Chapter 6: A Battle for Freedom
The scent of scorched earth hung heavy in the air—a pungent, metallic cocktail of ash, blood, and gunpowder.
The battlefield, once a quiet village, now lay desecrated, trampled beneath boots and bodies alike. Ael's breath came in ragged gasps, his muscles trembling from exertion, yet his arms moved with ruthless precision. He swung his hatchet in a wide, lethal arc, the blade singing as it cleaved through another cartel enforcer.
The corpse crumpled at his feet, joining the heap already strewn across the mud-soaked ground.
But they kept coming.
Dozens more emerged through the smoke, eyes crazed, shouting profanities as they surged forward like a tidal wave. Ael's grip tightened, blood slicking the hilt. His teeth ground together in a mixture of desperation and fury. They were too many.
"Lilith!" he bellowed, not a call for aid, but a curse—half warning, half plea.
A sultry laugh slithered through the din, cold and venomous.
From the chaos strode a woman, clad in black leather, her form exuding confidence and cruelty. Her whip, long and barbed like a scorpion's tail, flicked lazily at her side. Her smile was more a baring of fangs than any expression of joy.
"To think you'd raise a hand against me, Ael," she purred. "My disobedient little pet. Did you forget who broke your chains and taught you to bite?"
Ael spat, rage flaring in his blood. "You never freed me. You just gave me a longer leash."
Lilith's eyes gleamed. "And now I'll shorten it."