Genmei rose from her bed again, looking out her window at the barely lit sky, then at her timepiece. Still too early… she sighed, flopping back in her bed with a growl. She hadn’t been able to sleep more than a few hours the whole night. Lytro had been occupying her thoughts incessantly, like a glek, latched onto her, draining her life away. She placed her hands over her face, rubbing at her tired eyes. She had asked him to meet with her in the morning, but, in her haste, hadn’t set a time, or done any sort of planning. Why did you do that, you idiot? She asked herself, over and over again.

  She would wait till an hour past first light, she decided, taking a breath to calm her frayed nerves. Why was she so nervous? Ever since the party where he intervened with Kazama, she had noticed his attention to her growing. His looks lingered just a bit longer than normal, and he seemed to be really warming up to her. And her, to him. But he’s a low noble… she thought, feeling her heart race at the scandal of it all. She would be the talk of Ne’arath, that’s for sure. His family’s poverty wouldn’t be an issue; she’d make sure he found his fortune. The man was exceedingly talented after all. It would be easy to use that to build his house.

  She lay in bed for another hour, lost in heated thoughts of romance; then bathed and spent another hour finding her best military clothing. No dresses here… she didn’t want to look like she was trying to impress him, but at the same time, wanted to blow him away. She tried on her entire wardrobe; at least, everything she brought with her on this mission. Which wasn’t nearly enough for her liking. She ended up settling for a dress uniform she had, but left off the gaudy metals and accolades that were supposed to be worn with it. He was a rugged sort, and would probably appreciate a grittier military approach. She took a final look at herself in the mirror, and left to head to his room. She went down to the third floor, and found his suite.

  She cleared her throat, then knocked confidently on the wooden panel beside the stone door. She adjusted herself, expecting the door to open any second. She waited for close to a minute, then frowned before knocking again, then again, a minute after that. She huffed in frustration, placing her hand on the door and opening it with a flow of her power. The door slid open, and she stepped inside, her mood now soured.

  “Lord Lytro, are you still asleep!?” She fumed, stopping in the middle of the room, then paused as she realized he wasn’t anywhere to be seen. She blinked, looking at his made bed, then his sitting area, then the other corners of the room. He’s… gone? She was puzzled as she rubbed her chin. Where could he have gone this early? She left the room and started asking the governor’s servants if they had seen him. All that had, mentioned he was only seen last night, before she had even spoken to him. Where in Pelemont could this man be!? Her anger started to boil within, the audacity of this man. He knew of this, agreed to it, and decided to abandon her? He wasn’t the sort to do something so dishonorable; where did he run off to?

  She started asking the guards, then made her way to the barracks of their warriors, inquiring there if they had seen him. Even his commoner companions, Kenji and Yuki had no idea where he was. They at least leapt into action, saying they would do everything to find him. They may be commoners, but they were efficient.

  Finally, after nearly an hour, Sazumi ran up to her with a guard in tow. “Lady Genmei!” She shouted, out of breath as she came to a halt before her.

  “Did you find him!?” Genmei asked, worry starting to take hold. He was acting strange last night… maybe something happened to him. She suddenly felt guilty for being so angry with him earlier. He might need our help!

  “I saw him, my lady.” The guard wheezed, also out of breath. “At the Northern gate. He flashed his credentials to leave the city. He looked… very unsettled, my lady. I wanted to ask him, but his station is far beyond me. I… didn’t think it was my place.”

  “The Northern gate?” She was perplexed, “what could he be doing out there? There’s nothing out there but hundreds of miles of empty desert.”

  “That’s what happened, my lady…”

  Genmei blinked in confusion. What am I supposed to do? She thought. This is quite literally the last thing she expected today. She cursed as she adjusted her ridiculously uncomfortable dress uniform. “Assemble a search party. There is something clearly wrong with him, and I intend to bring him back.”

  “Yes, my Lady!” Sazumi bowed.

  “Lord Lytro is a top priority for house Kamakura.” Genmei’s voice boomed with authority as her next task became clear.

  “As well as a top priority of the emperor!” An annoyingly familiar voice called from behind her.

  Genmei sighed in irritation, turning to see none other than Lord Rictus, and several other warriors approaching. “Lord Rictus...” She glared at the man, the stress of her current predicament leaving very little room for any troublesome additions. “This is an internal matter for house Kamakura. It does not—”

  “Everything that happens within the empire, is the emperor’s business, Lady Genmei.” Rictus shot back, cutting her off. “And, as agents of the emperor himself, we are obligated to investigate.”

  “What interest do you have in him?” Genmei’s patience was on the verge of collapse as she spoke. “He is a low council member, and a mere warrior. The last of his house and…”

  “My interest in him is, to be quite honest, none of your concern, Lady Genmei.” Rictus turned to his warriors. “We follow the trail, and see where it leads. Do not engage with him. Identify him, and report to me only.”

  The group of warriors saluted and shouted in acknowledgement, before they swiftly began moving toward the Northern gate.

  What is going on here? Genmei’s mind whirled, why was Rictus now involved? Is he a fugitive now!? She cursed her foolish blundering when asking around for him and creating a panic. Of course Rictus was watching them, he would do anything to find his way into the good graces of the emperor. What better way than to diminish a highly favored house.

  “Does this mean we can’t search for him?” A voice from her right, pulled her from her thoughts. She shot a glance over and saw Yuki of house Kyomo; one of Lytro’s pets. Behind her was Kenji, the commoner. Both of them looked very distraught, and eager to move.

  “It means we need to be careful.” Genmei responded, eyeing the commoner suspiciously. Who was she to think she could just speak to me in such a way? “We must assemble at the Northern gate, and formulate a plan to properly search for him.” She turned her attention to Sazumi, who nodded and whirled to enact her orders.

  “That’s not good enough.” Yuki pressed, crossing her arms defiantly.

