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The oncoming flames rushed straight for the group. An orange aura suddenly surrounded Wu Fei, and the fire instantly froze in its place.
The flames licked at the air, then silently died. The scared men stared shocked, then collapsed against the ground in fear.
The dragon's tail swiped back and forth slowly, then relaxed. His, by this time Wu Fei was certain it was male; large reptilian face turned back to the Asian and seemed to relax. Quietly his head relaxed against the ground and let out another small puff of smoke.
An image of a warm yellow danced in Wu Fei's head, which he took in a good way. Glancing at Trowa, he slowly approached the dragon. Anne and the others watched nervously.
The dragon let out a small snort of smoke and blinked his large green eyes. The wings fluttered, then he turned to Trowa.
Large black shapes against a green background appeared in Wu Fei's mind. He stepped back, wincing slightly.
"There's an army heading towards us from the east, they're in the forest.."
A bright approving yellow appeared, then a green.
"And he wants you to go."
Trowa stared at the dragon, who seemed very interested in him. "How many?"
"Many," Wu Fei replied.
Trowa tightened his grip on his bow. "I'll take 10 men with me, but I'll need a horse."
The men nodded. Trowa took a deep breath and stared towards the trees.
Heero glanced back at the pirates, who were pressing on with a grim look on their faces. They'd become much more threatening and ready to fight since he'd met them, which meant that perhaps the last part of the journey wouldn't be as difficult.
He was certain it was still day, but it felt like the middle of the night. Dark fog rolled through the dead trees, making the path less and less visible.
Red eyes appeared out of the fog, followed by a wispy form of a dog-beast. Heero rested his hand on the hilt of his sword, but remained still.
Why have you come here? the shadow narrowed its red eyes.
Heero grunted and held out a small black stone, which was slightly glowing.
The shadow nodded and took it in its large clawed hand. Follow me.
There was a deep silence in the forest, both stifling and threatening to Trowa. Often, he would hear the wind shudder, then the silence would once again suffocate everything.
The horse snorted in sudden anticipation while the rider glanced around, looking for any type of disturbance.
It was too quiet.
A loud explosion rocked through the air and a large group of birds took flight. From all sides, swarms of the enemy appeared waving swords and cheering.
Trowa jumped down and grabbed a sword, joining into the fray.
Wu Fei stared silently at the dragon, still not believing that such a thing could exist. And yet it was there, staring at him patiently.
A large black shadow passed over them and Wu Fei saw another dragon in the sky, its wings shimmering violet in the bright sky. The blue stared at it momentarily then back at Wu Fei.
He lifted up his large wings and then departed for the skies.
Wu Fei stared at the small field, wondering what that was all about. Anne was still standing and staring, looking just as shocked as before.
"You stopped the fire,"
Wu Fei smirked. "Nothing a strong man can't do.."
She rolled her eyes.
"There are people coming," Elaina mused as she paced back and forth.
"I know," Quatre replied, still staring distantly away. "Why are you worried,"
She stared at him momentarily, then went back to pacing. "The armies are set to attack, there won't be any resistance after that."
"I suppose not." Quatre quietly slipped his hand back into his pocket. "Focus on that, I'll handle the invaders."
The glint of blue began to appear again, but only for a second.
The forest will begin to wake.
With the strength of words one shall forsake.
Trowa slammed his sword into the gut of one of the goblins, feeling the cold pain in his shoulder from where he'd been nearly taken out of the fight. It didn't look good, they were far too outnumbered to even consider winning.
But Trowa was used to fighting unevenly. He glanced around, seeing the sudden shuddering of the trees.
They like you.. Autumn's words echoed softly.
"Then how about some help.." Trowa murmured to himself as he blocked another attack from an oncoming goblin.
The trees began to shake, the earth cracking slowly..
And then it seemed as if the entire forest had come to life, the branches cracked and fell against the oncoming troops, the branches twisting and turning and tripping the enemy.
Trowa's skin glowed slightly.
Heero entered into the back of the castle, running up the stairs. The guards that were there were all taken care of by the pirates.
Quatre threw him against the ground, his face expressionless. He slowly walked over, pulled something from his pocket and slipped it into the palm of his hand. Roughly Heero accepted Quatre's hand as he was pulled up. His grip tightened around the tiny gift as he nodded. Quatre's face softened into a deep sadness.
"Time's running out," Quatre whispered as he slowly stepped back, his expression becoming dark and cold again.
Heero squeezed against the small key and looked through a passing window to see the sky darkening.
The dragon soared overhead again, this time faster. They seemed to be coming back and forth faster and faster, and Wu Fei could sense some apprehension.
He was the first to notice it; the sudden oncoming smoke and blackness..
The army was coming....
"EVERYONE GET READY!" he yelled, reaching for a sword.
They were gone. One moment they'd be winning against the small band of soldiers, but then they were gone.
Another army was approaching to join the Northern forces.. She couldn't tell who, but she could see them coming.
She was going to lose.. Elaina didn't want to believe it, but she was going to lose.
Send out smaller armies..
No, he couldn't have. Could he?
She ran back towards the room, realizing her mistakes. He'd been countering every single thing she did, and then using it to his own advantage..
And she'd gone right along with it. She threw the door open, letting the fire dance in her eyes.
Quatre was standing there, as if he'd been waiting for her the entire time. "The armies won't make it through this; you can't possibly win now.." he murmured pensively, not making eye contact.
Her fist balled up as a black ball of energy formed around it. It hardened into a black shell, and headed straight towards the blonde.
Quatre simply flexed his fingers and the ball froze, then dissipated. The blue had returned to his eyes, mixing with the black clouds, creating a turbulent storm. She stared back, the angered fires burning in her pupils.
There was a sudden wind as the doors were slammed and locked. Not even fate could intervene with this battle now.
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Two more chapters to go..
And oh yeah, it was Jeremy Thatcher!! Thanks for remembering that!