Elegy for the Sixty-Seven

The Veil Sealer Company worked with desperate urgency inside the vault, the Friendship’s arrays blazing as the Prime Rift shuddered against the sealing energy. Erika monitored the readings, her brow furrowed. Gio operated the control array with precision, sweat beading on her forehead despite the cold mountain air.

Outside, Elder Denren stood guard at the vault entrance when a shrill whistle cut through the night. His eyes snapped skyward. Dark shapes wheeled against the stars, dozens of them, with humanoid torsos borne on feathered wings and talons glinting in the firelight from the burning monastery.

“Harpies!” he shouted. “Watch the air!”

The harpies dove in a coordinated swarm, hurling jagged rocks. One stone struck a cannon’s breech, denting the barrel. Another shattered against a La’Shido shield, sending the warrior sprawling.

“Spread out!” Elder Malin commanded, his voice carrying over the chaos. “Douse the torches! Harpies have poor night vision!”

The soldiers moved quickly, extinguishing their lights and scattering into loose formations. Riflemen dropped to one knee, tracking the wheeling shapes above. La’Shido archers drew their longbows, white-fletched arrows hissing into the dark. The mages raised their staffs in unison, shimmering crystalline barriers over the exposed cannons.

“We’ll handle the flying guests!” Elder Yaya called to Gio and Erika, her languid demeanor replaced by sharp focus. “Focus on closing the Prime Rift!”

The harpies dove again, but their attack faltered against the prepared defense. Arrows punched through leathery wings. Rifle bullets tore through feathered chests. Mage-fire erupted in blue blossoms that consumed screaming monsters mid-flight. Bodies rained down, crumpling against stone and steel.

Then the night split with an ominous honking sound. A sound like a rusted war horn echoed off the cliffs.

A violent downdraft slammed into the courtyard, extinguishing the remaining torches and blowing soldiers off their feet. From the dark sky descended an enormous avian shape. Obsidian feathers absorbed the firelight, tracing up a long, serpentine neck to a head ablaze with glowing crimson eyes. Spikes of blue arc-lightning crackled violently along its jagged beak.

“It’s the Evil Goose!” Denren shouted. “Take cover!”

The creature unleashed a thunderous shockwave of white-hot lightning. The blast tore through the front ranks, vaporizing a La’Shido barrier and blasting armor into molten scrap. A heavy artillery cannon overturned with a deafening clang, its crew tossed across the stone like ragged dolls. The Goose slammed onto the courtyard, its talons gouging deep trenches into the mountain bedrock as it snapped its massive beak, crushing a screaming warrior before launching skyward with a heavy beat of its wings.

“Reform the ranks! Clear the kill zone!” Malin commanded, wiping ash from his face. “Gatling guns, aim at the sky!”

The heavy weapons swiveled upward, their barrels spinning with a high-pitched whine before unleashing a relentless torrent of lead. Tracers crisscrossed the dark sky, pounding into the creature’s chest. But the Goose’s dense plumage absorbed the kinetic force like armor plating, forcing the heavy rounds to deflect off its hide in showers of sparks. It banked hard to the left, circling a monastery spire with contemptuous ease.

The harpies pressed their advantage, riding the monster’s wake and sweeping from the west in a coordinated wave. But the company’s combined firepower met them in a wall of death. Harpies fell by the dozen, their shrieks cut short as they tumbled from the sky.

Then the Goose swooped from the east, its beak crackling with lightning.

“Goose from the east!” Malin shouted, pointing his staff toward the beast. “Aim for its eyes!”

Every gun, bow, and staff turned to track the incoming terror. The counter-barrage was blinding as rifle bullets sparked across its snout, white-fletched arrows found tight gaps between neck feathers, and mage-fire scorched its face. The Goose shrieked in fury and pain, its focus breaking as lightning sputtered wildly from its beak. Struggling to gain altitude, it reared back in mid-air.

“Sleep!” Yaya’s voice rang out over the din, her hands tracing an intricate, glowing pattern.

A dense wave of drowsy, violet magic washed over the monster. Its powerful wings seized mid-beat. Its crimson eyes drooped, and for one critical second, the beast collapsed into a spell-induced slumber and plummeted like a stone.

It crashed into a burning spire with a shattering impact. Rooftiles and masonry rained down, crushing harpies and soldiers alike. Flames erupted where its massive body struck, but the magic wore off on impact. The Goose began thrashing wildly, its serpentine neck whipping back and forth as it tried to free itself from the rubble.

Elder Denren sprinted toward the collapsing tower, his boots finding purchase on crumbling masonry as he scrambled upward. The radiant heat singed his armor and hair, but he pressed on, drawing his greatsword. At the broken apex of the spire, he leaped into the air.

His sword came down in a brutal arc, driving deep into the Goose’s neck where the feathers were thin. Dark, steaming blood erupted like a geyser across the courtyard. The creature’s head dangled from its shattered spine, snapping feebly at the air as the massive body gave one final, violently convulsive shudder.

“Focus fire on the target!” Malin roared.

The cannons swiveled and fired as one at point-blank range. The Goose’s body disintegrated under the concentrated barrage, and the surviving harpies broke formation, screeching in terror as they were cut down in the dark.

Silence fell over the monastery, broken only by the crackle of flames and the moans of the wounded.

The three La’Shido Elders entered the vault, stepping over bodies and debris. Inside, the Friendship hummed with strain as the Prime Rift shuddered against the sealing beam.

“How’s the sealing going?” Malin asked.

“The process is stalling,” Erika replied, her voice tight with worry. “The rift shrank, but something’s fighting back.”

The Prime Rift pulsed with dark energy. A chill swept through the La’Shido as presences pressed against the other side. The rift began to expand again, its edges writhing like wounded serpents.

“What are those?” Gio whispered from inside the Friendship’s cabin, her face pale.

The sheer terror of the presence made La’Shido warriors tremble. Some dropped their weapons; others fell to their knees under the crushing weight.

The three Elders alone maintained their composure.

“They’re the ones that destroyed our former homeland,” Malin said quietly.

He exchanged glances with Denren and Yaya. No words were needed. They had prepared for this long ago.

The three Elders moved into position around the Friendship, forming a triangle.

“What are you doing?” Erika demanded, her voice rising in alarm.

“Two centuries ago, we lost our home,” Elder Malin declared, his voice steady. “We will not lose another.”

The La’Shido soldiers understood then. This was farewell.

“The greatest honor for a warrior is to die in battle,” Elder Denren said, drawing himself up. “The future is in your hands, children!”

“I just want to take a nap,” Elder Yaya said, offering a whimsical smile. “A very long nap.”

The three Elders closed their eyes. Their life forces, representing centuries of accumulated mana, wisdom, and love for their people, began to channel into the Friendship. A warm golden light enveloped them.

“Use maximum output!” Malin ordered.

“Maximum output released,” Gio confirmed, her voice breaking as she manipulated the controls.

The Veil Sealing beam intensified to a blinding glare. The ground shook. Lightning and gales erupted in chaotic motion, tearing at the vault walls. The Prime Rift screamed as the enhanced energy tore into its core.

It writhed. It fought. It shrank.

And then, with a final, thunderous crack, it disappeared.

The vault fell silent. The air cleared, and the oppressive presence dissolved.

The three Elders lay motionless on the stone, their faces serene. Their long duty was finally complete.

Erika bowed her head. Gio wept. The La’Shido soldiers knelt in silent reverence.

The sacrifice had been made.