Chapter 56

Chapter 56: Chapter 56

The leaves on the trees were iridescent, often the only source of lighting in the thick foliage of millions of trees. Right now, the trees seemed to be closing in, almost like they were about to rip themselves out of their roots in response to the deafening howl that seemed to reach the very ends of the forest.

A monstrous creature was surrounded at the base of a gigantic tree, hatred blazed in the fire in its eyes. Heavy chains bound it from every corner, the hunting parties taking care not to harm it gravely.

The Hellhound fought relentlessly, but the hunters were persistent and his strength was not up to par. The chains that forced him lower and lower to the crisscross of vines covering the dark earth did not bother him, rather he focused on the shackle about to be placed around his neck.

It hummed and glowed with magic, a sinister kind, one he knew instinctively to fight against. With a great heave, he swung his head against the trunk of the tree that had been his home for the past one thousand years, obliterating one of the Demons clinging to his neck against it and shaking the others free.

It was a futile battle, one that would drag on until he was completely drained of strength. The hunters were endless, a swarm of parasites that hacked and cut into trees and vines as they crawled through the forest.

Caedos had no plans to lose. Hounds were all connected by the trees, so he knew, he knew who these hunters were and how much anarchy they had wrought on his kind.

But his feeble body would not listen to him, and with every group of hunter and their chains, he threw off himself, twice as many tried to subdue him.

He forced his blazing eyes to stay open despite the bone-deep exhaustion, guttural growls leaving him, black smoke seeping out of his tightly bound maws. The Demons were familiar with hunting Hellhounds, they had bound his jaws and pinned down his claws immediately, leaving him defenseless.

The head of the creature had been forced to the ground, the vines and roots underneath him writhing in distress. Above his head, a Demon could fully stand on its massive head, a new battle beginning even after all the fight had been taken out of it.

The shackle partly around its neck fell off in time for another to replace it, its neck bloodied from the Demons fighting above and around it.

Caedos completely lacked the strength to howl out his pain, his chained-up maw further preventing him. He huffed out sizzling black smoke, the kind that held heat. But even if his jaws weren’t locked up, he was too young to call up fire.

Despite the intense battle going on around him, it was only a matter of time until one of the sinister shackles fell around his neck. Drawing strength from a well of hatred, he slowly forced himself to his feet, willing to fight as long as he still drew breath.

His ears were sharp, so he could hear everything the hunters said, the names of several Dukes who had called for his capture fell into his ears like sharp knives.

...A true fire-breathing hound... they called him.

...He would make quite a fine steed for Duke Morkoth...

...It naturally belongs to the superior Wrath Faction...

...Duke Azranon led the charge to defeat the King and Queen a millennium ago, he had all the rights to claim the last noble hound for himself...

Caedos’ attempt was met with heavy resistance, and he was forced back to the ground once more. The hunters had no hesitation in working together to that effect, stepping over the bodies of the Demons they had killed themselves to capture him.

Just as the bonds around his neck were about to be locked in place, blinding light came from beneath him, casting piercing gold light against the hulking silhouette of the trees surrounding them. It blinded everyone in its vicinity, giving the illusion of a burning sensation from the sheer brightness of it.

Despite the number of people casually walking over the Hellhound like it were merely a beast of burden, Caedos alone fell into the ring of golden light, the bonds around his neck burning as the light consumed him.

-+-

The fire didn’t hurt Dulce any more than the glow from the summoning magic did, so he made no attempt to step away, trying to peer into the billowing flames for his precious hound.

Moira was starstruck, watching the harmless fire fill her workshop. She didn’t want to miss even a single moment of the ritual, wishing she could capture this moment to preserve it for later.

The three Demons immediately circled around the wall of fire, the light casting harsh shadows on their tense faces. They were close enough that the explosion pushed them back several feet, the fire having no effect on them.

Dulce, who was much lighter, was usually thrown back from the explosion of his summoning ritual but this time, a giant paw pinned him down, the rest of the monster falling through after the explosion.

The dwindling fire was reflected in his eyes, making his silver blue eyes appear gold, a wide, silly smile on his face as he laid on his back underneath a monster that took up most of the space in the center of the massive dungeon.

The explosion had cleared up what little furniture and the people around, a black Hellhound covered in chains and blood and breathing smoke taking up the space.

After the light and the fire ceased, Dulce could get a proper look at the creature he summoned, his first thought from his limited view on his back under the Hellhound was that he would be hard pressed to fit it in his cottage.

The Hellhound didn’t move after crashing into the stone floor, its massive head drooping, its eyes closed.

Dulce got free of its paw with ease, it had merely been the weight of the heavy limb pinning him down, there had been no strength behind it. He shot to his feet in a panic, and without stopping to check whether the creature was hostile or not, he grabbed the chains around the paw that had been on him, snapping it with ease.