Chapter Fifteen
The sun was setting and the soldiers of Zaibach were positioning themselves for the attack. Dilandau was licking his lips with pleasure at the images which filled his head. Because of his insanity, he could not even begin to detect the mood which hung over Persephone. Though he could not, the rest of the soldiers did. They had seen her go throughout the day withdrawn and snappish. They all knew to keep away from her during the battle. There was a bit of her own insanity in her gaze that day, a vengeful, tortured, hateful expression.
Persephone was distracted, her very attitude emanating her bitchy mood. She was also tired, weary. She had dark circles under her eyes and her actions of indifference and lack of concern was odd. "Persephone, do you hear me?" A calm and cool voice crackled in her ear. Persephone started for a second before she reached her hand up gently to the small speaker in her ear. It crackled a bit more before the line smoothed out.
Persephone forced a bit of the tension out of her limbs as she spoke. "Loud and clear. How about you? Having fun up there in your confined little fortress?" She asked, her voice pushing between teasing and resentment.
Folken chuckled a little. "Yeah, but I'd rather be out there in the open air."
"Perhaps we could go out sometime, get out of that dingy old ship. Just you and me, get away from Zaibach for a couple of days." Persephone said, her attitude finally lightening as she conversed in small talk with him.
"Perhaps." But his voice sounded distracted and troubled and she suddenly remembered what exactly was going on. Her soul heavied again as he spoke. "Remember what I said, Persephone. I call you out, you better be running for the hills. Got that?"
She nodded, despite the fact that he couldn't see her. "Yes, Lord Folken."
"And, Persephone?"
"Yes, Folken?" Persephone answered wearily as she rubbed her temples.
"You better keep the promise that was given to me."
*************
Later on, when Persephone looked back on the battle, she would fully take into thought the way things went about. Zaibach attacked quickly, cloaked by invisibility. She was on foot and she sprinted to keep up with the machines' large strides. There were a few soldiers on foot, mostly younger ones, not much older than twelve or thirteen. At one of the invisible guymelef's attacks, a small wave of pandemonium rippled through the streets of Corinth. People took in the first crumpling building, then their shredded gates as if it were a nightmare, taking a few seconds before they realized the seriousness of the situation. Their soldiers were out almost immediately and Persephone was faintly surprised by the power and advancement of their guymelefs.
She hit the first wave of fighting much quicker than she thought, a large man in bounded armor bringing his sword over his head and letting out a cry. "Aarrgh!" Persephone answered his cry and with two calculated swipes of her curved sword, he was gutted. At the first sight of death, she lost all control, the remembrance brought on the night before coming back in an overpowering wave.
She hit another soldier, then another, and another, her teeth bared, and then the tears came angrily and smudged with dirt. The next guard she hit didn't even see her coming. Her blade plowed through his back, killing him instantly. *Strapped down, their eyes on her, their lips on her...* "Fuck you!" She screamed as she pulled the sword from the man's back and brought it down again, oblivious to the fact that he was already dead. *Their hands, on her chest, between her legs, mocking her...* "Fucking... Bastards..." She was still tearing into the same corpse, devastating it so that it was barely recognizable as human. A man charged her from the back and she turned, slicing up, into his groin. *Forcing themselves on her violently, one after another, pain smashing through her, then leaving her there, naked, crying, screaming...* "Die, you bastard." She whispered through bitter tears, making one final, killing sweep.
"Persephone? Persephone?! Can you hear me?" The voice in her ear finally registered, her sword blade dropping and hitting the ground, her chest shaking with sobs. No one around her was still alive. The fight had moved on, and an indefinable amount of mutilated corpses lay in pieces around her feet. She had no idea how long she had been there, no idea what so ever. "Persephone?! Gods, Persephone, answer me!" The choking voice awoke her again and she opened her mouth, choking on her own words a few times, her mouth gaping open a bit, before she could finally answer.
"Fol-Folken?" Her voice was small, weak, broken.
"Thank the gods!" The voice exclaimed before going forward, a new rage in his voice. "Where the hell have you been?! I've been telling you to retreat for the last half hour! Dilandau and his guymelefs are on their way out now. They tried to contact you... They thought you were dead. I thought you were dead." His voice had transformed from one of anger and disapproval to a desperate, concerned whisper. "Are you all right, Perseph?"
"Yeah, I just..." Her voice faded and her shoulders fells. She could smell the tremendous amount of blood on herself. She was too tired to think, too tired to finish her thoughts.
"Get out of there, Persephone. Come back to me." Folken said quietly, noticing the defeat in her voice.
Tears welled in her eyes. "O- Okay, Folken." She stuttered before stepping over the remains around her, slightly aware of the fact that most of the corpses at her feet were because of her.
