Interference

Aiming down the sights as the creatures remaining heads roar at me, I let off a volley of rounds watching as they ricochet off the hydra's steel-like scales. Cursing as it spits a ball of acid at me, I leap backwards away from it, trying to create some space. Grimacing as acid splashes onto my skin, burning it. Sliding to a stop, I point the gun directly at one head.

"Arbalest. " With the sound of a cannon, the bullet hits the Hydra, sending the head reeling backwards into the wall, shattering stones. With the sound of tinkling metal, I watch as some scales fall to the ground. Running forward, I reload Thorne and slide a round from Aetheris.

"Shadowstep." Landing on the creature's back, I point Thorne directly at the head I shot moments ago.

"Quick draw." Suppressing a cry as I hear the bones crack in my arm from the recoil, I toss the bullet high into the air.

"Shadowstep."Appearing in front of the creature, I aim down Aetheris's barrel.

"Ace's High." As the bullets connect, the tail of the Hydra whips around towards me. Bracing myself for impact, the wind knocked out of me as the tail connects. Smashing into the wall on the far side of the room, I feel my bones break from the impact.

Landing heavily on the floor, I groan and look up as the Hydra is engulfed in a rain of fire. Gritting my teeth, I groan as I push myself to my feet. Feeling pain in my side as I take a breath, I holster Aetheris and feel the side of my body. One, two, three, four ribs broken. And judging by the pain when I breathe, one has punctured my lung. From the Hydra, a screeching sound emits, piercing into my skull. And the flames die down. Walking clear of it, the heads look at me with hatred and hunger in their eyes. With an effort, I draw Aetheris from its holster and cross the guns across my chest. Running forward, I stagger and leap sideways as the creature spews more acid towards me.

"Akimbo." My body screams out in pain as it twists from the magic taking hold. Watching as a hailstorm of fire and bullets destroy the head I damaged, I land heavily and collapse onto the floor, my guns falling from my grasp as the backlash renders me immobile. Shaking itself into a frenzy, the damaged head falls to the floor, the creature already turning to me. As it takes a heavy step in my direction, a voice fills my mind.

"Oscar!" In a blur, a white multi-tailed wolf the size of a bus comes tearing into the chamber, slamming into the hydra, smashing it into the wall. Landing lightly in front of me, it takes a defensive position and growls a deep growl that rumbles throughout the entire cave. Finally, feeling the backlash wear off, I grab my guns and push myself to my feet. Holstering them, I reach out and place my hand on her side.

"Good to see you, Marianne." At my words, her head twists towards me, and a sad anger fills her eyes.

"Good to see me? You mean you are lucky I showed up when I did. What were you thinking?"

"I thought that Saetaen put this thing between me and my daughter and the woman I love. And I wasn't about to let it stop me from getting to them."

"Ella and Hannah are further inside?"

"Yes." Turning away from me as the Hydra gets to its feet, power radiates through her, and her claws crack the stone ground.

"Hurry ahead, Oscar. I shall deal with this pup. Heal yourself, and I will make an opening." Placing my hand on my side and backing away, I concentrate on the magic.

"Healing wave." As the golden energy washes over my body, I feel the pain in my chest and my breathing get easier. Letting the magic dissipate, I watch Marianne charge into the hydra, her teeth and claws gripping it tightly. In one motion, she throws it clear from the doorway, and I hear her voice in my head.

"Oscar. Now!" not wasting the chance, I sprint past the fighting and down the hallway Saetaen walked down earlier, running until the sounds of fighting become faint. Walking deeper into the cave, I stretch uncomfortably as a dull throb comes from my chest. Stopping for a moment to catch my breath, I hear voices talking faintly. Moving forward on tiptoes, I come to a large antechamber, and standing in the middle is Hannah, Ella and Saetaen. Watching Hannah draw her sword, I stifle a cry as I see Ella place her hand on her back, a slight flash of purple light emanating from her palm. As Hannah falls to the floor, Ella draws out a pure white feather, its power clear from where I stand. Creeping forward, I inch closer to a point where I can hear their words clearly.

"Release the curse."

"Or you will do what? You have no power, Ellavessa. You never have, and you never will."

"I have power enough, father. You should recognise this feather. Now it may not kill you, but it will kill me even with your curse, and the backlash from that will taint our bloodline in such a way that it will be catastrophic. Not even you can escape that."

"You dare…" Watching as Saetaen's rage makes his hands transform into claws, I draw Thorne.

"You dare to threaten me with a divine relic? Me? Your father. And for what? A lowly human man and his pathetic hero daughter. I should kill you where you stand." At his words, my rage simmers to the top, and it takes all of my willpower not to shoot him immediately.

"You can try. But I will burn this feather faster than you can imagine, and even if I do not make it out of here, you will be the one cursed for all eternity."

"Fine. Have it your way." Waving his hands, a dark energy pulls itself free of Ellavessa and she falls to the floor. Just before she hits the ground, a purple flash comes from her hand and hits Hannah.

"Hannah now!" Leaping up from her place on the ground, Hannah's sword emits a blinding white light, and she launches into a series of attacks against the Demon King , her blade becoming a blur. Leaping back from the onslaught, he draws his blade and meets her with a clash of sparks. Pushing her back, he readies his blade and returns the assault. Watching from the sidelines, unable to do anything, I watch as their blades clash, sending rippling shockwaves through the chamber. And for a second, I almost thought Hannah might win. Then I heard it. A sound like metal tearing from stress, and her blade split across the center, sending the tip flying off into the darkness. In one movement, Saetaen plunged the blade into Hannah's side, and I'm honestly not sure if she or I screamed louder. Aiming down Thorne, I yelled out.

"Arbalest!" With a cannon blast, the bullet struck Saetean on the shoulder, spraying blood into the air. Before I could shoot again, Hannah pushes herself clear of his blade, and in the same motion, the remnants of her blade come down slicing the side of his face open. Letting go of his sword and clutching his face, Saetaen screamed out in agony and staggered away. As Hannah fell to her knees, I took two steps forward and stopped as I felt power pulsing through the room.

"You dare to cut me? Me? You will all die beneath this mountain. I will crush you all!" At his shout, power bursts from his body, shaking the entire mountain. As the roof cracked overhead, I started sprinting towards Hannah, seeing Saetaen transform into a black-skinned winged demon. Watch as rocks tumbles down from the walls and the roof, I stagger as one hits my shoulder, sending me into a pillar. Before I could take another step towards Hannah, I look up to see another rock coming down and everything goes black.