The lieutenant cut him off sharply. “Stow it Stenson! Get them to the shield!”
The man straightened up again and crisply responded, “Yes sir!”
The then the lieutenant looked at Quinn's weapon then at me. He turned back. “Michaels! Give her your sidearm.”
My chestnut maned companion gave him a sly smile. “No need soldier. She won't need a weapon, she IS the weapon.”
Then she nodded at Stenson and we were navigating the wreckage of downtown Denver. About a block later we were traversing an alley when a gargoyle came gliding down and landed in front of us. It bellowed and charged and before Stenson could draw his weapon, Quinn just charged at the beast her fists and feet erupting into flaming granite and she landed a series of lightning fast blows.
She dodged a couple swipes from its front claws then she jumped and landed on its back. She cocked a fist as it tried to buck her off and then she landed a horrendously powerful blow on the back of its neck. With the sound of grinding granite, its head fell one way as its body went the other. She rode the body to the ground. Then she stood and with a snarl, snapped her hands downward, spreading her fingers, and the fire and granite instantly disappeared.
Oh me lord, that was... arousing? I grinned at her and the man beside me just stared at her, unmoving, until he shook himself out of it when she motioned for him to lead the way.
We hid behind a dumpster when a patrol of thralls went by then scurried into another alleyway. I could see the glowing of the shield getting closer, the closer to the capitol building we got. I could taste the perversion in the magic. Though it was not elemental, I could tell it was twisted and warped to Blaine's needs from its original intent.
We got up to it and I laid a hand on it, it felt smooth as glass. My hand erupted in flame and I pushed against it. I could feel some give in it now but not enough, so I felt around me and found water. A hydrant exploded and the water came to me to help. I had it strike the shield, but there was no effect. I let the water seep down and felt its journey downward.
Then after getting down thirty feet or so I felt it trickling under in cracks in the bedrock. I let the water seep along the uneven bottom of the shield as it followed the bedrock. That was my answer, it was conforming to the stone below.
I asked the earth to aid me and the ground in the area shook and there was a slight rumbling as the bedrock heaved up forming an arch above ground. No bigger than a doorway, the shield energy followed the contours of the granite leaving an open aperture through it to the inside of the Chronos Dome.
We went to step through, I turned to Stenson. “Thank you.” I gave the surprised man a quick hug then turned away to find Blaine.
Quinn ran her hand along the granite passage her brow furrowed in thought then turned back to the man who was about to return to his post. “Wait. Stenson.” She paused as he turned back. She motioned to the archway she was standing in. “You can use this to get the civilians out! Don't let Blaine's forces find it.”
The wonderfully evil smile that bloomed on Stenson's face told me everything about his strong character. He was instantly on his radio, relaying his intentions and the coordinates of the archway to the other troops in the area to help aid in evacuation. Then without hesitation he stepped through into the dome with us. He nodded at us and went one way as we went the other.
I closed my eyes and took a deep shuddering breath and made my way toward the capitol building with the other half of myself at my side. It took us a while to pick our way through, avoiding skirmishes and patrols. When we got to the green in front of the capitol, we peeked around the civic center.
There were groups of civilians and disarmed soldiers lined up on their knees near the capitol steps. There had to be hundreds of them. There were gargoyles and what I could only describe as golems standing menacingly around them, keeping them in line, There were some of those robed men we saw on the news report, bringing in more prisoners with those gnarled branches in their hands.
But what made my blood run coldly was Blaine. He was there at the first row of people, drawing the thrall rune on the prisoner's foreheads with his own blood from a cut on his finger. As each one was marked, they stood then walked calmly off toward the sounds of the closest battle.
I realized I was crying. I went to step into the open and Quinn held me back. I turned and glared at her. I pointed toward what Blaine was doing and blurted out, “Enough! It ends now! One way or another!”
She looked at me, I could feel all her conflicted emotions and her burning need to protect me. She nodded once and I didn't even pull my eyes from hers when the closest hydrants exploded and I sent water rushing toward the thralls he had just made. Drenching them. They looked confused and then started running. They didn't get far before they were re-captured.
