The first rays of dawn filtered through Aurelith's window as she opened her eyes. Today marked her departure for Stonehold. The past three weeks had transformed her capabilities - especially with Gale Force. The wind teique now bent to her will twice daily, each burst sting ten precious seds.

  Her muscles ached from the releraining, but pride swelled in her chest. The ward improvements with Cadwen and Nimroth had proven equally fruitful. Their enhanced dete now revealed both numbers and shapes of those crossing the boundary, though the mana drain remained substantial.

  In the vilge hall, Aelindor's silver hair caught the m light as he embraced her. The other advisathered to bid farewell, even Cadwen managed a curt nod.

  "Take this." Nimroth pressed an echostoo her palm, ao Lira. "Weekly reports, without fail."

  "We'll keep you informed," Aurelith tucked the stoo her pouch.

  Their stht them to Thalindor's fe, where the heat bst hit them as they ehe dwarf wiped his hands on his apron and gave them each a gruff hug.

  "Are the modifications ready?" Aurelith's eyes swept across the workshop.

  Thalindor's beard twitched with pride as he pulled out a set of gleaming armor. The metal caught the fe light, its surface etched with intricate wind runes.

  "These'll help with that fancy teique of yours. The reinforced joints and enhanced padding should keep your bones from shattering but don't be reckless."

  He handed her the matg leggings, their design equally impressive. The dwarf had woven flexible ptes between yers of treated leather, creating armor that moved like a sed skin.

  "And this beauty..." Thalindor lifted a longbow from his workbench. The wood seemed to pulse with life, its grain shifting uhe light.

  "Treated the wood with a special solution. Doubles the draw weight without sacrifig speed. Should snap back faster than anything you've used before."

  He disappeared into the back of his fe, returning with a quiver of arrows that made Aurelith's breath catch. Each shaft erfectly straight, the fletg precise down to the smallest detail.

  "These aren't your ordinary arrows." Thalindor held one up. "Desighem special. It took me weeks. The shafts handle multiple entments at ohout breaking apart. Fire, wind, light - whatever magic you want to pour into them, they'll hold."

  Aurelith picked up an arrow, testing its weight and bahe craftsmanship was fwless, each groove and notch pced with mathematical precision. She could feel the potential humming through the metal tip, waiting to be awakened by her magic.

  "These are magnifit." Aurelith turhe arrow in her hands, admiring how the metal caught the fe light. "Your craftsmanship surpasses itself with each creation."

  Thalindor's chest puffed up beh his leather apron. "Well, 't have our best archer running around with sed-rate equipment. Though I'd appreciate if yht back more than splihis time."

  "That was oime." Aurelith rolled her eyes.

  "I'll write you a detailed report after testing these beauties out. Every enha, every rea - you'll get the full breakdown."

  "Looking forward to it. And don't fet t me exotic materials if you ever e across ohalindor's eyes kled at the ers.

  "Those arrows might surprise you. Got a few ricks worked into the metal."

  Aurelith secured the quiver across her back. "Time to head out. Elena's shop is my st stop before Stonehold."

  "Ah, visiting our resident potion master." Thalindor's expression sobered. "Watch yourself out there. Demon activity's been worse than usual, even for Stonehold's standards."

  "I will." Aurelith nodded, adjusting the strap of her new armor. "Thanks for everything, Thalindor. I will see you soon."

  She turoward the door, the weight of the new equipmeling fortably against her frame. The m sun streamed through the workshop's windows, casting long shadows across the fe floor as she stepped out.

  Elena's shop smelled of herbs and crystal dust. The alchemist pressed additional healing potions into their hands, despite their protests that their packs were already full.

  The bell above Elena's shop door chimed as Aurelith stepped inside. Elena's face lit up at the sight of her friend, but her expression quickly morphed into one of hopeful pleading - the look she always wore when she had new experimental potions ready for testing.

  "Don't give me those eyes." Aurelith shook her head, a smile tugging at her lips. "I'm heading to Stonehold today and you know it."

  Elena's shoulders slumped. "But I just perfected this amina blend! The crystallization process-"

  "I'm here for my orders from st time," Aurelith cut in, knowing Elena could talk about potion theory for hours. "The healing and mana potions?"

  "ht." Elena disappeared behind the ter, her silver hair swishing as she bent to retrieve a wooden box. "I added extra stabilizers to these ohey should st longer in your pack without degrading."

  The box tained rows of crystal vials - deep red for healing, shimmering blue for maoration. Each cork bore Elena's precise handwritiailing the potion's properties and date of brewing.

  "Perfect timing too. I just fihe batch yesterday." Elena's fingers drummed against the ter. "But are you sure you don't want to try just one experimental-"

  "Not this time." Aurelith carefully transferred the vials to her pack. "I need reliability for this. Maybe when I return?"

  Elena brighte that. "Promise? I have this fasating theory about bining frost esseh-"

  "Ohing at a time." Aurelith pced the payment on the ter.

  "Keep those ideas brewing until I'm back."

  Elena nodded, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

  "I'll be waiting for my favorite b guinea pig. Just think of all the experiments we do when you return."

  A chill ran down Aurelith's spi those words.

  Elena's ughter filled the shop, bright and clear. Her expression softened as she met Aurelith's gaze.

  "Be careful out there. The roads to Stonehold aren't what they used to be. And please, try not to be reckless for once."

  "I will be careful," Aurelith adjusted the strap of her pack. "I'll see you soon, Elena."

  She stepped out of the shop, the bell's gentle chime marking her departure.

  At the vilge gates, Aurelith adjusted her pae final time. Lira fell into step beside her, and together they set out oh toward Stonehold, leaving the familiar fort of Everspring behind.

  * * *

  The setting sun paihe western edge of Whisperwind Gde in deep crimson hues. Aurelith and Lira paused at the tree liheir boots dusty from the day's travel.

  "This spot should work."

  Lira dropped her paear a natural hollow ierrain.

  "The trees will block the wind, and that roation gives us cover."

  Aurelith nodded, her auburn hair catg the st rays of sunlight.

  "I'll find us dinner. Keep your echostone close."

  She reached into her spatial ring, the air shimmering briefly as she retrieved one of the paired echostones - a unication devices with unlimited pyback capabilities, that were among the precious few treasures her parents had mao secure before Emberveil's fall.

  The stone's smooth surface gleamed with a faint blue light as she passed it to Lira, a reminder of both its magiature and the weight of history it carried.

  While Lira gathered kindling and cleared space for their camp, Aurelith melted into the forest shadows. Her steps fell silent oumn leaves as she tracked fresh prints in the soil.

  Two plump rabbits and a patch of wild berries ter, she filled their waterskins at a clear stream before heading back.

  The smell of herbs greeted her return. Lira had a small fire going, protected from sight by the rocky outcrop. She'd already id out her cooking supplies - a testament to years of experien the wilderness.

  Aurelith settled cross-legged by their packs and pulled out their iory list.

