Black smoke engulfed the skies over the tall buildings of Windermere, covering all but the beaming sun. The city was under siege, in terror of the ongoing demon attack. Some of the knights were struggling with the airborne demons, not to mention the creatures that were double their size. Knights scattered the streets, whether they had life or not.

The walls did nothing against the siege beasts; large holes showed it barely held a chance against their brute force. A couple of the colossal monsters lay dead outside the wall—with the exception of one hanging over its attempt to break through the stacked stone—large spears sticking out of their corpses like quills.

    Screams of the civilians were just as potent as the fires and smoke, harrowing down the streets and alleys. Blood had already stained the cobble flooring of the city, a mix of demon and human remains.

    The whole city was a massacre.

Lyra and Kaelen had fought their way into the city, aiding in the knight's fight to protect the civilians. Even though it was just the duo, their presence brought a sigh of relief to the knights left standing.

"We're glad you could make it. . ." a knight forced through his heaving chest. His scuffed armor showed he had seen battle before, but his face expressed that it never amounted to anything like this. He looked past them, expecting something. "Where's the rest of your company?"

"We were . . ." Lyra struggled to find the words, rolling her hands over one another, as if she were to reel in a word.

"We're a forward observations group," spouted Kaelen.

The knight gave them a puzzled look, confused at the amount of personnel that they would even call themselves a group.

"Well, to catch you up to speed: the demons began using the sewers to move through the city. They practically have a base of operations in that filth hole that we can't penetrate."

"You're not asking us to. . ."

"Oh heavens, no! They can have the sewers. Can't waste any more knights to go down there."

Lyra stepped forward to the knight and said. "Where are the civilians being led to evacuate?"

The knight pointed at a large building behind him just a few blocks away. The building exuded a small heavenly aura with its clean masonry of white and gold. "In that cathedral there. It's getting full, and I'm afraid that we won't be able to hold this position very long."

"We have a path here," she held her arm out at an angle, showing the way out of the city.

The knight only responded with a shake of his head. "See all of those bodies?" he pointed at the scattered remains of mostly humans down the street. "They're keen on trapping us within and picking us off if we try to escape."

"Thank you. We'll investigate further."

The knight bowed his head, then ran towards the cathedral. Lyra looked at Kaelen, watching his eyes scan the city. She began a light jog down a street towards a stall, finding as they rounded a corner of a building just several blocks down, a circular plaza showed itself in disarray—produce scattered the floor in all shapes and conditions, goods like jewelry, armor, and weapons were rummaged through. The plaza was covered by multiple large triangular tarps, giving shade for those who unfortunately set up shop this day.

"Garrett." She called softly, hearing the screeches of flying demons coming from afar.

Nothing responded, but a gust of wind prompted Kaelen to reach for his twinblade. His eyes darted at the flipped stalls, watching the sway of all their tarps and drapes. "What are we doing here?"

"The boy has to be here, probably scared."

"We hadn't checked the cathedral; he could be there too."

She hadn't thought about it at the moment, but a sudden cry caught their attention. Their heads whipped to a stall that was completely upside down. Lyra motioned for Kaelen to ease himself as he unsheathed his weapon.

"Garrett, is that you?" she asked.

Another screech of a flying demon sounded as if they were approaching them. Kaelen grabbed her by the arm and tugged her under a tarp with him, pulling her close and out of the opening. They watched as seconds later, a large shadow zipped over them.

"We need to grab this boy and go," said Kaelen, ducking out to see the skies.

Lyra nodded, hurrying to the stall. She crouched beside it, trying to find an opening, but found nothing. "Garrett?" she said, loud enough for the boy to hopefully hear.

"Please," she heard a muffled cry. "I've been stuck here."

"Kaelen, I need help."

He hurried over to place his fingers where he could grip and began to lift the stall. The stall groaned under its own weight; Kaelen had lifted it with ease, unveiling a child underneath. The boy's face was crumpled as he cried, tears streaming off his cheeks and puffy red eyes.

