One hundred soldiers through the rift.
Two hundred.
Five hundred.
A thousand.
Fourteen hundred.
Fifteen hundred soldiers total.
Loki's reinforcements. The army he'd been marching through the night to reach the settlement in time.
They'd arrived.
Lyra stared in shock. "You... you're here. You're actually here."
"Did you doubt?" Loki asked, his voice carrying warmth despite his demonic appearance.
"I thought... I thought you'd arrive too late. I thought we'd be dead before—"
"We would have been," Loki interrupted. "If we'd marched at normal pace. But we forced march—double speed, no rest, pushing through exhaustion. My soldiers are tired, but they're here."
Through Seraphina's network, the settlement defenders felt Loki's presence.
And hope exploded through the telepathic connection like sunrise.
"REINFORCEMENTS!"
"LOKI'S HERE!"
"WE'RE SAVED!"
"THE ARMY ARRIVED!"
