by Ramy Vance
The Mundanes split, Stew and Suzuki charging as Beth and Sandy fell to the back. Sandy went to the far left of the cavern as Beth went to the right.
Anabelle was frankly impressed by the cohesion of the Mundanes and their ability to move so quickly. Whatever they had in store had been practiced multiple times, and Suzuki was deft at giving commands. Unfortunately, Anabelle and Terra were not at the same level.
Terra looked at Anabelle, obviously flustered. “What am I supposed to do?”
Anabelle thought fast. “Stick with Stew. He seems to have a similar fighting style to yours. Take cues for what to do from him. I’ll roll with Suzuki.”
Terra dashed after Stew, who was a few feet away from Telzrem. The two of them swung their axes at Telzrem, who raised his hand, creating a barrier shield around himself. He floated backward, casting a small thunderstorm between him and his opponents.
At the back of the cavern, Sandy was busy carving a sigil into the ground. When she saw the thunderstorm forming, she conjured her own book of spells in front of her, flipping through the pages furiously. She finally found what she was looking for and started working her magic.
A strong gust of wind ushered from her, dispelling the thunderstorm.
Telzrem was moving again, weaving another spell as the barrier extended to the far side of the cavern. It effectively cut the dragon off, giving him time for his magic.
Anabelle knew what she could do about the barrier. She might not have the tactical mind of Suzuki, but she had an instinctual understanding of battle. Anabelle pulled her mana into her hands and fists, drawing from the area around her and the extra magic generated by Sandy and Telzrem’s spells, and ran toward the barrier. She leapt and brought her fists down on the barrier as they burst into flames.
The barrier quivered, and after the elf landed, she delivered a flurry of kicks to the barrier, cracking it and allowing Terra and Stew to charge Telzrem.
The dragon was caught off-guard, his eyes wide. Apparently, he’d had no idea what Anabelle was capable of.
Stew jumped and slashed at Telzrem, who threw up a small barrier to deflect the attack as Terra flew past him, throwing her axe.
Telzrem managed to dodge the attack, but Terra didn’t let up. She was on him in seconds, smashing her fists into his face. “Just give us the fucking jar!” she shouted.
An arrow flew past Terra with the force of a bullet and hit Telzrem in the shoulder, sending him flying and pinning him to the wall.
Terra charged after the man-dragon, smashing into him with her shoulder. She pounded her fist into the dragon’s face until a blast of energy sent her flying backward.
Telzrem pulled the arrow from his shoulder and grinned as it burst into flames. “You have quite the set of skills. Very well, let us battle.”
He began whispering in the ancient dragon tongue. As he spoke, his body vibrated, shadows of himself shifting away from him. Three more versions of him, slightly less gold, pulled away from his body. “Now we shall commence,” the four Telzrems said in unison.
One of the Telzrems teleported in front of Beth. He slashed at her with a conjured sword, causing her to fall backward. She rolled to the side, leapt to her feet, and fired three arrows that the Telzrem shade easily knocked away.
“Fine,” Beth said as she put away her bow and drew her daggers. “Let’s fucking play.” She dashed at the shade, moving incredibly fast. She slashed across its stomach, then moved behind it and jumped onto its back, driving her blades deep into its neck.
Another of the shades stepped to Suzuki and Anabelle, a sword in its hand. Suzuki lunged at it, their blades meeting. The two clashed, slashing and striking at each other, their feet never ceasing as they danced away from each other.
Anabelle leapt into the fray, her hands crackling with lightning, forcing the shade onto the defensive as it stumbled away, while still managing to deflect her attacks efficiently.
Suzuki bashed his shield into the shade’s head, breaking its guard.
Anabelle saw her chance and channeled as much outside mana as possible, then leapt and brought her hands down in a shockwave of electric energy that flung the shade into the air.
Suzuki slipped under it, driving his sword into its chest.
Before Suzuki could step away, the shade exploded in a cloud of smoke. Suzuki grasped his chest, coughing as he fell to the ground, his feet turning to stone and connecting to the ground. The stone climbed up his body. “Sandy!”
