Cassie watched Tyrian critically as they made their way to their tower. He seemed to show no ill effects from using his relic in such a manner, and that was a good sign. Tapping raw relic power was no easy trick and could often be as draining as unlocking new levels. "I admit, I'm surprised he didn't challenge you to a Relic Duel," she said as they went into their room.
"Relic Duel?" He paused as he pulled off his shirt. "What's a Relic Duel?"
"It's where two relic users try to use the raw power of their relic to overwhelm their opponent. The idea being that all regular relics are equal in raw power, and Pure Relics are equal. It's the magical capacity of the wielder that makes them potent. So even though Lane probably has a fully unlocked relic and you don't, it wouldn't matter."
"Hmm."
She slid her arms around his waist and rested her hands on his bare stomach. Her lips feathered across his back. "It's normally only between enemies because it can be very dangerous, especially to outsiders. Relic users can feel the vibration in the air. Pure Relic users feel as if they're involved in the duel."
"You know a lot." He covered her hands with his.
"We collect information," she admitted. "And there are more Pure Relics in assorted people's hands than most think." She slowly slid her hands up over his chest and smiled as she heard his breath catch. It was a wholly different power to make such a powerful man tremble at her touch. "Am I distracting you?"
He turned and dragged her into his arms for a wild kiss. It almost seemed as if he wanted to devour her, and the feeling was thrilling. She bore a risk herself because there was no one closer to him than she, but if that was her eventual future, she did not care. As long as she stayed by his side, that was all she wanted.
Things were busy in the morning. Lane, Verdure, and Crimson began to work with the magic unit. Ewan went to see Mouse, and she proved her skill by sharpening Night's edge until it was as thin as a hair. When Ewan tested it on a broken pillar, he cleaved it straight in half without a single ragged mark or damage to Night. The combination of his skill and a legendary sword underscored why he had been born as the Midnight Moon Warrior.
Tyrian, Cassie, Gordon, and Samantha met up with Matthias and Kane in the meeting room. Ewan and Kyle joined them shortly thereafter, and so did Liang. As his mentor sat down, Tyrian leaned over and murmured, "I haven't seen you much. On one hand, your trust in Cassie is both welcome and justified. On the other . . ."
Color slowly climbed Liang's face. He had woken that morning to realize he was neglecting Tyrian, and that with the battle against Donald looming in the near future, Tyrian needed his support more than ever. "I am sorry, Tyrian."
"I'm not." Tyrian smiled when Liang looked at him in surprise. "You've been with Serentia and Tavi. I know you have. I've seen you helping in the garden and teaching Tavi the little things you used to teach me. And I'm glad," he said simply. "You've been like a father to me, Liang, and eventually, soon, we're going to have to part ways. You need to have a family. I love Tavi as if she were my baby sister. And Serentia . . ." He shook his head a little. "It's hard to get my head around. She's only eight years older than I am, but she's so much like a mother." Very softly, he said, "More of a mother than Annareal was."
The fact that Tyrian had not called Annareal his mother since Ophelia's death was evidence to the fact that he had never, and may never, forgive what she had done. Not unless Annareal ever truly regretted what she had done. If she showed true remorse, Tyrian might find forgiveness after all. He was more matured than Liang. He knew he would never forgive someone such a betrayal.
Evelyn showed up with breakfast and was serving it when the doors banged open and Tavi rushed in. She ran across the floor and climbed up onto Tyrian's lap without asking and then promptly buried her face against his shoulder.
Startled, he cuddled her close. "Tavi? What's wrong?"
She leaned back and her lower lip wobbled. "There's a family visiting the inn. The boy said I can't be a Destined Star because you don't need kids." Her eyes welled with tears as the others at the table bristled. "Yumi's ten but she's useful! I don't do anything!"
Gordon started to speak but Matthias shook his head. Tyrian gently cupped Tavi's chin. "You're here," he said softly. "My littlest Destined Star. You give me hope for the future, Tavi. It's your future that we're fighting for, and because you believe in me, I can have the strength to fight. That's why you're important too. If there was trouble, and you knew I needed you, then you'd come help me."
