Lily Thatcher's heart thudded against her chest.

"We're too late..." she gasped, "They're all... gone."

Her heart ached at the realization that she had failed, just like Allan had.

She leaned toward Tiamat's ear.

"We need to get back," she said as they remained airborne, "There's nothing left for us here."

Tiamat nodded her massive head, and they began ascending.

As they flew low over the shoreline, Lily saw thousands of people in a zombie-like state milling about on the beach. The sight was horrifying.

She silently prayed for the people, knowing that they were already dead.

She continued to soar higher and finally broke free from the clouds, looking down at the coastline below.

She was shocked at the scale of the destruction. Thousands of undead bodies wandered the shoreline, all seeking to fulfill the will of their new master, The Leviathan.

Lily and Tiamat landed in front of one of the many massive stone towers with glowing orbs. In her vision moments ago the tower didn't have a glowing orb atop it.

What changed?

She looked around, hoping to find clues about what had happened. She noticed that all of the obelisks for as far as she could see were similarly active. She glanced back at the people on the beach.

"Did they do this?" she whispered, "Or... did the Shadow Walkers?"

She looked over at Tiamat, "Should we try to stop it?"

Tiamat turned her massive head toward the sky.

"No, my queen. We must flee from here."

Lily nodded slowly and looked down at the thousands of undead people below.

They're all dead!

She bit her lip, feeling her heart pound in her chest.

How can this be happening?

She looked over at Tiamat, whose massive head was still facing forward.

"What did Timur do?!" she shouted, "What kind of monster could do such a thing?"

She sighed in dismay as she looked away from the lifeless bodies of the zombies, but suddenly tensed as she heard a loud roar from above.

"Tiamat! What is it?" she asked, looking up at the dragon.

Lily gasped as she saw a huge shadow fall from the sky.

"What is that?!" she yelled.

Tiamat exerted great effort to flap her wings with furor as a giant creature descended from the heavens. Lily looked up at the large reptilian beast, her eyes wide with fear. A massive dragon with tattered wings pursued them, its eyes white with fire and its nostrils and wingspan ablaze with a hot blue flame.

"I thought you said dragons don't breathe fire!" Lily stammered.

"No, my queen. Not here in Zion." Tiamat's thoughts echoed through her mind as they struggled to escape, "There hast not been stories of our kind with that ability. Verily, not since the great migration."

Lily tried to comprehend the meaning of Tiamat's words as she struggled to maintain balance.

"Migration?"

"Yes... yes, my queen." Tiamat breathed heavily with each stroke of her wings, "When... our ancestors... didst flee... didst flee from... thy world Earth..."

"Save your breath!" Lily interrupted despite the fact that her mind was racing with questions, "Focus on escape! We can talk more later."

Lily's heart raced as she looked back to see the gigantic reptile soaring in hot pursuit. A trail of smoke followed in its wake. A feeling of dread consumed her, and a voice creeped into the back of her mind.

"Yield thy soul unto me!" the voice echoed.

"Did you hear that?!" Lily stammered.

"Indeed, my queen." Tiamat confirmed, "That is no ordinary dragon. I fear it hast yielded its soul unto the Leviathan."

Lily's heart sank as she looked back to see the enormous reptilian beast pursuing them.

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"It's going to catch us!" she cried, "Can you fly any faster?!"

Tiamat roared as she increased in speed, and Lily gripped the saddle for dear life. She glanced back to see the enormous reptilian beast closing in on them. A massive wave of heat rolled across her body and she screamed.

"Is this what it was like for the people of Earth before they yielded up their souls?" she wondered, "Were they terrified like this?"

Tiamat landed hard, and Lily was thrown off her seat. She fell to the ground and slid several feet before coming to a stop. Her head spun, and she stood up unsteadily.

Tiamat immediately shielded Lily with her wings as the undead dragon breathed a blast of searing fire at them while coming in for a landing. Lily drew her sword and pointed it at the approaching dragon as a fiery blast of blue fire shot from its mouth, engulfing a few of the undead people in its wake. Lily looked around to find themselves surrounded on all sides by the zombie-like creatures, but they were the least of her concerns right now. From the back of the undead dragon, a massive demonic figure made up of what appeared to be smoke emerged as if it were unmounting from a saddle.

"I am the Leviathan!" it spoke from its flaming mouth, "I command thee to yield thy soul unto me!"

"Never!" Lily shouted as she steeled her resolve, "I will never yield!"

A violent gust of wind blew across the grassy field where they had landed as the Leviathan attempted to separate Lily from her dragon. Tiamat resisted the forces of nature and withstood the blast. The Leviathan lunged at them with a headlong charge.

"You will both die!" the Leviathan laughed as it closed in on Tiamat, "Your souls shall be mine!"

