By the Red Moon Part 74
Scythe howled a shrill screech as she crushed the bones of the skeletal steeds that came within the reach of her massive talons, sending their hooded ghost riders to plummet from the skies. Quickly reeling her long body around, she stretched her spiked tail out to demolish more targets that were closing in while sending forth a stream of flames from her breath to take care of the others still around.
Hundreds of miles below, Wing was in the midst of hacking away at the weaponry of the dark army. Gripping and tearing at the hurlers, he dropped the huge machinery atop the demonic soldiers that scrambled across the grounds, flattening dozens at a time. When he did not have a weapon to attack, he moved on to the tents where the flames of his breath brought forth great explosions.
In the midst of the chaos all around, the white steed looked up to see a stream of dragon nets sailing high over Scythe. The black beast was too engaged in her defending herself to see the danger that was swooping back down to claim her.
Releasing a loud roar, Wing climbed as quickly as he could while paying no mind to the blows that he was receiving in the process. With a surprised squawk when her counterpart passed her, Scythe blinked her glowing, white eyes as she watched him destroy the falling nets that she had missed with a burst of fames.
Quickly destroying her last few immediate challengers, the black smiled to her unlikely hero. Grunting, the white steed smirked back when he returned to her side. And within seconds, they were engaged in the thick of the battle again... only this time, they stayed close to watch out for one another.
"Let's go, men! We're making headway here!" Captain Lewis shouted to his comrades around. His armor bloodied, the burly man spun his long sword to lob the head off an ogre that had attempted to run him through with a spear.
* * * * * *
On the other side of Sanq, Mueller pulled his blade from the side of a towering ogre and spun around with wide eyes at a pained yelp. Finding the source, he gasped sharply when he found certain black wolf to be on the ground with a spear through her upper torso with a gremlin standing over her. Paling, the Commander shouted, "Gloria!"
Slicing his way through the fray, he hurried to his lover's side to separate the head of her unprepared attacker from its neck. The werewolf peered up with shimmering eyes and whimpered as blood seeped from her wound. Biting his lip, Mueller gently patted her sweat-dampened head and soothed over the roar of voices and clang of metal, "You're going to be okay. Just hang in there."
In their own wolven states, Alex and Adodera rushed into the scene. Both covered with blood that was a mix of their own and their enemies', they assisted the knight in pulling the top of the spear from its bed in the earth.
The moment she was free, Gloria collapsed in shock. Carefully stretching her out on the back of her pack, Mueller's head shot up to watch as an ogre charged them with a thick club raised over his head. Taking hold of his sword, the Commander shouted to his friends, "Get her to the healers!" Reluctant to leave him, the wolves had no choice but to take off with their charge.
Swinging his sword when the ogre was upon him, Mueller was able to block and dodge several swipes of its club. But soon, his momentum was lost and he screamed when his right leg was shattered by a downward chop that hit its mark.
At the back lines of the Alliance along the hillside that wrapped around Sanq, Sally and her team of healers quickly swarmed the knoll. "Let's do this as quickly as we can, everyone!" she yelled over the roaring voices of the battle. "We cannot afford to be caught up in a strike like that, ourselves!"
Pulling flatbeds on the backs of horses, they made their way through the back ranks to search through the fallen to find those that they could help. Human and werewolf alike were carefully loaded and carried back to the shield of the trees where they could be tended to.
Deep in the shield of the forest, Relena was wrapping a wailing soldier's bleeding torso. Biting her lip as she gazed around, she saw that the place was filling much too quickly with the wounded for the healers available to reach them. Shaking her head, she whispered, "Dear Creator, there are just so many of them already."
Only a few feet away, Quatre finished passing on his gift to one of the fatally wounded soldiers so that he could pass on peacefully. It was not the first time the empath used his ability in such a way. And it was not about to be the last. Not by a long shot.
Peering back to his wife over his shoulder, he reassured, "Only worry about what you can do now. This is not about to get any better, so one case at a time is all we can do." The seer bit her lip and nodded her head and moved to the next injured lying in line.
Closer to the tree line, Queen Middi and Princess Sylvia were working as quickly as they could with the healers around to see to the patients that they could save. As they held wounds to stop bleeding and wrapped others closed, they raised their heads at the distinct patter of wolf paws padding into the forest.
