Chapter 32: Old nemeses
Megeslav was racing to the exit of Peak 1, his mind racing full of thoughts of vengeance and hatred. After years of thinking that his nemesis had died from a natural disaster, he was going to confront him once more in open combat, here, on the plaza of Xlaxlan Twelve Peaks.
When he got outside of the temple, he saw that chaos had already descended upon the southern parts of the peaks. There was an army of about 260 Emberwings fighting both the Azuls, the spix macaws and all the scarlets, driving them out of the southern temples.
Although vastly outnumbered, the Emberwings fought with much more aggressiveness and savagery, which was the main reason why they managed to drive them not just out of the southern temples but also the most southern temples of the western and eastern lines.
The battle quickly turned brutal as the Emberwings fought the Azuls, spix macaws and scarlets both in the skies above the plaza and on the center of the plaza itself. Yet, for all the intense fighting, no Emberwing, Azul, spix or scarlet macaw fell.
Eventually, Megeslav entered the frame and managed to take down 5 Emberwings that had gotten deep into the lines of spix macaws and red macaws alike.
Blu and the rest of the gang also arrived at the scenes and began to fight many the Emberwings without mercy. At one point, Eduardo and Sapphire stood back-to-back against each other, whilst 2 Emberwings were charging at both of them. Eduardo and Sapphire looked at each other for a short time, Eduardo nodded at her, clenched his wings into two fists and smashed the Emberwing that stood in front of him to the ground, taking him out instantly. Sapphire was faced with a female Emberwing and after dodging an attack, she smashed the Emberwing with so much face, that it was instantly taken out.
"You truly got some fighting moves, Sapphie." Eduardo complimented his wife.
"I may not be the youngest of birds anymore, Eddie, but I'll never unlearn the fighting skills I've learned in Peru." Sapphire replied smoothly to her husband, to which Eduardo smiled.
With Roberto and Jasmine, they too were fighting side by side, tanking down a few Emberwings with some well oriented and combined battle-moves.
Roberto couldn't help but obverse Jasmine's battle moves with awe and wonder and thought to himself: Whoa, she truly fights like a battle-like angel.
Then, after some fighting, Roberto and Jasmine locked their eyes once again on each other. Was this the moment?
Just then, a female Emberwing descended upon them at full speed, screaming, and ready to attack them.
Jasmine and Roberto noticed that and yelped in fear, but just then, a spix macaw bumped into the female Emberwing from the right (left in the POV from the Emberwing), making the orange macaw fly onto the ground of the plaza.
"Thomas!" Jasmine yelled at her brother, who just saved the both of them.
"Make sure none are getting any closer to the center of the plaza!" Thomas yelled as he fought the female Emberwing.
"On it, Thom!" Roberto said back.
The battle raged on and although some spix macaws, Azuls and scarlets were wounded during the fighting, none of them seemed to have lost a life, whilst the Emberwings' numbers were slowly falling.
After some fighting, however, a yell was heard from Peak 7, calling the Emberwings to get back and closer to the southern temples. Just before all the Emberwings went back to regroup, Tiago and Skye both managed to take an Emberwing child down with a rock.
As the Emberwings regrouped into a line on the Plaza near the southern peaks, all the spix macaws, Azuls and red macaws saw something coming in between the Emberwings, something large and scaly.
Then they saw it, a large lizard they had never seen before and on its back stood an Emberwing with a sharp stick in his right talon.
There was lots of murmur within the tribes, especially within the Azul Clan and Mia's tribe, as they all knew too well who that bird was. These murmurs sounded like: "It's him…", "That maniac is there…" and "Is that a Komodo dragon?"
Then, as Megeslav turned his gaze towards the bird, his eyes widened with both anger and hatred.
"Skarsnik…" Megeslav said, whilst a few others around him looked at Megeslav when he said that.
The giant lizard Gobbla snarled at the 4 tribes.
Skarsnik then spoke.
"Well, boys and girls… would ya'll take a look at this." Skarsnik spoke in a very sadistic, high-pitched and hooligan-like way.
