Chapter 77 The first wave
"They are early."
The guard's voice shook. Mara rushed to the wall. Looked out at the forest. Demetrius's army was there. Not in six days. Not in three days. Now. Today.
"How many?" she asked.
"All of them. Three thousand. Maybe more. They must have marched through the night. Reached us while we slept."
"Sound the alarm. Get everyone to positions. Now!"
Bells rang across the city. Warriors scrambled. Civilians ran for shelters. Chaos erupted everywhere.
Zevran appeared beside her. "This is not good. We are not ready. Half the traps are not set. The southern wall is still weak."
"Then we make do with what we have. Where is Isla?"
"Safe. In the palace. With Luna. I made sure."
"Good. Keep her there. No matter what happens. She stays protected."
"What about you? What will you do?"
"What I have to. Fight. Lead. Use whatever power is necessary."
"The goddess's blessing—"
"The goddess can wait. My people cannot."
Mara felt Ash stirring. Excited. Hungry. Ready.
"Finally," the fragment said. "Finally we get to fight properly. No holding back. No restrictions. Just pure survival."
"We still have rules. No killing civilians. No excessive destruction. We defend. We protect. That is all."
"Whatever you say. But when the killing starts, when blood spills, do not pretend you are still the same person. War changes everyone. Even you."
Demetrius's army stopped just outside arrow range. A single rider came forward. Carrying a white flag.
"They want to talk," Marcus said. "Should we let them approach?"
"Yes. Hear what they have to say. Maybe they will surrender."
"That is optimistic."
"I know. But let me have hope for a few more minutes."
The rider reached the gate. Removed his helmet. It was not a soldier. It was Demetrius himself.
"Moon Wolf!" he called out. "I come to offer terms! Open the gates! Let us speak!"
"Speak from there!" Mara shouted back. "I can hear you fine!"
"Very well! I offer you mercy! Surrender now! Open your gates! Kneel before the Sun God! And I will spare most of your people! Only the leaders die! Everyone else lives as servants! It is generous!"
"That is your mercy? Death or slavery?"
"That is reality! You are outnumbered! Outmatched! You have no chance! Why sacrifice everyone for pride?"
"Because freedom is worth more than life! Because we do not kneel! Not to you! Not to your god! Not to anyone!"
"Then you choose death! For yourself! For your daughter! For everyone who follows you! Their blood is on your hands!"
"Their sacrifice is my honor! Now leave! Before I put an arrow through your throat!"
Demetrius laughed. "Brave words from someone who cannot use her full power! Yes! I know about the blessing! Know about your weakness! The goddess told me everything! You are helpless! And today you learn what happens when queens play at being warriors!"
He turned his horse. Rode back to his army. Raised his sword. "ATTACK! Kill them all! Show no mercy! The Sun God demands it!"
The army surged forward. Three thousand soldiers. All screaming. All hungry for blood. They hit the walls like a wave. Ladders rising. Arrows flying. Magic crackling.
"Archers!" Mara commanded. "Fire at will! Warriors! Hold the walls! Do not let them through!"
The battle began. Arrows darkened the sky. Soldiers fell. Blood splashed. The noise was deafening. Overwhelming. Terrifying.
Mara watched from the command position. Every instinct screamed to fight. To use her power. To destroy the enemy. But the blessing held her back. Weakened her. Made her almost normal.
"This is torture," she muttered.
"Then break the blessing," Ash suggested. "Break the chains. Use me. Use your full power. We can end this in minutes."
"And doom myself? Doom everyone?"
"You are already doomed if you lose. At least this way you fight back. Make it count."
A section of wall collapsed. Enemy soldiers poured through. Warriors rushed to contain them. But more kept coming. Too many. Too fast.
"Mother!" Isla appeared beside her. Armed. Armored. Ready to fight.
"I told you to stay in the palace!"
"The palace means nothing if the city falls! I am here! I am fighting! Deal with it!"
Before Mara could argue, Isla jumped into the breach. Her wolf form golden and fierce. She fought like Mara had taught her. Fast. Smart. Efficient. But she was young. Inexperienced. A soldier got past her guard. Sword coming down.
Mara moved without thinking. Power exploded from her body. Silver light and darkness mixing. The soldier flew backward. Crashed into ten others. Did not get up.
The blessing shattered. Mara felt it break apart. Felt her full power returning. Felt Ash surging forward. Free. Unleashed. Hungry.
"Yes!" the fragment screamed. "Finally! No more chains! No more limits! Now we show them what real power looks like!"
"Ash! Control yourself! We defend! We do not slaughter!"
"They tried to kill your daughter! Your child! And you want mercy? No! They die! All of them!"
Mara felt herself losing control. Felt Ash pushing. Taking over. Her eyes turned pure silver. Her body radiated power. Soldiers near her stumbled. Fell. Consumed by fear.
