Golden Dragon
Location: Forbidden City / Serenia's Mausoleum
Time: Y0000 - 29th day of the Fire Moon
*whisper* "Open it." (Dragon Priest)
*crank* (Ancilla)
A small hatch opened in the ceiling of the mausoleum.
The light of the sun enveloped the inside of the room revealing elaborate drawings, rich ornaments and a literal mountain of gold and treasures. And on top of the golden mountain, a creature. Coiled like a sleeping snake. With golden scales and three eyes. Gigantic in size. A Dragon.
The creature twitched, as an high pitched voice filled the room.
"Lady Serenia! The Apex beseech you!" (Dragon Priest)
The dragon opened one of it's eyes. What it saw was a minute creature, an humanoid rat, wearing gaudy red and black clothes accompanied by similarly small rats clad in white. The rats were about one meter tall. Truly a minute existence compared to the two hundred meters long Dragon.
<Absorb Memories> (Serenia)
The Dragon Priest, who was already kneeling, staggered. His head fell even lower to the ground. One of the female rats lost consciousness.
Rather than speak with those inferior creatures, Serenia was watching their memories like one would watch a film or read a book. The life of the rat unravelled before Serenia.
The small Rat being born, selected and put alongside other rats, learning of the Dragons and going through what can only be described as torture, everyday. Earning it's tunic, and eventually the information Serenia wanted. Something about an oracle about doom, and The Apex summoning her. Finally, appearing before her and~
*explode* (Dragon Priest)
*collapse* (Female Rats)
[This one exploded too. I wish my servants were sturdier.] (Serenia)
The Dragon priest exploded, with blood and flesh splattering all around. The rats around him fell to the ground. maybe unconscious, maybe dead. Serenia cared too little to confirm which one it was.
[Doom? Preposterous!] (Serenia)
Dragons are unchallenged in this world. To think her brethren would believe to Oracles of an existence as small as the Elven Seer! She'll have to rectify the situation herself. As usual.
Serenia started floating above the mountain of gold and flying in a trajectory along the surface of an imaginary sphere thirty meters in diameter just over the mountain of gold.
Serenia was collimating a large amount of aether. So much that the space around herself was warping and becoming fully depleted. A feat only the strongest amongst the Dragons could accomplish.
<Relocate> (Serenia)
The space around Serenia melted away in ripples. Glimpse of an open blue sky could be seen for a moment, and the moment after that, Serenia disappeared and a powerful shockwave propagated and reverberated inside the mausoleum.
--------------------------------
*weak voice* "Owww... What happened?" (Me'Ra)
Sometime had passed, and one of the Ancilla woke up. She was bleeding from the nose and from the eyes. Her white fur and dress stained by the blood of the Dragon priest.
"Me'Ki'N? ... Anyone? ..." *sniff* (Me'Ra)
Me'Ra was the only survivor. Few creatures can endure the weaving of a Dragon at such short range. Me'Ra was lucky.
"I need help... Clean up... Before She returns..." (Me'Ra)
Me'Ra was in great pain and had an head splitting headache. But she had a to endure. One could only shudder at the though of what Serenia would do, id She returns to her mausoleum in such state. She needs help to clean it up.
Me'Ra couldn't know that Serenia would never return to her mausoleum again.
Summit
Location: Black Mountain Summit
Time: Y0000 - 29th day of the Fire Moon
<Relocate> (Serenia)
What Serenia just weaved, was a spell that folded space, allowing the user to travel without moving. The walls of the mausoleum melted away, replaced by the skyline of far mountains and an open sky. The air around her shook by powerful shockwaves.
Serenia was now on top of the Black Mountain. Or she should have been. The mountain top was shaved off. A platform build in it's place. One big enough for several Dragons to lay in coils. There were pillars with rich carvings, and patterns on the stone floor. Serenia was impressed. Just seven decades had passed since she ordered the Rat-kin to build this platform, and her servants already completed the task.
