The bulldozers were pushing a green-mass back. Their attack was swift and merciless, also, their newest addition in their ranks – a certain dragoness – also wasn’t just resting on her ass in the backlines. She didn’t know how formation should properly work, she didn’t know commands nor their fighting system, yet it didn’t matter. She was pushing forward, and the red legion followed her deeper into the inferno of blood and gore. Dwarfs were simply following her, instead of moving as a wave – steadily as one body butchering enemy they were like an arrow, carving their path in the wall of flesh.

Their heavy boots trampled bodies of enemies and friends alike.

On Dragoness face had a blissful smile plastered on. She was enjoying herself! Even if most of her enemies were weak, the number of them meant only one thing in her eyes – a challenge!

Her axes spun from side to side, from above to below. Goblins and Hobgoblins were too weak… she was trying to lead her formation to places where ogres stood their ground, yet even they would eventually fall, mostly because of the help of her new comrades. Prince of the Ironblood was more than just skilled on the battlefield. As he was dueling with Zari he couldn’t show even a scratch of his abilities. He was a team fighter. A leader. His shield together with shield of the other was creating impenetrable wall that was covering her sides from attacks, his glaive was digging in the body of the ogres before they could immobilize her.

Actually, she was bit annoyed by that. Ah, how much she would give fore opportunity to fight in the pit one against a few ogres, to check how many she can take down at once, to check how many waves can she withstand before collapsing…

In here memory there was still humiliation of losing to minotaurs. Even if they were bigger, stronger, faster and smarter than ogres… No. It doesn’t matter. Her life should be over. She lost. She underestimated the Tower and her opponents… if not Zari…

STOP THINKING ABOUT IT NOW! Yes, you lost, yes, you were saved, so get the fuck up from this bloody dirt and raise your blades again! So this would never happen again! So she would never….

- “Foolish child! Such a weakling dares to claim to be my daughter?”

Her eyes widened in shock. She was no longer on the battlefield, instead, she was standing in the dim cave. She knew that place. She knew it far too well. Most of her muscles were gone, her armor was replaced by dirty cloth, instead of her twin axes she was carrying small, rusty, dull sword, almost bigger than herself.

Once again. She was a child facing her father.

Beast was sitting on the pile of gold. He wasn’t even facing her directly, as he was laying on his side. He kept pushing her back with his long tail, each strike was sending her flying a few meters before she would land on the ground covered in scratches. He was looking at her with that entertained look, as if he was observing some bug that picked its curiosity.

She was shaking, already exhausted, yet once again she made a step.

- “Y..You will…” she started with unsteady breath “… go bac…k to village…a..and app..oligise to mommy!”

- “Oh? Is that so? What if I won’t?”

- “I..I will.. m..make you!”

- “Feel free to try.” Beast grinned showing its row of spear-like teeth.

That monster… he did that to mommy… he made her act like that. And now, as mommy is dying… He won’t even… He won’t even… HE WON’T EVEN…!!!

She got up from the ground, grabbed her blade with both hands and charged on. The tail of the mighty dragon moved from above as if it wanted to trample her, she jumped to the side avoiding it. Still, the blow of beast shook the whole mountain, and Gisele.

But she kept running, she was losing her footing yet she never stopped charging. She started screaming. Another movement of his tail that she avoided, yet this time it was only a faint, he twisted his muscles making it act like a whip which change trajectory as it was about to attack from the side.

She was training for months! She will make him recognize her! By recognizing her as his daughter she will force him to recognize mommy! He will share some of his gold, she will be able to get medicine and… and… AND…!!!

She jumped above his tail rotating her body to the side. Beast grinned wider, it was entertained by this little bug, by her.

She got closer to the side, raised blade above her head and pierced down.

A blood splashed around.

- “My, my…” Beast whispered half chuckling, as if not feeling pain “… kids are surely growing up fast, ain’t they? Very well. From now on, I will also use one of my paws…”

W..what?

She couldn’t react in time, clawed paw bigger than herself hit her from the side. Sending her across the room.

She hit the wall vomiting blood in the process.

- “Ah, fly will always remain a fly. Even mosquito can bite from time to time… what a disappointment… For a moment I thought that…”

- “He… m…my…”

- “What do you want now?”

- “Hel… mommy… Plea…se… I beg… a coin… just a gold coin… would be e…bough for medicine…”

- “No. I won’t give you anything. For every single piece of my treasury I had to work myself. Every silver chalice, every golden plate, and every copper coin. I tore it with my own bloodies claws. Do you hear yourself? Give! GIVE!!! You are just like those lowly humans! You dare come to me DEMANDING to get help? Defeat me, and I will gladly give you my treasury. Defeat me, and you will earn a right to banish me from this place, make me look for another lair… DEFEAT ME, AND PROVE THAT THERE IS SOMETHING MORE IN YOU THAN YOUR MOTHER’S WEAKNESS!”

