Chapter 75. Dragon’s Breath

Chapter 75: 75. Dragon’s Breath

The fighting across the open mile showed no sign of slowing. Shields still met clubs. Blades still found flesh.

The wet sound of blood and the heavy breathing of both armies continued without pause.

Dust and the metallic scent of open wounds hung low over the packed earth.

Human brawlers pushed against the Red Horde in a grinding line that shifted only a few feet at a time.

On the left the Mindbreakers kept testing the edges of the formation with short bursts of violet pressure.

On the right the Heartseekers loosed careful volleys that forced the wall archers to stay low between shots.

From one of the upper wall bases Tina drew three arrows at once onto her sleek black bow.

Soft green mana gathered along each tip as she locked her eyes on three demons who had broken free of the main clash and were sprinting straight toward the Warforged Titan that carried Kael, Amber, and the others.

The demons moved low and fast, clearly intending to climb the beast’s leg and reach the riders.

Tina spoke a short name under her breath.

Thorn Split

The string released with a clean thrum.

The three arrows flew in a tight cluster at first, then separated cleanly at the halfway mark, each one curving toward a different target with unnatural precision.

All three struck forehead-center.

The demons dropped mid-stride without another sound, bodies tumbling across the dirt and coming to rest in broken heaps.

The red oni who was still a little distant from them saw the target was surrounded by four rankers and sent these three so that they’ll be obligated to come down and fight them leaving the black haired girl behind on the back of the beast.

’But who would’ve thought that elf bitch would kill them from that distance easily.’

Kael turned toward the wall in time to see Tina lower the bow.

She offered a small, satisfied smile in their direction before reaching for the next arrow.

Brianna watched the exchange, then pressed the soft weight of her green breasts against Kael’s arm one final time.

The contact lingered a second longer than necessary.

"I’m going down to fight."

She stepped off the Titan’s back and dropped toward the packed earth below, chain armor shifting around her as she fell.

Seraphine followed a heartbeat later, silver-white hair lifting in the wind of the descent.

Her voice carried back up to him, sharp and clear.

"Don’t go down there, Dad."

Eira’s small voice rose after her sister.

"Be careful!"

Seraphine glanced back with clear annoyance, crimson eyes narrowing.

"Don’t worry about me. I’m not weak like you. You stay here with our dad and don’t go down no matter what."

Amber kept her eyes on the lesser dragon and the black-haired woman above it.

Her rough voice cut across the short silence that followed.

"Your family is really interesting, Kael. But you should also probably go down and fight. Show me what you learned from our training. Don’t worry about your daughter. As long as I’m here, she’ll be safe."

Eira’s fingers locked tightly around Kael’s hand.

Her whole body started to shake.

The words came out in a thin, broken stutter.

"Dad... pl..lease don’t go. I’m scared of demons."

Kael lowered himself until his eyes met hers.

Eira stood only five and a half feet tall against his six-foot-six frame.

He placed both hands on her cheeks and felt the faint tremor under her skin.

Tears had already started to gather at the corners of her eyes.

He rubbed her cheeks with slow, steady thumbs, the motion deliberate and warm.

"Eira, you need to be stronger. You can’t just be afraid of everything you see. And don’t worry.

Amber here is one of the strongest rankers in this battle, except maybe that black-haired beauty on the lesser dragon. Stay with her. I’ll be back soon."

Eira’s voice rose again, thinner than before.

"But Dad, what if that black woman attacks you?"

Kael did not let her finish.

He pressed a short kiss to her cheek, then patted her head once.

"Don’t worry."

Color flooded Eira’s face.

She stayed silent as Kael stepped to the edge of the Titan’s back and dropped toward the battlefield below.

The impact of his boots on the ground sent a short jolt up his legs.

He drew the spare steel sword and moved toward the nearest gap in the human line unaware of the real threat that was waiting for the exact moment to target his stepdaughter.

’Luck seems to be on my side today. Now only the red-haired girl remains, she will be forced to get distracted and that’s when I will get my chance to abduct her.’

On the far side of the open ground Mira pulled herself back onto her Warforged Titan.

The cambion general did the same on the Gloom-Stalker.

Both beasts dug in and charged.

The distance between them closed in seconds.

The plated hide of the Titan and the skinless bulk of the Gloom-Stalker shook the ground with every stride.

