As the morning drew to a close in the former governor’s home, it became apparent that Kameko’s word had spread to great effect. People were willing to fight.

Blacksmiths from all over town came to donate arms and armor. Even tools and bags of caltrops. Common people with the tools to break up paving and brick roads brought them to the White Tiger.

Boys from barely thirteen to men over sixty insisted on joining the fight. Even women and a few hot-blooded girls. The elderly, mothers, and their young daughters boiled water and oil while boys too young to fight helped string bows, sharpen sticks and collect materials.

Tavern owners donated their stores of alcohol and food to feed the rebels. White Tiger soldiers helped civilians tie together street-wide mazes of bamboo to stifle the Nikan approach while university students built slingshots, catapults and trebuchets to launch bricks, stone and flaming projectiles.

The White Tiger soldiers had always been offered masks with cloth in them that protected soldiers from gas attacks by the Nikan. Now, people were just tying them to their faces with ribbons and sheets.

Kameko and the other captains gathered to discuss angles of attack the Nikan might lead with and prepare the civilians for battle.

Amid an argument between them about whether it was wise to dedicate troops to the walls, someone entered their conference.

It was Seang.

“Come to tell me how pointless this is again?” Kameko growled.

Seang shook her head, “I didn’t think this many would fight. I’m sorry for doubting you. On the condition that we plan to rescue our ally, we’ll help you.”

Despite the dire situation, Kameko couldn’t help but grin.

_________________________________________________________________

An awful scream rang out across the grassy hills of Northern Koinelia as Taya and her compatriots traversed it for the fifth day.

“What the hell was that?” Ruhak exclaimed.

“A call to adventure!” Taya joked.

“Nope, shut up.” Cecile said, “We’re not dealing with whatever the hell that thing is, alright? It’s probably some eleven foot tall flying demon that’s going to scoop me up because I look like the weakest and either I’ll die or I’ll be put through yet another humiliating rescue attempt.”

“Humiliating?” Peng asked. “I thought my contraption was rather brilliant.”

“Brilliant or not, I’m tired of being the only one here who can’t take on five people at once.” Cecile sighed.

“I...can’t do that.” Ruhak said.

Cecile huffed, “You stole one of my Bane Knights last time. Three of those are equivalent.”

“Stole? He was about to chop your head off.” Ruhak looked taken aback. “I saved your life!”

“Alright, alright, who gives a damn about who saved whose life?” Taya said, “We should investigate.”

“We don’t exactly have infinite time,” Bjorn protested.

Taya sighed. He was right, but...it wasn’t as though anyone else could stand a chance against the Armageddon event.

After cresting a hill, the five of them caught sight of a battle happening in the middle of a burning village.

Bulky, towering monsters with snouts and twisting horns, rampaged through the town, leaving the dismembered bodies of civilians in their wake. The meager numbers of the town garrison tried to fight back, but were doing a poor job.

What drew Taya’s attention was the massive, black-skinned drake twisting about in the sky and unleashing streams of violet flames at the command of a thin, black-cloaked rider wielding a dark, long sword.

A collection of armored men on horses―cataphracts, they were called in Koinelia―shot crossbow bolts at the drake. Each of them wore red capes emblazoned with a golden glyph of a rising sun.

“Duskbreakers!” a man with a fancy plume on his helmet roared as he charged past the other cataphracts, “Evacuate the people first! Then bring down this demon!”

“There are people already helping.” Ruhak said, “Let’s go.”

“Helping? Those men are just fodder.” Taya said, “Their bolts are just bouncing off that thing’s scales. Ruhak, ensnare him. I’ll do the rest.”

Taya hopped down from her horse and unsheathed her claymore from its side.

Ruhak sighed, “I...ugh.”

The Hikupti man lashed out with his left hand as five metal cables shot out over his fingertips and wrapped around the draconic creature’s leg.

Taya called the power of her Shedim and grabbed the wires. With a powerful shake, a wave of force ripped through the wires and brought the beast to the ground.

She crossed the distance between her allies and the village in a single bound and readied a fatal strike with her sword. She would’ve cleaved the creature in twain if its rider hadn’t had the inexplicable ability to parry her strike with a simple long sword. The cloaked rider unleashed a blast of shadowy force in the face of her disorientation.