At the sight that greeted them, the girl shot to her feet and shouted, "Alex! Adodera!" Along with her mother, she ran for their friends only to freeze when they had a good look at the black, spear-pierced wolf slumped across their backs.
Her jaw hanging open, the queen worked with her daughter to lower Gloria to the ground. Running her hand over the thick fur of the still creature, Middi bit her lip as the werewolves behind her turned into their human forms. Once she found the thick neck to feel for a pulse, her worst fear was realized.
Sharing a saddened glance with Sylvia, the young woman slowly turned towards Alex and Adodera. Just the look in the brown eyes of the queen was enough to tell them of their sister's state and the white werewolf collapsed into her husband's arms as she let out a heart-wrenching wail, tears streaming down her face.
Moments later, Mueller was half-carried into the forest, wincing from the biting pain in his crushed leg. Finding his lover lying on the ground and her sister weeping, he scrambled to Gloria's side, crawling when he was close enough. Arms shaking, he sobbed and buried his face into her fur.
* * * * * *
From his place on the castle's balcony, Dekim worked up a new approach to his own attack. Raising his hands to the skies, he muttered an incantation as his eyes glowed a brilliant white. A dark beam of energy shot into the clouds to turn them a cold blue shade. And when they opened, a driving hail of sharp ice shards fell atop the Alliance reinforcements at the back like swords.
Crying out in pain, the men made quick to raise their thick shields over themselves and their werewolf counterparts. Those soldiers and beasts not fortunate to have moved quickly enough fell dead, sliced into pieces. Within moments, the spell ended, but there had been quite a bit of damage in the number of casualties.
"Would somebody please get to that bastard!" Juan hissed under his breath as Tiny maneuvered them through the chaos that filled the skies. Glaring at the old man as he weaved another spell, he shouted, "Let's make a move for him, girl!" Her head falling back, his small steed shot forward through an opening for the castle.
Nearby, Anna peered over her shoulder to watch her fellow knight-in-training make a move for the sorcerer. Her blue eyes widening, she shouted, "Juan! Tiny! It's too dangerous! Stay back!"
That brief glance away from the ghost riders around her cost her and she cried out in pain as a beam of green light grazed up the side of her right leg and rose to knock the helmet off of her head. Despite the burning pain, the archer pulled back on the arrow already loaded against her bow's drawstring with a growl of pain and shot her opponent off his mount.
Wufei's head snapped back at his wife's shout to Juan and Tiny racing for the castle with five other riders that had decided to take the chance with him. Right shoulder bleeding from the lucky swipe of an ogre's blade and his own helmet long removed, the Commander paled as he breathed, "Dear Creator. They're not going to make it."
Spotting the oncoming wave of dragon riders, Dekim chuckled deeply. "I give them merit for their courage," he smirked to himself. "Or their stupidity." He raised his hand to send out a plume of black smoke that engulfed the team.
Instantly choking, the riders and their steeds fought for air that did not exist, lost in that black fog. It did not take long for the team to suffocate and fall lifelessly from the dark haze. As their bodies tumbled towards the ground far below, the thousands still fighting around watched.
With sharp tears in their eyes, Wufei and Anna looked on in horror while Nataku and Ingier howled in grief in seeing the brave knight and his little dragon dropping away from their sight. A sharp breath filling her lungs, the archer screamed, "Nooo!" Gripping her bow tightly, she let out a deep growl as her gaze narrowed heatedly on Dekim.
The swordsman wiped his tears with the back of his arm and set his own glare on the sorcerer. "They had the right idea," he growled deeply. "It's about time that we took some shots at that bastard to repay him for everything."
Nodding firmly, Anna slapped her dragon's side and called, "You hear that, Ingier?! Clear a way for us!" Her blue-purple snorted as his lips curled up in a smirk and blinked away the shimmer in his emerald eyes. Only too happy to oblige that command, he tipped his wings forward and gave a few mighty flaps the moment he had an opening to gain some speed.
Once he was clear of any immediate danger, Ingier lowered his head for more speed and bore right through skeletal beasts filling the skies with Nataku at his side and a wave of other riders right behind, including the remaining members of the Sanq Elite.
