Airin stood at the edge of the forest, the winged snakes flew toward their group.

Rovan was weak, but he pushed through, shouted some order, then he was busy helping the children find hiding spots underneath the thick underbrush and among massive roots of trees.

"Airin!" Elisthia grabbed her hand, but Airin flicked her hand away. "No, I want to see what happens to Xander ..."

"It is suicide, Airin! The snakes will kill you! We must hide!"

Airin turned to Elisthia, her sight clouded with tears, tears that kept rolling on her cheek. Unstoppable. Like her heartbreak. "I cannot let him by himself out there! I cannot let him get hurt, Elisthia!" Her words seemed to sink into Elisthia because now the sorceress' eyebrows furrowed as if she was thinking hard, and she stopped trying to grab Airin's hand.

There at the edge of the clearing, Xander stood still after he roared just now. A roar so loud Airin could feel the shake of the ground underneath her.

Nothing happened, except the winged snakes that still flew closer, Airin could now smell the rancid odour that came from the snakes.

The snakes were close now.

Elisthia froze, as was Airin next to her.

"Elisthia, go hide!"

"No, we are in this together, Airin. Rovan is weak, but he could watch over the children in hiding. I am here."

Airin turned to face Elisthia. Elisthia looked serene for such a situation. She stared at the snakes. "We are fighting, Airin. For the one we love."

"What could we do, Elisthia? What could we do in the face of evil so great?"

Elisthia had not answered when Airin saw Xander turned around, facing her.

He lifted up his arms with Zeus' sword on his right hand.

Then she heard a loud boom from the direction of the elegarii.

Orbs of lights shot up high in the sky.

The orbs that had been swimming in the river elegarii.

They shot up to the sky like projectiles from the water.

"What the ..." Airin's jaw dropped when she saw what was happening far away at the direction of elegarii. She did realize now that the place where the Halgard's main palace as well as the half-burned palace was on top of a hilly area, on a higher ground than where the river elegarii was. Thus from the difference in height, she could see the orbs shot up even more clearly, it was just like watching New Year's Eve glorious fireworks from the peak of a hill.

Each of the orbs of lights shot forward now, like streaks of light that flew fast toward them.

Right at the moment when the winged snakes arrived at the edge of the forest where Airin, Elisthia, Rovan, and the children were, these orbs arrived there too.

Airin could see Xander move his hands toward them, and she realized Xander was controlling the orbs of lights.

Each of the orbs of light, silverish-gold in colour, embraced each snake, and each snake struggled midair as the orbs embraced them.

Then each orb turned into gaseous cloudlike structure.

Each of these cloudlike structure took form, a more solid form.

A winged horse, more specifically: A white horse with golden mane and platinum-coloured wings. Each of these magnificent horses encapsulated a winged snake within the spread of its majestic wings.

The snakes let out roar and thrashed about within the choke of the wings, but the winged horses were stronger, they brought the snakes flying a few turns, and the snakes struggled less and less.

Airin watched the whole happening with strange calmness. Xander, you did it! Those horses will help us!

The snakes exploded into black dust that smelled nauseating, and the horses flew away, back to Xander. But there were more snakes coming. The sky in the horizon turned darker from the snakes' swarm.

Airin turned to Elisthia and saw the sorceress' mouth still open and her eyes widened in shock upon seeing what had happened.

Then from the distance, she could hear ominous sound of gongs, loud yelling and explosions. "The Myrana's attack has reached the capital city and the outskirt of the palace grounds," Elisthia finally said something after her shock. "I hope the commanders of our soldiers in the provinces outside the capital are able to hold off the attack. I just do not know how many who are still on our side, not falling into Leidra's sorcery."

Airin nodded to indicate to Elisthia that she was listening to what she had just said. "Dimerion ... he went to shore up support from battalions around the capital, didn't he?"

Elisthia nodded. "Dimerion can be trusted. He is a brave and honourable man." Elisthia paused, composed her thought, and said,"Those winged horses ... I have heard about these horses that could very well be the descendants of Pegasus, the first winged horse. But I thought they were just myths, or they just live in Olympus. I did not know that Lord Xander could awaken them, control them ... they are real."

Airin did not say anything—the line between what was real and what was myth had long been blurred beyond recognition for her. She just kept her focus straight ahead at all that was unfolding in front of her.

The winged horses flew around on the sky, ready to tackle the new wave of winged snakes of Ares that had almost arrived. Xander remained in control of the horses, as well as be a commander to his soldiers. Some groups of soldiers were seen running into the forest between the main palace and the half-burned palace, maybe they were sent there to provide enforcement to their comrades who were not under Leidra's command.

Some soldiers stayed behind at the edge of the grass clearing to guard them here. All the people who could possibly have the rightful claim to the throne of Halgard were here.

When hordes of Myrana's soldiers swarmed out of the forest on the other side, the battle truly began.

Her feet shivered, but Airin ran the face of her students in her mind. One by one. Their smile, their cries, their quirks.

Xander turned around to see her one more time, before turning back to face his enemies. He stabbed the sword of Zeus to the air, and tiny pieces of thunderbolt flew out and about. Each of these thunderbolts found a Myrana soldier and decapitated him with sheer accuracy.

The bloodbath had begun. The thunderbolts were busy finding the victims to kill, the soldiers clashed, and Xander had to wield his control over the winged horses again when the flying snakes got to them.

It was chaotic with battles happening on the ground, and up in the sky between the winged horses and the pet snakes of Ares. Screams of terror and pain, clanging of swords, whooshing of the wings of the horses and the rancid smell of the snakes. All mixed into one as the sun slowly rose in the east. But the day was grey because storm clouds covered the sun. No sunshine. No warmth.

The children screamed in fear from their hiding places, Rovan came out from his hiding place wielding a small dagger. "This is all I have. I am good at dagger. I can try to fight off the Myrana when they get here," Rovan sounded unsure, but he slashed around his dagger.

The battlefront moved closer to them.

But Airin felt strange. A strange coldness that draped over her, colder than the winter wind.

Her premonition is getting from bad to worse. She turned around and watched the forest where the children were hiding in.

The forest was still and dark.

"Airin?" Elisthia noticed her change in behavior.

"Something is not tight. My gut feeling is bad," she half-whispered to Elisthia.

The two women stared into the inner part of the forest.

Airin started walking deeper into the forest, past the underbrushes where the children crouched in hiding.

"Airin! Rovan, stay close to the children!" Elisthia followed her after giving Rovan's instruction. "Airin, where are you going? Airin!"

Airin ignored Elisthia's call and something made her keep walking. Despite fear and bad premonition, she kept walking on the damp, muddy pathway in the forest.

And at one point a few meters ahead of her what her eyes saw caused her sinking heart to sink even deeper.

"Oh no ... no ..." Elisthia gasped behind her.