During that time of unrivaled suffering,

The horses will be overcome with terror and abandon their masters,

Even the wolf’s unquestioned loyalty will be sorely tested,

And the lion will strike mercilessly at the heels of stragglers.

But a little kitten? She will deliver the Father of Kings.

- Andanian Chronicles

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“High gods of Saadian! Answer my call!” Xerxes roared as he jabbed his staff at Phoebe. The divine enchantress sang hoarsely in response as she defended against the thundering blast that crackled fiercely against her crumbling shield. Then the shark squirted swiftly sideways as the lion slashed down rapidly with his mithril blade, but the king of beasts shot forward and rammed his naked foot down into her shin. A loud cracking sound, like that of a falling tree, rumbled through the battlefield, and Phoebe gasped in pain as she traced a crude hasty spell circle and propelled herself away from the deadly combination of blows that rained into the space she had just occupied.

“What happened to all your fancy magic, expired sea shark?” Xerxes taunted as he pursued the fleeing goddess.

“I’m not expired yet, I’m still only twenty-four…” she panted out a whining complaint as she tripped and fell to her knees, “…hundred, and ninety-nine years old.” She gestured hurriedly and a distinct spell began accumulating in each of her hands, one to restore the bones in her shattered leg, and the other to neutralize the immense power gathering in the lion’s scepter. But Xerxes caught up before she could complete her magic and swung his sword to decapitate her, “Buy me some time!” She cried out as she flung herself behind the two princes.

Amir and Aryan yelled out desperately as they intercepted the attacking lion, their blades whirled blindingly as they rained a well-executed combination attack on their foe, and Abel capitalized on the lion’s momentary distraction to bury two additional arrows into the beast’s undefended back. But Xerxes snorted mockingly as he ignored the projectiles and parried every strike the two princes unleashed, without even breaking a sweat. Then he swiped out blindingly with his sword and jabbed out rapidly with his staff. By some miracle of the gods, Amir managed to bring up his enchanted blade and parry the weapon cleaving towards him, but the raw impact from the blow blasted him off to the side and into the second prince. The third prince didn’t possess the same god given fortune, his eyes bulged with shock as he stared at the gaping hole the staff had punched through his chest and his weapon fell weakly from his hands.

“Aryan!” his brothers shouted desperately as they untangled themselves and struggled to their knees, but they both suffered from multiple fractures, and were just too far away to make a difference.

“This is what happens when imprudent gnats like you decide to challenge the Emperor of Saadian!” the lion gloated as a spurting red gushed from Aryan’s wound and trickled down his staff, “And I will…” Xerxes’ voice choked off with strangled pain and his brief moment of exultation was cut off abruptly when the blood hissed like strong acid against his fingers. “Arrgh!” He roared in agony as he flung both Aryan and his scepter away from him before sticking his fingers into the soil and rubbing desperately in a futile attempt to remove the biting bloodstains from his hand.

Aryan staggered upright as the rod slipped from the crater in his chest and he gasped dumbly at the fluid gushing from his wound, “Why doesn’t it hurt?” he muttered in puzzlement. Then his consciousness faded away and his entire body degraded into a heap of bloody talismans that glowed with monumental power. The charms cawed menacingly as they flapped up like a flock of sodden crows and surrounded the suffering emperor within a glowing red paper column. Then they surged forward as one and stuck themselves over every inch of his skin. The emperor’s loud torturous cries wailed across the battlefield, like that of a viciously tormented wraith, and all of Saadian who recognized his voice trembled in fear.

…

The little kitty cat licked her chops as she glanced up from her latest willing snack, several kilometers away on the battlefield. And she sighed with relief as the horde of anguished screams rolled toward her, like thunder from an approaching storm. “Oh, god Dagon,” Mirror meowed gratefully with a barely suppressed shudder, “thank you for delivering me from all of the witch’s very evil traps!” Then she rose swiftly while mustering all her Talent and darted off to retrieve the fallen staff of Verethragna.

…

“Hey Aryan!” Laura winked with forced cheerfulness as the shocked prince materialized before her, “You must have died. Tell me super quickly, how did Xerxes kill you?” She fumbled desperately for a healing talisman, even as the raw horse’s liver she had been munching on fell from her mouth.

“An angel? Am I in heaven?” Aryan answered dreamingly as he gawked at his completely restored body.

“Faster! You have three seconds… how did you die?” Laura hissed.

“You’re Laura! Erm… he stabbed me through the chest with his staff…” Aryan muttered sheepishly as his hands drifted to the spot where his wound had been, “how did you save me…”

Laura sighed with relief as she tagged the spot on her body, hurriedly with the charm, “I can probably fix something like that…” she clenched her teeth with an anticipatory grimace. Then a hollow crater blasted through her budding bosom, accompanied instantly by a large fountain of gore that further stained the already reddened hillside, and the princess cried out due to the extreme pain and pitched over face-first into the sopping stained grass.

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“Laura! You stupid foolish witch…” Aryan fell to his knees with horrified realization as tears streamed down his cheeks, “You gave up your life for me…”

“Super idiot,” Laura gasped faintly, “don’t write me off that easily…” she groaned painfully as she raised her trembling hand and activated the healing talisman.

“Laura!” Aryan crawled up to the blood-soaked girl, “You aren’t dead?” he muttered in disbelief. “But he ran me straight through the heart!”

“Gah… holy Krall, this hurts so much that I can’t even concentrate properly. Normal mundane pain is even more inconvenient than I imagined!” Laura complained. The princess giggled as Aryan continued to gape repeatedly at her like a goldfish out of water, “Tired of my company already?” She tittered teasingly, “This is like your once in a lifetime, super best opportunity, to off me while I’m still completely incapacitated. All you have to do is to lope off my head before my heart heals itself.”

