Shae clicked with her tongue, watching their new enemy arrive. Four arms heavy with muscle slammed into the ground, each thicker than a Zrun. Once a common Qilesh soldier, this specimen had survived dozens of battles, claiming enough Mass to ascend to a Ch'riun.
A colossus twice the size of Liron. Its torso was broad and covered in thick plates that had grown out of its skin. Their success on the battlefield allowed the Ch'riun more individuality, a common gift inside the Qyoral for the ones who prove themselves worthy. This one had twisted its membrane to stand high like dorsal fins, expressing its brash nature. The gills around its neck lacked the soft nature of Zonis'. They were sharp and rigid, like stone protruding out of its flesh.
Its arms were painted black, and the stripes formed Qyoral symbols on its torso and back, resembling Shae's tattoos. Most disturbing about the creature was its head. As all the Qilesh of the Qyoral's army, it appeared like something Angin had called a shark. A massive predatory fish that lived in the oceans. But unlike the Xrrons and Zrun, its mouth was twice the size, enabling it to devour a grown man with ease. The pale white skin of its head was touched by the black stripes, forming fine lines alongside its snout and around its eyes. Whatever human and empathetic qualities Liron had found in Zonis' eyes, he failed to see them in this creature.
The Ch'riun laughed, its voice deep and raspy. Its greater strength gifted it with authority, leading larger groups of Zrun within the Qyoral army. It grabbed one of its subordinates by the neck, effortlessly picking it off the ground. Calling something at them in Lors, it waited for their response.
"It wants to know our names," Shae translated, gathering her storm around her hands, summoning talons.
"Tell it we will carve them into its ass," Liron said, grasping the handle of his black blade.
Shae glanced at Liron, but she told the Ch'riun what Liron had said. It laughed in response, throwing the Zrun at it. The soldier changed its shape, fusing its hands with the tip of its snout, turning them into a massive arrowhead. The air hissed as it hurled towards them. Shae summoned her lion's paw, coating it in strong winds.
She deflected the living projectile, letting it slam into a ruin next to them. The ancient house tore apart, the vigor behind the throw devastating what had endured the centuries. Three more Zruns followed, catapulted at Liron and Shae.
Liron cast a smoke screen, allowing them the chance to slip away. Emma, hidden behind her illusion, enveloped them in her spell, letting them vanish as the smoke dispelled under the Qilesh blowing through it. Crashing into pillars and other buildings, Al Parkis lost pieces of its old self. The holy place had still many more to lose, though.
The fighting between the beasts and Qilesh turned towards the Qyoral's favor. The first tortoise and scorpion fell to the endless barrage, presenting fresh Mass for the Qilesh to take and grow stronger, absorbing their victim bodies. Zonis didn't give them the chance to claim their price.
As they slashed and punched through the fresh carcasses, the new bombs installed underneath them exploded, burning away them and their new Mass. As they had done, Zonis had changed his shape, allowing him to swim through the sand like through water. Somewhere, Bran and the other agents prepared another set of bombs for Zonis to implement, taking advantage of the Qyoral having to fight the beasts. They had no capacity to aid Liron, Shae, and Emma.
Having seen Emma's illusion, the Qa'an had given the command for all its subjects to enhance their smell. They wouldn't stay hidden for long, but they didn't need to. Closing in, Liron cast his smoke sickle, his spell shooting for the Ch'riun. Shae boosted the spell, letting her lion roar out a storm wind, pressing the cut forward. The combined spells appeared from behind their illusion. For the Ch'riun, they just emerged from nowhere, coming for their heads.
But it had survived countless battles already, its senses for the flow of combat strengthened. Holding the next Zrun in its hands, it used it as a shield. The sickle cleaved through the Qilesh, still having enough power to reach the Ch'riun. It slashed into its plates but lacked the edge to cut through it.
The force sent the Qilesh stumbling. It nearly fell, its legs short and underdeveloped, forcing it to use its arms when it ran or walked. It used them now, punching its fist into the sand for stability. Grunting, it noticed the smoke lingering around its wound. It dashed forward, discarding the slashed remnants of its subordinate, running on all six. Despite its mass and size, it accelerated, building up speed through its sheer strength.
It should have sniffed out Liron and Shae, but instead of charging them, it headed towards the Zruns it had thrown. No, it headed towards Emma, having discovered her scent. Liron's heart skipped a beat, and he hurried after the Qilesh without waiting for Shae. She called something after him, but he ignored her.
The thrown Zruns climbed out from the wreckage, moving towards Emma. The ones behind them, who had awaited being used by the Ch'riun, sprung into action as well. Shae stayed behind, engaging them.
