The private council meeting happened at midnight—a time deliberately chosen to avoid community observation.
The leadership assembled in the smaller chambers, away from the main council hall where public meetings occurred. Anya, Lysera, Harren, Father Thorne, and Cairn. The five people responsible for determining Haven's direction. The five people who would ultimately decide Marcus's fate.
"Mira's faction has grown to approximately forty percent of the general population," Harren reported, consulting notes he'd been maintaining. "Not all of them are committed to her specific proposals, but they're sympathetic to her concerns about resource allocation and Marcus's continued presence."
"Forty percent is substantial," Father Thorne said. "That's enough to create genuine community division if we ignore it."
"We're not ignoring it," Anya said firmly. "We're addressing it through reasoned debate and transparent decision-making. But we're not abandoning strategic defensive capability because a political faction is uncomfortable with power."
"The question isn't whether we abandon capability," Lysera said. "It's whether maintaining Marcus here is serving the community or creating more problems than it solves."
The room fell silent. It was the first time anyone on the council had openly articulated what they'd all been thinking privately.
"Marcus is planning to leave in three months," Anya said. "That's already established. The question is whether we accelerate that timeline or maintain it."
"What does Marcus want?" Father Thorne asked.
"He wants to finish training the technicians," Lysera replied. "He wants to ensure the barrier systems are stable. He wants to leave on his own terms rather than being forced out by political pressure."
"And what do we want?" Cairn asked, his multi-layered voice making the question seem to echo in the chamber.
Harren spoke first. "I want community stability. I want residents to feel safe in their own settlement. I want political divisions to heal rather than deepen."
"I want Haven to survive the next major threat," Anya said. "Which means maintaining advanced defensive capability and not being distracted by internal politics."
"I want Marcus to have the dignity of completing his work," Lysera said. "He's given Haven significant contributions. He deserves the respect of finishing what he started."
"I want the community to maintain connection to its principles," Father Thorne said. "Which means balancing practical needs against moral obligations. We don't exile people because they make us uncomfortable. We exile them because they represent genuine danger we can't manage."
All eyes turned to Cairn.
The shaman was quiet for a long moment, his strange eyes fixed on something that existed beyond material reality. When he spoke, his voice seemed to contain multiple consciousnesses speaking simultaneously.
"The Weavers are watching. Lilith's plans extend beyond this settlement. Marcus's transformation is nearly complete. Within weeks, the boundary between him and the cosmic force will dissolve entirely. What remains will be something other than human—powerful, dangerous, potentially necessary for larger conflicts. The question isn't whether he should leave Haven. The question is what Haven becomes after he's gone and whether the community can survive the attention his presence has attracted."
"What attention?" Harren asked sharply.
"Other factions. Other Demon Kings. Forces that recognize Marcus as cosmic instrument and want to either ally with or eliminate that power. Haven became significant when Marcus arrived. Haven will remain significant after he departs. We cannot escape that reality through exile or politics."
Scout reports arrived the next morning, and they confirmed Cairn's warnings.
Kessa—the lead scout who'd brought news of Valerius's forces months ago—returned from eastern territories with information that made the council's debate about internal politics seem almost trivial.
"There are organized movements," she reported, standing before the hastily assembled leadership. "Not Valerius's remnants—those are scattered and disorganized. Something else. Multiple factions consolidating power. Some led by humans, some by other species. At least three separate groups that I could identify, probably more I didn't encounter."
"What are they doing?" Lysera asked.
"Absorbing smaller settlements. Sometimes through negotiation, sometimes through force. They're building power structures. Creating territories. Establishing control over resources and populations."
"Are they threats to Haven specifically?" Harren asked.
"Not yet," Kessa said. "But they know about Haven. They know about the siege. They know about Marcus. Word has spread about the Demon King who broke Valerius's assault. Some factions are interested in alliance. Others are interested in elimination."
"How long before they become immediate concerns?" Anya asked.
"Months. Maybe six to nine. Possibly sooner if circumstances accelerate their consolidation."
The council absorbed this information with the grim recognition that came from understanding their position. Haven wasn't isolated. Haven's survival of the siege had made them visible. Marcus's power had made them significant. And significance in this world was both asset and liability.
"We need to accelerate our defensive preparations," Harren said. "We need to assume that multiple threats are approaching and prepare accordingly."
"Which means maintaining advanced barrier technology," Anya said pointedly. "Which means not reallocating resources toward simpler defensive approaches."
