The Call of Crows

Chapter 48: Apotheosis

Taya smiled with glee as violet energy rushed in a vortex around her and the Dragon. He tried to let go, but she held onto him.

"Hear my kin, enemies of man!" Taya roared in unison with her Shedim, "Humans shall once again be their own salvation! Darkness, through its deceit, will no longer capture the hearts of the lost! The search for light will once again be worthwhile! The skies shall clear as men regain their sight once again! Steel will embolden men to take up arms against fate!"

Taya continued on her own, swearing a promise to herself.

"Justice has been absent! Rescue will never come! So I, myself, will step in to lead us! My strong arm of steel and my own justice to fuel me, I will don willpower as my armor, determination, my helm! I will clothe myself in the robe of vengeance and wrap myself in a cloak of passion!"

The Dragon senselessly beat on her arm, but to no avail.

"I will leave an eternity of nothingness to enter a temporary existence of glory! I will abandon the will of the gods to surround myself with true humanity! I will never again know peace and instead, embrace pain! I will betray this world! This fate! This universe! And all who stand in my way, will know the love I feel for my fellow man when they suffer the wrath of my hatred!"

Taya's surge of power left her. She pushed the Dragon away and fell without fear.

The cobblestones crumbled beneath her as her soles hit the ground. The other Shedim Masters stared at her in awe from their knees.

"Warriors of mankind! Get up! Up on your feet! They will steal our futures from us unless we take them by force! The gods seek our demise, out of jealousy and pride," Taya shouted. "So get up and earn your future! Fight for your right to a tomorrow!"

She pulled Shedim Masters and Legionnaires alike to their feet.

"Our mission today lies before us! Wake the damned! Let freedom's song rage! Warriors of mankind! Arise! And destroy all the Weakness that lies in your path!"

Once they were all on their feet where they belonged, Taya turned to face the Dragon. He stood on top of a roof, cradling the arm that Taya had grasped.

"So this is the challenger to the Dragon I've heard so much about." he hissed. "You want a fight? Fine."

The Dragon gestured with his hand, causing all the city's Bane Knights and soldiers to come flooding out of the allies and roads around them.

"No mercy for the tyrants!" Taya roared. "Into the abyss, my brothers and sisters! Into the abyss, for life, liberty, and glory!"

She was the first to unleash a hoarse scream of fury as the Legionnaires rushed toward the enemy..

"Queen of the Night and Taker of Souls, bond with my bone and let us become two beings as one!" Taya chanted.

Her Shedim Bonemerged with her, causing her skin to turn a pale grey and her plaid tunic to be replaced by wicked black plate armor. A decorated Claymore appeared in her hands as she charged.

Normally, the immense power that came with Bonemerging made it so the bearer could only hold it for a few minutes before needing to rest. But right now, Taya felt as though her well of power was infinite.

She wrapped herself in ropes of violet energy, carving through the wall of Bane Knights before her like a fire consuming a piece of parchment.

Each of her movements felt lighter than air. Her strikes had the force of a writhing ocean behind them. The armor that emerged from her Bonemerging was tougher than a mountain.