Any damage Night’s crystal sustained couldn’t be healed just by spawning prisms nor by absorbing darkness element. Only time could fix the Horseman. On top of that, every small injury on Night’s real body weakened both her physical and magical abilities.
“Nice trick, but I won’t fall for it a second time. Let’s see which one lasts longer, if your crippled life force or the daughter of Baba Yaga.” Night said with a crazed laughter.
“Has anyone ever told you that your puny flames lack the kick of the real deal?” Night tried to move her crystal core behind the protection of her flesh and armor while Lith hurled another stream of bright blue fire.
It hurt her a lot, but it was far from killing her.
‘Dammit, she’s right. I might win in the long run, but I don’t know if my life force can endure using Origin Flames so many times. My breath is that of a Wyrmling, not of a Dragon.’ He thought.
The pillar of violet Origin Flames the size of a skyscraper that struck Night, instead, was the real deal. The stream of fire the Horseman with the strength of a collapsing mountain and threw her in the air as if she was just a ragdoll.
“How dare you attacking our family?” Xenagrosh’s roar made Lith’s house tremble despite all the arrays protecting it.
The Shadow Dragon landed with the grace of a ballerina and the fury of a storm. She stood over 30 meters (100 feet) tall, with her mouth brimming with fire and her four eyes lit by Chaos magic.
“Thanks for freeing me, you moron!” Night laughed at Xenagrosh blunder. Unlike Lith, her flames had enveloped her whole body and destroyed Immortal Fetters.
“I don’t fear a single Dragon. I’ve got a set of carpets and curtains made from skinning you oversized lizards. Your presence does nothing but give me the ingredients I need to reforge my weapons.”
“How dare you inflicting us pain?” Kigan, the Blood Wind of the desert, dismounted from the Dragon’s back and turned into a black Phoenix so big that his wingspan covered the starry sky.
He unleashed a stream of violet Origin Flames that intercepted Xenagrosh’s and hit the Horseman who was still trapped inside the first pillar of fire. The moment the two streams of Origin Flames met, they turned white and lit the night like a small sun.
The two beasts had mastered Origin Flames to the point that they could make the conflicting energies merge rather than collide, creating a combined attack that the Abominations called Primordial Flames.
‘I’ve fought a Guardian in the past. A couple of hybrids are not- Oh, shit!’ Night cursed her big mouth as several people jumped off the Dragon’s back, each one shapeshifting to a size similar to Xenagrosh’s.
“How dare you make us bleed?” A male figure turned into a 28 meters (92 feet) long Leviathan who conjured a tidal wave of Chaos and water magic that destroyed Night’s host and decimated her army at the same time.
Lith, Solus, and every single sane person who witnessed the fury of the Abominations felt a mix of awe and fear running through their bodies.
The powerful mana flow coursing through Lith’s body protected him just like the arrays shielded his family, but the aura the hybrids emitted was so powerful that many in Lutia fainted for no apparent reason while others experienced life-scarring nightmares.
“How dare you taking what’s ours?” A female figure turned into a Griffon, who unleashed all the Life Maelstrom stored inside her body at once, making the skies scream with thunder and the ground tremble with a quake.
“Death is not enough to pay for your crimes, but it’ll have to do!” A man turned into a Garuda, a gigantic feathered humanoid with two sets of wings on its back, the head of a black eagle and talons instead of feet.
A second burst of Life Maelstrom met the first as a female Fenrir appeared as well, joining the attack. Bytra wasn’t with them simply because she was busy erecting a barrier around the entirety of Lutia, to protect it from the effects of the fury of her companions.
‘What the heck?’ Lith and Solus couldn’t believe their own eyes.
Under any other circumstance, they would have wondered why so many creatures had assembled just to help him or what reason could drive them to such fury. Xenagrosh had already shown them how much she cared for her relatives, but the other Abominations were no Dragons.
Yet their anger matched Xenagrosh’s and so did their power.
Their combined might was more than enough to kill Night. Lith could see the black crystal cracking as Life Maelstrom turned the spells empowering the living legacy against herself.
The silver lightning struck from the inside while Origin Flames and spells damaged the Horseman from the outside, covering her surface with cracks. The shockwaves of the attacks had killed every single undead and destroyed the sealing arrays.
The beasts and the houses survived only thanks to the silver barriers enveloping them.
“Enough!” A voice more ancient than the night itself resounded as a white barrier shielded the collapsing crystal and warped it to safety.
The fury of the six colossal beasts had been so stunning that no one had noticed the small hut running across the battlefield on what looked like 10 meters (33 feet) long chicken legs.
“You’ve really outdone yourself this time, child.” Baba Yaga’s voice was cold, but the kindness with which she rocked the dying Horseman between her arms was akin to that of a mother with her sick newborn.
“Unhand our prey, Blood Mother, or we’ll make sure that your name on a gravestone will be the only thing left of you.” Xenagrosh said as seven black pillars appeared from the sky, setting up for the Chaos array their combined presence conjured.
“Are you really sure this is what you want? I’m aware of the Master’s plan. Of how they focused on restoring the powers of the direct bloodline of the Guardians to match their respective parents if needed.
“On reviving the Fourth Ruler of the Flames to provide you with weapons and armor that dwarf those of most Guardians in the case they try to interfere with your ascension. A clever plan indeed.
“Yet I see that many of you still wield outdated crap and your power is far from that of a real Guardian.” Baba Yaga said.
“So what? There are seven of us and one of you. We prepared to fight our parents and you are nothing compared to my old man.” Cyare the Fenrir said.
“I’m Baba Yaga, child, and I’m standing inside my mage tower.” Solus could see that unlike her, Baba Yaga’s hut was capable of moving and absorbing the surrounding world energy even in absence of a mana geyser.
It provided her with much less strength than the crystal mine but it was better than nothing. Moreover, the phenomenon made it harder to conjure the world energy, weakening all breathing techniques, Origin Flames, and slowing down the recharge of the Life Maelstrom.
“I admit that I can’t take you all by myself, but if I go all out and put my life on the line, I’m confident I can kill two, if not three of you before attempting to escape. Worst case scenario, I’ll die after halving your numbers.”