[My servants were faster then expected. They may yet retain some usefulness.] (Serenia)
Serenia loved watching her domain from the top of the Black Mountain. A mountain she personally charred black with her flames, to mark her domain. Her eyes looked far, but couldn't see anything that was amiss in the large plain surrounding her in all directions.
<Sense Surroundings> (Serenia)
Serenia weaved a new spell. She refined countless threads that extended like tendrils, reaching to the far ends of her Domain in all directions, hundreds of kilometres away. Trees, Rat Kin, Houses, Dragons she could sense everything. After a few minutes of searching, with still nothing out of the ordinary coming up, she rescinded the spell.
[Everything is as it should be. My brethren better have an explanation.] (Serenia)
****ROOOOOOOAAARRR**** (Serenia)
Serenia let out a thundering roar. One that shook the cloud and could be heard in every corner of her Domain. A call for The Apex to assemble.
Serenia only saw the memories of a servant about doom, and a request from The Apex to wake her up. Apparently The Apex has proof. Hopefully for them, it will justify waking her up. Even they wouldn't escape punishment, otherwise.
Serenia coiled down in the middle of the platform, enjoying the warmth of the sun, the view and the breeze. Dragons with their long lives have a different perception of time. It may take many hours for The Apex to fully assemble.
It won't be a problem. Even if doom really is approaching. A being strong enough to challenge her simply does not exists in this world. She made sure of that.
The Apex
Location: Black Mountain Summit
Time: Y0000 - 29th day of the Fire Moon
"Lady Serenia. I, Altamir, heed your call and pledge my loyalty." (Altamir)
The fifth and last member of the Dragon Council touched down, coiling in a corner of the platform.
In Dragon culture, strength is everything. When dragons meet, either one pledge loyalty, or fight. And challenging Serenia is nothing short of suicide.
"Veridion. Altamir. Telluria. Kastah. Explain." (Serenia)
Serenia asked the obvious question. A lean red dragon, about fifty meter long, the youngest smallest member of The Apex, answered.
"I shall speak, Mother." (Kastah)
Both dragons leapt in the air. Dragons have no wings, they fly by manipulating the air and the force of gravity with magic. Rather than fly, one can say that they swim in the air, almost like a dance. It's a beautiful and mesmerizing sight.
As for the reason of their leap, it's simple. Strength. Dragons need to prove that their words are worth listening.
The Red Dragon and the gigantic Golden Dragon fought in the sky.
Their fight shook the earth and scattered the clouds. Thunderous roars filled the air. No magic was involved. Serenia and Kastah were fighting with fangs, teeth and breaths. Each trying to sink the other to the ground.
*crash down* (Kastah)
The fight lasted only a few minutes. Kastah fell from the sky, roughly hitting the platform, damaging it. Shortly after, Serenia, gracefully coiled down at the centre of the platform.
<Mend Wounds> (Veridion)
Kastah had deep cuts, bites and charred scales all over her body. Her life was not in danger of course. The vitality of a dragon is nothing to sneer at. Still, Veridion, the largest and oldest living Dragon, healed her battered body for her.
Serenia was unharmed, of course.
"Kastah, you have grown. You truly earned your place in The Apex." (Serenia)
"Thank you, Mother. I'm unworthy." (Kastah)
"Regarding the matter of the Elven Seer... You are fools!" (Serenia)
This statement shook the members of the council. Dragon are fearless and confident by nature. A result of their unchallenged supremacy. But an angry Serenia is something no Dragon would ever want to face.
"Kastah shared with me the memories of this Elven Seer.
Even if the Oracle is accurate, and my Domain is doomed. There would be of no consequences for us.
We can easily endure the destruction showed in the Oracle.
I welcome it even! I hadn't had a fair challenge in millennia! We shall burn our Enemies and their folly!
Then, we will set off to new lands and beat new servants into submission! Make a new Domain!" ****ROAAAARRRR**** (Serenia)
Serenia's words were no mere boast.
