Pushed by the milling, terrified masses, Mason tumbled to the ground and fell at the ogre's feet.
He looked up at the twelve-foot-tall creature, which had appeared out of nowhere in a flash of light and blocked the convention center's exit.
A woman tried to duck between the monster's legs, and he caught her with one hand, then flung her back into the crowd, causing those who she collided with to topple and fall like bowling pins.
In a panic, Mason kicked his feet against the ground, crawling backward to the safety of the crowd. Going past him with a determined step forward, despite his confusion, a security guard aimed his taser gun at the creature, then pulled the trigger. The metal prongs stuck in the ogre's massive forearm and surged with electricity.
The giant chuckled under his thick red beard, tickled by the sensation, then grabbed the guard's head in his huge palm and squeezed.
The man screamed and flailed frantically until his skull cracked and his limbs went limp.
Dropping the corpse to the ground, the ogre smeared its blood over his bare, fat chest. The crowd stared in stunned horror.
He smirked delightedly at the sight of their terrified faces. "No one leaves," his voice thundered. "Drop to the ground, now!"
People startled at his words; then, slowly, began to obey.
Mason looked behind him. He was already down, and as he saw the others comply with the ogre's demand, he kept hoping for someone to defy him. Maybe another guard? Someone with a gun? Someone who could stand up to the giant…
He considered standing up himself, but fear kept his legs numb, and he knew that even if he did, it wouldn't do any good.
"Don't worry," the ogre smiled as more and more of his hostages sat down, accepting their fate. "It will all be over soon."
Mason kept looking, kept hoping.
But all of them dropped to the floor as they were commanded, all except one: a paladin in golden, blood-stained armor, wielding a spear, with a longsword hanging from his back.
Kai took a deep breath, releasing his nerves and preparing himself for what he was about to do. He held the spear back, ready to throw, then launched it at the ogre, aiming straight at his head.
The giant brought his massive arms up to shield himself, but the spear pierced through, shining with the power of the paladin's conviction, and lodged in the creature's eye. While the ogre wailed and screamed, Kai drew Lightgrave, and advanced.
Through the haze of pain and the blur of tears welling in his remaining eye, the creature spotted the Oathless and raised his leg to stomp on him.
The ogre's foot sent tremors as it crashed into the ground, missing the paladin—who dodged to the side and then spun, swinging his sword into the back of the creature's knee. The enchanted blade cut through skin, muscle, and bone, spraying a splatter of blood into the air as it cut cleanly through the leg.
Losing his balance, the ogre fell on his side, flailing and writhing. The paladin came at him again, charging with the tip of his blade, and the ogre swung his arm, landing a punch that launched the Oathless back into the crowd with great force.
Mason found his courage and rose to catch him, but the momentum sent both of them tumbling to the ground, knocking aside those behind them.
"Ugh," Mason moaned as they rolled to a stop. "Are you okay?" He rose, turned the paladin over, and looked through the visor. His eyes were closed.
Kai had lost consciousness.
***
In a flash of light and a burst of magic, Hexaphalia—who was still at the main stage—turned her human familiar into a gigantic red dragon. He roared, the reverberations of his voice rattling the trusses at the ceiling, then bowed his head before her.
Affectionately, she laid her hand on his scaly, horned reptilian head. "The wide screen, my love. Bring it down for me."
The monster breathed through its nostrils and rose, flapping its wide, leathery wings.
The witch stepped down from the stage to the area where once the audience had been. Now only a few people remained, most of whom were unconscious—trampled by the fleeing masses—and the rest of whom were too paralyzed by fear and disbelief to move at all.
The dragon grabbed the large screen with its powerful, sharp talon and lifted it, snapping it from its cords and harness, then placed it down beside his mistress, letting the screen's back lean on the stage. The Omen of Death still shone in its cracked surface, even though it had been ripped from its cables.
"Thank you, my love," she said as the dragon landed next to her, and she reached once again to caress its head. "I knew I could count on you." He pressed his snout into her, and she embraced him with a giggle.
"Hexaphalia!" Vira yelled from above, floating high by the projectors on the ceiling.
"Fairy godmother," the witch grinned. "A pleasure to finally meet you in person." Her grin grew wider, but her eyes were stern and vicious. "Kill her," she ordered, and her dragon roared as it lunged into the air, flapping his wings, and opening his maw to swallow the fairy whole.
She was faster than the large beast, flying and slipping through the holes in the trusses, channeling her magic into the metal bars as she passed by them.
The monster was too large to get through those tiny gaps, but it didn't care, punching through them easily.
As its chest hit the first truss, the bars changed their form, magic flowing through their webbed framework, turning them into a big net of iron-linked chains that folded on top of the beast.
With its wings restrained close to its body, the dragon fell to the ground, landing on top of several people and crushing their bones under its weight.
The fairy godmother winced as she heard a yelp of pain and wished she had thought that plan through.
Hexaphalia rushed through the air on shadowy wings, much faster than the dragon, and caught the guilt-ridden fairy by surprise. They collided, and Vira was sent spinning through the air until she spread her wings wide and steadied herself.
Both floating high in the air, the witch scowled at the fairy and channeled her magic, throwing it into her dragon.
She can't undo my chains, the fairy looked down. Not without expending a great amount of power, she smirked, realizing what the witch was aiming at. She is trying to shrink her dragon, allowing him to pass through the net. She began channeling her own spell. All I have to do is shrink the net to compensate and keep it—But her magic wouldn't come. Confused, she reached for her pendant, and her eyes went wide.
The witch finished her spell, and indeed, the dragon shrank, passed through the net, then expanded again. With one hand, Hexaphalia manipulated her magic, and in the other, she held something in her closed fist.
She grinned as she noticed Vira's attention was on her and unfolded her fingers, revealing the star-shaped pendant.
"No!" she cried, but there was nothing she could do now—the dragon was already on her trail again. She swiftly darted out of its way, causing it to smash its horned head against the wall behind her.
It's not over yet, she thought, as long as I can fly, I can still—Hexaphalia crashed into her from above, sending them both hurtling toward the ground like a pair of shooting stars.
Vira beat her wings, fighting against the momentum, but it only grew stronger, and she shut her eyes tight—right before her body smashed into the floor. Pangs of pain shot through her bones, and her head spun, vision blurring. A cry of pain choked in her throat, and as she tried to rise, the witch stomped a foot into her back, pinning her down.
Hexaphalia let the pendant drop, and it clanged against the floor in front of the fairy. She narrowed her eyes to sharpen her vision and was stricken with despair at the sight of the star pendant, once a shining ruby, now a dark amethyst, cracked and corrupted beyond use.
"It was surprisingly easy to corrupt," the witch said. "Which means you and I aren't so different. You also have doubts about the Fairy Queen's mission…" She added, and pity entered her tone. "You also want to be loved."
Vira pursed her quivering lips.
"Oh… poor sister, there's no need for us to be enemies. We could work together, you and your godchild, me and my familiars; we could rule this magic-less world as queens and—" she paused, sensing a disturbance in her magic, and turned her head in the direction of the convention entrance.