Gersius stalked into the courtyard with his shield raised so that only his blazing eyes could be seen. He gripped the sword of Astikar tightly as its blade started to glow red, reflecting his anger faintly. Thayle and the four priests follow him with similar intent, ready to push aside this newest threat.
While the rest of the city looked intact, this area had seen fierce battle. The space was a large open plaza with a street leading to the left and right. It was flanked by buildings of stone and wood on all sides. Most of them were burned-out shells with no roofs or inner floors. The street was littered with piles of rubble and blackened timbers where walls had collapsed. It looked like a fire had raged unchecked, and they all knew a dragon had likely started it.
Now they were facing two men and two women whose eyes glowed with dragon light. There was a red and blue pairing of each, almost as if done intentionally. It was safe to assume they were dragons, but it didn't make sense why they were using the human form. Lilly initially hated using the human form, and Shadros still didn't care for it except to share affection with Mingfe.
As they closed on the four people standing on the temple steps, the large man in the center smiled. He stood over seven feet tall and wore simple metal armor of loose plates over what looked like hide. He had no helm, and his face was hidden behind a thick black beard that ringed his mouth. The hair on his head was shoulder length and unkempt. He held a shield, but there was a sword in his hand. A straight blade of metal that flared out slightly in the middle and then tapered back to a point. It was so long that even in his hands, its tip dragged on the ground.
As they drew near, something crashed to the street a few blocks away, and a terrible wail filled the air. All heads turned to see a great flash as Lilly and Shadros brought down the enemy dragon.
“Izzacarri,” has been defeated,” one of the women said. “They have driven her into our trap.”
Gersius smiled to know he was right about the courtyard and the magical ward that protected it. Lilly and Shadros must have driven that dragon down and thrown her into it, triggering it on her instead. A moment later, a dark form dropped on the roofs behind him, and Lilly glared down with violence in her eyes.
“Who are these people?” Lilly bellowed with blood dripping from her jaws.
“Foolish dragon,” the tall man laughed. “Do you not recognize your betters?” He stepped down and entered the street, his weapon easily held in one hand. “And do you all not see the devastation around you? This is the future of all the cities in the empire.” He gestured to the ruins all around and then came to a halt. “This is the price they will pay for following you.”
Gersius tightened his grip as he and the man stood not thirty paces apart. He could hear fighting from the back streets and knew Shadros must be helping the others contend with the soldiers. That left this group as the only ones barred their way, but Gersius had Lilly, and she was already in her dragon form.
“You have already lost this fight,” Gersius said as he dared to lower his shield a little. “You have nowhere to run.”
“Run?” The man said with a broader smile. “Do you think you have cornered me? Do you really think I would allow you to trap me?”
“And yet you are trapped,” Gersius replied. “Lilly can kill you all in an instant.”
“Apparently, he can't count. There are four dragons here, but they only have one,” one of the women on the steps said. She wore red and gold armor plates and carried a metal shaft that ended in spikes. Her hair was dark red while her eyes glowed with fire. She stepped down with the others as a man with blue eyes lifted a massive ax. While a second woman, also with blue eyes, held her hands out as if ready to weave.
“Why would you engage us in the human form?” Gersius asked as he suspected a deception
“Why not just crush you as dragons?” the tall speaker replied. “Because I already know you have lost, and I want to prove that I don’t need dragon power to crush you.”
“Sounds a little arrogant to me,” Thayle said as she held her sword tight. “The prophecy says we will win this encounter.”
“The prophecy says nothing about our meeting here,” the man replied. “And you may want to read it a little closer because neither of you are twice blessed.”
Lilly dropped to the street and stalked up to stand over her lovers as the group faced off.
“Gersius is twice blessed,” Lilly countered. “He was blessed when he married Thayle and I.”
“Do you think the prophecy meant he would have two wives?” the man laughed. “You are ignorant of the meaning of even the simplest verse. It was foolish to believe this was what it meant when it clearly states he will have three wives.”
“Regardless, Thayle and I are the dragon knights,” Gersius growled.
“Are you?” the man asked. “Has the prophecy proven it so? Tell me then, where is the blood hidden among the enemy? Or what is the cold that comes in the night? Which of you is marked by the divine? Or carries a secret only the dragon form can reveal?”
“Which one of you leaves her shame with the enemy?” one of the women asked.
“This is all in the prophecy?” Gersius asked as he looked up at Lilly.
“I haven't been able to read that entire book yet,” Lilly replied. “He rambles on about failing for a hundred pages before saying anything directly. But I have seen the part about leaving the shame behind and the cold that comes in the night.”
