The clash of steel and snarls of dying demons faltered as every guard on the street froze, eyes fixed on the towering figure now standing among them. Reaver loomed at twenty-one feet, its monstrous form dwarfing men and buildings alike. For a moment, the battlefield went silent. The guards had fought the lesser demons with grit and discipline, cutting them down at terrible cost—but this? This thing was beyond anything they had ever faced. Its sheer size made them feel like insects waiting to be crushed. Fear rooted them in place.
"What are you standing around for!?" the guard commander roared, breaking the paralysis. He ripped a steam-pistol from his belt and fired into the giant. Bullets pinged uselessly against Reaver's armor, absorbed like rain on stone. "You see something big and lose your courage!? What happens to your families when you get scared!? Fight for your families! Fight for the brothers and sisters in arms beside you! Fight for the sake of Arcadicia!"
His words cut through their dread. The guards roared as one, surging back into the melee with renewed fury, blades clashing and guns firing as they drove into the tide of lesser demons.
Reaver's burning gaze shifted from the knights to the guard commander. "That one is a bigger problem than you two," it rumbled, hefting its massive weapon skyward.
"Oh no you don't!" Calvinel snapped. He thrust both hands out, and a cloud of freezing mist burst forth, so cold it scorched like fire. The vapor clung to Reaver's right arm, locking its elbow in a crust of jagged ice. The demon snarled, muscles straining against the frozen bind, then turned sharply. Its left wristblade gleamed as it thrust downward, aiming to impale Calvinel where he stood.
Before it could strike, Bryanard leapt high, warhammer raised over his head. He came down with all his weight, smashing the hammer toward one of Reaver's three birdlike toes. The blow connected with a resounding crack.
Reaver bellowed, pain twisting its voice, before it lashed out violently. Its massive foot slammed sideways into a nearby building, smashing Bryanard into the crumbling wall before he could tear himself free. Stone and dust rained down as the old knight disappeared into the rubble.
"Old man!" Calvinel shouted, panic cutting into his voice. He raised both hands, conjuring a massive spike of ice that shot forward like a ballista bolt. It screamed through the air toward Reaver's head, but the demon caught it mid-flight with its left hand. Frost hissed across its armor as the ice burned against its flesh.
"Insect," Reaver growled, and with a savage heave hurled the spike at the cluster of guards. Their eyes widened as they braced for the inevitable—but the projectile burst apart midair, shattering harmlessly into snow and shards. Calvinel stood with one hand clenched, already having dispelled it before it could hit.
Reaver lowered its gaze and drew its foot free of the ruined building. Bryanard was there in the rubble, coughing as he forced himself to stand, his warhammer dragging against the ground until he hefted it back into his grip. The knight's head barely rose above Reaver's knee at this new size, yet he lifted his weapon without hesitation.
Reaver's voice rumbled with curiosity, mocking yet edged with respect. "That's not normal armor, is it?"
Bryanard gave no answer. He only shifted his stance, squaring his shoulders, and prepared to swing his warhammer once more.
Reaver gave a low grunt before swinging its colossal foot at Bryanard. The knight reacted instantly, leaping upward and bringing his warhammer around in a crushing arc into the demon's stomach. The impact boomed, but once again the drakorath's segmented armor shifted and absorbed the blow with a ripple of metallic plates. Reaver's massive hand shot up to swat him from the air—only to jolt as something tore into its heel.
The guard commander had slipped behind the towering demon, steam-powered chainsaw sword screaming as its teeth bit deep into the armored flesh. Sparks and blood sprayed with each grind of steel against scale. "You will die today, demon!" he bellowed, sawing mercilessly into the joint.
Reaver snarled, its strike at Bryanard missing as the knight landed atop a nearby rooftop, now nearly eye-level with the giant. The drakorath turned its furious gaze down on the commander. "You dare!?" it roared, raising its weapon to smash him flat.
Instead of dodging, the commander raised his chainsaw sword like a shield, bracing himself as though he could block the impossible blow.
"Are you mad!?" Calvinel shouted, thrusting his hands forward. A towering wall of jagged ice erupted between the commander and the descending weapon, shattering under the strike but halting the demon's swing long enough for Calvinel to rush in, seize the commander by the arm, and drag him back. "You would've been crushed!" Calvinel snapped.
"I cannot falter before my men," the commander growled, but allowed himself to be pulled to safety. "If they see me break, they will break with me. Goddess knows that."
"I think they'll break just as fast if you die," Calvinel shot back, setting him down as Reaver snarled in frustration, its attack denied.
Up above, Bryanard launched himself again, warhammer spinning in his grip before he slammed it into the side of Reaver's temple. The demon's head snapped hard to the side with a ringing crack—yet its massive hand lashed out and finally caught him mid-air. Fingers like iron bands clamped tight around the knight, pinning his arms to his sides.
"Finally got you," Reaver rumbled with satisfaction, beginning to squeeze. Bryanard's dwarven-forged armor groaned and buckled under the crushing grip, metal plates denting inward with a sickening whine.
"No!" Calvinel shouted, raising his hands to summon a spell—only for a pack of demons to rush him, snarling as they threw themselves between him and their master. They weren't mindless; they knew he meant to free Bryanard, and they fought to keep him pinned down. Calvinel and the commander were forced to turn and defend themselves, blades and frost flashing as the swarm pressed in.
Reaver sneered down at the knight struggling helplessly in its grip. "Do not worry. The others will die quickly—unlike you." Its claws dug in tighter, armor shrieking under the pressure as Bryanard's chest was slowly crushed. The knight strained, muscles burning, desperate to break free, but his arms were locked. Death seemed certain.
Then, from two different directions, salvation came. A roaring blue fireball slammed into Reaver's left side, and at the same instant a blazing orange arrow of flame struck its right. Both detonated with searing force, melting its segmented armor into molten slag. Reaver howled in pain, the burns searing through even its unnatural hide, and dropped Bryanard. The knight crashed into the cobblestones below, coughing but alive, as the demon staggered back several steps.
All eyes turned. From one flank stood Annabel, her hand still outstretched, the glow of her spell fading. Beside her, Edluar drew his blade, the half-elf's stance ready but tense. From the other side, Clara stood with a bow of pure fire drawn taut, Xain just behind her, looking extremely worried.
"Hope we didn't arrive too late," Clara said, her voice tight with nerves.
"You all look like you could use some help," Annabel remarked with a small, confident grin. Reinforcements had arrived.