Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

[Mamono Assault Force]

Heart pounding, breaths gasping for air, her feet pounded against the grass as fast as her body could carry her. The damp night air gave her lungs the moisture needed to continue running. But even so, her lungs were burning, she was getting tired. But she knew she had to continue. Her pursuers were not far behind.

A little fairy flying at her side, glowing with a green light, with brown hair done back into a tail over her head, and a green dress, tried to comfort the girl who was running for her life. "We're almost there!" she announced quickly, "Please hang in there, Alice! You have to keep running!"

Shedding a few tears, Alice, with waist long blond hair done back into a straight pony tail, wearing a red tunic and dark blue pants, shut her eyes for a moment to try and cope with the burning sensation growing in her body. "I can't... I can't make it!" she panted, her legs barely maintaining balance as she ran.

Behind her, several Magi foot soldiers kept a steady pace, spreading out so as to box Alice in should the event come that she try to diverge from her path. And right behind them, a war machine followed in the distance, responsible for killing everyone that tried to help her escape. There were few forces that could stand up to a Magi war machine.

A tower coming into view from beyond the trees, Alice barely made her way to it, stopping at the stone door, laying her hand against the side of the open, decaying door, panting with exhaustion. "Alice, you can't stop here! Come on! Just a little more!"

Alice's tears grow more prolific, "What if it doesn't work..." she cried, "I don't want to die like this... And everyone that was killed to help me escape... Oh, Susan..." she sobbed, "They're all dead..."

Susan, the fairy, pulled on Alice's collar desperately as the sounds of footsteps got dangerously closer, "That's why we can't stop now! The dragon WILL protect us! I know it! But if we die here, then everyone really will have died for nothing.!"

"ALICE!" Susan screamed.

Swallowing a lump in her throat, Alice let out another cry, running with a slight limp from her strained muscles, into the tower, and up the circular steps as fast as she could. Panting, crying, and wheezing, Alice suddenly missed a step, yelping as she fell on the steps before her. Susan quickly grabbed her shirt, trying to tug her up, "Don't give up!" she shouted, getting Alice back to her feet, where she ran up the rest of the long flight of stairs.

On the final floor, Alice ran through the short hallway, decorated with historical art that she cared not to examine, before entering the final chamber, where none other than the crystallized dragon's egg awaited her. The size of a dragon itself, the egg was enormous, as well as beautiful. Though the top of the tower lacked light, a bright, overpowering shine emanated from the core of the crystal egg, shining a great white, and red color through the brilliant material.

"White Fatalis..." Alice whispered, falling to her knees, panting.

"... She's beautiful." Susan said with admiration over the dragon encased in her egg, no visual shape needed to be seen, the bright light alone enough to speak wonders about the glorious, legendary dragon. A moment later, Susan began flying up to the crystal, placing her little hand on the smooth material.

"What are you doing?" Alice inquired with worry.

Susan looked back with a shy smile, "I'm going to use my power..."

Alice's eyes went wide, "But, you aren't strong enough to do that!" she shouted, "You'll die!"

Susan smiled at Alice, "It's okay... I know it's for a good purpose..." She turned around, looking at the great egg, "Maybe she'll know of my sacrifice, and hold pity for us..." she giggled, "Everyone's given their lives, so that we could make it here... I want to give my life too, for the sake of the world."

Alice shook her head, "Susan...! I don't want to the be only one to live! You're all I have left!"

"It's alright..." Susan said to comfort her, "She... She'll protect you." Clasping her hands together, Susan summoned all the magic she had in her tiny body, connecting her force with that of the dragon inside of the egg, seeking to explode the prison that the legendary beast had contained itself in. "Please..." the fairy pleaded quietly, hoping that the sleeping dragon would hear her request, "Please protect her..."



Susan's essence poured into the egg. Her little body becoming nothing but a glow of green light that seeped into the cracks of the enormous egg. A moment later, the cracks in the egg grew, even more shaping themselves over the surface. The essence of the dragon's soul inside stirring from being disturbed, the egg surrounding it soon shattered in a mighty explosion. Shards of blue crystal descended from above all around Alice like snow, while the glorious light that rested within took shape, like yolk forming into a hatchling.

