Chapter 20
Talya coughed, and tried to climb free from the rubble. Her legs were caught underneath a large stone, she couldn't move. She looked around and tried to call for help. It was so dark, she couldn't see from all the dust in the air. Her voice was lost to the void. She ran her hands through her hair, they came away bloodied and red. It was so quiet. Only moments before the air was filled with the sounds of grinding rock and twisted metal, Screams and roars. The ground had shaken as the Citadel came down, the dust filled the sky. Now everything was silent.
The sound of strong wings beating the dusty air echoed from down the street, and she knew that a Dragon was coming. She tried to pull herself free, but the stone would not move. Out of panic, she called to the shadows. She felt their presence, she felt their pain. She bound a presence to a rock in her hand, and tied it to her will. The shadows manifested into the form of a wolf. Its fur was dark, but its eyes were darker. It carefully reached down and removed the stone.
She stood to her feet, thankfully nothing felt broken. The ground shook as another explosion sounded in the distance, the dust was beginning to clear.
What happened?
The city she grew up in was barely recognizable, as it lay under a pile of rubble and ash. The proud citadel had fallen, crushing much of the poor quarter.
The Dragon had landed a few meters away, and it glared at her. She dived for cover as it spewed forth its fiery death. Her wolf Demon charged forward, and swiped its claws against the Dragon's scaly hide. It roared, and her wolf howled in chorus. With a snap from its powerful jaws, the Dragon destroyed the Demon. She watched as the shadows were released.
The Dragon turned on her again. It threw back its golden head, preparing to breath its fire, when arrows struck it in the eyes. It screamed in misery as it lost its sight. A third arrow, accompanied by a blast of magic struck home in the creatures gullet. It collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain.
Two figures approached from behind a building. One was a man, his skin as grey as the ash in the sky, and his eyes darker than night. He had little horns that sprouted from his head, and despite his demonic appearance, Talya knew him to be friendly. The other was a hard looking woman.
"Ambassador!" She shouted happily as she limped towards him.
"Talya?" He asked. "Your brother will be so pleased to know you survived the citadel." He said as he hugged her. She looked into the Mercyre's eyes and felt safe.
"He's alive then?" She asked.
"I haven't seen him since the start. I don't know." Ash said. "We must hurry to the forward operating base, it's our best chance of finding the others.
"Sir, we have company!" The woman said. She was a soldier, maybe in her mid thirties with blonde hair and stunning blue eyes. Her hands lit up with purple flame, and Ash drew his bow as a ring of Drakes closed in around them.
They were surrounded, and had no route of escape.
"I am very happy to have spent my last moments among friends." Ash said quietly. "Talya if you see an opening, you have to run. Don't look back."
He fired an arrow straight into the heart of the nearest Drake before she could argue. The rest charged with claws outstretched. Ash dropped his bow and drew his sword. He took on three simultaneously, while the soldier shot small bursts of fire at any who came too close.
A Drake slashed deep with its claws, cutting right through the woman's armor. Her book splattered the stones as she went down screaming.
One approached Talya. She did not have any weapons to draw, so she retreated backwards. Her back found stone and she could move no further. Ash cried out in pain as claws wrapped around his neck. She watched in horror as his blood poured to the ground, his body collapsed.
The Drakes were advancing. Her fingers wrapped around the little white stone In her pocket. The stone Tria had given her. The stone that bound the Demons of her father.
Panicked, she attempted something she had never done before. Something completely unheard of in Demon lore. She tried to summon an Angel.
She closed her eyes, and spoke the words she had never been taught. Calling for the light. The shadows manifested once again, and the image of her father formed. She had never felt so weak, even keeping her eyes open was difficult after spending such energy.
"Dad?" She whispered. He was just how she remembered. His tall and powerful body lashed out, and ripped the life from the surrounding Drakes. Her joy was soon turned to horror as her father attacked. She wanted them to die, just not like this. Their entrails were scattered around the street, their dark blood filled the gutters.
