by Virlyce
“Were you expecting more?” Chi’Rururp asked in return.
“Can you fly with just one wing?” Tafel asked, ignoring the flames that were being pushed back. The firewall gradually took on the shape of a sphere as Charlotte constructed a barrier from within.
“Swords don’t need to fly...,” Chi’Rururp said, its eye staring at Tafel as if she were dumb. “My wing cuts magic.” Chi’Rururp paused. “It’s retractable too. Like a cat’s claw.”
“Can it cut that barrier?” Tafel asked, pointing at the white light that was peeking out of her flames. Only the blood-red wisps of fire were still wrapped around the barrier, the rest having dispersed.
“Maybe.”
“Helpful, aren’t you?” Tafel asked and rolled her eyes before throwing Chi’Rururp at the barrier, hilt first. The sword’s wing stabbed into the white light, popping it like a bubble. The Fangs of Capitis screamed as the phoenix flames rushed in like a flood, bathing them in fire. Tafel held her hand out, and Chi’Rururp reappeared in her grasp.
“Calm down!” Abel shouted. “It might get a little hot, but your armor stops the worst of it! Charlotte! I said”—he raised his sword and bashed the back of Charlotte’s helm with its pommel—“calm down!”
Charlotte staggered forward, her flailing arms pausing before grabbing her head. “S-sorry,” she said as she took in a deep breath. A white light flowed out of her, enveloping the rest of the Fangs, and the red flames flickered while weakening. When the fire was extinguished, she exhaled. “Phoenix flames are frightening.”
“Really?” Tafel asked, raising an eyebrow. “Then have some more.” She pointed with her left palm, shooting out a jet of pure, blood-red fire. A clear phoenix cry pierced the air, causing the Fangs to wince from the volume, and a massive bird formed from the flames, extending its talons towards Charlotte.
“Mistle!” Charlotte screamed. “I know you’re watching! Do something!”
A thunderous sigh rang through the battlefield, and Tafel’s hair stuck to her skin as a white mist descended. The phoenix flames gave a weak cry as steam flew off of it at an explosive rate, shrinking until it disappeared. A giant octopus made of vapor and mist took shape in front of Tafel, a pair of crystal clear eyes staring at her from above. “You’re strong,” a melodic voice said from the octopus. “My name is Mistle, an ocean elemental. You wouldn’t happen to be an elementalist by any chance? I wouldn’t mind making a contract with you if you were.”
“Sorry, I’m not,” Tafel said, squinting her eyes as droplets of water rolled down her face. Her clothes were drenched, pressing down on her body. “And I won’t give up my subclass to become one.”
“Are you sure?” Mistle asked. “I can make you powerful. The flames of a phoenix and the water of an ocean elemental. Some people think fire and water don’t mix well, but they’re wrong. Combined properly, they can be just as strong as a fusion between wind and fire.”
“Hey, hey, Mistle,” Charlotte said, wiping away beads of water from her helmet’s visor. “What do you think you’re doing? She’s my enemy.” She emphasized each syllable. “En-e-my. I didn’t ask you to come here to make her stronger.”
“Why fight?” Mistle asked. “Wouldn’t it be better if we could all be friends? As part of her terms of the contract, I’ll make her stop fighting you.”
“I’m not going to contract with you,” Tafel said, pointing Chi’Rururp at Mistle. “Borrowed strength is useless; the only person you can depend on is yourself.” She furrowed her brow. “And my husband, but he’s not around. I guess that doesn’t make him very dependable, huh?” She sighed and crouched down before using the tip of her sword to draw circles in the ground. “And I probably have to fight a dragon the next time I see him. Why the hell do I have to fight a dragon? Auntie doesn’t know how I could beat that stupid lizard either.” She pouted while making a groaning noise. “I didn’t want to be reminded about that. Now I’m not in the mood to fight.” She raised her head and glared at Mistle. “It’s all your fault.”
Mistle turned around and stared at the Fangs. “Is she okay?”
“Why are you concerned about our enemy?” Abel asked. He slapped the Fang with the rifle’s back. “Shoot her.”
The Fang with the rifle lifted his gun and pointed it at Tafel. She was still sitting on the ground, stroking Chi’Rururp while muttering to herself. “Is, is this honorable?” the Fang asked.
