Gryphos. The final city on the list, the final battle they would fight, and the final day of the bloody war.
Ember, Moon, and Draco stood with their armor, looking over to the city with dread. But the only thing Draco could see was the home of the griffon who was going to die. The coward's smell was the only thing he could make out among the rest. Ember drew her daggers, Draco adjusted the shield shakily and swung his sword for a quick stretch. Moon looked to his brother, and at his nod, he howled louder than ever before. 54,982 fighters stood on the outskirts of the capitol, and 2,467 carrier dragons flew overhead. Draco pointed his sword to the castle.
"THE WAR ENDS TODAY, GRYPHOOOOOOOO!" he shouted.
"YOU WON'T TAKE ANYMORE LIVES!" Ember roared.
"YOU'LL DIE LIKE THE COWARD YOU ARE!" Moon howled.
"FIGHTERS!"
"RAHHHHH!"
"CARRIERS!"
"GRAAAAAAHH!"
"RED FEATHERS!"
"AHOOOO!"
"ATTAAAAAAAAAAACK!"
The thundering cries of the combined forces rocked the city's streets, and the ground quaked from the number of fighters and rebels advancing. Catapults lined the outer walls of the city, launching large boulders and groups of smaller stones. The dragons unlucky to be under it were crushed, and their comrades pushed on with just that much more rage. The catapults were keeping their reinforcements from keeping together while mounted crosslaunchers fired streams of enormous arrows. The dragons scales only held for so long against the constant and swift barrages. Draco traveled with Ember and Moon, holding his shield up as the arrows rained down and ricocheted off. The carriers up high were safe from the artillery, but they had their own adversaries in the skies.
Massive war balloons with crosslaunchers mounted on every side flew to meet the equally big dragons. The ships weren't as maneuverable as the carriers, but they packed just as much a punch as they did. The carriers rammed the large inflations and set some ablaze as well, trapping the occupants in a platform of fire. As the bodies and wreckaged fell from the sky, the dragons began climbing the wall, while fliers and griffons flew up with firebreathers. Once at the top, they fought savagely to get to the artillery and set it on fire. The four entrances of the city were opened up to the army, allowing them to pour through into the streets.
Shadow and Peck went ahead while Ember and Moon stuck with Draco. Being so far back from the front lines made Draco growl and snarl in annoyance, but they just wouldn't let him through. The impulse to just take to the roofs and surprise them from above came over him, and he was going to do it before Ember grabbed his arm tightly. She shook her head, ducking under an arrow before it hit her. Draco could hear the sounds of sword on sword as they moved on, bodies of Red Feather and Empire griffons beginning to show up with a sparse amount of dragons. Draco caught a spear and launched it into the ranks behind the front line. His heart rate was on the rise as instinct began to kick in, and he could hear the other voice yelling at him to get to the emperor.
"DRACO!" Ember yelled.
He sprinted past the fighters and griffons, adrenaline causing him to ignore the pains in his body. Bashing a griffon's head with his shield, he deflected a slash and stabbed the griffon quickly before dodging another spear and heabutting the unlucky soul. Ember and Moon pushed through their fighters to join Draco. She jumped over him and slashed a griffons face open, then Moon used his pincers to help his teeth tear into a griffon's skull. The wolf-pony ducked under a trio of arrows, and Draco stepped in the way with his shield before another set could hit him. Moon jumped onto his shield, and his friend launched him to the archer above. The mounter spears penetrated the griffon's chest instantly.
Ember set a spear head ablaze and launched it at a chariot. The cart crashed after running over some griffons and smashed into another war vehicle. Draco pulled her aside, saving her from a duo of spears. This time, Ember took his dagger and bit down on the blade as she charged at the griffons. She sliced one's throat open while the other had his heart cut in half. Her last eight throwing knives were kept in their sheaths, but as soon as she put away her daggers she started tossing them as if there were no tomorrow. Six of the six thrown met their marks in their targets head.
