by Sarah Noffke
Maybe because they share the same body, Lunis posed.
She shook her head. This is the twenty-first century. Be open minded, would you?
Why was the first one who nearly ate you for lunch Terry? Lunis sounded amused.
Because she reminded me of this girl I took classes with who stalked me, always making up rumors about how I cheated and that was why I aced all the tests.
Oh. And Krysta? he asked.
Did you see Dogface all up on my business, not even granting me an inch of breathing space? Sophia explained. Some people just have no manners.
And who is that one bobbing around separate from the others, begging for our attention? Lunis questioned, indicating one of the heads dancing around like a cobra coming out of a wicker basket. Maybe it was trying to mesmerize them, although its position away from the rest had put it in a compromising situation.
Sophia stood in the saddle and raised Inexorabilis. That is Susan, she stated. And she wants us to make an example out of her.
Cool, Lunis said casually. First, though, may I suggest you magically enhance your blade to be larger?
Sophia slowed her dragon’s progress, momentarily thrown off by his idea. That’s a genius idea, she stated and cast a spell that transformed Inexorabilis so it was slightly larger, hopefully making what she had to do easier. Thankfully, the larger size didn’t make the blade heavier, but she did need two hands to hold it.
Susan bobbed around, seeming to taunt them as they neared.
Sophia caught Mahkah’s attention and signaled to him she was about to do her part. He darted under the snapping jaws of Terry or Krysta, or maybe it was Carol or Keith.
It was difficult to stay balanced as Lunis swerved, feinting one way and then the other, trying to lure Susan, the lone head, away from the pack. That wasn’t going to last for long, though, as Mahkah changed position, going on the offensive.
Sophia hit the bobbing head with a stunning spell, which she immediately knew wasn’t going to last on the mythical creature. Susan’s eyes momentarily glazed over, and it froze. It was obvious the beast was fighting the spell, and Sophia knew she had seconds to act before it broke free and did something unpredictable.
The only reason she didn’t act when she was nearly in place was Mahkah was still booking it around the other heads, not quite in position.
The twitching of Susan’s eyes was the first clue it was breaking out of the spell. The forked tongue that slipped through is yellow teeth was another clue. The rippling of the lava lines running up its neck was the final hint.
Now, Lunis encouraged, veering to the side.
Sophia raised the sword over her head as Lunis rose higher and brought Inexorabilis down hard and fast. It hesitated on the top of Susan’s head, making her certain she’d fail, but she remembered to combine the effort with a combat spell—the same one she’d recently used on Mahkah—and to her relief, the blade slipped all the way through the meaty neck, severing the head.
It fell to the ground, smashing like a giant pumpkin and sending blood everywhere. From the neck, hot lava spewed as it shot around like an uncontrollable fire hose. Sophia and Lunis flew out of the way as Mahkah and Tala took over. The brown dragon opened its mouth, expertly following the dancing neck as she spat a neat stream of fire at the severed portion, seeking to cauterize it before the head grew back.
Sophia would have stayed to watch and help, but two large shadows crossed overhead, casting her in darkness.
Looking up, Sophia saw the eyes of the heads she was pretty certain were Terry and Krysta.
“Hey, ladies,” she said meekly and held the reins tighter, preparing for her next move.
Chapter Forty-Three
The blast of fire that radiated from the severed neck sent the two female heads in opposite directions, allowing Sophia and Lunis an opportunity to escape.
Hydra was even more pissed than before as the other heads spiraled around, chomping on the thick Oriceran air and letting out vicious roars.
Mahkah had successfully cauterized the wound, which meant no new head would grow back. They still had six more heads, and if legend were to be believed, the job would get harder with each head because the beast would grow more desperate.
That means we need to be strategic, Sophia said in her head to Lunis.
That is your middle name, isn’t it, he replied.
It should be, she told him, considering her options.
What about that repeat spell you’ve been practicing? Lunis suggested.
Sophia nearly barked a complaint but realized Lunis was right. She hadn’t mastered the spell, not even close. It would require a great deal of power to fuel it, but it did make the most sense. The spell, if done correctly, would use one action and repeat them on all enemies.
You can do it, Lunis encouraged, flying so haphazardly it was almost making Sophia sick.
Well, it’s worth a shot, she agreed, looking over her shoulder at Mahkah. He was back to flying around the thrusting heads. There was no time to communicate to him what she was planning. He would figure it out as soon as she tried it, whether or not she was successful.
And then he’d have to act fast. Sophia wouldn’t be able to help since she’d probably be too depleted from the spell. There were so many things that could go wrong with a spell of this sort. It wasn’t just the hope the spell took out all the enemies at once. There was also the concern that it had to target the right enemies and didn’t go after one of her compatriots. Sophia had to be very deliberate and focus on the heads of Hydra and not confuse the spell with one of the two dragons darting around in the sky, or their riders.
She pulled in a breath, knowing timing was important. Hydra was still recovering from losing one head. Soon the half female and half male multi-headed dragon would be raving mad and doing everything possible to take out those posing a huge risk.
Which head? Lunis asked as Sophia stood on his back, once more raising Inexorabilis.