Her slumber had ended. For thousands of years, her eyes remained shut. She had even lost her biological form, remaining as a soul, trapped within the crystallized egg that shaped around her. Mira's soul slowly began to attract a shape to itself. But instead of four legs, she had two. Instead of scales all over her body, she would feel a shiver from air touching naked flesh. When all the light had faded, only the dim light from the crystal around her giving sight, Mira would see hundreds of reflections casting her own image back to her, a shape of a human, bearing traits to the great dragon she once was.

And before her... Lay a single human girl, sitting on her knees as she stared at Mira in awe...

"Fatalis..." Alice whispered under her breath... "Is this really her...?" She rose her hand, slowly reaching out to the dragoness, unable to find words to use, to plead with the dragon. All she could think of how desperate she was to make it to this point, how many people gave their lives to help her awaken that which no one would ever dare awaken.

A moment later, Alice's eyes suddenly went wide. An arrow from a Magi's crossbow penetrating right through her shoulder sending her to the ground on her face. Several soldiers had gathered from the stairs, and now were pointing their weapons at Mira, the dragoness before them.

"Target's down." one soldier announced.

"What the hell is that?" another asked.

"Doesn't matter. Kill it, and then we'll finish off the traitor." the commanding Magi ordered.

Doing as their commanding officer ordered, they all took a knee, aiming their weapons at Mira.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Consciousness. Slowly, almost painfully so it began to return. There was something nearby. Something... alive? Impossible. Something pressing on the shell? A presence felt, the creature began to stir. Then a burst of energy, shattering the shell, seeping into the being's raw soul, like a spash of cold water. Instantly the ancient force was brought to wakefulness.

'What was that? What is... this?' Miraboreasu Ryu looked around at the countless reflections in the falling shards. 'This body...' Looking down at itself, holding an arm out, Mira looked upon itself with wonder and some other feeling... something it had never felt before. Fear? A voice broke the creature's thoughts. "White fatalis." Mira's gaze snapped down to the being at its feet. 'A... human?' A flash of memory.

On a barren mountain peak, blasted clean of all life by savage lightning storms, a large group of humans gathered around a glowing crystal. Chanting words of power, the creature residing inside was gradual roused. The legends had claimed that the great dragons possessed the power of Creation and would grant that power to whoever awakened them. The chanting reached a cresendo but then silenced as an earsplitting crack issued forth from the egg.

'Humans... I was awakened by them before. But this time is different. Something's wrong. This human...' Mira's contemplations on that brief memory were cut short as Alice pitched forward. Red eyes snapped up to the three humans. Although unable to understand what they were saying, their weapons spoke a language understood by Mira.

'They cannot seriously think that they can harm me.' Mira's tail curled around in front of her as she watched the humans. As one of the magi's bolts flew towards Mira, it was knocked out of the air by the tail. Despite having immense strength, Miraboreasu Ryu knew it wasn't particularly fast, but it knew how to move, even in this strange body. Whipping the tail back behind her provided the forward inerta that sent Mira flying at the humans before another shot could be fired.

The one that had fired Mira tore into with her claws, raking across his chest with blades sharper than any forged sword. A second magi found the dragon's tail coiling around his neck, constricting tight enough to cut off air and blood as Mira slashed back across the first magi's chest. Before the commander of the doomed trio could even react, Mira brough her claws up through the shooter's chest and into his chin where they caught on bone, ripping the man's head from his neck while her tail snapped around, severing the second man's head at the same time.

Spinning around, Mira's tail caught the commander in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Looking down at the human, Miraboreasu Ryu pulled some of the energy inside her into her mouth and released it. In an instant the ball of lightning obliterated the magi commander and blew a hole in the floor of the tower in an explosion of white light.

