SWNOVELS Chapter 43: Freedom
I quickly drop to Marron’s side, seeing her bleed profusely from her wound, with more trickling down from her lips. I hold my hands over her and begin to pour healing magic into her as tears stream down cheeks. No…no, not again. Please not my sister, not for a third time. I don’t want Dewloura to become a tomb for more of my family.
Behind me I hear the heavy padding of wolves as I look up to see Fenris and Athena rushing over to us followed by Mom soon after. I turn back to Marron, feeling even more desperate.
“I thought I told you to never sacrifice yourself for me,” I tell her.
She smiles, looking paler by the moment. “It’s what family does, sweetie.”
I stare at her, pouring more and more healing magic into her, feeling more and more desperate. “Please don’t die on me,” I choke out.
She looks to me, “I’m not going to die, you idiot.” Her voice is still strong yet it's strained from the endless pain she’s no doubt experiencing right now.
I look to her, hoping she’s not trying to put on a brave face for me. We’ve come so far together, experienced and revealed things that have bonded us together so tightly that it defies logic. We are sisters through time and fate, something that I never want to lose.
Mom kneels down opposite of me and pulls a vial from her robes, popping the cork and gently gives it to Marron while my wolves lean over, keeping close. Marron slowly downs the contents to which Mom then holds her hands over her and begins to heal her as well.
She looks to me, “Your sister will not die, sweetheart, although her injuries are indeed severe.”
I look to Marron as I start to cry, not wanting yet another person to die on these steps. Not again, I can’t bear to see it for a second time on these steps.
Marron weakly lifts up her hand and flicks my forehead. “Stop it,” she says. “I made you a promise didn’t I?”
I look to her as tears drip onto her cheeks. I will never leave your side, no matter what happens. I grip her hand, clearly remembering it. I smile softly, still gripping her hand tightly, not wanting to let it go. Both of my wolves lean down further and begin to nuzzle her.
“Aria!!!” I hear Diana bellowing out.
I turn around, seeing her and Orobas simply standing there, waiting. My ears move about, listening and hearing that the sounds of battle are beginning to wane as there is fewer and fewer people fighting. I can hear the distant howling of wolves mixed with the roars and heavy crashing of a few heavy bodies. This battle is coming to a close, with more and more green and red dragons soaring in the skies above.
I stare at her, only she remains from all of this, the final obstacle. Yet now…while I know what has to be done, part of me doesn’t want to leave.
“You need to go, sweetie,” says Marron.
I look to her, despite Mom’s potion and treatment, my sister is still incredibly weak. The hole in her abdomen is still bleeding profusely as blood pools under her. I’ve always escaped death, though at the cost of many. Now death seems hell-bent on claiming yet another prize in place of me.
“I don’t want to lose you,” I tell her, feeling frantic.
“Nei’shy,” she says softly.
My heart stammers as the word echoes. My eyes then grow wide as for the briefest of moments I see both hers and Celes’ faces overlap. Even their voices are the same. I stare at her, seeing my sister in both of her lives looking up at me with a warm and gentle smile.
“Go,” she adds.
I’m taken completely aback by this. I mean…Celes is actually here, yet also is Marron. Both are one yet still distinct. Yet it’s as though Celes is finally able to speak one last time to me as her soul emerges to simply comfort me again. This is simply incredible, yet I can’t help but accept this. Marron is Celes, yet now both are speaking to me at the same time.
We truly are fated sisters.
“I will take care of your sister,” says Mom, finally bringing me back to reality. I look up to her, seeing my mother smiling reassuringly to me. I breathe softly, knowing that she will.
I then feel soft fur nuzzling my face, peering up to see Athena smiling to me. Her ice-blue eyes stare gently into mine.
“I will protect them both,” she says. She nods to me, groaning softly.
My ears then flick up as I hear heavy padding and the heavy clacking of claws. I look up, seeing more and more wolves arriving. I scan their numbers, noting that some are missing yet none present appear to be in mourning. Even Leto and Nelly are here, safe and accounted for. Many are severely injured from the battle with some showing deep burns on their bodies, something I’ll need to take care after this is over.
