Chapter 15: Chapter 14: Surrounded on all fronts

Aleph and Vaynard ran amok in the enemy camp. They favored haste over stealth, carving a path of bodies out from under the shadow of the spire. They were miles away from the allied camps, so they instead chose to go to where the portals were, since Aleph could operate them.

He could still sense the two energies rampaging behind him. It's crazy to think that they'd eventually have to deal with a single one, let alone all eight, as Vaynard mentioned.

Aleph was surprised at the man's abilities. Not only did he display miraculous healing ability, he was also able to extend that to others using spells. Aleph's arm still tingled a bit, but the almost dead bit of flesh was good as new. What would have required a ton of materials to fix in the old world, Vaynard managed with a single word. It was as if Aleph downed an elixir.

He led the attack, proficiently using the knife Aleph lent him. His strikes were big and flashy, each done with a flourish reminiscent of a performance, rather than the massacre it truly was. He barely uttered spells, though Aleph suspected that the shroud of mana surrounding him was more than just for show. He glowed like the sun, not allowing them to hide even if they wanted to. 

Aleph struggled to keep up. For the first time since coming to this world, he had finally found a human whose physical ability exceeded his. He instead shouted directions at Vaynard, pointing him towards where he sensed the portals would be. 

Soon they were back on the clearing where Aleph was captured. It was unfortunate for them, but Aleph was still relieved to see that the portal was inoperable. Captain Carrack did their job, then.

Vaynard seemed to have figured out Aleph's plan, and this time he knew where to go. There were plenty of portals in the area, after all. They picked one at random, just hoping that it would be close enough to Hios so that they could go. The enemy was targeting Carrack in particular, and may focus their forces there as a result.

The one they went to next  was indeed operational. The problem was that it was currently being used. They arrived just as a group of a hundred harbingers were being transported, with a couple of emissaries directing traffic.

"The attacks have begun, then." Vaynard said without levity. There were emissaries on equal points around the portal, who were four in total. He ambushed one of them with blinding speed, stabbing his heart before he was even aware. Aleph attacked the one on the opposite end a moment later, slitting his throat in one quick motion. The other two tried to mount an offense, but were quickly dispatched. Vaynard joined him in the middle of the portal. He held the severed heads of the emissaries he had taken care of waving them in front of him like some sick trophy.

"Can you do anything with these? I noticed that the knife you lent me was made from their horns."

Aleph considered for a moment before following suit, commanding his knives to drag all the bodies towards the middle of the portal.

"These could be useful too." He said curtly.

Aleph tried to activate it with his processed heart, but it did not respond. He dug his hand in to one of the emissaries' chests. It's a good thing that he was the one that killed two of them; Vaynard had struck his kills down with swift thrusts to the heart.

"Eww." Vaynard remarked from his side.

"Your state in the cells was far worse than this."

"Ahh, but I was far more dignified."

Aleph turned to look at the man for a second, staring at him as if to say 'is this really important right now?'

"Enough of this. Can you get us home?"

Aleph had already gotten hold of the heart and was willing it to work without bothering to pull it out. He had a sinking suspicion something was wrong since they got out without much difficulty.

"On your guard, Vaynard. These creatures can approach without warning."

On Aleph's command, the ground below them lit up once again. He stood and readied his weapons, his knives floating just above his outstretched hand. Aleph counted down the seconds, but it felt like an eternity.

A flash reflected from his knives' surface, causing him to look up, where he saw a massive ball of energy coming down on them. 

"Above!" Aleph warned, but Vaynard was ready. His eyes were closed, presumably in the middle of spell casting. Aleph felt the heat coming from the attack, even from so far away. 

"Flame bolt!" He summoned all the mana he could muster, but his meager spell did nothing to hinder the thing. Fortunately, Vaynard had finished his own spell before it hit. 

"Sanctuary!" 

A translucent pair of wings sprouted from his back and covered their location, shielding them from the attack. The ground shook as the attack landed, scorching the immediate area. It seems using the portal so quickly after a wide scale activation takes time.

"How much longer?!" Vaynard asked urgently, as a massive shadow fell from above at an impossible speed. It crashed into the barrier, almost shattering it completely. The shadow flew low, revealing itself to be a massive black dragon.

The creature reared up for another attack. Aleph struck with his flying daggers, but they bounced harmlessly against the its scales. It postured up on its haunches and spat out another energy ball. Vaynard's spell faded as his mana was finally spent.

"We have to dodge!" He said frantically. The portal will be destroyed, but better it than them. Aleph shook his head and took his knife back from his companion. He sent them forward to intercept, calling on their ability. A cyclone swirled itself around the knives, becoming larger and larger as it went. The light from under their feet was at its brightest now, a signal that they would be transported any moment now.

"Hold on for a little longer!" Vaynard shouted. He kept looking at the ground, even crouching low to fall through it as soon as it opened. He dare not take his eyes off the dragon though, who might decide to attack from the ground.

The two spells clashed right above them, stopping in place. Aleph pushed the daggers' ability to its limit, causing the whirlwind to grow massively in size, swallowing up the attack. The creature roared, diving once again towards them. It flew through the clashing energies, dispersing them with ease, and a split second later it appeared right in front of them. It floated close now, close enough to see that there was someone riding on its back. 

The rider regarded them for a split second, then gestured an armored hand towards them, causing his mount to breathe a tsunami of black flames. They finally fell through the floor at that moment, just in time to avoid being burnt to a crisp. 

Aleph stared at the dragon rider up until the end. He had a feeling they would face each other again. 

_________________________________

"I cannot go with you." The overgod said with finality.