Lucas stood in the centre of the carnage, his black eyes turned on her. Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. He charged at her, and she collapsed to the ground. She felt her soul being torn from her body.
Then she felt nothing.
***
Eric and Kharn reappeared within the city. Battered and broken. They ran through the streets, clinging to dark alleys and side streets. They could no longer hear the sounds of fighting.
"The forward operating base must be around here somewhere." Eric said.
"Help me." They heard someone call. "Someone help me please"
Kharn and Eric ran to the source of the noise, to find a small boy half buried underneath. His arm was broken, and tears were dried on his cheeks. Half the building had fallen on top of him, and it was burning.
"Hold on, we will get you out." Eric called out.
"It hurts!" The boy cried.
Eric was exhausted. He tried to draw on his magic, but there was nothing left. He was ready to collapse.
"Eric, put out the fires." Kharn demanded.
"I... I'm trying." He stammered.
He reached out and tried to bend the energy, but he couldn't do it. His mind was going foggy, his limbs felt like lead.
The boy started to cough as smoke filled his lungs. Kharn rushed over and tried to clear the rubble.
Eric saw him burn his hands as he tried, he threw his body onto the searing hot rubble, trying to get it to move.
"Dammit Eric, move the rock!" Kharn shouted.
"I can't." He whispered. "I can't."
The boy started to scream as the fires touched his skin. Eric watched, powerless to act. Kharn tried to pull onto the boys arm, but he screamed louder.
A woman came running from behind a building, her face burned heavily.
"Josh!" She screamed. "Help me! That's my son!"
The boy cried for his mother, his body fully in the fire now. It made him feel sick, watching and powerless. He closed his eyes, they were so heavy.
***
He woke in a strangers bed, with Kharn eating some dry bread on a chair by the window.
They said nothing as he got changed, the haunting images from the night before still fresh on his mind.
"Did the boy-"
"Dead." Kharn whispered. "He died."
"How long was I out?" He asked.
Kharn shrugged. "Maybe a day? I've been scouting out the area, raiding homes for supplies. It's not looking good out there."
Eric helped himself to some of the old bread, noticing his parched throat.
"Any water?" He asked.
"Can't." Kharn replied. "A few hours ago black rain fell from the sky. It's in everything, it's not safe to drink at all."
"Let's get moving then." He said.
They left the house and entered a markets square, filled with abandoned stalls and empty crates. As they stepped from the shadows, and entered the light, he felt the cold touch of a blade kiss his neck.
"Who are you?" A voice whispered.
"I am King Eric." He replied calmly.
"Yeah right." The voice said as the blade was pressed harder against his skin.
"Believe what you will, I am not here to loot and pillage. I am looking for the forward operating base, where I can find Lord Demetrius and his associates."
There was a moment of tense silence before the voice responded.
"Pockets, empty them."
Slowly, he obliged. Kharn did the same as he dropped their food supplies on the ground in front of him. Eric's fingers felt the warm touch of his spell blade, the one Lord Edgar had given him for his name day. The day his father had died.
He acted quickly to direct his energy into the thief's knife, untill it glowed white hot. The theif cried in pain as the knife dropped to the ground. He turned to face his captor, a boy who clutched his burnt hand.
"The base is just two blocks away in the basement of the coffee shop." He cried.
"Thank you." Eric said gently.
"If you are the real King, don't ever show your face in these parts again." The boy called. "This is The Wanted's territory."
Kharn tensed. Eric said nothing, and they followed the directions to the base.
The sky was clear, and there hadn't been any enemy encounters in a while.
Maybe the tides were turning?
They entered the shop, and were greeted by a scene of chaos. Demetrius and a few commanders were fighting over a small table in an even smaller room. All shouting stopped when people started to recognize Eric.
"My King." They said, as they bowed. Eric dismissed them, and turned to Demetrius.
