by Hans Bezdek
Right as neared, the gate was ordered open, and the mix of dwarves and humans rushed at the surprised Greeners.
"Try not to get grabbed this time," I grinned at Dhot, pulling out my dagger and the Time Shield as I ran to join the fight.
"Don't worry, I'll be hanging back!" called the goblin, searching for a place to set up with Helga.
I brought my right hand back as I got close to the front line, preparing my goblin glove. When I got as close as I could, I punched out, setting off the rockets inside. This pushed me up and over the dwarves and humans, and right into the Greeners. Not wanting to waste the momentum, I shoved my dagger into an orc's neck as I landed, dropping him. Another orc next to me lashed out, but was easily blocked by my Shield.
Before I could lower it, the orc let out a surprised cry. When I peeked over the Shield, I saw the familiar blue glow of the Shattered Sword as Cassandra carved into the closest Greeners.
"Save some fer me!" I heard Braun shout behind us. I looked to see him nudge his way through the defenders, who looked more than a bit annoyed at the dwarf. As Braun reached his first goblin, the dwarf spun Grimkell's Mace and connected with the center of the creature. The goblin went flying back from the hit, knocking over two goblins and a troll behind it.
The defenders didn't look so annoyed anymore.
Greener screams came from our right, drawing my attention. A familiar walking creature made of fire punched out in the middle of them, setting many of them aflame. A few seconds later and another of the creatures spawned up ahead of us.
"Having fun?" I asked Beatrix, the gnome smiling at the destruction her creatures were causing.
"I can't complain," she said, stabbing a goblin in the back that hadn't been paying attention to her.
"How many things can you summon, by the way?" I asked her, bashing my Shield into a troll. It spun at me with its club, but a human drove her sword into the creature's side before it could reach me.
"It depends on how powerful the things are," shrugged Beatrix. "I think the maximum I've done is twelve elemental creatures in a day, but that included water elementals. Those things can be a huge pain."
The wall to our far left exploded as one of the siege weapons dealt out enough damage. A hole the size of a horse appeared and the Greeners pushed into it. The humans and dwarves closest to it were too surprised to jump in and block the hole, and the Greeners began pushing them back.
Annoyed that they were making progress, I stepped back behind the Vorovan line, brought my hands together, and began mumbling. I could hear the dwarf to my right yell out a battle cry as he swung, the sickening thump letting me know he made contact with whatever Greener was unlucky enough to get near him. Those around us were equally successful and the line pushed up deeper into the Greeners.
This left an opening, meaning I didn't have to be too careful with my aim. I pushed my hands out as I finished my spell, letting loose a beam of electricity. The lightning shot went down the clear path and toward the hole in the wall, cutting off the Greeners pushing into it. Those that were in the way of the beam were pushed back or flew off, none of them likely to breathe again. The beam of electricity held for a few seconds, then ended.
Aside from killing several Greeners, it had the added effect of allowing the Vorovans to jump in front of the hole and block any additional Greeners from getting inside. The fact that these defenders weren't attacked from behind let me know whatever Greeners had already gotten inside the city hadn't survived for long.
For several minutes we fought the Greeners back, Beatrix and I heading toward the hole in the wall while Cassandra and Braun continued pushing with the rest of the Vorovans. I could hear the loud bangs from Helga every once in a while, and I hoped Dhot was conserving his ammo for later.
Once we reached the hole, the Greeners started to back off even more easily. It seemed they had lost the will to fight.
"We're doing it!" yelled one of the humans near me. "We're winning this fight!"
"A bit optimistic," murmured Beatrix, her eyes flashing blue as she summoned another fire elemental to deal with one of the siege machines. "We have no idea how the rest of the city is doing."
Roars echoed across the battlefield in each direction. The Greeners collectively grinned as the defenders cast worrying looks to the distance.
"There's also the little matter of those dragons," I said, nodding to the wave of red and black in the distance.
"At least I'll get to watch you fight in your half dragon form now," grinned the gnome.
"I wouldn't be so sure that's a good thing," I said.
Chapter 17
The red and blacks flew toward Vorova from every angle. As they got closer, the fires from the Greeners and the siege machines we destroyed reflected off their scales, giving the humans a better view. That was just what they needed.
Zorikium arrows shot from the tops of the walls, arching and striking a few of the dragons above me. The dragons hit screeched out in pain, more than one veering down to the ground. The ground forces surged around the downed dragons, attempting to quickly finish them off. From where I was, they weren't being as successful as they had hoped. A wounded red dragon sent several dwarves flying into the air with a swipe of his tail, following it up with eating one of the Vorovan soldiers.
"Focus on where the arrows landed!" I could hear one of the sergeants shouting. The Vorovan fighters shifted their attention to the Zorikium arrow in the dragon's shoulder, their non magical weapons finally finding a way in through the thick scales.
I watched as the majority of the red and blacks flew over the walls, a few of them breathing down fire on the defenders. Several of the Dar'Ka dragons shot right for the looming tower, crashing into it. We watched with wide eyes as the dragons all lashed at the middle of the tower, taking turns flying through it. After only a minute or so, they had done enough damage to one of its sides.
