A deafening roar split the battlefield as the Terrasnake's colossal, stone-plated body scraped against the ancient trees, pulverizing them into splinters. Julie dove into a roll as its massive tail slammed down where she had stood, exploding their makeshift barricade into a cloud of shattered wood and debris. The air thrummed with chaos, the screams of soldiers, the rain of arrows, and the blasting of conflicting spells.
'Aeroblast!'
Sylphy's voice cut through the din. She compressed high-pressure air into a shimmering sphere and launched it at the Terrasnake's head. It detonated on impact, enveloping the beast in a cloud of dust and concussive force.
As the smoke cleared, the dazed serpent lunged, its fanged maw gaping wide to swallow her whole. At the last possible second, Sylphy uttered a quick levitation spell, hovering just out of reach as its jaws snapped shut on empty air.
Distracted, the Terrasnake left an opening. Julie darted in, her daggers striking in a blur, but they screeched harmlessly off its stone scales, sparking against the impenetrable armor.
This battle was just a microcosm of the entire fight. Elfir's furious jets of crimson fire were met and neutralized by the Vulpyre's own golden flames in a searing stalemate. Tylon was a relentless whirlwind, desperately dodging the Gravadilo's crushing rolls, while Gobuka engaged in a lethal dance with the Plumivorax, his sword clashing against razor-sharp feathers.
Amazel's eyes scanned the frantic stalemate, her strategist's mind calculating. 'This is a war of attrition we will lose.' Gritting her teeth, she stomped the butt of her staff into the blood-soaked earth.
'Earth Manipulation: Rampart!'
The ground beneath the Gravadilo groaned and erupted upwards, forming a steep, stony ramp. The monstrous armadillo, caught mid-roll, shot up the incline at terrifying speed, launched into the air like a cannonball directly toward the Plumivorax.
The elegant avian tyrant's eyes glinted with deadly intelligence. It pivoted with inhuman grace, its magnificent tail-fan spreading wide. The jeweled feathers weren't just for display; they were honed blades. With a motion as swift and beautiful as it was brutal, the Plumivorax sliced through the Gravadilo. The stone-plated beast was cleaved neatly in two, its halves crashing to the ground with a sickening thud.
"Tylon! Support Julie and Sylphy! Now!" Amazel commanded, already turning her attention to the next crisis.
The burly warrior broke away, charging the Terrasnake with a guttural roar. He feigned a powerful overhead swing with his hammer, then pivoted into a devastating horizontal blow aimed at its eyes. The snake recoiled with surprising speed, then struck back like a thunderbolt, its fanged maw snapping shut on Tylon's outstretched arm. Metal and leather groaned as Tylon roared in pain, muscles straining as he physically held the monstrous jaws apart, blood streaming from where needle-like teeth pierced his gauntlet.
It was the opening Julie needed. In a flash, she vaulted onto the beast's snout and poured every vial of venom and paralytic poison she carried directly into its gaping throat. Tylon shoved backwards, breaking free as the Terrasnake recoiled, thrashing in agony as the potent toxins seared its insides.
"Sylphy, NOW!" Julie yelled.
'Aether Press!' Sylphy incanted, her wand flaring with emerald light. The very air around the Terrasnake thickened, condensing into an invisible vice of immense atmospheric pressure. The beast's thrashing slowed, crushed by the unbearable weight. Between the poison and the pressure, its monumental struggles grew weaker until finally it lay still.
"You two, help Gobuka!" Julie ordered Tylon and Sylphy, already sprinting toward Elfir's position. "I'll handle the fox!"
Elfir was on his last reserves, his robes shredded, blood dripping from a dozen scratches. A sustained torrent of fire roared from his wand-tip, met and matched by the Vulpyre's own infernal blaze in a blinding, heat-hazed standoff. He never saw Julie coming. Silent as a shadow, she flanked the Vulpyre, and with one precise, ruthless slash, severed its head.