She rubbed at her eyes. She had known it, but she needed to hear Tyrian say it. She wanted so much to protect him! He always looked tired and it made her so mad that no one would let him rest. She tugged on his tunic, and when he leaned down, whispered in his ear, "If L'ang marries Mommy, will you be my big brother?"
He slowly smiled. He had suspected that she was eyeing Liang as her preferred choice of father. "I'd say so."
She held up her pinky. "Then we help!"
He solemnly linked pinkies with her and they shook on it. "Deal."
She climbed down and scampered out of the room as fast as she had entered. The doors almost banged shut again but the guards were quick enough to grab them. "Well," Matthias said. "It was inevitable, I suppose. It threw most of us off stride when we realized someone so young would be a Star, but we are much quicker to accept the ways of Destiny. Well handled, Lord Tyrian."
"It was the truth," he said simply. He leaned back in his chair. His green eyes remained calm but promised a dangerous anger. "I believe I'll need to have a word with everyone soon. There may as yet be more children to be Destined Stars. Yumi isn't as quickly noticed because she is 'useful' for her inventions. No one is going to belittle any of my Stars, no matter their age."
It wasn't the first time the others had noticed that the strong emotion between Kaiten Star and Destined Star went both ways. Tyrian was as fierce about them as they were about him. To him, his Stars belonged to him and nothing else mattered.
Evelyn had left with the cart, and everyone began to eat. While they did, Kane started talking. "It's probably not the best subject with food, but it can't be put off." He poked at the eggs on his plate. "Beelzebub has the ability to raise the dead. Any body that is deceased can potentially be raised as a soldier. The more recently dead come back as zombies. The older dead come back as just a skeleton. Both are equally unpleasant. Zombies are far worse for those involved because they, to some extent, retain features of their former self."
Ewan pushed his plate away. "Well, I'm done."
"Being dead," Kane continued, "they don't feel pain, so they can keep on attacking even if they lose limbs or take severe injuries. The only way to stop a zombie is to either remove the head or set it on fire. Skeletons are much trickier. They need to be cut in half through the chest."
Matthias frowned thoughtfully as he went over all strategies. "Our best hope for defeating the army Beelzebub will raise is to take our magic unit with Crimson in lead. Our ranged units are of no use. We'll want to have our close-range combat units all wearing Fire Relics if possible, or have Fire Scrolls if they can't wear a relic. How effective is Lightning magic?"
"Very," Kane said instantly. "If it is strong enough."
"Then Kyle and Laia will each be in a unit," Tyrian said. "We lack a Relic Master around here, but Beatrice has a lot of scrolls in supply."
Only Pure Relics could be equipped without the aid of a Relic Master. All others needed assistance from someone trained in relic application. Even though they had been amassing a great deal of relics in storage, there was no one to apply them. It went onto Tyrian's list of needs, along with everything else.
The Resurrection Relic also carried a lightning spell that was deliberately designed to be effective against the undead, so Kane, Marion, and Halkern were of equal importance in the coming battle.
They didn't know many units they would need at Beelzebub's castle, and they didn't even know precisely where it was located to begin with. It was said to be in the mountains, but that covered a lot of ground. That it hadn't been found in all these years was testament to how well it had been hidden.
"What do you hope to find at the massacre site?" Samantha asked Tyrian. "It's not going to be pleasant, Lord Tyrian."
"Beelzebub wants me. I can assume that means he will want to fight me on his turf. Well, I can hardly go on his turf unless I know where it is. That means there will be a clue left behind at the site." He looked at Matthias. "Is that your feeling?"
"It is indeed." It wasn't the first time they had thought similar. Tyrian was not much less of a brilliant strategist. "Persephone said her village was called T'que. If my memory serves, it was once an Elf city before others moved in and made it more diverse. It is to the northeast of Teasarn, fairly close to the mountains."
Tyrian drummed the fingers of his relic hand on the table. "We can't spare the time to get there by foot, or horse. We know Persephone and her family made it here in five days by running without stopping. Five days is an optimistic number, no doubt. It's about three to Teasarn alone."
Slowly, Ewan said, "Beelzebub likes things to be simple. He is, at his heart, a coward. I fully believe it. He is also confident in his own power. He wouldn't exert himself."