Skarsnik: "It looks like our old enemies, the Azuls, have survived the flood like we did. And it looks like they made some allies."
"And some of those allies are even older enemies of yours, Skarsnik." A voice said.
"Who said that?" Skarsnik asked.
Then, out of the crowd came Sapphire, Mia, Arturo, Eduardo, Blu, Jewel, Thomas, Jasmine, Roberto, Andor, Amalia and Willfried.
When seeing Sapphire, Skarsnik looked a bit stunned, but then spoke up.
"Well, well, well, boys and girls. Look who has decided to come back the dead and taunt us. It's Sapphire." Skarsnik said in a taunting way.
Sapphire's eyes narrowed at Skarsnik.
"And it looks like, old Mia and Arturo seemed to have said death to back off as well." Skrasnik said. "Did ya'll eat too well to survive, Sapphie?"
"Don't you dare call my wife that, you maniac!" Eduardo yelled.
There was a lot of murmur amongst the Emberwings and even Skarsnik's eyes widened.
"Wife?" Skarsnik asked. "Are you her husband?"
Eduardo (angry): "Yes, and lay a wing on her and you're going to regret it!"
Skarsnik chuckled evilly and said: "Well, this is gotten more interesting. More toys to play with."
This was something that outraged Jewel and she angrily said: "You're not fit to speak my mother's name and to talk to my father."
"Oh." Skarsnik said. "You must be Sapphire's daughter I heard about."
"Heh. Thought that you'd be dead." Skarsnik said in an evil sarcastic way.
"DON'T EVER SPEAK TO MY WIFE LIKE THAT, YOU ORANGE MANIAC, OR I'LL TEAR YOU APART!" Blu yelled at the top of his lungs, whilst Jewel and Jasmine were holding him back with all their might.
"Wife?" Skarnsik said to himself. Then, however, he saw Bia, Carla and Tiago coming to aid their mother and aunt in helping to calm their dad.
"Don't let him get into you, dad!" Carla said.
"Yeah, it's what he wants." Tiago said.
"So…" Skarnsnik said evilly. "…you two even have kids… That makes things more interesting…"
"THERE IS ONLY ONE BIRD YOU'RE GONNA FACE HERE, SKARSNIK, AND THAT BIRD IS GONNA BE ME!" a Russian voice yelled out of the crowd.
Skarsnik frowned and then he saw a military macaw coming out of the crowd of Azuls, spix macaws and scarlets.
"It can't be…" Skarsnik said dumbfounded as he watched Megeslav come to the front of the crowd.
"And if you or that lizard of yours dare to claim the life of just one innocent chick, I'll be the one that tears you apart, limb from limb…" Megeslav said in a dark voice.
"Well." Skarsnik said. "This just gotten even more interesting… Megeslav, my old nemesis."
The two stared at each other for about 10 seconds, before Skarsnik broke the silence.
"So, Meg, how's your daughters?" Skarsnik asked darkly.
"You have the nerve to mention them?" Megeslav said back darkly.
"Yeah." Carla said. "What you have done to his daughters is unforgivable!"
"Totally!" Bia said with frowned eyes.
Skarsnik took a closer look at Bia and Carla and said: "Well, they are like blue miniature versions of your daughters, Meg. Perhaps you all don't mind if I play with them too?"
Blu gasped and Jewel took Bia and Carla into her wings, frowning at Skarsnik.
"If you lay a wing or talon at these two girls, Skarsnik, I swear I will make your death slow and painful." Megeslav said to his archenemy.
At that point, Gobbla snarled and made a hiss towards the crowd, making many birds back away with some fear, but certainly not Megeslav.
"Patience, Gobbla." Skarsnik said, whilst patting his pet Komodo dragon. "Soon, you'll get yer belly filled with many birds."
"If that lizard wants to eat other birds, then it will first have to get through me." Megeslav said.
"Ah…" Skarsnik said. "Your will to fight me takes me back to old times in Peru, Meg. And when we came here, it was that bloodthirsty Svaken named Queek whom I had the biggest rivalry with. He had plans to take my head and place it on top of his head trophies."
