“Go ahead, Farris,” Phynis told the woman as Slaid settled into his chair, trying to suppress her worry.

“Our worst fears have been confirmed. Tyria attacked Sifaren’s army around Galthor yesterday.” Farris’ voice was blunt as she looked at the others around the table.

The conference included everyone of importance in the city, from Vendis and Slaid to Albert Windgale and Lirisel from Medaea’s temple. Diamond and Sistina were there as well, but others had been excluded on the simple basis that their superiors were going to pass along information and Phynis didn’t want too many people in the room. This was going to be bad enough as it was.

“Tianna protect us… how bad was it?” Vendis asked, her face ashen.

“Not nearly as bad as it could have been. From what Reva was able to tell us, Tyria was trying to kill the commanders instead of the army as a whole, though when she lost her temper it was pretty bad. Seventeen golems were destroyed and only twelve people were killed by her hand, but they couldn’t react fast enough to have all their magi concentrate on her,” Farris explained. “She could have devastated the army, but she isn’t acting quite how we expected, even with Wenris’ warning. Tyria isn’t directly working for Kelvanis, and when Reva told her about being Medaea, she seemed… confused and curious. So she asked where the priestesses who could confirm this were.”

“That’s either promising or terrifying, and I’m not certain which it is,” Diamond murmured, leaning forward slightly. “Did he tell her?”

“When she said that she’d reduce his army to ashes and drop him from hundreds of feet in the air if he didn’t? Yes. She’s overseeing the retreat of Kelvanis’ army to the border, but after that I believe we must assume she will be coming here,” the golem mage replied, her strange eyes glittering.

“Alright, what in the hells are we going to do, then? If she could have wrecked an entire army on her own, what chance would we have?” Slaid asked bluntly. “I know you said we have some methods, but hearing about this scares me. I know it’ll shake my people, too.”

“Of course it will! The war was already too close to evenly matched, even with you and Yisara’s army. With a goddess in the fray, it won’t just tip the scales. We have to stop her if we’re to have any chance at all!” Vendis exclaimed, looking at Phynis. “Your Majesty, do you have any assurance that we can do so?”

“No. While we have methods we think will work, there’s no guarantee against such a powerful being,” Phynis admitted heavily, sitting back in her chair and looking at the others seriously. “I don’t want to lie to all of you, which is why I’m telling you this. Despite that, we do have two possible solutions. Farris, Sistina?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. First is the beacon atop the palace itself. I know that most of you are aware that it’s also a weapon called a Siegebreaker Array. It has severely limited uses, but it possesses enough power to punch through virtually any shielding spell and take down most dragons,” Farris explained, her lips curling into a slight smile as she continued. “While not necessarily equal to an army of magi, it can be used almost instantly, and it’s all but impossible to block since it travels so quickly. If Tyria comes within a mile of the walls, we can target her with it. Unfortunately, it would require someone to be on hand to aim it, but…”

Albert cleared his throat. “As a point of note, my weapon that I used on the wall was based on these Siegebreaker Arrays. I don’t think mine had more than a tithe of the power, but I hope that adds some perspective to the matter.”

“I see. That does help somewhat. What about the other solution?” Slaid asked, looking at Sistina.

The dryad had been sitting calmly, barely reacting to most of the conversation, but when he asked, she looked back at him and spoke gravely. “This is dangerous. She may dodge the beacon. She may breach the city. If she does, do not stop her. She will come for me. I have laid a trap. It may capture her. The power needed is… immense. If I can, if it works, I can claim her brand. That or use Jaine’s brand to try to restore her mind. It may not work, though. I fear Irethiel will try to intervene.”

“Tianna preserve us…” Vendis muttered, but Slaid nodded.

“I suppose. Why are you so sure she’ll come for you, though? You’re just the dungeon from her perspective, right?” the man asked, glancing apologetically to Phynis as he did so.

“That is a good question,” Phynis agreed, looking at Sistina and raising her eyebrows. “Well?”

“My domain, my magic will interfere with hers. She is intruding into my domain, which will weaken her. She will come to destroy me to keep from being weakened or ejected from my domain,” Sistina replied simply, shrugging. “Like removing enemy commander. Just makes sense.”

