Chapter 19: 19. The Undying Army

Von

Von Asger, one of the last Blue scholar mages of the Eldritch Council west of the Shield Mountains, sat in his tent wishing for a moment of peace.

He could barely remember what peace felt like anymore. In the last decade of war it came in fleeting moments stolen from the fear, pain and fear of combat and preparing to fight. It was found in a few days of morphine induced peace, so he could recover from his wounds. A brief moment in the arms of a woman, or drinking with companions, most of whom were now dead. Most rare of all, peace was a week or two where it seemed a new weapon, a new tactic, a new spell could halt the demons.

Then it was gone and he returned to the fight.

Mother Sun and Father Moon expected their children to stand on their own feet, supporting them with advice, magic, and the priesthood. It was up to each individual to prove they were worthy of  entering the afterlife in their own way. He wondered if the gods knew how hard it was for the mere mortals who stood beneath them.

If he died today, would he be cast back into the world as a failure for not trying hard enough? Or would he be allowed to finally rest among the stars? Maybe he would be considered hopelessly tainted and cast into the Abyss.

His life was full of failure. Moments where if he'd fought harder, been smarter, made the right decision, hundreds, even thousands, of people might still be alive today. And what would The Mother say about his latest action?

If he was going to be damned to the Abyss, it would be for bringing Keir to life.

Yet what choice did he have?

The necromancer was the only one who could possibly save what was left of the continent. They were supposedly making wonder weapons across the ocean. Metal ships powered by steam, wagons that could move without horses, artillery pieces that were five times the size of what they had in Erebu, and who knew what else. But they were an ocean away, not here.

His country, Uva Isulana, had once been at the forefront of magic and technology, the jewel of the world. Now it was bled dry of resource and hope, starving under the masses of refugees, huddling behind its fleet, hoping the narrow stretch of ocean between it and the mainland would keep it safe. He hadn't seen it since the start of the war, and hadn't heard from his parents or sisters in four years when the last letter had reached him.

“What choice did I have?” he asked.

'Von, drop whatever you're doing. We need to talk,' Alvis said in his mind.

Thankful for the distraction, he took a moment to get his thoughts in order. 'What do you need Alvis?'

'Did you question the necromancer?'

'Yes. She hasn't found a way to magically break the geas. She hasn't even tried to think of a magical way around it.' He didn't bother to say how the questioning had angered Keir the other day. The look of rage and fury should have looked humorous on such a tiny woman. Yet he had seen her raise an army with a thought, and destroy souls with a touch. For all her apparent good humour, and the strange contrast between her body and her behaviour, Keir had an air of unyielding power that couldn't be hidden.

'What about the report we have from High Commander Alder?'

'Keir could get around the geas in several physical ways, and admitted as such.'

'The Lady is not happy that you didn't use all of the geas.'

Keir didn't have to ask who the Lady was. Lady Thea, first among equals in the Eldritch Council, and the most powerful mage in the world. She was the main reason Keir hadn't been resurrected sooner. She was also the person who had created the Second Alliance and was holding together what was left of humanity on the continent. Without her the defence of Erebu would have crumbled years ago.

'If this plan is to succeed Keir needs some freedom to think and act. We don't know how to use her magic or the dead effectively, turning her into an automaton would be pointless.'

'I know that.' There was a moment of silence, before Alvis continued. 'So do most people, even The Lady, but she hates the thought of using him. Still it's done now, so you have new orders. If anyone asks, the Council supported your plan. I know you've already lied to almost everyone there saying it was agreed to, stick to it. Our diplomats are spreading the word of the Councils victory, doing their best to keep panic from setting in and old fears from taking hold.'

'So I'm not going to be thrown to the wolves?' Von asked, mildly surprised.

'Hardly. If you survive and manage to reach human lands, you'll be declared a hero, at least in public. When spring arrives, try to reach the Uzak Pass, it's the closest route through the Shield Mountains and our forces still control the area around it.'

'That pass is little more than a goat trail, we can't get an army through it, or the refugees.'

'We'll do what we can for the refugees and soldiers, but you and Keir are far more important. Everyone else is expendable.'

'I don't think General Ajani will agree to that.'

'Tell him it's straight from the Alliance High Command.'

Von grimaced at the thought of telling the general that. 'He doesn't obey the Alliance. He has only agreed to support us because we had the soldiers he needed. Now, almost half of the soldiers we have follow him because he's kept them alive this long. The other half are nearly all Lleial, who follow Keir. There are maybe three hundred soldiers left who follow High Commander Alder.'

'It's that bad?'

'Yes,' Von said.

If he was being truthful, it was far worse for the Alliance. Keir was developing a following among the soldiers and the refugees. It was her magic that had saved them. Her displays of power kept building on that hope. She was working with The Mother Church and Elder Sister Tyra. She even had one of the priestess's helping her school of necromancy, so she clearly wasn't a heretic who was going to lead them all to the Abyss. She'd made sure that everyone knew she was sending out her dead to find any refugees hidden in the mountains and highlands. That had everyone talking, hopeful that family and friends could still be saved. To people not used to propaganda and power plays, Keir made it seem like she wasn't really trying to build up a following.

