Ryn approached his dying grandfather slowly. A still skewered Nelos was suspended on earthen spears some distance behind him. The rage that had consumed the earth dragon was steadily being replaced with sorrow. He and Kalim hadn't seen eye to eye in many things. They'd clashed over much lately, and Kalim had shown himself to be a dragon that Ryn could find many faults in.
Still, he was family. The elder dragon had very nearly raised him. He'd kept him safe, even if Ryn hadn't wished for it. He'd been willing to put his life on the line, and ultimately give it away.
Ryn crinkled his snout, cursing softly as he sat down next to the barely moving drake. Blood was beginning to pool beneath him. The grizzly wound that had hollowed his chest was far beyond any healer's capabilities. There was little left to do now, other than wait.
Ryn met Kalim's gaze, his lips pressed together, as the gravity of his grandfather's slow demise continued to eat at him. The fire dragon's eyes were clouding, his breathing was hoarse and shallow. Kalim looked to Nelos' corpse behind the earth dragon. He cracked the faintest of smiles at the sight. Ryn had to quell a gut reaction to say something obscene.
"Well fought." Kalim coughed quietly.
"Why'd you do it?" Ryn questioned angrily. "If you'd moved out of the way of the first strike you wouldn't have been caught in the second. You wouldn't have…" The earth dragon trailed off, his eyes drawn to Kalim's wound before he grunted and turned away from the sight.
"Still asking simple questions." Kalim breathed. "Your life outweighs my own Ryn, you know this."
"I didn't ask for your protection!" Ryn shouted. "I didn't want this!"
Kalim seemed to sober at the words. "No whelp should have to ask for his parent's protection." He grunted. "It is something owed, nothing more."
Ryn's visage cracked at the words. He hung his head as he tried to blink back tears. "You damned idiot." He mumbled.
"You did well Ryn." Kalim continued, ignoring the comment. Kalim looked to Nelos' body once more, a sense of satisfaction showing in his eyes. Ryn didn't know how to feel as he watched. "You've become a warrior. One who can tear down anything that threatens him."
"I don't intend to follow in your footsteps grandfather." The green dragon answered his voice little more than a whisper. "War is not the answer to everything."
Kalim smiled as his eyes shut. "You're young Ryn. In time, you'll find that dragons never change. When the time comes that your morals fail you, my teachings will prop you up."
Ryn watched silently as Kalim's breathing faltered and halted entirely. His life was extinguished just as easily as that. Ryn found himself lost in a slew of emotions. He hardly knew what to feel. He stood up, but couldn't bring himself to move anywhere. Around him, the battle raged on. Death and chaos were all that greeted his senses as dragons tore each other apart. In the all-consuming devastation that surrounded him only Kalim's final words rung through his mind.
"Is she alright?" Aegis asked hesitantly as he approached his mate.
Syra lay next to Azshea, her breathing somewhat shallow, her eyes only half open. The young dragoness could only vaguely register the voices around her. However, the warmth of her mother gave her some measure of comfort. That belief that her mother could keep her safe, despite the havoc continuing around them, made her feel much like a child. Realistically, there was nothing stopping them from being overrun, but she was far too worn to consider such things.
"We should get her to the moles." Azshea said quietly. Her daughter's blood was still trickling free of her form. It had slowed, but given long enough it would prove fatal.
"I couldn't agree more." Aegis said moving forward.
His approach was interrupted by a sudden blast nearby. Both adults honed in on the devastation immediately. The battles around them were thinning, but by no means over. There was enough space to see the source however. Two dragons, one a devilish violet beast, and the other a bulky dull gold dragon, Valas.
They watched as Cassius loosed another blast of convexity, the beam cutting through the environment as well any dragon unfortunate enough to be caught in the onslaught. Any consideration of friend or foe had seemingly left his mind.
"What kind of monster have they created?" Azshea whispered under her breath.
Aegis didn't answer as he watched the continued devastation. He turned to face the battle, squaring his shoulders. Azshea glared at him, already knowing where his mind was heading.
"You can't mean to join in. Not for that one." She scoffed, her eyes flitting to Valas.
"Valas is inconsequential." Aegis muttered, his focus still on Cassius. "But someone has to stop that thing."
"You can't go alone." Azshea continued. She hesitated then, turning back to a sorry looking Syra. She frowned, knowing where her priorities lay. "And I can't go with you."
