Finding Doric's Line
Chapter One
"Curse it!" Devona snarled as she watched one of the hulking Titans break through the line and charge for the portals behind her and the valiant Chosen warriors. Her anger turned to horror as she watched the four legged fire monster turn towards the portal that held the charred towers of Rin's Royal Palace in its center.
"No!" The warrior howled, and with one near berserker flail of her hammer, gained separation from the smoldering spawn of one fallen Titan, and forced her legs to move with all the speed her frame could carry to try an intercept the lumbering beast.
Unfortunately, it moved with a speed unnatural to its size, and had too much of a head start, disappearing through the portal moments before Devona was even within a full sprint's distance away.
"Devona! Take your team and go after it!" A voice shouted across the battlefield, likely the leader of the primary team. "We can handle things here, but that monster can't be allowed to reach Rin! Go!"
Devona wouldn't have argued, even if she had wanted to. "Mhenlo! Aidan! Cynn! Hurry! We don't have much time!" She ordered, not waiting for them to catch up before jumping through the portal in pursuit of her quarry.
She was momentarily taken aback by the abrupt lack of ground when she materialized back onto the slopes of her childhood, dropping about two feet before collapsing unceremoniously in a heap.
Ignoring the minute discomfort in her right thigh, due to the fall, she quickly jumped to her feet, and started to sprint again, only to hear the sound of grunting behind her. At any other time, she might have laughed at the sight before her as she turned about; her three companions in a tangled heap, followed by a resounding slap that she assumed was Cynn delivering retribution for some perceived attempt by one of the men to place their hand in a more sensual area.
Of course, this wasn't any other time. So Devona resorted to a terse, "Watch the first step. Now get up and start moving!"
The Titan had nearly three hundred yards of space, and no matter how Devona forced herself to run, it just didn't seem that she could close the distance. The battered walls of Rin were in sight, the gigantic fire beast already forcing its way through a break in the city exterior. It bought Devona and her team some time, as did the mustering of Rin's defense forces, but not enough for Aidan to even be in range to take a hurried shot.
Devona's hopes steadily dwindled as the beast continued at breakneck speed towards the palace, seemingly ignoring anything in its way… people… animals… buildings… literally anything.
Nonetheless, Rin had one more defense... it worked against the Charr, and it would prove to have some effect on this latest threat. From the cliff face to the northeast, the trembling blast from Stormcaller prompted the skies to darken, the rumble of thunder, and then finally a near blinding deluge that quickly soaked everyone exposed to the bone… including a certain monster of flame.
Raindrops struck rapidly, each droplet sizzling on the Titan's smoldering carapace, causing the beast to momentarily stumble, only to then continue to stagger forward on its path of destruction. However, that at long last gave Devona and her comrades to finally close the distance, and engage the beast.
Water flew off the hammer's head in a violent arc as the crushing maul slammed into the Titan's left rear leg with a sickening crunch, sending ashen flecks scattering momentarily before being forced to the ground in moistened sulfuric clumps. The Titan staggered then spun about, swinging with one massive, clawed hand that Devona ducked under, before swiping upward with her hammer, connecting once again at the elbow of sorts, before the warrior was finally forced back by the still sweltering heat emanating from the Titan's core.
Before the monster could press its advantage, two gleaming arrows imbedded themselves halfway into the creature's head, jerking it backward from the force of impact. It flailed wildly, and Devona spun away from the first thrashing claw, only to be struck soundly in the back by the second. She clenched her teeth in pain as she heard the crunch of bones in her back and a numb sensation drift down from her hips.
Devona tumbled limply along the ground, but before she even came to a stop, she felt sensation return to her legs, and a warm, comforting energy roll up her spine. By the time the Titan had regained its wits, and began another charge, Devona was ready, smacking one claw away with her hammer, and rolling back from what would have been a painful bite.
That moment of clearing gave Cynn the opening she needed to cast her spell, a burst of freezing power that seared the Titan's carapace like a glowing hot iron onto human flesh. The spell had a secondary effect, chilling the rain around the Titan into tiny daggers of ice that pierced the beast's normally rock hard shell.
Devona then jumped back into the fray, leaping and swinging in a downward bash, connecting with the top of the Titan's bowed head. This time, the cracking sound prompted a shattering one, and without the hard outer layer, the molten interior of the Titan spilled out, and it collapsed in a heap.
"We aren't finished yet." Aidan warned, though it was hard to imagine that any of them would have forgotten. True to the ranger's claim, the rest of the carapace split, and a slightly smaller beast forced its way free. The Ember Hulk roared, and lunged at its attackers, deciding to try and forgo the ferocious warrior, and charge at some potentially less hardy adversaries.