Matthias' eyes lit. "Ewan, you might very well be on to something. You are suggesting that the castle in the mountains might very well be close to T'que. It surely must be the closest city. Why would he go to some small town out of the way if something easier was closer?"
"So what should we do?" Cherry asked. She suddenly brightened. "Wait! You think we should use the Mechanoportal to send the units to T'que and then march the rest of the way once the castle is found?"
"Indeed! There is nothing stopping us from transporting in additional units once the castle is found. We can send a preliminary three, our magic unit and two close-combat, and then add more if needed. Lord Tyrian, name your unit leaders."
"For magic, Crimson will lead with Lane and Marion assisting. If Lane doesn't like it, he can get a damned Fire Relic himself." Ignoring the quick grins from the table, especially Ewan's, Tyrian continued, "The close-combat will consist of I, Cassie, and Kane in one unit, and either you or Cherry with Laia and Ewan in the other. If we find we need more units, I will choose the leaders at that time."
"I will ride," Matthias said. When Cherry frowned, he tugged on her braid. "My leg is doing much better today. I will be just fine."
Cherry was still obviously unsure, but she did not argue further. Since Matthias had told no one precisely what his ailment was, there was no one who could say definitively whether he was healthy or not. Tyrian suspected what was wrong and had ever since he had met his strategist, but it was Matthias' right to tell.
Units planned, everyone headed to where they belonged. Ewan's face stayed impassive as they waited for the Mechanoportal to power up, but Laia lightly rested a hand on his shoulder in silent support. He hesitated and then covered her hand with his in thanks. He knew he was about to revisit his nightmares.
When the transport ended and left the three units outside of T'que, a murmur of unease ran through the soldiers. In the late morning light, the village stood as a bloody wound on the land. Buildings were perfectly unharmed. The streets were immaculate. If it hadn't been for one small detail, it could have been a ghost town.
Blood stained every surface. It had splashed across walls and run down the streets. It was no longer normal hue after so many days, but the greyed color seemed somehow worse. There were no bodies in sight, yet their lack was not unexpected. Why find a graveyard to desecrate when there were newly fallen dead to make into an army?
Because they were there not just to wait for battle but to find a way to the undead castle, Laia and Ewan left their units to join Tyrian, Cassie, and Kane as they rode into the city. Even braced for it, Tyrian barely contained a flinch as he saw the lingering remnants of the massacre that had happened. How Persephone and her family had survived . . . somehow he knew it was only because Beelzebub had wanted them to carry his sadistic message.
"'He creeps in the night," Laia murmured, "feasting on the blood of the innocent. A path that crosses his will cross no more.'"
Cassie shuddered. "Thank you so much, Laia."
"It's a passage from an old text Rourke read once. It was never said it expressly meant Beelzebub. But you can be sure it likely did." Laia tilted her head slightly as if listening to something. "There's an area of dead air ahead."
"Dead air?" Ewan asked.
"An area where the air has been stripped of magic," Tyrian offered. "Laia has exceptionally sharp hearing, enough to hear where there is a pocket of silence."
"I didn't know air made noise," Kane said.
"It's not so much that it makes noise," Laia said softly. "When we get there, you'll notice it too."
The dead air was in the middle of what had once been the town center. A bloodstained teddy bear sat abandoned by a lamppost. A wagon had been overturned and the harnesses that had once been worn by horses were broken and tattered. From outside the center, the sound of a sign creaking in the wind was eerily audible. Once within the center, the creaking disappeared.
It wasn't the only thing to disappear. Until they entered that spot, none of them except for Laia had realized just how loud the world could be. Inside the dead zone was no sound at all. Even the faint background hum of magic that none of them had ever noticed before went away. Tyrian couldn't hear his heartbeat, couldn't hear the sound of them breathing. The horses' hooves made no sound on the stone.
A chill raced down Ewan's back. "I never realized that silence could be so frightening." Though audible, his voice carried an eerie cadence as it forced through the silence.
"There is a difference between natural and unnatural silence," Night said quietly. "A natural silence occurs when the magic in the air fades in and out from various locations. An unnatural silence, a dead zone, is what it sounds like. Beelzebub killed this piece of the air. It will always be dead. No magic can be used here."
