by Eve Hathaway
Chapter Seven
The Battle
THE OTHER MEN stood frozen, terrified.
Cyrus sprung into action, sprinting towards the direction of the screaming child with Magdeline fast on his heels, still bickering at him.
"Don't you have any sort of plan?!" she yelled. "Cyrus, stop!"
She almost ran into his back when he stopped dead in his tracks.
In the corner of a ruined building huddled a child, his hands over his head. A fire burned around him, fueled by the most horrifying creature Cyrus had ever seen.
It was huge. It was easily the height of two horses with a tail that whipped out about eighteen feet from its body. It had a muscular body like a wingless dragon, covered in ruby scales from its head down to its legs. It had a face and nose similar to a large cat and giant, pearly fangs. Two large ivory horns protruded from its head above ears like that of a goat. A mane of gold trailed down from its head down its spine.
The same long fur formed a line from its jaw to its stomach and under its tail. It roared and swung its massive claws at the child, causing debris to fall around him.
Magdeline screamed, "Cyrus, do something!"
The monster turned and its golden eyes flashed. It immediately spotted Magdeline and her purple gown, forgetting all about the child.
The beast charged, smoke and flame flooding from the edges of its mouth. Cyrus's heart leapt into his throat and jumped, pushing Magdeline aside so that she fell into a heap of rubble and out of the beast's line of sight.
Then he braced his sword. He knew he couldn't defeat a creature like this. Oh no. Not in the manner he took down the falcon that chased for his Soulyte. But he could fight and he could die a Hero. His mother would hear that he did his mission. He fought a monster.
The creature roared and dove toward the Hero. He swung his sword and almost laughed hysterically when his blade made contact.
But his delight was curbed when the sword shattered upon making impact, leaving him holding only his grip.
That's what I deserve for buying a twenty-jewel sword, he thought.
But then the beast snarled and fell on its side and thick, black blood was flooding the path.
In a matter of moments, right before their shocked eyes, the monster melted to the ground in a disgusting, dark puddle.
Magdeline crawled out from the rubble and stared in shock at what was left of the fallen beast.
Standing on her feet, she walked on wobbly knees to the remains. "You... you actually did it," she breathed.
She glanced up at Cyrus. His chest was heaving in exertion and he had the slightest hint of a smile on his face as he, too, looked at the puddle.
"You did it!" she repeated in a squeal, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him. Cyrus didn't know why he did what he did. He was just kissing her, too, holding her, too, in a tight embrace. Her lips were soft. Her body also so soft. And she smelled like roses.
But he suddenly jolted back, his eyes getting caught in a sudden burst of light that blinded him so he fell backwards.
The sound of chirping birds resounded and he blinked away the black dots clouding his vision in time to see his faerie flitting to and fro in a bout of rage.
Magdeline screamed in her faerie language and flew over to Cyrus, hitting him on the head with tiny fists.
It was the kiss, he remembered now. The kiss could turn Magdeline back into a faerie!
A faerie so enraged that it was shouting bloody murder at him. Not that he could understand. But noone had to talk his language to know that Magdeline was mad as hell.
Cyrus was suddenly laughing. Magdeline put her tiny fists on her tiny waist and huffed. He then gently cupped her in his palms and brought her down to face level.
She glared at him, her Soulyte color flashing brightly on her luminescent skin. Cyrus didn't feel the usual attack of the jitters as he watched her pout and glare and roll her eyes. Or seem to. With those pupils, he couldn't really tell.
Well, that was better.
"I missed you as a faerie," he said. "I guess that curse wasn't really broken after all."
He glanced around. The boy who was in the ruins had long since ran away and there was no noise but the crackling of flames. He saw his broken sword by his side, shards of metal scattered several feet in several directions.
Cyrus lowered his voice. "I don't like this. No one's coming out."
Then a low growl shook the ground.
Cyrus jumped to his feet and stared as the puddle of blood rippled and raised into the air.
It formed the shape of the monster and after only a few moments morphed into the beast, complete with scales and fur. It no longer sported the wound it had earlier sustained from Cyrus's now shattered sword.
Magdeline flew into the air and buzzed behind Cyrus's head. But it wasn't an angry chattering now. She was clearly in a panic.
As he was.
He no longer had any weapon and it was apparent his sword wouldn't do much good either way.
What was he to do?