Chapter 6 Hadariel's skin burned from the desert sun. The fiery sphere hung overhead, tormenting

15 Pages·2017·0.11 MB·English

by  Justin Lee

Chapter 6

Hadariel's skin burned from the desert sun. The fiery sphere hung overhead, tormenting the
worn human with promises of setting him ablaze. He trudged along with pained wheezes, forced
to shamble beside the magister's lithe looking horses. His hands were chained behind his back,
the cool metal from his collar still clamped tightly around his neck. To his relief the heat seemed
to not soak into it, one small blessing amidst the sea of curses. He was dripping sweat in large
beads, counting each step as he took it within the shifting sand as it whipped by his ankles. His
eyes had been covered, wrapped tightly by a sheet of off grey cloth.If he squinted hard enough
against the bindings he could scarcely make out the dunes before him and the countless horses
slowly making their way along.
How long they had been traveling he knew not. Honestly he had started to lose count, and
when he had asked about it in a hoarse voice they had simply ignored him, just like most of his
complaints or concerns.
His captors were uncaring of anything. When they were not whispering in hushed voices just
out of ear shot they were prodding him with sharpened sticks to keep him moving. Even when
he fell they didn't let up. They simply shoved the butts harder into his shoulder, shouting curses
until he scrambled to his feet. How he hated them. How he regretted turning himself in. When
he would resume his walk he would grit his teeth and wonder how his mother felt about his
decision.
He had only seen her once during this time with little words being shared. There had been a
brief, trembling hug. Tears lingering in her eyes as she looked him over. They had narrowed into
anger filled glares as they looked to their captors. Hadariel could only imagine the things she
was planning to do to them if she were every truly freed.
Armaros kept watch the entire time, his eyes hard and cold as his stare pierced them like a
cold knife. The didn't say anything as Hadariel embraced his mother, but he could tell by a small
smirk that this was just letting him know to behave. That they had someone to hurt if he did.
Each morning was met with bland tasting meals, some bread he was certain with swigs of
warm water to swallow it down. The days were filled with long treks over the unforgiving sands
until they laid down to rest during the cool nights. It was not until one such evening that
something different happened to their makeshift camp.
There had been a loud crack that disturbed their slumber. Hadariel himself bolting awake
with a startled yell. He sleepily sat up, shaking his head as muffled cries soon turned into shouts
of concern and worry. The teen stumbled to his feet, his chains pulling taught against his
bindings magically connected to the sand.
"What's going on?" He shouted out, his words laced with a lingering fear as men screamed in
return. His blood turned to ice when he got an answer, an inhuman screech that wrapped
around him, sending a bolt of pain coursing through him like lightning. His legs buckled and
shook as the teen dropped to his knees. He was left gasping for breath as humans cried out,
and terrified whinnies filled the void. Hadariel fell backwards, scurrying backwards on his rear
until his back was pressed against the edge of his tent, binding pulled taught as far as he was
able.
The sounds only got stranger as insectile chittering radiated from all directions, drowning out
the clang of metal and pain filled screams of the magisters meant to guard him. It was close,
closer than anything else was in this moment. His hair stood on edge as he pulled his bindings
tight. He wanted to shout, call for help, but he froze. That would only lead to whatever this thing
was right to him. He could only whimper and squirm against his chains, dread ever consuming
his thoughts. When he heard the rustling of chainmail and his tent open he breathed a sigh of
relief, someone had come to help him.Even the chittering had stopped. He was going to be
alright.
"Thank the gods." He said, surprised he was this happy to have one of his captors by his
side. He reached out, expecting to find a man to help him, but instead he felt a warm fleshy
substance. It coated his hands with a thin sheen of liquid, dripping down in long drops to the
sand below. When he felt the familiar touch of chainmail he knew what was he was grabbing at.
His hands were caressing the disembodied torso of one his captors.
It's..It's.His mind blanked for a moment before the revulsion set in. His whole body jerked, as
his stomach threatened to release its contents to the world. He recoiled in horror, screaming in
fright like a banshee as his heart thundered against his ribcage. It was in this moment it
occurred to him that all the sounds of people fighting had begun to fade away, but the chittering
sound had returned in full force. He felt alone, lost within a sea with nothing to cling to. He
tugged uselessly against his bindings, recalling a tale about how spiders drank the innards of
their prey. He froze as the sound that had filled him with fear was now but just mere feet from
him.
