"Everyone, quiet!" The scarred Horadrim woman whispered.
At her order the boat fell quiet. 4 other Horadrim were keeping low while they rowed the boat towards the harbour. They could all smell it over the tang of the seawater; smoke and blood. They did not know if the city was fallen or not, or how many daemons there were, but their ship could go no further. It was this hellish port or nothing.
Everyone grasped for their weapons as the boat brushed against the gravelly shore, tense breaths held so daemons would not hear them over the waves. When a long moment had passed with no cries of alarm or bloodcurdling roars, the woman signalled to leave the boat. With her in the lead they moved up the beach, staying as low as they could while they approached the side of the harbour. There had been a battle here, for as soon as they ascended unto the cobbles of the harbour proper they found piles of bodies. Mariners and dockworkers with great slashing or biting wounds and their faces contorted in agony, the cobbles around them covered in great splashes of blood. A few ships lay at anchor, one of them aflame. Beyond the roar of the flames, the port was silent. The battle, if it still raged, had moved inland. Swearing oaths of vengeance for the dead, the Horadrim followed.
Soon they heard the clashing of metal on the wind, as well as shouts of rage and pain. A square was the site of a raging battle between daemons and men, great bonfires interspersed throughout. Where the fires raged the daemons shied away, but elsewhere the humans were being pushed back and away from the fires. It was clearly not the only battle; in the distance a great host of flying daemons swarmed about and the Horadrim could see even more fires.
"Horadrim, with me." The scarred woman growled and gripped her weapon tightly. Around her the other Horadrim steeled themselves for battle.
Without shouts of battle the armoured warriors charged. The daemons were surprised and immediately fell back under their onslaught but not before the Horadrim had felled a dozen of their number. A red-skinned creature raised a staff aloft, made from a human spine, but before it could finish its spell, the woman's axe was planted in its skull. Two large daemons with blade-like fins on their arms and legs and a jaw like a beartrap sought to take advantage of her disarmament, only to discover that her shield and fist were equally lethal to any blade.
"For Ranstheim!" The shouts came and the daemons, distracted by the Horadrim attack, were again assaulted from the rear. The townsfolk came with their meagre weapons but also, more importantly, a mass of torches and lanterns. The fires were small, but the daemons panicked and tried to run in any direction that would take them away from the fires. Only few escaped. The Horadrim gripped their weapons with both hands and killed over half the daemons that tried to escape, a full third of that accounted for by the woman and her deadly axe.
The battle over, the townsfolk gave out a great cry and one of them, clothed in a long robe matted with blood, threw a spell into the sky that erupted in blue sparks. In the distance, a similar spell of a different hue answered, and the flying daemons jerked and fell under an onslaught of arrows and bolts.
The Horadrim woman sent her fellows to hunt the daemons that had fled, lest they circle around or report the events to their superiors. As she turned to retrieve her axe from the cranium of a pot-bellied daemon, she saw a man approaching her from the crowd of townsfolk. Close cropped black hair framed a pale face with yellow eyes. He wore ill-fitting armour and a spear that had snapped in the middle. To his credit, both halves of the spear were caked in blood.
"You have our great thanks, mystery warrior. Without you and yours I doubt we would have held for much longer." The man's voice was hoarse.
She grasped his extended hand. His grip belied his thin frame. "You have our thanks too, for holding so long. We have a ship in the harbour."
"I am afraid we cannot offer much in way of supplies, of any sort really. But if it's a port you seek, we can help you out." He said.
"How soon?" She said and grabbed with a vial in her belt.
The man looked back at his fellows. Most of them had collapsed to the ground in tired heaps and others worked about the square sorting bodies. Dead humans with closed eyes to the sky. Dead demons in disorganised piles to be burnt.
"I reckon the work will distract them, keep them going. We'll be ready before your ship clears the wave breakers." He said.
She nodded and threw the vial at the cobbles with a suddenness that startled the man. Before he could ask why or what, a white smoke had begun emanating from the cobbles where the liquid within had splashed.
"A signal to my ship." Was all she said for an answer.
Just as she turned to leave, the man cleared his throat. "I would like to know the name of our saviour. I'm Alders."
"Valkana Stormbringer." She said.
"Stormbringer? You're a barbarian, then?" He asked. Valkana's Horadrim fellows began returning to the square, 3 daemon corpses in their collective grasp. They were added to the piles.
"Aye, before the mountain was shattered." Valkana said, then added with a chuckle, "I'm a scholar now."
Alders looked at her blood-splattered armour and battle-axe. "If you say so."