I nod slowly. I then hold out my hand, summoning Astraea to me, quickly sheathing it.
I look to Marron, smiling to her. “I’ll be right back.” She smiles as I let go of her hand, praying it won’t be the last time I do.
She looks to me, “Be careful, my love.”
I smile to her and then look to Fenris.
He nods to me. “Let us end this.”
I nod, rising to my feet. The both of us then turn and walk off, behind me I hear the worried moans of the wolves, yet some offer encouraging huffs as their tails swish strongly on the stone.
Fenris and I walk slowly towards where Diana and Orobas are waiting. The wind howls against us with every step, making them feel heavy. My outfit flaps wildly yet is still able to remain firm as we walk. All around me, I can still see both enemies and allies lie dead or dying with medics rushing to their sides, trying to save them. I peer over watching enemies flee, no doubt having just seen their leaders die or captured.
Diana glares at me, fists clenched tightly. She has basically lost both of her new parents, with her own mother dying by my hand. Yet…her hatred still burns as hotly as the demon horse standing beside her. I know Selene loved and treated her as her daughter, yet I can’t fathom why the girl in front of me is not showing a single sign of remorse. Perhaps instead she’s chosen to focus her grief onto me.
She and I really are parallels of each other. Both have suffered immense loss, yet unlike her, I had people to come and heal my heart when I needed them most. I could easy see myself in her, what might have happened if I had allowed rage to consume me or more than likely if Selene really had taken me in. It’s really scary the more I think about it.
However…that path thankfully will never be treaded.
She looks to me as Fenris and I stop roughly twenty feet from her. Greenish felfire puff sporadically from her fists as her mismatched eyes glower at me.
“I don’t really care that this battle is lost,” she declares. “I will have your head and finally be free of you. No one, or anything, in this world will save you from your rightful fate, little girl.”
I stare at her, feeling the wind whipping up my battle regalia again as Fenris steps beside me. I breath slowly, feeling me sword hanging from my belt, my tails swishing softly on the ground behind me.
“You’re right, Diana, but this all ends here,” I reply. “This age-old blood feud between our houses ends with us.”
She snarls, “I don’t care about any of that, only you!”
I nod, knowing it was a rather pointless thing to tell her. For Diana, she truly was Selene’s daughter, perhaps even becoming princess of her house if things were different now. However…the truth behind my declaration was really just for me.
Shyair and Nethune both stretch back to the founding of Dewloura, having once been of the same family. Yet over time they truly were completely different in the end. That difference led to Nethune often desiring for Shyair to disappear completely and Shyair resisting them. This strife has led to many deaths over the centuries, all leading to this final moment.
I look to her, again seeing how we really are two sides of the same coin. We both were reborn into new lives, becoming two completely different people as a result. She was reborn, full of hatred and resentment towards me, and raised by someone without much compassion but her ambition.
I on the other hand, was reborn because I was destined for another, even despite my little meddling in the past. My mother, Rachel Rivenfeld, still sought me out and gave me a new life to live, one filled with love and exploration.
Yet now, both lives are set to collide one last time.
I peer over to Orobas. His darkness-filled eyes glare deeply both at me but also Fenris. I know my wolf father has been itching for a rematch after last summer. Both are beings whom are polar opposites, yet each have unfinished business with the other.
The four of us merely stand there in silence, yet then charge at each other. There is no battle cry, no further declarations, just the simple fact the battle has started.
We then collide, with Diana and I kicking and punching each other. I vigorously block and twirl over her, delivering a knee to the back of her head. She counters by grabbing my leg and attempts to slam me into the ground. However, I spin my body, freeing myself of her grip and summon a sheet of ice and kick off of it, landing a flying kick to the face.
Diana spins in the air yet doesn’t fall. She instead charges back, summons balls of felfire and launches them at me. I open a shadow midair and swallows them both, opening another to return them.
