Now that the base had been found, something heavy inside my chest had loosened. I had answers, some of them incomplete, many of them dangerous, but answers nonetheless. I knew the war had direction again. I knew my parents’ souls were safe somewhere beyond the reach of the Eternals.
For the first time in a long while, the constant pressure inside my mind had eased. I reached out and gently held her face between my hands.
For a second I simply looked at her.
Her hair moved softly in the breeze drifting through the streets, and the faint light from the sky reflected in her eyes.
"I missed you," I said quietly.
The words came easier than I expected.
Her gaze softened immediately.
"I missed you too," she replied.
Something about the way she said it made the last of the tension leave my shoulders.
I leaned forward.
The kiss was not hurried. It was slow and warm, the kind that made the rest of the world feel distant for a moment. When we finally pulled apart, she rested her forehead lightly against mine, and I wrapped my arms around her.
For a while neither of us said anything.
We simply stood there in the quiet.
Eventually I spoke again, my voice softer now.
"You know... this entire planet is ours now."
North tilted her head slightly, amused. "You’re already planning real estate?"
I shrugged lightly. "Why not? We could build a small house somewhere here. Away from the city. Maybe near one of the forests."
She looked thoughtful for a second.
"No," she said, shaking her head slightly. "Not near a forest."
I blinked. "No?"
She smiled faintly. "If we are building something, then I want space. A large open field. Somewhere I can practice with my blades without worrying about hitting trees or buildings."
"That sounds suspiciously like a training ground," I said.
"It is a training ground," she replied immediately, her eyes brightening with excitement. "A proper one. Targets at different distances. Moving constructs. Maybe even a terrain field where I can practice fighting while running."
I chuckled. "You’re planning a military academy."
"I’m planning my training," she corrected.
"Fair enough."
I tightened my arms around her slightly.
"And the house?" I asked.
She pretended to think about it.
"Well," she said slowly, "if you insist, we can build something small nearby."
"Very generous of you," I murmured.
She laughed softly.
For a moment the conversation faded again, and I leaned in once more, kissing her gently. Her hands slid around my shoulders as she returned it, and the quiet of the plaza seemed to deepen around us.
Then I felt it.
A ripple. A portal activating somewhere inside the teleportation hub.
I pulled back slightly, my senses sharpening instantly.
North noticed the change in my expression.
"Someone arrived," I said.
She sighed quietly, though the small smile on her face remained.
"Let me guess," she said. "Lyrate."
I nodded.
The ripple I had sensed a moment earlier strengthened.
A circle of light spread across the plaza floor inside the teleportation hub, the spatial energy thickening until the entire structure hummed with the pressure of an active gateway. The portal widened steadily, its inner surface turning dark as if opening into a deep void.
North and I walked back toward the others while watching the growing distortion.
The first figure stepped through.
It was not Lyrate.
A towering demon emerged from the portal, clad in heavy black armor etched with crimson sigils. The armor carried the unmistakable design of the Demon Monarch’s army, the plates layered and angular, built for war. A horned helmet hid most of his face, though the faint glow of ember-like eyes burned through the slits.
He paused for half a second after arriving, scanning the plaza.
Then another demon stepped out behind him.
Then another.
Within seconds the steady rhythm of armored boots striking stone began echoing through the city.
I looked up at the others.
Silver whistled softly.
"Well," he muttered, "that escalated quickly."
The demons continued pouring through the portal in an organized flow. Each one wore the same war armor, each one carried a weapon across their back or at their side, and every single aura radiated the same level of power.
Peak grandmasters.
Hundreds of them.
No one spoke for a while as the stream continued. After the first few hundred arrived it became clear the plaza would not be large enough to contain them all.
I raised my hand casually and flicked my fingers outward.
Several nearby buildings lifted from the ground as if pulled by invisible threads before disintegrating. Within seconds a vast open space surrounded the portal, giving the incoming forces room to gather.
The demons continued stepping through in disciplined ranks.
Ragnar moved closer to my side, his large frame looming over several of the others as he watched the endless line emerging from the portal.
"How many are there?" he asked.
By the time he asked, the numbers had already crossed five thousand.
Steve folded his arms and shrugged.
"It’s Lyrate," he said simply. "So who knows."
The portal remained stable.
More demons continued to emerge, their formations spreading outward across the newly cleared plaza with perfect discipline. No shouting, no confusion, no wasted movement. They moved like a well-drilled army that had prepared for this deployment long before arriving.
When the tenth thousand demon stepped out of the portal, the flow finally paused.
For a moment the gateway flickered.
Then a new presence stepped through.
Ferans.
Massive tiger-like warriors emerged from the portal in tight formations, their bodies covered in layered armor designed for both mobility and brute force. Their striped fur showed through the gaps in their armor, and their golden eyes scanned the surroundings with controlled aggression.
Five thousand of them marched through the gateway, each carrying heavy weapons across their backs or in their hands.
Knight leaned toward Silver and muttered, "I suddenly feel underdressed."
Silver nodded solemnly. "Same. But Ferans. How?"
The Feran warriors spread out alongside the demon ranks, forming their own disciplined columns.
The portal pulsed again.
This time the figures stepping through were unlike the previous two groups.
Insectoids.
Their bodies were tall and angular, their armor built to accommodate chitinous limbs and elongated frames. Their compound eyes glowed faintly, and their movements carried an eerie precision as they entered the plaza.
Ten thousand of them crossed the threshold.
Their arrival filled the air with a faint clicking sound as their armored limbs moved in coordinated rhythm. Within minutes the plaza and surrounding streets had transformed into a massive military assembly, tens of thousands of elite warriors standing in organized ranks.
The portal flickered once more.
Then a new figure stepped through.
Demon General Kharzun.
His armor dwarfed even the other demons, his presence radiating raw power as he walked forward. Beside him appeared Commander Saleos, followed by three other demon transcendants whose auras alone made the air feel heavier.
Behind them came two familiar figures.
Primus stepped through the portal first, his fiery cloak shifting around him as he looked over the assembled army.
And finally—
Lyrate.
She floated out of the gateway with the same effortless grace, her crimson hair flowing behind her as her long red dress moved gently in the wind created by the portal’s energy.
A wide smile rested on her face.
Her red eyes immediately found me across the plaza.
For a brief moment she simply looked at me, clearly pleased with the scale of what she had brought.
Then her gaze shifted slightly. She noticed Aurora standing beside me.
Lyrate’s smile widened just a little more.
And with obvious mischief in her expression, she gave Aurora a slow, cheeky smile.