After sharing a laugh, the two of them left on their business, Alders directing his workers to the docks and Valkana bringing her fellow Horadrim down to where the ship would dock. There were only a few dock-bridges left, the rest taken up by burning ships and derelicts. By the time the Light of Rathma had dropped anchor, the burning ship was nearing the waterline and sinking fast. Valkana had no knowledge of dock work but she and her fellows helped where directed, and the ship was soon secured.
Arcanist Vaisoris was first down the ramp. "Excellent work Valkana. I knew you could do it."
Valkana indicated the townsfolk still milling about finalising the docking. "They'd done some of the work before we got here. It's not a town without fangs."
"Excellent." Vaisoris mumbled. Behind him the other Horadrim were leaving the ship, some in a better state than others. Karim in particular was green around the gills and promptly ran to the side of the docks to vomit.
A few stayed on the ship to watch the Soul Cage. Until they had the lay of the hand and a way forward, there was little to gain from bringing it ashore.
Alders stepped forward and extended a hand towards Vaisoris. "Uhm, welcome to Ranstheim. I take it you're the leader."
"Of this merry group, at the very least." Vaisoris said with a chuckle and took the hand.
"We hope we can purchase some supplies here before we move on." Vaisoris continued.
"That might be difficult, I'm afraid. We've been under constant attack by daemons for near a fortnight, and we're stretched thin even caring for our own."
Alders glanced at Valkana. "We're deeply grateful for your help, but it's an unfortunate choice for a port."
"I am afraid our ship can go no further, by order of its lovely captain." Vaisoris said. Far behind him on the ship, a tall woman was directing her crew to prepare to cast off as soon as the hold was emptied.
"But why are you all in Ranstheim? We mostly get people leaving, not many come here." Alders said.
"Have you heard of the Horadrim, lad?" Vaisoris said.
"Eh, stories. I heard they all died over two decades ago." Alders said.
"Not quite, but that's a story for another time. We are scholars and we wish to examine the ruins on the slopes of Mount Arreat." Vaisoris said.
He waved vaguely behind him at Valkana and the other Horadrim warriors. "Hence our escort."
Alders chuckled at Valkana. "So, you were a scholar after all." She smiled back.
"Are you sure? The daemons are rowdier than ever these days." Alders said, turning back to the old arcanist.
"Since when?" Vaisoris asked.
Alders scratched at the stubble on his chin for a moment. "A couple months, we've been kept quite busy so sometimes the days kind of blend into each other." He looked at the walls vaguely visible on the far side of town as he spoke. Dawn was breaking, but not with much fanfare. The clouds and smoke from the burning buildings filled much of the sky.
"We do some trade with the Demon Hunters out of their keep in the Dreadlands, but we haven't seen any of them for over a month now." Alders added.
Valla had been a demon hunter. Valkana thought to herself.
"If at all possible, we should pass by their keep, Arcanist. They would be helpful allies, both in a fight and for navigating the region." Valkana said to the old scholar.
"That is true. If nothing else, we owe it to the Nephalem to ensure they are well." Vaisoris said and turned back to Alders.
"Young man, do you know anyone in this town that can guide us through the region, preferably also the keep of the hunters?"
"With things as they are, I doubt anyone in town would leave the walls. Even in daytime it would be dangerous. At night, well, let's not speak of it." Alders replied.
"There would be payment." Vaisoris said without missing a beat.
"Well that opens it up a bit, but anyone that mad or strapped for cash is bound to be deep in their cups or outside of town in the first place." Alders said.
"If you can wait till the sun's coming back down, the taverns will start filling back up. That will be your best bet." He added.
"Thank you for your assistance, young man." Vaisoris said and held out a small pouch.
"I appreciate the offer, but your escort probably saved our town. You don't owe me a thing." Alders said, then added. "Maybe a mug of ale at sundown."
"Very well. Valkana, let's be on." Vaisoris said.
The Horadrim split up, with roughly half staying near the docks to protect the ship, both from curious eyes and demons. The rest walked throughout Ranstheim, examining the town's defences, gateways and tunnels. The town was not under a proper siege but leaving through the main gate would attract more attention than they perhaps would enjoy, especially considering their cargo. So Valkana and the other fighters of the Horadrim felt through the darkness of tunnels to find a way to leave town out of sight.
"This one looks promising." Vaisoris had said and pointed at a pitch-black doorway sequestered away in the far end of an alleyway. Even the shacks had stopped a way back and it was just grimy cobblestone walls on either side. So now she was walking through the dark corridor beyond the doorway, careful about each step lest she misstep and injure herself on a hidden rock. A medallion given to her by Vaisoris gave off a weak light, enough to see by without disrupting her night vision excessively. Keeping a hand on the wall to her right for balance and to judge distance, she found a slight curvature as she went. A while after the light of the entrance behind her had passed, she saw a thin line of light up ahead. It was at the top of a long, wide stairway, illuminated by the weak light of the medallion.
