The Forsaken Hero

It took several hours to reach the edge of the Blacksand Caldera. The road was well worn and traveled, with lots of foot and wagon traffic. Fable passed it all by in long, loping strides, followed closely by R’lissea and Fyren. Elise rode behind me, arms held loosely around my waist.

The road turned to switchbacks, taking us step by step up the caldera wall. I couldn’t help but give R’lissea a dirty look, which she tactfully ignored. When we descended, there had to be a road like this on the other side. We definitely hadn’t had to jump the whole way.

As we climbed the caldera wall, I glanced over my shoulder, gazing at the spire. It was little more than a slender needle on the horizon, so far away it was impossible to see any of the scars the Day of Cinders had left behind. My memories, on the other hand, wouldn’t be so quick to fade. There was much I had learned here, much I was given. And much I had sacrificed.

”We’ll come back,” Elise said, giving me a gentle squeeze.

I looked over my shoulder, and she smiled.

”I promise,” she said.

”I’m...not worried about that,” I admitted. ”You’ll come back many times, actually. First, you were forsaken, like me. Now you’re a noble. I wonder what next time will bring.”

”Is that supposed to be a riddle?” she asked.

I shrugged. ”Not really. Just...you’ll see him again. That’s all I’m saying.”

”Xiviyah! It’s not like that,” she protested.

”Not yet, maybe. But Elise?”

She scowled at me. ”What?”

”Don’t let a throne stop you from being with one who makes you feel warm inside. I...won’t ever have something like that, but I want you to.”

”What are you even saying, Xiv? He’s the crown prince! And I’m just a broken, defiled--that is, I don’t want that right now...”

”I wasn’t talking about his throne, Elise. Just remember, okay? Promise?”

”Fine, if it means that much to you. But I’m telling the truth. We only spoke a few times.”

I turned back to the road, feeling a slight pang in my chest. Was it really so easy to trust someone? I wanted to think Luke and I had shared more than a few words. I shouldn’t have trusted him even after everything. My mind had known it, but I’d allowed my heart to lead me astray. Never again.

After a few minutes, we crested the caldera’s edge, breaking out into open plains. The road split into three, with every wagon and traveler taking the north and south. Fyren led us east, alone as far as the eye could see. No one else was foolish enough to chase after demons.

After only a mile, the temperature had noticeably dropped. Spring in the caldera was warm as summer, yet now it showed its true colors. It was cool and moist, causing me to huddle closer against Fable, the breeze raising bumps along my exposed skin.

Dark clouds gathered on the horizon ahead of us, streaks of gray touching the ground. The air was thick and humid, blessedly so. It soothed the itch in my throat and the discomfort of my horns that had bothered me since entering the caldera. As much as I hated the cold, it was clear I had little more tolerance for heat and dryness, either. Spring and fall really were the best seasons.

As the caldera fell out of sight, I patted Fable’s neck, urging him to stop. I slid off his back, bringing Elise with me.

”Is everything alright?” R’lissea asked, catching her breath.

I nodded. ”We’ve got to pick up else we won’t make it by nightfall.”

”Make where?” Elise asked.

I pointed ahead of us, to the storm. A few flickers of lightning lit the dark clouds. We were too distant to hear the thunder.

”You sensed it, too?” Fyren asked.

”They’re waiting for me,” I said softly.

He gave me an appraising look, a small, proud smile twitching his lip.

”Who’s waiting? Where are we going?” R’lissea asked.

”The Devoted,” I answered, ”and a gate. We have to get there before it breaks.”

”Do we really have to travel with them?” Elise asked. ”They’re demons...”

”Please, I know you’re tired of them, but bear with it a little more,” I said.

She cast a long look over her shoulder, searching for any sign of the city. Her shoulders slumped.

”It was nice while it lasted,” she said with a sigh.

While we talked, Fable padded away, getting some distance. When he was almost a dozen yards away, he unleashed his mana. Starlight enveloped him, and he quickly swelled in size. Half a second later, he towered over us.

