After clawing his way through the door, he moved more slowly, prowling on all fours to follow the source of the magic that radiated through the halls of the palace like heat from a fire. When he turned the next corner, there were two guards standing between him and the doors at the end of the hall. They stood their ground, much to his surprise. Migo had anticipated finding more resistance before now. With all the soldiers employed by the emperor, surely there were more of them prepared to fight against the monsters created by shamans. Monsters like him.
He knew to be cautious. One of the failings of the waheshi when facing him is that they seemed to not consider the possibility of getting hurt. They were self-sacrificing in a way that insinuated they lacked tactical reasoning. Migo was different. He was a trained soldier, and although he wasn’t equipped with a glaive or poleaxe, he did have… weapons.
The soldiers stood together as Migo approached. With his heightened senses, he already knew what kind of attack to use. He lowered his head, focusing on the soldier to his right. As expected, the other soldier stepped wider, both of them lowering their weapons, aimed at his head. Migo snapped at the soldier he faced, turning his head to the side to avoid the stab of his weapon. The other soldier went to stab the side of Migo’s neck, but his left wing flicked down in a flash, impaling him in the neck. He rose on his haunches, grabbing the body off the spike of his wing, flinging it at the other man. When the soldier dodged aside, Migo slashed down with his right claw, hammering straight through his metal plated armor.
The soldier thumped into the ground in a crumpled heap.
He refocused on the door ahead. The vibrations of magical energy trickled from the door like smoke. The entire surface around the door was coated in a blurry mist. Was that what enchantments looked like?
A deep growl shook the walls as Migo closed the distance to the doors. He should have never left Katsi behind. He should have stayed with her. He’d trusted the emperor too easily. It was time to see if this curse was worth the price. He resisted the urge to charge straight at the door, and instead used a more cautious approach by slashing at it with one of his paws. His talons pierced straight through the filmy mist and scored a massive gouge in the door. He pounded again and the doors shattered in splinters.
Ranaz Malrabia stood in the entryway, dark eyes burning with an energy that made it hard for Migo to look at them.
“Ah.” The muscles of Ranaz’s jaws twitched. “King Rikaydian. It seems my mother was right about you. I never anticipated the day I’d come face-to-face with Ashjagar. The bleeders must truly be desperate.”
The burning energy in Migo’s chest surged. He could feel it trickling down to every fiber of his body, even the horns and spines. It yearned for him to lunge, to bite, to claw, to roar. He would tear the flesh from Ranaz’s bones.
“Migo!” Katsi’s voice shouted from the room behind Ranaz. He would have heard it even if she whispered. He could smell her scent from his current position—that smell of dried sand mingled with the sweet flavor of aboda fruit. It was both intoxicating and startling in his present state. But there was desperation in her tone. “Migo, run!”
So Ranaz had already started trying to convert her power into one of his enhancing artifacts. But Katsi had no idea what Migo had become. She was in for a surprise.
Something dark and deep echoed from Migo’s chest, a growl that rumbled the walls. He stretched his muscles before stalking toward Ranaz.
The emperor did not hesitate. The ground beneath Migo vanished, revealing a deep chasm. At the same time, the walls and ceiling closed in, every brick slamming toward Migo with a speed that defied reason.
Migo’s wings and legs shot out as he tried to grab onto something, but the incoming bricks battered him down. With his tough hide, he barely even felt the stones that pelted him. They may as well have been grains of sand. But even discounting that, he simply couldn’t grasp anything, and he had no momentum to prevent himself from falling. It was time to test his real strength.
He pumped his wings as hard as he could, throwing them down with all his strength. He crashed through the falling rubble and pumped them again and again. The falling rubble subsided, and he burst out over the edge of the gaping hole Ranaz had created. He grasped either side of the open doors and clawed his way toward Ranaz, snapping at his feet. Ranaz’s shining sword arced quickly, grazing across Migo’s snout. The pain was startling, but it was still nothing when compared to what he suffered when transforming into Ashjagar.
Katsi was in the room, pinned to the wall. Something was clearly preventing her from using her magic. She would easily have been able to free herself otherwise.
Ranaz swung again, his eyes focused, jaw set. Migo flinched his head back, getting better footing before swiping at Ranaz from both sides. The emperor was faster than Migo would have thought possible, skipping backwards, slicing across with his sword. The blade scraped along one of Migo’s talons before tearing the flesh on the back of his hand. Using his own body as a weapon made Migo frustratingly vulnerable.
He tried a few more careful strokes with his claws. It was harder to fight in this manner, unable to use feints or parries as he was accustomed to and having to avoid any contact with Ranaz’s sword completely. It was a single sword. How was Ranaz able to move fast enough to counter each thing Migo did?
Perhaps he was being too careful. He needed to take the same advice he’d given to Katsi during that single opportunity he’d had to train her regarding hand-to-hand combat. Commit.
