The Citadel had always stood as the last unbroken wall between humanity and the shadows of the Abyss. Yet tonight, even its stones seemed to groan with unease. The fortress walls towered over the city below, carved with runes that shimmered faintly in the twilight. Soldiers and Slayers lined the battlements, weapons drawn, their eyes locked on the horizon.
Kaien stood among them, his sword resting at his side, shadows of his aura flickering faintly around him like dark flames. Though his breath was calm, he could feel the others shifting uneasily, some edging away, others casting him brief, wary glances. The whispers had spread through the ranks: half-breed, cursed, abyss-touched.
The boy who might save them—or doom them.
Ren's voice cut through the murmurs like a blade. "Eyes forward. Steel your hearts. Tonight we fight not for glory, but for survival." His words were sharp, heavy with authority, and they carried down the line like a steady drumbeat. For a moment, the unease dimmed.
Then the earth began to shake.
The tremors rolled across the plains, rattling stone and armor. Kaien felt it in his bones before he heard the sound—the roar of an oncoming storm that was not born of thunder or wind. From the horizon, shadows gathered, stretching like a tide. Shapes emerged from the smoke, countless and twisted: demons, surging forward as one.
The army of the Abyss had come.
Their cries rose in a terrible chorus, a sound that made the sky itself seem to darken. Wings blotted out the last light of dusk, claws scraped against one another like metal, and their bodies twisted as though they had been torn from nightmares. And at the front of the horde walked giants—Demon Generals, towering creatures clad in jagged armor fused with flesh, their eyes burning molten red. Each step they took cracked the ground beneath them.
For a heartbeat, fear pressed against the wall like an unseen weight. Some Slayers swallowed hard, others muttered prayers. Kaien felt it too—a pressure, heavy and suffocating—but in him, it ignited something else. The abyss within stirred, whispering for release, eager for the slaughter to come.
The horns of the Citadel sounded. The battle had begun.
Arrows launched in great arcs, streaking through the sky before raining down on the horde. Explosions flared as enchanted bolts struck, fire and lightning tearing through the first rows of demons. Roars answered, and the ground shook harder as the creatures surged faster, clawing over their fallen as though nothing could slow them.
They struck the gates like a tidal wave. The steel shuddered, echoing through the walls. More demons scaled upward, claws hooking into cracks, wings beating the air as they climbed toward the defenders.
"Hold the line!" Ren's voice cut through the storm. "You are Slayers! The wall will not fall!"
The first demon crested the battlement where Kaien stood. It lunged, jaws splitting wide, eyes glowing like embers. Kaien's blade flashed in the half-light, and in a single stroke, the creature fell backward into the horde below. Another followed—this one winged, talons stretching for his throat. Kaien sidestepped, his aura flaring in a violet burst as his sword slashed upward, severing the creature's charge. It crumpled, and the shadows around Kaien pulsed brighter.
The Slayers near him froze for a moment, caught between awe and fear. His power unsettled them, but none could deny that where he fought, the wall held.
And then the first Demon General reached the wall.
It swung a hammer the size of a carriage, slamming it into the eastern battlement. Stone shattered, screams rang out as defenders were thrown back, dust and rubble filling the air. The wall cracked, threatening to split. The creature roared, the sound echoing across the Citadel.
Kaien's eyes locked onto it. His heart hammered in his chest, but his grip on his blade tightened. He stepped forward without hesitation.
The general's gaze fell on him, as if recognizing something within him—something familiar. Its molten eyes narrowed, and its grin split unnaturally wide. With a swing of its hammer, it aimed to crush him.
Kaien moved. He dove aside as the hammer struck, the impact rattling his bones, shards of stone cutting his cheek. He rolled across the rubble, breath sharp, then launched himself upward. His blade cut into the general's leg, sparks flying. It wasn't enough to cripple, but the beast howled, staggered, and turned fully on him.
The abyss whispered in Kaien's mind, urging him to give more. He felt it coiling around his soul, shadows gathering tighter. His aura flared violet and black, rippling in the air like fire. The Slayers watching gasped—his power was undeniable, unnatural, but it was holding the monster's attention when nothing else could.
The general swung again, its hammer whistling through the air. Kaien darted forward instead of back, closing the distance, his sword blazing with violet shadows. He leapt, twisting, and brought the blade down across the creature's shoulder. The strike cut deeper this time, abyssal energy burning through armor and flesh. The general reeled, bellowing as ichor spilled like smoke.
The wall shook with cheers as the Slayers rallied. Arrows and spells rained down to support Kaien, forcing the demons at the base to stumble. For the first time that night, hope flickered in their eyes.
But Kaien knew this was only the beginning. His chest heaved, his aura pulsing violently, the abyss whispering louder with every heartbeat. He could feel the battle pressing in, the horde endless, the generals too many.
And somewhere beyond the battlefield, past the horde's endless ranks, Kaien felt something else. A presence vast and cold, watching from the shadows.
The true master of the Abyss.
The siege of the Citadel had only just begun.