Heron took command upon himself. Realizing how dire our situation was, we began to pull the troops back. Too many were wounded, and they needed immediate help.
Our army lingered briefly to tend to the injured. We kept a wary eye on our surroundings, knowing full well: in our most vulnerable state, the enemy could strike at any moment.
Once the bandaging was complete, we resumed our retreat. But constant skirmishes with enemy forces forced us to change our route again and again, leading us ever farther from our intended path.
*Caw*
A black raven swooped over me with a harsh cry, its wings stirring the air around my head. It was him again.
"Heron," I said.
"I know. We're being led," Heron replied grimly. "We can try to break through and meet their army head-on, or continue on this path. Hold!"
He fell silent abruptly, scanning the area. Heron understood perfectly well how dire our situation was. We could try to break the encirclement and reach open ground but to do so, we would have to abandon our wounded. Condemning them to certain death. There is no harsher trial than choosing between saving part of the company at the cost of sacrificing the rest.
"Sir, we will hold them off," said a Spartan, limping from an arrow lodged deep in his leg. Everyone knew what awaited us.
"I cannot order you to your deaths," Heron replied through gritted teeth.
"You don't have to, sir. We volunteered," said the wounded Spartan. One by one, the others nodded in solemn agreement.
"It is an honor to serve alongside warriors such as you," Heron's voice trembled for a moment, then hardened again. "I will stay with you. Damocles, you are in command now. Lead the army. Save as many as you can."
But fate gave us no time to act. The ground beneath our feet began to tremble, as if an earthquake had struck. The tremors grew stronger, rapidly approaching. Trees ahead of us shattered and fell at an alarming speed. At first, I thought it was a giant. Then the centaurs appeared and behind them, something far worse.
It was larger than several giants combined. The creature's body looked like a monstrous fusion of reptile and stone: massive, covered in thick, jagged stone plates, with deep cracks between them glowing with a dim orange light as if some raging energy was trapped within its core.
Its limbs were heavy and powerful, ending in claws as long as swords. A row of sharp, stone spikes ran down its back, from its broad head to the monstrous tip of its tail.
The creature's head was wide and angular, bearing the savage features of a reptile. Its eyes burned a vivid orange, slit like a serpent's. Its mouth was almost invisible, fused with the stone of its face but when it opened its jaws, it revealed rows of sharp, blackened teeth.
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"Skalias!" Heron gasped. "It cannot be... I thought he was only a myth."
The look on his face said everything: we could not win this battle.
"We cannot fight it. Our spears and swords won't pierce that stone hide."
I looked around at my brothers those willing to fight to the last breath, those who did not tremble even in the face of inevitable death. A faint smile touched my lips.
"I can lead it away," I finally said.
"No. That's madness," Heron snapped. "And it won't work!"
"I can lose it in the woods and return," I said firmly.
Heron hesitated only for a moment. The death of one against the death of hundreds. The choice was clear.
"Go," he said at last. "But do not throw your life away needlessly."
I dashed forward to meet the beast. There was no fear in my heart though any sane man would have been gripped by terror. Not even every demigod would dare face such a monster.
The centaurs leading the beast suffered from its fury themselves: some were caught and devoured alive by Skalias in a single savage movement. If I could distract him and cut down those guiding him, perhaps he wouldn't notice our army.
Seeing me approach, one of the centaurs tried to veer away. But my spear was faster it pierced straight through him. Yanking the weapon free, I lunged forward and struck again, killing a second one. The last centaur was torn apart by Skalias himself.
For a moment, his colossal eyes locked with mine. Only then did I truly grasp how massive he was. To him, I was nothing more than a tiny, insignificant shadow barely noticeable at his feet.
His clawed paw lunged at me, trying to snatch and crush me. I barely managed to dodge, evading each blow that could have shattered stone itself.The ground trembled beneath me with every movement of the monster.
"ARRRRRAAAARRRR!!!" his roar tore through the air, crashing down like a monstrous wave. My ears rang from the force of it.
He didn't like that he couldn't catch me. Good that was my goal: to keep him distracted.Realizing this, I turned and ran, luring Skalias farther away from our forces.
But not for long. He suddenly jerked his head up, sniffed the air, and his gaze once again fell upon the army. His next move was aimed straight at them: there would be no retreat without losses now.
Damn centaurs! It seemed they had decided to sacrifice themselves to take us down along with the beast. I saw how they had engaged our troops in battle, preventing any escape.The scent of blood must have reached the lizard's nostrils and for him, it was an invitation to a feast.
Determined to act more decisively, I raced after Skalias. Grabbing onto his tail, I was flung into the air as he lashed it, somehow managing to land on the creature's stony back. To keep from sliding off, I drove my spear into his armor-like hide. Skalias' skin was truly tough: the tip barely sank into the rough, rocky plates.
Clutching the spear's shaft tightly, I pushed off and sprinted along his back, weaving between jagged spikes. Reaching his head, I realized he had sensed my presence Skalias shook his head violently, trying to throw me off.
Summoning all my strength, I raised the spear high and struck at his eye. Using the Furious Storm skill, I hacked my way through the stone-like eyelid he had closed, the spearhead sinking deeper into the glowing orb with each blow.
"ARRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!" Skalias' roar shook the air like a thunderclap.
Suddenly, a massive paw slammed into me, hurling me away like a rag doll.I tumbled through the air, crashing into the ground over and over, feeling bones crack and break with each impact.
Through the haze of pain, I managed to rise and saw the lizard furiously trying to tear the spear from his eye. He staggered, thrashed his head, but couldn't dislodge the shaft. Even battering it with his claws failed to break it. Finally, after fruitless attempts, he froze.
Slowly, Skalias turned his head, fixing his one remaining eye on me. His gaze blazed with fury.
Without my spear, I had no way to pierce his armor. I had to get it back.
The beast began to coil Skalias tucked his head to his chest and wrapped his tail around his neck. He looked like a monstrous, spiked wheel barreling toward me at terrifying speed.
He crushed everything in his path, leveling trees. Splinters and debris flew in all directions.I sprinted away with all the strength I had but Skalias was gaining on me. Then a thought flashed through my mind: he had lost one eye meaning he was nearly blind on one side!
At the last moment, I veered sharply to the side, dodging the rolling maelstrom. Just as I had hoped, Skalias didn't notice: the monster thundered past, tearing up the ground.
He roared in rage, scattering chunks of earth, then rose onto his legs and charged after me again.
In desperation, an even crazier idea struck me: If the centaurs had planned to unleash this beast against Sparta, maybe I could turn their plan against them? If I could lure Skalias deep into their ranks, he would tear through them with his own claws and fangs.Then, if I could manage to blind his second eye, he would lose sight of us completely that was our only chance for survival.
But for that... I needed to get my spear back.