FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Part 37

I let the light from my trident fade as the sound of approaching feet grows thunderous. The sound grows louder and louder until it is nearly deafening. Just before we are forced to cover our ears it comes to a sudden and deadly silence. Even the wind seems to have lost its voice as the air grows as still as a tomb.

The silences grows and stretches longer and longer before a voice calls out from the other side of the wall, "Now now Seeker, is this any way to greet your brother? A wall of earth and ice?"

A growl resonates inside my helmet as Aduro's voice rings in my ears. Struggling to keep my anger under control I call back, "My brother died in Atlantis over three thousand years ago. You are nothing more than a thief using his memory as a weapon and will never dishonor him again."

A deep laugh echoes from all around us before Aduro responds, "Believe what you wish Seeker, I don't much care either way. By the time night falls on this land the last guardians will be dead, you will be nothing but a memory, and my masters will reign supreme unchallenged for the rest of eternity."

I call back loud enough for all to hear, "Nothing in this world is truly eternal. All things will and must eventually come to an end. Even immortals such as us will eventually diminish and end. So know this traitor, should you by some chance succeed in destroying us here today there will come a day when you to will be destroyed by another greater power."

From the darkness comes a rumbling laugh, "Fancy words brother but meaningless. After today there will only be one power left in the world that of my masters. But even if your words do prove to be true and nothing lasts forever it won't matter to you because you will not be around to see it. These are your last hours and I intend to make them your worst."

The sound of a dozen bowstrings being pulled back is the only warning we have before black arrows begin to fly over the makeshift wall. In response Jasper and several others let loose arrows of their own which cross paths mid air. Some collided with black ones but most clear the wall. All of the black arrows miss hitting anyone though one comes close to me but I manage to deflect it with a spin of my trident.

While none Aduro's projectiles found their targets our retaliation seemed to have fared better. A chorus of roars and whines from creatures I can't identify echoes from the other side of the wall. I allow myself a moment of pride before the whole area shakes with a large impact.

Steadying myself I look to the wall where a crack has formed. Another earth shaking boom and the single crack spider webs into a dozen. I wave my trident towards the wall willing more water to flow up it and freeze, trying to reinforce the weak point. As the ice forms three more crashes follow the first two. With each blow the cracks spread and widen along the wall till pieces begin to crumble away.

On the sixth impact the earth and ice give way in an explosion of frozen dirt sending wolves and humans scurrying out of the way. Rick and I do our best to deflect as much of the debris as much we can but our efforts are soon interrupted by a large figure moving through the breach. As the dust clears a giant shadow creature barges through the hole it just made in the wall.

It towers over all of us by a dozen feet at least. It lets out a ground shaking roar and charges straight for me. Each step it makes rattles the earth under my feet but I hold my ground. As it nears me it swings a massive club in my direction. Thankfully its immense size makes it slower than normal foes so I am easily able to dodge the blow.

After rolling to the side away from the club I look up in time to see a trio of arrows impact the right side of its head at the same time as two fire balls hit the left side. Look to the left I see Jasper pulling back on his bow in letting loose a rapid series of arrows at his target. To the right are Shadow and Luna both charging up another pair of fire balls to let loose. Shadows flames seem to be quite a bit darker red than I last remember seeing them in our training sessions. Before I can think on it more though I dodge again as a giant fist nearly turns me into werewolf jelly.

Jumping inside the creatures reach I spin my trident around and slash at its mid section causing a large gash to appear. A black ichor flows from the wound as the behemoth roars in pain and stumbles back. It drops its club as one hand goes to its guts while the other reaches for the arrows in its face.

When it pulls its hands away the wounds have sealed themselves but the signs of them remain. If this thing can heal that fast it will be a tough fight for us. I chance a glance to the wall where a dozen more shadow creatures are pouring through, none thankfully are as large as the one I am fighting. The rest of our defenders are working to slow the influx of attackers.

