The demon army arrived that night, just after midnight with an unholy roar that echoed like thunder across the Valley. The bells began ringing immediately thereafter. Before they separated for their sections of the defense her father stopped her. "I love you, Gwen." He kissed her on the bridge of her nose. "Stay safe, and may Uriel, Michael, and all the Powers of Heaven protect you." The prayer was uncharacteristic of her father, but she kissed him back and gave him a hug.
"You too, dad. I want to see you after this is over. Raphael's luck, stay safe." They split from each other at a run.
The first hour was not terrible. Though tired, and wishing for more sleep, she was too scared to stop. She joined up with Saphira near the Fountainhead Square. They knew their tasks for the battle. Wait, and move to where they were needed. She was assigned as a medic, all she had to do was run around and help those who were hurt. It would be tiring, but she would save people.
The second roar began, but this time it continued. Gwen shook terribly as the sound grew louder. Saphira moved next to her and steadied her. "Don't worry, we'll be-" Gwen didn't hear her finish as the first salvo struck the outer walls, and the ground shook with the violent explosion. "Stay here, I'll go there. Tsuki! Stay here and wait for a bit longer." Runes appeared on Saphira's limbs as she sprinted toward the blast with an inhuman speed.
Gwen hoped she could just stay here, keep safe and not have to worry, but she wasn't so lucky. It took only five minutes for her to be requested and sent out. She ran to the wall to help but stopped, reality crashing around her.
The sight of the dead man who was strewn about the base of the wall, flesh scorched and smelling of cooked meat nearly made her break. The fear overtook her and she would've blacked out had she not heard the call for help. She ran as hard and fast as she could, but it didn't stop the screams of pain, nor the roars of the monsters outside of the city.
She ran from person to person, doing anything she could do, many times she could do nothing. It was only an hour before she collapsed in exhaustion. Another, more experienced healer pushed her aside, telling her she had run out of mana and any further use could cause her to pass out, or die. That hurt her. She was that useless.
But she didn't stop. The fear was too strong. She found her way to someone who seemed to be organizing things and asked to help. He threw a bundle of bolts and arrows and told her to run them up to the top of the wall. She did, but regretted it.
From the ground she could convince herself that this was small, just a small battle, far from hopeless. On top of the wall, her fantasy was broken. An army of demons, many ten feet tall, some even taller. The tallest amongst them simply stood by the wall, the bolts and arrows bouncing off of his skin as though he were made of stone. He ran his arm across the walls knocking many men down off the wall. The unlucky ones were grabbed, and the monster ate them.
She had frozen there, cowering for a moment before a soldier bumped into her. The man was being attacked by a demon, only his armor and shield keeping the beast off of him. She panicked and ran. The last thing she clearly remembered being the world blurring as she ran the ammunition down the wall to various defenders. This was only the first of three days of battle.