He thrashed against the chains, his wrists aching from the effort as the smell of brimstone
mixed with the offputting smell of a swamp hung heavy on the air. He fell slack, fight leaving him
as he listened to his own shallow breaths and fluttering heart. Just like that poor soul in the story
he was going to meet his end here. Unable to do anything as whatever monster was before him
ate him. He whimpered as he almost felt the creature take a step, tentatively, almost like it was
staring at him and unsure of what to do.
Hadariel prayed to the gods as the smell was inches from his face. He felt a small brush of
hot air roll against his cheek as whatever monster before him let out a blood curdling hiss. He
clenched his eyes like a vice through the blindfold, preparing himself for the pain. Hopefully it
would be over quick.
It was then a crack like a whip radiated through the air. The tent's cloth and sand around him
getting thruashing violently away as if taken by a heavy breeze. Whatever that had been in the
tent with him suddenly vanished, the air starting smell like dried sand once more. He burst out
laughing as the dark shadow lingering over him faded. He didn't care if anything else heard him,
he had been so damned lucky. For minutes he continued to laugh, until those sounds of
disbelief turned into honest tears, just glad such a fright was over. Even when a magister
grabbed him by the shoulder and asked him if he was alright he continued to cry. The man must
have seen the previous guard from the tent because his voice had cracked, almost fearful that
maybe it was Hadariel that done the deed.
The nights that followed that scare were spent with Armaros' within his tent. The man had
him chained magically to the ground with nowhere to go. When Hadariel asked about the
incident the man brushed off the question. Instead telling him it was all on a need to know basis.
Just another one of those strange magical storms that plagued the desert through the years.
The teen scowled at such answers, his hatred for this man only intensifying with each
passing night, the inner flame only getting stronger with each step he took the following days.
Despite the conditions the magisters did little to make this trip easier for them. That fact
alone left the teen worried, almost wishing that whatever had found them that night had killed
him. Perhaps it was trying to save him from whatever lay ahead of him? He luckily caught some
magisters talking of the terrors that had beset them. Whatever it was it sounded terrible. It had
six limbs, wicked scythes for slicing, and five burning red eyes that brimmed with an alien
intelligence that sent tremors of fear through the spine. He learned nothing more than that
however as Armaros soon swooped in to lash at the talkative guards. Without remorse the
magister captain had sentenced them to twenty lashes each. To which Hadariel and the others
were forced to watch hours later. Each crack of his captive's whips against the men's back
bringing forth groans as their bodies twisted and jerked from the pain. In a way he felt sorry for
them as he watched the blood drip down their exposed backs. When Armaros came back with
the blindfold he had glared at him something awful, something the man had chuckled at.
"Remember what we hold above you child." The man sneered, wrapping the teen's head in
it's tight bindings once more. So, with a heavy heart and heavier steps on the sand Hadariel
was once more left in the dark as they continued such an arduous journey.
When each breath had begun to be a chore and the human's legs ached with a pain that
lingered for hours did they finally come to a stop. Hadariel caught his breath in large gasps, not
sure how his body was able to continue on in such a state. He nearly collapsed right there in the
sand, his legs wobbling uncontrollably back and forth. Armaros grabbed firm his blindfold with
his rough hands, ripping it off in one clean stroke. The teen shielded his eyes as the sun pierced
his eyes like swords, making him instantly clench them to save himself the pain. He gritted his
teeth until the pain passed and he started to blink away the shock and blinding light.
"Gaze upon this place boy." The man hissed, causing Hadariel to gaze upward from his sand
covered boots.
His jaw dropped as they were before a gigantic wall of pristine stone. One that rose up from
the sand like a towering monolith about three dragons in height. It looked sturdy and well made,
large arcane runes engraved into the surface. It was the same color as the sand, almost looking
as if they had formed it from the very ground it now stood. He felt so small staring up, getting a
glance of several looming towers of darkened stone lined with dull metal. "What is this place?"
He stammered, looking for a gate as the mounted men shifted and held fast their horses. No
matter how much he traced the outer wall he could see now way to enter. How the magisters
expected to get into a place was beyond him.
"This place is to be your new home." Armaros chuckled, waving his hand around in a loop.
When he was finished there was a thunderous crack, as lines of glowing blue energy emerged
on the wall of stone. It flowed and weaved across the brown surface, forming a wooden
doorway large enough for three horses to enter side by side, glowing softly with magical light.
The door cracked open with a loud hiss, a burst of cooler air rushing out to pleasing lick at
Hadariel's cheek. He hated to admit that it was calling him forward, begging him to get just one
more touch of that pleasing sensation.