Sandy, who was on the other side of the cavern, dashed forward, turning into a cloud of smoke and moving through the battlefield where Stew and Terra fought one of the shades. Their axes bashed at it, but it was wielding a great sword, and reformed in front of Suzuki. Sandy cast a healing spell that froze the stone growth on Suzuki.
Suzuki stared down at his legs. “Are you serious? I’m going to need more than that!”
A bolt of lightning struck the ground next to him, forcing Sandy to dodge to the side.
Sandy pointed at Telzrem, who was floating above the field of battle, weaving his magic and spells throughout the cavern. “I have to take care of that! He’s buffing all the shades and doing fuck knows what else.”
Anabelle pushed Sandy back. “You take care of him. I’ll handle Telzrem.”
“Are you sure? He’s a powerful wizard. His understanding of magic—”
“Magic isn’t something you read about in books. It’s something you use to bash someone’s fucking face in.”
Anabelle drew her mana together, leeching off the energy being cast by Sandy and Telzrem. She knew what she was capable of. Grok had shown her the depths of her power. She let out a scream of rage, and a blue aura surrounded her as lightning crackled at her feet.
She flung herself into the air, moving faster than she could have imagined, and appeared in front of Telzrem, whose eyes widened in surprise.
Anabelle chopped him in the neck, lightning bursting from her hand as she drove him to the ground. As Telzrem fell, Anabelle followed him. The man-dragon hit the ground, and Anabelle’s fist slammed into his chest.
A shockwave of energy shot through the room.
Anabelle pummeled Telzrem, hitting him in the face over and over before delivering the final blow. “That is my jar!”
Telzrem lay still on the ground as the rest of the Mundanes and Terra finished off their shades, which evaporated into smoke.
Anabelle stood, flicking her hair out of her face. “There we go. Now let’s get that jar.” She walked over to the object in question, which was still floating in the middle of the room.
“Not so fast.”
Anabelle turned around to see Telzrem slowly getting to his feet. “You do seem to have a lot of strength,” Telzrem said. “Let’s put a stop to that.”
Telzrem placed a finger over his mouth and hissed at Anabelle, a sound that reverberated through the cavern, sending the elf through the air.
Anabelle hit the wall of the cavern and slid to the floor. As she picked herself up, she noticed something; she couldn’t feel her magic.
Telzrem breathed a plume of fire as he cackled.
Chapter Twenty-One
Telzrem’s body began to change and contort. His bones cracked and he leaned forward, his legs jerking as his suit melded into scales, his neck stretching and his tail exploding out of his back and whipping back and forth.
Anabelle heaved a sigh. That last attack had taken a lot out of her. Even if she knew how to push her body, it didn’t seem as if the Path of the Travelers or the Path of the Lost was simple to access.
Grok had taken Anabelle over the edge. She wasn’t sure how to get there herself.
Terra didn’t seem bothered by the dragon’s transformation. She shrugged and took off after him, followed quickly by Stew. She slashed at the dragon, but the attack was deflected by his tail. Stew followed up Terra’s attack but was met by the same rebuttal.
Telzrem curled his tail around his body and began to glow.
Suzuki backe
d away and shouted, “On me, now!”
The Mundanes obeyed and circled Suzuki. Anabelle and Terra did the same for lack of anything else to do.
Suzuki peeked over Terra’s shoulder. “Okay, we know he’s a high-level spell caster. That means we can expect more than elemental attacks. What you got for us, Sandy?”
Sandy’s death mask disappeared for a second. “If we stick to attacking him one on one, it’ll make it harder for him to use any AOE spells. I can handle taking care of one or two of you, but if we all get hit, we’re going to be fucked.”
Suzuki nodded. “Okay. Sandy, I want you to buff all of us. Beth, no more support. I want you in there putting pressure on with Stew.”
Despite Anabelle’s inclination, she cleared her throat and asked meekly, “What do you think we should do?”
Suzuki looked surprised at Anabelle’s question. “Wait, you’re asking me?”
“Listen, human, I can admit when there’s something I need to learn. You’re obviously skilled at strategies that involve more than three people. Let’s leave it at that.”
