“What is this?” asked Laromendis, not bothering to keep his voice down. Everywhere they looked demons of all stripes and fashion were engaging others. The oddest quality of this mad scene was that the demons who were already encamped wore armor of a roughly uniform fashion—dull silverfish breast armor and helms, some with spaulders or pauldrons, others with no shoulder protection. Some wore greaves or boots, while others—those with massive feet ending in claws—went barefoot. But it could be quickly ascertained they fought under the same banner. And that banner was raised high atop a long pole in the center of the camp, a massive black cloth with a red design upon it, impossible to see in detail at this distance.

The attackers were likewise armored in a haphazard fashion, but their armor was a uniformly dark blue-grey color and they flew no banner in the field. Still, they were clearly holding the advantage in surprise and ferocity.

Even without armor and weapons, demons were lethally effective fighters; with arms they were even more terrifying. The slaughter was without pause, and on every hand demons went down in screams of pain, fountains of smoking blood, and body parts sailing through the air. It was butchery in every sense of the word.

Gulamendis replied, “I have no idea. A demonic revolt, by the look of it.”

“There,” said the Conjurer, pointing across the valley to the ridge opposite the one they hid behind.

In the distance, Laromendis could see what had caught his brother’s attention. Atop the ridge rose a massive figure, dwarfing those around him. Still it was impossible to make out details at this distance. But enough could be seen to make it clear that group atop the distant ridge was orchestrating the assault on the demon horde encamped in the valley below.

Fliers from below rose up to meet those already overhead, and the two elves now saw the source of the massive concussions and explosions. The attackers’ flying demons were carrying large objects that they released on the ground forces below and when they struck the ground, a massive amount of energy was released, throwing a tower of earth, smoke, flame, and bits of destroyed demons into the air. The early assault must have included assaults on positions closer to where the brothers hid, for these impacts were less severe.

Down three gullies from outside the valley a stream of attacking monstrosities came flooding. They rolled into the encamped army, caught up in the throes of panic, and the slaughter began in earnest.

“What is going on?” asked Laromendis.

“Can you conjure enough cover if needed for us to remain unseen?” asked his brother.

“Not for long.”

“If what I think is happening is happening, we won’t need long. Come, we must hurry.”