Chapter 40

[Talia]

"Get into some formations, we've got a job to do!" Ahead of Talia, Alem shouted loudly as dozens of Mercenaries, Soldiers, and Adventurers, fell into rough lines by the city gates. Weapons were ready, and faces were grim. Talia couldn't find a single person who wasn't fixing their eyes on the danger in the distance, where a massive form was emerging west of the city: clawing its way out of the ground.

"Look out!" Someone shouted, but Talia knew the warning would make no difference.

This threat was beyond that.

What seemed likely to have once been a boulder, exploded against the city walls into hundreds of pieces. The impact slammed just fifty paces to Talia's left, scattering stone with tremendous force. That was soon followed after by several other, smaller, pieces. Chunks of earth that happened to get scooped up by the conflict raging west of the city. These were luckily intercepted, as shimmering faith [Barrier] spells flickered into place across the great walls. She could see that beneath those shields though, the magic-worked stone of the city walls that towered behind them was already pockmarked with other small impacts.

The beast wasn't even here yet, and they had taken significant damage.

More stone flew, this time falling short to spray dirt and rocks up, as another rush of wind came with a distant explosion. Clouds of sand were blocking visibility, as the monster continued to fight free of the ground it was emerging. All while the battle in the distance was intensifying. From the ripples of wind coming out across the plains, Talia knew the powers at work were far beyond any direct battle she had taken part in prior.

And that was saying something, considering how long she'd been an Adventurer.

"Ready weapons! Ready spells!" The shouts seemed tiny from atop the wall, where numerous figures were pointing weapons over the edge. Mana Cannons were being rolled into position over the battlements, directed by Guards and Engineers, and Talia could see that members of the Church were acting as well. More defensive spells and miracles were sprouting along the edges to guard the crews focusing weapons towards the looming threat. Above them, two skyships had even taken to the air, though both were small craft, and nothing more than scouting units which were usually seen in escort of cargo vessels. Still, riding on them were dozens of Mages, and their spells were already coming into formation, ready to launch a mobile salvo of attacks at a moment's notice.

It was a sight to behold, especially because Talia knew that the city was in tatters. If this was what the City of the Emperor could muster in its dying breaths, she could only imagine what it might have been capable of in a healthier state. As it was, though, Talia knew this was the first and last defense. The gamble was if it would be enough.

ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAR

The explosion of force rippling across the empty fields made her raise an arm to block, as the wind blasted through their lines.

Talia had expected to find a bright gem of humanity, upon arriving in the City of the Emperor. From the stories she'd heard of it, be those about the Emperor, or the Academy, or the noble defense against the Eastern Mountains, she had arrived with high expectations. And quickly, she had found them dashed.

Nobles had taken to hiding in their ivory towers. The Church she'd once respected so dearly, barely seemed to care for the troubles of the common folk. The Mages of the legendary Academy barely seemed to be helping at all, simply focusing on addressing the basic necessities instead of working to develop solutions, and the great Golden fleet was simply gone.

Truly, the people had been left to fend for themselves on all fronts, and with earthquakes and the recent monster attacks, this had been pressing the population to the limit. What had already been considered difficult times even before, were taking a steep turn for the worse. She had heard that the Academy stationed Mages constantly, those with enough Mana running rune-worked machines to pump water up from a network of pipes running into the City's Dungeon Entrance, while food was now at an all time high if it could be found for sale at all. Trade and exports were stalling, the Merchant Guilds were losing money hand over fist, and it was as if the entire city was heading to a screeching halt.

It had become a place where hope was tenuous at best.

But not today, Talia decided.

Even with most of the military forces the City had been known for, located entire continents away: the response had been massive. The City Guard had remained ready, and their forces were bolstered by many Noble houses, sending in their own forces as all the wealth in the city united under the shared threat. There were even groups of people who were clearly not from warrior backgrounds. Youth, mostly, who had somehow found a spear or an old sword, and rushed to join the defenses. Even weakened: humanity stood ready.

But perhaps, people were just glad to finally have an enemy they could fight.

