Jinn BLADE
Chapter 102 | Disaster

Chapter 102: Chapter 102 | Disaster

Flashes of light filled the air, light chains lashing out in every direction—multiple strands weaving and slithering through the sky like glowing snakes.

A volley of arrows, forged from the same radiant energy as Jirael, rained down from above, crashing toward Jirael with relentless force, forcing her to summon a barrier of light that shimmered into place, just in time and absorbed the barrage completely.

"Is that all you got!?" Jirael shouted, her voice sharp, though her breathing had turned ragged, the constant strain on her body finally starting to catch up as her limbs grew heavier with each passing second.

"Of course not," Vendrael replied, narrowing his eyebrows as he exhaled slowly, his breath steady with focus while his fingers released the light-string of his bow, sending arrow after arrow streaking through the air in a continuous, unbroken stream aimed directly at her.

Vendrael wasn’t tired—not in the slightest—compared to Jirael, his stamina held firm, and his movements never faltered, his body still sharp and controlled.

He had always been Zendrell’s partner on countless campaigns, trained under fire, molded by war, and that history gave him an advantage that showed in every motion.

He was a master of the bow, swift and agile, his technique refined and deadly, every shot an expression of precision and power.

*Fwip! *Fwip! *Fwip! *Fwip! *Fwip!

As his arms moved with practiced rhythm, snapping back repeatedly to release arrow after arrow, Vendrael subtly readied a more powerful shot, carefully hiding it among the smaller volleys to keep it concealed.

Without breaking the pace of his attack, he released exactly three of those enhanced arrows, each one slicing through the air with a sharp whistle that blended into the chaos.

Jirael, focused entirely on maintaining her barrier to fend off the barrage of smaller arrows, didn’t sense the difference.

She was too occupied to realize that three distinct and far more powerful projectiles had slipped through her defenses unnoticed.

And then, in perfect unison, all three struck.

*BANG! *BANG! *BANG!

Three deafening blasts echoed across the battlefield like thunder, each explosion sending out a powerful shockwave of eidra that slammed into Jirael and hurled her backward with overwhelming force.

"U-Urgh!" she cried out, her body skidding violently across the snow-covered ground, leaving a trail behind as the blast disoriented her.

She had landed a significant distance from Vendrael, her body still aching from the earlier blast, but in that moment of recovery, she didn’t realize something was behind her.

A dragon.

A faint click sounded from deep within its throat, just subtle enough to make her freeze.

Jirael turned in sudden realization, her eyes going wide as she caught sight of a massive clawed arm swinging toward her with terrifying speed.

"S-Shit!" she stammered, trying to bring up a barrier, but she was too slow.

The beast’s claw crashed into her before the shield could form,

*ROAR!!!

tearing across her upper face with brutal force.

"AAAGH!" Her scream pierced the air, sharp and shrill, her voice cracking from the pain as blood poured down from the torn wound.

"I—I CAN’T SEE!!" she cried out, her hands clutching her face, trembling as panic overtook her.

Her voice carried through the battlefield, making heads turn—faces shifting from stunned soldiers who had once served under her, to her brother, then to Zendrell, and finally, to the one who mattered most—her lover, Garian.

Another strike was coming—the dragon’s massive, serrated jaws opened wide, ready to end Jirael’s life in a single bite.

Vendrael’s eyes widened, his heart pounding as his instincts kicked in.

Without thinking, he pulled the string of his bow back with full strength, charging a powerful arrow that began to whir with raw energy.

"GET OFF HER!" Vendrael shouted, his voice loud and sharp as he released the shot.

*BANG!!!

The arrow shot forward with terrifying speed, slick and precise, cutting through the air like a beast unleashed.

In an instant, it struck the dragon’s chest with a force that shattered bone and scale, tearing through its body and exploding out the other side, leaving a gaping hole in its wake.

The creature let out a guttural sound before collapsing,

*THUMP!!!

slain instantly by the blast.

Vendrael had acted without hesitation—his sister was in danger, and he couldn’t stand by and do nothing.

But that moment of instinct came with a cost.

"VENDRAEL!!" Zendrell’s voice rang out, piercing the air with urgency and fear.

Before Vendrael could even turn toward the sound, a massive blade erupted through his chest from behind,

*Crack!!!

the sudden force lifting him slightly off the ground.

"K-Kurghk!" he gasped, blood bursting from his mouth, his eyes wide and shaking as he slowly turned his gaze downward.

Standing behind him, the one who had dealt the blow—was Garian.

"G-Garian..." Vendrael murmured, his voice already faint, trembling with disbelief as the world around him began to fade.

With a swift yank, Garian pulled the sword free from Vendrael’s body, the metal sliding out with a sickening sound.

Vendrael collapsed instantly, his body hitting the snow with a dull thud as he writhed in pain, blood pouring from the wound and painting the ground beneath him in a deep, spreading red.

Without wasting a second, Garian turned and dashed toward Jirael, who still lay wounded, while Zendrell rushed toward Vendrael, his boots crunching against the snow.

"Damnit!" Zendrell muttered as he dropped to his knees beside Vendrael, ripping off a piece of his cloak and pressing it hard against the wound, trying to slow the bleeding.

But the blood wouldn’t stop. It surged through the cloth, soaking it quickly, darkening the fabric in seconds.

"K-Kurghk..." Vendrael coughed, blood spilling from his lips, but he grit his teeth and tried to hold on. He forced his focus inward, channeling his eidra to keep the bleeding in check, buying himself a few more moments.