"And it shall be so for the rest of your days." The man grabbed his chains, and with a
ushering to his horse he was dragged inside to the waiting maw of this place. "Welcome to
Glanchester."

**********
The smell of the desert sands wafted by Infinity's nose. Bit by bit the scorching heat that
plagued her scales simmered away into the void. Her ears on the back of her head twitched,
almost expecting to hear the shuffling sounds of tired horses.
Deserts? Blood?
She groaned as she felt cold stone beneath her paws. It was somewhat comforting as she
squirmed against the floor with a twitching tail.
I'm in a cave..Not a desert.
When in her jostling movements she felt a metallic collar push against her it confirmed which
was real. The object scrapped against the floor, bringing a sense of relief to her confusion filled
mind. Despite the confusing images and events of the past few moments, she was free. The
questions of this Hadariel and why she was seeing such things could be answered another day.
For now she had a task to do. Her eyes snapped open as purpose came flooding to her mind.
Purple scales and a malicious grin taunted at her senses. All four eyes trained on the exit to her
brief prison, her other head's white scales catching in the periphery of her vision.
She scanned around, not finding any trace of the woman that had bathed her scales and
showed her a glimmer of comfort. Her heads shook as she fought off the vileness and fury she
held within her heart for that purple bastard. Hopefully that human was alright, and her purple
overlord had not decided to simply eat her for his trouble. If he did, it would just be another
reason to see him dethroned from his lofty perch. With that thought bouncing around her mind
she pushed herself to all fours, stretching out her limbs with a lingering growl. She made sure to
snap both of her jaws, testing the other for its responsiveness. It seemed to be instantaneous,
not a single delay or resistance to be found. She was in complete control of both of them. It
looked like all the training with the lich had paid off. Her snout wrinkled at the mere thought that
he gave her something useful.
She flicked her ears back as during her stretching she knocked over the metal bucket the
woman had used to clean her. It went clattering to the floor, tipping over and dumping it's soapy
content into a flowing puddle. Instinct took control of her claws, instantly having turning invisible
as she slipped into the caverns stretched out before her.
The uneven paths rose and fell like a wriggling serpent, following a section that had seen the
wear of paw pads and scratches of claws on its surface. She found a small trace of pine in the
air, her scales tingling as she shifted her course and slunk through the dimly lit rocks towards
the green dragon she called friend. She slowed to a crawl at several moments, stopping to
blend into walls when she thought she was being followed or observed. She even reapplied the
invisibility during these sections of anxiety. As the spell kept on reaching its time limit.
The crawling eventually gave way to more faster travel as the scent got stronger and
stronger the longer she kept going. She was certain it was none other than the green dragon
that lied to her. The one that had saved her from the wyverns, and the one that had returned
Axton's pack to her in her moment of sadness.
Unless the purple dragon had a series of pine trees within his home. She grimly chuckled at
the idea, already picturing many of the wooden things sprouting from the walls like spears.
That would be silly. She reminded to smack Lyyreth when they were free and safe. Though
she did have to find him first.
She figured she was on the right track when the torches that had lined the cavern walls got
scarcer and scarcer. The warm glows that had been a pleasant company now hardly dotting the
stone at all. The continuing path was one of darkness. It was no problem for her keen eyes, but
she imagined it was to dissuade others from getting this far.
The cavern rose up, breaking off into several directions, each one lined with a series of runes
and marks that she did not recognize. She glared at them with a swaying tail, narrowing her
eyes and cursing to herself. Why couldn't this brute simply use draconic? That would have
made things much easier.
Just focus on his scent...And you'll find him.
She closed her eyes, focusing on the comforting words as she took in two sets of breaths.
The scents here were somewhat confusing, all mixed together into a menagerie. She could
identify the telltale smell of human lingering in the air like a cloud, mixed in with with the musky
scent she identified as gryphon. It was when she folded her wings did she catch the scent she
was looking for. Her eyes bolted open when she pushed all the others away, the strong scent of
pine drifting off down the far left corridor. She could have warbled in joy but bit her tongues,
there was a time for her small victories later. With a resounding snort she carried on across the
stone.
She slunk or slithered across the remaining stone, curving with the carven until she saw the
red-orange glow of torches. Like shining beacons they lit her way, guiding her to the final
section of the humid cave around her. Even some stalagmites from the ceiling were slowly
dripping droplets of water into smaller pools that littered the twisted and curved surfaces. She
had to bite her tongues again before calling out for the green dragon. Who knows what else
could be lurking nearby. Thankfully she squashed down the urge like a squirming bug.