The blast sent Taya tumbling into the dirt, making a cloud of filth behind her as she rolled to a stop. She pulled herself out of the crater she’d just made and found herself next to the cataphracts.

“Son of a bitch.” She cringed, rolling her shoulder. Her Shedim hadn’t been able to fully protect her. Not enough focus.

The commander lifted his helmet’s faceplate, a distraught look stricken across his pale face that looked as though its bushy blonde facial hair was once well-groomed, “If you don’t wish to die, I suggest you hurry away from here. My men and I can handle that beast.”

Taya furrowed her brow. “I-I’m sorry, did you see me take a hit from that thing like it was nothing?”

“My men and I have a job to do and you’re interfering. Please leave the handling of this to professionals.”

“Your men are as familiar with this as they are with the Nikan east coast’s geography.” Taya scoffed.

“Sardaeu! Take your team around and flank it.” the man ordered.

“Are you ignoring me?” Taya asked. “Look, you guys help take care of the demons on the ground. The town guard won’t last much longer. My allies and will be more than a match for that drake.”

The commander let out a sigh, “I...fine. Keep it busy. But if you get yourself killed, it won’t be my fault.”

Taya launched herself into the sky with a massive leap. The drake had once again gotten itself into the air and belched, gagging up a violet fireball specially made for her.

Taya swung her blade through the air with such incredible force that the wind split the fireball in half for her. She reoriented her arms to ready an overhead strike and let out a bloodcurdling war cry as her blade ripped through the drake’s body, making a shallow cut in its flesh. Its scales were tougher than she’d anticipated.

The drake roared as the rider slammed its long sword into Taya’s shoulder with incredible strength. The blade didn’t pierce her flesh, but the blunt impact sent pain through her bones.

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Taya couldn’t recall the second before she crashed through the stonewall of a house, her spine only intact thanks to her Shedim.

“Ow…” she groaned, clamoring to her feet and leaning on her claymore. Yes, her Shedim prevented any serious damage, but she still felt like someone had slapped her across her entire back while it was sunburnt.

“Gods and demons, you’re tough.” Bjorn and the others appeared in the hole in the wall she’d made, now on foot. He cast aside a bloodied demon corpse he was holding by the neck to approach her.

Bjorn turned to the hole in the wall as the drake started throwing around those Duskbreakers like ants with whips of its tail, readying his axe.

“No can do, my friend. The drake is mine.”

“Oh, that’s just dumb.”

Taya sighed, “Alright, you can help marginally.”

“Good. Now I can steal this kill.” Bjorn launched his axe forward, burying it in the beast’s flesh where she had cut it before dragging himself towards it in an arc of lightning.

Taya leapt her way there and smacked the drake upside the head with the flat of her blade.

In all honesty, her claymore wasn’t great for cutting. It was more or less a fancy-looking club. But people were afraid of swords more than they were clubs, for some reason. Both had even killing potential.

Taya saw Bjorn get whapped in the chest by the drake’s tail before he could get to his axe. She positioned herself behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist as they crashed into the ground.

“Ow.” Bjorn groaned.

“You’re one to talk. Your back alright?”

“Yeah.”

They both staggered to their feet.

“I think my axe might be stuck in there for good.” Bjorn winced. He drew a spear instead.

“What are you doing?” the Duskbreaker Commander rode towards them from a short distance away, “You said you were-”

Taya scoffed. “At least we’re drawing its attention. You guys aren’t doing much more than a mosquito could accomplish.”

“Really? You’re bumbling around like idiots. My order’s honor will not be tarnished by the likes of some common mercenaries with the devil’s magics.”

“That’s why you’re here?” Taya asked, “Then stop sitting on your horse and go kill it yourself, numb-nuts.”

“I will not be disr-”

Taya launched back into the fray before the commander could finish his sentence.

She pierced the drake’s side, eliciting an unearthly scream from the creature. She tore her sword out of its flesh and pushed herself away before the rider could grab her.

Taya landed as softly as she could as Bjorn charged up electricity between his hands. He cast the lightning out in a flash, accompanied by a boom of thunder. The drake was struck out of the sky and dropped to the ground.

