The warrior looked at the stout figure standing in front of him that was holding both his shield and blocking the incoming thrust spearhead as if the being wasn't a mere mortal but instead a personification of a God itself.

At that moment, the archbishop's figure was instantly elevated in the skink elite's eyes and mind. It wasn't just him either, but Tolliah, the little girl standing behind the battle at the cave entrance also had similar stars glimmering in her wide-casted wondrous gaze. She too, like the man himself, saw his papa in a newfound light.

From the momentary shock, her face slowly began to reveal a proud smirk. She began to puff out her chest proudly, her figure was telling the tale 'That's my papa! I knew that he was strong!'

"[Reptilian] Calm down brother. I will take it from here, don't you worry a bit!" Turning his head side, Aiden glanced at the stupefied elite behind him. Flashing a reassuring smile, he spoke in a warm tone, nodding his head towards the back line. "Go, and take a rest. Let the ladies take a look at you. I got it from here."

The elite, still sitting on the ground, was just simply unable to process the sudden turn of events. Like as if he was frozen in time, his eyes were wide, barely holding onto their sockets, his legs still felt like two servings of jell-o. His mind couldn't process the vast amounts of perplexing, anomalous information that all his senses and nerves was sending to him. Added with his high emotional state, the elite was slowly descending into a delirious state of mind.

He was probably being convinced that he was already out of mind, and everything he was seeing was just a fabrication of his dying synapses in his mind..

Noticing the lack of reaction on the man, Aiden simply smiled and shook his head. He hurriedly sent a mental command to the leader of the support group, Captain Pyre to send someone for the man and give him some attention. Barely a second later, he heard the mature skink woman's acknowledgment, Aiden closed off the connection and shifted his attention once more, back to the front line.

He could feel the constant battering, the hammering from the other side. As the large metal plate, the towering shield shook, trembled under the heavy barrage of assault, he couldn't help but be amazed at the rest of the Shieldbearing elites still holding their fort. Despite their right arm probably going completely numb by now, even to the point that even pain slowly began to fade out along with any other sensation, they still did not falter.

Not even a step was taken, as each and every one of them stood firm. With gritted teeth, they ignored all the torture, holding firm, steadfast knowing full well that their most likely outcome of this battle was through the eventual and inevitable meeting with the legendary Death itself. Well, not the fabled myth, the so-called legend, the Reaper, but the agent of the Afterlife.historical

He could feel the probings of not one, but several spearheads trying to peak through the small crevices and try to find or create an opening, slowly adding to his growing annoyance, and bringing him back from his thoughts.

He frowned as he felt the slight pressure coming from the other side, trying to wear his resistance down, chipping away from his stamina thinking that he was the same as the rest of the forces.

"[Reptilian] Okay, I had enough. This can't go on like this any longer." He muttered to himself. In the next moment, a faint golden outline appeared around his figure, slowly but surely growing in intensity, until it was akin to a beacon of hope, a central masterpiece on the grim, dark, gray battlefield.

Whilst it first only gained the attention of its immediate vicinity, in just a few seconds, the entire resistance force kept one eye at the strange, mystical phenomena playing out in their midst. Though at first, they had no idea who was doing it, and for why, they all soon realized that it was their leader who decided to do something about the brutal standstill and decided to step in himself.

The proud smirk and puffed, huffing chest did not leave from Tolliah's stature. She was standing there displaying an adorable haughty outward attitude, acting like a proud little peacock. She could barely contain herself from shouting, exclaiming cheerfully.

Feeling, sensing the flow of his energy, his vast amounts of [Soul Power] coursing in his body, even as his outward appearance was that of a generic-looking wrinkled, old Draconic Skink, Aiden utilized several of his skills and innates in quick succession.

His muscles in his arms instantly bulged, turning swollen as he contorted and flexed his shield holding his arm together with his currently free left one. As his [Draconic Wrath] innate activated, the ebony curved claws appeared at the tip of each of his fingers on his left hand. The tired, pale-looking scales gradually transformed, suddenly regaining a newfound vigor, each turning glowing glimmering golden one after the other. A golden shine, a thin layer of energy surrounded Aiden's very being as his [Mystic Martial Arts] were running at its full power, pooling more and more might into his muscles, whilst keeping their flexibility as well.

Suddenly the slight numbing of his right arm vanished, wafted away by the gentle wind as if it never even tried wearing him down at all. Suddenly the battering, the hammering coming from the other side, felt as if there was nothing at all, but just some small dust grinding against the sturdy mountainside. It became irrelevant.

Slowly, Aiden pulled his arm, cocking it as if it was a projectile that he was about to set off against his unsuspecting foe.

A cruel smirk slowly appeared atop his face, contorting his visage. As his eyes began to flicker with a mixture of golden and orange-tinted red, his expression slowly but surely began to border that of the same as that battle-crazed lunatic amazon, Naybeah.

Defying the laws of gravity and physics, the small pebbles and dust lifted off the ground, levitating around their master, causing another wave of shock to spread around the entirety of Aiden's resistance forces.

Feeling that his power was at its peak, Aiden licked his lips with expectation.

"[Reptilian] It's time to play." He snickered in an unfamiliar, deep tone.

Suddenly, he flung his shield in the air, freeing his right arm and momentarily stunning the assaulting Temple Guards on the other side with his unexpected action.

Before they had a chance to react, Aiden's left fist struck down, striking down at the ground beneath the soldiers in a diagonal arc.

As all the gathered energy together with all the carried momentum and simple force were unleashed all at once, a tremendous, violent explosion of energy shook the ground, throwing friend and foe away like broken, helpless kites alike.

---

AN: Hey there Readers!

Just a friendly reminder, that from wherever you are reading , you can reach out to me using any of the below methods!

For you, sailors of the seventh sea (non-WN readers), be a bro/gal and throw me a cup of joe, show your appreciation!

Also, feel free to reach out to me in either one of the below links, or just on WN. :)

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/shaele