Dragon's Roar - 8. Chapter 8

Mordred paced back and forth, lost in his thoughts, he barely heeded Urien any attention. His mistress was growing in power and desire; her grand plans were moving along faster than he thought was appropriate, but he knew better than to question her again. Mordred flexed his claw recalling the last time he decided to question her methods. Mordred returned to his senses when Urien made himself known through a throat clearing.

“It would seem Lady Morgana is ready for the next phase of action. I don’t particularly care what the old snake is going on about, but she is making me stick very close to you for the time being,” Mordred stated. Urien shrugged, seemingly uninterested in whatever response Mordred may have.

Mordred enjoyed the thrill of chaos, but he never liked entering a losing battle. The last confrontation was methodically planned out taking advantage of a power-hungry fool and the element of surprise, but even that plan seemingly accomplished nearly nothing. It was time for preparations of Mordred’s final gamble to begin as he was not going to come away from this gamble empty-handed – not when he was so close to success.

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Zephyr struggled to remain on his feet. He was acutely aware that he was being outclassed with every watchful eye in the stadium locked on him. This dragon was the real deal, he was more than just strong; he was cunning, intuitive, creative, and kind. Levi could have ended this fight in mere moments, but he let Zephyr come at him with everything he had in his arsenal. Zephyr shook himself off, gathering the last of his remaining energy, he was determined to make at least one meaningful strike. He had to prove to himself and everyone here that he was not to be underestimated. He took a deep breath and vanished from sight.

The crowd watched in silence aimlessly searching the arena for any sign of the wind dragon. As if a hurricane appeared from the void, the gale force energy collided with the barrier their King had put in place. As suddenly as it appeared the storm was gone, the silence remained as everyone looked down upon the two figures.

Levi saw the firm resolve in the eyes of the warrior before him and offered the warrior a genuine smile. “Damn it all, I couldn’t even leave a scratch,” Zephyr whispered, his final gale was stopped effortlessly by Levi’s power; it was almost frightening.

Levi’s smile faded as he quickly pulled Zephyr to him and surrounded them both with his wings as black flames engulfed them. “Stay where you are! Do not dare lift that barrier!” Jin felt his mate’s thoughts scream through their link as he jumped down into the arena himself.

“This is most delicious,” a voice from a void uttered elegantly yet sinisterly.

Levi knew that voice well, and this was not a good time for her to make an appearance.

“Did you think our little game was over, oh dear boy, you should know that I play for keeps, and this time, I will have my revenge,” Morgana laughed from above.

Levi’s eyes widened in horror as Morgana gathered an unsettling amount of energy in the palm of her hand. He was unsure of what she planned to do. Placing Zephyr down, based on sheer instinct, he flew straight toward Morgana, shrouding himself in a magical barrier as a wave of black flames struck him from below as Mordred joined in the fray. Levi found himself at a disadvantage as he could not effectively handle Mordred and Morgana while trying to protect the Kingdom from harm. Morgana smiled, and Levi’s heart went cold as she sent a blast hurling toward the market district while Mordred simultaneously kept him just far enough from intercepting the attack.

Just before the blast struck, it collided with a wall of water the resulting explosion leveling nearby buildings and structures.

“I see your puppets have some new tricks up their sleeves; alas, the blue one is nothing but a minor annoyance,” Morgana uttered casually as she appeared before Sune with her yellow eyes looking down at him like prey. Morgana raised her hand stopping Zephyr in his tracks as he attempted to strike her from behind. “Oh, this one has spirit. What a pity that you lack the strength to back up that bravado,” Morgana laughed as she mocked Zephyr’s futile efforts.

“I will not let you lay a hand on him,” Zephyr’s body began to radiate a pale green light as he slowly began to push Morgana back. Mordred sensing the new flow of energy sent a dark flame in Zephyr’s direction before continuing his clash with the Royal dragon. Mordred grunted in annoyance as the flames were washed out by the water dragon though he was pleased that the blue one seemed on the verge of exhaustion after having collided with Morgana.