She counters yet again and kicks them at me, this time actually hitting me. I flip back, feeling my chest heave a little, however grateful my armor took the brunt of the damage. I exhale slowly and leap back to her, weaving and dodging her strikes, trying keep my rhythm with her. Diana really has grown stronger since September. Her attacks are far more powerful and more precise, with several actually hitting their mark.
I reel back from another of her blow, tapping the ground with my tails. She sees this and launches felfire to destroy the traps I just laid down. I smirk, snapping my fingers, unveiling scores of kitsune-bi and have them rain down onto her.
However, I hear the shing of something as they’re all destroyed. I look over to see Diana now wielding a massive scythe. The blade alone is twice the length of a normal scythe yet with same width as a saw. It’s actually rather beautifully crafted. Something akin to an artifice weapon I’ve seen in certain museums. I know it’s a bit cliché for a being born of death to wielding it, but I guess after our last battle, Selene felt it was appropriate to arm her daughter with a weapon.
The girl then begins to hack and slash at me, wielding the scythe with a level of precision that I can’t help but be impressed with. Her attacks are light, despite how obscenely huge the weapon is. It cleaves through the air, leaving a silver and black blur in its wake. She even twirls it around like a Bo staff, while firing balls of felfire at me.
I twirl and flip through the air, dodging her attacks. I block and deflect her attacks with my Han Kote, while firing several Orbs and kitsune-bi at her. Through it all though, I can feel the fatigue from the entire battle starting to weigh me down. I feel a bit sluggish as my muscles ache and burn.
This isn’t like our first battle where I was severely injured from the start or even in September. It’s been a long battle and I am aching and bleeding from some of my accumulated injuries. In other words…a real marathon. But this will end here, all of it.
I land some distance away and slap both hands onto the ground, sending a massive wave of ice at her. She counters by slamming the pummel of her scythe into the ground, summoning a wall of flame to deflect the wave coming straight at her. She and I actually smirk to each other, something strange for the both of us.
While not enjoying the battle, I guess on some level we are showing respect to each other.
I peer over to watch Fenris and Orobas fighting each other. Fire and ice erupt as both creatures clash, causing tiny tornados to form and quickly die. Despite Orobas standing at the same height of a Clydesdale, Fenris is still able to easily maneuver around the demon horse.
They bite and kick at each other, with the horse slamming his front hooves into the ground at his opponent, sending up a plumes of felfire. Fenris counters by summoning a shadow right beneath the horse, swallowing the flames and opens more shadows, causing the streams to pour out from them and striking the demon. Icy winds then whip and whirl around Fenris, slamming the demon with a miniature blizzard, pelting him with ice and snow.
Fenris then leaps onto the horse and bites down hard onto its armored neck, sinking his deeply into it. Shadowy tendrils and ice then erupt from beneath the horse, both wrapping around it and skewering through cracks in the armor.
My bonded uses them to pole-vault the pair forward, slamming the horse into the ground, causing them to form a crater in the stone tiles.
The pair struggle while there, with Orobas kicking and wailing wildly. He finally manages to throw my wolf father off of him, summoning another plume of fire for good measure. Fenris is struck midair when the horse reels back and delivers a massive hind kick to the wolf.
My bonded grunts from the blow, yet is able to right himself and disappears into a shadow. The demon horse snorts green flame from his nostrils as he tries to find his adversary. Shadows then open around his as more and more ice and shadowy tendrils erupt and strike at him.
As they do, I notice a small crack forming in his chestplate. While small, it’s enough for a start.
Diana and I continue our own battle, with Fel and spirit flames colliding and exploding around us. I race around her, flipping and twirling through the air, having dodged another of her slashes. I grab her leg with one of my tails and throw her to the ground. She grunts, recovering and slashes up at me again, sending waves of felfire at me.
I dodge them, allowing the heated air to carry me through them while I fire Orbs mixed with dragon flame at her. She growls, knocking several away, with a couple striking her. The girl erupts into flame only to be snuffed out by felfire.