"G-Give me..." he rasped, each word strained, his breath shallow as his eyes met Zendrell’s with urgency.

"My bow..."

Zendrell didn’t hesitate. Just a few inches away, the bow rested where it had fallen. He grabbed it quickly and placed it into Vendrael’s trembling hands.

Vendrael’s fingers tightened around it, weak but determined. It was the same bow that had stood with him through countless battles, the same weapon that had shaped his legacy.

Zendrell looked at him, confused. "W-What are you doing?"

"T-To bring us home..." Vendrael whispered.

With a final surge of power and eidra, Vendrael let out a scream that pierced through the cold air, loud and fierce.

"YAAAAARH!"

Summoning every last ounce of strength, he drew back the string of his bow one final time, pouring all the eidra he could gather—the very essence of his being—into the draw. Then, with trembling fingers, he released a single arrow.

It was small, drifting slowly through the air compared to the other shots he had fired before. This arrow was weaker in size but carried something far greater inside—Vendrael’s entire spirit, his will, compressed into one singular, glowing arrow.

It traveled silently, without a sound, until it pierced the heavens and soared into the space above.

Vendrael’s eyes followed it as it vanished into the sky, then slowly shifted back to meet Zendrell’s gaze. Despite the blood flowing freely from his mouth, a faint smile crept across his face.

"Thanks, captain... for everything."

The moment those words left his lips, the arrow exploded with incredible force, bathing the entire sky in a blinding white light that spread quickly, shifting the clouds entirely.

The arrow seemed to scream, as if in pain—like Vendrael’s eidra itself was crying out at the loss of its master.

Then, without a single second wasted, multiple massive ships tore through the sky, rupturing the air with a thunderous roar as they descended rapidly, filling the space above like an overwhelming storm ready to crash down.

Several beeps echoed from the devices carried by nearby soldiers, including Zendrell’s, signaling the arrival of reinforcements just in time.

"T-They’re here, man! You just have to—" Zendrell began, relief flooding his voice as hope sparked in his eyes, but the moment he looked back down at Vendrael, his expression shifted completely.

Vendrael’s eyes were wide open, but they no longer held any light, no sign of the fierce eidra that once burned within him.

He had poured out every last drop of his eidra in that one desperate, final shot.

He had held on and fought through the pain just for that moment.

Zendrell was frozen in silence, the weight of loss crashing down on him as he closed his eyes tightly, gritting his teeth against the pain and frustration clawing at his heart.

He placed a heavy hand over his eyes for a moment, swallowing the lump in his throat, then pushed himself up to stand, his voice sharp and commanding.

"EVERYONE, FIRE AT WILL!" he bellowed, pointing his sword directly at Garian and Jirael, who were still locked together..

"AYE!" the soldiers shouted back in fierce unison, unleashing a powerful barrage of fire toward the two fighters.

*zzzPOW! *zzzPOW! *zzzPOW! *zzzPOW! *zzzPOW!

Garian moved without hesitation, swinging his massive sword with skill and strength to block the incoming storm of attacks while his other hand held Jirael behind him, protecting her as much as he could.

As the soldiers fired their energy rifles in rapid bursts toward them, several massive ships descended from the skies, making landfall just a short distance away, shaking the ground beneath their feet.

"Kurghk!" Garian grunted, his eyes flicking toward the approaching ships, his other arm tightening protectively around Jirael’s shoulders.

They were at a clear disadvantage, and if they wasted any more time, both of them would be completely surrounded.

Amid the chaos, a strange whisper echoed faintly in Garian’s ears.

It was eerie—like countless voices tearing through his mind at once.

He couldn’t understand the language, yet somehow, the meaning became clear deep inside him.

Following the whispers, he began to wrap eidra around his arm, the energy slithering and coiling like a living thing as it traveled toward his fingers, buzzing with raw power.

As if ripping the air itself, Garian tore through it like a fabric, ripping open a portal to an unknown place beyond.

"W-What’s happening, Garian?!" Jirael shouted, panic rising in her voice as she struggled to see around as her face continued to flow with her own blood.

"We’re escaping, Jirael," he replied quickly, eyes never leaving the portal’s flickering edge.

"For now, we have to leave this place. Now, Make a barrier for both of us."

"A-All right!" Jirael answered without hesitation, lifting her staff and focusing her power to create a wide, shimmering barrier that would protect them both.

Without wasting a single moment, Garian grabbed his massive sword and stepped through the portal, the protective barrier holding strong behind them as it blocked the incoming hail of energy shots from the soldiers.

"Sir, they’re escaping!" shouted a soldier, still firing wildly at Garian and Jirael as they hurried toward the portal.

"YOU COWARDS! COME BACK HERE!" Zendrell roared, charging forward just outside the deadly crossfire, his sword ignited with a fierce crimson eidra that pulsed with power.

Garian turned his head slightly, his eyes sharp and cold as the void.

"We will meet again, Zendrell—and when that happens, you will die," he said quietly but with deadly certainty before stepping fully through the portal, Jirael close behind him.

Frustration blazing in his eyes, Zendrell released a powerful wave of crimson eidra that surged forward like a tidal wave toward the portal, hoping to strike them before they could escape.

But before the eidra wave could connect, the portal fractured with jagged cracks and then vanished completely, swallowing Garian and Jirael’s presence along with it.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

Zendrell bellowed in pure rage and frustration, his fists clenched tightly as he stared helplessly at the empty space where they had just disappeared.

The sound of his roar echoed through the cold air, a fierce promise that this was not the end.