Lightning flashed in the heavens above, dark clouds rumbling angrily. Rain had just begun to fall upon the world below, forming small pools upon the battlefield below. Smoke rose up high into the heavens, darkening the sky further as the clash of blades and the shouts of men echoed with the thunder. Lights flashed below much like the flashes of lightning in the sky, both the heavens and earth alight with a furious storm that swept up thousands in its fury.

The armies of Prince Hui Lu Tang were holding a desperate struggle against the warriors of Prince Hui Zhang Zazia. The Tang forces were pushed and trapped against the bend of a river by the forces of Prince Zazia. The fighting was beyond fierce as men and women fell by the scores to the blades of fellow countrymen, though it was becoming fast clear who was going to be the victor in this struggle of family. Even still the forces of Prince Tang the White Tiger surged and smashed against black armored tide of the Èmó De Shǒu, the personal army of Zazia, the Black Gale.

Light flashed below once again as a formation of a dozen dark armored men were flung aside. Standing where they once had been formed was a man standing at well over six feet tall, clad in the finest armor with a tiger pelt across his body. His long dark hair billowed behind him along with a long white cloak. He twisted a spear out through the air, the blade whistling as he pointed it at the warriors before him.

“Is this all Zazia thinks he can hold me back with? Don’t toy with me!” The man roared as he rushed forward.

His spear flashed out, slicing through two men with a single swing and sending their halves flying through the air. Two more came from his side and he swung his spear around, the shaft clanging against their straight swords. He kicked one and sent him flying against another behind him before twisting his spear around and slicing open the throat of the second man. Prince Tang, the White Tiger of Xing and Third Prince of the Imperial Family lived up to his name. He fought with the ferocity of a tiger, no matter how many surrounded him.

Air blasted past him, blowing his hair around his head. “Brother, watch out!”

A crossbow bolt smashed into a man that had been about to come up behind him, punching through armor and out the other side into a tree. He turned and looked upon a young black haired woman in brilliant silver armor, a blue cloak wrapping around her form. The prince snorted. “Hey, I had it under control!” He said with a frown.

The woman rolled her eyes. “You could just say, thank you.” The woman remarked as she loaded her crossbow again.

“Thank you, o’Eagle Talon for your assistance.” The Prince remarked as he swung his spear out, blocking another warrior that had decided to try their luck with him.

Princess Hui Dan Rei, the Eagle Talon, finished loading her crossbow and turned it upon a row of men ahead of her. “Imperial Eagle Technique, Divine Bolt!” The crossbow in her hands glowed a brilliant blue before firing a bolt that smashed through the man immediately in front of her. And the man behind him. And the one behind him. So on down the line until ten black clad soldiers fell over dead. She placed her crossbow on her shoulder and smirked as she watched them fall over, dead from a massive gaping hole in their chests.

“Just no end to them…” Tang remarked as he swung his spear up, the shaft sending the man he had blocked flying high into the sky. He spun the spear around and when the man came back down he ended up impaled upon the tip of the spear. “Zazia still hasn’t shown his face. Is he planning on just drowning us in bodies?”

“There is no need for my prince to sully his sacred hands with your blood, White Kitten.”

The booming voice came from far above and there were none upon the battlefield that didn’t hear it. Men stopped butchering themselves to gaze up at the sky and after a moment a bolt of lightning streaked out and what appeared from it was a towering form that stood over the battlefield. Clad in fine black, voluminous robes and with a headdress of silver upon her head, the woman was a dark beauty. Silver hair was pulled back into a long braid that stretched to the ground, as thick as a man was tall. Accents around her eyes only helped make unnatural golden eyes stand out more.

“And there is a big one finally.” Tang remarked as he pushed the corpse off of his spear.

“Witch-General Shi Fa.” His sister gritted out with a stony look upon her perfect face as she gazed up at the giant.

“Two for the price of one it seems. The White Kitten and the Eagle Chick. How fortunate. When I claim your essences for my prince, he will stand without any in his way.” The woman lifted a thick sleeve up to her mouth and let out a booming chuckle that echoed across the battlefield.

She took a single step toward them, her booted foot lifting up and covering soldiers, both friendly and enemy alike in its darkness before slamming down. Armor crunched as easily as the exoskeleton of insects and rendered the mass of soldiers as a mess of gore left behind when she lifted her foot again. She took another step and once this one slammed down, the earth shook and a shockwave was sent out in the area before her. The shockwave blasted men and women by the scores away, flying through the air only to slam down further away on the battlefield. That cleared the path between both her and the pair of siblings.

Both Tang and Rei were forced back a single step by the intense shockwave of the woman’s power. The earth around her step had cracked and left no doubts as to the power that existed within the dark woman towering above them. Tang held his spear up with a smirk, looking up at the face of General Fa. His sister had loaded another bolt and was taking aim at the titan that was staring them down.

“Rei. You need to get out of here.” Tang breathed to his fellow royal.

“What!? I can’t just leave you!” Rei protested.

“This is the Demon’s Claw herself. She killed Jin. Which means even if we team up we aren’t going to beat her. I can stall her while you get out of here.” The prince stated.

A loud laugh interrupted the pair. The towering woman smirked as she placed a hand upon the blade at her side. “How touching. However, your Imperial Grace is required to help the Prince to reach his peak. A fragment dwells inside of both of you. There will be no escape for either of you.” She stated. “You can try to run of course, but soon there will be nowhere in Xing Prince Zazia’s shadow does not engulf. Whether I claim the fragments from you while you live or from your corpses matters not to me. Of course, I am certain the difference is far greater to you both.”

Tang glared up at her. “While there is strength still in me, I won’t let Zazia touch the Imperial Throne!”

