In the middle of sleeping, Ulrika shakes me awake. The first thing I see when I open my eyes is two glowing eyes above me. I sit up almost in a panic if not for her holding me close. She grabs her dagger underneath my pillow and puts her arm over my chest to point it at my eyes.


    "Who goes there?" Ulrika says as an arc of lightning passes down her arm. It shocks the person square in the face. They shriek. "Am not asking you a second time!" The second electrical charge lets out a half-second stream of lightning.


    "Ulrika stop! It''s me!" Phopasis says.


    "What the hell, Phopasis?! What are you doing here?!"


    "I told you. You should''ve waited until they were up," Anasha says.


    "Can this wait until the morning?"


    "M-maybe," Phopasis says.


    "Then get out! And don''t you ever bother us in our sleep again!"


    "Yes, ma''am!" She says and bumps into Anasha as she backs out of the room. Ulrika tucks her dagger back under my pillow and pulls me down to lie with her.


    "These fucking angels or whatever they''re called are pissing me off," she mumbles. "I''m tired of this shit."


    Ulrika''s frustrations don''t end that night. Phopasis and Anasha await us in the kitchen after we awake. Ulrika is more heated than ever. She refuses to get out of bed to hear what they have to say. I get dressed to meet them on my own. As I head to the door, she tells me something that makes me second-guess myself.


    "Why you?" Ulrika says. Out of all the people I know who are far better than me, I always seem to be in the spotlight. Sometimes I wonder if others are taking some sort of responsibility from these gods and angels.


    At the end of my momentary pondering, I find no simple answer to Ulrika''s question. I exit without giving any answer.


    "Is she coming?" Anasha whispers after standing out from her chair.


    "No. You will speak to me only," I say. "What was so urgent last night?"


    "We know where Haleema is," Phopasis says.


    "Where is she?"


    "Moonbay. Specifically, under Zadione''s estate, you went to."


    "How did you know I went there?" Anasha slowly raises her hand halfway past her head. "Okay... How do you know she''s there?" Anasha wiggles her raised hand.


    "Have we ever mentioned what makes my sisters and me special?" Anasha says.


    "No."


    "We," she pauses and crosses her hands over her heart, "essentially grant gifts to the needy."


    "What kind of gifts?" Their specialty has no limits to what they can provide. They can grant the smallest issues like growing hair or big ones like saving someone from near death. But not all people receive their grants, only a select few. Two of those lucky people are Syren and Vahloin.


    "Through her needs, we found you. That''s why Coretha contacted you to protect her baby."


    "Ah," I say, pondering their abilities. Since they seek out selective people''s needs, I''m curious to know how they choose. "How did you find Haleema?"


    "Her prayers lit a beacon in an area who don''t believe in the gods. Her soul shone like a star."


    "Shined?"


    "The essence," she says, touching my chest. "It glows when you want something. Sometimes yours fluctuates."


    "Do you know what I want?"


    "I do," she says, looking around behind me. "Both of you."


    "Can you see..."


    "She was ready for you last night," she whispers. "She still is, but I know it isn''t the time. We won''t grant it." She takes her hand off my chest and grabs my shoulders firmly. "Haleema seeks to be free. Since you''re not actively fighting Zadione''s army, I ask you to free Haleema."


    "What about the people in Nebulas?" She frowns tightly and shakes her head.


    "The best my sisters can do is soothe their troubles."


    Another daring task from an angel. I can''t help but continue to question the people they can use, why me? Why do they continue to trust me? I can''t say no even if I want to. Haleema is calling for a miracle. And I''m the unfortunate instrument to her plea for help.


    "How am I supposed to get there when Kromagia is surrounded?" I say. "Do you have portal rings?"


    "I will get you there," Phopasis says, stepping forward. "I can create an opening straight to her, but we must be quick."


    "Why''s that?"


    "It is a direct rule break," she say,s almost whimpering. "I''ll be reprimanded for aiding you." This plan isn''t sitting right with me. If she can take me there directly, why can''t she do it herself? She can grab Haleema and come back without anyone knowing.


    "That sounds easy. Too easy. You can do this yourself, so why don''t you?"


    "I''m a near spitting image of my sister. Do you think she would listen to me?" She has a decent point. Zadione is Haleema''s prime nemesis. She''ll see red if she sees Phopasis.


    "I see."


    "Let''s make this quick."


