A/N: Here it is! The first part of the battle! A quick warning of violence, and a tad bit of gore. I can't believe I'm almost done with this story. Thank all of you so much for taking the time to read my stories. It really means a lot to me! I finally give you all a peek at Fantanzia's beauty, and some of the citizens there. I think words cannot describe it, but I'll try to put it into words for all of you. Anyway, on with the show!
The angry mob stormed out of the portal, weapons raised, and primed for battle. Dusk lunged forward with a great roar, pinned one member of the mob onto the ground, and gored him with her wickedly sharp claws in three swift blows. These humans were foolish. They lacked the proper training, and armor needed for such a battle, but they made up for it in numbers, and fire power. She couldn't risk getting shot again. She wouldn't be able to protect her comrades. She whipped her tail around, and struck another member of the mob, sending the poor fool flying across the tracks. She turned, and raced over to CB's side. He was the most vulnerable of the rolling stock.
CB pulled his arm back to deliver a blow to the human before him, when a black and white paw like hand swiped at the human, aiming for their belly to disembowel the target, but the human was quick enough to dodge Dusk's attack, but not fast enough to dodge his attack. CB felt the human's skull crack under the immense force of the blow. There was no way a human would be able to survive that. He glanced over at Dusk, who threw her attacker into a tree, as if they were a rag doll. She was much more powerful than he had thought.
The humans kept coming. It felt like an endless wave of enemies were pouring from the portal's entrance. They needed backup. They needed fire power, and he knew how to get it. He remembered Dusk telling him about Athena, and Whiteshade. If he could convince them to join the fight, victory would be certain, that is if he was fast enough. He took a deep breath, and waited for his, maybe only, chance, and darted into the portal the moment he saw an opening.
Dusk whipped around just in time to see CB race into the portal. She wasn't sure what he had in mind. This was his first battle. Perhaps, his nerves got the best of him. She couldn't blame him. It was always a scary situation, regardless of how much experience you have, you cannot take your next breath for granted. However, he didn't seem to be the type to suddenly flee in the midst of battle. He wouldn't flee from his murder victims. Perhaps, there was something more. Either way, she still needed to stay behind, and protect her friends. She raced over to Greaseball's side, and proceeded to rip a human to pieces.
CB sped through the mist covered terrain. The portal's ground rippled like water, and the air was cold. It wasn't freezing, just enough to chill him. He darted to the left, and entered Dusk's realm. He screeched to a stop before the enormous mansion. It looked abandoned, but knowing Dusk, there was clearly more to it. He looked up as a huge shadow flew over him to see not one, but two huge mechanical dragons circling the town.
"Hey! Hey! Athena! Hey!" CB yelled at the top of his lungs, and waved his arms, hoping one of them would notice him.
Dolor banked to the left, and noticed a strange being waving their arms, and shouting, as if to get their attention. He contacted Athena through his computer.
"Meet me at the mansion, now. There's a creature out here flailing his arms, and calling for you Athena." Dolor circled once, then dove, and landed next to the mansion, causing the ground to shake.
"Affirmative, Dolor." Athena replied. She turned around, and nearly lost her balance in mid-flight. She had turned too quickly. Dolor had warned her about that simple mistake before. It could jam the hydraulic pistons in her wing joints, and send her crashing to the ground. She dove, and landed beside Dolor, where a strange creature was trying to flag them down.
"Dusk is being attacked, and there's more enemies attacking than we can handle. She came to my world by mistake after being chased there by an angry mob of humans, and now they found her, and are attacking her, and my friends. I can lead you to her if you want." The humanoid caboose panted. Dolor's engine revved when he heard the news of Dusk, his master, was in great distress, and others are in trouble because of it. War affects everyone around it, even if they are on the other side of the world. It affects economies, people's jobs, and more importantly, it affects the story of man-kind. It was a fact he had learned when Dusk had first used him in battle. He had many questions for the strange creature, but they could wait, his master could not. Every second counted in this situation.
"Dolor, I have not been tested in combat yet. Master would forbid me fighting by your side, as much as I loathe it." Athena met the crimson gaze of her older counterpart.
"Correct, but you can take the creature to Fantanzia to notify Whiteshade. She needs to be notified of this act of war." Dolor quickly slipped through the portal, and then took to the cold air with a single beat of his enormous wings. Now he was able to pinpoint her exact location. He needed to be fast. Time was of the essence.
