"No, there are others," Bracken said. Gilgarol harrumphed. "Are you not aware of--" A hard glance from Bracken silenced him. "What?" Kendra pressed. "Come on, you have to tell me."
Bracken sighed. "The Fairy Queen has five children-- four daughters, one son. I'm the son."
"The Fairy Queen is your mother?"
"Yes."
Kendra rubbed her forehead. "No wonder she seemed so worried about you. But how could your mother be a fairy?"
"Did I say she was a fairy?"
"She's not?"
"Unicorns were the founders of fairydom. My mother was the first."
"The Fairy Queen is a unicorn?"
"Very few beyond our inner circle share this knowledge," Bracken said. "The fairies honor her as the first of their kind. Gorgrog destroyed my father, which is part of the reason I want to defeat him. Time is running out. We have eighty-nine astrids to go."
Kendra felt stunned. She had been cuddling and flirting with the son of the Fairy Queen? There was no time to sort through the implications. "Let's get going."
"All but the unfaithful," Bracken called.
Kendra knelt, and one by one the astrids came forward to have their true forms restored. It took longer than she expected. Soon she started closing her eyes with each kiss to avoid the blinding blizzard of sparks that accompanied each transformation. All of the astrids looked more or less like the first. The weapons varied, as did some elements of the armor, but each had golden wings, and each looked intimidating.
At last, with eighty-seven astrids restored, three darker astrids remained. These lacked the shining golden feathers of the others, and they wore remorseful expressions.
"You turned on the Fairy Queen after she chastised you for your failure," Bracken reprimanded. "But you came when she called. You will hereafter be considered the lowest rank of all those present. May you reclaim your honor through outstanding valor." He nodded at Kendra.
When she kissed the final three, they grew into shining warriors indistinguishable from the others. The three knelt before Bracken. They spoke in unison. "We apologize for our disloyalty. Our rebelliousness will forever shame us. Thank you for this opportunity to prove our penitence. We will not fail you."
"You picked the right day to prove yourselves," Bracken said. "Behold, dawn approaches."
Looking to the east, Kendra saw color in the sky. Overhead, the clouds were thinning. Accompanied by several astrids, Kendra and Bracken returned to where their companions waited, a short distance from the shrine.
"Looks like you recruited some help," Trask said, sounding heartier than he had in days.
"These are astrids?" Seth said, giddy with excitement.
"This is only the beginning," Bracken promised. "Agad is on his way with a group of dragons. Additional reinforcements may issue from the shrine. We may not have the strength to defeat our opponents, but we'll give these demons a welcome to remember."
"What's the plan?" Warren asked.
"We'll form up on the far side of the shrine," Bracken said. "A large clearing separates the shrine from Zzyzx. Since the Fairy Queen is using the shrine as a portal, our sacred homeland will be somewhat vulnerable. We'll try to lure the combat to other locations, and twelve astrids will hang back specifically to protect the shrine."
"Should I build a tower?" Seth asked. "I have a little tower that will grow into a real one if I plant it in the ground."
Bracken shook his head. "Mobility will be too crucial. These are beings of immense power. The strongest of them tear down walls and towers for sport. Save your tower for another day. The demons will try to paralyze us with fear, but the astrids and I can counter their dark auras. None of you will feel the effects of magical fear unless the rest of us fall. Kendra and Seth will each have two astrids assigned as bodyguards; the rest of us will each have one."
"This will be an unstoppable horde," Vanessa reminded.
"We can harass their vanguard, but more will keep coming, too many to handle. We need concrete objectives."
"I have specific maneuvers in mind," Bracken said. "But Nagi Luna is watching. The restoration of the astrids really caught her attention. Much of our hope depends on surprise. I'll share the specific assignments as our adversaries emerge."
Vanessa chuckled. "You require a lot of trust."
"He's the one who brought the army," Warren said. "We don't have much choice but to hope his plan is a good one."
"Our situation is ridiculously perilous," Bracken said. "Yet I'm confident that, under the circumstances, my plan grants us the only possible opportunity to win the day."