    When I open my hand out to receive my sword, I hear the bedroom door unlatch. Ulrika walks out with her eyes aimed at the floor. She is dressed in clothes not fitting for casual wear. It is as if she intends to go out to work. She''s wearing the bare essentials for protection. Her stomach is wrapped with her stab and slash-proof black corset. She has her forearms wrapped too, but she isn''t wearing the set of gloves that comes with them.


    "Anasha," Ulrika says, takes one slow blink, and looks at her. "Hand us our swords." I grab my sword as Anasha fetches Ulrika''s sword.


    "You don''t have to do this," I say. "I''ll be in and out quickly."


    "I don''t care if you return in the blink of an eye, I''m going with you." She straps her sword to her back instead of putting it on her left hip. "You said you can open directly to her, yes?"


    "That''s right," Phopasis says.


    "What happens when a person like you breaks the rules? You have no purpose." That''s a great question. Even though I don''t say it out loud, I silently await Phopasis''s response.


    "I... do not know. I''ll become human, I suppose."


    "What if that isn''t the case? What if something worse happens?"


    "Ulrika... I don''t care what happens to me. All I want to do is help Haleema." I''m convinced. I don''t think Ulrika is. She hasn''t changed her smug look since asking Anasha for our swords.


    "Is everyone ready?" Anasha.


    "Let''s go."


    "Give Phopasis some space."


    Ulrika and I step to our left. Once Anasha gives Phopasis a few reassuring pats on the shoulder, Phopasis summons a portal by meticulously waving her arms in a sequence. It opens with a somewhat loud boom. The force is enough to swing her hair back. I come around the table to see inside. Haleema is lying on the ground behind a cell in a dark dungeon. I step inside and ignite my hand bright enough to illuminate her body. She''s dirty and in some sort of sackcloth dress.


    "Kaioson?" Haleema says softly. She slowly yet strainingly sits up to meet me at the bars. The heavy metal chains binding her arms drag against the ground. "Is that really you?"


    "Yes," I say.


    "Thank the heavens," she says, chuckling with a soft cough. "And... is that Ulrika?"


    "What have they done to you?" Ulrika says.


    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    "I''d rather not talk about it."


    "Fucking bastards..."


    "How," she says, using the bars to pull herself up to stand, "did you guys find me?" Ulrika stands to the side and points at Phopasis on the other side of the portal. "Is that... Zadione?!"


    "Surprisingly, her sister."


    "Phopasis?" Phopasis ducks through the portal to come inside. When she approaches, Haleema quickly steps away from the bars.


    "Fear not," Phopasis says as she pries the apart bars. As they bend and creak, a few of them snap. "I am nothing like my sister. Let me see those chains."


    "They''re spellbound. If you manage to break them, the guards will know."


    "We''ll be gone before they notice." She coils her index and thumb around the center, holding the cuffs. The cuffs break apart and then disintegrate. The second she goes inside to deal with the ankle restraints, I see a white flash of light beam through the door.


    "That''s them!" An orc slams the door open after it unlatches with his boot.


    "Intruders! Sound the alarm!" The guard says.


    "Hurry!"


    "Kaio, do the big one!" Ulrika says. I unleash the strongest blast that isn''t DG. It sends them and the door into the other room.


    "I got her! Let''s go!" Phopasis says.


    We all make it out. Phopasis carries Haleema into the kitchen and places her gently on the table. Anasha and I fill the buckets in the room using a few of the water crystals. We wash the dirt away from her wounds as she fills us in on what happened after they left to fight Echo Ripper. It sounds like a wild tale. She boasts Zadock''s abilities like he''s a god.


    "He gave her a tough time. In the end, we won," Haleema says. "But we weren''t prepared for Zadione''s sudden arrival."


    "What happened?" I say.


    "We were beaten and then captured. And then beaten some more."


    "Goodness," Phopasis says.


    "By the way, where is Zadock?" Anasha says. Silence fills the room. Haleem pulls her knees up to her chest despite reacting to the pain and locks her arms around them.


    "Gone," Haleema says. "They executed him a day ago." Anasha crosses her arms over her stomach and cups her eyes as she puts her head down. "An eye for an eye for killing one of their own."


    "What a sick woman," Ulrika says.


    "I need to gather my team," she says, trying to scoot off the table. "Kaioson, come help me. I need to find a healer."


    "Haleema," I say, holding her up and thinking of a way to summarize the dire situation of the world.


    "What is it?"


    "Zadione has us surrounded."


    "Surrounded? How did she get the city surrounded?"


    "This isn''t Nebulous. We''re in Kromagia."