With the three humans dead, Mira, covered in their blood, turned to the fourth human, the one that had apparently awakened her. Grabbing the back of her tunic, her claws digging a little ways into the woman's flesh, Mira pulled the human upright. The fragile fabric tore under the weight and force, but Mira grabbed the human by the neck and hoisted her into the air. Having had no use for language, the dragon tried to get an idea of why, and how, this human woke it through other means, fear.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Firing the sole arrow, the man cursed as Mira's tail deflected it. "Damn it! Those are some tough scales!"

Once she charged, the men began shouting, pulling out their blades as the one that fired was sliced from her claws, his armor seeming to do nothing to help him survive her attack. And before his comrade could cut into Mira, found his neck strangled, and then severed, both men dead, leaving only the commander left, who desperately fired at her with his crossbow, only to find his shot deflected as well against her tail, which slammed against his stomach in response.

Sliding across the ground, the armored man tried to get up, and flee from the obviously powerful foe, before his eyes went wide at the massive ball of electrical destruction disintegrated his body.

When Mira turned to the blond girl, she'd be laying on her side, eyes wide with fear at the terrible monster that stood before her, holding her wounded shoulder with a squinted eye. When Mira started walking towards her, the girl's face went desperate, trying to back away by pushing her feet against the ground, yelping as Mira yanked her up, and then lifted her by the neck.

She gagged, one arm hanging limply from the arrow in it's side, while the other clenched at Mira's wrist desperately, eyes wide with fear, afraid that the monster was going to kill her this way. She couldn't kick her legs, or struggle beyond clenching at the wrist of the dragon choking her. She had no energy left in her body, and absolutely no means of surviving should the dragon wish to kill her.

After only a few seconds of strangulation, Alice began to cry, the last tears she had left in her eyes shedding, as she choked on her own saliva, unable to speak, or beg to be spared, or even saved with the strong grip around her neck.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Mira looked at the pitiful creature in her grasp. So fragile and weak, undeserving of life. And yet, watching the girl's tears, Mira felt something, something alien, but warm. The feeling made her grip relax, allowing Alice to breath, but still holding the human aloft uncomfortably. Strange words came to Mira's mind, ones she could just barely understand.

"Hhhhhuummaan." The dragon hissed, unfamiliar to speach. "It wwaakesss meee ffromm ssleeeep. Wwwhhyy?" The words came clumsily to Mira's lips, as though a child making her first sounds, but far more menacing. "Doesss it wwaant tooo die?"

Mira's tail began to coil around Alice's torso, not exerting any pressure, but present, the fine fur on it soft where it touched the human's skin.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Gasping as her throat was released a little, Alice pleaded in a raspy voice, still suffocating from the dragonic hand around her neck. "Please... Help..." she managed to choke out. "Help..." she repeated, face going red as the blood flow to her face was continuously restricted.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Snarling, Mira released the girl from her grasp, allowing her to fall into the coiled tail, keeping her from moving, but not restricting her breathing or blood. "Nnoww, sspeeak." The dragon growled, moving her head in close to the human's. "Wwhhyy sshoouulld I hhheelp yyoouu?"

Despite her words, Mira felt an odd sensation when looking at the human, something familiar. This only made Mira more angry, this human must have done something when she woke the dragon.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Coughing, and gasping as she was released, Alice struggled to recover from the condition Mira put her in, and the one that developed from her fatigue. "Y-you're..." she coughed several times more, "You're the only one who can...!"

She looked up pleadingly at Mira, head waving woozily, "Fatalis... Please..." she choked, gagging on her sore throat, "The entire world is being eclipsed by Hell's moon... Everything is being covered in the shadow of evil... They..." her eyes blinked weakly, slowly closing, "They... Want to... Turn every race into their slaves..."

Eyes completely closing, Alice when limp in Mira's grip, "Please... Help..."

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Mira scowled as the human fell into unconsiousness. Turning away, she intended to throw the frail being against a wall, shattering every bone in her body, but found her tail gently holding the human. Releasing a deep growl, Mira looked back at the woman. 'You'd have died of your wounds anyway. But don't think I'm saving you.'