“So you claim to be something you don’t even fully understand,” the man laughed.
“I do not need to understand it,” Gersius replied as they faced off less than thirty steps apart. “I know Balisha has named Thayle and I the dragon knights, and even if I do not know the prophecy, its path cannot be undone.”
“That name will die with you here,” the man snarled.
“I will deal with the man with the ax,” Thayle said over the bind while turning to face him.
“I will take the leader,” Gersius added silently. “Let the priests focus on the two women.”
“Why not just let me kill them all?” Lilly asked and looked at the group. “Surrender now, or I will kill all of you before you can change.”
“Is that what you think,” the towering man said as he started to smile. A dark red form burst through a wall scattering bricks and dust as it charged. It loosed a gout of flame that caught the four priests and sent them to a screaming grave. Lilly scarcely had time to turn her head before the dragon crashed into her. The impact carried her across the plaza and into the wall of a building. It toppled as the two dragons began to savage one another in a wild battle.
Gersius was moving even before Lilly hit the wall. He had to even the odds as quickly as possible, and though he ran directly at the towing man, his dragon's claw wrapped around the woman who was starting to weave. He used the claw to yank her from the steps as she cried out in alarm, drawing her right into his shield so that she was battered in his charge. Then, in one fluid motion, he stepped over her and gouged out her throat with his sword.
“You insect!” the other woman roared and ran at them with her weapon raised high.
Gersius collided with the giant of a man, Their two swords meeting in a shower of sparks. He channeled Balisha's divine might but could not focus it through Astikar's sword. Still, he was grateful for the ability to bolster his strength as his opponent hammered him with powerful blows. He saw an opening and used the frost breath as his eyes went white with dragon fire. The man threw up an arm, an orange glow forming a star pattern over a disc. Gersius was shocked to see Astikar's defense used by this dragon, but he wasn't about to falter an inch. He saw the other woman rushing in, and with a quick counter thrust at his foe, he switched focus to her. She was taken aback when he suddenly turned on her and, with his shield hand, produced a lance of ice that collided with her armor. She was thrown aside as she cursed him allowing him to turn back to the man who was now smiling wickedly.
Thayle met the ax man head-on as he cleaved the mighty weapon, forcing her to deflect it away. All of these dragons were using heavy two-handed weapons as if they were light. Using dragon strength to bear the weight and put them to deadly effect. Ulustrah wasn't about strength and combat, but she was connected to Sarah and Lilly. She drew on dragon might, matching the man's power. Even as his ax started to burn with blue fire. She felt the air go cold and realized he was trying to chill her as frost formed on her armor. However, Lilly's love protected her, and the frost did nothing to slow her attacks. She launched into a dance of quick thrusts, trying to put the speed of her weapon to use, but the man was no slouch, and he quickly stepped back while countering. They were evenly matched, and Thayle would have to think of some way to break the stalemate before it was too late.
Lilly felt the wall collapsing around her but thankfully wasn't caught underneath it. The red, however, took a few firm blows to the head, hissing as it fought through. Lilly struggled to turn, bringing her claws and teeth to bare against the red, who was only a little larger. She scored a good bite on the dragon's neck but was quickly raked in return. Her scales peeled away under those claws, exposing tender flesh that bled in deep red lines. Lilly let go and stumbled back, toppling more of the gutted building. She quickly called on her divine power and used a dragon’s claw to rake the reds face. It raged and came at her with jaws open for a bite, but Lilly used another power calling on a weave to draw something from her saddle.
The magical power stored in the fang blade of Balisha caused the sword to grow in size until it was suitable for a dragon. She reared up on her hind legs and held the sword like a fighter as the dragon stumbled to stop short. It threw out its right hand, and a long black spear appeared in a burst of flames. She gripped it tightly with two hands and charged in, determined to skewer Lilly.
Gersius caught a glimpse of the dragon battle, but he was too hard-pressed to intervene. The tall man's sword was quick, and every blow rattled his body. The other woman was up as well, snarling as she picked up her dropped weapon and moved to join the fight. He saw an opening as the man raised his sword high and quickly put it to use. He rushed in with his shield held high and used his sword to turn the attack away. Then he dropped the shield and quickly drew wind razor as he called out in the dragon voice. “Dassk!” The blade glowed with a blue light as she spun around and plunged it into the woman's chest. Without pity or remorse, he cut upward, gutting her like a fish.
