Lord of Azure Flame Chapter 24x: Fires of Liberation

[Inactive Account]

"I am Brigadier General Anatoliy Mikhailovna Borodin," the general declared as the leader stepped forward, using Common since it seemed to be the standard for the mercenaries at the moment. She stood tall, hands planted on the hilt of her sword; it was too bloody to sheathe at the moment, so she braced the tip against the floor. "I assume you are Ivanko. As should be obvious, I've decided that the current regime is no longer doing their duty to the people. My aid to your forces is contingent upon the assumption that you will do better." She glanced over her shoulder, listening back to the sounds of the fight behind her. "Other formalities can wait, though. My personal unit is currently engaged with the Imperial Guard. I will need to return to help them clean up. If you're headed for the throne room, it's this way." She turned back toward the hall she'd come from, gesturing an invitation to follow.

[Phoenix]

Approaching the Throne Room

Looking back at Levski, Ivanko gave a curious look, wondering if that was really the officer he had been in contact with. Lev simply shrugged. With that, the group began following after Borodin, though they still kept their eyes peeled.

New Strategy

Only one explosion ever sounded ... that meant the mercenaries must have dealt with the other two sprinters before they had a chance to detonate themselves. There was also no way of knowing if Ivanko was killed by the first one or not. That didn't leave the commander with a lot of options, but he quickly came up with a new way of dealing with the mercenaries, even if they did reach the throne room. This time he would use a more direct tactic in hopes of finishing them off.

In between the mercenaries and the throne room was one last intersecting hallway. They had enough men on both sides to use a pincer tactic. If they managed to cut the leading forces off from the rest of the bulk, they would be stuck between the Zaftran reinforcements, and the royal guard. Even if Ivanko was alive, he doubted the man could fight his way out of that and still defeat the emperor. With that, he gave the order, and the soldiers quickly went into action. It wouldn't be long before the sounds of their approach reached Ivanko's ears.

Hellfire

Another attack came, and Ixion's only option was to use up more of his energy to keep from being incinerated. The attack caught him off guard however and almost shattered his barrier. As the attack subsided, it became evident that Ixion had almost been overwhelmed, as his cloak started to cast off glowing ashes into the heat current swirling about the room.

Iso: So ... wwwhat's you're plan ...?

Ixion: We have, to make her attacks cease, or we won't be able to launch a counterattack.

Iso: Great ... go'head and ask her to stop, then.

Ixion: This is no time for jokes, you fool. I miscalculated before. The next time she does that, I'm finished. I need you to summon Proxima. We need it now more than ever.

Iso: Proxima's a Crimson Weapon, but what can it possibly do about this? She's a hell of a lot stronger than I am.

Ixion: She's using fire. You don't wield fire, Isotov, you wield hellfire. There's a difference.

Summoning Proxima into his hands, and then collapsing onto one knee, he looked over at the Empress. That was when he noticed something, odd. The Empress had a faint aqua tinted glow surrounding her entire body.

Iso: Ixion, do you see that?

Ixion: ... I do. That explains it then. (I was beginning to wonder why she was willing to die in here with us since this heat should overcome her just as it will us, but she hasn't broken a sweat. It's as if the temperature around her body is being regulated by something. That glow must have something to do with it. That may make things easier for us, maybe.) Iso! You have to overcome the next attack. I cannot deflect another one!

Iso: What?!

Selena: Hmph. I was wondering how long it would take to break you. A fond farewell to you, Ixion.

She quickly summoned a forth attack, this one was twice as powerful as the previous three combined. She intended to kill both of them with one shot even if Ixion did try to put up another barrier. It drained four fire stones to fuel the attack, and afterwards, anything flammable in the room besides her would be set ablaze. As the attack came, Iso launched a fire attack of his own. Giving everything he had, he managed to create a crimson inferno about half the size of the Empress'.

Ixion: Don't push back, just overcome it!

Iso: Urgh!

He spread his flames out like a net around the Empress' attack as it hurtled toward them, and just as the flames made contact, a massive heatwave shot out in all directions, knocking even the Empress off balance. When they looked back at the collection of flames, they were all under Isotov's control, all a crimson, all hellfire.

Ixion: ... now hit her with it ...

Iso: Heh, I see now. EAT THIS! HAAAAAAAARGH!

The entire mass of crimson flames came flying back at the Empress and she was forced to try and erect a barrier herself. The power of the attack didn't kill her, but the force behind it sent her into the wall behind her. The aura around her body cooled anything she came into contact with, but she herself was rendered unconscious.

Iso: ... we did it.

Ixion: We're not finished yet.

Iso: Well she's still alive, but-

Ixion: No, I want her alive ... just in case. I'm talking about the heat situation. We're going to become extremely hyperthermic in less than a minute.

Iso: Hyper ... thermic?

Ixion: Heat stroke, you fool.

Iso: (Well that's ironic.) Wait, I've got an idea!

Iso quickly summoned another spell of fire from Proxima and began guiding it throughout the area sweeping it across the floor and through the air.

Ixion: Trying to absorb all of the remnants of magic induced heat isn't going to buy us much time, probably no more time than it took you to do that.

Iso: I'mmmm noooot ... finiiiiiished ... YEEEEET!

He yelled at the top of his lungs as he sent the massive fire ball into the wall! The resulting explosion sent the two to the ground hard, but a hole was blown through the wall out into a separate hallway, and a good portion of the persisting heat was dragged out with it. It was still well over two hundred degrees inside the chamber however. As they stood up, Kiev peeked in through the hole ... curious.

Ixion: Well ... I suppose we could survive now ... but we need to leave this room now.

[Inactive Account]

Without their commander, Borodin's personal unit were just as effective as usual. Slowly but steadily, they continued to make their way through the hallway full of imperial guards, aiming for the end that their general had disappeared down.

Borodin continued to retrace her steps. She knew there were very likely reinforcements ahead; the question was, what kind? As the force approached the hallway she'd come from she fell in alongside the leaders; she wasn't about to run ahead and get herself cut down like some overeager cadet. It would be much more effective to integrate forces as soon as possible.

[Mercakete]

When Tas found Raechel, she was working with the mercenary healers in a sort of makeshift infermery. Not wanting to bother her, he returned to where he last saw Irina and Isotov...only to not see them around at all. He didn't really know anyone else from the mercenary company besides Lev and he wasn't in sight either. He didn't want to bother any of the mercenaries, but it was either that or stand around awkwardly and probably get in the way that way. The first step, of course, was dismounting Namid, which he did first and formost. "Um, excuse me," Tas timidly adressed one of the marcenaries, "Have you seen Irina or Isotov?" (Lev is probably doing something important, being the second in command and all... My best bet is asking about those two.)

[Phoenix]

The Pincer Tactic

It wasn't long before the group following Borodin began to hear the trampling sounds of soldiers marching in from both sides at the intersection they were coming up on.

Ivanko: So they finally sent reinforcements, huh? They got here a bit early though.

Lev: Should we stay put and let them take the intersection and then fight our way through, or fit as many guys as we can through before they get here and cut us off?

Ivanko: Depends on how many people we have to fight through past this point. Borodin, how much opposition is waiting for us between here and the throne room?

Out of The Frying Pan, Into the Awkward

With their way cleared, Isotov and Ixion made a break for the hole in the wall, but Ixion didn't forget to grab the unconscious Empress before exiting. The two managed to climb through but received minor burns from both the floor, and the searing hot edges of the hole itself. Once they were out, Iso collapsed on the floor. He then flipped over onto his stomach and pressed his face down against the stone floor, hoping to cool himself on what would normally be a chilled surface. That failed however, since the explosion had heated the floor to the point where it too was just steaming hot. He quickly flipped back over, frustrated, in even more pain than before, and a little dizzy. Ixion put down the Empress before collapsing on top of her and losing consciousness.

Kiev, uncertain what to do began making loud and strange sounding calls in the halls hoping someone would hear him and come by. Not far away, Ivan and Maryana were running down the hallway as fast as they could manage hand in hand. They had to stop with Kiev sitting there in their path though. Ivan quickly recognized the big dopey wyvern.

Ivan: K-Kiev?! Oh no ... that means Irina's not f-I-IXION?!!!

Maryana: <The wyvern is Ixion? He can turn himself into a wyvern?>

Ivan: <No that's Kiev, Irina's wyvern. Ixion is ... unconscious on the floor? What?>

Ivan checked Ixion only to find a woman underneath him ...

