Chương 51: Breach

The world became fire. Kesseroth's breath washed across the field in a devastating wave of red. Barricades exploded into flame. Siege equipment ignited and soldiers scattered in every direction. Andy had expected screaming. He had not expected the utter silence that fell over the area following the destruction. Anyone who hadn't been caught in the inferno simply stared, those who hadn't been so lucky–well they were no longer able to scream. Burning equipment and sections of earth cracked.

Black smoke rose into the sky and Andy smelled it. The same scent from his last encounter with the soldiers. From when they took Auri. The rage started building and the world went dark at the edges. Suddenly, a hand was on his shoulder.

"Andy." Sessaly said calmly.

"Andy, save your rage." The darkness receded. Sessaly's blue eyes met his.

"Auri needs your head more than she needs your anger." Andy took a breath. In. Out. In Out. The urge to release his anger diminished from overwhelmingly volatile to pretty tempting.

"Thank you." He managed.

"I'm okay." A horn blared from within the barracks, then another from the facility. The silence finally shattered. Kesseroth landed and the party tumbled off both sides. Gustave fired windblades from the air and an exhausted Georgina fired her crossbow.

"Allow me", Sessaly said, stepping out from behind the group. She spread her arms open wide and began to sing. A hauntingly beautiful song erupted from the merfolk's mouth. All of the soldiers stopped in their tracks. Bow strings went slack, runs stopped mid stride, horns ceased midnote. Every soldier looked at Sessaly, bowed and then turned. The soldiers began walking the other direction. It wasn't until they collided with unaffected soldiers that the real battle began.

Every soldier under Sessaly's Siren Song was utterly convinced that protecting the merfolk was their most important duty. An archer walked straight up and punched a commander who was shouting orders. Nearby two swordsmen clashed. Two watchtowers were exchanging friendly fire. The facility descended into chaos.

"Move!" Georgina shouted while picking off stray soldiers one at a time. Meanwhile, Andy had transformed into his unicorn form. His B. A. L. L. S were safely attached and Barnacle in his new knapsack was snug as a bug against Andy's side. Barnacle filtered.

"Thanks buddy. Good luck to you as well." Barnacle filtered,"Hey what do you mean 'Try not to drop me this time.'" Barnacle filtered.

"Andy!" Kesseroth yelled, shrugging on the knapsack with Reggie inside.

"We won't have much time, let's go." The now humanoid dragon took off at a run. Andy attempted to ignore the world around him as he ran. All he needed to do was focus on running. On Auri. He passed a soldier who knocked a comrade unconscious and then made a beeline straight for him. A windblade stopped him and his sword, which had been inches from Andy at best. Sessaly's song continued. His horn decided to turn it into a duet. Da da-da dada daa… Da da-da daduh daaa-da Andy nearly tripped.

"Really horn? Now is not the time." Da da dada da da da-da da dada dadaaaaaa A man was running straight toward Andy in his path. Andy skidded to a stop trying to decide which direction to dodge when the soldier stopped abruptly and lowered his sword. His eyes unfocused and he began gently swaying to the tune. Much to everyone's surprise the man then at the crescendo burst out "A WHOOOLLLLLEEE NEWWWWW WORRRRLD".

[ABILITY ENHANCED: HORN SONG -> HORNY SIREN SONG] The soldier blinked, "I uh, don't know why I said that." He shook his head, "Where am I?" A windblade removed his helmet. He watched the spinning piece of metal as it hit the ground and rolled. He looked at the very large horny horse in front of him. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"Nope," he said as he dropped his sword and went running away from the facility. Andy stared after him.

"You know, that's probably for the best."

"Andrew!" Kesseroth shouted from ahead.

"Yes, right! Running!" Andy began running as fast as he could. The prisoner entrance was getting closer now. The squat stone structure looked rather unassuming. Unlike the main gate there were no banners, no decorative stone work, and no attempt to draw attention to it at all. As Reginald has said, It sat off in the corner behind what looked to be discarded crates and barrels. It'd been so long since he'd run at full speed he really got caught up in how fast he could go.

[GALLOP EFFICIENCY: 90%] Andy ran right past Kesseroth and Reginald who'd stopped at the door. He tried to stop but skidded about five additional body lengths past right into a guard who'd been behind the building. More defenders were peeling off from the main fight at the front and were converging on the would-be-infiltrators. The guards back here were too far away to be affected by Sessaly's song. So instead they were going to have to deal with him.