He jabbed his left wing down from above, swiping down at Ranaz’s feet with his left claw as well. He also sprung his right paw forward, stabbing two claws directly at Ranaz’s midsection. Ranaz jumped back, narrowly dodging the wing, and swiped his sword down, deflecting the low strike, but Migo’s right claw got just close enough to tear at the emperor’s shirt. But Migo felt it. The tip of his claw had grazed Ranaz’s skin. It would only equate to a minor scratch, but at least Migo had done something to prove Ranaz was not invincible.
Blood was drawn. Even at such a small portion, the metallic taste of it tickled Migo’s senses, urging him on. He let out a low growl, sneering at Ranaz.
The emperor smirked.
He tried again, this time using both wings, aiming one of them a little further back in case Ranaz was able to step back as quickly as he had previously. Ranaz seemed to have anticipated the attack, jumping to the side this time and stabbing at Migo’s right paw, jabbing the sword into his palm. But Ranaz wasn’t prepared for the extra wing stroke, and took a stab in the left side of his chest. Migo felt the spike break the flesh. He could tell exactly how deep it had penetrated. The very tip had punctured the muscle and stopped right against Ranaz’s rib.
Another shower of bricks pummeled Migo’s face. He shook his head to batter them away, but Ranaz was bold enough to step forward with a few quick jabs, one of them scoring the top of Migo’s chest.
Migo reared back and whipped his tail around, but Ranaz was suddenly in the air, easily dodging over the attack. He arced over Migo’s head, blade cutting down at the same time. It rattled against the spines along Migo’s back. Migo batted at him with one of his wings, but Ranaz simply slid to the side, evading it as though he predicted every move. It was almost like he was playing with him. Similar to when he’d dueled Migo at their first meeting. Perhaps the shaman’s curse still wouldn’t be enough to defeat Ranaz.
But he wouldn’t go down easy. One glance at Katsi was all it took to reinvigorate himself. She didn’t scream or shout, but watched the two of them battle with unblinking focus. It appeared that she too realized her fate was in Migo’s hands. Or claws. Sands.
Migo spun and snapped at Ranaz’s feet with his jaws, pounding his wings down for additional thrust.
The ceiling of the room shattered as Ranaz summoned the bricks. They went crashing down into Migo once again as Ranaz glided through the air. His sword flashed, clipping the edge of Migo’s left wing. Migo batted the wing, actually managing to slap the side of Ranaz’s body, but the emperor seemed fully at home in the air and barely even moved, swinging his sword again. Migo recoiled his wing just in time, then whipped his left claw at Ranaz’s torso. Ranaz was quick enough to dodge again, but the tip of Migo’s claw still hooked the bottom of Ranaz’s boot, ripping the black leather straight off his foot.
Ranaz snarled and jerked his left hand. Hundreds more bricks bolted toward Migo as the ceiling completely tumbled. This time, the bricks changed midair, transforming into long, sharpened spears.
Migo, still planted on the ground, tucked his wings and spun. Most of the sharpened stone spears broke apart against his hardened spines, but one scraped his stomach. And another one, though it crumbled on impact, broke through the thick scales on the end of his snout.
Migo let out a huff and leapt into the air, pounding his wings to chase after Ranaz who retreated higher through the broken ceiling. He felt at a pure disadvantage. Ranaz had the ability to navigate through the air in whatever direction he liked at any moment, whereas, Migo depended on the strength and angle of his wings and body.
Ranaz shot forward like the tongue of a grasping reptile. He struck fast, stabbing Migo’s knee, then recoiled before Migo was able to react. Migo roared and lashed out with all fours, narrowly missing. Ranaz came at him again, rotating over Migo’s head, trying to get at his back. Migo spun, driving the back of his right claw toward Ranaz’s face. He dipped lower, sword grazing Migo’s forearm.
His wounds stung as if Ranaz’s sword was poison, but no amount of pain would be enough to stop Migo. Only death.
Cascading sleet and sand pounded into Migo’s eyes from every direction as he roared in frustration, his voice shaking the air like it was just another boom of thunder. Lightning streaked overhead, threateningly close. The energy within was like a pulse to Migo’s burning heart.
Ranaz flitted in one more time, slashing Migo across the side, barely getting scratched on the back of his arm as Migo whipped his spiked elbow back.
Enough.
Migo pumped his wings in a powerful lunge, jaws snapping at Ranaz’s head, both his front claws grasping for the emperor’s body.
Ranaz’s sword flashed like lightning, scoring a long gash right up Migo’s neck. Migo sensed every bit of his flesh that tore with disgustingly perfect detail. He knew that if he proceeded forward, his throat would split. He threw his head back, tilting into a backward dive.
But that was as he’d intended.
His tail whipped up from below, battering Ranaz across the back, some of his spikes gouging the flesh.