I hadn’t been able to appreciate his growth during the battle with the dragons, but now I stood open-mouthed, admiring him. He was almost a quarter longer than the last time I’d seen him assume his true form, over a hundred feet long from nose to tail. His fur was darker than before, almost a gray, yet it shone with starlight. His claws had grown longer and sharper, glowing with mana even though he hadn’t imbued them. Even a casual swipe possessed the power of a fifth-circle spell.

The ground trembled as he returned to my side, covering the distance in three colossal steps. He was massive, almost forty feet tall at the shoulder. I looked up at Fyren pleadingly, throat too dry to ask.

The demon grinned and placed a hand on my back, his other, sweeping my legs off the ground, holding me under the knees. I threw my arms around his neck and squeezed my eyes shut, biting my lip as he leaped off the ground. We slowed shortly after reaching the zenith of our jump, and my feet came down on thick fur. I sank to my knees, gripping it with both hands, before daring to open my eyes.

I’d been right. Fable was really tall. Way too tall.

”I’ve missed this,” R’lissea said, landing next to us.

Elise followed afterward, tottering over and falling to her knees beside me. Her face was a little pale, but she wore a smile.

”I’m not much of a jumper, but it’s fun when there’s such a soft landing,” she said, catching her breath.

Once we settled in, Fable took off, loping across the landscape in great bounds. Every leap crossed hundreds of feet, the ground blurring at horrific speed. I cast a few wards to quell the winds, shielding us from the worst of the cold and air resistance. Forests, mountains, and rivers came and went, passing like flickering visions in the night.

I could never lower my guard, but after an hour of white-knuckling Fable’s fur, I relaxed. R’lissea had gone to Fable’s head, sitting between his horns and letting the wind wash over her. Elise had curled up in a particularly thick clump of fur and fallen asleep. A ways off, Fyren stood studying his sword, going through form and, I assumed, familiarizing himself with the blade.

With no one to talk to, I drew the runic dictionary and ninth-level spell book from my spatial ring and began to study. It was unlike any spell I’d learned before, or any I’d created, for that matter. Ninth-level spells, I learned, were less structured means of accomplishing a goal than creating a framework for impressing one’s will upon the world. Individual runes didn’t matter so much as the concept they expressed. The spell required light, so you called light. The means didn’t matter, only the end.

For someone like me, who had never relied on the rigid system of chants and runes, it was a godsend. But it also made clear why so many mages failed to reach this level. It would be impossible for them to comprehend the abstract methods of casting required to break through. Only fringe mages like me had a chance.

Part of me wondered whether the gods had created Enusia’s magic system with this intent in mind. The ninth-level beings I’d met were unreliable at best and prone to acting against the god’s interests. From bribing Nithalee to showing evidence of the gods’ corruption to Avant and Elaine, they all seemed willing to betray them without hesitation. I could see why the divine wouldn’t want such powerful mortals around if there was such a risk of them causing trouble.

The sky darkened, the runes blurring together in the darkness. Demonkin’s vision worked well for shapes and depths, yet fine details like delicately written runes were difficult to make out. I looked up, curious where the light had gone, only to find we’d passed under the storm’s outer edges.

A jolt of panic caused me to store the books and look around nervously. What had happened to the last few hours? We had been several hundred miles away from the storm. How could we be there already?

”Welcome back,” Elise said, grinning at me. ”I tried to warn you, but you didn’t even notice!”

I flushed, looking around. The plains had broken into vast, sweeping hills. They were as wide as mountains but far shallower. They felt ancient and worn, even tired.

”Sorry,” I said, tail flicking in embarrassment. ”I was just...it was so interesting, and I--”

She giggled. ”It’s fine. I thought it was cute. Now, mind telling us what to expect?”

R’lissea, who had returned to our side, nodded. ”Yes, please. I’d rather not walk into any more surprises.”

I opened my mouth to respond, only to pause, a tingle racing through my soul.

”Too late,” Fyren said. ”We’re here.”

We turned, gasping together as the hills parted, revealing a valley several miles wide. It was filled with demons. Thousands of them, from massive evolved to the smallest scions. And at the end of the valley, hovering a dozen feet above the ground, was a gigantic red gate.