Kingsland Arc Chapter:14 The Last Stand
The thunderous sound of Chou crashing through the trees, a horrifying symphony of splintering wood and groaning timber, echoed through the Zevery Forest. Ronin, his lean frame rigid with shock, stood frozen, paralyzed by indecision. His heart hammered against his ribs, a frantic drumbeat against the sudden, eerie silence that followed the cacophony. His mind raced, a chaotic storm of fear, guilt, and a desperate need to act. Rafaela's tear-streaked face, her desperate plea for him to run, flashed before his eyes.
"Ronin!" Rafaela's voice, choked with sobs, had been sharp with urgency as she turned and sprinted back towards the sounds of the battle. Her slender body, usually so graceful, was a blur of frantic motion, her light tunic disappearing into the mist. She couldn't leave them.
Now, Ronin was truly alone. The choice was agonizing. Should he obey Rafaela, run to Baelish's house, and bring help, potentially saving himself but leaving his new companions to a monstrous fate? Or should he go back, knowing he was weak, an E-rank light magic user, but unable to abandon Chou, Yue Xin, and Rafaela to face that colossal viper alone? The metallic tang of fear filled his mouth, but beneath it, a bitter taste of shame began to rise. He remembered Chou's dismissive tone, his own inadequacy. He remembered Rose's unwavering belief in him.
His knuckles tightened on his twin blades, Sei and Kuro, the cold steel a grounding presence in his trembling hands. His jaw clenched. No. He couldn't leave them. He wouldn't be useless again. He wouldn't abandon his friends. A fierce, unyielding resolve, born from the ashes of Magnolia and the sting of his own weakness, surged through him. His eyes, usually wide with apprehension, narrowed with a newfound determination.
With a guttural cry that was half-shout, half-sob, Ronin turned and sprinted back the way he came, pushing his relatively lean body to its absolute limit. The forest blurred around him, the ground uneven beneath his feet. He could hear the faint sounds of battle now – the heavy thud of the Jewelion Viper's immense body striking, the strained grunts of exertion, the occasional crackle of magic. The air grew thick with the acrid scent of ozone and something else – a faint, sickly sweet odor that spoke of the Viper's poison.
He burst back into the clearing, skidding to a halt, his breath ragged. The scene before him was chaos.
Back in the clearing, the battle raged. The colossal Jewelion Viper, its immense, mottled purple body coiling and striking, was a whirlwind of destructive power. Chou, a crumpled heap against a splintered tree, was slowly pushing himself up, his sturdy body trembling with effort, his face pale and contorted in pain, a dark bruise already blooming on his temple.
Yue Xin, her slender body swaying with exhaustion, was desperately trying to hold the Jewelion Viper at bay. Her elegant deep blue robes were torn, and her face was slick with sweat, her long, dark hair plastered to her forehead. She stood before the colossal snake, her staff thrust forward, summoning thick, thorny vines from the ground. With a surge of mana, she cast Binding Vines, causing the earth to tremble as gnarled, glowing green vines, thick as a man's arm, burst from the ground and snaked out from the surrounding trees. They wrapped themselves around the Jewelion Viper's immense body with surprising speed, binding its jaws shut just as the first tendrils of purple gas began to escape its throat. The Jewelion Viper roared, a sound of frustrated fury, its colossal body thrashing violently against the restraints. It struggled, its powerful muscles bulging, trying to force its mouth open, but Yue Xin's desperate magic held fast, for now.
"Yue Xin!" Rafaela's voice, choked with sobs, cut through the air. Her slender figure, usually so gentle, was a blur of frantic motion as she sprinted back through the mist, her kind face etched with desperate fear, her eyes wide as she took in the horrifying scene. She had heard Yue Xin's scream, and her loyalty wouldn't allow her to abandon her friend.