  "We've used more bread than expected. The dried meat's holding up well though." She made quiotes with a piece of charcoal.

  "We should stock up on preserves when we reach Stonehold."

  Lira hummed in agreement as she spiced the rabbits ahem to roast. The berries went into their remaining oatmeal for tomorrow's breakfast.

  When the meat turned golden-brown, Lira divided it onto their wooden ptes. Steam rose from the perfectly cooked rabbit, seasoned with wild herbs she'd gathered.

  "This beats trail rations by leagues," Aurelith sighed between bites.

  Lira grinned. "Nothing like fresh meat over a campfire."

  They ate in fortable silence, sav every morsel as the stars began to appear above the treeline.

  After their meal, Lira pulled the echostone from her pocket ae toward Aurelith. The crystal's blue glow pulsed softly in the dim firelight.

  Aurelith shook her head, auburn hair shifting in the evening breeze.

  "Keep it. We'll reach Stonehold tomorrow." Her golden-brown eyes fixed on her friend.

  "The stone's range spans the whole territory. If anything happens, we alert each other."

  Lira's silver hair caught the st flickers of their dying fire as she tucked the crystal bato her tunic. "You're sure?"

  "I trust you with it." Aurelith gathered their ptes, scrubbing them with sand from the stream bank.

  The two elves moved in practiced synization, erasing traces of their presence. Lira scattered the ashes while Aurelith brushed away their footprints. The forest floor returo its natural state, leaves and twigs arrao hide any sign of their camp.

  Their bedrolls rustled as they settled in for the night. The stars wihrough gaps in the opy, and noal creatures began their evening chorus. Sleep came quickly to both warriors, their breathing falling into the steady rhythm of seasoravelers aced to nights uhe open sky.

  * * *

  Dawn broke over Whisperwind Gde as Aurelith and Lira tiheir jouroward Stonehold. The m peace shattered when they crested a hill and stumbled upon a se of age.

  "What the hell is this?" Aurelith murmured, as she ss the field of corpses stretched before them.

  Lira stood frozen beside her, silver hair whipping in the wind as she took iermath of what must have been a massive battle. Demon bodies littered the ground - lesser demons of various forms scattered across the blood-soaked earth. The remains of imps and hellhounds y taogether, their infernal flesh already beginning to decay.

  But among the more on demon corpses, stranger forms caught their attention. Several bodies appeared to be half-transformed - one end still maintaining the shape of ordinary objects while the other revealed twisted demon flesh.

  Even more disturbihe small, childlike body parts strewn across the battlefield - tiny hands ahat looked human but carried an otherworldly wrongness about them.

  "Aurelith..." Lira's voice shook. "What are these things? I've never seen demons like this before."

  Aurelith's jaw tightened as she surveyed the se. "The half-transformed ones are mimics - demons that disguise themselves as everyday objects to ambush their prey. When killed, they remain frozeweerue form and whatever they were imitating."

  She poio the small limbs. "And those... those are gelings. Demons that repce human children, growing up in disguise until they're ready to strike." Her voice carried the weight of a knowledge passed down through geions of Emberveil's rulers.

  Lira shuddered, taking an involuntary step back from the grotesque dispy. "This must have been Seraphine's forces."

  Aurelith's mind raced as she pieced together the evidence before her. The refugees' stories of demons appearing from nowhere, the geling remains, the mimics - it painted a disturbing picture of how Stonehold had been infiltrated.

  "The demons didn't just attack from outside."

  "They grew their numbers from within. gelings repced children, mimics positiohemselves throughout the city..."

  Lira's silver hair caught the m light as she turo her friend. "But Stonehold has always had demon hunters and priests. They should have detected this kind of infiltration."

  "Exactly." Aurelith's fingers brushed against the silver circlet on her brow. "Someone must have promised their deteethods. Or worse - the huhemselves were repced."

  They pressed forward along the blood-stained path toward Stonehold. The st of smoke grew stronger as they approached, and soon they came upon a group of survivors. Humans, dwarves, and even a few elves worked together, building pyres to burn the demon corpses.

  The fmes rose high against the m sky as the workers methodically sorted through the bodies, ensuring no demon flesh remaio taint the nd. Their faces were grim, hardened by the horrors they'd witnessed, but they moved with purpose and coordination.

  "Those are Stonehold's elite guard," Lira whispered, pointing to the distinctive armor some of the workers wore. "At least some of them survived."

  Aurelith watched the burning parties work, her mind still turning over the implications of what they'd discovered. The systematifiltration of such a well-deferonghold shouldn't have been possible without help from within - or without someone dismantling the city's protective measures piece by piece.

  Two guards stepped forward as Aurelith and Lira approached the burning grounds, their ons raised in defensive positions.

  "Halt! Identify yourselves," the burlier of the two guards barked, his weathered face twisted in suspi. His calloused fiightened around the shaft of his spear, knuckles whitenih the grime of ret battles.

  "I am Aurelith, advisor to Chief Aelindor of Everspring. This is Lira, my panion." Aurelith's golden-brown eyes met the guard's stare without fling, the flecks of red and e in her irises catg the light of the nearby pyres.

  The guards exged gnces, and a ripple of murmurs spread through the nearby workers. The sed guard, a lean man with a scarred face that bore the marks of what looked like demon cws, spat on the ground. The acrid smell of burning flesh made his nose wrinkle as he spoke.

  "Everspring? That vilge was so far from us. You expect us to believe they sent reinforts which happens to be you two and just happeo show up now?" His voice dripped with barely tained hostility, eg off the stone walls around them.

  Lira's hand drifted toward her bow, her fingers brushing against the smooth wood, but Aurelith subtly shook her head. The autumn-colored fabric of her cloak shifted in the warm breeze as she replied, "Lady Seraphiended an invitation to discuss an alliance. Send someoo fetch her, and she'll firm my identity."

  "Right," the burly guard sneered, shifting his weight fgressively. "And I'm the King of fall himself. We're not disturbing Lady Seraphih obvious imposters."

  The workers had stopped their tasks now, f a loose circle around the frontation. Some gripped their tools tighter, as if preparing for a fight. The tension in the air was thiough to cut with a bde, punctuated only by the crag of the funeral pyres and the distant sound of hammers striking stone.

  "You're making a mistake," Aurelith's voice carried an edge of steel. "Lady Seraphine specifically requested my preseo discuss the demon threat."

  "The only threat I see is right in front of me." The scarred guard advanced, his sword lifting higher. "Two suspicious strangers appearing right after a demon attack? You'll be ing with us - in s."

  Muards emerged from the group, ons drawn. Lira's bow cleared its holder in one fluid motion, an arrow already nocked.

  "Last ce," Aurelith's hand moved to her own on, her autumn-colored cloak swirling in the breeze. "Send for Seraphine, or this situation will bee very unpleasant."

  The tension mounted as muards surrounded Aurelith and Lira, their ons glinting in the sunlight. Aurelith kept her voice steady, attempting to defuse the situation.

