The Shadow Walkers searched through the Lost Zone, but came up empty. Then they turned their search to the beach, which didn’t take long. There they were, standing before a newly reactivated obelisk.
The two had their guns trained in their direction. “Halt!” Brad yelled, “Come no closer!”
“Give up.” Brittany seethed, “It is your destiny to serve the Leviathan!”
Brad shook his head. "No! We won't join you. I owe allegiance to no one but myself!"
"You can't run from me forever!" Brittany growled. "And I'll hunt you down until you submit to me!"
"I refuse!" Brad shouted back. "I chose to fight, but I will never bow to any creature!"
"Then I'll kill you." Brittany said, and raised her sword. "I'll destroy you!"
Brad took careful aim with his gun, “Come on then. Let's see what kind of warrior you really are!"
Brad immediately mowed down several of her Shadow Walker comrades, causing her to shriek in rage. Brittany's blade flashed and sliced through the air as she advanced toward Brad. With each strike, Brad parried with his gun, and each time he made room for another shot.
Brittany summoned the Element of Light, forming a glowing sphere in the air and releasing it at Brad.
With a flash of light Brad was thrown to the ground. Blondie rushed to his side.
"Are you alright?" Blondie asked.
Brad coughed, and slowly rolled over. "Yeah. I'm fine. What happened?"
"Some sort of magic spell, I guess. You took a blow to the head." Blondie said, "Brittany’s some kind of mage for the Leviathan now."
Brad looked up at Brittany, quickly checking her stats. "You're the Leader of the Shadow Walkers now?!”
“Indeed.” She smiled wickedly, “And you would do well to heed my advice. Submit to the Leviathan, and you will gain glorious powers like mine!”
Brad shook his head as he stood. "Nope. Not happening."
Before Blondie could respond, The Shadow Walkers attacked again. This time they were more coordinated. They surrounded Brad on all sides. A few of them grabbed his arms, while others pinned his legs.
Brad started shooting. He fired off round after round into the group. Bullets tore through their chests, striking with devastating force. Blood splashed across the sand, and bodies fell to the ground.
But other members of the group were still alive. One of the Shadow Walkers darted forward, casting a spell at Brad.
Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
A bolt of lightning struck Brad hard in the chest, sending him flying backward. Blondie managed to catch him, preventing Brad from falling onto the ground.
Brad’s body began to convulse. He gritted his teeth, and forced himself to hold out against the pain. "It burns! It hurts so much!"
"I know, honey," Blondie said, placing a hand on his cheek, "We can still win!"
Brad tried to nod, but the movement caused him great pain. Instead, he closed his eyes tightly and clenched his jaw. His body continued to shiver uncontrollably.
His health dropped rapidly, and he started losing consciousness.
The Shadow Walkers swarmed them, and Brittany grinned maniacally, “You’re dying. Yield your soul to the Leviathan and you will be healed!”
“I’d rather die.” Brad choked out the words.
“Wrong answer.”
"I don't want to be what you've become." Brad growled. "I'd rather not be a follower of any being. I'm going to continue to choose to fight."
"Then die!" Brittany said, and raised her sword high.
Brad held out his gun, shooting his last shot. The bullet grazed Brittany's shoulder, but she didn’t even flinch.
[-50 Damage]
He watched with a sense of resignation as Brittany stabbed her blade through his chest, twisting the hilt as she withdrew.
StabTwist: Difficult
Instant Kill
+270 XP
Brad gasped his last breath as Blondie’s usually defiant resolve finally broke.
“Don’t leave me!” Tears streamed down her cheeks, “I love you!”
Blondie held her lover's limp form close to her chest.
She stroked his hair. "I'm so sorry, Brad…"
Her tears fell onto his face, mixing with his blood.
“The Leviathan could have saved him, but he refused.” Brittany seethed, “Now it’s your turn. Yield your soul, or die. The choice is your's.”
Blondie sobbed, "Never!”
"Then die." Brittany seethed, and raised her sword once again.
Blondie grit her teeth and raised her own blade. She spun it around, and parried the attack. Sparks flew as the blades met.
Blondie brought her weapon down, but Brittany managed to block it.
Blondie quickly followed up with a thrust, but Brittany deflected the blow, and countered with an overhead slash.
Blondie blocked the attack, and then retaliated with a horizontal cut.
They traded blows, striking with blinding speed and precision.
Just then, a massive dark shadow crossed their path. Brittany looked up to see the large wingspan of a dragon coming in for a landing. On the back of the beast sat a woman with brilliant blonde hair.
"Who is that?" Brittany stopped her advance and stammered, “The last time I encountered a dragon it tried to eat me. How did that woman tame such a vicious beast?”
"It's the new Queen." Raul explained, “King Timur must have introduced her to the royal dragon steeds before his untimely death.”
“Timur?” the name sounded familiar, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.
“Yes, he was the king of this land for nearly 700 years. I only recently heard of his death. Nobody knows how it happened.”
The dragon made a landing in front of them. The woman dismounted and approached them. She was surprisingly young for a Queen, but she radiated power and confidence. She had bright green eyes and long flowing blonde hair. She was fitted with magnificent armor, and strangely no crown or tiara rested atop her head. She looked nothing like what you might expect.
"I’m Lily." she announced. “Why are you slaughtering these people?”
“These people are rebels.” Brittany said, “The Leviathan needs more fodder. We are only doing his bidding.”
Raul stepped forward next to Brittany.
"Step aside, and let us do what we came here to do."
"I won't allow you to do that." Lily said. "If you want to keep attacking innocent people, then you'll have to deal with me."
"Are you threatening me?" Raul asked.
"Of course I am." she laughed. "I won’t let you hurt this woman.”
Raul and Brittany shared a look, but neither moved.
Lily turned to Blondie holding out her hand, “Come with me.”
Blondie hesitated, but then took the Queen's hand. Together they quickly mounted the dragon, and took off into the sky.
“No!” Brittany screamed in rage. "I'll hunt you down and kill you too!"
----------------------------------------
© Copyright 2022 R.M. Mulder. All rights reserved.