Chapter 924: Done For (Ch.925)
The ruins of Ebon-Hollow had always been a sight of devastation. A monunt of a great tragedy. But nothing could have compared to the chaos it had now fallen into.
War... it was a cruel and bitter thing, Neveah realised.
Like the uprising and the overthrow before it, she knew this was one that would go down in history.
A sea of fire roared far below, monstrous beasts wailing as the flas consud them.
Dragons swooped down in formations, raining torrents of flas. Their great claws tore through the gigantic beasts, ferocious roars shaking the skies.
Riders released arrows on forlorn beasts invading the skies, keeping them off the back of their dragons. Wielding magic shield artifacts the mages had cast to protect the vulnerable parts of the battling dragons.
But the forlorn charged in overwhelming numbers. For each one taken down, there were ten more to take its place.
Hydras, orcs, maticore packs, trolls, golems of all kinds and species Neveah had neither heard of nor seen before this mont.
The sll of burnt flesh was thick in the air. A layer of ash and embers curled up to the skies, blocking out the descent of the sun.
The easy white of the first layer of snow had been dyed red with blood, overwheld by ash and devastation.
The sll of death was what stood out the most. Putrid... bitter, and clinging to the back of her throat like a curse she couldn’t shake off.
Neveah panted from exertion. The wind whipped through her hair, popping her eardrums as Jian cut through the skies at blinding speed, steering a path straight for the enemy commander.
Her breath echoed in her ears, heart pounding wildly against her ribcage. She could feel the strain of magic on every breath, the golden light pulsing around her hands draining her strength.
But she didn’t falter, feeding the shield that warded off the relentless ambushes hurled at Jian.
The Dragon King was in the midst of the battle, and it was apparent that the forlorn was hell bent on taking him out.
A great orc stepped into their path, aiming a jagged blade at Jian from below.
Cassian dove down, claws piercing into the shoulders of the beast. The orc roared loudly, but Cassian’s roar was greater as he stirred his wings, tearing the head of the great beast right off its shoulders with a strength that humbled Neveah.
The beast crashed to the earth, crushing nurous of its kind to the ground with it.
Imagor and Kirgan had joined the fray at so point.
If the battle on the other side of Ebon-Hollow had been won, or they had entrusted it to another battle lord, Neveah wasn’t certain.
What she did know was that the King’s guard always knew where they were most needed. And they had determined that place was here, by Jian’s side as he made to claim the head of the enemy commander.
Nothing else mattered but that. In this mont, they were a well oiled team, battling with startling unison and the expertise of n who had fought by one another for centuries longer than most could rember.
A hideous, winged beast, half the size of a dragon surged at Cassian from behind, and like a fiend from hell, sword at the ready, Kaliana leaped off Imagor’s back with a loud battle cry, hacking wildly into the beast.
Imagor dove after her, flying low and she free fell, landing true on his back like one who had lived in the skies all her life.
Neveah had thought she understood the bond these n shared. Only now did she realise, she didn’t have the slightest idea.
Jian flew straight. Not faltering or slowing, no matter what appeared in his way.
He knew the King’s guard would clear his path. He trusted them with absoluteness, and they in turn didn’t fail him.
They protected each other too, guarding their vulnerable points without questions.
Each knew what to do and exactly when to do it. Together? They were an indomitable force.
And they were missing two of them.
Neveah couldn’t help but wonder, the terror it would be if all five dragon lords guarded their King.
Perhaps this was not the right ti to harbour such thoughts, but Neveah felt a deep sense of pride blossoming within her.
There was no greater decision her dragon lord had made, than these n he called brothers.
And if they survived this...when they survived this, Neveah vowed to herself these n would truly be her family. She would trust with all she had. She would hold nothing back... nothing.
A pained cry drew Neveah out of her thoughts. She whipped around, eyes widening in horror to see Estelle tumble off Dante’s back, a hydra’s tentacle wrapped around her midriff.
Dante roared, diving after her, but another tentacle slamd into him, sending him crashing down to a swarm of beasts below.
"Elle!!! Dante!!!!" Neveah cried in horror, "We have to go back! Dante’s hurt!!!"
"We’ve got them!" Kaliana yelled, "Just keep going!"
Imagor swerved around, diving for Dante with Kirgan guarding his retreat, leaving Cassian pressing on by Jian’s side as they left the sea of flas behind, Orin’s rusty scales a dot in the distance.
Neveah winced visibly, her heart tight. It took everything in her to tear her gaze away, hoping against all hopes that this would not be the last she saw of the bubbly girl she had co to cherish.
’Do not fret.’ Jian’s voice flooded her mind, ’Kirgan and Imagor have it under control. A hydra may be the fiercest foe, but together, they have the advantage.’
’We must keep going. We cannot let him get away. Our duty...is to end this. Save everyone.’
The certainty in Jian’s voice eased the knot in her heart. At the sa ti, she felt the weight of the responsibility Jian had lived with for centuries.
They were the rulers of the stronghold. They couldn’t look back. They couldn’t falter. They couldn’t hesitate, or mourn.
They could only stay the course. Press on.
Because this would only end, when Asrig was dead.
And if they failed, Dante, Estelle, the King’s guard, Kaideon and the Dunes, the whole damn stronghold...was done for.
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