Fall

----------------------------------------

Gwyn's Perspective

The dark cavern walls rattled in chaos as blight fiends' screeches echoed around us. The unstable cavern was losing its support. I felt my heart pounding in my chest as the group lost their composure.

Pulling my bow-staff up, aiming it at the passage behind us that laid bare in the ceiling. I could hear fiends all around us, but there was only one way to enter this room.

A scream erupted behind me, making me turn around to see the cavern floor open up. I watched as Thomas, Azrael, and my son fell. Dread filled my head, stomach turning in dismay as I lunged forward. I screamed my son's name as I watched him fall into the darkness.

I couldn't lose him. I must save him.

Before I could jump down, Dimmal grasped my arm tightly. "Don't do it. You can't save them."

Gritting my teeth, I pulled my arm free and shoved him back. "Watch me." Turning away towards the sinkhole. Sweat dripped down my back and face as my hand shook in fear.

I can't lose him like I lost Cira.

Taking my foot first into hell, Dimmal pulls me back as the giant worm-like monster erupts from the wall. Its maw opens with rows of razor teeth grinding up rocks. I can only glare in frustration as debris and rubble fly everywhere. Looking at the monster's body, I can tell the Blight morphed it to make the nests.

The monster hissed at us as the screeching got louder. Dimmal didn't lose his composure at all. He wasn't afraid of dying. Neither was I; I was afraid of William dying. I won't let that happen. I raised my bow-staff at the monster.

Suddenly, my attention was pulled by a roar as it erupted from the passage behind us. Turning towards the entrance, now covered in dust, I made out a few shadows. A large figure with wings holding two bodies. No, it tore something in half. It grunted as it battled what I assumed to be the fiends. A rough laugh bellowed out as more fiends got torn to shreds.

With a quick flap of its wings, the dust blew away, revealing a maroon-red massive bipedal lizard. It brought its fist down onto a gigantic spider, punching a hole straight into its face as it threw it at another fiend. Swatting fiends away like flies, it used its wings to block incoming attacks. It spun in circles only to turn to us and lean down onto its arms. I watched its wings rise as a beam of light shot towards us.

Tackling Dimmal so we don't get hit, making us both crash into the ground. The beam struck the massive worm, rattling the cavern we were in. I shook my head as dust filled the room. Standing up slowly, we looked at the new individual before us. It was a Drakonic, standing almost eight feet tall.

It turned to us. In a deep, slow, gravelly voice, it spoke. "Who the fuck are you guys."

Azrael's Perspective

My head throbbed in pain as I regained consciousness, opening my eyes to see nothing but a simple flicker of light. I felt the cold, hard ground on my back, stubs pressing into me. My body ached and protested at my movements, but I did my best to ignore them, letting out a few grunts as I sat up.

The Dragon Force may have enhanced my body, but I was far from invulnerable. Placing one foot underneath me, I stood and went to the light. The air was cold, and the ground was hard and solid. I could easily hear my footsteps as I saw that the light was a fire.

The fire burned brighter as it lit up our surroundings. There were holes and passageways all around us. We were far deep in this Blight Nest. The room was filled with rocks and debris from our fall, with dark veins and sinews covering the walls and ceiling. They pulsate every so often, similar to a heartbeat would.

I soon saw Thomas standing away from me, seeing only his back. Moving closer, my hand started to flare up as I grabbed it, praying it would smooth over the pain. "Sir Thomas, you ok?" I asked with concern.

I got closer, seeing the light shine off Thomas's armor as he turned to me slowly. My heart sank in confusion as I noticed his eyes turned black. Dark veins covered his entire eyes, spreading across his face but all originating from his eyes. Thomas's once ocean-blue eyes were now shrouded in darkness.

Whatever happened to Sir Thomas, it wasn't a Blight infection. This is something else. "Sir Thomas, what happened to you?"