Rayse despaired. He came to the sanctuary to ask the god if he could help, but was met with flat out refusal. The overgod saw his expression, and compassionately patted his shoulder.

"The causal forces at work seek to balance the influence that higher beings can exert on any world. If I descend upon your world now, I only invite Erebos to do the same. I am afraid that your world cannot endure such a battle.

"...Master's been captured." Rayse said meekly. He felt so small at this moment. Lacey pulled him out of it earlier, but here he need not pretend he wasn't worried. Not in front of God himself.

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At the mention of Aleph, the overgod's demeanor changed. His resigned expression changed to one of compassion. Rayse felt the god's hands tremble as he spoke.

"I sent Aleph to you, Rayse, not just to respect his wishes, but so your world may be spared. As a god, his influence was negligible, but this allowed him to hone his abilities with little causal repercussions."

That struck a chord with Rayse. He remembered how Aleph was when they first met. 

"You must believe in him. I cannot peer too closely into his whereabouts while he is within the spire's influence, but Aleph is with my agent at the moment. They will keep each other safe."

At that, the overgod walked towards the guest house.

"And as for your people, I've placed Aleph among you for a reason. He has prepared you for what is coming, Rayse. Trust in who you and your friends have grown into." He added meaningfully.

There were some incomprehensible things added in, but Rayse could feel his sincerity. He looked to the graves around him, each hero fallen to the enemy he and his friends were about to face. This was the toll taken from Aleph, the price of his victory. Will they pay a similar cost?

Rayse left the sanctuary listless and with nothing to show for it. He tried to shake it off and made himself useful around town instead. He left their gear at the top of the gates and gathered the children. He had them run around town, asking everyone to stay in town from now on. He had spread a rumor that a wild pack of beasts had been roaming close by. Hopefully everyone had heeded his warning. Then he went to the town hall, where a meeting was taking place. Lacey and Brandon were already there, but he was not allowed in.

He settled in with Iona's subordinates instead, absorbing mana crystals while awaiting instructions.

The search party arrived later that evening, along with the terrible news. Rayse and his friends were devastated to learn that Aleph had been left behind, wounded or worse. Carrack beelined it into the meeting once he arrived, making Rayse feel a bit envious.

The search party itself was in terrible shape. Rayse sought out and sat with the youngest among them and chatted a bit. Apparently, they were harried by the enemy all the way to town, each demon possessing unnatural strength. Carrack's team actually managed to wipe them out, but not without casualties. Of the dozen or so that joined the search, less than half remained.

They immediately sent someone to retrieve the enemy bodies for study. Carrack seemed to think they were direct subordinates of something called a herald. Rayse was only half listening, as fretting for his master was taking all his attention even though it shouldn't. 

Still, he remembered the overgod's assurance. The only thing that prevented him from losing hope completely was what he told him. He felt a headache coming on, and saw that he had absorbed all the crystals he had on him in one fell swoop.

Focus, he scolded himself. Mister Aleph will be fine. He had tried contacting him since his message, but no response came. 

"I don't think you should be doing that." The young man beside him warned. He was pointing at all the empty mana crystals in Rayse's hands.

"I know, Brig. I'm just worried about my master… Do you think he's okay?"

The young man wilted. Despite his tiredness, he knelt in front of him and bowed.

"S-sorry! We fell into a trap because I wasn't cautious enough! He blocked the attempted capture of my superior, but that was supposed to be my duty. As scoutmaster, I should have seen it coming… I'm sorry, Rayse."

Rayse looked at Bring with some respect. He was the youngest by far in the search party, but one of the stronger ones. His mana was like a gentle breeze enveloping him, or at least, that's the impression Rayse had. He went to pull his new friend up and said,

"Hey, don't be too down on yourself. I don't blame you at all, and nor would my master. He'd say so if he was here!"

Brig smiled and nodded, and Rayse immediately saw the tiredness in the young man's eyes. They had been fighting for hours after all. Rayse gave Brig and his buddies some potions, and was helping them treat their wounds when the meeting adjourned.

Rayse bid his new friends farewell and met up with Brandon. He looked tired too, but for a different reason.

"Hey man, how was it out here?"

"Eh, you know, I was just keeping busy. How about you guys? Any word on strategy? Where do they want us posted?"

"There was none of that. Sigh, you know, I wish I stayed here with you, because those dumbasses in the council are so stubborn my absence would not have made a difference!" 

"What happened? Your dad's in the council isn't he?" 

Brandon grew even more irritated at that.

"Ohh, don't get me started, Ray. I can't believe that guy. We spent so long telling him why it wouldn't work, but he and his buddies insisted on evacuating! It's like, what, do they expect the demons to respect noncombatants? I was this close to letting them try, see how they fare without walls and hundreds of demons double their size running after them."

"Oh come on, Bran. You're still on this?" Lacey said as she joined the pair.

"Oh, sorry Ray, but this guy's just something else. Had a rowing match with his dad right in front of everyone. It was pretty embarrassing."

"Well I would have stopped if he-" Brandon's complaining was cut short when they heard a commotion. A militia member was running towards the town hall, shouting as he went.

"Lord Carrack! Lord Carrack, you must come quickly!"

Brig leapt up from where he was seated and stopped the man.

"Hey man, calm down and tell me what's wrong. The name's Brig, Lord Carrack's subordinate. I'll make sure he hears your message."

The militia member turned to him immediately. Not even vetting his identity, the man just blabbered out. Rayse had a bad feeling. He had never seen someone so armed be so afraid.

"The enemy has been spotted out at the forest's edge! They're marching straight towards us!"

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