I awoke to a symphony of chaos— loud screeches and thuds that reverberated through the very fabric of the tent we were being held in.

My eyes snapped open, and I shot up from the hard ground. I looked about, trying to make sense of what was happening. The tent flaps billowed in the wind, and moonlight streamed in, illuminating the small space.

"What's going on?" Eliaria's groggy voice called out, her words muffled by her hands.

Flint was sitting on his knees, rubbing his eyes and cursing under his breath.

"I don't know," I replied.

A loud crash echoed outside the tent, and then the sound of shouting and screaming. The canvas walls rippled in response to the disturbances outside. I rose, the coarse fibers of the ven’thik blanket slipped from my shoulders. I rushed to the entrance, pushing aside the heavy tarp and stepping out into the cool night air.

Our guards are gone.

I scanned the scene. The air itself seemed charged with an unnatural energy, and the sky overhead glowed a bright shade of purple. Pink lightning danced across the heavens, illuminating the battlefield below.

"Holy shit!" Flint shouted, coming up behind me.

Before I could say anything, a low hum rose above the din of noise, it sounded like a swarm of insects buzzing in unison. The sound grew louder, and I realized that it was coming from above us. As I stared up in wonder, I saw the sky sag like a pregnant woman’s belly. Bumps appeared all over its surface.

"Did they put something in our food?" Flint asked, staring up at the sky.

"I hope so," I muttered, "or shits about to get crazy."

Thunder cracked, and the sky tore open, like a septic wound, and from within came monsters. Horrific creatures, like I had never seen before—fell from the sky like deadly raindrops. Some slammed into an invisible dome that covered the village, and other's landed on charred areas surrounding the village.

"What the hell are those things?" Flint shouted.

I shook my head, still trying to absorb what was going on. The beasts were large, with leathery wings and clawed hands. Their faces were long and narrow, their eyes glowing red, their mouths filled with rows of sharp teeth.

A row of vent'thik spear men holding shields stood between the monsters and the village.

"Demons," Eliaria said, her voice trembling. "They're demons."

They charged forward, and a deafening roar erupted from their throats as they threw themselves against the line ven'thik spearmen.

Archers atop the village walls let loose a barrage of arrows, and the creatures screamed and hissed as the projectiles pierced their flesh. But more demons came, falling out of the rift above and landing on the ground with a sickening crunch.

"We need to get down there!" I shouted over the chaos.

Eliaria nodded.

"This is what we came for," Flint said, pulling his staff out of his storage portal. "Let's kill some demons and gain some levels."

***

We ran down the stairs and into the courtyard. A single gate stood open, allowing soldiers to run in and out. We stepped out of the village and into the storm, and I realized we had no plan.

The demons were pushing the ven'thik back. Their line was collapsing, and soon they would be overrun.

"What do we do?" Eliaria shouted, her face streaked with sweat.

I looked around for an answer, but all I saw were demons.

"I don't know!" I called back. "Watch each other's backs and kill as many as you can."

I saw a soldier get picked up and thrown to the ground by a demon. Another soldier rushed in, his spear thrusting into the monster's side.

"That's a lot of fucking demons!" Flint said.

"This way!" I shouted, pushing through a gap in the line of defenders.

We found ourselves face-to-face with a group of demons. One of the creatures roared, its red eyes gleaming in the darkness, and then lunged at us.

I sidestepped, my daggers slicing through the air and severing the beast's arm.

Flint brought his staff down on the demon's head, crushing its skull. The demon crumpled to the ground, blood and brain matter leaking from its ruined head.

A golden javelin appeared in Eliaria's hand. She threw it at another demon, and it hit the creature in the neck, sending it sprawling to the ground.

Soldiers fought on either side of us, desperately trying to hold back the tide.

We fought alongside the ven'thik for hours, slaying demons left and right. As each creature died, a green mist rose from its corpse and dissipated into the night air. After seeing hundreds of these demons killed, one thing that stood out was that none of them dropped card essence.

My body was covered in hundreds of cuts and my arms ached from exhaustion. I looked around and spotted Flint wading through the demons like a man possessed, his quarterstaff spinning in a deadly arc, slamming into skulls and crushing bones.