[Twenty millennia ago, Serenia bested in combat even the <Supreme Entity>. To think an existence even greater than that could have eluded our sight, is about to attack. And win. Against Serenia! Impossible...] (Veridion)
Veridion saw what Serenia is truly capable of. Nothing can possibly oppose her in this world. Even if all Dragons banded together with all this world's living creatures to fight her, Serenia would still prevail. As long as Serenia is awake, there can be no meaningful opposition. There was no room for doubt in Veridion's mind.
"The Apex hears and agree with your every word, Mother" (Kastah)
"Indeed. Let this Domain be burnt by our flames along with our enemies. Five decades ago I saw a Domain worth conquering. I'll show you." (Altamir)
"Lady Serenia, your servants prepared an offering for your awakening. Your golden bed will grow taller." (Telluria)
"I miss exchanging blows with you, my Lady Serenia. After the feast, I would like to speak with you." (Veridion)
"Oh. Oh. Oh. I look forward to it, old friend. Let us feast, now!" (Serenia)
[Enemies that think they can win against me! Turning their hope into despair will be pleasing.] (Serenia)
Serenia was in a good mood now. Her strength was so overwhelming that no enemy attacked her in millennia. The five Dragons took off to the sky, headed for the Forbidden City.
Unknown to Serenia, somewhere far above her head, somewhere she wouldn't think to look, a plan put in motion long ago was nearing fruition.
Offering
Location: Forbidden City / Dragon Plaza
Time: Y0000 - 29th day of the Fire Moon
It was night. Five dots closed from the Black Mountain.
The five dots became bigger and bigger. It was The Apex. The five gigantic Dragons touched down in the Dragon Plaza, coiling near a platform in it's centre. The plaza was littered with small mountains of food, herds of live cattle, and piles of gold and trinkets.
A sea of Rat kins, the whole population of the Forbidden City, was kneeling in the plain around the plaza.
A small creature, the Dragon Priest was kneeling on top of the altar in the centre of the plaza. Ready to listen to whatever unreasonable request would come from The Apex.
It took decades for the Rat Kin to gather this much wealth. Raids ordered by the Dragons leading to catastrophic causalities. Food from their stores. All their cattle. And it will all be used up in one day. The awakening of Serenia was not planned for. The Rat Kins can only hope it will be enough.
"Is this a joke? Where is my offering?" (Serenia)
*anxious* "Lady Serenia! We have gathered all we had!!! Your awakening was unexpect~ *SPLAT* (Dragon Priest)
"You DARE blame your failure on me?!?" (Serenia)
The fact that her servant blamed the failure of his kind on her was unacceptable. Serenia's temper was coming up, and unconsciously she let out a little too much power. The dragon priest exploded. Serenia's servants had to be punished!
Serenia started collimating aether. Thousand of Rat Kin around her collapsed and died due to aether depletion. They were the lucky ones.
<Fire Wall> (Serenia)
In an instant, an immense wall of flames half a kilometre high, engulfed the plaza. Tens of thousand of Rat Kins were incinerated on the spot. Thousand more, furtherer away from the flames, suffered severe burning due to the intensity of the fire. The remainder started fleeing.
[Maybe this is what the Oracle was about. Serenia losing her temper and burning her domain. The Rat Kin brought it upon themselves.] (Veridion)
"My Brethren! Hunt the vermin~ (Serenia)
Something changed. Serenia's aura disappeared, her anger dissipated like snow in the sun. The dragons, ready to dive and hunt the Rat Kin, paused. The Apex was as confused as the rest of their kin. Surviving Rat Kins, unaware of this change, kept running for their lives.
Serenia was looking up.
Omen
Location: Forbidden City / Dragon Plaza
Time: Y0000 - 29th day of the Fire Moon
Five full minutes had passed. The world was still frozen as Serenia kept her gaze fixed on the night sky. Finally, someone gathered the courage to speak up.
"Mother! What is it? Is something the matter?" (Kastah)
"My instinct. Something I haven't felt in tens of millennia. Danger. From the sky." (Serenia)
Serenia focused the entirety of her being, trying to give shape to this threat. Another long minute passed.