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The move was risky as it sacrificed his defense, but the tactic had worked to even the odds. Now it was three on three, but his towering opponent kicked the shield with great strength, slamming it into Gersius. He rolled across the ground from the tremendous impact, barely getting his sword up in time to block another swing. The power behind that blow reminded him of dueling Sarah as his arm shook even with dragon strength.
He struggled to get up even as his opponent tried his best to keep him down. Behind him, more buildings were crumbling, and Lilly felt like she was enraged and suffering. He could feel the wounds down her side and knew she was bleeding, but until the tall man fell, there was nothing he could do. That thought sent his blood boiling, and that anger began to manifest as a red glow on Astikars sword.
“So you think you can harness the power of Astikar,” the man laughed as Gersius finally got to his feet. “Your god has long since abandoned you.”
“I do not need Asikar to defeat you,” Gersius growled as the two circled one another.
“Are you sure?” the man laughed before stretching out a hand to form a glowing hammer. Gersius dived out of the way as it was thrown, the impact shattering stones. It was the second blessing of Astikar the man had used as if mocking him with its power.
Gersius called on more of Balisha's strength. Creating a wall of dragon scales as the man threw another hammer. It exploded on the barrier, but Gersius lost the focus, Balisha's power suddenly feeling weaker.
Lilly danced against the spear, wishing she had a second sword fitting her size. Unfortunately, she was used to fighting with two weapons and against opponents like Gedris. Worse, the space was restricted with crumbling walls and piles of rubble. She found it hard to twist and turn in the moves as the red kept thrusting that nasty spear. She turned aside one blow but stumbled in the debris, giving her opponent an opening to punch a hole in her leg.
“I am going to rip off your wings and turn you into a breeding cow,” he hissed as she swiped the spear away.
Lilly was focused on killing this dragon now while at the same time lamenting jat he would die. Too many dragons had already been killed in this war, and now she would have to kill more. She focused on her Goddess, drawing power into the sword to magnify its effect. She used that power to ready the sword for delivering a powerful blow, hoping to sever that spear in half. When the dragon lunged, she took her opening, swinging for the midpoint of the spear. Just as she hoped, the fang blade glowed with lunar light, and the spear rent in two rendering it useless. The pointed end flew off into the courtyard, but the enraged dragon brought the broken end up and used it to club Lilly's head. She reeled to get out of the way as he bit down on her wrist, causing her to drop the sword. She raked at his face with the other hand to pry him off, and he quickly jumped back, her blood dripping from his maw.
With her heart pounding in worry, Lilly spread her wings and took to the air. She was desperate to be clear of the buildings and have some room to maneuver. The red followed suit, flying after her close enough behind to grab her tail. In moment's their desperate clawing battle resumed over the courtyard where Thayle was being hard-pressed.
Thayle tried to tangle the man in plants, using the power of Ulustrah’s sword to magnify the effect. The man put dragon strength to work and tore free almost effortlessly, his attacks unabated.
“You can't tangle me, weakling,” he laughed and suddenly leaped into the air, his ax trailing white fire. She was stunned by how high he went and even more when he breathed a line of frost at her. She stumbled back, momentarily blinded by the frost. That ax clipped the top of her shield, twisting her arm painfully. The blade traced a fine line across her nose, just deep enough to bleed and cause her discomfort.
Thayle cried out and fell into a series of counterblows meant to push him back. He used the head of the ax like a shield, swinging the shaft as a weapon. She was forced back into a wall and had to roll aside as the ax nearly took her head off. She stumbled into a narrow archway and quickly fell back while raising a green warding shield to prevent the man from following.
A single blow from his ax shattered the barrier sending her stumbling back. She raised her shield to glare at him as blood ran down her face. He smiled and went to pursue, then realized the tunnel was too narrow to wield his ax effectively.
Thayle growled as he discovered her ruse. She hoped to lure him into a tight space where his weapon would be a detriment. Now he glared as he put a hand out and a hammer of Astikar began to form. Thayle reacted first, using the chains of Ulustrah to bind him and stop the hammer from forming. He growled with a mighty flex, breaking the chains but giving Thayle the time she needed. She planted to sword into the ground to channel vines that quickly spread up the wall and crumbled the rock. It worked at the gate in Calathen, and she hoped it would work here now. The man looked up as the wall began to tumble, and stones fell about his head. A moment later, he went down with them, buried in the collapse. Thayle breathed a sigh of relief, but her path back was collapsed, and she could feel the pain of her loved ones as they were battered in their fights. She needed to find a route back to the plaza quickly, or it might be too late.