Abel growled. “Honor? Do you remember what she put us through?”
The Fang with the rifle clicked his tongue. He aimed at Tafel’s shoulder and pulled the trigger. A bullet flew out and struck Tafel, but it passed right through her and hit the ground behind her. He fired another bullet with the same result. “She set up a series of portals around herself. I don’t think we can hurt her until she exhausts her mana.”
“Hey, Chi’Rururp,” Tafel said as Abel charged at her. She ignored him before inspecting her sword. “You wouldn’t happen to know a way to defeat a dragon, would you?” Abel’s blade cut at her but passed through her body without harming her.
“Can’t you just do this until the dragon gives up?” Chi’Rururp asked, its eye following Abel’s slashes. It flinched every time the blade approached Tafel’s skin.
“And then what? I’ll just have a pissed off dragon waiting for me to run out of mana,” Tafel said, biting her lower lip. She sighed and raised her head to stare at the sky, but she made eye contact with Abel instead. His sword slashed towards her forehead, but it disappeared a millimeter away from her skin and came out of a portal behind her back instead. “You’re in the way of the clouds. Can you move over a bit?”
“You, fight me like a man like you did in the arena battle!” Abel shouted. “None of this portal shield cowardice!”
“I’m a woman,” Tafel said. “And if I had enough mana to do this for an extended period of time when we first fought, then I would’ve done this instead of a giant spell. This phoenix imprint is really handy.” She leaned to the side. “But seriously, move over. You’re making it hard for me to mope properly.”
“Abel!” Charlotte said. “Just give it up. She doesn’t want to fight, and we can’t hurt her. Let’s leave her alone or she might teleport us somewhere random again. What if we end up in the sky or underground?”
“In the sky or underground…,” Tafel murmured as Abel walked away. “Underground….” Her eyes widened as she jumped to her feet. “That’s it! That’s the answer!” She dropped Chi’Rururp while running towards Charlotte and tackled her, giving the surprised Fang a hug that knocked her to the ground. “You’re a genius. Thanks!” She stood up and waved her hand, causing Chi’Rururp to disappear. “C’mon, Emile! I know how to beat that silver lizard!” She skipped towards the phoenix and met him halfway before turning towards the Fangs. “Oh, and since you gave me some advice, I’ll give you some as well. My aunt’s doing work in that dungeon, so you’ll want to stay away from it until she comes outside. She gets angry when she’s interrupted. Take care!”
Charlotte opened her mouth to say something, but Tafel disappeared in a flash of silver light. Charlotte rubbed her helmet. “I’m not sure if I’m relieved or upset that she just left like that. Shall we take her warning to heart, or check out the dungeon anyway?”
“Obviously, we’re going to accomplish our task,” Abel said with a snort. He advanced towards the dungeon but stopped when a tiny figure flew in front of him.
“No trespassing,” Erin said, crossing her arms over her chest. “Or I’ll turn you into a mushroom.”
***
“Your Gloriousness! I finally found you!”
Vur turned his head. He was holding onto a massive raw drumstick with a dead roc beside him. Red juices dripped from the corners of his mouth, dropping onto his chest and the forest floor. A dwarf was running towards him, beads of sweat pouring from her red face. She got closer and screamed upon seeing Vur’s bloody countenance before stumbling and falling headfirst. Vur blinked at the dwarf before resuming
his meal, tearing off half the drumstick’s meat with a single bite.
“Your Gloriousness!” the dwarf said after recollecting herself. She straightened her back and saluted. “A report! Since the night after you left to find that dastardly Zilphy, more of our soldiers disappeared and four of our cities were completely stripped bare, leaving no one behind. Not only that, but a few cities in the south were destroyed as well by the Fangs of Capitis while they were on the way to our dungeons. Your aunt is at the dungeons, and E has forsaken all responsibilities. The four generals who remained in the capital are squabbling with each other, and we currently have no proper chain of command. Please, tell us what to do!”
Vur continued chewing as if he hadn’t heard her.
“Y-Your Gloriousness?” the dwarf asked, meeting Vur’s eyes.
“He doesn’t speak while chewing,” Stella said as she popped out of his chest and flew onto his head.