"Come! We must hurry and get you to safety," she said, holding her hand out. The boy hesitated at first, until she smiled at him. The boy reached out, and Lyra pulled him out of the debris.

"I'm so scared!"

"I know," she replied, hushing him while navigating where to go. "But right now you have to be strong, okay?"

Garrett nodded, wiping the tears from his eyes and steeling himself. Kaelen let go of the stall, and it crashed into the stone beneath it. The sound echoed through the streets. A wooden stanchion fell onto the intricate network of the tarps, collapsing their cover from the demons who flew over.

Their hearts stopped as they stared above them. A large bat-like demon hovered over them. Jagged pieces of metal stuck out of its body like artificial armor. Its feet were large, hooked talons. It was blind, Lyra judged by the milkiness of its eyes. But when it let out a high-pitched screech, its head whipped to where they stood.

"Run!" yelled Kaelen.

The creature dove towards them, screeching every moment it got to echolocate them. Its downward momentum was faster than their running speed, catching up to them in no time. They all ducked down and felt the dust unsettle beneath them as the upward draft from the creature's wings flapped itself back into the air.

"It has our scent now," said Kaelen, looking for any sort of urban advantage. "We can't hide; we just need to find a way to trap it or kill it."

He nodded his head towards a building with a broken bay window. From all the smashed cakes and smeared icing, it appeared to be a pastry shop.

"How do you know so much about this demon?" asked Lyra, browsing the cupcakes for a split second.

"They're Screeching Terrors, at least that's what my people call them." He stared down at his blade, inspecting the runes inscribed in its metal. "We've dealt with them before, on beaches of Aesh Rakz."

All of them ducked behind a counter. Kaelen peeked over occasionally. With this much commotion, there was bound to be reinforcements coming. But the question was, when?

"Are you talking about the dragon island on the west coast?" she asked, making sure the kid was okay.

He nodded, finding a door that led to a back room with Lyra following closely. A back exit was found, leading to a trashed alleyway. There were a couple of manholes that were opened. A nearby screech hurried their pace as their backs hovered against the wall.

They used the shadow, even though it wouldn't provide much in this chase, creeping closer towards the cathedral one block at a time. Kaelen halted at a corner, looking around it ever so slowly. Crude voices began to sound clear as they approached. Their cheap metals clanked with every step. He couldn't tell how many there were, but he knew they couldn't handle it, especially if they had to protect the kid the entire time.

"We have to let them pass," said Kaelen, looking in the alleyway for adamant cover.

"There's nothing we can hide behind here."

She watched as his shoulders slumped, silently agreeing with her. Setting the boy down, Lyra decided to peek around the corner too, finding a group of at least fifteen demons; their size, features, and build varied from demon to demon.

Pulling herself back from the corner, she took a deep breath, trying to come up with ideas. Her eyes glanced down at the boy, and his face tried to hide the fear in his eyes. He's depending on them; she knew that.

"We should head back," she whispered.

"We can't," he simply rescinded. "They're starting to sweep through these buildings and eventually the alleyways."

Lyra clicked her tongue. Her foot tapped, showing her impatience. When the open manholes crossed her line of sight, she hurried to the nearest one and peered into the dimly lit tunnel beneath.

"Are you serious?" asked Kaelen, looking over his shoulder. "These are infested with demons."

"Do you have any better ideas?"

Kaelen went to open his mouth but stopped himself as he heard the demons approach their position. He grabbed the kid and watched Lyra go down the ladder. He saw her wave at him to come down. Reluctant at first, he began his descent with the boy in his arms. To their surprise, the sewer was well lit thanks to the storm drains on the main roads.

All the algae in the water turned the stones into an emerald green, alongside the waste. The murky waters hadn't gone above the walkways, but the wetness of the stone threatened that it could. All the water channeled further down into a central draining system, which was a large chamber with other channels spilling into it. The crashing water roared just enough to hear a conversation. Kaelen didn't like the idea, holding his head high as if it helped with mitigating the stench.

