The fallen elves looked up as well, noticing the anomaly in the sky, and an uproar broke out among them.
"Look! A dragon!"
"A dragon!"
"Mother Goddess above, it's actually a gold dragon! Is it friend or foe?"
"We are the Blades of the Sacred Court, the kin of the Goddess of Moonlight and Darkness—the holy army sent to suppress rebels! He must have come to aid us!"
Even as their dispute raged, the gold dragon let out a deafening roar. Unfurling his massive wings and opening his maw, he dove amid howling gales, a brilliant conflagration igniting deep in his gullet.
"Not good!"
"He's coming for us! Damned gold-skinned reptile!"
Realizing the newcomer harbored ill intent, the fallen elves began hurling venomous curses.
Yet a scalding gale was already sweeping across the earth, rushing straight into their faces.
*Boom—!*
The sound of air detonating echoed through the heavens. A surging torrent of dragonfire cascaded from the gold dragon's jaws like a waterfall, creating a vast sea of raging flames that swallowed hundreds of fallen elves whole.
"So hot... I'm burning up!"
"No—!"
"Damned reptile!"
"Gold dragon! We are the Blades of the Sacred Court! Why are you attacking us without cause?!"
The fallen elves wailed in near-hysterical agony, their hoarse roars rising in desperation as they struggled uselessly in the inferno.
Their skin charred black and split open with brittle pops, revealing grotesque drider forms beneath their elven skins.
These half-elf, half-spider monstrosities screeched bizarrely, scrambling on spindly, pointed legs to flee the blazing sea. But ignited head to toe by dragonfire, no amount of rolling on the ground could extinguish the flames. One after another, they curled in agony, reduced to charred husks.
"Kill this reptile! Shoot it down!"
"Loose! Loose your arrows!"
"Kill him at all costs! We cannot let these rebels escape!"
Therian struck the ground repeatedly with his staff, his expression dark and his voice choked with fury.
The fallen elves drew their bows and aimed for the sky, loosing volleys of envenomed arrows that shrieked through the air. The elven mages raised their scepters, discharging beams of pitch-black light aimed straight for the dragon's underbelly.
Yet the ancient gold dragon threw back his head and roared, spreading his wings. Dragonfire spiraled across his frame, turning into a furious fire storm that swallowed both arrows and spells whole.
"Fallen scum consorting with the Abyss, warped creatures of darkness—I shall bury you in fire!"
Titus scoffed, a dazzling blaze suddenly flashing within his golden eyes.
In an instant, countless meteors rained down from the heavens, trailing gorgeous tails of fire and carrying terrifying power. They slammed into the fallen elves' formations, detonating in a series of colossal explosions.
Watching the tremendous spectacle wrought by the gold dragon, Catherine's face lit up with joy. "Lord Titus, thank you for coming to our aid," she said respectfully. "You are truly worthy of the title 'Wings of Dawn.' Your strength leaves me... in sheer awe."
In the distance, Rhea sliced off a fallen elf's head, then glanced toward the ancient gold dragon and gave a respectful nod.
Titus flapped his broad wings, hovering above the defensive lines like a guardian deity. Lowering his head, he spoke with solemn gravity: "Greetings, Queen Catherine. You give me too much credit.
"To uphold justice and purge evil is the duty of all metallic dragons. I would have come regardless, let alone at your personal invitation."
Catherine raised her scepter, bestowing soothing radiant light upon the gold dragon. She smiled and said, "Lord Titus, your nobility commands my deepest respect."
"That is Titus, the legendary Dragon of Dawn! No wonder his dragonfire is so terrifying!"
"What immense power!"
"He's our ally! With such might on our side, we will surely reclaim the Sacred Tree!"
With the gold dragon's arrival, the morale of the Silvermoon Followers and the Harpers soared. Roused with battle fervor, they raised their blades and charged into the enemies who were reeling back from the scorching dragonfire.
A shadow fell over Elder Therian's face. He barked out a stern command: "Keep pressing forward! Do not fear! The great Mother Goddess is watching over you!
"Remember, we are the true masters of Therenia, and our numbers far exceed theirs! These rebels will never defeat us!"
"Hurrah!"
"For the Mother Goddess!"
With madness in their eyes, the fallen elves braved the dense volleys of arrows and raging flames, charging recklessly forward. Some transformed directly into grotesque spider horrors.
Therian narrowed his eyes and held up his staff. Intense waves of malevolence emanated from its tip, setting the air trembling.