Just built into the very fabric of the place, the City of the Emperor was a daunting fortress. The walls had stood unbroken for what might well have been thousands of years, and the weapons built along its battlements were terrible indeed. Atop the walls, soldiers shouted and lit signals, as more troops filtered towards the gate. What few resources could be spared, were being focused. Hymns were being sung, in an effort to stave off the debris that was straying towards the city walls like over-sized hail.

Increasingly large pieces of stone and odd pieces of metal or wood were hitting them with puffs of dust. Just tiny fragments that were scattered by the ongoing battle in the distance, and the people below ducking for cover where faith-based barriers had yet to appear.

And adding to the sense of urgency, Talia could see the survivors of the attack were filtering in, riding or limping, as exhausted and injured Ro' dragged what remained of the caravan. Dozens of people, all wide-eyed and terrified, barely clinging to sanity. Some were babbling nonsense, covered in blood but entirely uninjured: clutching their arms or legs as if they thought they might fall off the second they let go.

The gathering defenders weren't faring much better.

"It's a fucking dragon." A man with a heavy crossbow stated. "Here of all places."

"Aye, that's a fucking dragon." Another beside him replied. "Late Emperor didn't kill all of 'em, from the looks of it."

"Aye, that's a big fucking dragon."

"A really big fucking dragon."

"You're not wrong."

Several men with crossbows muttered to one another, expressions grim, as many of the soldiers shouted additional orders.

There was an uneasy peace in place. Talia recognized it as the awkward balance that formed between many groups that normally did their best not to associate with one another. All gathering in under the promise of substantial payment, the allure of gold was a strong one, as the standing bounty for those licensed to respond to threats to the city was more than high enough to keep everyone peaceful.

Yet, it seemed tension was still simmering.

The Mercenary groups eyed the Soldiers and Adventurers, and the Soldiers eyed the Mercenaries right back. Though Adventurers were less common than either of those two groups, there were still many present. In groups of ten or twenty, what Talia recognized as diving parties were in attendance. Each of these were wary of just about everyone, and their focus was only partly on Alem as he delivered instructions between moments where he conferred with one of the Guard Captains who were present.

It seemed that, as the only real independent Adventurer Guild remaining in the City, the Farstrider leader had been handed a large amount of responsibility.

Talia didn't envy him one bit.

"Alright! Listen up! The Guards are rolling out an old mana cannon they recovered from some wreckage recently. It's functional, but they need a few more Mages to help them power it, so we need some volunteers!" He nodded as several people in a cluster of Adventurers raised their hands, and directed them towards a soldier who quickly lead them away. "The remaining Soldiers are going to front line for us with the Church assisting. They'll use a congregation to form up some defenses, and they're going to ready some additional spells from the wall itself, but I think we all know that's not going to work for very long. Anyone who can prepare heavy hitting attacks, get them ready."

Talia listened as several more Mages began chanting, preparing their arrays. Beside her, though, Eveth remained silent. Content, it seemed, to glare at the bantering men with crossbows.

"Going to get a spell ready?"

"No, we've still got plenty of time." She spit on the ground, and tapped her staff impatiently. Her attention didn't shift.

"Friends of yours?" Talia asked, cautiously, as she saw Eveth's lip curl into a sneer at the men.

"Absolutely fucking not." Eveth stated. As Talia waited, the woman didn't elaborate further.

"I see." Talia didn't see, but she knew better than press the subject. The Mage had a temper, and in the month or so Talia had known Eveth, she'd never quite found a read on the woman to know what might set it off. Plus, Eveth's wide-brimmed hat was pulled too low to get a proper read on her face.

"It's fightin' something." The men continued, oblivious.

"Is that what it's doing?"

"Sure looks like it."

"Seems more like it's just stepping on things, instead of fighting them."

"Same difference."

"No it ain't-

ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAR

The conversation stopped, as the Dragon let out a massive bellow of lightning. Twisting its head, shockwaves blasted up hundreds of feet in the air, a mile long, all while sending debris flying. Several frog-like shapes crashed in the relative distance, stumbling back up and hopping towards the monster.

"Oh... the God of the wastes is still fighting out there."

"Aye, but I think God really made it mad."

"Look at all the frogs."

