The dragons took to the skies, Creed letting loose a roar of challenge. The soldiers raised their swords and yelled, the strength of the sound alone slowing the flood of hellhounds. The demons didn't stop, though.
The sea of hellhounds collided with the army, screams of both man and beast filling the air. Creed circled around, followed in formation by the rest of the dragons. They swooped over the monsters, unleashing their power upon the hounds that hadn't joined the battle.
Fire spread across the ground like a vengeful sea, engulfing the screaming monsters in seconds.
Yuya watched from Vendetta's back, waiting for the alpha. The fire went out, having scorched the ground and the creatures in the way. The hellhounds stood back up, their fur having been burned off and their flesh burned, and dragged themselves towards the main fight.
The dragons circled around again, Creed roaring something and diving close to hellhounds. The others followed in a tight formation, slashing at the beasts with their talons. The burned hellhounds tried to attack, getting a few small bites in before they were torn apart. The human soldiers were still standing, but they were struggling to kill the eight-foot-tall demons.
"There," Vendetta roared.
The alpha stood on the horizon, its wings outstretched and its steel spikes glinting in the sunlight.
"Hold on!" the black dragon growled, pulling into a dive and rocketing straight toward the alpha.
The massive hellhound was caught off-guard, not expecting its prey to come straight to it. Vendetta flew over the monster's head, dodging its snapping jaws. The alpha flew after them, greed and excitement glittering in its small black eyes.
Vendetta led the alpha towards the river, the hellhound getting closer by the second. She pulled into a sharp dive, aiming for the crack in the ground.
"This is going to hurt!" she yelled. She spread her wings at the last moment to slow herself as much as she could.
They both fell into the pit, the alpha's jaws snapping at them through the opening with a metallic clank. The monster tore at the ground, its claws clearing the dirt to find stone beneath. It didn't stop, clawing furiously at the crumbling sedimentary rock below it.
Vendetta took off the necklace, tossing it to Yuya after he stood up, shaking his head.
The alpha stopped abruptly, staring at the necklaces. It bared its steel-coated teeth in a snarl and backed away.
"What's it doing?" Vendetta asked, her voice far less powerful in her human form.
"It's smarter than I thought," Yuya said, watching the monster.
The alpha paced above them, growling long and low.
Then it stopped, looking towards the river.
The alpha ran along the crack, straight to the water.
And started digging.
Vendetta swore several times in Draconic, her eyes widening as a shallow tunnel was carved into the earth, the river eagerly following towards them.
"I'm going to have to if we are going to survive."
"You can't, Yuya. You'll die."
"I have to try."
Yuya used tree roots growing along the sides of the crevice to climb to the surface.
"Stop. You are going to get killed and then we are all going to die," Vendetta hissed.
"Come on. We don't have much time."
When Yuya climbed out, the alpha's gaze snapped up from the ground. He held the Pendants of the Broken Heart in front of him, not breaking eye contact with the beast. The alpha didn't move, aware of the power in the pendants. Yuya's expression was sad, but it was determined. He felt the power in the gemstones growing, eager to be released. He drew the power into himself, feeling the magic course into his veins. The pendants glowed, becoming a shape rather than an object. He felt the change, waiting at the edges of his grasp.
Now.
He closed his hand forcefully, the light disappearing momentarily before flashing so bright that the alpha and Vendetta looked away.
Oh, it felt good to be back to normal.
"You did it," Vendetta breathed, her eyes wide.
The sun glinted off of silver scales, black wings, and golden spines. He felt the strength of his breath, as cold as ice, in his chest. He had missed his wings.
Yuya was a dragon.
Before the alpha could react, Vendetta's sleek black form was next to him. She threw herself at the alpha, her claws digging into the monster's flesh, blood splashing into the water and dying it red. They grappled on the ground, tearing at each other and Yuya leapt to join Vendetta. Moments later, they had the alpha pinned on the ground, the horrific mixture of flesh and metal snarling in fury and desperation.
Yuya cast the spell, the alpha writhing with more force with every second.
"See this mighty beast of Hell, take its strength and seal it well. Take the power in all of me, make sure that it will never be free."
The alpha went limp, its form changing beneath their talons. The metal spines fell from its body, clanging onto the ground. The beast's wings tore themselves from the body, laying limp after doing so, staining the grass with the beast's blood. The creature's metal-coated teeth dropped from their places one by one, leaving the limp hellhound with a gaping, toothless maw instead of its mocking smile.
Yuya fell to the ground, trying to stay conscious.
"Yuya?"
He closed his eyes as darkness swept in from every direction.