C222 - Desperation
The rain of feathers didn't stop, but Khan could avoid everything that tried to fly toward him. Carrying Liiza inevitably slowed him down but only slightly. He remained fast enough to dodge the monster's threatening ability.
Liiza and Khan didn't say anything to each other, and she didn't try to jump down either. The crisis had already made her confirm that her weight barely affected his speed, and it was clear that she couldn't deal with the feathers on her own, especially after losing an arm.
Khan couldn't feel the pain radiated by his right arm. He didn't even think about his broken knife. Only the sensations caused by the falling feathers and the exit of the valley existed in his mind.
Painful cries filled the valley as Niqols and humans continued to die. The monsters' screeches resounded among the two mountains, but they couldn't suppress the familiar voices that reached Khan's ears. The Niqols he had learnt to know during the last months were dying, and he couldn't do anything about that.
.
The higher-ups from both species soon reached the rear team and lowered the damages caused by the feathers. Yeza seemed able to make those projectiles change their trajectory, Captain Erbair could punch many of them away, and the other powerful troops also performed similar feats.
Soon, only those who could deal with the feathers or had found suitable protectors continued to run in the valley. Still, the deaths didn't stop since many monsters directly dived on the escaping group to kill with their sharp talons.
Khan did everything in his power to remain near Yeza, and she didn't make it hard for him. An aura capable of fending off the monsters surrounded the Niqols' leader, and she didn't hesitate to use her ability to protect her daughter.
The valley's exit eventually grew close enough to fill the survivors with hope, but the ground in front of them suddenly opened to reveal a series of mutated Lysixi. It turned out that the battle between the two armies had attracted more than one pack, and the scouts couldn't see the second coming.
A series of spells immediately shot toward the monsters coming out of the ground. Every ability user in the escaping group launched powerful attacks that killed the creatures before they could jump on the surface. Yet, more Lysixi soon replaced the dead and continued their charge.
A few Niqols managed to use the window created by the spells to jump past the holes created by the Lysixi, but those creatures soon sealed the path and bellowed in anger. The escaping group had to stop to avoid those threatening monsters, but that action only exposed them to the rain of feathers.
The two packs weren't working together. The bird-like monsters screeched at the mutated Lysixi and diverged part of their offensive on them. Khan almost hoped that the two groups would forget about them, but that didn't seem to be an option.
The mutated Lysixi created a proper wall with their bodies while Khan's group tried to understand what to do. They couldn't advance, but they couldn't stay there either since feathers continued to fall and some of the flying monsters had even landed near them.
Many eyes fell on the two leaders. Niqols and humans tried to find answers in Yeza and Captain Erbair, but it was clear that they were as lost as them. The two packs weren't leaving any path open even if they didn't plan to share their targets peacefully.
Utter desperation fell among the group. Plans formed and crumbled in Khan's mind as he tried to find a way out of that situation. He had a shot at leaving. He was fast enough to sprint past the Lysixi, but that only if they were distracted.
Khan eventually experienced nefarious thoughts when death seemed imminent. He hated what was appearing in his mind, but he couldn't ignore the products of his survival instincts.
Khan quickly came up with a list of who he was willing to sacrifice to save his life. The names of the soldiers or adult Niqols didn't affect him, but he felt dirty when he saw that many of his acquaintances had made it there. His only consolation was that his close friends weren't there.
"[Mom]?" Liiza asked in a weak voice when she realized how desperate the situation was.
Yeza stared at Liiza and the desperation that she felt melted. It had taken Liiza entire years and that terrible situation to rely on her mother, and the latter couldn't help but feel happy about it.
Yeza heaved a deep sigh before showing a warm smile. She knew what she had to do. In theory, her position as an ambassador made her the most valuable asset in the valley, but she didn't care about politics now. She had a chance to save her daughter, and no hesitation stood on that path.
"[Convince the old hag to come back home]," Yeza ordered in a warm voice, "[And don't make kids before you have established yourself in the tribe. Did you hear that, young man]?"
Khan found himself unable to speak when looking at Yeza. He could read her intentions on her face, and his throat closed because of that. He could only nod to answer her.
"[What does this mean]?" Liiza asked.
