As Eugene waited outside the conference room, he occasionally heard someone cry or beg to be let go from the other side. He did his best to ignore what was going on behind the doors as he orchestrated the rest of their forces in California.

A few runners came and went as he handed out updated orders. He also received more up-to-date intel on the evolving situation outside. Which pretty much amounted to the whole building being surrounded by undead. The runners could get past them easily enough with the spell that hid them as it was already active and thus immune to the mana draw effect, but soon leaving would be impossible. There was also another issue.

The wraiths were being pressed by more undead than they could deal with, so he had retasked the only forces he had available – his and the Boss’s personal guards – to shore up the anchors.

That would only delay the Council forces though. It should be enough. He had already sent someone to notify this Ice King that he was free to come over. Eugene hadn’t personally met the old Redstone Springs coroner, but he knew of him. Hell, he had probably sent more than his fair share of people his way during his time as an enforcer under Thomas Sin. And while he trusted the Boss’s decision, he was still wary of anyone with that much power.

The wait dragged on, and at one point, Eugene could even hear fighting from outside. Then like someone had taken a light switch and flipped it off, it all stopped. He glanced back toward the stairwell before stepping away from the door for a moment and making his way over to a nearby window.

The window was now coated in a thick rime of frost, making it impossible to see out of. He grunted and returned to his position guarding the boardroom. When he returned to his post, he noticed the sounds inside had quieted as well.

A few seconds later the door opened and the Boss stepped out. He couldn’t help but glance inside the room, where he saw most of the Council huddled in a corner silently crying. There was one poor bastard on the far side that was once a human. Eugene recognized his face as the idiot who proclaimed Donovan wasn’t there.

After scanning the room for threats, he focused back on Norman. “Anything worthwhile?”

Going by the annoyed grimace on the man’s face, he thought not. “No, these people are more useless than I could believe. Donovan didn’t trust them with even a modicum of information about what he was up to or where he was going. The only information I was able to glean is that he was using Marte, that’s the portal mage, for some project. Oh and that some of these people were spying on us and paid a few citizens in Ashvale to give them info.” He pulled out a sheet of paper and held it out.

Eugene took the offered sheet and unfolded it. There was a list of forty-odd people on it. “Traitors?”

Norman nodded. “Have some of our people back home round them up for questioning. If they are guilty, they will be punished accordingly.”

Eugene nodded and stuffed the note into his pocket. “The Ice King just arrived.”

“Good. I’m sick of being here, he can finish cleaning up this mess. What about Princess and the others?”

***

It was a great day for Princess, although most of her days were great when she was allowed to guard and hunt. But today was extra special. He had given her and her pack free rein to hunt. And hunt they did.

It hadn’t taken long to find their first target. The tentacled creature was pretending to be a placid animal tied to a wagon. She and her brothers weren’t fooled by its appearance as they leaped from the dark alleyway. As one, they tackled the thing to the ground before it realized they were there. The three of them ignored the screaming and fleeing humans as they tore great chunks out of the rubbery creature before it could morph into something else. It struggled for a bit but wasn’t able to compensate for the surprise attack or its unsuitable form in time.

One of the humans did bark out some projectiles at them, but the things ineffectually splattered against their thick armored hides. She turned her muzzle toward the threat and growled, her face full of the creature's blood. The human blanched and took off.

She let her tongue loll out happily before licking the blood off her face. Then she let out an ear-piercing howl that split the air. Moments later, a series of howls came back from miles away. Her pack was spreading out and from the sounds of it, the hunt was going well. She chuffed happily and barked at her brothers.

The two stopped eating the rubbery corpse to look up at her. She barked once more and the two deflated slightly and walked away from their prize. She could only shake her head, there would be more to come. The creatures’ stink was heavy in the air. She breathed deeply, looking for the next trail. It took a moment but eventually, she locked in on one. She growled softly and the three rushed off toward their next target.

***

The Ice King stepped out of the teleporter along with his honor guard. Nikolas wasn’t stupid. No matter what assurances his old employee had given him, this was an active warzone. And while he liked to imagine the best in people, the last ten years had shown him some people would turn in a moment if given the power and opportunity.

His guards spread out and secured the empty building. Well, mostly empty. There was one man in black armor standing off to the side. He seemed content to wait though. Once his guard captain came back and declared the building safe, the Ice King approached the man.

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“Ice King,” the man bowed politely. “I’ve been sent to guide you.”

Nikolas’s flinty blue eyes examined the man for any signs of deceit, but he found none. His bearing spoke of a long seasoned soldier. It reminded him of his own time as a soldier. That was not a life for him though, so when his time was up, he left. And while he wasn’t in perfect shape, he had lost a lot of the belly fat he once had that made him such a good Santa for the less fortunate kids.

“Where did you serve, soldier?”

“1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, Sir.”

“A Marine? And how did a Marine come to work for Lord Norman?”

“I died a few years back fighting the Council. Then one day I’m back up and kicking. I didn’t have any family, so I figured the least I could do was pay back the man who gave me a second chance.”

So it was personal for this man. He was surprised to see the man so calm and collected while he was in the territory of the people who killed him. “I see. Thank you for telling me. Please lead the way,” He gestured.