"Mara!" Zevran grabbed her. "Stop! You are losing yourself! Come back!"
"I cannot! Ash is too strong! Too angry! Help me!"
"How?"
"The shadow! Get Kieran! Get the Shadow King! Only it can match Ash! Only it can help!"
Zevran ran. Found Kieran on the eastern wall. Fighting. Defending. Barely holding on.
"The shadow!" Zevran shouted. "We need it! Now! Mara is losing control!"
Kieran's eyes went black. The shadow emerged. "About time. Where is she?"
"Southern wall! Hurry!"
The shadow moved. Faster than possible. Reached Mara in seconds. Saw her glowing. Saw Ash taking over. Saw the soldiers nearby dying from pure fear.
"Stop," the shadow commanded. Power in its voice. Ancient authority. "You are breaking our agreement. One day of freedom after the battle. Not during. Back down. Now."
"Make me," Ash challenged. "You are old. Weak. I am new. Strong. I do not fear you."
"Then you are stupid. I have existed for millennia. I have consumed gods. Destroyed kingdoms. You are a fragment. A piece. I am whole. Do not test me."
The shadow raised Kieran's hand. Black energy gathered. Pure. Concentrated. It did not attack Mara. It attacked Ash directly. Inside her mind. Inside her soul.
Ash screamed. Recoiled. Was pushed back. Forced down. Locked away again.
Mara collapsed. Gasping. Crying. "Thank you. I almost killed everyone. Almost lost myself completely."
"You owe me," the shadow said. "That was extra service. Not part of our deal. I want compensation."
"What do you want?"
"Two days of freedom. After the battle. Not one. Two. That is the price."
"That is extortion."
"That is business. Take it or next time I let Ash consume you. Your choice."
"Fine. Two days. But supervised. Controlled. Same rules as before."
"Agreed. Now get up. The battle is not over. Your people need you."
Mara stood. Looked at the chaos. The walls were holding. Barely. But Demetrius had not committed his full army yet. This was just the first wave. A test. He was learning their defenses. Their tactics. Their weaknesses.
"Pull back the warriors on the western wall," she ordered. "Reinforce the south. That is where they will hit hardest next time."
"How do you know?" Marcus asked.
"Because that is what I would do. The southern wall is weakest. That is where they broke through once. They will try again. Harder. With more soldiers. We need to be ready."
"We lost fifty warriors in that breach. We cannot afford another."
"Then we do not have another. We hold. We adapt. We win."
A horn sounded from Demetrius's army. The soldiers retreated. Pulled back. Regrouped.
"Why are they stopping?" Luna asked.
"Because they got what they wanted," Kieran said. The shadow had retreated. Let him speak normally. "They learned our numbers. Our positions. Our response time. Next attack will be coordinated. Precise. Deadly."
"How long do we have?"
"Hours. Maybe less. They will rest. Then hit us again. Harder."
"Then we rest too. Rotate warriors. Feed everyone. Prepare for the next wave."
The city scrambled to comply. Wounded were carried to healers. Dead were moved aside. Walls were repaired. Arrows were restocked. Everyone worked. Everyone contributed.
Mara found Isla helping with the wounded. Her hands covered in blood. Her face pale.
"You saved me," Isla said quietly. "When that soldier attacked. You broke the blessing to save me."
"Of course I did. You are my daughter. I would break a thousand blessings for you."
"But now the goddess will be angry. Will punish you."
"Let her. I am done bowing to gods. Done following their rules. They use us. Manipulate us. Sacrifice us for their games. No more. From now on I make my own choices. Damn the consequences."
"That is brave. Or stupid. I cannot tell which."
"Probably both. Now come. We need to eat. Need to rest. The next wave comes soon."
They ate together. Bread and cheese. Nothing fancy. But it tasted good. Felt normal. A brief moment of peace in the chaos.
"Mother?" Isla asked. "If we lose. If the city falls. What happens to me?"
"You run. Zevran will get you out. Take you somewhere safe. Somewhere far from here."
"I do not want to run. I want to fight beside you."
"I know. But if we lose, someone needs to survive. Someone needs to carry on. To rebuild. That someone is you."
"What about you? Will you run too?"
"No. If we lose, I stay. Fight until the end. Buy time for everyone else to escape."
"That is not fair."
"It is necessary. I am queen. Queens do not abandon their people. Not even in death."
"Then I am staying too. We fight together. We die together. I will not leave you."
Mara wanted to argue. But she saw the determination in Isla's eyes. The stubbornness. The loyalty. And she knew arguing was pointless.
"Fine. We fight together. But you stay close to me. You follow my orders. No heroics. No unnecessary risks. Understand?"
"Understood."
A horn sounded. Three short blasts. The warning signal.
"They are coming again," Zevran said. "Everyone to positions! This is the real attack!"