"Operation BONER!" Andy declared. Three vines rushed from the sacks at Andy's sides. The nearest guard barely had time to look confused before a vine wrapped around his ankle and yanked. He pulled the guard up and dangled him upside down out of the way. Another guard swung a sword. The vine slapped him in the face. The guard dropped the sword and screamed as a giant red welt appeared across his face.

"Note to self," Andy said.

"Vine whip is super effective." Andy was busy flinging the first guard into the second when he noticed a shadow fall over himself. The torchbearer. He was equipped with a sword and shield. The torchbearer whispered a few words and the sword caught fire. A similar rune to the staves and pylons lit on the hilt of the sword.

"You." Andy declared. The torchbearer smiled that horrible smile.

"Yes, me."

"You kidnapped my friend." The torchbearer glanced toward the prison entrance.

"I told you that it would've been easier had you cooperated." The torchbearer swung. The flaming sword licked at Andy's neck. Andy ducked. Heat washed over his mane and a few strands blackened and curled.

"Hey! I was growing that out." The torchbearer stepped forward behind his shield. Unlike the other soldiers, there was no fear in his eyes. He was focused solely on Andy. The flaming blade cut downward. Andy leapt backward. The sword struck the ground and dirt flew in every direction. A vine shot up behind the torchbearer and tapped him on the shoulder. Without looking he brought the flaming sword around and sliced it in half. A second vine emerged. A third. Both were cut down. The torchbearer smiled.

"The trick was more impressive the first time." Andy frowned.

"My B. A. L. L. S!" The vines fell away drained of their magic. The same thing that happened around the staves. The same thing that happened when they took Auri. The rage began building and the edges of Andy's vision darkened.

"Good," the Torchbearer said.

"Get angry. Maybe then you'll be a challenge. He lunged and his shield slammed into Andy's shoulder. Pain erupted through Andy's side. Andy stumbled. The flaming sword followed immediately. He pressed the flat of the blade against Andy's rear flank. It sizzled and popped. Andy screamed, "No, no anything but that!" The torchbearer laughed and pulled the sword back to attempt a second strike. There was no wound there. The man stumbled backwards in confusion.

Andy, pawed at the ground, "You seem to be confused on how to penetrate. Let me demonstrate. Whoops I didn't mean to rhyme there. Anyway…" Andy lowered his head and charged. The torchbearer lowered his shield and braced. Andy's horn went straight through the shield and the unfortunate Torchbearer's arm. The sound that came out of the torchbearer will be skipped over due to safety concerns for our viewers' mental health. Suffice it to say: It was loud, it was high-pitched, and it was entirely deserved.

The charge carried Andy (and by being shish kabobbed onto his head also the Torchbearer) several more body lengths before he managed to stop. The torchbearer stared at the horn protruding from his arm. He attempted to say something. What emerged instead was a noise that sounded more like an injured trumpet.

"You know, that's fair." Andy said and jerked his head sideways. The shield ripped free from the man's grasp. He stumbled backward, gripping his arm. The ruined shield hit the ground with a heavy clang. The flaming sword lay on the ground several feet back at the place of impact.

"Oh," Andy said, kicking the sword toward Kesseroth.

"I'm fire resistant." The unwavering loyalty he had for the Harness was still there. Andy could feel it. But now there was something else too. Anger.

"Good." Andy said, "Get angry. Maybe then you'll be a challenge." The Torchbearer screamed and charged. Andy waited until the last moment, wrapped a vine around the man's ankles and lifted. He tossed him into the side of the facility. The Torchbearer hit the side of the facility with a meaty splat. He slowly slid down the wall and did not get up. Andy blinked and turned to see a shocked Kesseroth and Reginald.

"Come on, we have places to be."

"You know, all this time I thought you were jokes and rainbows." Reggie said cautiously.

"Reggie, I'm an expert at sticking my horn where it doesn't belong. Remind me to tell you all about it." Kesseroth held the door to the entrance open, "Come on Andy. No one wants to hear about your weird misadventures."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." [SPECIES: UNICORN(MAGICAL BEAST)] [GALLOP EFFICIENCY: 90%] [PARTY MEMBERS: 4] [HERD BOND: ACQUAINTANCE (DRAGON)] [HERD BOND: COMPANION (PRIMORDIAL BASILISK)] [HERD BOND: COMPANION (SESSILE)]