The blades of Temerity's twin swords flashed in the moonlight as she cut her way through the endless sea of
wraith-like creatures. She had never fought such a foe before, and she had begun to doubt that she would leave this battlefield alive. The mortal resistance
had been utterly eradicated by the power of the dark army she now faced, and she was thus the last thing standing in their way.
It was the stuff of legends. If she survived.
Temerity's body flashed with brilliant blue energy, and she unleashed a wave of destructive power across the battlefield, destroying dozens upon dozens of the creatures. Still, she winced. The attack had not been nearly as effective as she had hoped; having four of her siblings allied against her with no one else aiding her cause was severely limiting her power. She was more than a little angry with Hytric for departing for the "foreign realm" when he was so much needed here in Reverie. If the Realms were reduced to nothing but ash, it would be entirely his fault.
Not that blaming it on him made the situation any better. She was still surrounded by thousands (probably hundreds of thousands) of creatures with one thing on their simple minds: destruction. She also had yet to even see any of the four Vagaries responsible for them. She could fight these things all day, but unless she could take out her siblings, they'd just keep coming.
It really was hopeless. But that didn't stop her.
She tore into the monsters with renewed vigor, her blades spinning around her in a cyclone of death. With speed and strength that no mortal could match, she ripped them to shreds, then moved on to others while the bodies of those she had slain quickly faded into nonexistence. At the same time that she was slicing and dicing them, she was also bombarding them with fire, lightning, ice, and scouring light, sometimes channeling it with her swords, other times mentally conjuring it right in the midst of a cluster of the beasts.
A familiar shadow passed over her, and she turned her face upward. Ruin. Of all the Vagaries that could have shown up, he was the one Temerity dreaded most, which was actually probably why he was there. He hovered above her for a moment, furiously beating his bat-like wings, then he raised one hand above his head.
Temerity conjured a magical shield around herself just in time to block the blast of raw destructive energy. The ground around her was scorched smooth, like cooled lava. Naturally, the wraith-creatures around her were completely unaffected. She knew she didn't have any chance of lasting another minute alone against Ruin. Was it the Dreamer's will for her to die here? Maybe, but she wasn't about to drop her weapons and accept it. Closing her eyes, she quickly cast a teleportation spell. She didn't have any specific destination in mind; for all she knew, she could wind up right back where she started. That was completely up to the Dreamer now.
She was in a clearing in a forest, that much she quickly determined. Apparently, the Dreamer hadn't desired her death today. Temerity really had no idea where she was: she had never seen this realm before. She was sure of one thing, though: she was exhausted. As soon as she had teleported, all of her power had faded, and she became acutely aware of the fact that she had been fighting against that horde of fiends for well over a day. She was also aware of the hundreds of wounds she had received in the battle. She was bleeding, and what strength she had was quickly fading. She took a step, then fell to the ground. She tried to force herself to stand, but couldn't. She tried to levitate, but her mind was just as tired as her body. She was unable to move a muscle, and her whole body was enflamed with pain. Fatigue was catching up, and she was still losing blood.
And then the world grew dark.
It was the stuff of legends. If she survived.
Temerity's body flashed with brilliant blue energy, and she unleashed a wave of destructive power across the battlefield, destroying dozens upon dozens of the creatures. Still, she winced. The attack had not been nearly as effective as she had hoped; having four of her siblings allied against her with no one else aiding her cause was severely limiting her power. She was more than a little angry with Hytric for departing for the "foreign realm" when he was so much needed here in Reverie. If the Realms were reduced to nothing but ash, it would be entirely his fault.
Not that blaming it on him made the situation any better. She was still surrounded by thousands (probably hundreds of thousands) of creatures with one thing on their simple minds: destruction. She also had yet to even see any of the four Vagaries responsible for them. She could fight these things all day, but unless she could take out her siblings, they'd just keep coming.
It really was hopeless. But that didn't stop her.
She tore into the monsters with renewed vigor, her blades spinning around her in a cyclone of death. With speed and strength that no mortal could match, she ripped them to shreds, then moved on to others while the bodies of those she had slain quickly faded into nonexistence. At the same time that she was slicing and dicing them, she was also bombarding them with fire, lightning, ice, and scouring light, sometimes channeling it with her swords, other times mentally conjuring it right in the midst of a cluster of the beasts.
A familiar shadow passed over her, and she turned her face upward. Ruin. Of all the Vagaries that could have shown up, he was the one Temerity dreaded most, which was actually probably why he was there. He hovered above her for a moment, furiously beating his bat-like wings, then he raised one hand above his head.
Temerity conjured a magical shield around herself just in time to block the blast of raw destructive energy. The ground around her was scorched smooth, like cooled lava. Naturally, the wraith-creatures around her were completely unaffected. She knew she didn't have any chance of lasting another minute alone against Ruin. Was it the Dreamer's will for her to die here? Maybe, but she wasn't about to drop her weapons and accept it. Closing her eyes, she quickly cast a teleportation spell. She didn't have any specific destination in mind; for all she knew, she could wind up right back where she started. That was completely up to the Dreamer now.
She was in a clearing in a forest, that much she quickly determined. Apparently, the Dreamer hadn't desired her death today. Temerity really had no idea where she was: she had never seen this realm before. She was sure of one thing, though: she was exhausted. As soon as she had teleported, all of her power had faded, and she became acutely aware of the fact that she had been fighting against that horde of fiends for well over a day. She was also aware of the hundreds of wounds she had received in the battle. She was bleeding, and what strength she had was quickly fading. She took a step, then fell to the ground. She tried to force herself to stand, but couldn't. She tried to levitate, but her mind was just as tired as her body. She was unable to move a muscle, and her whole body was enflamed with pain. Fatigue was catching up, and she was still losing blood.
And then the world grew dark.