Ivan: Gyaaaaagh! W-who is that?! Who is that he's lying on?!

Maryana: That's Empress Denisov, Ivan. You haven't met her yet, I guess.

Ivan: Why is Ixion buried in her chest?! This doesn't make a lick of sense!

Maryana: Maybe you should ask him when he wakes up?

Ivan: No way! If anything I should beat him over the head so he doesn't wake up. Ever! If he comes to, you and I are dead.

Iso: For the love of magic, would you two please go get some help? We're dying here ...

Ivan: Dying?

Iso: You see that hole in the wall? We were in there too long and now ...

Maryana: Oh my goodness! We should help them, Ivan.

Ivan: Are you mad?! Ixion isn't a very grateful person. If you heal him, he'll still probably kill us. The Empress? Of course, we'll help her. Iso ... s-sure, but not Ixion. It's probably best if we just let him die in peace.

Maryana: Ivan ...

Ivan: I know I seem like a coward but ...

Iso: Still dying over here ...

Ivan: I can't let anything happen to you, Maryana. Please, let's just ... leave Ixion here.

Maryana: Well ... that seems so cruel ... I'd feel like I'd murdered him myself by doing that ...

Mercenary

Mercenary: Irina and Iso? They went in a little while ago. Took the wyverns too for some strange reason, crazy kids.

Edited June 29, 2011 by Phoenix

[Mercakete]

"'In?' They went into the castle?" Tas echoed. (That either means it's safe or they're getting into trouble... But why would they take the wyverns in there? It must mean trouble... And it doesn't sound like they were told to go in there...) "Thank you, sir," the courier hurriedly replied before quickly returning to Namid, who really wasn't that far off. Throughout the short trip, he was piecing things together. (The mercenaries mentioned having to wipe out the entire royal family... If they weren't told to go in to help, why are they going in there? It must be greusome in that castle... Sure, they have the wyverns and each other, but... I want to help out, too.) "Namid, I'm sorry, but I'm going on ahead without you. You can't walk very well and flying inside a building would be either hard or impossible for you. I'll be back -- don't worry. Just stay with the other wyverns," the courier mentioned to his trusted ally.

Namid was confused. Tas sounded worried and he was going somewhere without him? Sure enough, Tas took his vulnerary out from Namid's saddlebags and ran off into the castle. Namid was alarmed, but stayed where he was. Tas always came back, but this place was so dangerous...

The courier was a fair runner, though Namid was, of course, much faster. (Which way did they go?) When Tas came to his first intersection, there was a problem: he didn't even know why Irina and Isotov had gone into the castle. "Err... Um... This way, maybe..." he muttered to himself, choosing a direction at random. (It's safer if I keep moving. I need to remember that...I... ... I left my weapons with Namid. Uh... ... Well, they wouldn't kill an unarmed courier, right? Either side? Oh dear...) The only thing to do was to keep moving, hoping to find someone familliar and continuing to choose directions at random.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raechel healed people.

[Inactive Account]

"Between here and the throne room? I don't think your men will have any trouble," Borodin replied, quickly calculating how much of the imperial reinforcements would have arrived. She wasn't worried at all. "I also have reinforcements on the way. Anyone who attempts to flank us will have to deal with them. They won't have an easy time of it." She wasn't surprised that Kouriatov and Ilyushin had not arrived yet-- they had much larger units than she did, and much more of the palace to fight through-- but she was certain that they could not be far now. "I assume you have units dealing with the rest of the royal family?" she added. She would be incredibly surprised if anyone able to make this much progress would not have such a plan, but she refused to leave room for such surprises to pop up.

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Reinforcements were indeed on the way. Major Ilyushin, one of Borodin's most trusted subordinates, had led her unit through the halls, smashing through any soldiers they couldn't dissuade. In between fights, it was a halting, careful trip; she didn't care to spend more time fighting if she could avoid it with stealth.

She looked around the next corner with a mirror: a large mass of soldiers, belonging to one of the more unstable commanders based on their insignia, was heading somewhere in a hurry. She motioned to one of her men, who carefully inserted himself into the group and cut through to the head, sneaking back when he'd seen what they were aiming for. "<Mercenary commander's up ahead,>" he reported upon returning. "<They're targeting him, planning on a pincer attack.>"

Ilyushin nodded, quickly formulating a plan. This was it; this was to be the last and longest of the fights, the drive through these troops to the throne room. She formed up her group, brought them around the corner, and slammed into the back of the unsuspecting group of imperial reinforcements.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Kouriatov was on his way as well, though his group, herding a number of medical staff along with them, were avoiding more fights. He took hallways largely devoid of fighting, weaving through the nobles' quarters, occasionally leaving a healer to an area recently caught up in a fight.

He paused as an unusual (well, more so than anything else he'd seen today) sight presented itself ahead in the next hall: an incredibly confused-looking wyvern, as well as a small group of people in varying states of unconsciousness. Directly after realizing that it was much warmer than usual in this hall, he recognized one of the unconscious figures as the Empress. He hung back for a moment to contact Borodin. "<It appears the Empress has been rendered unconscious. Her attackers aren't in good shape, either. What should I do with the Empress?>"

Kouriatov's call came just after Ivanko had confirmed that the royals were taken care of, so Borodin already knew her answer. "<Kill her. Heal the others; if they survived a fight with her, we'll want them around.>" There could be no benefit from leaving the empress alive, and she was too much of a threat.

Kouriatov got a wind mage working on the temperature-- nobody here was dressed for heat-- and stepped forward with a trio of healers. "You appear to be in need of assistance," he noted, brushing aside the pair who still seemed to be healthy enough to panic. "Treat them so that they can be moved, then get them out of here," he instructed the healers, then dragged the empress' unconscious form off to the other side of the hall. Drawing his tome, he simply placed a hand to her temple and released a jolt of electricity through her brain.

That was it. Most other soldiers, even Borodin's most trusted, would have hesitated to kill their queen, but Kouriatov showed no signs of conflict. Even his troops seemed a little unsettled by it, but they didn't say anything. "<There will be lots of fighting in the very near future,>" he commented to his troops. "<Ready yourselves.>" Leaving behind the designated three healers, along with a pair of guards and Sleep and Silence staves in case they needed them, he brought the rest of his unit ever closer to the throne room.

OOC: Going to assume that Ivanko answered "yes" to Borodin's question, and not take up three posts conversing about it. Elaborate if necessary but the important bit is that Borodin knows the royals are taken care of.

[Phoenix]

The Return Of Zolkov

The Veteran General spend his time wisely and consolidated the remnants of his forces before returning to the airspace. This time they had healers, and mages with them, gathered from an outpost some miles away from the city. Zolkov returned with not only them, but also a plan to turn the battle on its head. He only needed the emperor to hold on a little longer while he put it into action.

They were quickly spotted in the distance, but their approach made the ballista useless against them. They could only counter with airborne units, something Zolkov had fully anticipated.

Scout: He's back. Hey! Get airborne!

Mercenary: Well, I can't say I'm not happy about this. I was hoping he wouldn't run away so we could finish him off.

Scout: Don't get careless. We've been trying to kill that man for hours and everything has failed. Don't give him an inch or he'll kill you. I'm going to send a messenger in to let them know the fighting out here has started up again.

Mercenary: This is going to be over in about two minutes. Why bother them with this? You'll only be distracting them from taking the throne.

Scout: because, we have to keep them informed in case the situation escalates.

Several dozen wyvern knights took to the sky in an attempt to intercept Zolkov's men above the palace.

Zolkov: <I'll admit ... I underestimated you mercenaries quite a bit. I assumed you were nothing more than money driven thugs, but the truth is Ivanko has been training a true fighting force and slapped the title "mercenary" on it to hide his intentions. Well played, but this ends here. It doesn't matter how well you train these village pups, the military will always have more resources and experience ready to smash you with. Remember the plan, men, break through them, and make your way directly to the target. Nothing else matters.>

On his order, his men readied themselves for a head on collision with the mercenaries approaching from below. The mages readied their siege spells and began taking well aimed shots at the mercenaries. The first volley was perfect, each spell hitting and killing a target within the mercenary formation. Before a second volley could be launched, the two sides collided. Unlike before when the sky riders converged on one another, Zolkov's men didn't begin to circle and strafe the mercenaries and instead kept flying down toward the palace roof.

