He had no time to ponder the nature of Holt's protection song as he was set on by three more huge goblins. Refusing to take their lives, Lyric beat them down with the flat side of his axe head and the large ballast ball at the end of the handle.
To the side, a member of the Milleytes Lux was on his back, fending off the advances of two more elves. Dropping the axe handle atop his foot, Lyric grabbed both elves by their shirt collars and calling on his demon strength, he hurled them into the goblins surrounding Cadence.
Kicking his weapon back up into his hand, he looked around for any immediate threats. The battle had ended for now. The remaining enemies were dead, unconscious or held captive by the soldiers. The odd sensation of being covered by water suddenly dissipated, leaving him tingling head to toe. Shaking it off, he leaned down and helped the soldier to his feet.
"Thank you, sir, may I have your name?" The older man examined Lyric and his companions closely.
"I'm no one, I'm just trying to help." Lyric noted that the man was older than he was by quite a bit.
"No offense to you, but a member of the Standard would not travel with 'no one'." The soldier's eyes flicked briefly to Cadence, who was testing the balance of a sword scavenged from the fallen. "Nevertheless, I will respect your privacy and not press the issue-" he stopped abruptly, his eyes fixed on Lyric's Singer pendant as it swung from his neck while bending down to check the pulse of a fallen elf. Suddenly he snapped to attention.
"Colonel Avery, sir, at your service."
Lyric had dealt with the Milleytes Lux in the past and he'd always been mystified at the effect soul singers had on the unbeaten legion. Lomong had explained once that Singers were more legend than real. The only thing that could be safely said is that they were extremely deadly and served the Composer to protect the Score of Creation. Highly trained soldiers like the Milleytes Lux found that worthy of immediate respect.
"At ease, Colonel, just point me in the right direction."
Avery pointed to the south side of the battlements.
"Head that way and climb the steps. Just keep going, the wall corkscrews up the mountain."
Lyric nodded preparing to leave and turned to ask.
"What did you mean by ‘member of the Standard’?”
“Your companion,” Avery gestured to Cadence. “I’ve been around a while, Singer. The only humans I’ve ever seen fight like that are members of the Standard. Don’t worry, I won’t reveal you to anyone. The Composer be praised that you are here to help us. Now if you’ll excuse me, my men need to secure this area and your abilities are better used upstairs.” The Colonel saluted smartly and turned to his task.
Acheron and Cadence waited with different degrees of patience for Lyric to join them. Acheron was covered in various colors of blood. Cadence was disheveled, but none the worse for wear. Lyric looked away from Acheron, the bliss on her face coupled with the grisly evidence of her recent fight was so far removed from how he’d begun to see her, it was a jarring reminder of her true nature. He led the way up the southern battlement around the side of the mountain with the city below and to the left. Looking down to the right he saw the Milleytes Lux in force engaged in combat with the attackers a good distance from the city wall. He wondered what happened to the West to allow the enemy to breach the defenses but immediately realized it must be Rondeaux’s work. Lyric needed to get upstairs as fast as possible. A sudden dark blaze to his left and a wash of heat caused him to turn and see Acheron clean and flawless as the day they met. It did little to wash his mind of the memory of her covered in blood.
“We need to get upstairs, fast.” He said. Acheron shrugged.
“Let’s fly.”
“I can’t fly, Acheron, neither can Cadence.” The demoness chuckled.
“I wouldn’t put it past her. Regardless, I’m certain there’s some pretty tune you can come up with that would allow me to carry you.”
Lyric looked at her doubtfully.
“That doesn’t seem like the best idea. Singer’s limit songs on themselves for good reasons. Anything I try would be unstable at best, I’d rather not have it crap out a hundred feet in the air.”
Acheron looked above them at the upper battlements.
“That’s where we need to go?”
“At least that far,” Lyric agreed.
“Okay, I have another solution, but you probably won’t like it.”
“Wha-?” Lyric’s attempted question was cut off as Acheron seized him by an arm and leg and hurled him upward like a sack of flour. He cleared the battlement by twenty feet at least and had just enough time to dread the landing before he crashed to the stone. Rolling over in pain, he saw the small, lithe figure of Cadence appear over the edge and land a few feet from him. She managed to land in a roll that propelled her to her feet. Then Acheron was standing directly above him, a spiked boot on either side of his head as she smiled down at him.
“You suck,” he coughed as he sat up slowly.
“You’re welcome,” the demoness said, bumping a hip against his head as she walked past him toward the soldiers advancing on them with weapons drawn. Cadence was immediately beside her and they stood shoulder to shoulder between the soldiers and their Singer.
“Stop!” Lyric shouted, forcing himself to his feet. “We’re here to help. Colonel Avery sent us.”
“Hold,” another soldier shouldered his way through the troops. “Who are you?”
“I’m a soul singer, I’m here to aid in the defense of Markhato against Melody and Rondeaux.”
“ ‘Bout damn time,” the man looked at Lyric’s pendant but didn’t show the immediate respect Avery had. “Please don’t tell me you’re all they sent, what are you twelve? Where are the rest of you? Why haven’t you answered our calls? And who the hell is Rondeaux?”