As Valkana moved to step into the tall chamber that contained the stairway, she heard a splash of water. Taking care not to smash her metal armour against the stone, she dove behind a large block of fallen masonry and covered the medallion with her hand. After a moment of tense silence, the footsteps continued, albeit very slowly. Valkana held her breath while slowly removing her axe from its sheath at her side, ears trying to pick out any sound coming from the room. The footsteps were getting closer at the same pace. As they reached her hiding place, Valkana surged to her feet and swung her axe with a shout. The shape approaching her narrowly dodged the attack, jumping away from her and raising an object towards her. She heard a snap and threw herself to the side, but too slowly to evade the projectiles that clattered against her armour.
"Tough husk for a demon, aye?" The shape shouted. It had a hoarse voice, but clearly not demonic.
"I am no demon." Valkana said, put her axe aside and uncovered the medallion. The light showed a man standing in front of her. He was somewhat lanky but if he could dodge her attack, he could hardly be weak. Her was covered in cloth and leather, though the light washed out all the colours. On his shoulder and along his left arm she could see an arrangement of bones and he carried an assortment of small spheres and vials in belts across his torso. His outstretched hand held a small crossbow, much like the one she had seen the Nephalem use when she had met the woman in Westmarch.
"Oh," The man said in a surprised tone, "Honest mistake."
Valkana made to speak further but another splash in the room caught her tongue. She covered the medallion in a hurry and dived back beneath the rock. The man had slipped out of the area of light before Valkana had moved. The splash was followed by a multitude of others and the clicking of claws on stone. Large shapes with thin limbs moved through the darkness, crimson eyes darting back and forth. The man was nowhere to be seen as the shapes arrived at the entrance to the tunnel leading into town. Valkana made her breathing as quiet as she could as the creatures began stalking past her little hiding spot. Each had 4 legs like a knight's lance but made of bone, the legs supporting a thin torso with 4 further limbs, each limb shaped like a farmer's scythe covered in spikes. She heard a different movement in the chamber as over half of the demons had passed her, their chaotic assortment of eyes too focused on the path ahead to detect her. A creak of leather and then a sound of metal on stone. In the darkness she could only just see the sphere in time in order to move her shield around her body and in the way before the grenade went off. The tunnel filled with fire, noise and light. Demons screeched as the fire and the shrapnel blasted their bodies, the tight confines of the tunnel magnifying the effect. Valkana felt several items bounce off her shield until the immediate ball of flame died away. The demons had been hit hard and were shook, but over half their number was still alive. Grabbing her axe and uncovering the medallion, Valkana surged to her feet and struck at the closest shape. The demon's maw opened to snap at her before her axe parted its skull. Another demon roared at her and leapt, a mass of spiked limbs flying at her, Valkana managing to get her shield in between before it could strike. One arm went around the shield and sliced at her shoulder, hitting between where her pauldron and glove protected her, the cloth there parting with ease, leaving a gash on her upper arm. With a shout Valkana pivoted and pushed, slamming the demon into the wall and pinning it there with her shield before decapitating it with her axe. Two demons behind her raised their spiked forearms but before they could strike at her back, a burst of crossbow bolts slammed into them. Most were stopped by their armoured hide but enough hit home in eyes, neck and gut that both demons staggered away and collapsed. Another sphere falls to the ground and detonates, but the demons are roused and outside of the tight confines of the tunnel, so only a single demon is caught in the blast. Three of them surge around the fading explosion towards where the sphere had come from, only to find another grenade on a longer fuse. They shriek as their bodies are pelted with burning shrapnel. In the illumination cast by the explosion it is clear that the demon numbers are rapidly thinning and some of them break away to run away back the way they had come, only to find the man standing in front of them, and another volley of crossbow bolts punch through them. Two of the spindly demons think they have Valkana cornered, only for her to toss her axe through the skull of one and bulldoze the other with her shield, smashing its body to pieces with it.
A snap and a curse calls out through the noise of the battle and Valkana sees the man running from one of the creatures. She runs towards him and snatches her axe on the way, throwing the weapon into the demons back. As it flinches from the force and the sudden pain, she tackles it to the ground then grabs its head and rams it into the stone floor. It only takes 3 impacts for it to stop moving.
"No hard feelings for earlier, I hope." The man says as Valkana stands up, eyeing the spatters of blood on her armour.
"I'm friends with people that've hit me harder." She replied and bent to retrieve her axe. She had to put a boot on the demon to do so.
