Ivarn noticed the headlights in his rearview mirror before he reached the end of the street.The same dark car from the parking lot. Same distance. Same speed.Coincidence, he told himself. Lots of people leave work at seven.He turned left onto Mercer Street. The headlights followed.His fingers tightened on the wheel. The industrial district was empty at this hour: closed warehouses, dark windows, traffic lights that changed for no one. He was alone out here. The thought had never bothered him before.He turned right onto Fremont. They followed again.Okay. Not a coincidence.Ivarn's mouth went dry. He reached for his phone, but his hands were shaking too badly. He grabbed the wheel instead and pressed harder on the gas. The engine whined. The needle crept up.The car behind him accelerated too."What the…"Bright lights flooded his mirror. The car slammed into his bumper. His head snapped forward, and the seatbelt cut into his chest. Pain flared across his collarbone.He stomped on

A man stood outside the ruined archway.He was tall and broad-shouldered, dressed in worn leather and a heavy coat. A sword hung at his hip. Two more figures stood behind him, carrying spears.The man stared at Ivarn, his eyes narrowing."By the seven," he said. "What in the abyss are you?"Ivarn opened his mouth. Closed it. Opened it again."Lost," he finally said. "I'm lost."The man looked him up and down. Then he laughed."You're not just lost, friend. You're dead."Ivarn's blood went cold."What?"The man gestured at his clothes, his face, his whole self. "No weapons. No armour. No supplies. Walking alone in the Barrens. You're either the luckiest fool in Elarion or the unluckiest corpse I've ever met.""I'm not a corpse.""Could've fooled me." The man stepped closer. "Name's Belric. Belric Thorne. I'm a merchant, and these are my guards. We're heading to the Dominion. If you want to live through the night, you come with us."Ivarn stared at him. "The Dominion?""Veyrath. Demon t

The settlement was bigger than Ivarn had expected.Once through the gate, the streets opened into a wide market square. Demons moved in every direction: merchants, soldiers, families, travellers. Stalls lined the edges, selling fruit and cloth and weapons and things Ivarn couldn't put a name to. Blue lamps hung from iron posts, glowing softly. A cart rumbled past, pulled by something that looked like an ox but had far too many legs.Ivarn stared."You're doing it again," Belric said."Doing what?""Staring."Ivarn looked away. "Sorry."They pushed deeper into the square. The noise was overwhelming: haggling, laughter, arguments, the clang of a blacksmith's hammer. A demon woman was shouting at a fruit seller about the price of something purple and spiky. Two men were arguing over a deal that seemed to have gone wrong. A group of children ran past, chasing a ball that bounced off a stall and nearly took out a crate of eggs."This is..." Ivarn trailed off."What did you expect?""I don'

Ivarn waited until Belric was asleep.Then he slipped out of the inn and walked back to the registry.The streets were quieter now. The blue lamps still glowed, but most of the stalls had closed up for the night. A few demons drifted past with their heads down, not looking at him. Ivarn kept his own head down too. He didn't want to be recognized.The registry office was closed, the door locked. But there was a light on inside.Ivarn knocked.No answer.He knocked again, harder.The door opened a crack, and the junior clerk from earlier peered out. His eyes widened when he saw Ivarn."You," the clerk said. "You're not supposed to be here.""I need to see the record again.""Absolutely not. The registrar said…""I know what the registrar said." Ivarn kept his voice level. "But I need to know if it was a mistake.""It wasn't a mistake.""How do you know?"The clerk hesitated. His eyes flicked left, then right, and for a moment he looked like he wanted to slam the door in Ivarn's face."P

The transfer point was a wide stone courtyard behind the registry building.Ivarn stood in the middle, flanked by two guards. His chains had been taken off, but his hands wouldn't stop shaking."Where are the enforcers?" he asked."Coming," one of the guards said.So they waited.The violet sky was dark. The cracked moon had already set. The only light came from the blue lamps along the courtyard walls and a single lantern hanging above a gate.Ivarn looked at that gate. Beyond it lay the street, then the settlement, then the Barrens.If he ran now, he might get away. The guards had weapons, but they weren't watching him closely. Their eyes kept drifting up toward the sky.He took a small step back.The guard on his left turned. "Don't.""I wasn't…""Don't."Ivarn stopped.A hum filled the air. Low and steady, like a swarm of bees somewhere far away.The guards straightened. The color drained from their faces."They're here," one of them whispered.Three figures came down from the sky