Iatus and Max glanced between the pile of ash and the cat girl.
"What do we do now?" Max asked, looking at the crowd of soldiers and magi who had gathered around the square.
Iatus didn't have an answer, but he was glad to see that the others were equally dumbfounded.
"Just glare at them and walk out, like you just did that yourself, usually works for me..." said a voice at their feet.
Iatus looked down and saw that the voice came from a particularly bedraggled sparrow. It had two black eyes, a chipped beak, a bent wing, a disfigured leg and no feathers on half its back. From somewhere he had found a wooden crutch and was hobbling along on it.
"You look awful Aelith!" Max said, shocked by the bird's appearance.
"Oh, I'm sorry to disappoint you, your eminence, next time a master mage tries to kill us I'll let you handle it."
"Aelith, be nice," Iatus scolded.
"Brat," Aelith scowled at Max, "Iatus, do as I say, walk as if you're a God and they'll part before you."
Iatus looked at Max, shrugged and started to walk towards what he hoped was the exit.
Illiria sniffed and wiped her eyes with her sleeve, "Wait for me guys!"
She bounded up to their side and matched their pace. She came up to Iatus' shoulder in height and he felt oddly protective over her, even though she was far more powerful than anyone he had ever met.
"Where are we going now?" she asked.
"Home," Iatus replied, although he had no idea which way that was, or even if he would be welcome back.
"Oh, okay," she mewed and wiped her eyes again.
They approached the line of people, Iatus steeled his courage and kept his pace. The people looked at each other nervously.
"S...s...stop... right there!" stuttered one man, "You cannot leave!"
Iatus' stomach churned but he kept his nerve, "And why not?"
"I... We... Won't let you!" the man screeched nervously.
"You think you can stop us?" Iatus replied calmly.
"It is my duty to try!"
Damn it.
"Well, it was worth a try," Aelith said solemnly.
"So much for Aelith the wise," Iatus said, groaning.
"Will you shut up about that, I've managed to keep you alive so far! Not many spirits could have done that I assure you!"
"The only contribution you have ever made to my safety is to leave me in a tent to be tortured and killed! How is that keeping me alive?"
Aelith scowled, then winced and draped a wing over his cracked beak.
"Dismiss you're demons at once!" the man continued.
"Please get out of my way, I've had a very trying day," Iatus said, sighing.
"Dismiss your demons! Now!" the man insisted.
"Damn," Iatus groaned and said Fiuren's command word.
A hole in the air appeared and the golem stepped out. The tiredness was getting to Iatus, despite Illiria's healing, and his head span from what should have been a minor event. The golem's sheer size and metal appearance should have terrified the onlookers into fleeing for their lives, except the hole in question opened horizontally, depositing poor Fiuren in a heap on the floor, evoking confusion rather than the intended terror.
"Was that my fault or his?" Iatus asked.
"No idea, that sort of thing doesn't happen to me..." Aelith mused.
Fiuren got clumsily to its feet and looked around, found Iatus and knelt before him.
"Gods Iatus!" Max exclaimed, "How many demons do you have?"
"Fiuren," Iatus said as confidently as he could and pointed at the assembled Gauls, "Smash them."
I think simplicity might be the best policy with this one...
Fiuren got to his feet, nodded, held out his hand to the air.
"What is it doing?" Max asked.
"No idea; golems can't do magic..." Iatus replied.
"Actually, this one..." Aelith started but he was interrupted by four more circles appearing in the air and smaller metal golems stepped out of each of them, wielding various oversized weaponry with vicious edges.
"...can," Aelith finished.
"But... But..." Max quivered in astonishment.
"But you said demons couldn't summon demons!" Iatus glared at Aelith.
"Well, no, I said spirits can't bind spirits. Some of us have mastered the art of calling on friends or people who owe us debts for assistance."
"Huh," Iatus articulated.
The golems then set about swinging their weaponry at the gathered group of soldiers. Fortunately for them the golems were rather slow and cumbersome and the crowd scattered, shouting for reinforcements.
Max put his hand against his forehead, looking on in disbelief, "Do you have a single demon that isn't stupidly powerful."
"That one," Iatus pointed at Gopple, who waved at Max and smiled.
"He's just stupid," Aelith commented.
Iatus nodded and pulled Max along by the arm. They ran through the streets towards the palisade and followed it along until they reached the gate. There were no guards present but there was still a large beam across it.
"Max, help me shift this."
The two boys ran to one end and began to push on the beam. In their weakened states they found it tough, but they managed to shift it, inch by inch.
Until Illiria got bored and blasted the doors open with white light.
She smiled and bounded out of the smoking doors.
"Yay! Grass!" she turned and smiled at them, "Oh Aelith! What happened to you? You look so shabby!"
Aelith slouched, "I'm fine, don't worry."
"Did she only just notice that now?" Max whispered in Iatus' ear.
Iatus shrugged.
"Don't be silly Aely! Here!" she went over and crouched in front of him.
"No! Don't!"
She touched his head and light cascaded down from her hand.
"Ow! Ow! Ow!" Aelith shouted and hopped away, smoking slightly, "You idiot cat! I'm an air spirit! Light mana isn't compatible with me!"
"Oh, I'm sorry Aely," she sniffed and tears began to well up in her eyes.
"Don't worry Illiria," Iatus said, "I'll send him back to the Ether, he can rest there."
"Yay! Aely's going home!" she purred and clapped her hands, falling back to a sitting position and kicking off her sandals, "It's such a lovely day! Let's go to the beach!"
Iatus and Max gawked at her.
"The sea is hundreds of miles away," Max said, confused.
"Owww," Illiria moaned, folded her arms and pouted.
Iatus shook his head and said the dismissal for Aelith.
The bird groaned in relief and winked out of existence, no doubt collapsing wherever he called home.
"So what do we do now?" Max asked.
Iatus bit his lip, "Well, Rome's that way, so I guess we start walking."
"Can't you summon us up some horses," Max asked, hanging his head.
"Not without a good night's sleep and a well-stocked magical library. And I don't think we'll be getting one of those anytime soon."
"Yay! We're going on an adventure!" Illiria shouted and put on her sandals.
She jumped to her feet and bounded off down the road.
Aelith was right. She is evil.
Max and Iatus sighed and followed grudgingly after her.
The shouts of battle from behind them were growing more intense. Iatus looked back at the town and every now and again a small figure would be flung into the air, screaming.
"Head for those trees," said Iatus, nodding at the wood about a mile from the town.
Max nodded and they set off at a jog.
They got about half way before a searing pain shot through Iatus and he felt the ties holding the golem to him break.
"Iatus! Are you okay?" Max asked as Iatus groaned and doubled over.
"We need to start running."
Max didn't question and just pulled Iatus along as fast as he could.