As Outer Commander, Tanca didn’t have a station to report to during the alert. His place was in training, organizing, and leading Wolf’s forces in the field outside the manor while Ghlan handled the manor’s defenses. The man was a bit of a stuffy bird, but Ghlan was genuinely good at defensive planning and could handle the current troubles.

Instead of getting in the way, Tanca enjoyed one of his favorite pastimes: training the younger generation. He and Dara were about finished with their warm-up routine in one of the smaller training circles within the Gifted Hall. The different stretches and calisthenics were thrown together over the years, pulled from other experts he’d met and moves he’d developed. After decades of battle, inside and outside the training circle, he was a big believer in preparing the body for combat.

He had enjoyed the past couple of days, watching Dara throw herself into her training with a new fire in her heart as she pushed herself to improve every day. She’d never been lazy, but she’d surprised him by spending most of her time in the hall, ready to challenge anyone willing to step within the circle. At first, he’d fully endorsed it as increasing one’s strength was the only correct answer to many of life’s questions. Still, for someone as training-mad as him, even he was starting to have concerns. After all, she didn’t have a healing ability, and he’d already noticed how she favored one side during their warm-up, pointing to an existing injury. He’d be sure to talk with her later after illustrating why she shouldn’t hide injuries from her battle instructor.

Standing up from his last stretch, he casually placed a padded training helmet over his head. The open face, save for two metal bars, protected him adequately while allowing decent visibility. Across from him, Dara did the same. With her blunted training spear in her other hand, she moved towards the center of the training sand. Turning back to him, she braced her feet, assuming the standard starting form for their sessions.

Taking his place in front of her, he shifted his feet to a slightly different stance since he planned on trying a little subterfuge this time to see how she’d react to the unexpected. He pointed his training spear with its hardened wooden blade at an angle, slightly towards the sandy ground, and took a slow breath in focus. There was tension in the air as Dara tried to anticipate him since their fight would be over after the first attack if she didn't predict him correctly. Just as he was about to commit and blur into action, the manor’s alarm went off.

He stood up straight from his stance, dropping his spear to signal a halt to training as he recognized by the sound that the alarm wasn’t a drill – the added buzzing sound was only used for battle. Designed to wake up a warrior from a dead sleep, it felt like his bones were vibrating in sync with the sound, and he dashed to his gear, donned his proper helmet, and snatched up his long spear and iron-reinforced round shield.

Fully armed and armored, he triggered his family’s bloodline as his armor shifted, blurred, and shrank. The metal and leather flowed like a fluid as his flesh changed to merge with his armor. Within only a handful of heartbeats, he stood entirely encased in a fluid metal body. Feeling his metallic features stiffen, he had to concentrate on the different parts of his body to make them move. After over fifty years of practice, it was second nature to maneuver within his metal frame – the day of feeling locked within a stiff body far behind him.

Assuming a severe expression, he gestured to Dara, still changing into her battle armor of thick leather with hardened metal along the joints. “Secure the building, Dara. I’ll check outside.”

He jogged over to the two heavy doors, his steps thumping, gesturing for the guards in the central circle to arm themselves. The children that often watched were gathered by a few of the older teens as they shepherded them towards the rear of the building. A few staff in their offices stepped away from the doors as Tanca moved forward, and he pulled open one of the doors to get a look outside.

The blaring alarm finally stopped as organized chaos took hold in the open ground between the manor and gatehouse. Shouted orders drowned out confused questions while guards wrestled with the gate controls, locking down the mechanism. At the same time, more warriors streamed in from their barracks to take up their places atop the walls. Other people nearby rushed towards their stations, whether guard or civilian, though a few people stood frozen, staring towards the gate with fear.

Without an assigned station himself, his duty was clear, and he opened the doors wide as people started to stream by him inside. His fellow guards could hold the line at the walls while he made sure their people, their families, were safe. Only then would he join them on the wall.

“Come on, get in here,” Tanca yelled to help dispel the incipient panic he recognized in a few standing still nearby. “Keep your heads about you. Don’t forget your training people. Either here or the manor – move!” He stepped out into the open grounds to give their people space in the doorway.