Ayawa put an arrow in a man who was obviously a priest of Vellis, desperately trying to keep him from healing his fallen comrades. Tavis was wounded when three priests ganged upon him at once, but Gedris came to his rescue, chaining one up to make him an easy target. She was now healing him even as he continued to weave bolts of daghost into the seemingly endless enemies. Mingfe had taken charge of the other priests, forming them into a battle line as they tried to hold a street behind Shadros. Already three of the priests were done, probably dead, and several others were wounded. The fighting was becoming desperate, but all they could do was buy Gersius time. With any luck, he was already recovering the seal, and they could leave this death trap before anyone else fell.
“At least they are attacking in small groups,” Tavis said as she ducked under a poorly thrown hammer of Astikar. “If they took a few moments to form up and attack in force, I doubt we could hold them.”
“The dragon is the only thing keeping them at bay,” Ayawa growled as she aimed at a woman who was causing a fallen comrade to float so she could take him away. The woman howled as the arrow landed in her shoulder, breaking the spell and causing the man to drop.
“There are priests of Asmigaris here,” Tavis said as he saw the woman suddenly cloak herself in shadows.
“There are priests of Astikar, Ulustrah, Vellis, Gorrin, Asmigaris, and Youthan!” Ayawa shouted and had to hide behind a corner as a bolt of Daghost came from the enemy. “And they have weavers!”
“Shadros needs healing,” Gedris said as she watched the dragon take a volley of spells. “Mingfe is trying to heal him and organize the others. She is being overtaxed.”
“Go! We will cover you!” Ayawa shouted and aimed for a man who had glowing chains coming out of his hands that he was using to lash at the priests of Balisha. The arrow was blocked by a green shield channeled by a woman of Ulustrah who was quickly covered in ice by Shadros.
Mingfe was desperately trying to shield Shadros from incoming blessings and attacks. Several times he charged into the enemy's lines, rending men and women while taking brutal injuries. The tactic was working, and it kept the bulk of the enemy scattered behind cover. However, Shadros was nearing his point of exhaustion, and Mingfe couldn't keep healing him.
Gedris rushed ahead as Ayawa and Tavis used their attacks to pick off anyone who even looked like they might be targeting her. She arrived at Mingfe’s side, offering to heal the dragon as much as she could.
“Get to it!” Mingfe barked, grateful for the help. “Shadros, start falling back. Force them to pursue us into the street.”
“We should flee!” he snarled and heaved a piece of rubble down the street. “We have killed dozens, but they keep coming.”
“We have to buy Gersius as much time as possible,” Mingfe replied. “This is Sarah's only chance!”
He growled and took a hammer of Astikar to the shoulder, then flared out his wings to conceal the retreat of the other priests. Slowly he walked backward, daring the enemy to follow him as Gedris walked beside him, healing with all she could.
“We should have brought priests of Vellis,” Mingfe complained as they reached Tavis and Ayawa.
“There are at least three of them dead out there,” Ayawa pointed out and fired for a man in a car window.
“This is madness,” Mingfe replied and ordered her line to halt. “How could so many priests from so many orders be helping the enemy?”
“They have had years to prepare for this,” Tavis said. “Only now are we starting to see the full scope of it. I suspect they are all here in this city as part of their new empire. Gathered here away from their rivals to muster their strength.”
Shadros ripped a corner from a building and hurled it down the street in a great crash, causing green shields to go up and stem its effect. He was annoyed that so many priests were arrayed against them and wished to get away. He heard the sound of dragons roaring and looked up to see Lilly in battle with a larger red, the two shredding one another as they tangled in the air.
“Lilly is in danger,” Shadros pointed out.
“We can do nothing for her,” Mingfe replied. “Gersius will have to handle it. You priests, put our dragon’s claws to work. Drag anyone you can see into the open to make them easy targets.
“We can't,” one of the priests said as he tried to call on a blessing. “The lady's power is fading.”
“By the divines,” Ayawa sneered. “Balisha has spent too much power in this fight. She has become too weak to continue.”
“Then Lilly is in terrible danger,” Mingfe said as she glanced up. “Gods protect them.”
Gersius felt his arm shake and raged to match the man's strength. The blow staggered him back and nearly caused him to drop his weapon. He tried to call on Balisha for more power, but it wasn't coming, so he reached out to Lilly instead. A black spear fell into the street, sticking point first into the ground just as he did. The momentary distraction was enough to give his opponent an opening, and the point of that sword gouged a line across his armor. The impact threw him back, but he kept his feet to see his opponent wrench the broken spear from the ground. Now he stood with a sword in one hand and the spear in the other as Gersius matched him with sword and dagger. He heaved for breath as pain and anguish pressed on him over the bind. Lilly was losing her battle, and they were running out of time.