With a frightening creak, the top half of the tower fell onto the southern part of the city. The structure crashed into the wall, surely killing anyone on either side that had been underneath it. This included that section of the wall, which was surely about to be overrun by Greeners at any moment.
The Dar'Ka dragons above the city weren't left alone for long, however. Gold and silver dragons shot to the sky, prepared to try and get revenge for their fallen comrades hours earlier. When they reached the mass of the dragons, the Zorikium quit flying. It was up to the Collective's dragons to win the fight in the air.
"Shouldn't you get up there?" asked Beatrix, tilting her head to the side. "You're not scared... are you?"
"I think you've got to be a little crazy to not be scared to fight dragons," I mused. "But you're right. Cover me while I change."
I back to be as close to the wall as I could be, then started my transformation. As my green scales grew I could hear the clashing of blades, the roars of the dragons above, and the pounding of the siege weapons as they rammed into the walls in the distance. I had a feeling Vorova was going to have a rough time recovering.
Better that than dying, though.
I stretched my wings as I completed my switch to my half form, letting loose a battle roar of my own.
"Woohoo!" cheered Beatrix. "Go kick some Dar'Ka butt!"
I gave her a thumbs up, then shot into the sky.
The Dar'Ka outnumbered the Collective's dragons, but just barely. I noticed the blue dragons working in tandem on the other side of the dragon brawl, and they seemed to be handling themselves just fine. A silver near me wasn't doing as well, so I dove in to help. He was fighting with a black dragon about his size. The black was effectively treating the silver as a punching bag, swinging freely at the dragon who was hardly putting up any defense.
"Can't fight back, can you!" laughed the black dragon. "You all should've given up and taken your place underneath us!"
The silver dragon couldn't respond, barely able to flap its wings to stay in one place. The black dragon grabbed the silver's neck with its l
eft claw, pulling back its right hand for a finishing blow.
"Die you scu-ARGH!"
I bit into the black dragon's bicep, pulling the arm back even further.
The black dragon let go of the silver dragon and swung his free claw at me. I let go and flapped backward, just out of his reach. The black dragon swung at me a few more times, apparently thinking throwing punches was the most effective fighting technique. At that moment, I realized some of the red and black dragons were just as inexperienced at fighting as the gold and silvers could be. That worked for me.
I flew underneath the black dragon and behind him. He tried to follow me as I went, flipping over in the air. As he did so, I shot down with my legs right into his exposed stomach. This knocked the wind out of him and sent us both down closer to the fight on the ground. I had hoped to land with the dragon so some of our ground troops could finish him off, but the black dragon suddenly grew a brain a hundred yards above the city. He flapped his wings and spun out of the way as he slashed at my legs. I quickly jumped up and floated a few feet away.
"You freak!" hissed the black dragon.
"Woah!" I said, holding my hands up. "Do you think Ulrich would like hearing that you think we're freaks?"
"N-No..." said the dragon, realizing that by calling me names he was effectively doing the same to his leader. "But, but he's not green!"
"So being a green dragon is what makes me a freak," I reasoned.
Instead of using his words to express how he felt, he flew at me. I dodged his horribly telegraphed punch, then raked a hand across his face before avoiding another haymaker. The dragon let out a frustrated roar, then rapidly threw strikes as he flew after me. I easily maneuvered myself back and forth as I danced outside of his range.
The black dragon pulled up to a stop and glared at me as he tried to figure out how to fight me.
"Take your time," I said, coming to a stop myself a few feet away. "It's not like you've got something you've forgotten coming right for you."
"Huh?" asked the black dragon. His eyes widened as his memory triggered. He tried to look up and was met with a fast claw to his throat. The injured silver dragon finished his foe off quickly and without mercy.
"T-Thanks for your help," the silver dragon said, nodding his appreciation at me.
"Don't forget we've got a few healers in the city," I said. "We need all the dragons we can get. Go see them before joining the fight again."
"Y-Yes, sir," nodded the silver again. He flew down without another word.
I wasn't sure how much I liked being called 'sir'. Didn't feel natural.
A red dragon flew by me, grazing the Time Shield on my left arm with her claw. She spun around in a half arch, letting loose her fire breath. I raised the Shield up and flew back, lowering it and letting out a growl as the red dragon hovered a dozen yards away from me.
"Hey!" I shouted. "I was having some internal dialog! What's the big deal?!"
"Remember me?" sneered the red dragon. She had to be the one that had chased me with the black dragon earlier. It looked like her right leg was slightly mangled, but otherwise she looked fine.
"Nope," I lied.
Her face dropped. "Oh."
"What happened to the black dragon you were with?" I asked, more curious to know what happened than to continuing hurting her self-esteem. "The one who's wing I injured. Did you take him out of the fight for me?"
"Ha! So you do remember me!" grinned the dragon. "Yes, I took him out all right. I had planned on killing him later, of course, but you gave me too much of an opportunity by wounding him. How very foolish."
"Yeah, really foolish of me," I nodded. "Injuring someone that was chasing me and then turning his friend on him so I could escape. How could I ever be so dumb?"