  "We resolve this peacefully. There's no need for bloodshed among potential allies."

  Lira lowered her bow slightly, leaning close to Aurelith's ear. "This isn't w. They're too worked up to listen." Her silver hair brushed against her cheek as she turned. "Why don't we write a letter to Lady Seraphine? Have them deliver it?"

  Aurelith's facial features lit up at the suggestion. "That's actually-"

  The burly guard cut her off with a snarl. "Shut your lying mouths, knife-ears!" He spat on the grouween them.

  "You think we're stupid enough to fall for that? Pass your fake letter to Lady Seraphine?" His face twisted with pt.

  "Probably filled with demon magic, more like. We won't be your messengers, you filthy imposters."

  The air grew still. Lira's fiightened on her bow until her knuckles turned white. Aurelith's eyes narrowed, the e flecks in them bzing like embers as she fixed the guard with an icy stare. The casual slur and btant disrespect hung heavy in the air between them.

  Both elves stid, their expressions hardening as they locked eyes with the guard. The breeze caught Aurelith's autumn-colored cloak, making it snap like a banner of war.

  "You asked for it." Aurelith's voice cut through the tension like a bde. "Lira, don't kill them. Just make them immobile."

  Lira nodded, smoothly retrag her bow. The guards charged forward with battle cries, their ons raised high.

  Aurelith and Lira moved in perfect synization, their forms fluid and graceful. They flowed between the guards like water through stone, dug under wild swings and sidestepping clumsy thrusts. The guards' formation crumbled as the two elves weaved through their ranks.

  Quick strikes to the back of necks dropped guards one by one. Bodies thudded against the ground as Aurelith's precise hits found their marks. Lira matched her pace, her silver hair fshing in the sunlight as she disabled anuard with a swift chop.

  Screams erupted from the nearby workers. They scattered, fleeing back toward Stonehold's walls in panic. "Attack! We're utack!" The cries echoed across the battlefield as people scrambled for safety.

  Just as Aurelith dropped the st guard with a precise strike, bells began tolling from within Stonehold. The wall's battlements filled with archers, their bows drawn and arrows trained owo elves.

  Aurelith calmly raised her hand and waved at the assembled forces. The archers held their positions, arrows nocked but not released, as an uneasy stillness fell over the se.

  A figure emerged atop Stonehold's highest watchtower, sunlight glinting off golden hair. Lady Seraphine surveyed the se below - dozens of guards sprawled unscious around two familiar elves. Her eyes narrowed as she reized Aurelith's distinctive autumn cloak and Lira's silver hair.

  Seraphine's lips curved into a practiced smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. She raised her voice to carry across the battlefield.

  "Look who's finally here! Hmmm. I see you've already introduced yourselves tuards."

  The tension among the archers eased slightly at their leader's casual tohough their bows remained drawn.

  Seraphiuro the guard captain beside her. "Stand down. Stop the arm." Her and rang clear and firm. The bells fell silent, their echoes fading across the blood-soaked field.

  She desded from the tower, emerging through Stonehold's gates moments ter with a small retinue of knights. Their armor ked as they approached Aurelith and Lira, stepping carefully around the unscious guards.

  "I apologize for the... enthusiastic wele," Seraphine called out as she drew closer. "Ret events have left everyoher on edge." Her hair caught the sunlight as she gestured to her panions. "Though I must say, your method of announg your arrival was quite memorable."

  "Don't bme me," Aurelith sighed dramatically, pressing a hand to her chest. "Here I brought gifts from Everspring - our fi autumn wine and those special forest herbs you mentioned loving from the echoshard - only to be greeted with such hostility. My heart bleeds, Lady Seraphine."

  Seraphine's eyes widened as she clutched her ow in response. "Oh, the shame! To think my guards would treat such a thoughtful guest this way. I shall never recover from this disgrace!"

  The knights exged bewildered gnces. Lira's mouth hung open as she watched the two leaders engage in increasingly theatrical dispys of distress. Several of the scious guards shifted unfortably, pletely lost as to whether they should intervene or tig this bizarre se unfold.

  "The wine will surely turn to vinegar from this treatment!" Aurelith decred, swooning slightly.

  "And the herbs will wilt from witnessing such rudeness!" Seraphine tered, dabbing at ent tears.

  The two women locked eyes for a moment before bursting into peals of ughter, their previous dramatic personas vanishing instantly. The gathered crowd stared in fusion as Seraphine and Aurelith embraced like old friends.

  "Wele to Stonehold, Advisor Aurelith," Seraphine said warmly, posing herself. "I trust your journey from Everspring was less eventful than your arrival?"

  "My si apologies about yuards," Aurelith replied, her tone gehey should regain sciousness within the hour, no sting harm done."

  "No, no, I must apologize for their behavior. Such disrespect is unbeing of Stonehold's defenders." Seraphiuro her knights. "Please see to the unscious guards. Have them taken to the infirmary."

  The knights moved quickly to ply, carefully lifting their fallen rades.

  "Now then," Seraphiured toward the fortress gates. "Shall we show you and Lira to your quarters? I imagine you'd like to rest before we discuss matters of demons' attack."

  "While I appreciate the offer of rest, I'd prefer to discuss ret events first." Aurelith gestured to her pack. "I brought more than just wine and herbs."

  She id out her findings on a nearby table - ons with strange markings, ses of tree trunk bearing demonic script, aailed dotation of her iigation. The metal of the recovered ons gleamed dully in the sunlight, their surfaces etched with symbols that seemed to writhe and shift when viewed directly.

  "These were recovered from demon enters near Everspring." Aurelith spread the papers across the table. "The patterns suggest anized movements rather than random attacks. And these markings..." She traced a finger along one of the tree truions. "They form a unicatiowork of sorts."

  Seraphine's practiced smile faded as she examihe evidence. Her golden hair fell forward as she leaned in to study the demonic script.

  "This matches reports from our own scouts. The demons have been using simir markers throughout our territory." She picked up one of the ons, turning it over in her hands.

  "And these ons - we've found identical ones on demon corpses within our walls."

  "I've piled everything I've learned so far in these dots," Aurelith said, pushing forward a leather-bound folder.

  "Including patterns of movement and potential weaknesses we've identified."

  "This is invaluable information." Seraphine's eyes skimmed the detailed reports. "We've lost so many good people trying to gather intelligen their operations." She straightened, her expression grave.

  "Perhaps it's time I bring you up to speed on Stonehold's situation."

  She gestured for her knights to secure the room, ensuring their privacy before beginning her report oy's ret struggles against the demon invasion.

  * * *

  Seraphihem through winding stone corridors to a meeting room. Oak panels lihe walls, and a polished table domihe ter. Sunlight streamed through tall windows, catg dust motes that danced in the air. The room retained an air of dignity despite the wear visible in the faded tapestries and scuffed floors.

