Dragon Ops

by Dragon Ops (retail) (epub)

  I left my sister and Yano and trudged over to Ikumi, feeling completely weird and uncomfortable as I struggled with what I was going to say. I wanted to make her feel better somehow. But at the same time, she wasn’t wrong. This was really bad. For all of us. Especially Derek.

  When I reached her, I crouched down to her level, finding her eyes with my own. “Look, I know this stinks,” I said, trying to make my voice sound reassuring. “But don’t give up. We can still do this!”

  “How?” she demanded. “Lord D’ou said we needed three stones if we were going to have a chance to defeat Atreus. Now we only have two.”

  “Maybe two is enough?” I suggested. “With our stones and your high level…”

  “No.” She shook her head. “If we don’t have all three, we’ll never be able to defeat Atreus. I just know it.”

  “Then fine—we won’t defeat him,” I said, grasping for straws. “They’ll still come for us eventually, right? They’ll be able to fix the game and get us out.” Hopefully before Derek became dragon dinner.

  “Get you out, maybe,” she shot back bitterly. “Not me. I’ve been stuck here for two years. And no one’s come for me yet.”

  Wait, what? I scrunched up my face, trying to understand. “You mean you’ve been playing for two years, right? You’ve only been stuck since Atreus took over.”

  She closed her eyes, hands clenching into fists. “It doesn’t matter. I should have known better than to hold out hope. It never works out. Never.”

  “What doesn’t work out? What are you talking about?” My mind whirled as I tried to make sense of what she was saying. Two years? How could she possibly be stuck in the game for two years? What about food? Sleep? Bathroom breaks? And what about her dad? Her nurses? They would come in and check on her, right? If she was stuck in the game, they would do something about it.

  Ikumi looked up, her eyes rimmed with tears. “Ian—”

  “Ian! Ikumi! Come quick!” my sister interrupted.

  Reluctantly, I got to my feet, reaching down to help Ikumi stand. When I turned around I saw that Lilli was practically jumping with joy.

  “What is it?” I asked, a small shred of hope winding through me. “Did you find the stone?”

  “No.” Lilli beamed. “Because that wasn’t the stone. Yano just checked his databases. That was the Tremulous Jewel of the Sea. It gives mages a plus ten to water spells. Which would have been nice to have…” She shot an irritated look at Yano. “But it’s not the Water Stone. Which means the Water Stone is still somewhere in this cave!”

  My body flooded with relief. “That’s awesome!” I cried. “Right, Ikumi?”

  “Awesome,” she repeated. Though she still looked a little upset. My mind flashed back to our conversation. What had she been talking about? I’d have to ask more later, but right now, we had a stone to find.

  “So where is it?” I asked, looking around the cave. The walls were tall and solid. And there were no other apparent passageways besides the one that had just caved in on us and the pipe we’d dropped down from. My eyes trailed to the crystal pool of water at our feet. Could it be under there somewhere? But no—the water was so clear—I could see the bottom and there was nothing.

  “Wait!” Ikumi said suddenly. “I have an idea!” She turned and started wading through the water.

  I shot my sister a doubtful look but followed Ikumi. Wading through the shallow part, then swimming once it got deeper. A small part of me worried that she was going to tell us we had to go underwater to finish this, but instead, she led us right to the giant waterfall at the back of the chamber.

  The rush of water splashed at our faces as we got closer, thundering in my ears. Ikumi shouted something, but I couldn’t hear her over the noise. We followed her to the side of the waterfall and around to the back. There, cut into the rock, was a small cave leading to a narrow tunnel.

  “Holy supersecret passageways!!!” I exclaimed, impressed. “How did you know this was back here?”

  “I didn’t,” Ikumi confessed. “But I had a feeling. This whole level was clearly designed by my dad. The waterfall, the glowworms, the treasure trap. It’s all stuff he’s into.”

  “And he likes waterfall caves?”

  “It’s how he and my mother met,” Ikumi explained. “She was playing Fields of Fantasy from her home in Japan. She had hidden her character behind a waterfall so she could go eat and leave the game without worrying about a monster attacking her while she was away. My dad found her there while exploring and tried to talk to her. When he realized she was away from her keyboard, he sat down and waited for her to come back.”

