by Marcus Sloss
Not wanting to wake the dragon, there wasn’t much we could do with the second ratman, his position too close to the dragon for us to interfere with his plans. Having no other reasonable choices, we slid the downed ratman behind a pillar and waited. We just needed to make sure the Rexco didn’t leave the cave with a dragon egg, then the day could be considered a success.
I heard the ratman snicker to himself, his greedy paws wrapping around the egg as he attempted to remove it from its secure resting place. Illia and I watched in anticipation, ready to intercept him when he returned to his partner. Watching the scene unfold, we instinctively jumped back when the eyes of the dragon sprung open, staring at the predator whose hands touched her most precious possession.
The ratman remained oblivious, clearly too focused on how to grip the egg which proved to be too heavy for the rat to lift.
The dragon breathed out, its rage growing as smoke slipped from its nostrils, circling the rat.
His attention no longer on the egg, he reared back, tripping over the lip of the nest and falling flat on his ass.
Illia and I tried blending in with the wall behind us, already heading toward the cave’s exit.
The dragon, now fully awake, its rage ignited by the unwelcome visitor, stood to its full height, glaring down at the fallen ratman.
He scrambled to his feet, desperately searching for his comrade but not finding him.
He tried to run, but the dragon was not so forgiving, its massive jaw coming down on the panicked ratman.
In one bite, the ratman was gone, his body resting comfortably in the dragon’s stomach.
I began pushing Illia from behind, realizing the need to be anywhere but in the cave with the irate dragon.
A stream of fire erupted from the beast's massive snout, giving me no choice but to throw up a fire barrier to protect us from the blaze. I had no doubts that the remaining ratman would be roasted, the small pillar not enough to block the intense flames. The dragon’s fire subsided first before I let my barrier drop.
The dragon's eyes were trained on our position, the use of my mana gift having given away our location. Shit. The beast's wings opened, making it all the more intimidating as it prepared another fire attack.
“Shit!” Illia mirrored my initial reaction, recognizing the dragon’s intent to see us dead.
Everything happened fast after that. She gripped my hand, the earth under us propelling us forward and out of the cave entrance. Lifting her hands into the air, a rock wall answered her call, barricading the entrance with a solid sheet of stone.
Our relief lasted a second, the enraged dragon plowing through the make-shift wall, rocky debris exploding from the force. We ran toward the ledge, the path too narrow for Illia to use her gift to aid our motion. The dragon would not give up, refusing to let its newly acquired prey escape.
When we reached the ledge, the dragon opened its wings, speeding in our direction. Standing on the cliff, we stared down at the drop, thinking of our next move. Of course, the dragon didn’t wait for our decision, swooping down at us, scooping us up with its oversized claw.
As I hung in midair, carried by the arm by this ferocious beast, I knew I should be scared, but at that moment I wasn’t. Instead, I realized how beautiful and vast Jormia looked from the air, the surroundings spreading out as we flew so effortlessly above the land. But then I remembered we were in the grasp of a giant flying monster, the calm being short lived.
Illia had my body in a death grip, and I realized she was no longer being held by the dragon’s claws. I readjusted my free hand, so I could hold her a little tighter, but knew that if the dragon had the inclination to drop us, there would be nothing we could do. Wrapping her legs around my waist for more support, she stared down at the ground that seemed to only be getting further away.
When I felt the sharp claw penetrate my forearm, I knew we couldn’t stay in the dragon’s grasp any longer.
“Any ideas?” I asked, the blood starting to drip down my arm.
“Just one.” She looked up at me, gauging my reaction. “Make it drop us.”
I tried to control my expression, but I just couldn’t see a positive outcome coming from her plan.
“Trust me,” she said matter-of-factly, the look of determination in her eyes convincing me she truly had a plan.
Taking a deep breath, I resolved myself for the free fall before reaching for my mana. From the arm trapped in the dragon’s clutches, I released a steady stream of fire, waiting for the moment the beast would feel the heat and release its grasp in response. After another minute, the dragon made a sharp turn, heading back in the direction of the cave, but it showed no signs of feeling the heat from my attack.
I continued to blast the underbelly but quickly realized it would take a bit more than fire power to elicit the intended response from the dragon. Hoping to provide the extra boost we needed, I intertwined a lightning bolt into my attack, sending it up with the flames and into the dragon’s body.
At first, the dragon showed no indication of being affected by the bolt, so I increased the force behind the attack.
Finally, as the bright light entered the dragon’s body, it trembled slightly, its legs reacting as it tried to brush the entry point.
All this power, and it only amounted to a mere itch to the dragon.
I breathed in, trying to pull some of the outside mana I had begun to feel through my use of the earth mana gift.
I didn’t want to risk depleting my own stores, but I knew the bolt would need to be stronger if we wanted to be released.
I wasn’t sure it would work until I felt the mana start to build in my fingertips, the path coming from outside my body rather than within.
Again, I released a stronger attack, mixing it with the stream of fire that still proved ineffective. I watched the lightning travel up, entering the belly of the dragon.
A small twitch became a massive one, freezing the dragon in place. Instead of dropping us, the whole dragon began to fall, clearly rocked from the attack.
