Chapter 191: Clash Of The Titans
Moraxor and his forces watched in a mixture of despair and growing apprehension as the enraged Bloodburn Queen mounted her mighty dragon and charged towards the faltering Kraken.
The sight of the two, both brimming with fierce determination, sent a shiver down the spines of even the most hardened warriors.
Whispers of unease rippled through Moraxor's ranks as they witnessed the formidable duo tearing through the skies, a dark omen of their impending doom.
The once-confident soldiers, who had reveled in the Kraken's initial dominance, now found their courage waning, their faces etched with worry and disbelief.
Moraxor himself clenched his scepter tightly, his knuckles white from the strain. He had underestimated the Bloodburn Queen's resolve and her strength.
"Isola..." Moraxor mumbled with a grimace, his face twisted with fear for his daughter's life.
Since the Kraken seemed to be in distress for some strange reason, wouldn't his daughter be in danger as well?
He wanted to chase after Rowena but his injuries were holding him back and there was no way he could outrun a dragon. Still, these reasons weren't enough to make him give up. Even if there was a good chance Isola was already dead, he had to make sure for himself.
On another side of the battlefield, Narissara's eyes widened in desperation and worry as she caught sight of the Bloodburn Queen and her dragon getting closer to the weakened Kraken.
Her heart pounded in her chest, and a cold sweat broke out on her brow.
She and her people had staked everything on their guardian and her daughter; she couldn't let it all go to waste.
Every muscle in her body tensed, her mind racing with frantic thoughts of how to intervene and protect her people's last hope. In that moment, Narissara made a split-second decision, her body reacting almost before her mind had fully committed to the course of action.
She unleashed a explosive arrow in an attempt to break free from her clash with Esther and sprint towards the Kraken.
But her movement was abruptly halted by the gaunt figure of the tall Death Knight, cloaked in ragged, bloodstained dark blue robes, making Narissara's fists shake.
"I warned you before...I wouldn't be the one who needs to escape," Esther declared from behind in a cold, unwavering voice, her words like icy daggers that pierced through Narissara's heart.
"You..." Narissara muttered in a frigid yet distressed tone upon getting cornered without leaving her any chance to stop her.
But she and Moraxor had already passed down orders to their army to stop the Bloodburn Queen at all costs!
The Umbralfiend army, feeling the same mounting desperation in their king and queen's orders, sprang into action with a fierce determination to protect the Kraken at all costs.
As one, they charged forward, a tidal wave of dark-clad warriors intent on stopping Rowena from reaching their last hope.
With a surge of determination, they launched a desperate assault, unleashing a barrage of attacks at the Bloodburn Queen soaring high above them.
Waves of dark energy, spikes of black water, and bursts of elemental power filled the sky, each one aimed at Rowena and her dragon with killing intent.
But Flaralis didn't even flinch.
It merely stretched out one of its enormous wings, effortlessly shielding both itself and its master from the onslaught. To Flaralis, the powerful strikes felt like nothing more than small stones being thrown at its impenetrable scales.
The Umbralfiend forces stared in disbelief and growing dread, realizing their attempts were fruitless. As if to confirm their worst fears, the Rowena looked down upon them with her burning crimson eyes, her gaze filled with a chilling mixture of disdain and fury.
In that moment, they realized they had only succeeded in provoking the wrath of the Bloodburn Queen.
With a swift, fluid motion, Rowena unfurled her whip and lashed it out at the air.
*SWRSHHH!*
A devastating blast of crimson flames erupted from the tip, cascading downwards towards the hapless Umbralfiends below. The searing inferno engulfed them, incinerating everything in its path and decimating those who had dared to challenge her ascent.
The battlefield fell eerily silent for a brief moment, as the full extent of her power was made abundantly clear.
Where once had stood a mass of Umbralfiend forces, now lay a large, whip-like sizzling crater that scarred the landscape. The sheer power of her assault had not only obliterated her enemies but had also carved a lasting impression on the very earth itself.
The elongated crater stretched across the land, its meandering shape resembling the coils of the whip that had unleashed such destruction. The scorched and fractured ground still emitted tendrils of smoke, a frightening display of the Bloodburn Queen's wrath.
Despite being shaken and terrified, the rest of the Umbralfiend army desperately tried to rush towards the shore to help their guardian but they were all stopped by the Crimson Army and a number of other armies from different Houses.
At the same time, up in the sky, Rowena's icy voice rang out as she patted her dragon, "You know what to do, Flaralis."
Flaralis let out a deep, rumbling growl in acknowledgment before swooping down towards the massive Kraken.
The colossal creature, weakened and struggling to defend itself, tried to use its giant pincers in a futile attempt to fend off the approaching dragon while trying to get back into the waters.