The man held out a hand. Now that she had a better look, the hand was strong and heavily scarred. "My name is Hans Rudiger. I'm one of the Demon Hunters that operate here in the Dreadlands."
"Valkana." She replies and takes the hand. His grip is strong.
"Pleased to meet you. Can we walk and talk?" He asks and points back the way she had come.
"We can. And I believe I know someone that would love to talk to you and your order." Valkana said, figuring she can return here to finish her exploration later.
"And who might that be?" Hans said. The light from the medallion cast shadows all over the tunnel as they walked.
"Arcanist Vaisoris Galaren of the Horadrim." Valkana replies. It's not often she uses his full name, but it is not often she talks to a Demon Hunter.
The last word makes Hans start. "The Horadrim? Like that old man from the stories?"
"The very one." Valkana said. She had never met the old man, but Vaisoris spoke of him at times. It was curious hearing the arcanist look up to someone.
"What was his name again? Devrim Kay?"
"Deckard Cain."
"That's the one." Hans said. As they walked, he brought out the crossbow from earlier. The limb was limp and there was no string.
"It broke at the worst time." Hans explained when he caught her glancing. "I suppose I've been taxing it too heavily."
"What is a Demon Hunter doing hiding in a city?" Valkana said after a moment of silence. They could see the light of the exit up ahead.
"Well I didn't intend to make for the city, but the demons drove me here. I've been harassing the herds that roam the Dreadlands, like many other Demon Hunters. Over the last month they've gone mad." Hans said, then added. "Not that demons are usually calm."
"When I left, they hadn't attacked the Keep yet, but I would not be surprised if that is under siege by now too. Something's got them riled up."
Valkana had an idea what that could be but decided to let Vaisoris tell that particular tale.
They found the old man waiting for them outside the door of the tunnel, smoking a pipe and reading a book. He was much delighted when he learned who and what Hans was.
Hans sat on the wooden deck looking at the intricate patterns of the Soul Cage and the glowing sphere it contained. Vaisoris and Valkana stood a short distance away.
"Oh Valla, how did you end up like this." He muttered after a while.
"She didn't suffer." Vaisoris said.
"I'd like to believe that, but Demon Hunters don't get to die in their beds." Hans said.
"Valla most of all."
"We mean to transport it to the Shattered Mountain." Vaisoris said after a moment of silence.
"That's a long way for a burial."
"An ancient prophecy says it will decide the fate of this world." Vaisoris continued, ignoring the jibe.
"And you want me to guide you there." Hans said.
"That is correct, her Rudiger." Vaisoris said.
"We can leave at first light." Hans said and stood up.
"The Horadrim have plenty of ways to light up the night." Vaisoris said.
"That may be, but the demons come out of their nests at force in the night. The plains will be swarming with them. Even with a small group it would be impossible to cross." Hans said.
"What if we could direct the eyes of the demons somewhere else? A distraction." Valkana said after a moment.
"It would have to be a real big distraction." Hans said with a chuckle.
The sky was pink with the waning sun by the time Valkana and Hans reached the battlements. Most of the townsfolk were there in scattered clumps, looking nervously at the duo and out onto the plains of the Dreadlands. In the far distance, Mount Arreat rumbled, the caldera covered in a thunderstorm.
Alders looked up at their approach then started when he saw Hans. "Hans! I thought you had all died." The two men shared a hearty handshake.
"Trust me, there's been plenty of close calls. How's the shop?" Hans said.
"Well I've had to take on a side-job for a time." Alders said and indicated the spear that rested against the wall. His armour was much like what Valkana had seen on the man when she arrived.
The merchant-turned-warrior looked over to Valkana. "I hope we can count on you and yours for this night as well."
"I am sorry, Alders, I have my own duty to do." Valkana said. No matter how their plan worked out, she could not imagine she would see the man alive again after this evening.
Alders nodded, then looked at Hans. "And I suppose you are part of that, or why would you be here too?"
Hans nodded. "I would love to stick around but this is important too. We need your help, Alders."
"How could a family man like me help two trained warriors like you?" Alders said with a grim chuckle.
Hans produced 4 vials from a bandolier. "We need to cross the plains, and we need as much time as we can get. Make some bonfires and splash that on them. Will make the Eve of the New Year look like a matchstick."
"Drawing more demons." Alders said. The chuckle was gone.
"Can the town handle that?" Hans said and looked across the walls.
Alders did the same. "Maybe." Was all he replied.
"We need to cover as much ground before the next nightfall and leaving in the night is the best way." Valkana said, trying to keep her voice level.
Alders was still for a moment and Valkana and Hans did not want to press him.
