Argarath, the blue wisp, hovered in the darkened hall, his ethereal form flickering like a star, casting brief flashes of light that danced on the cold stone walls. Across from him, standing like a mountain of muscle and armor, was Vor, the Demon General. His eyes, like twin embers, glowed with a ferocity that could ignite entire battlefields.

  Around Vor stood his conclave of brutal warriors, their hulking figures adorned with trophies of past victories, skulls, battle-worn armor, and the heavy stench of violence. The air reeked of bloodlust, of battles fought and won with little care for tactics, as long as the enemy fell.

  Argarath floated calmly, tracing glowing blue lines in the air, his movements fluid and graceful, in stark contrast to the brute strength around him.

  Tell me your plan, Vor.

  The words glowing for a brief moment before fading into the shadows.

  Vor’s gaze flickered to the wisp, his expression unchanging, the heat in his eyes a constant fire. He grunted, his voice deep and heavy, like the rumble of a distant thunderstorm.

  “Plan is to attack,” Vor replied, his words simple, direct, and lacking in any real detail.

  Kael sighed in his square, miles and miles away. Argarath traced once more, a soft sigh escaping his lips as the light flared briefly.

  Attack how?

  Vor shifted, his eyes narrowed, thinking for a moment, before his answer came in the same clipped manner.

  "Attack straight at the enemy. In open combat."

  Argarath’s ethereal form hovered in thought for a brief moment, then he traced once more, the blue light arcing through the air.

  Who is the enemy?

  Vor, with little more than a grunt of annoyance, flicked his gaze toward the wisp. "The Golden Legion."

  At that moment, Kael shifted in his seat and reached for the sphere map Myke had given him, rolling it in its box. He let his fingers trace along its surface, trying to find the Golden Legion. His brow furrowed as he scrolled through the map, trying to find any hint of their location, but there was nothing.

  Argarath’s blue light flickered again and his words materialized as if summoned by a thought alone.

  Where do they live?

  Vor's fiery eyes glinted, the answer simple, as always. "Golden City."

  Kael rolled the map again, more carefully this time, focusing his attention. The sphere shifted, glowing brighter as it revealed a city. An enormous city gleaming in gold, rising up against the horizon like a shining beacon.

  It was far to the west of Ironmire, across a vast expanse of terrain. He adjusted the map further, his mind still spinning, and noted the position of Highhaven, north of Golden City. A realization struck him as he studied the map. They were closer to each other than he had anticipated.

  Who is in charge?

  Argarath traced into the air, the words hanging in the dim space between them.

  Vor thought for a moment. His voice rumbled bluntly. “King Kaden.”

  Argarath absorbed that information, his blue light flickering.

  I will try something. Delicate lines of blue were traced in Vor’s dark hall. See if it works.

  Vor grunted, barely acknowledging the glowing words. “Okay.”

  It was the kind of answer you would expect from Vor. He wanted action, not deliberation. Not intricacies of planning.

  Far away, Kael sat within the confines of his own square, frustration written in the furrows of his brow. He had been trying to formulate a strategy but was getting little information from Vor. If only he had more to work with.

  Argarath’s presence flickered again. The wisp's next question sliced through air.

  Can I see your army?

  “Sure,” Vor said.

  The next instant, Argarath was taken out of the dark hall into a vast sprawling landscape, barren steppes with short grass and rocks littering the ground. The wisp’s glowing form appeared in Kael’s mind’s eye as though the two were connected by some invisible thread. It was as though Kael was right there, rather than sitting in his square.

  As Kael’s eyes scanned the horizon, they were met with the sight of Vor’s army. It was massive, a horde of demons all gathered together under Vor's banner.

  First, his eyes locked on the Skaras. The massive lizard-like demons, red scales brimming with power. Their ferocity was palpable, each carrying cruel looking weapons. A vast difference to his own Xal.

  Next, Kael saw the large demons made of pure fire, their forms swirling with molten flame. He couldn’t feel the heat through Argarath, yet Kael knew a touch and he would be incinerated.

  Looking above, there were the flying lizard-like creatures that soared above, their leathery wings flapping in the smoky air. Their massive jaws gaped open, revealing rows of teeth sharp enough to tear through steel, while their eyes gleamed with intelligence.

  Kael watched them all, trying to come to terms with the sheer scale of the army before him. He knew the Skaras—he had seen them before, in past battles, and he knew their strength and weakness. But the others? The fire demons? The flying beasts? Those were unknowns, and Kael couldn’t afford any more surprises.