Thousands of Alliance riders paused to witness the charge and were all the more eager to get their own chance at the dark sorcerer. Even if it meant their death, at least they could cause enough of a distraction if enough of them stormed the castle that they just might make a difference. It was with that very notion that Treize raised his sword dripping with red and cried, "Overwhelm the son of a bitch! He can't get all of us!"
A new roar of cheers and shouts rose from the dragon riders as they followed the king and Noventa. Before long, hoards of soldiers and their faithful beasts shot through the heavens for the castle.
Stunned, Dekim watched with wide eyes at a new wave of riders approaching... from everywhere. Those approaching stormed their way through the ghost riders that tried to deflect them and kept their heated glares set on the old man with the Sank knights-in-training in the lead. Regaining his composure, his eyes narrowed as he picked a handful of the swarm to go after first.
With different kinds of attacks sent off, several riders and their dragons were taken out and fell to their demises whilst the rest of the lot weaved and dodged through the storm. And still they soared for the sorcerer.
"I will not be defeated like this!" Barton howled as he continued to fend for himself while his enemy drew all the closer towards the dome he had created around the balcony.
When one dragon and their rider were handled, it seemed three more flew in to take their place from Dekim's perspective as they closed in on his protective dome. Gritting his teeth, he continued to rain down every spell that he knew. Grazing many and only managing to overtake a precious few, his endurance was fading.
Just when Nataku and Wufei were about to befall the shield, they were shot at by arrows and spears from the ogres that had hurried to the other balconies to hold the Alliance away from their master.
Growling deeply in frustration, the Commander had little choice but to retreat along with the others around to eliminate the added threat on their lives that would distract them from the sorcerer's blows. And so the demons became the primary focus once again.
As the swarm began to break away, Dekim hurried back into his throne room. Leaning against the nearest wall, he panted heavily and wiped his damp brow with the back of his hand. The battle had shaken him. Never before would have expected his enemies to make such a strong assault... on his own home, no less.
Looking over to where Heero was standing in silent wait for an order, the old man waved his hand and snapped, "Go to the bleeding room and come get me the moment Dorothy is finished with the prince." With a bow of his head, the Commander quickly moved from the throne room to carry out his master's wish.
Beyond the doorway, the sounds of the battle continued on as Dekim reached a hand up to wipe at his mouth. He needed the boy's gift. No longer was it simply a matter of want. For his guarantee of victory, he needed more than what he was capable of. And to obtain it, he needed to give the sorceress all the time required to take that power from Duo.
Taking a deep breath, the sorcerer's eyes narrowed. He would see to it that she had more than enough time to spare. He was not about to be defeated. Not like this. Not ever.
It was with that resolve that Barton could feel his own gift building along with his rage. Growling deeply, he stepped back onto the balcony to resume his place as the dark lord that he was.
* * * * * *
Sweat rolled down Dorothy's face as she continued to magnify her gift through the crystal ball of the scepter.
The glow of that energy washing over Duo as he remained prone in the chains of the crane holding him, she worked to pull him free of the strands of his gift remaining inside of him. His eyes closed tightly, the braided prince's head was stretched to his side as he grunted and groaned in the efforts of holding her back.
"You are... incredibly strong," the sorceress admitted, voice strained and breath panting. "Much stronger than I ever gave you credit for."
Cracking an eye open, the braided teenager gritted out, "Likewise. This was not something I expected from Dekim's little whore of a puppet." Dorothy's eyes widened with a gasp at the insult. A fury like none other that Duo had seen pierced through her glare and reddening face before she zapped him with a jolt that had him screaming in pain.
Pleased by the blow that she had delivered, the girl continued to work her magic in an attempt to draw the last droplets from her prey. "Oh, I do not intend to stay that bastard's willing servant forever. You have no idea the measure of my patience to tolerate that man for the right opportunity. And now that it is here, I am not about to let the likes of a mere boy like you stand in my way of it."
Shaking his head to fight the urge to fall asleep, Maxwell turned his head forward and stared past the light to the fiery eyes on him. Feeling a trickle of blood that ran down his mouth only to be taken into the scepter, he gulped for air.' Better not piss her off like that again,' he thought to himself. 'I don't know how many more jolts like that I'll be able to take.'