“Goddess…” Lirisel’s voice was soft, and she swallowed before asking, “What do you want us to do? I mean, she’s our goddess, no matter what’s been done to her, but I don’t know that I can fight her.”

“Pray. Pray fervently, with memories of who she was,” the dryad replied softly. “Remind her.”

“That’s all well and good, but what about us? While I want to help, my people are really hesitant to get involved in your war,” Albert asked, folding his arms and frowning. “I’m willing to help where I can, but since Mister Sorvos isn’t anywhere near us, my position is somewhat precarious.”

Diamond spoke first, her voice calm as she looked at Sistina. “Sistina? May I ask if you’re willing to allow us to harvest a large number of herbs from your private gardens?”

The dryad nodded in response, looking curious but not saying anything. Smiling, the priestess looked at Albert and asked, “Guildmaster, may I ask what your Guild’s stance on outsiders purchasing healing items is?”

“We sell them all the time. Only members can buy items used to attack or cause damage, but healing items are freely available, though Guild members get discounts,” Albert replied, and Phynis could see the realization dawn on him. “I think I know what you’re going to ask, and I’m probably going to say yes.”

“You likely do. I’m not going to ask you to do anything for free, Guildmaster. What I’m going to offer are the herbs to create healing potions, with three potions worth of herbs being exchanged for two potions.” Diamond replied. “I would say that your adventurers defend your part of the city, as if the walls are breached the soldiers outside might not realize you want to stay out of things, but allow us to gain healing for our soldiers. That could be the difference between victory and defeat.”

“That seems fair to me, but considering things from before, I shouldn’t just agree,” Albert murmured, turning to Phynis and asking, “Would that be acceptable to you, Your Majesty?”

“Considering everything you’ve done since the attack on Sistina, yes. I know you weren’t responsible for what was done, Guildmaster, and my anger has largely cooled,” Phynis told him after a moment of thought. “I must say that the deal seems fair to me, though I’m uncertain if it seems that way to you. I have no idea how much effort it takes to distill potions.”

“It isn’t a loss for me, I’m willing to say that much. Oh, it’ll be a lot less of a profit than normal, but the hard part for higher quality healing potions is getting the ingredients to begin with,” the Guildmaster replied readily, then sat back and let out a sigh. “I’m glad, though. I’ve been feeling like I was walking on pins and needles around you, Your Majesty.”

“Likely for the best, at least at first,” Phynis murmured, her thoughts still churning through their problems. After a few moments she sighed and looked at Farris, her voice soft. “I hate to ask it, Farris, but since you don’t need to sleep, might I convince you to keep watch for Tyria, with the beacon ready?”

“I am more than willing to do so, Your Majesty,” Farris replied, giving a deep bow.

“There isn’t anything else I can see to do for preparations. Everyone knows their part of the city’s defense, and Kelvanis’ army hasn’t gone anywhere. Let’s get back to work,” Phynis told the others, taking a deep breath and letting it out. “Oh, and try not to tell anyone what the exact preparations are for Tyria. We don’t want Kelvanis catching wind of it somehow.”

That caused a chorus of chuckles as the others stood, and Slaid replied drolly, “Right, that would be bad. Don’t worry, I won’t say anything.”

“Good enough. Be safe, everyone,” Phynis murmured, and watched them go.

* * *

“Hey, Albert,” Daniel called out cheerfully.

“Oh, hello, Daniel.” The Guildmaster’s reply was slightly belated, and the look of concern on his face made Daniel pause.

“Is something wrong? Other than the siege, I mean. We were going to take Sina on her first delve to try to get away from the commotion, but if it’d be better to stay outside, I’d like to know,” Daniel asked, growing a little more worried. They were in the front room of the Guild, and Daniel realized after a moment that their conversation had already caused the others in the area to quiet down.

Albert looked around the room, then chuckled and set his mug aside. Standing, he spoke more loudly. “I suppose that it’s best not to let myself stew in private anyway. Right, all of you heard about how one of the local goddesses, Medaea, was supposedly captured, right?”

“I heard the rumors, but didn’t really believe it.” Penelope spoke up from her chair, swiveling away from the bar. “Who could capture a goddess anyway?”