  "You've mao keep some spaces remarkably intact," Aurelith said, running her fingers along the smooth wooden surface of the table.

  Seraphine shook her head. "This is the best we could salvage from the chaos. You should see the state of the other wings." She pulled out a chair. "Most rooms are filled with refugees or verted to makeshift infirmaries."

  They settled into their seats, the leather cushions creaking softly. A young servant slipped through the door, carrying a silver tray den with an oreapot and delicate cups.

  "Fresh mint from what remains of ardens," Seraphine expined as the servant poured steaming liquid into their cups. The fragrant aroma filled the room, momentarily masking the underlying mustiness.

  Aurelith ed her hands around the or, while Lira examihe intricate pattern on her cup before taking a careful sip. The three women sat in fortable silence, letting the hot tea ease the tension from their journey.

  "The tea is excellent," Lira said, breaking the quiet. "Almost reminds me of home."

  Seraphine smiled over the rim of her cup. "Small forts bee precious in times like these."

  Seraphi her cup down, the por king against the saucer. "The situation here is grim. My forces are holding, but barely. Over half my troops lie in the infirmary with severe injuries."

  "How did it get this bad?" Lira leaned forward, her silver hair catg the sunlight.

  "When we first arrived..." Seraphine's eyes darkened. "The streets looked normal, but somethi wrong. Chairs attacked people. Wardrobes snapped shut on unsuspeg refugees. Even simple items like books tried to devour anyone who touched them."

  Aurelith's fiightened around her cup. "Mimics."

  "Yes. But that wasn't the worst of it." Seraphine's voice dropped. "People weren't who they cimed to be. A mert would close his shop, then appear simultaneously iavern and the square. Children would wave to their mothers, only to find their real mother had been home all along."

  "Dopplegangers," Aurelith said. "W with the mimics. a textbook case."

  "The corruption ran deeper than we imagined. When we finally fought our way to the cil chambers..." Seraphine's hand trembled as she reached for her tea. "The leader of Stonehold, Lord Durnham - he was already under a succubus's trol. She had him ed around her finger, signing orders to let more demons slip into the city."

  Lira exged gnces with Aurelith. "You think the succubus orchestrated all of this?"

  "She must have. The timing was too perfect. While we were distracted by the mimid dopplegangers, she was slowly repg the popution with demons. The corruption had undoubtedly taken root months before we first arrived iy." Seraphine's jaw ched.

  "Only half the city's real inhabitants remained by the time we realized what was happening."

  Aurelith set down her cup. "We saw mountains of demon corpses outside the city walls. A battle of that scale doesn't happen without a story."

  Seraphine's shoulders slumped. "It started when Lord Durnham ordered our forces out of the city. We knew something was wrong - he'd never abandon his people like that. But his guards were loyal to a fault."

  "The succubus's influence," Lira said.

  "Exactly. We gathered what remained of our army and tried to force our way ba. That's when the demons poured out of every gate, every cra the walls." Seraphine's knuckles whitened around her cup.

  "They came in waves. Cws, fangs, wings - more types than I'd ever seen. We lost good soldiers holding the line and many more, injured."

  "But you prevailed," Aurelith said, gesturing toward the window.

  "Not alone. While we fought outside, the citizens iarted their own rebellion. They'd seen enough of Durnham's madness, watched too many neighbors disappear." Seraphine's eyes lit up with pride.

  "on folk armed themselves with mining picks and smithing hammers. They overwhelmed the demon patrols from within, opehe gates for us."

  "The dwarves of Stonehold were never oo bow quietly," Lira said.

  "No, they weren't. Once we breached the walls, it became a proper sing. Street by street, building by building. The demons had o run." Seraphiraced the rim of her cup.

  "That's why you saw so many bodies outside. We dragged every corrupted thing we killed and burhem beyond the walls. Couldn't risk any taint remaining iy."

  "And Durnham?" Aurelith asked.

  "Still holds the inner keep with his demon mistress. We haven't mao break through their defenses yet."

  Aurelith set her teacup down with a decisive k. "What if we helped you eliminate Durnham and his succubus?"

  Lira choked oea, droplets spattering the polished table. Seraphine's eyes widened until the whites showed all around.

  "You 't be serious." Seraphine's voice came out in a harsh whisper. "The inner keep is a death trap. We've lost three scout teams just trying to map the entrance."

  "Not to mention we have no idea what's waiting inside," Lira dabbed at the spilled tea with her sleeve. "The succubus has had months to fortify her position. She could have transformed the entire yout."

  "Exactly." Seraphine leaned forward, her palms ft against the table. "The keep used to be a straightforward design - typical dwarven architecture with clear halls and chambers. But now? Reports suggest the walls themselves shift and ge. Corridors lead to dead ends that weren't there before. Rooms appear and disappear."

  Lira touched Aurelith's arm. "The space would be too fined for your usual tactio room to maneuver, no shots with your bow. We'd be fighting in close quarters against who knows what."

  "The succubus likely has more demons guarding her," Seraphine added. "Shapeshifters, mimics - we'd be surrouhe momeepped i would be suicide to attempt an assassination without proper intelligence."

  "Our soldiers who made it out alive spoke of shadows that moved on their own," Lira's voice dropped lower. "And whispers that drove men mad. We 't just walk in there blind."

  A sly grin spread across Aurelith's face as she reached into her pack. Her fingers brushed against the smooth crystal surfaces of the dete wards she'd been perfeg.

  "Who said anything about going in blind?" She pced three palm-sized crystals oable. Each pulsed with a soft amber light, intricate ruched into their faceted surfaces.

  Lira's eyes lit up with reition. "The dete wards! You actually fihem?"

  "What are these?" Seraphine leaned closer, studying the crystalliructures.

  "Enhanced dete wards." Aurelith arrahem in a triangle formation. "They reveal any demonic presehin their range - shapeshifters, mimics, even those shadow creatures your men entered. No demon hide its true nature from these."

  Lira nodded. "We've beeing prototypes in Everspring. They're incredibly effective at exposing cealed threats."

  "The raends about fifty feet in all dires," Aurelith expined. "Pce them strategically, and we map out every demon's location in the keep."

  Seraphine's expressihtened, but Aurelith held up a hand.

  "There's one signifit drawback. The mana ption is astronomical. Each ward drains magical energy at a rate I've never seen before. Using them for more than an hour could pletely deplete even my reserves."

  "And running out of mana in demon-ied territory would be..." Lira grimaced.

  "A death sentence," Seraphine finished.

  "Exactly. We'd o move fast and have a clear extra pn. No room for deys or sed-guessing once we're inside."

  Aurelith traced her finger along the crystal's surface. "Before we pn anything, we o uand the keep's inal yout. Do you have maps from before the corruption?"

  Seraphine's eyes lit up. "Actually, yes. Two of my best men mao recover blueprints from the archives." She strode to the door and called out into the hallway. "Marcus! Elena! Join us, please."