His courageous, bold smile, which I was used to in the capital when he trained me to be a Dragon Knight like him, was replaced with an eerie smile. "My Goddess Omara has spoken to me, your highness." He walked towards me with his arms open as if he would embrace me. "She has shown me the truth and has chosen me to be her champion. I can hear her voice clear as day."

"What?"

A groan escapes his mouth as he grasps his head. "She says she knows your struggles."

I took a step back, my brows furrowing in concern and skepticism. I recall what Lord Dimmal said about the riders he and his fellow compatriots found after Hearthglen's destruction. "What are you talking about?"

Each step he took echoed throughout the cavern. Watching his facial expression change felt odd, with his corruption evident. "Omara knows the pressure the noble put on you. The burden you have. How your father and mother expect greatness from you. She knows the weight on your shoulders. The daughter of the Dragon King, the daughter of a Titan rider. The next in line of the throne."

I furrowed at him, anger etching on my face as I could almost feel the heat rising in my cheeks. He knew nothing. She knew nothing. "Shut up." I hissed. I could feel my arms trembling slightly. "You are unwell, Sir Thomas."

"Oh, I feel magnificent. Omara sees me. She has shown me the way to end this war." He said with the conviction of a madman. He extended his arm out to me with an open palm. "Let her in, princess. These people you have associated with are nothing to her. Let her lift the weight of your burden."

My head flared up in pain that sent me down to my knees as I cried out. I had this feeling before, but it was never this bad. I clenched my eyes tightly as I struggled to keep myself up. It felt like my mind and brain both were turning into sludge. As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw a window of sorts in front of me.

[Status Magic Activated]

[Madness increase to 2%]

[Omara ǫ̷͉͐͗f̴̖̹̄f̸̘̖̏ë̸̥̻r̵̫̻͛s̸̙̚ ̷̬͗h̴͉͑̅ë̵̩̤r̷̟̣̀͌ ̸̗̲̏̂b̷͙̫̊l̸̘̎e̴̩̓s̶̠̍́s̵͈̆i̵̖̳͒̾n̷͓̈ǵ̷̹̈ to you]

[Do you accept?]

What is this? Why is status magic activated?

I tried to stand up on my feet, but the head pain kept me down. I couldn't think straight.

A yell echoed from the other side as I saw William coming from behind with his hand sword swinging down at Sir Thomas.

William's Perspective

I gritted my teeth as Thomas blocked my attack. My face was inches away from his as our breath mingled; his eyes told me everything I needed to know. He was just like those riders back at Hearthglen.

Memories of Hearthglen flashed in my mind as I remembered all the people I couldn't save. It made me angry—so angry.

"Traitor!" I yelled at Thomas. He furrowed at me as we stood our ground. Looking over at Azrael as she lay on the ground in pain, I hissed. "What did you do to her?"

"You're one to talk, peasant," Thomas chuckled. "I'm not the one who stole a dragon egg. You're nothing more than a thief." With surprisingly little effort, he pushes me back a few feet away as I catch myself.

Gasping loudly at the realization that he was different from those I had fought. He must be a Dragon Knight. My heart pounded as I recalled what happened in Hearthglen. When the Titan Rider arrived. I can only imagine he had the same look on Thomas's face. My hand started to tremble as a cold sweat began to drip down my back. The room shrank as breathing started to get rough.

Azrael looked like she was out of the fight, and the noble Sanguine was unconscious. I couldn't beat a Dragon Knight. Thomas knew this, and he gave a mocking chuckle. "Pathetic peasants like you have no right to be bonded to a dragon. I only hope the princess hears Omara's words as I do."

I grit my teeth as I struggle to charge at him. I wanted to take his head off. But something was stopping me as my eyes widened in frustration.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

"Will, run," Azrael mumbled, taking Thomas' attention away.

Thomas glared at Azrael, grasping his head as if in pain. "Stupid girl. Omara has already taken Drakelene under her wing. Who are you to defy her will?" Thomas looks away for a moment as if distracted by something. "If you don't submit willingly, then maybe this will."