He rushed in, going into a series of attacks to get inside the enemy's reach. He hoped to deny him the use of those weapons and land a solid hit with wind razor. The powerful man stumbled back, giving him an opening, but it was part of a ruse. Just as Gersius rushed in, the man kicked up, his size and power throwing Gersius back again. He landed on a wall and dropped to his feet just as the spear went through his shoulder. The man used his sword to batter the blade of Astikar away as she growled in victory to see Gersius impaled.
“Where is you goddess's power now?” he laughed and stepped back as Gersius clutched the spear shaft. He pulled with all his might, but the weapon didn't move. He reached out for divine strength, but nothing came leaving him only the option of Lilly.
“Go ahead, draw on your dragon's power,” the man urged. “Weaken her even more than you already have so that she will lose her battle as well.”
“I don’t need her power to defeat you,” Gersius wheezed as he pulled on the spear shaft.
“No,” the man said and took a leisurely pose. “You would need a lot more than that. You don't realize this trap was laid for you even before you left to find your dragon. As demonstrated earlier, we know the prophecy better than you, and we knew that you would come here if all the other taps failed. This is where you would ultimately fall because we made sure you didn't have the strength to win.”
“What are you talking about?” Gersius groaned as he futilely pulled.
“Did you think so many of these events happened by accident?” the man said. “The fall from grace, the turning of your brothers against you. The harming of your precious dragon to fuel your anger. Our master knows the prophecy and the weaknesses of the human heart. He knew that if you were pushed hard enough, your faith would break, and with its strength gone, you would falter. What you fail to realize is that only a priest of Astikar can complete the prophecy. But it seems you have forsaken that path and embraced the weakling Balisha. In your ignorance, you brought a group of her priests with you, and in the ensuing battle, you have exhausted her power. Now you have nothing to draw on but your dragon, but doing so will almost guarantee her death.”
Gersius knew he was right as Lilly was suffering from a dozen wounds so profound he could feel them as if they were his own. She needed every ounce of strength she had to stay alive, but with Sarah trapped in the dream, she was the only one he could call on.
“What a shame you can't call on Astikar. If you could channel through his sword, you might have had some hope of surviving. However, now the end comes,” the man said and raised his sword to Gersius's throat. “So ends the reign of the dragon emperor.”
“Get away from him!” Thayle yelled as green chains wrapped around his waist, pinning his arms and causing him to drop the sword.
“Brave move, girl. Pity you are a human. I would have a bred a dragon with such spirit,” he said even as he turned in the chains to face her.
Thayle struggled to hold him still as he started to smile and flex. Divine power was pitted against dragon strength, and Thayle cried out when the chains broke, freeing the man. He raced toward her as she fell back. She desperately put up awarding shield just as he reached her. He slammed it with a bare fist causing the shield to instantly shatter and throwing Thayle back through the hole in the wall she used to enter the street.
Gersius struggled to pull the spear free, but his strength was spent, and he didn't dare pull on Lilly. Someplace out of sight, his wives were fighting for their lives. He knew they were outmatched, considering how easily he had been defeated. This dragon was far too powerful without divine help, and Balisha was too weak to keep pouring power into them. He wished Sarah were here, but that was probably part of the trap. She was the target of those spears because with her trapped in the dream, her great strength couldn't be used.
Now he was in terrible conflict as he could feel Lilly's pain while a rival dragon ripped her to shreds. He cried out to Balisha, reaching for anything but nothing came. He felt a sharp pain in his side and realized Thayle had been injured. The dragon had caught up with her, and she was terrified.
“Why?” he called to a dark sky. “Why was I called to be the dragon knight only to die here?” he yelled. “What have I done wrong for it all to fail now?”
He felt Thayle’s pain across the bind and cried out again as one of her arms was broken. He felt Lilly hit the ground someplace behind him, suffering in terrible pain as something crushed her into the street.
Gersius pulled with all his might, desperate to save his wives, but the spear didn’t budge. He cried out in frustration, his heart breaking as the lights of his world started to go out. It was here he remembered the vision and how he would stand alone as the three stars faded, but something else came to mind, something he had almost forgotten.
The strange man sat on the seat of his wagon after delivering the sword and armor. Gersisu was sure he knew this man but couldn't place him or remember his name. When he asked, the man smiled and replied with something he hadn't understood.
“You will remember my name when the darkness creeps in, and the lights of your world are about to go out. When you do, call me. I will answer.”
Gersius heard the voice as he looked up to see the distant stars.
“I remember who you are.”