  Heavy boots echoed against stone as two figures ehe room. The man stood tall and broad-shouldered, a work of scars crisscrossing his tanned face. His panion was shorter, lithe, with close-cropped bck hair and sharp greehat missed nothing.

  "These are my most trusted operatives," Seraphiured to ea turn. "Marcus led our ter-offensive during the initial demon outbreak. His knowledge of siege roved invaluable. Lyria here? She's our best infiltrator. Half the intelligence we have about the keep's current state es from her reaissance."

  Marcus unfurled a weathered scroll across the table, weighing down the ers with smooth stones. Detailed architectural drawings sprawled across the part, showing the keep's multiple levels and defensive positions.

  "The inal blueprints," Lyria said, her voice carrying a slight rasp. "Three main levels. Multiple escape tunnels and dungeon, though most have likely colpsed or been sealed off."

  "These were accurate as of six months ago," Marcus added, his deep voice resonating in the chamber. "Before everythio hell."

  Aurelith traced the pathways on the map with her finger, she absorbed every detail. The keep's yout reminded her of a elven fortresses - desigo fuse and trap invaders while providing defenders multiple escape routes.

  "How have your troops approached the inner keep so far?" Lira's silver hair caught the sunlight as she leaned forward.

  Seraphine's shoulders tensed. "We tried three different strategies. The first wave went through the mairaextbook formation, shields locked. They made it to the sed level before the corridors started... ging. Only two soldiers returned, babbling about walls that breathed and floors that swallowed their rades."

  "The sed attempt?" Lira pressed.

  "Stealth operation. Small team, experienced scouts." Seraphine's fingers drummed against the table. "They used the servants' passages, hoping to bypass the worst of it. Found them three days ter, curled up in different ers of the keep. Their minds were shattered - the succubus had filled their heads with visions that drove them mad."

  Aurelith's attention shifted to the upper levels of the blueprint. "And the third?"

  "Split formation. Two teams, coordinated assault." Seraphine's voice grew hollow. "The demons separated them somehow. Redirected them into the same chamber from different dires. They ended up killing each other, thinking they were fighting monsters."

  Aurelith pced three markers on the map. "The wards need clear sightlio be effective. If we position them here, here, and here-" she poiiterses, "we cover most of the approach to the upper level. The main challenge will be maintaining them while we move through the keep."

  "These juns give us the best ce," she tiapping each point.

  "The tral ward would reveal any demons in the main halls, while the other two would expose threats in the side passages. But we'll o move fast - the wards won't st more than an hour. And I am waiting for just the trump card."

  A soft knoterrupted their strategic discussion. Pe, another of Seraphirusted aides, poked her head through the doorway.

  "My dy, the adventurers have arrived. Should I bring them in?"

  Seraphine o Pe. "Bring them in."

  Pe bowed and slipped out of the room, her footsteps fading down the corridor.

  Aurelith's brow furrowed. "Adventurers?"

  "You don't know what adventurers are?" Seraphine's eyes sparkled with amusement. "And here I thought the great advisor of Everspring knew everything."

  "I know plenty," Aurelith crossed her arms. "Just not about random wanderers who call themselves adventurers."

  Lira leaned forward. "Are they some kind of merary group?"

  "Oh, much more than that." Seraphine's smile widened. "They're the brave souls who delve into a ruins, face terrible monsters, demons, and occasionally save kingdoms - when they're not busy looting everything that isn't nailed down."

  "Sahieves with a hero plex?" Aurelith's lips twitched.

  Lira burst into ughter, nearly falling off her chair. The sound echoed through the stone chamber.

  "Says the elf who just proposed we storm a demon-ied keep with experimental magic crystals." Seraphine raised an eyebrow. "You'd make quite the adventurer yourself."

  Aurelith's cheeks flushed pink. "I do not have a hero plex. I simply possess a strategid and-"

  "And a tendency to rush headlong into danger?" Lira wiped tears from her eyes, still giggling.

  "I calcute my risks very carefully, thank you very much." Aurelith's pout only made Lira ugh harder.

  "The term 'adventurer' is retively new," Seraphine said, turning back to Aurelith. "It emerged just a few decades ago, so it's not surprising you haven't entered it before."

  She traced the rim of her teacup. "The Adventurer's Guild mahem in most major cities. They've established quite an anized system - each advearts at G-rank and works their through missions."

  "And these ranks mean something?" Aurelith asked, with her eyes narrowing with curiosity.

  "Ihey progress from G through F, E, D, C, B, and A-rank. The most exceptional even achieve S-rank, though those are rare enough to be legendary." Seraphine's fingers drummed against the table. "Each rank opens up more challenging - and lucrative - missions."

  Lira leaned forward. "How does payment work?"

  "Simple enough - plete the mission successfully, receive the agreed-upon reward." Seraphine's lips curved into a smile.

  "The Guild ensures both sides honor their tracts. Makes things much more civilized than the old merary system."

  "If you were an adventurer, what rank would you be?" Aurelith asked, studying Seraphine's face.

  Seraphine paused, sidering the question. "I suppose somewhere between B-rank and lower A-rank, given my current abilities."

  "Lady Seraphine is too humble," Marcus cut in, his scarred face creasing with disapproval. "She's faced down elder dragons and demon lords. That's solid A-raory."

  A practiced smile crossed Seraphine's features. "The world is vast, Marcus. I'm but a small fish in a very rge pond."

  Aurelith's expression shifted, her golden-browaking on an iy that made the room feel smaller. "What about me? What rank would I be?"

  "Well, with that hero plex of yours-" Seraphiarted to joke, but the words died ihroat as she met Aurelith's unwavering gaze. The elf's face remained serious, expet.

  Seraphiraightened in her chair. "Being ho? At your current level, you'd be k at best. Your archery skills are impressive, and your tactical mind is sharp, but you ck the raw bat experience against higher-tier threats that B-rank requires, which is one of the reasons why I invited you here."

  Aurelith's brow furrowed as she processed Seraphine's assessment. Her firaced absent patterns on the wooden table while her mind ed through the implications of being k.

  "Well, that would make me-" Lira's silver hair caught the light as she tilted her head.

  A sharp knock cut through the air. Pe pushed open the heavy oak door, stepping aside to reveal fures whose mere presence seemed to alter the atmosphere of the room.

  The first, a mage, wore robes that shimmered with barely tained magical energy. Crystalline focuses ked softly at his belt, eae pulsing with different colored light. His eyes held the distant look of someone whurly gazed into realms beyond mortal prehension.

  Behind him, a soved with liquid grace, her leather armor so well-maintai barely made a sound. A dozen different knives decorated her belt and boots, and her eyes stantly sed the room, markis and potential threats with professional precision.

  The tank towered over his panions, his pte armor bearing scars from tless battles. Despite its obvious weight, he moved with practiced ease, each step measured and deliberate. The massive shield on his back gleamed with protective entments.