As he stepped forward, Thomas turned back to me, sword in hand. I step back as memories of Hearthglen surface. The Titan Rider when he struck down the Matriarch. When he turned into his Titan form, all the people killed in his attack weighed heavily on me. My heart pounded in my chest as everything slowed down.

I remembered what I felt that day. Helpless, pathetic. Weak. I could've done more. I should've done more.

Without thinking, I swallowed whatever was caught in my throat as I charged at Thomas, hearing the ground beneath my feet crack under the pressure. Thomas charged at me back, both our weapons in hand.

The ground cracked under our steps as we swung our swords at each other. The clash of metal on metal sent sparks. However, I wasn't ready for the raw strength behind Thomas's swing, and my hands jolted from the strike. I brought my blade up in time to block Thomas's attacks. Unlike Azrael, his were raw arching strikes with a powerful magical attack. He hadn't cast a spell yet, so that was good.

Our blades locked briefly as my hands stung from the constant barrages of strikes. Thomas' sword lights up as he starts to channel magic, making me leap to a safe distance. I watched him approach me, twirling his sword in a fancy display. I tried to watch his next attack, but his sword was a flaming red blur as he spun. Guessing where he would strike, I channeled magic into my arm and sword and, luckily, struck his sword with a loud clang. The raw impact left a high-pitched noise throughout the cavern.

Thomas lunged at me, slicing at the air, keeping me on my toes. He knew I had the advantage in raw power, but he was better in technique and experience. Thomas would try to keep me on the defensive with quick, powerful attacks. But I don't think he knew how much his attacks affected me when I blocked him.

Quickly thinking, I leaped back and kicked some dust into the air to blind Thomas. It worked as he cried out, wiping his eyes. Without a second, I channeled magic into my legs and sword, feeling my muscle fibers warm up as I poured more and more magic into them. With a quick dash, I close the distance between me and Thomas, swinging my blade at his head.

Thomas, however, recovered, parrying me and guiding my sword down to his side. With a surprised look on my face, Thomas swings his elbow down at my face.

I clenched my teeth and eyes as I growled in frustration and pain, feeling my face ache as stars started to form under my eyelids. I feel his hands wrap around my throat, my feet leaving the ground as I dangled briefly in the air. Gripping my sword as tight as possible so I don't lose it, the sudden change in direction as Thomas slams me into the ground.

A loud crack rang in my eye as I cried out, my head slamming into the ground along with my back. Blackness took my sight as stars spun in my vision, and pain struck throughout my body.

Winded as I struggle to breathe, the fact that I can feel pain tells me I am conscious. Opening my eyes, I witnessed Thomas's fist engulfed in flames, striking my stomach.

Howling out in pain, I felt my stomach burn, my body almost going limp from the punch. My nerves sheared as I curled into a ball, trying to push back the pain. I could hear my skin sizzling. Turning over, realizing my sword has left my hand, I reach over to grab it as I check my stomach. His punch burnt my shirt and left my stomach slightly charred and blistered. I could only feel the pain coming around the wound itself.

Thomas' blazing sword roared into flames, seizing my attention and making me jump to my feet as Thomas readied a swing. He was using a powerful skill, so I channeled everything into every point in my body as I tried to block with my sword. Our swords clashed, and I felt the world flip as I flew. Crashing into the ground, I quickly rolled back onto my feet, recovering from his attack. Letting out a quick gasp, I collected myself and readied myself again.

There, I saw his body engulfed in flames as red scales formed around his body. His current armor wraps around him like another layer of skin along the newly adorned scales as every inch of him is covered. His hands now sprout a red gauntlet with golden accented spikes like jewels. His new cauldron is just as spectacular as his chassis and boots. He looked identical to Lord Barren. I watched as the scales reached up to Thomas's face. The scales covered his head in a tight red helmet, and his golden-light eyes were beaming out with a menacing glare. His entire face was gone and replaced with what I could make out to be a visage of his dragon planted onto a helmet. Two horns attached above his eyes, running up over the top of his helmet. He didn't look like a dragon, but he looked like a true Dragon Knight with a new golden cape.

