The Sorcerer's Dragon (Book 2) (12 page)

“We’re wasting energy,” Olivia shouted.

“And sunlight,” Remi said.

“What are you talking about? It’s noon.”

“Which means the morning is already gone!”

“What is wrong with her?” Ian said as Harlan bounded in front of Remi and started running backwards.

“You okay, girl?” he asked.

Remi scowled at him. “Never been better. Why?”

“I don’t know. I just want to know what the rush is.”

“I feel like we’re getting closer.”

“I doubt it. There’s not even a light coming from the shard.”

“Of course there—what?” Remi stopped in her tracks and Harlan slowed down so that they wouldn’t crash into each other. As the others gathered around them, Harlan and Remi gave the shard a closer inspection.

“Did you shut it down internally?” he asked but Remi was adamant that she hadn’t.

“No, not at all…you want to try?” she asked, handing him the shard.

He took it in his hands and lifted it high, closing his eyes and willing it to show him the way. The light within it remained dim. “Nothing,” he said, scratching his head.

“I take it as a good thing,” Ian replied. “We all kept talking about how it wouldn’t be this easy, right? Maybe this means we’re in the general area, but it’s up to us to explore from here.”

“That’s kind of exciting,” Remi said.

“Riiiiight,” Olivia said. “I would have chosen a different adjective, but we’re here now so let’s think. Should we keep heading straight?”

“Depends on the terrain,” Ian said, trying to look off in the distance. They were still in the forest. That hadn’t changed, but Remi had to admit that once she gazed ahead, her vision got blurry, as if the world before her was an illusion.

“Manifestation?” Remi asked. Olivia squint her eyes too.

“I have no idea,” she said. “If that’s a manifestation, then it’s a big one. That’s a lot of power being emitted.”

“You think it’s a Sorcerer?” Milo asked.

“Could be a weapon.”

“If that’s a weapon,” Remi said, “then he or she is a lot more powerful than I am.”

“Let’s move forward cautiously,” Olivia replied. Taking one step at a time, they moved slowly, unsure of they were about to walk into. As they got closer to the haze before them, Remi felt her heart began to race. This wasn’t a matter of not being able to see now. It was right before them. There was something visibly wrong with the land in front of them, and stepping past the veil might set off a chain of events that she wasn’t sure she was prepared for.

Harlan stuck a finger through the veil and waited. “Well, nothing’s biting it off.”

“Why don’t you go all the way through?” Ian said.

Harlan hesitated. “Perhaps I will.”

“I was joking. We don’t have to—” Before he could finish his sentence, Harlan stepped through the blurry transparent curtain, disappearing from their sight completely.

No one moved.

Until Harlan burst out from the other side with a big smile on his face.

“Guys, you have to come see this.”

They all took a step forward, and onto the other side.

It was the exact same forest they had been traveling through for the past six months, except on the other side of the veil, it was all covered in snow. Mounds of it. It was so heavy that it fell off the tree branches in clumps. It was so high that they nearly fell over after taking one step forward. The chill in the air was so cold that it made their lungs burn and a few of them started coughing as a result.

Remi bent down and rubbed a hand across the snow’s hardened surface.

“We don’t really have clothes for this,” Olivia said. “Not much, right?”

“I brought a coat,” Remi said. “I think Milo has it.”

“Yep,” Milo said, as he just finished fastening the buttons on her coat over his shoulders. “Yes, that should do nicely.”

“That’s mine, you little imp.”

“You could come catch me if you like.”

“Like that’s going to happen,” Remi muttered. She was afraid to sprint for fear of falling on her face. Olivia took a deep breath and began heating up her body, making the snow melt around her.

“Guess I’m taking lead again,” she sighed.

“What else is new?” Harlan said. Olivia glared at him and then began walking forward slowly, allowing the snow to melt around them. Remi took note of the ground underneath the winter wonderland. There was no grass, no leaves. Nothing but dirt, and it told her that the snow had in fact been there for a very long time. But how was that possible? Did they enter a new world somehow?

“Shush,” Olivia said, putting a finger to her lips. “Did anyone hear that?”

Remi froze in her tracks and began searching her environment meticulously, but the air was still and the woods were dead. Nothing had moved as far as she could tell, but that didn’t mean they weren’t in danger. Remi allowed the tip of her eidolon to stick out of her right shoulder, but after a few seconds passed, she realized that it wasn’t enough. She unsheathed it completely.

“Wait!” Olivia cried out. “Someone might think we’re trying to attack!”

“I have to,” Remi replied as she stuck her eidolon high into the air, the purple light emanating from it reflecting off of the shiny silver surfaces of the snow. Remi didn’t sense anything around them. But there was still something strange in the air. It was as if the oxygen had gotten thinner and drier. But it was on such a microscopic level, was it really a cause for concern? Was—

“Get down!” Remi shouted as she leapt onto her belly. Olivia glared at her with wide eyes but she crouched down low. The others obeyed, unsure of why.

“What are we doing?” Ian whispered, but Remi put a finger to her lips. Though the snow was freezing against her thin shirt and pants, she remained still. A second ago she had sensed an entity. It was very real, very angry, and very, very big.

A screech sounded off across the sky like a shockwave, shaking the tree branches above them. More piles of snow rained down on top of them. Remi took a deep breath and kept silent. It was near.

