide, sweeping slashes, darting off out of range, then coming back in for another attack, blocking where she had to when up close. Tress didn’t have the luxury of flight, so she could only move a step or two, which left her open to being overwhelmed.
Of course, Tress wasn’t overwhelmed, because she was so adept with her axes. And they were clearly made of something that the demon’s hide wasn’t thick enough to deflect, so every strike drew blood.
Within half a dozen strikes, both demons were down, and Tress stood, panting.
Seila ignored the flicker of jealousy at not getting those kills herself, and darted over to her, Ashante following.
‘You need to get back behind the others,’ Tress said to Ashante. A streak of blood crossed her face, but she didn’t seem bothered by it.
‘We need your help,’ Ashante replied, ignoring the order.
Tress wiped her bloodied hands on her boots and readjusted her grip on her axes. ‘I’m helping you already, aren’t I?’
‘The Marauders,’ Seila said, jumping in to keep everything on track.
‘Don’t tell me you can’t even kill those,’ Tress sneered.
‘I dropped my sword, just inside the hedge maze. There are too many Marauders, I can’t see it. We need you to draw them out.’
Tress shook her head, incredulous. ‘I’ll kill them, you know.’
Seila wrinkled her nose at the waft of smoke that blew across their faces. ‘Once I have the sword, I’ll be back in action.’ She couldn’t believe she’d dropped it. If only she’d let go, it would have vanished, ready to reappear when she needed it. But once it materialised, if she lost it, there was no getting it back.
‘That’s down to you.’ Tress began to spin her axes, one in each hand, as she strode across the battlefield towards where the hedge maze opened.
‘At least she’s up for fighting,’ Seila said. ‘She’s right, though, you’d better get back behind the others. Don’t want anything happening to you.’
But Ashante wasn’t listening. She stared up at the wall, where the flames had been put out by the passage of so many demons over the past few minute
s. The Enchantress trembled, her lip quivered as though she was holding back tears.
Seila span and froze.
She was familiar with Leeches and Stingers, and even Prowlers. Although she had little experience with Marauders, she could recognise those, too.
This demon was not one she’d ever seen before. Had never seen anything close to it before.
But she knew exactly what it was.
‘Gorath.’
7
Seila had seen Sekki before, had fought him. But much like the ancient Prowler with its massive spines had been more of a threat than the regular kind, Gorath put Sekki to shame as far as intimidation went.
Gorath hadn’t bothered with a human shell. He strode around in his true form, and clearly cared little for who or what saw him. Seila wouldn’t be surprised if he slaughtered people where he found them and left their bodies to rot in the sun.
At least Lesser Demons hunted for food.
Gorath was something else.
The Elite loomed on top of the wall, surveying the scene below. Vaguely humanoid in appearance, he also sported two pairs of broad, bat-like wings. His tail was long, thicker than a Prowler’s, and dotted with spikes that jutted out at all angles. Atop his head, four curved horns grew, and many spines protruded along his back, knees, and elbows. He wasn’t bulky by any means. His skin was scaled like a snake, dark red-brown, and seemed to ripple with every breath. If anything, he was rather lean, and certainly smaller than Sekki, but it was clear that Gorath came from another class altogether.
His eyes burned like molten gold as he watched. ‘Destroy them all.’
Gorath’s command nearly dropped Seila to her knees. Every demon roared in acknowledgement of their Elite’s order, and returned to battle with a frenzy that she hadn’t seen before. ‘My sword!’ she yelled, taking to the air and swooping over to the hedge maze.
She flew above it, peered down, and saw Tress locked in combat with one of the Marauders.
‘Gorath’s here! I need my Sieken Blade!’
Tress froze, stared up at Seila, and then the Marauder slammed into her. She was sent flying through the hedge and into the main garden, dragging leaves and twigs with her. Seila didn’t bother to see if she was okay. The other Marauders left the maze, either by jumping the bushes or racing to the entrance. When they’d gone, Seila saw the glint of metal poking out from the bottom of the hedge.
She was on the ground in seconds, and pulled her sword out from where it had been lost. ‘Now I can fight.’ She took a breath. This wouldn’t be like Sekki, and that had been a hard-fought battle. There was no Mirage to close, this time.
Gorath was literally on their doorstep. They had to put an end to it now.
Seila poked her head over the hedge, unwilling to charge in blind, and took in the scene. Tress was back on her feet, guarding Ashante and making her way over to Tej, Damon, and Claes. Now that Gorath had arrived, the demons had turned their attention on the Kouzlo themselves. Any demons that had been trying to reach the house had turned their focus away from the building and to whomever was nearest to them.
Gorath watched, and made no move to join the fray himself. His attention was entirely locked on Tress.
Seeing an opportunity for the element of surprise, Seila got herself airborne, strafed far to the side, away from the battle, away from the gardens, and flew over the wall.
Now, she could make her move.
She flapped her wings hard, beat out the aches and rose as high as she could, all her thoughts on impaling Gorath and putting an end to the battle. She couldn’t wait to see Tress’s face when Gorath fell to her Sieken Blade. Where would all her superior talking be, then?
She smiled as she soared higher and higher, until Caramond House was a dark smudge against a landscape of browns and greens.
Seila took in another breath, hovered. The wind blew cold so high up, and clouds drifted slowly between her and the battle far below. She tightened her grip on the sword, aimed, and dived.