“And who are you calling dastardly?” Zilphy asked, a green rock appearing on the ground beside Vur. “I’m freaking adorable! What part of this”—she gestured towards herself—“is dastardly?”
“Zilphy?” the dwarf asked, her eyes widening. She snapped her gaze onto Vur. “You succeeded in contracting with her? Congratulations, Your Gloriousness.”
“I didn’t hear an apology,” Zilphy said, puffing her rocky cheeks out.
“What do we do, Your Gloriousness?” the dwarf asked, ignoring the wind elemental. “At this rate, the humans will win. None of the cities that were stripped bare used any of their ammunition. They lost before firing a single shot! Our technological advantage means nothing if the humans have a method to avoid it.”
Vur swallowed his food and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “If I beat up the king of the humans, does the war end?”
“The humans have an emperor, but yes,” the dwarf said with a nod. “If you subdue the emperor and force him to surrender, then the war ends and we win.”
Vur nodded. “And if we win, I get their territory?”
“Some of it,” the dwarf said and furrowed her brow. “It depends on the treaty that’s signed. Usually, we take one or two cities in our wars. Do you have a plan to defeat the emperor?”
Vur grunted. “I’ll go there myself,” he said. “You guys take too long. And I need to give Tafel a birthday gift the next time I see her. So I’ll just give her the whole continent.” He tilted his head up and squinted at the sky. The dwarf followed his gaze, but she only saw some clouds.
“You’re not going to try flying up there again, are you?” Stella asked, narrowing her eyes at Vur.
Vur grunted again. “For now, a whole continent will have to do.” He lowered his head and asked the dwarf, “Which way’s the emperor?”
“Well, you’re not too far from one of our settlements,” the dwarf said and scratched her head. “If you go southeast and get there, you can pick up a ride to our borders. Then you can rendezvous with our—”
“Just point,” Vur said, cutting the dwarf off.
The dwarf froze. She swallowed. “Pardon, Your Gloriousness?”
“Which way’s the emperor?” Vur asked again. “Just point in the direction.”
The dwarf furrowed her brow. “Um.” She bit her lower lip and tapped her fingers against her thigh. “That way,” she said after a moment and pointed off into the distance. “It’s west by south.”
“Okay,” Vur said and nodded.
The dwarf waited for Vur to say something else, but he just picked up the roc and continued eating. She bit her lower lip. “Um….”
“Was there something else?” Stella asked as she flew off of Vur’s head and tore a strip of meat off the roc. She stuffed one end into her mouth and chewed while staring at the dwarf.
“I, I have nothing else to report,” the dwarf said. “But, Your Gloriousness, what do I tell the generals when I report back to them?”
“Tell them to bake a huge cake that says, ‘Happy Birthday, Tafel,’” Vur said after swallowing. “She likes the fluffy kind that isn’t ice cream.” He paused. “Purple frosting. Lots of fruit on top. Decorate the sides too; don’t let it look plain.”
“You mean a sponge cake?” the dwarf asked. “Wait, Your Gloriousness, I was asking about important military matters.”
“It’s a very important matter,” Vur said with a nod. “The cake should be as big as a dragon. Tell Auntie about it too, but keep it a surprise from Tafel if she winds up in the palace. Make sure you preserve it properly, so it can be taken out at any time.”
“I understand,” the dwarf said and saluted. “I think…? I’ll also tell the generals that you will take care of the war by yourself. Is that fine, Your Gloriousness?”
Vur grunted again as he bit into the dead bird.
“Okay,” the dwarf said. “I think that was an affirmative grunt, correct?”
“It was,” Stella said. “Stop asking so many questions and let the poor dragon eat. He’s exhausted from trying to fly to a star.”
***
Kondra yawned and arched her back while extending her neck, stretching towards the ceiling of the cavern with her eyes closed. “It’s been a while since I’ve slept properly,” she said and smacked her lips a few times. Her mate was sleeping beside her with his wing draped over her body. Leila and Grimmy were sleeping next to each other with their necks and tails entwined. Leo and Luke were playing golem chess with each other. And Lulu’s explosive corner was empty.
Kondra blinked and looked around. “Lulu’s not back?”