  Genmei snapped at her, her temper finally boiling over. “What was that!? Who are you to speak to me like that? I am doing everything I can to traverse this tense political landscape, not as though I need to explain myself to the likes of you! Are you his concubine or something? Why is it that you care so much for his whereabouts?”

  “We are only—” Kenji tried to politely respond, before he was abruptly cut off.

  “Fuck that bullshit, Dorian!” Yuki raged, turning her back to Genmei. “I’m done with all this sneaking around and nonsense. Grey—”

  Kenji clasped his hand over her mouth, whispering something angrily in her ear. Genmei raised an eyebrow in confusion. What in all the great spirit’s names was going on here!? Who is ‘Dorian’?

  Yuki managed to break free of the man, and huffed angrily. “It doesn’t matter anyway. We’re going to look for him ourselves.” She stomped off down the road, followed by Kenji who bowed apologetically to her.

  Genmei watched them in astonishment for a time, before their forms disappeared behind a corner.

  “That… was very odd, Lady Genmei…” Sazumi whispered, seeming shaken.

  “Yes… those were not… those were not the people he introduced us to originally.” Genmei narrowed her eyes. This is all connected, she thought. What he told me last night, about the humans. His sudden disappearance, and how these… people are acting. Is he harboring humans? Did he really kill them? She rubbed at her chin, feeling the weight of her father’s gaze on her performance. She needed to tread carefully, especially after what happened with Kazama, her former fiancé. She growled in frustration, then turned to Sazumi. “Assemble everyone, and meet at the Northern gate to start the search immediately. I won’t be left in the dark any longer.”

  “But… what about Rictus? And the emperor?”

  “My father will have my head…” Genmei sighed, “but I won’t allow myself to react to situations any longer. We must act, if we are to uncover the truth, and save Lord Lytro from whatever he’s gotten himself into.”

  ~

  Greyson closed his eyes, feeling the spiritual energy of Lauren and Katrina, allowing it to guide him over the rolling sands. He had snuck out of the city in the middle of the night, found a nice place to camp, and slept as much as he could, before first light. He knew this would create a much larger problem for him considering, but he was determined to intercept this group before the demons. It was imperative that he make haste. There was also the large group of humans that was, at this point, very close to them. No doubt the people Lauren and Katrina were supposed to meet with. He sighed, thinking of Dorian and Ashley. He wanted to take them with him, Dorian at least. He would understand. But Ashley was too volatile right now. She was just as likely to attack Katrina and Lauren as the Dae. And they were together now… Better to ask for forgiveness than permission. I’ll find a way to get them after all this is done.

  He opened his eyes, picked his heading, and started moving. For the next two hours this process was repeated, again and again, until he was finally right on top of them. He looked at the sand he was standing on, remembering Katrina was a very powerful Dae-Voh. Knowing this, he then assumed she had dug them a shelter of some kind. He breathed, raising his hands into the air, and projecting his voice. He shouted, “Lauren! It’s me, Greyson!” He paused afterward, not feeling entirely confident in his choice of words. He scanned the horizon, hoping that he was being monitored somehow. His answer came as the ground rumbled beneath his feet, and a cave opening spread like a maw out of the sand.

  A Dae warrior stepped out, holding two blades in his hands, followed by several others. Greyson recognized this man. It’s the Dae from the battle… he thought, his memory of the warrior’s prowess coming to fore of his mind. He swallowed a lump past his throat, and held his hands up defensively. “I mean no harm to you or the humans you’re traveling with, friend.”

  “Who are you?” The warrior held one of his blades forward, its point aimed at Greyson’s chest. “How did you find us?”

  “My name is Greyson, and I’ve been sent here to assist you guys any way that I can. I’m a human too.”

  The warrior’s eyes narrowed, and anger began to show in his expression. Fuck, I knew this would happen. “Listen, this is going to sound crazy. But I made contact with Daniel. He sent me here to help any way I can. There are demons on their way here right now. They know where you are, and it’s only a matter of time before they find you.” There was a sudden feeling of dread that came over him, not fear of the man in front of him, but of what he sensed in the distance behind him, further complicating things. It was Dorian and Ashley for sure. Part of him wished he could sense Dae as well, but shrugged that fear off. There was a really~ low chance that they would go out looking for me, right? He’d have time to get back… probably. “We don’t have much time. We’ve got to get you moving. The Demons are scouring this whole area.”

  “Probably sent by you, no doubt.” The warrior grumbled, turning over his shoulder and shouting to someone further down the tunnel, unseen. “Well? Can you confirm this? Is he the same human I think he is?”

  “He is…” Lauren’s voice echoed from further in the tunnel, before a Dae’s face appeared from the darkness. She was also in disguise, it seemed. “What are you doing here, Grey?” She asked, crossing her arms as she came to a halt before him.

  “I…” Greyson mouthed words, but nothing came out at first. “Lauren… I… we thought you were dead.” He hung his head, the shame of his numerous sins assaulting his conscience. “If we had known—”

  “If you had known, what?” She snapped, her eyes blazing with emotion. “That I was alive, you wouldn’t have been responsible for the death of thousands of innocent Dae!? God, Greyson.” She huffed, “I thought about this moment for so long. What I would say to you, and everyone else.” She eyed around him. “Where’s Ashe and Dorian?”

  Greyson looked over his shoulder again, sensing their presence closing in on them. “They’re on their way… but we can’t wait for them. There are demons coming.”

  “Yeah… I heard you.” She grimaced, “I’m just having a hard time believing that you didn’t send them here.”

  “Look… Lauren. I… I’m sorry, alright. I know nothing I say will make what we did right. But we can deal with that after we’re out of danger. Please, you have to listen to me.”

  “You think you can just come here, and say a few words to get us to trust you?” Turak spat. “You truly are a fool.”