"I'd best get going then." Alders said finally and turned towards the nearest stairway off the walls.
"Going where?" Hans shouted after him.
"To find wood for the bonfires!" Alders shouted back.
"Wait a moment." Hans said and unclasped one of his bandoliers. Alders accepted it with a confused look.
"Grenades." Hans said in reply to his look.
Alders nodded, thanked Hans and ran down the steps two at a time.
Night fell. The sky went from pink to blood red to dark blue. Throughout town lights went on and fires were started, except the bonfires on the wall. They were for a specific purpose. Out beyond the walls, the Dreadlands were waking. Wide tunnels carved into the ground lit up from within and howls echoed back and forth over the barren land as the demons came from their realm. In the distance, Mount Arreat still rumbled.
The Horadrim stood gathered in the grand chamber at the end of the tunnel. The warriors that Valkana had brought with her to the harbour covered their rear while Valkana and Hans continued through the remainder of the tunnel into the open air beyond. It was not the only exit from the chamber, but all the others were not manmade. Old, dusty demon-tunnels, the ground within covered in bones of all sorts. The corpses from Valkana and Hans' battle the other day had already been removed, long bloody drag-marks running into the underground.
"I wish we had a way to signal Alders." Hans said as Valkana and he waited in the shadow of the walls.
"The demons would see the signal." Valkana replied.
"I know, I know. But a man can wish." Hans said and checked his armaments again. He had fixed his crossbow before leaving town, and a replacement bandolier held a row of knives.
In the distance they could see the herds of demons moving towards the walls. They were scattered and disorganised, but they far outnumbered the townsfolk on the walls. Volleys of arrows rained down on the demons and some fell, but most did not. The battlefield was lit by a bright flash of light and then the cries of demons. The ones closest to the walls screamed and fled, until the light faded. When the demons regained their courage and renewed their assault, their numbers had grown. The light flashed again and again the demons recoiled, but in the distance Valkana could see more demons emerging from the hills.
"It's time we started moving. They're buying us time and we're wasting it." Hans said and turned for the entrance to the tunnel.
The Horadrim caravan made good time. Hans took the lead, so the caravan avoided the worst of the treacherous terrain. Valkana marched alongside the Soul Cage, which had been covered with a sheet to contain the light, and would look over her shoulder sometimes to see Ranstheim in the distance. From the distance all she could see was that the fires still burned on the walls.
Eventually Ranstheim disappeared in the distance, behind the hills of the Dreadlands. Valkana had wondered why they would need a guide to get to Mount Arreat; and indeed, ever since they had arrived at the shore of the Dreadlands, the ominous mountain had been clearly visible on the horizon, forever roiling within a storm. She had thought that surely, they could use it as a landmark to navigate. She had not considered how broken the Dreadlands were. They had always been a harsh land, even before Baal's invasion, but somehow the loss of the Worldstone and the demonic influence had broken and twisted the land. What seemed like hills ended in sheer cliffs, ravines would open in places difficult to see with the naked eye ready to drop unsuspecting travellers to their doom.
Daylight had begun returning by the time the caravan reached the first big obstacle after leaving Ranstheim. A ravine had opened up a hole over 10 meters across and several miles east and west. A single path cross it, less than a meter wide.
Hans stood on a rock, scanning both ways around the ravine. Valkana and the other warriors stood guard while the scholars rested their feet. Every single one knew the importance of their task so there was no complaining.
"We could go around, but it would easily take an hour whichever way, and," Hans squinted at the eastern approach, "I think I see demon tunnels in either direction."
"So, we should cross." Vaisoris said. The comment lacked his usual good cheer.
"It would be smartest, but also the most dangerous course. Let me get a closer look." Hans said and approached the edge.
"Sir, if we tie everyone together with rope, that should lessen the risk of anyone falling off." Karim said.
"Very well. Everyone, assemble all the rope we have with us." Vaisoris said.
"What about the Soul Cage? All of us making it across has little use if we leave that behind." Valkana said.
"If we send you across with rope, tie it to the Cage itself then we can guide and push it across the bridge." Karim said.
"I'd be careful about falling off, even with all the rope in Sanctuary attached." Hans said. He pointed behind him down the crevasse.
"There's whimvine down there."
"Whimvine?" Karim said.
"Think of it like an evil tree-root." Hans replied. "Wickedly sharp at the tip. Even a metal chain wouldn't hold long."
"Can they reach up to the bridge?" Vaisoris asked.
"Shouldn't, no. But if anyone falls off, you'll have to pull them up right quick." Hans said.