Use your head. He doesn't need you caught...again..
She grabbed hold of a large stalagmite protruding from the floor like a giant tooth. She
crouched low against the floor till her armored belly was dragging against the stone. Her twin
heads slowly snaked around the rock, eyes scanning the wide cavern before her. Unlike the
winding sections of uneven stone behind her, this was more like a dungeon seen in the stories
that Axton had read to her.
The floor and walls were perfectly smooth, pressed down to be completely level with each
other. They bore small cracks and lines from magical tampering, the caster seemingly not caring
about aesthetics about this section of the cave. From the dark coal like surface sprouted long
torches, flickering flames dancing away to an unknown beat. Along the cracked and scratched
walls hung metallic devices with sharpened points and dried blood smeared all over their
gleaming surfaces.
Infinity's paws twitched as she followed each curve. Phantom pain coursing through her
scales the longer she stared them down. It was all she could to turn away from them, focusing
instead on the strong scent of pine mixed with dragon. Despite it's thickness in the air the
dragoness could not spot a single green scale of the so called viridian knight. Instead all that lay
before her were metallic posts encrusted with rust and dark metal chains complete with
manacles large enough to fit around draconic paws.
It looks like he'd be here...She stepped slowly into the room, eyeing small splatters of
crimson that dotted the surfaces around the posts. Not enough for a dragon of Lyyreth's size to
be dead, but certainly injured. And it's all your fault. She whipped herself mentally with her next
step. For being to trusting...Of course those mortals had been telling the truth. She padded to
the blood, lowering her black scaled snout to sniff at the crimson goo. It was fresh, still gleaming
like a small pond to the towering sun. Her eyes shifted up to the area's exit, wondering just
where the green could have gone off to. She rose her head, settling down onto her haunches
with her tail curled around her. Did you go to find me? Her ears pinned at her side as she
pictured him injured, limping through the cave desperately searching for her.
"Infinity? Is that you?" Came a familiar voice, pulling her out of the cold that wrapped around
her. It was almost a whisper on the air, but not beneath her fine hearing. A green head with
sunflower eyes poked out from behind a stalagmite at the edge of the dungeon.
"Lyyreth!" She went to say, smiling as she leaped to her paws and bounded over. Though as
she neared the green stepped out from the stone, revealing a blue scarf and and two non
chipped horns. "Oh...it's you." She slowed to a slink, a sigh escaping her snout as her ears
drooped.
"Good to see you too." The green snorted, padding closer with a swaying tail. His eyes
looked past her to the dungeon, his snout wrinkling in good measure. "Is Lyyreth?..." His voice
lowered, eyes widening in silent fear.
"No." She hissed, her spines drooping as the green dragon passed her. "He's only missing,
we manage to elude that purple ass for the meantime. Lyyreth seems to be alive.." The
dragoness bit her tongue, holding back that it was partially her fault. "Grozzo doesn't seem to
want him dead for the moment. Something about being familiar with the mother that you two
share." Her eyes narrowed as Cordenth glanced back to her, visibly wincing at the realization. "
Something we can discuss after this is done." She snarled, unable to resist as purple eyes came
to mind, that voice whispering in her ears. When Cordenth's frills changed color she pushed
passed him, following the scent of pine. "Though that doesn't mean he won't hurt him. He
seemed quite eager to rip into my hide." She snorted, rolling her eyes. "Even if I think he wasn't
good at it. I've endured much worse in my time."
"Grozzo? Rip into your hide? What happened to you two?" Corcenth snapped his head back,
eyes brimming with questions. "I hadn't heard from you two in hours. I was beside myself with
worry, so Amatae let me know of this servant entrance. Wasn't sure I could fit at first. Should
have seen her face when I changed size." The green bounded after her as trotted through the
dark cavern.
Infinity informed him of each detail as rocks shifted under paw. How they had been lead
inside and offered food and drink, only for it to be poisoned. How with blurry eyes she had tried
to stop Lyyreth from being attacked. To how Amatae was the purple's adopted daughter, very
much like how Axton was to her.
"Dragon's bane." Cordenth muttered, closing the distance between the two. "That would have
to be it. If you concentrated it into a potent enough dose it would knock you on you scales like
that. I'm actually impressed it didn't kill you."
