Chapter 70 The First Battle pt1
I can’t control my breathing.
Silver blood drips off my face, the splatter becoming a second skin as I spear another alicorn through the neck. The beast falls like the rest before them, and Sylvain ends their suffering with her poison.
They keep coming in droves, as if there are more down here, or more being released.
I glimpse over my shoulder and see Zaries grab one of them by the neck and swing over onto its back.
Maybe he’ll be able to tame one, maybe he’ll survive this…
The beast rears and bucks before going over backward.
I can’t see Zaries anymore, but he isn’t screaming. I turn to face the next alicorn, a brilliant black beast with glowing red eyes.
“Anara, he’s not normal!” Sylvain cries, gripping my arm from behind me. “That one’s demented!”
“They’re all demented,” I whisper.
The monster lowers its head and stomps on the ground.
“Get to Zaries and Oberon, now!” I bark as I run at the creature with all my strength. I have no time to see if Sylvain does, or if she stays at my side because all my attention is on the beast racing toward me for the kill.
I slide, narrowly avoiding the stallion's horn as I dive between its legs. I try to stab up and pierce its underbelly, but the beast kicks its back legs high in the air. I roll just in time to miss being stomped as the creature screams in anger and runs past me.
Jumping to my feet, I turn to face the next, but there are no more. I almost breathe a sigh of relief when I hear a roar coming from the fire. I turn just in time to see the same stallion coming around for a second attack.
Its powerful shoulder hits and knocks me to the ground. I scream in pain, my arm now hanging limply by my side as I try to roll to my knees.
I’m too slow. The massive stallion is on me before I can roll off my back. It rears, hooves pawing the air, when I see why this one is so determined to kill me.
“Malachi!” I roar as the alicorn’s hooves descend.
They land on my chest, two merciless clubs determined to gouge the ground on the other side. Crunching and grinding scrape through my mind, quickly swallowed by a wave of agony. The last thing I see before my vision fades is Malachi on the beast’s back. He must have claimed it.
Blinded by the pain I lash out, stabbing at the air with the horn until I feel hot blood gush over my hand.
“You bitch!” Malachi hisses. His alicorn rears again, but this time the hooves land a few feet away. “You stabbed me in the fucking leg!”
“Good,” I groan, not feeling what must be deadly pain and broken ribs.
I sit up slowly, coughing up blood, then wipe it away with my wrist as my vision slowly returns. The horn is sticking out of his leg, pinning him to the alicorn who roars in pain.
“I’m tired of wounding these innocent beasts!” I try to scream, but it comes out more of a rattling gasp. “Time for someone truly evil to die!”
“I’m not dead yet, bitch!” Malachi growls, pulling the horn out of his leg and throwing it to the ground. “I have an alicorn, and you don’t. Have fun dying down here!”
Disgusted, I watch from my knees as his alicorn spreads freed wings and takes flight. It seems wrong that the bastard is the first to escape, but I have no time to think about how unfair the gods are.
I turn, limping to my feet.
Zaries and Oberon are still fighting off a dozen beasts with their bare hands, but I don’t see Sylvain or Alric anywhere.
“There’s no way we’re getting out of here,” I cry, hot tears of defeat making my eyes burn. I stumble toward the fire as crazed, wounded alicorns run wild around me. My vision tunnels as I’m jostled by them, these beasts more scared than fighting.
I can’t kill any more of them.
I just can’t.
This is wrong.
Zaries and Oberon seem to realize the creatures are no longer fighting out of anger, but survival, and they switch their own attacking to defensive rather than offensive.
We’ll be trampled down here regardless, but it seems the alicorn bloodshed is at an end.
You will not give up! You must claim one! Now that they aren’t attacking, claim one! Malachi took their lead stallion, you have a chance!
“I can’t fight anymore, I—”
My words are cut off with a bellow from above.
I look up slowly, shielding my eyes from the rising dawn, as a black alicorn plummets into the pit. Screaming, I shield my head, certain it’s Malachi returning to end my suffering.
Dozens of hooves hit the ground, wings flapped, and loud horse calls echoed all around me. Except none of them attack.
I open my eyes and stare in bewilderment.
The Hellbane alicorns have arrived.