She was all covered in blood, her body was once again bigger, her twin axes re-appeared in her hand, she was once again on the battlefield surrendered by goblins…

But each of them somehow resembled her father… their eyes filled with that sick entertainment…

Just stop… just stop… just stop…. Juststop. Juststop. Juststop. Juststop. Juststop. Juststop. Juststop. Juststop. Juststop. Juststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststopjuststop….

- “JUST STOP LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT ALREADY!”

She screamed almost crying, charging once again at green-skins. They were confused by sudden outburst of dragoness.

She was crying. Tears were falling down her face mixing with blood of her enemies that was covering her from head to toes. Oh, it wasn’t making her look like a loser, oh no, those veins visible on her forehead and cheeks, flush of anger covering her face, clenched teeth… these all things were making her look more like an insane beast.

Axes were no longer dancing. It could no longer be name as dance. Skilled movements were replaced by savage, mindless blows. Every weapon-master after seeing them would rather send such a “fighter” to the lumber mill instead of picking them as his or her apprentice…

… but these moves were faster than a wind, stronger than a typhoon. If you would blink when her axe was on her left side, you would open your eyes just to notice that your head is laying 10 meters away from your body… and that the axe she used was on her right side…

She left the formation, dwarfs simply couldn’t follow her. She was too fast in her deadly march onward. Handles of her axes was slippery because of blood, yet her grip was so strong that she didn’t have to be afraid of losing her weapons, more about crushing it in her palm.

She bolted onward as she noticed four ogres getting closer and closer, each of them looked like a claw of her father’s paw. She needed to break them, cut them, turn them into dust and powder… she just have to prove her worth… for gold… to help her mother… losing isn’t even taken into consideration…

First ogre answered her challenge by charging back at her, he was carrying some deadly-looking mace. They swung their weapons at each other making them clench for a second. Then the blow of a dragoness pushed forward and the ogre took two steps back and his weapons was thrown behind him. She wasted no time.

Axe in her left hand dug into the thigh of the tall beast, the one in her right dug itself deep in the monster belly, just under the rib cage. Mighty beast fell onto all four spitting blood when Gisele rotated near him. She changed the way she held her axe, now not the blade, but deadly needle-hook on its other side used mostly as a counterbalance for the weapon penetrated the kneeling ogre’s skull. Its brain was turned into a bloody mess and forced outside of its head.

She looked with same insanity on the remaining three monsters.

Not many things can make a ogre to feel fear, yet this time, three remaining warriors took a step back by their own will.

Fast Pov change

- “Now?” one of an ogres waiting behind the wall asked his higher-in-rank companion

- “NO! Ask one more time and I will tear your spine from your fucking backs! Just bloody wait till goblins on the wall would give us a si…”

A high-pitched squeal could be heard from the walls. One of the “little ones” start waving in their direction madly.

- “Now?” the first ogre actually bring himself to ask once again despite the threat.

- “Yes. Now. READY YOURSELF, YOU FUCKING SONS OF THE GOATS! LOK’TAR O… I mean… TO THE DEATH! THEIRS OR OURS!” Ogre lead his companion across the wall.

Most of them didn’t bother using gates, instead they build up momentum running to the wall and start jumping over it, lading pretty often on their comrades on the other side. Still, who would bother about lives of goblins? They did great as canon food and cleaning up the camp. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Fast Pov change after fast Pov change

Aaaaaaaand they started charging. Great. I couldn’t not notice that Gis left her formation. Appraising her status from afar (something I managed doing only because I was in party with her. I appraised her name on my party list. Otherwise it would be impossible because of distance) I noticed her rage points raising dangerously close to 100. Few more and she would reach [Fanatic] state. I had to get in there before that… or she would start attacking our allies. Something I would rather avoid.

Good damn it! Stupid wings! Work faster! FASTER! DAMN IT!

I won’t make it on time… unless…

No. That’s stupid.

Just plain idiotic.

Such brainless moves could work only in low-class mangas and animes! No chances!

No chances!

NO CHANCES, I TELL YOU!

…

…

…

Let’s do this.

I moved my hands past my body, targeting my opened palms behind as I started concentrating fire magic.

Ladies, Gentlemen, and you - units of unprécised gender. Thank you for choosing Zari-travel. We would like to ask you to fasten your seatbelts, as apparently pilot has lost his shit and is about to use nitro. Thank you very much for your cooperation, see you in hell.

Breath in, breath out…

- “As Pyrox would say it right now… Kaboom!”

I activated explosive spell from my palms

Extremely fast Pov change after fast pov change af… eh, screw this

Pyrox sneezed.

- “Again?” Marika asked “Are you sure that you aren’t sick?”

- “Pyrox can’t get sick! Pyrox too….”

- “Too hot to get sick. Yes, yes I know.” Marika just rolled her eyes. Then she whispered to herself “Goddess, give me patience, for if you would give me strength I would fucking beat the shit out of him!”

Back to Zari

- “MOTHERFUCKER!” I only managed to scream as the momentum of the blow forced my mouth and eyes open alike. I could only praise my luck for not hitting any flies. Still, I am pretty sure that my face was right now looking like those dogs that were putting their heads through the window of riding car.

