Holy War (4)
Friga lifted her axe and grinned as the enraged Frost Dragon's roar thundered across the clearing.
——————!!!
Boom—! Boom—! Boom—!
Its overwhelming bulk shook the earth as it charged the small girl, blue flames whipping madly around its body as if determined to finish her this time. Razor-sharp bone claws rose high into the sky—
—and crashed down without mercy.
KRAAAASH!
The ground split open. Thick clouds of dirt and dust billowed up, swallowing the world in an instant. Pure, crushing violence.
"...C-Commander?"
A trembling voice broke the sudden quiet of the clearing.
—Tap-tap-tap!
Light footsteps cut through the dust. Friga burst free of the cloud, soaring upward. Wind runes blazed beneath her feet, blessing her leap.
"Hyaaah!"
She shot high through the dust, axe raised overhead, the blade roaring with golden heat haze.
—KRAAAASH!
The blow slammed into the Frost Dragon's chest. One of the mysterious characters carved into Friga's axe haft flared brilliant gold.
——————!!!
The dragon staggered back with a scream of pure agony. Friga gave it no room to breathe, surging forward at once.
As she kicked off the ground, the Frost Dragon unleashed a searing blast of flame.
—WHOOOOSH!!
"Kh—!"
Too close to dodge. Friga squeezed her eyes shut against the onrushing fire. A hair's breadth from death.
Yet no matter how long she waited, the scorching breath never touched her. She carefully opened her eyes.
A broad back filled her vision.
—KRAAAASH!
"Urgh...! Kh, my lady... are you unharmed...?"
"Commander...?"
Commander David had somehow reached her, massive shield raised, planting himself between Friga and the dragon. Alone, he stood against the ancient beast's breath.
Sizzle—
The heat seared his hair and clawed into his lungs. He gripped the trembling shield tighter.
"Nngh!"
But the shield, already half-melted from the previous breath, was losing its shape. The relentless flames forced his knees closer and closer to the earth.
—Clang!
He cast aside the completely melted shield and began blocking the fire with his bare body.
"Ghhhk!!"
David wrapped himself around Friga completely. The merciless flames crashed over him. He swallowed agonized groans.
"Hey! Hey! What the hell are you doing?! You're gonna die!!"
"Khrrrk!! Ghhk!!"
The pain was so fierce his clenched teeth cracked and the blood vessels in both eyes burst, flooding them red. His back, shielding Friga, melted under the fire, dark blood and fluids streaming down.
"You—you fucking idiot!! Move! You're really gonna die!!"
Friga shouted from within his arms. She could not understand why he would do this for her.
At last the dragon's breath—endless as it had seemed—ended. Only then did David release her.
"You crazy bastard! You got a death wish or what?! Why the hell would you go that far?!"
Friga caught the commander as he collapsed into her arms and scrambled backward. Werewolves had the holy knights and warriors surrounded; no reinforcements were coming.
She bit down hard on her lip.
Far from the ancient dragon, Friga carefully laid David on the ground, avoiding his melted back.
He forced a smile through the pain.
"My lady... are you all right...? Ghhk!!"
"...You absolute fucking idiot..."
Friga stared at him with trembling eyes. Blisters covered every inch of his skin; pus oozed from the charred wounds.
It had to be agony beyond words, yet David smiled up at her.
"That weapon... kh—! You... you still have something you must do... don't you...?"
"...Yeah."
"Then... you should go..."
He forced the words out and his eyes slid shut. Friga lunged forward in panic.
"Hey! Hey! You can't die! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
Hiss—hiss—
Thankfully, shallow breaths still rasped from him. But the fragile sound could snap at any moment. These wounds would not let him last long.
—Griiiip
Without a word, Friga seized her axe and rose. Her gaze swept the clearing.
Clang—! Shiiing—!
"Hold the line!"
"The Commander's down!! Hurry!!"
"Get the fuck away, you bastards!"
In the distance, holy knights and warriors fought desperately against the werewolves. Between them, Kenis's lips were turning blue as life drained from her.
———...
The Frost Dragon, a hairline crack now running through its breastbone, let out a low rumble and fixed its eyes on Friga. Blue fire flickered at the corners of its maw. Wary of her axe, it kept its distance.
"...Ha!"
A sudden snort of laughter escaped Friga.
What were they fighting for? Why were the holy knights and warriors throwing themselves into battle like this? For whom had Kenis burned her own body?
Why had the commander sacrificed himself to save her?
Friga did not know.
But one thing was certain.
"...Goddamn gods."
She was not fighting for any god. Not for faith. Not for some grand love of humanity.
She raised her axe to protect the family and comrades at her back.
—Griiiip
Calloused hands clenched the haft with crushing force.
She would lose no more family. No more comrades. She gripped the axe.
"I am—!!"
Friga's voice rang across the clearing.
"The rightful heir of Montegras—! Friga Nix—!!"
The cry seemed to shake the entire world.
Everything heard her.
"I raised this axe to protect my family—!!"
"I fight for my comrades—!!"
"Who will fight with me—?!"
