Verdan and Branwen wasted no time getting back to the Line, their chosen spot being one of the better barricades that had been put together next to the command post.

Commander Griffon, Carla, a dozen guards, and a score of archers in hunting gear were in control of this specific area.

“Verdan, Branwen!” Griffon called out in relief as he saw the two of them approach. “Thanks the gods you made it back here. We’ve got everyone ready that we can, but we’re thin on the ground.”

“We’ll do what we can to even the odds,” Verdan said before looking over to Carla. “Any idea where Gwen is?”

“The other Storm Witch is down at the far end with Sorcerer Kai,” a soft voice called down from the top of a nearby building.

Verdan glanced up to see a dark-haired man with gaunt features watching them as he crouched behind a chimney stack. Despite having spoken to them, the man’s gaze was firmly on the breach in the wall, and he was almost unnaturally still.

“We’ll just have to manage,” Verdan said with a grimace before looking over the archers present. “Who’s the best shot here?”

The nearest archer gestured to the man on the roof without hesitation. “Callum is. Far and away.”

“Okay, give me a quiver of arrows for him and as many as you can find that will fit Branwen’s bow,” Verdan ordered, motioning for Branwen to hand over her remaining arrows. “It seems we have a minute to prepare. We should use it.”

Verdan attached the now familiar durst enchantment to Branwen’s remaining five arrows and the same to a quiver of twenty for Callum.

The odd man dropped down from the roof to take the new quiver before wordlessly returning to his perch and drawing the first arrow.

With a moment to look around, Verdan realised that Natalia was moving between the guards, passing out small vials of what he assumed was a healing potion.

The two of them locked eyes for a moment, and Verdan suppressed the urge to tell her to leave. It wasn’t like anywhere would be safe if they lost the fight here, and she had as much a right to risk her life as anyone, no matter how he hated it.

“I’m glad I found you,” Natalia said breathlessly as she hurried over to Verdan. “I’ve done what I can to get the injured on their feet, but I wish I could do more.”

“It’s more than enough,” Verdan said before reaching out and drawing her in for an urgent kiss.

“They’re coming.” Callum’s voice was level, showing none of the fear and worry nestled in Verdan’s heart.

“Come to the medical tent if you need healing. I’ve brought everything I have down with me,” Natalia said hurriedly as everyone raced to their positions. “Don’t you dare die on me!”

“I wouldn’t think of it,” Verdan said, the two of them sharing a soft smile before she left. Turning back to the battle at hand, Verdan hardened his heart. Now was the time to give everything he had.

Stepping up onto a crate to get a better view over the barricade, Verdan saw that Callum had been correct. The first ranks of the Sect forces were charging through the hole in the wall straight into a volley of arrows, bolts and blasts of lightning.

Verdan began to form a spell in his staff and ducked back as he channelled Aether into it. He had an idea, but it would use a lot of what he had left.

Essence shields formed, protecting the Sect troops as more and more of them pushed into the city despite the steady barrage of fire from the defenders.

Walls of stone rose up to shield the attackers, only to be pulled down a moment later as the Fwyn continued their battle with the enemy earth Sorcerers, which suited Verdan just fine. If they were focused on that, they wouldn’t be watching for anything else.

“Grym garreg durst,” Verdan ground out the three-word spell, his throat raw from how many he’d used in the last few hours.

Aether sank into the ground around Verdan before causing the ground around them to shift slightly, a crack forming ahead of the barricade that rapidly crossed the gap to the walls.

Like a subterranean lightning bolt, the Aether struck the edge of the wall that bordered the breach the Sect was using and exploded, undermining the whole section.

With an audible groan, a large section of the wall crumbled down to the ground, falling sideways as it went and burying the troops in the breach in an avalanche of stone.

Over a hundred of the attackers were cut off from the rest of their force as the dust settled, and that number began to drop as the defenders focused on them exclusively.

Shields of Essence were conjured to protect the attackers, but the Sorcerers maintaining them were steadily picked off as they tried to retreat.

A few survivors rushed to hide amongst the debris, but their hiding places were poorly chosen as a wave of decay Essence swept through the piles of rubble.

Unprotected stone and the bodies of the fallen and living alike were destroyed under the powerful wave of Essence.

Verdan carefully kept his expression neutral as he watched a clear path form through the rubble. The Sects must have lost a good portion of their force in the wall’s collapse, but the Weeping Death leader clearly had a powerful reserve of Essence.

The Sects restarted their assault, though it seemed that the earth Sorcerers had been caught in Verdan’s attack, as no more walls sprung up to provide shelter.

Without the need to constantly battle the earth Sorcerers, the Fwyn were able to start picking off enemy Sorcerers with grasping hands of stone that dragged their targets into the ground.