Aegis glowered, frustrated by their situation, but not at all by her decision. He looked from his mate to the continuing battle as Valas dodged around another deadly blast. The lightning drake noted his minor stumble, Valas was growing weary. He cursed under his breath as his mind rushed for an answer.
"Is she alright?" They heard a familiar voice ask from behind them.
Both dragons turned to find Ryn approaching. The earth drake looked haggard. His scales were singed in patches, there were smaller lacerations littering his body as well as bruises and a few larger wounds, future scars. He was covered in dust and dirt, a swath of mud still clinging to his gut to hold his injury shut.
"You're alive." Aegis said. He didn't mean to sound surprised, but he spoke without considering his tone.
"Somehow." Ryn offered as he continued to hobble towards Syra, worry clear on his face.
"She's still breathing, but we need to get her medical attention." Azshea explained quickly. "We were about to leave, but…"
"But?" Ryn asked idly as he followed the dragoness' gaze towards the battle they'd been observing. His scowl deepened as he considered the trouble they'd already had with younger corrupted dragons. Simply looking at Cassius told him what he needed to know. Viewing the destruction and dead bodies surrounding him only solidified his understanding of the dangerous being.
"You want to take him on?" Ryn asked.
"Want is a strong word." Aegis countered.
"I can look after Syra." Ryn offered, mustering every bit of strength he had into his voice. He stood a little straighter, although the gesture did little to convince the worried father before him.
"You'll forgive me, but-
"There isn't time for this. There's a group of our allies holding out back in that direction." Ryn said cutting the lightning dragon off as he thrust his horns back towards the way he'd come from. "I can get her there."
"You're in no condition to do anything." Aegis answered quietly.
"We don't have a choice!" Ryn growled, his temper getting the better of him for a moment. The earth dragon shut his eyes and took a deep breath. His emotions were still in turmoil, however, he shoved them aside. If he didn't die in the next few minutes, there would be time for such thoughts later. "I know we just met, but Syra trusts me. I need you to trust me too, just this once."
Ryn watched as Aegis' visage hardened. He knew exactly what was coming. He couldn't say he blamed the adult. "Just because you've found yourself infatuated-
Aegis was interrupted by his daughter's sputtering cough. A half conscious Syra opened her eyes just slightly. She turned her head towards her father who had immediately focused all of his attention on her.
"Go, father." She mumbled softly; her words barely audible over the fighting around them. "Ryn's always kept me safe." She added slowly, her words labored.
Aegis' snout twitched, his own daughter's plea grating against every parental instinct he held. It wasn't until Azshea stood up a few seconds later that he deigned to consider anything else. His mate held a sympathetic gaze. There was the slightest amount of moisture forming in her eyes.
"Let him handle it." She said softly.
To Ryn's surprise, Aegis didn't immediately shoot the idea down. The lightning dragon gnashed his teeth in irritation, turning away from his mate before looking back at her with a similarly pained expression.
"You're sure?" He asked.
"We don't have a choice." Azshea said gesturing towards the ongoing battle. Aegis didn't have to look to hear Valas' roar as he crashed into the earth. They needed to act. He turned to Ryn, who met his stare stoically.
"Get her to safety." He growled.
Ryn nodded. "Make sure you come back alive."
There was little else to say as both Aegis and Azshea turned and bounded towards the battle. Ryn, in the meantime, knelt down next to Syra. He grimaced as he looked over her wounds. They were many, including two deep stab wounds. Her crimson blood dribbled forth staining her red scales to an even darker color.
"It's looking grim." Syra breathed quietly her eyes lolling as her lids struggled to stay open.
Ryn nearly jumped, he'd assumed she'd passed out once more. He turned to look at her, quickly mustering a lighter expression. He knew it was pointless, she'd already seen his worry. She didn't seem to mind; in fact, she didn't seem to react much at all as her pulse continued to weaken.
"We need to stop the bleeding." Ryn said firmly.
"Yes sir." Syra replied lightly. She was growing light headed from the blood loss as she smiled, her eyes closing, her thoughts a jumble.
Ryn cursed knowing he didn't have much time. Her complexion was growing paler. He stood and felt the mud on his side shift with his scales. An idea snapped into his mind and he knew what he had to do. For a brief instant, he considered the torment he'd felt when he'd created his own cast. There was little to be done about it however.