“This isn’t what I had in mind!” Illia shouted, still gripping me tightly as we began the fall back to Jormia.
The dragon’s body acted as dead weight that only hastened our descent.
The worst part was that the creature's grip only seemed to be stronger in its electrocuted state. The sharp claw embedded even deeper in my arm.
Luckily, about halfway through the drop, the dragon came to, its giant wings opening wider to stop our fall, gliding us back into a normal flying position.
A bit disoriented, it seemed the creature forgot its intentions, it’s claw opening to release its prey. Again, we fell, but this time Illia didn’t seem concerned. She grabbed my wrist, maneuvering her body until we both faced the ground, her eyes locked on a space between the treetops.
“Closer, closer...almost...not yet,” I could hear her mumbling, her eyes never leaving the ground as she gauged what she needed to do to stop us from dying upon impact with the ground.
“Now!” she shouted at last.
Her arms came up, mine moving with her motion. The ground below us shifted, a mound of dirt coming up to meet us as it wrapped around our bodies. We continued to fall, the ground now falling with us, everything happening in a fluid motion.
When we reached the ground, instead of simply dropping us, the earth below dipped to soften the landing, readjusting itself once we were safely on the ground.
We stood on the solid floor of the forest, our clothes a bit dirtier than when we headed up the mountain, but we were still in one piece.
“How did you know that would work?” I asked, impressed by her quick thinking.
“I didn’t,” she admitted, my eyebrows raising at her response.
What else did I expect, it was Illia after all - the girl who threw an untested grenade at a dungeon wall with only the hope and sheer confidence it would work. Still, things did always seem to work out and she did save us from the dragon’s grasp.
�
��Good work,” I gave in, accepting that her plan, albeit underdeveloped, did end successfully.
I looked up, trying to see past the treetops, wondering if the dragon would simply give up on pursuing us. When I didn’t see or hear the dragon, I figured we were safe. After all, the egg remained in the dragon’s nest, so the initial threat had subsided.
I smiled at Illia, then began searching the woods, realizing we had been dropped in a random part of the forest, Hercules nowhere in sight.
“You’re bleeding,” Illia gasped, noticing the blood that steadily trailed down my arm.
“It’s nothing,” I shrugged, pulling at the long hem of my tunic until I had a strip of fabric to wrap around the wound.
I tied the makeshift bandage tight, hoping to staunch the bleeding, fully expecting the wound to heal by the following day.
“Where are we,” I changed the subject, looking back into the depths of the forest.
“I don’t think we landed too far from our basecamp, maybe a few hours at most.”
A few hours, I thought to myself, realizing how quickly the dragon was able to fly over that distance. If only we could fly everywhere, travel would be so much quicker. I returned from my thoughts, my focus switching to Illia.
She began heading in the direction she believed we would find Hercules and I followed, maintaining a steady speed as we walked in companionable silence. As she had suspected, we reached our original camping site two and a half hours later, Hercules still grazing happily in the spot we’d left him.
“See, what’d I tell ya?” Illia held out her hands, showing off the fact that we located the horned horse.
Her proud grin was infectious, and I found myself smiling too. After a quick packing up of the camp, we loaded our belongings onto the horse’s back and headed back in the direction of the dwarf village.
We rode hard until the suns started to set, already making it through the wide plain. I kept glancing at the sky, waiting for the dragon to come back and finish us off. Luckily, the ride passed peacefully, no beasts vying for our lives.
Back in the safety that the dense forest provided, Illia set up camp, the rock tent a welcomed comfort after the long hours on horseback. After eating a quick meal, we laid down together, Illia snuggling in close before we fell asleep for the evening.
∞∞∞
In the middle of the night, the darkness was so thick you could barely see your hand in front of your face. We heard a loud roar. The sound woke us from our deep sleep.
Startling awake, I lit a small flame on the tip of my finger, giving us enough light to move around safely but not enough that we would be spotted by whatever had made the noise.
Our camp was situated just inside the forest, the plain still visible through the trees. Illia and I crept closer to the entrance, seeking out the source of the sound.
The moonlight illuminated the open space in a soft glow, making it easier to see as we strayed further from the thick of the trees in the dense forest.
As we had feared, the dragon circled the sky, its cries desperate as it surveyed the land from above.
“Why is it away from the mountain?” I whispered to Illia.
Her eyes were still on the dragon’s massive flying form.
“There would be one reason, but I hope I’m wrong.”
Before I could ask her what she meant, the dragon roared again, a long and sorrow-filled sound. When the beast turned and flew farther from our location, I thought it had decided to return to its dwelling, but a quick shift in direction brought it right back toward us.
As the minutes passed by, the dragon only seemed to become enraged, the sorrow that once radiated from it shifting to anger. Clearly not finding what it sought, the beast began to lash out at the forest below, sending streams of its fiery breath into the open plain.
The pink grass caught fire, the blades quickly disintegrating under the intense heat. Illia and I stared at the chaos one creature created, our bodies frozen in place by the raw power.