"Lucky for me it takes more than that.Yet another gift bestowed upon me by the lich." She
snapped, a growl radiating in the back of her throat.
"And you just woke up here with him?" Cordenth slipped around a large rock worn away with
scratches with large chunks missing.
"The bastard seemed more interested in breaking me in than anything else." She gagged,
the purple's hungry stare making her stomach churn like an unruly sea. "When I get my claws
on him...It won't be pretty." She leaped over a small area of sunken stone, briefly flapping her
wings. "How about you? How was the town?"
"I convinced them to get that adventurer woman down. Even had several of the healers
tending to her grievous wound. They might not be strong, but combined they had the power to
seal the thing." The green dragon grinned, looking rather proud of himself. "While she rested I
came here, hoping to find out what had happened to the two of you. Save you if I needed to."
"So play the big hero of the story?" She glanced back, offering him an amused smirk.
"If that's what I needed to be...I honestly had my fears of what I'd find in here. You have no
idea how much a relief it is to see you alive and well."
That surprised her, the genuine look in his eyes that did not contain any lie. The green
dragon did honestly want to see her alright. "We can all share hugs and happy moments when
this is over then. Good to see you too." She snorted, stepping onto a crimson rug, the way
before them looking vastly different than what came before.
Where the rest of the cavern had looked natural, like any cave that one could find in a
mountain only bigger, this one looked crafted. The walls and ceiling while large enough for three
dragons were smooth and lined with torches. The air smelled of sweet morning dew instead of
the dampness that had permeated the rest of the cave. Even the air seemed warmer, almost
soothing to her scales. The biggest difference were the decorations lining the walls. Paintings of
all sorts, of vast rolling countrysides and castles, some of great flying dragons of all colors. She
wrinkled her snouts as they passed a large golden framed one with a self portrait of the grinning
purple tyrant. "Well...Isn't this different." She groaned, glancing to several scattered suits of
burned armor that lined the walls. She lowered her heads to peer inside, noticing that they still
had the charred skeletons of their previous wearers inside. "Tacky." She hissed, sticking out her
tongues in disgust.
"I suppose he thinks it makes him intimidating." Cordenth's eyes followed the painting,
narrowing as he stared at the purple's white teeth. "Rather full of himself isn't he?"
"Yea, real sweetheart." She snorted, "Makes me want to go right up to him and claw his
smug snout."
"You think he's bad. You should have seen this red dragon by the name of Veledar. Now he
was smug. Full of himself, considered himself to be a gift to the world."
"Sounds like an ass." She rolled her eyes, padding passed a room crowded with humans of
all sizes adorned in tattered clothing and staring at Infinity with trembling hands. How terrified
they looked. Each wide eyed face nearly broke her heart as she remembered that town with
Nigel. And how she had been made to invoke fear into their souls.
"Lyyreth!" Cordenth suddenly exclaimed as a roar echoed through the caves. It sounded
rather close, possibly down a few more corridors before getting drowned out by another one.
That one shook the very cave, armor suits trembling as if in fear before collapsing in a clattering
pile.
Fear tugged at her heart as they broke into a gallop. Claws scraped against the floor, easily
ripping through any carpet that managed to get under paw. She tried to silence it's wicked
whispers by telling herself he was going to be okay, but it didn't work. Her heart pounded away
against her chest as she tried to will herself to go faster.
"Get down from there you whelp! I'd rather not have to injure you too badly, but if you force
my claw I have no other choice!" Came Grozzo's growl, then his roar that sounded like a clap of
thunder. The near deafening sound filling the air and making Infinity's ears pin against the back
of her head. She had no idea what that was, but it didn't matter. It just meant that Lyyreth was
still okay. That mere thought alone gave strength to her limbs.
Seconds seemed longer as they barrowled down the corridor, their tails bouncing along and
catching any stray piece of furniture that lay before them. They even passed a pair of servants
rearranging a painting, only for her tail to brush by it and slice the thing right across the middle.
Talons dug into the stone as they came a screeching halt, almost topping over themselves to
avoid crashing into a series of crates and boxes stacked on one another around the corner.
They were the tip of the iceberg r to a grand treasure room that spaned out before their eyes.
