Days 92-95 (70th-73rd)

Day 92 (70th):
I was back in the room where I had met Breanne and the others. Wondering why, Vanity appeared beside me.
"Why are we here? Did you bring us here?" I asked her.
"Not I, Kayla. Since you are asking, I am betting you didn't either."
Shaking my head, we looked around. From a dark corner, a deep male laugh echoed. Focusing on the sound, we saw him walk out of the shadows.
"You are not the one I was trying for, but one is as good as the other," Maalicus said in an off-handed manner. He stood less than arm's length from me. Then, he looked at Vanity.
"You are not a Sister. Who are you? From your appearance, you are not human. So, demon bitch, who are you?"
Vanity stepped forward to face him, "I am Vanity. I am one of the swords. I am her partner and friend."
Maalicus looked at her closer. A look of disgust and hatred darkened his already dark expression.
"I knew the swords were evil, but this is unbelievable. So, soulless demons inhabit the swords. Fouler than I thought. Girl, cast aside this abomination and embrace the true faith. It is never too late."
I was appalled! How dare he speak about Vanity that way. I looked at her and saw the hurt in her face.
"Maalicus, your words are dull daggers! Vanity is no demon. She is my friend. I could no more get rid of her than I could my heart. You are the one who follows a demon. Tharinzar is the only demon in this conflict."
Before I could react, he slapped me.
"Bitch! How dare you call the true god of all a demon! I will defeat you and all of your stupid followers. Then, you will kneel and beg for the holy words to be carved upon your foul hide. I will make you beg after you have serviced me like the whore you are."
It was my turn to slap him, hard. Apparently no woman had ever stood up to him. For a moment, he was speechless. His eyes darted between the two of us. Then, he started chanting. Small demons appeared around him. He smiled evilly.
"Behold! Holy hands of the true god. Bow or die! This is your only chance."
Vanity and I stepped closer together. For a second, I was terrified. Then, I remembered where we were and who had been here before. My memory served as a summons. Breanne, Claire, and everyone else in between appeared beside us. Maalicus took a step back.
"YOU! Goddess who forged the swords! She is your servant then. I will be truly blessed to defeat you. Tharinzar will grant me godhood!" Maalicus gloated.
We said nothing. Clasping hands, we formed a powerful bond. The demons rushed at us. Not a single one touched us. The aura of our power was such as they vanished before reaching us. Maalicus roared when the last vanished.
"Damn you all! I will defeat you and the power will be mine! Damn you!"
He retreated into the shadows and disappeared. Facing each other, we smiled. With just a nod, I awoke.
It was still dark. I went to the balcony and saw the sky just beginning to get light. I felt for Leo or Mattis. Fortunately, Leo was awake.
"Leo, I need to talk to you."
"Kayla? What is it? You sound troubled."
"Maalicus visited me in my sleep. He attacked me and Vanity."
"He did what?! The gall of him. Tell me everything."
Both Vanity and I told him the whole encounter. Even at a distance, I could feel his anger rise during the telling. Also, my sisters roused and I had to retell parts. Finishing, we all sat to ponder this event.
"Who do you think he was after? You don't think he was still after Sarah?" Lisa speculated.
Sarah gasped, "Even with Abigail dead? Am I such an easy target? I am not weak, am I?"
"You are not weak!" we all responded together, even Leo.
"Then, what, why me?"
"It may be your age. He may think, as the youngest, you are the most vulnerable," Callie added.
"That is plausible. Someone as old as Maalicus may see youth as a weakness. However, now that you have each become more like your ancestors, Kayla is most likely to receive any mental message. Sarah, as part mermaid, can probably send farther or clearer, but Kayla is the most receptive." Leo informed us.
Sarah relaxed, knowing her vulnerability was not in question.
"He still believes Breanne and the first sisters were goddesses and Tharinzar is the true god of all. How can he be so deluded? He called those little demons 'holy hands'. I think he is insane," I stated.
"Obviously," everyone else chimed in.
The bells interrupted us. I felt Mattis approach our door. With a nudge, I opened the door before he could knock.
"How foolish of me to think I could arrive undetected," he said to cover his embarrassment. Looking at us, his smile fled, "I felt you this morning, but I wasn't fully awake. What is going on?"
We told him. He sat heavily into a chair. Silence reigned for several minutes. The servants arrived during the silence. Mattis rose after they left.
"The king must be told. I will spare you from telling it again. However, they may want to question you. I will let you know if they do."
With a slight bow, he left. We were sad that the king had to wake up to such information.
After eating, we went out on the balcony and watched the city begin its day.
Before long, Dorland, Mattis, Mamar, and Kendar stormed into our room. Flushed with anger and exertion, they panicked slightly until they saw us on the balcony. Kendar actually came over to me and wrapped me in a tight embrace.
"Child, are you well? No damage, I hope," he said as he looked me over.
"I am fine, Kendar. He alone is no match for a dozen generations of guardians and Vanity. Besides, he relies too heavily on his demon 'holy hands', even if they were real."
"Explain, please."
"Upon reviewing our encounter, I noticed that the little demons were identical, to the last detail. That only means whomever was projecting those images had only one demon as a model. Maalicus is a user. He would never use his own power when many of his followers would do anything for him. Abigail, Holly, the Bishop, General Barvann, and many more have died for him. He would not risk his own power when their's are available."
Everyone agreed. The men paced. I could tell they felt helpless. Deferring to us did not help matters. An idea came to me and went to my sisters but a second later.
"Mattis, Mamar, there is something we can do. Barriers around the town, arcane and divine. Get Margret and Gavin, they are linked to this land. Call every cleric of every faith. We are going to set up enough lines of defense so that no Baaloc, demon or human, can even touch this city or palace."
Everyone perked up immediately. We coordinated it.
By mid-day, we were set. Starting at the fort outside the city, we set up "power poles" in every direction. Poles were planted in a square around the city every couple of miles. The first set, fort distance around, was blessed by every faith not in tune with the Baaloc faith. It would deter only the weakest of the Baalocs but serve as an intruder alarm. A few miles toward the city, another set was erected. This was charmed by wizards of every type, even necromancers. This was also only for the weakest, but it would alert us to undead and non-humans. Another few miles in, another set. For this set, Leo was the key. Using dragon magic, he made each deter all magical creatures. Anything weaker than a dragon could not pass. The fourth and closest set, wizards, clerics, Leo, and we seven charged to keep out everything that intended to damage the city or harm its people and everything in it.

Days 93-95 (71st-73rd):
It took a couple of days to accomplish this task. Droland commented that he had never seen or heard of so many different people of different faiths, specialties, and cultures coming together for one purpose. From the main tower, I could see the magic of each set. While all the poles were the same height, each extended higher than the previous with the last being higher than even the main tower of the palace. Also, the kinds of magic was visible to me. Cleric yellow, wizard blue, dragon shimmer, and the rainbow of us seven. While each set was not smooth or consistent, they were solid, with no holes or gaps.