"My Lady Serenia. I can feel it too. I can't give shape to the enemy, yet. But they are coming." (Veridion)
"Telluria. Take the sky. Lead our brethren how you see fit. I don't care about this Domain. Just annihilate the enemies when they reveal themselves." (Serenia)
"It will be done!" **ROARRRRR** *take off* (Telluria)
"Veridion. Kastah. Altamir. Link your Dragon Hearts with mine. Collimate as much aether as you can. I'm going to weave continent grade spells!" (Serenia)
This was like a different Serenia. Focused, strategic and efficient. Her instinct warned her that a threat to her existence was looming closer and closer. Even when such threat shouldn't exist in this world at all. Common sense didn't matter. Her instinct couldn't be wrong.
Veridion, Kastah, Altamir and Serenia took off, they started flying in a sphere like pattern just above the Dragon plaza. The smallest sphere being Kastah's, the biggest being Veridion's.
<Magic Link> (Veridion, Kastah, Altamir)
Serenia is the strongest magic caster in existence. The potency of her spells can be boosted to an even greater degree if others collimate aether for her. This way she can focus on weaving, and weaving only.
This formation is what allowed her to best the <Entities> twenty millennia before. It might be overkill, but Serenia looked forward to release the full measure of her powers once more. It made Serenia's heart flutters with anticipation.
<Deplete Domain> (Veridion, Kastah, Altamir)
Serenia's Domain was not just an imaginary boundary. A gargantuan enchantment was weaved over the centuries in the ground itself. It was activated by The Apex.
Aether flowed from locations hundreds of kilometres away, depleting them. Veridion, Kastah and Altamir collimated it, and around the four Dragons a tangle almost a Kilometre wide of highly dense magic threads formed.
The dozens of dragons flying in the sky did the same on a smaller scale. Every dragon was now flying in a sphere like pattern, holding to it's own mass of threads. Ready to weave magic at a moment notice.
Living creatures naturally produce aether as by-product of their metabolism. The dragons long discovered this connection, and this whole Domain was nothing more than an aether farm for them.
As result of Deplete Domain, every living being down to the bacteria, in hundreds of kilometres of range, died. Aether depletion is lethal to most life. They merely fulfilled their role in the food chain.
"Now come, my enemies. We Dragons are ready for you." (Serenia)
Had a living creature be there to see with their magic sight, they would have seen a small sun like light floating above the forbidden city, and dozen smaller lights in the sky.
Everything was calm now. The calm before the storm.
Cataclysm
Location: Forbidden City / Dragon Plaza
Time: Y0000 - 29th day of the Fire Moon
"Here they come!" (Serenia)
The night sky lighted up in a ghastly red hue.
Meteors touched the upper atmosphere of Arcania and became fiery balls of fire, leaving a smoky trails behind.
First one, then two, than dozen! At the speed they move, it will take no more than twenty seconds, for the first one to impact the surface.
Serenia was surprised. She had seen falling stars before, but it never occurred to her that they could be used as weapons. Serenia didn't even how to make falling stars, she didn't even know it was possible. But she was sure this was the enemy's doing.
This was the enemy's opening gambit and probably their best shot.
And she had the perfect counter. She even had all the time she needed to pull it off.
<Continental Barrier> (Serenia)
The Kilometre wide tangle of magic threads around The Apex started shrinking visibly, as an unbelievably large dome two hundreds of kilometres in diameter and ten kilometres high started forming out off thin air.
It was like watching ice forms in an accelerated video. Only over a whole country. Like a translucent glass dome emitting a faint golden light. It was beyond imagining. Had any Rat Kin still be alive, it would have blown their little minds.
All it took Serenia was ten seconds, and now her entire domain was protected by a barrier powerful enough to shake even the biggest falling star Serenia had witnessed in her long life.
The sky became more and more red and bright as the the meteors hurled down toward the ground. They were all headed toward Serenia's domain of course.
"My brethren. Wait out the Starfall under my <Continental Barrier>. After it subsides, search for the enemies and annihilate them!" (Serenia)
Seven long seconds passed as Serenia and her brethren awaited for the meteors to impact the dome.
