Apostles of Doom

Ruiden had been true to his word and cleared them a path through the zombies to the closest vampire-led ghoul squadrons. The sword had then proceeded to continue on through the ghouls, leaving behind it a rather sickening mess of recently living corpses.

Ghouls and ghasts were always more problematic than zombies, or even vampires or vampyrs. Ghouls and ghasts were living, diseased people who had to eat living, or very recently living, flesh to survive. Ghouls were generally not in control of their hunger. Ghasts, however, had reached an accommodation with their disease and over decades had learned to process the flesh and blood they consumed, mastering their hunger and subsequently extending their unnatural lives.

In both cases, however, the creatures were living people. Most protocols recommended conversion, atonement and trial for ghouls. However, the longer one lived with the disease, the more corrupt one became. Longtime ghouls could often not live with the guilt of their actions as a ghoul, and so suffered greatly and sometimes killed themselves. Ghasts and many others were unwilling to atone, and so were typically executed. However, Hilda had always believed in giving them an option for redemption, at least for ghouls. This was why she felt torn over Rede the dhampyr; for him, redemption was not technically possible.

In any event, redeeming ghouls on the battlefield was neither feasible nor safe, and thus they must be put down. However, unlike zombies, one could not forget that ghouls, however sickly or unkempt, were people. Of course, vampires and vampyrs were formerly people, but they were not technically alive; the former were actively evil, and the latter so dangerous that they had to be put down.

For the last — well, Hilda had no idea, she was losing track of time — hour or so, they had been battling through the now really angry ghouls still alive in the wake of Ruiden’s meat-grinding carnage. Her chants and rituals were protecting and enhancing the soldiers, including electrifying the ghouls, but up ahead and to the left was a large squad of vampyrs. For that, she planned to get out front.

Even as she was summoning her Holy Vorpal Sword of Light, the vampyrs were turning from their course towards her squadron to engage in combat with something behind them. It was too dark in this area to see without Holy Sight, so she increased her night vision.

Hilda gasped. There was a group of demons moving in an orderly manner, not that different than her own squad, flying low the ground and engaging in hand-to-hand combat with the vampyrs. She shook her head at a sight that could only be out of the End of Times. Demons rending vampyrs limb from limb with complete aplomb.

Vampyrs were the most vicious, unrelenting creatures Hilda had ever encountered, and these demons were literally ripping them to pieces as if they were rag dolls instead of giant ravening mouths of teeth in humanoid form. It was not that the vampyrs could not bite the demons, or claw them, but the demons simply did not care. The demons were being wounded, but their wounds were healing even as she watched.

Suddenly the largest of the demons broke free from the vampyrs and made his way towards Hilda’s squad over the bodies of ghouls. As he approached, a ghoul got in his way and he simply ripped it in two and tossed it over his shoulder. Her squadron quickly moved to face the very frightening demon. The still-living ghouls between her and the demon rushed to get out of the demon’s path.

“Hail, Saint of Tiernon!” the demon said, stopping about ten feet away. “I am Darflow Skragnarth, Commander of Doom’s 20^th Regiment!”

“What do you want, demon?” Hilda demanded.

The demon tilted its head, its mouth splitting into a hideous and deeply terrifying grin. “Why, to be of assistance!”

“To be of assistance?” Jacob shouted in shock.

“Of course! We are, unbelievably, on the same side! All of us did, after all, follow Talarius, Knight Rampant of Tiernon and Apostle of Doom, into battle!” Darflow Skragnarth said.

“Talarius? Apostle of Doom?” Hilda asked in shock.

“Apostle, harbinger, emissary? What else would you call the person who sounds the horn of battle to bring forth an army?” Darflow Skragnarth asked.

“Well, this is a onetime thing,” Hilda replied, “so I think that term may be too strong.”

The demon chuckled. “Perhaps; however, he did fight side by side with Lord Orcus and the goddess Sekhmekt of the Nyjyr Ennead against the Knights of Chaos. Thus, I argue that Talarius is clearly as much a knight of Doom as a knight of Tiernon,” the demon replied.

Hilda was at a complete loss. She seemed to recall hearing something about this in the command center. She shook her head. “You attempt to distract me. Why, demon?”

The demon grinned. “I do not seek to distract you. I simply seek to note that Lord Tommus, or Lord Orcus if you will, is not what you may think. Nor are I and my soldiers. Today we, enemies for millennia, fight side by side, brothers-in-arms,” Darflow said.