Sighing worriedly, Djoser rode along side of Tao, Kain, Kondolar, and Master Yelsnid as they tried to find a village where they can get more supplies and figure out how to meet up with the girls....wherever they were. After some hours of rest in the forest, the old master sorcerer felt he was strong enough to at least try to conjure up another spell and follow the girls. It was a small chance, but was worth a shot. At first, Djoser argued that they should have went with the girls in the first place and not leave them to confront such an evil force as Kumraa, but even he had to accept Yelsnid's explanation of how fool-hardy that would have been, for the strain of the spell would have been so great on him, they would have been separated and ended up anywhere....perhaps even thousands of miles apart from each other.
At least the rest he got had given him back some of his strength, and once they found a place where they can properly get together to redo the spell, Yelsnid said they had at least a small chance of finding the girls. At that answer, Djoser relaxed just a little. The moment Jeneta and the rest of the girls stepped through that vortex, his heart never stop beating fast with worry for a second. He was worried about her, he admitted it. But the faster they found a village, the better the chance they would find them, so he tried to put aside his worry and concentrate on finding civilization.
But alas, the land was unfamiliar to them all, and they had been riding for hours. Soon, they came out of the grand forest they were riding in and into an expansive meadow filled with many colored flowers and emerald green grass. Rolling hills stretched out far into the horizon, and the almost setting sun shone golden rays all over. But the men didn't see any of the indescribable beauty. They were worried, very worried, and time could be running out for the ones they loved.
"I knew it, we're lost." sighed out Kain, looking around and running a nervous hand through his jet black hair.
"No, we can't be too far from a village," Yelsnid took a deep breath and tried to gather strength in his body. "I did a small scrying spell last night, and I know there MUST be a small village here. I felt it, I could almost SEE it. We just have to go a little further." The old man looked with pleading eyes at the rest, as if begging them to trust him.
Tao and Djoser looked at each other for a moment, then nodded. "Alright then Master Yelsnid, if you say so. But we can't keep this up. The girls might need us right now." Djoser's hands clenched his reins harder, the thought of Jeneta being in trouble making it hard for him to even breath. They're in trouble, he just knew it, and it didn't go them any good to be here wasting time.
They rode on, passing the breathtaking scenery, and Kondolar took the time to ride up next to his master. "Master Yelsnid, are you alright?" the young apprentice asked, brushing some stray strands of dark brown hair from his face.
The old man turned to look at him tiredly, smiling slightly. "Oh, yes, I'm fine Kondolar. It's just.....I really didn't think casting that spell the other night would have taken so much out of me. Perhaps I should have prepared more, or maybe..."
"Halt!"
His words were never finished as Tao came riding up hard past them and stopped a few feet ahead, surveying the area. His eyes were narrowed and his hands clenched hard on his reins as he turned his horse around. His keen warrior senses...honed from many years of training and living off the land, were in full mode as he looked at the others. "Something isn't right here. I thought I...heard something. We have to be careful."
The others looked around cautiously as they caught up with Tao, and for the next few moments, nothing seemed amiss. Then out of nowhere, there was a soft rumbling coming from the earth. Although it was not too strong, it was enough to alarm the travelers and their horses, causing the steeds to rear up on their hind legs. After a moment of trying to calm them down, the men looked up and gasped. Running straight towards them from the rolling hills a good distance away was what looked to be an army of demonic creatures. Although they resembled animals, from wolves to tigers to even horses, they ran on two legs and carried spears, swords, crossbows, and finally bows and arrows. They were dressed in black armor plates over their chests, arms and knees. Their eyes flashed with madness and some even had spittle drooling from their mouths, anticipating human flesh to rip through. The very ground itself shook with the force of their running and their great numbers.
"By...all the mercy of the Gods!" Master Yelsnid breathed out in shock. Djoser and the rest could only stare in wide eyed astonishment as the animal army continued running, then abruptly stopped just a few feet before them, breathing hard and holding their weapons in clenched hands. A moment passed before they seemed to part and clear an open path, and an enormous bear-headed creature calmly walked through, taller than the rest and heavily muscled. It was obvious he was the general or leader. He seemed to smile at the group, then with a snarl, pointed at them and grunted.
