BXBX NOVEL Chapter 91: Fear and Doubt.
"The demon god is beyond us, she is beyond any power we will ever gain-"
"Then why are we still trying to beat her, aren't you just admitting that nothing we do will ever be enough?" Eris asked and Arla gestured to Sol.
"That's my job, but just because she's my fight doesn't mean you have a free pass to run away with your tails tucked in, Argom needs its heroes to be as powerful as possible because there's an entire horde of possibly billions of demons other than the demon-god, so even though you're two heroes short you're still pushing forward; granted the other captains have been assigned the army while only Arla accompanies us." Sol stared at her with his hand gestured back at Arla.
"Then not only are we headed into more danger than we can handle, but we're doing it without the teams we planned to go there with, this is too much to ask of us!" Bruce objected.
"Are you actually a demigod?" Usami turned to Sol and asked him skeptically.
"Only demigods have blood of pure white, Usami, you saw it yourself, we all did; blood of glowing white." Arla answered in his stead. "You also probably think that Master Vestic fighting the demon god is pointless given what happened a few days ago when she appeared..."
"Don't worry about Sitri, just focus on gaining strength, leave her to me, trust me there won't be a repeat of what happened." Sol stood confidently before them, contrasting his laid-back persona from before Sitri appeared.
"It's like he's a totally different person." Dina looked at Ikaris who was wearing a dress without armour and assuming her goddess appearance where everyone could see her, even if they now knew she was different, they still didn't know what she was, so she relaxed a little, with Sol on alert it was nearly impossible for anything to touch anyone around him.
"This is the Sol of Atla," Ikaris whispered back. "To say he is different from what you have seen is an understatement, only by witnessing him will you understand." She bragged, leaving Dina even more curious.
...
"I believe it to be a bad idea." Idria stared at the heroes and Arla as they were in a meeting set aside from the remaining army that was going to continue to the next obelisk and check for more breaches along the territory before going back home.
"I tried convincing Usami several times but she is adamant that she will not leave the heroes' party-"
"Do not speak to me of that girl with such an innocent tone, Morn, her Highness has already been made aware of your deeds, you will receive a befitting punishment for abusing your role as the teacher of the spear hero to have your way with her when we arrive back in Argom, as of right now you are under mine, lady Lyra and sir Kris's surveillance, and if you leave our sight for a minute you will immediately be branded a war criminal and be blacklisted with an order to kill on sight."
"I have no idea what you speak of-"
"There is an abundance of proof on this matter, eyewitness testimonies as well as physical evidemce, so save your words and say your prayers, the Queen will have you on a pike so enjoy your remaining three months of freedom in the army." Idria regarded him with a scorful expression.
"That is nonesense though, she was the one who-"
"You are not permitted to speak on the matter." Lyra stated to him; she was the tallest of all of them and her imposing figure gave her an air of danger without her even having to make a move, that was all without mentioning the fact that aside from Arla who was a monster in her own right, Lyra was second only to the late General Grim.
That is to say as the descendant of a Demigod she was powerful, even if she usually stated otherwise.
Morn had two choices, and being the coward he was he chose to fold and accept his situation rather than fight back, even with his special skill to kill any he deemed as an enemy he valued his life over his freedom, he would do whatever it took to live.
"This is a rather anticlimactic sendoff," Eris waved to Idria as they left with morn at the back of the army. "It feels tacked on and kind of rushed."
"You wouldn't feel that way if you had any confidence going forward." Sol held out his hand to Ikaris and she hooked her arm with his and mounted his horse, sitting before him and relaxing.
"Am I supposed to have any confidence?" Eris looked around at Sol with her brow raised. "You say you have it under control but I can't stop thinking about what happened to you, your entire chest caved in like a fucking sinkhole to an attack I couldn't even see, I don't feel safe in any regard-"
"Listen here you-"
"It's okay, Ikaris," Sol held her hips as she took the reins and began moving. "Her doubts are warranted." He corrected her.
"What's up with that appearance anyway?" Usami raised her brow at Ikaris and the goddess just smiled. "It's weird y'know."
"Mimic," Ikaris answered concisely.
"That's... no, I'm tired of that one excuse!" Usami scowled.
"I find this form extremely attractive, actually." Sol looked down at Ikaris's ears and pressed his lips on one of them causing the goddess to shudder with a squeal at the sudden tease.
"She's more sensitive to touch, and without having to hide it she also has a sharper handle on her powers." He pointed out and Ikaris nodded, that was a load of bullshit, obviously, she was just tired of looking like a human when three of the people around her were aware of the fact that she was a goddess already.
"Ugh," Usami mounted her horse and looked at Dina who shrugged and smiled.
"Everyone is tense after the recent incident." Arla approached them on her horse forming the leading three while everyone else fell in line behind them, with the only exemption being Sara who was insistent on following them from the start and remained at the back.
"They're afraid," Dina sighed. "Honestly, I am too, but I don't think I share the same fear... they're terrified that they stand no chance; that they're gonna get killed off without a fight." She pointed out.
"I'm afraid because the future for us is so uncertain, I trust Sol with my life; if he says he can do it I know he's not lying, what worries me is my own weakness, I wonder if I can do my part effectively enough to let him focus on the demon god without interference."
"That's why even though I'm the one with the largest role currently, this journey is focused on you guys getting stronger, I'm still not taking part in your fights, unless I absolutely have to, or unless I feel like Ikaris's safety will be threatened." He gestured to the heroes. "This is still your story, I'm just tagging along as the ultimate support character.
"What a weird way of saying 'I got your back." Dina chuckled as they started gaining speed.
"So, what's the estimated time before we reach the demon-god?" Bruce asked.
"Two months," Arla answered, keeping pace with him and Usami who rode side by side while Eris was in the middle of everyone, an unconscious formation to keep the medic safe. "If we travel by day and rest by night we will reach the edge of the continent within two month's time, from the previous accounts from a hundred years ago, the demon-god's lair was established in the northern-most mountains."
"You sound like you're unsure of the exact location." Eris looked behind herself at the mage.
"Again, Sitri is my responsibility, your job is to keep the road clear and kill absolutely everything that we cross paths with, Eris," Sol stared at her.
"Me too?" She asked.
"Naturally," Ikaris answered. "Everyone is going to fight this time, even you as the healer need to be strong enough where if things go south you can defend yourself in the absence of all of us." She explained, and the healer sighed.
"I don't like this, I really don't like this one bit-"
"Oh for fuck's sake that's enough already!" Sol snapped grabbing Ikaris's hands and pulling on the reins causing his horse and every horse behind them to come to a sudden halt. "That's enough out of all of you, stop your fucking complaining, what the fuck!?" He dismounted and turned to them, unlike his usual annoyance he was starting to get pissed off.