Both of his hands mentally gripping onto the fading fibers of his ability against the pull on them, he panted, "Then... you've been waiting for this all along... for something that would make you stronger than Dekim?
Laughing, Dorothy replied, "I am stronger than Dekim now! There is no one in this world that I cannot best, as you are making perfectly clear as we speak!" She tilted her head and smirked, "But one can never go without some... assurance. Had your gift never been known to me, that fool would have been dead long before now. But his desire to capture worked to my benefit and so he lived only by my choosing."
"Strong words," the prince grinned, large drops of sweat running from his face. "Especially for someone who still hasn't been able to bleed me out yet." Before the next blow even came, he tightened his hold on his gift as tightly as he could. Screaming as the new jolt hit him, his violet eyes squeezed closed.
Beside herself with rage, the sorceress shrieked, "That is enough from you! Surrender your gift to me now!" With her strength quickly fading, she had to pull back the black bolts of her gift that had surrounded her captive to catch her breath again.
Shaking, Duo struggled to lift his head and stammered, "G-gonna have to do better than that, bitch." The corner of his mouth curling up, he chuckled, "I can keep this up all day. Maybe you're the one who should give up before you hurt yourself."
As much as she wanted to unleash everything that she had on the smug prince, Dorothy held back to regain her composure. There was still much fight left in Maxwell and she needed to pace herself. Even when she was successful in draining him, she still needed her gift to hold up enough to complete the spell by passing it onto herself.
For Catalonia, there was a great deal of satisfaction for her knowing that if her prisoner thought that he was in pain now, he had no idea what was in store. For the victim of a bleed out, they would remain alive in writhing, blissful agony until their gift and life force was released from the scepter into another.
Then he would truly suffer as he deserved.
Until then, she would wait to strip him of what little remaining of his gift he would not release.
With his words, Duo was too weak to hold on for much longer. Dorothy knew that. All that she had to do was continue to pull. He would eventually let go.
Flattening her hands against the crystal ball of the scepter, she released her gift in a steady and measured pace. Maxwell was not prepared for her new approach. Swallowing roughly as he felt the strain on his hold once again, his eyes drifted closed and his breath labored for air. His 'hands' tightened anew until even that hurt.
The warmth of the light side of his gift began to fade. Soon after, even the cold of his dark abilities ebbed. Shaking his head, the prince did all he could to call on those powers to hang on a little longer. He wanted to know that his plan had worked. He couldn't let Dekim or Dorothy have his gift if there was any way he could prevent it...
But the urge to let go and be over with the pain was calling. And the threads that he was able to protect were slipping from his grasp one-by-one.
It was nearly the end for him, Duo realized with a flush of dread that sent a chill up his spine. Helpless, he felt another strand fall away.... and another...
...and another.
Groaning, the prince felt his hold giving way. Tears of frustration and sheer terror ran down his face as he breathed, "Oh God... I'm so sorry, everyone." Unable to hold on any longer, his 'hands' fell away and the last of his gift was stripped away.
Dorothy watched with wide eyes as the last stream of his gift poured into the crystal ball to make it glow a multitude of changing colors and breathed, "Yes. That. Is. It. His violet eyes rolling back, Duo's body convulsed and writhed violently within the chains holding him as he was lost in a world of agony.
Nearly trembling with anticipation, the sorceress gripped the scepter's staff and looked up to her captive and snickered, "Do not worry. Your misery is about to end... forever." Carefully lifting her prize, her blue eyes sparked with lust as they stared at the shimmering gift in her grasp.
At long, long last... she was the one to be feared by all.
Gasping at a sudden jolt of incredible pain in her chest, Dorothy's eyes widened and her hands nearly dropped the scepter. Slowly staring down, her jaw fell open as she stared in disbelief at the bloodied sword tip that had pierced clean through her.
Breath wheezing through her lungs, she turned slowly and whispered, "D-Dekim."
* * * * * *
Falling to her knees, Relena stared out into the oblivion that flashed with images before her. Her arms wrapping around her abdomen, she gulped in a sharp breath of air. "Dear Creator," she breathed as tears filled her eyes. "Duo is going to die."
TBC...
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