Her shout filled the sky.
As if answering that cry, her axe erupted in sacred flame.
—Whoooosh!
Friga gripped the burning axe. From among the warriors, someone shouted back.
"We will! We'll fight with you!"
"For our comrades! For our families!"
"Take up your weapons!"
The holy knights slammed their shields—Clang! Clang!—and roared.
"We—! shall be your shields!"
"For the gods! For all of you!!"
Friga grinned wide and bellowed.
"Then fight! I'll lead the way! Raise your weapons!! Fight!!"
Fwaaaash—!
A vast wave of light exploded outward from Friga. The golden tide that had vanished earlier surged from her once more, flooding the entire clearing.
—Ssssshhh
Where the golden wave touched them, David's and Kenis's faces eased. Friga confirmed it, then locked her eyes forward again.
——————..
The Frost Dragon stroked its cracked breastbone and slowly advanced. Blue fire leaked from the fractured bone—clearly it could not breathe flame for the moment.
Friga adjusted her grip on the axe and charged hard.
Tap-tap—!
The Frost Dragon spread its wings and tried to take to the sky—
—CRACKLE!
—BOOM!!
Blinding lightning crashed down upon its wings.
——————!!!
The rising dragon screamed in agony and slammed back to earth with a heavy thud.
Friga did not miss the opening.
"Hyaaaaah!!"
—KRAASH!!
Her axe blazed as she closed on the fallen dragon.
—Crash!
—KRAASH!!
Twice. Three times. The Dragon Hunter's Axe left afterimages as it smashed into the dragon's bones. Behind Friga, the faint phantom of a dragon hunter appeared.
—CRACKLE-BOOM!
—BOOM!!
Lightning kept falling from the sky, hammering the dragon's wings.
—CRACK!
——————!!!
On the fifth axe blow, the Frost Dragon's breastbone shattered. Five characters now blazed on Friga's axe haft.
The dragon thrashed in agony, flinging Friga away.
"Kh—!"
She leapt back at once, eyes fixed on the glowing characters. Five shining letters. Two empty spaces remained.
Instinct told her she had to fill them all.
—Huuu
Friga steadied her breath. Blue fire poured in streams from the shattered breastbone. Even with a hole through its chest, the beast still stood strong.
...The sword Kenis drove in!
Her gaze locked on the blade still buried in the dragon's skull—still radiating holy fire, still tormenting the creature. That sword would be the turning point of this fight.
Friga watched the dragon's every move, axe clenched tight.
The man painted on the glowing axe seemed to lend her his strength.
——————!!!
The enraged Frost Dragon opened its jaws wide and charged.
Crash—! Crash—! Crash—!
Everything between Friga and the dragon was pulverized beneath that mad rush.
"—Kh!!"
The instant those jaws snapped shut toward her, Friga kicked off the ground and flipped backward in a dazzling leap.
—KRAASH!
The dragon's massive maw slammed into the spot where she had stood a heartbeat earlier. Fangs buried deep in the earth, the beast's movement faltered for a single breath.
Now...!
Friga exploded forward.
Whoooosh—!
Golden heat haze poured from the axe and wrapped around her. The phantom of the dragon hunter guided her path.
—Bwoooom
KRAASH—!!
She smashed the axe into the dragon's skull and used the rebound to twist her waist high into the air.
The sixth character blazed.
"Tsuuaaah!!"
—KRAAAASH!
She spun that raised waist and brought the axe crashing down from above.
The seventh character ignited.
——————!!!
Cracks spiderwebbed across the Frost Dragon's bones. It loosed a howl that sounded almost like a scream.
Huuu— huuu—
Friga stepped back, rough breaths steadying, eyes locked on the dragon. Seven characters shone dazzlingly. She slowly exhaled, feeling the heat haze embrace her.
"Hah!"
Once more she kicked off the earth and charged.
——————!!!
The Frost Dragon bellowed and swept its claws at her in a furious storm. The air itself was shredded as the talons closed in a dense cage around Friga.
...That way!
The dragon hunter's phantom showed her the path—a thread-thin gap.
Slash—!
"Kh—!"
A claw grazed her cheek. Friga gritted her teeth and drove straight at the Frost Dragon.
—KRAASH!
Slash—!
Claws missed her by the thickness of a sheet of paper. Following the dragon hunter's guidance without pause—
Tap—!
She leapt high toward the empty space above the dragon's head.
Below, the sword still jutted from its skull. The key to victory Kenis had forged for her.
Friga raised the axe high overhead. All seven characters blazed. The blade burned with golden heat haze.
"Haaaaaaaaah!!"
—Chiiing
The seven radiant characters rose into the air and drew golden rings along the axe's path. Each time the axe passed through a ring, its power and speed exploded higher.
—KRAAAAAASH!!
After the seventh ring, the axe tore the air itself with a scream.
KRAAAAAASH—!!
Friga's golden-flaming axe slammed down onto the dragon's head—
——————!!! ——————!!!!! ———....
Crack—
The ancient dragon's massive bones—
Crrrack—
split completely apart and shattered.