Devona swiped at the Hulk's heels as it charged towards Cynn, who squeaked in momentary panic, no spell ready to meet its attack. But mere feet from striking, the Ember Hulk was struck in the side by an unseen force that actually lifted it off the ground, and sent it crashing almost ten feet away. Out of the corner of her eye, Devona saw Mhenlo panting in relief, his staff thrust forward in trigger of one of his many smiting spells.
Devona gave no opportunity for the beast to rise again before her hammer once again struck violently into the abdomen of the Ember Hulk, crushing its vital core with her devastating blow.
Nevertheless, Devona knew that not even this meant the end of the fight, and even though she was expecting the two minor flame beasts, she was caught by surprise by the suddenness of the attack.
Her vision was filled by the fiery monster, and she then felt its grasp around her arms, it touch immediately burning her exposed skin and forcing her hammer to fall from her grasp. She kicked desperately at the chest of the minor Titan, but it refused to relinquish its hold, even as Aiden and Cynn began attacking it.
"Don't worry about me!" Devona ordered, "Stop the other one!"
That's when they saw the second minor Titan… but far too late to do anything about it. The other creature charged into one of the corner supports of the palace, then with a deafening explosion, sent the entire side of the wall collapsing into charred rubble.
Devona momentarily forgot the pain she was feeling, overcome with horror as she watched the scene unfold. Without the support of the corner battlement, the central tower of the Royal Palace teetered uncertainly, before collapsing downward and to the side, a thick plume of dust marking its fall.
Horror then turned to rage, and Devona resumed the attack on the minor Titan holding her with a berserker's fury. She twisted her body, and delivered a two-footed shot directly to the monster's head, and that, coupled with a well placed arrow to one of its arms, forced it to release the warrior, who with a roll gathered up her hammer, and lunged forward with a side-swiping blow that knocked the monster to the ground.
She then pounced on her fallen enemy, bracing her feet against its arms and she rained down a frightening bevy of blows onto its torso and head, brutally attacking even as the creature went limp, and its glowing surface faded.
She felt a hand fall on her shoulder, and it was only her sharp reflexes that kept her from caving in Aidan's head. "I think you got it." He said simply.
The fall of the Titan seemed to prompt the magic of Stormcaller to fade, as the rain steadily let up until was nothing but a light drizzle. Again the hammer fell from Devona's hand, but this time it was because she let it drop, finally starting to decompress, starting to feel the pain and fatigue as Mhenlo's healing prayers worked on her badly burnt arms.
The sounds of rising panic jolted Devona to full alertness, then she noticed that the people of Rin were rushing towards the palace, greatly agitated by something. The warrior's eyes bulged, and she yelped, "The King!"
She pulled herself from Aidan's grasp, and joined the masses who were now digging through the rubble, occasionally pulling out severely wounded or dead soldiers and retainers. Feverishly, Devona tossed chunks of masonry and brick to the sides, praying for some sign… anything… something…
And at last she found that sign… a hand, streaked with blood, burst from the debris barely a foot from her, and with a shout, she started digging away. Apparently, no one save her companions heard her, as only their hands added to the efforts, clearing away the soggy remains from the face and chest of King Adelbern.
The monarch coughed, and started to speak, but Devona silenced him, grabbing his blood soaked hand. "Don't try to talk, your highness."
"It's too late… for that…" The King retorted weakly. "You must call… for Rurik… tell him that… I'm proud of him… and that he will be a good king…"
Devona momentarily choked up, remembering the events on the Shiverpeaks, and of Rurik's grand sacrifice for the refugees of Ascalon. She simply couldn't bring herself to tell the dying monarch the truth. "I'll do so." She promised.
At that point, King Adelbern seemed to realize who he was talking to. "Devona… you're Devona… Julian's little girl…"
"Yes, your highness." Devona replied, somewhat surprised that he remembered her.
"I'm sorry that I will not be able to attend your wedding, my dear. I'm sure it will be splendid."
Devona smiled, finding herself somewhat embarrassed, "I'm sure it would have been."
"I am glad you returned. Ascalon will need people like you. Rurik will need people like you… and… my dear…"
Unable to finish the sentence, the eyes of King Adelbern went dark, and his hand slackened in Devona's palm, and she sorrowfully pulled it onto his heart.
"May you… and Rurik… find peace at lasts in the Mists." Devona said, not even ashamed at the crack in her control as the tears slid down her face.
"Madam Devona?" A nervous voice asked, and she wiped away her tears to turn towards the soldier that had approached. "Have you found…"
"Summon Duke Barradin, wherever he is at this point." Devona muttered. "The King is dead."