Chapter 177: The Last Hawk(2)

"You must be Tam, famed Warrior of Ursten, The Last Hawk. I have heard murmurs of your recent conquests, surely those were more than enough to satisfy a lifetime of war? Why have you turned your gaze on my Empire?" The Emperor's soft voice sounded out toward Tam, who hovered in the air next to Anteris, who currently held his hand against the raw wound in his shoulder, stemming the blood that flowed from the wound.

"One as powerful as yourself should understand, we cannot truly advance to the realm beyond with the knowledge and mana of the Isle. I seek to unify the nations of the Isle, so that I may lead an expedition through the Fidour Mountains." Tam was open about his intentions, the intentions of the Ursten army behind him were clear, and he knew that out of anyone he had to face, the Emperor would understand.

"A simple message urging cooperation would have sufficed, would it not? But in your greed for power you have set the entire Isle ablaze in the flames of war, first you ravaged the lands to the north, and then my vassals, and now you point your sword at my capital!" The Emperor's tone hardened, and once again, he took up his sword and pointed it at Tam.

"Come now, surely you don't believe the drivel you spew from your mouth. What nation would truly send their most powerful on a mission with those from other nations, not when there exists a chance to betray and through that, conquer?" Tam's reply was cutting, and he raised his sword in answer to the Emperor's.

Both men, though their eyes were hidden behind their helms, gazed fiercely at each other, and their gazes could melt clean through steel. 

"Anteris, begin the assault." Tam said coolly to the hovering Anteris next to him. He knew that any Advanced level enemies remaining at the capital would surely have emerged by now, and that the threat that Anteris would pose below would surely turn the Emperor's attention below. 

Some might call it a decision without honor, but the truth of the matter was, in war, the victors were those who told the tales, and so in turn, were the honorable ones.

Now, the figure with flaming wings descended down to the flagship, as the light radiating from the two figures remaining in the sky suddenly brightened.

The hawk wings that were on either side of Tam flapped furiously, creating enormous gusts of wind that buffeted the Emperor, causing him to struggle to stay aloft, as Tam rose up, higher and higher.

Within moments, Tam was high up above the Emperor, flying between the Emperor and the sun, so that the Emperor, who was so used to opponents struggling to see against his blinding attacks, was forced to stare up into the sunlight beaming down around Tam.

The light around the Emperor grew in intensity as he furiously channeled his mana in anticipation of an attack from Tam, this time, his sword was raised diagonally above his shoulder, it seemed that he intended to attack with slashes rather than stabs.

But his preparations to attack were in vain, for even as he flew upwards, the Emperor, who was so used to having the advantage when it came to speed, was caught ill prepared as Tam folded his wings in, his steep dive downward accelerated by gravity.

Only the most perceptive of those watching were able to see what happened in the moments that followed.

Tam aura was completely focused on his curved blade, for as he dove, he had barely any use for his wings, completely surrendering to gravity, so confident in his attack.

The curved blade slashed out as Tam dove past the Emperor, who desperately struck out with his glowing sword, only succeeding in blocking a portion of the slash, sending him spinning uncontrollably through the air as the attack slammed into his armor.

As the hawk clashed with the angelic figure above, the black ships rapidly advanced, all men back at the oars, ignoring the battle occurring upward.

"Load the ballistas!" Anteris yelled out into the device in his hands, seated on a crate as a few of his men helped remove his armor and tended to the wound he had received.

All across the ships, in unison, rune enchanted bolts were loaded into the massive crossbows that had been mounted aboard the decks of the ships.

"Aim for the boom chain towers! We'll have our men come aboard at either side of the harbor, they'll expect us to come into the harbor!" Anteris bellowed into the device, still fuming from his defeat at the hands of the Emperor.

"Ready to fire!"

"Ready!"

"Ballista primed!"

Numerous cries of acknowledgement echoed out from the device and Anteris waited until the very last ship had checked in.

"Fire at my command! Five, four, three, two, one. Fire!' Anteris bellowed out so loudly that the neighboring ships heard him even without the device he was yelling into so furiously.

There were a series of loud twangs across the fleet, and a rain of enchanted bolts flew through the air, the runes activated as they were fired.

Some bolts burst into flame, while others became covered with frost and turned into icicles, some even sparked with lightning, they were enchanted with a variety of elements, so open barrage would never be the same, keeping the opposing mages on their toes.

With their Emperor locked in combat with the hawk above, the palace guards were ill prepared for the barrage, and the bolts rained down onto the paired boom chain towers at either side of the harbor's entrance.

Screams of terror sounded out as the enchanted bolts slammed into the large squared off yellow stones that made up the short, squat towers, the men and women within fled, streaming out of the towers as they collapsed, without resistance, under the barrage.

"Men and Women of Aznur! To arms!" A deep voice bellowed out as he saw the pandemonium unfolding. Captain Jeremiah had come to his senses, and he put all the strength he could muster into his voice, to rouse the spirits of the fleeing Imperial soldiers.

While the towers collapsed, the Emperor was struggling to recover from the blow he had been dealt by Tam, his armor filled with cracks, his wings beat in a flurry, slowing his fall toward the ocean below.

As for Tam, he had spread his wings again, curving up out of the steep dive, flying upward once again, readying himself for a second assault on the Emperor.