I signaled for my squadron to take position so that we would be attacking the invading horde from behind, in the hopes of neutralizing the anti-dragon weapons before any could be deployed. I was waiting for the right moment for our counterattack. If we struck too early, we might miss the bulkof the force still emerging from the tunnel. Too late, and they would have their anti-dragon weapons at the ready while the rest would spread into the residential streets, and we wouldn't be able to contain them.
Almost simultaneously, I saw similar eruptions occurring at other points around the city's perimeter. The Shedun had coordinated their attack perfectly, striking from multiple directions at once to divide and overwhelm the city's defenses. They must have mobilized all of their worms for this attack, hoping to deliver a devastating blow to Elucia.
“Onyx, communicate to Nyxath what we are seeing. If she hasn't yet, she should check with the Wrath Wing if they see any activity on the border. This attack is massive, but we should be on the alert for a diversion. I wouldn't be surprised if regular Sitorian forces mounted an assault on the transportation hub while all eyes are on Podana.”
In the distance, I could see the first units of Elucian ground forces rushing toward the breach points, but they wouldn't arrive in time to stop the initial wave.
That was our job.
I gave the signal for attack.
We dove as one, fifteen dragons and their riders, plummeting toward the unsuspecting Shedun below. They had not expected us to be ready for them, and their surprise was evident as they spotted us descending from the night sky. Those with the pipes got in position to fire at the descending dragons, and it was a race to the punch. We had to take them out before they had time to load their explosive projectiles and discharge them en masse at us.
"Now!" I commanded.
Onyx opened his enormous jaws, and a stream of blue-white fire erupted, engulfing the Shedun. They didn't even have time to scream before they were incinerated.
The other dragons of my squadron unleashed similar streams of devastation, targeting the Shedun emerging from the tunnel.
The worm itself thrashed in agony as multiple dragons directed their fire at its body. It wasn't as easy to incinerate as its masters, its body covered in scales similar to those of dragons, even though they were not related in any way. The scales might have protected it, but its primitive nervous system was still overwhelmed by searing pain.
I felt sorry for the creature in a way I didn't for its vile masters. It didn't dig tunnels for them because it wanted to, and it had no evil intentions. Nevertheless, it was an instrument of destruction, and the more of them we killed, the fewer tools the Shedun had to fight with.
As it writhed in agony, more Shedun poured from the tunnel, replacing those we had struck down.
I signaled for my squadron to pull up and regroup. We couldn't maintain a continuous fire—dragons needed time to regenerate it, and pushing them too hard would leave them defenseless.
As we circled above the breach point, I could see the ground forces arriving at the outer edges of the battlefield and engaging the Shedun who had managed to spread beyond our initial strike. The sharp reports of rifles piercing the quiet of the night were easy to hear, even as far above the ground as we were.
And yet, despite our rapid response and the arrival of the ground forces, the Shedun still kept coming. For every demon we struck down, two emerged from the tunnels, and they were pushing steadily inward, toward the residential districts where civilians were waking up and assuming defensive positions.
Once they reached those densely packed neighborhoods, dragon fire would be rendered useless. I signaled for anotherrun, this time focusing on the tunnel's entrance itself. If we could collapse it, we might stem the tide at this breach point.
By now, the Shedun had their anti-dragon weapons loaded and trained on us. We'd lost the element of surprise, and we had literally hundreds of deadly projectiles waiting to be fired at us as soon as our descent brought us within range.
"Our dragfire reserves are low,"Onyx warned as we dove once more."One, perhaps two more full-strength attacks before we must allow time to regenerate."
“Make this one count, then.Target the tunnel entrance.”
We plunged down, Onyx's wings pulled tight against his body to maximize our descent speed and minimize our visual footprint as a target, both making us harder to hit. Regardless, hundreds of flashes from the ground indicated that a massive volley of projectiles was traveling up to meet us.
Within seconds, Onyx was forced to perform evasive maneuvers as the projectiles zipped all around us.
While I was beseeching Elu to protect my riders, Logan's dragon was hit, spinning out of control, but only for a brief moment before leveling out, breaking off formation, and re-ascending at an alarmingly slow rate.
I didn't have time to follow its progress as the ground was rapidly approaching.
At the last possible moment, Onyx snapped his wings open to brake, hovering momentarily as he unleashed a concentrated stream of dragfire directly into the tunnel's mouth.
The heat was so intense that the stone itself began to melt, flowing like lava. The Shedun still within had nowhere to run, caught between those behind them and the deadly fire ahead.
Onyx banked hard to the left, avoiding a projectile, and another one of our dragons took his place, focusing his remaining dragfire on the tunnel opening.
The strategy was working. The tunnel walls began to sag, and then with a thunderous boom, the tunnel collapsed in on itself, burying any Shedun still inside.
But that was only one breach sealed. Across the city, similar battles were being fought at other breach points, with varying degrees of success.
The Shedun who had already emerged were still pressing forward, pushing toward the residences.