"Climb into my cockpit, and I will take you to Fantanzia." Athena laid down, even when laying on the earth, she was enormous. How in the world could Dusk climb on and off of this weapon of mass destruction within a matter of seconds? CB didn't know, but she was clever enough to build steel bars to grip onto to use as a ladder to climb up to Athena's cockpit. He reluctantly gripped onto one of the steel bars, and carefully made his way up to the cockpit. He felt a little uneasy. Athena had not proven safe yet. However, she seemed to be able to fly just fine. He sat down on the seat, and looked down at the impressive control panel. Dusk had crammed as many features into Athena's programming as possible. Athena's Artificial Intelligence was far more advanced than anything he had ever seen. The only primitive feature on her was a pair of chains connected to her neck that led to the cockpit. This must be how Dusk steered such a behemoth of a machine.
"Fear not, for my autopilot feature will do the work for you, just fasten yourself in, and we'll be off." Athena's voice modulator lit up as she spoke. It was directly in the middle of the control panel next to a radar, and several gauges that measured the temperature of Athena's engine, the level of altitude, and how much fuel she had left. She practically had a full tank of fuel. Thank Starlight. CB fastened his safety harness, Athena stood up. CB gripped onto the armrests of his seat for dear life. How could Dusk feel safe in this thing? Athena charged into the portal, and, with a great roar, took the air with a mighty leap, and a quick beat of her wings.
"I will attempt to fly as steady as possible. I cannot guarantee you will not get motion sickness." Athena looked back at CB for a split second before banking right into another portal, and then leveled out. They were now on Fantanzia.
CB looked around. They were flying just a little bit above the tree line. He could see the mountains in the distance. Their tops were shrouded within the clouds. They looked like they could reach up to the moon. He looked up at the full moon just in time to see an emerald scaled European Dragon fly past him. It was a creature of awesome power, and majesty, far more beautiful than he had ever imagined. It's power rivaled the sun, and it's grace would rival even the most elegant dancers The spiraled around him, and Athena. It's green scales sparkled in the light of the full moon like little gems. CB smiled at this elaborate display of finesse. Now he knew why Dusk loved it here. The island had beauty that simply could not be matched.
Eventually, the dragon left them, leaving him, and Athena alone for a few minutes. He gripped onto his seat as Athena dove and landed before a large castle. CB looked down at the village beneath them. The houses were made of either limestone, or quartz, gleaming white under the moonlight, and the roads were made of beautiful white marble that looked blue under the light of the moon. This was heaven. This was where he wanted to live out his retirement.
Athena laid down to let him off off, and he unbuckled his harness, and made his way down just as a small squadron of guards approached them. Their armor had no rust, nor dents, nor grime. It was spotless, and shimmered under the moon's rays. It almost looked like they were glowing.
"What is it you wish, and who sent you here?" The guard in the center asked in a booming voice as he tightened his grip on his lance, ready to attack and protect the kingdom if necessary. CB put his hands up to surrender to them.
"Dusk Ravenwood sent me here. She is in danger. Humans are attacking her in my home world." CB felt as if the guard was staring into his very soul. He was reading him, just like how Dusk had done to him several times before. He was simply making sure he was telling the truth. The guard relaxed.
"Very well, follow us." The guard turned, and led him up the marble steps, and into the enormous castle. The first hall was dark. It's floor was red as blood, and it's walls were blacker than the darkest nights. Scenes from epic battles were inscribed on the walls in crimson. It looked like a timeline of sorts, depicting Fantanzia's darkest ages. He noticed how their style of combat changed, and molded them into the army that man-kind feared today.
They entered a huge room, an indoor garden nonetheless. The ceiling was made of either glass or crystal, letting the moon's rays bathe the garden in a sea of silver. The trees stood tall along the marble path, like great guardians protecting the beautiful fauna, and wildlife. He jumped a little when a dwarf dragon flew just over his head. This was more than a garden. This was a sanctuary.
The guards came to a stop before a pair of large oak doors that had intricate engravings of Fantanzia's royal seal, a great tree, whose roots wrapped around in a circle, in gold. The center guard stepped forward, and pushed the heavy doors open. The hinges creaked from old age, and it echoed through the whole castle, announcing their arrival. They were now in the throne room. The floors and walls were made with white marble, a symbol of purity, and stained glass windows depicting great beasts and warriors of Fantanzia's history allowed the moonlight to trickle in, washing the marble in a beautiful display of color. The guard on the far right left the small squadron, and vanished into the darkness of the hall on the right.
A/N: Woo-hoo, two chapters in two days! The next chapter is already in the works, and we will finally meet the queen of Fantanzia herself! As you can tell, I use a lot of symbolism in Fantanzia. I hope you all enjoyed this visit to Fantanzia. I'll see you in the next chapter!