The Empires Rise

With the warriors as ready as we can be, we wait. We outnumber them and will have the advantage as soon as they get close. However, to make it out alive, we need more than outnumber them.

I look for Draemish; she is looking down the line, and our eyes meet. She nods her head at me, and I know it is her respect for my skills.

Turning back to the impending battle, I prepare myself. My goal for this fight is to survive and thrive. My blood starts to churn faster, and scales come out of my body. I feel an itch on my back where my wings typically come out but have stayed hidden.

With a grunt, I calmed down a bit. I had fought challenging battles, and this wouldn't be anything new; it was just different.

They finally charge at us. Oria has done an excellent job reinforcing the fencing, but we all know it won't be enough.

By the time the regular sea devils reach the line, the Barons have stepped forward and have prepared their attacks.

Small water spears fly out; they are indifferent in who they attack. Three sea devils take water spears in the back, and one, quite unlucky, receives a spear in the back of the head.

Several spears hit the line of warriors; three could not adjust their shields to offset the force of the strikes, staggering backward while one held on valiantly.

One Arcane Shot comes from our side, and I see Ritotorous helping us. With him, we can retaliate to a lesser extent. He kills one of the regular sea devils before flying over them and heading to the back.

The enemy reaches our line, and the warriors fend them off quickly due to the overwhelming numbers.

The Viscount is apathetic towards the plight of these lesser sea devils and instructs the Barons to move forward. Ritotorous occasionally hits them, even managing to kill one of the Barons.

Waiting for the right time, I stay in my position.

The Barons reach us and start stabbing with their spears. We are out of reach, but with some teamwork, we pulled the spears away from the Barons and forced them into closer quarters.

Knowing it is my time, I charge out of the line and past the Barons, heading straight for the Viscount.

My eyes are bloodshot from all the killing today. That is when I see my lovely wife.

She appears behind the Viscount silently. Raising her blade, she hacks down.

A smile can't but appear on my face, knowing she always has my back.

That smile dies just as quickly as it formed. Her blade, which was meant to stab deep into the back of the Viscount, is instead stopped by a powerful water shield. A sinister look appears on the Viscount; he turns and punches out at Madoka.

She dodges to the side just in time, just as shocked as I am. My blood churns again, and the familiar itch comes.

Remembering the pain that comes with having my wings erupt from my back in moments like this, I hold on and try to calm down that impulse before continuing to charge at the enemy.

I thrust forward, aiming to hinder his movements so Madoka could continue to stalk around while hitting him in his blind spots.

He dodges but keeps his eyes on her.

Launching a Power Strike at him, he finally turns his attention on me. He fails to dodge this attack, but the water shield around him keeps him safe.

I notice a slight ripple from where my strike hit him.

He slashes his claws at me, and I raise my shield in defense.

The claws rake across it, leaving deep gouges in the wood.

Feeling the strength behind the hit, I know the shield will shatter if I don't use it wisely.

This dance continues between the three of us. I pick up a scratch here and there. Madoka, thankfully, can barely dodge all the attacks. And the Viscount has finally taken some damage from us.

HP: 337/500

I know we won't be able to outlast this Viscount, and not many warriors would be able to hold it off as long as we have. Trying to think of what we could do, I hear shouts from behind, and I smell blood.

Quickly looking at the situation, I see three more of the Barons have fallen, but in return, four of our own have perished in the fighting. Two of them were warriors, while the other two were hunters fighting on the line with the warriors.

During this lapse of attention, the Viscount sends a spell at me. Not anticipating the spell at that moment, it hits my shield arm, rendering it nearly useless.

Cursing for being distracted, I try and focus back on the fight.

I hear a shout from behind me again. Not wanting to take another attack, I ignore it and continue fighting.

We held off the Viscount for another couple of minutes. He has worn down my shield to the point that it is just pieces of wood, and I am physically exhausted from the intense battle.

A couple more of our attacks have penetrated its water shield, lowering its health by another 11 points.

Thinking about how we can do more damage to this guy without sustaining more damage, I remember two arrow towers might have ammunition to fire. I slowly start to attract the Viscount to the north side of the settlement.

Once I see the tower, I hear the familiar sound of an arrow whizzing through the air before impacting the Viscount.

It looked at me menacingly, but I kept its attention and brought it further from any potential cover it could use.

When it tries to go to cover, Madoka pops up and forces it back into the open.

With the addition of the arrow tower, we can further bring down its health, but I am now exhausted and won't be able to continue the fight.

The arrow tower has run out of ammunition, and the Viscount has only dropped to half its health. It has backed off from us and looks ready for another attack at any moment.

Madoka appears next to me, "How are you doing?"

"Not great. I don't think I can keep fighting him." I check my health to see how much more I can take.

- Status:

Name: Ilpheus Taldrit

Race: Demi-Human (E)

Bloodline: Giant Red Dragon (25% Purity)

Class: Warrior

Level: 5

HP: 6/100

MP: N/A -

It has been a while since the sounds of battle from Manor have stopped. Feeling like there might be reinforcements, I gather my remaining strength.

"Madoka, make sure you look after the kids. I will hold it off as long as I can. Hopefully, Draemish or Rognar can get here soon," I tell her.

She looks at me and nods, willing to listen to me one more time.

I charge forward, but I am unable to hold it any longer. I force my left arm to shift into its draconic form. The pain grates in my consciousness, but I push through, hoping to give her one more minute.

Slashing with my sword while clawing at the Viscount, I force it further from Madoka. I can feel my legs slowly giving way from exhaustion, and I push harder.

My pants break at the seams, revealing the many scales covering them. Blood drips down from my chest. Splattering on the ground around where we are fighting.

I finally broke the water shield completely, my blows landing harder and drawing more blood.

During the fight, we turned around, and I saw Madoka standing there, at the ready. Then my face paled.

Behind her, I see twelve Barons approaching. They are covered in blood and staggering towards her.

Where did these enemies come from? Why are they here now? What happened to everyone else?

These thoughts race through my head, leaving me distracted. I want to wave her when a claw pierces deep into my chest.

I look down at the Viscount as my lifeblood flows out of me.

My vision blurs, and I see that Madoka has been surrounded.

I have failed.