With a silent prayer to the ancestors, the earth dragon slapped the nearby earth softening it into a malleable form. He looked to the wounds the fire dragoness sported. "Sorry." He said, gritting his teeth as he swept the semi solid across and into her injuries. Syra's eyes snapped open, a shrill scream cutting the air. Ryn ignored it, counting himself lucky that she seemed too exhausted to flail. Grasping hold of his element the earth solidified into a solid cast and the dragoness' head fell limp as she passed out.
Ryn didn't waste a second as he began to hoist her body atop his back as best he could.
Cassius spun around, his tail slamming Valas' chest knocking him backwards. The bulky dragon bore the brunt of the attack well, only being pushed through the air instead of tumbling to the ground. He landed, already feeling the resulting ache in his crest.
"Is this it?" Cassius berated. "All that talk and you can't even back up your words?"
"I see the finer points of strategy still evade you." Valas said spitting at the ground, a look of contempt in his eyes.
"Please." Cassius balked. "You can't pass off slow retreat as strategy."
Valas shook his head. "I don't know why I expected competence from a brat. Where's Malik, he was the definition of an ass, but he at least had a head for tactics."
"He's dead." Cassius growled.
"Shame." Valas said, his tone devoid of any sorrow. "Is that why after all that waiting you just charged in head first? You'd be wise to conduct your wars with more thought than the apes."
"We have more than enough strength to defeat you." Cassius snarled.
"Do you?" Valas asked tilting his head. "Perhaps if you bothered to look around, you'd realize the reality of your situation."
Cassius' eyes narrowed. He didn't want to heed the obvious request, but he found the prospect too tantalizing. What he found only seemed to enrage him further. All around them, the fighting was beginning to stall. While there were still plenty of combatants dueling each other, many had already fallen. Few were left in the air, deadly arrows knocking those foolish enough to fly into the ground. Cassius couldn't deny that, from a brief viewing, the numbers did not favor his side.
He turned a heated glare back onto Valas. "You were just distracting me." He snarled.
"Keeping you occupied seemed the obvious choice." Valas answered snidely. "All that power's gone to your head, no matter how strong you are, you can't win a war by yourself whelp."
Valas had expected the dragon to falter, perhaps show any small sign of concern at his current predicament. He almost chastised himself for thinking such a thing when Cassius released a maddened cackling. Having no interest in any antics, lightning snapped from Valas' lips. The strike surged forth crashing into Cassius, but he hardly seemed to notice. There was a slight pause in his laughter before it continued, almost with renewed vigor.
Narrowing his eyes, Valas focused himself, manipulating his electricity to dangerous levels. He steadied himself, ready to blast the insane drake from existence. His lips opened, he began to inhale, and in the blink of an eye Cassius went still. Valas watched, suddenly frozen, as the purple dragon's body went rigid his wings spreading wide as he fixed the older dragon with a petrifying stare.
Valas wanted to act, but found himself unable. It was then that Cassius' roar pierced him. The sound was enough to make even the battle-hardened dragon hesitate. The sound was deafening, and a few seconds later even the world seemed to react. The earth cracked and shattered, violet light streaming from the cracks, the air grew thick like soup, lightning streaked above them, and clouds dimmed the sky as darkness fell.
Valas noticed in his peripherals that the fighting around them was slowly coming to a halt. Both sides couldn't help but be caught up in the sudden changes. He watched as violet lightning struck nearby deadening the area, another bolt crashed into a dragoness, killing her instantly.
He brought his attention back to Cassius whose cry was only just ending. The dragon's body glowed. Convexity sparked from his scales. That wasn't all however. Flecks of his hide slowly separated like dust from a surface as his very being began to slowly disintegrate from the corrupting power.
"You know nothing of power." Cassius muttered as he leveled a sadistic grin at the lightning dragon.
Finally regaining control of his body, Valas loosed the energy he held. The lightning crashed forth, jaggedly cutting through the air as it reached out towards Cassius.
Seemingly unbothered, Cassius popped his lips, a burst of convexity catching the energy and immediately dispersing it. Valas' eyes widened as he thrust himself to the side, still feeling the burn of the energy against his side and through his wing.
Valas expected another blow to find him, but he was instead greeted with more laughter. "You've all been found lacking!" Cassius screamed to no one in particular. He fired off three more strands of energy, instantly killing three dragons, two of which were his enemies, and another his ally. He didn't seem the least bit concerned however.