The situation became evident to those watching from below and the snipers quickly took aim alongside the mages and they began firing the moment the two sides were separated enough to avoid any friendly fire. Zolkov's men scattered and the mages began raining down siege magic onto the inhabitants of the rooftop.

Zolkov: <How nice of you to all crowd around up there for us. It makes shooting you so much easier. Now listen, those chimeras may be on their way soon. All that matters is the target. Get all of the healers there immediately!>

On the roof, something was wrong however. The winged chimeras, the gargoyles ... all were confused and stationary. None of them would engage the enemy. Some mercenaries even overcame their fear long enough to physically prod the beasts into action, but they wouldn't cooperate. They merely nipped at the mercenaries when they became annoyed, and then went docile again.

Mercenary: Something's wrong. Why aren't they doing anything? What the hell?! Is Ixion distracted down there or something?!

Mercenary2: INCOMING!!!

Before the mercenary could react, several Zaftran riders swooped down and killed them, though one of them also died when a well placed shot from a sniper dismounted him. The wyvern riders caring healers descended down over where the severely injured Orteiga was being kept and began nose diving to reach him. Victor quickly snarled and took off hoping to kill the hostile intruders. The healers came prepared to die, and make the ultimate sacrifice for the chance to turn the battle around, and so they took their physic staves and leaped from the wyverns, recalling Zolkov's earlier rallying speech as they did so.

Taking aim, they directed their spells at the dragon in human form. Victor quickly reached them and flew past them, but not before biting one of them right out of the air. The wyvern riders tried attacking him as well, but one was met by his tail and gruesomely beheaded. Another healer was shot in the chest from a sniper on the palace roof. Orteiga rose to his feet, surprised to see the Zaftrans going to such lengths. They were placing all of their hopes on him ... and he didn't intend to let them down. As his wounds began to heal in front of everyone's eyes, several mercenaries rushed in to kill him before he could transform. All of them disappeared in a fiery explosion as Orteiga made the change.

Rise of The Dragon

Zolkov: <We've done it, my comrades ... Orteiga is back ...>

The massive fire dragon appeared out of the smoke and debris of the explosion and looked down on the crowds of mercenaries at his feet. There was no where to run. With a loud roar, Orteiga alerted all of Kalten to his return ...

Zaftra's Fate

Ivan: He ... he just ...

Maryana: EMPRESS!!!

Maryana fell to her knees when Kouriatov killed the Empress, and was quickly met by Ivan who placed his arms around her shoulders.

Maryana: W-why? Why are you betraying us?!

Ivan: Maryana, don't.

He quieted her down as Kouriatov left, to keep anything else from happening. There was no guarantee he wouldn't kill her too if he could so easily cut down the Empress. Iso meanwhile tried to stand up after being healed, but his vision was horribly distorted and he couldn't steady himself as he rose up. Ixion soon regained consciousness and quickly threw off his cloak to help speed up the cooling process. He came to his feet, disoriented and lightheaded. He could still identify Ivan easily enough and stepped forward toward them with a dark expression on his face.

Ixion: ... Ivan.

Ivan not answering, quickly stood up and got between Ixion and Maryana.

Ivan: Don't. Don't you touch her. If you want to kill me ... so be it, but don't take it out on her.

Maryana: ... Ivan, I ...

Ixion: You betrayed us for a woman? You already had one, you fool. Or was there something else they offered you aside from just a noble woman's body?

Ivan: I wouldn't expect you of all people to understand. I wanted peace. Ivanko doesn't have to kill Denisov to rebuild Zaftra, he's just gotten greedy.

Ixion: What are you talking about?

Ivan: Denisov is going to rebuild Zaftra once the demonic threat is eliminated once and for all. Doing it before then is insanity, don't you get that?! Look at this battle alone. So many have died already! So many lives that could have fought for something more than just a leader's position of power.

Ixion: Ordinary humans are useless against the kinds of demons we must face. The only way to end the demon threat once and for all is to destroy the Lord of Azure Flame, and the most powerful demons he commands. Don't even pretend to believe that either Ivanko's Mercenaries, or the Zaftran Imperials can accomplish this, not after what happened in Septimus. That is what we face, not mere imps like those that showed up over a month ago. Denisov couldn't be reasoned with so he'll be removed. The only people that matter in the efforts to counter the demons are the crimson weapon wielders and those strong enough to kill demon lieutenants. Everyone else might as well be expendable decoys. I don't like wasting resources so we'll keep those who can do little more than die here to help rebuild the country, and send others to fight. It is not impossible to do both, but Denisov is too foolish to understand this and his people have been run into the ground as a result.

Ivan: If the Lord of Azure Flame appears, what then? All that hard work to restore Zaftra, WASTED!!! He'll destroy the country a second time.

Ixion: You speak with the voice of the weak, Ivan. So afraid to lose even a little. You'll wait until after the war with the demons is over before rebuilding your country? You're so short sighted, it's miserable. You probably didn't even stop to consider what will happen to Zaftra after the conflict ends. Assuming we survive, everyone we wasted against the demons will no longer be able to defend the country, we'll have made no progress toward restoration, and the Zaftran refugees will either be forced to stay where they are, a twenty-five year old dream destroyed, or they'll be brought back to Zaftra under the banner of Halton or Septimus. I will not allow this country to be annexed or become a suzerain state. I will kill anyone who puts us at such risk, do you understand that, you treacherous parasite?!

The dark druid reached forth and hauled Ivan in by grabbing his collar plates with both hands.

Ivan: W-what about a peace treaty.

Ixion: Before, or after they invade us and take over?

Ivan hung his head at Ixion's rhetorical question. He understood the dark druid's point, but all of this killing ... Then suddenly, there was a slight rumble as Orteiga's roar traveled through the halls and reached their ears.

Ixion: ... the dragon ....

Ivan: Orteiga's alive?!

Options

It wasn't long before Ivanko's group too heard the call of the Fire Dragon above them and the slight rumbling that accompanied it.

Ivanko: ... you've got to be kidding me. Who healed it?

Lev: ... shit. Ivanko, don't stop what you're doing. This has to be that one general that got away. Let me handle this.

Ivanko: Let you handle the dragon?

Lev: Ivanko, the sooner you take out Denisov, the sooner this ends, so don't waste time going back to finish old business. Victor's still up there, so he can probably keep the dragon busy long enough for us to come up with a plan.

Ivanko: ... don't die, moron.

Lev: I'll be in touch.

He smiled holding up a spirit doll linked to Borodin and then turned to leave.

Catching Up

As Levski made his way back through the hallway, he spotted Irina coming up on Nikita.

Lev: What the hell are you doing?

Irina: Is my uncle this way?! I need to fight with him, not just sit back and wait around.

Lev: They aren't too far from the throne room. To be honest I'm glad your down here.

Irina: ... the dragon ... I know. Oh no, Tas!

Lev: Oi ... is Iso down here too, then?

Irina: Yeah but we got separated.

Lev: ... okay well I guess that's as good as it's gonna get. I'm going back out there so if I see Tas I'll send him down here.

Irina: Why are you going out there?

Lev: To get them coordinated. They don't know how to deal with a dragon. Neither do I, but I can stay calm in a hopeless situation long enough to think of a way out of it. It's not so important that we kill Orteiga this time, only that we keep our losses to a minimum. That's what I'm going out there to do.

Irina: ....

Lev: What?

Irina quickly put down her visor to hide the tears building up in her eyes.

Irina: D-don't ... die.

Lev: ... we all make it sooner or later. Just worry about you. I'm not going to do anything crazy out there if I don't have to. I just need to do something about that damn wyvern lord and keep that dragon from killing half our people before the battle ends.

Irina: Just say it.

Lev: ... sorry, Already said it before we left the crimsons. I'd rather not risk breaking two promises. That'd just be unforgivable. Well, see you, Irina.

Irina: ... (Two promises ...?)

[Inactive Account]

Kouriatov

Ignoring the shouts of the small group he'd left behind, Kouriatov led his unit down another service hallway, and out into the hall before the throne room. This hall had seen plenty of fighting already; Borodin's personal unit was still there, and many of the fallen looked like the work of Borodin herself. It was still full of fighting, too, and Kouriatov wasted no time getting into the fight, relieving Borodin's handful and giving their healer a break.

The numbers were against them initially, but that was quickly remedied, and Borodin's forces set about cleaning out the surrounding area. It couldn't be long before their leader returned, after all; best to have things tidy.