His joy was short-lived as Levi’s offensive became more deadly with every strike; the cyan dragon aimed to clear him from the field, and Mordred knew a drawn-out clash with this one would not end in his favor. There were no taunts, no threats, or no cries of friendship; the dragon before him was aiming to kill – channeling his inner powers and bringing them forward. Mordred now found himself on his back foot as Levi’s eyes were pure white with his spear in hand. Mordred had a flashback and could have sworn that he was in the presence of the late queen herself.

“I have grown tired of you pests already,” Morgana rebuffed Zephyr and Sune’s combined assault. She casually took hold of them as her claws flowed with darkness. Zephyr and Sune let out screams of pure agony. “Such lovely screams,” Morgana mused, relishing in their agony as it fed her ego and the darkness. Tossing them aside, she once again harnessed her revitalized powers aiming to take out the two dragons and cause some collateral damage all in one.

Mordred smirked as the explosion caught Levi off balance causing him to lose focus, as was now desperately trying to make it past him. Taking advantage, Mordred grabbed the cyan dragon and blasted him point blank sending his hurling away.

As the dust settled, Morgana’s annoyance grew, she had destroyed the market district, but the dragons remained. Merlin’s barrier protected the warriors, but he could not bring himself to look around him. The force of the attack was too great for a widespread barrier. Morgana had indeed regained her former power and more.

Jin shook with rage at the devastation and his uselessness; he made several attempts to move from his position, but Vincent was always there to keep him in check. “I know you desperately want to join the fray, but if you drop that barrier even for a moment, they all die,” Vincent stated as he pointed at the citizens gathered below in the relative safety of Caliburn’s barrier. Jin let out a roar, with his newfound power, he could do nothing as his subjects died around him, and his warriors began to fall. The power of darkness was no ideal threat, but in a time of need, he was put on the bench. At the same time, the council watched in fear and intrigue as the scene unfolding around them was reminiscent of the attack that nearly destroyed the entire kingdom so many years ago.

Mordred dropped to his mistress’s side as she continued to lay waste to nearby districts. “My lady, it would be in our best interest...” Morgana cut him off with a stare.

“Do you presume to tell me what would be in my best interest?” she questioned as her claws ignited with flowing dark energy.

“I would never dream of such a thing mistress; I am only stating that they will begin to regroup...” Mordred was once again cut off, but this time by the great Cyan dragon barreling toward them. Jin clutched his head in pain; he could feel the pain of loss flowing from his mate. He could feel the emotions growing stronger as Levi took in the sight of his kingdom being laid to waste, the death of his people, and the damage to his friends and master. Jin attempted to reach out to his mate but was rebuffed painfully; he could feel everything from his mate, but he could not reach him.

Morgana smirked at the dragon not phased in the slightest, and Mordred made his move slamming his large claymore down aiming to cleave the royal in two. Mordred found his blade deflected, and his body was sent flying backward.

“Apologies, your highness, the rest of our people are safe,” Vicky was unsettled when she received no indications, good or bad, from Levi as he stood motionless with his eyes locked on Morgana. Mordred advanced, his blade now engulfed in black flames hurling towards Vicky; she swiftly ducked beneath his swing. Mordred regained his footing and continued his attack only this time colliding with the flames of Bastion’s sword.

“Just like old times,” Bastion chuckled before he flinched as Mordred pushed his weight forward as his claws and fangs elongated with each breath. Vicky phased in between the two landing several blows to Mordred’s chest causing him to stumble backward. Bastion went on the offensive until the dragon caught his blade with a single hand.

“You vile shadow dragon. You’ve learned a few tricks. You may have sealed off a little of my strength, but I am still superior to the likes of you.

Morgana scowled as things began to shift out of her favor; still, she was determined to kill the thorn in her side standing in front of her. She dashed forward as her ethereal wings of darkness trailed behind her; she screamed in anger as she was pushed aside by blades of light. Using her momentary confusion, Sage pressed forward with his attack. The blade of light merged into a whip of light causing Morgana to lose her momentum. Now, the air around her seemed to stop and warp. Levi appeared from above, taking hold of Morgana’s face smashing it down into the earth beneath her. With a claw raised, Levi aimed to strike her down until Mordred barreled through knocking Levi to the ground and positioning himself between them.

