Demon warship after demon warship, following the star-system coordinate sent in the message asking relief, ended its warp voyage and came safely to the neighborhood of the coordinate of its destination.
"Reporting — two great legion fleets of the Agares Legion, two hundred thousand interstellar warships, have all completed the warp voyage. Ends."
Hearing his subordinate's report, the Agares Legion's vice-marshal sat straight in the captain's chair of his own flagship, and turned his eyes aside upon the demon sergeant beside him who had charge of the radar equipment.
"Have you detected any high-energy reaction of fighting?"
"None at present," the demon sergeant answered.
Which answer checked this vice-marshal of the Agares Legion a while, and drew his brows a little together.
"We are already very near that coordinate the King-of-the-North Legion sent us asking relief; a clash upon the grand scale of some hundreds of thousands of warships.
"It is not possible that within this compass the radar should sense no fluctuation at all…"
At this time a possibility came to this Agares vice-marshal.
"Send out five scout fleets, spread out toward this quarter, and let them sail and scout at full speed.
"Anything whatever, report it to me at the first moment!"
"Yes!"
His subordinate went at once to publish the order.
Very soon five formations of interstellar scout fleets, thirty warships to each, set out toward five quarters.
While the remaining Agares Legion warships rested where they stood, awaiting the fighting to come!
"Can it be that our coordinate is out of true?" the Agares vice-marshal asked, unwilling to give it up.
"There should be no error; upon our star chart it shows that where we stand is the very coordinate the King-of-the-North Legion sent us.
"I have but now compared it five times by five methods; there can be no error," that demon sergeant explained.
At this time the interstellar scout fleets, but lately set out, sent word back.
And several fleets sending word back at once, besides.
"Reporting — this is the first scout squad; we have found what seems to be the remains of a field of battle, with a great quantity of wrecked interstellar warships and the marks of fighting.
"There is heat in these wrecks yet, which shows the fighting is but lately ended.
"Heavens… these are every one of them King-of-the-North Legion warships!"
"Reporting — this is the third scout squad; we have found a great quantity of wrecked King-of-the-North Legion warships, at a first reckoning above fifty thousand at the least!"
Word came upon word, until the Agares vice-marshal felt for a moment as though in every quarter about him there lay a great quantity of wrecked King-of-the-North Legion warships!
At which word the demon sergeants about him who heard it felt the very air of the bridge freeze at that moment.
"This is the fifth scout squad… we… we have found a great quantity of Owl Dragon warships, and… and the wrecks of at least a hundred and some tens of thousands of King-of-the-North Legion warships!
"And… and what may be Marshal King-of-the-North's flagship… wrecked."
Which word came upon no few of them like cold water poured upon the crown of the head.
Every one of them drew in a breath of cold air, and looked at the man sitting in the captain's chair.
This Agares vice-marshal before them has in fact some relation with that Marshal King-of-the-North.
He may be reckoned half a disciple of Marshal King-of-the-North's, and is the own younger brother of the Agares Legion's grand marshal.
And now, coming by this word, what this half-disciple of Marshal King-of-the-North's felt may be imagined.
"Give me the coordinate! The whole host, advance!" the Agares vice-marshal ordered, cold and unmoved.
But his hand had gone to a great sword that he keeps at ordinary times behind him.
At this moment that great sword stood upright before the captain's chair, its point come heavily down upon the floor, and the vice-marshal's two hands were set upon the hilt.
The demon sergeants about him all knew that their vice-marshal was very angry.
This sword was given to this disciple by that Marshal King-of-the-North long ago; it followed at the King-of-the-North's side many years, and has taken on even that bone-piercing chill of the King-of-the-North's.
And at this moment that chill pressed harder upon them yet.
These two hundred thousand Agares Legion warships, taking the order, began at once to advance toward the coordinate.
And the distance not being great, before long.
Through the deep-space telescopes upon the starships, all could see the sight ahead that chilled the blood.
Sheet upon sheet of wrecked interstellar warships, forming a prospect very like a swarm of meteors.
More like a graveyard of starships!
And without one exception, every one of them Demon Race warships.
And upon some of the wrecks one could see the fleet blazon of the King-of-the-North Legion besides.
There were those shaken within; when they heard that word before, they had within them been unwilling to believe it.
Among the original twelve demon marshals' legions, a terrible existence that might be ranked within the first three.
Had it — had it truly been destroyed by someone here?
And even that lord himself might have…
Bang.
All at once the Agares vice-marshal sitting in the captain's chair rose sharply up; his keen gaze was fixed upon a vast wrecked interstellar warship within the picture the deep-space telescope had taken.
Unlike the other wrecks rent into four and five pieces, perhaps because this warship's bulk was too vast, one could see an exceedingly great wreck of her even where she had been struck.
Like the remains of a warrior standing yet unfallen.
The T5 Blade-of-Terror-class Medium Interstellar Battlecruiser · the King-of-the-North's flagship pattern!
Though this is the T5 Blade of Terror that is common through the Demon Race.
Yet certain demon legion marshals will have their flagships made over to their own order.
The King-of-the-North's flagship T5 Blade of Terror had been so made over, and is called by outsiders the King-of-the-North's flagship pattern.
Among all the Demon Race's warships, it is a terrible thing that ranks within the first five for the whole fighting strength of a single hull.
And now that whole hull floats there alone, with bullet-scars past counting upon her; and upon the port side there is a vast hole driven clean through, by which one may see the cross-section of the hull within.
Upon the hull one may see besides a great quantity of cracks; and one of them runs from the very bow to the middle of the hull, and at its widest is a full near one kilometer!
Set that upon a planet and it is a great rift valley.
And the place where the breach is greatest lies exactly at the bridge.
Under so terrible a wound, one may imagine how great an attack the bridge took.
Such a warship, once so illustrious in its service, is now so withered away.
"My lord… about us… not one King-of-the-North Legion warship has been found.
"By certain remnant communications we have gathered.
"The King-of-the-North Legion's three hundred thousand interstellar warships… fought every one to the last, and every soul of them died…" The demon sergeant beside him spoke with a tremble in his voice.
Whether for sorrow or for fear, none could tell.