Chapter 35
The monster was huge, towering above the bay, looking as if it could easily wipe out our army with one swipe of its tail.
The creature’s scales seemed to shimmer with a dark, oily hue, constantly shifting between shades of black, deep blue, and green, as though the sea coursed through its skin.
Its head was a terrifying sight: long and serpentine, with multiple sets of glowing, slitted eyes running along the sides of its skull, burning like molten gold.
It had a gaping maw filled with jagged, razor-sharp teeth, each the size of a small ship’s mast, designed to shred anything that crossed its path.
Running along its spine were massive, bone-like spines that rose out of the water like jagged cliffs, dripping with seaweed and barnacles as if it had slumbered for centuries in the deepest abyss.
It lifted its tail up into the air, only to slam it back down so hard that waves of water were rushing towards us.
One of the Gods put up a shield to stop the water from hitting the soldiers.
That seemed to anger the creature even more and it started moving towards our army, towards Theo.
I jerked when suddenly I felt a hand on my arm and drew the dagger.
“Maelis, it’s me!” The Abbot held his hands up.
I released a sigh and put the dagger back into my boot.
“What is this thing?” I asked, looking back to where the monster was now approaching slowly.
The Abbot’s face was an unreadable mask as always, but his voice was hard and cold.
“The Leviathan is a creature of ancient chaos, resistant to most divine attacks. Its size and power can cause tidal waves, it can summon tempests and its presence may start to corrupt the battlefield.”
I looked towards him, “What does that mean?”
The Abbot watched as the Gods summoned their powers to attack.
“There is no telling what it will do. Waters could turn toxic, and even the land could crack and warp under its chaotic influence. The Leviathan was chained in the depth of the ocean because of its horrendous power, but these stupid mortals and the traitorous Gods freed it.” The Abbot spat out those last words and hate twisted his features.
“So if you are here, does that mean we have no chance of defeating it? Are you here to harness my powers?” I whispered.
He shook his head. “Harnessing your heka is our last resort. Auretheos and the others are strong, and the Leviathan can be defeated. Let’s give them the chance to work their powers first.”
I nodded and as if on command, blue light erupted from one of the Gods, hitting the creature in full force. It was halted in its tracks and roared in pain, but recovered quickly , moving towards the shore again.
Another blast of light erupted, this time the light was light yellow.
The Leviathan was hit, but it did not even stop in its advance. It lifted its tail and brought it back down, causing the ground to crack upon impact. The earth was shaking, many of the soldiers were falling over and the fear on their faces was apparent.
I heard Lythandra then, who had turned towards the soldiers. Her voice carried over to me:
“We won’t back down! Keep the lines! Wait for my command to attack.”
The Gods assembled at the front line, swords ready.
The Leviathan hit land and Veridus raised his hands first. White light erupted from him, magic vibrating in the air and flowing out from his palms. For a second I smiled because I imagined what would happen if he told the creature to go and make a sandwich.
But my smile quickly faded when the light hit the Leviathan without doing any damage at all.
It was like a snowflake landing on his skin, disappearing between its oily scales.
“Their magic isn’t working,” the Abbot breathed.
“What are they going to do now?”
He didn’t respond, he didn’t have an answer either.
We weren’t prepared for this. In all the time we had done our research we had never considered that the Heralds knew how to summon dark magic. I had never even heard of the Leviathan until today.
“They are going to fight for as long as they can,” was the only answer he could give me.
The soldiers had recovered from the small earthquake and had gotten back up quickly, but their stances were not as sure as they had been an hour ago.
The beast roared and everything happened at once.
It seemed to take a deep breath and the Gods looked up in alarm.
Theo managed to cast a protective shield, but it wasn’t big enough to encompass the whole army.
Because when the Leviathan exhaled, dark greenish fumes escaped from its nose and mouth, hitting the army in record speed. The soldiers underneath the protective globe stood tall, but the unlucky ones who got hit by the fumes were screaming in agony.
Their skin blistered as if they had been burned and their armors seemed to melt.
Their screams were horrific, some of them calling out in different languages, crouching on the ground and trying to shield themselves.
