"Why can't we just use that orb thing you used to get us all here?" Jayln whispered, watching the mages carefully prepare for the spell.

"That was an enchanted item for emergencies. Not to mention it's meant for one person, not two dozen. We have enough people here to open our own portal."

Jayln frowned. She had expected a bit more of an army than this. Six mages, mostly old and feeble, were forming a circle and quietly bickering about rune placement and intonation. The Arch Mage directed them and slowly they began to get in sync. Jayln, Tryst, Matius and two dozen other mages stood ready to go through the portal once it formed.

"So to be clear. Matius and I go first and if there's no rift, we signal the charge?" Tryst asked dryly, eyeing the group with equal skepticism. Matius frowned at their doubt.

"That's the plan." He forced a smile and said brightly/ "Cheer up, I know they may not look it right now, but you're in the presence of some of the most powerful people in En. Can't you feel it?"

Jayln and Tryst glanced at each other and frowned, Jayln shook her head. "Feel what?"

Matius's smile grew genuine and his fingers flexed, a breeze came from nowhere and ruffled his hair. "The energy. This courtyard is absolutely buzzing with magic."

The unintelligible chanting from the mages grew into a harmonious hum. "Here we go, get ready." Tryst took Matius's proffered hand, his nonchalant expression betrayed by his pale face.

There was the smell of something burning and then the hair on Jayln's arms rose as a crack of light appeared, growing into a portal. Matius ran forward with Tryst and the two disappeared with a flash. The remaining twenty-eight people held their breath.

After an agonizing minute, Jayln heard Matius's voice, soft like a breeze. "Clear. Enter now."

She glanced around and although quiet, apparently all had heard the message. The Arch Mage pointed and his feeble body rose into the air and flew into the portal. Jayln charged and the other mages followed.

The blinding portal threw her off and she almost fell as she stepped through. She blinked in the dark trying to take in her surroundings. Someone grabbed her and she clasped her hands around the arm, twisting and bending over until the person flipped over her and landed with a thud.

"Ouch, hey! Jayln, it's me!"

Jayln blinked down at Tryst, who stumbled back to his feet, wincing. "Sorry."

Tryst gestured for her to follow. "Quick, we need to get under some cover."

She barely heard him as an explosion ripped through the air. Between intermittent flashes of lightning, she could make out the mages engaged with the Brimstones in the darkness. Elemental magic filled the air, a few summoned golems and living corpses mixed in. Jayln spun into a kick, taking a black cloaked mage down, his hands clenched over his pummeled gut. She jabbed him in the neck and he fell still.

Tryst found a wide, stone column to hide behind and Jayln joined him to get her bearings. They were on the far side of the massive room with Niv's throne. The demoness herself floated in the air. With a sweep of her arm, half a dozen Azir collapsed, writhing in pain. The Arch Mage shifted and a glittering shield wrapped around half the room. Niv's face contorted in rage and she turned her attention to the Arch Mage.

Jayln nocked an arrow, taking another Brimstone out through the eye. Her second target was more prepared and, despite not seeing the arrow coming, a black shield deflected the shot. He turned to her and pointed a finger which crackled with black lightning. Jayln ducked behind the pillar just in time. Tryst yelped.

"You're blowing my cover!" he hissed.

Leaving him alone behind the pillar, she rolled on the ground and below the next blast. The instant she was vertical, she shot another arrow. It still deflected. The Brimstone grinned and was about to retaliate again when he was blown off his feet, crashing into one of the stone statues. His head cracked against the stone wetly and he crumpled to the ground.

Jayln looked around and met Matius's eyes. He gave her a smile, his robe was smoking and singed. He said something lost in the chaos and a sigil glowed in front of Jayln and Tryst. A fiery hound lept at Matius and he had to turn his attention back to the fight. Jayln shot the hellhound, killing it and scanned the crowd for more targets.

The battle was fierce but seemed to be at a standstill. The Arch Mage focused on nullifying whatever Niv cast and the Azir mages barely holding against the sheer number of Brimstones. Jayln focused on the hellhounds, her arrows never having a problem piercing their smoldering flesh.

There was a commotion on the right of the Arch Mage and the shields began to fall. Jayln turned her attention there just in time to see one of the Azir held high in the fist of Fenrin.

She thought she'd be prepared from the pool memory, but still her heart caught in her throat. He was gaunt and bloodied but that didn't seem to affect his strength or stem his ferocity.

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He tore through the mages like they were nothing. Their shields not doing much to stop his fists or the black sword that magically appeared in his hand thanks to a glance from Niv.

The Arch Mage's attention wavered and Niv's oppressive aura fell heavy on the crowd. Jayln trembled but held firm. A nearby mage screamed, falling to the ground and clutching his head.

The sigil Matius had cast, reappeared in front of Jayln, pulsing with warm light. A protection against whatever Niv was doing with her enemies' minds.

Jayln turned her bow towards Fenrin. She had to stop his onslaught. Her arrow embedded itself in his sword arm and he howled with pain, eyes scanning the crowd. Quickly pinpointing her and her bow, he pulled the arrow free, blood gushing from the wound as he stalked towards her.

