“First blood,” Myka said with satisfaction as she leveled out and swept into a sharp bank to the left.
Marak felt his body tossed about like the ear of a romping dog. He gripped the knife anew and adjusted his legs as the dragon straightened and headed towards the distant demon that had also turned around. Once again the two huge creatures raced towards one another, and once again it appeared that a collision was imminent.
Unexpectedly, the demon’s wings flared out to each side and the demon dropped rapidly. Myka screamed as she flew over the demon, as Barrok gashed her underside with its sharp claws. The dragon did not turn as quickly as the last time, but sped on straight for some time. Marak turned his head and saw the demon approaching from behind.
“It’s coming up behind you,” warned the Torak.
“I know,” answered the dragon. “You must hang on tightly just before Barrok reaches me. You will be jarred abruptly.”
Marak kept watching the approaching demon until it was too close to see without letting go of the knife. Unexpectedly, Myka’s entire body thrashed as her powerful tail whipped full out and smashed the demon in the face. The demon reacted as if it had run into a wall. Its wings flapped furiously and Barrok dropped a hundred paces in altitude. Myka had already begun her dive and spiraled around to attack the demon before it recovered. Her claws dug into the demon’s face, but Barrok was not defeated yet. The demon spun its body, and its talons tore into Myka’s left wing. The dragon broke off, large tears shredding a section of her wing. She immediately rose higher in the sky to put distance between the demon and herself.
“Can you win this fight?” asked the Torak. “This demon seems to be a formidable foe.”
“I must,” replied Myka. “This is only the first of six, and those six are the survivors of the last battle. They are all skilled and deadly. Thankfully they are attacking one at a time, or I would have no chance at all. Hold on tight, Torak, we are going in for the kill this time.”
Marak was not sure if Myka could kill the demon. The lacerations in her wing surely had to affect her ability to maneuver quickly, and the Torak could see no weakness in the demon.
Myka wobbled as she flew, and the demon cackled as it circled. On one pass the demon spit at Myka, and a large glob of acidic spittle landed near Marak. The glob smoked as it started to eat through one of Myka’s scales. Marak’s hand darted to his pack to retrieve a piece of cloth to blot the sputum, but Myka spoke sharply.
“Mind your knife, Torak,” ordered the dragon.
“Wise, Myka,” cackled Barrok. “There is no need to worry about scales when you both shall be dead soon.”
Marak’s hands immediately gripped the knife tightly. The demon darted inward towards Myka’s injured wing from the rear. Myka suddenly folded her wings inward and began to drop precipitously. The demon shouted in surprise and streaked after the falling dragon. The Torak’s body lifted off the dragon’s back, and he remained affixed only by his hands holding the knife. Without warning, Myka’s wings suddenly flared outward, and Marak’s body slammed into the dragon’s scales. The demon had been tricked into believing that Myka was heading for the ground. As the demon instantly caught up to the dragon, Myka twisted in the air and snapped her jaws tight on Barrok’s throat. The demon gagged and flailed as it tried to break free, but the dragon increased the pressure as her teeth sunk ever deeper. Acidic, black blood seeped out of the demon’s neck and flowed along its body. With a loud snap, the demon’s head lolled to one side. Myka flipped her head and discarded the creature’s body. Marak watched the demon’s carcass fall to the ground.
“You did it!” exclaimed the Torak.
“This is no time for congratulations,” sighed Myka. “Agad and Caliphia are coming out to play.”
The Torak glanced towards the temple and saw two distant black shapes winging away from the building’s roof.
* * *
“Have them blunt their arrows,” shouted King Avalar. “I want them to hit solidly when they are fired. There will be no flesh to bite into. The task is to break the spinal column supporting the head.”
“I will see to it,” promised Galantor.
The elven king returned his attention to the duel in the sky in time to see the demon gore the underside of the dragon.
“That doesn’t look good,” commented Ukaro. “Isn’t there anything that we can do to help?”
“Not according to Myka,” Lyra shook her head. “The demons are immune to magic, and our weapons are puny in comparison to the armor of their hides.”
“Emperor Marak is being tossed around dangerously,” frowned Princess Alastasia. “If Myka dies, so does the Torak. How can he manage to hang on?”
“His life depends upon hanging on,” Ukaro said softly.
StarWind came running towards the group and halted alongside Lyra.
“We have contacted the Astor,” she reported. “We were just in time. The free tribes were just about to advance into the field of skeletons. They have halted and are awaiting instructions.”
“They will have to wait a bit,” Lyra said distractedly. “I don’t know how to continue without the Torak.”
“We must continue,” balked King Avalar. “We are all committed to destroying Vand. There is no other option for us. He will destroy our world. Surely the Star and the Astor will carry on?”
“I understand the position that we are in,” Lyra retorted tensely. “What I meant by my words is that the prophecies clearly state that the Three will battle Vand for control of the world. If the Torak dies, the Three are no longer. I do not know if just the Astor and I can fulfill the prophecy.”
“I will not accept that,” Princess Alastasia declared. “Everyone here will fight to the death to destroy Vand. I do not care what the prophecies state. We are all committed to this campaign, and we shall finish it, one way or another.”
“Well spoken, daughter,” smiled King Avalar.
“I would have it no other way,” explained Lyra. “I have no intention of backing out. I just want everyone to realize that our fight may be futile. That is not to say that we would even think of abandoning it.”
“A tail to the face!” exclaimed Ukaro. “Myka is going in for the kill.”
Everyone’s attention returned to the battle overhead as Myka’s claws ripped into the demon’s face and then the demon shredded the dragon’s wing.
“This is not going well,” StarWind remarked with nervousness. “Can’t we do something? I would rather attack than stand here watching helplessly.”
“Myka does look wounded,” sighed King Avalar, “but I would never give up on a winged warrior. They have the spirit of Kaltara abiding within them.”
“Within her,” corrected the Star of Sakova. “Myka is the last of her kind.”
The group watched as the demon circled the wounded dragon. Breaths were held and the camp fell silent as the demon spiraled closer and closer.
“She’s falling,” gasped Lyra. “Oh, Kaltara, save her.”
The demon dove after the falling dragon, and everyone held their breath again. When Myka flared her wings and struck the demon in the neck, the whole crowd cheered loudly. They watched with satisfaction as the demon’s body plummeted to the ground.
“I thought Marak would fall off when Myka began dropping,” Lyra sighed with relief. “He was barely hanging on, and a fall from such a height would surely have killed him.”
“Praise Kaltara that that is over with,” exhaled Ukaro.
“Praise him indeed,” King Avalar said softly, “but it is not over. Look towards the temple.”
The group gazed towards the towering Temple of Vandegar and saw the two black specks flying towards the dragon.
“She is in no condition to fight right now,” frowned Ukaro. “She must flee to fight another day.”
“She is trying to flee to the east,” remarked StarWind, “but her flying is erratic. I don’t think she will be able to elude them.”