    "What?!" She shouts.


    "Also, most of the Paladins are stuck in that city."


    "Who made it out?"


    "Rhyndac," I say.


    **


    Two hours after rescuing Haleema, she enlists her service to Kromagia''s southern special knight units. The quartermaster outfits her with mage armor. It will enhance all of her magical capabilities. It''s made of hardened bronze and gold.


    After Haleema''s fitting, the quartermaster offers Ulrika and me similar enhanced armor. He takes us into a separate room with two sets of full armor on a stand in the middle of the room. Each plate is meticulously crafted to give the wearer great mobility. Unlike Haleema''s suit, these are gray with a silver polished finish.


    "I''ll help you get in," Ulrika says.


    "So, this is the kind of equipment you''ve worn?" I say.


    "It was," she sighs.


    "You sound bothered."


    "Very much," she says sharply, ensuring all the laces in my armor are fastened. "I hated the thought of seeing you in something like this."


    "I''m sorry."


    "For what? It isn''t your fault. It''s hers." When she blames Zadione, she clenches her fists for a moment. "Help me with mine." As I fasten each protective section to her body, I notice her sulking.


    "Is everything fitted properly?" She rolls her arms, squats two times, and practices swinging her sword around while it is inside the scabbard. "It''s if you are not wearing it all."


    "Far more superior than the ones I wore." I hand her helmet and almost wear mine when she stops me. "Don''t... Not just yet..." She places our helmets on the ground near the door and pulls down the collar of my armor to kiss my lips until they are wet. "If you want more, you know what to do," she says, picking up her helmet.


    "And that is?"


    "Live," she says after donning her helmet.


    **


    Zadione''s southern forces are a mixed multitude. They are not the same combatants from Nebulas. Every race and species from the south is attacking us. I feel bad for our former allies and anyone forced to raise a sword against us. Kromagia isn''t sparing anyone. According to Bearbolt, our king wants to show that all adversaries against Kromagia will be utterly destroyed. She believes he''s doing that to make Zadione''s soldiers turn on her or one another. Most of the elves, succubi, fairies, and some of the drows do not like her. It sounds like wishful thinking. Unfortunately, as the days go by and more bloody battles ensue, that belief is gone.


    The fight goes on for days with no end in sight. Kromagia and its borders remain protected. The death ratio of our people versus Zadione has her at the highest of losses. We can''t gain ground, only hold the lands and ocean outside our kingdom.


    Every night after battle, I return to the barracks with Ulrika more tired than the previous day. Since our city is close, the military relieves our company with fresh, ready-to-fight men. We head straight for the baths since I''m constantly getting soaked in sweat, blood, and sand.


    Afterward, Ulrika and I meet at our usual table in the great hall for food and elixir replacements. This time she''s not alone. Three men sit with her. The one facing her from across the table is talking with her. I listen, standing closely behind her. They don''t bother asking who I am or telling her who''s behind her. She has suddenly accumulated admirers. Two find her skills remarkable. The third fancies her. She shuts down any opportunity to flirt when his advances get too direct.


    "I have a man," Ulrika says and then points her thumb at me.


    "How did you know I was behind you?" I say.


    "Their eyes," she giggles, pointing at each one of them. "Gentlemen, if you would, disperse."


    They leave us to resume our private daily supper. The next day, we conclude a battle with a terrible loss of life. Zadione''s Paragon, Theo, causes mass casualties on our side. In the evening, we learn from citizens'' gossip that Penny is on the Western Front. Reports say parts of the ocean are frozen with giant ice walls. I can only guess where Ethan is. No one has mentioned sighting his power. For the next battle tomorrow, I plan to end Theo''s life with help.


    Come morning, Ulrika, Haleema, and I stand atop the castle walls, watching the army march for another fight. Haleema scans ahead with her eye enhancer tool for signs of Theo. Once she spots him, we''ll make our move.


    "How do you want to do this?" Ulrika says.


    "No quarter," I say. "He''s a serious threat to everyone."


    "We go lethal. Don''t even speak a word to him."


    The battle erupts half an hour later. The southern sentry activates and watches something off in the distance to its left. It takes three steps and then throws its spear on the fourth step. An explosion diverts the spear to the right. Theo''s mana signatures appear on the sentry before a series of explosions go off. Most of them hit their mark, cracking thick chunks of stone off the sentry. Some of the explosions destroy the walls. Haleema, Ulrika, and I sprint to the side, getting attacked.