“I’m straight out of the field, sir, I can’t speak for my Guild but I’m here. Rondeaux is the threat. Melody’s attack on the east is a diversion, Rondeaux has more than a million soldiers mustered and attacking from the West. Where do you want me, sir?”
“Easy on the attitude, boy. My name is General Brad Tagshout.” The older man rubbed his jaw, “more than a million, huh? Why haven’t we seen them then?”
“I don’t know,” Lyric said wearily, “but I assure you they’re there. Avery has already engaged them on the lower battlements. We just came from assisting him.”
“None of you look too awful, for having just survived a battle with over a million men.”
Lyric’s patience was evaporating rapidly. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to ignore the man’s needling.
“Hope you fare as well, sir. Since you seem to have everything under control I’ll bid you good luck.” Lyric turned to walk away, deciding he’d head for the West side and do what he could there. A rough hand fell heavily on his shoulder and the general whipped him back around, livid. Lyric grabbed the man’s wrist as Tagshout tried to grasp the front of his shirt. Slowly he began to squeeze, looking the man in the eye. “I am more than you can handle, general. I will give my life to save this city, but I will not do it under your command.” He could feel the bones bending under his grip. To his credit, Tagshout didn’t even whimper. “I’m going to the West side of the battlements to engage the enemy and do what I’ve been trained to do. You can step out of my way or be thrown out of my way.” Lyric stopped tightening, but held the general’s wrist fast. The older man tried pulling away but had no chance against Lyric’s demon-augmented strength. “I suggest you maintain what dignity you can, sir, and simply allow me to pass.” Lyric released his wrist. Tagshout stood staring at him, shaking in rage. Lyric saw it coming well before it arrived. Catching the general’s other fist as the man tried to punch him he clipped him under the jaw with his own fist and watched the man crumple. The soldier’s who’d been watching warily prepared to rush Lyric but the Singer yanked his pendant from his neck and held it up for them to see.
“I’m here to help you!” he shouted so they could all
hear. “You might be tempted to avenge your general’s honor, but don’t. He’s an asshole. You obviously know what this is, which means you have some idea of who and what I am. Would you rather have me fighting for you or against you?”
The soldiers made a path and Lyric and his companions passed unmolested. Turning back, he caught the arm of one of the soldiers and pulled him close.
“Markhato is being attacked from both the east and the west. The general did not seem to be aware of that, but I promise you it’s happening. Tell whoever you need to tell so that the enemy doesn’t come strolling in the back while you’re covering the front.” The soldier nodded and took off at a run.
Lyric, Cadence and Acheron made their way back around the west side of the mountain and looked out at nothing but thousands and thousands of trees.
“Acheron?”
“I’ll go look.”
Acheron smoked out and Cadence and Lyric stood watch. A few minutes passed and Acheron reappeared.
“They’re out there.”
“How many?”
“No idea, but they’re using the same demon-proofing as in the valley and it goes for miles. But here's the best part,” Lyric met Acheron's eyes. "It's moving toward us."
The sound of booted feet running turned them to see a contingent of grim faced soldiers heading for them. Stopping ten yards short if the two the front man saluted and shouted.
“General Noale Sabre, requesting permission to approach.”
Lyric nodded curtly, watching the older man approach.
“Permission to speak freely, sir.” The general continued shouting even though he was three feet away.
“Granted.”
“What the hell do you think you’re doing, boy?”
“Saving Markhato.”
“Not good enough. You are Lyric of the Soul Singers Guild. Better known around here as the Demon Singer. Less than an hour ago, you were a prisoner in the dungeons below. You have killed several of the enemy, but also injured several of our men. Your loyalties are in question, as you’ve been declared fallen by your own Guild. A Guild that we have been out of contact with for two days now. We have a full frontal assault occurring on our eastern side and no evidence of any activity here in the west. All the evidence points to you being full of shit.” The general paused, looking for a reaction. Lyric continued to stare at him impassively. “Rumor also has it that you are the son of the Emerald Light of Markhato.” Lyric’s jaw clenched at mention of his mother, whose fate was still a question mark to him. Sabre’s tone softened. “I knew Emma before she ran away with that asshole, Niq. I can’t imagine for a second any son of hers being a traitor. So please, give me something to believe.”
“SIR!!”
They all turned to see a soldier pointing at the secondary battlements. Appearing out of thin air, wave upon wave of humans, goblins, vampires, elves, trolls, ogres and sundry other creatures overwhelmed Avery's men in seconds and swarmed over and along the walls making their way unchallenged to the foot of the primary battlements.
"How's that?" Acheron asked.
General Sabre assessed the situation and began barking orders, sending runners for reinforcements and setting his remaining soldiers to defend their position he turned back to Lyric.
"I'm convinced. Do your thing Demon Singer."
"Don't call me that," Lyric muttered quietly as he approached the edge. Looking at the ceaseless torrent of attackers appearing on the secondary battlements he asked Acheron. "You said you can punch a hole in that barrier?" The demoness nodded. "Let's start with that."
"Sing me a song, Lover, I'll need some juice."