"It seems finding a village now won't be as easy as we hoped..." Kondolar said. With a gulp, he turned to Kain next to him with a nervous look.
But the handsome young man raised his head bravely and looked back at him. "It's Kumraa's army. He wants us out of the way. But I won't make it easy for them. I swear if I must die, then I will make their victory costly," But even he was a little shaken as he looked at the waiting army, then back at Kondolar. "Are you afraid?"
The sorcerer-in-training looked at him before turning to look at Djoser, Tao, and finally Master Yelsnid. He took a deep breath and looked back at the army. "I was. But...no, not anymore. Not with you all here with me-"
But the moment was cut short as the general raised his weapon high and gave a commanding roar, and not even a second later, the army advanced again, roaring and snarling loudly.
"Come on!!" Djoser reaching into his cloak and pulled out his sword, raising it high into the air. "If we are to die today, then we die giving time to Jeneta and the others. Death to Kumraa!"
No more encouragement was needed as the others nodded, and after their horses reared high on their hind legs, rushed off into the battle, yelling loud and long.
After just a moment of running towards each other, the army of demonic creatures and the small group of humans came together in a loud clash of sword upon sword, metal upon metal. Djoser swung his sword swiftly and with deadly accuracy, cutting in half any monster that dared come near him. When he could, he used his energy powers to blast away any that tried to sneak up on him.
Kain, with a mischievous grin, jumped off his horse and flung himself high into the air. While still in midair, he quickly changed into his true wolf form, and with powerful jaws snapping as he landed, took down almost a dozen of the beast soldiers within seconds.
Like the true warrior he was, Tao fought with all his might with the trusted whip that was his late sister's. With a flick of his wrist, he snapped the long whip around the neck of one of the creatures, and pulling hard, used its body to knock several off their feet, all while still riding his horse. With another flick, he released the whip and started all over again.
Kondolar and Master Yelsnid did their best by sending blast after blast of energy beams after the creatures, turning whomever they hit into piles of ash. The sorcerer's staff glowed brightly in the early evening air as he used his magic, but after only a few minutes, even he was growing tired and weary, and sweat rolled down his face.
Djoser barely missed a club swinging over his head, and with a grunt, he cut down the monster in half with his broad sword. He panted heavily as he looked around and saw that they were swiftly being surrounded. We can't keep this up for long! he thought with desperation.
He turned his head and watched in alarm as Kondolar was knocked off his horse with a large club and landed with a heavy thud on the hard ground. The young man's body twitched in pain for just a second, then lay still, blood leaking from the side of his head. Djoser didn't even know if he was dead or alive. Moments later, Yelsnid was grabbed from behind on his horse by one of the blood-thirsty creatures as he yelled in surprise.
It was a losing battle, even he knew it. With sadness in his heart, Djoser pictured the face of Jeneta in his mind, and his soul cried with the thought that he might never see her again. I'm sorry Jeneta. I wanted to be there for you. Forgive me, A tear rolled down his dark cheek, and with that, he continued fighting, knowing it might very well be a lost cause. But at least it would give her and the other girls some time to do whatever it was they had to do, and that filled his heart with a tiny spark of hope.
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Kumraa looked with barely contained shock as he realized that it was none other than the Ones Who Are Blessed that stood before him, once more in all their glory, in all their power. Memories of their last battle flashed through his ancient mind, but he refused to let them go on for more than a few seconds. This was his chance now! This time, he was going to win the battle, not them! Even if he would die tonight, he would make sure they would die with him, and there would be no chance they would be reborn.
With a smug smirk on his face, the evil demon lord regarded the powerful goddesses before him and crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, so we meet again, my dear Goddesses. But this time, I will be the victor here, not you!!
"You are wrong, Kumraa," Ula, who moments before was Jeneta, stepped before the others, her dark skin glowing despite the decreasing sunlight. "Just as we have done thousands of years ago, we will stop you. Too many innocent people have died by your cruel hands, and it has to stop, NOW!"