Racks of clothing hung on metal wires, connected to ornate and clean looking furniture made
out of fine crafted wood. Grandfather clocks rested beside suits of armor still holding their
weapons high in their hands, and unlike the ones in the hall these were polished silver,
reflecting the torchlight that illuminated the place. Coins lay in stacks of glittering metal, with
gems of all colors lost within their surfaces. Books lay stacked on their sides, all in a circular
pattern that could fit a dragon within circumference. Infinity blinked slowly as she scanned out
across the sizable room, almost imagining that she could fit ten wingspans of her own within this
place. Her scales tingled with a slight feeling that all dragons shared within their blood. So much
treasure before her, begging her to take it for her own.
"Curse you green whelp!" Grozzo's roar pulled her from her brief pause, the purple dragon
crashing hard through a towering bookcase with a thunderous crack. Wood splintered and
snapped below his bulk, flying in all directions as coins were sent flying as his tail thrashed
about like a mad eel. He looked bigger than she had remembered, almost twice times her size
as his powerful limbs pushed him back to all fours. "You will regret such actions!" The dragon
flaring out his mighty wings with a ferocious snarl. His eyes trained on something out of sight.
He must not have seen her and Cordenth for he lowered his stance and ignored them with a
lingering hiss.
"You can't hide from me green dragon. I have been doing this for much longer than you." The
dragon's eyes glowed red, dripping down magic as he pounced towards the rest of his vault, his
mighty tail smacking aside a chest full of silver coins, scattering the little things with a crash.
Infinity gritted her teeth, spines flaring as she chased after Grozzo with a flap of her wings to
gain distance, getting enough to regain sight of him. She flicked her forepaw, focusing on the
raw power of lightning that she loved to use. She snarled as brilliant whitish blue electricity
sprung forth around her paws, igniting the air with a lingering glow as it began curling and
dancing across her scales as she eyed the purple as he bounded and pounced through his cave
like he was chasing a rat. With narrowed eyes she let it fly, the arc of deadly magical fury sailing
through the air and slamming into the unaware dragon in the span of a heart beat.
Grozzo turned at the last moment, the bolt striking him square in the neck and quickly
spreading over the rest of his scales. It sparked and caressed him like a lover, circling his tail all
the way to the tip. Though to her dismay he seemed unphased, not even a tremor of discomfort
finding its way to his snout as he looked to her with utter amusement.
"Well....aren't you a fascinating catch." He eyed her heads, his own tilting to the side. "So
many surprised about you my dear. I thought you'd just be another pretty face to adorn my lair,
but you've really piqued my interest!" The purple snorted loudly, his eyes trained onto the form
of a little brown bird fluttering overhead. With a crack and billowing purple smoke, Lyyreth
formed out of thin air, landing on all fours and flaring his wings with bared teeth and a
threatening hiss.
"That I am." She smirked as Cordenth rushed to her side, his teeth exposed, frills twitching
as his yellow eyes narrowed and muscles tensed, ready to attack.
Grozzo took a step back, keeping all three dragons in his sight. "Ah..So three dragons come
to do away with me." He chuckled, tail swishing back and forth across the treasure. He only
stopped with a sigh, "Emerald Lady. You send your children and this beautiful black dragoness
to do your bidding. When I dispatch them I will see it you are punished for trying to get my
daughter."
"She didn't send us you brute." Infinity growled, her black head's jaws snapping at the air.
"You destroyed that caravan! Killed those people! I saw how your daughter talks about you! You
terrify her to no end, and literally eat your servants!"
"Honestly, It was only a matter of time till someone came to put an end to this little thing you
have going." Cordenth growled his eyes brimming with fire. "Some would say a quick death is
too good for you."
"And you call yourselves dragons." Grozzo sighed, his eyes filling with disappointment.
"What is this world coming to that my kind no longer sees itself above those wretched mortals."
He bared his teeth, his eyes narrowing in kind. "You speak to me of such things, when that is
my...nay...OUR right as dragons! We live for eternity if given the chance while they wither and
die like weeds! Is that not proof alone who is the superior in this world?" He took a powerful step
towards them, the ground almost shaking as the dark pools of his eyes glinted i the torchlight. "It
is only logical that they should sacrifice everything so that we...The chosen species rules this
place."
"You might want to look around then." Lyyreth snapped. "Dragon's don't exactly rule the
world."
"And that is because of those little vermin Lyyreth. They breed and spread across this world
to hunt our kind like a vast plague! They drive us to near extinction, and you seek to treat them
with mercy?" This is why we must push back with every ounce of our strength, lest they finally
put an end to us for all time."
"Perhaps they wouldn't want to put an end to us if dragons like you didn't exist." Infinity
countered, eyes trained on his tensing muscles. "Did you ever think to try treating them like
equals?"