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To General Ajani, High Commander Alder, Elder Sister Tyra and Von, it was obvious, and not even very subtle. General Ajani didn't care, he just wanted to kill demons, and Keir was his best chance at doing that. High Commander Alder was too busy trying to keep everything working smoothly to actively stop it, if he even could. The High Commander was good at administration, but he'd spend two decades running the Keep, politics wasn't one of his strengths. Elder Sister Tyra had made her position as a cautious supporter of Keir plain, by having her priestess help at the school.

As for himself, Von supported the Eldritch Council. It had kept the continent relatively peaceful for centuries and had at least slowed the demonic onslaught. But, he knew they weren't always right. How much farther was he willing to stray to win the war?

Alvis interrupted his thoughts. 'Things may change over the winter, but for now that is the plan. You are expected to follow it.'

Sighing, Von nodded. 'I'll work on General Ajani, while we prepare for the spring campaign. How is the rest of the war going?'

'The Kahlaamo royal family and most of the government evacuated Port Isla. That's the last of their mainland territory. They promise to keep fighting from the islands, but those are nothing more than fishing villages. The city has probably already fallen, reports said that riots were out of control.'

'Except for the Merirosvo Confederacy that's the last of the northern countries, isn't it?'

'Yes, the pirates are still around and fighting. Even the demons can't seem to survive in that frozen wasteland.'

'Is there anyone else left on the mainland west of the Shield Mountains?'

'A few holdouts mostly in the mountains and a few small peninsula's. They don't have mages we can contact, so we're mostly going by rumours or very loose ocean connections. The city of Qum is the last place that isn't on the verge of collapse. And they're still alive only because they fortified, poisoned or buried every oasis and well in the Zuha Desert that isn't within sight of the city.'

Burying his head in his hands, Von wondered what his decade long fight had achieved.

'I need to write up my report. Let me know if anything changes,' Alvis said.

'I will,' he replied, suddenly feeling utterly exhausted.

'Hey, cheer up. When you get here in the spring, you'll be a hero.'

He cut the connection.

***

Stary Mountains
Near Desolation Keep

The ghostly rider moved silently through the trees, its pitch black horse ignoring the roots and stones that would make the terrain treacherous for a living horse.  To either side, barely visible amongst the trees other ghosts travelled in the same direction, alert for demons or humans.

Overhead a host of banshees flew, each one a blot of darkness against the brilliant blue sky. The banshees weren't part of the original group. They had come across each other at dawn, and the banshees for whatever reason, had decided to follow the ghosts.

Living scouts were well behind the ghosts and banshees, taking their horses on an overgrown path, looking for signs of refugees and demons.  After a day and a half of searching they'd only found a few demons, which had been quickly killed, gutted and their meat cooked to pad out the rations.

The ghost didn't really care, it had been told to look for humans by its creator. The scouts it followed had told it to kill demons if they saw any. It didn't matter how long it might take, it was loyal and would do its duty. At worst it had a minor irritation that it hadn't yet been able to successfully follow its first command.

The banshees screeched, flying ahead as fast as a horse could gallop. The ghostly rider drew its sword and raced after them. Its fellow riders did the same their ghostly yells filling the air.

Racing over a shallow mountain river, it heard the screams of living humans, and the roar of demons. The banshees screeched again, this time their cries were louder, making the very air seem to shake, drowning out all other noise.

The ghosts riders came together, swords raised, following the banshees into the fray.

They came to a small clearing, next to a rocky cliff. Women and children were climbing up the side of the cliff, using knotted ropes that had to have been put in place beforehand. Men were trying to keep a small pack demons back with spears and bayonet tipped rifles.

The banshees dove out of the air, screeching at the largest four armed demon. The monster threw a mangled body at them before falling to the ground, clutching its ears, whimpering in pain.

The riders tore into the demons, using magical energy to harden their bodies. Fiery hooves crushed bone, swords cut into flesh. The demons struck back, howling in confusion as their claws and teeth struck only air, not realizing they were hurting the ghosts.

Spears and bayonets stabbed into the backs of the monsters. Holding them in place for the ghosts to slaughter.

By the time the scouts arrived, the fight was long over. The two dozen or so refugees were sitting huddled together, staring fearfully at the ghosts who stood well back watching the woods for any new threats. The banshees had flown off, looking for more demons.

“We're here to help. We have food and supplies at our keep, and the demons aren't coming back anytime soon,” the Lleial scout said, getting off his horse.

“Who are you? What are those things?” one of the refugees asked, pointing at the ghosts.

“We're the Undying Army. And those ghosts are going to help us kill the demons,” the scout said with a grin.

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