"The ones with whom we share these bodies with have friends depending on us and them, and we will not let them down." Jadinna stepped forward next to Ula, her almond-shaped eyes narrowed and full of determination. Even she knew that Ling, hidden safely away in her consciousness, would already be fighting him, and she had to fight the urge to rush him right there and then.
"Oh yes, your friends," Kumraa laughed deep in his throat, as though sharing a private joke with himself. "My, my, how sad. Didn't you know? I sent a little welcome party out to meet your little "friends", and by now....they should be dead."
"NO! You lie!" Ula's eyes narrowed dangerously as she raised her sword towards him.
"Do I?" The demon's skeletal grin seemed to pierce into the goddess's very heart, and even she knew that there must be some truth behind those words.
"You monster! You'll pay for that!" said the blonde-haired Celeste. Usually the most calm of the group as Heather was the most studius, she rushed forward with a cry, her sword ready to run through the rotten body of Kumraa. But the demon lord was ready, and just as the blonde woman was about to reach him, he casually stretched out a hand palm up and blasted out a heavy dose of energy. It hit her dead center in her chest, and she went down with a painful grunt.
The others rushed over to her with a gasp, Thiyalin the first to reach her. "Are you alright?" she asked with concern. Her bronze skin and dark eyes mirrored those of Prya, and the red dot in the middle of her forehead gleamed brightly.
When Celeste nodded, she helped her up and stood with her along with the others.
"Alright Goddesses," Ula turned to the other women and nodded. "No more talk. We have the power, and we can defeat Kumraa this time. As the girls we were reborn as would say..." Her hand clenched on the handle of her sword. "Let's do this!"
No more words were needed, and with grim determination set on their faces, they rushed forward towards Kumraa, their swords raised and ready.
But the demon only laughed more, raising his arms high into the air. "Fools! I am at full power now! Do you expect to defeat ME, the most powerful force in all the universe? No mere whelps like you will EVER defeat me!"
The goddesses were just about to reach him when there was a bright flash, and smoke suddenly filled the air. The women skidded to a halt and stepped back in confusion as they covered their eyes, and after just a moment, the smoke began to dissipate. When it was clear enough to see again, they saw with wide eyes that in the place of the demon lord was a large, black-scaled creature similar to a dragon. White, razor-sharp horns erupted from the enormous creature's head, and red, glowing eyes stared out at them. The creature's tail was nearly twice as long as his body, and it was spiked at the end with sharp, curving bones. The wings were more than twice the demon's size, and seemed to be made of the night itself, it was so black. On the clawed feet were sharp, curved talons, looking as though it could tear anything apart with just a flick of the wrist. When it was done, the demon dragon looked down on them and let out a loud roar of triumph, as though already celebrating his victory.
But not even that sight was enough to stop The Ones Who Are Blessed from doing what they had to do. No matter what form Kumraa took, it was their duty to defend their world from evils like him, and nothing would stop them from it. With swords held tightly in their hands, the women prepared to rush forward, but it was at that moment the monster demon spread his black wings wide and took off into the air with one flap.
"We can't let him get away!" Maiyi, just as determined and straight forward as Angeni, closed her eyes in concentration as her long dark brown hair whipped about her. The others followed suit, knowing what she wanted to do. Within a second, their bodies began lifting into air, as though some unseen force was picking them up and guiding them towards their enemy. Their long hair flowed like rivers behind them in the wind as they flew on.
Once in the air, the battle began, and the goddesses attacked full force. Metal scrapping against scales filled the air as they struck the monster again and again. But it seemed as if the monster's scales were made of metal themselves...there wasn't even a scratch on him. But still they fought on, pounding the creature with their swords again and again with all their might.
The monster hissed loudly, and with his eyes glowing a vicious dark red, shot of a streak of blue lightning from his mouth. Jadinna spun expertly in air, as graceful as a ballerina, out of the way just in time, her jet black hair almost wrapping around her as the blast rushed past.
