The Game Before the Fall

Chapter 53: The things we should have known. (Part 3)

**

"Hey!" the call was followed by a slap, and I jolted awake. Poppy looked down at me as I laid on the forest floor surrounded by tree. "You good? What happened you randomly collapsed."

"Where am I?" I asked.

She raised a brow and chuckled, "You don't mean when?"

I scowled at her.

"It was a joke," she waved my scowl away. "We're in the Western Mountain range. Your mum teleported us."

"The world," I looked around. "Is it already done?"

"What do you mean?" Poppy looked around, "Seems normal enough down here."

"No, I saw it. I saw her break Areithia apart."

"Dude, it's been like half a minute since we left the tower." She hoisted up from the ground, "Anyway, time to get to work. Haize is a bit of a bitch but if he says a danger is present it means its real bad. You got anything on that?"

My eyes widened as I saw what Poppy did not, the speck high in the sky that quickly became larger, "Wyvern King!"

"Wyvern what now?" Poppy looked up. "Oh shit!" She grabbed me and took to the air, flying rapidly away and just in time to avoid the monstrous force that pummelled into the ground we had just been. The trees and earth were shred apart and a large crater was what remained.

The King of monsters regarded us. An enormous body covered in dark blue scales. Its reptilian head was shaped like an iguana, a crown of scales jutting from its neck as a frame. The creature stood on two hind legs but leaned forward using it upper appendages as both arms and feet. Its biggest feature was its wings that grew from its arms and were currently furled behind it and attached to its body. This was the Wyvern King, a creature so powerful that it had survived the time of Dragons.

"Jump at me like that," Poppy huffed. "I'm the Queen of the Skies around here! Let's see how you like this." She raised her hand to the sky and the winds all across the mountains swept into a swirling gale. Ghostly blades formed by the air itself appeared above the Wyvern King and descended upon it. The impact was immense as the trees and ground were crushed only for the loose debris to be picked by the gale.

A roar of annoyance burst out from the swept dust and broke through Poppy's magic, dispelling her winds. The Wyvern King glared towards us angered, slight scratches marring its skin.

"Hmmm, that's not good," Poppy sweated. "You know when it comes down to it, I was never particularly strong against single targets."

"We should run," I noted as I hung on to her.

"Yeah." We took flight but as soon as it was clear we were retreating the Wyvern King leapt after us, proving to be far faster than compared to its side. As Poppy flew I aimed my hand towards it. A flash of light erupted in front of its face, bright enough to steer it away and give us space.

"Fucking Haize," Poppy shouted through grit teeth. "He could have been a bit more specific. Ardent you need to get out of here. I can't win against that. Fuck me, so this is how I die."

She flew with me in her arms, making a quick beeline for the cover of the nearby rocky outcrop. The Wyvern King however recovered quickly, proving to be just as fast as Poppy despite its size. Poppy flew between the large rocks that covered the mountain side, trying to break its sight but unable to as the beast simply ploughed through the solid stone.