The sudden silence was deafening. Elfir stumbled forward, his fire sputtering out. He whirled on Julie, wand rising, his face contorted in furious betrayal. "JULIE! That was my—"
"Snap out of it, Elfir!" she snapped, her voice cold and sharp, not even looking at him as her eyes scanned the ongoing carnage. "We don't have time for your pride. Look around you!"
Elfir's gaze swept across the battlefield—past the injured soldiers crying out, past the corpses of comrades and monsters lying tangled in the mud. The anger drained from his face, replaced by shame. He closed his eyes, taking a shuddering breath. "Sorry."
"Hmm…Let's end this," she said, already moving to aid the combined assault on the Plumivorax.
The five commanders fought as one. Sylphy's 'Aether Press' slowed the creature's dazzling movements. Elfir's 'Crimson Flare' scorched its brilliant plumage. Tylon's hammer, Julie's daggers, and Gobuka's sword harried it from all sides. Yet, even wounded, it was a whirlwind of death, its bladed feathers deflecting and parrying, holding the entire army at bay.
Seeing the stalemate, Amazel raised her staff high. 'Glaciate Lance!'
Six shards of glacial ice, sharper than steel, materialized and shot toward the Plumivorax. With breathtaking elegance, it deflected two with its wings and dodged a third. But its injuries finally told. It was a fraction too slow. The remaining three lances found their mark, piercing its chest with a sound like shattering crystal.
"Aaawwk!!!"
With a final, dying cry, the jungle tyrant fell, its beautiful plumage scattering like forgotten jewels across the mud.
Silence descended, heavy and thick. Forty-one soldiers were dead. Twenty-three more were grievously wounded. The cost was written in the grim, bloodied faces of the survivors. Amazel's jaw was clenched so tight it ached, her fists trembling with a rage she dared not unleash. She took a deep, steadying breath, burying her fury beneath the mantle of command.
"Everyone," her voice, though quieter now, carried across the field with unwavering strength. "Take a moment. Honour their sacrifice. Remember their names."
A profound silence fell as every soldier, weary and wounded, stood with heads bowed and eyes closed, paying tribute to the fallen.
"Now, gather our heroes," Amazel ordered, her tone shifting to pragmatic urgency. "Be swift. The scent of blood will draw more than just flies."
As soldiers began moving, Julie approached, her voice a low whisper only for Amazel. "General, carrying the dead will slow us to a crawl. The risk of plague… it could decrease our numbers more surely than any monster."
"I am aware of the risks, Julie," Amazel replied, her eyes scanning the treeline. "I have a plan. For now, your priority is to scout. The one who laid that lure is still out there. Find them."
Hours later, deep in a new, more defensible position, the exhausted army tried to rest. The scent of soup from the campaign kitchen was a small comfort. Amazel stared into her bowl, her mind replaying the day's horrors, seeing the faces of the dead in the steam.
Then a scent, faint and cloying beneath the herbs, triggered a memory—a captured assassin's blade, tipped with a poison known as "Widow's Kiss" for its delayed, lethal effect.
Her reaction was instantaneous. She flung her bowl to the ground. "Do not drink the soup!" she roared, her voice lashing across the camp. "Those who have eaten, do not induce vomiting! Do not eat or drink anything else! Report to the healers immediately!"
She locked eyes with each of her commanders. "The soup is poisoned. Secure your units. Provide only clean water. Amar, your unit is with me. We detoxify this now."
What followed was a controlled frenzy of healing magic. Due to Amazel's swift action, a catastrophe was averted. She then marched to the kitchen tent, where the cook was already on his knees, tears cutting tracks through the grime on his face.
"General… I swear on my life, I would never… not even in my darkest nightmare…"
Amazel didn't let him finish. She placed a firm hand on his shoulder. "I know it wasn't you. Your loyalty is beyond question. You are the backbone of this army. Without your food, we cannot fight." Her words steadied him, the panic in his eyes receding.
She turned to Julie, her expression grim. "This is the work of our hidden enemy. They may have infiltrated us. Julie, this matter is yours. Find the viper in our midst. Quietly."