"That's good, right? Frogs are fighting."

"Well, it don't look like the frogs are winning."

"That's no good."

"Aye, we're right fucked."

"Ain't that the truth. The hells is a crossbow bolt going to do to that?"

"What a terrible way to die-

"Will you all shut up?" Eveth barked, causing all the men to jump and eye her warily.

Talia noted that their concern over the present circumstances seemed to only get worse once they recognized the Mage.

"Is that..."

"Aye, I think it is-"

"Politely now, you remember what happened to the boss."

"... Yes ma'am." All three said quickly, nodding and shuffling awkwardly to gain a bit of distance.

As Talia watched them leave, Eveth let out a satisfied huff turning back towards the battle raging in the desert.

This was just another mystery that would never be properly explained.

The Farstrider's Adventure... trading... Merchant?

The group that Eveth and the others were a part of was a strange one.

Talia had worked out some of the details. They were part Adventuring Guild, part trading company, part... something else? With an apparent history of conflict, it seemed the Farstriders were at odds with several organizations within the city. Yet, they were also the only people that the holy spirit had told her to trust since arriving, and they were the only other people she knew of who understood, if barely, the magnitude of what was happening.

"The Great One is close..." She felt the spirit shifting, as if being pulled lightly in the direction of the battle.

"He's out there." Talia said quietly. "Those Golem are his."

"Yes." Eveth replied.

"He needs our help."

"Of course he does." The Mage answered, white-knuckled grip creaking on her staff. "The problem is he doesn't want it. Not from us, not from anyone."

Another tremendous shockwave ripped across the plains, as several members of the Clergy began singing. A [Barrier] was raised just in time to block the approaching waves of dust, sand, and stone. It faded away quickly after, casters conserving energy.

Several stone figures landed closer to the city than before. This time, several of them did not get back up. Those that did, seemed to hesitate to return to battle. Missing limbs, or weapons, they stumbled back into standing position.

Talia felt a growing sense of concern.

"It doesn't matter what he wants. It's what he needs." She stated.

"We'll know if that's true, soon enough." Eveth replied.

"Cannons are ready!" A voice shouted. Soldiers were preparing themselves, many forming up after receiving blessings from several white-roped figures. Talia saw that Dren was among them, assisting.

"More survivors!" From on top of the wall, a cry went up. "Approaching survivors! Five wagons with escort!"

True enough, as the dust began to settle, their shapes took form. Exhausted Ro' dragging wrecked wagons empty of cargo but full of people, escorted by a single massive Golem with a broken shield. Compared to the other frog-like warriors, it was another half as tall, and seemed entirely built for combat. The plates of armor on its body were all heavily cracked and chipped. Yet, with great dignity, it marched towards the gathering forces.

As the wagons rolled towards the gate, people fell silent.

Rescue flares had gone up over the caravan when it was attacked, but everyone had given up hope on whoever had still been out there after the dragon appeared. Whoever survived, survived, and the city had given up on everything except preparing for battle.

There had been others coming from that direction earlier, but this group was different. It consisted only of a few dozen people, all of whom hardly seemed alive. None of them spoke a word as they passed by, heading into the city, and not even the soldiers stationed by the gate, broke the strange silence. Many bowed, some even seemed to be mouthing prayers.

The Golem stopped just short of the city's defensive forces, as it looked them over. The features of its carved face were stern and warlike. Even covered in broken armor, chipped and battered: it looked like a force to be reckoned with. The shattered shield on its arm, hacked into a jagged edge, seemed as lethal as any blade. And the martial focus that seemed to emanate with power.

And it looked down upon them all.

To think, there might be hundreds more, fighting in the distance... it was humbling.

It was awe inspiring.

Yet, the Golem did not move. Instead, it seemed to look them over, patient and considering. Standing calmly, against the strongest force humanity could offer, completely unconcerned it might be considered a threat. As it stared, Talia felt as though the Golem was saying something. Those chipped stone features seemed to judge the crowd before it in a single glance as they all stood beside the city walls, watching the true battle from afar.