Borodin

Borodin would have liked to curse when she heard that Orteiga was back up, but she was well accustomed to not cursing when anyone else would have: it was unseemly. Instead, she just closed her eyes briefly, formulating a plan.

Her connection to Glinka was lighting up even before she opened it. "<General, Orteiga is-->"

"<I know,>" Borodin cut her subordinate off. "<Get some people who know how to use catapults and ballistae on the roof. Catapults for Orteiga, ballistae for enemy riders. Keep a minimal guard on your healers-- the citadels still need medical support-- and split the rest of your fighters into two groups. One goes for the dragon, the other goes for what's left of Zolkov's group-- you won't be alone there. If any of your mages have stone bombs on them, now's the time.>" She was going to lose a lot of good soldiers in this fight, she knew, but the price would be even higher if she kept her men out.

"<Understood, ma'am.>" If Glinka had any misgivings, he didn't show them.

Borodin closed the connection. "Time to finish this," she said simply, continuing forward.

The hallway where she'd left her unit was much clearer than it had been; her unit and the mercenaries would be able to dispose of the rest of the opposition. Nevertheless, she waded into the fray without hesitation, cutting through the guards to clear a path to the throne room.

Healers

"<For the love of the Goddess, lie DOWN, you're nowhere near stable yet!>" one of the medics snapped as his patients tried to get to their feet. "<We only just stopped your damned internal organs from melting-- hold STILL!>" One of his colleagues shook her head, instead opting to sneak up behind Ixion and at least try to get him into a condition where she wouldn't have to knock him out to keep him from standing up. It seemed to work, as the druid was quickly returned to enough strength to bully the unharmed man about, at least. "<Now you're going to make more patients for me?! STOP IT!>" the first medic proclaimed. By now, both of his cohorts and the guards were shaking their heads not at the actions of their rescues, but instead at their friend's dramatics. If he hadn't been good at what he did, they wouldn't have kept him around.

Glinka

With a heavy heart Glinka divided up his troops. He knew he was about to lose numerous subordinates, but he couldn't afford to brood over it; he selected the units and was done. When his force split, he was with the side headed for the dragon.

Wyvern riders and ballisticians made up the majority of the force headed for Zolkov; Glinka's current company was a more diverse lot, with pegasus knights, even airborne mages alongside his riders, and catapult support on the roof. With the dragon still there, the catapults were unable to do anything; there was too much risk of dealing deadly friendly fire that way.

It was too tight there for anyone to attack, really, especially with the murderous wyvern still present. Glinka's forces formed up and hung back, circling until Orteiga took off. When he did, they'd be ready.

[Mercakete]

A surprise attack hit the mercenaries on the castle roof, then the dragon was up again. Along with several of the mercenary staff-users, Raechel was helping patch up whoever she could so that they could move them somewhere with more cover. As the confusion continued, the woman only spared a glance back at the scene behind her. (I certainly hope this all ends soon...)

~~~~~~~~

There was the odd presence of a boulder on the roof of the castle...

~~~~~~~~

"Okay, so, this way... Wait. ... Did I already go that way? Or...was it the other way? I've been in this hallway before, haven't I?" Tas mumbled to himself as he wandered the castle, hopelessly lost. The rumble of the roar rolled through the corridor he had decided on walking through. The distant voices had been eerie enough, but this stone-shaking roar spiked Tas' fear to a new pitch. (It... It's alive?! I thought it was dead! Oh no... I hope Namid's safe. He either flew away or curled up. Oh man... Either one has downsides... If he flew away, that would make him easy to see. If he curled up, he wouldn't be trying to avoid anything... Oh man... And the mercenaries, and Raechel... This isn't good...) Then, Tas' muscles tensed as he heard a much closer growl...only to realize a moment later that it was his stomach. "Not now..." he sighed to himself, again slightly exasparated by his fast motabolism. Choosing to ignore it for the moment, Tas continued down the corridor. (Nothing I can do about it right now... All I can do right now is keep moving and hopefully run into either thier kitchen or the mercenaries. ... Or both. Both would be nice.)

[Phoenix]

Inferno

The fire dragon towering over the gathering of mercenaries roared again as they began to scatter. He immediately crushed a handful of them under his paw and then leaned forward to attack some of the others. All the remaining wyvern riders present took to the sky, not to fight back, but to evacuate themselves and any passengers they could carry. Orteiga quickly sprayed down a fifth of all the forces on the roof with a powerful stream of fire that left nothing behind but a massive patch of slowly sinking magma. Another group was destroyed when when Orteiga launched a similar attack. Things were looking grim.

Victor came back around to see his enemy returned to his super wyvern form. This enraged him, needless to say, and he roared down at the dragon trying to summon its attention. Orteiga looked up at the circling bull wyvern, and even higher up to the Zaftran brigades. It pained him to see them in opposition to him, but if they tried to stop him, he would fight.

Dilemma

Orteiga's second roar was little more than confirmation for Ixion. Still ignoring the healer trying to talk him down, he stared at the bickering Ivan.

Ivan: Orteiga survived ... oh no. Ixion, you have to get Ivanko to surrender! Do you have any idea how many of the mercenaries he's going to get killed over this?!

Ivan was nearly cut off when Ixion backhanded him across the face. Ixion then looked to the body of the slain empress.

Ixion: I've had about all I can take from you for one day, Ivan. We knew what might happen to us, and we chose to do this regardless. Now, who killed her?

Maryana: One of the generals ... Kouriatov, I think.

Ixion: ... if I wanted her dead, I would have finished her off myself. I still needed confirmation on a few things from her, and I also needed a contingency plan. How long has she been dead?

Maryana: N-not long at all, really ... why are you asking?

Ixion: (The timing doesn't matter so much, I suppose. I've taken memories from a corpse before long after the onset of decay. But an unconscious mind rather than a fully dead one is far easier to extract information from.)

Ixion didn't bother answering and stood over the empress for a moment. Then he kneeled down over her and placed his right hand over her forehead and closed his eyes. He stayed this way for almost five minutes ...

On His Way

On Lev's way out, he inevitably came upon Tas. Keeping his axe over his shoulder, and keeping calm despite the horrible turn of events, he addressed the lost wyvern rider.

Lev: Well that's good. Irina was worried you might still be up there. There's still a problem though. Orteiga's a dragon, not a normal predator. Leaving Namid up there isn't a good idea. If you want to go back for'em, I can cover you, but you're on your own after that. I've got to rally these guys before they run away, and do something about that stubborn commander of theirs.

[Mercakete]

Tas was both surprised and relieved to see Levski. The news he brought wasn't entirely encouraging, though...not entirely. "She was?" that had left his mouth before he'd entirely processed what he was thinking or saying, "I mean, of course she was! I just thought she'd be focussed on something else right now. She and Isotov had to have come into the castle for a reason, after all." Rambling asside, Tas managed to transition onto a more relivent topic -- considering Lev was quite possibly short on time, Tas cut his questions short, "So, this dragon's more dangerous than I thought... How am I supposed to keep Namid safe? He can't walk very well and flying indoors is out of the question..." An idea did come to mind, but he didn't want to resort to it. Still, what else could he do?

"... I'll fly away for a while and wait for the fighting to die down. I'll come back when it's safer," he decided, informing Lev as he did so, "Thanks for helping me out. Is there some way I can help out? I could bring something with me if you want it away from the fighting."

[Phoenix]

Lev

Lev: Nothing really comes to mind, other than Irina, but that's not happening.

He sighed just thinking about how much of a struggle that would be even in a situation like this.

Lev: Alright, well if you're ready to go, follow me. (God, I hope Krinkov is still alive ...)

Lev quickly made his way up the massive staircase leading to the roof. Things weren't looking pretty, and Orteiga was uncomfortably close. Fortunately however, from the looks of things, the dragon was only attacking those who couldn't escape. He wasn't aiming for any airborne units just yet. It was as good a chance as they were going to get, and Krinkov didn't appear to be far away.

Lev: Alright, get over to Namid and get away from the palace. If you can, take an injured or useful passenger with you. I'll see you later, if all goes well.

With that he dashed off toward his wyvern and mounted him. They didn't take off before something distressing caught Lev's eyes. Stephanie and some other healers scattered about were trying to heal the wounded, though there were hardly any wounded to begin with given Orteiga's horrifying power.

Lev: Oh dammit, woman ...