"What's happened to him?"
Valas' eyes flicked to the side, before quickly going back to Cassius. He refused to take his attention off the dangerous dragon for longer than he had to. It was a fire dragoness standing beside him, a lightning drake next to her.
"Well?" Azshea prompted, falling into a ready stance should the crazed Cassius lash out again.
"I don't know." Valas answered. "But he needs to be put down."
"Stating the obvious." Aegis added. "Keep moving, quick strikes, maybe we can wear him down."
Valas nodded, however he realized as the two jumped forward that the strategy probably wasn't meant for him. He didn't mind being excluded, he would fight on regardless, it was all he could do now.
Azshea sprinted forward, being the first to draw the ire of Cassius. The purple dragon spat convexity directly at her. Expecting such an attack, she was nimble enough to leap aside, the energy drilling nearly a dragon sized whole in the earth. She did her best to push any concerns about making a mistake from her mind. Cassius was already readying another strike.
The fire dragoness tensed, readying herself to dodge once more. As violet lightning from the sky struck next to her she flinched and stumbled, the sound and light completely throwing her concentration. As Cassius' next attack coursed forth, she felt herself being drug to the side from above.
Azshea hit the dirt, keeping her footing as she slid to a stop. Turning, she expected Aegis to be beside her, but to her surprise found Valas instead. The lightning dragon remained silent as he moved to separate from her, not even bothering to meet her curious gaze.
There was a crackle of thunder that pulled Azshea's attention as she watched a stream of lightning crash into Cassius' skull, the source being her mate. As the purple dragon angrily turned to face him, she took her chance. Fire ripped from her scales as she focused it with a desperate cry.
The superheated blast engulfed Cassius before he could retaliate against Aegis. Having no intention of burning, Cassius pulled on his seemingly infinite well of power. A burst of convexity snapped from his hide. The fires around him fizzled to embers, the lightning that had been streaming towards him snapped towards the sky and the earth shook as the ground seemed to collapse beneath them all.
Azshea bared her teeth and tilted her head unable to gaze directly at her opponent as an expulsion of air swept over her. The blast of wind proved to only be the beginning, as she felt a foreign power encompass her. In a brief second, her body felt as though it were set aflame and she was thrust backwards.
Coming to a stop on the ground, Azshea had to keep from twitching from the residual pain as she experienced convexity first hand. With a gasp, she struggled to steady her breathing as she rolled off her back. Shaking her head, she could see Aegis and Valas some distance away, equally floored by the attack and trying to rise. More concerning however, was the form of Cassius approaching her. His paws crunching on the dead dry earth sent chills through her.
Before he truly reached the dragoness, there was a whistling sound as ice cut the air. A sharp icicle slammed into Cassius' chest, however where it should have penetrated it only feebly bounced away. Azshea turned to find Aria standing some distance away, the source of the attack. As scared as she was for her own life, in that moment, her fear for the young dragoness surpassed even that. She tried to muster words, but found her throat as dry as sand and she could only sputter as she slowly forced her limbs into action.
Aria didn't seem to notice Azshea's distress as she prepared another blast. Cassius, who had already paused seemed amused by the futile attempts. As another icicle shattered on impact with him, he turned to face the dragoness, beginning his approach to his newest curiosity.
Aria continued her assault, not seeming to realize just how close the dragon was getting to her. Cassius' last step bounced the dragoness an inch from the ground as he slammed his paw down before her. The purple dragon leered at her, and in retaliation she spat another shard of ice into his jaw, making even the intimidating dragon flinch.
When he glared at her again, he found her smiling. The simple sight lit a fire in him once more, but before he could do anything to end her life there was a thunderous boom as Ivarik, curled into a ball of lightning and fury, crashed down into his skull.
The purple dragon's head quickly met the dirt, kicking up a spray of soil as the electricity and weight of the young dragon crushed him. His stunned state didn't last however as he almost immediately thrust his head aside, tossing Ivarik through the air. When the disgruntled dragon looked to where Aria had been, he already found her sprinting away.
Convexity flared angrily from his scales, the energy continuing to consume his very form. Ivarik caught himself, his wings spreading just in time to drop him lightly onto the ground in a sprint next to Aria. As he felt a tingle of energy reach his tail, he peaked back at the raging Cassius and without thinking dove at Aria who let out a surprised gasp. A moment later, the shockwave of convexity hit the yellow dragon's back and sent them both tumbling away.