If a clue was to be anywhere, it would be there. Tyrian swung off Fay's back and began to look around intently. He didn't know what he was looking for, but he knew he would know it when he found it.
The lamppost caught his attention. With a frown, he studied it. "There's something off."
The others looked and Laia's brows lifted. "There's no blood."
The lamppost was nearly pristine. Not a drop or splash of blood had marred the surface. Tyrian lightly ran his fingers over the post and felt what might have been faint carvings in the surface. "There's something here." He hesitated and then said, "Someone lend me their sword."
Laia dismounted. "Seeing you spill blood might make the rest of us violent," she said calmly. "I will do this instead." She drew her sword enough that the blade was visible and without a flinch she cut her palm so that blood welled.
Kane instantly looked at her speculatively. The others, too, looked at her a little curiously, though not with the same suspicion. Her blood was not the normal red of Humans, Mongra, and Grimalkin, nor was it the silvery color of Faeries, green of Elves, or blue of Dragons, Merfolk, and Fliers. Her blood was, in fact, a very dark shade of red that in the right light might have looked black.
"You're not Human," Tyrian noted.
"I'm half, actually," she told him. "The first pureblood Human in five generations was my mother. My father was a serious mutt, and yes, I include Mongra in that too. The fact that I lack wings, fur, or a tail of any kind is a, pardon the pun, bloody miracle."
"Fascinating," Kane murmured. If his suspicions were correct, then he thought he might very well have a better understanding of just how Laia Mitakel did what she did, and why her voice was so powerful even without her Music Relic.
Laia pressed her bloody palm to the lamppost and then slowly slid her hand downward so that her blood smeared the surface. The blood began to drip even further, but only from the smooth portions. The rough area that Tyrian had found revealed itself as words as her blood was trapped inside.
While she stepped out of the dead zone to heal the wound, Tyrian read, "'The sun never rises on the castle of the Vampire. At the moment of sunset, he awakes.'" He shook his head. "Anyone have any idea what that means?"
"It might be directions," Ewan offered. "There's got to be a cliff or something where it faces the west and is sheltered from the east. Think about it: if the mountains blocked the east, then the sun will literally never rise on the castle. But a clear view of the west would allow Beelzebub to know exactly when the sun set."
Laia and Tyrian both got onto their horses again, and Tyrian led the way toward the exit in town that headed directly into the mountains. The sun sat nearly directly overhead, and it was almost impossible to tell one direction from another. Luckily, after an hour of riding into the mountains, the sun began a distinct downward slope. With shadows for a compass, they began their search for a place where the sun would never rise.
It was unexpectedly found as sunset began. As they came around the side of a cliff, they found themselves standing on an enormous plateau. It tapered into a hillside rather than dropping off, and there were no trees to get in the way. The plateau ended against very high cliffs that would entirely block the sunrise. The sunset was perfectly seen as it set on the horizon like a ball of fire. In the light, Laia's hair seemed to turn to gold and the blue in Cassie's hair overtook the black. Even Tyrian's eyes seemed greener than usual.
Night suddenly said, "He's here. I can sense his presence. Ewan!"
"Way ahead of you!" Ewan leapt down to his feet and walked a few steps away from the party. He drew Night and swung him high in the air before slamming him point first into the ground. A shockwave ripped from the sword and tore across the land so violently that it cracked the stone and dirt.
Before the wave hit the cliffs, it hit something else. The shielding spell in place abruptly broke and crumbled like shards of glass. And there, hidden behind the safety of a shield that no longer existed, was the castle of the undead lord.
It was less of a castle than it was a mansion, and it stood like a decrepit mausoleum against the shelter of the cliff. The two highest points on the mansion barely skimmed the top of the cliff behind them. Everything was black and gray stone, and sinister gargoyles perched along the roofline to stare at visitors with hungry red eyes. Dead vines covered the walls, bars covered the windows. Burned into each window was an inverted pentagram in a perversion of a symbol used by Healers to promote life.
Kane rode closer to Laia. "Give me your strength." She held out her left hand and he took it with his right. His Resurrection Relic activated and so did her Music Relic. Like an amplifier, the power that he poured into the Music Relic greatly increased as a holy harmony seemed to swell on the air.
