The Leviathan knew that even while standing on his own turf, there was nothing he could do from a distance against three Guardians so he came to face them in person.
“This is not an act of aggression anymore, but of war between Garlen and Jiera. By the end of this day, only one continent will survive and retain its original Guardians!”
Along with his own Steps, Fenagar conjured two more. One for Roghar the Fenrir, who had many bones to pick with all of Garlen’s Guardians, and one for Zagran the Garuda, the battle maniac who never turned down a challenge.
The crackle from the conflicting auras of the assembled six Guardians was enough to flatten one-third of Jiera. Mogar reacted by turning the beach into a Fringe and keeping whatever was going to take place inside of it from affecting the outside world.
“Farm me sideways.” Lith focused on Zagran, her aura was completely different from Salaark’s yet similar.
He could tell even at first glance that the Garuda was stronger than the Pheonix in some aspects but weaker in others, making a fight between them a coin toss at best.
‘Even if the Guardians of Jiera were all chumps, the clash with the Guardians of Garlen would be enough to kill us all. No one would have survived the side effects of Grandma’s fight against Tezka if not for the colossal barrier and them looking out for us.
‘Here there is no barrier and the other Guardians are going to target us on purpose.’ He thought while conjuring Ragnarök in a blaze of emerald flames. ‘If only I could conjure Silverwing’s Bastion…’
The anti-Guardian spell needed seven bright violet-cored Awakened and on that beach, there were just four. On top of that, Lith and Quylla had never practiced with Inxialot and Raagu so even if they did have the power, the spell would be far from optimal.
“This is fine.” Inxialot said. “My phylactery is hidden in a safe place. I’m going to survive this and once I’m back, I’ll find a way to resurrect you, baby. If I remember about you, of course.”
“Don’t call me baby!” Raagu snarled.
“Meow!” Nero pulled the Lich’s robe, pointing at the bell on his own neck.
“Oh, shit! I’m dead. And I mean for real. Really dead. Cadaverific.” Inxialot realized in shock that his phylactery was right in front of him. “If you ever loved me and if there is any sort of afterlife, put in a good word for me, baby.”
“Who the f-arm ever loved you? We had one date and it was a disaster!” Raagu replied, stunned by her vocal cords altering the swear word on their own.
“Roghar.” Tyris opened and closed her hands multiple times, making her knuckles pop. “Didn’t you have enough already? Didn’t Ileza’s fate teach you anything?”
The majestic Fenrir reached a height at the withers of 50 meters (166 feet), the fur covering his body glistening under the sunlight as if every bristle was a pure white mana crystal.
The fact that he still wore enough bandages to pass for a mummy and two of his limbs were splintered, however, ruined the overall effect.
“I surrender.” Roghar shrunk to the size of a regular wolf and fell on his back in front of the Great Mother, exposing his white-furred belly.
“Zag-zag!” Salaark stepped forward with her arms open.
“Sally!” Zagran shrunk from a fifty meters (166′) tall humanoid covered in feathers into a human woman and ran to Salaark, lifting the Phoenix in an embrace.
“I’ve heard about your fight with the old fox. How was it? Has he gotten stronger? What tactics did you two use? Are those Eldritch hybrids really a threat or are they cool guys? You have to tell me everything and I mean everything.”
“Sure thing. Now put me down, please.” Salaark replied. “I have an image to uphold in front of my Featherlings.” She pointed at Lith and Elysia.
“Well, I guess it’s just you and I, old friend.” Leegaain’s voice was calm and deep as the all-weapon Worldbreaker materialized in his hand in the form of a spear. “I’ll honor your wish. By the end of this day, one shall stand and one shall-”
“Let’s not rush this, okay?” The Leviathan shrunk to his human form, holding his hands with the palms out in a peace gesture. “Things were said but no one got hurt so no harm no foul.
“We’ve all let old grudges cloud our judgment for a moment but there’s no reason to make a mountain out of a molehill.” Fenagar had prepared thoroughly for Tyris’ coming and was sure to win.
Against her. Three Guardians versus one, it wasn’t a challenge so much as a death sentence. Mogar shared his opinion and dispelled the Fringe.
“Tyris?” The Father of All Dragons looked unconvinced but, at the same time, he really didn’t want to overtake Fenagar’s turf and take care of it until a new Guardian of Discovery popped out.
“Violence is never the answer.” The Great Mother shook her head, relaxing her muscles. “Except when it is.”
She disappeared from her spot and moved right in front of the Leviathan.
Her knees were slightly bent, her center of gravity low, and her posture perfect. The punch she unleashed contained every bit of Life Maelstrom she had released which was further amplified by Focus Point.
The Griffon’s bloodline ability allowed her to concentrate her power and mass to the extreme so that not one iota of her strength went to waste. The punch struck Fenagar’s sternum, shattering it first and then the rest of his bones as the shockwave reverberated inside his body.
The Leviathan was sent flying despite him weighing hundreds of tons, his painful journey ending abruptly thanks to the defensive systems of his underwater fortress. Tyris’ aim was true, sending him back home after a few bounces with the same precision as a pool player choosing a specific pocket to land a specific ball.
“I couldn’t waste so much Life Maelstrom and the other lizard deserved a lesson anyway.” Tyris said with a warm smile as her golden aura faded.
It was nigh impossible to believe that the same sweet, beautiful woman in front of everyone had just blasted away a colossal monster but after a few pinches and slaps, the witnesses had the bruises to prove that it wasn’t a dream.
“I’ll go back to Garlen them. Call me when you want me to take over guard duty.” Leegaain said while walking in front of Elysia. “Were you scared? No? Good girl. Grampa is always watching over you.”
He cooed and made a lot of embarrassing baby noise before going to reassure Valeron the Second as well.
Only once the Father of All Dragons was certain that both babies were and felt safe did he walk through the still-open Gate and put Worldbreaker back into his pocket dimension.
“Can I please go home now?” Roghar whimpered. “This is getting embarrassing.”
He was still belly up and people were staring at him.
“Scram.” Zagran snapped her fingers, sending him back to his turf. “So these are the famous Lith and the even more famous Elysia.”