  “I need you to trust me, alright? There are worse things than Visoth warriors to worry about. I’m talking about demons, Lauren, come on! Real bad news… they’re stronger than the ones you defeated in the city, and they are pissed. I needed to get here before they did…”

  “And in us coming out here to speak with you, you’ve put us in even more danger.” Turak sighed, turning to walk back into the mouth of the cave. “We can’t leave you out here to be found by the enemy. And we can’t bring you inside, because one of us might slit your throat for what you did. Myself included.” He looked at Lauren, shrugging. “I leave it up to you though. Katrina wants him to join us inside, no doubt.”

  “I…” Lauren looked Greyson in the eyes. “I want to trust you, Grey… I really do. But I just can’t… after everything. I wish we had more time to talk about all this… but we can’t let you down here with us, it’s too dangerous. Not just for them… but for you. Some of the men down there, lost family members because of you.”

  Greyson’s heart sank at her words, the guilt of his actions nearly robbing him of his balance. “I understand…”

  “Would you people relax for a second!?” A loud feminine voice boomed from down the tunnel. Again, a Dae woman walked into the light, she was being supported by several warriors, and seemed to be wounded. “Damn, Lauren. And you too, Turak. You’re both being a couple buzz killers.”

  “I don’t think so, Katrina.” Turak growled.

  “You, Greyson.” Katrina continued, ignoring Turak’s comment. “You said you communicated with Daniel. How? What did he say?”

  “He told me… I had a lot to atone for.” Greyson breathed slowly, his chest tightening at the memory of Daniel’s words. “I was in desperate need… and I reached out for him in my spirit world. I can sense other humans… but he was the first one I ever communicated with like that. He saved me from a demon, then told me to find you and help you find who you were looking for.”

  “You can sense other humans, huh?” Katrina raised an eyebrow. “Can you sense any others around here?”

  “Yes.”

  She smirked, “and where are they?”

  Greyson pointed to the East, focusing his senses on the cluster of humans approaching them. “Over there, four of them. They’re heading in this direction, maybe a day’s walk from here.”

  Katrina’s smirk grew into a smile and she looked at Turak.

  “No.” He shook his head. “You can’t possibly trust him, Kat. We will find them on our own.”

  “We don’t have the time, Turak.” She shot back, pointing her open hand at the sand. “My senses can only go so far, and trying to find them while being pursued by Visoth AND demons? Is going to be a pain in the ass.”

  “You are a pain in MY ass, Katrina.” Turak swore, “I’m in command of this mission, and I say we wait. They won’t be able to find us if we travel underground. All you need is a bit more rest and you can manage. The demons will have a hard time finding us that way.”

  “Then we’ll miss the deadline!” Katrina urged, “We haven’t heard a response from Pyxxis in weeks. They will only wait another two days before they press on to God knows where. AND I don’t want to be caught in some dark tunnel when demons start pouring out everywhere to eat us.”

  “They can’t hear you because your transmissions are being intercepted.” Greyson added. “I’ve… been listening to them too. Visoth knows where they are, it’s YOUR party they were unsure of. They were encountered a little while ago; they might have escaped, but the Visothian agents honed in on the spiritual frequency of their Dae-Jin. They’ll find them if they speak to you. There is an entire team of elite Visoth warriors who were sent here to find them.”

  “How is that possible?” Lauren asked, her voice showing a hint of fear. “We send messages through the wind…”

  “It’s possible.” Turak sighed, “and more common than you think. If they know what Cato’s brat was saying, then it is only a matter of time before they find them. They must have known though, that’s why they haven’t been sending any return messages at the checkpoints.”

  “Wouldn’t they be able to hear us as well?” Katrina grunted as power flowed from her open hand into the sand. A large humanoid creature rose from the grains, forming a golem of some kind. Its eyes glowed a bright emerald, and it lifted her from the ground, and cradled her in its huge arms.

  Turak took a step back, eyeing her in surprise. “No… they need to know what they’re looking for. They only needed to identify the person sending the message. It’s easy if there’s only one Dae-Jin in the party. Once they learn their spiritual signature and pass it on, they can listen in if they monitor properly. Otherwise, there is no way to listen. What are you doing, by the way?”

  “We’re leaving, Turak.” Katrina pat the ten foot tall golem on the shoulder. “This will be my transportation. Traveling underground is way too slow, and is really draining for me. This is the fastest way for me to get around, without being a total burden.”

  “The fastest way is to take me with you.” Greyson pressed, looking at Katrina pleadingly. “I can lead you directly to them, how do you think I found you guys? I know you have no reason to trust me, but I swear I will get you there.”

  “I already said, that isn’t going to happen.” Turak spat, stepping between him and Katrina. “You’re lucky we haven’t gutted you already.”

  “No.” Katrina sighed, letting her arm dangle as if completely exasperated. “If you can swear to me that you will lead us directly to them, without any funny business. I’ll allow you to lead us there. But if either of us even gets a WIFF of nonsense from you.” She lifted her dangling arm to point right at Turak. “Then my very angry, and scary friend over here is going to cut your head off. I don’t care if Dan really did talk to you; I’ve got an obligation to my people here that far exceeds any sympathy to a villain like yourself.”

  Greyson gulped, but nodded. “I understand. I won’t let you down.”

  She stared at him for a few more seconds, then nodded with a smile. “Alright then, let’s get going.”

  Turak groaned before stomping back into the tunnel and rousing the rest of their party.

  ~

  Genmei took a long pull from her water skin, breathing out in frustration afterward. She looked at the oppressive sun above, anger rising within. Her Cro’kan shifted impatiently beneath her, seemingly unbothered by the heat, despite the exertion of their ride. They had been tracking Lytro through the desert, found his campsite, and have now, apparently, caught up to him. At least she hoped so. Damn that man, she fumed. Feeling the sweat drip down her entire body. I should be in the comfort of the governor’s estate right now. Enjoying a nice bowl of chilled wine. Not chasing after some fool!