"Should one treat little insects the same as a dragon?" Grozzo chuckled in the back of his
throat, "But you don't you." He sighed, casting them a withering glance. "Alas, you all are
misguided little whelps. In time the one I serve could help you see the correct path. The one that
we as dragons were meant. With those pitiful mortals you hold dear under claw."
"Like I'd ever want to be anything like you. I don't particularly like having them look to me with
fear and mistrust." Icy blue eyes came to mind, and pleasing nights curled around Axton as he
read to her. "I think time for talk is over you monster."
"Says the dragon with twin heads." He raised a scaly ridge, letting out a snort. "What dark
magic did you have to weave in order to gain such a power?" Before she could offer her rebuttal
Grozzo sprung at them like a coiled spring, his talons unsheathed and ready to rip into them.
Infinity and Cordenth scattered, leaping away before the purple could slice into their hides.
She stayed just out of his reach and smacked aside his serpentine neck with a paw. He
recovered more quickly than she would have liked and pounced on her, claws digging into sides
like little needles. She rolled with him however, using the momentum to push the purple dragon
off of her with the help of the green dragons that leaped to her side and offered their strength.
She was left gasping as Grozzo crashed through a pile of coins, cursing out in some vile tongue
that sounded like chittering insects.
"Do you even know who I work with?" Grozzo snarled, fresh blood dripping down from his
snout. Like a thin river it traced his dull scales and splattered to the ground. "By taking claws
against me you take claws against her. No one or dragon is foolish enough to do that whelps."
"You speak with a tongue as though I even care." Infinity snarled, crouching low as the green
brothers spread out in opposite directions like wolves on the prowl. "But it's over today you ass.
Humans and elves will no longer fear you."
"Such confidence! Such spirit!" Grozzo smiled, "When you are back in my clutches young
one, it will be a pleasure to count you among my treasures! And don't think for a moment that
will get you off the hook Lyyreth." The purple dragon flashed Lyyreth his teeth and ended it with
a wink. "Green is my favorite color to have squirming beneath me."
"Stop your wagging tongue." Cordeth snarled, The two green dragons flicked their tails in
unison, near identical copies springing from their bodies like phantoms. When they snarled and
pounced, not two dragons lunged at the towering dragon, but eight dragons in all their snarling
glory.
Grozzo snapped out with his jaws, catching one copy of the brothers with his teeth. The copy
exploded into thousands of little lights as they sank their teeth into what they could. "Insects!"
Grozzo snarled, lashing out with his claw and sending Cordenth flying away with a forceful
strike. The scarf wearing dragon bounced off the ground with a groan, his copies all fading away
in an instant.
Infinity took to the air, carrying herself above the five dragon's with a mighty leap and bound.
They kept the tyrant on his paws, making sure he was backing away from their agile strikes,
while avoiding the purple's own powerful strikes. When an opening presented itself she let loose
a fireball, smirking as the red-orange ball of death impacted the purple's scales with a brief,
brilliant explosion. Though when the smoke cleared he was fine, not a single scorch mark to be
found on his toughened scales.
"I think it's time you played with us darling!" Grozzo shouted out in glee, grabbing hold of
Lyyreth's neck with a claw as he stared at Infinity with malicious intent. The green dragon flailed
with lashing claws, slicing little lines in the purple's hide but otherwise useless.
The dragonesses wings suddenly bolted closed, held tight by an invisible force. Before she
even had a moment to cry out in surprise she was sent crashing to the ground and scattering
more treasure around her. She shook her heads as she pushed herself to all fours, not even
getting a chance to flick her tail before something with the force of a stampeding rhino struck her
in the side. Breath was forced from her lungs as pain lit up her side in fire. She was sent flying
through several suits of full-plate, a bookcase that splintered before her, and finally crashing to a
stop against a towering statue in the dragon's likeness.
What in...the world. She groaned, scarcely remembering what Amatae had mentioned about
his telekinesis.
"I got him!" Cordenth shouted, his claws glowing a bright azure as he leaped at Grozzo and
slashed a large gash at his shoulder, splattering crimson gore against the stone and forcing the
large dragon to back away and drop Lyyreth from his clutches.
"Damned little wretch." The large dragon hissed, backing away with snarling teeth.
"Good one!' Infinity cried out, bounding over to the others, unhampered by the purple's
magical tampering. "Now why isn't he effected by lightning or fire?" The question blurted from
her maw as she and the others surrounded the cowering purple dragon.