  He thought back to his time in the Ascension Trials, when he had faced an opponent that was in Vor’s conclave, a Master whose name he only knew recently. He thought of what that Master had, the same powers Vor and his conclave would have.

  Do you have Oculothrax?

  Argarath traced the words again, his blue light cutting through the air.

  “Yes,” Vor answered.

  Kael answered, a grin slowly forming on his face. “I got a plan.”

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  The day's work had been exhaustive, his mind taxed with the strategy he had laid out for Vor—though Kael wasn’t entirely sure if the demon general had truly understood the plan or if he had simply grunted in agreement, more interested in the thrill of battle than the finer points of strategy.

  Kael stood in the quiet of his square, the dim glow of twilight casting long shadows across the moss-covered ground. Kael had done what he could, but the rest was out of his hands.

  Kael’s thoughts drifted as he pulled out one of the Message Birds, a golden, ethereal creature that seemed to materialize out of the very air itself. He scribbled a letter on the parchment, sealing it before holding it up. The bird, no larger than a crow, fluttered its wings and took off, the letter clutched firmly in its talons.

  Kael watched the bird fly into the night, passing the blue light barrier with ease. He couldn’t help but hope his plan would work. Hoping that the reward would be worth the risks.

  More than the reward, though, he needed the power. The forces he had seen today. Vor’s army left Kael with a nagging unease in his gut. He wasn’t naive enough to think he could go toe-to-toe with such a force alone.

  The square around him felt small. He had his slimes, his golems, but even with the latest Skara, his numbers were still pitifully few.

  With a sharp inhale, Kael reached for his orb again. He focused, channeling his mana, and summoned the next creature. A slimy, goopy mass of brown that squirmed and shifted upon arrival.

  This one was different from Jello. It was smaller, more liquid in its form, with no clear shape, just a fluid mass that sloshed with each movement.

  Kael leaned down, inspecting his new companion carefully. It wasn’t as solid or as stable as Jello, but it would do. He reached out, brushing his fingers gently over the slime’s shifting body. "Sludge," he murmured.

  The creature seemed to react to the name, its form rippling with approval. Sludge began to slither across the mossy floor, its sticky body leaving a trail of faintly blackened patches in its wake. Poison Slime, indeed.

  "I could use more slimes," Kael muttered to himself, his gaze flicking to the square around him. He reached for his orb again and focused.

  One by one, the orb pulsed, and four more green slimes emerged. They were simple, green blobs, familiar in shape and form. It wasn’t much, but it was something.

  More friends. That’s what he needed.

  It can’t hurt to have more friends in my square, Kael thought.

  Speaking of friends, Kael’s gaze shifted to the glint of the ring on his finger. The Rings of Link.

  "Hi," he sent, his mind reaching out like a thread across the distance.

  A warm reply quickly followed. "Hi yourself." There was a flicker of something in her voice, the kind of familiarity that Kael had come to rely on. "You've been really busy today, Kael."

  Kael chuckled alone in his square. “Yeah, a bit too busy," he admitted, smiling to himself. "Planning a fight that I’m far away from is tougher than I expected."

  "I can only imagine.”

  “You know, Vor’s square is a steppe, too. Maybe he's nearby you."

  "Really? That’s quite scary."

  "Yeah," he agreed. He let the silence stretch for a moment before asking, "Have you ever fought against the Golden Legions?"

  "No, but my invaders talk about them a lot. They say they’re really tough."

  "Lira, you should have seen Vor’s army. I think they can handle the Legion.”

  "We’ll have an army like that too," she said. “One day.”

  "Yeah."

  A quiet silence stretched between them, an unspoken understanding of the battles ahead. But Lira broke it gently, her thoughts light and soft like the wind.

  “This is nice.”

  Kael’s thoughts lingered on her words, a moment of peace that seemed fleeting. He wanted to respond, to say something, but before he could, the atmosphere in his square shifted.

  His eyes flickered toward the glowing blue barrier that surrounded his square. The walls shimmered faintly, turning not just red, but tinged with a subtle gold. Kael’s senses snapped to attention.

  Here they come.

  A figure appeared in the air, its silhouette framed by the fiery glow of its own power. With a screech, the being hurled a bolt of fire at Kael, the projectile tearing through the air.

  Kael dove to the side, narrowly avoiding the firebolt that exploded in the spot he had just occupied, the air sizzling with the intensity of the flames.

  The creature prepared for another attack. Kael’s hand was a blur as it reached for the hilt of his sword, his instincts taking over.