**GREEN FLASH** (Meteor)
The first meteor impacted Serenia's barrier. It let out a green flash of light... And punched right through it! Sound travel slow. It will be a while before the Dragons hear the sound that impact made.
Just like rain, after the first meteor hit, dozens others followed. The barrier might as well not have been there at all.
The meteors were moving at five kilometres per seconds, and the closest one was less than ten kilometres away. Only two seconds before the first impact.
Time is somewhat flexible to Dragons. An hour can feel like a second, allowing them to meditate, slowly absorb aether and grow.
But in battle is the opposite, their sense of time compresses. The world came to a stop before Serenia's eyes. Seconds become minutes. Sound was now too slow to convey her words. No matter, Serenia will give orders using her mind.
<Telepathy> (Serenia)
[My brethren. My Continental Barrier is of no use. Our enemy is worth defeating! Avoid the falling stars while I take them head on!] (Serenia)
[As you will.] (Telluria)
[Veridion, the enemy gave the Falling Stars a remarkable barrier piercing attribute. If we leave this place, we will lose the aether we collimated. I'll weave my ultimate barrier!] (Serenia)
[Good call, My Lady Serenia. That defended even against the <Erasers> of the <Entities>. Neither physical nor magical attack can pierce it.] (Veridion)
The kilometre wide tangle of magic threads shrunk to half of it's size as Serenia weaved a much smaller but fundamentally different barrier.
<World's Boundary: Ten Folds> (Serenia)
This barrier was the culmination of Serenia's studies in dimensional magic. It literally cuts the dimensions and fold space on itself ten times over.
Space is absolute. Every attack must end where space do.
A full second of real time passed while Serenia carefully handled all the intricacies of the weaving in her compressed relative time.
One instant the Dragon plaza and four dragons, along with a gigantic mass of magic was there. The next instant, a black sphere two kilometres in diameter appeared into existence in the Dragon Plaza's place. It's surface seemingly eating light itself. The blackest of black.
<Will-O-The-Wisp: One Hundred Thousand Lights> (Serenia)
And yet, Serenia's mastery of dimensional magic meant she could still weave magic in the now outside world while hidden behind the new curvature she made in the universe itself.
Untouchable, yet able to touch. With a sphere half a kilometre wide of highly dense magic threads to fuel her attacks and four Dragon Hearts holding millennia worth of aether in solid form at her disposal.
This is how Serenia defeated the <Entities> twenty millennia before. An invincible combination.
Countless golden lights rose up in the sky, intercepting the coming meteors.
**BOOM** **BOOM BOOOOM**
Another second of real time passed. Meteors started touching down. Fire plumes expanding. Rocks disintegrating. Meteors impacting Serenia's lights and exploding into fragments that came down delivering their own share of destruction.
[My orbs are only causing the falling stars to explode in fragments. This attack gave me an idea for a new spell. If I could tear reality in their path, the falling star would be consumed into oblivion.] (Serenia)
Serenia mused on her research in magic while she was safe in her own little world. She could sense her brethren dying out there, but they only had their weakness to blame.
Meanwhile, the meteor shower kept growing in intensity. The sky was filled with countless trails. The night became day lighted by explosions of every color.
**KA-BOOOM**
A big meteor, at least half a kilometre large, took head on many of Serenia's orbs, fragmented, and hit the canyon where the Rat Kin lived just hours before.
Large spherical shockwaves expanded in every direction. A nuclear cloud formed and rose in the sky, in slow motion in Serenia's eyes. The shockwaves that reached the black sphere, bounced back. The sphere was absolute.
Telluria and the other Dragons were doing their best trying to avoid the meteors. Weaving magic to evade, protect themselves and attack the incoming falling stars. Younger, smaller, weaker dragons were dying. The meteors were too fast and the explosions too big for them.
[That one is really big. It won't be needed, but it won't hurt to be prepared either.] (Serenia)
<Unbreakable Body> (Serenia)
An especially large meteor, two kilometres in diameter was hurling down at a speed of ten kilometres per second, headed directly toward Serenia's little world. Serenia weaved an enchantment to reinforce her own body, since it acted as the core of the barrier.