Eliaria had also broken from the line, her healing magic washing over a fallen ven'thik that had been pulled from the formation. Demons were closing in around them, and they needed help.

I started to make my way toward them when something caught my eye. A single figure was standing on a small rise to my right. It was too far away for me to make out any details, but its silhouette stood out in the moonlight, a stark contrast against the night sky.

The figure raised its arm and pointed in the direction of the great tree that stood in the center of the village. A moment later, a column of purple light shot up from the ground, exploding against the dome with a deafening boom. The spell sent a ripple through the earth, knocking soldiers and monsters to the ground.

"Bas!" Flint shouted, snapping me back to the present. "I need your help over here!"

I rushed toward him, dodging a demon and leaping over a fallen ven'thik.

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Eliaria had already joined the battle, her golden javelin piercing the eye of a demon that had been about to rip Flint's throat out.

A group of ten demons advanced toward us, their mouths twisted into grotesque smiles, and their red eyes filled with hunger.

"Come on," I said, stepping forward, "let's show these ven'thik what us ground-dwellers can do."

The demon's screeched as they charged at us.

Eliaria cast a spell and fiery chains shot from her hands, wrapping around the demons and holding them in place.

I followed up on her spell with [Bone Spikes] and a circle of bones shot up from under the demon's feet, skewering their bodies.

Flint cast [Warp Strike] and disappeared, reappearing above the nearest demon. His staff glowed as he slammed it into the back of the demon's head. There was a flash of light and the demon collapsed. [Warp Strikes] cooldown was reset by the kill, and he cast the spell again and again, dealing the killing blow to one after another.

In a matter of seconds, the ten demons laid dead at our feet.

"I leveled up from that!" Flint said, grinning.

"Me too," Eliaria added.

A cry rang out, and I looked up.

The ven'thik line had fallen, and the demons were swarming over the defenders.

"Get down!" Eliaria yelled, and then she was pushing me out of the way, her hands gripping my shoulders, and the force of her shove sending me crashing to the ground.

A moment later, a demon's clawed hand sliced through the air where I had just been standing.

I looked up to see Eliaria, a golden javelin in her hand. She stabbed the demon through the throat, her weapon piercing its thick hide with ease.

Hundreds of demons swarmed the village, the sky filled with their dark shapes. The dome of force above the village was turning red in places where the demons had penetrated the line of soldiers and were attacking the barrier directly.

"This is bad!" Flint shouted, his staff whirling as he smashed the skull of another demon.

"What do they want?" Eliaria cried.

I had no idea, but it was clear that the demons and the magic wielder were trying to enter the village. At that moment, the ‘why’ didn't matter as much as stopping it.

I ducked under a clawed hand and brought my dagger up, slicing open a demon's stomach. It let out a gurgling roar, its insides spilling out onto the ground.

"We need to draw them away from the village," I said, feeling the stickiness of the creature's blood coating my hands.

"How?" Eliaria asked, her breath ragged.

"Kill enough of them and they'll sure as hell notice us!" I yelled, stabbing a demon in the face.

***

Captain Zak'Sho stood atop the wall, watching the battle unfold below. He had known it was only a matter of time before the demons reached the village, and now they had come in force.

"Hold the line," he bellowed, his voice carrying over the din of battle.

A battle cry rose up amongst the ven’thik in response to orders, and they tightened their formation, standing shoulder to shoulder, spears stretched out before them.

With each wave that came the demons grew stronger, they seemed to be evolving, the first wave had been nothing but fodder. Now, a week later, the demons had wings, claws and teeth that could rend armor and bite through flesh.

The captain’s warriors were fighting bravely, but the demons were relentless. The barrier that protected the great tree and the secret it held was slowly failing, cracks were spreading across its surface, and it would only be a matter of time before it broke.

They might survive this wave, but what about the next?

Suddenly, a flash of light caught his attention, and he looked down to see three figures fighting in the thick of the fray. It was the ground-dwellers. At first, he'd taken them as nothing more than low ranked adventures at best. Yet, there they were, tearing through the demon horde like it was nothing. Their weapons sang as they cleaved through the ranks of monsters, but even as they fought, Zak'Sho could see they were being surrounded. The demons had noticed the new threat and were beginning to focus their attacks on the trio.

