Hundreds of thousands of figures moved across the edge of a plateau surrounded by mountains. Countless flag proudly displayed their country's colors. From the elevated view of Dragon’s Nest, I could see the entirety of the coalition troops gathered to face the Demons.
In the distance, a wall of blood-red mist continuously expanded. It devoured everything it touched and mutated them into monstrous abominations. Hulking creatures prowled the perimeters of the mist. Countless shadows gathered opposite the coalition army, concealed by the blood-red haze. Their numbers grew with each passing minute as howls and inhuman screams echoed across the hills.
“There are more than I expected,” I said as I looked at the all too familiar sight of a Demon invasion.
Svend stood next to me in gleaming armor. His massive halberd was planted in the rock under our feet as he observed our future battlefield. “More and more unstable rifts are opening up across the realm. None of them are strong enough to allow Envy to pass through yet but I suspect he is flooding all of them with as many Demonkin as he can.”
“To get this many Demonkin through this quickly, the losses consumed by the unstable void must be staggering,” I muttered.
Svend nodded thoughtfully. “Let’s hope he was not willing to risk any mature Demonkin. Our men have enough trouble just taking down a newborn. If any of his true army makes it through, we will be in trouble.”
I watched the soldiers building temporary battlements on the plateau below. No proper alliance had been agreed upon yet so most of it was a disorganized mess but at a glance, I could see which armies were taking the threat most seriously. The remains of the Novus military had been present the longest and already built a series of terraced fortifications into the side of the cliff face. The Kala army had been the last to arrive but they had already claimed the slope at the mouth of the plateau intending to defend the most dangerous location. The largest army to arrive flew the flag of the Free Cities, but it looked as if there was some internal strife among their leadership as only a small portion of the army seemed to be ready for war. The only other army I could see that had already begun war preparation was, to my surprise, one that flew a flag of a stallion against a red backdrop. After I caused the downfall of Bastya Fortress, General Izmos had agreed to begin preparing for the Demon invasion but I had honestly not expected much from him. It was a pleasant revelation to see that he had actually come through in the end.
Even though I had just arrived at the scene, it was clear there was a complete lack of harmony in the coalition. I felt a headache begin to form as I watched each army work separately. Even the few that were motivated did not combine their efforts. I could already imagine the arguments at play among the leadership. This coalition may have gathered to face a common threat but no one had succeeded in uniting them as one force.
I sighed as I thought about the mountain of work they lay before us. “Svend, who do you think would be the best face to lead this mess?”
Svend ran his head across the stubble on his face as he struggled with the question. “It cannot be you. While the Kala would be more than happy to follow your command, the other nations will be much less happy about the arrangement. It might lead to outright disbandment of what we have achieved. I would like to nominate myself but I do not have much fame or reputation. I might have ruled Kala for the past fifty years but I never dealt with other nations very much. Our best choice would be a general respected by both allies and enemies alike. If he is still alive, I think General Arthur of the Novus would be our best pick due to your family’s close relationship with him. He will serve us better than some random puppet.”
“Will the kings of other nations listen to someone without a domain?” I asked curiously.
“We need a tactician. If all we wanted was personal strength, you might as well ask Sebastion to lead.”
I grimaced at the thought and quickly shook my head. “General Arthur works. He is associated with the Church of the Realms though. If you want to maintain your ploy of being dead, you might want to avoid spending too much time around a pawn of the Forth Division.”
“The moment I donned this armor, I was prepared for the Divisions to learn of my survival. Besides, you have already agreed to give me sanctuary. If the Seventh Division comes after me when this is all over, it is your problem, not mine.”
I scowled at Svend. “Fine, but I expect you to fight seriously. I do not want a single Demon left alive in this realm by the time Envy arrives.”
“You can count on that. They dared to touch my Cyra. I will slaughter them all myself.”
“Good, then let’s make our entrance grand. I think enough of the soldiers have noticed us now.” I said with a grin. I turned back towards the building where Vissna was staring out at the red mist with a murderous gaze. “Vissna, can you change back into your real body for a few minutes?”
Vissna’s gaze shifted towards me and for a moment it felt as if she might attack me as well. “I am not some mascot for your amusement.”
“Of course not, but if the soldiers know a dragon as powerful as you is fighting by their side, it will help inspire them. We need any advantage we can get. Unless, of course, you think you can kill all the Demonkin by yourself.”
