Two days after the disappearance of Zrosa’s northern army.

Kailu grunted from the cold as his eyes peaked open, a dim flickering light reaching his face, he opened them wide only to jump back.

Startled, Kailu reached for his weapon, eyes fully open he stared at the skeleton who sat by his side.

“Calm yourself, little fool.” Ascal’s voice spoke as the skeleton’s bony jaw moved.

“S-Sir Ascal?” Kailu mumbled out through the shivering, glancing about he saw that they were laying on a rocky outcrop atop some hill.

“That indeed is I,” Ascal mused as he sat facing the opposite direction, mostly giving the boy his skeletal back.

“Y-You’re…undead?” Kailu asked, inspecting his leading officer’s lanky corpse as it sat animated.

“Just because I am not wearing an ornate set of robes, elaborate accessories or wielding my beautiful staff personally handed to me by the Emperor,” Ascal sighed, “Does not mean I am simply an ‘Undead’…I’m a Lich boy, I’ve finally advanced from necromancer!” He exclaimed with enthusiasm.

Enthusiasm which quickly died out, as he then gestured at the scythe laying by Kailu. “Except, I’m contracted to that filthy thing now…And not a Death God…So am I even a Lich?”

“Meh, about in between Lich and Warlock, be grateful I handed you more options than just disturbing corpse raising.” Zeokul’s voice spoke out from within the weapon.

And as a moment of silence passed, the demonic bound being spoke out again.

“Who you callin filthy!?”

“Took you long enough.” Ascal sighed.

Gaining Kailu a headache as he held his throbbing head, “I…get the essence of it but…what happened?”

“The Demon invading that dread-filled weapon you wield invaded your soul and took over your body.” Ascal explained, “A very high-level type of possession I must say.”

“Oh why thank you bony.” Zeokul mused, irritating Ascal.

“Agh…Either way, it drained your energy to the point that you’ve been collapsed asleep for two days now.” Ascal then said.

“T-Two days!?” Kailu exclaimed in shock, “A-And the Citadel? The invasion of Keye? Has miss Zentha returned with news of Lady Makaela!?”

“Slow down boy, we’re still somewhere in between Abyele and Lahihr, on the shore.” Ascal snapped back at him, gesturing for him to be silent as he then pointed to where he had been staring at. “And unless your little demon friend can pull off what he did back there, we’ve got other things to worry about.”

“Nope, completely out of juice for this year.” Zeokul grumbled, as Kailu rose up shakily, turning to look down the hill they stood on.

He needed no other direction to see what Ascal was talking about, as the moment he turned around, it was vastly clear.

As in the distance beneath them, large ships of wood made landing upon the Sinrozi shores, hundreds of them slowly being grounded onto the sand as sailors pulled them in and roped them still.

Kailu’s eyes narrowed as he inspected the ship’s people, and the ship itself.

“Elves…” He mused.

“Not just any Elves,” Ascal pointed out, gesturing at the ship’s banners. “New Druv, has made landing.” He sighed once more, as the armada below gave out thousands upon thousands of armed Elven troops onto the sandy beaches.

-

-

Erikathyr took in a deep rumbling breath, painfully exhaling it after, he set his weary eyes upon the city ahead.

“Have…we received nothing?” He asked Zentha who stood behind him, alongside Pyra and several more of her officers.

“I could not make contact with sister Makaela,” Zentha reported in Elven, “But it is clear, the Zrosian Shinobi’s chain of command has crumbled. Yet, the central Zrosian army continues its march.”

“And from Ascal?” Erik then asked, as he gazed at shifting walls of stone, rising higher as Keye mages prepared for their assault.

“I…made not contact with him either.” Zentha answered, bitterness filling Pyra’s expression at this news.

“Have faith,” Erik then said, turning to his retinue of commanders, “Have faith in our comrades, and family. B-” Entering a coughing fit then, Erik had to hold onto the railing as to remain standing, clenching the black stone as he also held his chest.

Pausing to regain his posture and breath, he refaced them, “Be-Believe, beyond belief, that they will succeed. Push away the worries of failure, crush the brooding of loss.” He said before returning to face the enemy ahead.

“There will be a day of weeping for the fallen, a day of cheering for the survivors.” Taking in another deep breath, Erik felt the flames fill his chest. “A day of boasting victory, or a day of dreading defeat.”

As black lightning crackled along his body.

As his eyes shone crimson.

“Today, is a day of neither. Today…” Feeling his power faintly dim out as he called upon it, Erik clenched his hands into fists, pushing himself further.

Tendrils of dark veins forming over his face as he did so.

“Today is a day of death, and dance with death we shall.”