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Urien watched in awe, this was not the same person he had once known but that awe quickly turned to rage. “Soon, you will have a better hold over the darkness; when that day arrives, this will be mere child’s play to you,” Urien shook his head, the damned voices were becoming more frequent and intense, but he dared not to deny the good they brought to him. “Seemingly, the voices could read his mind and react to his emotions,” Urien thought. “Maybe a little assistance is in order, we can observe from the sidelines and still have a little fun,” the voices agreed with Urien as he continued to hide in plain sight beneath his cloak.

Bastion, Vicky, Sage, and Levi surrounded the two dragons of darkness; unfortunately, the three felt unsettled as Levi’s demeanor and aura had been off since they arrived on the scene. Bastion gripped his blade preparing himself for the next phase of battle when suddenly everything before him vanished. He rubbed his eyes and shook his head; his eyes were playing tricks on him. He could sense those around him but could not center himself lost in a void of nothing. “That’s right, nothing! Soon, you will all be nothing!” Bastion did not recall ever hearing this voice; its presence was both foreign and familiar. His mind flashed and as he opened his eyes. He let out a wail seeing Sage dead at his feet. He threw his weapons down and rushed to his lover, his mate. This could not be happening; he promised that he would never let anything hurt the man he loved. “Do not cry. Here in the darkness, everything returns to nothing! Once you are nothing, you can be together again forever!”

Sage and Viki jumped back in surprise as Bastion wailed. With his sword engulfed in flames, he blindly struck out at anything within his reach be it friend or foe. Seeing the scene before him, Levi's body shook in anger. “Again, with the mind tricks Morgana, do you think yourself so powerful that you have the time to devote to such an attack as I stand here before you?”

Morgana turned to him in confusion, as much as she would enjoy torturing the mind of the knight, she was in no position to defend her mind and body in this situation. Her moment of confusion was all Levi needed. He flew between the two with his outspread wings catching both Morgana and Mordred by surprise as he rammed them into a nearby wall of the arena. Morgana regained her composure blasting Levi into the air.

“Your power is indeed great, and it will be put to better use once I claim it for myself.” The great purple serpent again made its appearance. Vicky looked over in distress as she was unable to come to Levi’s aid with Mordred occupying her attention, and Sage doing his best to calm Bastion to no avail.

“How does it feel, shadow dragon? I will be sure to give you a front-row seat as Lady Morgana devours your precious retainer. Oh, don’t look so surprised, I know all about the lore of you shadow dragons. You pledged your life and soul to your king, and I will take great pleasure in watching you fade as he ceases to exist,” Mordred relished.

Try as she might, she simply could not overpower the dragon before her. She watched helplessly as Morgana backed Levi into a corner. She knew her charge was powerful, probably the strongest in generations, but she knew in his current state even he was no match for Morgana at her best. With her brother sidelined with the King and Sune down, they were at a severe disadvantage facing the power of darkness.

Levi could feel his strength waning. Even in his draconic form, Morgana was gaining the upper hand as her vastly superior years of experience pushed Levi to his limits. He was not ready to face her, his journey was incomplete, and he lacked the power to face her properly. His anger caused him to expend more energy than he should have, and Morgana took advantage of every mistake he made.

Merlin, having somewhat recovered, landed next to Bastion latching his claw to the young knight’s head. “Sage, I need you, we must reach Bastion before his mind succumbs to the effects and is lost forever.”

“What about Levi? You should go to him first; otherwise, this is all for naught if we lose him, and Morgana gains even more power.” Sage cried as the situation turned more desperate at every turn.

“I am afraid that I would simply do more harm than good tangling with Morgana. We must trust that Levi can pull through while we must save the ones we can.”

Merlin attempted to hold firm – everything in his being wanted to help the young master. Looking down at Sage, he could see the same conflict rage within him. They were outmatched and outmaneuvered. They let their guard down and were now paying the price. Merlin and Sage sadly nodded at one another as they turned their attention to Bastion still wailing beneath them, but their attention on the knight was short-lived as an explosion of energy ripped through the air feeling as if the very earth was on the brink of shattering.