Sophia spied the strange eyes of the head lifted highest. Maybe it was the extra spark of mischief in the beast’s eyes or that she had a lot more green slime dripping from her mouth. For whatever reason, Sophia instinctively knew it was Terry.
Take me up there, she stated. I’m taking her out, and hopefully her brothers and sisters will fall at the same time.
Chapter Forty-Four
The one thing most fighters don’t prepare for when in battle is the unexpected. How can one? How does one know what they won’t expect?
Sophia had been taught how to fly by the very best, and thankfully, Mahkah was not too far away. When she and Lunis took off toward Terry and were caught in an updraft, she was grateful for the words he screamed across the space.
“Go with it!” Mahkah yelled. His words were partially obscured by the screeching wind.
It sought to tear them in two. If Lunis resisted or if Sophia tried to steer him in another direction, it would have taken them in two different directions and sent Lunis to the ground and Sophia into the air.
It was like jumping into a tornado, something no one in their right mind would do. If they found themselves inside the spinning vortex, they’d look for the first way out. Sophia and Lunis knew to go with it and embrace the chaos. So Lunis folded his wings in to make himself as compact as possible and allowed the wind to send them upward in a mass of confusion and uncontrollable power.
Sophia wasn’t sure how long it went on. She felt like she was plummeting through the Earth’s ozone at an insane rate, about to blast into pieces when they halted suddenly, suspended in the air, a strange cosmic force around them.
For a few seconds, everything moved in slow motion. Most things stopped around them. Sophia looked sideways at Lunis. He blinked at her.
Spots of radiant light dotted all around them, making the tiniest details suddenly visible. That’s when Sophia realized she wasn’t on her dragon. The panic hit her mind at the same moment everything went back into hyperspeed. Sophia was suddenly falling fast back to
ward the Earth. The vortex was gone. Lunis was a strange mass of ungraceful movements as he freefell and tried to get himself in the right position for flight. The ground was quickly approaching, its hard surface promising death.
Just when Sophia was prepared to take the coward’s way out and close her eyes, Lunis rotated so his wings were upright and his underbelly faced the ground. Then he shot forward, diving under Sophia and knocking her in the face, head, and stomach but managing to glide under her until she was back in the saddle once more.
Not missing a beat, he shot up to fly dangerously close to the neck of Terry, who was distracted by the strange vortex now spinning around her face. Her red eyes shot down at the last moment, but Sophia was already in place, her mouth quickly repeating the words of the most complex spell she’d ever used. Not only did it take a great deal of power, but Sophia had to quickly locate the other five heads. All of them were focused on Mahkah, who was running interference, knowing Sophia needed the distraction.
Sophia raised the giant sword and swung it, using solely her own muscle power since all her focus had to be on the repeating spell.
The expression of horror on Terry’s face when the blade connected with its scales gave Sophia a pure moment of satisfaction. She brought the blade across while thinking of her contempt for bullies and wrongdoers and her desire to preside over justice. To her astonishment, the blade cut through cleaner than before, severing one of Hydra’s heads and sending it tumbling nose over mouth to land with a splat.
Once more, everything slowed down. Sophia looked around at the other five heads, which had paused. She didn’t know if the spell had worked or if she needed to come up with another strategy. Then she knew there couldn’t be another approach because the spell, whether it had worked or not, had drained her magical reserves.
She slumped onto Lunis, finding it difficult to hold her head up. Her vision blurred. She desperately wanted to sleep right then. She would have fallen into a dreamless stupor if the screams around them hadn’t woken her up.
There were murderous sounds as blood and lava shot out of the five necks after something invisible sliced through them and the heads tumbled to the ground.
Mahkah’s astonishment at the sight was a beautiful thing, but he recovered quickly and started cauterizing the wounds before the necks could grow more heads. It had to be quick work, but he and Tala darted around, her shooting fire as the necks jerked around like a chicken with its head cut off. The reference nearly made Sophia laugh until she noticed one of the heads was still narrowly attached to the neck, hanging by a thin sliver of skin. She was about to race up to it and cut through it completely when the skin stretched just as Mahkah was flying next to it, his attention on cauterizing the other wounds. The dragon head broke free of the severed neck and fell toward the ground. It would have been fine, except the teeth of the hungry dragon scraped across Mahkah’s back and down Tala’s tail as it made its final descent.
Dragon and rider had been marked by Hydra, and when Sophia’s gaze connected with Mahkah’s, she knew from his expression that the results might be deadly.
Chapter Forty-Five
The headless beast crashed to the ground with such force the cave behind it began to tremble. Rocks spilled off the sides and tumbled across the platform, knocking into the massive monster and covering it.
Veins of lava spiraled under the black skin of Hydra, making it inflate. The peak of the Mountain of Truth was about to come down. Worse, it appeared Hydra was going to explode lava everywhere.
Sophia steered Lunis toward the fallen rider and dragon. They had landed as ungracefully as she’d ever seen the expert rider do. Tala staggered, trying to get her feet under her, but fell on her face. Mahkah jumped from his dragon, concern evident in his every movement. He looked to be having just as much trouble controlling his limbs as his dragon and collapsed to the ground after only a few steps. He tried to push up and recover, but it didn’t appear he could.