The White Tiger rushed toward the massive Titan, a pale blur to anyone watching. He zipped across the open field, dodging and weaving around the stomping feet of the woman above. He sped around, trying to find a way to get further up and climb General Fa, however the woman was far too quick for that. It was all he could do to rush around and avoid her steps, each one shaking the ground. She let out a booming chuckle.

“Perhaps the White Beetle is a better word for you, little princeling. How long can you keep this up I wonder?” The woman mused.

For her part Rei gritted her teeth. She wanted to stay and help, however, she knew in her heart that her brother was correct. If Zazia managed to catch both of them, he would be the Emperor of Xing without question. He would have the full Imperial Grace and all of Xing would be his. That was not something she could allow. So, cursing under her breath, she slung her crossbow over her shoulder and started running toward the river as fast as she could.

Fa frowned as she watched the girl fleeing, extending a finger. “Not so fast, little bird. Demonic Force, Negative Burst!”

A purple bolt of pure foul magical energy shot out from the digit toward the woman as she ran. There was a white blur before it made impact and a burst of power that cracked the earth itself. When the dust cleared, Tang stood upon the ground, brilliant armor half falling off of his body as he gasped and panted. Smoke rose from his form as he twisted his spear around and twirled it over head. His face was set in one of determination as he spun it faster and faster, the winds around him starting to kick up.

Sparks eventually started flying from the weapon, bolts of electrical energy striking the ground around him. The General crossed her arms and watched him as he prepared, the wind managing to move her massive and thick clothing around her body. Her braid swung behind her as the fierce storm above was being pulled down from the sky and toward the spear of the Prince. Some of the thick clouds above and the very lightning itself was brought into the fury of the tornado that was roaring around Tang.

“Imperial Grace, Wrath of the Heavens!” The prince stopped spinning his spear and pointed it at the General.

All of the gathered storm struck the black clad woman, smashing into her with a force of lightning and thunder and wind that tore soldiers from the ground and sent them flying for hundreds of meters. Even the massive form of the woman was lost amidst the clouds and storm, swallowed up by the sacred technique of the Prince. He collapsed to one knee as the force left him, breathing heavily as it felt like all strength had just flooded out of his body from the force of the storm.

“Impressive, princeling. Without this size gifted to me by the Prince, I would likely have been utterly destroyed by such an attack.” The woman remarked as she waved a hand and cleared the storm clouds around her as though dismissing mist from the air.

General Fa drew the weapon from her side and held it before her. “Demonic Force, Shout of the Damned.” A pulse radiated out from her weapon, extending out all around her.

There was no time to block as Tang took the full force of the blast, blasted back and smashing against the ground hard. The prince spat blood as he landed, his eyes having dark spots dancing before them. He coughed as he felt tremors in the earth getting more intense as the dark shadow of General Fa drew closer and closer, her steps quaking the ground. He looked up at her as she stood over him, the woman having lifted a sleeve to her mouth as though to cover her amusement at him upon the ground.

She lifted one of her black boots up, its sole casting its shadow over the injured man, enough to cover his body entirely. The General slowly brought it down upon him, not pressing upon him, but it was enough pressure to keep him pinned exactly where he was upon the ground. He squirmed weakly, trying to get away from the foot of the General. It was no use of course, he might as well have tried to move a mountain for all the good his efforts did him. Of course his efforts did draw a chuckle from on high.

“Prince Jin squirmed *just* like that before the end. Honestly, if you couldn’t even manage to scuff my boots, you aren’t worthy of Prince Zazia’s blade. Rest assured, when I hunt your sister down I will be certain to take my time. Princess Yui makes a fine insole after I broke her, so the matching pair of sisters would complete the collection.” The woman laughed, shifting her boot aside to look upon Tang’s sprawled form..

“You… demon… Zazia will never… be Emperor.” Tang wheezed.

His words were ended in a cry of agony as General Fa brought her foot down harshly upon his legs. There was a loud series of pops and crunches as she flattened the limbs, sending the prince at her feet howling in agony. The woman had another smirk trace its way up her black painted lips. She brushed strands of dark hair from her face and tapped her other foot upon the ground nearby the prince, a cruel little chuckle escaping her.

“Can you hear her screams in there? Oh if only you could feel her as I do, squirming and writhing like the worm she is. I promised her something before I took the field you know.” The dark haired general said as she shifted her foot back and lifted the other foot over Tang.

“I promised her that I’d crush you with this foot. So she could feel every bone snap and hear your cries of pain.” She boomed before slowly bringing her foot down upon the prince.

There were indeed screams of agony and pain, Prince Tang the White Tiger did not die silently as he screamed and writhed as General Fa brought her foot down upon him in such a way that she managed to splinter his bones and cause as much pain as possible. Such was his suffering that it would be the stuff of legend for those that watched the towering General as she crushed him. Of course, she could only keep it going for so long, eventually her foot coming down flat and rendering the prince as nothing but a red smear of gore upon the ground.

By that point the Tang forces had surrendered, having taken far too many losses and demoralized from the loss of their Prince in so horrifying a way. The General shifted her foot off of the corpse and from the body rose a golden light. It rose high up into the air, before coming to a rest before General Fa. She grasped her fingers around the light, letting out a little sigh as she turned and looked at a few of her commanders at her feet, bowing before her.

“Go forth. Search and scour the countryside for Princess Hui Dan Rei. She is to be brought to me alive.” The General boomed.

She closed her eyes and, inside of her right boot, curled her toes. She smirked as she felt an intense and desperate writhing against the digits. “Don’t you worry; your sister will be joining us very soon.”