KING OF BEASTS (Hiatus)

The screams were filling Rivea, and Ares pulled up in alarm. His stomach throbbed as he gasped for air, but he tried to will the pain away. Such a thing didn’t work, of course, but he had tried anyway.

“Stay here,” Lana said as she stepped out of the tent.

Ozar and Ozri both awoke, beginning to cry and wail as they squirmed.

“It’s alright,” Ares said, ushering the pair as he rocked them gently in his arms. “Everything’s okay.” A scream cut through the air once more, causing them to wail louder. “Okay, maybe everything isn’t okay, but…”

Lana returned, the sounds of heavily armoured figures moving around the tent began to echo around. Before she was able to speak, screeching and roaring started to fill Rivea as the screams continued, shouting now adding to the cacophony of sound.

"What's going on?"

"Dragons," Lana said.

"Dragons?" Ares held up his crying children. "Take them."

"What are you doing?" Lana asked.

"Take them, I need to see."

"You need to remain here, protected."

"Lana! I need to see what is happening to my people!" Ares pushed the pair up towards Lana, who stared at him, unsure.

She took them from him and Ares summoned his staff, trying to stand. The pain flared through his gut as he cried out, unable to get up from the blankets.

He turned to a guard that was at the entrance of the tent. "Help me up, damn it! Help me up!" Ares reached out for them.

The guard, without even a speck of alarm, entered and helped his King up doing so as carefully as he could. Ares thumped his thigh, trying to ignore the shooting pain as he stumbled out of the tent to see what madness had taken Rivea.

The light of the morning struck his face, yet a shadow cast over his face for a moment from something else. Over, at the side of the mountain, nestled atop a rock that jutted out, a giant creature stood. Its body was long and thin, covered in red scales from head to tail, like a long snake with wings, a pair of talons at the end of its wings.

A wyvern.

The creature hissed out, wound its head back, and then screeched out. The sound waves covered the air and blasted Rivea with a strangeness, fear filling to the core of most people. The fear tried to set within Ares, but he did not care for it, ignoring whatever numbness it tried to inflict onto his body.

There was screeching and roaring in the distance, Ares quickly glancing over to see a large number of drakes, far larger than the creatures he had seen when climbing the mountain. Their eyes were pure white, feral and mindless. They leapt and tore into the few tents that still remained, others tearing into the wooden homes that families fled from. Soldiers, armed and ready to fight, quickly formed ranks to deal with the beasts.

Mala screamed, spear on hand as she stuck a spear into a drake, though the spear glanced off. Rash and Rala were trying to flee from the drake, though soon its jaws snapped at them, trying to catch one of the catfolk.

A spear tore through its open mouth, causing it to screech and shake, trying to force the spear out of its throat before it crashed into a home and cell against it. Mala turned to see Ares, a hand pointed towards them as he began to summon a sea of spears to rain down onto the drakes.

"Form up! Roaring Tridents, to me!" Ares exclaimed.

Even now he could hear the screaming and crying of various Riveans. Roaring Tridents had formed up nearby, some still cutting their way to Ares.

"Fuck!" Ares cursed, motioned a hand towards other drakes and showering them with spears, skewering them. "Don't worry about me! Save the others! Go!"

Yet the Roaring Tridents remained near him, not leaving their chosen perimeter. Ares grabbed onto the nearest one. "You! Stay with me!" Ares pointed to another. "You as well, with me! The rest of you, go! Damn it, just go!"

The beating of wings cut through the air as the wyvern flew across the air and then crashed down, crashing against a wooden home. The wood have slightly, though it seemed to have hurt the wyvern quite a bit. It turned and snapped it's head towards a soldier, easily crushing them within its mighty jaw.

"Fucking hell…" Ares gasped, watching as the soldier was tossed aside, striking the mountain and painting it red with their blood and guts.

Ares stepped forward, holding onto the Roaring Trident for support. He could barely even remember their name, his mind too focused on the pain and the task ahead. He shot out a spear, which narrowly missed the wyvern, though drew its attention to him.