[Mercakete]

Tas hurried over to Namid, taking in Lev's instructions. At his rider's approach, the mountain wyvern uncurled, glad to see Tas but quite intimidated by all that was going on around him. Then, Tas was in Namid's sadle, flying him over to the healers before landing again. (I can only take one person with me... There are just too many for me to take all of them to safety. ... Oh wait! That place outside the battle zone where I met Raechel! If I can ferry them over there... ... It'll take too long. Half of these people will die if I do that... ... If I can double the loads, though... ... I could fly Raechel or one of the others who can use a staff over there, unload Namid as much as possible, fly back and ferry them two at a time. That might work.)

The courier made the short flight over to Ivanko's Mercenaries' second-in-command and quickly explained his idea, "Lev! I'm going to try to get as many of these people out of here as possible." Then, without waiting for so much as a nod, he took off again and flew back to the scattered healers, landed and hurried over to the lady who seemed to be organizing the mercenary healers. "Hello, I'm the courier from earlier: Tas. I'm going to help you get as many injurred and staff-users as possible to a safer location away from the fighting to safety. How many should I leave behind and who should I take with me first? I can only carry one other person right now, but when I come back my wyvern won't be carrying as much so I'll be able to ferry two passengers at a time after the first trip. That's my proposition, anyway. How do you want me to help?" he asked Stephanie, suddenly growing a bit more timid with his last two sentences, worrying he may have been too assertive.

[Phoenix]

Stephanie

Stephanie: There aren't enough fliers to get everyone out of here. Some of us need to get inside the building, but ...

She paused to glance over at Orteiga, who while distracted was still slightly obscuring the staircase down into the palace. It was a gamble many of them would have to take.

Stephanie: I don't think you will be able to make more than one trip, so take as many as you can without falling out of the sky, Tas.

Levski

Well, at least the priestess wasn't doing anything suicidal. He decided to leave her to her own affairs for now. He didn't like taking away from the rescue forces, but he needed some wingmen if he was going to take on Zolkov again. Waving over a quartet of riders, he took off and they followed. He didn't have as many as he would have liked, but it would have to do.

The dragon was looking up at him and all the others in the sky. Victor was ready to explode in a fit of rage, and those stranded on the roof of the palace were scattering. It was becoming so bad that people were dying simply from crowding to close to the edges and being forced off. Nearly twenty people died in this fashion, and then, to stir the fliers into action, Orteiga let loose another stream of flames targeting a crowd of mercenaries at the northern edge of the palace. Nearly all of them died, half from being inadvertently shoved over the edge and failing to be rescued in time, and the other half from being burned alive. Only those in the middle got out unscathed, but even some of them were nearly trampled to death. They were learning a hard lesson in not overcrowding spaces.

Dealing with Denisov might prove easy compared to Orteiga from the looks of things ...

The Family Treasure Revealed

When Ixion opened his eyes again, the look on his face was one of complete calm. He seemed almost normal again, but this was brought on by something else. He learned something important. He stood up and faced those listening.

Ixion: Princess Pressha and Emperor Denisov are the only surviving royals. I'll deal with Pressha later, but for now my main objective is over and I can assist Ivanko.

Looking down at the Empress's body, he knelt again. After a moment of searching, he rose back up having relieved her of something. A medallion shaped item. Holding it up and showcasing it to them, he asked ...

Ivanko: This is the family treasure, correct ... the one used to identify members of the bloodline ...?

Maryana was shocked that an outsider knew about it. Ivan didn't know what the hell was going on anymore. Maryana's face hinted at the truth, and Ixion became certain that it was what he was looking for.

Ivanko: I don't need this for my mission anymore I suppose, but it would be useful to hold onto for when Ivanko assumes the throne.

Iso had already gotten up during Ixion's mind searching and wandered off. Despite attempts to keep him still, he muscled free babbling some nonsense about finding Irina. Kiev followed closely behind since the fire proof one was the only other person he could trust around here.

Ixion: Where is Isotov?

Ivan: He left while you were violating the empress for the second time.

The coldness in Ivan's voice didn't escape Ixion, but this really wasn't the time for ... that kind of argument.

[Mercakete]

"I'll only be able to take one person the first flight, depending on who I'm carrying," the courier replied, "But if I move quickly enough, I'll probably be able to come back and pick up a few more. You probably know more about dragons than I do, though... Do you think I'd be able to come back a second time?" Tas did as he knew he shouldn't: his eyes wandered to the dragon. For a moment, ever instinct he had was telling him to flee. Then it passed as he shifted his eyes back to the priestess and tried to ignore the horrors going on around him: the screams, the scent of charred human and wyvern flesh, the various growls and roars and shrieks from who knew where... (Focus, Tas! You'll be overwhelmed if you pay attention to anything but your job! You're a courier: someone who delivers things from one place to annother efficiantly, safely and quickly. Just focus... People are relying on you, even if it is just a little bit.)

[Phoenix]

Stephanie

Stephanie: I ... seriously doubt it, but don't worry about that for now. If Levski can get the dragon away from the entrance, the survivors the fliers miss can head inside ... I hope.

Couple's Fate

Ixion: So Isotov has wandered off like the fool he is. I suppose I'll go find him then, but first ...

Ixion turned to the two. The look on his face made it rather obvious that they were returning to the issue of Ivan's betrayal. Given that Ixion seemed angry, it didn't seem like it could end well.

Ivan: I-Ixion?

Ixion: So you betrayed us for a position in the Zaftran military and this noble woman, then?

Ivan: N-no! I didn't ... urgh, I did this so they would know what to expect. I wanted the Imperial family to beat you from the onset so there wouldn't be so many casualties! I was trying to save everyone from this!

Ixion: And look where that has gotten us. If they didn't know when we would be coming, the battle would have been over by now. Instead we've been here for hours fighting for every inch of this place we can get. At this point however, we still have the advantage and I can turn this battle back in our favor, but it's going to come at great cost.

Ivan: Why are you doing this, Ixion?! Are you that power hungry?! Why does Ivanko have to be the emperor?! WHY?!!! Why did all of the royals have to die?!

Ixion: I'm done answering your questions, Ivan. Before I get back to the mission, I should to decide what to do about you two ...

Ivan immediately shielded Maryana from the dark druid. He knew where this could lead.

Ivan: Ixion, no.

Ixion: You joined them to gain peace. Peace is lost to war. You joined them to be a part of their great military. What's left of them will become a part of the forces you tried to defeat. You joined them hoping to be wed to this noblewoman. You've lost everything but her for turning on us. I don't see a reason not to correct that.

Ivan: Ixion, please! It's not her fault!

Ixion: On the contrary. She's the cause of some of this. I'm not even certain what she sees in someone like you ... then again I'm not certain what Stephanie sees either. Either way, I'd rather deal with the problem now.

Maryana: Hold on!

Ixion: Hm?

The noble stepped around Ivan and stood by him much to the surprise of both men.

Maryana: You want revenge for everything that's happened. That's understandable ... but you're about to make a huge political blunder, Ixion. How many noncombatants have you killed besides the Emperor's family?

Ixion: None.

Maryana: Do I look like a member of the royal family to you ...?

Ixion: ... I assume you're alluding to the strain our killing the "innocent" might cause in the transition of government?

Maryana: Ivanko is your leader, but the actions of his subordinates will reflect heavily on his leadership and character. Executing a noble's daughter will look callous no matter what you tell them. Ivan's no longer a threat to you, so killing me is nothing but your twisted sense of revenge.

Ivan: M-Mary-

Ixion: I suppose I should just kill Ivan and be done with the matter, then.

Maryana: Ah-NO!!!

She shielded him this time, unsurprisingly.

Maryana: Ixion ... don't be cruel ... just ... let us go. We've already suffered so much as it is.

Ixion: I don't really care if it's cruel or not. Earlier in this battle, something happened to me that I can't quite describe. Suffice to say I failed to keep my emotions in check. For most of my life I've been holding back all feeling, all emotion, everything that made me human. My beliefs haven't changed on the reasons why I should continue to do so, on the contrary, they are stronger than ever ... however ... there is something else I plan to do first.

Maryana: W-what? Do what?!

Ixion: Allow this fury to flow through me ... and learn who I truly am, not just who I've made myself out to be.

The dark druid gave them no time to react as he held out his hand and unleashed a dark magic attack at the both of them. He knew what to expect of the traitor Ivan, and guided the blast to only inflict a terrible wound. Sure enough, as Ivan moved to shield Maryana again, his entire right arm was blown off of his body, while he himself was sent spinning to the ground in a screaming bloody heap.