Rosalie and Rick are using the water and earth to create spikes that shoot up and impale any who cross the wall. Some are stopped and break apart into wisps of smoke and darkness that dissolve in the air. But for every one that is struck down two more force their way in. In no time the sound of swords crashing into each other fills the air as hand to hand combat spreads throughout the clearing.

Unable to observe the surrounding battle for more than a second I return my full attention to the creature that seems hell bent on squishing me. As arrows and fire balls continue to strike it I duck and dodge its fists striking with my trident every time I find an opening. On one strike I manage to get in close and strike at its right leg.

As I move my trident through the air I will water and ice that is around me to attach to the points forming a long single blade with a deadly edge. Moving my weapon through the air the blade grows longer and longer till it makes impact with the creature. With little resistance I cut through the creatures leg just below the knee.

For a moment my trident meets resistance as it hits bone. When that happens I focus all of my strength into making my swing finish through. A split second later a loud crack echoes through the area as the creatures leg breaks and I finish amputating its right leg. It lets out its loudest roar yet as it topples to the left as it shifts its weight trying to stay upright but failing.

It lands on the ground with the force of an avalanche causing all of us near it to stumble. As it reaches down to the stump of its leg bellowing in pain I see Shadow move up towards the head his sword held high with crimson flames racing up and down its length. With one swift stroke he brings his sword down and cleanly decapitates the behemoths head in shower of black blood.

I look at my mate with pride at what we had accomplished but freeze for a moment as the creature begins to dissolve into smoke and darkness some of the shadows released by it seem to swirl around Shadow a bit before vanishing. As they do the flames of his sword seem to grow darker and burn more fiercely before returning to their previous color. Blinking my eyes for a moment I look closer but nothing seems any different.

Before I can think about approaching my mate however something impacts my back and sends me rolling across the ground. When I come to a stop I turn to see what hit me and find myself looking at another creature wielding a large black hammer. With a growl I get back to my feet and flex my shoulder. Nothing feels broke meaning my armor did its job and blocked the worst of the blow. But I'm sure I will still be rather bruised in the morning from that hit.

I spin my trident around once then charge back into the fray with my attacker. At first it manages to block my blows. But as the fight progress I see a pattern in its movements. After three more swings I manage to find the opening I have been looking for. With a fast hard thrust I drive the points of my trident under the creatures block and into its chest.

With a grunt of effort I lift its twitching form up in the air and throw it over my head and into the ground where with a sickening crunch it lands on its head. I pull my trident free splashing more of these creatures black blood on my armor before it begins to melt and dissolve.

Turning from my small victory I see Rick smash two at once with a mighty sideways swing of his hammer. Rosalie is spinning in fluid patterns around a foe with a long sword making fast jabs and slices with her own trident keeping it off balance until she swings for the kill taking off its head. Jasper has found a bit of high ground from which he is raining death down on the masses, each arrow finding a target. Even if not all are fatal shots more than a few result in the now familiar cloud of a vanquished creature.

Wolfie and Marcus are fighting back to back with swords in a ring of five creatures. Even though they are surrounded they are not as bad off as they seem. In a matter of seconds they have cut three of the creatures down and quickly move on last two. Eve and Tabatha are moving around with staves knocking down and injuring as many creatures as they can while Luna follows behind in their wake working to finish off any they miss.

Haran seems to be fighting twice as fierce as anyone. Constantly shifting between sword and claw depending on how close he is s casing shadow creatures to fall before him in no time at all. He seems to have taken this attack far more personally than I would have thought. Several villagers are fighting in a line holding back a wave of the creatures on the other side of the clearing. It seems as though another part of the wall has been breached.

I make a move to try and help solidify their defense only to see Shadow leap over the villagers from behind and crash into the creatures knocking several to the ground. He rolls away from the ones the toppled swinging his sword widely. With every slash of his sword flames shoot out in arcs up to twenty feet wide causing a dozen creatures to burst into flames. Many more fall after being sliced in two by his blade. As each creature falls Shadows attacks seem to grow faster and stronger. Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth I turn back to look at the rest of the battle and my heart sinks.