The wave of purple power swept across the land in what would normally be a spell to revive those close to death. Instead, it slammed into the mansion and shattered the windows. The unholy spells imbedded within were likewise shattered, removing all attempts to bar outsiders from entering.
As the sun sat behind them and darkness began to descend, the land began to shake and rumble. Bloody and decrepit hands with broken nails hooked like claws shoved up through the dirt. Grayed and gnarled skin hung loosely from bones. The hands grabbed the ground and pulled sharply. Dirt and rock flew as the zombies hauled themselves out of the land.
Ewan swung back up onto his horse's back and followed the others as they ran down the hill swiftly to escape the horde. When they reached the bottom and looked back, the swaying figures of violent undeath stood as sentries at the edge of the plateau.
Just as the zombies and skeletons started to run down the hill, fireballs began to rain from the sky. Tyrian turned sharply and saw the three units rushing up the hill toward where his party sat. The magic unit led the charge, and Crimson was readying them for another attack. With Lane's wind magic to increase the potency of all fire attacks, it was an inferno that rained down on the enemy.
Ewan and Laia rode over swiftly to join Matthias as Tyrian, Cassie, and Kane took command of their unit. "Magic!" Tyrian shouted. "Push back the tide! Let us pick off the stragglers! Swordsmen, focus on the finishing blows! All other combat is to focus on weakening the enemy! If you can take their arms off, they have nothing to attack with!"
Even with the Liberation Army working perfectly together, there seemed to be no end to the battle. For every undead that fell, another rose. After the first hour passed without anything changing and the Army beginning to tire, Matthias touched his Voice Relic. "Lord Tyrian, our best hope is for you to take Ewan, Kane, and Cassie into the castle itself and remove Beelzebub. This battle will not end unless you do. I will have replacement unit leaders called in."
"Done. I'm counting on you to give us the time we need." Tyrian looked at Cassie and Kane who nodded swiftly in understanding.
Ewan had been next to Matthias, and he already knew the orders. He rode quickly across the field, cutting apart anything stupid enough to try and get in his way. As soon as he reached the others, Tyrian pulled Cassie up onto the back of his horse. She had been dismounted for combat because her hands were her most lethal weapon.
With Kane shooting at anything that ran after them, and Ewan cutting apart anything in front of them, the party rushed back up the hillside toward the plateau and the mansion beyond. When they reached the doors, everyone leapt down and Cassie kicked the doors open. They ran inside, and Fay gathered the other two horses to run back down the hill toward the Liberation Army. She knew that when her owner left a battlefield that she was to return to the strategist.
Cassie and Ewan slammed the doors behind them just as several skeletons jumped for them. The sound of bone hitting oak was both loud and sickening. A set of armor with a heavy axe stood nearby, so Ewan used the axe to keep the doors shut. Skeletal hands clawed under the bottom of the door but found nothing to grab onto.
The interior of the mansion was a far cry from the outside. It was opulent and decadent, fit more for a king than a mere noble. The tapestries and curtains were velvet and silk, and the floors had been made of polished stone. Jewels encrusted the statues and hung as part of the chandeliers. Lamps were finely crafted pieces of art, and expensive paintings hung on the walls.
Tyrian felt a shiver run all the way down his back. That someone who had such an appreciation for the finer things in life could be capable of such destruction . . . it was horrifying. Somehow, this beautiful manor looked more disgusting than the bloody remnants of T'que.
"Welcome," came a voice that Ewan had never forgotten. "Welcome to my home, Lord Tyrian Southerwind."
Tyrian turned sharply to see a man coming down the stairs toward them. The shiver spread through to his relic as his deepest soul recognized evil. Beelzebub was handsome, cultured, and polite. He wore the disguise of a man very well, but his eyes revealed the monster within. Knowing that Ewan had gouged out one of his eyes, Tyrian wondered just how much of Beelzebub's appearance was a lie. "You deliberately called for me," he said with a calm that impressed even Cassie. "I doubt it was to enjoy a cup of tea and discuss the weather."
Beelzebub chuckled. "Ah, spirit. Such a scarce commodity these days." He bowed with a mocking courtesy toward Cassie. "Lord Tyrian, your taste is impeccable. Lady Cassie has a beauty to rival the sunset." He shot a slight smirk at Kane. "And I see you've brought out the big weapons. Let's see . . . you would be the new Vladimir Kane. You look like your ancestor, boy, but I doubt you have his skill."
