Chapter 21

"Miss me, Overlander?" Thor growled. He lunged for Hera but she dove out of the way. "It has been much too long."

Gregor just stared at him, his sword out in front of him. He didn't say anything, so Thor continued.

"I never got to talk to you properly after you killed my bond. But no matter, I will get you now, with all your little friends, and my traitor mate and daughter." He lunged again, but this time his claws closed on Hera's wing. Hera shrieked.

"NO!" Gregor cried. He swiped his sword at Thor, and with a ton of strength, severed one of the claws holding Hera's wing. Thor roared in pain, and Hera pulled herself from the other claw. Her wing tip had some scratches, but it wasn't much damage. Gregor pulled the bloody claw off of Hera's wing, and threw it in his backpack. Man, he was going to have a collection of those soon, with Ares's and now Thor's.

Thor wasn't doing well coping without his right claw. He couldn't do much damage with only one, so he appeared to be trying to knock them out of the air. He was flapping his giant, thundering wings, and Hera was doing all she could to avoid them. She was flipping madly left and right, and Gregor couldn't get himself in a good attack position.

"Heraaaaa!" Gregor cried as she did a full body roll that nearly sent him tumbling off her back.

"Sorry, Gregor!" she screeched back, slowing her flips a bit. Gregor held on tighter.

Suddenly, with a move surprisingly swift for the big bat, Thor plucked Gregor off of Hera's back with his remaining claw. Hera didn't realize for a second and dove down, but when she did, Ripred pinned down her wings before she could go back.

"Release me, Ripred! We are BONDS!" Hera cried, finishing off with a huge shriek that could have challenged even Nyx, the queen of loud shrieks.

"You'll only make it harder for him to get himself free!" Ripred snarled at the struggling Hera.

He was right. Gregor wasn't in any immediate danger, because Thor didn't have his other claw. Gregor was just dangling, grasping Thor's claw shut with one hand so he couldn't attack him. He had his sword in his other hand, but wasn't sure what to do with it. If Hera flew up to rescue him, it would make it easier for them both to be injured.

Hera was still shrieking and trying to free herself, but Ripred was immensely strong. Gregor saw Luxa and Howard, hovering in midair on Aurora and Nike, watching fearfully. The Terrorwings were lost without the guidance of Thor. Persephone was hovering off to the side, but Nyx was battling Luna silently, despite a few screeches from both bats. The rest of the Regalians were also watching, Kendra and Leda as well.

Gregor pulled his sword arm up above him and cut Thor's tender under wing. Thor gave a cry, and Gregor let go. He fell, but Hera managed to pull herself free and caught him and flew off to the side with him. A bunch of Regalians moved in to take on Thor while Gregor caught his breath.

"Are you—okay?" Hera asked, panting. They had landed on a stone ledge. Gregor nodded. He had a nasty cut on his left arm, but he wasn't thinking about it much. Hera also had a small cut on her wing.

"I'm sorry I dragged you—into this." Gregor panted. "I guess being my bond is—harder than anything."

"Do not be stupid, I am extremely glad to be your bond." Hera said, brushing dust off of both of them with her wings. Gregor gave the bat a hug, ignoring the blood covering her.

Howard and Nike coasted in. "Gregor, let me stitch that for you. You will not be able to continue fighting with an open wound like that. And Hera, your wing." Howard said. He quickly stitched them both up, and they thanked him.

"Are you ready to continue the battle?"" Hera asked.

"Yeah, I—LUXA!!!" Gregor cried.

Luxa and Aurora had apparently gone in to fight Thor as well. Aurora was unconscious, off to the side, bleeding, but Luxa was still conscious, although trapped. Her leg was sliced open, but Thor had her pinned down by two fliers Nyx had told Gregor were his brothers, Erebus and Uranus. Gregor jumped on to Hera and they flew over, but Ripred slammed his tail in front of them.

"What's your plan?" he snarled.

"I don't know, I just have to—LUXA!" he cried. R was holding his claw right over his heart.

"Make one move and your little queen friend DIES!" Thor roared. Luxa gave a grunt and tried to reach for her sword, but Erebus and Uranus held her down tighter.

Gregor couldn't fight the impulse to run and help her. He jumped off Hera's back only to be pinned down by Ripred.

"Gregor, the prophecy!" Howard had appeared out of nowhere.

"What—about it?" Gregor grunted, struggling to free himself from Ripred.

"Listen, you idiot!" Ripred snarled.

"Can he hold when her life is at cost?" Howard quoted.

"Yeah, else he will be among the lost. But isn't that about Hera?" Gregor asked, looking back at his bat.

But Hera slowly shook her head. "No, that was not about me at all. Together with a long-lost girl. That is Luxa, not I!" she said, realization dawning across her face.

"But how? Luxa's not long-lost!" Gregor said.

"Yes, she is." Howard said. "Do you remember how lost she was after her parents died, and after Henry betrayed her?"

Then Gregor got it. Luxa had been lost and had trouble feeling sadness, but when she became together with him, it was like a reincarnation for her. And now he had to hold, or else he would die as well.

"But…but… I'd die for her! She can't die, I should! Regalia needs her!" Gregor cried.

"And your family needs you! If you try to save her, you'll both die! We're trying to find a way to get you both out of this alive!" Ripred shouted at him.

"Okay, but what are we going to do?" Gregor asked helplessly. That was truly the question. What were they going to do?

As he watched Luxa, Gregor was slowly losing hope that either of them would make it back to Regalia alive.