The invaders had been too fast in their attack, the first wall had fallen within an hour, their aggression too irresistible, the second before the morning was out. Kite now stood at the last, looking down upon the hordes beating their armour and weapons in a final challenge. The wall would have provided a good deal of protection had there been enough of them to defend it but Kite remained with only a scant bunch of stragglers too exhausted to cope with much more fighting. She and the others desperately tried to prevent the attackers from scaling the walls, kicking them away with their feet or hacking down on top of them with their weapons.
Kite took stock of the situation; they would not be able to hold out for much longer as the wounds and exhaustion truly began to take toll. Pausing in this thought, Kite caught at the extreme range of her hearing a deep undulating scream, one that she had heard on occasion before, a noise that she shared in experience with her sister, Mooneye. The markings on her face and body began to burn and itch as she sensed the presence of something severe and intense on the fringe of the battlefield. Beyond the walls, beyond the fires she saw a shadow, a shape formed of dragon and bird, sweeping in to view the conflict. She turned to face three Dragonblood bearing down on her as the form of Quill Redwing swept across the battlements brushing one of her assailants into his claws and casting him into the air. The figure fell far beyond the edge of the ramparts, a rag doll buffeted by the drop towards the hard ground below.
Shocked, the two remaining Dragonblood drove toward her over the brink of the wall, blades glinting in the smoky sunlight. The wall allowed them to approach her in only single file, an easy task for her skills. Parrying the first blow she swung her blade back catching the sword of her opponent, unbalancing him. With her second blow she caught the Dragonblood on the side of the head toppling him from the wall. The second rushed at her attempting to grapple her from the battlements, he swung his blade down over his head but once again Kite managed to parry. With a splintering crash her sword shattered beneath the weight of the blow. Drawing her assailant toward her he left his sides unprotected and with a sideways stab Kite thrust the remains of her sword into his abdomen. Bent over double from the attack the Dragonblood plunged over the side of the wall to greet his two sword brothers who had fallen mere minutes before.
Turning once more to face the onslaught the form of the bird dragon swept down from above clutching a cylinder. Quill let it fall from its talons, dropping it into the grasp of Kite. The cylinder was wound with ancient, time-stained paper, a scroll that with its touch echoed words in her mind, ‘Mooneye’, ‘Help’, ‘Use’. Kite understood what to do, the powers inherent in the scroll crackled through her being. Lifting her hands toward the oncoming Dragonblood Kite uttered a single word, a noise that carried with it the containment of the scroll and its unlocking. Its powers wrenched loose.
Whirling from beneath her, lines of energy spread out in a semi-circle expanding with a shuddering howl. Moving slowly at first the waves expanded until at a point they rushed outward, dragging with them streams of magical residue. The force smashed into the enemy ranks, throwing them down in unison, row after row collapsing from the ethereal energy, drained of life by the violent magical storm. The force left none of the attackers standing; they lay as they had stood, amassed in rank and file, collapsed, overlapping head and foot.
Kite stood silent, staggered by the power that had been unleashed. The invaders lay defeated by the energies let loose from that small, unimportant looking scroll. Kite looked toward the west knowing her sister smiled upon the event. With a silent prayer Kite thanked her for her help, she thanked the instrument of the victory, she thanked the dragons.
THE END