by Ramy Vance
As Alex looked at the green streak left by the ship, she couldn’t push aside the fear growing in the back of her throat like a bad nasal drip. Soon her hands were going to start shaking, then she was going to throw up. After that, she’d be useless.
Alex wondered where all this fear had just come from. Only a couple of seconds ago, there had been nothing. She’d been fine. Maybe meeting with the Nest’s shrink wasn’t such a bad idea. Talking almost sounded nice. Alex wished she could have talked this over with her parents, but they would have worried. But if they could get past the worry, they would have understood.
The hills were coming up. Time to get your head in this, Alex thought as she focused on the giants who were riding mammoths across the plains. Alex wouldn’t have assumed mammoths could move so fast, but those things were hauling ass. Hopefully, they’d be able to make it to the boulders before the mammoths passed.
Chine’s mind tugged at hers. Sometimes when there had been a long interval, Chine would politely nudge Alex before interrupting her thoughts. What’s up, Chine?
The dragon’s thoughts were soft and almost timid. As the two got closer, Alex was starting to pick up on the emotions behind his words. You seem distracted, Dustling. As if something is troubling you.
Alex should have known better than to not talk to Chine about it. She should have at least let him know what was going through her mind. Even if she tried to hide her feelings from him, he usually picked something up, and they needed to be in sync. They depended too much on each other.
This is too much like last time, Alex finally said. It’s freaking me out. The last time, it was…
I know, Chine replied. I was there. I’d never felt anything like that before. It was disturbing.
What if this is the same thing?
Alex felt her dragon’s positivity wash over her and wrap around her like a warm blanket. It was almost as good as getting a hug from her dad. It isn’t going to be the same. For one thing, if this were nearly as dangerous as the rock was, Myrddin would have had it on his map for months. And whatever it turns out to be, we’ll be able to handle it.
He was right. If this thing was as dangerous as the meteor, there was no way Myrddin wouldn’t have prepared for this situation. That was all the wizard did. And, Alex reminded herself, reinforcements were on the way. Maybe this would be an easy one.
Except for the horde of giants riding mammoths. Comparatively, though, that wasn’t as bad.
Alex and Jim sped up, flying around the giants so as not to give away their position until they got to the hills. They found a spot with a number of boulders. Alex pulled up her tactical display to see how Jollies and Gill were doing.
The display showed that the other two dragonriders weren’t too far from their destination. Alex commed Jollies and asked, “What’s it look like out there?”
Jollies’ voice came back instantly, a little garbled. “We got A LOT of bogies. That’s what you call ‘em, right? Or tangos? I don’t know. I’m not sure I’ve been getting all the targeting slang. Whatever. Wargs and orcs. Same ol’, same ol’. Tons of ‘em.”
“What’s the game plan?”
“Uh, Gill, what are you thinking? Short and sweet?”
Gill spoke over the comm. “I believe I could sneak around to the front and draw most of their attention as you split them down the middle.”
“Oh, like that two-point pattern you were showing me?”
“Exactly.”
Alex was impressed by the obvious teamwork between the two. She was a little jealous but wasn’t sure of who. Either way, it was good they knew what they were going to be doing. “All right, sounds great. Let me know if anything changes, okay?”
“No probs. Jollies out.”
Jim was already in position to get the boulders going. Alex got behind him. Once the first two went down, they were going to have to rush over to the next couple and keep going. The only way this was going to work was if they got the jump on the giants. Taking too long between rolling the boulders would let the giants catch their breath and maybe mount an attack.
After they depleted the hills of boulders, the only other option was to get up close and personal with their targets. These didn’t seem to be yhomir. They were much larger. Alex reminded herself that close didn’t mean too close.
Alex looked at Jim and gave him the high sign. Chine reared up on his hind legs and slammed his chest into the boulder as Jim fired a concussive blast at the boulder in front of him.