While one on one we all seem to be able to hold our own against the creatures the sheer numbers of enemies makes my blood run cold. For as far as I can see in every direction there is a sea of shadow creatures moving towards us. Our wall is all but gone giving me a full view of the army marching towards us. High above it all is the giant dark creature in command of it all.

Steeling my nerves I plunge back into the fray striking at any shadow creature in reach. More than once I summon spears of ice to impale creatures at a distance. Soon I find myself back to back with Wolfie. His clothes are stained and ripped and there are more than a few trails of red through his fur. Thankfully none of his injuries appear bad enough to hinder his ability to fight.

With a pant he calls out to me, "Is it just me Seeker, or does it feel like these creatures are just meant to tire us out not actually kill us? I haven't seen one yet after that first big one that gave any of us any real trouble long term."

I swing my trident hard taking out three creatures at once before the implications of his words sink in. Looking around I see that while everyone is holding their own they are beginning to show signs of battle on them. Where some are actively engaged in combat the creatures seem to flow around them in search of those less engaged. Keeping all of us occupied and on the defensive.

I duck under one of Wolfie's attacks as I reply, "You're right, they are not here to kill just weaken and delay us. The worst is yet to come."

He nods as he leaps over a swing of my trident aimed to take out the legs of a four armed creature attacking with two swords and a club, "I was afraid of that."

He drives his sword straight past my right ear and into the face of another creature that had snuck up behind me. With a humorless grin I reply, "Thanks..... Wolfie if this keeps up like I fear it will. There will come a point when..."

I am cut off by several arrows shooting between us causing us both to jump back for a moment before returning to each other's side.

Before I can continue Wolfie looks at me with a look only another Alpha can fully understand and says, "You intend to order your guardians and pack away and want us to follow."

I nod, "Rick and Rosalie already know and will make sure the others go. Will you go with them?"

He stares at me hard for a moment then looks around the fighting before turning back to me, "I think it is a very stupid plan of yours Seeker and I would rather die than see our new home destroyed. But I also see the wisdom of it, what point is there in a home if no one is alive to live in it. I will make sure as many of us as possible get out alive."

I extend a paw in gratitude, "Thank you my friend, I know it's a lot to ask of you."

He smirks, "Damn right it is and if you ever ask something like this of me again expect a knock upside the head."

With that he grasps my paw with his own and shakes it. In the instant our paws touch the white aura I once saw around him weakly returns with a blinding brilliance. In that instance I know that he would make a truly fine air guardian and leader. Sadly I no longer have the time to give him that honor as we are ripped apart by a sea of creatures who chose that moment to attack and drive us away from each other. Almost as if they could sense what I could.

As I parry and attack time and time again dropping more and more shadow creatures I begin to lose hope that this fight will ever end. Looking up I see something that causes that slow loss of hope to turn in pure dread flowing over me like a tidal wave. Moving slowly towards me clad in armor darker than night and giving off an aura of pure evil is Aduro. His black cape waves lazily behind him while in his right hand he carries an ax that sends chills down my spine as I remember the feeling of it cutting my flesh.

When he locks gaze with me the army of shadow creatures parts between us and begins to back away. This is what they have been waiting for. Their only job was to weaken me and the others so that Aduro could come in and wipe us out single handedly. As he approaches me I rise to my full height and raise my trident to my side willing it to glow softly in an effort to ease my own nerves.

When he is about five paces from me he stops. As he does all sounds of battle around us also ceases. Sparing only the briefest of glances to either side I realize that the fighting itself has actually paused. The shadow creatures have everyone surrounded. Some in small groups some singled out. But all surrounded just out of a sword or staffs reach.

For a moment we both stand there staring at each other from within our helmets neither of us making a sound. Then with a slight incline of his head Aduro's helmet vanishes in wisps of smoke. With a sadistic grin on his face he calls out, "Well well here we are again 'Seeker' you and me facing off. One on one."

I will my own helmet to flow away like water as I respond, "So it would seem."