"Don't let my age fool you," Kane warned softly.
Beelzebub wasn't that stupid. Kane could have been six instead of sixteen and the Vampire would have treated him with caution. The Kane Clan's reputation was well earned, and any who went rogue feared the day when they looked back and saw the glint of a crossbow arrow.
He turned and looked at Ewan, and the hate could not be kept off his face. "Well, well," he said mockingly. "Look at this. What a blast from the past. You've gotten a little taller since I last saw you, Ewan. I do hope you've gotten a little stronger as well."
Ewan slowly drew Night from his sheath and had the deep satisfaction of watching the smugness drain from Beelzebub's face. The short sleeves of Ewan's tunic plainly revealed the mark of the Midnight Moon as he took an aggressive stance. "Stronger, better, and I've got a friend who has just been dying to meet you, Beelzebub."
"I don't think we need an introduction," Night said politely. "Lord Beelzebub knows just who I am, don't you, rogue?
Beelzebub hissed through his teeth as necrotic energy began to pulse around him. "Cursed Relic of Night."
"Oh, I'm not cursed," Night assured him. "Curses are overrated. I'm relatively normal for a half of a Pure Relic."
Beelzebub lunged for Ewan with claws extended. Ewan dodged to the side and swung Night as he did. The blade bit into Beelzebub's cheek and broke the illusion the Vampire had been wearing. His left eye seemed to disappear into a tangled mass of scarring. The scars had never healed properly; they were blackened and decayed rather than healthy.
Realizing that Ewan was, indeed, vastly better than he had ever been before, Beelzebub instead went after Tyrian. If Beelzebub was to go down, then he would take Ewan's beloved Kaiten Star with him!
Tyrian sidestepped gracefully and whirled his staff around so that it cracked into the back of Beelzebub's head. He promptly dissolved into bats before he ran into the wall and flew back to the center of the room. As soon as he reformed, Cassie seemed to appear from out of nowhere. She grabbed him by his tunic and flipped him entirely over her head. He barely managed to get his feet under himself to keep from slamming into the floor.
With a high-pitched scream of fury, he released a shockwave of power that sent Tyrian and Cassie flying into the wall. Kane was sent tumbling across the floor but rolled up to his feet and drew his crossbow. He began shooting at Beelzebub, and the Vampire had to dodge quickly. The arrows used by the Kane clan were not normal arrows. They were blessed by the Millennium Relic, and if they pierced a rogue's heart, the Vampire would be instantly destroyed.
The arrow barrage covered Ewan as he ran across the floor toward Beelzebub. "Block this, you bastard!" he snarled as he swung Night for Beelzebub's neck.
Beelzebub had no room to dodge, but in a morbidly humorous turn of events, he tripped on his own cloak and fell on the ground. The slash of the sword narrowly missed his head and sent Ewan stumbling before he caught his balance.
Tyrian hopped to his feet and his relic glowed brilliantly. The rolling wave of black power swept across the floor and consumed Beelzebub. It could not kill him, but when the dome of power ebbed, Beelzebub looked as if he had literally been through hell. His clothes and skin were ravaged, his energy depleted dangerously. He realized at last that he was outmatched and reached for his power as he began to dissolve into bats.
Kane's relic glowed. "Rapture!" he commanded.
Thick lightning bolts dropped from the sky and formed a proper pentagram around Beelzebub. He was forcefully thrown back into his normal body and fell to his knees as flickers of lightning leapt threateningly around him. "You think this is enough?" he snarled.
"Ewan, banish him!" Kane ordered. "Hurry!"
Ewan stepped forward and slammed the point of Night into the ground. Another shockwave was released that blew apart every bit of glass or crystal in the area. Beelzebub's voice rose on a horrendous scream as the wave tore through his body and then he abruptly disappeared. The pentagram dissolved peacefully as silence, natural silence, descended.
"Is he gone?" Cassie asked cautiously. She stood partially in front of Tyrian, keeping him between her and a wall for safety.