This got the attention of the mangled and deform demons running amok in the village. Taya carved one in half as it tried to impale Bjorn on a wicked-looking spear.

“What do we do about the rider?” Ruhak asked as he swung around a small house to their position.

“What even is that thing?” Bjorn muttered.

“It’s a Specter. A servant of Xiollah.” Taya growled, “The Old God of Ruthlessness. A twisted form of Ambition.”

Peng’s face went white as she spoke.

Taya continued, “The Nikan worship its master. It grows stronger with the submission of men around it. The townsfolk are empowering it with their fear. And don’t let it hit you with those shadows it hit me with. I felt it try to inflict me with thoughts of despair.”

The Specter stumbled from the wreckage of its mount. It seemed dazed for the time being.

“How are we meant to fight it?” Bjorn asked.

“Don’t help the villagers get away. Lessen their fear by killing the demons. I’ll take care of this thing.” Taya said, readying her claymore.

The Specter’s empty shadow of a face bared into Taya with its gaze.

A creature that fed on fear could only ever be as powerful as someone thought it was. An apt challenger for a Shedim Master like herself. She, too, was only as powerful as she thought of herself.

Her instincts urged to get the better of her. She’d spent a long time fighting her enemy, but she’d never faced it in physical combat before. Would it be any different to facing it within her own mind?

Power rippled through her, carrying a mixture of exhilaration and anticipation with it that threatened to overwhelm her. And so she repeated the first Shedemic Mantra in her head.

Idealism. Remember why you fight. Conviction. Fight to the last. Evolution. Become better than you were the second before. Remembrance. Learn from those who came before you. Ambition. Reach for the impossible. Humility. Don’t be broken by pride. Cooperation. Trust in your comrades. Passion. Let yourself love.

“I see you…” the Specter rasped when she was close enough, “I see you, child of the Survivor. You will fail, Daughter of the Iron Queen. This day or some other. But ultimately, you will meet your doom before you succeed.”

Taya frowned. She’d never heard either of those names before. No matter. All she cared about now was that this specter died.

The specter rushed forward with a swing of its sword. Taya parried the blow and attempted to impale her enemy, but it evaded.

“You are strong. My mistress likes the strong. Join us and you will have all you desire and more.” the specter whispered its empty praises toward her.

Taya carved into the creature’s shoulder, but the wound quickly healed itself, the specter still drunk on the people’s fear.

“I assure you, my strength is something your mistress would dislike very much. I hear she doesn’t care for strong hearts.” Taya growled, “Xiollah is a petty and selfish goddess. Unworthy of any followers, even gutter spawn like you.”

The specter screeched in rage and rushed at Taya. She disarmed the creature in one motion and smashed her pommel against its shadowy face three times before it stumbled back.

One thing that was always consistent with the forces of Despair was how prideful they were. And thus, easily manipulated.

A part of her hoped that maybe a specter could be saved. Maybe it could have a change of heart. But she reminded herself that these things came from Despair. It was a slave to its destructive nature and not malleable like humans.

“My mistress has given us all glory we never would’ve known in the pitiful boots of a man!” the specter shrieked.

Taya responded by unleashing a flurry of attacks with her claymore. The specter was still too strong. All this time distracting it with conversation and yet they still had-

No! Trust in them! Remember Cooperation! Keep your balance!

The specter struck back while she was forcing herself into the right mindset. Taya was thrown backwards several feet. When she stood, her arm burned as blood leaked from a shallow gash in it.

She’d had her Shedim...were the people more afraid than before?

Even the Phantom Queen of Crows had its limits. Taya would have to do something more drastic to keep the specter at bay.

“Behold, Daughter of the Iron Queen. The strong are not afraid to feast on the blight of others.” the specter hissed.

“The strong don’t need to rely on the blight of others.” Taya muttered. Her Plague Scars flared with light as she ran the chill of her power over her arms and into her weapon. “She who calls the damned and reaps the spirits of warriors. Bond with my steel and become the hand that carves my path.”

Her Shedim’s power flowed through her weapon, changing its shape. The sword’s blade became wider and should’ve been ridiculously heavy, if not for the power running through it. Intricate violet etchings ran up the blade while the hilt became encrusted in a black stony chitin that it shared with her hands and wrists. Cracks in the chitin revealed barely contained purple light up to where the smooth blackness faded into her flesh.

