Winfred, leader of the Blood Crows, couldn't help but gave a nasty smile that shows his jagged teeth as he watched the Vice Commander of the Dawn Templars be forced to battle with her own subordinate who had been taken over by his malevolent blood magic and put on a show for his tribe's entertainment until either is exhausted and then they'll go in to rape them. He had been eyes the pinkette since their last encounter and could hardly wait to pin her down and force himself on her.
She cursed him for playing dirty but he could care less. That mouth of hers is better put to use with his cock. Behind him were some of his men already having a go with the knocked out Dawn Templars, their screams music to his ears. Minutes before the two were getting sluggish and Winfred got off from his seat with a wicked smirk. "It's time." He laughed, drawing closer to the exhausted female knights with his men, hands reaching out to molest them as they can only watch helplessly.
"Yeah! Time for an ass whooping!" A loud voice declared before a yellowish mucus slams into Winfred, causing him to fall down and scream as he was electrocuted. The Blood Crows freeze in metaphorical shock before Fulgur Anjanath bursts out from the trees, roaring out loud as the Dawn Templars and mages from his back jumped down and began engaging with the bandits while saving their sisters being violated.
"Shit! It's the Dawn-" One of the bandits was cut mid-sentence when Claudia and Beth arrived via a horse and severed his head from his shoulders, with Beth stabbing another who was too slow to react. Claudia ducked under two overhead swings before killing their users with a sword swing of her own.
The Blood Crows panicked and tried to counterattack. However, they weren't prepared for the Monster Shifter to retaliate first by turning his body to smack several men away with his tail and chomp down on three more with his jaws. If they didn't die from the bite force, the electricity coursing through their bodies will.
Some tried to use sword to try and make a cut so that they can use their blood magic. But even their magic-infused sword couldn't dent on the thick skin. In response, Fulgur Anjanath rears his leg up and claws at them, tearing into the flesh as those who didn't die from the kick are left wailing in pain. A screams catches his attention and from the corner of his eyes, he spotted a Dawn Templar whacked in the head from behind by a bandit while she was busy fighting the one in front of her as they both pinned her down.
Snarling, he lowers his head and charges at them, slamming into them as their bodies flew across the air. He turns to the relieved knight and nodded but her eyes widened. "Look out!" Her warning came to late though as a giant, rocky fist makes contact with Fulgur's face, making him roar in pain and stumble sideways, dazed from the surprised attack. A bandit had enough time to use a magic gem to summon a golem to fight the Brute Wyvern.
The golem swung its left arm and scores another hit to the Monster Shifter, knocking him to the ground. It reached forward to grab Fulgur Anjanath by the throat and began choking him. The bandits cheered whilst Claudia and the other Dawn Templars are worried and tried to aid him, but the Blood Crows had too much numbers for them to help Jack at the moment.
Not that he needed assistance though. "Piss off!" Fulgur roars as his enters rage mode, his nasal crest and sails exposed as he delivers a brutal kick to the stone golem's chest that made cracks and forces it to let go as the Brute Wyvern gets back to his feet. Fulgur Anjanath bellows as he lunges at the golem with his mouth open. The stone golem grabs his jaws and tries to forcibly open it King Kong style.
However, in lifting his head above it, the stone golem inadvertently exposes its chest for Fulgur Anjanath to start kicking it violently, causes cracks to appear with one brutal kick breaking one of its eye and dropping to a knee, releasing the Brute Wyvern as it clutches its head in agony. This gave Fulgur Anjanath the chance he needs to charge and body slam into the weakened golem, shattering it into literal pieces as the gem holding it all together breaks as well.
"Impossible! That's a high level golem that can one-shot even a war orc!" The bandit shouted, unable to comprehend that Fulgur Anjanath easily dispatch such a formidable. He isn't given enough time to react when Fulgur Anjanath body slams him, sending him flying through the air and landed with a sickening crack.