Suzuki seemed to be unable to process what he was hearing. “I’ve never met an elf willing to take orders from me. All right, can you help Sandy?”
“Unfortunately, my magic doesn’t work the same way as hers.”
Sandy rested her hand on Anabelle’s shoulder. “No worries. I got this one figured out. I’ll show you.”
Suzuki twirled his sword as he stepped out of the circle. “Terra, do you think you can show Stew why you lasted in the arena?”
Terra sighed as she stared at Telzrem. “That might be a problem. A lot of my strength is…I don’t know, kinda like an adrenaline rush, and frankly, there’s nothing heart-pumping about fighting this mage dragon guy.”
Stew shoved Terra. “Are you serious? Come on, dude, let’s fuck this guy up. It’s a fucking gold dragon!”
“Sorry, bro. Your D&D nerd tidbits don’t mean anything to me because I have no fucking idea what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t you have a blood rage or something you can activate?”
“Still no idea what you’re talking about.”
Stew looked at Suzuki. “Permission to Leroy the hell out of this and show Terra what a barbarian looks like.”
Suzuki smiled at Stew. “Oh, you’re asking permission now?”
“Not really. I just thought it sounded badass,” Stew said as he drew a dagger from his side. He slashed his chest and let out a roar, his eyes glowing bright red for a second. His muscles bulged as they increased in mass. “Leroy-motherfucking-Jenkins!”
Stew stormed out of the group, his steps cracking the ground.
Telzrem swiped his tail at Stew, but the barbarian leapt into the air, narrowly avoiding the attack. Suzuki shouted, “In formation! Let’s get that jar!”
Stew landed on top of Telzrem, knocking the dragon down. He scrambled to move, but Stew grabbed him by the throat and held him down. He reached back to slug the dragon. Unfortunately, Telzrem’s tail whipped around, sending Stew flying.
Terra leapt and snatched Stew. “Are you serious? You just slash your chest and get mad?”
Stew stared at Terra like a newborn baby. “The thrill of battle, you know?”
Terra put Stew on the ground. “Okay, I got you. I’ll give it true.” She let out a heavy roar and hit her chest. “I am now enraged!” Terra sprinted at Telzrem, who was back on his feet, alongside Suzuki and Beth.
Beth got ahead of Terra and slid, pulling her short bow out and firing shot after shot.
Telzrem spread a barrier around him to deflect the arrows.
Terra leapt and landed behind the dragon. She threw her axe at him, but he deflected it with a small shield. Terra didn’t relent, though, following through by getting close and hitting him in the jaw.
Telzrem stumbled back, attacking with his tail to get more space. Suzuki was already on top of him, slashing at his throat.
Anabelle, who was in the back with Sandy, could see Suzuki’s strategy. If Telzrem was constantly on the defense, he wouldn’t have time to cast his magic. “What are we going to do?” Anabelle asked.
Sandy’s wand floated in front of her. “I’m casting spells to increase their endurance so they can keep up the attack. I can also funnel mana to you. All you have to do is get a little creative from back here.”
Anabelle wracked her brain. She couldn’t cast specific spells like Sandy, but the elements were under her control. All she had to do was think.
She looked at the rock formations above. “Got it.” Then she slipped into one of the first stances she’d learned along the path, a technique most Travelers moved out of. She reached toward the rocks, planted her feet, and flexed her mana, causing a rock from the ceiling to head straight toward Telzrem.
The dragon looked up at the last second and waved his paw, turning the rock to water.
Anabelle stretched out her mana, her hands covered with frost, and turned the water into ice shards that struck him.
Telzrem twirled, clearing space with his tail, then floated into the air, away from attacks. Beth tossed her short bow to the ground and pulled out her longbow. She nocked an arrow, drew back, and let it fly.
The arrow hit the dragon in the chest, and he smiled as he pulled it out. “Just what I needed.” He flicked the arrow on the ground, and flames surged where his blood fell. “This ends now!”
Telzrem opened his mouth, and a yellow mist flowed out of him.
“Oh, shit!” Sandy shouted as she ran forward. She cast a defensive barrier around Suzuki, Stew, and Beth, but it was too late. The barrier that surrounded them locked in the mist.