“You are still alive?” Aryan spluttered belatedly, “How is it even possible…”

Laura chortled, then she coughed feebly and convulsed from the excruciating agony shooting through her critically wounded body. “My spell is a super smashing success! If I’m feeling so much pain, that stupid lion must be going mad from the tenfold amplification! Sneaking that extra modification into the empty lines in the fifth ethereal layer was a super brilliant…”

“Laura…” Aryan growled darkly, “what if he had also cut off my head or disintegrated my entire body with a direct blast from that staff of his? Would you have been able to recover from…”

“Questions, questions.” Laura shrugged dismissively, “Hey, lift me up in your arms and show me what’s happening to Xerxes!” The wolf sniggered excitedly as the lion’s plaintive yelps began echoing across the land, “I mustn’t miss his solo choir performance!”

“But you have a big bloody hole in your chest!” Aryan stammered, “We must…” he glanced wildly about him but quickly realized that the nearest Vaishyan healer was situated miles away.

“And so?” Laura pouted with a sigh, “I know that I’m all sticky and icky now, but I saved your freaking life! So just do me a favor and lift me up so that I can see what’s happening to Xerxes. I’m quite close to deciphering how his defensive tattoo works!”

“But Laura, you are…” Aryan protested tearfully.

“I’m in this lousy state right now, because you wouldn’t listen to my warnings, ran off to play hero, and got yourself killed!” Laura goaded exploitatively at the boy’s growing guilt, “So stop arguing for once and do as I say!”

The third prince of Vaishya nodded obediently as he cradled the bleeding princess of Andania gently in his arms and turned to face the screaming lion behind him.

“Hey you!” Laura beckoned to the officer that had been gaping silently at their antics, “Where are my kebabs? Bring them to me this instant!”

…

The mighty Lion of Saadian thrashed about in utter misery as Laura’s higher magic scorched unforgivingly against his flesh. First, he rolled and lashed about in an uncontrolled frenzy, then he dug his fingers desperately under his own hide in a vain attempt to tear the countless talismans from his body. “Arrgh… it hurts… someone please, help me!” he whined plaintively as the blood from his self-inflicted wounds soaked into the blackened soil beneath him. The intense agony that the spell inflicted on him was far worse than death itself and drove the maddened emperor to suicide. Unable to bear the immense pain for any longer, Xerxes reached out and grabbed at his mithril sword and thrust the sharp end straight through his own beating heart. He toppled over face-first into the dirt and lay still for a long silent moment, then the intricate runes on his body blazed brightly, the torturous talismans were blown to smithereens, and he rose to his feet with a loud furious roar that shook the heavens. “WOLF!” the lion glared directly at the far hillside, “YOU ARE DEAD!” he snarled as he blurred towards her like an unstoppable gale of obliteration.

“Curly Krall crap…” Laura cursed weakly as she choked on her smoking skewer of meat, “I can’t stop him like this, run Aryan! You’ll be caught in the blast.”

“I’ll never abandon you!” Aryan swore furiously as he looked around urgently for a weapon.

“Don’t be stupid,” Laura retorted. “You don’t stand a chance, and if he kills you again, my spell will transfer all that damage to me!” she lied desperately. “Officer! Protect your prince with your life! Get him away from here this instant!” The wolf pushed weakly away from the prince and staggered upright, before activating a talisman and sprinting away.

The lion smirked as he immediately understood the princess’ intent and continued speeding towards his original destination, “I’ll kill him first!” he sneered. “I’ll tear all the people you care about to pieces before your hapless eyes!”

“Nooo!” Laura screamed as she turned back and unleashed all her power to confine the emperor. For one infinitesimal moment, the princess’ overloaded Talent soared up and exceeded even Xerxes’ monstrous ability, then she collapsed helplessly to her knees as blood steamed from her reopened wounds. And the lion’s laughter thundered mockingly as he shrugged off her faltering magical restraints and stampeded towards the prince and his sole surviving bodyguard. The knight gulped in horror, but he brandished his sword and yelled bravely as he charged towards Xerxes. The lion snorted with scorn as he sidestepped the officer’s attack before slugging him in the chest with his naked fist.  The mighty blow tore effortlessly through the unfortunate soldier’s armor and his corpse was blasted apart into a multitude of mushy pieces that rained across the hillside. Xerxes smiled viciously as he cracked his stained knuckles loudly, then he moved with purposeful slowness towards the doomed prince of Vaishya.

“Please… you can’t… anything but Aryan…” Laura wept as she poked desperately at her Calamity Ring. But the princess’ injuries were simply to severe, her exhausted Talent refused to submit to her distraught mind, and the horrified magicless girl fell helplessly onto her fours. The lion gloated, his upraised mithril sword gleamed brightly as it reflected the rays of the gentle morning sun, and he swung with deliberate slowness to extend their instant of despair to an everlasting eternity.

“ARYAN!!!” A feral kitty cat, bristled savagely as she interposed her body between the two men. The staff of Verethragna yowled violently as it disintegrated the lion’s mithril fang, along with his entire arm, and the earth trembled from the impact as she pummeled the mighty emperor in the gut, with an eight-hit combo. Then she pounced wildly on the staggering lion’s chest and gnawed off his left ear before darting away to avoid his distressed retaliatory swipe.

“Arrgh!” Xerxes moaned as his tattooed runes glowed again and his damaged arm began regenerating swiftly. But his eyes widened with horror as blood continued to pour from his mangled features and he clutched at the side of his bleeding face as it refused to heal.

The angry kitten leered as she chewed viciously, and her throat bulged as she swallowed, “I’ll eat you, Aryan hurter!” She growled as she poured her Talent into the humming scepter and jabbed it at the wounded lion.