Tyrian's Voice Relic beeped softly and Matthias' voice said, "The battle is done. The zombies and skeletons have lost all power. We are undertaking the task of burying them where they are. It is the least we can do. Return and we will transport back."
"He's gone," Kane confirmed as he holstered his crossbow. "For good, though, I can't say. We dealt a big blow to him. It might be years before he recovers. When the war ends, I will track him. Unless I find proof that he is gone for good, I will assume he survived." He looked at Ewan. "Your battle with him may not be over. It may be just postponed."
"I can handle that." Ewan took a deep breath and then let it out again. "I faced him and won. That's enough for now. I know if I encounter him again, that that time I will be stronger still and be able to destroy him for good. At the least," he shot a grin at Tyrian, "we know he won't be after us again! Tyrian gave him Hell."
"I figured he must be acquainted with it, so he might have missed it." Tyrian let out a little breath as he and Cassie joined Ewan and Kane in the middle of the foyer. "At least we found some justice for T'que and the Commune."
A sudden sense that Tyrian was in danger had all three Destined Stars looking up sharply. They closed together, keeping Tyrian between them all, just as soldiers of the Imperial Army burst out of hiding. Their presence in Beelzebub's mansion was both confirmation of their suspicions of Blaine's involvement, and a vile testament to the corruption spreading through the Army itself.
"Surrender!" one soldier ordered sharply as he aimed a crossbow at them. Others were armed with regular bows, and some held close-range weapons. There were nearly twenty total in the area and they blocked every exit. "Put down your weapons and surrender, Rebellion scum!"
Fury began to churn inside Tyrian's heart and soul, and his relic began to glow softly. "You would call us scum," he said softly, "when you are the ones who stood aside and let a monster murder innocent civilians. Old men and women. Children. People who could not fight and had no desire to. You let them be slaughtered."
"It drew you out," a soldier said in satisfaction. "So what's a little blood here and there? They were just poor villagers anyway. Who cares what happened to them?"
Tyrian's eyes turned abruptly to black and the runic circle appeared around his feet as the symbol of the Devourer appeared over his head. In a lethally calm voice, he said, "Purgatory."
Black fire began to pour down the walls. It was so hot that it melted the stone it touched as it rolled across the floor. One by one, it engulfed the soldiers. Each began to scream in horror as the fires ate away at them. They were little more than ashes in moments, though their voices hovered in the air. It was a frightening display of power, but Cassie, Ewan, and Kane felt not one bit of remorse or guilt for the soldiers' painful destruction.
The flames evaporated and cool air swept into the manor. Tyrian went glassy white as his strength drained from him sharply. He wasn't even conscious as he fell, too weak to even resist the exhaustion. He landed safely in Cassie's arms and Ewan braced her so that she didn't fall. Together, they lowered Tyrian gently to the floor.
Kane knelt beside them and removed his cloak to wrap it around Tyrian. It suddenly seemed obvious to all of them just how tired Tyrian was. His pallor had revealed the vivid dark circles under his eyes. He looked impossibly fragile for someone so powerful.
Cassie gathered him closer against her heart, hoping the sound reached inside his sleep and comforted him. Tears seared her eyes and closed her throat. This could not go on for much longer. "Only the second level," she whispered.
Ewan brushed Tyrian's hair out of his eyes tenderly. "He'll be fine. It's why he has us to support him." He blew out a long breath and touched his Voice Relic. "Matthias, we need someone to bring Fay to us. Tyrian is out. He unlocked the second level of his relic." Since all unit leaders could hear him, Ewan could hear Lane say something unpleasant. Because the tone held concern, Ewan asked, "What's wrong, Lane? If you know something, don't keep it to yourself!"
"It's too fast," Lane said in frustration. "He's leveling the relic too fast. His body is still adapting to the power it already has. I'll bring Fay to you. I might be able to help with my relic. I can't promise anything; I'm working purely on speculation based on my years of study with Lady Tanelia."
"Just hurry!"
Cassie
buried her face in Tyrian's hair. She felt as if things were dragging on too
long, and Tyrian was evolving too quickly?
Just how long was he supposed to endure this? "Damn you, Destiny,"
she said softly. "Damn you to Hell."
©Stacy J. Garrett. Do not reprint or redistribute without permission.
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