"Eric!" He shouted. "Thank the gods you're alive!"
"What's the situation?" He asked.
"Almost all of our forces have been wiped out, however pockets still remain bottled up in places marked on the map. "
Eric studied the map on the table. There were dots of ink scratched into the paper in various locations throughout the city.
"We were just... Debating our next cause of action. I recommend we send our remaining runners and troops the these locations, notifying the defenders of our position. That way we can focus on holding out until the United Forces arrives. The captains are content to wait for air support from the other cities and their Haast. While I agree that that's certainly a better option, we can't wait forever, considering people's lives are on the line. We need to send runners now."
"No." Eric said. "Sending out people into the streets is far too dangerous. They'll be discovered without a doubt. What if we sen-"
"Everyone quiet." A scout ordered as he entered the room.
Eric looked up, confused. But things were soon made clear. Even from the basement, the powerful beating of wings against the stale air could be heard clearly. It was a few moments before they were in the clear, convinced that the beast had moved on.
"We need to move." Eric said. "The city is lost, we're sitting ducks in here."
"I agree." Captain Cado said.
"We should fall back to the northern watch tower and set up base there."
"The isle outside the city where you the Hunters were trained?" The Marshal asked.
"The very same." Eric replied. "It will give us a good rally point for any survivors, and we can gather the united forces there as quietly as possible."
"Makes sense." Demetrius said, nodding. "Send messages to both the United Forces, and the Allied Lords of our new position. The rest of us, start breaking camp."
The effect was immediate. Maps were rolled and equipment was packed. Messengers checked the skies before taking to the streets. Demetrius came over to talk.
"Was Talya in the Keep?" He whispered.
Talya, his sister. In all the commotion, he had either forgotten, or the realization had failed to regester properly. He wasn't sure which. He drew a shaky breath to steady his raging emotions.
"There will be a time to mourn the dead, Demetrius." He said."It's not now."
Demetrius nodded slowly before returning to work. Kharn called out from upstairs, and instantly everyone on the room froze. The unmistakeable sound of a Dragon touched down in the street outside.
"Run." A scout screamed, before a pair of red claws skewered him from behind. Eric signalled for Demetrius and Kharn to come close, before he grabbed their shoulders and vanished on the spot. They appeared out on the street outside.
"Buy them some time." He shouted
Kharn and Demetrius were quick to take on the Drakes as they began to surround them. Demetrius hacked away with his mighty battle axe, while Kharn ducked and weaved with his twin daggers.
Eric took on the Dragon. He cleared his mind, and sent a powerful bolt of lightning towards it. The Dragon cried out in pain, and threw back its head. Like a tide of fire, the flames burned through the street, destroying everything In it's path. Eric shouted a warning, before teleporting to a new position on a building above the Dragon. From there, he threw out his hands and let lose a powerful blast of intense heat to the confused Dragon. He struck at its wings, hoping to burn holes in the leathery flesh. It didn't work.
The Dragon slammed it's tail and claws into the base of the building, causing it to collapse. Eric was quick to vanish, and reappeard back down on the street, avoiding the damage of the Fallen building. The street was now filled with dust, he couldn't see. He could hear the sounds of Kharn and Demetrius fighting, and could see the occasional burst of light as their weapons connected to claw.
The Dragon roared loudly and beat it's powerful wings, clearing the air.
Eric turned just as a claw pierced from his uncles stomach. Demetrius's eyes went wide with surprise, and the colour drained from his face.
"No." He said. "No. No. No. DEMETRIUS!"
Suddenly, Eric was plucked from the ground as powerful claws wrapped around his shoulders. The Dragon was carrying him into the sky. He began to feel tired, with the wind blowing in his ears and the cold tapping his spirits. He needed to escape, but the Dragon's grip was too strong. He tried to use his magic, but he was too tired.
"Sleep." A voice whispered.
He watched as the retreating city disappeared into the darkness of his mind.
"Sleep."