Aduro studies me for a moment then asks, "Why don't you make this easier on all of us and just surrender? Surely by now you have realized that there is no way for you to win this fight. If you surrender right here right now you have my word that all those you protect will be spared, except you and your guardians of course. I would offer you all places of serving but you wouldn't take it. So what do you say, five lives in exchange for the rest of these peasants?"

From all around me I hear shifting and muttering from wolves and humans alike. Before I can answer one of the villagers calls out, "We will never let Seeker surrender like that. We will all fight to the end beside him. Not cower behind him in fear."

Cheers of approval echo around the clearing from all of the villagers and both packs. I turn to look at Aduro with a smug grin that was more bluff than I care to admit, "Looks like you have your answer. No one here will ever surrender to life of slavery, we would all rather die free protecting those we love."

With a snarl he spins his ax as his helmet reforms, "So be it. My masters had hoped to torture some information from you before you died but this is acceptable as well."

I raise my trident to a battle ready position and restore my own helmet, "This is it then. One last fight."

As the two of us race towards each other the sound of battle explodes around us as all the creatures renew their attack on us. Unfortunately I am unable to spare any attention the various fights around me as my fight with Aduro will require every bit of concentration. At first our attacks and blocks are evenly matched neither of us gaining an upper hand.

Each time I slice or jab at him he manages to duck, block, or roll away. Luckily each time he launches an assault on me I am able to dodge just as quickly. It would seem that all the hours of training I have put in since our first battle has paid off. That is until he grips his ax with both paws and it begins to split into two smaller blades, one in each paw.

With an evil laugh he says, "I see you have been training since our last fight. But so have I."

He launches into a two handed flurry of attacks that forces me to stay on the defensive. Barely able to block each blow before the next follows in its wake I find myself being forced back step by step. As sweat begins to run down my face and neck I feel the strain each blow is having on my body. As I gradually begin to slow down I know it is only a matter of time until I fail to block one of his strikes. I know when that time comes it will put me at an even greater disadvantage.

Luck seems to be on my side however. Before the fatigue gets the better if me Aduro launches a fierce downwards blow with both blades at once. I manage to raise my trident up parallel to the ground to block him. The way his strike lands the shaft of trident doesn't block the blades, but rather hits square with both of his paws.

Buried within the resulting crash is the sound of several bones breaking. Acting on pure reflex I swing my weapon up and over my head as hard as I can causing both of his axes to go flying as Aduro lets out a howl of pain. As his weapons fly over head they dissolve into wisps of smoke. Turning back towards my foe I level my trident at his chest as he stumbles back clutching his paws.

What I thought was a lucky break for me turns into a moment of horror. Before my eyes his mangled and twisted fingers straighten and pop back into place. In a few heartbeats his paws show no sign of damage at all. He flexes his fingers making sure they are back to normal before looking at me.

I take a step back saying, "There is no way you should heal that fast. No werewolf can."

He lets out a laugh, "Such is the power my masters can bestow on their faithful. You will never know it however."

Realizing that if he is able to heal so quickly I have far less chance of defeating him than I realized. In that instant I fully accept my fate and decide to put my plan into effect.

Raising my trident I yell out, "RICK, ROSALIE, WOLFIE! YOU KNOW THE PLAN, SEE IT THROUGH!"

With that I jam my trident points first into the ground as the whole mountain side begins to shake. In seconds the shadow creatures have backed away from my friends unsure of what is happening as everyone loses their footing. The shaking intensifies as I focus all my will on bringing the water deep beneath us to the surface.

The shaking stops for a brief moment before hundreds of razor sharp spikes shoot out of the ground impaling shadow creatures all around us. Aduro lets out a roar of furry and tries to charge at me only to fall backwards as the earth begins shaking again. I turn to see Rosalie and Rick grabbing hold of Jasper and pulling him back as he fights to get loose. To their right Harran and Wolfie are doing the same with Shadow.

I can see the hurt, anger, fear, and ultimate realization in all of their faces. But none hurt me as much as seeing the tears flowing from Shadows eyes as he is slowly pulled back by his father and friend. I spare him one last look as I mouth the words I Love You to him for what I believe is to be the last time.