"Your dead peasant," Thomas hissed, his voice now distorted and deeper behind the helmet.

Fear crept up my arms as I couldn't stop picturing the titan rider, Orderbreaker being, behind that mask. Before I could even think, Thomas turned into a blur as he dashed at me. Diving to the side, I dodged as fire exploded from where I was. I turn back to see that Thomas struck the wall. My heart raced in panic as Thomas stomped his way over to me. Quickly getting back up, we swung swords at each other, sparks flying as Thomas' strength doubled along with his speed.

Sweat dripped down my back as my muscles ached from the more barrages of attacks. I had to channel even more magic into my body to keep up with him.

Trying to understand his fighting styles, he keeps twirling his sword quickly, following up with a few powerful downward slashes. But then it turns into a twirling session, followed by another even more powerful slash. Each attack would make my hands hurt from the impact. Luckily, they weren't as fast as Azraels, but now they are just as fast.

Trying to counterattack, Thomas blocked my attempt, shoving me back. He forced an opening from me. He tried to kick me in the gut, but I kicked back, so I didn't take the hit. Pain shot up my leg as I kicked off of his foot.

Thomas didn't give up as he lifted his free hand at me, fire bursting towards me. Leaping away, I rolled as fast as possible away from his magic. I could feel the heat of his spell flying past me and crashing into the walls behind me. He swapped tactics as he swung his sword, leaving a wave of fire flying at me. I didn't even bother blocking, so I charged at it. Within the last second, I slid under the spell, catching him off guard as I managed to kick him in the gut.

Grinning as I heard Thomas grunt, we charged at each other. My feet pounded into the ground as I sidestepped in time with one of his attacks. Thomas was stunned, especially when I swung my elbow at his face. Striking him with a loud thud, knowing my strength, an average person's jaw would have snapped, but Thomas let out a deep, loud, distorted cry.

His armored helmet was not a joke. That shit fucking hurt.

It felt like lightning jolted up my arm, all the way to my fingers, especially the pinkie, numbing it completely as dull aching pain radiated from the bone.

Ignoring the pain as Thomas stumbled, I did a quick slash at his shoulder, clashing with sparks on his armor. I couldn't hurt him directly, but I could reckon his body still felt pain.

I watched as Thomas stumbled onto the ground, but he didn't relent. He got right back up and charged at me. He did the same downward slash, so I pivoted this time and channeled magic up my arms and sword again. Within seconds, I slashed at him with three instant strikes, forcing him into a defensive stance.

Pushing Thomas back, he twirled his sword once more in a fancy display of power and expertise as he struck back at me using a magic skill. I dodged his attack, fully ready for him.

His attacks sure are stronger and faster, but they never change. The only time they ever changed was when I switched up how I defended. But this time, as I dragged his sword down my side with my sword, I channeled magic up into my arm, punching him straight in the face.

Thomas went stiff as he tumbled back. My fist throbbed; luckily, adrenaline kept the pain down. I didn't punch him lightly, either. Despite being nearly exhausted, I smirked as he stumbled onto the ground.

Thomas retaliated, unleashing a furious slash of fire. I didn't have time to dodge, so I blocked what I could with my blade. The spell hurled me off the ground, making me tumble toward a wall. After I stopped rolling, I got up to inspect my arms, which I could barely feel. The attack charred my arms, just like my stomach currently was. Sizzling sounds hissed from my arms as I watched them twitch and tremble. Pain radiates around the charred wounds.

Gripping my sword once, breathing heavily as adrenaline was my one good friend in this fight. If I had more experience, I would have been able to defeat Thomas. But right now, it's a struggle. I'm taking more damage than I could deal with, and I have no good way to hurt him.

