Skora frequently visited Soel, as she patrolled the Fourth Ring. Making sure that it was only ever them two speaking. Skora found Soel waiting for her, with a table of assorted fruits. She smiled and created herself a seat. "You've made my last week enjoyable." "Well mine has been miserable." Soel said, her face and voice tired. She buried her face into her hands. "I did promise I wouldn't cause any problems." "You're not who I'm worried about." She said looking up to the barren horizon. "Yes, beyond that horizon, is seemingly an endless army. Hell bent on destroying you all." Skora said, crunching on an apple. "Thanks." Soel said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. Skora and Soel stared off into the horizon, with the sun cresting over the horizon. "Are you contempt with this existence?" Skora asked. Soel glanced over looking at her askance.
"What do you mean?" "This. To wake up every day to the same thing. Does it ever become too mundane?" Skora asked, her voice filled with despair. Soel chuckled, surprising Skora. "What's so funny? I'm being deep and philosophical!" She exclaimed, crossing her arms. "I asked Encara that once." Soel said, placing her hand over Skora's heart. "He said, when you have the right people in your heart. Boring or exciting, no day is wasted with them." Skora froze looking at Soel's warm smile. "Day after day of battle, or a mundane existence. If I wake up with the people I have in my life. I'll be happy." She said staring off into the horizon. Skora nodded solemnly. Soel could tell she was upset with her answer. "You've lived for a long time haven't you?" Soel asked, placing her hand onto Skora's shoulder. She chuckled. "I've lost count of how long it's been. I can't remember the last time I lived with purpose."
"Then come fight with us. Help us end this war." Skora shrugged her hand off, and stood up. "He would never allow us to join a side." Soel could sense the fear emanating from her. Skora was powerful enough, to make Encara hesitant to fight her. So who would instil that fear into her? "Who would never allow you to join a side?" "Not important. Just know that I won't be helping you all in this war." Soel blew a raspberry. "You won't tell me anything about yourself, will you?" She shook her head with a smirk. "Looks like you have company." Skora said. Soel stood up seeing a shadow pass the horizon. Skora closed her eyes. "Judging by the weight of that small army. Artaraxus has arrived to take a swing at you." "You can sense them that far away?" "I can also tell you that there's about two thousands of them. Split evenly with the Kal'Nar-" "Finish sucking your own dick later." Soel snapped, leaping off the ring. Skora watched her float down. "I'll be waiting!" She called out.
The legion of Artaraxus marched with the sun behind them. Wearing their resplendent golden layers of plate armour. Their pauldrons and helmets shaped in the heads of lions; claws atop their gauntlets and sabatons. Their white capes floated behind them, with a poleaxe, or war hammers embossed on them. They were the only kingdom Soel knew of, that refused to carry any banner. A prideful kingdom, built upon excess, lust and their vanity. The Golden Lions. However unlike the pitiful horde of Elves, and mountain mongrels. Artaraxian soldiers have always been a threat. They stopped roughly five hundred metres away, with their Commander meeting Soel, face to face. He bowed before removing his helmet, tucking it under his pit.
The Commander towered over Soel, with his silver hair, shaved down the sides, and long down the middle. His chiselled features was covered in sweat from the march. "Grand Mage Soel. Are you here to negotiate the surrender?" Soel pursed her lips to a line, staring at him filled with contempt. "I see stupidity, actually runs through the entire kingdom. Not just the siblings." She said rolling her eyes. The Commander snarled. "Do not, mention those traitors, to me." His growling simply made her smirk. "Unfortunately, I'm not here to negotiate a surrender. Simply offer a proposal for you, to take back, to your men. Join us in killing those, who raise their banners against us. Or die with them." The Commander scoffed. "I had always thought that the Grand Mages of the Citadel, to be smart. I guess I was wrong." He said strapping on his helmet.
"I am commander-" Soel raised her finger. "Stop. I don't give a fuck who you are. Walk back in silence." She snapped. The commander let out a roar, drawing his war hammer, and tower shield. He swung his hammer up high, ready to bring it down, with all his might. He froze seeing, a large fully formed Earth gate, under Soel. She smiled before closing her fist. The Commander's armour crumpled, instantly pulverising him, with a sickening wet crunch. Blood sprayed out from the gaps. She took a deep breath and launched the crumpled mass of armour and blood, high into the air. The former Commander plummeted into the ground in front of the awaiting army. Soel created a sign that read. 'Come and get it, Cunts.' The enraged army drew their weapons and shields, charging in. Skora watched from above with a smile from ear to ear.
The two legions charged in without fear, their shields and weapons drawn. Soel lowered her stance, tucking one fist by her hip, holding the other out. The gate beneath her expanded tenfold. "EARTH!" They chanted. The formation shuffled, and at the rear hundreds of Earth gates opened. She sucked on her teeth, then took a deep breath. The audacity to think a small handful of Earth Mages would stop her. Soel raised her front leg, slamming it into the ground. A giant boulder shot up from the ground. She took a step forward with her back leg, squaring herself with the boulder, launching it towards the enemy with a hip punch. Skora reeled back impressed. "And here I thought, all you Citadel mages, were a bunch of static casters."