I land and summon icy winds from the cold air above and mix them with dragon ice, hurling them at her, followed by a massive sheet of ice. Again she slams her scythe into the ground and sends a massive wave of felfire to counter it.
The two opposing magicks clash and explode, with some of the greenish fire passing through and slam into me. I twirl back, bouncing hard off of the ground. I grit my teeth as I feel my ribs crying out in pain.
Diana then whirls her scythe around, summoning more and more felfire, forming into a massive ball and launches it at me. I feel the unholy flames approaching as I still skid a bit. I then flip back onto my feet and draw Astraea, charging the blade with foxfire and cleaves through the ball of flame. Both halves fly harmlessly past me and explode some distance away.
Diana stands in disbelief at this. She then looks to my sword, no doubt noticing that it’s completely different than the ones she broke back in the fall. This weapon is one she will never destroy, for it forged of myself and from parts that represent me as a person. My mana is infused into its entirety, with the crystal and the dragon metal cores imbuing it with unparalleled strength.
I pull back my sword, holding it behind me. I breathe slowly, centering myself.
She then snarls and launches herself at me. She whirls the scythe, firing blades of magic at me. I deflect with blade and gauntlet. Yet as I do, I am pelted with tiny bolts mixed in through her slashes.
She grins as I land a couple paces away from her. “I learned that one from you,” she says. “You won’t live past this day, Aria.”
She slashes her scythe again, firing even bolts at me. I grunt as they hit me, while still able to deflect and countering them with balls of foxfire and slashing with Astraea.
Diana then launches herself at me, landing a kick to my stomach. I spew out my breath as she follows up by striking me with the back of her scythe. As I stagger for a moment, I feel her grabbing my hair and drives my face into her knee.
Just before it smashes my face, I reach up and push it away, sending a blast of magic into her, sending her flying some distance from me.
She lands hard, but quickly stands back up, holding her scythe.
I pant heavily, swiping some blood from nose. I look to her, “No…I will live on, go home, and even marry Kenji when I’m older.”
She glares at me, becoming enraged. Normally I’d be beyond embarrassed making such a declaration, yet now? It’s the truth and what I truly plan on doing with him. A childish fantasy of raising children with him will become a reality one day.
I crouch low and charge at her. She growls as we fight. Sparks fly as our blades clash. I twirl and flip, dodging and deflecting her strikes while also slashing at her. My tails twirl through the air, pelting her with orbs and kitsune-bi. The girl is pelted but counters with stunning spells and slashes at me.
I dodge them and strike her with the pummel of my sword, causing her to cough. Yet before I can cast a spell into her, she knocks it away and swipes down with her scythe, faster than a human eye could ever hope to track. When it lands near me, my body poofs into smoke.
She is stunned for a moment as I then land on the blade as it rests high and behind her. I then swoop down and land a kick to the face. She flies back, with blood flying through the air. Diana then rights herself, slashing down into the ground with her weapon, arresting her movement.
Fenris and Orobas meanwhile continue their battle, with my wolf slamming his body into the horse. The demon is knocked off balance while I leap in and wrap Diana with one of my tails and flip back, throwing her into her bonded. The pair slams hard into each other with the girl bouncing off the ground.
As she lands, she glares up at me. She summons a stream of flame and sends it at me. The fur on the back of my ears then stand up as I feel a wall of flame racing towards me. I flip back and exhale slowly, with it freezing into fog as I twirl, summoning a wall of ice and flame, blocking them.
Fenris then lets out a mighty howl, one loud enough to shake the ground itself. Hundreds of ice shards the sizes of baseball bats then begin to rain down onto them. Orobas rears up and neighs loudly as he slams into the ground below, summoning a wall of felfire to protect them.
The horse then engulfs himself in flame and charges at Fenris. My wolf summons a shadow clone of himself and the pair howl, shrouding the area in shadow.
Diana is disoriented, firing blindly into the shadows. I however, appear behind her and jump, twirling in the air and kicking her in the face. She reels back and flies away.