I could almost hear the soldiers below me talking

- “What is it?”

- “It’s a bird!”

- “No! An airplane!”

- “No! It’s a sup… wait, what the hell the airplane is?”

- “I don’t know. I just felt an urge to say so…”

I didn’t know how their conversation ended as I already flew past them. Now, about the landing part… No, it is impossible for me to “land”, the momentum was far too great. I could only try making my fall look a bit less embarrassing….

… or we could combine useful and nice into one…

I start covering myself in fire spell making myself look like a fire bolt more than a human. Now, bit higher, left, left…. Some more left… stupid wind blowing, LEFT DAMN IT! Gis? Where the hell are y… ah, there you are. Right in the middle of blood and gore, of course, fear not, my princess, your hero is on his wa….

Back-to-Gisele-Pov

I was able to get part of my senses back, just to see what I did again. Papa Jeremy was telling this over and over. Control your emotions, or emotions would control you.

I couldn’t. I am sorry. I got myself surrounded once again. My muscles were screaming from pain, as usually in berserker state I broke my own limits abusing my body. I am dead. I am so, sooo dead. Ogres are still jumping across the wall. I could defeat four of them, I am pretty sure I would defeat even 10 at the same time. The problem is, that there is more than just 10 of them, my allies are too far away behind my back, right now I am rotating in all direction trying to slash ass many greenskins jumping from every side as it is only possible.

But my body is heavier and heavier….

I could… maybe I could kill some more if I would let rage devour me? I would become unstoppable… for some time.

Haha. I wasted the life that Zari saved. Life that he saved twice, in tower and Blackwoods mansion… I am sad that I won’t be able to see his face again, all I can do is to make him proud… that I died in bat…

- “MOOOTHEERRR…” I heard from afar “…FUUUUUCC.”

Something hit the ground few meter from me, shaking the ground with earth shard and blaze.

Did dwarfs started using catapults? Put I didn’t see them to bring any with them…

Flames started moving by its own, creating shapes of serpent devouring greenskin. Fire was attaching to their bodies like living being, refusing to disappear, then from the crater a white haired mage raised shaking dust from his shoulders

- “Hello, love. You missed me?” He grinned widely

- “Z..Z…” I wanted to cry, this time from joy…. But then “… ZARI!? DID THEY SHOT YOU FROM A FUCKING CATAPULT!?”

- “Wait?! What?! NO!”

- “Knowing you, you surely would be ready to do such thing!” I said slashing goblin that was about to jump at my head from the side.

- “This is a slander! I would never do such a reckless act… ok. I totally would. But it was not a case!” he said moving his palm as in weird, exotic dance forcing blazes of fire to consume even more enemies.”

- “Ha?! Still, you were supposed to sit together with the commandeers at the camp on a hill!”

- “I did!... for some time, at least, but all this time I was looking from afar at your butt which was keeping me distracted!”

- “POOR JOKE! I am more than sure that it was covered by masses of dwarfs!”

- “OH SHUT UP ALREADY! I CAME, SO I CAME! END OF THE CASE! I won’t let you keep your whole glory just by yourself!”

Through such a hopeless lie even I could see through. You must have seen those ogres behind the wall… or me losing to rage.

Once again you came to save me…. You idiot.

- “Stop wasting breath, damn it!” He scolded me turning his back, increasing area of his spell “I will keep the new from coming, at least for some time, you will have to get rid of these that are already here. We need to form a line once again with dwarfs!”

A wall of fire started spreading to the sides rising high in the air.

I got what he meant. Such a huge spell will require lots of focus and powers, he may collapse soon. I have to finish before that.

Saved once again. He was smaller than me, his muscles were far from being called “developed”. Still, when I am looking at him right now, he looks like strongest man in the world.

Capital of Neira, Adventurer’s guild

Guild master sneezed loudly blowing his nose in the tissue.

“Hm? Getting cold?” Alesia raised her brow entering the room “I have never seen you before sneezing like that.” “Me? Cold? Woman, I have been fighting in Antrachta Mountains with Yetis! Without clothes!” “Yeah. I heard those fairy tales before…” “THESE ARE NOT…” “Yeah, whatever you say. But still, you are growing old so…” “I AM STILL STRONGEST HU…” “Jericho. You are no longer a human.” “Tsh.” “That girl took your title” “Tsh.” “Also. You should start taking care of yourself - taking some herbs, i know! Maybe you could ask Zariel to cook you some potion and…”

He throw angry look at his assistant

“Anyway…” He continued “I don’t care about that [strongest] title! I am already also the living legend! I only care for one girl to see me as strong! My little sweet Gis! In her eyes I will always remain strongest! NYA-HA-HA-HA!” “What if somebody else would impress her? “My little girl? Answer is easy. I will tear him to shreds! NYA-HA-HA-HA!”

Somewhere far, far away, it was Zari’s turn to sneeze