“We should go,” I told her with a bit of urgency in my voice, pulling myself from the trance as the dragon started to drift toward our location.
She agreed, but our decision came a bit too late as the next beam of fire aimed at the forest entrance.
“Run!” Illia shouted, heading deeper into the woods.
We ran as fast as we could, making it back to our tent, back to our waiting horse, but the fire proved faster. It was upon us in a matter of seconds, running no longer an option.
Illia pulled up the dirt around us, hardening it until we were completely enclosed in a rock sphere. The space grew hot when the dragon’s breath reached us, encircling our shield in deadly flames.
At first, we thought we could simply wait out the blaze, thinking we’d be safe if we could keep away from the flames, but as the temperature in the rock barrier increased, our thoughts quickly changed. I felt the sweat trickle down the side of my face as my breathing became increasingly difficult.
Realizing we needed to do something immediately, I decided trying something that might not work would be better than doing nothing. I focused on my fire gift, intending to snuff out the fire that lay outside the rocky walls. I just wasn’t sure I would be able to control it outside my line of sight.
Placing my hands on the dirt, I visualized the burst of fire I wanted to create, watching it push back the flames that threatened our lives. At first, the flames materialized within the rock, but I quickly let them dissipate, trying again with even greater concentration.
Nothing seemed to happen at my next attempt, but when the air changed, cooling rapidly by a few degrees, I counted it as a success. I tried again for good measure, not wanting to release the rock barrier until we were sure we wouldn’t be swallowed up by waiting flames.
Illia read my movements and when I relaxed my body, she opened the top of the sphere, giving us a view of the treetops.
Confirming that no flames were present, she let our defense fall, revealing the charred forest that surrounded us. Small fires still burned in the field and some of the trees farther from our position.
Not wanting any more damage to come to the plant life, I used my mana gift to snuff out the remaining fires. While we managed to control the area, the threat still lingered as the dragon continuously circled the area above.
“It can’t be looking for us,” I said aloud, still concerned that the dragon may not have given up on the hunt.
“I’m worried someone else might’ve finished the job the two ratkin couldn’t,” Illia said quietly, her gaze never leaving the dragon.
“She’s searching for her baby,” I responded quietly, understanding the rage of the beast a bit more.
While I understood why she had turned her wrath on the forest, it didn’t help anything if the rats weren’t within this side of the forest.
We didn’t pass anyone on our trip through the plain or even see any indication that someone had been traveling the same way, so there was no way to know which way they had gone.
“What do we do?”
“Damage control?” She shrugged, the question not really having a good answer.
As we weighed our limited options, the dragon let out another breath of fire, aiming for the already burnt plain.
The blast of flames lasted longer, spreading out toward the tree line in the distance. Illia stepped forward, maneuvering the dirt into a wave that covered the plain, snuffing out the flames in the process.
The dragon roared loudly at our interference, its hardened gaze suddenly on us. Swooping down low, it dove toward us, but instead of landing or even attacking it returned to the air, heading back in the direction of the mountain where it lived.
“It must not have smelled the egg on us,” Illia said with a sigh of relief.
Good thing we never touched the egg, I thought to myself, surveying the damage the dragon caused to the forest.
“We should stop those and head back to the village before that thing decides to come back.�
��
I nodded in agreement, and we hopped on Hercules' back heading closer to the flames that continued to ravage the forest. When we were in range, I created a fire that would act as a barrier to the raging flames, waiting for the two to collide and both to be extinguished.
The plan worked as intended and soon enough we were back on our horse and headed toward the dwarves’ village. The forest remained dark, the night having yet to pass, but we didn’t think we’d get much sleep even if we tried remaking the camp.
Instead, I made a line of fire orbs above us as we rode, taking great concentration to keep them moving with our speed. Hercules didn’t seem to mind the dim light. His speed was only affected the tiniest amount.
By the time the first rays of the new day graced us with their presence, we arrived at the small wall that surrounded the village. Seeing it in the distance, we urged Hercules forward, his speed increasing to allow him to pass the wall seamlessly.
Once inside, we placed him in the stable to rest, being sure to fill his food and watering trough to the brim. I felt relieved that the area wasn’t on fire, meaning the dragon didn’t come as far as the village seeking its egg. My relief was short-lived when I heard Aquina’s voice yelling something that I couldn’t quite make out.
Illia and I ran toward the sound, eager to find out the source of Aquina’s outburst. As we neared her position, her words became clear.
“I said don’t move!”
We turned the corner to find Aquina, Cera and two subdued ratmen. Cera guarded one who sat propped up against a ground-level house while Aquina had her foot on the throat of the other, the dragon’s egg secured to his back. Shit.
My face dropped as I stared at the oversized egg, looking as though it was crushing the ratman that laid on the ground. Aquina jumped when we approached, turning in our direction, her stance letting us know she was ready for a fight.
When she saw we weren’t the enemy, her shoulders relaxed an exhale accompanying the movement. Her foot remained firmly planted on the throat of the ratman as he flailed about under her weight, trying to escape. She must be using a spell to hold him, I reasoned, showing no signs of a struggle to subdue the larger beastman.