    "Solo target! Black hair! One crazy look on his face!" Haleema says.


    "That''s him!" I say.


    "I''ll open a portal right behind him!"


    Ulrika and I run through Haleema''s portal the moment she opens it. Theo sees us coming, but we attack him before he can point his hands at us. We keep him dancing on his toes. Once Haleema jumps in on the action, it all goes downhill for him, and the fight ends in mere moments. She muddies the sand under him, turning it to quicksand. I get close enough to touch his shoulder to apply a full freeze tether. Ulrika drives her sword through his heart. He dies frozen, sinking into the sand until fully submerged by it.


    As we are congratulating our swift victory, the ground rubbles. Ulrika points to a plume of dust near the walls. When the dust settles, I see the sentry toppled on its side.


    "Shit! That''s not good," I say.


    "Have those things ever been destroyed before?" Ulrika says.


    "Not to my knowledge."


    "We should get..."


    "Get what?" She points to the sky where a purple cloud rapidly forms. The center opens in a spiral. A heavily armored knight descends between the two armies. Behind him is a woman with white flowing hair.


    "Was that her?"


    "Let''s find out. Jump through my portal," Haleema says.


    As soon as she opens the portal, I hear Zadione making a speech. I get behind a soldier near the front of the line to get a good look at her. She''s covered from neck to foot in plated armor. Standing beside her is Sir Solomon Serf, the drow''s burgomaster.


    "Look at you all," Zadione says, grinning. "Fighting so hard to stop me from claiming the last portion of Inaubira." She continues saying, "You guys are good. The magical and combat knowledge you all possess is greater than the other nations."


    "That''s why you will fail," Bearbolt says somewhere from the crowd. "The gods have blessed us well."


    "They sure have. But it''s starting to crack."


    Zadione''s red eyes radiate. The wind picks up out of nowhere and blows sand our way. Ulrika puts her palm forward to direct the wind upon Zadione. She braces her face from the sand and takes one glance at Solomon. He flexes his arms and yells at us. A powerful force comes out of him. It knocks over our entire army. Her army relentlessly attacks us while we''re trying to get up. Her hellfire rains down on everyone, too. To add insult to injury, Bearbolt orders everyone to fall back.


    "After them!" Zadione says. I stand my ground fighting.


    "Kaioson, don''t be stupid!" Ulrika says. "Pull back!"


    "But we need to fight and stop her!"


    "Kaioson, listen to me!" She screams after she slaps my chest. Her hit shakes me up and rattles me to comply. We sprint for the portals. A flaming rock, hurling down on us, destroys the portal we''re heading to and crushes six soldiers.


    "Shit!" The portals closest to us all get stuffed out. There are only two left. One on our left and another on our right.


    "Damnit! We are about to be trapped here!" Soldiers trample over one another to get inside. I don''t want to put myself in danger, so the only quick solution I can think of to get us out of here is to go straight up the wall.


    "Hold on!" I wrap my arm around her waist, tether her body to mine, and use my sword to fly up the wall. Our weight makes it extremely difficult to hold. My hand nearly slips off the handle seconds before I tether it to me. Once I clear the wall, I untether Ulrika and we run for cover. "Where do we go?!"


    "I don''t know! Just keep running!"


    The barrage stops after an hour of nonstop bombardment. Over half of the southern wall is gone. For the first time since the battle, kromagian casualties are higher than our enemy''s. Zadione''s unrelenting attacks continue for days. The southern tribes start losing ground. Her army marches in, and her other ones are beginning to overwhelm the kingdom.


    Ulrika and I continue doing what we can. Zadione seems to have an infinite source of soldiers. One particular soldier, a succubus, nearly kills me. During a sudden night battle, she backhands my helmet off of my head and stops herself from driving her sword into my neck. She looks shocked to see me. The hesitation nearly cost her life. Ulrika drives her away, but we quickly get separated from a swarm of succubi. I''m forced to flee into hiding behind enemy lines. I ditch my armor in a horse stable to make myself less visible and wait for an opening to head north, but it never comes.


    Days go by. Any opportunity feels like a death gamble. I''m struggling to survive without being noticed. I have to hide anything that looks like I''m a combatant to move around freely. The various species roaming here have different tolerance levels of Kromagians. The succubi are the most tourable. I believe they are like that because of my people''s relationship with them before they fell to Zadione. They feed the prisoners of war and civilians. I don''t know how long I will last around here. But hopefully, I''ll find a window of opportunity to get my ass out of here.


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