With the girl held in her tail, Mira walked over to the hole in the floor she had made earlier. 'I'll destroy your persuers, and everything else in this world while you watch. When you're the last of your kind, you'll understand just what you awoke this day.' Making that silent promise, Mira lept down the hole with Alice held in her coiled tail.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Falling down such a large distance, Mira passed by several soldiers that were on their way up the stairs. They each were surprised by the falling dragon, almost two dozen in number. And when Mira landed but a second later, their bows, from all levels, were angled at the beast below, while three more at the bottom drew their swords, ready to fight.

"Stop, beast!" one of the men demanded, "That girl is the property of the Magi! Hand her over 'gently,' or we will kill you where you stand!" Arming themselves, the many men seemed ready to follow up on his words.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Mira looked around at the assembled weaklings. "Kiiiilll meeee? Ssstuupiid huuumaans."

Without regard to the archers above, Mira lept at the magi who had addressed her. Unable to use her tail to create momentum like on the top floor, her leap was slower, but still possessing great power, evidenced by the cracked stones where she pushed off from.

As she landed in front of the human, she slashed across his chest, raking through his armor like scythe through wheat, and then back across with her other set of claws, tearing into his rib cage.

As the man fell, Mira spun around, pulling Alice behind her. 'You're inconvienencing me girl.' With a twist of the waist, Mira sent Alice rolling across the floor, behind a pillar, out of sight of the archers. She might have a few bruises when she wakes up, but she'll live.

Able to move around freely now, Mira let out a roar of challenge and unfurled her wings in a powerful display, daring the two remaining swordsmen to face her, or the archers to fire.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Quickly stepping back, one of the two retreating swordsmen shouted, "OPEN FIRE!" before a hail of arrows came from above Mira. On instinct, filled with the confidence that was present in every dragon, Mira's wings would form a shield around her. And as she would expect, the bolts were deflected by her tough scales.

But after the quick, second long rain of arrow fire, when her wings would retract back, one last Magi with an armed weapon fired his bolt. The sharp bolt flew through the air just slow enough for Mira to see, but not react to, as the sharp end of the bolt grazed along her ribcage, a cool feeling of her blood going down her side felt after the sharp sting of the bolt flying by.

"See?" one of the swordsmen announced, pointing his blade to Mira, "She's just as human as the rest of us."

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

'What fools, they cannot even hope to hurt me.' Mira was utterly confident as the arrows simply bounced off of her armored wings. She knew no weapon of human craft could pierce her scales, it was simply impossible, so when she threw her wings back in preparation to deliver the humans to their inevitible end, she was shocked when she felt the bolt draw blood.

Looking down at the wound, Mira could tell it was just a minor scratch, she could have continued fighting even if the projectile had struck true, but the sight of her own blood drew forth another burried memory.

The sword had lain in a wealthy man's collection for many years, rusty, unsuitable for use, but bearing a faint inscription in an unknown language. Pulled from the rock of a nearby mountain, the blade was truly ancient, made by a civilization now long dead. Once a mighty weapon, it had been reduced to a mere curiosity until the three dragons began their rampage.

A man, the blacksmith brother a warrior who had gone to fight the white dragon, had come to the aristocrat's estate for the sword. Believing that a weapon capable of surviving the mighty geological forces that had formed the mountain would be capable of harming one of the great dragons, he had worked for three days and nights to restore the sword.

Clad in massive armor formed from stones that seemed to be able to resist the white dragon's lightning slightly longer than others, the blacksmith-turned-hero found the beast in the middle of what once was a large town, now a blackened ruin. Without so much as a challenging shout, the man drew the blade and charged at Miraboreasu Ryu. The blade bit into the dragon's hide, causing more damage in a single strike than all of the other attempts made by all of the would-be heroes. But even that was little more than a flesh wound for the great dragon. When it left the ruined city, the dragon left behind a broken body encased in broken stone, and the hilt of the sword, blade shattered from repeated lightning strikes.

Miraboreasu Ryu had always remembered that blade that had drawn blood, and here, a simple metal projectile had done as much damage as that hated sword. 'Impossible. They could not have found that weapon. No, it must be this form.' Mira looked down at the soft skin that covered most of her body, fear mixing with anger.