  “And then brutally slayed her?” Yano asked hopefully.

  Ikumi rolled her eyes. “Um, no. He started talking to her. And then invited her to join his party.” She gave a sad smile. “And the rest is history. She moved halfway across the world just to be with him in real life, and she never regretted it. They were inseparable, my mom and dad. Till the day she died.”

  “And look!” Lilli broke in. “Are those their initials?”

  We turned to look where she was pointing. Sure enough, there was a small carving in the stone: H + I.

  “Wait. Was your mom’s name Ikumi, too?” I asked, surprised.

  Ikumi’s face flushed. “Her name was Ikumi, yes. But mine isn’t. That’s just my character’s name. Like you’re Lord Wildhammer.”

  “So what’s your real name?” I asked.

  But Ikumi only shook her head. “It doesn’t matter,” she said. “Just call me Ikumi.”

  I frowned, disappointed. Why did I even care about her real-life name? It made no difference here. At the same time, though, I felt like we had gotten to know one another during our time in the game. And she had said I was her friend. If that was true, why wouldn’t she tell me her real name? What else was she hiding from us?

  “You know I could google it when I get home,” I half joked. “You’re the daughter of a legend! I bet there’s tons written about you online.”

  Her face paled. “There probably is,” she said slowly. “But please don’t read it.”

  “Why? What’s the big deal?”

  She sighed. “It’s nothing. It’s just…” She trailed off, waving a hand across the cave. “You said this was real. Can’t this be real enough?”

  I winced at the pain in her voice. Maybe she wanted me to think of her as this—the girl she’d chosen to be with magic superpowers and crazy-colored hair and eyes swirling with glitter, rather than the sick girl who was stuck in her room all the time. My heart ached a little, and I wanted to insist that she was amazing in every reality.

  But the look on her face told me she didn’t want to hear it.

  “Speaking of reality,” Lilli broke in. “Can we get on with this quest so we can get back to ours? We do have a cousin to rescue, in case you forgot.”

  “Absolutely,” Ikumi agreed, looking relieved. “Let’s go.”

  So we continued down the damp, narrow passageway until it opened up into a third chamber—this one a mirror image of the one where we’d discovered the first jewel.

  Except this one had a dragon.

  A massive sea serpent with blue-and-violet-checked scales slept not ten feet away from where we were standing, its long, lithe body coiled around itself like a snake’s and its back was ridged with spiky white fins. Two more frilly fins formed a collar around his neck like a Victorian queen’s. His eyes were closed, his head resting on a small wooden chest that spilled over with treasure.

  “Kaito the Water Lord,” I whispered. “I knew he had to be here somewhere.”

  “Yup,” Lilli replied grimly. “And look what he’s got.”

  I followed her finger, my heart dropping. There, cradled in the middle of the dragon’s ropy body, was a second pedestal holding what looked like a pure drop of water, the size of a large egg and completely see-through.

  “The Water Stone.” I didn’t know whether to be relieved or terrified. “How i
n the world are we going to steal that?”

  Lilli glanced at Yano. He held up his paws in protest. “Not on your nelly,” he declared. “The last time I tried to help, Ikumi almost knocked my head off. And I’ve grown rather fond of my current head.” He flew up toward the ceiling and perched on a small rocky outcropping. I half expected him to conjure himself up some popcorn.

  I groaned. “So what do we do? You think we could fight him?”

  “Lord D’ou said he’d be too tough,” Lilli reminded us. “He’s one of the real robot dragons, remember? He could literally crush us in real life if we made him mad.”

  “Then what are we supposed to do?”

  Lilli squared her shoulders. “You stay here. I’ll go steal it from him.” She made a move toward the dragon, but Ikumi jumped in her path.

  “You can’t,” she said. “Look what you’re wearing! One swipe with the dragon’s claws and you’d be dead before I could heal you.”

  Lilli’s face fell as she looked down at her muddy robes. “Then what?” she asked. “You can’t do it. You may be high level, but you’re also not wearing armor.” She looked around the cave. “And there aren’t any creatures here for you to charm.”