The red dragon's right eye twitched. "I was just letting you go because I knew I'd catch you again! If you were half as smart as you thought you were, you would be far gone from this place."
"A few months ago I would've been," I agreed. "Unfortunately, I've changed. Well, a little, anyway."
"To think all it cost you was your life," laughed the red dragon.
"Doubt it," I said, reaching her with a single flap of my wings.
Gaining the element of surprise this time, I thrusted out with both of my front claws. I dug into the base of her throat with them, trying to find a way to cut off her breathing. Before I could find what I was looking for, she was kind enough to remind me why it was better for me to attack dragons from behind. She grabbed me with her own claws, digging into my right arm while the Shield protected my left.
I cried out and let go of her neck, swatting her arms away. They came back quickly, but I was able to catch them with mine. A power struggle quickly ensued, which I wasn't so sure I'd win. The two of us flapped our wings forward, pushing with all our weight behind our hands.
"Ulrich is going to be so thrilled," sneered the red dragon. "I'll have all the reward for myself this time!"
"Really happy for you," I said through my teeth. I needed a way out of this. "You've got something in your eye."
"Do you really think that's going to work?" she asked.
As she spoke, I floated up while keeping her claw interlocked with mine. I twisted some to the left, then twisted with all my might to the right. She probably thought I was trying to twist my claws out, which she just held on to more firmly. Instead, I whipped my tail up to her face as quickly as I could. The tip of it was just long enough to poke her eye.
"Gah!" she hissed, yanking free of my claws and reaching up for her face.
I took the opportunity to circle behind her, bringing my claws into the middle of her back. Using my arms and legs, I tore into her scales as quickly as I could. When I had weakened her enough, I dug a claw in as deep as I could.
"You fight dirty!" she hissed, trying to spin around and grab me, but I was holding on too tight to let that happen. "It's not fair!"
"Coming from the dragon that killed their injured friend," I scoffed, driving another claw in.
With a final roar, the red dragon went limp. I let go and she fell into the city.
"Not one of my easier fights," I mumbled, glancing down at all my appendages covered in the red dragon's blood. "Or the cleanest."
I thought about flying down and getting some healing, not to mention a quick bath. I looked back up and saw the dragon battle still going strong, seeing a lifeless gold dragon slowly fall to the city. Varinia was up there somewhere. I didn't intend on letting her get out of this battle in one piece, even if we lost. That meant I had to find her before it was too late.
"Guess I'll shower later," I grunted, flying up and into the fight.
Chapter 18
Even with my help, the gold and silvers were struggling. The black and red dragons were proving to be too much for the majority of the Collective's dragons, overpowering and occasionally double teaming them. One of the only dragons on our side that seemed to be making a dent in the Dar'Ka forces was a very large gold dragon.
I would've assumed he'd be slow due to his size, but somehow the creature was nearly as fast as I was. Whenever one of his opponents was on the brink of defeat and tried to run away, he'd catch them again within a few seconds and finish them off. Before the black or red dragon's body was halfway down to Vorova he was already on to his next opponent.
"Keep the fight up!" roared the golden dragon, swatting a black dragon away with his tail as he swiped a red to his right. "We can still win this!"
For a moment I wondered if it was Laurinaitis. I quickly stopped kidding myself. He was no doubt hiding in his room still, if not already halfway back to The Republic. This golden dragon demanded respect and fought like someone who had seen his fair share of battle before. This had to be Antonius.
The gold and silvers around me seemed renewed by Antonius' words and fought even harder. Some of the Dar'Ka noticed this, too, and went to circle the giant gold dragon.
Six black and reds flew around Antonius, each one
diving in and taking a shot at him when they had his back. The gold dragon spun around quickly at each one, clipping a couple of them. They were still coming out on top, though.
I flew at one of the blacks and bit into his wings. The black dragon screeched and spun around, trying to get me off. I let go and flew to a red that was diving at Antonius' back. I shoulder tackled the red right before he made contact with the gold dragon, sending him spiraling backward.
"You guys really need to fight six against one?" I called out at them, hovering at Antonius' back. "I thought you black and red dragons were supposed to be scary!"
"It's that green runt!" said one of the black dragons, gesturing to me. "The one that Ulrich wanted!"
I could hear Antonius inhaling and preparing a flame breath, so I kept talking. "Ulrich wants you to take me out because he knows he can't do it himself. Some leader you've got, huh? Bet you wish you were fighting on our side. "
"I'd rather die," spat the black dragon.
"What a coincidence!" I said. I quit flapping my wings and dropped a few feet as Antonius spun his head around. A wave of fire shot out over my head and toward our opponents. The black dragon was completely engulfed, along with two red dragons. Normally a dragon's flame breath wasn't very effective against another dragon, but Antonius seemed to have enough power behind his to cause some pain.
When his breath ran out, I flew up and toward where the black dragon was. He was still blinded by the fire and never saw me connect with his neck. After finishing him off, I quickly took care of the two red dragons that had also been hit by Antonius' flames. Three down, three to go.
I flew back next to Antonius. The remaining three Dar'Ka dragons were still circling us, but looked a lot less sure of themselves. They weren't coming in to attack anymore, and seemed completely content to fly around us and bide their time.
