Chapter 31

Note: Thanks to Alex for beta reading this!

Hagane skidded to a halt. She had mistimed her attack.

Instead of jumping off the building, she stopped at the edge. Staring down at the street, she grimaced at Maya’s sacrifice to kill the thunderbird. Hagane closed her eyes. One more thunderbird dead, but it had cost a good monster girl. Hagane couldn’t make that mistake again.

Because she heard the crackle of lightning. She opened her eyes and spotted another thunderbird swooping down at the halflings that Maya and Chystota defended. The unicorn threw herself into the blast of lightning, taking the blow that would have killed a half-dozen of the innocents.

The brave unicorn hit the ground, her body smoking and charred. Hagane’s anger swelled. Fury trembled through her metallic body. Chystota whinnied in pain one last time then she vanished in a burst of motes.

Sent back to the Void Crystal.

You did amazing, Chystota, Hagane thought. You saved their lives.

Now it was Hagane’s turn. This time, she would not mess up. The thunderbird rose out of her attack, climbing out of the buildings and right towards where the animated statue stood. She leaped from the building.

The metallic girl slammed down on the back of the thunderbird and rammed her arm-blades through the electric body of the enemy. Current surged up Hagane’s limbs and through her body. But she wasn’t made of flesh.

Of metal.

She could take an electric blast. Endure the pain as she drove the monster girl to the ground. They hit hard. The thunderbird burst into motes while the animated statue’s tough body rose to her full height, hurt but still in the fight.

The halflings stared at her where they huddled in fright. She aimed at the door to the building. “Go! Get to safety! Lord Leo will protect you! Just get out of the street.”

Hagane didn’t know if all the thunderbirds had been killed or not. She would not take any chances.

Garnet soared over the city and found Hagane ushering a group of halflings into a building. From around the corner, Sriblo trotted at the tip of a large group of halflings. From the air, Garnet could see more groups rushing in this direction.

Word’s spreading, she thought. She took the responsibility of making sure the halflings got out of the city very seriously. She would not let down her big brother.

“Are there any more thunderbirds?” Hagane asked in Garnet’s mind.

The succubus didn’t see any. “You’re clear. Get them to safety then move to the north. We have to help up there.”

“Okay,” Hagane said as Garnet winged to the north, her whip dissolving. She didn’t get to spank a naughty thunderbird.

Tears formed in her eyes at the dead lying in the street. Those halflings didn’t get to come back like the monster girls. They were snuffed out forever. The little succubus hissed her fury. She wouldn’t let any more of the halflings die.

“How’s it going in the east, Mommy?” Garnet asked, her voice echoing through the dryad’s mind.

“Almost clear,” said Mrs. Zoe Baldwin to her daughter. “How’s it going in the west. It sounds bad over there.”