  Iron Curtain.

  The sword rose in an arc, and with a sound like the clash of steel on stone, the firebolts met the blade. Each bolt was deflected with a sharp, metallic clang, the force of the impact rattling the air around him. The flames splintered off in all directions, a fiery spray that singed the air.

  Kael’s mind raced, and with a snap of his fingers, he called forth his ice slimes. "Fire icicles!" Kael commanded.

  The slimes launched sharp, jagged shards of ice toward the creature. The icicles flew with speed and precision, a cold streak of white against the crimson backdrop of the square.

  Kael watched them soar, but the creature twisted and darted, evading the attack with a grace that defied its humanoid form.

  Kael cursed under his breath. The creature was faster than he had anticipated, and his slimes had missed their target. “Keep firing,” Kael said.

  With a wave of his hand, Kael directed his wisps toward the creature, their bodies crackling with energy as they surged forward, ready to deliver electric shocks.

  But this invader wasn’t human, Kael realized, even before he had a clearer view. It was a humanoid bird, its body covered in feathers. The legs and arms were long and muscular, with sharp talons at the end, and its beak was curved and sharp, a weapon in itself.

  It soared, wings beating faster, higher, until it was nothing more than a dark silhouette against the flickering red glow of the square's walls. The high flight made it almost impossible for his ice slimes to land a hit, but also made the bird creature’s spells difficult to land on Kael.

  But Kael wasn’t one to give up so easily and got his wisps to continue the chase.

  Kael stared at the night sky, trying to pin the bird down when he realized a presence here, on the ground.

  The first one he saw was a massive humanoid ox, its body rippling with muscle, blue skin gleaming under the dim light, sharp horns jutting out from its skull like weapons. The beast grunted, grinding its hooves into the ground, leaving marks in the dirt. But Kael’s gaze moved past the ox to the next intruder.

  A yellow humanoid lion, equally muscular, stood beside the ox, its battle axe gleaming in the fading light. The lion’s golden mane swayed slightly with the wind, its eyes locked on Kael with a feral hunger. There was strength in that gaze. Raw and untamed.

  And then, as if the odds weren't stacked against him, Kael spotted the third creature. A cat-like humanoid, lithe and slender, her muscles taut. Her claws glistened, sharper than any blade.

  The cat's eyes flickered with malice as she crouched, preparing to leap. Before Kael could react fully, she pounced, her claws extending like daggers aimed straight for him.

  The creature was fast, but he was faster.

  Kael’s body moved before his mind could catch up. He dashed forward underneath her pounce, the impact of her landing nothing more than a gust of air.

  His sword, already in hand, slashed upward, catching the feline intruder on her side. It wasn’t a fatal blow, but it was enough. Blood had stained her fur, and she hissed in pain, turning quickly to face him. Impact Thrust had done its job.

  She was slowed down, leaving her open for the final strike. Kael took a deep breath and lunged forward, his sword cutting through the air with the precision of a master.

  The first strike was a blur of motion, his sword severing her arm with a clean, brutal cut. The pain was immediate and intense—the arm fell to the ground with a thud.

  But Kael didn’t stop. The second strike landed, then the third, each blow landing with devastating accuracy. Her body twisted under the onslaught, but it was no use. Her form buckled beneath his relentless barrage.

  By the time all six of Kael’s Flurry of Strikes had landed, the cat-like intruder was crumpled on the ground, her dismembered body twitching. Her blood stained the floor of his square, red against the green of the moss beneath.

  Kael stood over her, breathing heavily, his sword dripping with the blood of the fallen.

  Introductory levels.

  The thought rang in his mind, bitter and grim. They were only Introductory. His first instinct had been to laugh, to mock them, but a part of Kael wondered why they had come.

  And more importantly, why now? Why had these creatures chosen his square? What had brought them here?

  These must be the consequences Skrindle mentioned.

  ******

  Square: Unknown

  Master: Kael

  Difficulty: Bronze

  Conclave: None

  Treasure: 1692 Gold

  Residents: 4 Ice Slimes Lvl 1

  10 Green Slimes Lvl 1

  2 Green Slimes Lvl 2

  1 Green Slime Lvl 3

  1 Poison Slime Lvl 1

  24 Will-o-wisp Lvl 1

  1 Steel Golem (Strength Specialization) Lvl 3

  1 Steel Golem (Complexity Specialization) Lvl 3

  1 Skara Lvl 1

  Mount: Shadow Mount

  Kills: 13