I then turn my attention finally onto her bonded. My kitsune eyes see him clearly, even in the pitchest black of shadows. I begin to summon forth streams of foxfire and ice, and hurl them at him. The fire sears deeply into the whirlwind while the ice storm fires innumerous ice shards and harrowing winds rapidly cool him.
As the torrents swirl, I use my tails to summon Orbs and fire them at the felbeast. The horse moans and wails as the magicks damage him. All the while, I can hear the sounds of metal cracking. Extreme heated metal followed by extreme cold makes it brittle.
Diana then reappears and kicks me away, pelting me with felfire. As I flip through the air, I summon a shadow to engulf the flames and opens another, showering her with her own attack.
She falters for a moment, with the smell of singeing hair floating about. Oh boy does it reek, especially when you add felfire into the mix.
Fenris meanwhile again leaps onto Orobas’ back and bites hard into his neck, trying again to pierce the nightmare’s armor. My wolf father then shifts his body, dragging the demon down and slamming him into the ground, covering it with a thick sheet of ice.
Diana soon recovers and returns, grabbing my face and driving it into her knee, this time connecting. I stagger back, feeling blood pouring from my nose. It’s not broken, but I still apply a slight margin of healing magic to it just to set it straight. In the faintest of moments, I see the tip of her scythe come racing towards me.
I twirl back and kick it into the ground. While still in the spin, I slam my pummel into her stomach. She coughs and then growls, spinning and slashing at me with it.
I flip out of the way, only for her to counter again by summoning plumes of felfire and have them try and encircle me. A few slam into me and knock me away. I gasp for a breath and flip back onto my feet and rushes into her. I swirl kitsune-bi around my sword and channel it into the blade. With one massive slash, I destroy her weapon. Shards scatter around us, with Diana showing the same look of disbelief I once had.
One could say this is payback for her destroying my original swords. However…I’m not here for revenge.
I then turn, seeing Orobas as he breaks free of his prison. I leap over to him, slashing at the horse just as he notices me. The blade sheens off of his chestplate, trying to strike at the crack in it. Before I can deliver another blow to it, he turns away and kicks me straight into my chest.
I twirl away, feeling his fire searing into me. My entire chest screams in pain, yet my armor still takes the brunt of the damage. Diana also reemerges and blasts me with felfire. I groan as I’m flying through the air, only to use my tails to right myself and flip backwards before charging at them again.
Diana grins, face bloodied from our fight and summons little balls of hell fire and throws them at me. However before they hit, Fenris appears and deflects them with his tails. He then grabs her again and tosses her away.
With that brief window, I resume my assault on the nightmare. I twirl and dodge his front feet, slashing at his chest. After a couple strikes, I charge my sword with foxfire. The blade once more glows bright blue as its cutting power is increased.
The horse neighs loudly as his summons waves of felfire to stop me. I dodge and flip over each of them and continue to attack him, spinning and slashing as the same small crack.
Diana manages to slip past Fenris as he pelts the horse with icy-shadowy tendrils and grabs me. I in turn simply throw her off and blast her away.
One strike finally is able to break through and shatter his armor. The horse whines loudly as I see something deep within the demon’s chest. It’s dark and appears to be something akin to obsidian or some other dark material. The container for its soul.
Diana becomes desperate and engulfs the area in felfire, causing me to pull back as it streams in to separate us.
I flip through the air and slide some distance away. I feel a calming chill surrounding me, making me feel at ease. I glance over to see Fenris standing beside me. I nod and peer back at our foes, seeing the final objective.
“Let’s finish this,” I exclaim.
Fenris nods, swishing his tails. “Yes, my little Aria.”
I nod. “FENRIS!!!”
My wolf lets out a mighty howl, wrapping his body in shadow and then leaps into mine. I feel incredible power surging into me, coursing through every portion of my being. My tails and hair all change in color, now matching my bonded’s. I breathe in slowly as a magical shockwave bursts out from me.