"Do you think this is over you bitches?!" The Brute Wyvern looked and saw the man he'd launch his electrified mucus with shouting as he got up and raised his hand which had a rune symbol tattooed on it. "Have you forgotten what we're capable of?!" With a smirk, Winfred activates it that causes the symbol to glow blood red.
"Ah!" Fulgur Anjanath glanced and saw the two Dawn Templars they attempted to rescue suddenly swinging their swords at their own sister in arms, with one nearly beheaded and only lucky to have bits of her hair cut off.
"Bastard!" One of the Dawn Templars snarled, blocking a strike with her sword as they kept a good distance from their controlled sisters lest they be cut and be susceptible to the bandits' blood magic. Fulgur Anjanath snarls as Winfred and the remaining bandits laughs as they watch the Dawn Templars avoid trying to hit them. At this rate this would tire them out which will allow the Blood Crows to take them down.
He took a step forward but paused, narrowing his eyes as he tries to assess the situation. Attacking the leader outright is too risky as there's always the possibility of them using the either Dawn Templars to take the hit for him even if he uses a ranged attack. A sneak attack is also out of the question as the mages would need time to chant an invisible spell would the bandits would not waste time on and reinforcements would take way too long. So the only logical solution was to negate the the blood magic that befell Rose and Lily.
And he had the answer for that. It was dangerous but compared to the other alternatives, it was the safest option.
"Claudia," The Dawn Templar leader whips her head at the Brute Wyvern's direction. "Do any of your mages know healing magic?" He asked.
"Yes they do." Claudia nodded, but shakes her head in sadness. "But I don't think healing alone will nullify the bandits' blood magic. We would to take them back to Celestine to-"
"I wasn't talking about healing them to counter the blood magic." Fulgur Anjanath cut her off. " I was thinking about healing them after I'm done dealing with the blood magic." Her eyes widened at the statement which was mirrored by everyone else within earshot.
Rather than explaining what he meant, Fulgur Anjanath reaches down and pressed his nose against the hourglass symbol, causing him to be consumed by a dark blue flash. In the Brute Wyvern's place was a slender dragon with a gray body covered in dark scales. Its wings resemble that of a bats which each membrane connected "separately" to the wing fingers, and each wing possesses a single, giant talon.
There is also a pair of smaller fins, similar in coloration to the wings at the base of its tail. Three of the fingers on its front legs end in a curved, giant claw. It has two large, golden horns, as well as frills extending from both sides of its neck that resemble a cowl. Its tail ends in three large, movable prongs that can be used to grab small prey.
The most unique features are the "feathers" that covers its chest and its wrists that moves occasionally despite having no wind. The MonTrix Symbol seen on its right shoulder.
(Insert Theme: Red Eyes and Blue Flam - Trevor Morris)
"MALZENO!" The Silver Duke Elder Dragon screeches, standing on his hind legs and spreading his wings apart in an intimidating display, resembling the pose of the Dracula movies he'd seen on the early 20th century.
Both the Dawn Templars and Blood Crows took a step back as they see the Elder Dragon first hand. They are utterly shocked and even terrified of the creature they laid their eyes on. It looked like something out of folklore that parents tell their children in stories. "By the Goddess." Claudia muttered as she stares at Malzeno with slight fear.
While she's aware that it as Jack who was the Monster that stood before her, Claudia couldn't help but feel like this form feel likes something Olga would have as a bodyguard or a monster sent to slay her enemies. The blood red eyes didn't ease her worries but she had faith in what Jack was about to do.
"S-So you've got a scary Monster! Big deal!" Winfred manage to recover and gave a look of defiance, even if everyone saw his raised arm shaking a bit. "And what's this gonna do?! You're aware I can just force those harlots to take any hits you throw at me and the boys!" Yet the Elder Dragon wasn't fazed one bit. Mazleno gave a sinister grin gave members of either party shivers. Rather than gave a verbal answer, the Elder Dragon puffs his chest out and his arm stretched out.
