Arc 1, Chapter 10: The House That Still Answers

  The shapes at the tree line surged forward.

  Ash raised his dagger, his palm damp against the leather grip. He gathered the dregs of his mana, scraping the bottom of reserves that felt like parched earth. Beside him, Isolde drew her greatsword in a single motion. The black metal caught the ward-light as the blade cleared the sheath.

  The first beast broke through the pale luminescence. Its fur began to smoke and char against the barrier, but the creature ignored the pain. It screamed, charging forward with a rot-filled throat. Ash's blade found the gap in its neck before its claws reached his chest.

  More followed. Five, then ten, then a flood of twisted limbs. Isolde carved arcs through the darkness, her blade parting flesh with a precision Ash could not track. He burned a lunging hound, then pivoted to catch a multi-limbed crawler across its midsection. The Seed of Life felt like a guttering candle, its warmth flickering with every pulse of power.

  A creature raked its claws across Ash's forearm. The sting was immediate. Warm blood soaked into his sleeve. He growled, driving his steel into the beast's eye.

  The sound of hooves hitting stone echoed from the forest. It was a rhythmic, heavy thunder that drew the eyes of the monsters.

  The riders emerged in a tight formation. Black armor drank the forest's dim light. The warhorses were midnight-black, their muscles rippling as they moved through the thorns without slowing. The riders sat straight-backed. Visors were locked. Weapons were drawn. Twenty-four riders of House Valendris had arrived.

  The lead rider raised a gauntleted fist. The group split into groups of eight with practiced ease. One squad circled the clearing, riders dismounting at even intervals. They ignored the monsters pouring from the trees as they found their marks.

  "Dark Gate: Shield Wall."

  Eight voices spoke in unison. The sound rolled like mountain thunder.

  Mana erupted from the knights. The barriers grew like ink spreading through a pool of water, stretching to connect with each other. Gaps still existed where monsters slipped through, but the edges soon solidified. Isolde cut down a beast in a closing gap. Ash incinerated a crawler that tried to scramble under the mana before it hardened. The shield became a single ring of humming shadow.

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  Inside the ring, dozens of monsters remained. They turned from the barrier and focused on Ash and the maiden.

  Four knights moved through the chaos to form a circle around the pair. They stood in black iron, their presence alone creating a wall. They did not cast spells. They simply used their blades to keep the swarm back, rotating and adjusting their stance to cover every opening.

  Ash looked toward the sky. Eight more knights stood on platforms of crystallized mana high above the ground. They faced the dragon.

  "Dark Gate: Binding Threads."

  Eighty fingers released streams of shadow. The mana cables were thick as rope, lancing toward the dragon from every direction. The threads wrapped around the wings and the armored chest. The knights pulled. Their arms trembled with the effort as they tried to drag the massive creature down.

  The dragon roared.

  The sound vibrated through Ash's chest. The Shield Wall flickered. One caster's nose began to bleed, the crimson trail running down his visor. The threads held, and the dragon began to plummet.

  Four more knights moved to cardinal points beneath the falling beast. They raised their palms. Mana pooled in their hands, condensing into spheres of dense shadow that made the air vibrate.

  "Dark Gate: Dark Beam."

  Four pillars of black light erupted. They merged above the knights and struck the dragon's chest. The impact sounded like a thunderclap. Ash waited for the creature to disintegrate, but the light faded to reveal an unmarked dragon. The armor plates on its chest glowed where the mana had been absorbed. The metal was not even scorched.

  The dragon's eyes tracked the knights.

  "Dark Gate: Void Cage."

  Mana poured from sixteen hands. It converged on the dragon as a massive weight. The creature slammed into the earth, cracking the stone beneath its belly. The tremors dropped several knights to their knees.

  Ash stared at the spell. It was the same one he had used against the orc, but the difference in power was staggering. His attempt had been a wisp of smoke; this was a mountain of force. The four casters shook from the strain. Blood dripped from their ears and eyes as they fought to keep the dragon pinned.

  One knight on the Shield Wall collapsed. His section of the barrier dissolved into mist. The monsters outside saw the opening and surged. They poured through the gap like water through a broken dam. The inner circle of knights shifted to meet them, but the numbers were too high.

  Isolde's greatsword cut through three beasts in a single swing. Ash burned a lunging creature, his Seed of Life now almost entirely cold.

  A high, thin shriek tore from the dragon's throat. The four casters holding the cage stumbled. The weight on the dragon flickered for a second.

  One wing tore free from the pressure. The dragon pushed against the stone, forcing itself up despite the mana. The casters redoubled their effort. Their bodies burned hollow to maintain the spell.

  The second wing broke loose. The dragon stood up, lifting the full weight of the four casters.

  The cage shattered.

  Mana exploded in a wave of black sparks. The four casters collapsed to their knees, their armor stained with the blood leaking from their visors.

  The dragon stood in the center of the crater. It extended its wings and raised its head. It looked at the failing barrier and the knights fighting for their lives.

  The jaws opened wide. Ash knew the end was coming.