202 Descent Into Darkness VII : Alpha Wolves, Hope For The Future

The three Alpha wolves came charging for Soren, coming from around the corner with such ferocity that they knocked over the common monster wolves, and a couple of vampires fighting who were unable to get out of the way on time. There was a steak of lightening, and one of the wolves stumbled, it's left fore paw was completely sliced off, and the wound cauterized by the lightening used in doing so.

Soren was no bigger than a normal lion, he was maybe a bit broader and more muscled, but considering he was made of a polymorphic metal created with nanotech, I don't think a normal lion would be able to compare. He took the challenge, and shot towards one of the wolves, pushing of his hind legs as he aimed for it's jugular vein. The wolf actually shifted a bit, showing a surprising amount of intelligence as opposed to other monsters we've been fighting. Soren slammed into it's chest instead, and with how huge the wolf was, it was like watching a child fight a larger than normal adult. But even then, Soren had enough power to actually push the wolf off it's paws, as they scrambled over each other, scratching, biting, snarling and moving around like true animals in a fight.

The final alpha wolf was about to interfere with their fight, probably making it a two on one fight, but I turned and threw my sword straight at it's head. And in a shocking display of skills and magic, a golden barrier sprung to life in front of the wolf and deflected my sword to the side. My eyebrows went so far up,that they disappeared Into my hair.

It's not that I didn't expect the monsters to have skills, and be able to use magic, but a wolf with a defensive skill was not what I expected. I activated my armor, and stretched my hand, calling my sword back to me. Then I raised it up, letting myself feel every inch of the blade, its hilt, its groove, and it's blue stained edge. The sword vibrated, causing a disturbance of wind around me.

The wolf looked a little apprehensive, as it contemplated whether or not to attack me. But it wouldn't matter anyway. As far as using swords go, I'm a brute. I have a enough brute strength not to worry about the intricacies of sword wielding, and the refined power behind it. And I'll probably won't be able to properly reach the peak of swordsmanship for a very long ass time. But I was a master of it, of it's essence, of the laws it embodied. I am the sword.

I opened my eyes, and let my sword fall, given a casual swing towards the wolf. At first there was no explosion or show of light. All I felt was an invisible air ripple, fly past the wolf and up the hill into the crowd of monsters still approaching. I felt mentally drained for some reason, but I don't think the wolf would be feeling any better than I was. A line of blood showed up in the middle of it's forehead, and seconds later like the red sea, both halves of the wolf fell to the ground. And the monsters behind it, going back almost fifteen meters, suffered the same fate as they were torn in half, the cut seamless and smooth.

I don't know what that attack was, but I had used it once before, reshaping the lake on the first floor of the dungeon in the process. It was like I made the sword bigger, sharper, longer and more lethal, just by being one with it. It was weird, and it left me with a strange headache. If not for the sake of showing off, or using it as a sure hit kill move, I don't think there should be a reason to use it regularly. Let it be my secret trump card.

There was a sharp Snarl to my left, and I watched as Soren scaled the back of the wolf, moving nimbly as his opponent's bucked and slammed it's body against the canyon wall in an attempt to throw him off. But Soren latched on tight, his powerful claws digging furrows in the fur and skin of the wolf, eliciting painful howls and growls. Then with a sharp movement, Soren's massive jaw latched onto the neck of the wolf, the howl of pain it released was so powerful I felt my eardrums vibrate in protest.

And then something else started happening,the point where Soren had bitten the wolf, began to corrode at an extremely fast pace, spreading throughout it's whole body as it's blood turned black and acidic within it's own body. I was shocked by that display, but I recognized it none the less. That's exactly what would happen if a person is grabbed, touched, or bitten by a Sanguine curse bat. A monster I have in my dungeon, a dungeon that Soren used to run for me. In summary, it seems Soren can now use the skills of the monsters in the dungeon, and to great effect too.

As soon as the final alpha werewolf died, with Queen already electrocuting her's to death. The remaining monsters gave ear piercing howls, that was returned by and even deeper howl farther down the canyon pass. The canyon shifted, twisted and finally rose up to become a more level ground and a somewhat straight path that curved into a bend seventy meters away from us. The monsters turned, and took to their heels retreating, probably heading back to location of that huge howl to regroup and prepare for one final assault. We've done good, but whatever it is we've done so far, I couldn't shake the feeling we're about to deal with something messy. We cleaned the battlefield up as best as we could, then we all got back into formation, and marched towards the sounds, preparing ourselves for what's to come.

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THE BLUE DISTRICT

ETHERNALIA LEONIS

ASHA YSMIR LEONA COR

The halls of the academy was empty, but there was still a trace of warmth coming from it's walls. At first starting a school just to keep the children busy, while their parents were working, was what I wanted to do. It would give me a chance to be busy, and to connect with the vampires, give them a true reason to serve Kael and looking beyond the oath they had taken. It was a plot in and out of itself, to get to the parents, you had to get to the children.

But Everything changed. I'm not always so sure of my decisions, neither was I perfect as a person. Being the dean of this academy in the short time that it has been built had taught me that, my life, my duty and responsibility, now went beyond trying to keep the man and the woman I love safe. Or preparing a safe haven for my babies, so that they could go grow up protected. I was the first lady of the blue district, the first Mistress of the Cor family. All of this titles has made me, more than just Asha the wife and protector of Kael Cor...…I had become Asha. The mother and protector of Ethernalia Leonis, the Cor family, and everything it stood for. And today we would be taking a very important step.

I made my way out the front door, standing in front of me where the gathered students of the academy, and their parents, well those of them who are around anyway. It might have been better to have done this when everybody was back at home, but this was a time when the people here needed to have something more hopeful and pure to look forward to. A beacon to shine in the dark so that they don't loose sight of what they're fighting for.

"My people, my family and my children. There's nothing auspicious or special about today. But by choice I've decided to make it special, to give a gift to my children, because of how hard they have worked and learnt, as their parents toiled for the future. We have all been through tough times, we've lost loved ones and cried tears of blood; as even with our freedom, the world still refused to leave us alone, so that we can grow in peace. But what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger, and I believe we have gotten stronger! I once heard someone say forget about the past, live for today, and let tomorrow take care of itself. But that's not how we do things here, here! We learn from our past, live today to the fullest and the best of our abilities, and prepare tomorrow for our children! Because the future! Our future! Belongs to them. And it's up to us to make sure that they're molded, forged and taught the best values possible to make that future good for them, and to make them strong enough to protect their future. So it is in that regard I want to reopen and rename this building behind us, that's known as the academy. It has become so much more than what it originally was, and it would be good to give it true power, power to change futures. Ladies and gentlemen, vampires, gnomes, dwarves and members of other races who're a part of this great city. Today I give you The Equinox Academy Of Higher Learning! The gateway to our future!"