Averford Academy – Arena Repairs
Claire and Margott were hard at work, repairing the damaged arena. The girls were using plowing tools, filling the holes they made with the great clash of mystic spells reflected in wooden swords. Claire was moving forward with some speed, while Margott was beginning to sweat and her breathing was more agitated than Claire's.
"Faster, Margott! We must leave this place better than before!" Claire shouted. Margott, exhausted, was starting to lag. She glanced at Claire, amazed at how she never seemed to tire.
"How do you have so much energy!?" Margott asked. She paused for a moment, wanting to catch her breath, causing Claire to also stop moving forward and come closer.
"Don't tell me you've already reached your limit" Claire replied smugly. Claire took some fresh water from her canteen and shared the rest with Margott. "It's incredible how strong you are… Kiett can't compare to you." Margott exclaimed.
Claire halted, turning to Margott with a sharp look. She took the tool Margott was using and placed it next to hers.
"What do you mean by that?" she asked, her voice tinged with irritation.
"Let's be honest, Claire." Margott said, regaining her breath. "If it weren't for his Original Spell, Kiett would be a bit weaker than you."
Claire's expression darkened as she approached Margott. "Instead of belittling my brother, shouldn't you be encouraging him?" Claire questioned, her tone was sharp. "That's not something a girlfriend should say."
Margott lowered her head, realizing her mistake.
"That wasn't my intention… Please, forgive me." Margott apologized.
Claire was still upset but turned her back and continued working.
"Forget it and hurry up. We must attend the Incense Ceremony." Claire muttered. Margott silently nodded and got back to work. Margott was ashamed of her words, but a subtle hesitation crossed her mind like a flash of lightning, she cautiously looked around making sure they were both alone.
"Claire, how about we use magic to fix this?" suggested Margott with a mischievous grin. Claire watched her and smiled back, becoming an accomplice.
―Ruins of Aldelviewreld―
The Scarlet assault continued. The kings stood near the Eighth Gate, which had begun to glow intensely since one of its seals had been broken.
"What does this mean?" Ezequiel asked while he turned to Woodrow.
"We don't know yet, Your Grace. It started glowing the moment the seal was undone." Woodrow answered.
"Figure it out immediately! How was the seal broken?" Aurora demanded.
Everyone was entranced by the eerie glow of the gate, almost hypnotized. They were so focused that they failed to notice a group of Scarlets tunneling beneath the battlefield, breaching their defenses.
A sudden, inhuman scream rang out—followed by a searing red beam that incinerated a scarlet dragon that had come dangerously close to the monarchs. The shock snapped them out of their trance. "What the hell was that?" shouted Aurora. Fiora's attack had saved the lives of all the monarchs.
"What the hell is happening!?" Dracus muttered, still dazed. "The dragons can move underground, they've crossed the shield. We must deactivate it and attack now!" exclaimed Fiora. The glow from the eighth door had put them into a kind of trance.
As he looked around, time seemed to slow—explosions, fire, and destruction surrounded him. He snapped back to reality only when Argus ran toward him and slapped him hard across the face.
"Brother! We're surrounded—we need you!!" Argus shouted desperately. "What should we do?" shouted Ezequiel. 'Open a section of the shield, we must gather them in one place and then destroy them," exclaimed Fiora, "fire the cannons and everything you've got. We can beat them, I reckon there are just over two hundred of them" Fiora stated amid the echoes of destruction.
Everard shouted and directed the defense inside the area protected by the enormous shield. The dragons continued to emerge from the bowels of the earth and began to devour soldiers, burning them and tearing them in half.
Three scarlet dragons emerged behind the monarchs and attacked with their blue fire breath, but Fiora was faster. She summoned her shield, repelling the attack. Aurora activated her mystical rings, creating six spears that appeared to be made of pure lightning energy, and threw them at the dragons' bodies. When they struck, the dragons were completely charred.
"Aurora, follow me!" exclaimed Fiora, launching herself into the attack alongside Everard and Woodrow. "Don't you dare give me orders, woman!" replied the queen of Eircloft, but she obeyed Fiora's command and ran after her. "Come on, guys, let's defend the eighth gate!" exclaimed Ezequiel. The shield opened in one section, allowing the dragons to enter. Fiora's plan seemed to be working; now they had those beasts coming toward them in a single direction. "Now, fire the arcane cannons!" Aurora shouted from the crowd.