  “True,” Ikumi said. “But if I cast a speed spell on myself I could get in and out before he woke.…”

  “Um, hello?” I waved my hands in front of the girls. “What about me?”

  They both looked at me blankly. “No way,” my sister said.

  “Why not?” I asked, annoyed. “I’m wearing armor. I can take a few blows.”

  “But can you sneak?” Lilli asked doubtfully. “No offense, little brother, but it’s not exactly been your thing so far.”

  “I know. But I put some points in it since then. And Ikumi could cast that speed spell on me. I’d just run up, grab the gem, and be gone.”

  “Yeah, but…” Lilli wrinkled her nose. “Running isn’t really your thing, either.”

  Now my face was burning with embarrassment. They didn’t think I could do it. Eight-Bit Ian, great at old-school game trivia. But when it came to real-life adventure? I’d never level high enough.

  But that was the old Ian. The Ian who hadn’t faced off against an ice dragon and won. Who hadn’t jumped off a cliff and soared through the sky like a freaking bird. The old Ian hadn’t spun down a drain, been catapulted from a pipe. Escaped a collapsing tunnel on his hands and knees…

  I drew in a breath. “I can do this,” I said, squaring my shoulders and lifting my chin. “Just… give me a chance.”

  Lilli nodded, giving me a strange look. As if she had read something in my eyes that told her to believe me. “Okay,” she said. “We’ll be right here if you need us.”

  “Actually, I think you should stand near the exit,” I said, pointing to the far end of the cave. “I’ll meet you there with the gem so we can escape quicker.”

  “That’s too far,” Ikumi protested. “I won’t be able to throw you healing potions from there.”

  “I’m not going to need healing. I’ll be fast enough.”

  The doubt returned to Lilli’s face. “I don’t know.…”

  “Also,” I added with a smile, “I have a secret weapon.” I accessed my menu and swapped out my tank gear for the super-speedy wrath armor I’d purchased in Ghost Hollow. Finally! A chance to use it!

  Finally, a chance to become a true hero.

  I crouched close to the ground, in full-on track-runner position, my wrath armor flashing gold in the cavern’s dim light, accenting the huge dragon emblem on my chest. Even my sister had to admit it looked cool, though she was still skeptical about the plan itself.

  “Whatever you do, don’t stop,” she warned. “You have to keep running.”

  “Don’t worry, I’ve got this,” I assured her, trying to push down everything inside me that said I absolutely didn’t. While I might be New Ian now, that didn’t mean New Ian wasn’t terrified. Was I being crazy? Did I really have a chance to pull this off?

  I turned to Ikumi. “Okay. You can cast the speed spell in three, two, one—”

  A bright white light flashed across my field of vision as she let the spell rip. Electricity prickled across my skin like I’d been hit by lightning—though thankfully I didn’t fry on the spot. Instead, I exploded into action, dashing forward, loose rocks flying up from my feet as I pounded the ground. I felt a little like Sonic the Hedgehog going into supersonic speed as he raced across the game board to collect his golden rings.

  But I didn’t need a thousand rings. I needed one single stone.

  I reached the rocky ledge at the dragon’s back and scrambled up the side, hands painfully scraping against rough stone. When I reached the top, I drew in a breath, channeled my inner Lara Croft from Tomb Raider, then jumped down onto the pedestal, careful not to crush the stone under my heel. Working to keep my balance, I crouched down, then scooped up the stone, cradling it like a football under my arm. It felt strange—not exactly solid, but not liquid, either. More like one of those squishies my sister collected, though much stickier. At least that meant it probably wouldn’t break if I dropped it.…

  Okay. I rose to my feet, scanning the room, my heart pounding in my chest. I could feel the speed spell running out, my skin tingling less and less as it lost its power. Leaving me standing, literally, in the middle of a dragon.

  A waking dragon, I realized with growing dread.

  I swallowed hard as Kaito lifted his head, blinking stupidly as he tried to figure out what was going on. He was still half asleep, which meant I still had a half a chance—at least for the next couple seconds. I glanced back at the ledge I’d jumped down from, but it was too far up to reach.