Blaine was yelling, “Show yourself dragon bitch!”
I stepped out into the open, Quinn went the other way. Making her way toward the prisoners.
I ran toward Blaine, as his forces converged on me I didn't hold back and transformed with all the fury I could muster. The explosion of flames around me incinerated golems and reduced approaching gargoyles to rubble. It was almost comical as they were blown away from me.
Now in my fire form I leapt through the air as Blaine was backing up the steps. I landed between him and the prisoners. The impact of my landing cracked the steps under me as I bellowed out, “You will harm no more innocent people. The human race is under my protection!”
I sneered. “Now take my heart if you can coward!” I heard gunfire behind me and grinned. Quinn had engaged the guards.
I charged at Blaine, he murmured an incantation and lightning lanced from his gnarled branch and struck my shoulder. I shrieked in pain and sent a blast of fire toward him. He dodged to the side and pulled a staff from his back with his free hand and struck its base on the ground. Water from my previous attack blocked the heat of my flames from burning him. He put the twig in his belt and grabbed a stone from a pocket as I wrested control of the water from him and it took the form of a fanged serpent.
I thrust my hand and my water serpent struck at him, but his rock glowed and the trees in the park snapped and twisted into something dark. I could feel nature screaming in pain. The twisted tree trunks blocked my water attack.
He was laughing as he backed up the steps. “You are just as stupid as that bitch Caragh was. You've already shown me you are both a water and fire elemental. It shouldn't be possible but you are. It was a simple matter for me to find the right magics to combat that. Lightning and wood. Morgan's writings were extensive on countering elementals.”
I ran toward him, he motioned and the tree trunks impacted me, sending me tumbling back. A branch was sticking into my shoulder where the lightning had blown away some of my scales that appeared instantly to protect me from the blast. It was a searing pain. I growled and the resulting pyre of flame reduced the trunks to ashes and smoldering and burning debris.
I felt a new phantom pain in my side. Quinn had been injured in her fight. But I felt her rage and her determination flowing into me so I knew it wasn't serious.
I rolled to the side as lightning lanced at me from the top of the steps. The steps exploded into flying shrapnel. I felt it ricochet off my skin, letting me know more scales had appeared to protect me, though I know I'd be bruised from the force and pain of the impacts.
I rolled to my feet and Blaine disappeared into an archway and through the doors of the capitol. I followed, not even slowing for the doors as I struck them and they were reduced to splinters. We exchanged fire and lightning as he kept retreating upwards. I had a few new burns on my body, I ignored the searing pain as I followed him through the door to the roof.
He was laughing at me as I stepped out. “You really are a stupid one aren't you doctor? I already told you about the lightning and wood, yet you follow me out here. Do you think I picked the capitol building to confront you by chance?”
I looked at him, trying to calm my an
imalistic need to destroy him and think. Then my eyes glanced quickly at the huge, gold plated dome of the building then back at him.
He laughed again, it sounded like a madman who had lost touch with reality. “Yes, now you see it, the biggest conductor available. His hand shot up with his branch and lightning lanced out to the dome it glowed and reflected the power back tenfold from the dome. Then he pushed his arm toward me and all that energy lanced out at me.
I couldn't hear my own screams as the white hot pain assaulted every inch of my being. It was exponentially more pain than when the Fire Stone shard had awakened my dragon spirit.
The pain faded and I found myself lying on the edge of the roof, my flames were gone but my flesh was smoking. I glanced at my now naked form, my clothes had been incinerated. All I could see was burnt flesh and dragon scales covering every inch of my body.
I glanced down at the battle below. The height was terrifying, almost paralyzing me in fear, but I saw that Quinn was laying waste to the enemy below. I couldn't be prouder. I could see flames flaring as she fought with her elemental gifts from me. I pushed the fear aside as I staggered to my feet. I wouldn't let her down.