With a final tremendous effort I push the water up higher than ever. The earth between them and me splits wide and a wall of ice shoots straight up. The higher it goes the thicker it becomes until it towers high above us and is so thick nothing of what is on the other side can be seen.

Once the wall finishes rising from the depths a dim flash of red appears on the other side before it goes dark. As the shaking stops I fall to one knee panting from the sudden drain of energy caused by raising the barrier.

Lifting my head up I see Aduro slowly rise to his feet looking around him as a large portion of his army dissolves into smoke and shadows. Unfortunately many more seem to have escaped my last ditch effort. A he turns to face me I see a level of hatred and anger in his eyes I have never seen in another living being.

He begins walking towards me growling as he does, "You fool. You think this little display of yours will stop me? All you have done is insured that you die even more slowly and more painfully than before."

Laughing I look up at him, "This wasn't about any display of power or trying to stop you. It was about keeping hope alive. If I can hold you back even a few moments that's a few moments extra the rest have to try and stop you."

With a derisive snort he says, "All you have done is bought them a few more moments of terror and pain. I will personally make sure that each one of them dies knowing that your last breath was spent begging for your life."

He raises his sword up to strike and brings it down with both hands. At the last moment I manage to knock it aside with my trident causing his ax to impact with the ground. His second strike is not so easily blocked however and the blade bites deep into my left shoulder tearing through metal, flesh, and bone.

I let out a roar of pain as he rips the weapon from my body sending a spray of blood in the air. Before I can move away and try and shield my injury Aduro shoots out a paw and grabs my trident from my right hand yanking it free, "I will take this, you have no way to use it at the moment anyway."

As he steps back I watch in horror as first my trident tries to dissolve into water, like it normally would if someone I didn't want to hold it tried to wield it, only to see Aduro shake it back into a solid sapphire state. His helmet vanishes again to reveal a twisted and evil grin on his face. He sets his ax on the ground and raises my trident up with both hands and brings it down hard on his left knee.

There is a crack like thunder as my trident is broke in two. At the same instant a horrible pain flairs in my chest as though something within me has been broken as well. I fall back trying to move away from him but what strength I had left is flowing from me faster than the blood from my shoulder.

Aduro approaches me with that same grin saying, "Now the last guardian of Atlantis will die on his own weapon."

I realized what he intends a split second before my chest is pierced with the points of my trident and my right leg with the broken shaft. Almost instantly I begin tasting blood bubble up in the back of my throat followed instantly by an even greater blinding pain.

Losing all my remaining strength I fall back unable to even cry out in agony as the wolf I once called a brother raises his ax for the killing blow. I can barely manage a weak cough that releases more blood than air as I watch the inevitable fall of the blow that will bring an end to my too long life.

The ax reaches its summit and begins to fall when I feel more than see an explosion from somewhere above me. Aduro jerks his head up in surprise just in time to get a face full of fire and ice shards that is quickly followed be a blur of the darkest crimson I have ever seen. One moment my executioner is standing above me, the next he's gone.

I try to lift my head to see what happened but the effort is to great as another cough tries to force more blood from my lungs. Voices soon come from around me but my vision has grown fuzzy to the point where all I can see are blurry shapes of green, white, and blue. Even without being able to see them I know it is Rick, Jasper, and Rosalie standing around me.

Tears fall from my eyes in despair from knowing that they didn't do as I asked. They didn't flee to save themselves, making my pain pointless. I try to say as much but there isn't enough breath left in my body to get the words out.

I feel a pair of hands lift my head gently causing my field of view to shift. For the briefest of moments my vision clears and I can see Aduro and Shadow fighting in the distance. Their fight is extremely fierce. Every blow launched by Shadow is blocked by Aduro. But barely.

Each hit causes a small explosion of flames and smoke as Shadow slowly seems to be pushing Aduro back with his assault. But I know it won't last. Unable to make myself watch my mate die I close my eyes despite the yells around me from voices I can no longer understand.

As the darkness envelops me one voice rings loud and clear, "It is not your night yet young one. We have much to discuss and precious little time......."