Chapter 201: Long live the queen.
~Ava's POV~
It took us some hours to reach the border. I could see them in the distance, the army of Lystra, preparing for another attack against us.
Their grey banners fluttered in the evening wind, and smoke rose from their campfires scattered across the valley.
They had set up a proper war camp, with wooden barriers and watchtowers. This wasn't just a raid, this was a full invasion. They were going to wipe us out again.
But I wasn't going to let it happen, not on my watch. My people were relying on me.
The faces of the villagers they had killed flashed through my mind , innocent farmers who had never held a sword, children who would never see their fathers again. The rage built inside me, and with it, I felt my powers rousing.
"Don't let anyone escape," I commanded. "Get the soldiers ready for a counter attack. I'll attack first and give you the signal to capture and annihilate every one of them."
The men looked at me with confusion. How could one person attack an army of 20,000? But they had sworn to follow my orders, and they followed even if they didn't trust me.
They spread out in formation, staying far enough back to avoid whatever I was about to unleash.
I stepped forward, walking alone toward the enemy camp. The Lystra soldiers noticed me approaching , a single figure in royal blue walking calmly across the battlefield.
I could hear their laughter, their mocking calls. "Look, their Queen comes to surrender!" one shouted. "She thinks she can face us alone!"
To think, I thought these people didn't know who I was a month ago. There's certainly an insider in Mesodomica. After this war, I will find them out. As for these guys, they have no idea what was coming.
I stopped about fifty yards from their camp and closed my eyes. I felt for the power that had terrorized me for so long, the ice magic that I had always tried to suppress. But now, instead of fighting it, I embraced it. I let it flow through my veins like frozen lightning.
When I opened my eyes, I unleashed my power with a fury I had never felt before. Ice erupted from the ground around their camp, massive spikes shooting up like crystal spears. Their campfires were instantly extinguished, replaced by walls of solid ice that trapped soldiers inside their own tents.
But the ice was only the beginning. Deep within me, I felt another power awakening, the fire magic that ran through my bloodline, the opposite force to the ice. Lorraine was life. I was very force of nature. No wonder the gods are scared of me.
Now, with my emotions running wild and my kingdom's survival at stake, both powers merged within me. I let the ice melt their defensive barriers while my fire began burning down their camp. The combination was devastating, ice to freeze their weapons and fire to destroy their supplies.
The Lystra army realized too late that this wasn't a normal attack. They starts sending archers sending volleys of arrows toward me while their mages hurled magical spells. But it was futile. I raised walls of ice to block their arrows, then melted them instantly to send scalding water rushing toward their ranks.
"None of you will live to see the daylight," I said coldly.
I fought with powers I never knew I possessed. Every attack I made seemed to fuel the next one, making me stronger. Fire and ice danced around me like obedient servants, striking down anyone who dared approach. The Lystra soldiers tried to retreat, but I had surrounded their camp with a ring of ice and fire that trapped them inside.
As I fought, I could feel my powers growing stronger with every passing moment. It was as if two months of suppressing this power had only made it more potent when finally released.
The ice responded to my slightest thought, creating barriers and weapons. The fire obeyed my emotions, burning hotter when I thought of my fallen people.
Sooner than I had expected, it was over. The battlefield fell silent except for the crackling of dying flames and the gentle tinkling of melting ice. Just as I had promised, none of them had survived. The 20,000 men of Lystra, their entire invasion force, had been defeated by my powers alone.
I stood in the center of the destruction, breathing heavily, steam rising from my body where fire and ice magic still coursed through me. I couldn't believe it, but it was true. I had single-handedly destroyed an entire army.
Slowly, I turned to see the stares of my soldiers. They had watched the entire battle from their position, witnessing their Queen unleash powers that seemed to come from the gods.
At first, I thought they were scared of me. I had just shown them that I was something far beyond what they think, something that could level armies if I do wish it.
But it wasn't fear I saw, it was joy. It was hope. It was pride. Their leader had brought them victory against impossible odds, and they realized that with me as their Queen, their kingdom was truly safe.
"Long live the Queen!" one soldier shouted, raising his sword to the sky.
"We have won!" another cried, and soon the entire army was cheering.
Their morale had increased beyond anything I had ever seen. Some soldiers smiled with tears in their eyes, others danced with joy, and many fell to their knees in grateful prayer.
They looked at me not as a monster I thought they whom see, but as a protector who would defend them against any threat.
Inside the temporary command tent that my soldiers had set up, I received a briefing from Commander Clinton. His face showed a mixture of awe and concern as he delivered his report.
"My Queen," he began, still processing what he had witnessed. "Our scouts report that Lystra had other troops stationed at different locations, waiting for orders to attack. This was just their first wave."
The meaning of his words settled over me. Even after destroying 20,000 soldiers, the war was far from over. Lystra had planned this carefully, with multiple armies positioned to strike at different points along our border.
"How many more?" I asked.
"At least three other camps, each with 10,000 to 15,000 soldiers. They're positioned to attack our eastern and western borders simultaneously."
"The army is ready for your command, My Queen," Commander Clinton continued. "The morale of the men has increased tremendously, thanks to your powerful display earlier. They believe we can face any enemy now."
I nodded, understanding the responsibility that rested on my shoulders. My people needed me to be their shield against this invasion, and I would not let them down.
"Tell them to assemble. We march for war," I said as I left the meeting room.
The moment I stepped outside the tent, everything changed. Suddenly, I felt dizzy, as if all the energy I had used in battle was finally catching up to me. Using such power certainly has it's consequences.
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