Finally, it nodded towards them before it turned back towards the battle, marching to form up with the few other surviving Golem that had landed nearby. Setting their knees into the dirt, each of them locked shields in front of their stone bodies, providing additional cover well ahead of the marked line for [Barrier] spells as another powerful blast ripped across the terrain.

Then, they waited.

Another explosion of lightning scattered on the sands.

More and more Golem in the distance were being scattered. Thrown like ants, unable to do more than irritate the massive dragon that was turning to set its sights on the City.

It was moving in their direction, now.

"Sighting in!" A soldier shouted. "Ready!"

"Fire!" The command came at once, nervous looking Captain throwing his sword ahead to deliver the order.

BOOM

The weapons let loose powerful bolts. Like that of a [Magic Missile] but hundreds of times the force, powered by both Mage and mana crystal. Glowing with brilliant blue and green, the shot moved with insane speed, plowing into the Dragon's maw, even from a mile off.

The impact was tremendous, as many of the bolts hit directly in the creature's face and torso. Even from a great range, it seemed the crews atop the walls were accurate.

A quick cheer rose from that sight. The barrage was tremendous, but the cheers quickly fell away as the Dragon stilled and the mana cloud from the impact slowly faded.

Had that done it? Talia felt it couldn't possibly be that simple.

As the dust was swept away by the wind, finally revealing the beast beneath, all that greeted them on its scales were bright scorch marks. The mana cannons had set a harsh burn into the scales on the beast's snout, but apart from that, the Dragon seemed entirely unaffected.

Only, now it looked angry.

"Charging second round!" The commanding shout rose up, as the cannon began to hum. Ahead of it, a soldier breached the weapon and shoved a metal cartridge into place, and the Mages in position began to channel energy into the device.

"Readying barriers!" The hymns were in full swing, as the peaceful light began to rise as a wall before the defenders. Layer upon layer adding up until the shield began to block out sight on the far side.

Instead of another roar, though, the Dragon raised its tail and swept its massive wings lifting off the ground to summon a storm of sand, stone, and wind.

Boulders began to roll across the plains, as smaller pieces of debris picked up speed quickly, smashing into the shield with impacts that shattered layers of the defensive miracle with ease. Stepping back, many of the Golem threw their backs to the barrier, stopping some of larger stones from colliding with it.

As the barriers faltered, the dragon beat its wings again, keeping up the onslaught.

"Hit it again!"

BOOM

A second cannon shot was launched, and the impact smashed in much the same place it had before. This time, the Dragon flinched, visibly in pain from the hit. The wound on its face bled with a thick red gore, and a cheer rose up as it let out a roar of agony.

Still, even as the defenders cheered, Talia caught sight of one of the Mages next to the cannon collapsing.

"Charging third round!"

But there would be no further time for skirmishing, it seemed. The Dragon swept forward. Huge as it was, just lowering its body and stepping forward once began to close the gap. No longer willing to wait, many who had been preparing their own attacks, let them loose as the creature moved into range. Magecraft and projectiles filled the air. Each enhanced by all manner of abilities, as they rained down on the dragon's scales.

None seemed to leave a mark.

More attacks came from atop the walls, soldiers firing whatever weapons were available from the battlements, and the defending Golems ahead of the barrier charged to meet the approaching threat. With great leaps, the stone warriors threw themselves ahead. But even with their great size, they seemed like pebbles bouncing off a mountain. Their impacts might break scales, but that was the best they could do, as the dragon simply shook them off.

Spreading its wings wide, dozens of Golems were thrown into the air. Their bodies tossed off into the distance in all directions, crashing with horrible explosions of stone.

"Fire!"

BOOM

The cannons howled one final time, and yet again its aim held true. All around it, mages were on their knees, but the impact sent the dragon reeling. Stumbling off course, it crashed to the earth and threw up a wave of soil as it was stopped short. Wounded to the bone, its skull seemed to be glowing with boiling blood, as it let out a bellow of rage and struggled to stand.

More attacks rained down on it. Arrows that divided as they sailed on tall arcs, crashing into the beast's wings. Magic Missiles and fire spells, among other attacks. Talia watched as Eveth crafted wicked looking spears that spung around her, to launch on the peak of their turns one after the next, to pierce into the creature's hide.