The soldier nodded and put his helmet back on his head. “The way isn’t exactly safe, so keep your eyes peeled for trouble. The Council mostly uses low-level mages and undead as shock troops, but they aren’t above using firearms if necessary.”

Nikolas nodded and used his power to form dense ice armor around his body. And while his troops didn’t have fancy magical armor like Norman’s did, they still came in full riot gear.

It would protect them from most things, and he would protect them from anything magical that came their way.

The group made their way out of the building and to a waiting bus, or it had been a bus at one time. Now it was more like a large flat sheet with one driver’s seat. Black blood still dripped down from the bed of the thing.

“Sorry about the ride, it was all we could manage in such a short time.”

“It’s fine,” Nikolas replied, deciding not to ask about the blood. He didn’t get on it right away. First, he forced his power to freeze the blood that coated the deck of the bus, then, it slowly crawled up the sides, giving them a bit of protection.

Norman’s soldier nodded at this and everyone climbed aboard. Each of his guards took up one of the shooting slits and rested their guns in the openings.

The cold was probably a bit uncomfortable for his people, but nobody openly complained. It was another reason he had chosen to outfit them in riot gear. It was much thicker than just wearing a plate carrier, the added padding would reduce the impact of the cold.

The bus rolled down the street, sounding like an old steam engine as it sputtered and popped. Whatever form of locomotion the Council used, it was rather annoying, even if it did work. Riding the bus did bring back memories of his early twenties and having to use public transit to get around. Many things about the apocalypse still irked him, but he certainly didn’t miss the days of having to sit through traffic.

While his people kept their eyes out for any trouble, Nikolas took in the town. He wanted to see if what Norman said was true or not with his own eyes. It didn’t take long to verify the veracity of the man’s claims.

The bus passed a few large groups of individuals. There was a distinct separation of castes, in not only cleanliness but clothing and attitude as well. The workers were always herded in large groups by one or more people wearing much nicer clothing and holding themselves apart with an air of authority. A few of those glanced at their bus as it passed, but none of the workers so much as glanced up as they trudged along.

When the bus rounded a corner, Nikolas got to see his first Controller. If the previous people seemed to exude some authority, this Controller practically radiated it. The woman had fifty undead at her command and was waving down the bus.

“Shit,” he heard their guide mutter.

Nikolas made his way to the front of the bus and put his hand on the soldier's shoulder. “Don’t stop.”

“This thing will never be able to make it through that group of undead.”

“It’s fine, I’ll deal with them.”

“Alright,” he said, shaking his head before stepping on the gas.

The woman with the undead soon realized something was wrong and she began to form a spell. Nikolas exhaled slightly and the world around them froze. Then he breathed back in, and the cold retreated once more. A confused and shivering Controller was left in a daze as the bus plowed through the flash-frozen and freeze-dried undead in their path. All that remained was dust, and the bus easily passed through them without slowing.

Not seeing any other obstructions, Nikolas sat back down. He closed his eyes and held his shaking hands. He did not enjoy using his power on others, even if they were undead. With Norman’s ability, those people could have been revived, but now they were gone forever.

And that woman got lucky, he had barely been able to pull his power back from killing her as well. Perhaps she would learn to be a better person from the encounter though.

Eventually, the bus stopped. “We’re as close as we can get with the bus. When I left, the Council tower was being surrounded by undead. …Um, do you think you could do that thing you did before?”

“Perhaps,” Nikolas responded noncommittally. “Won’t Norman get angry if I kill that many undead?”

“I doubt it,” the black-armored soldier responded. “We haven’t been given any orders to preserve the mindless undead. And I think most are just monsters anyway.”

“Even the human ones?”

“Better safe than sorry,” the man responded as he grabbed his spear and strapped on his sword.

The soldier looked around for any threats before hurrying off the bus.

It would certainly simplify things if he just treated them all as threats. “Very well, what about others like you? I can’t guarantee they won’t get caught in my magic.”

The man chuckled as he held the stairs while everyone else cleared the bus. “I wouldn’t worry about that, our armor will protect us.” That was interesting. Although he doubted Lord Norman would appreciate those facts being spread around so liberally.

After walking a short distance, Nikolas could see the hoards of undead that were making their way toward a building in the distance. He judged the distance to the building and sighed in annoyance. He could do it, but it would put a strain on him. “Get close, I’m going to have to blast my power out to clear away these undead, and I won’t be able to make a very big exclusion zone around me.

Everyone gathered to within a few feet of him and he took a deep inhale of breath before letting it out. The ground around them erupted into huge spikes of ice only a dozen feet away that raced off faster than a bullet.

The icy protrusions soon stopped, but nothing outside was saved from the sub-zero chill. The undead froze mid-motion, the mages controlling them, likewise freezing. They hadn’t even had time to register the shock of his attack as the icy chill raced into the distance and covered the entire building they were heading toward.

“Alright, we should be good,” Nikolas said as he stepped out from the corner of the building. “Remember to stick close.”

As the Ice King moved, so did his zone of control. The ground around them returned to normal and froze right again behind them.

It wasn’t long before they reached the first lines of undead. The creatures unthawed but collapsed to the ground dead as the party continued their trek through the frozen streets. Nikolas could have retracted his aura, but this way it ensured nobody else could approach the tower in the distance. Once he had control of the situation, then he would drop the magic.