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AR Chapter 403 (Beginning of Book 5)
🕑 Added 2025-06-04 04:13:35 +0000 UTC***
“The egg is moving!”
“They’re on the walls!”
If wanting to hunt my people to extinction wasn’t enough of a reason for me to hate the Misti Hawar, a more pressing problem was their terrible timing. Every person in the Empire with even a little bit of know-how regarding hatching and healing said that our eggs were about to hatch as the first Keel born in this era. Then, on the day when they’d begun moving in earnest, the call went up.
Before I could even see the nub on their snouts to cut through the eggs’ shells, I needed to protect the rest of my people.
“Stay here!” I snarled at Brutus as he made to follow me. “I’ll kill every one of them and you’ll make sure nothing comes near my family.”
He flared his frills in assent as I bolted out of the building. Drawing lightly on [Spear of the Many], I flashed through the streets. Through their damned magic, I could hear a family of Misti Hawar making their way over the walls and into a nearby building. With a thought, I pushed my magic to my throat and shouted.
“TO ARMS! THE ENEMY IS AMONG US! KILL! SPILL THEIR BLOOD AND PROVE YOUR STRENGTH! VICTORY! VICTORY BY FANG AND BLOOD!”
With [Innervating Address] empowering every one of my people nearby, I heard as the quiet assassinations became fights. My people were as prepared as we could manage, but they were losing. Lethargic from the cold and preparing to sleep for the night, the Misti Hawar were showing their strength as hunters. But we were conquerors. Again, I drew my magic to my throat, this time channeling [Conqueror’s Rebuke] and speaking in the human tongue.
“You will regret coming here! Misti Hawar, your flesh will feed our young and your blood will water our crops!”
My people roared in approval as I challenged the beasts. My words were the least of our attackers’ concern. With a roar, I leapt into the house where the family of Misti Hawar had gone. Inside, they were ripping into two Kha who fought desperately for survival, but each of their attacks phased through the dark-furred aggressors. One, the largest present, seemed to be the Chakuq. The shadows in the barely lit room billowed deeper and darker around it, and when its claws sliced through the air, the shadow carried the strike further than I’d expected, almost a foot. As they struck out, the two Kha fell, bleeding out.
Instead of just watching it continue, though, I let out a constant, bubbling growl driven by [Murderous Melody]. It was obvious where the magic hit my foes, as they rippled and their forms became more distinct. That was enough for me. With jaws and claws ready, I ripped into the Chakuq. It turned to attack me, but blinked once in surprise as it met my eyes. The hunter recovered quickly, but it didn’t matter if it’d been in top form. As the source of the magic that caused their shadowy forms to solidify, my fangs ripped through the Misti Hawar’s throat without issue.
It collapsed, gurgling, and the unnatural shadow ceased its billowing for the dying creature. The other two Misti Hawar in the room turned and snarled something in their language, but I wasn’t finished. My fallen people hissed in excited challenge, that their leader was present and delivering justice on their behalf. The other larger Misti Hawar, the dead one’s mate, I supposed, tried to gather the shadows in a cloak around them and their child, but I didn’t hesitate. With two more bites, I dispatched them.
“Victory…” panted one of the suffering Kha. The Misti Hawar, as we’d seen in those ambushed by them all those months ago, dealing more in crippling and pain than deadly blows. I held back my scoff. Hunters, they called themselves.
“Victory.” I echoed. “I’ll send someone to care for you when I can.”
“Yes, Zaaktif.”
I didn’t wait for any response but still heard it as I bolted out of the room. Another three families had made their way into buildings nearby, but [Pack Tactics] told me it was more important to man the walls than to deal with the stragglers that’d managed to find their way into the city. As such, I paused only to rip apart a pair of Misti Hawar when I chanced across them in the street. Their words, somehow so similar and yet so different to our own language, escaped my understanding. I didn’t care either way.
At the walls, I leapt up and witnessed the casualties. As before, it was obvious that the Misti Hawar bled their foes to near death before they attempted the killing blow. The stones were slick with the blood of my people, and three different families were on the walls, engaging in the wholesale subjugation and slaughter of my people. I pushed the thrumming magic in my throat further as I lunged to engage with the Misti Hawar.
Seeing me coming, there was, again, some measure of surprise evident in their body language, but I didn’t care. I rushed through the flickering shadows cast by the torches fallen from insensate hands. Instead of the meager percentage I’d drawn before, I took from all of my followers as I pushed [Spear of the Many] to the limit. My heart pounded in my chest and I focused [Destructive Wave] into my claws. With none of my people on their feet, I was free to send the attack rocketing forward. A nearly ten foot-long scar ripped into being and tore forward as the first family got close to me.
All three fell, bisected.
[Murderous Melody] filled my head, and as the second and third reconsidered the actions that had brought them to this point, I screamed at them.
“Nievtala strike you down!”
Over half died outright, blood coursing from every orifice. The other half, stunned by my curse and [Skill], died nearly immediately thereafter to my ripping claws. And then, this section of the wall was cleared of enemies. Taking a brief second, I reared my head back and gave my people the instruction.
“They’re weak to magic! While they’re shadow, you can kill them with magic! Rally around those who can strike them down and KILL!”
Again, my people rallied further under my commands, and I looked in every direction for my next target. Deeper in the city, I saw flashes of fire, of deadly magics cast by my people. It wasn’t long before I lay eyes on my next foe and leapt down from the walls to get my vengeance. And I would do so speedily, because my children were waiting for me.
Comments
Veldorn
"dealing more in crippling and pain than deadly blows." painful