I slowly open my eyes, feeling at peace, grateful to those who allowed me to reach this point.
Diana stares at me, jaw hanging in shock. “You’re…you’re not an adult this time.” She then grins, “Is it going to fail like before?”
I stare her then at her bonded. This time is different, this time we both have it under control. It’s been awhile since we fused, not since showing it to Marron back at the Outpost or at home. This is one of the reasons for our training in the past, something we fulfilled together. Now…we can really finish this.
I take another slow breath, swiping my foot back and bringing my sword with it. I look to her, “Not this time, Diana. This time it really is over. The past and the future now collide. And with it, freedom.”
I crouch low and then charge at them. My tails unfurl, summoning kitsune-bi mixed with ice and shadow and hurl them at the pair. They dodge some with a few hitting them. They then retaliate with Diana hopping onto Orobas and charging at us. I watch as the pair combine their magic, drawing in felfire to a single point and unleashes it as a massive stream of hellfire.
I quickly shift into my spirit form and shroud myself in shadow to avoid it, slipping into a shadow created by a fallen piece of rubble. I can feel Fenris within me, soothing my pain. I feel the pride he’s exuding, the pride of a father for his daughter. It’s amazing, knowing he’s here with me, and has been through it all.
I then reappear behind them, wrapping both in my tails and hurl them away from me. I still have to remember how heavy the nightmare is, feeling the immense strain on my tails.
They land some distance and recover, and launch fireballs, waves and pillars of flame at me. I peer up, seeing one of the stone pillars that Henry has summoned and run to it. I run along the side, using shadow magic to cling to the stone and race towards the pair.
Orobas runs after us with Diana once more leaping onto his back. Both continue to hurl felfire at us. They’re able to get ahead of me and launch another massive stream of felfire at me. I kick off of the pillar and twirl through the air just as it sails past me. I then land on the ground behind them and pivot, facing them as they turn around.
I then Rush towards them, seeing my target. I wrap my sword completely in magic, causing it to glow brightly as I thrust it into the demon's chest and knocking off his rider. The magic then erupts, forming into a massive blade that rockets out of his back, shattering the container.
Diana races back over to try and stop me. I however knock her away. The nightmare reels back as I pull out my sword. I twirl again, summoning even more magic and concentrates it between my hands and then fires a massive blast towards the demon.
Heh, it’s the Kamehameha. Only real.
The stream of pure magic completely engulfs the nightmare, destroying it utterly. I pull back, watching as the dust settles, revealing that nothing remains. I sheath Astraea and take a deep breath.
I feel a wash of relief as Fenris and I defuse. Again I feel a bit lonely without him in me, yet in truth, a real truth I’ve known for years. I’m never alone.
I look to him, smiling broadly. He smile, leaning in and licking my face. “Well done, my little Aria.”
I giggle, stroking his. I then pan over to Diana, watching as the corruption leaves her. It’s like a dark smoke as it billows out of her body. She then looks to me, her eyes now no longer filled with hatred.
“What…what just happened?” she asks.
I walk over to her and kneel down. I smile softly to her, “You’re free.”
She looks to me a bit confused, but then becomes quiet for a moment. Her face then is filled with horror yet tries to remain calm. “I…remember Arnold, and what happened to him.”
I nod, resting a hand onto her shoulder. “We’ll have time to discuss it later,” I tell her softly.
She nods softly. We do have a lot to talk about, so much in fact.
I then turn back towards where Marron is and rushes back over.
I quickly kneel at her side, seeing her eyes are now closed. Fear grips me as I shake my head. No, no, no. I can’t believe she’s gone, not after all of this.
“Marron?” I cry out. “Oh God, Marron, I can’t lose you.”
I start to cry, leaning over her body. Not again, please not again. Please don’t let death claim another of my family.
She smirks, “I’m not dead. Would you please keep it down?”
I look up, seeing her emerald eyes peering up at me. I smile, leaning up and hugging her as tears flow down my cheeks. Marron smiles, weakly reaching up and hugging me.