Mira raised the axe and swept it in a wide horizontal arc.

Pale blue wind gathered along the edge in a dense, cutting sheet that hissed as it cut the air.

Sky Cleaver

Whoosh

The blade of wind met the general’s spiked club head-on. Gray mana flared on the club.

The club held for only a fraction of a second before the force tore through.

The general and the Gloom-Stalker were thrown backward in a single violent motion.

His body smashed through the first line of trees at the jungle edge.

Crrrk...Crrrk

Trunks snapped one after another with sharp, cracking reports as he tumbled deeper into the undergrowth.

Leaves and splinters filled the air in a wide cloud.

Mira did not wait. Wind gathered under her feet.

She left the Titan and shot after him in a low, fast glide, following the trail of broken wood until the main battle was far enough behind that she no longer needed to hold back for the sake of the ordinary rankers.

The short blue dress clung to her body as she moved, the fabric snapping once in the sudden speed.

Lina watched from her own Titan as her mother sent the cambion general flying like a discarded toy.

The ease of the motion left a short, sharp impression.

She had always known her mother was strong, yet seeing a full demon general swatted aside so cleanly still tightened something in her chest.

Her yellow dress shifted around her thighs as she adjusted her stance on the Titan’s back, eyes still fixed on the broken path into the jungle.

High above, Envy noticed the same exchange.

Her dark eyes narrowed.

The lesser dragon under her shifted its wings with a heavy, leathery sound.

The creature was large enough to cast a wide shadow across the packed earth, its dark scales dull under the fading light, long neck stretching forward as its rider guided it away from the center of the field and toward the wall bases where the human archers still worked their heavy integrated bows.

The dragon’s wings beat once, twice, each stroke sending a low pressure wave across the ranks below.

The massive shadow swept over the rankers.

Many of them looked up at once.

Fear showed clearly on more than a few faces as the lesser dragon’s bulk blocked out what remained of the evening sky.

The beast opened its jaws.

The inside of its mouth darkened rapidly until the flesh itself looked black.

Grrraaa!

Thick, black fire began to gather at the back of its throat, the heat already warping the air above the field.

Amber, Lina, and Lily all saw the change at the same moment.

The intention was obvious.

The dragon meant to wipe out the archer positions and collapse the rear support in one pass.

Lily’s voice cut across the short distance between the Titans.

"I’ll handle it."

The lesser dragon released the black fire in a single heavy stream aimed straight at the nearest wall base.

The dark flame roared forward, heat and pressure rolling ahead of it in a visible wave.

Rankers closest to the projected path scrambled sideways, some throwing themselves flat against the dirt.

Lina left her Titan in a running leap, yellow dress flaring around her legs as she dropped toward the ground.

Lily moved at the same time.

A wooden staff appeared in her right hand as if drawn from a dimensional pouch.

The shaft was plain polished wood, but the upper section held a cluster of smooth, water-colored stones that caught the light in soft blues and pale greens.

The design matched a long, elegant staff with a crystalline head, only the material had shifted to natural wood and living water stones.

Kael, still moving across the ground below, caught the brief flash of the staff and the way Lily’s white gown lifted around her as she rose slightly on the Titan’s back to aim.

The fabric of the gown billowed once in the wind of the dragon’s approach before settling again.

’That staff doesn’t look like something a gentle support mage would carry. The water stones are already gathering power.’

Lily raised the staff high and spoke a clear name.

Cascade Veil

A dense curtain of water erupted from the stones at the head of the staff.

The water poured upward and outward in a wide, continuous sheet that met the black fire in mid-air.

Hissss

Steam exploded outward in a thick white cloud that rolled across both armies.

The black fire vanished under the sudden volume of water.

The remaining cascade continued downward and drenched a wide stretch of the battlefield, soaking human and demon rankers alike.

Many of them staggered under the sudden weight of the water, boots slipping on the suddenly wet earth, but the wall bases and the archer positions remained untouched by the dragon’s flame.

Hraaaakh!

The lesser dragon pulled up with a harsh, frustrated cry.

Envy’s expression stayed cold as she guided the beast higher again, black hair whipping in the wind of the ascent.

The shadow of the dragon slid away from the field, leaving the rankers blinking in the returning light as the steam slowly thinned and the battle on the ground resumed its grinding rhythm.