Wren stands there confident in their triumph.  They had indefinitely won the day.  She glances to her sides at all of her allies and feels her heart swell with pride.  After all they had been through, from Phoenix Guard to Rangers, they can still steal victories in great battles.  She goes to pat one of them on the back when the very sky rips apart.  With the thunderous, unforgettable crack, her face drops into a look of terror.  A seemingly endless stream of monsters flood out of the tear and onto the field.<br/><br/>"Brace yourselves!" She calls out, hastily redrawing her blade.  Within moments, they were consumed in battle yet again;  swallowed up like a ship on a raging, stormy sea.  There was no time to look around, no time to think.  All she could do is press on and hope her fellow rangers were doing the same.  No matter how many fell by her hand though, twice as many would reappear in front of her.  Mere minutes on the battlefield felt like ages. As there was not chance or rest or relief.<br/><br/>With an effortful grunt, Wren swings her sword, cutting down another beast.  There are far too many.  The entirety of the guard is overwhelmed, and their numbers drop more and more by the second.  She pants wearily as a bead of sweat drips off the end of her nose.  Her muscles ache with fatigue from overwork.  The weight of her already heavy broad sword only increases.  Another demon leaps at her, but she quickly holds her hand out and sends a blast of fire at it, burning the creatures face.  It lets out an earsplitting shriek and recoils.<br/><br/>"Rue!" A voice screams through the chaos.  Recognizing a call for her aid, she desperately scans the crowd.  Her eyes widen in horror at the sight of one of her allies bodies getting thrown across the field.  Everything seemed to freeze as she finds her first moment to observe the scene.  Corpses of so many of those she has fought alongside for years litter the ground.  Right and left, more fall to the wrath of the demons.<br/><br/>"No, not again.  I've lost too much, please... no more," she whimpers in despair.  She looks up to the shattered sky, tears brimming her eyes.  Long ago had she condemned her god, but in this moment she prays to each and everyone she knows of.  The call of the Grandmaster pulls her back into focus.  No, they can't retreat now.  All the sacrifices made here cannot be in vain.<br/><br/>Great claws suddenly slash against her back, cutting into her flesh and creating grooves in her armor.  Crying out in pain, she knows she can't carry on, lest she become another corps on the dirt.  "Forgive me my friends, I will continue to fight for you," she murmurs to herself.  With a reinvigorated battle cry and slashes her blade across the beast's flesh.  With a deep breath, she whispers a spell and disappears from view.  She dashes through the carnage, cutting into all the enemies she can as she passes.  The golden escape portal comes into view as she vaults over another monster.  She flickers back into visibility as she stands before the Grandmaster.  Her energy incredibly drained between the magic usage and physical fighting.  There is a brief shared gaze.  Wren looks at him sadly, the pain of loss and failure crushing her.  She can say nothing, but bows her head briefly in great respect.  With that,  she clenches her fist and hesitantly steps through the portal.