  No. There was only one way down.

  Without pausing to think, I threw myself on my butt, sliding down the dragon’s slick scales as if they were a slide at a playground. The scales were slimier than I imagined, and the armor at the back of my legs was quickly coated in goo. I launched off the dragon’s side, flew through the air, then slammed down hard on my ankle. Pain exploded up my body, but I ignored it as I clutched the stone against my chest and started to run.

  “Ian! Look out!” my sister called from the mouth of the cave.

  Kaito’s tail slashed out like a whip. I tried to dodge, but I was too slow and it hit me straight on, knocking me off my feet. Before I could even move, the tail slid around me, wrapping me in a crushing embrace.

  New Ian had been fast. But not fast enough. And now I was caught.

  Kaito’s grip was like iron, and as hard as I struggled, I couldn’t move. I tried to take a breath, but he only squeezed harder and my lungs started to burn. My vision grew spotty and I desperately tried to stay conscious as panic rose inside me. This couldn’t be game over! Not when we were this close! I tried to grab my sword, but it was pinned to my body.

  “Ian!” my sister screamed.

  I looked up and my blood went cold. Kaito was dragging me back to him, his mouth creaking open to reveal a really impressive set of pearly-white teeth.

  SMASH!

  Out of nowhere, razor-sharp rocks rained down from the ceiling, smashing into the dragon’s head, slicing his scales open in a large, angry gash. He hissed in rage, twisting and writhing as blue blood gushed from the wound, running down his face and blinding him. He dropped me like a hot potato and I hit the ground hard, pain lashing up my side.

  I took in a huge breath, almost crying as sweet air filled my lungs.

  “Ian!” I vaguely heard Lilli cry. “Run!”

  Scrambling to my feet, I charged toward her and Ikumi, as fast as my sore legs could carry me. I had to get out of Kaito’s reach. I might not get a second chance.

  It seemed like I was under a slow spell now—or wading through mud—but at last I made it. Ikumi grabbed my arm.

  “Come on!” she said. “Down here! I found a door!” She dashed down the corridor, and Lilli and I followed close behind. As we ran, I could hear the dragon roaring with fury, and
I shuddered as I remembered how close I’d been to becoming his dinner.

  At last we came to a large wooden door and dove through it out into the open air. A voice cried out behind us.

  “Hey! Wait for me!”

  Yano burst out, flying at full speed. We slammed the door shut behind us, Ikumi casting a spell to seal it shut. Then we collapsed onto the ground, breathing heavily.

  “Wow,” Lilli declared, looking over at me once she’d caught her breath. “That was amazing. No offense, but I honestly didn’t think you’d be able to do it.”

  “I told you this armor was epic,” I teased as I raised myself onto my elbow to face her.

  “No.” She shook her head. “You were the epic one in there. And don’t even try to deny it.”

  I couldn’t have wiped the grin off my face if I tried. I was epic. Ian Rivera, gamer geek and all-around wimp, had taken on a giant robot dragon and had come out victorious. Suddenly I wished this game gave out badges. Because a “Badge of Awesomeness” would surely be mine.

  Though I did admittedly have a lot of help. If Lilli hadn’t stepped in when she did? I would have been a goner for sure.

  “Speaking of epic, what was that rock thing you did?” I asked. “That was amazing! When did you learn how to do that?”

  “I didn’t. I used the power of the Earth Stone.” She held out her favorite turd and grinned.

  “So… you’re saying I was basically saved by a poop?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “An epic poop,” she corrected, her eyes twinkling.

  The cave had dumped us onto the sandy shore of a deep blue lake. It was sunset, and the twin suns cast dazzling sparkles across the water as they painted the horizon with bold orange and blue strokes. A picture-perfect spot with thankfully no enemies in sight. The best place to take a rest.

  Not that we had time to rest. The sun was setting on our second day in Dragon Ops. Atreus’s three-day deadline loomed. At least we had what we needed to defeat him now. We could begin our final journey to his lair.

  “You guys ready to push on?” I started to ask. But before anyone could reply, my menu lit up red and my cousin’s hologram hovered in front of us.