Twisting in the air with a double spin twist, Ula swooped right in front of the dragon form of Kumraa, and with a smirk, formed up a ball of energy in her hand and threw it full force into his face. That seemed to work, for the dragon threw back his head and roared loudly with pain. She grinned in triumph and prepared to do it again when she heard Jadinna suddenly scream out "Ula, look out!"
But it was too late; the monster's giant tail swung about with almost lightning speed, and before she could fly out of the way, she was hit and knocked away by the broadside of the tail, barely being missed by the spiked end.
She flipped end over end in the air and was about to fall when she was caught by a pair of strong arms. When she looked up, she smiled at Celeste and nodded her thanks. When Celeste let her go, she winced in pain slightly, but pushed it in the back of her mind. There was no time for pain now.
Still in the air, the women flew towards each other and regrouped, trying to figure out what to do next. "Goddesses, listen! I think there's a way to at least to hurt him. We have to combine our powers together and strike with all we've got. At least we can weaken him with way," Ula said, looking at all of them with hope.
The others nodded with understanding, and together, they concentrated and made their swords disappear, knowing that they would not need it now. They then flew to the still thrashing demon dragon, and at the same time raised their hands out towards him.
Their bodies glowed with a peaceful white light, and within moments, a ball of energy was formed in their hands. With a loud yell they pushed forward the balls of energy right into the face of the creature as he turned around to face them, roaring with rage and frustration. The energy collided with the demon in a loud and deafening bang, and with one final roar, he fell slowly towards the ground.
Seconds later there was a crash as he landed heavily into the ground, dust rising up from the impact, then he laid still. Cautiously the goddesses flew down and landed near where he lay.
"Is he...dead?" Maiyi whispered, looking to the others.
"No, he still breathes, look!" Ula pointed to the slow and steady rising of the beast's chest.
Without warning, Jadinna step forward towards him. "No! It's too dangerous!" Ula warned, but feeling fearless, Jadinna stopped just in front of him and knelt down.
She peered right into his face and narrowed her eyes. After a moment, she got up and turned to the others. "Well, that didn't seem so bad!"
But just then, as the women were just beginning to relax, the creature's head twitched and started to rise, grunting softly in his throat.
"NO!" screamed out Celeste. Jadinna tried to get away and towards the others, but it was too late. The dragon's red eyes lit up brightly and a flash of red energy shot out and hit her directly in the chest. Instantly she was encased in a sort of red, web-like crystal, frozen in her moment of surprise and fear.
The others rushes forward to help, raising their hands to call forth their swords, but even they were not quick enough to avoid the lightning-fast beams of energy from the beast. One by one, they were hit and encased, frozen in time. When it was done, the dragon tilted back his head and roared in triumph. Within moments, he would crush them, and no one will dare stand up to him again!
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In the mysterious place between reality and dream, Jeneta slowly opened her eyes and moaned softly in pain. For some reason, her body hurt...hurt more than anything she could remember. She lifted her head up and looked around, and found that she was in....nothing. Wherever she looked, there was just...space. That was the only way she could describe it. "Where...where am I?" she wondered. With her hands clasped over her heart, she concentrated, and soon began to remember what happened;
She was with Heather, Angeni, Ling, and Prya, and they were confronting the evil Lord Kumraa. She remembered rocks coming down towards them, and then....nothing. It was like everything blacked out after that. A hopeful thought entered her mind then. The Sacred Medallions! She remembered clutching hers right before the rocks fell on them and praying for some sort of miracle. Oh, that's right! We must have changed into the Goddesses! I must be inside my mind. she thought. But..I wonder what happened. Why am I hurting like this?
"Jeneta!"
"Huh?" Jeneta looked around, wondering who had called her. "Who's there?" The voice was soft..and yet familiar, almost like it was her own. "Who's calling me?"
But instead of answering her, the voice called again. "Jeneta! Wake up! You and your friends have to help us, or else we're all going to die!"
At those words her eyes widened, and fear like none other entered the young girl's heart.
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To Be Continued....
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