Both Jim’s and Alex’s boulders started to roll down the ridge. Neither of the riders wasted any time jumping over to the next boulder and pushing it. Then on to the next. And the next after that.
Alex worked as fast as she could, and it wasn’t long until they had cleared the first hill of all the boulders. She pulled up on her dragon anchor, sending Chine bolting for the ridge across from her as Jim’s mech rose. She landed and started the process again with the boulders on the other side.
The boulders Alex and Jim had already gotten moving were picking up speed as they careened down the slopes into the mostly flat valley.
Alex took off and held out her anchor, pulling her scythe out of the ether. “Let’s get this done,” she said before taking off toward the giants.
Chine dipped into the valley as the boulders Alex and Jim had set loose slammed into the mammoth’s body, knocking the creature to its knees and tossing the giant from its back.
As Chine got closer, Alex could see just how massive the creatures were. These giants were nearly twenty feet tall. They were large enough to swat at Alex and Chine if they got too close. That put an end to one of Alex’s plans. She had originally planned on raining fire from above. Now that she could see how large the giants were, it became obvious that to do any real damage, she was going to have to be close enough that she would be in range of the giants.
Jim seemed to realize the same thing because he pulled up to give himself time to figure out what to do.
The boulders were still crashing into the giants. Luckily, the boulders were large enough to do damage. They were knocking over the giants and mammoths left and right. It was difficult to see if the giants were going to stay down, but some of the boulders were roughly the size of a giant and a mammoth together.
Alex was glad they had put time into coming up with a plan. If they had just walked blindly into this fight, they would not have survived.
As Alex and Jim continued to gauge what was going on below them, one of the giants who had been knocked over got to his feet. He grabbed bits of the boulder that had exploded against his mammoth’s legs and began throwing them at the riders.
Chine dodged the rock, but Jim took a direct hit to his shoulder-mounted machine gun. He threw on his thrusters, putting more distance between him and the giants. If that was how fast they could throw shrapnel, Jim was going to need more space to maneuver. The mech wasn’t as fast as Chine.
Alex worried for a second that all they had managed to do was provide ammo for the giants, but it seemed like most of the ones who had been knocked over were also knocked out. There were only half as many as there had been before.
One of the giants, the one who had thrown the boulder shards, had a gnarled face, its nose looking like it had been carved from a tree, its eyes deep and heavy, with sadness buried within them. He reached down to his side and pulled out a long, curved horn made from a mammoth tusk. He blew into it, releasing a mournful call that echoed through the valley.
Alex sighed loudly as she shouted to Jim, “Whatever the hell that is, it’s not going to be good!”
As Alex shouted, the giant beneath her blew his horn again. “Not going to have any more of that,” Alex said as she drew her plasma pistol. She took aim and fired, and the horn shattered.
The giant below her smiled, its teeth dark and stained. Then it pulled a black rod from his side and aimed it at Alex. The giant shouted something and Alex felt a wave of energy wash over her, pushing her back. The force of the energy got
stronger, shoving Chine back as well.
As Chine tilted backward, Alex felt her feet lifting off Chine’s back. They were no longer anchored. She frantically grabbed her dragon anchor, which was flickering on and off. “Oh, crap, oh crap!” Alex shouted as she floundered, trying to grab something to hang onto.
Alex wasn’t fast enough. She knew the fall was going to hurt, but she needed to think fast. If she wasn’t anchored to Chine, that meant the giants had something that would sever their connection. If they could do it once, they could do it again. Alex was going to be fending for herself.
As the dragon anchor flickered, Alex whipped her hand out again and pulled her scythe out right before the anchor cut off. She clutched the hilt tightly as the giants ahead of her watched her fall. “There really aren’t any easy missions,” she muttered.
Chapter Ten
On the ground, Alex felt powerless. Even with her scythe in her hand, without Chine, she felt like she was simply waiting to die. Fear had overcome her faster than any emotion ever had. Dozens of eyes glared at her from what was quickly becoming a haze, those of the giant who had pulled her from Chine’s back burning brightest of them all.
