Broken Chains

Looking death in the eyes, Puck was surprised when it didn’t come. The feline, moments ago still a limp body on the ground, suddenly got up again, growling.

At first, thinking it had been possessed again, Puck was surprised as it only inspected him with a swift gaze before turning to the approaching monster horde with a look full of hatred.

Soon Puck understood though.

This creature wouldn’t fight for him, Puck. Why would it? It held no allegiance to him or anyone else. No, it wouldn’t fight for Puck. Who it would fight for, though, was itself. And what it wanted more than anything else was revenge on the being that had captured it for so long.

Flexing its back legs and readying its stinger, the feline hissed with dozens of small snake mouths before flinging itself forward.

Bringing her axes down for the final time, Scarlet cut through the innermost parts of the chest of the titanic monstrosity she was standing on.

Finally, with one last twitch, the creature went still.

Jumping down from the butchered mound of flesh, Scarlet felt her entire body ache. More than once, the creature had managed to hit her, and each time had felt like being struck by an avalanche. Additionally, overusing her bloodline in such a direct manner put immense strain on her body.

Deciding not to turn her head and look for Puck, Scarlet knew that the best thing for both of them would be if she eliminated the heart as quickly as possible. Any second in which the heart was allowed to remain unchecked increased the danger manyfold.

Burning with the fuel of her bloodline, Scarlet shot towards the heart like a bullet. In a matter of seconds, barriers sprang up to delay her, but each one was shattered by her with a single swing of her axes.

The moment Scarlet reached the pillar the heart was embedded in, the heart made its final move. Suddenly, glowing red cracks sprang up all over the heart and its pillar, testifying to the immense cost of the heart’s final card.

Slowly, a dark crack in space was forming in the air above Scarlet, opening the way to a place far away. Through the portal, an immense aura of dread and danger fell as the aura promised the doom that would arrive to consume them all, it would...

With a sound like shattering glass, the portal suddenly stopped forming and instead started to recede, accompanied by a hateful scream from the creature beyond.

The heart, previously covered in cracks but still alive, now had an axe embedded in its middle, signifying its recent demise.

Instantly, the heartbeat that had shaken everything up to this moment stopped, and an eerie silence set in. Not for long, though. As the heart died, its body began to wither, and since the heart had been part of the whole cavern and ice around them, its demise would have unknown consequences.

Jumping upwards on groggy legs, Scarlet struggled for some time with pulling out her axes from the now solidified heart before she finally managed it and fell down again. In that time, the tendrils of darkness that had held the ceiling up had deteriorated to an alarming degree, and everything began to rumble once more as the silence faded.

Jogging over towards Puck's still unmoving form, Scarlet feared the worst. Reaching for his pulse, Scarlet confirmed that he was still alive, but just barely. Picking him up as carefully as possible, Scarlet began moving towards the exit they had entered through as fast as she could.

Hearing a hissing sound behind her, Scarlet twirled around to see a heavily bloodied but still alive abomination. Why was it still there? These creatures should all have breathed out their unholy life the moment the heart was shattered.

Readying herself to defend, Scarlet was surprised as the abomination hissed one final time before rushing towards another exit of the great cavern.

Deciding to ignore the issue for the time being and do the same, Scarlet made her way to the entrance they had come from. But as she eyed the ceiling and the spiraling cracks above, Scarlet knew she wouldn’t make it in time, they would need to find another way out, where the ceiling would hold longer.

Going through her options, Scarlet finally settled on the one with the highest chance of success. Turning around, she followed the feline abomination towards the entrance it was heading to.

Seeing the cracks above spread ever faster, Scarlet knew it would be close. Trying to ignite her bloodline more thoroughly again, Scarlet felt like the roaring bonfire from before had reduced to a small flickering flame, but it was helping, she was speeding up again.

Soon, the first icy stalactites were shaking loose from the ceiling and impacting the ground with terrifying force. With each second, the impacts came closer, and Scarlet gave it her all to avoid the raining debris.

Throwing herself out of the cavern in the last moment before a full collapse, Scarlet knew they weren’t safe yet. The remaining beast was waiting, and a collapse like this could have effects beyond the immediate surroundings.

Worst of all, Scarlet didn’t know in which direction the tunnel they had entered now would lead.

Pushing all those less immediate issues away for the time being, Scarlet tried to listen for Puck’s breathing as she searched for a temporary safe haven, but soon she had to concede that her eardrums were too damaged for the task.

Finally finding a slightly protected alcove, Scarlet immediately sat down and started pushing healing energy into Puck. That was one of her advantages over people using their ideals in battle, she still had her reserves topped up even after a great battle like this.

Sadly, she herself was hurt too, and every cell of her body was worn out from the overuse of her bloodline. In addition to the healing, Scarlet would also need to stay alert for danger.

This would be a few hours of hard work.