Brass rallying-horns boomed all over the camp; it was time to leave Kriesgrab. Flann and Walgen dressed themselves and packed their possessions. The tent was stowed as soon as they emptied it. By the time the sun was well above the horizon, people had eaten, gathered their things and found their respective officers.
There were now more than seven cadleders who had come with the reinforcements. Each sat atop a horse at the head of their war-bands. Cadleder Kemp was at the head of Flann's war-band, seated on a powerful gray steed. He faced his four hundred troops.
"Hear me! Today, we begin our sweep of the north; all war-bands have a region to clear. Since we are the largest, we are headed straight for the foot of the Hellpit, where we believe the demons have come from. I can guarantee that there will be fighting, so be prepared to act quickly."
He turned away and signaled the group to march. The other Cadleders took their soldiers in different directions, fanning out in between the north and the east. They would be sweeping the highlands between the Red River and the Tearing Beck, to ensure that no demon still roamed by the end of the journey.
The sun had risen not long ago, casting its fiery light on the western side of the mountains to the north, giving a rather imposing look to the Hellpit volcano, which stood higher than any other mountain, as it was at the meeting point of the Ashen Peaks and the Spinas Range. No smoke spewed from its tip, nor had any for several decades. The highlands became flatter as the war-band gathered north. They needed to travel around sixty kilometers to reach the base of the Hellpit.
Flann and Walgen marched side-by-side. She turned to him.
"I wonder where exactly the demons came from. They couldn't possibly all climb out of the Hellpit's mouth, could they?" she asked.
"I doubt they could. The Hellpit is rather steep near its tip, not to mention that the pit itself reaches into the bowels of the earth," responded Walgen.
"Do you think that the Realm of Chaos is below the earth? Perhaps they come from a cave at the foot of the Hellpit, one that is yet to be discovered."
Walgen thought a moment.
"Perhaps they are below the earth, but it is hard to believe that they sit in one massive cavern under all this dirt and stone."
Ragnhild came along.
"I have a gift for you, Flann," announced Ragnhild, "Bought from a requisition officer with my pay: a good set of mail. It'll protect you more than that flimsy warrobe, and weighs little more."
Flann thanked her.
They walked together, chatting about the happier days in their respective villages, although Ragnhild did speak of the day that her village was attacked by Valand soldiers in 639, during the war. She told the tale of a crazy Luxurite warrior who single-handedly defeated twenty Valandian soldiers along the shore of the river, one who reveled in the slaying of his foes. The Luxurite soldiers had been outnumbered three to one, and they had been only fifty strong.
"Was only seven years old that day. Lay hiding under a broken cart when I saw him slay his twentieth foe. He was covered in blood and his armour was damaged in all places, yet he still stood. Told myself, that very day, that I must become a warrior like him. A warrior like Bloody Warrick, although, perhaps without laughing while slicing the throat of fallen foes."
"He sounds rather savage. Unbelievable... Twenty to himself?" exclaimed Flann.
"Without help. He was an exceptional leader, too."
"If only we had that man here," said Walgen.
"He died in 642, as the luxurite army was routed from Valandian territory. They say he was covered in blood of one hundred foes. An arrow killed him, they say, right in his eye, the luckiest shot as he wore one of the earliest sets of plate armour," explained Ragnhild. "They say his son was a farmer in one of the central villages of Luxurum, and he had the village named in Warrick's honour. No one remembers which, though."
Flann hesitated before asking: "Do you have children, Ragnhild?"
"Never had a child. Would like to, after this war, if anyone dares sleep with Raging Ragnhild."
"Well, they can expect you to be quite..." said Walgen, smiling, "lively."
He laughed. Ragnhild's face turned to a slight red. She shoved him, gently by her standard. Walgen tumbled. They all laughed.
A few hours later, the front of the formation shouted something. Kemp gave the signal to prepare for battle. They were perhaps halfway to the Hellpit, and demons had come to intercept them. Ragnhild fetched the armour she had bought for Flann.
Flann was sent closer to the front, along with Walgen and Ragnhild. They were a few rows of soldiers from the front. The front of the formation tightened their ranks and drew their weapons. The first row was entirely composed of shield-bearing swordsmen, mostly Luxurite soldiers, and they formed a shield wall. The second row comprised of pole-arm users, some with spears or other weapons, but most with halberds. The third row was a mixture of priest, priestesses and pike-wielders. Other rows were arranged similarly and would replace those who fell in the front rank, while a group of priests and priestesses at the back healed the fallen.