This was something many birds (except the Azuls) did not expect Skarsnik to say, did the leader of the red-eyed rats really want to take Skarsnik's head so badly?
"Well, Skarsnik, consider that those Svaken Thomas and Jasmine told us about aren't any of your concerns anymore, and neither is it for us. The only concern for you, Skarsnik… is me." Megeslav said.
"Tell me something, Meg." Skarsnik said evily. "Are you truly so eager to die?"
Megeslav said nothing and kept staring at Skarsnik.
"Are you so eager to join your wife and daughters, whom you both failed?" Skarsnik asked.
Failed, failed, failed where the words that echoed through Megeslav's brain.
With a sudden shriek of madness and anger, Megeslav dashed towards Skarsnik and Gobbla.
"Wait, Meg!" Sapphire yelled, but to no avail, the military macaw was already charging at full speed towards the Emberwing warlord and his lizard mount.
Skarsnik smiled evilly at the angry charging military macaw, readying Gobbla to charge towards him.
As Megeslav now was really close to them, Skarsnik yelled and Gobbla stood on his hind legs, ready to smack Megeslav with his talons.
That also came to pass, as Gobbla smashed the military macaw with his right paw, smashing him back and onto the ground.
All the Azuls, spix macaws and scarlets gasped.
"ATTACK THEM!" Andor yelled with his feather tip pointed towards the Emberwings.
The Azuls let out a loud roar and charged towards the Emberwings, followed by the other spix macaws and the red macaws.
The second phase of the battle erupted with even more ferocity than the first. The Azuls, spix macaws, and scarlet macaws charged into the Emberwing line, pushing forward with all their might. Above the plaza, the sky was a chaotic swirl of wings and feathers, with birds diving and weaving in a deadly dance of combat.
Blu and Jewel fought side by side, their bond giving them an almost telepathic connection in battle. Jewel darted forward, delivering a swift kick to an Emberwing that was closing in on Blu's blind side.
"Thanks, Jewel!" Blu shouted, flipping mid-air to strike another Emberwing that tried to blindside Jewel.
"We've got this, Blu! Just stay close!" Jewel responded, her eyes fierce with determination.
Nearby, Roberto and Jasmine were a whirlwind of motion. Jasmine's agility and Roberto's brute strength made them an unstoppable pair. Roberto slammed an Emberwing into the ground, while Jasmine delivered a precise strike that knocked another out of the sky.
"Nice move, Jasmine!" Roberto shouted, impressed.
"Focus, Roberto! We're not done yet!" Jasmine replied, her voice carrying a mix of determination and a hint of affection.
On the ground, Thomas and Willfried fought side by side, their movements synchronized as they kept the Emberwings from advancing further into the plaza. Thomas delivered a crushing blow to an Emberwing's wing, while Willfried knocked another off balance with a powerful sweep of his tail.
"Keep them back! Don't let them get past us!" Willfried commanded, his voice filled with authority.
"We won't let them through!" Thomas responded, his focus razor-sharp.
Andor and Amalia were a sight to behold. Their years of experience in battle were evident as they took down Emberwings with precise, calculated strikes. Their children, Henrik, Astrid, and Bruno, fought nearby, proving that they had inherited their parents' fighting spirit.
"Stay together! Don't let them separate us!" Andor called out to his children.
"We've got your back, Dad!" Henrik responded, dodging an Emberwing's attack and countering with a swift kick.
In the midst of the battle, Tiago and Skye worked as a seamless team. Skye provided cover while Tiago took advantage of openings to strike. Their coordination was flawless, and their bond grew stronger with each successful takedown.
"Nice work, Tiago! We're unstoppable!" Skye cheered as they downed another Emberwing.
"Couldn't do it without you, Skye!" Tiago grinned, his confidence bolstered by her support.
Bia and her boyfriend Miguel fought close to the front lines, their love for each other evident in how they protected one another. They both used their intelligence and partly strength to form a formidable pair.
"Watch your left, Miguel!" Bia warned, striking down an Emberwing that tried to blindside him.
"Thanks, Bia! Let's keep pushing them back!" Miguel replied, his voice filled with resolve.