Alex looked upward, trying to find Chine. It looked like vrosks had detached from the ship above and were now attacking the dragon, trying to keep him away from Alex.
Whoever had organized this attack had figured out a vital aspect of the dragonriders. Dragon was the first part of the job title, rider came second.
Alex glanced at her anchor. It still wasn’t up and running. She wasn’t sure if that meant her connection to Chine was broken or not. As far as Alex knew, their connection was mental and based in Chine’s biology, not the tech attached to Alex’s arm. Chine, can you hear me? she called.
Chine’s voice boomed in Alex’s head. Yes, Alex, I am still here. Are you okay?
The giants were beginning to advance, the one carrying the black rod ahead of the rest, his club resting on his shoulder.
Alex took a step back, her scythe trembling in her hand. Uh, I am for the moment. But I’m staring at a bunch of giants. Get your ass back down here, please. As fast as you can.
Chine groaned in pain, and Alex looked up in time to see Chine whirling, trying to get away from the vrosks that were swarming him. Chine! Alex called.
Chine let loose a jet of fire, but he was still being overwhelmed. I can’t get away, Chine shouted. They must have been planning on separating us. You will have to fight alone until I can get back to you, Alex. Fight well.
Alex’s legs buckled as she took another step back, scanning the air for Jim. She hit her comm but heard nothing. The comms were connected to the dragon anchor. She was alone.
The ground thundered as the group of giants took another step toward Alex. Oh my God oh my God oh my God, Alex thought, the words reverberating in her skull. What am I going to do?
The scythe wasn’t large enough. She was too small and not nearly strong enough. There were too many giants and mammoths. What the hell was a dragonrider without a dragon? If this were Middang3ard VR, this would have been an instant game over, but it wasn’t. Here it meant a slow, agonizing death.
The giant with the black rod stepped away from the rest of the giants as thunder cracked above and rain began to pour. “Ah, you are the human we were warned about,” the giant boomed, his voice nearly as loud as the thunder. “What do they call you?”
Alex’s voice stuck in her throat. She knew she was being taunted but couldn’t answer, simply standing in silence as the giant gloated at her fear.
The leader of the giants pounded his chest and shouted, “Are you a mute as well as a cripple?” He pointed at Alex’s robotic hand. “Let me inform you of the name of the one who will bring your death. I am Hulmor, the First Giant of the Dark One. I will grind your bones up after I tear away your flesh.”
Alex knew she should run, but there was nowhere to go. The giants were much larger than her. She’d be caught in a matter of seconds. Where the hell was Jim? What was he doing up there?
Maybe I can stall until Chine can get down here, Alex thought. “How are you going to do that from all the way over there?” she shouted.
“Oh, so the mouse can speak?” Hulmor chuckled. “After we break you, I’ll boil you alive. That way, you will come right apart, and your bones will crack easier.”
“Break me? Are you talking emotionally or physically? You’re gonna have to be more specific because, I mean, I think I might be emotionally broken already. The last few months have been a hell storm. I saw a bunch of kids at my school die. Then my mind got flayed by your boss and his weird son/child thing or whatever. Oh, and I got dragged into a cross-dimensional rescue mission.”
Alex didn’t know why all those words were pouring out of her, but once she started, she couldn’t stop. They just kept flowing. “I mean, I have a crush on two guys. Which is, like, the least of all my problems. But I really wish it was just my only problem. I miss my parents, and I’m worried how upset and terrified they’d be if they found out how dangerous my life is.”
The giants looked at each other, obviously confused by the rant Alex was giving. Even Hulmor looked puzzled by how the situation was playing out.
