(Ersa)

 

               Ersa rushed forward followed by Chan. She swerved to avoid all the rubble from the disintegrating fortress around her. She jumped over fallen towers and made her way to the middle of the once great fortress.

​

               She had seen on old maps of Iilrona in Nebulus University’s libraries that there were once fortresses all throughout Fariyoh Forest. They had all been overrun by Erseugen and abandoned centuries ago. They were off modern maps, so it would make sense for the headmistress to take all the dirty work here. A place abandoned and forgotten.

​

               As she circled around a wall, she saw the grim scene before her. Serafina was standing in the middle of what Ersa assumed used to be the great hall of the fortress. It was now a large field of stone and overgrown foliage. The demon was bound by anti-magic restraints on a high platform about one kilometer. It looked like she was wrapped tightly in toilet paper. Ersa looked closer and realized she was in straightjacket. Next to Serafina was Headmistress Zenith, armed with her spear and shield. Next to her was a hulking bear of a man in shining silver armor with long blonde hair and a beard. In his hands was a silver broadsword jeweled to perfection and sharpened to a deadly point. The man’s face was harsh and scarred from previous battles. His muscles bulged out so much they seemed to barely fit in his armor. Ersa recognized him as Aleczar, Captain of the King’s Royal Guard. The rumors around him claimed he was part dwarf, part giant. He was infamous for stubbornly never giving up and had won every fight he’d ever been part of. His magical abilities rivaled that of a god.

 

               So the rumors were.

​

               The Royal Guard and Knights of the King were completely different from guardians. They dealt with anti-magic and restraint. They relied more on physical power and strength. Guardians celebrated magic and made it part of their very being. The two notoriously disliked each other and often were found squabbling.

​

               Surrounding them all were several people on their knees, chanting something. She recognized a few as professors and staff from the school, the rest were knights or unrecognizable. Serafina was being illuminated by a spotlight and several weapons were pointed on her. She looked around, confused but still somehow oblivious to the reality of the situation. Her innocent face made Ersa’s stomach churn. Seeing her up there made the situation too real.

​

               “The punishment doesn’t fit the crime,” Chan muttered beside Ersa. “What’s the plan?”

​

               “I’m not sure yet.” Ersa looked at him as they crouched behind the wall. “Just how are they planning to execute her? Demons can’t be killed.” she mused.

​

               Chan was silent for a moment. “Actually...”

​

               “What?”

​

               “You were passed out but remember how I told you Serafina got rid of the other demon?”

​

               “Wait… with the magic circle?” Ersa’s eyes went wide. “Gods, they wouldn't… Hoist me up!” They wouldn’t dare try summoning an upper level demon to kill Serafina, would they? Ersa wracked her brain on what they could do to counteract this stupidity. She looked at the platform from the higher angle and, sure enough, there was the faint glow of a summoning circle around Serafina.

​

               “I recognize the markings of that circle.” she stated. “I read about it when I was doing some research a while ago. They’re trying to summon the highest-class of demon. They’re called Archfiends. Nearly impossible to summon and even harder to control. This is mad! They can’t go through with this! They’re messing with unknown entities that could destroy the world!”

​

               “Gods...” Chan muttered.

​

               “Alright, follow my lead.” Ersa said, grabbing two reddish-purple crystals from her bracelet. “I can’t believe I have to use this spell twice in one week,” she grumbled and closed her eyes, breathing in deeply. “Aero, god of wind, give me the strength to fly.” she prayed casting Godspeed. She stabbed the two crystals into her legs, grunting in pain as she did so. Life around Ersa seemed to slow to a crawl as she ran the length of the field.

​

               Her heart pounded in her chest. Godspeed only allowed her 3-5 seconds in real time to run basically at the speed of light. The aftermath made her reflexes slow down for about 3-5 minutes, however. So she needed to be careful.

​

               She ran up to Serafina and picked the demon up. She saw those around her slowly beginning to react. Some knights were reaching for their weapons, a few professors blinking back in surprise, Headmistress Zenith looking confused as Ersa locked eyes with her for a brief moment. She spun on her heels and brought Serafina back to Chan.

