Chapter 24
Marco was feeling a bit sore after breaking through that wall. Through the dust and rubble, he could see he had broken into a hallway lined with iron bar holding cells. He spotted a faint white figure lying down in one of the cells. Before he could get a closer look, the guards stormed into the hall from both sides. They were armed with spears and shields. Marco stepped into the hallway and just charged through them like they were a flock of birds. Whoever didn't jump out of the way was kicked aside by his powerful legs. 
When he stood in front of the cell, he got a better look at the white figure. A chill ran down his spine. Not only was her town wedding dress white, but her skin was too. It was as pale as the dress itself. Her body was shrivelling up. Her dress sagged around body from how skinny she now was. Clumps of her golden hair had fallen out and were laying on the floor. Bits of skins were flaking off. Marco recoiled in shock. The potion really was killing her. 
He had to get her out of that cell. But how would-
"There it is!" someone yelled, interrupting his thoughts.  Fresh troops stormed into the hallway as the ones he had knocked out were dragged away. Six guards wielding pikes approached him from behind. The guard closest to Marco landed a direct blow to his back, but the pike just bounced harmlessly off his hard scales. He knocked them all down with a single sweep of his large tail. Then he slammed his tail down on them like a club until they stopped trying to get up.
Anyways, he needed to get her out of that cell, somehow. Marco curled his claws around one of the cage bars and pressed his whole weight into it. Surprisingly, the bar snapped like twine. He had no idea he was that strong. He plucked out the bars one by one.
Before he could finish, he heard the clinking metal of armored knights entering the hall. He was getting frustrated with all these interruptions. He glared at them and yelled “Go away!” At least, that's what he meant to do. Instead he blasted them with fire breath. The knights' shields seemed to protect them, but the carpet was completely scorched. Both of them suddenly ran out of his range and started stripping off their armor. They both cursed as they dropped pieces of steaming armor to the floor. 
"I thought humans were tougher than this. Beating you was a lot easier than I thought it would be." He said with a sneer. That was really satisfying. The only audible response was a weak groan from some of the soldiers behind him. With that done, He took Lilia and flew back with her. Time was of the essence.