It wasn't our time to go home.
"That's the largest army I have seen in my life," Bastion noted, seemingly amazed by their numbers. Two whole battalions, six companies in total, about a thousand men, and some change. It wasn't that spectacular, but this continent rarely seen forces of this scale amassed.
"You probably didn't see much considering how old you are." Fang mirrored my thoughts. Still, I might have to lead these people, and I wasn't looking forward to it. I was supposed to be the chief of staff instead of a field commander. Plus, my rank wasn't adequate for this.
"Just why?" I asked myself riding towards the formations. And I was worried the Demon Lord would execute me because of my failure. Now I was put in command and potentially promoted too. Nothing made sense to me. And who were we fighting?
"I should be asking the same, Dio," Exagus complained behind us. For a moment, I thought he was reading my mind too. His mount could barely keep up with our splendid Nightmares though, and Hakim seemed to be the only one enjoying the situation. He stole a destrier back in that coastal city and was proud of himself. He was such a strange guy and was hellbent on joining the Twelve. "Why did I have to come out of retirement for this? What is this nonsense?"
"That's what you get for calling yourself a warlock. Now you will be heading to war." I turned back to taunt him. But yes, while we all wished the Demon Lord would finally leave that cursed and cold Ghell fortress, I didn't think it meant we would all march into battle.
"I thought we never had larger formations than companies before." I heard Bastion trying to grasp the situation, and he was slower than usual, like a little boy who was easily amazed by the most mundane things, which reminded me he was indeed very young. All of us seemed to be missing something: Fang his wife, Bastion his childhood, and me, I got away relatively easily, losing an eye. "This looks much more."
"In the Continental Wars, countries threw dozens of divisions at each other. Each division would be at least ten thousand people, usually more, so this is nothing compared to that." Fang belittled our modest army again. Yes, sure, everything was better in the old days, and bigger too, we all knew that but I found it somewhat comical.
"I know you are old, but you're not that old," I claimed, flashing a grin at him. His initial reaction was to roll his eyes. Easy for him, he still had both. A little education couldn't hurt for the old wolfman. "The Second Continental War ended nearly a millennia ago, the most devastating conflict in recorded history, not exactly a fair comparison numbers-wise. Never again did these lands witness armies that large."
"Well, that was the whole reason to fight them." Fang shrugged. He seemed in the mood, where he couldn't let an argument go. I didn't mind it per se, back in the day we would often kill time reasoning with each other, usually about things that did not matter, but it helped to get our minds off of the things we didn't want to deal with. "There was no need for big armies when the entire continent was united. Plus the Gates enabled them to travel quickly, so one elite company was all it took to keep the peace in the Cranta Empire. But that doesn't mean this is big."
"My point is, people don't have huge standing armies nowadays, so this is probably on the larger side," I explained as we reached them. The Nightmares behaved properly, so no panic waves should have washed across the soldiers, but they were abyssal monsters after all. The men became restless when they noticed us. "Ever since the Collapse, countries, and their armies kept on shrinking, so two whole battalions in one place would be probably the largest you can see."
"For what purpose though?" Fang kept pushing back. Well, it's not like I had an answer to that yet. But from what the warlock told us, we were summoned to meet with the Demon Lord, and there was no mention of why, just where and when. "These six companies were taken from elsewhere, which means our borders became more vulnerable."
"Hey, feel free to protest. I want to know the reason too." I shot him down for now. We were riding in front of the large formations, the men saluting to us. The imposing tent of the Demon Lord was finally in sight as well, and I saw wyverns and some of the Twelve Champions standing in front of it. They were waiting for us, I hadn't seen them in a while. "Only four of them? Omerta and us three, did they lose this many?"
"All the more reason to let me join their ranks!" Hakim yelled over my shoulder. Right, I forgot that he wanted to enlist too, one more thing to worry about. I glanced at the warlock right next to the human.
"You were saying something about where to find magicians, right?" I asked, nodding towards the four survivors. "One hob, an orc, and a beastman warrior. Plus a zombie, that's what I have to work with."
"We are still here, you know." Fang protested once more, but I shrugged him off. Being dissolved right here was also in the cards. It seemed unlikely that the same people could lead armies and champions, and even serve as the chief of staff. We were short-staffed, sure, but not this badly. Besides, the beastmen and the ogre were warriors all the same, I wanted someone who could cast magic, and preferably heal me too.