Thanks to the solid ground of Al Pakris, the Qilesh couldn't dig underground, forcing them to rely on running. Another command reached them, telling them to focus on speed. Their limbs slimmed down, taking the shape of a deer's legs. These soldiers became a strange hybrid of beast and warrior, running on all six, no humanoid features left on them.
Noticing Liron hurrying after them, the Ch'riun turned around, charging him. Liron ignored the brute, blasting himself into the air. The Qilesh had some semblance of a mind, but it lacked any deeper strategic thinking, cursing as his enemy easily escaped him. Liron hurled himself after the Zruns, blade ready.
Before it could sever them, the Soulsmith gave them their next command. Out of the four, three abandoned their pursuit of Emma, transforming their arms into wings. They leaped into the air, adjusting to flight within seconds. The Zruns proved themselves as capable fliers, but Liron was faster, avoiding them midair with his explosions.
They refused to accept defeat, hunting after Liron. Escaping their grasp required little from Liron, but the Ch'riun didn't sit down and watch. It punched down a pillar, shattering it into boulders. Pieces as large as Liron's torso flew past him, having enough power behind them to rip right through him.
The bombardment and chase left Liron with no opening to come to his sister's rescue. He coated himself in smoke as he blasted himself around. As he gathered enough, he unleashed a stun explosion, blinding the Zruns. Even the Ch'riun cried out, rubbing its eyes. Igniting his blade, Liron hurled himself towards the Zruns, cutting through them with an enhanced hau. The velocity of the slash proved itself too much, the explosion ripping his sword out of his hands.
He let it vanish, spawning a new blade in his hands. Liron jerked around, about to blast himself towards Emma, but she had no need for his help. The Zrun had discovered her, forcing her outside of her illusion, a pile of sand. She had run away from the Qilesh, leading it towards a house.
While the Zrun could smell her, it could not see through her illusions. She had adjusted her position slightly off, displacing herself and the door she hurried through. At full speed, the Qilesh slammed into the wall, causing cracks to spread through it. Lying stunned on the ground, Emma pulled out her short sword, screaming as she stabbed the Qilesh to death. No artistry or restraint in her attacks. She had her eyes closed, thrashing around like a drunk woman.
After her arms were covered in the Qilesh's pale blood, she stopped. She kicked the Zrun, making sure it had died. She gave Liron a thumb's up. With its plan failed, the Ch'riun roared an insult at its fallen troops. It hurried towards the slashed corpses falling from the sky, picking them up. Their service did not end in death. Their bodies provided worth to the ones above them.
One touch, and the dead Zrun became the Ch'riun's. They fused, creating two battle axes. The handles melted with the Ch'riun's hand, becoming an extension of it. It carried one on each side, leaving its other two arms empty. It would need them, as four more Zruns reached the side of its master. Shae kept the constant flow of Qilesh at bay, but some had slipped past her, offering their service to the Ch'riun.
Liron landed on top of the house, Emm still staring at her dead enemy. "You good?" he asked, sweat dropping off his forehead.
Qilesh blood had splattered all over Emma's face, painting it in a pale grey. "Ehr… sure. I… I can still go."
"Good. Em, I need you to hide again and…"
"Fuck off. I'm done with this shit. You need my help against the ass there. I won't leave you alone with it."
"Em, you can't…"
A Zrun shot forward, slamming into the house. Liron blasted himself away. A small one, enough to hurl him off. He rolled on the ground. Emma had dived away, landing face-first into the ground next to him. The Ch'riun had grown tired of waiting, having thrown the first of his new soldiers. But instead of taking the next one, he tugged at the rope attached to the end of his living javelin.
The other three Zrun's offered their mass, creating the rope from their being. The Qilesh came free of the ruin, slamming back into the Ch'riun's hand. Unsatisfied with the attack, it changed the head of its soldiers, dancing it into a club. It swung around its newest weapon, ready for another try.
Recalling Ragner, Liron guessed how this creature would use the Zrun after a few attempts. "Fine. Em, I take your help."
"Great," she said, pulling her face out of the dirt.
Liron took a defensive stance. He lacked the control to make his exploding blade work for him, but his sword could not slash through the Ch'riun. He had failed against the Wrathlings before, and these two enemies were roughly equal in strength. The Qilesh's adaptability made them a nightmare to fight. So, it was Liron's turn to evolve.
He coated his blade in embers. Up until now, he had used them for little else than igniting his smoke or heating up his sword. But his Conduit transferred its abilities to all aspects of his Gate. It gave his smoke a cutting edge.
Liron's mind strained under the cost of creating another spell. Despite his struggle, his embers heard his demands, changing at the command. Their glow intensified, moving around his sword with new found vigor. Tiny daggers, rotating around his black blade, honed to cleave through his enemies.
If one hau would fail to penetrate his enemy's defenses, he would grind them down with dozens of smaller ones.