The "feathers" on his wrist and chest began to make noises akin to butterflies flying and suddenly they look to see that they were actually living beings. Four of these "feathers" detach and began to fly around which freaked everyone out. But only Claudia and the Dawn Templars quickly catch themselves and realized these were the same creature Jack has summoned against the Savage Dracon when he was Gaismogarm. It was the Qurio.
The Elder Dragon then points his claws at the controlled Lily and Rose. "This is gonna hurt like a bitch, but it's a much better alternative and I asked Claudia to have the mages heal you." Malzeno apologized which confuses the Dawn Templars. But before they could question him, the Qurio made their way towards the two Dawn Templars and attached themselves to their arm or thigh, specifically where they were cut and had the Blood Crows use their magic.
"AAAAHH!" Immediately Rose and Lily screamed as they felt the Qurio sucking their blood. Everyone gasped at then was taking place. All except Malzeno who kept a stern face as the Qurio did their job.
"What are you doing?!" One of the Dawn Templars shrieked as she watches the flying leeches sucking them of their blood. She was about to draw her sword to cut them but Malzeno raised his pronged tail to block her way.
"They're almost done." Malzeno said, pointing at what the Qurio were doing. To their shock, especially the Blood Crows, the runes that appeared in Rose and Lily's bodies began fading away as the Qurio sucked them magic out of them. 10 seconds later and the Qurio detach themselves from Rose and Lily who collapsed from both exhaustion and the amount of blood drained from them. Claudia caught on and turned to the mages.
"Heal them now!" Claudia barked at them who wasted no time rushing in and quickly used their magic to try. A few seconds later the bite wounds healed as Rose and Lily regained their colors as they breathed steadily with the other Dawn Templars giving out sighs of relief as their fellow sisters' recovery.
Winfred couldn't believe his eyes. This monster has a counter to their blood magic?! The surviving bandits stepped back in fear as they feel their chances of victory slipping away with each second.
"My apologies for what I had to do." Malzeno said sincerely, having a look of regret. "But with their nasty magic, I would run the risk of putting them in more harm. As such, this is the only way for me to help them." He closed his eyes and went silence for moment. Once he opened them again, there was fire burning in them as he growls.
"Now. To deal with the likes of you." Malzeno's voice takes on a dark tone as turns to face the the remaining Blood Crows, strutting towards them. "I'll make sure you'll regret laying your hands on them."
"H-How?!" Winfred yelled, unable to hold back the fear in his voice as he draws his sword. The others. "How are you able to negate my blood magic?! Only Celestine had the power to completely nullify it! JUST HOW?!"
"That's for me to know and for you to find out fatass." Malzeno sneer as he stops halfway and tilts his head up, as if to think. "What's the phrase? An eye for an eye? How about blood for blood?" The Qurio on his chest flap their wings before taking flight, awakened by their master/host's command. "You torture people by tampering with their blood? Well I'm about to show you what I can do with blood myself!"
The four Qurios that attached to Rose and Lily flies back to Malzeno's chest and attached themselves back. Immediately, Malzeno could feel himself getting stronger and with a primal roar, taps into his Bloodening form. In it he expels energy and his colors darkened to a degree. His eyes fittingly turned red as blood and the Qurio all glowed as they circle the Silver Duke Elder Dragon.
Malzeno roars as he unleashes a massive red and black breath that strikes the ground in front of the Blood Crows, sending them sprawling across the ground. "Now my Qurio! Attack!" But they had no time to react before the the Qurio swarmed them and began latching themselves unto their bodies. They screamed in agony as the flying leeches began sucking the life force out of them.
Even if they managed to cut one down, there was at least two or three more Qurios ready to take their forces. Their screams silenced once the Qurios had drained them dry before proceeding to the next victim and so on. "By the Goddess....." One of the Dawn Templars let off as she and her sisters stared at the carnage in horror. Many looked queasy or lightheaded at the sight. One Dawn Templar, a busty one at that, keeled over and vomited whatever she ate that lunch.