Lily held the Sword of Mars out against the raging winds as the Leviathan came upon them with blinding speed. She could barely even see its form, but she knew it would reach them soon. If she couldn't defeat it, then they were sure to die. But she also knew that this legendary sword guaranteed her supremacy in every battle.

Lily gripped the hilt with both hands and faced the Leviathan. She imagined herself standing among the great heroes of history, a knight clad in armor and holding a blazing sword in her hand as she faced down a mighty demon.

"For Zion!" she shouted, "My people will not fall!"

With a loud cry of defiance, she swung the Sword of Mars at the Leviathan, slashing through the smoke-like substance.

The Leviathan reared back and laughed, "Ye cannot defeat me!"

Lily felt her legs weaken as the Leviathan approached her and raised his arms.

"Die, mortal!" he roared.

Tiamat moved swiftly to block the Leviathan's attack with her wings while Lily brandished her sword in the air.

"No!" she shouted defiantly, "I will not yield my soul to you!"

The Leviathan laughed, the sound echoing throughout the field.

"You are impotent!" he sneered, "Your feeble weapon of metal cannot harm me!"

Lily pressed forward, holding her ground.

"And you are weak!" Lily roared in contempt, "You are powerless to harm me without my consent!"

The Leviathan's eyes flared, and Lily took that as a sign that she was correct. "See, you cannot harm me. Your only power is fear, and I'm not afraid of you!"

Suddenly the monster erupted in a guttural roar of contempt, and then immediately mounted the undead dragon and kicked off into the air. It hovered above them, flapping its massive wings.

"I will end you, mortal! Ye shall not live!" he roared.

Lily watched the monster as it soared into the sky in retreat.

"We did it!" she exclaimed aloud as she quickly mounted Tiamat's back as the undead began to swarm them, "We stopped him!"

Tiamat replied, "I didst delay him."

Lily smiled as she looked up at the dragon, "Well done, my friend."

She grabbed onto the saddle with both hands as Tiamat launched herself into the air.

"I'll find a way to defeat that beast once and for all," Lily whispered, "I promise."

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Lily Thatcher soared through the open sky on Tiamat's back, her heart pounding as she took in the chaotic scene below. The beach came into view, and a sense of urgency gripped her. People were gathered around an obelisk, tension thick in the air. Guns and swords glinted in the sunlight as two opposing groups faced off.

Lily's grip tightened on Tiamat's saddle as she assessed the situation. She could sense the animosity, the clash of wills that hung heavy over the scene. She was able to quickly discern that most of the people were undead Shadow Walkers surrounding two living people who appeared to be defending themselves. Her heart went out to those caught in the middle of this conflict, and she knew she had to do something.

She guided Tiamat lower, her presence unnoticed for the moment. The tension was palpable as the groups exchanged heated words. Lily's gaze shifted from person to person, trying to gauge the situation. An undead woman held a sword, her stance determined, while a man stood his ground with a gun in his hand. Lily could feel the weight of their convictions in the air.

Then, suddenly the man fell to the ground for some inexplicable reason, and the living woman rushed to his side. Moments later, the undead woman stabbed her blade through the fallen man's chest, twisting the hilt as she withdrew, killing him instantly.

Lily's heart clenched as she witnessed the unfolding drama. She had to intervene, to put an end to this violence. She instructed Tiamat to make a landing in front of them, and as she dismounted. As she approached, Lily took note of the individuals before her. There was an undead woman wearing a tattered police uniform who seemed to be in command. Bright blue eyes met Lily's gaze, and the woman's long flowing blonde hair cascaded around her shoulders.

"I’m Lily," she announced, her voice steady and resolute. "Why are you slaughtering these people?"

“These people are rebels," the woman replied coldly. "The Leviathan needs more fodder. We are only doing his bidding."

Another figure moved forward, an undead man who appeared to be decaying even more, and stood beside the blonde woman. His posture exuded a sense of authority.

"Step aside, and let us do what we came here to do." he spoke with a raspy voice.

Lily's resolve solidified. "I won't allow you to do that. If you want to keep attacking innocent people, then you'll have to deal with me."

"Are you threatening me?" The man's challenge hung in the air.

"Of course I am," Lily retorted, a hint of defiance coloring her laughter. "I won’t let you hurt this woman."

The man and the woman exchanged a quick, uncertain glance, but neither made a move.

Turning her attention to the living woman, Lily held out her hand. “Come with me.”

The woman hesitated for a moment, her gaze shifting between Lily and the dragon. Eventually, she took Lily's hand, and together they quickly mounted Tiamat, launching into the sky.

“No!” The woman's scream of rage echoed in the distance. "I'll hunt you down and kill you too!"

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