Cassius turned towards the two children, intent on finishing them, but was quickly bashed in his gut by Aegis' horns. The purple dragon coughed, the impact alleviating his lungs of any air. Still, he mustered a surge of convexity from his lips. The beam seared Aegis' scales forcing a snarl from him. Refusing to bend, the lightning dragon slashed his talons across the purple dragon's crest leaving deep lacerations.
Not seeming to care, Cassius mimicked the attack knocking Aegis away, a fresh set of wounds on his shoulder. Just then fire whipped up around Cassius' body. The heat seared him, and after a moment it seemed to gain a life of its own surging directly at him. From the side, he noted Azshea focusing on her element. As the flames licked his scales, he spat an orb of convexity at her. She didn't notice the attack until it was too late. The orb landed at her paws and exploded a wave of violet energy tearing into the dragoness. She was blown backwards, but remained standing. Energy crackled from her scales as she shuddered and cried out, as after a brief delay she fell to the ground, shivering in pain.
Cassius smiled, glad to finally be making some progress. He thought to finish her, but decided that leaving her to be tortured by the energy would be more to his liking. He idly looked back to Aegis who was recovering. With a snort the purple dragon spat several bursts of energy. The thin strands impacted Aegis in several spots, mostly his legs. The dragon grunted as he tried to remain standing but found himself unable as he crashed down.
Satisfied at the suffering he'd inflicted, Cassius turned to search for Valas, ready to finally put an end to the miserable drake. It didn't take him long to locate the lightning dragon. He'd moved close to the two young ones that had been sent rolling through the mud. While they recovered, Valas prepared.
Cassius took one confident step forward. It took no longer than that to shatter his sureness. The very heavens split. Lightning struck down catching Valas within it. The dragon radiated electricity. He was bright like the sun. The stray strands of power ripped open the earth, and streaked through the air. Cassius watched with pure disdain as he saw the older dragon smirk at him through the torrential brightness. It was the last thing he saw as his whole world was engulfed in light. The purple dragon gathered what energy he could into his body, still the electricity poured through him in the blink of an eye. Cassius saw, heard, and felt nothing. His senses shut down as his nerves overloaded.
From beside Valas, Aria clutched at Ivarik who was still in a daze from absorbing the convexity that had threatened to wash over them. She dared to open her eyes to nothing more than a squint. She wanted to see, however her pupils fought against her attempts. Through watering eyes, she finally began to make out the scene before her. A cloud of lightning still encompassed Cassius, blocking him from view. Knowing it was futile, she turned to Valas who was panting.
"Is he dead?" She asked quietly, hoping he'd somehow know.
Valas looked at her, seemingly surprised she would even address him. "Don't take your eyes off it." He said grimly, focusing once more on the storm of electricity.
It wasn't long until they got their answer. The lightning dissipated with thunderous crackling. There, in its midst, was Cassius, still standing, however he appeared more like a corpse. His form was gaunt, his violet scales blackened in many places. Some of his extremities, such as the tips of his horns and tail were slowly blowing away, having turned to ash. Still, through his seared scales, his eyes shifted, they darted in all directions, their glossy sheen a pale imitation of what they once were.
"He's blind." Valas muttered. "Damned fool won't give up."
The lightning dragon began gathering his energy once more, his muscles protesting his calls. He'd only been at his attempt for a few seconds before Cassius moved. With a desperate roar, the dragon swung his head around a beam of convexity fired from his maw. The blast devastated everything it came into contact with. In a split second, several dragons lost their lives.
Aria and Valas watched wide eyed at the destruction. Before they could fully absorb what had happened, Cassius loosed another beam of energy to the same effect. The dragon flailed wildly, continuing his attacks at random, each one taking several lives in the process. Valas cursed as he forced more energy into his scales, knowing his time was limited.
Aria was stunned, her body frozen as she watched Cassius rip the life from whatever was unlucky enough to be before him. Her blood froze as the purple dragon's head leveled on her. He couldn't see her of course, but that didn't matter. She watched his jaws widen and turned away, pressing herself against Ivarik despite knowing it wouldn't do either of them any good.