“I suppose it’d be a lot easier if she was asleep, as she apparently was. Regardless, it happened. I’ve heard the details from several of those involved, and I believe them,” Albert replied, and Daniel couldn’t help but flinch. No matter that Medaea hadn’t been worshiped in Kelvanis almost at all, the news was troubling. Yet Albert didn’t stop there.

“The next part is less certain, but it’s… distantly plausible. A defector brought information that Kelvanis was attempting to corrupt Medaea, and turn her into the goddess of a budding religion under the name Tyria.” Albert paused and had to raise his hand to quiet the hubbub at that, his voice growing stronger as he spoke over them. “I have no idea if that’s true! What is true is that Tyria attacked Sifaren’s army yesterday, and may be coming here.”

“Aw, dammit. What’re you wanting us to do, Guildmaster? I may not be too impressed with Kelvanis, and am willing to fight them somewhat, but fighting a goddess?” Darak spoke up, looking very unhappy.

“I’m not asking you to do that. Better, Queen Constella isn’t asking you to do that,” the Guildmaster replied, looking around seriously as he continued. “If you choose to join in this fight, that’s on you. This is an unusual war in that a former Guild member has broken the rules and allowed us to get involved, yet he isn’t anywhere nearby. As it stands, I’m supplying Beacon’s defenders with a variety of healing potions in exchange for enough herbs to replace them, and then some. The Queen asked us to defend our area, and the dungeon if we’re willing. I think that’s fair.”

“W-what if Tyria comes, though?” Eileen’s voice trembled, her knuckles white as she clutched Eric’s hand. He looked worried as well, but was putting a brave face on things.

“If you see a winged woman in armor, carrying a flaming sword and with purple hair, get the hell out of her way,” Albert replied dryly, shaking his head. “I’ll admit I’ve always been curious just how powerful a demigod might be, but I’m not foolish enough to ask you to fight one. A group of Dungeon Slayers might have a chance… but I wouldn’t put a lot of faith in it. We tend to fight monsters, not people or beings as intelligent as people.”

“I’ll drink to that,” Darak muttered, and Daniel couldn’t help but swallow as the other adventurers muttered their agreement. After a moment Albert sat back down and people began to talk again.

A minute later Sina appeared in the door of the Guild, wearing lightweight leather armor and carrying both a dagger and bow. Sayla was with her, and the pair of them smiled. “Hey, are we going to go or not?”

Giving Eileen and Eric a questioning look, Daniel was almost relieved when they nodded. “Yeah, just give me a minute. I wanted a couple more healing potions, just to be safe.”

“Alright,” Sina agreed, almost bouncing happily in place.

Daniel wondered how well that would hold up if she heard what had just been discussed. Still, there was no reason to ruin her mood, and he headed for the alchemist’s, deciding to get higher quality potions this time. He didn’t want to risk losing any of his friends.

* * *

“Phynis…” Sistina said softly, wrapping a blanket around the Queen’s shoulders as she looked up at the sky. The worry on Phynis’ face was palpable, which concerned the dryad greatly.

“Do you think we can survive this, Sistina? Tyria, I mean. You said that you’d taken measures, but you didn’t seem nearly as certain during the meeting,” Phynis said, not looking down from the stars above them. The moon was a waning sliver of itself, and the Queen pulled the blanket a little closer.

“Yes. I dare not speak of my last resort,” Sistina replied, then hesitated for a moment, swallowing hard and then asking, “I could show you. Would you like to see?”

Phynis turned at that, blinking in surprise. It took her a moment, as her mouth opened… but then she hesitated. “I was going to say yes, but then I wondered. Would me knowing change anything, Sistina? Or would it just be a risk?”

“Perhaps, and yes,” Sistina replied quietly. Anyone knowing about the bodies of Demasa and Kylrius would be a danger, as even as a shadow of their living selves, their power was immense.

“Then I’m content. I trust you, Sistina, absolutely and forever. I just… I worry,” Phynis replied, giving a nervous smile.

“Of course. All is darkest before the dawn, Phynis. The Godsrage was a great darkness.” Sistina paused for a long moment, and pulled her beloved into a gentle embrace, smiling as she murmured, “It is time for a new dawn.”