Blaine walked up to where I stood, swaying on my feet. He looked down. Then his brow furrowed. “Blood tie? Why Doctor O'Connell, I didn't know you swung that way.”
He put his stone away, keeping his lightning twig ready as he grabbed his knife. He looked at it and chuckled. “You know, this is the exact same knife I used to cut that stupid bitch, Caragh's throat. Fitting it will cut out your heart. You should have seen the pathetic look of betrayal in her eyes as the life faded from them. How does it feel to be helpless? Nobody on the outside can come save you because of this.” He tapped an amulet around his neck that glowed.
He swung the knife at my chest and I caught his arm mid strike and erupted into flames again with a sneer on my face. He was screaming as his flesh sizzled under my hand. I smirked, “I'll be thankin' ya for the information.” I punched his chest with my other hand and my metallic claws cracked the amulet. The Chronos Dome dissipated almost instantly. I glared at my nemesis as I kicked him in the chest, sending him tumbling and skidding along the roof for twenty feet. Then I hissed, “Who's the stupid bitch now you wee worm?”
He looked up from where he lay crumpled on the roof and grabbed his wood enchantment stone. Again and trees from below were ripped out by their roots, twisted unnaturally and were flung up toward me. I sneered. “You want to know Caragh's true secret? Queens can wield all elements!” I clenched my fist and walls of granite shot up from the ground and blocked the gnarled trees hurtling toward me. I hit him from behind with a blast of water, sending the wood stone tumbling from his grasp along the rooftop.
He stood shakily to his feet and glanced down at Quinn then smirked as he grabbed what looked like a bundle of leaves. “You have the same weakness as Caragh did. The way to defeat both of you is through the heart!” He tossed the leaves and uttered a strange word and he stepped into the leaves in the air and vanished. I looked around and saw him appear down below, and raised his lightning twig toward Quinn.
I felt more rage than I had ever felt in my life. I could hear Caragh in my ear saying, “Let the dragon out.” I know that I had held back until this instant. Quinn was in trouble!
I raised my head and shrieked. The building shook as my wings errupted from me. The power was immense and the entire rooftop exploded, the dome was blown to bits. And I turned my gaze down to Blaine.
The dragon had arrived!
Chapter 15 – Dragon!
I was exhausted, there were so many, but I wouldn't let them harm another civilian. The captured soldiers were fighting valiantly now, but they were no match for the magic or the beasts. I heard and felt Myra scream in pain. I looked up at the capitol building at the immense lightning display.
I could feel her searing pain as her flesh bubbled. My God! I was on the verge of panic but then saw her stand. Her anger, determination, and fear were almost overwhelming me. God, but she was a spectacular woman!
I redoubled my efforts. I had taken to using water attacks on thralls to smudge their rune marks. I hated killing people who didn't have control of their actions. But the golems and gargoyles I had no problems with reducing to rubble with my flaming granite strikes.
Those damn monks or whatever they were were the worst, with their ranged attacks. I have already been burned by a few close calls. The pain was wearing me down as much as the physical attacks. I smirked as I saw one pointing its branch at me. They may be magic wielders, but lead poisoning is universal! I grabbed my sidearm and fired a tight grouping of three into the man's chest. I didn't even watch to see his body fall as I dove onto one of the huge golems that were attacking soldiers.
I felt a certain smug vindication coming from Myra and a scream from Blaine. Then a moment later that Chronos Dome dissipated. I grinned at the fact that she had figured out how to deactivate it somehow. But the smile left my face as Blaine appeared thirty feet in front of me in a flurry of leaves.
He raised his branch at me. I prepared to roll out of the way when I felt something huge from Myra. The rage and fury and her need to protect me hit me as a solid wall of emotion. She started to shriek and Blaine looked up at her too.
That shriek turned into the deafening animalistic roar of a dragon as my red headed beauty seemed to grow in size as huge wings of flame burst from her. The top of the building seemed to explode as the enormous dragon of flame and fury reared up with her wings spread majestically behind her and she roared with the flaming head of the dragon shooting a pyre of flame into the heavens. It was one of the most awe inspiring things I had ever seen in my life. This was Myra! This was her dragon!