Maryana: IVAN!!!

Incomprehensible screams were all the wyvern knight could manage.

Ixion: Keep your woman, Ivan. You can have her in exchange for the arm.

Ivan: GARARAAAAARGH, IIIIIXIOOOOOON!!! WHY-GODDAMN YOU WHY?!!! AAAARGH!!!

Consolidating Chimeras

Ixion left Ivan and Maryana in the hallway with the healers and the guards and followed after Isotov. As he walked along, he slipped into a light trance. He needed to know which chimeras were still alive and where. Locating each of them gave him a clearer picture of how the battle was going. Sadly, the roof was in shambles and Orteiga was reducing everything to magmatic pulp. That was the more pressing issue so long as Isotov didn't wander straight into a group of enemies.

He took account of all his chimeras and then began to ponder a way to use them to bring Orteiga down once and for all. Before this however, he noticed another chimera ... a canis variant no where near the fighting, not even the country. It was Fenrir. There was little he could do with the hound given how far away it was, and it was serving as Miranda's pet or something so he thought to let it be at first. Of course a little more thought on this, and he decided to use this time to see exactly what was going on out there. Since he had severed all links to the party, he had no way of knowing what was going on there. He would have cursed them for being so short sighted, but he had a decent enough alternative for the moment. He quickly tapped into the beast's mind ...

Awkwardness Surpassed

Miranda unsure what to do for the moment, followed the crimson weapon wielders, at a safe distance. She had been so far behind them that she couldn't be sensed by anyone. Fortunately for her, she could sense the crimson weapons from incredible distances and had no trouble tracking them. She didn't keep a consistent distance however, and often found herself loitering wherever there was a decent hiding place. Fenrir was always beside her, and so that led to coddling and silliness. During one of her talks with the creature however ...

Miranda: Say 'I love you'. Say 'I love you'.

Fenrir: Rai ... ... urrrph. Grooommmph. Rai rowr rooo.

Miranda: 'I love you!'

Fenrir: Rai rowr roo!

Miranda: 'I love you!'~

Fenrir: Miranda.

Miranda: Huh?

Fenrir: Miranda, I need-

Miranda: HOLY SHIT!!!

Looking at Fenrir's face revealed something that scared the living crap out of the demoness, and she immediately kicked Fenrir in the head because of it, forcing the chimera back. Then she immediately realized that as startling as it had been, it was only Ixion.

Fenrir: Was that ... really necessary ...?

Miranda: Holy shit, Ixion! Get out of Fenrir's head! It looks ... disturbing.

Fenrir: What do you mean 'it looks disturbing'? Is something wrong with Fenrir's face ... aside from the possibility that you may have broken his nose just now?

Miranda: To me there is ... I ... can see your eyes instead of his ... that eerie blank stare of your is plastered all over his face. It's like you as a chimera ... or something. It's easily the creepiest thing I've ever seen. Get out.

Fenrir: Hmm ... it might be your demonic senses showing the true consciousness ... which at the moment happens to be me.

Miranda: I figured as much. Now get out.

Fenrir: Not yet. I need you to do something for me if you're not in a particularly rebellious mood.

Miranda: Well, okay. I'm listening.

Fenrir: I don't have any way of keeping an eye on the crimson weapons right now, so I'd like you to keep track of them for me. Remain just close enough to that group so that they can be pointed out on a map should I contact you.

Miranda: Mmm ... okay fine, but I want something in return.

Fenrir: What is it?

Miranda: It's about this core inside me ... I want you to help me claim the other half once there's time.

Fenrir: ... kill Shanice, you mean.

Miranda: Nothing against the shifty bastard but it's me or him.

Fenrir: I would probably hold a grudge against someone who killed me and harassed a love interest for ten years. Are you certain that has nothing to do with it?

Miranda: Nah.

Fenrir: ... alright then, not that it would have made a difference. We'll talk about that later. If there's a change in plans, I'll let you know.

Miranda: Oh wait-wait, are Iso and Irina alright? How are they? Just curious.

Fenrir: Alive.

Miranda: ... well ... thanks for the update, Vague-fang. Can you get out of Fenrir now? I see that face and I just want to smash it.

Fenrir: ...

Miranda: You look better as a man. Just saying.

Fenrir: ... I need to return to the battle. Farewell Miranda.

The man's face disappeared from Fenrir leaving the chimera with a confused look and a sore snout. He put his paw up to his nose and rubbed it a few times. What the hell happened to his nose? It felt like he'd run headfirst into a stone wall.

Miranda: ... oi ... you know what I should be doing is finding a way to fix this problem of mine, not just taking that other half ... unfortunately he's going to be busy for awhile. Alright, our little break is over. Let's get going, Fenrir.

Fenrir: Rai ... eeeeeeeeeeeemph.

Rising Against The Dragon

With the rest of the chimeras accounted for, Ixion put his plan into action. The gigasi were all unloaded, and that meant they were free to perform new tasks. There was already one close by, hanging along the side of the palace. It would be the first one to arrive ... and also the first to perish unfortunately.

The gigas hauled its head out of the hole allowing the cold air to rush into the palace. It then began climbing up onto the roof where Orteiga was terrorizing the mercenaries. Elsewhere, the other gigasi had abandoned the mercenaries at the mountain base and began rapidly ascending the mountain to reach the palace. They left a slew of debris behind them, and if they reached the palace, there would be an incredible amount of damage done superficially, but they were about to lose almost a third of their forces.

As the gigas climbing the western wall reached the roof, its head appearing over the edge, mercenaries scattered away. Orteiga's attention went straight to the giant worm. It was an odd opponent, and he feared he may have to reduce the entire thing to ashes to be rid of it. That could be a bit of a problem given its size. He was a little smaller than the gigas.

Ixion: Ignore the pain. Restrain him!

The gigas caused significant damage with the maneuver but managed to lunge forward and wrap its body around Orteiga like a snake. He had three more gigasi on the way, but Ixion hoped that those still able to fight would take the opportunity to inflict whatever damage they could to the dragon while it was occupied. Orteiga immediately began blasting the gigas with fire and burning away its flesh, but it held on as tightly as it could, making shrill cries the entire time.

[Mercakete]

"Whoa!" Tas jumped back as suddenly a gian worm wrapped around the dragon. He got over his surprise as quickly as he could. "Looks like you have your opening. Maybe staying around here is the better option for now. I really don't know what to do; this is crazy." (The situation is changing so rapidly I don't know what to do. What if someone needs to be flown away at a moment's notice? ... No, the best I can do is get out of here until the dragon is dealt with. I'll just have to do my best from there.) "Should I still take someone with me? I'm going to head out until the dragon is delt with," Tas asked. He didn't want to just leave without at least asking.

[Inactive Account]

Riders

Glinka and his troops kept a careful eye on the fight, not daring to close in on the dragon yet. They held formation despite their nerves until the appearance of the great worm. Then, even the best of the force had to calm their mounts, and numerous exclamations of "What the hell's that?!" were made until Glinka gestured for silence. "<Hold until I give the order!>" he called once everyone seemed to have their mount under control.

Some of the younger, more impulsive riders had been shaken by the appearance of the worm, though, and some saw it as an opening. One wyvern rider, fighting fear with insane bravado, broke off, speeding toward Orteiga while the dragon tried to fight off the worm. "<Get back here, you fool!>" Glinka shouted, but it was too late, and there was no following the rider without gaining the dragon's attention. Glinka could only watch as the soldier darted around, trying to get behind the dragon's head in order to swerve around to the front and put an eye out with his lance.

Healers

While they'd fussed over Ixion, it seemed their other patient had got away from the trio of healers Kouriatov had left. The first healer went into such a fit of dramatics that it seemed like he might faint, but there wasn't time for dramatics, especially with the injuries Ixion had left. One of the two who remained rational began to treat the man's injuries; the arm could not be saved, but the blood loss had to be stopped, and quickly. The third took one of the soldiers who'd been stationed to guard them, and started off down another hallway in search of their errant patient.

The General

With both Kouriatov's reinforcements and the mercenaries fighting, short work was made of clearing the hallways. As they readied to enter the throne room, Borodin surveyed her troops. "<Anyone wounded or unable to fight, stay back,>" she commanded. "<Frederikov, I want you to fall back and start looking for somewhere on this level that we can set up a medic station. Start directing wounded there as soon as it's set up. Keep a few healers fresh for now-- there will be injuries.>" With that, she turned towards the throne room door, waiting for Ivanko to do the same.