Draco jumped over a chariot, stabbing his sword into a griffons jaw, and kicked the archer off. He placed a bomb in the archer's beak and threw him into another sqaudron of his allies. They burst into flames as the explosion took of his head. Draco raised his shield just in time to block a sword from hitting him. He kicked the griffon onto his side and dropped his knee on his head. Moon tackled an archer off of a burning building and crushed him and a chariot, breaking the damn thing. He jumped back up to spin quickly as he found himself surrounded. Ember landed behind him, taking up a defensive position with her daggers.
Shadow came up behind one of the griffons and slit his throat, then kicked the one beside him to the ground. Ember breathed fire on the griffon in front of her and used her dagger to redirect two spears into unintended targets. Moon sliced a spearhead off and tore his spears into the griffons skull. Peck drove her pike into a warrior's neck from above, skewering him on the spot.
A carrier dragon slammed into a couple of homes, the wreckaged seperating Draco from the rest of them. Ember motioned for Moon, Shadow, and Peck to follow as they detoured around the street. Draco impaled a griffon on a spear and kept charging until he skewered another two. Tossing them aside, he grabbed his last two bombs and swiped them over a fire, lighting the top of the bag. He beamed them into the supports of a home, the explosion knocking out the metal beam and causing it to collapse on another group of enemy reinforcements. The castle was in view, just a few blocks down. He cried out as a sword exited from the right side of his chest.
Steeling himself, he elbowed the griffon and took the sword out. This griffon was bigger than most he'd seen. He had to have stood about as tall as him, and that was on four legs. Draco raised his left arm and his right one weakly, motioning for the giant to come. He regretted his decision when the griffon tackled him and slammed him into the street. The griffon slashed a dragon's face then used his axe to slice open his throat. Draco used the distraction to kick in the griffon's hind leg and bend the knee joint. The griffon screamed in pain, but Draco punched him in the throat then stomped on his head.
Stumbling to the side, he looked at the castle again, forcing his legs to cary him forward. Around the corner, Ember and Shadow were locking daggers with a squad of griffons while Moon and Peck dealed with the archers. Moon pushed back against the griffon's arm as he tried to stab his stilleto into him. He tossed him over the side of the building, looking down to make sure he was dealt with. His eyes widened as he saw Draco bleeding profusely again and collapsing.
"Ember! Shadow! Draco's hurt!" Moon yelled. Peck flew over and looked at the fallen man.
Ember's ear picked up what Moon said, but her other picked up on the sound of an arrow flying. Everything slowed as she glanced to an archer on the roof of a home two blocks away. The arrow was twirling towards Shadow unbeknownst to him. Ember stepped to the side quickly, spreading her arms and closing her eyes. The head broke through her weakened armor and stabbed her heart. She fell to her knees, clutching the wood of it as her breathing started to come raspily. A griffon, however, bashed the back of her head with a mace, knocking her over and plunging the arrow deeper. Draco reached the corner just in time to see Ember on the floor with a griffon readying to slam his mace down.
"SHADOW!"
Shadow rammed his knife into his opponent's neck, then spun around to see the griffon. Quickly grabbing Draco's fallen dagger, he hurled it into the side of the griffon's head. Draco ran over to Ember and carried her off to the side. He pulled the arrow out of her chest and shook her lightly.
"Ember?! Ember, please, wake up!" he shouted, his arms trembling. The princess' eyes opened, sluggishly looking at Draco, then to Shadow.
"Why?" he asked softly. Ember smiled lazily as she coughed up a good amount of blood.
"I… pr-promised… yo-your daughter… to b-bring y-you home," Ember coughed painfully. She looked up to Draco, wishing she could stop the flow of tears from his eyes. "D-Draco…"
"C'mon, Ember. Don't do this," Draco pleaded. "You're gonna make it. Just hold on. Please, you have to. Ember, please!"
She let her tears fall freely. It didn't matter to her anymore, now that she was in his arms and looking up to him without any fear. "I always… w-wanted to be stro-strong like… you," she panted, feeling her body weakening. "Not n-needing others… being able to-to lead… and b-being strong."
"Ember…"
"You… you were my future, Draco," she sobbed, gasping as the pain increased in her chest. "P-Please… just… take me through it."
