Rebellion

The Traitor Among Us

I nudged Electra forwards as we led the advance to the enemy mass. You could clearly see how outnumbered we were, and I felt a pang of worry for my Anchemi. What would happen if we lost? A flicker of movement caught my eye and I looked over to see some of the less experienced dragons flying ahead of the main body.

"Hold the line!". I shouted, and the lines separated into their individual ranks. I slowly counted the wingbeats until we reached the enemy, my heart pounding in my chest as I slowly placed my helmet on my head, tying the chinstraps. My sword glittered as I pulled it from it's scabbard with a dull rasp.

Four wingbeats

Three wingbeats

Two wingbeats

One wingbeat

And then we were upon them.

At once Electra shot fire into the enemy ranks, sending a long stream of it directly into the centre. Using the smoke as a diversion, we gently dropped lower, before soaring upwards directly into a wind dragon. The startled roar alerted his comrades, and I slashed my sword at his tail, the dismembered limb falling to the ground. A look of stunned shock appeared on the drake's face, as Electra sunk her talons deep into it's back, slicing through it's heart.    

One down, a thousand to go.

I was grateful for Electra's agility as the battle raged on, as we were able to avoid most attacks. Belatedly, I looked around for Phantom, but couldn't see him. He must have dropped back, but I could have sworn he was here a second ago. Electra slashed at our latest opponent, a female lightning dragon, as I lobbed a plasma bomb into the midst of the enemy. A bright white flash and the subsequent roars of pain told me it had hit it's mark. Electra hissed in pain as she was gashed by an ice dragon, and I shot a wave of fire towards the attacker, before guiding Electra back out of the fighting, to safety behind our thinning ranks. A pained screech from above us caused us to veer to the side as a yellow streak shot by us.

"Striker!". I yelled as Electra folded her wings and dropped like a stone, almost uncontrollably. She flared her wings, and dug her talons into the nearest are of exposed yellow flesh. Striker let out a bellow of pain as he was pulled to a stop just metres above the floor. I could see his wing hanging sickeningly by his side and I called down to him as Electra slowly lowered him to the floor

"Get to the Infirmary!". He turned his head, the blood on his flanks glistening as he struggled for breath. He called something else and I instinctively leant to the side to avoid the plasma ball Electra just shot upwards. Suddenly, I slid down her back as she plummeted to the side to avoid bending pulverised by a stone dragon. We crashed into Striker and he let out a yelp as he skidded across the floor.

"Striker, go. Now!". I commanded, nudging Electra back into the air. She glided upwards and I watched as Striker disappeared into the palace.

"Can you see Amaris,". I asked, leaning closer to Electra's neck so I could here her.

"No,". Electra replied. "She might be at the back of her army, away from all the fighting,". I nodded, scanning the army for any sign of her.

"Dive into the bushes at the edge of the landing zone. We can sneak through to the back of the army to find her,". Electra gently lowered herself to the ground, soaring over to the edge of the forest. Her talons crunched against the leaves as we crept forwards, weaving around the tree trunks as they cast shadows onto our faces. Insects clicked and nearby a rabbit hopped along. We hurried through the trees, and we increased our pace, until we were almost running through he forest. The breeze picked up as we burst through the final bushes, emerging into the bright sunlight. Electra glided upwards, towards a black and purple blob in the sky. As we reached the same height, Electra's flanks rose steadily inwards and outwards as she fought to regain her breath. We had been pampered too much in the palace, I thought with a wry smile. As we neared the crystal dragon, her gaze sharpened as she looked at us and she glided forwards majestically, like only a dragon with years of experience can. I drew my sword, and Electra snarled as we prepared to dive forwards, when darkness coated my vision. Electra roared in frustration as she swung around wildly, unable to see where Amaris was. Or more importantly, where Phantom was.