Chapter 23: Dream Warrior

Nuadu lay in the ground, his bloody self covered in burns and sluggish from all the blood he had lost. He felt his soul slowly detaching from his physical form. Excalibur had lost against his sword this time but it had delivered enough damage. "Fuck," the god coughed as tears formed in his eyes. He was going to break his promise to his beloved, she hated that the most. "I love you," he muttered as he reached his wounded arm in Ogma's direction, he hoped she magically appear and she would cradle him but life was cruel. he whispered the last of his essence into his arm and slipt away into the afterlife.

Elatha howled in pain and grit her teeth while whimpering as her arm lay on the ground severed from her body. "My arm! you ruined my body for the last time," she declared as she picked up the boulder beside her and hurled it at Abhartach. Abhartach turned into a shadow and passed through the giant rock, he dashed faster than I could keep up with and lunged at Elatha. He landed on her outstretched arm, the whole process had been in the blink of an eye. Two silver daggers beamed and spun in his palm as he gripped them tightly, showing off a bit of skill. He dug them into the Fomorian's scaly and rocky arm and run towards her shoulder, peeling off her armour leaving two stripes behind him made by his blades.

Elatha slapped grinned and shot a beam out of her remaining eye, burning through his chest and propelled him off her arm. "Fool, I am injured not defenceless," Elatha cocked her head as she glared at the vampire. Abhartach got to his feet and growled beneath his breath. He had lost himself and Ogma saw it. She said nothing to him however she had no intention of letting him kill the Fomorian alone.

Ogma stomped the ground and a burst of water emerged forming a geyser, she directed it to herself and formed a stream that encircled her body like Saturn's rings. Abhartach stumbled as a shadow formed over his open chest and began to slowly digest the darkness around and healed the wound almost immediately. Elatha formed a sadistic grin as she kicked Brigit's corpse as if it were roadkill, she wanted to draw in the vampire.

Abhartach dashed once more, his fangs bare and daggers glistening behind him. He slashed towards the Giantess' thigh but Elatha was ready with a beam, he tucked and swerved behind her and slashed one of her tendons. Abhartach was unlike the other Danann, savage, precise and merciless. He went for the other tendon but Elatha expected it and a large beam hit right beside the vampire, burning him with the heat and making him withdraw. She charged up another beam immediately and fired, a wall of water formed in front of Abhartach and the blast formed a mist as it collided with the wall.

Ogma flipped around as she sent a multitude of sharp water slashes at the Giant that only peeled off her armour but that was what she wanted, she would peel it off and then kill the Fomorian. Elatha felt a blade cut through her armour just above the tendon, Abhartach had missed but instead of attempting the same spot, he slashed and tore through the Fomorian up her leg, using the moment to propel himself up. Ogma shot a water chain tied the Fomorian by the neck. She pooled water by Elatha's feet and solidified it into ice which protruded spikes that tore into the Fomorian's legs.

Abhartach was by her neck in an instant, his eyes were black and empty and he slashed across her the Giantess' neck and landed in front of ogma. Elatha fell to her knees, spikes poking furthermore into her and blood filled her mouth. She struggled to speak and Ogma realised what had happened. Abhartach left a gash large enough to prevent her speaking or breathing but not enough to kill. She shot a slash of water to finish the Fomorian but Abhartach intercepted it with his shadow. "No," he growled.

Abhartach threw his daggers into the Fomorian's chest and launched himself into it. He grabbed the blades and stabbed into her ribs and Elatha's eye beamed from the pain, daggers pierced through her eye as Abhartach threw them preemptively and began to tear through her chest with his claws. Blood gushed on his bodice as he beastly tore through the Giant. He finally bore through her rib cage and pierced her heart as he jumped onto her neck and severed her throat. Abhartach retrieved his daggers and sluggishly walked to Brigit. Ogma stood there in silence as she felt a strange satisfaction in watching the Fomorian suffer before it died.

Abhartach laid his sheathed his blades and cradles his love, her body felt mangled and his eyes turned back, tears fell on his blood-stained cheeks and as he dropped down to kiss her, he felt her last words, a light went into him and he heard her words, "I love you," her warmth speaks through him as he loses himself beside her.

The memory turns black and I look at the vampire, "What happened next? With Lugh and everyone else?" I ask.

"Lugh killed Balor in a ferocious battle that deformed part of their fighting ground and assumed the title of King, Ogma became the army commander but losing Nuadu and Brigit left her empty. centuries later, humans arrived and killed us off including the Fomorians and here we are."

"Sounds like you wanted to skip unnecessary exposition," I say jokingly and he lets out a small laugh.

"Wouldn't want to prolong this more than I have, time to wake up."

Abhartach had shown me more than enough and I would learn