To The Ones Who Can't Dream

chapter 52 - Sangravah

TW: mentions of rape

     "Hey suit up, there's been an attack on the Sangravah temple. We leave in 5 minutes," Azriel called to Seren.
Whenever Azriel or Cassian would go check on a disturbance somewhere, they would invite Seren along. They learnt to have each other's backs when confronting an enemy and worked like a well-oiled machine. Running up to her room, Seren crashed into a large chest. Rhys grabbed her arms to stabilize her, "Where are you going?"
"Suiting up. Az, Cass, and I are going to check out the attack at the temple in Sangravah," Seren said before rushing off to her room.

     When she arrived back in the living room, she was met by Azriel, Cassian, and Rhys dressed in their Illyrian leathers. She did a double take at Rhys standing there. "What are you doing here?" she questioned him.

     He shrugged, "Just thought I would come along. No real reason."

     Seren caught Cassian giving Az a meaningful look behind Rhys's back but before she could ask about it, she was distracted by Rhys. She had never seen him in Illyrian leathers before and she had to admit that he was a work of art. They clung to his muscular body and his tattoos peaked out the top of the neckline. He had a sword strapped to his back, like everyone else.

     They all had different weapons but carried a sword no matter what. Seren also had her daggers buckled around her thighs. But the biggest weapon was herself. "Okay, Seren I'm taking you and Az will take Cass. Let's go," Rhys commanded.

     As Cass and Az disappeared into the shadows, Seren stepped up to take his hand. He lent down and looked her in the eye, "If anything bad happens, I want you to get out of there. Az's shadows are still picking up on Hybern's General and his army being there."

     Rolling her eyes, Seren squeezed his hand, "Got it High Lord. Let's go help out Cassian and Azriel."

     Rhys winnowed them to the meeting place where they had all agreed on beforehand. Guards lined the perimeter of the temple and there was no big opening to get inside the building. Nobody knew what was happening on the inside, so they weren't sure if killing their way into the building was the right way. But they were left with no other option. The temple looked small but there were many rooms underground and they were pretty sure Hybern's soldiers had infiltrated those rooms.

     It was unclear if any of the priestesses were still alive, but Seren made a promise to herself to go through every single room and make sure to save anyone she could. Silently, Seren started walking down the hill they were on and up to the temple. Only two guards were stationed at the front door and as Seren stalked towards them, she lifted her fist. Both guards levitated off the ground and clawed at their throats as if they were choking. When their faces had turned an unruly shade of blue, she released them and they toppled to the ground. She didn't know if they were dead or simply unconscious but she didn't stay around to check.

     She kicked the door open and was immediately met with guards. She didn't even have time to take in the beautiful temple she was standing in. Rhys snapped his fingers and misted them all. One moment they were there. And the next, they were just a red bloodmist. Seren sent him a look and he shrugged his shoulders as if he was saying, It's nice to have my powers back.

     A door banged open. Hundreds of guards flooded into the room. Seren surveyed the room. She couldn't help but notice the dead half-dressed priestesses strewn around the room. She was so mad. Seren was visibly shaking. Without another word, Seren started sprinting towards the soldiers.

     She unsheathed both her daggers. Blood sprayed on her face. She slashed. She cut. She dismembered the guards. These monsters had raped and murdered innocent women. She wanted to throw up at the thought. The guards kept coming. So Seren kept killing.

     Although Seren could use her powers, she used her daggers instead. She wanted to feel these vile men die by her hand. There was no coming back from what they had done. They all deserved a very slow and painful death. She could see Az, Cass, and Rhys also fighting in various points of the room. They were covered in blood, so Seren couldn't tell if they were injured or not. But she was pretty sure it was the latter.

     The men she was up against were three times her size. But that didn't bother Seren. She used their size to her advantage by moving so fast they couldn't keep up. Before they even registered she was near them, they were dead.

     A smaller man came up behind her. She didn't notice him until the last moment. The guard brought his sword down. She vaulted over a pew. She had been seconds away from death. But as Seren looked up at the man, she smiled. She was a close friend with death. She sheathed her daggers quickly. The man jumped onto the pew. Flipping over the next pew, Seren pulled out her sword.

     The guard brought his sword down hard onto hers. Her arms shook with the effort of holding him off. With him distracted by her weapon, she kicked him. He landed in the aisle. Glaring at her, he stood up. Seren spun her sword. She advanced on him.

     Jumping from her pew, she landed next to him. He had no choice but to retreat to the pews on the other side of the aisle.
She hopped up next to him. Her sword clashed with his. He retreated backwards.

     She kept pushing. Finally, he reached the end of the pew. She smirked. But he surprised her. He took the chance to jump onto the next pew. Then the pew after that. Seren huffed and sheathed her sword. She chased him to the front of the temple.

     Quickly, she caught up to the man. He was running up to the dias. Seren took a running leap. She landed on his back. He whipped around trying to get her off. As she reached down for a dagger, he grabbed her other arm and flung her off him. She landed on her back in front of him.

     Her opponent grabbed their sword and aimed for her. Rolling to the side, his sword stuck into the ground where her head had been seconds ago. It took him a moment to get his sword unstuck. Seren flipped up on her feet. She whirled around to face him. He held his sword up, ready for her attack.

     Their weapons were brought together with force. It was a tight match since Seren wasn't as physically strong as this guard. Her sword grazed his stomach. His weapon slashed her cheek. Both were breathing heavily. But he didn't realize Seren's tactic until too late. When his back hit the table, he glanced behind him. There was nowhere for him to go.

     Seren knocked his sword out of his hands. He looked at where his sword was. Then he looked back at Seren. As she advanced on him, he lent back on the table in a last ditch attempt to get away from her. Seren cocked her head, "Any last words?"

     "Burn in Hell," he spit at her.

     Spinning her sword in her hand she smiled, "I guess I'll see you there."
With that she brought her sword down onto his head with both hands. The blade went through his forehead. And all the way through the table.