March of The Dead (MotD)

Deep beneath the Palace of Zolis, in a large earthen chamber of reinforced stone and metal, the War Masters of the Coalition sat around their crescent moon shaped table, elevated so all could see the large map carved and painted on the floor could see even when seated.

There were nine War Masters, each one of Demigod power. Six Argalon and three Demons. They sat in their chamber, hidden away from the war, knowing that if they directly interfered too often, the world itself would begin restricting them. Making them slower and weaker until they were only Master Tiered.

As such, they were severely limited to leadership and strategist roles. They took their duty very seriously. The responsibility to save their species weighed heavily on them.

Seated to the far left, Belgroth stared at the map, seeing in real time how the various forces moved across the continent, at least as much as the Coalition knew.

As the last surviving Guardian, he had demanded a seat at the War Master Table, and after several months of arguing, he had gotten it. The War Masters sent the weakest of them back to their world in order to better fend off the bugs and protect their people. Something the Argalon took surprisingly well.

Though as Belgroth thought of it later, he realized that the Argalon that had been sent home had likely felt stifled on this world where he was severely limited with the presence of the world constantly pressing down on him.

Regardless, Belgroth finally had a seat at the table, a say in how the war was waged. Unfortunately, he desire to have peace, an opinion that was looked down on, had led him to losing what little influence he had at the table.

They still listened when he spoke, as their customs demanded of them, but they very rarely ever acted on his words.

The Chairman of the Table, a role that was designed to merely keep the War Masters moving forward instead of stalling, but gradually shifted until it had become a role of Rulership over the two Races. The position was currently filled by an Argalon that Belgroth actually knew from before he was locked away.

Though when Belgroth knew him, he had only been a small child.

"The Humans of Gilae have proven to be skilled tacticians. The Fourth is regularly finding their supply caravans raided or burned." One of the War Masters said, pointing to the map and causing it to change and reshape itself until it had zoomed into the territory he was speaking of.

Belgroth sighed, 'Gilaen Empire. If you are going to destroy them, the least you can do is remember their Nation.' Though he did not say anything. He had already done so many times. They just did not care.

"Send a detachment of Flyers to guard the caravans." One of the Devils spoke up, "I'm more concerned about these Necromancers helping the Taurans. Their numbers, while weak, are troublesome."

Everyone at the table nodded, even Belgroth.

Another War Master opened their mouth to speak when a series of knocks echoed through the room.

The Chairman spoke, "Enter!"

The only doors in or out of the chamber opened to reveal two Argalon in elaborate armor, and between them, was a Devil, obviously wounded and exhausted.

"He says he has a message from Lord Ashborn."

Belgroth perked up immediately, though the rest of the War Masters looked puzzled.

"Lord Ashborn? Who is this Ashborn? Is he one of ours? The name doesn't sound familiar."

The Chairman silenced everyone with a soft slap of the desk, "Lord Ashborn is the Human who flattened Onigas. The one who attempted to parley with the initial Invasion force here in Zolis," He turned to the Devil who had been dropped in the middle of the room, "What is this message from the Human?"

The Devil sat in the middle of the room panting for several moments before he looked up. Belgroth immediately saw the horror that had been etched into this poor man.

"H-he said…leave this world…or he'll kill us all." The Devil stammered out through gasps, "He…He killed everyone in Hasal. Everyone, but those inside the castle. He promised us, that he would let ten of us leave unharmed. Everyone started to kill each other to be one of those ten." He hunched over with sobs, "He kept his promise."

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The War Masters looked at each other with varying looks of horror, rage, and confusion.

"You killed your own?" The Chairman said without emotion.

"I had no choice!" The Devil cried.

The Chairman stood, "There is always a choice. Guards, take this worm into custody and arrange for its public execution tomorrow."

"No! Please!"

But his pleas went unanswered as the Guards dragged him away.

Belgroth began rubbing his temples, already feeling a headache coming despite his powerful body.

When the doors closed once again, the Chairman turned to Belgroth.

"Do you have any insights?"

"I warned you." Belgroth muttered before looking up at the boy he once knew, now hardened leader of their peoples, "I warned you that by killing his fiancé, he would not hold back. Something, that I spent all those years inside his soul trying to ingrain in him. To hold back, to never unleash all your power, to seek peace between our cultures, to try to negotiate a peaceful end to this war that would satisfy both parties. And it was working!