The midday sunshine dimmed within the clear sky as if a heavy cloud had somehow appeared to block Lackar’s warmth and light. He looked around when the temperate weather disappeared while a cold wind blew through the grounds – the kind of chill he hadn’t felt in years. A cold fear settled in his gut, and a creeping feeling flowed into his body and mind as if some wild animal were stalking him.

“Hehehe.”

There was a sudden, almost overwhelming desire to flee, but Tanca immediately triggered Indomitable to shield himself from the mental assault. A shot of energy coursed through his body even as he tried to identify the threat, but he still couldn’t see their attacker. Those not strong enough or without a suitable ability couldn’t resist the mental attack and fled in a panic. Even the other guards, well trained to face death if necessary, were thrown off as a massive aura crashed over them. Only a few brave souls atop the gatehouse kept their wits as they pointed at something beyond the walls.

The monster suddenly appeared as it landed with a crash atop the gatehouse. Standing over a meter taller than Tanca and with shoulders and arms to match its gigantic size, the warriors could do little to defend themselves from the monster in their midst. The behemoth lashed into the guards with his dark claws in an explosion of motions. In little more than an eyeblink, the demon stood alone in the carnage and raised his dark red arms over his head, his haunting laugh echoing again.

“What is this creature,” he whispered in dread and caught sight of the demon’s glowing red eyes just as they focused on him. He recognized his mistake almost immediately, but it was too late, as the eyes somehow captured Tanca, and his body froze. Even with Indomitable, he could not shake his paralysis as the demon walked to the edge of the stone roof, its eyes still on him, and he could only stare at the deep red orbs set over an impossibly wide mouth filled with far too many teeth.

“Hehehe, hello there, shiny morsel. You’re a strong one, standing up to my power. Oh yes, I want to taste tha-.”

The creature was interrupted with arrows that harmlessly bounced off its thick red hide as a few brave Talents stood on the wall, taking shots across the grounds. Another group of spearmen moved across the open area from around the manor to block off the stairs near the gatehouse, but they advanced slowly, fighting against the demon’s aura that urged them to freeze or flee. One woman near the trader’s quarters raised both hands before her just as a piercing blue light struck the demon’s head. It did little damage beyond a small burn mark along one cheek, but it did draw a sharp look that froze the brave woman.

Smiling again, the demon grabbed one of the nearby stone merlons set atop the gatehouse structure. The meter-high squared block, built from the same light-grey stone as the rest of the wall, cracked loudly as the massive demon pulled the stone apart to shower down into pieces at his clawed feet. One, two, and then three stones quickly flew out towards the archers, and only one of them, a woman with red hair peeking out from her helm, was fast enough to dodge. The other two Talents were pulverized as the head-sized stones crushed their bodies to tumble lifelessly off the wall. A fourth stone shot out to take the brave lightwielder low around the legs as she disappeared with a crash into a nearby building.

The demon sniffed the air as his eyes roamed around the walls and grounds. His strange voice vibrated in the air with the disorientating echoes crawling into his listener’s minds. “Come out, tasty morsel. You can’t hide from me. I can sense your essence all over these stones. Face me!” The creature followed its yell by pounding on the top of the nearby stone wall. Pieces of stones and gravel shot out into the air, most pelting down the hill outside.

Tanca shook off the demon’s gaze as he picked up his dropped spear and shield. He needed to find Ghlan and his elites. Together, they might be able to drive the monster away until Wolf could rally the rest of their warriors.

As if his thoughts had summoned him, Ghlan and four of his elite Talents stepped out from the manor’s front door, their shields already in front of them. Tanca had seen Ghlan’s elites in the ring, and they were far more dangerous as a coordinated unit. Sparks and air currents swirled around them as they engaged their abilities to prepare for the fight. Ghlan stood just behind them while they bought him time to shift as his olive skin darkened to the color of freshly tilled soil with dark eyes to match. A cloud of smoke rose from his shoulders while tiny wisps of flame ignited around his torso and head. The Inner Commander pointed a darkened hand at the smiling demon, watching from his perch atop the wall.

“Begone, Boruta!” Ghlan yelled. “You are bound to the Accords!”