Alex started pacing, rubbing her temple with her free hand. “I mean, I am exhausted. Like, really exhausted. I’ve never been this tired in my whole life, and I don’t feel like I can get anything right. I mean, it’s not like I’m doing anything wrong. It just feels like it’s not right. Not good enough. Even this! Chine’s fighting his ass off up there, and I’m sitting here freaking out about whether I’m going to get killed or not. He could get killed. Jim could already be dead! I mean—”
Hulmor clapped his hands, interrupting Alex by shouting, “Human, I think you are confused by—”
“I am NOT FINISHED!” Alex shrieked, the air around her instantly growing hot, a concussive wave of energy streaming out of her body as her eyes flashed red. And just like that, the energy was gone. “But I guess if you want to get all fight-y, let’s get this done. Is it really going to take a dozen of you to kill one human?”
Hulmor still looked stunned by the variety of moods Alex had just gone through. He quickly composed himself, though, and laughed cruelly. “It won’t take any more than me to—”
Jim’s mech crashed into the group of giants, his machine gun firing as he launched two missiles that sent a giant and mammoth flying. Then he leaped among the flurry of flames and bullets lighting the air.
Above, she heard the roaring of mechs as their thrusters cut through the silence of the night. Some of them were heading toward the ship in the distance, and the rest were getting ready to land in the valley with Alex and the giants. “Guess you don’t have a choice,” Alex shouted. “Looks like your friends are gonna have enough on their hands.”
Alex had no idea why she was goading the giant. Chine was still nowhere to be seen, and her dragon anchor still wasn’t online. The brief moment of confidence that had flared up was gone, and she was reminded that she was a very small human standing up to a very large giant.
The giant didn’t need a reminder. He leaped through the air, his club high. Alex lunged to the side, rolling away as the club hit the ground where she had stood, tearing up the earth. Even though the giant was huge, he was fast.
Alex scrambled away from the giant as he chased her, swinging his club. As the club arced down, Alex turned to see it was going to smash into her face. She pulled up her scythe, narrowly blocking the club. The force of the attack sent her skidding back, but she was still on her feet.
Alex looked down at her robotic arm. Steam was coming off of it as its cylinders reset. Alex knew she was stronger on any realm except Earth, but the attack from the giant would have knocked her out a few weeks ago. Maybe the robotic arm wasn’t such a bad idea.
As was usually the case now, Alex switched her scythe to her robotic arm and twirled it once to get used to the weight. Maybe I can do this, she thought. I fought giants earlier t
oday. I’m just fighting another giant now. A larger one, that’s all.
Alex dashed forward as fast as she could, then leaped, spinning in a quarter circle as she slashed at the giant.
Hulmor raised his club, absorbing the force of the blow. It didn’t seem to have fazed him. Alex didn’t care. She’d seen the difference between herself and the giant, one Alex rarely noticed because she was always with Chine.
Alex was ridiculously fast.
Alex, still in the air, whipped around, twirling her scythe behind her back, and slashed again at Hulmor, who had to take a step back before she attacked again. Her next few attacks were relentless, her robotic arm steaming with each attack.
Hulmor continued to back up, barely able to move his club in time to catch her blows.
Alex hit the ground and caught her breath, sizing up the situation. She didn’t want to just run into this. She’d done that enough. Alex wanted to understand the fight. That didn’t mean she couldn’t trust her gut. It just meant there was more to her than that.
There had been a flash of something earlier. Alex had felt it. Fiery energy had given her a boost of confidence. Could it have been the augment she and Chine shared, the one that allowed her to make use of the draconic fluid in her dragon anchor? How had she accessed it before?
The last thing Alex had remembered before the sudden surge of energy was getting angry at being cut off. Maybe it was anger that triggered it.
Alex tried to think of something that pissed her off. Surprisingly, it wasn’t difficult, but nothing happened.
Hulmor was breathing heavily but unwilling to betray his weariness. “Do you need a break, human?” he taunted.
Alex looked around the battlefield. The mechs above were helping Chine take care of the vrosks on his back. Jim and the other mechs were cutting down the rest of the giants and mammoths. Now that Alex thought about it, this mission hadn’t been hard. “No,” Alex called. “Let’s finish this.”