Rope was tied around Valkana's waist and with a deep breath she ventured out onto the bridge. She wanted to take a wide stance for balance but didn't trust the rock closer to the edge, so she stuck to the middle, placing each foot in front of the other with more care than she ever had before. When she was past the halfway point, she heard a cry behind her and heard the flapping of wings. She ducked below the flight of bats returning home to sleep. Risking a look behind her, she saw Hans giving her the sign to continue. If the Demon Hunter thought it safe, she chose to trust him. On the cliff beneath where the Horadrim was waiting she could see a tangled mess, like a thick bramble bush. That must be the whimvine Hans had been talking about.
Taking a deep breath, Valkana carefully stood up and continued, only breathing easier when she was fully across with enough space around her to lie down at her full height and still be on solid ground. Across the way, Hans stood as high as he could in the immediate landscape so he could scout for demonic attention while the rest of the Horadrim braved the crossing.
Another Horadrim warrior crossed the bridge with no incident and the Soul Cage was tied to the rope and to its stretcher with enough rope to cross the crevasse several times so that hands on both sides could assist with its transport without dislodging it. When it was secured to everyone's satisfaction, Valkana and the other warrior took up their end while two others took the other. The two that had carried it all the way here lifted the stretcher and walked out onto the bridge, testing it with every step. While the caravan held its collective breath and the warriors kept themselves ready to pull the ropes taut at a moment's notice the stretcher inched across. With each step Valkana saw the bridge crumble and spill all their efforts into the darkness below, but it never happened. With a deep sigh of relief from all present, the Soul Cage was put down on the ground as far away from the edge as the terrain would allow.
Vaisoris was the next across, secured almost as tightly as the Soul Cage had been. When the old man was across, he quipped that was honoured that they wished so dearly to keep hold of him. Karim and another scholar were next and then the scholars were crossing in pairs, tied thrown back and forth across the crevasse like tools in some open-air circus.
The good fortune failed them with one of the last crossings; a pair of younger scholars were crossing very slowly when one of them, surprised by a gust of wind from below, looked down into the abyss below the bridge. With a sharp cry he dropped to the ground, hands over his head and muttering something indistinct over the gap. Even as his crossing-partner bent to console him, the scholar's cry was met with another, far less human cry. Shouting erupted on both sides of the bridge as a flock of winged creatures erupted from a copse of trees a hundred meters or so down the border of the ravine. Karim shouted at the men to hurry. Vaisoris tried to guide some of the scholars onto the bridge to help the stranded scholars. Valkana and the other warriors began readying for battle, and set a chain on the handle of her axe. Hans simply grumbled.
The creatures flew high into the air then angled towards the bridge. Even though the bitterly cold wind of the Dreadlands was against them, the creatures sped towards the flock of people scattered around the ravine like a burst of loosed arrows. Their vague silhouettes soon became obviously demonic, all brutal fangs and fiery eyes. Hans shot at them as soon as they were in range, his crossbow causing a few of them to tumble out of the sky with pained shrieks, but not all. 3 of the winged demons descended on the centre of the bridge, one of them catching Valkana's axe with its chest for its trouble. The remaining two tore into the scholar that had fallen, their fangs and claws tearing his robe apart and scattering blood and gore all over the stone. His partner was not attacked, but the buffeting of wings so close to him pushed him away and over the edge where he fell, the rope not as taut as it should be since the other man was cowering on the bridge from the demonic attack. The scholar swung on the rope towards the cliff edge while hanging on for dear life so as not to lose his grip when he impacted. But as soon as he neared the rockface, the mass of bramble came to sudden life, wooden limbs lashing out at the movement around them. The rope holding the scholar was sliced in two in a blink and with a cry he vanished into the abyss.
Hans reloaded his crossbow and put a bolt in the two demons on the bridge. One of them roared back and lifted up on its wings, but the other stumbled and fell from the bridge. After a few meters the whimvine surged with activity again, the razor-sharp limbs slicing the creature to ribbons.
"Now, cross!" Hans shouted at the Horadrim that remained on the far side. The four scholars exchanged a glance then began walking across the gap, arms out for balance. One by one they reached the rope that lay slack on the bridge from having been cut by the whimvine and they all grabbed hold of it as they proceeded. The demon angled in the air regardless of how the wind blew and came back towards the bridge with a screech. The scholars cried out and hurried their steps, but they would not make it across the gap before it would reach them. Valkana hurried to the edge and tossed her axe, attached to a chain, at its torso but it was too agile and dodged aside, emitting a warbling cry like a laughter. The laughter was cut short by a crossbow bolt to the back of the head. As it tumbled into the ravine without a sound, Hans reloaded his crossbow. The scholars breathed a sigh of relief and walked the rest of the way into the helping arms of the other Horadrim.