Chapter Sixteen
Persephone was on her way out of the city when the attack hit the Zaibach forces. To her left, about a mile away, a dazzling flash of white light burst through the pressing darkness. It arched in the air and made its way across the sky. Her eyes followed it, awed by the beauty of it. She was reminded of fireworks on the Fourth of July...
The streak of light hit a hillside in the direction she was heading. She froze in a silent horror as she saw an enormous explosion and, in that light, burning Zaibach guymelefs. She went stiff almost immediately, her eyes going wide. 'Persephone!' The scream in her mind echoed with pain and childish terror. She clenched her teeth. Dilandau. Oh, God, she couldn't handle this. Immediately Persephone was on her feet, running in the opposite direction, heading towards where she had seen the missile launched...
*********
"Lord Folken! We've been attacked!" One of the younger youths yelled out as his fellow warriors struggled to reach any survivors in the burning and melting guymelefs. "Lord Dilandau is down, sir. He's alive, but unconscious."
"Get out of there!" Folken yelled in exasperation as he heard another explosion in the background.
"But, sir... You told us to wait for Lord Persephone."
Folken's blood went cold. "She's not there yet?" He asked, a slight bit of amazement and despair in his voice.
"Why, no sir." The boy replied. "We haven't even heard from her yet."
Folken stood from his seated place in front of data charts and radio equipment. His hands trembled as he gripped the side of the console in front of him, his sharp talons piercing the metal. He reached and changed frequencies quickly before he yelled out her name. "Persephone!"
There was a slight pause in the transmission before she answered. "I'm so sorry, Folken. I didn't mean for it to end this way. I didn't mean to lie to you." Her voice was hushed, solemn, and confident.
Folken gripped his hands tightly, his face going slack as he realized what she was saying. "Persephone!" He cried her name once again, desperately, but the transmission had already been terminated. He stumbled back into his chair, his hand covering his face, the only thing visible were his wide eyes. He sat there for a few seconds before he called for one of his servants. "Turen, prepare my guymelef for flight." He said, his face still paler than usual, his body still shaking. "Oh, gods," he whispered after the boy had gone to do his bidding. "Not now. Not yet."
********
Persephone tore the ear piece from her ear, tears running down her face, her sides aching from the mile sprint. She approached the machines that were launching the attacks steadily, her feet pounding on the ground and her breath in a strange pattern. A few of the soldiers noticed her coming. She heard them yell something undefinable among her panic, but she still ran at them. She remembered the exercises on the main Zaibach fortress. 'Calm your mind. Yes, now. Filter the emotion. Spread it through you. Use it as your strength.' She pushed her fear for Dilandau, his voiceless cry still in her mind, through her body as she stopped a few feet from the men in front of her. They were pulling swords out and approaching her, along with a few archers readying their bows from buildings above. She ignored the men's cries of battle as they came towards her. She kept her eyes closed, her breathing shallow. 'Call on the strength, master it. This is who you are. You are invincible.' She held her arms out to her side, spread, calmly, when the power devoured her. The pain erupted through Persephone's back and the men stopped in horror as they saw the creature before them.
She felt her back burn slightly under the heat, but she had learned to master them so that it was usually not much worst than a sunburn. But still she felt that flame against her, and she willed herself up above the heads of the gawking onlookers.
Grown men trembled in horror as they saw her, crimson hair tangling violently around her head, and behind her, like an artist's backdrop, wings of fire, their span forty feet from tip to tip. Feathers of flame and magma floated down, burning some of the onlookers eyes. Persephone's eyes snapped open and that fire rested there, too, flickering and burning. She twisted her wrists, using all her power to concentrate. A flame erupted beneath one of the soldier's feet and he screamed as it consumed him. The fire spread like a creature of flesh, too quickly to be natural. It was then that the archers remembered their bows as their comrades screamed and died below.
Many of the arrows sent at her hit her fleshless wings, the fire there devouring them and leaving nothing but glowing ash. Yet, one arrow found its target and embedded itself in Persephone's side. An inhuman cry split her lips and, for a hopeful second, the surviving onlookers saw her faulter and begin to drop, her wings fading and flickering. But then she caught herself, her wings beating in the air frantically. She felt panic before the explosion, knowing she was losing control. And finally, the power snapped from her grasps and took control like a plague. She cried out as the flames engulfed her and everything below.
**********
From the hills above, the forces of Zaibach were frozen in place by awe and horror. The flame had begun in the center of the city, and they could see the outline of what could only be described as wings aflame. They saw them flicker and fade a moment before a violent explosion rocked through the city.
Screams could be heard as the ground cracked open beneath the people and a river of lava pushed its way through, making everything that was of the city as if it had never existed. The screams didn't last long, and the beautiful city melted before their eyes, the smell of burning flesh thick on the breeze.