  “Lady Genmei.” Sazumi called, bringing her back from her angry thoughts. “Our scouts have spotted a rather large group of people ahead. Nearly the same size as our own party.”

  Genmei reeled in surprise. “What? what do you mean? Lytro met with…”

  “We don’t know, but Lord Rictus is ordering his warriors to prepare for battle.” She replied as her expression sagged. “I just hope lord Lytro is alright. Do you think he’s been captured?”

  “I don’t…” Genmei shook her head in frustration. “Nothing makes sense. Where did Yuki and Kenji go? Why did Lytro come all the way out here on his own? Who did he meet with?”

  “The enemy!” Rictus interrupted, riding his Cro’kan up beside hers. “There is no doubt that he has met with the party responsible for the battle within the city. The disappearance of his trusted warriors, and his own sudden absence.”

  “What are you suggesting, Rictus?” Genmei spat, but the pieces were undeniable.

  “He’s a traitor.” Rictus lifted his nose. “And traitors to the empire, die.”

  She hung her head, her heart rejecting what her mind had pieced together already. “It… he can’t be a…”

  “We will see soon enough, Genmei.” Rictus reared his mount, and darted off toward the rest of his party.

  “You don’t believe him… lady Genmei. Do you?” Sazumi’s voice was small and full of despair. “Lord Lytro wouldn’t do that to us. He’s an honorable man. You know he is.”

  “I don’t know anything anymore!” Genmei snapped, doing her best to stifle the tears welling in her eyes. “But, like Rictus said. We’ll see soon enough. Prepare the warriors for battle.”

  ~

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  Greyson turned back, looking at the rolling dunes behind them. “Shit…” he cursed, seeing the distant forms of mounted warriors moving toward them at a quick pace.

  They had moved as quickly as they could, but with the amount of wounded they had, as well as many of them lacking mounts, there was no way they were going to outpace whoever it was chasing them. He had a pretty good idea, but the thought brought no small amount of dread to him. Please, Genmei. Don’t be in that group.

  “We can’t continue like this.” Turak announced, turning his Cro’kan to face the rest of the warriors. “I will not be overtaken by these fools. We turn and fight them.”

  Katrina groaned, her golem almost mimicking her gesture as it also turned about. “You’re right.” She eyed Greyson suspiciously. “Is this your doing, Greyson?”

  “He led them straight to us!” One of the warriors shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at Greyson.

  “N-no!” Greyson pleaded. “I didn’t think they… I don’t know how, but.”

  “Silence!” Turak shouted, any dissent quickly squashed. “None of that matters now. You fight with us against them, or you die.” He turned his angry gaze toward the warrior who accused him. “You will keep yourself under control, Eslan! And there is no running. It’s either we face them, or risk the enemy finding our objective. It’s better this way.”

  The warrior, Eslan, stifled any further protests, but fell in line with the rest of the warriors. Greyson watched as they set up battle lines, Then saw patches of the sand start to stir, bits of green glowing within. Katrina’s golem ability at work, no doubt. As the enemy closed in, he squinted, recognizing the form of Genmei, and Sazumi beside her. Fuck! They won’t stand a chance… Greyson panicked, he had to do something or they would be slaughtered.

  With a curse, Greyson kicked the sides of his Cro’kan, urging it forward. He passed the battle line, and shouted over his shoulder. “Maybe we don’t have to fight! Let me speak to them, please!”

  “Greyson!” Katrina and Turak shouted at the same time, but their protest was ignored. He focused on Genmei, waving his hands in the air, shouting for them to stop. “Wait!” He screamed, watching them skid to a halt, their charge stifled before they could reach their target.

  “Lytro!?” Genmei called back, riding forward at a sprint until she was right in front of him. “What are you doing, Lytro!? Why did you leave!? Who are they!?”

  “Listen, Genmei. Please stop this. I can’t explain it to you right now, you’re going to have to trust me.” He looked past her shoulder, and saw Rictus riding toward them, his face hidden behind a bone helmet. “We don’t have much time, Genmei. Get your people out of here. The warriors behind me are very strong. They’ll kill all of you.”

  “What are you talking about, Lytro!?” She pled, her eyes watered as her emotions began to get the better of her. “Why did you do this to me? I thought…”

  The sound of taloned feet thudded loudly as Rictus skidded to a halt beside Genmei, removing his helmet. “You bloody Chul. Traitor! I could recognize a Rexunii battle line from miles away. That’s a war-group from Eleutheros!”

  “This isn’t what you think.” Greyson breathed sharply, his frustration at the entire situation starting to boil over. What a fuckin’ mess you’ve made, you idiot! “Yes, the warriors behind me are from Eleutheros, but they aren’t running from you.”

  Rictus scoffed. “Surrender immediately, or you will be destroyed. All of you!” He shouted over Greyson’s shoulder.

  “Genmei… remember what I told you, last night. There are worse things out there than humans. Those things are on their way here, right now. Every second we spend not moving, makes it more and more dangerous. The emperor is lying to you. He’s being controlled by these things! Being led closer and closer to war with Eleutheros.”

  “Lies!” Rictus shouted. “You dare besmirch the name of our great emperor!?”

  “Quiet!” Genmei erupted, closing her eyes as she started to shake her head. “What… is coming to get us, Lytro?”

  “demons… real demons. Not the humans they’re trying to scare you with. But the real deal. The same monsters who did all that damage in town. The same monsters they told us about in Eleutheros. The ones that poured from the spirit forest.”

  “Lies and propaganda. You can’t seriously believe a word coming from this traitor’s mouth?”

  “How do you know this?” Genmei asked, her eyes filled with tears, but blazing with an intensity he had never seen before.

  Greyson sighed, in futility, looking up at the sky. “Because… I was there, Genmei. I was there when the gate in the forest opened… I saw the demons pour out and march on the Lokkadonians.”

  “Who are you?” She asked, her piercing eyes boring deeper.

  “Genmei… you know. By now you must.”