The cannons opened fire, incinerating many dragons, but they needed time to recharge their mystical energy for a second attack. Without hesitation, Dracus and Argus unsheathed their swords and joined the counterattack. The Lords Downmore fought side by side—except for Fiora and Aurora, who had charged ahead. "Where are they? I can't see them" Ezequiel said, scanning the battlefield.
"They're leading the front lines, sir!" Everard reported. Mustaffa immediately sprang into action. With a swift leap, he landed between two Scarlets and decapitated them both in a single stroke.
While Ezequiel, Argus, and Dracus charged forward, clashing against the monstrous beasts. Mustaffa remembered something, "Keep going. Come with me. We must use the cars I brought with me" exclaimed Mustafa.
The Eighth Gate had turned into a full-scale bloodbath. Soldiers were dismembered, burned, and devoured. Despite the chaos, Fiora and Aurora fought together. They were destroying the dragons, Fiora cut through their thick skin with her spear as if it were butter, and Aurora used her rings to summon diamond spikes, obsidian, and her lightning spears, the team was pushing forward while Woodrow and other mages reinforced their defenses, casting protective spells against the Scarlets' breath attacks.
A Scarlet suddenly lunged at Woodrow, striking her with a powerful claw. She managed to block with a shield, but the force sent her flying out of the protective formation.
"Aurora! Go after Woodrow!" Fiora commanded. "I told you to not give me orders!" Aurora snapped, but she still rushed toward Woodrow.
A pack of Scarlets closed in, ready to tear Woodrow apart. She desperately reinforced her shield, but it was starting to crack under the sheer force of their attacks.
From behind, Aurora arrived, summoning massive stone spikes from the ground, impaling the Scarlets. She then unleashed a torrent of crimson fire, slicing them to pieces.
"Woodrow! Get back to the formation—NOW!!" Aurora ordered.
Just then, another Scarlet appeared behind Aurora. She quickly summoned a massive boulder, using it as a shield before crushing the beast's skull with it. Woodrow recovered her composure, raised her staff and sent a flurry of stone daggers into the heads of three more Scarlets, killing them instantly.
"Good job, Woodrow! Let's finish these bastards!" Aurora shouted as Woodrow followed her into battle.
Meanwhile, near the Eighth Gate, the four kings fought against a relentless horde of Scarlets.
"Don't let them reach the gate! If they get through, we're finished!" Mustaffa warned. The battle was turning against them. The king's forces were suffering heavy losses, and Ezequiel knew they couldn't hold out much longer. Without warning, he rushed ahead, pulling out a chain-bound war axe.
"Ezequiel, fall back to formation!!" Argus yelled.
Ezequiel ignored him, he unleashed lightning magic through his axe, cutting through waves of Scarlets.
"Trust me! Stay down—NOW!!" Ezequiel ordered.
Spinning his axe wildly, he extended its reach with a mystical chain, nearly decapitating the kings behind him. They ducked in time as Ezequiel's attacks grew stronger, electrifying more Scarlets.
"Stay down! I'm not done yet!!" he warned.
He then leapt high into the air, flinging his axe skyward. A massive bolt of lightning struck the weapon, charging it. With a swift tug of the chain, he slammed the axe into the ground, unleashing a devastating shockwave that annihilated everything within a 25-meter radius.
"Incredible…" Argus whispered.
"You haven't seen anything yet." Dracus smirked.
The kings rose cautiously, scanning for survivors. Only dust and smoke remained—but in the distance, Mustaffa saw everything while he was preparing the cars for battle, at the distance he noticed flickering red flashes. He knew it was Fiora, still fighting.
"We have to assist Fiora and Aurora!" Mustaffa declared. But just as he was about to charge forward, a soldier hold his arm. "Wait, my king… look!" the soldier said, his voice shaken. "We had made a big mistake!" he warned.
Everyone turned in horror—the Scarlets they had just slain were regenerating, rising once more, restored as if nothing had happened.
"May Throme have mercy on us…" Mustaffa murmured, dread filling his voice.
TO BE CONTINUED…