Since the backlash rendered it unable to use its mana or any of its powerful abilities, all it could do was use its own body to defend itself.
The battle between the two titanic creatures was a sight to behold, as Flaralis wrestled with the Kraken, determined to carry out its master's command.
The earth shook and rumbled under their thunderous battle, each of them big enough to make the rest of them look like ants.
Flaralis' wings flapped with tremendous power, generating gusts of wind that buffeted the shore below.
Just the clash of its wings against the Kraken's pincers sent powerful shockwaves that made the space around them tremble while the sand near the shores were blasted away for more than a kilometer.
The Kraken was twice as bigger than Flaralis but in this situation, it unfortunately didn't have the advantage of flying, nor did it have an advantage in agility.
All it could do was use its own body weight to push itself back to the sea while fending off this dragon.
"Flaralis, don't let it escape," Rowena urged, her eyes locked on the Kraken as it tried to retreat into the water.
Flaralis let out a deep growl and deep within its throat, an intense glow began to build.
The glow intensified, spreading through its stomach as it gathered its fiery power. The air around the dragon shimmered with heat, and the very ground beneath it seemed to tremble in anticipation of the impending inferno.
*ROARR!!*
With a roar that echoed across the battlefield, Flaralis unleashed a torrent of searing flames, a blazing river of fire that streamed from its gaping maw. The flames surged towards the Kraken's flailing pincers, engulfing them in a searing embrace.
*KRRRREEE!!!*
The Kraken let out a pained screech as the fire seared its pincers, its once-powerful weapons now wreathed in flames. The intense heat forced the beast to lower its pincers, its last line of defense now rendered useless by the overwhelming might of Flaralis's flames.
All who witnessed the scene were struck by the sheer power of the Bloodburn Queen's dragon.
The once-dominant Kraken, getting suppressed by the fiery might of Flaralis, now lay completely at their mercy, its fate hanging in the balance.
Its massive claws snapped out, grabbing hold of the enormous creature's shell, and with a mighty heave, Flarlis lifted the Kraken's hulking body off the ground, making those who saw it have their hearts thud in shock and horror.
The Kraken thrashed and writhed in Flaralis's grip, but its attempts to break free were no match for the dragon's immense strength.
With a final, powerful twist, Flaralis flipped the Kraken onto its back, exposing its vulnerable underbelly. The badly wounded creature flailed helplessly, its legs kicking uselessly in the air as it found itself at the mercy of the Bloodburn Queen.
The battlefield fell silent for a moment, all eyes drawn to the sight of the once-mighty Kraken, now rendered powerless before the Bloodburn Queen and her dragon.
The terror of the seas had been humbled, and before they could even process what was going on, they saw the relentless dragon tearing out the flesh from its belly, trying to make a huge hole.
The sight alone made most of the Umbralfiends feel their legs go weak, their knees buckling as they fell on their knees, wailing at the sight of their guardian's brutal defeat.
Only moments earlier, Isola's weakened hands had been clawing desperately at the tendrils that bound this sailor, her heart aching with guilt and fear.
She could see the paleness of his face and the fading light in his eyes as his consciousness slipped away. Despite her own frailty, she persisted, feeling that he shouldn't pay the price for trying to free her. She didn't even know his name after everything that happened.
"Stay with me..." Asher heard her firm yet trembling voice echoing in his mind but he could barely see or feel anything else. Still, her voice seemed to have a mystical effect of clinging to his consciousness, trying to prevent it from slipping away.
But then, without warning, the world around Isola seemed to shift and lurch violently. The slick, fleshy walls of the Kraken's innards heaved and convulsed, making it nearly impossible for her to maintain her footing on the slippery surface.
"Ugh..." She stumbled and had her back slam against the fleshy floor, her heart pounding in her chest as the creature writhed and thrashed beneath her.
She could barely feel any strength in her limbs, making it hard for her to get up.
She felt worried upon realizing that her guardian was getting attacked after getting weakened.
But strangely enough, her determination to free this man hadn't lessened one bit.
As Isola struggled to crawl back toward him amidst the chaos, her attention was suddenly drawn to an ominous change above her.
The roof of the fleshy chamber began to stretch apart, the flesh tearing away as blood seeped in before it was torn out entirely, leaving behind a gaping bloody hole.
By now the Corrosive Mist in the sky had dissipated and the hole casted a haunting, crimson glow around Isola. She squinted her eyes against the sudden influx of light, her eyes struggling to adjust.
As her vision slowly adapted to the new conditions, Isola caught sight of a silhouette framed against the red-tinged sky.
It was a woman, but not just any woman—this figure bore enormous, dragon-like wings that spread out from her back like a menacing shadow and her crimson eyes glowing like the bloody sun.
Isola's heart raced as she could guess who this figure might be.