  “I want to hear you say it.”

  Greyson’s heart clenched painfully in his chest at her words. This was for the best anyway. He knew he couldn’t have had anything with this woman, regardless of his draw to her. His ruse had come to an end, but if it would save her life. It was worth it. He closed his eyes, and relaxed his power. He felt the harsh breeze as his true form was revealed, and with it, a stifled sob from Genmei.

  “You… you’re a demon!” Rictus shouted, drawing his blade. “I knew there was something off about you!”

  “So… Lord Lytro… the real one.” Genmei’s voice was soft, almost like a whisper as she spoke.

  “Dead…” Greyson replied, “along with everyone else.”

  “And your companions? Also humans?”

  Greyson noticed she called him a human, instead of a demon. “Yes… Genmei. You have to believe me. I only wanted to survive. We had no choice… we would have been hunted again and again.”

  “How did you fool the censors?” Rictus barked. “And where are the—”

  “Shut, the fuck up, asshole!” Greyson finally shouted. “I’m talking to Genmei here. There are two other humans back there, who are both powerful enough to kill you all themselves. I suggest you sit there, and listen for a second, before you get your ass blown away.”

  Rictus reeled, looking between him and Genmei. To his surprise, she glared at Rictus in return. “Just stop it. Let Ly— him speak.”

  “Greyson… Greyson is my name.”

  She nodded, her expression blank. “Please continue, Greyson.”

  “Our power is different from the Dae…” He continued. “In more ways than one. We can manipulate spiritual energy far more efficiently, and basically go in and out of our spirit realm whenever we want. And with that, we were able to disguise ourselves… The other humans in Eleutheros did it, some are better than others. But it is basically undetectable to the Dae. If your censors had checked my blood, though. I would have been found out immediately.”

  Genmei nodded, her face showing no hint of the warmth she used to display to him. “So, what will you do with us? Will you kill us?”

  Greyson was taken aback. “What!? no! of course not! I… I want you all to go back. Tell them whatever you want… I don’t care. As long as you and Sazumi get back safely.”

  She scoffed, shaking her head. “I can’t believe all of this… you were so convincing.”

  “I wasn’t pretending, Genmei. Aside from my form, I was… it was all me. I…” Greyson’s eyes widened at the sight of a small but familiar shape, floating just over her shoulder. “No…”

  “I wasn’t pretending~ it was all me~” The small, gremlin-like demon mocked, laughing maniacally. “You are a fool, Greyson… betrayer… sinner… murderer!”

  The voice must have startled Genmei, because she turned to look at the thing, her expression now incredibly fearful. Rictus mimicked her movements, practically yelping in surprise. “What in all the!? What is that!?

  “Get back!” Greyson shouted lifting his hand and blasting a highly pressurized beam of water at it. The creature disappeared with a chuckle, and Rictus and Genmei reeled in surprise.

  “What is going on!?” She shouted, her voice quivering with fear.

  “demon!” Greyson shouted at the battle line behind him. “They found us!”

  “Lytro! Eh, Greyson, what do we do!?” Genmei asked

  “Get your warriors into our formation! We have a better chance if we fight together!”

  To Rictus’ credit, the man turned and did just as Greyson commanded. Urging his warriors forward, and ordering them to fall-in beside the Eleutherons. There was obvious reluctance and confusion at first, but the ground trembled violently, kicking sand and dust into the air; That seemed to end any argument, and they moved forward with true purpose. Greyson kicked the sides of his Cro’kan, ushering the Visoth warriors along, also ensuring Genmei and Sazumi were behind the line.

  “Hurry up, Greyson!” Katrina shouted, wincing in pain from the exertion. Greyson leapt from his mount just as he passed the threshold, just before dozens of spikes shot from the sand, surrounding their formation. Where the demon had been, dozens of portals began to open, and with them, the snarls and roars of dark creatures echoed all around them.

  “Not again…” Lauren groaned, pulling her blade out.

  “What’s going on!?” Genmei shouted, grabbing his arm and turning him to face her. “What are these creatures!?”

  “I already told you, demons!” He shot back, grasping her shoulders, he looked her in the eyes. “Now you’ll see. The real threat your world is facing. The true face of evil you’ve been told about.”

  “Here they come! Steady yourselves!” Turak bellowed, just as two dozen familiars slammed into the defensive formation. “Katrina! Consecrate the sand below our feet! Lauren, imbue our weapons with your power! Greyson!” Greyson shot a look at the Dae, awaiting his orders. “I don’t know what your abilities are, but can you create a mist, or make it rain? Anything you can do to get your power airborne. It weakens the demons, makes them easier to kill.”

  “Right!” Greyson lifted his hands into the sky, preparing both of his elements for use. “You want rain? I’ll give you a fuckin’ hurricane!” His left arm surged with the power of his water Dunamis, transforming the very spiritual energy around them into vast amounts of water. With his right arm, his newly discovered control over wind, beckoned the air around them to thrash violently around their formation. Mixing the two together, a terrible torrent of elemental fury crashed in all directions outside their formation. The familiars stood no chance under the conditions. They died as soon as they got near the formation, being cut down by the Dae, or blown away by Lauren’s flames.

  A hand the size of a car burst from the sand, and into the air. Greyson reeled as it snapped back down, crashing into the formation of Dae. Men screamed as they were either crushed or leapt out of the way. The ground shuttered as a massive head emerged, followed by an upper body and legs. Greyson looked on in horror as the building sized creature’s deformed body stumbled out of the ground. It had many legs, human legs, attached to its body. All of them were facing in random directions, as if broken and mangled. The body was scabbed and raw skin, riddled with sores and filth. The head was just a hanging sack of skin and many bloodshot eyes randomly assorted around it.

  “What… in all the great spirits…” Genmei grasped her blade at her hip, her eyes widening in complete and utter terror at the sight of such an abomination.