“She dropped by twice to say everything was alright,” Luke said, pushing a golem forward. “I think she wanted to see the penguins.”
Kondra nodded. “And how are the penguins doing?”
Luke shrugged.
Leo noticed his mother’s gaze on him and shrugged as well.
Kondra sighed and shook her head before standing up. “Then I’ll check on them myself.”
“Okay,” Leo said as he knocked over one of Luke’s golems and replaced it with one of his own.
Kondra stepped over them and left the cavern through a tunnel.
“Checkmate,” Luke said, moving a golem diagonally.
“What?” Leo asked, his head rearing back. “No way. How did that…? I demand a rematch.”
“You’ll lose again, but okay,” Luke said and nodded as he rearranged the golems. He was about to put his last golem into place when the cavern trembled, rocks falling from the ceiling. Grimmy’s, Leila’s, and Kondra’s mate’s eyes shot open as the earth shook.
A booming voice echoed through the cavern, reverberating off the walls, causing all the golems to fall over. “WHO STRIPPED THE PENGUINS!?”
The five dragons in the cavern exchanged glances. Grimmy cleared his throat. “Well, I got a righteous quest to do, you know, busy busy,” he said, spreading his wings and leaping into the air, leaving the cavern from one of the entrances in the ceiling.
Leila coughed. “Ah, I wonder what Lulu’s up to. I’ll go find her for a sisterly chat,” she said, following after Grimmy.
“Should we stay here or run away?” Leo asked Luke.
“You know what they say,” Luke said. “The wicked live forever while the good die young. If we follow Leila and her mate, we’ll definitely live forever too.”
Kondra’s mate watched as his sons fled, leaving him behind. He scratched his snout and shook his head before curling up, resting his head on his tail. “Selfless sacrifice,” he said to the growing sprout on the ground. “I’m an excellent holy dragon, aren’t I?”
The green sprout wiggled in response.
***
“Your Imperial Majesty!” a man wearing a military outfit with five stars on his shoulder ran into a throne room and shouted at the top of his lungs. “An ocean-blue dragon is heading this way! It flew straight through the empire, ignoring everything—we haven’t even received any reports from the cities it passed because it’s too fast! You can see it on the horizon!”
“Eh? A dragon?” the emperor asked as he stood up. “I thought dragons didn’t interfere in the wars between humans and dwarves.”
“It isn’t a holy dragon, Your Imperial Majesty!” the general said and saluted. “It might be flying overhead without any intent of attacking, but the palace is in its course of flight. And you know how non-holy dragons appreciate shiny things. It might attack just for fun!”
“Ah, then is there anything we can do?” the emperor asked and tilted his head.
“I’ve come to move you to the shelter,” the general said before sweeping his gaze across the nobles in the throne room. “Please, come with me before the dragon arrives.”
“Mm, alright,” the emperor said with a nod. The nobles in the court stood up as well, chattering amongst themselves.
“Please, hurry up, Your Imperial Majesty,” the general said, beads of sweat rolling down his head as the emperor staggered out of the throne. “We don’t have much—”
A crash resounded through the building as cracks formed on the ceiling, causing dust to rain down on the people in the throne room. A tearing sound that echoed like thunder exploded out from above as sunlight poured onto the general and emperor. The nobles screamed and fell to their knees as the ceiling was tossed aside like a garbage can’s lid, revealing a scaly face with golden eyes. The dragon roared, silencing the crowd, before shrinking and hopping into the room. As the dragon shrank, it took on a humanoid form. By the time it landed on the floor, the dragon had turned into a shirtless human.
Vur placed his hands on his hips, letting the aura from the rune on his forehead wash over the nobles in the room. Stella complained about it giving her a headache, but Vur stuffed her into his chest. “My name is Vur Besteck, king of the dwarves! I’ve come to beat up your emperor and force him to surrender!” His gaze swept across the room before landing on the emperor. Someone charged out of the shadow of a pillar before anyone could react, stabbing a dagger at Vur. Vur swiped down with his right hand as if he were swatting a fly, and the ambusher flew backwards into the palace walls, crashing and crumpling into a heap on the floor. Vur blinked at the emperor. “Ah? You’re a skele—”
