It took an entire minute to get out of the damn thing.

Eloise could hear screams all about her. Most of her attention was focused on the labored breathing of the man in her arms, but still, she could tell that all those she had called to battle were dying while they beat a hasty retreat. There was zero visibility, and the mist even seemed to have the strange property of being able to lead them in circles, stopping them from breaking out into the sunshine. Thankfully, the winged beings among them managed to get out first, before proceeding to lead the rest outside by taking swift plunges that were dangerous, yet necessary.

The Godnet was waiting nearby to protect them as they made their way back inside. The Bishop made no move to follow, so another minute later, Eloise turned around to survey the damage while the deathtrap outside began to coalesce once again.

W-where are the other half? H-heavens...

Only half of those who had led the attack had returned. She had been expecting it, but it was still a heavy blow that almost made her feel woozy. But when Kellor took another harrowing breath in her arms, she forcefully recovered and said, "Well fought. Take a little rest... you’ve earned it. But be ready to assemble once again if required."

She didn’t know whether what she was saying was true, but she knew that it was what the others needed to hear. They had enough resources to defend themselves even if the Bishop was completely undamaged, so she made the decision to rely on them while they healed their wounds.

Taking a deep breath, she turned her gaze to the mist, fully expecting the worst possible outcome. Yet, when the mist coalesced into her figure again, Eloise let out a relieved sigh.

It was much smaller than before. Barely standing a hundred feet tall, it still seemed formidable, but it was obvious that the lives of so many Angarians had not been lost in vain.

It was the biggest blow to their home since the death of all those men and women and children, but it was something that they had been preparing their hearts for all this while. Their most fervent wish had been that they would give as good as they got, and at least in this instance, they had managed to succeed in doing so.

When the Bishop’s face began to form, a smile even reached Eloise’s lips as she saw a spasm of pain flash across it. It disappeared in the next moment as Kellor let out another breath... and stopped breathing.

"NOOOO!"

With a scream, she looked down to see that his body was completely motionless. He almost looked undamaged, except for a tiny hole on his forehead that had only bled a little, but deep inside...the Bishop’s attack seemed to have done its work. As the scream continued in her mind, she clutched him close and teleported once, twice, then thrice, before appearing at the center where the Goddess of Healing had already arrived to take a look at Daneel.

Having just finished with the Godking, she turned around quickly and rushed to Kellor’s side. Eloise was loath to part with him, but she did it all the same as she knew that Angaria was doomed if she did not continue to lead it. Taking one last look at his peaceful face, she fervently hoped that she would see him standing again, unfazed, in a few minutes, and got up to send the interrupted message from before to the assassins.

They had been waiting for her. As soon as she initiated the line of communication, they spoke quickly.

"The sword is a dimensional weapon! Dimensional magic is typically for Monarchs and Saints, but certain expensive Artefacts can be made to use it, too. The sword cannot work without that mist! The mist has the ability to weaken the natural dimensional barrier, thus allowing the sword to strike through space! She changed its form and hid it so we couldn’t see what it was! Do not go near that mist again!"

Eloise didn’t need to be told twice. She had realized that it was a trap when she saw the pinprick of light, itself, so the information didn’t really help her that much. Still, turning to the other battle still raging to the west, she saw that Angaria was losing there, too.

The Heroes of the Order were struggling to maintain the giants. They had only trained together for the span of a few months, so it was a huge strain on their minds to take part in the construct while also using their own Paths to attack. Prolonged battles had never been their forte, but as they had been forced into this one, they had been trying their best.

They had only been able to put up a fight with the support of the people and the core, but the power of the former had already begun to dwindle due to what they had seen just now. The forces of Angaria had gone forth mightily, but had returned limping with their tails tucked between their legs. The courage of the Angarians could not be doubted, but fear was like an unassailable enemy that was always stalking them in the shadows, and now, it reared its head again, unwilling to remain cowed.

The situation was bad, but her thoughts kept going back to the sovereign who lay dying, or dead behind her.

NO! Don’t think of that! We need to do something to balance the scales! But what?

The idea came to her suddenly. So she acted within that same second, trusting the instincts that had saved her so many times in the past.

A few moments later, a scream echoed across Angaria. Almost everyone turned their heads in the direction of the center, and what was waiting for them there made them fall to the ground, broken.

Their Godking’s mouth was open, screaming to the high heavens while blood flowed down from all over his body to pool at his feet. The scream went on and on, and then...he collapsed, and remained unmoving.

For the space of a heartbeat, the Angarians and the Bishop, alike, could only stare, unable to process what had just happened. Yet, when Eloise ran to him and broke down completely, they understood that the worst had come to be.

Even the Heroes of the Order froze as they saw this. No one had known exactly how much they had relied on their Godking, but now, as they saw him in that state...they felt all the fight go out of them.

Formations sputtered and failed. The giants fell apart, revealing the Heroes within. Even the Godnet flickered, as his mind had been crucial for its operation.

"What are you waiting for? ATTACK, YOU IMBECILES! GET THAT B*TCH, FIRST!"

Like a whip, the Bishop’s voice cracked through the air, setting the Chamelion corps in motion. They formed up arrows again, and this time, they were too quick to be stopped. In one smooth motion, they pierced through the Godnet...and fell upon the center.

The center’s barriers stood no chance against the combined might of 1500 Heroes. To the outside world, Eloise looked like she had stopped caring about reality. She was cradling the Godking’s head in her lap, remembering the dream that had been their past together, even as the Heroes of the Church all landed on the large platform and raised their hands to decimate the both of them.

Energy began to gather at their fingertips...but then, like a mirror shattering, the illusion fell away.

Snapping her head up, Eloise smiled. It was a smile filled with maleficence, cold and deadly, and as soon as she saw it, the Bishop knew that something was wrong.

"Burn."

As this word left her lips, the center became engulfed in turquoise-colored flames that ate through the defensive measures of the Chamelion corps in a single heartbeat. Green skulls of flame could be seen all around, laughing, and in between them, Eloise grinned even though the flames were destroying her, too.

The Emperor had left before, itself, so only the three of them were left on the podium. Daneel was unaffected by the flame as he had made it his own, before, but for the two of them...death was guaranteed.

Eloise didn’t even feel the pain that came from being burned. The flames licking up her body felt like the caresses she had come to love, as she had decided to hold the memory of the time they had spent together in these final moments. She felt only pleasure coursing through her veins as she saw the soldiers of the Church scream with agony, and as unconsciousness rushed out of nowhere to claim her, she looked at her Godking and thought:

historical

I’ve done my part. I...just wish I could have seen you, smiling, again. If our real bodies weren’t here, she wouldn’t have believed it. But it was worth it. It’s all up to you, now. Rise, my Godking...and avenge me.