With that, the Blademerging was complete. It was the next step in the Shedemic bond after Soulmerging, the act of manifesting your Shedim. And it was no power to be trifled with. It was the ability that Banebending was a poor mockery of.

It would conserve her stamina without weakening her abilities. But now she was on a clock. Even though she could last longer, she still had finite power. Five minutes before she would collapse. She probably could’ve gone longer if she started out with a Blademerge, but there was no going back.

So she played aggressively.

Taya kept the specter on the back foot, her senses heightened. She could see a strike before it set it in motion. The handling of her weapon was more dexterous than anything she’d accomplished before.

It was all a blur, but she was in control the entire time. Still, she couldn’t kill it unless the townsfolk felt secure.

“What you seek is a worthless endeavor!” The specter rasped as it suffered Taya’s assault, “It is in the nature of man to fear!”

“Good thing our nature isn’t the end-all then.”

“Your attempts to change! Your attempts to be brave! Fruitless! No one can be without fear!”

“Look!”

Taya heard Bjorn’s voice from the village.

“That woman took down the drake. She holds her own against the specter! That creature feeds off your fear! Believe in her, and we can kill it! Overcome your fear and make sure this monster knows in its dying moments that no man will let it leech off him!”

Taya grinned.

“You hear that, thrall?” Taya asked, “You’re right. No man is without fear. But we only keep you around so we can beat the shit out of you.”

Taya tripped the specter and smashed her gargantuan sword into its head as it hit the ground to make a show of it.

The specter staggered to its feet, slower than before. Bjorn’s speech was working. Taya didn’t let the creature get its bearings before crushing it under her sword again. The wound still healed, but only did so halfway before she struck again.

She spun her sword into an underhanded grip and shoved the weapon through the creature’s neck, sending a shock wave through the surrounding earth.

Taya grinned as the specter remained motionless. Its wound didn’t heal. Instead, its body dissolved into shadow.

She let go of her Blademerging before she could get anymore tired and fell to her knees, propped up by her once more normal claymore.

Bjorn and Cecile were the first over to help her up. Cecile went immediately to work patching up the gash in her arm while Bjorn hoisted her on his shoulder by her good arm.

“What the hell was that?” Bjorn asked her.

“I’ll show you all when you’re older.” Taya chuckled, “Good speech, by the way. You’re a...ugh. Later. I’m tired.”

Taya glanced up as the very beaten up Duskbreakers stopped before them.

The commander cleared his throat. “I must commend you for your efforts on the battlefield today, Sklaveni. But regardless of that, I would like to know who the hell asked for help from you and your...band of pagans! I am Gustave Delacroix, first born of-”

“Sir?”

“What!” Gustave snapped more than asked the interrupting soldier.

The cataphract that had spoken up looked far less dignified than Gustave liked to pretend he was. His armor was cracked. He was cradling his arm and his voice seemed ragged. “The Ascommani’s arm. Look.”

Gustave glanced down at Bjorn’s arm. His eyes bugged out as he yanked on his horse’s reins, causing it to saunter away a few steps.

“Good God, man. You have Plague?” Gustave muttered, “Is that the case with all of you?”

“It’s not Plague.” Taya sighed. “It’s what lets me leap across the field and practically fly to hit giant demons in the sky. All of us have no symptoms, so you can rest assured we aren’t contagious.”

“The doctors say it doesn’t matter.” Gustave said.

“Normally they’d be right.” Cecile spoke up, “I’m a doctor myself. But this isn’t a disease. It’s…”

“A force. That you have yet to experience or even understand,” Taya finished, “Which I would say is plenty of reason to stop yelling at us for helping you.”

Gustave sighed, “I...Alright. I apologize. My men and I must take the townsfolk here and move them to Dimale for their safety. Now then...good day, strange flying woman.”

“You’re going to Dimale?” Taya perked up.

“...Yes?”

“So are we!” Taya exclaimed. “You, sir, have just gained six powerful travel companions. It’s your lucky day!”

Gustave took in a long breath before letting out a sigh of dismay.