Liiza had lost a lot of blood, and pain filled her mind. She had used the entirety of her concentration to straighten her back enough to inspect the situation, so she was utterly exhausted now. Her mind couldn't process the meaning behind Yeza's words.
Yeza didn't answer. She closed her eyes before unleashing a wave of mana that crossed her underlings and expanded until it reached the monsters and Tainted animals in the area.
Khan had felt as if a dense gale had crossed his body. Nothing had happened to him, but he didn't fail to notice how all the flying monsters after his group fell to the ground. The same happened to the Lysixi. Yeza had made more than fifty monsters faint at the same time without affecting any of her underlings.
The incredible power revealed by Yeza left Khan stunned. He had no idea that the Niqols could deploy such a strong ability. It felt almost surreal that a single mage could accomplish something like that.
The humans and Niqols in the group shared Khan's amazement. Hope even appeared in their expressions, but their faces darkened when they saw that the monsters didn't remain asleep. Those creatures began to wake up mere seconds after falling to the ground.
"[Khan]!" Yeza shouted, and her words seemed to carry hidden meanings meant only for him.
Khan immediately snapped back to reality and sprinted toward the Lysixi. He ignored everything happening around him and jumped past the sleeping monsters to resume escaping from the valley.
Liiza struggled to raise her back. She was lying on Khan's right shoulder, and he was holding her legs with both arms, so she didn't have to worry about her balance. She could gaze at the rest of the escaping group, and her eyes widened after noticing that Yeza wasn't moving. The monster with two pairs of wings was even charging at her.
Khan wished to go deaf. Liiza called her mother in a tone that broke his heart. She even mentioned him a few times, but he forced himself to ignore everything and focus on escaping. He only made sure to tighten his grip on Liiza's legs to prevent her eventual attempts to run toward Yeza.
Yeza's smile widened when she saw how sad Liiza felt. She could finally confirm that her daughter cared about her, but her eyes eventually had to move on the four-winged monster. Her glare forced the creature to interrupt its charge and inspect its opponent in fear. That gave her the time to grab the only human that had remained in the area.
Captain Erbair felt dizzy. Her surroundings had turned into nothing more than vague images after Yeza unleashed her ability. Then, she felt someone pulling her from her shoulder.
Captain Erbair initially helped the pulling force since she believed that someone was dragging her away from the valley. However, when her vision stabilized, she found herself farther than before from the valley's entrance.
"What have you done?" Captain Erbair asked without bothering to use the Niqols' language.
"I couldn't keep them busy on my own," Yeza revealed while letting Captain Erbair go and showing a sorry smile.
Captain Erbair inspected her surroundings at that point. The Lysixi and the flying monsters had surrounded Yeza and her, but they didn't attack. Those creatures appeared scared of the two leaders even when they had an overwhelming numerical advantage.
"Is this your doing?" Captain Erbair asked.
"I can make them scared," Yeza sighed, "But monsters with such big packs don't give in to fear. They probably think that we are more valuable than all our underlings."
Captain Erbair inspected the distant valley's exit. A few monsters were running in that direction as they tried to catch the survivors with Khan in the lead. Those creatures weren't enough to scare away the underlings, but the latter's priority was to leave the area.
"You killed us," Captain Erbair coldly stated.
"It's our role to protect the younger generations," Yeza announced. "Your species will be fine. You have good soldiers."
"Humans don't think like that," Captain Erbair complained while moving her eyes on the monsters around her.
"I know," Yeza chuckled. "That's why I didn't give you any choice."
"Bastard!" Captain Erbair cursed while turning toward Yeza and grabbing her shoulders.
"Come on now," Yeza laughed. "We are already dead, but we can buy more time for our underlings. Let's focus on putting up a good fight, shall we?"
Captain Erbair wanted to crush Yeza on the spot, but she couldn't deny the nature of her situation. Monsters were all around her, and some of them had gone through the second round of mutations. Many had abilities, and both packs even had reinforcements near the castle or on the ground. Death was inevitable even for a soldier as strong as her.
"You are lucky that I like to fight," Captain Erbair sighed while letting Yeza go.
Yeza revealed a happy smile, but the two leaders soon had to turn toward the monsters. The latter had finally managed to overcome their fear and had launched a joint offensive.
To be continued