The king walked toward Nox and Soren with an authority so heavy it seemed the very earth bent to his will, a magnitude of evil Nox could not comprehend.
Nox lay on the ground paralyzed, Soren shifted back a few feet trembling. He couldn't sense Iora like Nox could, yet even he felt crushed by the aura pressing down on them.
Each step the king took made Nox's heart pound harder, he finally understood why Raizen had once told him: if you see one, flee.
Moments ago the Iora from the binding ring had made him feel unstoppable, now that strength melted away under the weight of this presence.
Ten feet away, Nox's body refused to move, his mind blank. He cursed silently, think damn it think!, but no thoughts came.
Then a spear slipped from a soldier's hand and clattered against the stone. The sound shattered the silence, halting even the king's steps.
Another breath broke the stillness, from the ranks of the marching army a young soldier ran forward.
Blonde hair, soft pink lips, a face delicate as glass but bright with warmth. His golden armor caught the sun as he planted himself before the king, blocking the path.
He knelt, pressing his forehead to the ground. His expression wasn't obeisance, it was a plea.
Soren's eyes widened, recognition struck him like lightning.
Varion's son, the son of the man who stood at the trapped door holding back Rios's blades so Soren could escape, the son of the man who died to buy him time. His sparring partner, his rival, his brother in all but blood. Portos.
Nox's thoughts flickered, another loyalist?
Portos lifted his head, his eyes found Soren's, a faint smile.
The king's expression twisted, proud shifting to irritation, with a flick of his hand he swatted casually toward the capital wall.
Portos flew like a ragdoll, the motion was so fast only Nox's eyes caught it, a blur ending in horror.
CRACK.
Portos slammed against the wall, blood splattered high across the stone, a red shadow staining white. His golden hair matted, entrails spilling through shattered armor, the prettiest face in Blitz was now pulp.
Nox's mind emptied, locked on the lifeless body.
Iora wielders were durable, but their hearts were still as fragile as any man's.
Portos, Soren whispered silently beneath his breath.
Soren broke, his scream never left his throat, tears poured instead, his soul drowning in despair.
But it wasn't over.
Another spear fell, another soldier ran forward, not bowing but standing tall, he too was hurled aside like trash, body splintering against the wall.
And then, a chorus of defiance, spears clattered across stone as soldiers dropped them, stepping forward one by one to block the king's path with their own bodies.
Nox remembered Soren's words that morning, there are those who would die and kill for me.
The gravity of those words sank into his head before his eyes.
The king flicked his wrist again, bodies flew like arrows splattering walls and streets, in moments the hundred who had stood in defiance were corpses, the white walls of Blitz dripped red.
The bystanders who had been observing the scene from the very beginning fled in peril of their own lives, leaving only Nox, Soren, and the demon king.
The king's lips curled into a twisted smile as he stepped closer.
Soren sat broken, eyes hollow, the weight of that presence melted every thought of resistance.
Nox's strength vanished, his life flashed before his eyes as the king loomed, passed Nox without a glance, and crouched before Soren. His hand, cold and deliberate, rested on Soren's cheek.
"Ah, my dear son," his first words.
"Through the fourteen kingdoms we have searched for centuries, for the one who could assimilate the Gravitas, and it was you all along," his laughter was sharp and cruel.
"The first World Weaver in a millennia, with you the barriers will surely fall."
Nox didn't understand the words, he could only stare upward waiting for the inevitable.
Soren, overwhelmed by grief and confusion, simply shut down.
"And to think," the king whispered brushing Soren's tears away, "I almost killed you. Grow stronger, sharpen your fangs, and bare them at me one day."
He stood, hands folding behind his back, and strode toward the castle. Before leaving, he glanced over his shoulder at Nox, offering him a smile as curious as it was cruel.
Nox met his gaze, baffled by the mercy.
As soon as the king's back was turned, Nox felt his strength being unshackled from the king's presence.
He swept Soren into his arms and onto his shoulders, fueled by the last of the binding ring's Iora he ran, through the gate, across the plains, into the forest.
He didn't stop until his power burned out, only then with Soren limp in his arms Nox collapsed into darkness beneath the trees.
Away from Blitz, away from the demon king.