Maledicti crashed against the shields, trying to reach over or around them to claw at the face of the swordsmen. Halberds smashed them from above. Polearms were blown aside by harsh winds as the stormborn lined up behind the Maledicti cast their magic. The front exchanged blows with the demons. Flann felt the wind and smelled the blood it carried. Wounded were dragged from the front, and they were replaced by others. Flann began healing those who were placed near her. Most bore only gashes from claws or wind, but others had been burnt by fire-breath. Screams of humans and demons alike filled the air, accompanied by the sounds of storms and steel.
Humans were clawed and maimed, while Maledicti were crushed by the pole-arms and skewered by swords and pikes. Stormborn were struck at their core and dissipated into a soft breeze. The floor drank blood and was adorned with bits of ashbone as the humans pushed back the demons.
More shouts came from the east; the closest war-band had seen the demons and come to flank them. The demons ranks backpedaled, but would not be routed as they tried to do as much damage as they could. A Maledicti ahead of Flann managed to grab a soldier and drag him into the ranks of the demons. His scream, more powerful than the other sounds, indicated to Flann that he had been cursed. That first victim of the curse redoubled the strength at which the humans fought.
Caron could be heard among the melee: "See those fiends, fell them with your mighty wrath! The Maiden has given us a sign! We shall crush our foe!"
With that, it began raining over the ranks of the demons. Caron's magic was at work. The Maledicti screamed as their half-molten-stone flesh sizzled as the water cooled their flesh. Some were enraged and fought harder, while some fell with ease.
Ragnhild was now sent to the first row, and Walgen to the second. Flann remained there, healing the wounded.
"Please, Maiden, protect those two. I need them," she prayed.
Cadleder Kemp was near, still atop his horse, shouting to his troops: " 'Tis a purge! We shall clean this land of their taint so that our children may wander these fields safely, that our people never see their loved ones off to war!"
The battle died drew out, war-cries still echoing in Flann's ears. Body count indicated two hundred demons had been slain. Sixty-two of the war-band had fallen, either killed or cursed, and a hundred more were wounded. Flann could only hope that this pre-emptive strike was as costly to the forces of Chaos as it had been to them. A few soldiers were doing rounds eliminating fallen, yet still moving, demons.
Ragnhild and Walgen return, lightly wounded. Flann tended to them personally.
"Where would we be without of healers, eh?" said Walgen.
"We would have lost long ago," responded Ragnhild.
The wounded were put into carts while the dead were arranged under tents. Kemp shattered a small glass orb, identical to the one Ragnhild had used during the hunt of the rogue, and it emitted a magical signal.
"Think not of the dead. They will be recovered swiftly by those who remained in Kriesgrab. We must carry on to the north and finish this fight," shouted Kemp to the war-band.
The battle had taken its toll, even on those who had not been wounded at all, and yet the fervour remained. They nevertheless forged onward. They came into view of the foot of the Hellpit. There had been a forest before the Hellpit, but it had been set on fire shortly before their arrival. Thousands of trees blazed in the distance, letting a great black mass of smoke float to the heavens. Caron made his way to the front of the formation and spoke to Cadleder Kemp.
Kemp turned towards the war-band and said: "We will cross this forest and storm the demons. They have sent this as their last defence, it seems. Those well-versed in water magic, come forth! High Priest Caron has need of you."
Caron arranged those that came to him in a line, close to one another. He took place in the middle. Soldiers formed a shield-wall ahead of them, and they led the war-band forward. The troops narrowed the formation to fit behind the line of twenty priests, priestesses, and the odd luxurite soldiers who knew magic. Together, they summed a great cloud, whose darkness rivaled the smoke. Violent rain poured ahead of the formation, quenching some of the flames. The pace was slow, but, gradually, a path was clear amidst the flames. Blacked trees forced the the ranks to split momentarily as the war-band made its way through the once-living forest. They emerged on the other side, and hiked up gradually rising terrain until they reached the bottom of the rocky base of the Hellpit. Further up ahead was a well-travelled trail cleared of rocks and pebbles. The path lead to a small alcove in the rock face. Within, terrifying sounds could be heard: demons of unknown numbers were screeching, trying, perhaps, to scare the humans away.
"This must be it," shouted Kemp, "the lair of the demons! We enter at once!"
The recess was narrow, admitting no more than a half-dozen side-by-side. The war-band, including the horse-drawn carts, entered the cave. The soldiers assumed their standard battle formation and entered the darkness of the alcove. Within was a large cavern – a cavern, forty-meters wide and, it seemed, full of demons.