  Greyson’s guilt nearly crippled him at that moment. How many Dae had seen the demons that he had unleashed, and collapsed in fear like Genmei? How many people were now scarred by the hard-fought victory against this terrible evil? He was responsible for it all, and that guilt began to turn to despair. Greyson shook the doubt from his mind, steeling himself once again. He couldn’t let it win in his mind. Couldn’t let the fear and hatred debilitate him. He needed to protect everyone he could.

  “This is nothing!” Lauren shouted, lifting her hands up toward the creature and launching a blast of fire at it.

  Greyson roared defiantly, joining her in the attack. The demon’s skin shifted, and a bloody layer of skin separated from its main body and moved to intercept the two attacks. Another strike of the hand nearly killed Greyson, slamming into the sand just as he dove out of the way. He glanced back to see Genmei draw her weapon, then dash to slash at the hand. Greyson tried to yell, to order her to safety, but the hand snapped again, and she went flying back into the battle that was now raging all around them.

  “Genmei!” He screamed, growling with rage as he pulled his own blade and jumped toward the body. Though his speed was impressive, the nearly ten-story tall demon shifted as he swung, causing him to miss entirely and fall to the now teaming mass of familiars below. He landed with a thud, and immediately felt dozens of clawed hands grasp for him. He whirled his blade around, shooting out a jet of water that sliced into the creatures. Then with his hand he blasted them away with blades of wind, coating himself in their black blood.

  The battle had turned to utter chaos, golems from Katrina joined the fray; crushing and stomping the smaller demons with each step, or swing of their thick arms. Greyson tensed his legs again and jumped at the large demon. It moved its body again, though not to dodge him, but the flesh parted where he would have slashed, tearing and spraying him with foul blood. Greyson was ready this time though. He lashed his hand out, and a tendril of water wrapped around the thing’s arm. It jerked back, trying to remove him, but he controlled his trajectory with his wind, and shot toward it like a bullet. It tried to dodge him, pulling half of its flesh apart, but he slammed into it like a hammer. A shockwave from the impact blew across the battlefield, and the demon screamed a muffled wail of pain.

  “Die!” He bellowed, blasting two different elements of his Dunamis into its grotesque body. A hand slammed down on him, then grasped his entire body. His bones creaked as he was crushed and lifted up to stare the many eyed demon down. He felt the fingers begin to tighten, and thought he was about to be popped like a ketchup packet. But a searing heat roared past him and directly into the demon’s saggy face. The fingers slackened, and Greyson used every ounce of strength he could muster to explode his wind power out of his body. The fingers were obliterated in the blast, and again he used his power to lash onto its arm, then shoot himself toward the chest. As he collided with the demon, he was joined by Lauren, who screamed in triumph as she buried her blade into it. The creature moaned in agony, then toppled to the sand, gurgling from some unseen orifice.

  Greyson breathed heavily as he lifted his gaze to the battlefield again, but noticed the familiars were still pouring from the portals. “Shouldn’t that have done it?” He asked, turning a tired eye at Lauren.

  “There must be another one.” She wiped sweat from her forehead, before pulling her blade from the corpse of the demon.

  Greyson cursed, remembering the small gremlin-like demon. “You’re right.” He started scanning the area. “Come on you little fucker, where’d you go?”

  A roar of lightning arched over a sand-dune directly into a group of demons. And to Greyson’s relief, he saw Ashley come charging in, followed closely by Dorian, who rushed in wearing his signature stone armor. Though, he had clearly made some improvements, and now looked like a giant stone mech.

  “Hey!” Ashley exclaimed, leaping up onto Dorian’s shoulder as he plowed through more of the horde. “We were looking everywhere for your dumb ass, Grey!”

  Greyson chuckled, breathing a sigh of relief. “About time you found me!”

  “Why the fuck did you just run off like that!?” She screamed, before Dorian cut her off with a wave of his mech-like hand.

  “Calm down, Ashe!” He grunted, kicking a familiar who jumped at him. “Fight now, talk later!”

  “This isn’t over, Grey! We’re gonna have some fuckin’ words after this shit!” She growled.

  “Help us get out of this mess, and we’ll do all the talking you want!” Greyson replied, then pointed at her. “The Dae are our allies right now! Fight only the demons!”

  She didn’t respond, just dove into the fray, disappearing into the chaos.

  Dorian did much the same, making an awkward gesture with his bulky suit, then following Ashley into battle.

  Greyson resumed his search right after. They had to kill the demon or weaken it enough for it to leave; only then would the portals close. Lauren must have caught on, because she ran up to him. “What are we looking for, Grey?”

  “A little gremlin looking mother fucker.” He grunted in frustration. “Like the size of a big cat, but ugly as sin.”

  “Sin…” A voice rasped in his ear, causing he and Lauren to jump in opposite directions.

  “Wha!” She yelped, pointing her blade at the creature, that was now laughing.

  Greyson took a swing, but the creature disappeared again. “Damnit! Come out here and die like a good little demon!”

  “Such strong words… coming from a man who was trembling with fear at the sight of me last night… Such arrogance.”

  “Yeah, that was right before I saw Daniel blast your little ass into nothing.” Greyson chuckled, scanning the battle from atop the demon corpse. “Talk about trembling in fear. You pretty much shit your pants when he showed up. How did you survive that, by the way?”

  “That!” he felt a burst of pain erupt on his back, and he fell forward, gasping. “Is enough out of you, traitor… murderer… manipulator...”

  “Fuck!” Greyson spread his hands out to the sides, and blasted his power in all directions. Lauren yelped again as she was knocked back. but, beside her, shimmered a translucent form. “There you are!” Greyson fired a beam of water at it, slamming into the small body and hearing the satisfying sound of its screams. “Got you, you little prick.”

  Lauren let out a whoop, but her short celebration ended as she noticed the portals were still spewing out demons. “What the hell!? Come on!”