"Which means convincing Mira's faction that external threats justify continued investment," Father Thorne said. "Which will be difficult when they've built their political identity around resource reallocation."
Marcus learned about the scout reports through Lysera that evening.
"Multiple factions consolidating," she summarized. "Some interested in Haven as ally. Some as threat. All of them aware that you're here and that your power is significant."
"So my presence is attracting attention," Marcus said.
"Yes. But your absence won't make that attention disappear. Haven is significant now because we survived the siege. Because we have barrier technology. Because we demonstrated capability. Removing you doesn't remove our visibility."
Marcus worked through the implications. "Mira's faction is arguing for resource reallocation and simplified defenses at exactly the moment when Haven needs advanced capability most."
"Yes," Lysera said. "Which is why the council is divided. Harren recognizes the external threats and wants to maintain defensive investment. Father Thorne recognizes the internal political pressure and wants to address community concerns. Anya is focused on technological capacity. Cairn is focused on cosmic patterns. And I'm trying to balance all of it while keeping you connected to your humanity."
"You're failing at that last part," Marcus said, and there was no judgment in his voice—just recognition of fact. "I'm not human anymore. The boundary is gone. What remains is Marcus Hayes wearing the Demon King's power, not a human resisting cosmic influence."
"Then prove me wrong," Lysera said. "Stay human for three more months. Complete the work. Train the technicians. Leave on your terms. Show Haven that power doesn't have to mean corruption."
"Power always means corruption," Marcus said. "The only question is whether the corruption serves a purpose."
The tension between external threats and internal politics came to a head during a community gathering.
Mira stood before the assembled residents and presented the scout reports as validation of her concerns. "We're facing multiple potential threats. Multiple factions. We need to be prepared for conflict on multiple fronts. Which means we need sustainable defensive approaches, not experimental systems that require specialized knowledge and dangerous assets to maintain."
"The experimental systems are what saved us during the siege," Anya countered from her position at the edge of the gathering. "The sustainable approaches you're advocating failed against Valerius. What makes you think they'll work against more sophisticated threats?"
"Because we'll have more resources to implement them properly," Mira said. "Because we won't be dedicating twenty percent of our technical capacity to maintaining systems that only one person truly understands. Because we'll have built community knowledge around defensive approaches that don't require cosmic power to function."
"And when those approaches fail?" Lysera asked. "When the next siege comes and the simpler defenses can't hold?"
"Then we'll have made our best effort with sustainable methods," Mira said. "Rather than gambling on technology we barely understand maintained by someone who's barely human anymore."
The phrase hung in the air. Barely human anymore. It was the first time anyone had stated that openly in a public gathering.
Marcus, watching from a distance as he always did, felt the weight of those words. Felt the community's eyes turning toward him. Felt the recognition that Mira was right—he wasn't human anymore. The crystalline formations, the burning eyes, the aura of power that made the air shimmer. He was becoming something else visibly and undeniably.
"Marcus is leaving in three months," Father Thorne said, his voice cutting through the tension. "That's already been decided. The question isn't whether he stays. The question is what Haven becomes after his departure. And I would suggest that abandoning advanced defensive capability right before multiple threats arrive is not wisdom—it's self-destruction disguised as fiscal responsibility."
The gathering broke up without resolution, residents returning to their quarters with more questions than answers, Haven's fragile unity continuing to fracture under pressure both external and internal.
That night, Marcus made a decision.
He found Lysera in her quarters and stated it simply: "I'm accelerating the departure timeline. Two months instead of three. The technicians are progressing faster than expected. The barrier systems are stable enough. And my continued presence is creating more problems than it solves."
"That's exactly what Mira wants," Lysera said. "You're giving her a political victory."
"I'm giving Haven stability," Marcus corrected. "Mira's faction will claim credit. That's fine. What matters is that the community stops tearing itself apart over resource allocation and focuses on preparing for actual threats."
"And the training? The complete knowledge transfer?"
"Will be compressed but sufficient. Sara and the other technician are competent. They can handle maintenance and basic modifications. Advanced development can wait until Haven has breathing room."
Lysera was quiet for a long moment. Then she nodded slowly. "Two months. That's the revised timeline. You leave in eight weeks."
"Yes."
"And after that?"
"I don't know," Marcus said honestly. "Lilith has larger purposes. I'll discover them as they emerge. But whatever comes next, it's beyond Haven's concern."