*****KA_BOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM*******
The two kilometre wide hunk of rock was engulfed in fire due to countless orbs that hit it, but it did not shatter. Soon after that, it hit the two kilometre wide black sphere squarely. The blinding light of the impact subsided, fire as hot as the sun erupted as the air turned into plasma. Fire was dispersed by the shockwaves themselves and even hotter fire followed. A mushroom cloud rose in the sky, but shockwaves kept propagating from the impact point, dispersing it.
[How can this be???] (Serenia)
The large meteor was still in one piece! Pushing down on the Black Sphere with all it's weight an momentum still intact. A physical impossibility.
[AHHHHH!!!!] (Serenia)
[My Lady!] (Veridion)
[Hold on, Mother!] (Kastah)
[Reinforce the barrier! Use aether from my Dragon Heart!] (Altamir)
An unbelievable sight. A two kilometre wide hunk of rock, covered in hexagonal patterns of blinding green light on top of a two kilometre wide black sphere. The point where the two touched was a crucible expelling an immense amount of fire, heat and pressure waves in equal parts.
The pattern seemingly kept the gigantic meteor from falling apart while conserving it's momentum. Somehow. Serenia couldn't understand it despite her vast knowledge and understanding of magic. She could only endure.
[How long can this falling star last???] (Serenia)
The ground below the Black Sphere couldn't possibly sustain the pressure. The sphere sunk deeply into the ground as plumes of dust and molten rocks raised into the sky. Shockwaves propagated in all direction. Heat and destruction pulverizing the ground on a large scale.
The sphere gathered more and more speed, pushed by the meteor.
An unstoppable force, or an unbreakable object. Which would have given in first?
**CREAK**
A terrible sound could be heard everywhere, like reality itself was cracking and bending under the pressure.
Hairline fractures appeared on top of the black sphere. The cracks expanded like roots, revealing that beyond the darkness of the sphere there was a blinding light.
**SNAP** **SHATTER**
The outer layer of Serenia's own personal little world bended and finally shattered. The fractures in the dimensions healed. Space unfolded and relaxed itself to it's original curvature. All the force that barrier had to shoulder was released all at once.
The sphere become a new sun for a split of a second.
**KA-BOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM**
The new sun was short lived, and faded away leaving behind an hole of molten rocks tens of kilometres wide. Near the centre, a black sphere two kilometres wide was still falling, pushed down by an equally large meteor clad in an hexagonal pattern of green light. Like a sumo battle between two worlds. A sight this world had never seen.
Dragons fell from the sky. This was just to much to bear. Few survivors weaved new barriers, anticipating similar explosions soon. All while desperately trying to avoid meteors from above, explosion and debris from below. One could be forgiven for thinking that the world was coming to an end.
**CREAK** **SNAP **KA-BOOOOOOOOMMMMM**
The unbelievable scene repeated itself. The meteor won again, and another layer of Serenia's worlds gave in, releasing another devastating shockwave of destruction, even bigger than before.
**CREAK** **SNAP **KA-BOOOOOOOOMMMMM**
Seven layers left.
**CREAK** **SNAP **KA-BOOOOOOOOMMMMM**
Six layers left.
**CREAK** **SNAP **KA-BOOOOOOOOMMMMM**
**CREAK** **SNAP **KA-BOOOOOOOOMMMMM**
Four layers left.
**CREAK** **SNAP **KA-BOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM**
Three layers left! The explosions got bigger and bigger. Like the the black sphere was trying even harder to resist the unnatural weight of the meteor. Serenia was giving it her all, but despite the enchantment she weaved upon herself, her body was breaking.
She couldn't leave using <Relocate> as it required very specific conditions to succeed. She could only endure. Even if she could, her pride would have compelled her to endure the enemy attack.
[I'm Serenia! Head of the Apex! I alone stand at the top of food chain! I will not yield!!!] (Serenia)
**CREAK**
But still, Serenia's best wasn't enough. The meteor kept winning!
**SNAP **KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM**
Two layers left!!