  “How unfortunate…” The same vile voice of the demon scratched in his ears. “That you have angered me…”

  “There’s still a limit to how many demons you can release!” Greyson shouted into the sky. “The spiritual energy will overwhelm the portals soon enough! All we have to do is survive!”

  “And there… is the challenge.” Its words registered in his mind, just as the air around his head shifted. He wasn’t sure if it was his instinct, or his neck had a spontaneous spasm. But, his head jerked back, just in time to evade an invisible blade of some kind. He fell to the foul flesh below him, sliding over its filth, scrambling to escape the next series of slashes that nearly took his legs.

  “Grey!” Lauren shouted, unleashing a wide blast of flame that spread around him. Again, a translucent shape rippled into view, this time it was far larger.

  This must be the thing’s true form, Greyson thought, panicking as he lifted his body up, preparing for the creature’s next move.

  The form shimmered again, and Greyson held his blade up in an attempt to block whatever was coming at him. His weapon slammed into his body from the impact of whatever he was hit with, and Greyson let out a gasp of pain as all the air in his lungs was expelled in an instant. He flew through the air, off the demon corpse, and into the throng of battle. Again, he slammed into the sand, soaked with black demon blood and entrails. He scrambled to stand, but felt claws slice into his shoulder before he could dash away. He let out a muted scream as the air had yet to return to him, but thrashed his blade, bisecting the familiar at the waist.

  He heard Lauren scream from atop the demon, and with a deep and glorious breath, he jumped back up. He saw her suspended in the air, two bloody scythe like blades jutting out from her back. She whimpered as she struggled against them. “No!” He shouted, letting another highly pressurized beam of water go at the demon’s vague shape. To his horror, the thing swung Lauren’s body around and his blast tore through her back. She let out an agonized scream, then fell silent, as the demon laughed. Greyson was frozen in rage, fear, and guilt as he saw her limp, shredded body slide from the creature’s blades.

  “No…” He wheezed, blinking in disbelief. He glared at the monster. “You piece of SHIT!”

  He dashed towards it, swinging at the glimmer with all his strength, but hitting nothing as it slipped back. He readied himself for another lunge, and saw it lurch forward as a bolt of lightning exploded against its back.

  It screeched in pain as Ashley leaped at it, slashing her incisor blade into its back. The body blinked into existence, and he saw it for the first time in its entirety. The demon was a violet color, with large pale eyes, and had a body that looked vaguely insectoid. On each of its arms were vicious scythes that extended from its forearms. Greyson didn’t hesitate, he let his legs explode with energy as he tried to skewer the thing. The demon’s arm extended, and a clawed hand, impossibly long, caught him by his throat. He nearly blacked out from the force of his dash, colliding with its extended hand. He gagged and sputtered as it squeezed him, slicing its claws into his flesh. Ashley tried to assist, but was deflected, and slashed across her armor before being kicked into the swarm of familiars.

  Greyson gurgled profanities at the demon, but it just smiled at him, showing its crooked needle-like teeth.

  “What a fine day… to kill five troublesome humans at once…” Its voice was deep and strained, as it mocked him, then turned him so he could see the battle. “Looks like even your friends are being overwhelmed…”

  Greyson’s eyes bulged as he saw the surviving Dae, golems, and Katrina, as wounded as she was, fighting to defend against the horde. He saw a flash of pink eyes, glinting in the sunlight. Genmei… no… She was wounded, covered in blood and gore, slashing her weapon beside Turak and Rictus, cleaving through dozens of monsters. It wasn’t enough… for every one that was slain, another took its place. Despair ate at his soul, clawing at him, tearing his heart asunder with each bloody swing of their blades.

  “I still have plenty of time before the spiritual energy accumulates enough to close these portals on their own…” The demon laughed, “but I will kill you last, Greyson... you deserve to see everyone you know, die.”

  The demon corpse they were standing on lurched suddenly, and a giant stone fist burst from the rancid flesh at their feet and grasped at the leg of the demon. It growled in pain as the hand squeezed, until the limb snapped like a twig. Then the rest of the suit of armor erupted out, covered in black gore, it lifted the demon up, chopping a stone blade at the wrist that was attached to the hand, that held Greyson. Greyson found himself falling to the flesh below, gasping for air as Dorian began fighting the thing.

  He scrambled over to Lauren’s motionless form, and turned her over to face him. “Lauren!” he cried, his battered throat tearing with the exertion. “Come on, girl. Don’t do this to me. I’m sorry!”

  He saw her wince in pain as he turned her. “Oh, hang in there!”

  “Grey…” she gurgled, a glob of blood spilling from her lips. “I’ll be alright. I just need time to heal… this ain’t… shit.”

  Ashley cursed as she slammed down next to him. Her body was slashed and bloodied, but she reached out and grabbed Lauren. “We’re fucked, Grey. There’s too many of them. They won’t get near this thing’s body for some reason, but.” She pointed at the mantis like demon, locked in a deadly duel with Dorian. “That thing doesn’t seem to have a problem up here, and is probably gonna kill us anyway.”

  “Hey!” Greyson snapped his fingers. “I need you, Ashe. Lauren needs you. We have to find a way to kill this fuckin thing.”

  “Even if we did, and all the portals closed.” She spat, “There are thousands of these things out here now. I don’t know if we can kill them all.”

  “One thing at a time.” He growled, turning his fury at the demon fighting Dorian. He mustered his strength, and dove at the creature creating a vortex of wind around it. He poured his water into the wind, creating blades of water that splashed harmlessly against Dorian’s stone armor, but gouged deep cuts into the demon. It roared, slashing at Dorian, who caught the scythe in his stone hands, turning its back toward Greyson, who slashed down with all his strength.

  “Die!” He screamed, tasting its foul blood coat his throat as it gushed out, while he drove his blade deeper into its flesh. It wailed and went limp, slumping over and falling forward onto Dorian, who casually tossed it aside. Greyson breathed heavily, spitting the black blood from his mouth on the body. He looked up at Dorian, who gave him a silent thumbs up, then turned his attention to the portals, that still, to his amazement, weren’t closing.