Blaine turned back to me and I felt a moment of sheer terror from Myra as she contemplated something. It hit me, she was terrified of heights. But then she jumped off the roof as Blaine chanted, she was flying! The ground around me exploded outward at the impact of her landing behind me and her huge flaming wings wrapped around me protectively, cocooning me as the lightning struck. But it's fury couldn't match the new power of her flames.
The ground shook as my sweet dragon's voice rumbled out, “You will not harm anyone else here! You will not harm someone precious to me! These are my people, the human race is under my protection, this ends here!”
Her tail wrapped around me and gently, almost lovingly, lifting me and placing me as far back as she could reach. Which, in her new form was about twenty feet back. A wall of granite rose between her and me. I quickly and carefully looked around its edge to see her squaring off with Blaine.
He was throwing lightning and then suddenly about a dozen gargoyles and golems attacked Myra from behind. She roared in pain as a gargoyle landed on her back, clawing through the flames into her flesh where the scales had been damaged, the ground shook as she roared. The dragons head swung back and the jaws and teeth of flame grasped the gargoyle and crushed him to gravel as her powerful jaws snapped shut.
Blaine was using more relics from his pockets, hitting her with various spells. I could feel her searing pain. Then her majestic wings started flapping, her attackers were thrown back by the wind it generated as she took flight. I felt that odd terror from her again but it suddenly turned into elation as she spiraled around above her attackers.
Her dragon's head pulled back and opened its mouth. Then with another mighty roar Myra hit them with a blast of flame that incinerated the golems and reduced the gargoyles to molten slag. Blaine looked terrified. He had escaped most of it by pulling out his water staff and getting a meager liquid wall between himself and the hellfire coming down on him. His skin was now all twisted and burned.
He raised the staff as she landed and stalked toward him, circling him on all fours, her tail flowing out behind her as she folded her wings to her back. He started to strike the staff on the ground when her claw shot forward and sliced his forearm, cleanly removing his hand from his body. The staff clattered to th
e ground and Myra stepped on it, reducing it to smoldering ash.
The ground shook as her voice rumbled, “You are mistaken about me heart bein' me weakness you wee little man. It is the source of my strength. Caragh says to give you her regards Saint George. May the devil take your last shilling!”
She reared up on her haunches and all of the hydrants in the area exploded and fanged water serpents hit Blaine from all sides as the dirt around him heaved up in a huge mound, swallowing him as the water turned the mound into clay. She reared up and gave a bellowing roar that shook the buildings around us, shattering all their windows, as a mighty column of flame leapt from her mouth, baking the mound of clay. It went on with her roaring for at least twenty seconds. Then she stopped and her wings unfolded and she started flapping, spiraling up into the air and then folding her wings in and plummeting to earth as a meteor directly into the baked mound, shattering it.
What golems and gargoyles that were left started wandering off without their master to control them. The thralls were all looking around in confusion and fear. Then it was almost silent. Myra turned her head slowly toward me and my dragon padded over to me and her huge dragon head nuzzled me. I couldn't fight the smile on my face as I stroked it between the eyes gently as it slowly faded. Then Myra, covered in those beautiful red and gold dragon scales, was standing there before me with tears on her face.
I 'needed' to protect her. I pulled her into a hug as she sobbed into my chest. Then she looked up. “He's gone. It's over.” I nodded at her. She looked back at all the military vehicles converging on us. “What's to become of me now?”
Soldiers were getting out of the vehicles and started helping the stragglers. I could hear some random fire from time to time from any remaining battles in the city.
Then I heard someone clapping and turned to see Stenson, a little battered, but smiling and clapping. The other troops joined in and Myra buried her face in my shirt in embarrassment. She finally turned and snapped, “That'll be enough of that now. A surly bunch you lot!” There were some chuckles.
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