"You're being such a child," laughed Lyra, staring at him with raised eyebrows. "You have no complaints about the sewers in Kogeer."

"Well, out of the many systems this city could've taken from the kingdom, a better sewer system should've been one of them."

She bounced her head, agreeing to his sentiment.

A growl came from deep within the sewers, interrupting their moment of peace. Its cadence reverberated against the walls. A sewer fight was the last thing that they'd want. Their heads perked up, now on alert for a new threat.

They listened closely. . .

At first, all they heard was the occasional sound of the pitter-patter of dripping water, then a growl echoed through once again; this time it seemed closer. Lyra picked up the kid and looked at Kaelen to lead the way.

"I take it you have some notion as to what this creature is," she asked, following close behind him.

"I can't tell until I see it. It could be something that's already dwelled here." He glanced back, making sure his heading was correct, following the centerline on the ceiling of the sewers. "The path to the cathedral is a straight shot. We just have to make it there." He pointed across the large drainage system.

"Where are we at?"

"If I'm correct, we're just under the plaza," mused Kaelen.

They made their way to a clearing and stepped close to the edge, observing the waterfalls of the sewer. Its architecture was a sight. The dome-like chamber had arches going all the way up to the center. If it didn't reek so much and have such a title, it could've been worthy of a chapel of sorts.

A footfall splashed in water, just to the tunnel beside them. Lyra froze, studying them as the sound got closer. Another growl came from the tunnel, followed by a snarl. The footfalls of this creature created sizable waves in the murky water. Kaelen readied his blade, bringing it forward as he turned in the direction of the threat.

"Whatever that is, it's here."

A snarl crept around the corner. The snout of a colossal beast crinkled as it turned to bare its jagged teeth and fangs in their direction. Each tooth was roughly as long as a human head, probably its favorite meal, seeing how it was salivating at the sight of them. It shook its head quickly, flinging drops of water. Then its eyes burned a fiery orange as they narrowed at them, the fur along its spine stood like spikes. Its skin was cracked, looking like the scales of a shedding lizard.

"That's a big dog," said Lyra, eyeing every possible exit.

"No, that is a hellhound."

It barked at them. The sound shook them for a moment, paralyzing their legs in that second. A howl came from further down the tunnel.

"We need to run!" yelled Lyra, turning to run the other way.

She looked behind her and watched as Kaelen turned sharply to follow her. The hellhound lunged in their direction, closing the distance in almost an instant. If the chamber weren't circular, the beast would have caught up to them within seconds, but the curvature allowed them to gain distance even if it were just a little.

They jumped the gaps between the pavement, carefully not to fall in as it could spell their demise—either from the fiendish dogs or the septic waters. But even with a head start, the hellhound caught up, and its pack just cornered the tunnel.

    With a lunge, Kaelen jumped and turned to slash at the beast, grazing its snout. It crashed into the water with a whimper, getting up with caution.

    "Kaelen!" Lyra called.

"Keep going!" He shouted, turning to run with them.

    The beast followed in pursuit, its pack soon to be on their heels. Just two more tunnels and they would be at their destination, but the hellhounds caught up with them, pushing their backs against the wall. Their hellish eyes bore a death sentence as they glared at them.

"It doesn't matter how fast we run; they'll just catch up," said Lyra, her free hand unsheathing her blade.

    Kaelen swung his blade at a hound that snapped at them, driving it back to the rabid pack. Lyra slowly stepped back, meeting the edge of the walkway just before it stepped off into the water. Her chest heaved as her heart raced like it never had before.

    "We need a diversion," said Kaelen, his eyes never leaving the pacing hounds. "Something that would slow them down or distract them just enough."

Her eyes darted from one side of the chamber all the way to the next, finding nothing to aid in the situation. The boy let himself down, tugging at Lyra's secondary blade.

