Chapter 22
Monavelle peeked outside. "It's a war zone out there. It looks like Cthulhu got every single darn thing at his disposal."
Ramisse looked out. "Pirates, goblins, snowmen," she said, ticking things off on her fingers. "The Twins, the Destroyer, Skeletron Prime, a Golem - is that Plantera?"
"I'm going out there," Monavelle said, her face hard and her mouth a grim line.
"You sure you can handle it out there?" Ramisse asked, concerned.
Monavelle's face broke into a smile. "Of course, Rae. Heck, I'm the Bow. There's nothing I can't handle."
"Except maybe seeing a spider in the tree house," Ramisse muttered under her breath.
"I heard that," Monavelle snapped.
"Go if you want, but I'm coming with you," Ramisse said. "I didn't spend days in the forges for nothing."
"Good luck, sis," Monavelle said affectionately.
They pushed open the doors and emerged into the war zone.
Later...
"Hey! Over here!" Monavelle shouted. "Yoo-hoo, you! I got arrows for ya!" She started firing arrows from her crossbow, dodging, turning flips in the air and firing upside down. The arrows streaked past the metal guardians and struck the writhing dark mass in the middle. The sound of booming laughter echoed through the forest as she shot.
"Show-off girl, I'm going to wait to kill you until I've taken over Terraria. You'll make an excellent court jester!" Cthulhu laughed. "Besides, your arrows aren't doing anything to me."
"Then maybe THIS will!" Ramisse screamed from behind Cthulhu. She held the Blade of Terra in one hand and her spear in the other, and in one movement she flicked the green beam from the sword, thrust the spear and rammed headfirst into the dark mass. As she backed away, puffs of steam emanating from her wings, golden ichor-like blood started leaking from the mass. However, as they watched, the cut sealed itself, the ichor evaporated, and Cthulhu laughed with delight. "That tickles! Do it again!"
"This isn't a game, Cthulhu. Either surrender now or suffer ignominious defeat!" Ramisse shouted, spear held high.
"What does 'ignominious' mean?" Monavelle whispered to Ramisse.
"It means 'shameful,'" Ramisse whispered back.
Cthulhu stopped laughing. "You misunderstand, you pathetic fools. I can only be killed by the emerald and sapphire!"
"Then we'll do all we can to make it easy for them," came a voice from the chimney. Calythé, covered from head to toe in black soot, was rising slowly from the flue, followed by Thunder. Calythé turned to Thunder and nodded her head. He touched down on the chimney, then leapt up from the edge and screamed, "EMBREA!" at the top of his lungs, shooting rainbows and summoning clouds of rain. Calythé followed, screaming, "TERRARIA!" and flinging blue notes in all directions from her harp. In midair, she whipped out her shadowbeam staff and shot focused beams of dark energy at the writhing mass. To her dismay, however, the beams simply ricocheted away from Cthulhu. Though they did strike the guardians and reduce some of them to scrap metal, the god in the center was unscathed.
A horrid yell of "PURPLE!" sounded from the chimney, and Ametha and Topaz shot out of the flue looking thoroughly maddened. They leveled their staves and muttered an incantation in unison, and suddenly two large flames, one purple and one yellow, erupted from the rods and twisted together to become an enormous gold-and-violet dragon. It let out a blood-curdling roar and launched itself at Cthulhu, breathing sparkling metallic flame. The flame raked over Cthulhu's minions, melting the remaining ones, but when it reached Cthulhu, it simply flew around him as if he were wearing a flameproof cloak. Cthulhu chuckled and reached out a tendril of darkness. It grasped the dragon around the neck and the dragon let out a small, strangled squawking noise.
Cthulhu laughed delightedly. "What a lovely pet. Shame it has to die."
Ametha screamed with rage and threw her magic dagger. It lodged in Cthulhu's chest, opening a deep gash in the darkness. Cthulhu's chest cavity swung open with a creeeeak, revealing a pulsating black organ, webbed with red veins, that could only be his heart.
Ametha turned to Topaz. "We need Emi and Saffa. Now."
Topaz jumped back into the chimney and sprinted to Emi's quarters. She and Saffa were sitting dejectedly on her cot.
"What's wrong, guys? We need you out there!" Topaz wheedled.
"Calythé doesn't believe in us," Saffa muttered, looking at his feet.
"Yes, she does. You should see her out there. She and Thunder are out there fighting for you."
"Are not," Emi countered. "After all, we're 'only children.'"
At that moment, Cthulhu screeched triumphantly, "HA! You may have exposed my heart, but without the emerald and sapphire I am invincible, and Terraria will be mine at dawn!"
"Oh, that tears it. As mad as I am, I can't let this guy take over." Emi glanced at Saffa. "Ready?"
"Please. We've got it in for this guy. Let's kick some butt," Saffa said amiably, standing up from the cot. The three engaged their wings and flew out the chimney.
Cthulhu laughed with delight as Emi and Saffa emerged from the chimney. "These are the emerald and sapphire? Why, they're mere morsels! Awww, how cute!" A tendril of shadow reached out and slashed Emi across her cheek, drawing blood.
Emi's eyes narrowed and a look of murder came upon her face. "Playtime's over, Cthulhu," she shouted, green energy snapping around her body. The green bolts expanded, swathing Emi in a globe of green light and lifting her off the ground. She touched her staff to Saffa's, and a similar dark blue globe sizzled into place around his body. Saffa and Emi touched their staves together at the very tips and slowly drew them apart. A thin beam of blue-green energy connected the staves. Emi checked her watch. Two minutes to dawn. They had no time to lose.
"You're too late, kiddies! Terraria will be mine, and you shall all perish!" Cthulhu screamed, but instead of delight and triumph, there was now fear in his voice.
Emi focused her energy into the thin electric beam connecting her staff to Saffa's. Slowly a ball of green fire formed in the beam, but it wasn't enough. She used all the energy in her green energy shield, then all her mana power. Finally, Emi was drained. She dropped limply down to the edge of the roof. Saffa's staff was still connected to the beam and the ball of fire, so he focused his energy, making the ball even bigger. Emi scrambled to her feet.
"Saffa," she gasped in his ear, "we've got thirty seconds till dawn. You know what to do."
"My years on the Terraria Boys' Volleyball team will not be in vain," he whispered back. Cthulhu started to laugh with triumph just as Saffa threw the fireball in the air, raised his arm over his head, and spiked it with all the force, anger, and deadly precision in his small body.
"HA! HA! HUH?! NOOOO!" And the ball of fire slammed into Cthulhu's heart. Within seconds the blue-green flame spread over the mass of darkness, consuming it and reducing it to ashes. Saffa and Emi collapsed into each others' arms just as the sun peeked over the horizon, lighting up the deep, black crater that had once been Cthulhu.