Running further away from the hiding Tryst, Jayln leapt onto the stone table in the center of the room. She nocked another arrow and turned.

Fenrin had moved faster than she thought and he grabbed her bow, pulling it out of her hand and slashing it at her like a club. She barely managed to dance out of the way and he tossed the bow to the side.

Jayln readied her stance but pleaded with him, "Fenrin, it's me! It's Jayln! Snap out of it!"

Fenrin's eyes flickered with recognition, but he laughed. "You won't beat me this time."

He stepped forward and she spun into a kick which he blocked with his arm, protecting his jaw, although the force made him step back. Her boot had cut into the skin and he licked the wound.

Jayln moved forward quickly, taking the opening to jab her elbow into his ribs. He grunted, trying to trap her against his chest but she nimbly dodged and came up to his left, her leg shooting up and hitting the back of his head. He stumbled.

She clasped her hands together, ready to bring them down as he caught himself, but it was a feint and he spun. His fists smashed into her chest and knocked her back. She winced, her rib throbbing. He moved closer and she danced away, knowing the danger of a close grapple with the large man. She couldn't afford to take her eyes off him and prayed his focus on her bought the mages time to recover.

Fenrin charged and she dodged, following with another kick. He caught her leg and tossed her to the ground. She rolled back up before he could get on top of her and kicked him square in the gut. He groaned, missing her leg this time.

Backing her towards the edge of the altar, Fenrin’s grey eyes looked for an opening. Jayln tried to dart left but he reached for her. She knocked his arm aside but he let it be deflected, his other hand catching her throat and slamming her into the stone.

She tucked up her legs and grabbed his wrist, pushing and launching him over her head. As his grip released her throat, she gasped and rolled away as he got back on his feet.

There was a blast of blue light and Jayln turned, distracted. The Arch Mage and an Azir she had never talked to but recognized as the First Apprentice were chanted in sync. The light of their spell was pulsating around Niv who's eyes were red flames. Fenrin moved to take advantage of her distraction but the floor rumbled making both of them lose their balance.

A crack split the table and Niv thrust out her hands, fingers in claws. The Azir recoiled for the attack, but it was the Brimstones who screamed.

Every black robed mage and Fenrin fell to the ground writhing in pain. Niv grinned and the blue light pulsed and winked out. In the chorus of her follower’s screams, Niv vanished, reappearing by the First Apprentice. Her long black nails dug into the girl's face, clawing out Niv's symbol.

"No, Yu'jana!" Matius shouted, his voice somehow echoing over the screams as he tried to cast the same sigil he had for Jayln. Niv waved it away and glanced at Matius, who fell to one knee, sweating as he cast a shield which flickered against the demoness's invisible attack.

Yu'jana twitched, rising slowly in the air. Blood dripped from her eyes and the Arch Mage flew over, grabbing her shoulders as bits of rubble floated up to orbit the two and push Niv back. Niv's neck arched and fire lined her form and Ju'yana's.

“Ergit 'Ytory Aohir Zil!”

Matius's amplified voice rang through the hall and Jayln felt his shield around her crumble as he put all his power into the spell.

Niv's flames went out like a candle and Yu'jana fell limply into the Arch Mage's arms. His hands darted over her, the blood dissolving into light as his fingers hovered over her forehead, Niv's symbol pulsing and flickering.

The demoness screamed, an inhuman sound, her flaming eyes locking on Matius who swayed unsteadily.

Jayln fell forward as something knocked into her. She turned to see Fenrin, his cheeks also streaked with bloody tears. He pushed her aside stepping heavily towards Matius.

"You..." he growled, "You left me. I'll kill you!"

Jayln moved to stop him, but her body flared with hot pain. She screamed, falling back to the ground. She could see two Brimstones at the foot of the table. Their eyes were red and blood coagulated on their cold cheeks. Dead.

Forced herself to stand despite the pain, Jayln looked around and spotted her bow. Her arrows were littered on the floor but none were in reach. She grabbed the bow and leapt off the table.

She hit Fenrin square in the back just as he kicked the feeble Matius to the ground. Slipping the bowstring over his neck, Jayln pushed her arms against the string, forcing it tight on Fenrin's throat. Just above the iron collar around his neck. He tried to grab her but she locked her legs around his waist.

His nails, long and broken, clawed into her and made her legs slippery with blood. Her head was pulled forward, pressed into the nook of his neck where she could hear his ragged breathing.

Fenrin turned his head, the friction cutting his neck and blood spilling. He sank his teeth into her throat and she yelped. Finally, his legs gave out and he fell to the floor. Her left arm twisted and cracked as his body fell on it.

Hissing with pain, Jayln dragged herself off Fenrin, cradling her broken arm. The man lay still and Jayln turned away, limping to Matius.

The Third Apprentice was also unconscious, sprawled where Fenrin's kick had sent him. Jayln glanced up to see Niv once more encaptured by blue light. Yu'jana was conscious, holding onto the Arch Mage’s hand and chanting.

]Their eyes flashed and for a moment Jayln thought they seemed to grow taller, streams of light unfolding like wings behind them. Niv gave that unearthly scream and blue light gathered, imploding on her. A shearing pain shot through Jayln's head and she blacked out.