Finally wounded, the creature had slowed, raising its wings and curling its tail to endure the assault.

"Keep hitting it!" The shouts went up, as more and more attacks were flung in the dragon's direction. Apart from the few which fell short, it was almost impossible to miss. The monster was as tall as the city walls, and with its wings spread as a shield, it seemed even larger.

The barrier began to fade, as the congregation of hymns shifted to join the assault. Holy [Smite] began coming down in bolts of light from the heavens. They hammer into the creature from above, driving into its skin one after another.

Beside Talia, Eveth's own spells began to fling out. Spears of pale light whipping out into the air to sink into the creature. She paused only briefly, to turn and look up towards the walls as a massive flux of light and power emerged. The shouts of the defenders seemed to pause, for the briefest of seconds.

"Archmages." Talia heard Eveth whisper the word. "They're here."

Talia could not see mana, but the air above several robed figures on the wall seemed to be rippling. Twisting and coiling in a haze of heat, something was forming. Something that made everyone hesitate, as the swirling light seemed to rotate and lock into place.

[Greater Bolt of Plasma]

The calm words spoke atop the wall felt with a sudden and silent beam of light, which struck the dragon directly in the chest. Roaring in pain, it twisted, as the beam continued, and it threw up a wing to block the sudden assault.

But the spell continued.

The dragon screamed, as its wing- that which easily blocked many previous attacks, melted. Shifting, the lower half was cut, forcing it to block with its other wing as well, and completely stop its approach.

Yet the beam continued.

The figures atop the walls, seemed to be slumping. Beneath the great formation of haze and heat, one by one they were falling. Talia could see six, then five, then four... as they fell, no one replaced them.

"Bittersweet, finally seeing this spell. I never had the mana to try it, and Silus always told me that my theory was wrong." Eveth said quietly, as she watched the number continue to drop. "Yet, there it is."

Finally, there was only one person left. A man dressed all in gray, staff wobbling as he leaned against the battlement. The spell above him began to flicker. Heavy beam of light growing smaller, and smaller, before he too finally collapsed.

The dragon was still.

Both wings were melted. One cut in half, the other barely hanging from a bloody stump. It seemed all too quiet, as it held completely still.

"Is it-"

"Stop. Don't say anything." Eveth whispered, cutting Talia off mid-sentence. "That's a flag."

"What's a flag?" Talia asked quietly.

"Something the snake used to warn us about." Eveth replied. "At times like this."

They waited, as the dragon remained still.

Uneasy in the silence, people shifted, looking about with uncertainty.

Finally, one of the crossbow men from before spoke.

"Do you reckon it's dead-"

ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAR

The wings parted, and lightning crashed into the walltop, tearing through any barriers that were present as if they weren't there at all. Before anyone could react, it swept across, cutting the cannons and reducing anyone unfortunate enough to be standing to them, into ashes.

"Oh Gods." Talia felt her stomach drop in horror, as the dragon began charging even more rapidly than it had before. The disorganized spells and attacks firing at it, simply didn't do a thing. The Golem ahead of the defense raised their shields, as faith layered behind them. Thin barricades facing down a massive battering ram. Crashing forward, towering over them, Talia could see the end.

What could anyone do against something of this size? It had closed the gap in seconds.

Lunging forward, jaws outstretched, the dragon tried to snap down on the Golem that made up the frontline-

And missed.

It dug its claws in, and snapped again.

And missed a second time.

Its claws dug desperately. Grasping for any purchase it could, it tore up giant swaths of earth. Dirt and stone and road, all went flying. Yet, slowly, the dragon was moving backwards. No matter how hard it struggled, inch by inch, it seemed to be sliding against its will, away from the meager defense.

The spells faltered once more, and everyone stared, dumbstruck, as the dragon let out a confused cry. With the lumbering yet impossible speed of a creature so large, it was flung sideways and backwards, to roll across the plains in a fumble of bloody wings and flailing claws.

Something had swung it by the tail, Talia realized.

Something big.

Something giant.

Something... lumpy?

"Time to pick on something your own size."