The Jewelion Viper, unable to release its poison, let out another frustrated hiss. It turned its massive head, its glowing red eyes burning with malevolent intelligence, and with a sudden, brutal thrust, it headbutted Yue Xin. The impact was deafening, a sickening CRACK that echoed through the trees. Yue Xin's slender body, already exhausted and trembling, was sent flying, a ragdoll propelled by the viper's immense force. She crashed into the trees with a series of dull thuds, not eight, but perhaps four or five, before collapsing into a crumpled heap, her staff clattering beside her. She lay motionless, her face pale and still, unconscious.
Rafaela skidded to a halt beside Yue Xin, her own chest heaving, tears streaming down her face. Her heart sank as she saw her friend's still form. She glanced towards where Chou had fallen, seeing his sturdy body slowly stirring, but unable to rise. The sight of her two friends incapacitated, and the Jewelion Viper now free, sent a fresh wave of terror through her.
"Yue Xin!" Rafaela whispered, her voice trembling. Not knowing what else to do, her hands began to glow with a faint, warm light, and she poured her healing magic into Yue Xin's unconscious form, her brow furrowed in desperate concentration.
But the Jewelion Viper wasn't done. As Yue Xin's magic wore off, the colossal snake began to coil, its immense body rippling, its head swaying ominously. It was preparing itself to use the poison gas attack again, its maw slowly opening, the sickly purple mist already gathering.
Rafaela, sensing the impending doom, her eyes darting frantically between Yue Xin and the monster, knew she had to act. She couldn't heal them fast enough, but perhaps she could protect them. Gritting her teeth, her face a mask of fierce determination despite her fear, she cast a Blessing of Purity, pouring her remaining mana into it. A faint, shimmering golden aura enveloped both her and Yue Xin, a desperate shield against the toxic fumes. This spell, a rare and powerful defensive magic, was meant to nullify poison attacks. She couldn't cast it on Chou; he was too far, and she didn't have enough mana. Ronin... she thought, a fleeting, desperate hope, he's probably far off in the forest, safe.
The Jewelion Viper unleashed its attack. A torrent of thick, cloying purple gas erupted from its mouth, billowing outwards, rapidly engulfing the entire clearing where Rafaela and Yue Xin lay. The air became heavy, suffocating, tasting of decay and chemicals.
Yue Xin, already unconscious from the headbutt, lay still as the noxious poison seeped into her body, her chest barely rising. Rafaela, despite the Blessing of Purity, coughed violently, her body convulsing. The golden aura around them flickered, then dimmed, unable to withstand the overwhelming power of the Jewelion Viper's toxin. The spell, meant to nullify, was simply overwhelmed. The poison was too potent, too ancient, too toxic. Rafaela's slender body finally gave out, her eyes rolling back as she collapsed beside Yue Xin, her breath coming in shallow, desperate gasps as the poison began to take hold.
The Jewelion Viper, its two enormous red eyes gleaming with malevolent satisfaction, slowly uncoiled. The purple gas began to clear, revealing the two unconscious figures. The poison, far from harming the Viper, seemed to nourish it, making its scales shimmer with a darker, more vibrant purple, enhancing its already formidable power. It lowered its massive head, its fangs dripping, preparing to consume them one by one.
Just then, a faint sound reached its acute hearing – the rapid thump-thump-thump of hurried footsteps, growing steadily louder. The Jewelion Viper's head snapped up, its red eyes narrowing, its body tensing. The sound was coming from the side where Rafaela had just fallen.
The sound of running increased, drawing closer. The Jewelion Viper turned its colossal head fully, its gaze fixed on the source of the noise. And then, through the thinning mist, it saw him.
Ronin burst into the clearing, his lean frame heaving, his face a mask of agonizing conflict and dawning horror. His eyes, wide with disbelief, swept over the scene. He saw Yue Xin lying motionless, unconscious, her body already succumbing to the poison. Chou was nowhere to be seen, lost in the splintered wreckage of the trees. And Rafaela, his last hope for help, had fallen, her slender body crumpled beside Yue Xin, her skin already taking on a sickly pallor as the Jewelion Viper's potent poison entered her body. The air was thick with the stench of death and decay. His friends, his new companions, were defeated, and he was too late.
[To Be Continued In Chapter:15 The Awakening]