Lyric considered what might be effective and quickly settled on a song of strength, sending it through the tie. Acheron's eyes blazed with an unholy light and she threw both hands out toward the barrier. Violet tinged black fire flew from her hands to smash into the invisible curtain. An odd bowing occurred where the fire struck as though it was pushing into a huge balloon. The barrier held and Acheron's eyes narrowed. Lyric was watching the demoness, and could almost see the effort she put in even though it was all in their tie. He could feel the power of his song surging into the demoness as Acheron drilled into the barrier with her demon fire. Their efforts were rewarded with a teeth-rattling boom as the barrier split wide and disappeared. Suddenly the large siege platforms set up against the secondary battlements were in plain view. The flood of attackers no longer appeared from thin air, instead now they clambered up the siege towers.
Lyric saw with dismay that the enemy stretched as far as the eye could see. The enormous number of attackers already on the wall was just the tip of the iceberg.
Calling to mind the flattening song from earlier Lyric directed it at the siege towers and watched as they crumpled, taking enemy soldiers with them.
The general grunted approval and gestured to the enemy troops who'd already made it over and were advancing like a well-armed flood.
"Can you do that to them?"
Lyric shook his head.
"It's too general, I'd kill your men as well. Beside, every time I sing a song it loses its potency. I need to come up with something else."
"Well, make it snappy, help isn't likely to arrive before they do." He pointed to the base of the wall they stood atop and Lyric saw elves and gremlins already scaling the stones. "And what you see here is all I have. There is no one protecting the several miles of wall in either direction."
Lyric regarded the advancing soldiers with the fanatical gleam in their eyes. This was going to be a blood bath. These creatures under Rondeaux's thrall wouldn't give up. The Milleytes Lux wouldn't show mercy and apparently, the Soul Singers Guild was not coming to help.
"Do something Singer!" Sabre shouted, joining his men in knocking elves and gremlins off the wall as more and more of the enemy came on.
Stillness settled over Lyric. He backed away from the heat of the battle and took an appropriate stance. Acheron whirled around to face him as she felt his intention through the tie. A beautiful smile lit her face as she nodded in anticipation.
“Dig deep, son.” Lomong spoke those words to Lyric immediately before his casting. He’d been secretly terrified that he would prove inadequate to the task. The words of his teacher and mentor echoed in his head. Ignoring the chaos surrounding him Lyric began to sing his battle song.
The moment his mouth opened the power began to flow. Usually Lyric drew power from Acheron, but this time he fed it to her. This was the strength of the soul singer. They could take power from their Verger or they could give it to them. No one since the Soul Singers Guild had been founded even approached the raw power in Lyrical Sound of the Evening’s Soul Song. A Singer’s soul song consists of many variations, and even multiple themes. Lyric’s battle song was fierce on its own and had already made him a legend in the Guild, even among the Masters. Now he would join the force of his battle song with the power of one of hell’s mightiest demons. The combined strength of Singer and Verger is said to be able to shake the hills. Lyric intended to shake the mountain.
Acheron smoked out, but not entirely. A form of her, translucent, lovely, and incredibly deadly hurtled along the battlements, seeking the enemy and killing them. There was no pausing, no second-guessing, no mercy, just death delivered in a cloud of black and the scent of lilacs. Lyric’s eyes remained closed as he focused on guiding Acheron with his will and putting the proper amount of respect back into the enemy. As they sped along the wall, every enemy they encountered was sent flying through the air, all the way back over the secondary battlements to crash among their comrades seeking to scale the barrier.
In a matter of minutes, one side of the battlements had been cleared. Lyric turned them around, raced back to his body, and passed it to repeat the process on the other side. He saw Cadence was standing with her back against him, guarding him from all sides.
It was odd; as they passed his body he was able to hear his voice with Acheron’s ears. It was eerie. He’d never heard
a song like the one he was singing. He didn’t even recognize it. A part of him was troubled by this, but Acheron shouted it down.
NO! Focus! Don’t lose control!!
She was right. He shoved the niggling doubt aside and ignored the screech of the discord in their tie. Focus. They cleaned out the other side of the battlements as they had the first. Lyric knew that some of the enemy had made their way upward already, but was confident the Milleytes Lux would be able to handle them. He had a point to make. Flying with Acheron over the gap between the battlements, they hovered above the enemy still trying to climb the wall. Lyric looked with demon eyes at the sprawling mass of life below him. He was amazed at the wide variety of supernatural glows he could see. Time for a message.
“Stop!” His voice thundered across the foot of the mountain for miles in each direction so that every living thing could hear him. “You serve a false goddess who has sent you on a suicide mission that serves no purpose other than your pointless deaths. You lay siege to the city of Light, the place of peace that serves the Composer of the Score of Creation. Wake up from the stupor and stop this attack or the wrath of the guardians of this city will fall upon you.”
Angry shouts and hurled weapons greeted his words. Not surprised, Lyric grimly steeled himself for what was to come.
Laying hold of the tie, he drew and drew and drew on it, to the point he could feel Acheron becoming alarmed. But he was in control and knew exactly what he was doing. May the Voice forgive me.
Blinding heat and light that was completely inside him and Acheron, feeding itself and growing threatened to break free. Aiming carefully he let it.
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