With a roar that shook the foundation of the tower, Mira's tail smashed into the floor and energy sparked around her mouth. Facing the human who had wounded her, Mira launched a ball of lightning streaking up to explode on the platform just behind the man. The force of the blast launched the unfortunate magi off his platform straight into Mira who had lept upward after loosing the lightning blast. With a wordless roar of hate, Mira drove a clawed arm clean through the man's chest.

Mira landed with the man still impaled on her arm, near the lowest archer. Pulling her arm free of the dead man, she swung a wing at the stunned archer, catching the side of his face. The force of the blow spun his head ninty degrees, ending his life with an audible 'snap'.

Mira looked up at the remaining archers, watching what they would do. Her wound had given her a notion of caution she had not considered before, and she wanted to wait to see what these humans would do before acting.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

The bowmen took their time to reload their weapons, both during and after Mira killed two of their men. Most of their weapons clicking as Mira looked up at them, they aimed to fire once more, their bolts flying upon the command of the same swordsman below. "Fire! Kill her!" he shouted.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Her head cool once again, Mira considered her options. There were still several archers left, and while she could take them all out, one-by-one, it would take a while and leave Alice undefended from the two swordsmen below. Also, Mira began to feel impatient with the process of killing these humans. A dragon's true body would be much more suited to the task, yet Mira still had an option she had yet to exercise.

'I've grown tired of this tower.' She thought, leaping from the ledge back down to the open center below, shattering stone as she landed. 'I'll anihilate it and anything still inside.

With a swing of her tail, Mira sent one of the swordsmen flying into the other, knocking them both to the ground, dazed, but alive, as she walked over to where she had thrown Alice earlier. Though her pace was casual, she kept a wary eye on the archers, using her wings to shield her from their shots.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

The archer's bolts reflecting off of her armor, and some missing her entirely, Mira instinctively was a bit more protective of her soft, human-like flesh. Mostly, this allowed her to approach near Alice, unharmed. But before she could do anything to scoop her up, one of the swordsmen behind her cursed at her in a fury, "Screw it!" he shouted, directing his shouting to the door out of the tower, "Send that giant hunk of metal in! I'm through playing with this bitch!"

The next instant, the stone wall foundation in front of Mira blasted before her, sending a large block of stone to her body, knocking her back some ways, before her dragon would be able to toss it aside without too much damage. And from the dust where something came through, emerged a machine, seemingly designed on the same structure as a human being. It's feet were thick, like rectangles, made just for smashing into walls as it just did, it's arms and hands had odd, intricate designs of runes and artistic, glowing lines that seemed to resemble veins, and it's body resembled a heavy duty armor meant to protect against heavy damage.

And at the top, where the head should be, was the head of the human controlling it. A cigar in his mouth, right below a thick mustache, he only regarded Mira for a moment, before looking down to the body of Alice next to his feet. With a deep chuckle, he reached his metallic hand down, and scooped her body up in his grip. Turning back to Mira, he directed the palm of the machine's hand at her, the limb swelling with magical power, before launching a ball of fire in Mira's direction.

However Mira would evade the attack, she would hear Alice's distressed squealing soon after, as the machine was quick to turn tail, and flee from the tower, which was now, due to the damage of the foundation, was quickly crumbling. Magi, no longer concerned with Mira, were desperately trying to escape, only for many of them to be crushed by falling rocks, that threatened to do the same to her.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

'Hmm? What is that human doing?'Mira turned back to look at the magi, and thus was unprepared when the piece of wall struck her. The sudden blow was certainly unexpected, if not particularly damaging, and sent Mira back some distance from Alice before she threw the block to the side.

'What... is this? Some attempt at merging a giant with a human?' Mira looked at the war machine with some curiosity until it reached for Alice. "Thhaat'ss miinee!" She hissed, and began to move towards the machine, but slowed as its arm began to glow.