With gravity pulling at her, and her wings speeding her along, Seila plummeted towards Caramond House. Even if Gorath heard her at the last moment, she was going fast. Too fast.
There was no way he’d be able to avoid her strike.
The grounds and gardens rushed up towards her. The main house, first, surrounded by greenery—although much of it was on fire. Then the two enormous dragons that Tress had summoned. The wall was right underneath her. She could see Gorath, his wings slightly extended.
He grew larger and larger as she sped closer and closer.
This was it.
She was going to end it all before it had a chance to get started.
Seila tucked her wings in closer to her body, giving her as much speed as she could stand. Her eyes streamed with tears, but she kept Gorath in the centre of her vision.
And then she and her Sieken Blade collided with the Elite Demon.
She plunged her sword into his back—the biggest target—and waited for the rush of power to overwhelm her.
The power of her strike knocked him off the wall and onto the burning grass below.
She tried to hover and brake, but she went over the wall as well, landing in a heap several paces away from where Gorath had stopped.
A loud buzzing filled her ears, which Seila attributed to the sudden change in speed and pressure.
All around her, the battle seemed to slow. Demons and Kouzlo both looked at her, or at Gorath. Grass stains lined her arms and knees, and she was dizzy from the sudden halt to her diving speed. Seila staggered to her feet, sword still in hand. She held it up, but there wasn’t so much as a drop of blood on the edge of the blade.
Odd.
She’d felt her blade connect. Felt the demon’s hide against her sword.
Then she realised the buzzing sound filling her head was more of a high-pitched ring, like metal striking polished glass.
Seila blinked, looked back at her sword. And it was...blurry?
It took her several more seconds to realise that the ringing in her ears was her sword vibrating. The back-and-forth movement of the blade so violent that her fingers burned where she clasped the hilt. She watched, wide-eyed, as the blade blurred. The ringing deepened, and slowly faded when her sword came to a stop.
She’d thought it was about to shatter.
She took a step to the side, sword still held high, and looked over at Gorath.
The Elite Demon was already back on his feet, tail lashing, wings flexing, and staring down at Seila with such hatred that she thought she’d die under that gaze. ‘You.’ He raised a clawed hand and pointed directly at her.
Lesser Demons turned their attention to her at Gorath’s words. Seila held the sword defensively across her chest, and the demons seemed less bold as she held her ground against them.
‘Nice try, Seila.’ It was Tej. He’d worked his way across the gardens, Ashante at his side, and was now right behind her. ‘I swear anything would have fallen to that attack. You dropped like a bullet.’
Seila slid back to stand beside them, her gaze locked on the snarling demons. ‘Honestly, I don’t think I have much else. If that didn’t do anything to him…’
‘We’ll think of something,’ Tej said. He fired another bolt at one of the larger Stingers. When it collided, the other demons near it scattered.
‘Where’s Tress?’ Seila asked, looking around. Her two dragons had their attention on Gorath, and were wreathing him in flame and smoke, to little avail.
Ashante gestured to the right. ‘Still by the hedge maze. She’s been frozen since Gorath emerged.’
‘Frozen?’ Seila followed Ashante’s gaze and saw Tress half-hidden in the entrance to the maze. She practically cowered in the shadow, staring over at Gorath. She still held her axes, but they were low by her side, and certainly not combat ready. ‘What’s wrong with her?’
‘Panic. Tej is trying to get me over there.’
‘Fine. I’ll cover from above, see if I can carve you both a pa
th to her.’ Seila leapt into the air, grateful she had a goal, and that her sword made short work of the Lesser Demons in the garden.
With Tej providing ranged attacks, Seila kept the gardens clear of demons as Ashante made her way over to the hedge maze. The young Enchantress grabbed Tress by her shoulders, turned her so she was looking right into her eyes. ‘Lady Tress!’
Tress looked at Ashante, but her eyes were hazy and unfocused.
Ashante shook her shoulders gently. ‘Lady Tress, please! We need you!’ Light seeped from Ashante’s fingers into Tress. Seila felt the heat of energy transferred, and turned her back, attention on the demons who still lingered nearby. She could have sworn there were more demons here than there had been with Sekki.
And they were going to lose it all if Tress didn’t snap out of it and put some bite into her bark.
Tej kept beside her, firing at anything that came near. In the distance, Claes and Damon were still manipulating their fire, sending whirling flames in the air after the flying Dragora, or along the ground to put a stop to Stingers and Leeches. Even the Marauders felt the touch of their blaze, and the few surviving ones lumbered over to Gorath’s side to fight with their Elite.
‘I’m almost out,’ Tej said, firing again.
Seila shook her head. Together they might have been able to hold off the demons, but there were just too many of them. It would only be a matter of time before they’d be overwhelmed. Behind her, Ashante tried desperately to break Tress free of her paralysing panic, but Seila didn’t have high hopes. Her dragons were already out and fighting. What difference would two more axes make?
If her Sieken Blade hadn’t so much as scratched Gorath, then what chance did her axes have?
Then again, Tress had said she’d managed to hurt Gorath before.
An idea came to her in a heartbeat. ‘Tej, take this and stay here. Don’t let any of them get to Ashante or Tress!’ She shoved her sword into his hand, hilt first.
‘What? Wait!’ Tej fumbled with it. ‘It’s bloody freezing!’
