"You've done it." Adelaxia's voice trembled. She swiftly moved in and embraced Markus, kissing him on the neck as she squealed with joy. Not even his desire to have her on the spot could mask the stench of death and smoke building in the hall.
"It appears we underestimated your dedication," came a voice from the entrance. Kalim, the richest satrap in all the empire stood with a silver dragon perched on his shoulder. His eyes narrowed onto Markus. "I'll be needing the relics now."
Markus shoved Adelaxia aside and rose. "We need to find the child first and foremost."
"Of course," he said. "I've already sent my men to deal with that. Now if you'd be so kind."
Markus turned back around to where Justinian's body laid slumped over to find Farid plucking a ring and slipping it over his own finger. A dark cloud appeared in front of him and took on the form of a young woman with short lavender hair and a bow in her hand. The blue tint under her eyes gave her a defiant appearance.
Farid burst out into laughter as he fumbled around his waist. "It worked. You're actually mine now and have to do whatever I command you to."
"As you wish, master." Mitra narrowed her eyes at her summoner. He gripped her shoulder and brought her down to her knees in front of him.
Markus fumed as he stormed over, turning Farid around and effortlessly snatching the ring out of his hands. "Give me that you fool. We're not here to pleasure ourselves but to liberate. Find the Library and the child too. We can't allow them to escape."
Farid eyed the dagger Markus held and gulped before raising his trousers once more. "I'll get right on it."
Markus nodded, watching him go before he turned his attention to the ring. He put it on and channeled some magic to the item, feeling it vibrate under his influence. He smiled and gave it some more. Adelaxia approached him, laying her hand on his arm as she watched in anticipation.
Mitra reappeared, sizing up her new summoner with a raised eyebrow. She kneeled before him and pressed a fisted hand to her chest. "At your service, master."
Adelaxia's grip tightened. She jumped on the spot and let out a yelp. "Quick, grab the other relics and become the Grand Summoner. You can finally rule the universe."
Kalim stepped forward, interrupting their celebration. "I don't think so. It's better if we abolish those ideas and return to a more decentralized way of life."
"I can't let you do that. We need to align our forces if we're going to defeat the Darkness."
"There will be enough time to deal with fairy tales once we all have our fair share of the reward."
Markus held his khanjar to the side, blocking Kalim from accessing the Emperor's corpse. "We already went over this. There are more urgent matters at hand."
"I didn't help you overthrow the Emperor just so you could crown yourself as the next," Kalim said. He held out his right hand, a dark mist seeping out of his grip and onto the floor. It piled up, taking on a human form. A Daeva captured to fight for him. Not just one but three of them appeared heavily armored with helmets concealing their faces.
Even so, Markus could still make out their dark faces and dangerous weapons at hand. "We shouldn't be fighting but it appears you leave me no choice but to determine the best course of action for all of us. Prepare for defeat."
Mitra threw her hands to the floor, creating a smokescreen around her and Markus and moved them to a safe distance before redirecting her attention to the Daeva roaming the halls. She pulled back on her bow, loosing two arrows in quick succession into the smoke. A soft clank gave away the fact that she managed to hit one of them and Mitra pounced on the opportunity, pulling the string back further and applied magic she received from Markus into her arrow. It flew across the great hall at a lightning quick pace, bursting through the armor and sending the Daeva flying back against the wall. He grunted out in pain and slid to the ground unmoving.
"You'll pay for that," Kalim said and in that moment Markus realized the mistake Mitra had made in bringing him away and leaving the remaining relics undefended.
Sure enough, Kalim rushed forward and used his summons as a shield to block Mitra's attacks and help pin her down. The dragon perched on his shoulder leaped into the air and soared along the ceiling, eying them all. Kalim reached Justinian and pulled a ring from his body.
"Concentrate on taking him out," Markus said, channeling more energy to her. Mitra worked efficiently, quickly mopping up the summons using their bodies as shields and focusing on Kalim. She pulled back on her string, bundling the excess energy into her arrow as she loosed it. The arrow darted across the hall before taking a sharp turn and burying itself into a pillar with an explosion. Chunks of rock and wood scattered through the hall as someone managed to deflect her attack.
The dust slowly cleared away, allowing the nimble form of Attia to appear with her dual blades held at the ready. Markus gritted his teeth, focusing all his effort into ending the conflict before it spread. Justinian sent Attia away but with Kalim in possession of the relic, he could summon her right back to the scene of battle without delay.
The remaining separatist summoners entered the hall and joined Kalim with their Daeva. Their combined strength would easily overcome his own. Mitra pulled another arrow out of the air and notched it. He didn't need to speak in order to communicate with her and he could tell she felt the tip of balance as well.
"You don't have to die here," Kalim said. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and grinned as Attia drew Adelaxia out from cover. "You helped relieve us of the tyrant. Take your maiden and go back home so we may live as equals."
Markus glanced over at Mitra and combed his hand through his hair in resignation. All of them gained the power of a Battle Maiden but lost all the same. The Darkness would snuff them out like a candle in the wind.