**CREAK** **SNAP **KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM**
One Layer left!!!
**CREAK**
The meteor still pushed down without giving any quarter, and like nine times before, hairline fractures spread over the final wall of Serenia's world.
But then the hexagonal green pattern flickered out of existence like it never even existed in the first place. Apparently this was too much, or maybe the hexagons were finally sated with the destruction they brought.
****KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM****
And without it, the large meteor finally lost it's battle. It exploded in an absurdly large explosion. As it should have done in the first place had the hexagonal pattern not been there.
The explosion subsided. The destruction was beyond words.
The black sphere, cracked and bleeding light was falling down toward a turbulent sea of magma.
The meteor had pushed it down fifty kilometres, well inside the mantle of the planet. The mantle itself was fully exposed, and Arcania was wounded by a scar almost five hundreds of kilometres wide. Meteors were still falling, scarring the wounded planet further.
The magma was flowing trying to fill the void left by the titanic battle that just ended, leaving voids somewhere else in the process and weakening the crust. As the surface caved in. Devastating earthquakes propagated. Arcania was trying to heal.
The falling Black Sphere impacted the sea of magma below at high speed, and a plume of magma rose in the sky. A short while after, the black sphere was finally floating over the turbulent sea of magma, as well as it could. Meteors were still falling, with no end in sight.
**SHATTER**
The final layer that separated Serenia's world from Arcania did it's job to the very end. The last fractures in the dimensions started to heal and all space folded back to it's original curvature. The blackness quietly disappeared like it had never been there at all.
The Dragon Plaza and an hemispheric portion of ground below was now the only recognizable feature in perhaps hundreds of kilometres. The area was now an alien environment.
[Mother!] (Kastah)
<Barrier> (Kastah)
Around The Apex was not air, but plasma, at least ten thousand degrees hot. Kastah erected a barrier just in time. Even a Dragon couldn't survive long in there. And even with the barrier, the ground of the Dragon plaza could only take that heat for so long. It immediately started melting away.
The tangle of magic threads that was originally one kilometre wide had all but disappeared. Serenia used it all up in a desperate attempt to sustain her little world. She ended up using the aether stored within the Dragon Hearts of The Apex as well. It was enough, but just barely.
[Kastah, I cut the <Magic Link> at the very end. Veridion, Altamir and I won't leave. But you must go, now!] (Serenia)
Kastah was the only dragon still able to fly. The other three were laying helplessly on top of the melting chunk of rock once known as the Dragon Plaza.
Veridion and Altamir lost consciousness when their Dragon Hearts became fully depleted. Serenia was still conscious, but her once beautiful body clad in golden scales was now wounded and charred, with large chunks of it missing. She was the core of the barrier, and had to shoulder whatever forces the barrier could not.
Had she even suspected such an enchantment as the green hexagon could even exist, she would have just left using <Relocate>. It was a failure of imagination. How could a being capable of mounting such an attack could have escaped her sight?
[I'll try, Mother. I'll avenge you!] (Kastah)
None of it mattered now. She left some of Kastah's aether untouched, allowing her to leave. Vengeance will be up to her, if she can escape. Still, Serenia doesn't mean to go down quietly. She only needs time to recover enough power and vitality to fly. She will take on her enemy herself!
[But where I'll go??? One hundred kilometres? No. One thousand? Not enough?!? I'll just go as far as I possibly can and hope for the best.] (Kastah)
<Superior Far Relocate> (Kastah)
*creak* (Barrier)
Kastah was not as skilled as Serenia in space magic. It was a battle against time. Against the meteors. Against the plasma and the magma that was eating the barrier away. Against the heat that seeped in. Will her <Relocate> succeed first, or will the enemy win, killing the last living dragon?
Above the surface, the meteors kept falling, with no end in sight. Immense columns of magma rose high, tens of kilometres in the sky. Volcanic clouds darked the horizon, and earthquakes could be felt all over Arcania.
Humans, Elves, Moles, Rat Kins and more, from all corners of Arcania looked at the red light beyond the horizon. The black cloud slowly expanding. Wondering it the end had come.