by Eric Vall
“I had no idea he’d go after other villages,” she sobbed, and the tears poured down her cheeks in clear rivers. “How could I have known that?”
“You should have known better than to make a deal with a demon,” Trapper spat out. “The village will hear of this immediately, and I doubt you will be an Elder for much longer.”
Torrance doubled over as she sobbed into her hands before she got up, turned around, and ran into her house. As the door slammed behind her, the brothers dropped to their knees and laid their faces down at my feet.
“We would never have done this, my lord,” Tomas vowed. “And we’ll do anything we can to make it right.”
I tapped my boot as I pondered our next move. It wouldn’t be right to punish all of them for Torrance’s mistake, and it seemed even her own brothers were so disgusted with her actions they planned to remove her title immediately.
So, I called my fireball back into my hand, and I took a deep breath.
“You can start by loading up anyone who can work and taking them to the village to the north,” I ordered the two. “They’ve lost a lot of buildings, and we have to find the creatures that did this before they hurt anyone else.”
“Of course, my lord,” Trapper said as the brothers rose to their feet. “We’ll send out a group immediately.”
“Thank you,” I murmured. “If you need anything for them, please send word to the castle.”
“We will,” Tomas agreed with a nod.
Then the two headed into the village and began to knock on doors. They took my statement seriously, and I appreciated their immediate efforts to make up for their sister’s grave mistake.
“Let’s finish our flyover, then we’ll update the king,” I told Eskandar.
We hurried back through town and shifted as soon as we were clear of the buildings. Then we flew above the mountains again to search for any more issues. No other villages seemed to have sustained damage, and as we headed back to the White Jade Temple, I wondered about the hellbeast’s attempts to gain allegiance from the people.
What would be the point of having ordinary villagers on his side? They couldn’t possibly defeat me or any of my people in a battle, and most of them didn’t appear to have hordes of money or treasure to buy weapons. In fact, they didn’t seem to really know why it was important to avoid the demons, despite the constant danger they were in, given their close proximity to the Breach. I couldn’t figure out what the beast’s objective was, and that frustrated me almost as much as Torrance had.
By the time we arrived at the palace, the sun had started to set, and I was thankful for our dragon eyesight since there was no way my human eyes would have been able to go back and track the ashes from Pierson’s village.
“Did you find anything?” Rodion asked as he strode toward the edge of the balcony where we waited.
“We found a traitor,” I growled.
“One of the village Elders agreed to the beast’s deal,” Eskandar explained in a grim tone. “Torrance said she would help the creature if it didn’t destroy the village. Her brothers have begun the process to remove her position and are already working with a nearby town to repair their damages. A few other villages were damaged as well, though it seems Pierson’s had it the worst.”
“Yeah, we could probably send a handful of people to the other towns over the next few days,” I agreed. “They aren’t as in dire need right now.”
“Thank you,” the king sighed with relief. “Now, do you think you can find the beast’s lair?”
“I know we can,” I replied as I lifted my chin. “They leave a trail, so we’ll follow that. The other one liked the desert, probably for the heat so he could have his lava pool. I imagine this one will be no different.”
“Never assume too much,” Rodion warned. “If this one has evolved into a more sentient being, it could be infinitely more dangerous than the first.”
“Understood.” I dipped my head and looked past the king. “Where is everyone?”
“I told them to eat dinner,” he replied. “I won’t have my future grandchild withering away because his mother is too worried to eat.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I know she’s got to be hungry. She ate almost as much as me for breakfast.”
“Not surprising,” he chuckled. “A dragon’s appetite will be new territory for her, but I will ensure she is healthy while she’s under my watch.”
“I know.” I nodded my appreciation. “We’ll be back soon.”
The king stepped back toward his chair, and we headed south to Pierson’s village.
“The closest desert would be at the south end of the Mihireti Mountains, but it’s dangerously close to the Breach,” Eskandar told me with a grimace.
“The demon probably likes being close to it.” I scowled. “Who wouldn’t want to be close to home?”
We picked up the pace as we zoomed toward the edge of the village, and I pointed out the trail of ashes that stood out against the dry grass near the town. The white dragon nodded, and we followed the trail. Though the ashes initially headed east of the village, they soon veered south, and I knew Eskandar’s prediction was right. The beast was holed up in the desert near the Breach, and we were sure to find its nest there.
When we finally hit the sandy territory, I focused on any deviations among the tiny grains. Even the slightest change of color or shape could be the beast’s hideout.
Then I felt a warm sensation in my chest, and it felt oddly similar to when I called on my fire power, but it was also different. More like--
“My lava magic,” I grunted as I realized I could feel the call of the lava to my power. “Follow me!”
I zoomed over the sand until the sensation became more of a throb that pounded with the same rhythm as my heartbeat. Then I looked down and saw it.
There was a hole dug out of the bottom of a dune, just like we’d seen near the Mahigan village. It wasn’t big enough for us to fit through as dragons, so we landed close to the dune before we transformed into our human bodies. Then we both drew our swords as we stepped inside the tunnel.
The lava was practically screaming at me to come closer, and we crept along the dark tunnel toward the light I knew waited at the end.
