Winter dragged Maledictus by one armored arm, the Demon Knight's unconscious body carving a rough trail through dirt and shattered stone as it scraped behind him. Every few steps, the limp weight snagged on broken rock before jerking free again. Blood smeared along the ground in a dark streak that marked their path back toward the portal.
Weeping Phantom walked a pace behind and to the side, silent at first.
"How many times do we have to do this, Phantom?" Winter began, his tone conversational, as if they were discussing something mildly inconvenient rather than the aftermath of a battlefield. "Every time we run into demons, you drift toward them. Every single time. It is getting repetitive."
Weeping Phantom clenched her jaw tight enough that it hurt.
"What, is my life just a story to you!?" she snapped, then turned her face away from him.
"Repetitive, he says." she huffed, "What is wrong with that empty head of his?" she muttered to herself, the words low and sharp.
Winter gave a small shrug as they reached the portal. Its surface churned in unstable waves of dark energy, the air around it distorting faintly.
He released Maledictus without ceremony. The Demon Knight hit the ground hard, armor clanking dully against stone.
"Alright," Winter said, rolling his shoulders once before adjusting his grip on the axe. He set his feet shoulder-width apart and brought the weapon up in both hands, angling the blade toward the portal's core. "Time to get this one closed up."
He drew the axe back in a controlled arc, muscles tightening through his arms and back, preparing to cleave directly into the heart of the gateway—
---
Darek walked through the woods with steady strides, the black knight and Lennix following just behind him. Leaves and twigs crunched softly beneath their boots. No one had spoken for several minutes. The silence was not hostile, but it was strained—tight from what had already been said and revealed.
"So…" Lennix broke it first, rubbing the back of his head. "Ever planed on revealing yourself to us, Carver? Or should I say… Darek?"
"You know that doesn't really sound as dramatic when... its already out right? You have to kind of say it before its out," the black knight replied.
Lennix let out a chuckle. "I just really wanted to say it."
Darek exhaled slowly through his nose. "Its good to see that you two haven't taken it to heart at least. And no. I wasn't planning on telling you."
Lennix shook his head and pressed a hand to his unbeating heart. "Oh no. I absolutely have taken it to heart," he said flatly. "You could have stepped in sooner. Mari and the others would not have had to see us like that. Wouldn't have had to cry. Its just that there isn't much we can do about it, considering you are… you know? The Reluctant Deity and all that."
"The same goes for me," the black knight added. "If you were anyone else, we would already be hitting you."
Darek slowed and turned to face them fully. "Okay, you know what? Fine, I'll let you both get one hit in each for what I did, okay? That sound fair to you two?"
They blinked at him.
"Seriously?" the black knight asked.
"Yes. Seriously. Go on. I deserve—"
He never finished.
Lennix's fist snapped forward first, connecting cleanly with Darek's nose. At the same time, the black knight drove a punch into his stomach. The combined force folded him and sent him crashing onto his back.
"Ah, shit!" Darek groaned, clutching his face as blood immediately spilled between his fingers. "Damn my nose, wait for me to finish my sentence, you assholes, ow!"
Lennix flexed his hand once, satisfied. "Yeah. That did feel good."
"Yup," the black knight said evenly. "Now let us go close that portal."
They stepped past Darek without offering a hand.
He lay there for a second longer, staring up at the canopy. Then he sighed, pushed himself upright, and wiped at the blood beneath his nose.
It did not take long for the three of them to reach the portal.
"Let us get this over with," Darek muttered.
He raised his right hand toward the portal…
---
Mark, Azid, Hoshikang, and Yuna moved toward the portal at a steady pace. Of the four, only Azid looked untouched by exhaustion. Mark's shoulders sagged slightly, Yuna's steps were careful and measured, but Hoshikang, despite the wear on his clothes, wore an easy smile.
"How lucky you two are," Hoshikang said lightly, glancing toward Mark and Azid. "Being saved by The Strongest of Aeruna. Not many have that honor. He is quite reclusive, after all."
Azid visibly trembled, not from fear but from barely contained excitement. "I was so confused when it happened," he admitted, energy practically radiating off him, "but after you explained it to me…"
His grin widened.
"I not really want to meet this Yahito and fight him!"
Yuna shivered at the enthusiasm in his voice.
*Goddess, he's already a pain to deal with. I don't want him turning into some strange admirer and becoming even more unbearable…* she thought. Then, despite herself, *…but it is kind of nice for a demon to be so energetic about me.*
"I-I don't think he has t-time for anything like that," she said aloud, trying to temper the direction of Azid's excitement.
Mark nodded in agreement. "Hmm, hmm. We are lucky he happened to be here at all."
As the portal came into view Mark reached into his pockets and pulled out his d20, rolling it once between his fingers.
"But enough about that," he said. "Let me deal with this port."
With a smooth flick of his thumb, he sent the die tumbling forward. It struck the sand, bounced once, twice, and rolled in a tight arc before settling...
---
"Ugh, my fucking throat," The Sage muttered, fingers pressing against his neck as if testing the lingering damage.
"It still hurts?" The Vampire asked, glancing sideways at him.
"You try and use word magic and see how that goes for you," The Sage replied hoarsely.
The Vampire shrugged, looking faintly amused. "I mean, I'm not saying I can. But if I was able to, I would just regenerate the damage."
The smugness in their face was unmistakable.
The Succubus sighed softly between them. "Now, now. Let us not argue over hypotheticals. We're coming up to the portal the Demon Knight mentioned, and I can definitely feel its presence."
Ahead of them, the air shimmered faintly. The portal's energy pulsed in slow, oppressive waves.
The Sage tightened his grip on his staff. "And of course I gotta close it. Can't have a bloody break, can I?" he muttered. Then he glanced at The Succubus. "You sure you can't head home and tell 'em to keep things quiet?"
She let out a soft, almost musical chuckle. "Oh dear, if only it were that easy. Besides, I hate Hell. It is not particularly enjoyable with all the constant suffering."
They stepped into view of the portal.
"Alright. Make room, you two," The Sage said as he lifted his staff...
---
Not at the exact same instant, but near enough that it might as well have been, across Aetheria four different hands moved against four different portals.
Winter's axe completed its arc. The blade struck the portal's core with a violent cleave, splitting its surface down the center. The gateway shuddered, the tear collapsing inward along the cut before unraveling entirely into fading strands of energy.
Darek's raised hand tightened into a fist. The portal before him compressed under invisible pressure, its edges folding inward as though crushed by unseen force. It shrank rapidly, condensing into a shrinking sphere before snapping shut.
Mark's die came to rest on a high result from his arcana check. He focused on the magic of the portal, steadying his breathing as the energy along its surface began to waver. The portal rippled unevenly, edges flickering and thinning before it folded inward on itself and quietly dispersed into fading light.
The Sage brought his staff down hard against the ground. The impact rang out, and lines of light burst outward in intersecting paths, slicing through the portal in precise segments. The structure fragmented under the luminous cuts, each section dissolving into drifting sparks before vanishing completely.
And King Domine felt all of it happening.
And he was… enraged.