When the fumes had cleared, only some of them were still moving, crawling towards the Citadel in an attempt to save themselves.
Theo removed the shield and a row of Gods started riding towards the Leviathan with their swords drawn.
Two of the Gods, I recognized them as Kytheron, the God of Forgotten Paths and Lost Travelers and Syranna, Goddess of Distant Winds, were firing arrows towards the Leviathan, hitting it across his neck.
The arrows must have possessed some magical quality, because they actually penetrated its scales.
The beast roared in pain and responded with a swipe of its tail, taking out Kytheron and some sentinels behind him.
The Gods didn’t stop their approach and launched their spears and arrows towards the Leviathan.
One of them hit the beast in the eye and it whirled around in pain.
Another Gods launched their magic towards it.
This time the creature had no chance to avert the attack, and the magic hit its target hard and fast. The beast stumbled backwards. More of the Gods now came forward in a second and third wave, hitting the beast with their powers.
Theo was the last of them to race towards the beast, his purple magic coming in fast and powerful. The Leviathan was retreating towards the ocean, but taking quite a few of the Gods with it. It was impossible to see what was happening to them, some resurfaced, others disappeared in the waters.
Too late I lifted my gaze towards the forest on the other side, where Ignara and about 20 other Gods had appeared.
For now, they came riding forward, effectively cutting off the Gods from the rest of the army.
But they did not attack the soldiers, they turned towards the Gods who were now trapped between the Leviathan and the Fraction.
Theo understood what was happening first and called out to stop the advance towards the water. It was too late, Ignara had already raised her sword and let loose a wall of fire towards the Gods.
Auretheos was the first to get hit, the heat of the fire burning his arms and legs.
He fell off his horse, but got up quickly and responded with a surge of power of his own.
Some of the Gods had turned and were sending out their power towards Ignara and her conspirators, while others were still fighting the Leviathan.
But with the power of the Gods now split up between two fronts, the Leviathan was winning ground again.
My gaze flew back to Auretheos, who had drawn back and was now kneeling on the ground, surrounded by a ring of Gods who seemed to protect him.
“What is he doing? Why isn’t he fighting back?” I asked the Abbot, confused.
He had a strange expression on his face.
“He is going to sing the Song of Creation.”
And that’s when I heard it. It wasn’t a song with a melody, but I could hear Theo’s deep voice repeating ancient charms, growing louder with each second.
The Abbot jumped up, like he couldn’t sit still any longer.
“The Leviathan was present at the world’s creation, meaning it can be bound or controlled by the Song of Creation.
It’s a divine melody that holds the fundamental magic of the universe.
Only the God of Wisdom may know the correct verses to sing,” he breathed in awe.
“I never thought I would get to hear this sacred vow.”
I turned back towards the battlefield and to my relief, the creature was shying back from the Gods and retreating towards the shore.
Theo’s chanting grew louder and more powerful, a purple light surrounding him now. Ignara and the rest of the Fraction were obviously well-prepared, because they launched their attack on the Gods encircling Theo now.
One by one they took them out, until no one remained but Auretheos. Why didn’t he get up? He had to defend himself!
The sea monster roared in pain, its scales turning nearly white.
The remaining Gods rode on towards the Leviathan, attacking it with their magic and their various weapons.
Finally, the Dreadshade army rushed towards Ignara, but she quickly stopped them with a wall of fire.
The Fraction was now right beside Theo, who still knelt on the ground, chanting the Song of Creation to weaken the monster.
The first blade that hit him went through his shoulder and I nearly screamed out.
I could see Lythandra turning her horse around and racing towards Theo, but I knew she’d never get there in time.
The second blade penetrated his outstretched arm, momentarily halting him in the recitation of the spell.
Another God from the Fraction stepped forward and kicked Theo in the back, the force behind it sending Theo crashing to the ground.
This was it, the moment I had been waiting for. I could feel the Luminaris key in my hand and willed it to open a portal.
Turning towards the Abbot, I hardened my features.
“I am sorry.”
And with that, I stepped out into the light, ready to become the villain they feared me to be, because only a villain could save them.
Let them call it treason.
I called it salvation.