"Don't start saying we might win," Newel complained. "You're making me nervous."
"We won't defeat them," Bracken clarified. "But we could survive."
"I think he's lost it," Doren whispered, twirling a finger beside his ear.
"This way," Bracken said. "When the sun rises, the prison will open."
Kendra fell into step behind Newel and Doren.
"Think they remember?" Newel asked Doren, eyeing the astrids.
"Remember what?" Kendra inquired.
Doren placed a hand beside his mouth and whispered, "Newel used to sling rocks at the astrids for sport."
"Hush," Newel hissed urgently, clamping a hand over Doren's mouth. "Doren and his stories."
Up ahead, Kendra saw human-sized fairies rising from the pond around the shrine. Kendra had not seen fairies like them since she had helped to rescue Fablehaven from Bahumat. Tall and graceful, they carried slender spears and swords, and gave haughty looks to the astrids.
A group of the oversized fairies gathered around Hugo and started chanting. The ground rippled, and Hugo began to swell as earth and stone flowed up into his body, giving him new mass. Huge thorns sprouted on his arms and legs. By the time they finished chanting, Hugo stood at almost twice his former height, larger than when the fairies had prepared him for battle during the shadow plague. A group of fairies brought the golem an enormous sword, longer than Trask was tall, with a broad, sharp blade.
Seth ran up to Kendra. "Did you see that? They beefed up Hugo! Maybe we have a chance!"
"Bracken thinks we might," Kendra said.
"I'm freaking out," Seth said, stamping his feet anxiously. "I'll be better once the battle starts. My sword really helps my nerves."
"Just obey Bracken," Kendra implored. "He's our general today. Do what he says and we might make it."
"I'm with Newel," Seth said. "I thought we were dead, so hearing we might beat them is messing with my mind."
"Stay calm," Bracken said. He and Gilgarol fell into step alongside them. "When the demons first emerge, it may look overwhelming. Remember, we don't have to fight them all head-on. We'll have specific objectives."
"Where are those dragons?" Seth asked.
"All in due time," Bracken assured him.
The sky had grown brighter. They reached the far side of the shrine. Ahead of them, a wide field separated them from a tremendous dome of rock, its entire surface etched with cryptic runes. Here and there on the field lay the eroding ruins of ancient structures.
Surveying their newly assembled army, Kendra counted at least a hundred oversized fairies. The heavily armed astrids looked grim and competent, some on the ground, some hovering in the air. And Hugo had become absolutely gigantic. Whatever the outcome, this was much better than facing Gorgrog and his horde with a team of nine.
Bracken trotted ahead of everyone and turned to speak, waving both arms to summon attention. "Our foes will emerge at any moment. Look to me for orders! Take heart-- we have the support of the Fairy Queen and other powerful allies. And after centuries of exile, the astrids have returned to their true form!"
This earned a cheer.
"For ages," Bracken went on, "you astrids served as the honor guard for my family. This regiment had a name. Would any of our human companions care to guess what they were called?"
Nobody answered.
"The Knights of the Dawn," Bracken said. "The same name taken by the brotherhood that stands in opposition to the Society of the Evening Star. I believe this name is no accident. I believe this name makes reference to this moment. No star can abide the light of the dawn, nor has evil ever loved light. After their long incarceration in darkness, let our enemies come against us with the sunrise at our backs!"
Kendra had chills. She had no idea Bracken possessed such dramatic flair for leadership. His words had kindled real hope. All around her, fairies and astrids clapped and whistled. Many applauded by clashing their weapons against their shields, producing a soldierly ruckus.
The sun peeked over the horizon, flooding the world with golden rays. And then the dome began to quake. A thunderous rumbling arose as if from the bones of the planet, drowning out all other sound. Tremors radiated through the ground, making trees sway. Kendra stumbled against an astrid, who prevented her from falling. The quaking intensified, and a vertical crack appeared in the lower portion of the dome, growing wider by the second. As the sun cleared the horizon, the demon prison opened.