Sure enough, we finally reached a cavern well below the surface of the desert that opened up over a boiling pool of the molten liquid. It bubbled and popped, and Eskandar looked at it with obvious concern.
“I don’t think the lava is what we should be worried about,” I whispered and pointed into the cavern.
At least six pairs of beady black eyes gleamed orange as they peered down at us from the walls of the cavern.
“Who… are you?” one of the beasts snarled in a strangled voice that sounded like he swallowed nails for fun.
Rodion was right. This one seemed different than the one I’d fought before, as well as his buddies in the cavern now. His eyes held a certain intelligence the others didn’t have, and he cocked his head to the side as he watched us.
“For you, we’re death,” I growled. “You hurt my people, and now you’ll pay.”
“You must be… the dragon,” he rasped. “We have heard of you.”
“From who?” I demanded. “Your master?”
“Ah, you’ll find out soon enough,” he chuckled. “When we send your soul to the underworld.”
“Not today,” I sneered as I clutched the Sword of Hatra and glanced at Eskandar. “Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be,” he murmured. “Let’s kill these bastards.”
“With pleasure.” I stormed into the cavern with the white dragon on my heels and my blade held high.
One of the beasts threw itself from the wall and swooped into the lava.
“What the--” Eskandar started.
“Look out!” I shouted as I threw a fire shield over his head just as the hellbeast emerged from the lava and rained down the molten liquid over his head.
I dove to the side to avoid the heated attack and swiped at the beast with the
Sword of Hatra, but it dodged the blow as it flew higher into the cavern to loop around and attack again.
This time, I conjured a fiery bow and arrow, and I launched one of the fire projectiles at its exposed underbelly. The beast tried to dodge the second strike, but my target precision ability made sure the arrow stayed true. The arrow plunged into its belly, and the beast screeched as it landed on the wall again and clung desperately to the stone near the one who had spoken.
Then I sucked in a sharp breath as the evolved hellbeast reached over and snapped off the arrow to leave only an inch of the fiery projectile exposed. He bellowed a raspy laugh as he tossed the remaining piece into the lava pit and seemed to sneer at me.
If this bastard wanted a real fight, he would get one.
I glanced over to see Eskandar had grabbed hold of the fire shield and now used it to protect himself as he battled with another hellbeast.
Then I formed a pair of fireballs in my palms and launched them at the evolved leader. It dodged the first fiery orb but didn’t see the second one coming. The second fireball connected with the side of its head, and even though the flames didn’t seem to harm the bastard, the impact was enough to knock him off balance, and the beast clawed at the stone to maintain its hold on the cavern wall.
“Get… him!” the leader shrieked and pointed at me.
With that, another of its minions dove into the lava with a wild screech and emerged with lava dripping from its expanded wings. I sidestepped the first droplets and trotted onto the edge of the lava pit. The liquid fire bubbled at my feet, and I wondered if I could use it to my advantage this time.
I doubted the hellbeasts knew I had lava magic, thanks to one of their dead buddies.
As the beast looped around for another shot at me, I activated my displacement power, and the lava poured onto the sand a few feet to my right. The beast looked around wildly, and as I figured, it quickly ran out of lava for its attack.
Then I started to swing the Sword of Hatra when the hellbeast realized where I really stood, but it leaped just out of my reach and clambered onto the stone next to one of its companions.
I decided exactly how I would use my newest ability.
I called on my lava magic and pushed a wave of the molten liquid up the wall toward two of the beasts. They started to relish in the lava until I focused on the stones of the sandy wall behind them. Then I forced the lava and the sand together, and in seconds, they formed thick, black obsidian fists that wrapped around the creatures. They squawked and screeched as the glass crushed their slimy bodies, and soon, a trail of orange blood dribbled down the side of the cavern.
I turned to see Eskandar had taken on one of the beasts, but the creature had forced him close to the edge of the lava pool. He teetered on the edge before he planted his boots and charged the beast again and plunged his blade into its torso.
The hellbeast’s shrieks echoed through the cavern, and I growled when another tried to attack Eskandar from the side and push him back toward the lava. I started to run around the edge, but I knew I wouldn’t get there in time. If I could use that wave of lava to create obsidian, I had to be able to do it with the whole pool. It would keep him safe, and it would take away the beasts’ main weapon.
I focused on the lava pit and the sand around us. Then I pulled the pool back toward the wall opposite Eskandar, and the molten liquid sloshed across the cavern and splashed against the wall. As soon as they connected, I pushed the sand into the lava, and one of the hellbeasts leapt away from the wall just as the obsidian began to harden.
While my plan had worked, it still left a giant hole about ten feet deep in the middle of the cavern, but I felt more confident in my ability to heal a fall, so I went to work on the beast that escaped my obsidian wall.
I pulled sections of the wall out like stairs and jumped from step to step to reach its new landing spot, and it whirled around with surprise when I dove from the last step and brought my sword down.
The blade pierced the creature right between its wings, and it tried to fly while I shoved my sword in even deeper. I grabbed onto one of the wings and yanked, and I nearly tumbled from the creature’s body when the wing ripped off like paper. Then a ripping sound nearly pierced my ears as a new wing sprouted in its place.