"Come! Come to me, you fucking bitch!" Ares was barely able to think as his forehead throbbed, almost dropping to a knee as he shot out another spear.

Yet another roar emanated from behind as the familiar form of Asyllia appeared, her feral form allowing her to fly and crash into the wyvern, taking the pair out of sight though Ares could still hear the pair roaring and clashing away from them.

"It is always one thing or another," called a familiar voice. It was King Abdan, who appeared in his heavy armour, blade and shield in hand. "Isn't it so, Ahreez."

"I can't really deny that, Abdan, but man am I glad to see you." Ares tried to stand tall as the Roaring Tridents dispersed, falling upon the nearby drakes which were half contained by the soldiers. Behind Ares were some Phoenix Guard, a group of five, protecting Lana and the twins.

"Where is Runar?" Ares asked.

"Under guard near Torak," a Roaring Trident responded.

Ares tried to recall their name. "Imro, right?" Ares asked. The Roaring Trident nodded. "Ashan?" Ares looked to the other, who nodded. "I need you two to guide us towards Torak," Ares said.

The pair nodded and continued on as Ares shambled with staff in hand. Abdan followed, a pair of his guards appearing. One of them was a familiar face.

"To think we'd fight side by side again so soon," Jiaga said.

"I had only wished it was under better," Ares gasped for air and almost stumbled down, "circumstances."

Lana grabbed onto his shoulder and stepped beside Ares. "Hold onto me," she said, holding both Ozar and Ozri close to her chest. The pair were unconscious though breathing lightly.

Ares held onto her elbow as he was led through Rivea, where a great many people were currently fleeing. The soldiers had reached quickly, keeping most of the drakes at bay. A few drakes had managed to charge beyond the line, but there were enough people with shield and spears beside the Riveans that they could fight the drakes off.

Ares noted that there were a great many rhinofolk who had stepped up to fight, and a few of the buffalofolk had managed to wrestle some of the drakes down, allowing people to surround the drakes to stab them to death.

Arrows whistled through the air and peppered at a few drakes as the Flying Wolves rode by, loosening volley after volley as a few began to lead the peoples to safety.

Ares heard screeching behind them as another wyvern, this one as black as he night, appeared from the heavens.

Ares summoned a spear, but this time he concentrated on the weapon. He winced as he willed the spear to become lightning, feeling the crackling energy within his fingers, before he tossed the lighting forward. The wyvern snaked around the lightning, dodging it deftly as it crashed down near them. It opened its maw to roar, but a figure crashed into it, and just like that it was many metres away.

Saykkera was there, silently beating the ever living days out of the wyvern. With that, Ares turned his attention back to the task at hand when he noted Torak up ahead, axe in hand. Beor was nearby, his great axe carving into another drake, which fell at the bearman's feet.

"Torak!" Ares called out.

Torak caught sight of Ares and nodded as their groups finally converged. Torak had with him two Phoenix Guard, one of whom was holding an unconscious Runar. Ares reached over to pick her up, not caring about what pain throbbed in his stomach.

"Is everyone okay? What happened?"

"We are dealing with the situation at hand," Torak said. "We're fine, mostly. I have sent word for some soldiers, but they won't arrive for some time."

"What of Heria and her Flaming Wolves."

"Gone, with a large number of the wolffolk and hyenafolk. The rest of the hyenafolk are probably dealing with patrols."

"Gone?" Ares asked, his eyes wide. Where had she gone? Why had she gone? That was unlike Heria.

"Gone to deal with the surrounding villages."

"Oh," Ares said, "that was rather quick."

"Finally," Rori said as he appeared, an axe at his side as well as a pair of Marching Blades. "I have been trying to search for you for some time," he said.

"I'm safe enough, what of the others?" Rori looked around. "Safe, but we need to move the pair of you to safety."

"I can fight," Ares urged.