Tanca’s stomach dropped at hearing that name, even as his eyes widened in recognition. There was no way they could hope to defeat Boruta – they could only delay him. An image of his grown children arose from his memories, recognizing that he’d never see them on this side of the veil. He took some solace in knowing they were far from here and that he’d be reunited with his dear wife soon. Embracing the inevitable, he changed his strategy.

The giant monster shook with laughter atop its perch, “Hehehe. No longer, little burnt man. I am here for my tasty primal power. Are you going to stop me? Hehehe.”

Boruta dropped down into the interior grounds to land with a solid thump. As if on a leisurely stroll, he walked over to one end of the gatehouse, ignoring the arrows that bounced off his hide, and stopped in front of the gate’s anchor with its attached chain. Grasping the metal links and pulling his arms wide – the metal screamed and deformed until the chain broke in a sudden explosion of flying debris. The demon took a hasty step away just before a stone spike ripped through where he’d been standing, and a column of flame also barely missed him as Ghlan could not change the angle of his strike in time.

Boruta smiled towards Ghlan, his gaze locked, as he picked up the multi-tonne stone anchor. The monster took three sudden long steps as he twisted and hurled the block towards the manor’s entryway. Frozen in place by the monster’s gaze, Ghlan and his squad didn’t move as the projectile plowed through their formation, the giant block barely slowing. Their bodies were tossed aside like so many broken mannequins as red splashed the brickwork beyond, and the stone crashed through the heavy metal-reinforced doors, disintegrating as the wood and metal burst inwards.

“I will tear this whole place down if I have to, coward!” Boruta yelled, stomping the ground with one giant foot as he looked around the open area again. He punched a nearby wall, turning his back on the defenders even as they continued pelting him with their ineffectual attacks. Another strike crushed the stone as dust billowed up into the air.

Tanca rushed back to the Gifted Hall entrance, hoping the demon would remain distracted with his wanton destruction. He tapped a specific sequence against the heavy wood, and a small square metal panel opened to reveal a familiar set of dark eyes. “Dara,” he yelled over the sound of destruction behind him. “You need to get our people out of here. Take the tunnels below the hall.”

“I can help,” Dara started with determination in her eyes.

“Listen to your orders, Gifted Easone,” he replied with a snap. “It’s Boruta Dunmaru, and it would take one of the Pantheon to have any hope of stopping him.” His voice softened as his eyes met Dara’s. “Your duty is clear, Dara. See to our people.”

Her eyes grew large as they darted over his shoulder, and he looked back himself, but Boruta seemed content to convert the wall into its constituent parts as stones rained down. Her eyes returned to Tanca, but while the fear remained, she nodded firmly. “May the spirits shelter you in your time of need, Jasper Tanca. I will remember your strength,” Dara said as her eyes welled with emotion.

“It’s truly been an honor, Dara. Tell my family I love them,” he finished as he turned back to face his fate and heard the panel close with a snick behind him.

Boruta was still occupied, though he’d moved on to destroying the gatehouse. With the monster distracted, Tanca tucked his spear under his shield arm and pulled out a small intricately embroidered pouch that never left his side. Opening its flap, he revealed its thick, silk-lined interior cradling a small sphere of cloudy crystal surrounded by a single band of white metal. He grasped the metal firmly, slowly turning it until he felt a click, just as a tiny needle popped out of one end.

With a thought, he changed one metallic thumb back to flesh just before he stabbed it down into the metal tip, barely feeling the sting as he held the crystal near his mouth. He then slowly and carefully intoned the words that Wolf had taught him. “On my authority as Outer Commander, I, Gifted Jasper Tanca, declare that Wolf’s Manor is lost. Evacuation confirmed. Last Stand Confirmed. I swear by the Oververse, and may the spirits protect us all.”

A flash of light surrounded him just as a new siren started in the air, and a deep sound like a warhorn blasted out. Above the manor, streams of multicolored lights lept like a glowing fountain high into the sky – a signal to any nearby airships or allies that a fortress was in mortal distress. Tanca’s racing heartbeat drowned out the sights and sounds as a rush of energy flowed into him. His mind ignited, the monstrous aura shoved aside as Dia Aaric’s artifact filled him with strength and power. His fear and doubt evaporated as Last Stand took hold. He wouldn’t have long to use it, but it would have to be enough.