"Purple dragons are not affected by lightning or fire." Lyyreth replied, growling as Grozzo
chuckled in surprise.
"How could you not know that child? What other things have been kept from you? How much
of your life was sheltered?"
"belana verenriit" He snarled, stomping his paws on the ground as they radiated a brilliant
brown glow. When he reared up with flaring wings, the stone below their paws began to shift
and change. Large shapes emerging from the ground like growing weeds.
"We have to keep him distracted!" She roared, leaping at him with bared teeth, only stopped
as a stone shape jutted from the earth and slammed into her with the force of a giants punch.
Infinity fell to the ground, gasping for breath that was brimmed with sparks of pain.
Just what I need. She groaned as the brothers weaved their way around the stones towards
the hissing purple dragon. When she had pushed herself to all fours Lyyreth and Cordenth had
unleashed combined cones of poisonous gas from their maws, bathing the purple dragon in a
dark green cloud. The followed up, moving like mirrors of one another as they unleashed twin
cones of swirling cold that wrapped around the purple like a snug coat.
Grozzo's wings batted against the air, easily parting the attack as his stone shapes began to
shift into the form of humanoids with oversized stone fists. When he leaped at Cordenth with a
chuckle, they sprung to life with jerking, slow movements.
Infinity leaped away from one such attack, the impact of it's stone limbs sending cracks
through the floor in all directions. She weaved her way through the clumsy creatures, avoiding
blow after blow as Cordenth was pinned to the ground under Grozzo's powerful paws.
"Oh no you don't." Infinity snarled, swallowing down the brief dread as it stabbed at her heart.
She slammed her bulk into the smug dragon's side, joined by Lyyreth to once more sent the
purple tyrant toppling over into his treasure. Before bounding away she managed to slice deep
at the base of his neck, smearing copious amounts of blood over her paws. To her satisfaction
the stone creations crumbled away as Grozzo crashed to the ground.
"Not so strong now are you." She grinned, casting a tired smile to her companions that took
position beside her. They looked exhausted and worn, scratched with little cuts oozing blood
beneath their scales. Breaths were coming large gasps, eyes still trained on the purple's claws.
"Mere...setback." Grozzo groaned, lashing out with his claws as they tried to press their
attack further. "In the end it will all end the same. With me.." His paw smacked Cordenth across
the snout, sending the dragon slamming into the ground. Before he could continue his assault
Lyyreth's claws caught the underside of his jaw, forcing the dragon back.
"I don't think so." Infinity circled him, avoiding the wild thrash of his tail. She had to keep his
attention divided, flank him if needed. She could already taste the victory that was almost at
hand. "You're just a brutal tyrant, and those people out there deserve better. Dragons deserve
better!" She leaped onto his back, claws digging into his membranes as she ripped into them
like a knife through sheets. She bounded away as he went to thrash, his talons scraping
against her scales and nearly sending her toppling head over tail.
The cavern rocked around her with series of magical explosions that filled the air with
thunderous crashes, and brilliant flashes of light as the dragons had at each other like a raging
storm. Savage snarls sounded out as they ripped at each other, a cacophony of sounds mixed
with the sound of breaking treasures. Infinity fared better than the others, already starting to feel
her cuts resealing themselves as the combat continued.
Grozzo despite his slowness was holding his own. His armored scales proving to be tough to
inflict any lingering harm. Attacks that might have worked on other dragons were failing to injure
him as he used his bulk and shear strength to keep the three dragons on their paws. When the
raging purple lashed out it was with the force of a battering ram, his talons cutting into them like
sharpened claymores. Fortunately they had been able to avoid his snapping teeth that seeked
to catch one of them by the necks.
"Ummmmf." She collapsed as a paw struck her hard, her forelimb shooting out to catch
herself with scraping stone. Her muscles lit on fire from the effort, stopping her uncontrolled
tumbling.
"Enough!" Grozzo snarled, his bloodied form moving with an unnatural speed. He smacked
Cordenth away with his tail, the green crashing through a rack of unmarked potions that
shattered and broke before the dragon's bulk. The purple opened his maw, the air around him
tingling like moments before lightning stuck, a slow hiss filling the air. His neck lit up a bright
crimson, spreading to his wings in a great forks. Thunder clapped all around them, near
deafening in it's intensity as red lightning poured from the dragon's teeth. Lyyreth tried to leap
away but Grozzo caught him, bathing the brave dragon in a cackling hiss of electrical