​

               She immediately ran back to where Serafina had once stood. She paused, enjoying the last seconds of silence and peace before the world sped back up. She braced herself for her consequences.

​

               “Ersa?!” Headmistress Zenith looked at her in surprise as some knights ran to surround Chan and Serafina.

​

               “Stop this madness!” Ersa yelled at everyone surrounding her.

​

               “Yeh daft cunt this be an execution!” Aleczar glared angrily at her, blade at the ready.

​

               “I know,” she challenged. “That’s why I’m here. I am Ersa, co-leader of Cardinal Equinox. Serafina is my teammate. I believe she is innocent and does not deserve to die. She made a mistake by opening a portal to her home, not realizing the consequences of her actions. She is not a monster, she is just misguided.” she looked pleadingly at Headmistress Zenith. “Headmistress, please let us guide her. You’ve seen her raw magical talent. Guided down the right path, she can be a great asset to the fight against the Erseugen.”

​

               She saw Serafina and Chan standing back-to-back from the corner of her eye. She silently prayed Serafina wouldn’t do anything rash.

​

               “I ha’ orders.” Aleczar spat in his thick dwarven accent.

​

               “Please,” Ersa pleaded. “Give her a chance. We’ve all made mistakes in the past. Now that I know the truth about Serafina, I won’t allow the tragedy that befell to happen again.” she spoke a little louder. “If we were all put to death for one mistake, there’d be none of us here today.” she stared the Headmistress in the eye, beggin for her teammate’s life. “Everyone deserves a second chance. Please let this be Serafina’s. Don’t do something you’ll later regret, Headmistress.”

​

               Aleczar kept yelling at Ersa and the Headmistress, but Ersa didn’t move. She could see the conflict Zenith was going through. She prayed she would see things her way. Serafina needed to live. All throughout the past 16 years, Ersa had relied on her instincts and they hadn’t let her down yet. And they told her Serafina wasn’t all bad. She stared into Headmistress Zenith’s dark eyes, holding her breath.

​

               She blinked and took a tiny step back, “Stop,” Headmistress Zenith gasped, looking around. “Stop this! All of it!” she yelled, waving her hands.

​

               “WHAT?!” Aleczar gripped his sword tighter. “Whaddaya mean stop?!”

​

               “I can’t do this!” Headmistress Zenith stood, shoulders back. “I cannot live with myself if I allow a student of mine to be executed. Captain Aleczar, stand down! And order your men to let them all go.”

​

               “I only take orders from muh king!” Aleczar sneered and spat at Zenith’s feet.

​

               Headmistress Zenith stepped forward, standing her ground. “My student, my school, my rules. Serafina lives.”

​

               Aleczar screamed in rage. “She canna live! I ha’ orders! It’s her life er mine and I wanna live!” he yelled and swung his glowing white sword at Ersa.

​

               Shit. Because of Godspeed, Ersa’s reactions had been slowed down too much to dodge or put up any shield. She tried to step back, but knew she was too slow.

​

               In the blink of an eye, Headmistress Zenith was in front of Ersa, shield up, taking the blunt of Aleczar’s broadsword. As the sword crashed into the shield, Ersa saw in horror the shield shatter like brittle wood. Aleczar’s swing slashed through Zenith’s arm like butter, blood gushing out.

​

               Ersa saw Aleczar pull his sword back as he realized what he had done, saving the Headmistress from being sliced into two. The sword slid down her front diagonally, blood flowing like a waterfall.

​

               Everyone held their breath in shock as the Headmistress fell to her knees.

​

               As the crimson blood touched the magic circle, it began to glow blood red. The summoning was complete.

               

               “No!” Ersa heard someone yell from behind.

​

               The skies darkened and was what supposed to be sunrise turned into dark as night. Ersa felt a chill run down her spine as everyone watched in silent horror.  The air around her began to buzz with energy as red lightning began to strike in the air. One huge bolt zapped down between Ersa and Aleczar, where Zenith’s blood had been spilt.

