“But-” Everyone said in unison, each with a different degree of stuttering.
Orion and Vastor were awed at the presence of the mother of Forgemastering, Tessa and Fyrwal were moved by the sudden reunion with their friend, while Zoreth and Bytra were terrified by her wrath.
“Nice talk. Giddyap!” Menadion dug her taloned heels into Bytra’s sides and the Raiju instinctively bolted forward like she had a Demon at her heels instead of on her back.
‘Now we are talking.’ Ripha said via a mind link as the Raiju’s figure blurred even for Awakened eyes. ‘Run to Epphy and don’t stop even if it costs you your life.’
‘Why me?’ Bytra sweated bullets, but not from exertion.
It was a cold sweat born from guilt and fear.
‘Because you and that Dragon knew about Epphy and kept your mouth shut.’ Menadion replied. ‘She trusted you in the past so I can trust that if anyone gets too close to the truth, you’ll run interference.’
‘No, I mean, why did you choose me as your steed instead of a Dragon or any of your friends. You trust them too.’ The Raiju swallowed a lump of saliva.
‘Because you are faster, you owe me, and, most importantly, I have no experience riding Dragons and they have no reason to listen to me. Besides, I’ve fought with and against you so I know very well how our powers mix.’
‘We’ve fought together in the past?’ Bytra had a hard time not turning her head in surprise but she managed to resist.
She couldn’t afford another tumble, not during what might be one of the redeeming moments of her life.
‘You don’t remember that?’ Ripha sounded equally surprised. ‘You really are a clone. Save your questions for later and follow my lead!’
The emerald eye on Menadion’s forehead and the emerald streak in her hair lit up, stirring the rumbling storm clouds as she sought control of Skyfire. Bytra helped Menadion to the best of her abilities and together they sent several lightning bolts at the World Tree.
Natural lightning moved too fast for an Awakened to defend against it, especially someone like the Yggdrasill who was forever stuck in the same place. The problem was that even normal wood didn’t conduct electricity and enchanted wood was much more resistant.
The World Tree’s bark blackened in the points of impact and Origin Flames spread from there but for someone of that size, it was no different than a mosquito bite. It stung and itched, no more and no less.
‘Fuck! What happened to your ability to conjure and control lightning?’ Menadion rebuked the innocent Raiju.
‘I still have it, but it didn’t work until the old Fringe came down and now the Storm Dragons have hogged most of the air element.’ Bytra replied. ‘There’s only one of me and a whole greed of them.
‘Take this, master Menadion, maybe it can help you.’ The Absolution coating her main horn shapeshifted back to its hammer form and jumped in Ripha’s hands after Bytra marked her as an authorized user.
‘What am I supposed to- Daughter of a bastard!’ Ripha had already seen the Absolution while following Solus as a wandering soul but she had never had the opportunity to examine it. ‘This is a modified version of my Fury.
‘A modern, way better version of my Fury!’
‘I created it back when I thought you and Elphyn were dead. I did it to honor your memory and keep your legacy alive.’ Bytra tried to justify herself.
‘I don’t care!’ Ripha cut her off. ‘The only thing that matters is that this is what we need.’
Like the original Fury, the Absolution granted its wielder the same energy signature as Bytra. By channeling her Domination through the hammer, Ripha could tap into Skyfire, bending it to the Raiju’s bloodline ability.
A branched bolt of lightning struck the World Tree’s trunk and several of their branches at the same time, setting them ablaze with Origin Flames. It was quickly followed by a globular lightning whose power was focused in a small area, opening a deep crater in the wood.
Menadion’s mastery over Bytra’s ability increased by the second and with it the number, shape, and power of natural lightning bolts she could control. At the same time, the Raiju collected massive amounts of pressure, heat, and electrical charges between her horns.
She released them in a white-hot plasma blade that cut the World Tree diagonally, opening a red searing wound across its trunk from which Origin Flames spread.
‘Stop them! Now!’ The Yggdrasill’s focus faltered as the mystical fire burned their darkness fusion and pain invaded them.
A few Golems away from the hybrid’s position charged at the Raiju, but she was too fast for them. On top of that, the World Tree had most pressing matters to deal with.
The When All Are One array was back and with Xenagrosh as its final member, it granted the other four the mass of a Divine Beast and wings again. Also, Orion and the others now shared the abilities of a purebred Dragon, including Dragon Eyes.
‘If my wife’s and my life weren’t in danger, I’d say this is the best day of my life.’ Orion inwardly griped.
One glance was enough for him to understand things that usually required days, if not even months of study. As his gaze moved over his allies, he could grasp the basics of the Forgemastering techniques used to create them and spot their flaws.
‘Gods if I suck!’ His own equipment was no exception and under the Dragon Eyes Orion noticed several imperfections that in hindsight he could have avoided.
‘Tell me about it.’ For the first time since he had met Xenagrosh, Vastor envied her so badly that it bordered on hatred. ‘I’ve wasted decades to solve problems that now seem trivial.’
‘Yes, Dragons are cheats. Deal with it.’ Tessa snapped them out of it and reminded them that under the influence of the array private thoughts weren’t private anymore.
‘Can we cast a Blade Spell?’ Xenagrosh asked in embarrassment, hoping that between her new equipment and experiencing the real thing she could grasp the secrets of Blade Magic and earn the Master’s forgiveness.
‘No.’ Fyrwal shook her heads. ‘Our equipment is spent and Orion’s is as good as gone.’
Two Blade Spells and several cycles of destruction and self-repair had left even the Royal Fortress armor cracked. Its mana crystals were dull and if not for Orion holding it, Grimlock would have already shattered forever.
‘But we can still do this!’ The five of them emitted as many Chaos Annihilation, aiming them where the wounds opened by Ripha were still burning.
The Golems intercepted them with Silverwing’s Bastion and protected their master. Until streams of lightning knocked them off their feet and messed up with their formations.
Ripha was now close enough to identify the constructs conjuring the defensive spells and strike them down with pinpoint accuracy. The Chaos Annihilations pierced through the weakened Bastions first and the Yggdrasill’s body second.
The Chaos and Origin Flames made the massive trunk quake in pain, disrupting the World Tree’s focus and dispelling the five Annihilations ramming at the hybrid.
