Marek could hear a demon struggling to breathe somewhere behind him. He wanted to tell the fool to stand, but doing so would require looking away from Simon.
He had not found the courage to do that yet.
The blood dripping from the Archfiend's hand should have reassured him. Instead, his attention kept returning to the fingers around the sword, waiting for them to move.
Korran had warned them.
More than once, the Iron Examiner had insisted that they were underestimating Blackmoon. Marek had listened, considered the reports, and decided the boy would be more useful under orders than under investigation.
Now he understood what Korran had meant.
'This is not someone I can simply use.'
The realisation came late enough to be embarrassing.
Marek possessed an Abyssal Heart. Even allowing for Simon's true battle prowess, the commander was stronger. Against the wounded demon before him, he had the best chance of victory among the four.
But he had managed to forget that.
