The monitoring room was silent, all eyes glued to the screens, everyone's mind struggling to formulate the proper response.

  There really wasn't one.

  Niala was the first one to break out of the spell. She turned her head towards her boyfriend. “David, your brother and his troops...”

  He locked gaze with her, his features turning to stone, nodding to the part she had left unsaid.

  “Jordo.” He said, turning toward the golem. “Is there a maze access door at all of the light towers?”

  Jordo's eye flashed a few times before he nodded. “Yes, Sir, and also near installations and landmarks.”

  David pointed at the native leader. “Tell him to give me the key.”

  Jordo turned and spoke in the ancient tongue, the haggard man hesitating somewhat before complying and removing the pendant from his neck, offering it to David.

  The courier turned to his two other companions. “Leandro, Niala, we're going outside, and we'll try to lead whoever we can inside the maze.”

  They looked at each other before nodding at David, who turned back toward Jordo. “Is there any way you can talk to us from here? Let us know where the troops are?”

  The golem tilted his head, his eye flashing once more, before turning his head to look at a spot near the entrance. A concealed panel opened, and a small shelf slid out, a dozen small C-shaped gadgets arrayed on it, two of them with a small green light, the others all inert.

  “Communication devices, Sir. They go around your ear. Normally, they would allow long-range communication, but after all this time, I am unsure how far their reach will be, or if they will even work. The closer you are to one of the towers, the better the signal should be.”

  David approached, observing one of the green-lit objects for a bit before finagling it into place, clipping it over his ear, and giving the second one to Niala.

  “I know what you're going to say.” He said, looking at Niala. “But, are you sure you want to come?”

  The tip of her tail swishing, she smiled and grabbed the offered communicator, managing to clip it around one of her cat ears, and then stared at him.

  A feeling of determination and love flowed through their link. He smiled back in turn, sending back the same feelings, before speaking. “Let's go. Jordo, direct us.”

  He then walked up to Niala, letting her hop onto his back, and then powered up his imbuements, Leandro following suit, the natives jumping back at the sudden display and scrambling out of their way.

  Two blue blurs raced out of the room, through the maze, and toward the entrance that led to the closest Azure Guards.

  “Sammie! What are you looking at? Come eat!” Sybil called out from the edge of their camp, the fire's light casting her armoured outline on the ground between her and him.

  He glanced at her before turning his attention back toward the forest, squinting, his hand gripping the pommel of his sword.

  She grumbled and walked up to him. “I said! What are you looking at?”

  “Ssshh!” He hissed at her. “Listen...”

  She gave him a side eye, but did as asked, taking off her helmet to let her bunnykin ears unfurl fully, angling them toward the forest.

  She heard... leaves rustling, scampering critters, a distant stream burbling, and something sniffing at the air.

  “What am I supposed to hear?” She asked.

  “The birds. They all shut up about a minute ago.”

  Sybil turned back toward the darkening forest, realizing Sammie was right. “Maybe something comes out at night to hunt them?”

  “...maybe... but something feels wrong.”

  They spent a few more moments peering into the wilderness in relative silence, the chatter of the other guards near the campfire rolling off the land.

  He turned his head toward her. “Terence was on patrol duty. He should have checked in by now.”

  She huffed. “Terence can't keep time for shite. He's probably just late, as us-”

  *CRRAAACK* What sounded like a splitting tree tore through the air.

  They swung their head toward the source of the noise and froze.

  A large, leathery, clawed hand had pushed aside a tree at an angle, with the creature's face peeking around its trunk.

  From its lipless mouth dripped an orange-red substance, each drop sizzling as it hit the ground. Its head, an oversized humanoid skull, covered in taut skin, was aimed at them. Its two sickly-yellow eyes had locked their pin-prick irises upon them.

  In its other hand, the headless body of Terence lay limp, his torso burnt in various places, his armour a mess of corroded metal.

  The thing's mouth opened, its tongue flexing into a tube-like appendage, contracting and spewing a ball of goop toward Sybil.

  Sammie had just enough time to push her out of the way, but the goop caught one of his hands.

  The liquid ate at his flesh instantly, and he screamed.

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  Shouts of alarms rang out from within the camp as soldiers scrambled to arm.

  Sybil rolled back to her feet, powering up her imbuements while slapping her helmet back on. She turned to Sammie to both thank him and tell him to get back, but he only stared at her, mouth open, before looking down at his own torso.

  Her eyes followed his, and widened when she noticed a slab of flesh sloughing off from a sizzling wound.

  She snapped her eyes back up to his face, pushing herself forward to drag him down and away from the threat.

  Before her hand could reach him, another glop of caustic mucus splashed on the side of his face, sending him sprawling to the ground.

  She wasn't sure who was screaming after that.

  Throughout the lands, the small units of Azure Guards made a good show of themselves, as they responded to the attacks promptly and with controlled aggression.

  The veterans mixed with the newer soldiers directed their wards, as battle lines were formed and imbuements triggered at the right times. The first Fel to attack was met with a strong defence and a coordinated attack, each enemy badly outnumbered ten to one.

  A few were even slain, or at least incapacitated, with only a few wounded on the side of the guards.

  Then the second Fel would show up, and the forces would split. A harder fight, but still manageable, even if wounds began piling up.

