I slumped to the ground, staring vacantly where the seven demons had been standing just a moment before. The rift between realms was wavering and dimming unsteadily. I could see the blurry figure of Envy smiling just on the other side. Our eyes met for just a moment before the rift completely destabilized and collapsed.
“Who… who were those seven Demons?” My dad asked. I could see his sword shaking slightly even as he gripped it tight.
“They were Envy’s seven generals,” I whispered quietly, “I thought we had more time.”
My mom placed a hand on my shoulder. Her eyes were also locked on where the Demons had stood before. “I had heard you speak of them before, but seeing them in person… I could hardly even breathe. Who was the one leading them, the woman?”
“Her name is Berith, a demon with the power of foresight. The last time I met her was over fifty years ago. Back then, she could only see a few minutes into the future, but the way she spoke… She has grown much stronger since then.”
“She said one of us would open the way for Envy,” Donte said softly.
I clenched my fists and stood up. My legs still shook and ached in protest as I walked towards where the rift had been a few moments before. Green flames ignited in my hand, covering the area to make sure no remnants of the rift remained before I turned back towards my family. “The future is never set in stone. Even someone with future sight can be wrong. I have seen it many times before. No matter what she says, nothing is guaranteed. All we have to do is continue striving forward. Envy is coming. His generals are already here. We need to prepare for war.”
My dad nodded. “I will arrange a message for General Arthur and the other allies we have drawn to our side. I will warn them that Demons have invaded our realm. With any luck, they will have time to prepare before a full-scale attack.”
“I will see if I can gather any supplies,” my mom said as she glanced around at the wave of destruction caused by Irene and her undead, “But first, our help is needed here. Renald, go talk to any soldiers that survived the attack. With their help, we can organize a search for any survivors trapped under the ruble.”
“Of course,” my dad said as he thumped his chest confidently.
“I will set up a place to treat the wounded,” Charly shouted enthusiastically.
“I will have Nox and Sylvie help too,” I said. The oversized cat growled in protest as I shoved it towards Charly, but relented after a stern glare from me. Nox shrunk back down from a massive lion to a small kitten. His stomach bulged from the flames he had swallowed earlier, turning his walk into more of a waddle.
My mom and dad smiled at each other lovingly for a second before my dad reached out and pulled my mom close. He planted a small kiss on her lips and whispered, “We really have some great kids.”
My mom chuckled and pulled herself free of my dad’s grasp. “Hurry and get to work you sentimental oaf. With any luck, I will have everything ready for us to leave by first light tomorrow.”
My dad gave my mom a small bow that caused her to roll her eyes before he turned and clasped Charly on the back. “You heard the lady. We have a lot of work to do if we want to get everything done today. Let’s go.”
Charly nodded as he looked over at me. I waved for them to go ahead first pushing the reluctant kitten over to their side.
I watched as my dad led Charly towards the undamaged side of the city followed by Nox, then turned back towards the site where the rift had once been. My mind was still in turmoil as I tried to think of a way to deal with Envy’s seven generals.
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“Are you not going to join them?” Donte asked, interrupting my thoughts while pointing at my dad.
I shook my head. “I am only standing right now because of the left-over energy from the rift. Energy that is slipping away by the second. I have maybe an hour left at most before I pass out. I would not be surprised if I slept for the next three days without waking up.”
“Are you going to be alright?” my mom asked with concern.
“Of course!” I replied with a big smile.
My mom paused, looking like she wanted to say more before turning to Donte. “Make sure she gets to bed ok. I will be back in a few hours.”
Donte gave a little mock salute before leading me towards the Preateritum ruin.
“Wren, when you get the time, you have to show me how you did all that. It was incredible!”
“You need to get stronger first before you can start learning how to use a domain,” I replied with a grin, “Right now, you are still too weak.”
“But I will be able to do it if I keep training, right?”
“Eventually.”
“I can’t wait! one day I am going to fly around like that too,” Donte shouted while punching the air with his fist.
“For now, just focus on your innate talent. A domain cannot be rushed. It is something that only comes with time.”
“Alright! Starting tomorrow I will double my training. I promise you, next time any enemy like Irene appears I will be ready.”
“I will be counting on you then when that time comes,” I said with a small smile as Donte and I entered the mansion.
Despite being dropped from the sky, the Preateritum ruin was completely unharmed. The things we had inside, much less so. I paused for a moment when I saw our family’s wagon. The entire backside was splintered and crushed. Both axils were completely broken. All the supplies we had stored inside were scattered across the main floor room of the mansion. I felt a small tinge of remorse seeing what had been our home for so long destroyed.
“Sorry,” Donte said as he caught my gaze, “I did not remember to put a protection around the wagon until it was too late. It is my fault it was destroyed.”
“It is ok,” I replied while punching Donte’s shoulder, “It was just a wagon. We can always get it repaired later if there is time. Though, it might be cheaper to buy a new one.”
Donte nodded. “I would like to get it repaired. It carried us through a lot after all.”
“Well then, since you broke it, you get to pay for the repairs.”
“Wait!” Donte shouted in surprise, “I don’t have the money for that!”
I stuck my tongue out at Donte before dashing through a door into one of the towers. I could hear Donte still shouting in protest as found the room I had claimed as my own.
Straightening the bedroll that had been thrown against the far wall, I sat down. The smile disappeared from my face and I stared blankly at the wall for a few minutes. Berith’s words echoed through my head as I replayed the scene in my mind over and over again.
With shaking hands, I reached into my shirt and pulled out a necklace. It was a simple necklace I made at the beginning of our journey north. It was nothing more than some twine adorned with only a single stone. A rift stone capable of creating a pathway between the realms.
The woman who gave it to me undoubtedly had no idea what it really was. To her, it was just a shiny rock she gave as a gift after we saved her village from Demonkin, but to me, it could be what saved this realm… or doomed it.
Berith’s words echoed through my mind once again. ‘One of them will open the door for our master to come through’.
If one of us was to be responsible for leading Envy into this realm, this stone would be how they would do it.
For a moment I considered destroying the stone. I trusted my family absolutely. I knew no one would ever be a traitor but Demons could be cunning. If someone was held hostage, I could not guarantee that things would not play out exactly as the Berith had said.
However, destroying the stone would completely cut off any hope of support from the Thirteen Divisions. Not only that, it was the only hope of getting my family out safely if everything else failed.
I sighed and tucked the necklace back into my shirt. I could not destroy it. Envy would come with or without its help. I could not rule out that Berith was lying just to influence my actions. Even if she was not, the future was not set. I will change it. I will keep my family safe.
I laid back against my pillow as the last of the energy from the rift leaked out of my body. I felt my muscles go limp when I could no longer maintain the flames healing the constant damage done by the pure chaotic energy.
Pain returned tenfold. I bit down my pillow and forced myself not to cry out. Every nerve in my body felt like it was being stabbed. My vision was blurry from the tears and it became harder and harder to breathe. Memories of when I was sick and dying flashed through my mind.
I could not suppress a fit of coughing as breathing became even more difficult. After several minutes of this, I coughed up a black sludge that looked like tar. I closed my eyes, not wanting to look at it as the pain overwhelmed me and my vision faded into darkness.