The night before everything changed felt wrong.

Too quiet and far too still.

Liam stood on the castle's highest balcony, looking out at Eldhar sprawled below. The city glowed with essence-light from thousands of buildings, demons going about their evening routines, unaware or unwilling to acknowledge that tomorrow, two hundred thousand of their kind would begin marching toward probable death.

Behind him, the castle bustled with final preparations.

Commanders verifying supply manifests. Quartermasters distributing equipment.

Priests from the Nameless Litany blessing weapons and armor with prayers that might or might not make a difference.

Tomorrow at dawn, the largest demon military force assembled in three centuries would begin the seventeen-day march to Sanctum Lux.

And Liam Cross—Lord Azra—the Primordial Demon who'd gone from failed actor to military commander in months—stood alone wondering if he'd led an entire empire into collective suicide.

"You're brooding." Lilith's voice came from the doorway. "That's not encouraging the night before launching our offensive."

"I'm calculating." He didn't turn. "Running through scenarios. Trying to determine if the disinformation campaign actually worked or if we're marching into trap that's even more perfect than before."

"Kael'thra's intelligence suggests the Radiant Empire repositioned forces based on false intelligence Lord Arcturus provided." Lilith moved to stand beside him. "They've weakened their eastern approach to reinforce southern and western vectors we claimed to prioritize."

"Or they're pretending to weaken eastern approach while actually reinforcing it with forces we can't detect." Liam's voice was tired. "Intelligence is only good as our ability to verify it. And we're verifying through sources that might be compromised."

"So we march tomorrow regardless of whether we trust our intelligence?"

"We march tomorrow because not marching isn't an option."

Lilith was quiet for moment. "You've changed much since arriving. The man who I asked to perform demon god has become something else completely."

"Synthesis. Integration of what I was with what I'm becoming." Liam's grey eyes studied the city. "I remember being Liam Cross. Remember failing as actor. Remember dying in bar robbery. But those memories feel distant. Like they happened to someone else."

"Because they did happen to someone else. The human died when you were summoned. What remains is..." She searched for words. "New. Something that contains human memory without being limited by human constraints."

"Something that sends two hundred thousand demons to probable death without the human guilt that should accompany that decision."

"Something that makes impossible choices because human guilt would paralyze necessary action." Her correction was gentle. "Don't mistake absence of debilitating emotion for absence of care. You care. It just doesn't prevent you from functioning."

A knock at the door interrupted them.

Koth entered, looking uncomfortable in formal armor that marked him as regional commander rather than simple brigade leader.

"My lord. Your Majesty. The legion commanders are assembled for final briefing. They're waiting for you."

Liam took a deep breath. "Time to give inspiring speech about glorious warfare and noble sacrifice."

"Time to give honest assessment that acknowledges horror while maintaining resolve." Lilith's correction was pointed. "These are veterans. They don't need inspiration. They need certainty that you understand what you're asking."

She was right.

The demons marching tomorrow weren't idealistic volunteers seeking glory. They were professional soldiers who'd calculated survival odds and chosen to fight anyway.

They deserved honesty more than inspiration.

---

The command hall was packed with military leadership that would guide tomorrow's march.

Seven legion commanders, forty-three brigade commanders, dozens of support officers who'd manage the logistics of moving two hundred thousand troops across hostile territory.

Every demon present had seen combat.

Had lost soldiers. Had made calculations about acceptable casualties and necessary sacrifices.

They knew what tomorrow meant.

Liam didn't mount the raised platform.

Didn't position himself above them. Instead, he stood at ground level, surrounded by commanders who'd execute his orders.

"Tomorrow we march," he began. No preamble. No dramatic buildup. "Seventeen days to reach Sanctum Lux. Then assault on the most fortified position in the Radiant Empire. Projected casualties are catastrophic. Eighty-five percent first wave. Possibly higher if intelligence is wrong or defenses are stronger than anticipated."

The bluntness created uncomfortable silence.

"I'm not going to tell you this will be easy. I'm not going to promise victory. I'm not going to pretend that most of you won't die attempting to breach walls that have never been broken." His voice was steady. "What I will tell you is why we're doing this anyway."

He gestured to maps showing Radiant Empire territories.

"The prophecy of Twenty-One Heroes. Divine champions summoned to cleanse demon-kind from existence. They have one fully deployed. Possibly more in training. Eventually, all twenty-one will be operational and supported by conventional forces we cannot match defensively."

The commanders have already been told this. But hearing it stated plainly made the mathematics unavoidable.

"Defensive warfare against that force guarantees extinction. Maybe in five years. Maybe ten. But inevitably, certainly, the prophecy fulfills itself and demons cease to exist." Liam's grey eyes swept the assembled leaders. "So we're not defending. We're attacking. We're destroying their summoning infrastructure before prophecy completes. We're breaking their capacity to threaten us permanently."

"And if we fail?" Commander Torven asked. "If we lose one hundred seventy thousand demons breaching walls we can't overcome?"

"Then we fail having tried. Having taken action rather than waiting for ordained genocide." Liam's voice was flat. "I'd rather die attacking than wait to be cleansed. I suspect most of you feel the same or you wouldn't be here."

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the commanders.

"The march begins at dawn. Standard formation. Legion One leads, followed by Two through Seven in sequence. Supply trains move with each legion. Fourth Order scouts range ahead identifying threats and gathering intelligence."

He pulled forward detailed movement orders. "We maintain disciplined advance. No scattered formations. No independent operations. We move as unified force that presents overwhelming power to any opposition."

"What about Radiant Empire response during march?" Brigade Commander Vel'kora asked. "They'll know we're coming long before we reach Sanctum Lux. They could harass supply lines, attack vulnerable positions, slow our advance."

"Fourth Order handles counter-intelligence and harassment prevention. Any Radiant forces attempting to slow our march will be eliminated before engaging main army." Liam looked to where Kael'thra stood at the room's edge. "The militant faithful have specific protocols for protecting the march."

"We'll ensure the army reaches Sanctum Lux intact," Kael'thra confirmed. "Any threats to divine will are eliminated without mercy."

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