The legion charged in with reckless abandon. Believing their Earth mages would shelter them. The giant boulder cast a looming shadow over them, before stopping above them. The Earth mages took a step in sync, ready to launch it back. The gate beneath Soel, begun to spin, with the boulder. She took a deep breath, grabbing the air. "Scatter." She said pulling the air apart. Screams of anguish and agony rung out, as spikes of earth pierced through metal, or crushed bones. The legion continued onwards, now roughly one hundred metres away from Soel, with a cloud of dust forming under their feet. Skora watched on, eager to see Soel continue her display of power and strength. With another deep breath, the gate stopped spinning and expanded to a radius of fifty metres.
She clapped her hands together, as if to pray. Taking another step forward, she drove her hands into the ground. "Sunder." Opening her arms, a snaking fissure, stretched through the legion. The ground split apart sinking inwards. The soldiers leapt into the air to avoid their demise. Soel smirked, and then clapped her hands. The two fractures shot up into the air, and slammed together. Torrents of blood shot out, with shrapnel of metal scrapes and bones shot out. The screams of hundred women and men silenced in an instant. However the screams of zealous soldiers continued onwards. Soel gnashed her teeth together, sweat dripping down her face. They had closed the distance. Skora looked on anxiously, spotting the knights and mages preparing themselves at the wall, for the horn to blow.
Soel shrunk the gate and retreated, surfing on a wave of earth. The soldiers kept chase. She smirked, waiting for them to exhaust their initial burst of energy. Thanatos stood far in the back, lugging the large horn behind him. With a deep breath he raised the horn. This horn let out a throaty roar, that rung out. As the sound reached out, the corpses begun to twitch and convulse. 'Why would they use it now? Their forces aren't even de-' Soel's mind went blank, seeing both dead and living soldiers transform. Her eyes bulged, brimming with fear. The small army of two thousand turned instantly into a swarm of Drakens. Now leading the charge of Drakens were rampaging Drakes and Wyverns screeching through the air. "GET INSIDE!" Soel roared. The Citadel army scrambled back inside, as Soel stopped and turned around. "What are you doing?" Skora asked clenching her fist. "RUN AWAY!"
Soel smirked hearing the faint cry. "You think I'm scared of an army of Drakens?" She fell to her knees, her cloak exploding as she transformed. Soel let out a roar in her Draken state, ready to meet the stampeding army. The ground shook violently, splitting apart from the weight of the swarm. The large horn crumbled in Thanatos's hands, and he wore a satisfied grin. "One Grand mage down." Cries of terror and monstrous roars rung out from behind Soel. Skora and Soel snapped back to see hundreds of mages and knights begin transforming. "What the fuck is that horn?" Skora and Soel exclaimed. Readying herself to leap off the wall, a scorpion scuttled onto Skora's leg, rubbing it's stinger on her leg. She froze in fear, gnashing her teeth together, and clenching her fists. Soel slammed her claws into the ground, separating the newly transformed soldiers outside the Fourth ring. Skora watched on, filled with anger and despair.
Soel was surrounded by over two thousand drakens. The sky blackened by hundreds of Wyverns circling above her. They begun to swoop down, as the other Drakens lunged at Soel. She evaded their attacks, being nimble as a cat, leaping onto their backs. She dug her claws into spines, gouging them out, as she leapt to a new target. The taste of blood and iron filled her mouth. Skora trembled in fear, as Soel's movement became sluggish, and slow. Her exhaustion boiled to the surface, and a Drake slashed her belly open. She tumbled bulldozing her way through the swarm. With a roar of anguish, and anger, Soel rose to her feet. A Lindworm leapt onto her back, sinking its claw bony claws, into her sides. Blood shot out, and before she could scream out, the draken sank its fangs into her side. Viciously shaking its head side to side.
"WHERE THE FUCK IS HER HE-" Skora's scream was silenced instantly. The sky became grey. The world became silent, a piercing deafening ring hit her ears. Skora quickly covered her ears. She looked up to the see the largest Wind Gate, she had ever seen. A singular vortex from the gate, was the size of the First ring. Aerith floated down from the sky, a finger to her lips, and her eyes closed. The vortexes in the gate, spun slowly, drawing in all the air. The Lindworm released Soel, collapsing back clawing at its throat. The Wyverns and Ampthitheres plummeted from the sky, choking for air. The Drakes, Wyrms and Lindworms, writhed, clawing at their throats. Skora watched on in awe, as the swarm of Drakens fell one by one. Dead. Bloodshot eyes glazed over, and tongues hanging out.