Carla and Renaldo, fighting together, matched the intensity of the battle around them. They were relentless, their movements in sync as they took down any Emberwing that dared come near them.
"We're not letting them through, Renaldo!" Carla shouted, delivering a powerful strike.
"Not a chance, Carla! We've got this!" Renaldo responded, matching her intensity.
Felipe, Mia, and Arturo led their respective groups with a fierce determination. They coordinated the efforts of the scarlet macaws, ensuring that the Emberwings were pushed back with every passing moment.
"Keep up the pressure! They're starting to fall back!" Felipe called out, his voice carrying over the chaos.
"We've got them on the ropes! Don't let up!" Mia added, her focus unwavering.
Eduardo, Sapphire, and Mimi fought with the wisdom and experience that only years of survival could bring. They moved together as a unit, taking down Emberwings with a combination of strength and strategy.
"Stay close, Mimi! We've faced worse than this before!" Eduardo said, delivering a powerful strike to an Emberwing.
"I'm right with you, Eddie! Let's show these orange demons what we're made of!" Mimi responded, her voice filled with determination.
Rafael, Nico, and Pedro used their agility and speed to their advantage, darting through the battlefield and providing crucial support to the main fighting force. They distracted and outmaneuvered the Emberwings, allowing the larger macaws to strike decisive blows. Nico sometimes even used his bottle cap as a boomerang and hit it in many eyes of the Emberwings, thus making them drop their guard.
"Keep moving, guys! Don't let them pin us down!" Rafael called out, his wings beating rapidly as he dodged an attack.
"Got it, Rafi! Let's keep them guessing!" Nico replied, flying in close to provide cover for Pedro.
The Emberwing numbers began to dwindle as more of their forces were taken down. Gobbla, the giant lizard, smashed his tail against the ground, sending shockwaves through the plaza and causing several birds to scatter. But despite its ferocity, Gobbla found himself unable to land a fatal blow on any of the Azuls, Spix macaws, or Scarlet macaws.
Then, as the battle raged on, Megeslav and Skarsnik finally came face to face once more. Skarsnik, seeing his forces faltering, lunged at Megeslav with a snarl, his sharp stick poised to strike. But Megeslav was ready. He dodged the attack and countered with a powerful blow that sent Skarsnik reeling.
"Your time is up, Skarsnik!" Megeslav roared, driving Skarsnik back with a flurry of strikes.
Skarsnik stumbled, his breath ragged as he struggled to keep up with Megeslav's relentless assault. Finally, with a decisive strike, Megeslav disarmed Skarsnik, sending his sharp stick flying across the plaza.
"It ends now," Megeslav growled, standing over his fallen nemesis, ready to deliver the final blow.
But just as he raised the weapon, a piercing scream cut through the air. Megeslav's eyes darted toward the sound, and his heart froze. Bia and Carla were caught in Gobbla's massive claws, the lizard's jaws opening wide, ready to devour them.
"NO!" Blu and Jewel screamed in unison, their voices filled with terror as they desperately tried to reach their daughters.
Megeslav's eyes widened, and without a second thought, he dropped the stick and rushed toward Gobbla. He grabbed the sharp stick and with all his might, drove it into Gobbla's left front paw. The lizard let out a deafening roar of pain, releasing Bia and Carla as it retreated back toward Peak 7.
The Emberwings, seeing their leader's mount wounded and their numbers rapidly declining, began to falter. Skarsnik, clutching his wounded side, snarled in fury. With a quick, vicious movement, he struck Megeslav in the back, reclaiming his stick before retreating.
"This is far from over!" Skarsnik hissed, his voice dripping with malice as he led the remaining Emberwings back toward Peak 7.
As the Emberwings retreated, the battlefield fell silent, save for the labored breathing of the victorious Azuls, Spix macaws, and scarlet macaws. After some more heavy breathing, all the birds let out a victorious roar. The battle had been won, but the war was far from over. Megeslav, still reeling from Skarsnik's parting blow, looked up at the retreating Emberwings with a mixture of relief and determination. He knew that this victory was just the beginning.
To be continued…