He tried to negotiate back when the portal first opened. You refused. He understood and left. He negotiated four more times with us. Each time he was refused and he left. Then you attack the one city he had all but begged you to leave alone, leaving him no choice but to defend it. And yet, he still tried to negotiate a peaceful alternative. And again! You refused.

He finally realized that you didn't want peace, so on top of defending his city, he worked on amassing so much strength, so much power, that you would have no other choice but to seek peace.

And then you idiots had the great idea of murdering his fiancé when the battle was already over. A good woman, who only fought to defend her patients from further harm. And you killed her. So instead of using his power to force a peace, he is now using it to force an annihilation.

If I did not still have hope for our people, I would join him, because I have lost all hope for our leadership.

So eager to survive, to conquer, to kill, that you angered the one person who could kill everything."

The Chairman interrupted with a stern voice that left no argument, "Silence. If you will not be of help, then keep your mouth shut."

But Belgroth never took well to orders, "And to think that the boy who loved life, who wanted to one day become a carpenter, would grow up to be so stubborn he cannot see any other way. So bloodthirsty that he has become one of the very monsters our people once hunted down." Belgroth stood up, "When the portal first opened, I sent a message through, a message that automatically sought out the five strongest sources of Mana, I know you received it. In this message, I cautioned you to fight carefully, to carve out a portion of land that our people could survive on. The entire Kingdom of Lissura would have been fine. That then we would seek peace with the Humans and working together, rise the other continents back to the surface, rebuilding our world where all three species could flourish together. To rise above the blood that was spilled so long ago.

I warned you that a war of extermination would not end favorably.

You ignored me.

This is the consequence.

Alaster will not stop.

He will fight until every single one of his enemies are dead and serving in his Undead Hordes. And because of your actions, his ire has been placed not just on our soldiers, but our people.

And honestly, I can't help but laugh, because that's exactly what we were doing to his own people. Man, woman, child. Noble, Soldier, or Civilian. You killed them all wherever you went.

You want me to be helpful? Fine. I will do so in two parts. First, I warn you again, seek a peace. A true genuine peace that would benefit all. Rebuild from there. Our people do not have time in the other world for us to conquer this one.

Secondly, I will go to Alaster directly and see if he could possibly be convinced to let this war end. I do not have high hopes for this. And quite frankly, I suspect he will kill me for suggesting it, despite our relationship. But I will try regardless, because someone has to.

By some miracle, I return alive, and he accepted the possibility of peace, and you have not begun to the steps to a negotiation, I will have lost hope for all our people, and will act accordingly."

The Chairman glared at Belgroth, "Is that a threat?"

Belgroth laughed, "A threat? Gods, I knew you had changed, I just didn't think you had gone stupid. Its not a threat. I will not betray our people, as you are so desperate to do. If you do not seek peace, Alaster will wipe us out. He does not care about anything else in all of existence. If you do not seek peace, I will take some of our people and leave, hoping that we can avoid his rage by running far enough away and hiding."

The Chairman sneered, "But there is one thing he cares about."

The desk in front of Belgroth shattered as large cracks appeared in the floor and walls around him, "You have already killed one innocent woman. One I considered a friend. And it has cost several hundred thousand of our people. That girl is another innocent, but she is also the very last tether Alaster has to life.

If you take that away from him, he will not wipe out our people. He will destroy this world, and every other world we try to reach. He will watch us starve and wither away as we fail to reach a world that he has not already shattered into pieces.

But it won't come to that. Because if you try to harm her, you will have to go through me first. And while I might not be strong enough to take you all on, I can guarantee taking at least three of you with me.

And how do you think our citizens will take it? Seeing how their leadership promised the Humans a safe area, only to break that promise to kill one young girl who has only ever defended herself? And then they see one of their War Masters, one from the Age of Harmony, fight against it?"

The aura around Belgroth faded away, only to be replaced by a cruel grin, "I imagine you would have a civil war on your hands."

Belgroth climbed down the stairs from their desk and stopped in front of the doors, "Like I said, if I return from seeking peace with Alaster, and you have not begun seeking peace with the Human Race, I will act accordingly."