He had a duty to protect the tree. He could not leave his post, but watching these ground-dwellers fighting a battle that was not their own with such bravery and courage made him want to rush down there and help them. They had killed countless demons, but there were still more coming, and soon they would be overwhelmed.

"Cho'Maw," he shouted, summoning the squad's mage.

The masked mage appeared, his curved sword dripping with blood. "Sir," the mage said, "What is your command?"

Zak'Sho watched the trio for a moment, their weapons flashing as they carved through the demons. "Hold the line," he said, "these ground-dwellers shame us, it is time I show them how we ven'thik fight!"

***

"Looks like we got their attention," I said, grinning.

We were surrounded, the demons had closed in on us, and there was no way out.

"I don't think they like us very much," Eliaria said, her eyes darting around as she tried to keep track of the circling monsters.

I had never seen so many monsters before. They were everywhere, and there were more coming.

"Someone remind me why we are doing this again? " Flint asked, gripping his staff tightly.

"Because we're heroes," I replied.

"I don't feel like a hero," he said.

"Me neither," Elia agreed.

The demons screeched, and the sky darkened overhead.

"Well, there's no turning back now," I said, my hand glowing with green light.

"Fuck!" Flint swore, "Let's do this."

As the first demon attacked, I was ready. Venom bolts flew from my hands, exploding into the creatures, sending them crashing to the ground.

Flint's staff flashed, and a beam of black light lanced out, hitting a demon in the chest and teleporting it several yards away.

Eliaria hurled her javelins, sowing chaos among the ranks of monsters.

We fought together, our weapons singing as we cut down the demons. But for every one we killed, two more took its place. Our [Etherix] was spent, our stamina was draining, and it was only a matter of time before our bodies failed us.

Eliaira screamed as a demon leapt from the darkness, its claws digging into her shoulder. She staggered back, blood pouring from the wound.

I jumped forward, stabbing the beast in the side, but a second demon tackled me from behind, sending me crashing to the ground.

"Bas!" Flint shouted, rushing forward.

His staff cracked the demon across the face, knocking it away, but two demons attacked him, forcing him back. Blood splattered his face as claws racked across his chest.

A clawed hand grabbed me by the throat, and I felt my windpipe being crushed. I slashed the demon's arm, cutting through tendons and ligaments. The beast screamed, its grip loosening.

I rolled away, and scrambled to my feet, gasping for breath. Flint was struggling to fend off three demons at once, while Eliaria was bleeding from a dozen wounds.

The demons could sense that we were growing weak, and they were closing in, their red eyes glinting hungrily.

"No!" I roared, my heart hammering in my chest.

I impaled a group with [Bone Spikes] and then threw myself into the melee, my dagger slashing left and right.

The demons hissed and spat, their claws raking across my body. My mind was screaming at me to stop, but I didn't listen. A fist connected with my jaw, and I saw stars. Something hard hit my chest, and I doubled over, gasping for air.

But I didn't stop.

I kept going, my blood burning with rage. I lost count of how many times I was hit. Finally, my body gave out. My legs buckled, and I collapsed to the ground.

But then, just as the darkness was closing in, I heard a sharp and thunderous crack as something flew through the air at an impossible speed. It crashed into the horde like a falling star, the impact sending a shockwave through the air.

Smoke and debris billowed all about, obscuring my vision. The light of the rising sun pierced through the clouds, illuminating the battlefield.

There, standing tall among the carnage, was a figure. Stag horns protruded from their skull, and a mane of silver hair fell down their back. In their hands, they held a colossal axe.

Captain Zak'Sho strode forward, his weapon dragging through the dirt, carving a furrow in its wake.

He stopped, his eyes narrowing as he took in the sight of us. "Rest now, ground-dwellers," the captain said, his voice booming. "Your work is done."

He raised his axe and slammed it into the earth. A ripple of energy emanated from the point of impact, racing outward, washing over the battlefield.

The demon's attack wavered, their red eyes widening, and they began to back away.

"That's right," Zak'Sho bellowed, "now go back to the hell from which you crawled!"

***