Demon Heart | Prince of the Barren Sands Volume 1

Chapter 16 (Part 2 of 4)

Kaden limped in to the encampment on the sore hip that led him in hitting the ground. The wall was slightly sloped from top to bottom, and Kaden had rolled most of the way down to the Lower Ring. But it was not a smooth descent, and he still hit bottom with a mighty thud.

It wasn't the muscles on the left side of his body, the side that had struck the unforgiving ground first, that hurt the most. No. The impact had shoved the tubing of Kaden's breastplate deep into his chest and his heart felt as though he'd been stabbed by a Koronai once again.

He struggled to hide his injuries from the fall. The haggard and exhausted Royal Guards who had survived first contact with the invading demon hordes did not need to see him injured. So he forced the pain down and swaggered in.

He needed to get the split open armor he wore off, and was already unstrapping it.

"Karo Shar!"

His title was called out by Sahkar Bul as Kaden stripped his useless breastplate away. In so doing, it finally tore the rest of the way into two completely separate pieces. It clattered on the ground like the garbage it now was and exposed the wound on his chest to the night and the eyes of all who were present.

Sahkar Bul rushed to him, perhaps thinking Kaden needed assistance.

But the Karo Shar knew better than to show any weakness before the men. Instead, he took an unshakable grip on the Captain's forearm, clamping down and greeting him with a manly firmness that was reciprocated in kind.

"You're injured," he said to Kaden noticing a trickle of reddish fluid from the gap in his chest. "We can get you to the physician immediately."

All this exchange occurred between them while the troops cheered his arrival. There were even chants of "Demon Heart". The name was starting to migrate from just used by the peasants to the members of Ison's military as well.

"I'm fine," Kaden snarled in annoyance. "Do not question my health. I am the prince's right hand, after all." But at the same time Kaden knew that Sahkar Bul was not attempting to make the Karo Shar look weak. He pulled the Captain close to whisper, "But Princess Lyla is out there. We have to help her."

"I know," Sahkar Bul whispered back. "Don't worry, she can take care of herself." Then he backed up and said more loudly, "What news do you bring us from the Upper Ring?"

Kaden straightened. "I killed as many of those foul demons as I could, but there were too many. And I never got any reinforcements."

Sahkar Bul nodded. "Aye. The palace was under attack as well. The northeastern wing, the area above the Gap, has been demolished by demons flooding out of there. The prince was indisposed, as were many of our troops. I am sure, if he could have, I am sure he would enjoyed fighting by your side in glory."

"I figured that. What's the situation down here?"

Sahkar Bul ushered the Karo Shar towards a table with maps laid out and marked as to the status of the battle. We've secured eighty percent of the Lower Ring. And we found one of the Old Ways the Koronai opened up. The battle is ongoing there. We're beating them back, slowly, and preparing to collapse it. However, we suspect there is a second one. Somewhere here." He pointed to another part of the map. "We're still hunting for it."

"I need men to fight with me in the Upper Ring," Kaden announced. "We cannot assume the battle at the palace will be easy, and that the prince will be able to assist."

"The men I have," Sahkar Bul pleaded, "are injured, exhausted, or engaged in ongoing battles. To pull them away would risk the security of the Lower Ring."