Chapter 89: The Fall Part 1

Chapter 89: The Fall Part 1

“Times up.” I said as I looked at the city before me.

“Excellent, you want to make the final announcement?” Cecilia asked as she got off her velvet couch and the servants with fans and plates of food stepped back with bows.

I turned to Cecilia as she channeled power into her hands, her hands glowed blue as arcane energy sparked off.

Mahaila had been giving her magic lessons so she was now far more powerful. As a Heir of the Firstborn she can devour the essence of others to gain power but she hasn’t needed to devour anything just yet. If you would compare someone’s ether potential to a cup, filling it isn’t difficult, making it bigger is the tough part. Basically at the moment Cecilia hasn’t reached her natural potential which is apparently very normal. Heirs were naturally very powerful for humanoids, to give a little context, apparently the first humanoids the Watchers were all Heirs. It had something to do with how my predecessors created the Watchers. So since the Watchers made all other humanoids based on themselves, apparently this heir stuff is some kind of recessive gene that was passed down from the Watchers.

“I look forward to actually trying out my new tricks.” Cecilia said as a wide grin as her hands sparked.

“Well it would leave an impression.” I replied as I spread my wings and sent a mental signal to my modified fliers and the phoenixes. I have made sure to keep my phoenixes hidden, they have had only one major engagement and that was at Beralis. So Tralis has no idea my phoenixes exist.

One last push for surrender, with little grandiose intimidation. I took off into the air right as I heard the horns being blown from the human army. I could immediately sense the ripple of fear across the walls.

I flew high up into the sky and as I did so I saw my flyers and the phoenixes descend out of the thick clouds. I could hear screaming from below in the city, kind of shocking huh? Seeing a dozen phoenixes in the air above them. That’s right, the phoenix the jewel of the Elysian empire. The power that made the Volerians stay the hell out of Elysia all those millennia ago. The Elysians only had the red fire phoenixes and Azatharine is a white fire phoenix born in the final stages of the age of the firstborn.

Now then time to send my message, I ordered the flyers to descend. They were basically giant flying megaphones that were designed to send a message to a besieged population. They proved quite useful throughout this campaign with them shouting demands at the entrenched cities. They were especially useful as a final warning, like a “surrender now or die” kind of deal.

So now without further ado, the message...

Attention slaves of the false king

This is your final offer to surrender, you have ten minutes to open the gates

If the gates are not opened I will open it myself

If you wish to surrender remove yourself from the walls or be incinerated

My children will not strike any unarmed man, women or child

If you are armed, then my children will feast

Well that’s about as clear as I can make it. Now let’s see what they will do...

The plan is pretty obvious honestly. I knew they were going to burn the slums and the south town beyond the walls. I don’t really mind, that’s on them. When we win, we can just pin it all on them. The people will be more willing to work with those that rebuild the city rather than those that attempted to burn it down.

Mahaila has been giving us some great intelligence. Cecilia placed a small force at the south side just to make them actually burn the slums. The thing is a firewall keeps us out, well not really my hive can burrow, it just keeps the humans out. But what it does do is keep them in. They are basically building a cage and removing a path of escape.

Still something about this plan bothered me. Yes it can be construed as a group of corrupt nobles doing everything they can to stay in power, even if it means burning the world around them to the ground. But yet something about this defense plan seemed like there was an invisible hand. Perhaps it’s paranoia or intuition but the feeling was there.

An invisible hand is not just a conspiracy theory either. The book I got early on was from my “Friend down under.” who was named A. It’s definitely not Australia and there are some demons with names that start with A. There was Asmodeus the Demon Prince of Lust, Astaroth of the Ars Goetia who are this kind of Demonic Nobility, Alastor the Archdemon who serves the Demon Prince of Greed Mammon and maybe Azazel the traitor angel.

“ABOVE US!” Jolin heard someone shout.

Jolin looked up to see the golden feathered Great Beast diving towards them.

“GET READY!” the officer screamed as Jolin felt all the soldiers around him stiffen in fear.

To his surprise he saw the Great Beast spread his wings and slow down before hovering right in front of the wall and gate. The whole wall stiffened as they gazed mutely at the Great Beast who was just hovering in the air, its wing’s were not flapping. They were just extended and glowing, as if some magic was keeping its massive frame airborne.

“So you going to open this gate?” the Great Beast asked with a fanged smile.

The soldiers around Jolin were dead silent as they gazed fearfully at the Great Beast. Jolin could feel his bowels about to give way as he gazed at this monster. Its mouth was filled with fangs the size of swords. It had no eyes but the soldiers could definitely feel its gaze.

“Knock knock...” the Great Beast said mirth in his voice as he tapped on the barrier with one of its scythe-like blades. The barrier sparked and Jolin could see the barrier shocking the Great Beast but it didn’t seem to care.

“Alright, fine...” the Great Beast said as it brandished its claws and they began to glow purple and it stabbed it into the barrier going clean through. Jolin could see the cracks in the barrier as it sparked and crackled trying to expel the foreign object.

“I guess I have to help myself then.” the Great Beast said with a laugh as its body glowed. Jolin saw the barrier crackle then he saw wisps of light start flowing from the barrier, towards the claws that were embedded in the barrier and then the same blue glow of the barrier traveled up the Great Beast’s arm.

“What?” Jolin sputtered as he watched in confusion.

“SHOOT IT!” one of the officers shouted and Jolin instinctively raised his crossbow.

Jolin fired his crossbow and he saw his bolt join a volley. But the volley of crossbow bolts and arrows clattered harmlessly off the Great Beast’s hide.

The Great Beast just let out a loud booming laugh as the blue glow started to flood into the Great Beast’s body.

“You know all of you were sent here to die right? After all if that wasn’t the case, where are the mages?” the Great Beast said and Jolin felt a sinking feeling in his chest.

“ALL OF YOU NEED TO GET OFF THIS WALL!” Jolin suddenly heard a shout from behind him. He turned to see an adventurer rogue shouting at one of the officers. Jolin could see his eyes glowing and a silver plate around his neck, showing he was a silver rank adventurer.

“THE BEAST IS...” the rogue began but then the whole wall shook violently.

Jolin staggered and when he faced forward again his eyes widened as he saw the barrier flicker and vanish. Jolin cast his gaze to the rest of the wall and saw the barrier collapsing across the entire wall.

“Draining the enchantments on the wall...” the rogue muttered from behind Jolin.

“That I am, human enchantments, so brittle, so easily overcome.” the Great Beast said it’s body now glowing blue from the power of the walls.

It was then that reality finally truly hit Jolin. He was going to die on this wall...

“Now then.” the Great Beast said as Jolin saw the inside of its mouth glow with power.

Can I interest all of you in an express ticket into the next life?