Blacksmith of the Apocalypse

--Somewhere in Tyrybh'z--

"We got new information from our insider. Looks like the Urth group found evidence that the citadel is at the northern shore of Tyrybh'z and belongs to the ruins of their old capital. There is another team that managed to teleport to a place close by."

"Are we going there now and leave the rest of the teams to my minions?"

"Yeah. Bring out your Nidhogr, or whatever you call that thing. We have to get there first and prepare the stage beforehand."

"As you wish, boss." the robed woman said in a sly smile.

"Arise, Nidhog."

In a flash of green flames appeared the figure of a massive bone dragon. Its corrosive aura eradicated whatever little life was left in the vicinity. The beast's presence alone made the earth itself wither.

The team mounted the bone dragon and it rose to the sky, flapping its toxic green energy wings. In the eyes of the audience, their group had left Aburth a day ago. When they now passed the city, once filled with huge numbers of carbonized and abominations, it was completely empty.

The woman in black had long finished harvesting her new army. The speed of the Nidhog was incomparable to something like an airship and they easily crossed the sea between Aburth and the detached continent in several hours.

They reached shore at dawn. Although the sunlight would normally weaken undead, it made almost no difference to the bone dragon.

"Isn't that team that managed to teleport over somewhere around here? Should we take them out now?" the man with a weird hobby of using the head as accessories asked excitedly.

"Nope, we have orders to leave them alone for now. We have to put up a show of dominance, how else are we supposed to shame Chrona? We will crush all remaining sparks once they reach the city as a show of strength." the shadowy leader answered seriously.

"A triumphant show of strength to crush all their hopes and dream?" the other smiled sadistically.

"I like that idea."

A day later they had reached the former capital that their info had spoken of. The city must have been massive at one point. A big part had still been active until recently with many houses still intact, though just a shadow of the former glory.

The ruins of the once-great capital extended along a sharp cliff with many more ruins sprawling at the foot as if the whole piece of land had sagged 50 meters straight down. Below the ocean was washing over the greater part of the ruins.

There they also found the remnants of the citadel they saw in the quest vision. Part of it was above the waterline, but the breakers of the sea kept hitting the outer walls. After centuries much of the citadel's outer walls had weathered away, leaving its former strength and glory in a state of disrepair.

Only the great central tower showed no signs of age after all this time. The descended along the cliff and entered the ruins below.

"Welp, that should be our target. It's your turn, master thief."

"Yeah, yeah, leave it to me."

Led by the master thief, an epic class, they made their way to the tower. At every step, the thief would warn them or disarm various kinds of defensive spells and traps. They could only slowly close in on the tower.

The ruins had the layout of a defensive structure, but it was obvious that everything had once been lavishly decorated with expensive and powerful materials and ornaments. Everything had been washed away by time and the ocean.

Only the tower still bore witness to the former glamour. The building had a smooth ivory exterior, with big stained-glass windows depicting scenes of dragons and knights. The great gates of the tower, big enough for a giant dragon to fit through, were golden with life-sized scenes of battle and worship carved into the thick metal.

Rows of rune, carved in the wings and doorframe, glowed in mystic light.

"Got to admit, these people knew how to spend money." the head collector commented with a whistle.

"Do you think you can get past this?" the leader asked the master thief. Although he did not have a fitting class, even he could see the number of security measures concentrated on the gates and tower.

"Hmm, I will need a few days."

"Okay, we will prepare the stage in the meantime."

...

Like a minuscule ant at the foot of an elephant, the thief had been crouching in front of the great golden gates without pause.

"I did it! Finally! We can enter now." he called out.

The figure of their leader stepped out of the shadow beside him.

"That. Is. Great. Let. Us. Enter."

"You seem a little weird. Are you okay?" the thief asked suspiciously.

"Do. Not. Worry. Take. The. Lead." he answered stiffly.

"...Fine." the master thief glared at him but did not say any more.

The gates swung open. It was just a tiny crack they could push through. They entered a massive hallway, as big as a cathedral and just as luxurious. The floor was polished marble, with a vast stretch of red carpet. The walls were decorated with golden magic lamps and giant paintigs.

"Say, where is the rest of the team?" the thief asked as the took the lead along the intimidating hallway. Something was wrong and the thief had a suspicion.

"Preparing. The. Stage."

"..2..3!"

Suddenly, the thief threw a small white stone on the floor between them. It erupted in an explosion of holy light. The leader stepped back with an angry hiss.

"For how stupid do you take me? Urgh!" he was rudely interrupted by a shadow spike that penetrated his abdomen.

"Very stupid. You should have just done your job. You could have lived a few more hours."

"What about our mission?" he coughed

"Don't worry about the mission. It will go a lot more smoothly now that you all follow my lead."

The lady in black came strolling toward the two from the gate. She sighed as the light in the thief's eyes dimmed and was replaced by a green glow.

"It's a shame. Now I have to waste time waiting until you regain control over your original skills," she commented indignantly.

"I. Am. Sorry. Mistress." the thief answered lethargically.

"It doesn't matter. Hurry and train, so we can secure the mission item."

"Yes."

"I guess, I will have to take some measures for my grand finale!"

--Chrona--

"Your highness?" a servant approached Leana.

The princess had been swamped in work ever since they started looking deeper into the background of their personal. She was about to cry. Every time she came up with a new date to meet Fin, something got in the way.

"What is it?" she asked disgruntled. She was sure the servant had only come to bring more reports or something of the kind.

"We just got a report from Delta."

Leana looked up in surprise. For the duration of the evaluation, Delta was not her responsibility. An imperial governor was in charge during her absence. Everyday tasks and decisions would not concern her. A report from Delta meant that something huge happened, that needed her immediate attention.

She could already feel a headache coming. As if the interference with the evaluation was not enough. Urth also didn't stay calm for long. She took the papers from the servant. Barely able to believe her eyes, she couldn#t help but mumble the information out loud.

"A huge fight?"

The servant nodded hesitantly.

"... several peaks were...?" her hands trembled.

Another nod.

"The culprit was confined by Minas Mar..."

"It seems like it." the servant tried to answer but the princess ignored him. She wasn't talking to him from the start.

After reading the report several times she put it down and started massaging her temples. What was she supposed to do now?