Skora bore witness, to a sight not seen in over twenty years. The Magnum Opus of Grand Mage Aerith Johwa. The Last Whisper. Skora shook off the scorpion. "I can't help them fight, but I can still save them." She said leaping off the wall. Sound returned to normal, and Aerith plummeted down, staggering over to Soel. She had reverted back to a human state, weakly clutching her stomach, in an attempt to keep her entrails inside. Aerith collapsed next to her, drenched in sweat. "You're....meant..." Soel said with laboured breaths, trying to crawl towards her. "To...save...me..." She grit her teeth, shoving the overwhelming pain down. Skora surfed atop the earth, and picked them up, encasing Soel's wounds with dirt. "Don't die." She said, gripping Soel tightly. She let out a bloody scoff. "I'm...not that...weak..." She said smirking.
Encara had been forced to rest in his quarters. His strength had not yet returned to full. He had taken it upon himself to heal everyone's injuries, to allow the other Blesseds to rest. An action that made Aerith ground him to his room. The stone in his room parted way, and Skora dumped Soel and Aerith onto his bed. "Heal them. Now!" Encara wasted no time, and clapped his hands together, branding them both with the Blessed cross. "Forget about Aerith. She doesn't have any injuries. Focus on Soel!" Encara growled, sealing Soel's wounds. "I'm not healing her injuries. I'm giving her some Arcane energy." "What good will that do?" Skora exclaimed, grabbing Soel's hand.
"Her heart could stop from the pain. Now shut up and let me work!" He ordered. Soel was pale, her lips turning blue. "How can I help!?" She shouted, frantic at the sight of Soel coughing blood. "Water, food, blankets. Go!" She nodded, and slunk into the ground. Encara grit his teeth, removing the cross from Aerith. "Sorry, Cin. You're gonna have to deal with that later." He said, focusing on Soel. Her injuries were clogged with debris, bone and other contaminants. Encara had to remove those as he sealed the injuries, and having to check if her heart stopped beating, among other internal injuries.
Several of the Elven commanders stood next to Thanatos, all dressed for battle. "They survived." One Commander said annoyed. "That was a waste of the Artaraxian legion." Another gripped. Thanatos let out an exasperated sigh. "Have you children ever casted a Magnum Opus?" He gazed out at the field, filled with the rotting corpses of Drakens. The Commanders all shared a fleeting glance, before shaking their heads. "Anyone smart enough would know, that you should enter, your Draken state before casting it. Especially one of that calibre and skill." He said with glee. The Commanders all looked at him askance, before one snapped. "Will you tell us already?" "It tells us, that Aerith Johwa has no Draken state." "But they're both still alive!" Thanatos rolled his eyes. "Aerith will need weeks to recover her strength. Encara will need to focus all his strength healing Soel. The Citadel is now down three Grand Mages, not one." A wicked smile stretched across their faces. "We'll send another wave of soldiers, at night." They said marching off. Thanatos let out a sigh of relief. 'This will be a quick war.' He thought.
As the sun reached its peak. Gwyneth and Miranda were followed by Yssac and Fervias outside the Fourth Ring. Their knights following behind them. Miranda whispered into Gwyneth's ear. "Why are they following us?" "You're not gonna believe me, if I tell you." She whispered back. Miranda glanced over her shoulder. Yssac and Fervias bowed their heads to her. She reeled back in horror and confusion. "What the fuck?" She whispered. Gwyneth shrugged, unable to give her an answer. The two of them stopped in front of the dead mass of Drakens. "What are your orders?" Yssac asked. Miranda shifted her confused gaze to Gwyneth, sharing the same expression. Encara must have healed them wrong, Miranda thought. It was the only possible answer for this oddity.
Gwyneth cleared her throat. "Bring the hearts of each Draken. One of each kind on the hierarchy." Yssac and Fervias saluted her, banging their right fist over their heart. "YOU HEARD HER! CUT OUT THEIR HEARTS!" Fervias ordered. The two of them scurried off, with their knights making swift work. Gwyneth and Miranda stood speechless, watching everything unfold around them. Their eyes raced, trying to comprehend the sight before them, with their jaws ajar. Fervias came back covered in blood, and dropped a large Drake heart in front of Gwyneth. The large scaled heart oozed out a last spurt of blood. She bent down, and filled the heart with her arcane energy. The heart pulsed with a surge of magenta arcane energy. "What are you doing?" He asked.
"Confirming Encara's theory." She said. "Fill the hearts with arcane energy, tell me what affinity is seen." The knights nodded and quickly followed her orders. Each squad filled a heart with arcane energy, answering aloud their findings. "Magenta! Magenta! Magenta!" "What does this tell us?" Yssac asked. "It means whoever gets transformed, loses their affinity. In any case that's good news for us. We won't have to worry about the newly transformed casting any magic." Gwyneth said looking out to the horizon. "What now?" Fervias asked. "Burn the corpses, and prepare for a night assault." Miranda said. "There will be no help from the Grand Mages this time. We will have to win this fight, the old fashion way." Gwyneth said. "I'll prepare the oils." Yssac said, saluting her. "I'll get the bows out of storage." Fervias said saluting her. As the two of them left. Gwyneth and Miranda shuddered. "EUGH! That's so damn weird!" Miranda exclaimed, her skin crawling.