Chapter 27 Knights of the Dawn
When the quaking subsided, the breach in the dome had become as wide as a basketball court. Seth stared at the gaping rift, waiting for a demon to appear. Around him, astrids and fairies milled anxiously. "Steady," Bracken called. "Await my commands."
"Are you my bodyguard?" Seth asked an astrid who had taken up position beside him.
"Yes," the brawny astrid replied. "I am Peredor. Denwin is assigned to you as well."
The second astrid stood a little taller than the first. He carried a pair of short spears. Peredor wielded a war hammer, and a brace of long knives crossed at his waist.
"How did you get your assignment?" Seth asked. "Bracken issues most of our orders mind to mind,"
Denwin said. "He is only using his voice for the benefit of you humans."
"He talks to me telepathically sometimes," Seth said. "He gave me a magic coin."
"Keep your fine sword ready," Peredor advised, glancing down at Vasilis. "We will try to shield you, but this will be a host of demons such as the world has never known."
"I'll do my best," Seth said, fingering the hilt of his sword. The waiting was agony. How long before a demon would appear? Would Graulas be the first one out?
A murmur ran through the assembled astrids and fairies as the first demons emerged from the rift in the dome. Seth pulled binoculars from his emergency kit for a closer look.
In the lead slithered a muscular woman with four arms and the body of a serpent. Near her limped a pale man, considerably taller than a regular person, his body pocked with sores. His long, spindly arms and legs gave him spidery proportions, slaver dripped from his slack mouth, and buttery goo clotted around his red eyes. On the other side of the snake woman padded an enormous wolf, with crooked fangs that protruded like tusks and fur as dark as ink.
"You recognize these guys?" Seth asked.
"The tall skinny one is Zorat the Plagueman," Peredor said. "Without unicorns on our side, he could wipe us out himself with disease."
"Bracken will hold his influence in check," Denwin said. "The woman is a greater demon called Ixyria, a mentor to witches and hags. The wolf is called Din Bidor. Darkness and fear increase his size."
Behind these three demons came a figure who nearly filled the gap, a shirtless mountain of a man with an iron collar around his neck and a steel mask over his face. In one hand he clutched a gigantic flanged mace, in the other a tremendous morning star. Beneath gray, elephantine skin and thick layers of blubber, rotund muscles swelled with every movement.
"Brogo," Peredor murmured with intimidated respect. "One of the three sons of Gorgrog. He used to attack castles unaided. The oaf has single-handedly felled forests, smashed monuments, crushed armies, and destroyed cities."
"Arguably the strongest demon in history," Denwin said. "He was one of the first locked up in Zzyzx."
More demons poured out alongside and behind Brogo. Some walked on two legs, some on four, some on six. Others slithered. Others jumped. Others rolled. Others had wings. Some had horns, or tentacles, or shells, or scales, or quills, or fur. Many wore armor and bore weapons. Some had heads like dragons, others like jackals, panthers, humans, or insects. Several stood larger than Hugo. A few lounged on litters borne by underlings.
As the nightmarish procession continued to flow out of the rift, an idea struck Seth, and he hurriedly approached Bracken, his bodyguards half a step behind. Bracken was addressing Trask, Vanessa, Warren, and Kendra.
"This is good," Bracken said, eyes on the growing mass of demons. "Impatient after years in prison, many of the demonic leaders have emerged early. Among them I already see several notorious cowards. Although they love destruction and mayhem, many demons are hesitant to risk their own necks. They prefer bullying."
"How do we use this?" Trask asked.
"We need to spread the fight as wide as possible. We harass and scare the weakest leaders. And we fall back before them, hoping Gorgrog will emerge with his vanguard to celebrate his freedom and observe our demise."
"This is just the vanguard?" Warren asked.
"What you see is but a small delegation of the many demons entrapped in Zzyzx," Bracken confirmed.
Across the field, demons continued to emerge from the rift. Groups of human-sized fairies and astrids began to attack in small groups from multiple directions, darting in, striking a few blows, then soaring away. When flying demons gave chase, astrids converged, outmaneuvering the winged attackers and cutting them from the sky.