Vissna's gaze hardened as she turned back towards the blood mist. “That red haze… it is disconnected from the will of the realm. It is almost like another dragon's power corrupted it… My strength will be limited there. This is worse than anything I imagined. How could such a horrible distortion of the balance be allowed to exist?”
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“It exists because we are not strong enough to destroy it,” I replied, “With your help, maybe we can change that.”
Vissna tore her gaze away from the blood mist and nodded. Scales began to form across her skin as she began to grow in size. Within less than a minute, the elegant-looking woman was replaced by a giant scaled dragon. The temperature in the region began to drop as Vissna let out an earth-shattering roar.
I could not help but laugh as soldiers from across the various armies began to scramble in panic. The presence of five domains radiated out from the various armies, more than I expected. It seemed that the countries were taking the threat of the Demon invasion very seriously.
Nodding in satisfaction, I motioned towards the veterans of Bellator and my family waiting for this moment nearby. Including myself, Svend, and Cyra, the pressure of nine domains clashed with the pressure radiating from the armies below. This was a show of force that could topple any country several times over.
While we agreed that I should not command the coalition of forces directly, I had to make it clear that I was no pushover. Many of the countries below had once been provinces in my empire. Even with the threat of the Demons, they would not be pleased with my return. I had planned this show of force beforehand to ensure cooperation and prevent any annoyances before they could even form.
The floating island of Dragon’s Nest floated down to the direct center of the gathered armies. Nearby soldiers cowered in fear until five domineering figures flew towards us. I recognized two of them as Chancellor Otto, leader of the free cities, and General Izmos that had once protected Bastya fortress. I did not recognize the other three but based on their attire, they were either kings or some other form of high nobility.
Upon seeing me, Otto was the first to react. His domain stopped clashing with ours and after a nervous glance at the dragon, he landed on the island. “Aurielle, you appear to be doing much better than last time I saw you. Given the dire situation, I am delighted to see you have regained some of your strength. Your soul even looks better than last time we met.”
“It is good to see you too, Otto,” I replied with a nod, “Events have progressed faster than I hoped but from what I saw up above, you have prepared well.”
Otto rubbed his head with a tinge of embarrassment. “Not as well as I would have liked. While I was able to gather significant support from across the free cities, I lack complete control of them. Six different generals have answered the call to arms. They are all of the same rank and none of them are willing to obey the other without my direct intervention.”
I frowned but understood that every army had its problems. Otto had gathered the largest army present. A minor issue like his could be expected. “Do not worry. You did well gathering so many troops. Blood will sort out the chain of command once the fighting begins.”
As I spoke to Otto, General Izmos had a conflicted expression on his face. “You… you are Aurielle, not her messenger?” I nodded and Izmos started cursing loudly, “If I had known that, I could have captured you and kept control of Bastya myself!”
I shrugged at General Izmos’ rage. “Misinformation is a part of war. It is your own fault for not catching my deceit. However, if you want a rematch, I am more than willing to fight you now.”
General Izmos paled and shook his head. “No, no, I have no chance of winning now that you have regained your domain.”
The three remaining domain warriors looked at each other hesitantly and flew down to introduce themselves. As I suspected, they were each important figures from their respective countries. These three actually represented an alliance among seven different kingdoms that was formed after the smaller blood mist outbreak I had experienced. General Arthur had actually been the one to create the alliance while we were in Kala.
While seven armies had come, the rulers of the remaining four countries had not been willing to leave their capitals unprotected for fear of falling like Novus. It was a concern I was worried about as well and I understood their fears. The fact that the Demons had let us all gather together like this was already suspicious enough. I did not know what they were planning but it was unlikely they would just sit back and do nothing.
In total, more than five hundred thousand troops had gathered from twelve different nations to fight the Demons. It was a staggering number worthy of praise, especially since the largest country, Novus, had already fallen and the second largest, the Ciel Empire, did not even bother to send a messenger declining the coalition. Many of the troops were still green but even at the height of my empire’s strength, gathering five hundred thousand troops in a single location was not an easy task.
While details of the coalition had yet to be ironed out, this gathering gave me hope that we might actually be able to fight back against the endless horde. We no longer had to fear a direct assault by the Demons. All I was missing was my undead army but the battlefield was never short of corpses.
For the first time since my rebirth, I was in my element. From this moment on, I would be hunting them.