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It seemed each demon was it's own shaman. Though Malice had descecrated the shamans, he had left the portals intact. Before the morning shed its gaze upon the world, the shamans had assembled around each portal, and the ritual continued. Malice noticed that the lesser demons they had fought for the last few days no longer made up the front line. They were being saved, Malice thought, saved to become shaman. Malice sent another prayer to the wind goddess that day as he hoped for Gracia.
The juggernaut army had left at the slightest hint of dawn. They had moved out quickly, as volitile as ever. Malice had never seen such a bloodlusted entity. They cared for nothing except destruction. The demons rose 8 feet off the ground in their prime, but the majority Malice had encountered had been a dwarfed 7. They resembled elephants, their sheer body weight and truck like snout only adding to the visage. They hunched over, and carried weapons ranging from chains to clubs and swords. The demons streamed one after another continuously out of the portal.
The real thing that disturbed Malice about the juggernauts was their behavior. They weren't like the other demons, listening to orders and thinking at least a little before they leapt into the fray. No, the juggernauts were more dangerous because they ceased to think. They were blinded by rage and weathered by battle. The lust for blood drove them further into the battle. They would kill either side to achieve the goals layed out for them by their commander. They were the perfect tanks to end the war.
Because the entire lesser demon force had not been sent, the stragglers lay bored in their camp. One approached Malice.
"Ahh tis the mage Hige was talkin bout," said the demon, ushering over his posse. "Gen'ral Hige is gon give yea quite thuh lickin eh boys." Around him his followers snickered, elbowing eachother at their friends routine. "But us'ns dun likeh Hige, so we's gon givit t'yea usselves. Ain't we?"
The first demon grunt kicked Malice, but summoning a powerful gust of wind, his foot was reversed backwards. The demon fell backwards as his companions laughed.
"Ehh ye think yee're tuff, usin' yur trick'ry? Git'm boys."
Malice could only do so much with his hands bound. His danced on the wind, avoiding blows, but the demons quickly overpowered him. With one demon dead, impaled by nature's fury on a treebranch, and two more laying dazed, the demons finally subdued Malice.
"THAT IS ENOUGH!" came a call from behind. With a swift strike, the demons rose into smoke. It was the human that had saved Malice before.
"Thank you," Malice tried to say, but was cut off by a low growl.
"Do don't test my patience," said Hige. "You WILL learn your place." Hige turned and slowly walked away.
Malice pulled his trump card. "I know you don't like siding with these demons. I see it in your eyes. I see your compassion for your kin. You hate sending orders that slaughter us. I ask that you join our cause; help us rid the world of the spreading crystal plague. You owe it not only to yourself, but to the people of Palis to be true to this world."
Hige dropped his head, and stopped walking. "You know I can't," he said, and he continued walking.
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