The fuck?
I grunted as the beast shoved off the wall and flapped its wings again, but I straddled its back and twisted my sword to do as much damage as I could. The hellbeast tried to knock me off with a barrel roll, but I wrenched back on the Sword of Hatra like a joystick. The blade ripped through more of the beast’s back, and I looked down to see orange blood pour from its body where the blade had poked through the other side.
The creature was going down, and I didn’t want to go down with it, so I yanked my sword from its back and jumped back toward the wall as I activated my stone magic to create a landing. No sooner had my boots hit the sand than the beast crashed down into the empty pit below me.
As soon as I looked up again, the vocal creature snarled while it zoomed toward me. I glanced both ways, and then I jumped from the landing into the pit just as the beast crashed into the wall behind where I’d been standing.
“Dragon!” the creature bellowed.
I cushioned my landing with my healing magic, and then I looked for Eskandar. He’d tossed one mangled beast into the pit and had the other one by the throat.
He was good, so I could focus on the leader of the pack.
I whirled around just as the hellbeast took a nose dive from the landing with its sharp fangs aimed for my head. I dodged its first strike, and the beast rolled as it hit the ground and stood on its hind legs to face me. I jabbed at its middle with the sword, but it flapped its wings to carry it backwards just out of my reach.
“Slimy bastard,” I growled. “You’ll pay for what you’ve done.”
“As will you,” the beast hissed as it flung a wing out against the side of the pit and showered sand all over me.
I was blinded for a moment, and the beast charged me again. Even if I couldn’t see, I conjured a ball of lightning in my palm and launched it through the rain of sand. I heard the sizzle as my electric attack connected with skin, and the beast roared as it stumbled and nearly fell on top of me.
I couldn’t get the Sword of Hatra between us, so I formed a fiery dagger in my hand and shoved it into the beast’s belly. The blade cut through its skin like a knife into butter, and I dragged it up until I felt the blade slam into its ribs.
The hellbeast howled with pain, and I backed up far enough to press my boot into its gut and shove it away. The creature tumbled back and clutched at its belly, but the orange liquid flowed between its clawed fingers.
It was time to finish the job.
I swung the Sword of Hatra in a wide arc over my head and then brought it around to slice through the creature’s neck. The hellbeast’s head fell from its shoulders and rolled across the pit until it came to a stop in an orange puddle.
“Eskandar!” I called out. “All good up there?”
“Two dead here!” he yelled back as he peeked over the edge of the pit. “I think you got that one.”
“I think you’re right,” I chuckled as I picked up the beast’s head and dropped it. “Shit, this thing really is slick.”
“What do you want to do with it?” Eskandar wondered.
“I want to send a message,” I growled. “Help me round up what’s left of these things.”
I pulled a knapsack from my spatial storage, and we piled the bodies of the creatures into the cloth and tied it up. Next, I pulled out a separate satchel for the leader’s head and tossed it inside. Then I climbed out of the pit and joined Eskandar in the cavern.
“What do we do with this place?” He looked around at the sand and obsidian walls that surrounded us.
“Leave it,” I answered with a shrug. “There’s no more lava for them to come back to, so it’s useless now if there are any more out there.”
We dragged the b
ag out of the tunnel, and I set the satchel on the ground in the light of the moons. Then we shifted into our dragon forms, and I clutched the two bags in each of my claws before we flew off into the night. Eskandar followed me toward the undamaged village, and I hovered over the round hut for a moment before I dropped the satchel at the front door.
The bag landed with a thump, and I tossed the knapsack to Eskandar before I shifted to my human form and landed in front of the door.
Torrance, Tomas, and Trapper walked out with their mouths gaping open as I opened the bag to reveal the beast’s head.
“Y-You brought that thing here?” Torrance gasped.
“Well, it’s dead,” I pointed out. “So, it’s not like it can do anything now.”
“B-But it h-had a legion,” she whispered. “It said so.”
“Yeah, we got those, too,” I chuckled as I pointed up to the other bag in Eskandar’s claws.
“So, we’re safe from these monsters?” Tomas asked. “You have defeated them.”
“You’re safe from them,” I confirmed. “But I don’t know yet if there will be repercussions from the king for the deal that was made. Can you swear your village’s loyalty to His Eminence?”
“Of course,” Trapper answered without hesitation as he placed his fist over his heart. “Torrance’s status as an Elder has already been revoked, and we are searching for a replacement, but we will not allow the seat to be filled by someone who does not have the respect for King Rodion that we do. He will not ever have to worry about a traitor from our village.”
I eyed the men carefully, but they stood with stoic resolution while their sister looked ashamed.
“Very well.” I nodded. “I will pass this information to His Eminence upon my return. In the future, if your village is at risk, you must reach out to the temple for assistance.”
“With all due respect, my lord, how shall we do that?” Tomas asked.
“Send a messenger, shoot off a flare, however you can,” I replied with narrowed eyes.
“I understand the point, my lord, but we have no one with magical abilities here,” he continued. “If we are in imminent danger, a messenger could take days to reach His Eminence’s palace. We could all be dead by the time help arrives.”