His sword skill isn't the problem; it's his magic. Sure, I could take a few hits, but I can't make up for it, nor do I have an exact way to make a clean hit without risk. That elbow strike and punch were the only sources of damage I could do. My early attack with my sword didn't cut through his scales.

Instead of slashing, I could thrust my sword into him, using all my strength.

It could work, but Thomas wasn't going to let that happen. Hell, I barely knew any way to do such an attack. Standing back up, I ran at Thomas, wanting to keep him on the defensive. However, he swiped his sword at me, lighting the tip with fire as I leaped back.

"Pathetic, weakling," Thomas hissed out. His voice sounded irritated or humiliated in a way. "You dare strike a Dragon Knight in such an ungraceful manner?" He kept slashing at me with fire trailing behind his sword as he approached me.

"Rich, coming from someone who betrayed their kingdom," I yelled back, trying to keep myself calm and collected. My breathing was rapid as my heart threatened to burst out. My stomach and arms were nearly numb, trembling from fatigue, and whatever remaining pain I could feel coiled around them. "I would never betray those close to me! I'd rather die!"

Thomas howls, "Then die like the maggot you are." He charges at me, fire trailing behind him as I can sense his magic building up.

I prepared myself until I saw Azrael crawling towards us, looking at me. Looking at her hand, I saw a chance if she was doing what I thought. Without hesitation, I rushed at Thomas, my throat tightening as sweat dripped down my forehead. Everything slew down, and I could imagine Thomas smirking behind his helmet.

However, before Thomas could get to me, he suddenly stopped, lunging forward as Azrael froze his foot in place. I assumed she was out of the fight, but I was wrong. She isn't as helpless as I thought. "You worthless swine!" Thomas yelled at her. "You are a pathetic excuse of a noble, and Omara knows it!" He raises his sword, dosed in flame, but that was his mistake.

Thomas turned to me, but it was already too late. I poured all my magic into my sword and leaped into the air. Pulling my arm back, readying for a thrust as I came down onto him.

Slamming the tip of my sword into his chest, I used everything I had to push past his armor. I utilized a skill, using my momentum and magic. It was very effective as my sword pierced his armor and scaly skin. My blade went all the way through until my hilt reached his chest.

Panting loudly, I looked up at his head, seeing him trembling. I don't blame him exactly.

Thomas reached out at my throat, making my heart sink into my chest.

What the hell?

A fist came at me as Thomas shattered the hilt in my hand and threw me to the side.

Gasping loudly, I rolled onto the ground and looked up to see Thomas screaming. He was fighting back his demise and squirming violently, fighting to stay standing. Soon, he went stiff and collapsed.

Walking over to him, holding my injured arm as if it was about to fall off. Moving my arms made me hiss; the pain was unbearable enough.

Letting out a rough exhale, I reached for his sword in exchange for mine. His sword was more traditional, but it was just as powerful as mine, maybe more. Holding his sword in my hand, I felt him grasp my foot as his armor faded to dust. I looked down at him, angry and disgusted. His helmet faded, revealing his blackened eyes. "Die like the maggot you are." I kicked his hand as I watched life fade from his eyes.

I wasn't exactly happy about killing him. But I wasn't too sad about it either. He was an ally, but I wasn't fond of him.

Making my way over to Azrael, I helped her onto her feet. She tried to push me away, but I insisted. I helped her onto a rock nearby. She pointed to the other person who fell with us, Sanguine. "Help him, I'll be fine." Her voice trembled weakly and softly, almost as if she was sick with a cold. I couldn't help but feel like I understood what she was feeling.

Doing as she asked, I went over to check up on Sanguine. He wasn't hurt in any way, surprisingly. I thought he was just a regular noble.

Before I could do anything else, a loud screech echoed throughout the cave.

"The Blight," I mumbled.