  Last came the bde dawin swords hanging at her hips. She moved as if gravity was merely a suggestion, her feet barely seeming to touch the ground. Scars decorated her exposed arms like silver ribbons, telling tales of tless close enters with death.

  The very air in the room seemed to grow heavier with their arrival. These weren't mere soldiers or warriors - they were living legends, eae capable of turning the tide of battles single-handedly. The kind of people whose names would be whispered in taverns and sung about in balds.

  * * *

  Pe bowed deeply to Seraphine. "My dy, may I present The Radiant Dawn, one of our most aplished A-rank adventurer groups."

  She gestured to each member in turn. "Lucas, our master mage and group leader. Elira, our scout extraordinaire. Dorian, our immovable shield. And Isolde, whose bdes have felled tless demons."

  The adventurers offered respectful bows to Seraphiheir movements carrying the practiced grace of seasoned warriors.

  "Lady Seraphine Lio," Seraphine ined her head. "And with me are Aurelith, advisor of Everspring, and Lira, one of their fi archers."

  Aurelith and Lira exged greetings with the group, noting how Lucas's crystalline focuses pulsed with magical energy as he spoke.

  "Now," Seraphine's voice took on a anding tone, "Stonehold faces unpreted demon activity. Our scouts report multiple breach attempts along the eastern wall. The dwarven defenders are holding, but their resources stretch thin."

  She spread a detailed map across the table. "We've identified three major oints in their defensive line. However, our primary is this." Her fiapped a loarked with a red circle. "Intelligence suggests the demons are attempting to establish a perma portal."

  "That's where you e in, Lucas," Seraphiuro the mage. "You're one of the feable of maintaining an anti-magic field strong enough to disrupt their ritual. While the rest of us eheir forces, you'll o shut down that portal before it stabilizes."

  Luodded, his eyes gleaming with are knowledge. "A demon portal of that magnitude would require signifit magical anchors. I ullify them, but timing will be crucial. And I would be able to move while I maintaii-magic field."

  Aurelith's eyes widened as she traced the location Seraphine indicated on the map. "The inner keep? What are the odds?" A dry ugh escaped her lips.

  Seraphine's golden hair smiled. "The succubus orchestrated an ambitious pn - repce everyone in Stonehold with demons. Fortunately, we uncovered it before she could succeed." Her expression hardened. "But it seems she's gathered enough power for this portal attempt."

  "Why am I even here?" Aurelith's lips curved into a practiced smile that didn't reach her eyes. "You seem to have everything well in hand."

  "Perfect timing, actually." Seraphine's armor ked as she straightened. "I'll guard Lucas while he maintains the anti-magic field around the inner keep. The rest of The Radiant Dawn will enter and elimihe succubus." Her gaze fixed on Aurelith. "With your skills added to their force, we end this threat even faster."

  Dorian's massive frame shifted, his pte armor beariament to tless battles. Beside him, Isolde's twin swleamed with deadly promise, while Elira's fingers drummed silently against her daggers.

  Lucas pulled a crystalline focus from his belt, its purple light pulsing stronger. "The sooner we move, the less time they have to plete the ritual."

  Seraphine rose from her chair, her armor catg the te afternoon light. "We'll execute the pn at dawn tomorrow. Everyone needs rest after their journey."

  The members of The Radiant Dawn exged gheir battle-worn faces showing a mix of relief and anticipation.

  "Pe will show you to your quarters." Seraphiured to her aide. "Meet me in front of the inner keep at first light."

  Pe stepped forward with a graceful bow. "This way, if you please." She led the adventurers from the room, their footsteps eg dowone corridors.

  After they departed, Lira turo Seraphine. "Is it wise to wait? The demons-"

  "The situation is under trol," Seraphine's voice carried quiet fidence. "Portal creation isn't a simple matter. Once we deploy the anti-magic field, their progress halts pletely. And no more shape shifting or moving rooms."

  "And if we're fortunate," she tinued, adjusting her golden bracer, "the interruption will undo their work entirely. The succubus would o start the ritual from the beginning."

  Lira's silver hair caught the light as she nodded, uanding dawning in her eyes. "That makes sehe plexity of such magic would make it unstable."

  "Precisely." Seraphine's armor ked as she gathered her maps. "Fresh minds aed bodies will serve us better than rushed a."

  Seraphine led Aurelith and Lira down a torch-lit corridor, their footsteps eg off stone walls worn smooth by turies of use. She stopped at a wooden door reinforced with iron bands, produg a heavy key from her belt.

  "I trust these aodations will suffice." She pushed the door open, revealing a modest chamber furnished with two beds, each draped in thick wool bs.

  A copper bathtub occupied one er, while a separate alcove housed the toilet. Fresh towels y folded on a side table, alongside pitchers of water and basic washing supplies.

  "Thank you, Lady Seraphine." Aurelith bowed her head, Lira eg the gesture.

  After Seraphied, they unpacked their essentials. The warm bath proved a wele respite, washing away the dust of travel. Once ed and refreshed, they ged into light scout armor, strapping on minimal ons for mobility.

  As they reached for the door handle, a soft knoterrupted them. Pe stood in the hallway, hand raised to knock again.

  "Good evening." Pe offered a slight bow. "Lady Seraphine asked me to inform you that dinner will be served after su. She also requested I show you around Stonehold, if you'd like."

  "Thank you for the dinner information," Aurelith said. "But we'd prefer to explore on our own, if that's acceptable."

  "Of course." Pe nodded. "I'll be nearby if you need anything. Just ask any guard - they'll know where to find me."

  "reciate it." Lira adjusted her quiver strap.

  With another exge of thanks, Aurelith and Lira left the building, stepping into the te afternoon air of Stonehold.

  * * *

  I exged a knowing look with Lira before we split up - she headed toward the gates and the training grounds while I made my way to the mihe streets of Stonehold told a story of devastation. Crumbling walls and shattered windows lined my path, yet amidst the destru, I noticed something remarkable.

  "Here's your daily ration, make sure the childre first," a guard handed out supplies to a group ees huddled under a makeshift shelter.

  Anuard distributed bo families camping in what remained of the town square. The efficy of the aid distribution caught my attentioe the chaos, Lady Seraphine had mao establish a funing support system. Perhaps I'd uimated her anizational capabilities.

  A child's cry pierced the air, followed by gentle shushing from their mother. Mees gathered around cooking fires, sharing what little they had. The se stirred memories of Emberveil's fall, but I pushed them aside. Now wasn't the time for old wounds.

  As I approached the mining district, the destru grew worse. Entire buildings had been reduced to rubble, their stones scattered across the street like discarded toys.

  A tavern with half its front wall missing caught my eye - the Miner's Rest, acc to its crooked sign. Voices drifted from inside, along with the sound of breaking gss.

  "Keep your voices down!" A harsh whisper.

  "They won't hear us back here." Another voice, followed by suspicious shuffling.

  I pressed myself against the remaining wall, listening. The versation didn't sound like typical tavern chatter. My hand moved to my bow as I edged toward the broken window to iigate.