The sun was setting and the soldiers of Zaibach were positioning themselves for the attack. Dilandau was licking his lips with pleasure at the images which filled his head. Because of his insanity, he could not even begin to detect the mood which hung over Persephone. Though he could not, the rest of the soldiers did. They had seen her go throughout the day withdrawn and snappish. They all knew to keep away from her during the battle. There was a bit of her own insanity in her gaze that day, a vengeful, tortured, hateful expression.
Persephone was distracted, her very attitude emanating her bitchy mood. She was also tired, weary. She had dark circles under her eyes and her actions of indifference and lack of concern was odd. "Persephone, do you hear me?" A calm and cool voice crackled in her ear. Persephone started for a second before she reached her hand up gently to the small speaker in her ear. It crackled a bit more before the line smoothed out.
Persephone forced a bit of the tension out of her limbs as she spoke. "Loud and clear. How about you? Having fun up there in your confined little fortress?" She asked, her voice pushing between teasing and resentment.
Folken chuckled a little. "Yeah, but I'd rather be out there in the open air."
"Perhaps we could go out sometime, get out of that dingy old ship. Just you and me, get away from Zaibach for a couple of days." Persephone said, her attitude finally lightening as she conversed in small talk with him.
"Perhaps." But his voice sounded distracted and troubled and she suddenly remembered what exactly was going on. Her soul heavied again as he spoke. "Remember what I said, Persephone. I call you out, you better be running for the hills. Got that?"
She nodded, despite the fact that he couldn't see her. "Yes, Lord Folken."
"And, Persephone?"
"Yes, Folken?" Persephone answered wearily as she rubbed her temples.
"You better keep the promise that was given to me."
*************
Later on, when Persephone looked back on the battle, she would fully take into thought the way things went about. Zaibach attacked quickly, cloaked by invisibility. She was on foot and she sprinted to keep up with the machines' large strides. There were a few soldiers on foot, mostly younger ones, not much older than twelve or thirteen. At one of the invisible guymelef's attacks, a small wave of pandemonium rippled through the streets of Corinth. People took in the first crumpling building, then their shredded gates as if it were a nightmare, taking a few seconds before they realized the seriousness of the situation. Their soldiers were out almost immediately and Persephone was faintly surprised by the power and advancement of their guymelefs.
She hit the first wave of fighting much quicker than she thought, a large man in bounded armor bringing his sword over his head and letting out a cry. "Aarrgh!" Persephone answered his cry and with two calculated swipes of her curved sword, he was gutted. At the first sight of death, she lost all control, the remembrance brought on the night before coming back in an overpowering wave.
She hit another soldier, then another, and another, her teeth bared, and then the tears came angrily and smudged with dirt. The next guard she hit didn't even see her coming. Her blade plowed through his back, killing him instantly. *Strapped down, their eyes on her, their lips on her...* "Fuck you!" She screamed as she pulled the sword from the man's back and brought it down again, oblivious to the fact that he was already dead. *Their hands, on her chest, between her legs, mocking her...* "Fucking... Bastards..." She was still tearing into the same corpse, devastating it so that it was barely recognizable as human. A man charged her from the back and she turned, slicing up, into his groin. *Forcing themselves on her violently, one after another, pain smashing through her, then leaving her there, naked, crying, screaming...* "Die, you bastard." She whispered through bitter tears, making one final, killing sweep.
"Persephone? Persephone?! Can you hear me?" The voice in her ear finally registered, her sword blade dropping and hitting the ground, her chest shaking with sobs. No one around her was still alive. The fight had moved on, and an indefinable amount of mutilated corpses lay in pieces around her feet. She had no idea how long she had been there, no idea what so ever. "Persephone?! Gods, Persephone, answer me!" The choking voice awoke her again and she opened her mouth, choking on her own words a few times, her mouth gaping open a bit, before she could finally answer.
"Fol-Folken?" Her voice was small, weak, broken.
"Thank the gods!" The voice exclaimed before going forward, a new rage in his voice. "Where the hell have you been?! I've been telling you to retreat for the last half hour! Dilandau and his guymelefs are on their way out now. They tried to contact you... They thought you were dead. I thought you were dead." His voice had transformed from one of anger and disapproval to a desperate, concerned whisper. "Are you all right, Perseph?"
"Yeah, I just..." Her voice faded and her shoulders fells. She could smell the tremendous amount of blood on herself. She was too tired to think, too tired to finish her thoughts.
"Get out of there, Persephone. Come back to me." Folken said quietly, noticing the defeat in her voice.
Tears welled in her eyes. "O- Okay, Folken." She stuttered before stepping over the remains around her, slightly aware of the fact that most of the corpses at her feet were because of her.