OoC: Phoenix, I figured it would not be a terrible thing to clear out the rest of the hallway guards, correct me if I am wrong.

[Phoenix]

Struggle

The situation outside was getting even more out of hand than before. Orteiga tried desperately to burn his way free, but the gigas' grip wouldn't loosen on him until the muscles powering his grip were burned away. Pain was not something Orteiga could use to his advantage on the creature. As a result, getting free was taking too long.

Stephanie: There's no time to talk about this, Tas. Take anyone you can car-No wait! The entrance to the palace is clear. There are a lot of mercenaries scattered about. Ferry as many of them over to the entrance as you can. You be able to make more than one trip at least. Prioritize the wounded.

High above the ruins of the palace roof, the wyvern riders waited for their chance to attack, save for one. He wasn't the only one to descend however. Victor wasn't waiting around either. That overgrown cow gut wasn't going to steal his kill from him. Orteiga scoffed at the approaching fliers. He didn't want to have to deal with them now of all times. He quickly pressed down against the gigas with his free paw and freed his snout enough aim a fire attack their way. Victor immediately moved out of the way before the flames even appeared. He knew how that super wyvern liked to fight. The wyvern rider wasn't as fortunate however ...

Lev: Dammit. Alright, how did we beat that thing last time? ... right, Ivanko and Victor double teamed him. That's not going to work this time. We need another plan ... and I need to find Zolkov before he causes anymore problems.

Levski took a few moments to think, but his idea didn't come to him until Victor made a pass at Orteiga without being caught or set ablaze. He didn't do much damage, but it was inspiring enough to get the bull included.

Lev: I've got it! Where's Stephanie ...

There she was, close to Tas, and not exactly in a great location either. Lev ordered his riders to wait where they were for him. He had to set another plan into action before going after Zolkov again. He flew down to meet them right after Stephanie told Tas about her plan to whisk people to the entrance in short trips.

Stephanie: Levski?

Lev: Stephanie, I need you to come with me, now.

Stephanie: Levski, I'll have you know that I don't want any part in your shenanigans.

Lev: Stephanie ... you do this ... you save all of our allies. No more casualties at best, untimely death at worst. Think about it ... no don't, decide now, or we'll have to throw a hundred people at this dragon just to kill it.

Stephanie: I ... ... just what are you planning to do that would involve me, exactly?

Lev: I didn't realize it until just now but Victor's smart enough for something like this to actually work. I need you though. It's going to be extremely dangerous, but that's a given. You're the only one around that can help me with this, so come on.

Stephanie: (Oh Goddess ... what am I being dragged into this time?)

Berserker In The Halls

Having left Fenrir's mind, and come back to the battle at hand, Ixion took a moment to gather his thoughts now that he knew where all the chimeras were and what they were doing. First off, he had taken out all of the royals himself save for the Empress who died while he was unconscious, and the Emperor, who would die by Ivanko's hands. Isotov had wandered off, and he didn't see Irina through the eyes of any of his chimeras, so those were concerns he might have to do something about soon. The last thing he needed was to let either of the siblings die this late in the battle. Iso was closer, and unfortunately for Ixion, more important, so he began heading in the fire sage's direction.

Along the way, he started thinking back on something that had alluded him before. Ixion had put up a strong barrier, but he sensed another during the fight with the empress. Twice even. Things were too dire at the time to even consider what it might have been, but now, he had to wonder ... just what was that?

About halfway to Iso, things took a surprising turn. A half dozen soldiers emerged at one end of the hall, and another half dozen at behind him.

Ixion: All this fighting and they still out number us. Fortunately we cut a bloody path straight to our goals, and your numbers didn't help you in here.

Soldier: <It's the druid! Take him down, then we regroup with the others!>

Ixion: Take for example your current numbers. It's twelve to one ... for now ... and even with twelve of you, only four will be able to take a swing at me at a time.

Soldier: That will be more than enough, druid.

They began charging toward him as fast as they could. Ixion quickly took off running down another hall being followed by the twelve men.

Ixion: I would turn back if I were you.

Soldier: Cease running, you coward!

As if on cue, Ixion came to a swift stop and turned to face them, and crossed his arms.

Ixion: There is a difference between retreating and luring the enemy.

When Ixion said that, the soldiers quickly stopped themselves. An ambush very well could have been waiting for them and they didn't want to leave themselves open for it by blindly charging Ixion. One of them however, rushed on past the others figuring it was a bluff his comrades fell for. He was suddenly cut down by a gigantic sword that appeared from around the corner. The sword wielding minotaur stepped out where they could all see him and gave them the glare of death.

Ixion: You two have fun. Howard, you're with me.

Soldier: Two?!

A good question, one brutally answered when the soldier was blindsided by a battleaxe. The other minotaur was right behind them and already in the middle of another swing by the time they had turned around. Ixion left the soldiers to their fates as two more soldiers were cleaved and went back to his search for Isotov. Howard simply followed along with both of his spears in hand.

[Mercakete]

Tas didn't even speak, he just nodded and began his part in helping the wounded. Figuring these people were probably used to not really needing an explanation in situations involving a nearby, writhing, enemy dragon, the only words he spoke to his first passenger were "Let's go" as he began helping the mercenary up and onto Namid's back. Then, a sqift flight to the entrence followed, a quick and gentle unloading before he flew back to find his next passenger to reapeat the process.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Don't worry about the wounded, Stephanie. I'll take care of them," Raechel told her fellow healer. She'd heard enough to know that the other couldn't stick around. That was all the time she spared it, though, as she continued hurrying around to treat the harsher wounds. She'd let herself be picked up by the courier eventually, but not until the wounded were taken to the safe place where she could treat them. They were Tas' priority, after all.

Edit: fixed some typoes.

Edited July 23, 2011 by Mercakete

[Phoenix]

And They're Off

Stephanie: Okay then. Good luck to you. Both of you.

And there was no more time left, so Levski grabbed Stephanie and hauled her up onto his wyvern before taking off.

Stephanie: Lev, that hurt! I know this is an emergency, but you can't go yanking people around like that!

Lev: I'll make it up to you later or something. Now hang on. We've gotta catch up to Victor.

Stephanie: What on earth do you want me to do with Victor?

Lev: Okay, listen closely while I explain ...

Breaching The Throne Room

When Ivanko's group and the Zaftrans working with them reached the throne room, no one seemed surprised to see it sealed off. The doors were not only locked, but were barricaded on the other side as well. It also wouldn't be far fetched to assume the doors themselves had been welded. There was no use calling them doors anymore. Just makeshift walls. Fortunately, they weren't something the mercenaries couldn't deal with. It would only slow them down a little.

Ivanko: It doesn't look like the doors are made entirely out of stone. That helps. We won't be getting a lot of people through here unless we're clear the whole doorway though. Borodin, is this the only entrance to the throne room?

They had a few options if they had to get in this way. Setting off a large enough explosion to remove the doors altogether was the one being talked about most by the mercenaries. They wanted in and they weren't shy about blasting in. Ivanko took a moment to sit down on a broken pillar while he had the chance. A few minutes of rest was all he was getting before facing the Emperor, he felt.

Unlikely Team

Stephanie: So ... if I heard you right, you want me to use the warp staff on Victor whenever the dragon is about to strike him?

Lev: Yeah, and make sure he's still facing the dragon when he returns so you don't confuse him too much. He'll probably think he's god or something but he's less of a hassle than Orteiga so it's worth a shot.

Stephanie: Do you have any idea how close to him I would have to be to not kill myself from the strain? He's a large moving object, for Goddess' sake!

Lev: Yeah there's one more thing.

Stephanie: ... w-what is it ...?

Lev: ... I need to get you onto Victor's saddle.

Stephanie: No ... Levski, no.

Lev: The more damage Victor can cause on his own, the fewer people we have to sacrifice to take Orteiga down. If anything happens to Victor before we deal with that dragon, we're in serious trouble, Stephanie.

Stephanie: ... Oh Goddess ... please give me strength, for what I am about to do is going to require more than I have. No matter what happens, please let this work.

Lev: Now that you've said your prayers, let's go!