    "Hey, quit that!" she said, trying to pull it back without losing focus.

    Garrett had successfully unsheathed Oath Breaker, but the sword was too heavy for the boy to wield. The tip of the sword clanged against the concrete, then dipped into the water.

All the water surrounding the blade began to freeze.

    Lyra's eyes widened as ideas began to race through her mind. She sheathed her mother's blade and grabbed Oath Breaker from the boy. She held it close to her eyes and inspected the runes that matched her mother's armor. This held magic properties too, she thought.

    She stood next to Kaelen with her newfound confidence, gripping the sword with both her hands as her shoulders angled towards the hellhounds.

"What are you doing?" questioned Kaelen, feigning a move towards the beasts.

"I have a plan." She gulped, not truly recognizing the success rate of the plan. "Once I strike the water with Oath Breaker, you run with the boy."

He drew in a deep breath, trusting her genius, even though that talent was not meant for battle.

    Lyra dipped the sword in the water, letting it freeze. The running current proved a slight problem, but she felt the power surge inside her. All the water stopped, dammed by a block of ice. She swung her sword upwards, creating an imperfect ice wall.

All of the hellhounds jumped back in; fear filled them at first, then it was replaced with weariness. In the moment of their confusion, the duo turned and began to sprint towards the tunnel they needed to go to in order to appear by the cathedral.

Loud barking came from the other side of the ice wall; the alpha barked commands, splitting the pack—one to go the other way, while the rest tried to break through—to trap them. The feral beasts had little to no issue with the wall, eventually shattering the only thing that kept them from advancing.

    But they were fast enough to reach the tunnel. With a quick turn, they sped down the walkway, Lyra slashing the water to create more obstacles. The ladder to the surface became visible. She sheathed Oath Breaker and began climbing as Kaelen gestured her to. Once she reached the top, she popped the manhole open. The sliding of its metal against the stone reassured her; the pace of her heart had a sigh of relief. When she climbed out, she turned and reached for the boy whose arms were outstretched. She quickly pulled him to the surface. Kaelen wasted no time following them, kicking the heavy lid back over the hole, ready to be rid of the sewers.

    Lyra looked at their surroundings, and the cathedral was just a few buildings down. The knights hailed them as they approached. Their shiny armor had all but a helmet.

"We're surprised to see you crawl out of there," said the knight. A wavy flow of dark-brown locks stopped just above her shoulders, accompanied by honey-brown eyes that looked at Lyra with furrowed brows. "You're that girl who lost."

A sigh escaped her, along with her spirit.

"I see you're a shiny just like us." Kaelen indicated. "Where's everyone else?"

    The girl grew flustered at the demand for an answer; her peachy complexion grew red around her cheeks.

"Helen and the others are deeper within Windermere," said the other knight. A boy with freshly cut blonde hair, straight and upright, and peachy skin with dark undertones. "They should've been back by now, but I'm not too sure what their status is; none of us are."

Lyra and Kaelen looked at each other. She set Garrett down to go with the other knights. "Where did they go? Maybe we can meet them."

The boy knight let out a deep exhale as he scanned the skyline, shielding his eyes from the sun with his hands. "I believe they should be at the commerce building." He pointed in the distance at one of the tallest buildings. It looked as if a sword made of stone was erected out of the earth.

    "Thank you," said Lyra, beginning to walk but abruptly stopping due to the girl calling her.

    "You plan on going yourselves? That's suicide. We should gather some more knights and form a unit," the girl said.

"We can't risk sending more knights and lessening the defenses here." Lyra argued.

    The girl went to speak, but the boy stopped her. Stepping in front of her with his arm barring her from going forward.

    "You guys go ahead; we'll stay behind in case the demons decide to attack the cathedral."

The duos nodded at each other, then went their separate ways. Lyra took one last glance at the commerce building before nearby buildings covered her view.