Boiling Isles: The Next Generation - Act I.

Chapter XLVIII - Devastation

The air had a scorched, metallic taste, and the landscape was covered in the devastation of a brutality that was beyond comprehension. Even Azura's wildest nightmares were nothing compared to the horror that unfolded before her eyes.

Long, winding trenches cut across the land. Their edges were covered in a layer that was sometimes glassy, sometimes sooty, a mixture of molten earth and charred dust that was still smoldering faintly.Where the spheres had vanished, huge, irregular craters gaped open, and the ground had melted into such a perfectly smooth surface that Azura could even see a distorted reflection of her own face in it.

And the witches...

Azura felt sick to her stomach when she saw what had happened to them.

Most of the soldiers were now nothing more than shadows. Their dark, sharp outlines lay smeared across the ground, exactly where they had been standing just a short while ago. The outlines were so clear it was as if their bodies had evaporated in an instant, and only their absence had been seared into the earth.

But there were those whose fate was even more horrible.

Next to a nearby depression lay the upper half of a demon's body, with a perfectly smooth cut line. Its legs, however, were nowhere to be seen; in their place was the same dark, ash-like outline.

And they weren't the only one to whom this had happened.

Not far from the demon lay a body whose left side alone was burned into the ground. In some places, two halves of bodies lay side by side, the upper body of a witch and the lower body of a demon.

Azura's knees trembled when her gaze fell on the next sight.

Bria Qadr...

The shadow of the former Covenhead of the Construction Coven melted into the shattered stone wall that she had raised to stop the sphere hurtling toward them...

Azura couldn't take it anymore. Her legs gave way, and she fell to her knees as her tears silently soaked the scorched earth. The pain gripping her chest and her exhaustion pulled her down with ever-increasing force.

"Priscilla?" Ophelia Cerys' voice rang startled.

Azura slowly turned her head to the side. Just a few meters away stood Priscilla, her arms outstretched, her fingers encircled by glowing energy, as she struggled with all her might to maintain the protective shield, whose surface was dotted with tiny cracks.

Behind Priscilla, Ophelia knelt, cradling the completely unconscious Taneisha protectively between her thighs, whose head was resting on her lap.

All around her, the air was filled with fairies flitting about frantically; their faces reflected sheer terror, and every beat of their wings trembled nervously.

Standing directly behind them were Kevin's two fathers, Gus and Matt, along with Skara Cadenza, who watched Priscilla in stunned silence, their mouths agape.

Azura didn't understand what had triggered this paralyzing fear in them, but then she became aware of Priscilla's appearance. The young witch had taken on her ancient god form, which made certain parts of her body resemble Kewok's appearance. The energy radiating from her presence was just as ominous as that of the ancient god.

"What on earth does this mean?" Ophelia said, stunned.

A sudden, violent spasm swept through Priscilla's body. The shield surrounding her collapsed with a sharp, shattering crash, and the energy scattering into pieces rippled through the air. The girl fell to her knees, braced herself against the ground with her palms, and gasped for breath, her breathing ragged and hurried.