As the energy surged forth, she heard the sounds of movement. Convexity did not wash over her and she looked to find the cause. Her jaw dropped as Valas crumpled before her. The large dragon's head fell near to her, his eyes slowly shifting to stare at her bewildered form.
As Aria tried to utter a question of why she watched as Valas' mouth hooked slightly. Then the lightning dragon breathed his last and his body went still. Aria stared in shock. Dragons had been dying all around her however this was the first to look her in the eyes as the life left his body. The image tore at her consciousness.
The only thing that shocked the dragoness back into reality was another beam of convexity tearing through the world nearby. She shuddered as the residual energy grated against her scales. Beside her, Ivarik shivered as he was slowly recovering, but he'd be in no shape to move soon. Aria looked over to Cassius who was still flailing wildly, his power ebbing away at his body even as he unleashed it onto the world.
No more than a few seconds later, the dragoness watched as Blaze, the guardian of fire, crashed into the rampaging dragon. Fire exploded from the two and Cassius screeched at having finally been confronted.
The fire dragon paid it little mind as more fire erupted from his maw. The heat forced the purple dragon back. He moved to retaliate, his energy condensing once more. Aria could hear his grunt from where she lay as multiple spikes of earth impaled the dragon holding him fast. Convexity left his maw anyway, going wide of the guardians but surely finding some unlucky target further on. To the side, Tera held a firm grasp on her element. Cassius roared in anger as he pulled against the restraints, doing little more than injuring himself further.
Lightning struck paralyzing the raging dragon as Srix landed next to the earth dragoness, static bouncing across his bloodied scales. The purple dragon never felt the final blow as a spear of ice pierced his skull from above, lodging itself like a pike into the earth. Icryious landed soon after, turning to observe his grim handiwork. Cassius didn't move, his heart beat its last, it was over.
Ryn approached the triage tent that had somehow remained intact. He, among others, counted themselves lucky that the corrupted dragons had simply charged them headlong, meaning that none had come close to reaching the medical moles. Moles rushed between the unwieldy number of dragons, tending to the most grievous cases first.
Ryn rotated his shoulder slightly, shifting the still unconscious Syra on his back. He trudged forward, knowing he'd almost made it. He made his way into a nearby tent, doing well to avoid interrupting any medics. Finding a spare area, he slumped down, shifting Syra to the ground as gently as he could. When she was as safely resting, he took a moment to look at her. It was a pitiful sight really. Her once vibrant crimson scales were caked in blood and mud. She was pale, her breathing shallow.
"Where are the injuries?" A mole asked breaking the green dragon from his thoughts.
Ryn turned to look at him. The mole didn't seem to notice, he was already in the process of examining the dragoness, a small cloth clutched in his claws as he dug at the mud that clung to her hide.
Ryn frowned and stamped his paw lightly. The earth crumbled to the mole's surprise. The little creature turned to Ryn who shrugged. "Field dressing." He said idly.
The mole nodded as he went to work on the now open wounds. Ryn felt a tap on his side and turned to find another mole looking at him.
"I'll need you to lay down." The mole said gently, nodding to an empty patch of ground near to the fire dragoness.
"Treat her first." Ryn said nodding to Syra. The mole looked like he was about to protest, but a firm look from the earth dragon made him think better of it.
Ryn watched as the two went to work, cleaning and bandaging her wounds as best they could. As they applied ointments and bandages Syra seemed to ease, her muscles relaxing slightly. Ryn wasn't sure if she even knew what was happening, but he was glad that on some level she was feeling more comfortable.
"If you don't mind my asking..." One of the moles started as he tied off a wrapping. Ryn looked at him, waiting for the question. "The battle, is it over? Have we won?"
Ryn pursed his lips. He'd crossed the battlefield only a few moments before. The once beautiful Avalar had been littered with bodies. Some had still been fighting. However much of the battle had already passed. He'd seen groups picking off stray dragons. He'd watched several of the purple beasts simply flee, no doubt they'd roam the wilds for some time and have to be hunted down.
Of course, he'd felt an immense power coming from one location, even seen the very skies darken. He had no doubt it was the dragon that Aegis and Azshea had left to confront. While the sheer immensity of energy had sent shivers down his spine even that had faded recently. He could only assume that they'd triumphed over the foe, although he was unsure how.
"Won may be the wrong term." Ryn said idly, drawing a curious glance from the mole. "But it looks like we've survived."