“We have to get them out of here!” Sophia yelled. She encouraged Lunis to fly after the pair. The blue dragon sped, flapping his wings faster than ever before.
Hydra was growing in size like a hot air balloon being inflated. The ground under it and the dragon and rider were vibrating so hard it would have been nearly impossible for them to stand even if they weren’t injured. The cave behind Hydra was dangerously close to falling.
Sophia ignored everything and slid off Lunis before he had even lowered all the way down or slowed and landed in a crouched position. She hurried to Mahkah to help him up.
She knew better than to ask him if he was okay. The way his eyes rolled back in his head when he tried to focus on her told her all she needed to know. “We’re getting you out of here. The Castle will fix you.”
“B-b-but the reason you came here,” he stuttered. His head wove back and forth.
Lunis had landed beside Tala and was trying to help, but there wasn’t much he could do with the ground rumbling and rocks banging into them.
He’s right, Lunis said to Sophia. You know what you came here for. His gaze darted to the crumbling cave.
Sophia opened a portal to the area just outside the Barrier. It shimmered faintly, a product of her magic reserves being low, but after a moment, it solidified. “Lunis, you have to take them through.”
But Sophia, Lunis argued, conviction in his eyes.
“You have to help them,” she ordered with a rueful expression on her face. She didn’t want Lunis to leave her and entering a cave that was about to collapse was definitely not on the list of things she wanted to do, but they’d come this far. They’d defeated Hydra. Papa Creola had been adamant she be in charge of the token if she defeated its guard. That was what she’d done, and she had to take on the responsibility.
Sophia, Lunis said, real fear in his eyes.
“I demand you take them through,” Sophia said. “You once told me I got to make three demands of you, remember?”
He nodded. The first was to allow you to ride me.
She managed a smile as she helped Mahkah up. He was sweating profusely. “And now I demand you take them through. Call the others. Get Mahkah to the Castle and Tala to the Cave. I’ll return when I can.”
Lunis pulled in a breath, regret heavy in his eyes. He knew she was right, both to demand this and also to not abandon their mission. Okay, be fast.
Sophia walked Mahkah over to Lunis, Tala on the other side. The rider held onto the blue dragon when Sophia released him.
She tried to look into Mahkah’s eyes, but they were mostly closed. “Lunis will get you home. You’ll be okay. Thank you for what you did.”
Maybe Mahkah had no response, but it was more likely he simply couldn’t manage one.
The ground quaked hard under them and nearly sent Sophia into the portal. Lunis extended his neck quickly to give Sophia something to grab onto. She reached out and held her arms around her dragon’s head, hugging him to her. Briefly, they looked into each other’s eyes.
“Come home as soon as you get the token,” he said, his gaze intense.
“Nothing will keep me from you,” she said and stepped back and to the side to make way for them. “Now hurry, get them home.”
Without another word, the blue dragon led Mahkah and Tala through the portal, leaving Sophia alone on a crumbling mountaintop with a mythical creature that was going to explode soon.
Chapter Forty-Six
The veins of lava had continued to swell and protruded out of the black dragon. Sophia didn’t know what would happen when the creature exploded, but she was certain that was how its story ended.
She weaved around the many heads of the monster, nearly falling on Terry or Susan or whoever it was as she made her way for the cave entrance. Rocks rained down from overhead, but she covered her head and sprinted forward, not hesitating to enter.
Sophia wasn’t sure what she expected to find when she entered Hydra’s cave, but what she found wasn’t it. The cave, which she’d have expected to
be large enough to house a seven-headed dragon, was tiny. Hydra’s cave was the size of a closet. Sophia instantly backed up, wondering if she’d entered it the wrong way.
She worried killing Hydra had done something to the cave. When she entered again, she knew it had to be right because hanging high on the cave wall was a golden coin.
“The token,” Sophia said and nearly fell as the largest tremor yet rocked the Mountain of Truth.
Rocks and dust rained down from overhead. She covered her head and wondered how she was going to get to the coin. It was much too high for her to reach, and she worried about using magic since she needed enough to portal home.
The cave grew furiously hot, as if Sophia had just stepped into a dry sauna. Her brow began to pour sweat, and she felt like she might start roasting.
When she stuck her head out of the cave, she saw what was causing the intense heat. Hydra was seconds away from exploding. If it was hot here before, Sophia could only imagine what it would be like when the dragon exploded.
A giant thundering sound filled the air. Sophia looked up as the peak crumbled and came sliding down the side of the mountain. She ducked into the cave as boulders rained down, sending dust and debris all over. The entrance was almost completely covered, making the heat even worse, like she was in a stone oven.
Sophia’s eyes connected with the token. She was out of options. As she held out her hand, she simultaneously drew the token to her and made a silent prayer portaling was allowed inside the cave. If not, this would no doubt be her final resting place.
The gold token raced across the short distance and met the palm of her hand, hot to the touch. Sophia didn’t flinch from the burn but instead sent all the rest of her energy into creating a portal home. To her relief, the cave did allow for portaling, but the tunnel that appeared flickered, not materializing fully.