Hundreds of attackers flooded through the breach, but Verdan only had eyes for the two Sect Elders.

Thankfully, the two Sorcerers split up as soon as they were through the breach.

The Weeping Death Elder started towards the far side of the Line with a group of scaled creatures that Verdan assumed were the Draks.

The Defiant Flame Elder, meanwhile, gathered a dozen of his Sect and started towards Verdan’s side of the Line.

The rank and file of the Sect assault force had made it to melee range in multiple places along the Line, but Verdan’s position was currently free.

Callum, Carla and Branwen had been picking off Sorcerers as best they could, and Verdan was relieved to see that the robed Sect members were thin on the ground.

A flare of Essence came from the direction of the Defiant Flame Sorcerer as he threw a thick lance of flames at a nearby barricade.

“Sia,” Verdan’s eyes went wide as he cast a quick spell to fight for control over the flames, but the attending Sorcerers had empowered the blast. “Damn it, they’re too strong for me to deflect.”

“I can do it. Cover me,” Branwen growled as she tossed her bow and empty quiver to one side before pulling a necklace from underneath her clothes and vaulting the barricade with a powerful jump.

Verdan glanced over to Carla before sending out a howling gale to knock back the people in Branwen’s way and following her over the barricade.

Branwen was already moving at a run as she headed straight for the group of Defiant Flame Sorcerers.

Without her reckless pace, Verdan and Carla were forced to fight for each inch they moved, falling further behind Branwen with each moment.

The Sorcerers seemed oblivious to the threat and continued to launch powerful blasts of fire at the defenders, each strike bringing screams of pain in its wake.

“Lord of Earth, shield my allies and grant me your favour!” Branwen’s voice cut through the noise of the battle as the ground trembled, and thick protrusions of dirt and rock broke through the ground to intercept the next attack.

Verdan worked hard to make sure that none of those around Branwen had the chance to slow her down, but there was nothing he could do when the Defiant Flame Elder casually threw a ball of flames at her.

The attack was a fraction weaker than the staple spell that Verdan used, but Branwen charged headlong into it, the flames billowing around her as she came out the other side.

The shocked look on the Elder’s face when Branwen shrugged off the flames only grew as an arrow shot past her to catch one of his attending Sorcerers in the throat.

A glance back showed Callum lining up for his next shot, but the Sorcerers were just as aware, and a barrage of attacks went flying over Branwen towards Callum’s vantage point.

Verdan did what he could to weaken and redirect the attacks, sending more than a few spiralling off at groups of Sect retainers, but there were simply too many.

The roof Callum was standing on erupted into flames, and the Elder turned his attention to Branwen, unleashing a torrent of flames that washed over her before Verdan could react.

Verdan had seen the resilience of the Idrisyr to fire and heat, but his eyes went wide as Branwen disappeared into the inferno.

The inferno cut off abruptly, the flames dying down to reveal Branwen holding the Elder by his throat, his feet dangling above the ground as he lashed at her with his flames.

While Branwen had survived the attack, her clothes hadn’t, and Verdan could see burns covering the skin that was exposed.

Fortunately, Branwen’s God had gifted her with stone armour that covered her vital areas, including what looked like a stone facemask.

A twist of Branwen’s hand ended the Defiant Flame Elder, and the rest of his retinue followed a moment later, their desperate attacks doing little to faze Branwen.

Verdan could almost feel the ripple of panic that swept through the Defiant Flame troops as their leader died, and he made sure to capitalise on it by targeting anyone who seemed to try and rally them.

In moments, the panic solidified, and while not all of the Defiant Flame troops fled, enough did to relieve the pressure on this side of the Line.

“Branwen!” Verdan called out as they finally caught up with her. “Are you alright?”

The stone covering Branwen’s face seemed to almost melt and flow down to her right fist, forming a gauntlet around her hand as she turned to face them, agony written across her face. “I’ll be fine, just not used to being burnt.”

Verdan winced as he got a good look at the intense burns that covered every inch of her not protected by stone.

“Iacha,” Verdan tapped her lightly, sending a good amount of healing Aether over to help. “There, that will help, but get back to the medical tent. Natalia will be able to treat the rest.”

“Will do,” Branwen nodded shakily as she began to slowly limp back towards the way they’d come.

The Defiant Flame had made up the majority of attackers on this side, so with the retreat of so many, Griffon and his troops were pushing the attackers back, making the trip safe enough for the wounded Idrisyr.

“Where now?” Carla asked in a strained voice, panting a little as she tried to catch her breath.

Verdan nodded in the direction of the Weeping Death forces. “We’ve got an Elder to kill.”