A Mirror of Smoke

Azemo looked at the proud faces of the humans who had previously been normal bandits. They were standing before him, posture rigid as they waited for the ritual to begin.

Kaede sat in a chair off to the side of the room, waiting in silence. 

Azemo had already confirmed with the bandits and they had all agreed. Even though their training had been merciless, it was impossible for one to do anything but respect Kaede. Since Kaede was a demon, the soldiers were all very excited to join her side and they were also looking forward to the extra power that came with being transformed.

The official reason for transforming the bandits was because of their contributions in the war. While Kaede and Azemo had defeated most of the human army, it was impossible for them to completely stop every human and the few who had gotten over the border were swiftly taken down by the bandits.