The beginning

Soren held his ground as a heavy wind push hard against them. Tendrils of bright mist seeped from his ankles and slid into the concrete, locking him in place.
"Nnngh..!" He grinded his teeth as he silently chanted in his head. An image of a powerful man filled his inner vision. "Cala! Concentrate!"

Cala shook her head, turning to Soren. She hurried to copy his lead.
What did I see? she wondered, shaking.

Seth darted off the bus and into the center of the circle, compelled by mental images. "Athen?!" he screamed, looking around frantically.

"Boy, get out of there!" Soren roared over the wind. He pulled at the image of Athen as he spoke, willing the form to make its presence.
Athen. I know you can hear me. It's time to wake up.

Zander wandered the streets of the camp, chastising random children who got in the way or created mischief and assisting an elderly person here or there. As he neared the border fence to the camp, he saw a dark cloud over the city. He squinted at the anomaly. Rain in the city? No, too discolored.

Ezekiel shivered, feeling something was wrong. He started walking down a path and out of the market area, looking around. It wouldn't hurt to just go looking around, right? He started away, trying to find whatever it was that was making him feel uneasy.

Athen began to feel the sleeping spell lifted. His sleep was removed completely, agitating the demon to no end. His mind was being pulled from his skull, beckoning him to leave his bed and resurrect. With an angry, powerful growl, he cast himself from the bed and into the spells center. The image of a city greeted his sleepy eyes. Before him, a small, younger miser looking up at him in confusion. Beyond the miser, three more figures stood, moving in a slower motion that Athen as he came into the same dimension.

Soren tightened his grip on his staff as he saw the form in the center of the spell. The wind beat hard against him, threatening to push him to the ground. He changed his chanting abruptly, speaking quickly in another language.
I need to siphon his strength before he gets a chance to use it...

Five saw the clouds rising and looked to India. "We don't have thirty minutes," he told her. He picked her up under his arm and started running. He cut the trip down to ten minutes, dropping India to the ground outside the city. "Get Zander! Bring him to me now!" he yelled to the guards. "Red alert!"

"Sir!" A guard came running breathlessly towards Zander.
He picked his gun up from its resting spot. "What's going on, soldier?" He asked, concern in his eyes.
"The...the city!...Five!...at the gate!..." The guard replied breathlessly.
Zander's eyes widened. Damnit. He bolted towards the main gate before the soldier had time to say anything else.

Anna watched in wonder as the sky turned cloudy. She giggled happily. "This is amazing!" she exclaimed.
She saw the man run towards the city with a girl under his arm. "oooh! He's fast!" She jumped to her feet and ran closer to the man, stopping when she saw his face. "F-five!" she shrieked, turning to run and tripping.

Five hurried and grabbed the girl by the back of her dress. "I was looking for you," he said with a sigh. "Hurry up Zander," he mumbled.

Zander pushed through a small group of people staring in awe at the clouds over the city and found Five. "What the hell is that?!" He pointed at the city, ignoring the girl in Five's arms.

Five held out the child. "This is your miser," he said, dropping her by Zander's feet. "That is a summoning circle in full effect. Athen's being summoned..."

Anna dropped on the ground, crossing her arms. "That's no way to treat a lady, mister!" she proclaimed.

Zander nearly dropped his gun in response. "You're a miser?!" I picked one hell of a day to leave my miser tech at home...
He looked back at the city then back to Five. "Please tell me there's someone out there working on that."

"Don't be fooled by her size. She's probably older than me." He pointed to the city. "That? Well, what can you do after he's summoned? They'll think of something. Probably."

He looked down at the girl with a scowl. "Miser. What do you know about this?"

Anna looked at him with big eyes. "I didn't do it," she said with a pouty lip. "But if Athen is summoned, he'll go to Hades, so it won't matter."

"I wouldn't believe her," Five mumbled. He turned to India. "This is Dr. India Tanner, by the way. She has her papers."

Zander knelt down to the girl and pointed at her. "I'm not done with you, miser." He stood back up and acknowledged the doctor with a nod. "We'll probably be needing you soon if things continue like this." He gestured towards the city.

"There's another name," Five said, holding out the list and pointing. "William Abbes. His previous residence is a fake safe camp across the river."

"Abbes, Abbes..." He smacked his forehead. "The little thief these marketers have been complaining about!" He shook his head in embarassment. "I should have known...especially you." He looked down at the girl in disgust.
He ran his head through his hair and muttered, "I don't know if I have enough men for this..."

"I suggest making a stronger border patrol in case Athen does come here." Five laughed. "It won't stop him, but the women and children can get out."

Zander looked around at the young and dirty faces of the camp, his expression grim. "If we're fast enough..."
He called a nearby soldier over. "I want you to take as many men as possible and form a barrier along this wall." He motioned along the fence. "Get everyone else as far back in the camp as possible and ready for evac. Move!" The soldier nodded and bolted down the street.