  I peered through the broken window, my eyes adjusting to the dim interior. Three dwarven miners huddled in the er, passing what looked like gemstones between them. My jaw ched at the sight.

  "Pure sapphires from the eastern shaft," one of them muttered, holding a stone up to catch the light. "We get good for these in Seabridge Haven."

  "If we make it there," another dwarf ted his share. "Those demons arely making travel easy. Don't fet that wine and ale."

  "At least it would be better than staying here waiting to die." The third one pocketed his gems. "Besides, everyooo busy with the demons to notice a few missing stones and some ale and wine."

  I shook my head in disbelief. Even with Stonehold under siege, with people dying and children going hungry, these mihought only of profit. The gems they po sell could buy food and supplies for dozens ees.

  My fingers itched to no arrow, but I held back. This wasn't my jurisdi, and I had more pressing matters to attend to. Still, I memorized their faces. Lady Seraphine might want to know about this - assuming we all survived long enough for it to matter.

  "Quick, someone's ing," one of them whispered. They scattered like rats, slipping out through a back door I hadn't noticed.

  "Even in this situation, they're going at it," I muttered under my breath, disgust coating my words. The fall of Emberveil had showh the best and worst of people under pressure. Some rose to heights of heroism, while others sank to new lows. These miners had chosen their path.

  I made a mental note of where they'd gone and pressed on to the mining tunnels. Their secret exit could e in handy, though it was also another oint in Stonehold's perimeter that we'd o deal with. Everywhere I looked, dwarven faces showed signs of hopelessness and fear. Not surprising, sidering we were dealing with shape-shifting horrors and creatures that could wear our neighbors' faces.

  I rouhe er toward the mines and stopped short. A dwarf with a salt-and-pepper beard stood at the entrance, all alone, his face flushed red as he attempted to repair the damaged doorway. His movements were sharp and aggressive - less restru and more like he was trying to punch the stones bato pce.

  "Stupid, greedy, worthless excuses for-" He smmed aoo position with far more force than necessary. The veins in his neck bulged as he worked.

  My earlier enter with the gem thieves clicked into pce. This dwarf's fury made more sense now. I stepped closer, my boots g on the scattered debris.

  He whirled around, hammer raised. "What do you-" His eyes widened as he took in my appearahe hammer lowered slightly. "Oh. You're that elf everyoalking about. The one w with Lady Seraphine."

  "Aurelith," I offered, gng at the partially repaired entrance. "You seem... troubled."

  He barked out a harsh ugh. "Troubled? That's putting it mildly." He drove his hammer into aone.

  "Try furious. While we're fighting demons, some rats think it's fio steal from our reserves. Our people are dying, and they're filling their pockets!"

  I crossed my arms. "Would these rats happen to be three miners heading toward Seabridge Haven?"

  The dwarf's hammer froze mid-swing. His knuckles whitened around the handle. "You've seen them?"

  "Just now, at the Miner's Rest. They were quite... detailed about their pns."

  A string of dwarven curses erupted from him. He jabbed his hammer toward the town. "Those ungrateful- I traiwo of them myself! And this is how they repay us?"

  "It's natural," I said, keeping my voice gentle. "When people's values are tested, when their lives are threatened... not everyone chooses honor."

  "Natural?" Gromm's face reddened further. "There's nothing natural about betraying your own people! Not all dwarves are like that. Most of us would rather die than abandon our kin." His hammer struother stone.

  "We've lost so much already, yet we stay and fight. Because that's what real dwarves do!"

  His passionate speech trailed off, and his shoulders slumped. The fire in his eyes dimmed, repced by a deep sadhat made him look decades older.

  He straightened, seeming to remember his manners. "My apologies, my dy. I'm Gromm, a bcksmith of Stonehold." He gestured at his work. "Or what's left of it."

  I studied the partially repaired entrance. "Are you fixing this to resume mining operations ohe crisis passes?"

  The question hit a nerve. Gromm's face torted with grief and rage. "Mining? You think I care about mining?" His voice cracked.

  Gromm's hands trembled as he set down his hammer. "You want to know what I lost?" His voice came out hoarse, barely above a whisper. "I had a family. A wife, two beautiful children."

  My chest tightened. I knew where this was going.

  "Tell me, Lady Aurelith, have you ever..." He swallowed hard.

  "Have you ever lost someone and realized they were gone long before you khat what you were living with, talking to, sharing meals with... wasn't them anymore?"

  Images of Emberveil's fall fshed through my mind, but I remained silent.

  "My Mira, she was the ki soul. Always had a smile ready, even on the darkest days in Stonehold. She'd bring warm bread to the miners when their shifts eend to their burns without pint.

  And my boy..." His voice cracked, the sound like a hammer striking brittle metal. "I didn't notice. By the gods, how did I not notice? The sighere - the way they stopped ughing at my jokes, how they wouldn't touch their favorite foods anymore.

  Mira's honey cakes sat untouched for days, when before, they couldn't st an hour in our home. My soo beg to help in the fe, but then... then he just stopped ing." His words carried the weight of a thousand hammered regrets.

  Gromm's fist smmed against the stone wall, the impact eg through the chamber like a funeral bell. "When Durnham expelled Lady Seraphine's forces, that's when the demons showed their true faces. They didn't o hide anymore."

  His shoulders shook with a violehat reminded me of the tremors that used to run through Emberveil's earth before a storm. "I ran home to get my family to safety, but..."

  Tears welled up in his eyes, and I felt my heart strict, reizing that same raw anguish I'd seen in my own refle tless times. "They weren't my family anymore. Hadn't been for weeks. Those things wearing their faces just... smiled at me. Their eyes. Their teeth..."

  He pressed his palms against his eyes, his weathered hands trembling like leaves in a harsh wind. I could see the bcksmith's calluses on his fingers, evidence of a life spent craftiy from metal, now bearing wito something grotesquely unnatural.

  "I torture myself w about the moment it occurred. Could it have been when my Mira took that solitary trip to the marketpce? Maybe during the evening my sons li their panion's home? The answer escapes me forever. My failure was absolute - I couldn't eve when abominations took their pces. They stood beside me through my darkest hours, and because of their support, I climbed to bee Stonehold's fi artisa with their absence, I find myself questioning the purpose of everything."

  His voice cracked o word, and I saw his thick fingers curl into fists against his knees. As a dwarf who had spent decades f bonds as strong as the metal he worked, the betrayal cut deeper than any bde.

  "Sometimes I dream they're still there, still themselves, and I wake up reag for them. But then I remember their faces, those twisted smiles, and I..." He trailed off, lost in memories that would haunt any father until his dying day.

  I could feel the raw anguish in his voice, each word dripping with the same helplessness I'd felt watg my own kingdom fall.

  The demons were masters of deception - they didn't just destroy their victims, they wore their faces like masks, turning loved ones into ons against their own families. My fingers instinctively brushed against the silver circlet on my head, a reminder of everything I'd lost to their cruel games.