"I didn't say anything about them." The kobold shook his head. Yes, I was aware, that was my problem. He wouldn't have been brought out of retirement if we had so many sorcerers. I hoped that the companies themselves had a shaman with them.
"Maybe I really shouldn't have fired Omerta after all." I pondered, looking at the formation next to us. Sorcerers were very rare. Shamans could be found in every larger tribe, and they would often enlist too, join a company as a healer or something. When they were formed, it was considered standard to have orc warriors, goblin auxiliaries, ogres and hobs in the vanguard, maybe a few beastmen, and two wyverns as a trump card.
They were invaluable as messengers, aided with the logistics, and could be used as a last resort in battle, being massive and deadly creatures themselves. One of the companies here was even mounted, which was a rarity. Their numbers were lower than the rest of course.
"Fang, get some info out of the survivors, and Bastion, find out the actual strength of each formation." I gave my orders before dismounting in front of the main tent. I didn't have half the knowledge I needed and didn't expect the Lord to fill me in on everything either. "Hakim, you'll wait outside for now, and Exagus, I guess you know what to do."
"Well I was summoned alongside you, so I'll have to go in." He stopped his mount too, but needed help to get off its tall back. He sure seemed reluctant, considering how ambitious he used to be. He went as far as to write a book about my Twelve Champions, selling them as his force before retiring, but now he didn't want to rejoin them.
There was nothing he could do if the Demon Lord summoned him though, and neither did I. We marched inside the ominous tent, and there he was sitting on a much smaller throne, but just as menacing as usual. He didn't need Ghell fortress as a backdrop to intimidate the people around him. He affected his underlings, reminding me of the fear aura our Nightmares could project, and I didn't want to face that ever again.
"Captain Dioneras. Exagus the Warlock." The Demon Lord greeted us, inviting us closer with a single wave. His eyes would glow crimson, as I have seen it happen many times, but it has been quite a few years since I've seen his Majesty outside his throne room, or going beyond the Gates of Hell in general. "We got some troubling reports from your deputy. Gorgon had to fight his way through the highlands, pursued by lizardmen. They have numbers far surpassing Our own, all attempts to negotiate failed, and they kept following them into Cranta Proper. This is a declaration of war."
So that was it, we were to fight the reptiles? It seemed logical now, but why was I even needed for that? He seemed even more mysterious than usual as if he was withholding information.
"What is thy bidding, my Lord?" I couldn't help, but ask, dropping on my knees and averting his gaze as customary. A long silence followed, and I had to fight my urge to look up. I glanced to the side instead, to the kobold kneeling by me, his long ears trembling.
"The humans's lies blinded Us." He started after a long pause. I couldn't help but look up at the creature resting on his elbow, the enormous fist supporting the stern face. Looking into the distance, the Demon Lord seemed lost in deep thoughts. "If not for your failure that you managed to turn around, we might have never learned the truth. We owe you an apology."
I couldn't believe my ears, what was he talking about? I noticed the kobold glancing at me in disbelief too. The menacing crimson eyes suddenly turned, staring straight into my soul. I was too late to look away.
"I don't deserve such words, my Lord. And I am ready to serve you with all I have, as always." I did my best to answer him somehow. He stood up from his throne, walking by us. His footsteps were heavy, the entire tent trembled from them, but his mood seemed even heavier, I never felt this much doubt from his rock-solid stature before.
"We were stunned by the fear of the Inquisitorias and their unbeatable weapon. We couldn't get over it if it weren't for you." He said, almost like a confession. It was not what I expected after all this time. "We have failed the Lesser Races, retreating beyond the Gates of Hell."
"That is not true, the Twelve Champions have always aided them in your name, wherever your Lordship has been." I protested, turning my eyes towards the ground again. What was I even trying to prove? "Keeping the peace was just as important, there is no other authority that could hold together the New Order. Your Majesty's safety was our highest concern. The Inquisitorias did manage to banish Gamma after all."
"Indeed. Your Twelve Champions did the best they could, as always. And it was thanks to you, but not Us." He claimed, reaching out to raise my head. I looked directly into those crimson eyes. "That ends today. We will lead this army against the lizardmen, and destroy the Elder's allies. We allowed their schemes to run wild for too long."