​

               When her eyes adjusted she saw an Archfiend crouched down before her. Her heart pounded in her chest as she studied her, unsure of what to do. She had bright red skin and curly black hair. Two horns protruded from the mass of curls. Her tail was scaly and thick with a rattle on the end. Her outfit was a tight black mess of shining leather, lace, and chains. Her ears were pointed like Serafina’s with black earrings running up and down. She stood slowly and opened her eyes. They were black with yellow irises, her pupils jagged and pointed like a serpent. She hissed and grinned out at everyone. Nearly all of those present fell to their knees, overwhelmed by her presence. Ersa felt her knees wobble, an overwhelming sense of dread and despair filling her. She stood her ground, willing herself to stay conscious this time. Several staff and knights began to cry out in pain. A few collapsed, quite possibly dead.

​

               Aleczar was on his knees, painful regret painted across his face.

​

               The Archfiend stretched and breathed in. “Ahh,” she hissed. “Oh how I’ve missed fucking with you mortals.” she licked her lips, making Ersa nervous. She turned to Aleczar. “Remember what happened here today,” she commanded. “We don’t want you releasing more than one true Archfiend upon this pitiful world, do we?” she turned to Ersa and looked her in the eyes. She seemed to be searching for something for a brief moment. She grinned maliciously, “Sister,” she nodded and looked over Ersa’s shoulder.

​

               She then laughed and began to dissipate into dark fog. She locked eyes with a knight who was bravely standing his ground and winked, disappearing into the atmosphere. As she left, the storm clouds cleared, leaving a bright, sunny morning behind.

​

               Several of those surrounding Ersa gasped, having literally held their breath.

​

               Everyone began moving at once after the Archfiend vanished. Ersa fell to her knees, gathering up the Headmistress in her arms, resting her head on her knees. All around, the knights and staff members began to fight. Ersa heard the clank of Aleczar’s sword as it fell to the bloodied platform.

​

               “I didn’t want this,” Headmistress Zenith garbled through a mouthful of blood. “Nor did I expect this, yet, this is my end.” Ersa grabbed several crystals from her bracelet, ready to do what she could to help. Zenith grabbed Ersa’s hand and shook her head slightly. “Don’t waste them,” she wheezed. She looked Ersa in the eye, who was silent. “I didn’t want this,” she repeated. “Make it right.” Zenith’s eyes went cloudy as she closed them for good.

​

               Ersa looked up at Aleczar who was looking at his shaking hands. “I can’t believe what I’ve done.” he kept muttering over and over.

​

               Ersa set Headmistress Zenith’s head down gently and stood. She walked to Aleczar, furious but listening to her own words just moments ago. “Close your eyes.” she stated. He immediately obeyed, shutting them tightly.

​

               Ersa closed her own, several powerful light crystals blessed by priests floating in front of her. Eyes shut tight, she faced the heavens and held her arms out. “Pillar of Light!” she called out, calling upon Light, the god of light. From the heavens a blindingly white light shone. All those in the area were instantly blinded and would be for a few minutes, long enough for Ersa to try and talk some sense into everyone. The problem with this spell was if the caster wasn’t careful, they could be blinded too.

​

               “Stop this fighting!” Ersa yelled, opening her eyes. Thankfully, she still had her sight and looked around as everyone frantically reached and grabbed at the air or their eyes. “Can’t you see what you’re becoming?” she continued, projecting her voice with magic so everyone could hear. “You’re no better than the demon you just tried to kill. Since you fools can’t see with your eyes, listen with your hearts. Teachers, Guardians, Knights, you united this morn with the intent of killing an innocent, and that you have done. Our Headmistress Zenith has been murdered. Stop now before anymore join her. We are all of different decent; Dwarf, Human, Elf, Centaur, Minotaur, Satyr, Fairy, Giant, Goblin, Cambion, Nephilim, Nymph, Witch, Wizard, and Demon. However, in the gods’ eyes we are all the same. We will all perish one day, and I’d rather that not be today. Now return to your friends and family. Too many have joined the gods this morning.”

​

               Ersa looked out as everyone began to stagger around. They had all more or less regained their sight at this point. They slowly began to follow her orders and leave. She saw Chan and Serafina standing in the distance, waiting for her.

​

               She turned to Aleczar. “Report to the king. Tell him what happened here, that we consider him an enemy of the Realm. He has chosen his own demise.”