"No," both Rori and Lana said.

"Lana-kin, will you take Ares to safety?" Torak asked.

"I will," she said as she handed the pair of twins to Torak, who accepted them. "You will need to come as well, I am unable to control my husband by myself."

Torak nodded. "Will you deal with the threat at hand, Consul?"

"I will do so. The elite guards you possess will remain with you, it will ease the civilians to know that they are so close to them. Now quickly, please go."

"What of us?" Abdan asked.

"Please also return with the King. It would not look good if we lost one King whilst saving our own."

"I will relent," Abdan said. "My warriors can still fight."

"They may do so, if the drakes breach the line and head to the civilians," Rori said. "I will leave such a task in your capable hands."

So Rori and the pair of Marching Blades moved onwards, and Ares and his group returned to the civilians who had grouped together near the centre. Thousands of Riveans, most of whom carried with them at least a spear in hand and a helmet on their heads.

"It's the King!" shouted a boy, rushing up towards the group and then peered about to check. "The King is here!"

"That I am," Ares grunted as he pulled up the earth to sit, as though it was a throne of pain. He held Runar close. He created benches made of rock around for others to sit as well, of course making another seat for his pregnant wife, and then a few for Abdan and his folk.

Ares' breath came to him ragged. He looked out to watch the various drakes, being held off by the soldiers. He wanted to be there, his blood spurred hot for action.

"Owoo aboo," called a tiny voice from below.

Ares saw Runar open up her eyes. She looked up at Ares and reached up with her little hands. Ares reached down as Runar wrapped her hands around his thumb and then began to shake it before bringing it down for her to suck. Ares pulled his thumb away before she could and picked her up, hugging her tight.

No. He needed to be here. He looked out to the faces of the civilians, the fear in their eyes causing him to wince. What was a deathly wound when his people were in such fear.

Ares stood.

"You need to sit down," Torak said as Lana approached, trying to force Ares down.

"No," he said as he stood, summing the staff to his free hand. He looked out to his people. "I'm not so weak, that I should sit and watch as my people suffer. I won't do so, not whilst I am alive."

Ares stood, not as tall as he would have liked, but he stood all the same. He looked to Mala, who had managed to return with her family to the civilians. He saw Ash and the pair of children, as well as Rala, who had been with Mala before.

"Are you afraid?" He asked Ash, the little boy. He was as small as he was in Ares' memories, a boy so meek and small.

"Yes," he said, "I'm very afraid, Ares… uh, Ares-kin." Rash had caught the look in his mother's eye.

"Then I have failed, haven't I?" Ares whispered. "Do not be afraid." Ares turned to look at Imro and Ashan. "These are Imro and Ashan, they are Roaring Tridents. They are the best of what Rivea has to offer. Those Phoenix Guard as well," Ares said, nodding his head to them.

"They are tasked to protect the King and I," Lana said. "Right now they are here, protecting all of you. You have a King's protection."

"That's right," Ares said with a nod of his head.

"You're injured though," Rash pointed to Ares' stomach, where he was half bent, unable to stand tall in fear of fainting.

"That's right," Ares smiled. "I received this wound when I wasn't near Imro and Ashan, so you can see how effective they are."

Ares looked beyond, to the rest of the people. Many of the Riveans had recovered, but there were quite a few of those he did not recognise. Mostly catfolk, bearfolk, and he had only just noticed, dogfolk. Dogfolk, he hadn't thought they were a thing, but they were here.

"I see many of you, some few hundreds, are rather shaken. I can tell many of you are new to Rivea. I assure you that this is not an everyday occurrence, usually we're up against armies ten times our size." Ares smirked. "You have no need to worry, for you are within Rivea, and there will be no harm to come to you."

Ares looked out to see the drakes had mostly been dealt with. He could not spy Saykkera or Asyllia for the moment. He reached up and then summoned a shower of spears to strike the last few remaining drakes.

"It seems we have dinner sorted."