“Still such a baby.”
I giggle, nodding.
I then feel someone stroking my hair. I peer up to see Mom smiling to me.
“Is it really over?”
She grins with tears streaming down her face. “Yes my love. It’s over.”
I lean back and see Diana still sitting there all alone. I smile and wave her over. The girl slowly gets up and hobbles over to us. She then kneels beside us, looking more and more remorseful as her head is hung low.
“I…” she starts. “I am so sorry for everything I’ve done to you Aria.” She looks to me. “I’ve caused you so much pain, and now this.”
Mom smiles, reaching over and strokes my former birthmother’s hair. “You are free little one. We will have much to discuss, and plenty of time to do so.”
She nods.
“However,” she continues, “we must tend to our wounded first.”
I nod, looking back to Marron and then to my wolves. Athena leans over and happily licks my face, with both of her tails wagging with pride. I giggle softly, stroking her fur.
Mom then summons a stretcher and carefully levitates Marron onto it. A few of the wolves then step over and lean down. They summon shadowy tendrils and hoist her up. We then start heading for the estate as I see several more wolves helping Mr. Bigsby and the others.
My ears then flick back as I see people walking towards us. To my sheer amazement, I find that everyone is alive. Asha slithers over to me, her outfit is in tatters and her body is riddled with gashes and blood. Yukari is holding her arm with blood pouring down the sleeve.
My aunts both smile to me. I step over and hug them tightly, tails clinging to them. I feel their hands stroking my hair.
“You were incredible Aria-chan,” says Yukari.
“I watched you from the sky,” adds Asha. “The both of us watched your final battle and were truly amazed by it.”
I grin, nuzzling them and then looks up. “Are you both ok?”
Yukari shakes her head and smiles, “We’re fine my dear. Although I wasn’t expecting to face off against a manticore and dragons.”
I grin, feeling Asha stroking my hair. “Elder western dragons were a challenge, but I’m grateful I had help.”
Both Kerrigan and Andriy smile to me, with the vampire wiping away fresh blood from his face. He nods to me, happy to see me alive. Kerrigan on the other hand hobbles over. One of her wings appears broken, yet I know it’ll heal. She leans over and places a kiss on my head, even stroking my cheek. I blush softly up at her.
She smiles, still lovingly caressing my face. Her eyes peer into mine, conveying her feelings of relief and happiness.
My heart then floats as I see Kenji strolling over to me. His sea-worn face is battered and bruised but still very much alive. I smile to him, now hoping he didn’t hear my prior declaration, even though we did talk about it.
Overhead, I watch as both green and red dragons soar high in the sky, circling us. I grin, seeing Tanith and Silvi flying together. They really must’ve hit it off during the battle. Isolde and Tulther fly over us, looking battered but good with Ddraig and Ashlan resting some distance away. The onyx dragons from the coven fly about, all smiling down at us.
I look around, seeing more of my coven aiding others. Henry in particular seems to be a bit out of sorts given the damage he caused to the city. Alexis on the other hand happily shoves open the crystal cage containing Lana and Mistral, handing them over to a group of elven soldiers and a pair of green dragons.
We start walking together as we head for the gate leading to the second tier. I peer down to see the remaining forces belonging to Viktor and Le’nia’s houses take charge in rounding up the stragglers. They even took Drakthul and Laevatain into custody.
I survey the area, lamenting how another home became a battlefield. I then hear the sound of armor clacking on stone as I see my knights strolling over to us. I smile brightly as all five are alive and well. I sigh in relief as all four combat maids arrive. Marie hoists her arsenal back into her body with Bianca sliding off of the wolves she was with.
I then see to my surprise that Abigale and Lyra seem to be a bit happy with Norick. I grin, shaking my head.
Orga and Kateryna both smile as they take their place at my side with Kayle getting a little closer to me. I grin up at her, grateful she’s here. I then see Piotr walking beside Marron. I nod softly, happy he made it.
I sigh softly, grateful to have this day finally over with. Now…comes what happens next.