"Great Mother Goddess, I beseech you, send forth your noble herald..." he whispered.
From midair came a harsh, grating screech like rusted metal scraping against metal.
*Skrrr—!*
Sharp, pointed limbs pierced through space, tearing open a dimensional fissure that seeped heavy poisonous mists.
Immediately after, a monstrous, colossal spider slowly crawled out of the rift. It possessed hundreds of crimson compound eyes, and each of its legs spanned nearly twenty meters.
"Praise the Mother Goddess!"
Therian spread his arms as if embracing the world, his scarred face twisted in fanatic ecstasy.
"Filthy abomination—!" the gold dragon roared in anger. Opening his jaws, he fired a searing column of flame straight at the giant spider.
Yet sinister crimson gleams flickered in the spider's eyes, and hundreds of rays laden with vile energy shot forth simultaneously, holding their ground against the ancient gold dragon's torrent of fire.
Titus threw back his neck and roared, climbing hundreds of meters in an instant. Spreading his wings, he swooped down toward the titanic arachnid, swiping with massive talons to crush it beneath his weight.
Yet the giant spider moved with unnatural swiftness. Its eight spindly legs shifted in a blur, easily dodging the dragon's strike while spewing highly corrosive venom that burned through the scales along the ancient gold dragon's flank.
Roaring with fury, Titus whipped around and swept his tail. The bone-crushing blow sent the giant spider flying; it tumbled across the ground, crushing several unlucky fallen elves beneath its mass.
Yet the monstrosity scrambled up almost immediately. Its fanged maw shot out thick, viscous webbing that wrapped tightly around the dragon's wings, severely hampering his movement.
Incensed, Titus tore free from the webbing and lunged aggressively at the spider. The two behemoths collided in brutal, close-quarters combat.
A fallen elf officer, his face twisted in malice, raised his saber and shouted, "Quick! The gold dragon is tied down! Charge in while we have the chance and take the rebel leader's head!"
The fallen elves surged forward like a swarm, charging recklessly toward Catherine. Even Rhea cleaving through them with radiant blades from her silver sword and Melisandre loosing a relentless stream of arrows could not halt their advance.
With a single sweep of her sword, Rhea cut down a dozen fallen elf soldiers and lunged back toward Catherine. But Therian and several mages raised their staffs together, chanting ancient incantations as black briars burst from the ground. Emitting thick dark mists, they trapped Rhea within.
Some fallen elves had even managed to close within a hundred meters of Catherine, hurling envenomed spears in manic frenzy.
"Quick! Protect Her Majesty!"
The Silvermoon Followers raised their shields and formed a defensive wall in front of Catherine, straining against the tide of enemies crashing against them.
Catherine remained composed atop her unicorn. Her scepter emanated soft, soothing radiance, invigorating the surrounding Silvermoon Followers and knitting their wounds whole in an instant.
Yet at that moment, a detachment of fallen elves launched an ambush from the rear. Mounted on sleek, pitch-black displacer beasts, they weaved through the shadows using magic, cutting down several Silvermoon Followers in rapid succession before lunging straight for Catherine.
"Die, rebel!"
*Wuuu—!*
A melodic horn blasted across the field as ripples spread through the air, and a massive portal tore open in the space directly behind Catherine.
Moments later, a regiment of dwarven cavalry clad in heavy armor and mounted on great-horned rams surged out from the portal, bellowing thunderous battle cries.
Like an iron torrent, the dwarves made the earth shake and dust billow, engulfing the ambushing fallen elves in an instant.
"Hahaha! Queen Catherine! The Mountain Dwarf Kingdom has come to your aid!"
At their head, Zayn let out a boisterous laugh. Swinging his warhammer, he shattered a fallen elf's skull into pieces, sending brains and blood flying.
"Crush these Abyssal bastards!"
The charge of the ram cavalry proved devastating. Trampled beneath the iron hooves, the fallen elves died before they could even groan, mashed into pulp and gore.
"Hahahaha!"
"Haven't had a fight this good in ages!"
Three thousand shield dwarf warriors flooded the battlefield, swinging hammers and battleaxes as they clashed with the fallen elves in a frenzy of roars.
It was as though they were pouring every ounce of grief and wrath from losing their homeland into their enemies.
Catherine looked toward Zayn and smiled warmly. "You must be the new Lord of the Mountain—King Zayn. I have long heard your name from Rhea, and seeing you today, you truly embody the spirit of King Ed.