Claudia is in the same boat as her subordinates, feeling the contents of her stomach go up her throat before forcing it down. She shakes her head and turns her attention to Rose and Lily, who were still weak but alive. Once she was sure they were okay, Claudia steels herself and looked to where the Blood Crows were being eaten by the Qurio.
"That could've been us." Another Dawn Templar near Claudia muttered loud enough for everyone, except Malzeno as he was in the middle of it all, to hear. "Had Olga found him first, it could've been us on the floor and those leeches draining our life forces." Many of the Dawn Templars gulped at the realization as Claudia's breath hitched and for good reason.
A week ago, they had captured several dark elves that near Stawford Village. And not just any dark elves, they're the same ones that the Dawn Templars caught watching from afar, notably when the Monster Shifter was around as if they were watching his every move and ready to jump or capture him. They managed to trick them into coming close and under the threat of immediate execution, one of them blurted out that Olga had tasked them with spying on Jack Andros in the hopes of recruiting him into her army.
The implications of Jack serving the Dark Queen sent a wave of terror down their spines, especially with how many more transformations he's yet to reveal. Claudia reported this to Celestine but kept Jack out of the loop, fearing he may try to confront Olga himself which is exactly would she would hope for.
Amidst of it all, Winfred crawls on his fat belly, trying to sneak away as quietly as possible to avoid attracting attention. Little by little, he made his way towards the bushes to lay low until it was over. Then he would have to rebuild his forces from scratch and exact revenge on-
"Where do you think you're going?" Malzeno stood over him and grabs him with his pronged tail. Winfred screams as he is held and beats his fists on the prongs as Malzeno held to up. He even went for a right hook to the Elder Dragon's face, only to pull back and whimper it only injures him rather than the Monster. He looked around and his heart drops upon the sight of his fellow bandits lifeless as the Qurio drains the last of their energy.
"Don't worry, I've saved the best for last." Malzeno growls and licks his lips, eyeing the fat leader. "You'll join your brothers soon. Now, I wonder what your blood will taste like!" He opens mouth and bites unto Winfred's shoulder. He screams and writhes as the Elder Dragon begins consuming on his life force like a real vampire. (1)
"Ooh~ that's nasty." A blonde Dawn Templar winced as she could practically hear Malzeno draining the Blood Crow leader, kind of like when a person drinks through a straw. She hated scumbags like him but she wouldn't wished that upon her worst enemy. Several knights around her nodded.
"He can eat me up....." The knights and mages looked at the Dawn Templar that, who quickly clamps a hand over her mouth, blushing profusely as she blurted it out of everyone to hear. Steam coming out of her ears as she let her intrusive thoughts out.
"Don't let Anne hear that. She's got first dibs so Andros will eat her out first." A brunette with short hair and wide hips snorted. Many of the younger Dawn Templars snickered the more mature ones sighed. Claudia pinched the bridge of her nose as she avoid scolding her girls for acting out like that.
By the time Malzeno was done, Winfred was nothing more than a husk with the Silver Duke Elder Dragon grunting at his accomplishment before tossing the dead bandit over his shoulder like one would with garbage, his corpse landing on a tree branch, and turns to the Dawn Templars.
"Sorry you had to see that. I can't always control it. Whenever I take the form of a Monster, I usually inherit their behavior." Malzeno apologized, scratching the back of his head with his wing talon. "Also what was that about eating someone out? I couldn't hear over draining that bastard dry." He asked.
"Nothing Jack," Claudia interjected, "Just girls gossiping about something trivial. Isn't that right?" She shot a disproving look at the Dawn Templars who started it, promising to deliver some.
"Yes ma'am!" The younger ones cried out, nodding their heads while sweat ran down their foreheads, paling at what punishment their leader will come up with when they get back. Malzeno raised an eyebrow but shrugged it off, thinking it was a girl problem he had no interest in getting involved.
Sensing there were no more threats, Malzeno, Claudia and the others head back to Stawford. Thankfully they are able to treat Rose and Lily properly half an hour before the representatives of the other kingdoms arrive.