Lev flew after Victor with Stephanie holding on for dear life. Once they caught up to Victor, the bull roared at them to get back. He didn't have time to deal with them. He was in a battle for this territory, and he wouldn't have them distracting him. Lev yelled right back.

Lev: Don't be such a stubborn jackass, we're here to help!

Another roar seemed to indicate that he neither understood nor cared. Lev suspected it would go like this, nonetheless he had a plan. Flying out of Victor's sight, as he prepared to charge Orteiga again, Lev steered Krinkov above and behind Victor before he could speed up. This was probably going to piss the wyvern off to no end, but it was a chance he had to take.

Lev: He might try to throw you off, so hang on as long as you can and don't drop that staff!

Stephanie: Oh dear.

Lev: Mention Ivanko to if you think he'll hear you.

Stephanie: Oh dear!

Lev: Let's see-what else ...? Right, I need you to jump down onto his back when I tell you. If you miss, there's no guarantee I'll be able to catch you in time.

Stephanie: OH DEAR!!!

The two flew directly over Victor, getting his attention. He looked back and snarled as he prepared to bank. This was getting annoying. When it was clear Stephanie was too scared to jump, Lev surprisingly shoved her off.

Lev: *sigh* Even I can't believe I'm doing these to a woman. I must be out of my fucking mind but ... dammit, I want to win this!

She screamed until she came to a rough landing on the saddle. Victor was thoroughly pissed.

Lev: Stephanie! Hang on for God's sake!

Stephanie: LEEEVSKIIIIIIIIII!!!

Victor banked left and nearly whacked Lev and Krinkov out of the way with his right wing. They barely managed to dodge it. He pulled off from his attack on the dragon and began flying into steep climbs and near nose dive falls trying to get the annoying female off of him.

Lev: Damn, cut her some slack, she's just trying to help ...

Stephanie: SOMEONE!!! GAAAAAH!!!

Victor had one more way of getting her off without splattering her against a wall. He barrel rolled wildly in mid air! Stephanie only managed to hang on by gripping the sides of the saddle as tightly as she could. She didn't manage without minor injury though. There was no time to moan over the pain though.

Lev: Dammit, Victor ...

Stephanie: V-Victor, enough of this! I'm one of Ivanko's ... females ... so I'm important!

That made the wyvern pause. There was mention of Ivanko; and she was one of the humans that treated his wounds. Still, why the hell was she riding him? She wasn't Ivanko so this was hardly acceptable.

Stephanie: Please, just listen. I'm here to help you ... wait! I'll show you. (Hopefully a small jump won't drain me too much ...)

Before Victor realized what the light that was appearing around them was, they were in a different place. Another side of the palace. Still flying toward the dragon, but now from behind. Victor wasn't sure what happened, but he felt fine, and with the dragon facing the other way, he was free and clear to attack. Taking his chance, he flew up behind Orteiga, who was still burning through the gigas. With a quick pass, he hit the dragon again.

Lev: Okay, now just keep it up until we can wear that thing down ...

As Victor came around for another strike, Orteiga launched an attack. Before Victor could react, Stephanie sent them into another warp, and Victor saw the flames disappear right before his eyes. What lied behind the flames was the back of Orteiga's head. What was going on here? Orteiga had to ask the same thing when he was hit in the back of the head yet again when his target was right in front of him.

Orteiga: What sorcery is this?!

He needed to hurry and get free, so he quickly and viciously clawed away at the gigas' body while simultaneously blasting it with fire. He quickly tore the gigas in half and muscled free of its burning halves. Looking up again, he quickly spotted Victor coming in again, and at high speed. He wouldn't miss this time, the wyvern was moving too fast to dodge. As soon as Orteiga launched his attack, Victor reappeared behind him and hit him full force. Three wounds that Orteiga couldn't explain.

Orteiga: (Wait ... I cannot see how it happens when I attack. My flames block my view, however, he is clearly moving too quickly to not be without magical aid. From right in front to right behind me? Someone is warping him about. Impressive, but when I find the source, I will end this once and for all.)

Stephanie: Do you see now, Victor? I'm here to help.

The bull wyvern looked back at his passenger with a different thought than normal. She was incredibly useful. No wonder Ivanko claimed her as one of his own. With her power, he couldn't be touched! He quickly and recklessly began another attack run on Orteiga.

Orteiga: (The wyvern has a passenger? I hadn't noticed before. Three times now she has repeated the same move. Behind my head, seems to be your preferred angle of attack. Wise in theory but in practice it's far too predictable. Your next attempt at this will be your last, human ...)

[Inactive Account]

Respite

Borodin and her troops also briefly regrouped, and Borodin paused to clean her sword. "There are two doors in the back, flanking the throne," she replied as Ivanko asked about entries into the throne room. "They will not be as fortified as the main door, but they will be well-guarded, and the entrances are narrower." Stretching, she continued, "If we are to enter via those doors, I would suggest a surprise attack, as well as making a ranged attack as soon as it is clear to do so." She held up the fire stone she'd confiscated from the runner she'd killed.

[Phoenix]

Planning

Ivanko: Alright, we'll go with that those entrances then. We'll breach on both sides so they can't concentrate their entire defense on one door. Also I want a large team to try and break down the main door in the meantime. It doesn't matter if you succeed or not, just keep it loud and keep them distracted. Surprise attacks tend to work better when the enemy is facing the wrong way.

The Unlikely Victor (double entendre)

When Victor came around for his next pass, Orteiga was ready, and as soon as he launched his attack, he took his left paw and threw it back to intercept the bull wyvern the instant it reappeared. Sure enough, Stephanie warped herself and Victor directly behind Orteiga again and Victor took the back of Orteiga's paw to his face which nearly stopped him cold. Stephanie went sailing from the saddle only to be caught in Orteiga's other paw.

Orteiga: You are the one.

Stephanie: ...

She would have screamed if only she could, but she could only get out a barely audible "Eep!" Victor quickly chomped down on Orteiga's arm and jerked it around a bit which got the dragon's attention back on him. As soon as Orteiga tried to blast the wyvern with a fire attack, Stephanie warped him and him alone. She and Victor tumbled a short ways before Victor righted himself, and Stephanie was just fortunate enough to land in the saddle again. That or Victor decided to save her, though how likely was that?

Victor: >_>

Stephanie: ... hopefully, that will solve this dragon problem ...

After saying that, Stephanie passed out, having drained herself. Orteiga found himself in a very unusual place when he reappeared. Looking down below, all he could see were clouds, and a very slight curvature to the landscape. Looking up as he began to descend, the sky was far darker than he expected. A more pressing concern was that he was having trouble staying focused he felt like he was losing consciousness. He was, and had lost consciousness before he even realized what was going on. From there, he began falling down through the stratosphere.

OoC:

Orteiga Current Location: Roughly 50 Kilometers (164,000 feet) above sea level and rapidly descending. K.O.

One More Loose End

Lev: Where the hell ... did Stephanie send that dragon?

Zolkov: <Orteiga! No!>

Lev didn't hear Zolkov's shouting, but just the same, the wyvern lord was the first thing to come to mind with Orteiga out of the way. He flew back up to join his wyvern riders while Victor searched for the dragon. Eventually he gave up and began searching for other victims, all while Stephanie slept blissfully on his back. Now there were a lot of fliers to deal with, but Zolkov still had a few magic users on board. He wasn't going to give up just yet.

Zolkov: <Rebels, traitors, the lot of you. Come to me so that I can strike all of you down for the glory of the empire.>

Lev: Alright, you bastard. It's time to put an end to this. Follow me, guys!

Lev and his riders began climbing to go and meet Zolkov head on, and with little else to do, Victor followed as well.

[Inactive Account]

Breach

Letting the mercenaries take the other, Borodin stationed her forces at one of the entrances she'd mentioned. Quickly, with the help of Kouriatov and another soldier, she opened one of the double doors and flung the fire stone inside, slamming the door as soon as the stone had gone through. She waited a moment for the explosion to pass-- the doors shook a bit, even as her soldiers held them shut-- and then charged in unison with Ivanko's forces at the other door.

Airborne

"<What the hell-->" at least one of Glinka's riders began as the dragon vanished before their eyes. Moments before, they'd been angling to attack. Fittingly for a commander, Glinka recovered first. "<It's just a warp staff, you've seen them used before,>" he called. "<The dragon's dealt with, but Zolkov isn't! Come on!>" With that, he led the remainder of his force to join the fight against Zolkov's riders.