Prepared, this time, for an attack, Mira deflected the ball of fire with a back-handed blow from both arm and wing, sending the ball into another wall. With now two gaping holes in it, the tower couldn't support its weight any longer and began to crumble inward. Still inside, Mira was unable to escape the collapsing building, being buried along with the magi who were unable to escape in time.

When the dust cleared, all that was left of the once great tower was a small hill of rubble and debris, with no sign of Mira. As the rubble settled, the night sky began to lighten as flashes of lightning lit the clouds.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Alice swinging limply in the hand of the large, magic fueled war machine, the man piloting the Magi technology turned around to face the crumbled tower. He made a wide grin at the site where the debris had landed atop the dragoness, chuckling with a deep, booming voice. He lifted Alice to eye level with him, cocking her head up on his thumb to look at her directly, her eyes only just barely open.

"Where's yer little dragon now?" he asked Alice mockingly, "Got crushed by the same tower she dun locked herself up in. How does that make ya feel? All oh' you rebels got what ya deserved for tryin' to wake up ancient creatures. An' now you get to be the last fool to die."

With a sadistic laugh, he slams his fist forward, ramming it into a nearby tree, crushing Alice in his grip, causing her to scream aloud, eyes finally opening wide from the intense pain of nearly having her body cracked in two. Blood launching from her mouth, Alice could only make a silent prayer as the Magi drew the machine's hand back one more time, to finish her off with a final crack of her spine.

However, just as he was about to slam forward, his eyes narrowed. He looked up to the sky to see lightning surging, when it had just been only a cloudy day. He let out a low hum, before spitting his cigar from his mouth, and crushing it with the boot of his mech.

Looking to the rubble, he knew that the dragon had survived. Holding a whimpering Alice in his hand, he wanted to make sure she saw the monster she'd unleashed be destroyed, before ending her life in the most miserable fashion befitting a traitor.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

At first, the only sign that Mira was still alive was the intensifying lightning above. Suddenly, a burst of light followed by a concussive explosion rocked the mountaintop. Where the tower once stood, instead of a rubble pile, there was now a smoking crater with Mira standing up in the center of it, risidual sparks of energy fading from around her mouth.

"Let her go. She will bear witness to the end of your species." The scales covering Mira's arms, legs, wings and tail, as well as the crest on her forehead, were glowing white, almost like a second sun. "You useless creatures are nothing. You will all die!" Across Mira's exposed skin, lines of red energy flickered like lightning and her red eyes were filled with hate as she roared at the armored magi.

Mira's wings propelled her into the air, launching her, with the aid of her tail, past the surviving magi and straight at the machine, a glowing claw aimed right for the center of the armored body. Although it may have seemed that she was sparing the unarmored humans, just before she reached the mech, brilliant bolts of lightning shot from the sky, unerringly striking the magi, vaporizing them into a shower of fine red mist from the force of the blasts.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

"Hah! What a hoot you are!" the Irish sounding man taunted, aiming his hand at Mira as she approached, slowly getting it to spin around like a chaingun, before firing a hail of smaller fireballs at her. They moved fast, and felt hot against her fleshy skin. Mira would be forced to diverge from her path, swooping in from another direction to avoid the fire, until she neared him, moving faster than he could turn, and dragged a claw along the base of his body.

Landing on her feet, having gone on a downward slope to attack him, only several trenches of torn metal remained where she attacked. The war machine was not phased.

With a chuckle, he brought his other fist not holding Alice back to smash it down on Mira, forcing her to back away lest she be injured if not killed. "You'll have'tah do betta than THAT to destroy Magi technology! Your ancient powers will do you no good, ya foul creature!"

 

[maikochan]

Re: Revival of the Ancient Terror (Mira)

Mira clicked her tongue in annoyance at seeing the small damage she did. 'Thick armor. I need to penetrate it to do real damage.'

Using her tail again to move quickly, Mira lept backwards from the strike and then back forward before the man had time to raise the hand, grabbing ahold of it. She dug the claws of one hand into the metal and wrapped her tail around the hand for further stability while she drew her other hand up strike deep into the metal of the hand's wrist.