Chapter Sixteen
Persephone was on her way out of the city when the attack hit the Zaibach forces. To her left, about a mile away, a dazzling flash of white light burst through the pressing darkness. It arched in the air and made its way across the sky. Her eyes followed it, awed by the beauty of it. She was reminded of fireworks on the Fourth of July...
The streak of light hit a hillside in the direction she was heading. She froze in a silent horror as she saw an enormous explosion and, in that light, burning Zaibach guymelefs. She went stiff almost immediately, her eyes going wide. 'Persephone!' The scream in her mind echoed with pain and childish terror. She clenched her teeth. Dilandau. Oh, God, she couldn't handle this. Immediately Persephone was on her feet, running in the opposite direction, heading towards where she had seen the missile launched...
*********
"Lord Folken! We've been attacked!" One of the younger youths yelled out as his fellow warriors struggled to reach any survivors in the burning and melting guymelefs. "Lord Dilandau is down, sir. He's alive, but unconscious."
"Get out of there!" Folken yelled in exasperation as he heard another explosion in the background.
"But, sir... You told us to wait for Lord Persephone."
Folken's blood went cold. "She's not there yet?" He asked, a slight bit of amazement and despair in his voice.
"Why, no sir." The boy replied. "We haven't even heard from her yet."
Folken stood from his seated place in front of data charts and radio equipment. His hands trembled as he gripped the side of the console in front of him, his sharp talons piercing the metal. He reached and changed frequencies quickly before he yelled out her name. "Persephone!"
There was a slight pause in the transmission before she answered. "I'm so sorry, Folken. I didn't mean for it to end this way. I didn't mean to lie to you." Her voice was hushed, solemn, and confident.
Folken gripped his hands tightly, his face going slack as he realized what she was saying. "Persephone!" He cried her name once again, desperately, but the transmission had already been terminated. He stumbled back into his chair, his hand covering his face, the only thing visible were his wide eyes. He sat there for a few seconds before he called for one of his servants. "Turen, prepare my guymelef for flight." He said, his face still paler than usual, his body still shaking. "Oh, gods," he whispered after the boy had gone to do his bidding. "Not now. Not yet."
********
Persephone tore the ear piece from her ear, tears running down her face, her sides aching from the mile sprint. She approached the machines that were launching the attacks steadily, her feet pounding on the ground and her breath in a strange pattern. A few of the soldiers noticed her coming. She heard them yell something undefinable among her panic, but she still ran at them. She remembered the exercises on the main Zaibach fortress. 'Calm your mind. Yes, now. Filter the emotion. Spread it through you. Use it as your strength.' She pushed her fear for Dilandau, his voiceless cry still in her mind, through her body as she stopped a few feet from the men in front of her. They were pulling swords out and approaching her, along with a few archers readying their bows from buildings above. She ignored the men's cries of battle as they came towards her. She kept her eyes closed, her breathing shallow. 'Call on the strength, master it. This is who you are. You are invincible.' She held her arms out to her side, spread, calmly, when the power devoured her. The pain erupted through Persephone's back and the men stopped in horror as they saw the creature before them.
She felt her back burn slightly under the heat, but she had learned to master them so that it was usually not much worst than a sunburn. But still she felt that flame against her, and she willed herself up above the heads of the gawking onlookers.
Grown men trembled in horror as they saw her, crimson hair tangling violently around her head, and behind her, like an artist's backdrop, wings of fire, their span forty feet from tip to tip. Feathers of flame and magma floated down, burning some of the onlookers eyes. Persephone's eyes snapped open and that fire rested there, too, flickering and burning. She twisted her wrists, using all her power to concentrate. A flame erupted beneath one of the soldier's feet and he screamed as it consumed him. The fire spread like a creature of flesh, too quickly to be natural. It was then that the archers remembered their bows as their comrades screamed and died below.
Many of the arrows sent at her hit her fleshless wings, the fire there devouring them and leaving nothing but glowing ash. Yet, one arrow found its target and embedded itself in Persephone's side. An inhuman cry split her lips and, for a hopeful second, the surviving onlookers saw her faulter and begin to drop, her wings fading and flickering. But then she caught herself, her wings beating in the air frantically. She felt panic before the explosion, knowing she was losing control. And finally, the power snapped from her grasps and took control like a plague. She cried out as the flames engulfed her and everything below.
**********
From the hills above, the forces of Zaibach were frozen in place by awe and horror. The flame had begun in the center of the city, and they could see the outline of what could only be described as wings aflame. They saw them flicker and fade a moment before a violent explosion rocked through the city.
Screams could be heard as the ground cracked open beneath the people and a river of lava pushed its way through, making everything that was of the city as if it had never existed. The screams didn't last long, and the beautiful city melted before their eyes, the smell of burning flesh thick on the breeze.