"Yet, as Queen of Therenia, I must offer my apologies. When Evindeldan faced its hour of peril, we were unable to honor our treaty and come to your aid."
"That was not your fault," Zayn replied gravely. "The sacred alliance between Therenia and the Mountain Kingdom has not ended; we remain steadfast allies. Besides, we still count on Therenia's support when the time comes to reclaim Evindeldan!"
"Naturally, King Zayn. Once I hold the reins of Therenia, I will spare no effort to aid you."
Therian's voice shook with unbridled rage. "Catherine, you colluded with those dwarves! You truly are an unforgivable traitor!"
Catherine said coldly, "The silver moon elves and the dwarves have been allies for millennia! It is you fallen ones who betrayed everything!"
She raised her scepter high. "Attack! For the glorious future of Therenia! For the honor of the silver moon elves!"
With the arrival of the shield dwarves, the balance of power tipped completely. Under the devastating assault of this "holy coalition," the fallen elves were driven back step by step.
Before long, more portals began opening across the sky. Wizards from the Arcane Hermitage, celestial legions from Mount Celestia, and ranger contingents from the Harpers entered the fray in rapid succession.
Spells of every hue illuminated the battlefield, holy light rained down from above, and war cries shook the firmament.
Meanwhile, the ancient gold dragon unleashed another torrent of dragonfire that incinerated the giant spider's carapace. Tearing free from the remaining web threads, he climbed into the air once more and dove toward the enemy lines, setting off another roaring conflagration.
Before long, the fallen elves collapsed in utter defeat, scattered and cut to pieces.
"Curse you outsiders!"
"Hahaha! Die! You will all die, and your deaths will be excruciating! You cannot withstand the Mother Goddess's wrath!" Therian raised his staff and screamed madly at the sky.
"Pitiable cultist of an evil deity," Titus muttered as he lunged forward, shattering the black magical barrier with a single swat of his claw.
Therian's face twisted, his eyes bloodshot. "Reptile, that goes for you too! None of you can escape! You will all—"
*Smack!*
The ancient gold dragon flattened the elven elder into meat paste with one swipe. Flicking the blood from his claws, disgust was written all over his draconic face. "Filthy Abyssal blood... it stains my claws..."
In the blink of an eye, smoke blanketed the field. Twisted, spider-like corpses littered the ground; the fallen elves were either dead or routed, leaving almost none behind.
"A blood sacrifice to the Mother Goddess!"
One crazed fallen elf, brandishing a longsword, charged straight toward Catherine, paying no heed to the hundred fully armored guards surrounding the elven queen.
Rhea's expression turned cold. Drawing her bloodstained silver sword, she stepped forward to cut him down, but Catherine stopped her, speaking calmly: "Keep him alive. I have questions for him."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Rhea moved behind the fallen elf and knocked him unconscious with a swift strike to the neck, then bound him tightly in iron chains.
It was quite some time before the fallen elf slowly opened his eyes. Catching sight of Catherine not far away, he began struggling wildly, his voice shrill and fanatical: "Rebel! You will die a horrible death! Under the radiance of the Mother Goddess, there is nowhere for you to hide!"
Catherine remained unruffled, asking without a trace of fear, "Fallen one, who exactly is this 'Mother Goddess' you speak of?"
The fallen elf gave her a strange look and replied, "We are silver moon elves. Naturally, we worship the great Lady Sehanine! Has a shameless traitor like you forgotten even basic common sense?"
"You revere Sehanine as well?"
Catherine could not help but furrow her brows.
Sehanine was a powerful and benevolent deity—the Moon Goddess, the beautiful silver-haired lady, and the guardian deity of the silver moon elves. Known reverently among them as the Mother Goddess of the Sacred Tree, nearly every Therenian was her follower.
Yet this wretch before her, radiating evil... claimed to be a worshiper of Sehanine?
Hearing Catherine's question, the fallen elf puffed out his chest with immense pride. "Of course! How could a rebel like you ever understand?
"I am the most loyal, most devout worshiper of the great Eight-Armed Mother Goddess, the Weaver of Chaos, the Goddess of Moonlight and the Dark Night—Sehanine!"
"Eight-Armed Mother Goddess?"
Catherine's brow knitted even tighter.
*Wait, just which Sehanine does this lunatic actually believe in?*
Chapter 755