Suzuki’s eyes widened as he swung at the barrier, trying to escape. His movements were slowed, hampered by the dust. He moved at a snail’s pace.
Telzrem rocketed toward the ground and tackled Terra. As she tried to get to her feet, he wrapped his tail around her throat and slammed her into the ceiling and then the ground.
Her hands clawed at Telzrem’s tail as she struggled to breathe.
Anabelle pulled up the stones around Telzrem, knocking him over, then punched him in the face. She drew the stones around the dragon, hindering his ability to get up. Last, she roundhouse-kicked him, her legs bursting into flames.
Telzrem grabbed Anabelle’s leg and grinned, his sharp teeth gleaming. “Oh, young fae, I was born of fire.” Flames radiated from his hands, and an explosion sent Anabelle crashing into the wall.
Only Sandy still stood.
Telzrem waved his hand, sending a fireball at Sandy, who cut through it with her wand. “A talented mage. It is a shame to end a life so young.”
Sandy slashed her wand at Telzrem, tearing up the ground beneath her. “I will not fall easily. Tonight, I bathe in dragon’s blood.”
Telzrem sent a whirlwind of fire at Sandy, whose body broke apart into ash and reformed. She swung her wand and shot a streak of lightning at the dragon, who easily deflected the attack. “Typical. Humans and elves always rely on the basest of magics.”
The dragon darted forward, appearing in front of Sandy as if he’d teleported. “Seems a waste to use magic to kill you. To be fair, you are quite advanced for such a youthful mortal.”
Telzrem hissed, and time froze. Then he whirled and slammed Sandy with his tail.
Sandy didn’t move, but pain registered on her face as she screamed.
“Goodbye, mortal.”
Telzrem’s jaw opened, unhinging as golden flame burned deep in his throat.
A bright green blast of magical energy hit him in the face, knocking him back and blasting through the dust-filled barrier Suzuki and the rest were locked in.
Another blast hit the barrier, tearing it to shreds. Suzuki and the rest poured out, grabbing their throats and gasping for breath.
A cloaked figure stepped out of the shadows at the cavern’s entrance, their hands glowing green.
Suzuki crawled to his feet and grabbed his sword as Anabelle, across the ro
om, stumbled to her feet. They both stared at the cloaked wizard. “You here for the jar too?” Suzuki shouted.
The figure slowly shook their head.
“Then what are you here for?”
The cloaked warrior darted forward, slinging blasts of green energy at the dragon, who dodged before leaping into the air and wrapping his tail around himself.
Anabelle joined Suzuki. Terra, Stew, and Beth were still out cold. “Friend of yours?” Suzuki asked.
The elf cast a glance at the cloaked figure walking toward them. “Uh, it might be a dude who we met in a dungeon, but I don’t remember him being able to use magic like that.”
“A friend of my enemy…”
Suzuki pointed his sword at the cloaked figure. “Friend or foe?”
When the figure spoke, their voice was garbled, like many voices were speaking at once. “Friend.”
Above, Telzrem’s wings unfolded as he transformed back into his natural state. He roared, and the walls of the cavern shook as he blasted fire at the three remaining warriors, his rage exploding.
Anabelle and the cloaked figure dodged while Suzuki stood his ground, holding his shield to protect himself from the fire. “We need to bring him down!” he shouted.
The cloaked figure looked at Anabelle and then at the dragon. They jumped into the air, green energy flying from their hands as black tentacles broke from the ground, wrapping around Telzrem’s legs and hands, trying to pull the dragon to the ground.
Anabelle drew her mana to her legs and leapt, her body warming with fire and lightning. Her knuckles cracked into Telzrem’s face, then her body shifted to cold, her skin wearing frost for a moment as she flash-froze the dragon’s head.
Telzrem flicked Anabelle away, but she managed to land gracefully on her feet. Meanwhile, he clawed his face as he breathed fire to burn through the ice.
The cloaked figure, still bristling with green energy, yanked down with their hands, the tentacles around them pulling the dragon with more force.
As the dragon closed, the cloaked figure fired a powerful blast of magic at him.
