Dirt rained down on them as the Zruns broke through, announcing their arrival in a shrill roar. Liron would never grow used to their voices. Perfectly constructed to disturb a human ear. The Qyoral and its rulers had created their brood for one purpose, and they had designed them well.
The shame of his failure haunted Liron still, his soul aching to remedy it. He summoned his black blade, smoke engulfing him. "Zonis, get the guys away. I will keep 'em busy."
"Liron, wait!" Zonis called, but he didn't wait.
He blasted himself into the air, charging the Qilesh. The Zruns jumped down towards him. The Qa'an had sent the ones who had devoured the vultures. They reshaped their heads into a beak, having used them as drills to dig through the ground. Their arms became wings again.
Liron swung his blade, shooting sickles at them. He counted at least twenty of them. They avoided his spells. He never intended to hit them. Only to gain their attention. That he had now.
He ignited smoke around him, drastically altering his flight away from them. The Zruns soared after him, cutting through the air. Without their master's hand, their instincts controlled them like a puppet. They had no semblance of a strategy of deeper comprehension. They knew only that Liron had attacked them, and they wanted to devour him. Zonis and the agents would not register with them, securing their escape. But this meant they would chase Liron without pause.
Liron zigzagged himself around, never following a clear or strict path. But no matter what he did, the Zruns kept up. Their control and speed dwarfed Liron's. He was a chicken next to hawks. Each of his maneuvers they kept up with, they crept closer. They opened their talons, moments away from catching him.
Running out of options, Liron blasted himself towards the city. He flung himself towards a house, only changing course as he was about to hit it. Two Zruns failed to manage the turn, slamming into the ceilings. While robust, even their strengthened bodies could not endure the collision. Their own momentum killed them. Their shattered remains stuck out of the ruin they had caused.
The potion honed his mind, and Liron darted through the city's streets, redirecting himself as often as he could. But no more than three Zruns died in the pursuit. The rest overcame each obstacle Liron put in front of them.
His stunt had secured him some extra time, but the Qilesh had adapted to it, navigating the constant turns with ease. And despite his improved concentration, it would only serve him for moments. Liron struggled to keep up with the shifting houses and streets, evading a collision through sheer luck.
But he never intended to defeat them through this hunt. He only wanted the extra time.
Shae's lion flew above them, and Liron headed towards her. The Zruns' single-minded obsession blinded them to the Conduit above. As Liron got closer, the lion opened its mouth. It roared, unleashing a storm gust towards them. The spell slammed into the Qilesh, belting them into the ground. Five snapped apart, bloody gore scattering the streets.
The others were hit by the wind surrounding the roar, punching them into the houses. Painful indeed, it didn't suffice to kill them. Liron cast tiny explosions to slow him down, coming to a halt. He smiled up at Shae. She had read his intention, knowing why he had come down here.
While racing through the city, Liron had lacked the opportunity to examine the buildings. Shae did so. She had taken her time to locate them, but after she had done so, she had floated above them.
The Zruns wailed, but their spirit remained unbroken. They wanted to continue the chase, but the beasts waiting in the houses they had crashed into had other plans. Slender arms wrapped around a Qilesh from inside the window. The spider's head popped up from the darkness, and it drove its fangs into its prey's neck. The Zrun squealed before it was dragged away. Similar to spiders Liron had witnessed when they had arrived in Sannara. Only that they have the size to claim a grown man as their next meal.
Another Zrun suffered a similar fate. A centipede leaped at it, its countless arms digging into its back. Spears equipped with hooks, ensuring that once launched into flesh, they would not come out without great bloodshed. The centipede forced the Qilesh on its knees, pressing it to the ground. Before it could cleave apart its head with its mandibles, the other Zruns came to its help.
Their talons cracked the chitin plates protecting the insect's body. They hammered down with their beaks, breaking apart the armor and letting its green blood flow. The centipede released its victim, ripping its back open as its arms came free. It twisted around, snapping its mandibles shut around a Zrun's neck. As it gored its throat out, its arms stabbed at the other Qilesh, driving them back.
Within seconds, chaos broke out as dozens of insects emerged from the hiding spot, striking at the Zruns. Liron's smile vanished as he watched the two sides battle, each more alien than the other. The Qilesh put up a good fight, but they stood no chance. From all sides, they endured nature's wrath. Their screams filled the dead city, the wet shredding as their limbs were pulled from them following.
Only four had the wits to flee, leaving their brethren to die. Shae intended to unite them in death, but she hesitated, a figure catching her attention. She had examined the city, but not closely enough. "Liron!"
He turned to her as several hands reached out from behind him, aiming to seize him. Liron dug, trying to roll away, but three hands grabbed him by his legs. He jerked around, his blade ready to sever them from their arms. As he saw who they belonged to, he froze. The Qyoral had created its soldiers to be unnerving towards humanity. The Empire had done similar things.
The Fides had the body of a snake, long enough to enwrap a wolf. But instead of slithering around like one, it walked on dozens of human arms. A centipede formed out of the bodies of countless poor souls that had sacrificed themselves to create this thing. As the Sinners, golden lines painted this thing as something divine, but unlike their lowly cousin, their marking formed writings, citing Harras Himself. The Empire had clothed the creature in black clothes, hiding its form. A blessing, as the glimpses Liron saw of it revealed the remnants of the people fused. Heads, shoulders, and a mouth lurked out of its body, buried underneath. Only its back was exposed, brown soil embedded into its form.
Its face resembled a white leather mask, sown together from the features of the sacrificed. It had black slits as eyes and had a serene yet tranquil expression. As if it had experienced a direct communion with Harras, blessing it with a state of absolute peace. None of this showed itself in its grip it had on Liron's leg.
It squeezed, trying to break his bone and shred his muscle. Liron fought through his shock, his sword starving to taste the blood of this cursed enemy. But the Fides grabbed his wrist before he could strike it. One hand could take his entire head in its palm and squash it.
A Tombbearer. The Empire had never depicted them in their war propaganda. Liron understood why, as no one would celebrate seeing such a thing on their side. It dragged Liron closer, more hands grasping him until he could not move an inch. He thrashed around, desperate to free himself, but all was in vain for the Tombbearer. Pressure spread throughout his body as the Fides' grip intensified. The first tears came to his eyes at his utter helplessness.
It pulled him upwards, and it stood on its hind arms, bringing him close to its mask. It examined him, ensuring it had caught the right person. As it identified him, it brought him towards its back, meaning to shove him into the soil. Liron guessed why they called it a Tombbearer. The solid in its back was a grave, ready to trap anyone in there it needed.
But before it could seal Liron inside its body, Shae intervened. The remaining Zruns noticed her as she had screamed Liron's name, engaging her. After their escape, their hunger and hatred reemerged, demanding to be satiated. Shae had tried to kill them, but the Qilesh refused to die a quick death, dodging her spells. The few fangs or roars that had connected with them damaged them but not enough to put them down.
Her lion raged around, and the Zruns brought distance between them and their prey, giving Shae the opportunity she needed. A roar erupted from the lion's maw, smashing into Liron and the Tombbearer. She would have focused her spell on the Fides alone if she could have. In the heat of battle, all the support she offered Liron was ripping him and the Tombbearer off the ground, flinging them high into the air. The spell took the Fides by surprise, and its grip on Liron loosened. Enough to free his right arm and torso.