Across the ravine they heard another howl. Hans was less taken aback than the others, the Demon Hunter dropping off the position he was standing on and running to the start of the bridge as a large group of demons arrived over the edge of the hill overlooking the ravine. Each had blood-red skin, a tangled mass of thick horns on the top of their heads and rode a huge lizard-like creature that exhaled a pitch-black smoke. With a roar they leapt off the cliff down towards Hans who turned and began running across the bridge, leaving behind a small metallic sphere. It detonated when he was halfway across, scattering rocks and demons to all sides. Some of the demons fell onto the ground while some stumbled off the edge and into the abyss, howling all the way. The shockwave caused Hans to stumble forwards and slide off the bridge, but Valkana managed to dive forwards and grab his hand before he could fall out of reach. He grumbled a thanks as she pulled him up. Across the ravine, the demons were regrouping, their lizard mounts crossing the bridge with their supernatural agility.
"Toss another grenade!" Valkana shouted. A lizard swung at her with its claw, but it only managed to rake across her shield.
"That was my last one!" Hans shouted. Thrusting his crossbow into the lizard's face, he planted a bolt in its eye. With a cry of pain, it tumbled backwards and off the bridge.
The bridge was too narrow for many of the demons to get close at once but by now the other side of the ravine was teeming with demons, far more than they could realistically defeat. And even if the few warriors among the Horadrim could defeat the demon horde, the commotion would draw many more from their tunnels, and if any circled around the sides of the ravine on their fast mounts, they would be surrounded.
"On my word, push them back!" Valkana shouted and took a step back. The other warriors fought to make up for the brief hole in the line, Hans helping from the flank with his crossbow, each bolt sending a demon into the abyss.
"Now!" At the word, the warriors swung their heavy shields forwards, forcing the enemy to either leap back or be sent flying from the bridge. Valkana leapt into the small opening and swung her axe downwards as hard as she could, hoping to dislodge the bridge. The axe slammed against the rock, but the bridge held, only a few small pebbles falling away. Before she could pull back to swing again, a large demon stepped on the back of her axe and pinned it to the ground. Beside her, her fellow Horadrim were pushed back a step by a new wave that had crossed the narrow bridge. She pulled on the chain attached to her axe, but the demon was too large to be easily dislodged. It laughed as it raised its own axe.
There was a shout behind her and a lance of thunder hit the demon in the shoulder. It roared in pain for a moment before the shock surged through its form and it stumbled backwards off her axe.
"Vaisoris!" Valkana shouted behind her.
"You're welcome, Stormbringer!" Vaisoris replied. He stood close behind her holding his medallion in a raised hand.
"Hit the bridge as hard as you can!"
Vaisoris grunted in understanding and began chanting. The sky above the ravine began roiling with power, the clouds slowing their travel as they were drawn into a spiral shape by the growing. The demons cried out and pushed again, the warriors forced back another step. But it was too little, too late. With a shout, Vaisoris swung his arm forward and a peal of thunder deafened everyone on the battlefield before a lightning strike ripped through the clouds and slammed into the bridge near where Valkana had struck it. The demons closest were blinded then fried from the intense energies. A crack of breaking rock filled the silence that followed the lightning and the demons howled and tried to get off the span of rock, either by running away or by pushing through the warriors that now held their shields in a wall of steel. A further crack and the middle of the bridge fell out, rock and demons tumbling down. The tension from the centre portion removed, the other sides crumbled quickly. One demon leapt up over its comrades to clear the wall, but Hans caught it with a bola fired from his crossbow, restraining it and sending it flying back into the hole. As it fell, it went past the mass of bramble. The whimvine lashed out and cut away the bola, but before the demon could even shrug off the remainder for the rope, the sharp limbs sliced it apart and it fell into the abyss in silence.
"We need to get moving." Hans said when all were back on their feet. Vaisoris was pale but he nodded still. On the far side of the ravine the demons howled and clamoured. With pressure from its red-skinned master, one of the lizards attempted to make the jump but fell a few meters short, plunging into the crevasse with a sharp cry and a puff of black smoke. A few demons tried throwing their weapons but the ones that both crossed the distance and flew even remotely close to the group were deflected by the wide shields carried by the Horadrim warriors.
The more pressing problem, the one worrying Hans, were the two prongs of demonic outriders moving around the ravine to flank the group.
Valkana was supporting Vaisoris. "Carriers, follow Her Rudiger's lead, we are leaving for the mountain." The arcanist said.