  A siear escaped down his weathered cheek, which he quickly wiped away. "Some nights I wake up thinking I hear them calling for help, w if they were still in there somewhere when I..." He couldn't finish the sentence.

  I uncsped my autumn-hued cloak and draped it romm's shaking form. The fabric settled around him like a protective embrace, shielding him from the world's prying eyes. Though I hadn't experienced his exact pain, the echoes of loss resonated in my chest, a familiar ache that ruly faded.

  "Keep your tears," I said softly, adjusting the cloak to cover his face. "A strong man never shows his tears to others, but that doesn't mean you 't shed them in private."

  His broad shoulders trembled beh the fabric. A muffled sob escaped, followed by another, eae carrying years of bottled grief. I stood silent guard, my presence a wordless permission for his pain to finally surface.

  The cloak darkened where his tears fell, each drop a testament to the family he'd lost. Miretched like hours as Gromm's sobs gradually quieted, repced by deep, shuddering breaths.

  When he finally stilled, the cloak shifted as he wiped his face. His voice emerged, rough but steadier. "Thank you, my dy. I... I haven't spoken of them since..."

  I raised my hand, stopping his expnation. Some wounds didn't need words - they just needed aowledgment.

  Gromm's breathing evened out, his posure returning like a tide washing away footprints in the sand. The weight of his grief, though still present, seemed lighter for having been shared.

  I reached into my ring and pulled out a bottle ed in autumn-colored cloth. The deep burgundy liquid caught the light as I uned it.

  "Wine from Everspring's fi vineyard. Our vintners age it in oak barrels blessed by forest magic."

  Gromm's eyes widened, his tear-stained face brightening at the sight. "That's... that's too generous, my dy."

  "sider it a gift between warriors." I pressed the bottle into his calloused hands with a grin. "Sometimes the best medie for a heavy heart is good wine and quiet ption."

  His firaced the intricate leaf patterns otle's surface. "I've heard tales of Everspring's wihey say one sip make you feel the forest's warmth." He clutched the bottle close. "Thank you. Truly."

  "You mentioned Everspring," Gromm wiped the st traces of tears from his face. "Is that where you're from? What brings an elf of your standing to our humble Stonehold?"

  The question stirred memories of golden fields and autumn leaves, of a kingdom long lost. But I pushed those thoughts aside. "I serve as an advisor to Everspring now. I'm here iigating the increased demon activity in the region."

  "An advisromm's eyes widened. He straightened his posture, the witle still clutched against his chest. "I had no idea Everspri someone of such importance."

  "Lady Seraphiended an invitation to assist with the demon situation here." I adjusted my quiver strap. "The cil agreed it would be valuable experience, given my... particur is in demoed matters."

  Gromm nodded, his thick gray beard catg the dim light from the nearby torches. "They're right. Nothing teaches better than firsthand experienust ve to truly uand the world." His voice carried the weight of someone who had learhis lesson the hard way.

  "My thoughts exactly." A small smile crossed my lips, though it didn't quite reach my eyes. The familiar weight of responsibility settled on my shoulders once more.

  "Which is why I'm pnning to lead an assault on the inner keep tomorrow. It's time to end this demon iion food." My hand instinctively brushed against the quiver at my hip, cheg the special arrows I'd prepared for just su enter.

  Each shaft had been carefully ented with wind magic - designed specifically to pierce demonic defehe familiar texture of the fletg beh my fingers brought both fort aermination. After what these monsters had doo Stonehold, there would be no mercy.

  The light in Gromm's eyes shifted, hardening into something sharp and desperate - a look I'd seen too many times before in those affected by demon corruption.

  "The keep... Lord Durnham might still be there. If he lives..." His fiightened around the witle until his knuckles turned white, the liquid inside sloshing quietly.

  "Could y him back? Alive?" The plea in his voice made my heart ache with memories of my own lost kingdom.

  I started to speak about letting go of rese, about how hatred only poisohe soul, but the raw iy in Gromm's face made the words die in my throat. The paiched in his features wasn't something ptitudes could heal.

  "We move at dawn," I forced a smile, though it felt brittle on my face. "If Durnham still draws breath, you have my word - I'll bring him back alive."

  "Let me join you," Gromm's voice cracked with desperation. "I 't just sit here waiting for news. I o see him with my own eyes."

  I shook my head. "The keep will be crawling with demons. Every sed will t."

  "I know how to swing a hammer." He lifted his bcksmith's tool. "Been in my share of scraps too. I won't slow you down."

  "This isn't a tavern brawl, Gromm. These creatures corrupt everything they touistake..." The memory of Emberveil's fall fshed through my mind. "One moment of hesitation could meah - or worse."

  "I don't care about the risks." His fiightened around the hammer. "I've already lost everything that matters."

  "I uand your pain, truly." I pced my hand on his shoulder. "But we have a narrow window to strike. Lady Seraphine's forces will create a diversion, and my team o move fast and silent. We 't aodate anyone else, no matter how justified their cause."

  The fight drained from his stance. His shoulders slumped, and the hammer lowered to his side. "Then at least keep your word. Bring him back alive if he still draws breath. I need answers."

  I met his gaze, saw the mix of grief aermination in his eyes. "You have my word as an advisor of Everspring. If Durnham still lives, I'll bring him back to face what he's done."

  The promise felt heavy on my tongue, but I meant every word. Some debts o be paid, some questions answered. I'd learhat lesson well in the turies since Emberveil's fall.

  I csped Gromm's shoulder one final time. "Get some rest. Tomorrow will bring its own battles."

  He nodded, clutg the witle close. "Thank you for listening, my dy. And for..." His voice caught. He gestured at my cloak, still draped around his shoulders.

  "Keep it for tonight." The autumn-colored fabric suited him, in a way. "The nights grow cold here."

  The setting sun painted long shadows across Stonehold's stohs as I made my way back toward the dinner hall. The day's st light caught the edges of the buildings, turning the gray stoo burnished gold - a sight that pulled at old memories of Emberveil's towers at su.

  My boots echoed against the cobblestones, mixing with the distant sounds of hammers and fes still at work despite the te hour. The dwarves' determination to keep their routines in the face of darkness struck a chord in me.

  How many times had I dohe same, ging to familiar patterns whehing else crumbled?

  The dinner hall's warm light spilled onto the street, carrying with it the st of hearty stew and fresh bread. My stomach reminded me I haden since m, too caught up in the day's iigations.

  I paused at the entrance, looking back at the darkening street where I'd left Gromm. I thought I'd steeled myself for stories like this, but listening to Gromm's story pierces me to my core.

  His story weighed on me, aestament to the demons' cruelty. They didn't just kill - they corrupted, twisted, turned loved ones against each other. The wine might ease his pain tonight, but tomorrow...

  I shook my head, pushing the thoughts aside. The dinner hall beed, and I had my own preparations to make for dawn's assault.