  The third Fel is where even the veterans began doubting their chances.

  The fourth Fel to show up was when the defensive lines crumbled.

  The fifth, and subsequent Fels, is when the feast was served.

  Isaac was reviewing the maps his scout master had compiled, conferring with his lieutenants on the next day's patrol schedule, when the first flare lit up the night sky.

  He looked up at the light. Red, an urgent request for help. He swept an arm toward his troops before speaking. “Merton, form up a squad! Ten men, bring medical supplies, and go find out what's happening. We'll get a second squad ready, send another flare if y-”

  His orders were cut short as another red flare went up from the direction of another squad.

  He began giving a second set of instructions just as a third flare lit up the sky.

  And then a fourth.

  And then a scream from the outskirts of his own camp.

  “Fel! A Fel is attacking!” Someone yelled from that direction.

  He shared one look with his officers and bodyguards, before steeling himself and dropping his visor. Just as he put a hand over his sword, another shout rang out.

  “Attack from the left! It's a Fel!”

  “There's another one here! Help!”

  “Trimen is wounded! I need support!”

  And soon, screams of pain intermixed with the calls for help.

  But Isaac was a Wardenfel. And Wardenfels... they... they fought. On the front line.

  The knuckles of his hand gripping his sword turned white.

  Wardenfels fought, he reminded himself.

  He took a step toward the nearest screams, the mechanical whir of his powered armour somehow drowning all other noises.

  Wardenfels fight. We guard against the dark. We stand strong in the face of sacrifice.

  We.... fight.

  Sybil threw her last firebomb at the nearest Fel, interrupting it from snapping its jaw around a soldier's arm, giving the man just enough time to dodge and retaliate, his arms glowing blue as he triggered a Strong Arm attack, slamming his face into the thing's head, shoving it to the side.

  The Fel froze, turning its head slowly back toward the defiant humanoid, blankly locking its unblinking eyes upon him.

  The man swept his mace around, empowering his Strong Arm imbuement once more.

  The fel's hand shifted, grabbing the mace along its path, stopping its flight.

  The monster advanced upon the soldier, who was frantically pulling at his mace, bringing its maw over the man's head and descending upon it.

  The soldier turned his head up just to notice his impending death, and froze, the jaws closing on him – before the Fel flew to the side.

  Sybil, legs glowing blue, as she recovered from a spinning kick, pushed the man forward. “Leave your weapon! We need to get out of here!”

  The soldier nodded, scanning the battlefield around him, seeing half of their number dead or dying, the rest in a fighting retreat.

  Sybil had rushed back a few paces, picking up Sammie in a fireman carry and triggering an Energy Burst as she dashed toward... wherever they were retreating to.

  Her friend was weakly moaning, half his face burnt away.

  She saw the man she'd just saved run ahead of her, gaining distance, slowed as she was with her burden.

  It might get her killed, but she wasn't dropping him.

  She pushed some more of her depleting mana into her legs, triggering a Quick Step, just enough to dash past the Fel she had kicked away and who had regained its footing.

  She never saw the bladed tentacles whip from the other side, one of them slicing deep into one of her legs, sending her screaming and sprawling to the ground.

  She rolled a few times, coming face up, just to stare into a Fel, its stupid giant face stating at her as if asking What are you doing there? Oh, well, I guess I'll eat you then...

  Its jaws descended upon her. One of her hands found Sammie's and grabbed on as she closed her eyes.

  A swishing sound. Hot sand spilling on her face.

  She shook the sand off her face, cracking one eye to see what had happened, before both of her eyelids flung wide open as she stared at the dark grey Fel made out of ash that the wind was eating away.

  Another swish, an indigo flash, and a puff of ash, to her side. She pushed herself up with her arms and looked around.

  There was a man, with an impossibly long indigo sword, dashing left and right, his entire body glowing blue from powered imbuements that he never turned off.

  Each swing of his stupidly long sword cleaved another Fel, turning them to ashen statues.

  “Here, drink this!” A clear, hurried voice sounded from her other side. She turned her head in surprise and found a catkin woman, offering her a potion.

  Sybil eyed the potion before looking at the wound on her leg. Painful, but survivable. She looked back at the catkin. “Please, give it to my friend, Sammie, he's much more hurt than me, he's-”

  The small woman shook her head. “I already gave him one. This one's for you.” She said, before shoving the potion into her hand, and moving on to inspect another soldier.

  Sybil looked at the potion before turning her head toward Sammie, only to freeze as she watched him slowly pick himself up from the ground, groaning as he did.

  Groaning through a fully healed, unburnt mouth.

  She snapped her head back to the Catkin, watching as she shoved a potion into the mouth of a soldier whose stomach had been ripped out by a Fel.

  She watched the small catkin look around, find the missing part of flesh, pick it up and shove it back into the gored woman, and pour another potion over it.

  She watched, as the flesh began sizzling and healing.

  She watched, as the woman arced her back and let out a pained hiss.

  She watched, as the woman came back to life.

  She watched, as the catkin repeated the minor miracle on two other guards.

  Around her, guards got up, incomprehension plastered on their faces, as they surveyed what was to be their graveyard, but was now a garden of ashen Fel statues.