Hans nodded and beckoned the carriers forward. Up and over the hill they went, and the journey towards Mount Arreat resumed. Vaisoris could keep the pace with Valkana's help but it was clear that the spell had taxed the man. He spoke little on the first leg of the journey, instead focusing on his breathing. The colour returned a little to his features, much to Valkana's relief. Ahead of them, Mount Arreat dominated first the horizon, then the sky. The wind began picking up when they reached its slopes and began ascending. In the valley behind them they could see a herd following them, the demons from the ravine passing that had gone around.
"They are behind us still but that will not last till sunset." Hans said with a grim expression. He walked beside the carriers to be on the lookout for holes or unstable ground, Valkana walking beside him. Vaisoris had recovered enough to keep up on his own, though the slope and the rough terrain was not kind on him.
Valkana looked down the slope. They were too far for her to see many details, but some of the lizard-mounts seemed to remain on the pursuit, even as the sun was setting on the horizon. "Some of the warriors and I could remain behind, delay them as long as possible." She said.
"We might well meet more demons as we get closer to the caldera, so I would not advise separating the group." Hans said.
With a chuckle, he added. "Besides, let's not send people to their deaths if we can avoid it. We have some time before we can do much about it, it's flat going for a little while yet." Hans finished.
There was silence between the two of them for a moment, broken intermittently by Vaisoris' grunting and grumbling.
"How did you know the Nephalem?" Valkana asked.
"The Nephalem? You mean Valla?" Hans said with another chuckle.
"We were trainees together, took the oath on the same day. Why?" Hans added.
It took a moment for Valkana to respond.
"I met Valla during the attack on Westmarch. My troop was just leaving the town when smoke started pouring from houses and screams followed."
Valkana was silent for a moment. "I am a warrior by blood. I take pride in my ability. But next to her I felt like a peasant idly swinging a lumber-axe. She was deadly in battle like nothing else I have ever seen."
"She was something else, that is true. Even during her training, she had an intensity that few could match. I certainly couldn't." Hans said.
The caravan walked in silence for a while, their pace hurried to keep as much distance between them and the pursuing demons as they could. Before long they reached a change in the slope, a cresting that led towards the old, abandoned settlements of the barbarian tribes that used to live on Mount Arreat and the approach towards the caldera. A wide plain swept out before them, covered in tough grasses that gave way to more rocky ground in the distance. Huts built with long timber and slabs of slate populated the plain, becoming bigger, more imposing structures and fortifications as the plain narrowed along the path to the core. To most members of the caravan, this was the first they had seen of the infamous barbarian civilisation. To Vaisoris and Hans, it was known territory. To Valkana, it was her childhood home. But these relations was not the first thing to occupy their attention at the sight.
It was the horde of demons that waited in the valley.
The red-skinned brutes they had encountered on the bridge must have been scouts or outriders from this army. They could see many more of that breed among the ranks, alongside pale-skinned humanoids covered in armour with cruel barbs, winged monsters alongside other far more monstrous creatures. Hans swore under his breath at the sight, seeing for the first time many creatures he had never seen outside of the manuscripts in the keep of the Demon Hunters. Vaisoris mumbled a prayer and grasped his medallion. Valkana looked on grimly, torn between planning how they would pass and despairing at the state of her people's heritage.
On the slope beneath them, the demonic scouts had paused in their pursuit and was instead fanning out to surround them and keep them from retreating back down the mountain.
"So many demons in one place." Hans said quietly. To Valkana the demon hunter suddenly seemed unsteady on his legs.
"The Nephalem faced more foes than this during her fighting at Bastion's Keep." Vaisoris said, though without much conviction or cheer.
"We are not the Nephalem." Valkana said.
A chorus of shouts and cries broke their contemplative silence. One of the other warriors tapped Valkana on the shoulder and pointed down the slope behind them. The demons had been forced from their mounts by fresh attackers. The distance was too great to see many details but Valkana was sure the attackers looked humanoid and flew through the air.
Behind her, Vaisoris prayed again, this time louder. Hans swore, but not at the strange ambush on the slope beneath them. Valkana turned to the plain again.
The demon army was on the move but not in the direction of the caravan. It was trying to form into lines of battle towards some point to the west. A figure hung in the sky, covered in radiant armour and carrying a spear that glowed like a fragment of the sun.
"Imperius." Vaisoris said, his voice full of awe.
The Archangel of Valor motioned forwards with his fabled spear, and the heavens split open behind him. But what spilt through was not the golden light of the High Heavens. What could be seen through the portal, even across such distance, was the dead, grey world of Pandemonium. As the joyless light of that war-torn realm shone on Sanctuary for the first time, a legion of angels charged through, each holding a spear.
Imperius' Golden Spears charged onto the field against the demonic horde, their songs of battle carried on the wind of their rush.