"Ember-"
"Take me through it!" Ember sobbed. Draco hugged her tighter than ever before, crying into her shoulder as she actually sobbed into his.
"You can't, Ember. Don't do this, for the Creator's sake, please!" Draco whispered, sniffling harshly. "We're going to see the statue of the sun, remember? Me, you, and Moon. We need to leave. 'Coming out the same way we came in,' remember?"
Ember nodded, grunting as blood fell from her nose. "I-I'm sorry… Draco," Ember whispered. "I… I lo-… I… nngh! Draco… I…"
"You what? You what, Ember?! Tell me, damn it! Ember! You what?! EMBER!" Her lifeless expression, the endless stare and her limp limbs… he remembered.
"EMBER!"
He sobbed furiously as her head fell to the side. He hugged her as if she would return the favor, but he never felt the same claws wrapping around him. The same ones that comforted him when he wasn't too happy or when he was troubled. He'd never feel that again. She was… Ember was…
…gone.
"I love you." Moon's ear perked as Draco kissed her forehead lovingly. "I love you, Ember."
Draco lowered her head to the floor, then stood up and stumbled back into the street. "Draco-"
"Order them to fall back. All of them."
Shadow and Peck's jaws dropped. "Draco, we're so close to-"
"I'M FINISHING THIS DREK UKET, UNDERSTAND?!" Draco roared, his voice mixing into two. "THESE DREK TRARG ESH UKITAL MY BORESHKO HAND! ORDER THEM BACK AND STAY THE FUCK OUT OF THIS CITY!"
The three looked on in fear as his eyes blackened fully. The mark on his arm was glowing as well, but an ominous black. Shadow and Peck looked to Moon, who whimpered as he moved back. With a loud howl, the surprised fighters began their retreat, along with the carrier dragons flying towards the outskirts. Draco kneeled down to Ember's side, taking her dagger and sheathing it into his own case. He stomped through the bodies and stepped between the dragons falling back. His glare was directed towards the oncoming wave of griffons, who were unaware of the mortal danger.
Let none live.
I never planned on it.
He roared as cuts on his body opened suddenly, a silver secretion crawling out and covering some of his body. The material reached out over some of his face, but large patches of skin were still present. His pained and angry roar quickly turned demonic as his body changed from within. The strength he had felt he'd been lacking suddenly appeared, and he stomped his foot through the stone and glared at the horde.
"JRO BORESHKO JRA NOOOOOOOOOOLL!"
Jaqeluu was meditating in the ship's life support room while Jerosh spoke to the Protiiglo about their assignment. Agner was practicing his energy transferral with his spear while Fermot played the Ocari at the far side of the room. Derekosh joined Agner in his training, using his hammer to smash the dummies to virtual smithereens. They all lost focus of what they were doing as a massive energy washed over them. The signature was… tainted… angry… hurt… and vengeful.
Agner turned to Derekosh, just as Jerosh and Jaqeluu rushed in. "Was that-"
"He's releasing the Ashla," Jaqeluu panted. "We have to find him now!"
"It's not the Ashla," Jerosh said. "It's something much worse. We still can't go, brother. The armies-"
"Reku'un's power can keep our extraction safe! We must find him before-"
"Before what? He's killed? He's hurt?" Jerosh questioned. "The boy is stronger than any of us, even combined. This Iikro is twice as strong as the Ashla, and much more unstable. If he loses control around us, we could start the end of the world he is on. Let him face the infant-levels. They'll be utterly wiped out and he'll be safe."
Another wave of the power passed through them, a shiver coming from a scaled behemoth.
He's not hurt. He's… angry… heartbroken… and sad.
What's going on with him, Nyla?
I cannot tell for sure, Agner. His mind is too far from my own to Ina speak with him, and his memories have not yet been touched by my own mind.
Tell Jerosh we should travel to Reku'un!
Jaqeluu, we aren't merely rounding up a task force, we're rescuing the survivors! Reku'un may be berserk, but he can hold his own. I only hope he does not face a pack of Alphas.
Nyla shifted her wings uneasily, shuddering as her partner's screams faintly echoed through her head.