Chapter 29: Devouring Flames

Note: Thanks to WRC 264 for beta reading this!

Sven Falk

I jumped back again, retreating before its swings. A purple ball of energy landed before the temple, spilling Zanyia out of it. My lamia slave gained her hands and knees, tail swishing. She had those katars thrusting out from her leather armor, but they would be equally as useless against Prince Meinard as my rapier.

Then Nathalie burst out of the temple, still looking slender and girlish despite the ruby armor she wore. Ruddy orange glowed in the stylized pattern of flames decorating her armor. The air wavered around her, heat dancing in an aura behind her.

A moment later, a flaming thing burst out, its body long and sinuous, segmented. Oily fire dripped off of it, leaving splatters on the ground as it scurried after Nathalie. Her screams galvanized me into action.

I darted from Prince Meinard, sprinting from him towards my slave. He snarled. His footsteps crashed after me, but I was faster. I had to get to Nathalie. Maybe I could hurt this monster. My boots thudded on the cobblestone.

“Master!” Nathalie gasped, her face painted by the orange light of her armor as she charged at me, leading the insect. “I tried! I tried! But it likes fire!”

Mandibles clicked, scything blades that hungered for my slave—my wife’s—flesh. I growled as I darted past Nathalie. I lunged my rapier at the monster’s flaming body. The shadowy point slammed into the chitinous face plate.

And skipped along it.

I left a scouring scratch across the surface, my blade sliding past its multifaceted eye. Frustration surged in me for a moment. And then my rapier’s blade hit the joint at the neck. It penetrated into it, biting into flesh.

The thing snarled in pain. A violent surge of triumph rippled through my body. I twisted the blade, savoring the things chittering snarl of pain. It’s long body contorted around, legs scuttling on the ground, splashing flaming oil to burn on the cobblestone.

Finally, something I could—

The thing’s back half uncoiled and slammed into my chest. I grunted as shadows swirled, swallowing up the burst of fire exploding around me. I stumbled back a step, my chest aching, the leather armor absorbing only some of the impact. A cough burst from my lungs.

“Gods damn it,” I grunted as the thing hissed and chittered.

Metal rang behind me. The air hissed.

Prince Meinard had caught up at me, his sword slashing down at my back.

Prince Meinard

Sven flowed out of the way of my blade, darting for the right. The Hunger scuttled after him, ichor bubbling from the wound in its neck. Its sharp mandibles opened and closed with scything whisk that sent a chill down my distant body.

Now I had Sven. He couldn’t dodge us both.

“Las’s putrid cum!” Sven snarled, shadows dripping off of him as he dodged out of the snapping attack of the Hunger.

I thrust my sword at his chest as he dodged right for me. I saw a moment of panic flash across his face. Then the shadows moved his body. He twisted out of the way, that damned armor of his keeping him alive.

But for how long?

The Hunger scurried after as I pivoted and swiped at Sven again, forcing him to dodge the Biomancer’s monstrosity. Sven growled and leaped over the slashing bite only for the centipede-thing to slash at his body. It forced him to slide to a halt, to shift his weight and dodge back.

I leaped and slashed, my metallic body hurtling through the air. My blade hurtled down at—

Fire washed across my face. Heat kissed my body. It absorbed it, drinking it in with ease. I hit the ground, my view obscured by the curling tongues of orange and red dancing before me. My sword slammed into the cobblestone with a jarring force.

The fire died. I blinked and then whirled around to see a slender girl in ruby armor slamming a flaming sword into my chest. It hit my iron body and bounced off. The girl stumbled back, eyes widening in shock.

I backhanded her, my metal fist slamming into her breastplate. Flames burst around the impact. She gasped as it threw her onto her backside in a metallic clang. I ignored her. Fire and her sword couldn’t harm my flesh. I had to kill Sven.

Shadows flowed to the right.

“Fire!” a familiar voice yelled. “Nathalie!”

“Ava?” I growled, looking down the street where a wooden dog chased a swarm of insects. The Colony buzzed closer, hurtling towards Sven.

Princess Ava

“Nathalie!” I yelled as the girl scrambled to her feet. She looked at me, her blonde pigtails peeking out from beneath her helmet giving her martial form a girlish demeanor. “We need your fire! Burn them!”

She shook her head, then she saw the swarm of insects descending from the sky, hurtling down at Sven as he darted around my father’s iron proxy. The buzzing insects had found prey they could harm. I ran faster, wooden claws scratching at the road.

“Burn then now, Nathalie!”

Purple energy burst around Sven. Nathalie slashed her sword down hard before her. The flaming blade left a sweep of heat that burst into dancing fire. It swept through the air, propelled before her. It crackled hungrily as it slammed into the horde of bugs.

“Gods, yes!” I cheered in delight as they crackled. Died.

Aingeal

I protected Sven as the fire rolled over the insects. My soul trembled against Ava’s as those bugs roasted. Crisped insects rained from the sky as the flames devoured them. A buzzing roar of pain hummed from the remaining swarm as they climbed into the air.

Nathalie aimed her sword, pointing at the swarm. Her flames chased, hungry for the bugs. The cloud rose into the air, fleeing her fire. It split apart, dozens of tendrils of scared flies darting in every direction.

The fire split, too.

It roared and crackled. Oranges and reds and yellows danced across the iron body of Prince Meinard. Ava’s father growled as he lunged at Sven, swiping his sword at my husband’s body. Sven, his armor drinking in the inferno’s glow, flowed.

“No, you Las-damned bastard!” I howled, only Ava hearing me.

Evocation spirits responded to my anger. The balls of orange light descended, dancing around the feyhound’s body. I focused them, my purple aura spreading around them, forming a ball of brilliant power.

I fired it.

The blast soared at Meinard as his massive sword hacked at my husband. Sven retreated before it. He didn’t attack. Couldn’t attack. What could a blade, even one made of shadows, do against a solid block of animated iron.

My ball slammed into the body. It hit with the force to demolish a building. Prince Meinard’s heavy body stumbled back as the evocation spirits spilled over him. He snarled, his voice booming with a metallic ring, and crashed onto his back with a heavy rattle.

“Finally!” Sven growled as burnt insects fell like gray snow around him.

Zanyia

The fire burned the bugs. I smiled. Nathalie had that in hand. I needed to find something to do. To be useful. To help my family. My new wives needed help. My ears pricked. Water sloshed around inside. Something gelatinous quivered.