  “What the fuck!?” Greyson shouted, his frustration boiling over. “What the h—” He was cut off by a thud, and sharp popping noise. Again, the breath was stolen from his lungs, and his arms went limp. He looked down only to see a scythe blade jutting from his stomach. It took a moment for the pain to reach him, but when it did, he nearly lost consciousness. “Ahhhh~~” He wailed, tasting the metallic flavor of his own blood fill his mouth. He tried to turn around to see it, but only caught a glimpse of Dorian’s suit of armor toppling over the side of the demon corpse, cracked and battered, into the streaming hordes below.

  “Almost…” The acidic voice of the demon whispered in his ear. He could feel its hot breath on his neck, then heard Ashley scream in pain as a gout of red blood splattered around him.

  “Fuck!” He heard her scream, then wail as she fell, out of sight.

  This is it… he thought, trying to swallow down his blood, but couldn’t as more and more of it kept rushing up his throat. What the fuck… could I have done different? He closed his eyes, trying to let himself die faster. He didn’t want to hear Genmei or Sazumi’s cries. To see them get devoured before him. He couldn’t bare it… Please God… let me die. He prayed, for the first time since his captivity and torture, he called out. In the agony of his arrival, he prayed. Called out for something, anything to save him from that torment. It was a demon who answered him… a demon who delivered him from that pain. But look what that got him. “Please, God… let me die. I can’t take it anymore…”

  He felt an icy cold prick on his cheek, then noticed the scorching sun’s rays had diminished somewhat. He opened blurry eyes to see white particles… falling from the sky. What? he thought, realizing against all logical reason that it was… snowing? His thoughts were interrupted as unimaginable pain wracked his body. The blade was torn from his stomach, and he gurgled before falling to his side. He blinked, just in time to see a hail of ice, start raining down on the hordes of demons, crushing and slashing them to pieces.

  The earth opened up around them as well, as spikes and pillars began erupting upwards by the hundreds. Greyson strained to find the source of the new abilities, only to see a small group of warriors, charge into the fray, wielding weapons and armor that looked as though they were made of crystal. Familiars began to die in droves as blades of ice, and other elements were laid into their masses. The demon howled in rage, its confusion as plain as Greyson’s own.

  Several pairs of feet thudded just behind Greyson, and he turned to see three humans, two men and one woman, standing in a triangle formation. The man at the front, and the girl just behind him, had dirty blonde hair; and blue eyes that stared past him, directly at the demon. The second man had long curly hair, tied in a ponytail, and dark skin with a full black beard.

  The front-man sneered, opening his palm and summoning a long stone staff. In doing so, the other two pulled weapons of their own. And in an instant, they leaped into battle. They fought with precision and speed, using their power, together. They all seemed to be in control of earth, as spikes and blades of stone were hurled and shot at the demon. It cursed at them, but blow after blow, they started to take the thing apart. The blonde man blinked above it, slamming his staff down on its raised blades. There was a meteoric crack, as the blades snapped in half, and gouts of black blood sprayed out.

  The dark-haired man, lifted his hands and a torrent of sand surrounded them, buffeting the demon, tearing its carapace away like a sand blaster. The blonde woman closed her eyes and slapped her hands together, resulting in dozens of needle-like spikes piercing the monster, and holding it in place.

  It gagged on blood and raged, too wounded to fight back any further.

  “These ones are tricky.” The blonde man said, lifting his hand toward the demon’s face. “It doesn’t have a singular body. You need to kill it at the spiritual level. Killing the body only pisses it off.”

  It began to panic as its eyes and mouth glowed a bright golden light. Then, in an instant, the creature was silent, only a bloody husk, slouched between them.

  A silence fell over the battlefield, and Greyson tore his gaze from his three saviors, to survey the battlefield. The familiars, who were once seemingly numberless, had all fallen over, dead. bodies covered the land, melting into black goop and seeping into the desert sand. Was it over? Did… we win? His eyes shot over to Lauren and Ashley. Both women were already being tended to, by two of the three other humans.

  The blonde man strode up to him, holding his hand out. “Hey man, you alright?”

  Greyson took it, and groaned in pain as he was lifted to his feet. He coughed blood as he tried to answer, and almost fell over again before the man caught him.

  “Whoa, take it easy. I got ya.” He placed one hand on Greyson’s back, and the other on his chest. And immediately, Greyson felt relief from his pain as the man’s power flowed into his body. He gasped as the sweet air flowed into his lungs again, and his wounds closed nearly instantaneously. Greyson blinked at the man, who only smiled and nodded. “You’ll live. Name’s Henry, by the way. Nice to meet you.”

  “Greyson.” He wheezed, trying to get his bearings again. “Wait… you’re the—”

  “Yup.” Another, younger voice called from behind him. “We’re the ones you’re looking for.” Greyson turned to see a young man with brown hair and blue eyes, who also bore a striking resemblance to Lauren.

  “That means, you’re Alex.” Greyson pointed at him and he opened his mouth as if to answer, but his eyes darted past his shoulder and widened in fear.

  “Lauren!” Alex exclaimed, racing past Greyson toward his wounded sister.

  Lauren let out a sob of joy as she wrapped her arms around Alex’ neck. She was covered in her own blood, and the blood of demons, but the healing abilities of the three humans who helped them was extremely powerful.

  Henry slapped Greyson on the back, and pointed toward the group of surviving Dae warriors who were slowly making their way toward them. Greyson scanned the faces, seeing that there were only a half of his original team left. Rictus was alive as well, as was Sazumi, who he was carrying in his arms. Beside them, with pink eyes gleaming through her exhaustion, was Genmei. Greyson let out a tense breath, an unintentional smile creasing his tired face.