Another screech made Milo shake so hard that he scurried to his feet in a panic. Remi shouted for him to stay still but he was in caught up in a frenzy. He picked up his grey suitcase and started running toward the veil they had come from. But just when he was about to leap past its border, a tsunami of fire cut off his path. It happened so fast, it was as if the ground below had opened up and burst into flames. The wall of fire was so high that there was no way he could get past without being severely burned. Milo fell onto his butt.

“What’s going on?!” he yelled and Remi ran to his side.

“I’m not sure,” she shouted. “But we have to be careful. Whatever that thing is, it’s so powerful that I’m sure we could be killed with one blow.”

“Screw that,” Olivia said, cracking her knuckles. She then reached down and unsheathed her sword. “This blade of mine’s been thirsty. I’m ready to give it drink.”

“Livi, we have to be careful.”

“Now I know we’re in trouble,” she sighed. “You only call me ‘Livi’ when it’s about to get real.”

Remi ‘s eidolon screamed and she snapped her head forward. Another wall of fire was heading straight for them. Remi tackled Harlan and pushed him out of the way as Olivia and Milo grabbed Eckard and Ian respectively. The wall of fire separated them into two groups. Olivia and Eckard were the only two on the left side of the blazing wall.

“Let’s keep moving forward!” Olivia shouted. “If this whole forest goes up in flames, we’re done anyways!”

“Agreed!” Milo said, grabbing his suitcase and sprinting forward. But he only made it a few feet when he stopped. “Does anyone else see that?”

The forest was crashing down in front of them, the trees started being knocked down like pins and that was when their adversary became clear.

With a wingspan that had to be a half mile wide, the dragon was in the midst of slowing its descent to greet the intruders. It had a horn sticking out of its forehead. It had red, almost metallic skin with green patches blended into its thick hide. Its scales were sharp and moved in the breeze like gills. The dragon’s eyes were a bright yellow and the pupils were black. The teeth showing from its gigantic maw were so sharp that they could cut on contact, regardless of the size of the creature’s prey. Its claws were gigantic and nimble, and it proved its mobility when it reached out, wrapped its scaly fingers around a tree’s entire body and ripped it from the ground. The dragon threw it behind it and huffed, its breath smelling of sulfur and oil.

Remi was in awe over the massive creature before her. It was unlike anything she had ever seen. Though its aura radiated danger, she could also tell that it was intelligent. The way its pupils dilated upon taking in each member of the group. The way it maintained a healthy distance from their blades. The dragon was no dummy, and she was inclined to treat it with the utmost respect.

Remi jumped in her skin as the dragon suddenly slammed its tail into a few more trees, separating them from its roots instantly. At the end of its long tail was a club, almost as if someone had attached a boulder at the end. Just one look at it, and Remi knew that a blow from it meant instant death.

The dragon huffed again and stretched its neck high, revealing its ribs and stomach underneath—a sickly green and yellow abdomen that resembled a shield in some ways. The creature yawned and lowered its head once more, its nostrils flaring as it closed its mouth.

“What do we do?” Milo asked and the dragon’s eyes darted over to him. He raised his hands in surrender.

“Whatever it wants,” Olivia replied. Her hands were trembling around her sword’s hilt. She was trying to stop, but she knew that the creature was faster than it looked.

“Take it slow,” Olivia said, and the dragon responded instantly. It growled and snapped its jaws toward her, causing her to barely roll out of the way. Remi lunged forward and slashed at the dragon’s lip, but it didn’t do anything. Her blade grazed off the surface as if it was made of glass. The dragon turned to her and opened its jaw wide.

“Remi!” Ian shouted, but she was already taking defensive measures.

The dragon scooped her up in its mouth and clamped its fangs down on top of her, but thankfully, she had summoned her armor just in time. Two of the fangs chipped on contact and the dragon spit her out of its mouth and began to crane its neck upward, howling at the pain that shot through the roof of its mouth.

“Now!” Olivia shouted, making her sword as hot as possible. She slashed at the dragon’s leg but it didn’t even cause a mark. Harlan ran forward and gripped one of its toes, trying to raise it from off the ground.

“What in the world are you doing?” Milo shrieked.

Harlan groaned as he broke out in a sweat. “I have no clue!”

The dragon roared and spun around in place. It didn’t hit anyone, but the wind caused by its rotation alone was enough to knock them off their feet. The dragon began flapping its wings—the force was so strong that it kept them all pinned on their backs.

“We can’t let it get to the skies,” Olivia shouted as she tried to get up. Remi sucked her teeth and got ready for the moment the dragon took flight. The window was narrow, but if she acted fast enough, she would make it.

The dragon was finally high enough to start riding the thermals in the air and its wings weren’t forcing them into the snow anymore. Remi leapt up to her feet and sprinted forward, summoning her white Sage robe to appear around her for that extra boost of speed and strength.

She leapt into the air and let her eidolon go, reaching out for one of the dragon’s gigantic toes. She hung on tight and kept her face smashed up against the rough sandpaper-like skin. She closed her eyes and hung on tight as she could hear her teammates yelling from down below. She forced one of her eyes open and saw that she was high up in the air now, far above the trees, and more alarming, she could feel the dragon’s skin getting hotter. She looked up to see smoke coming from the dragon’s clenched teeth.

It was going to breath out more fire!

Remi grunted and hung on tight, wondering what she was going to do when an idea popped into her head. She knew it would take perfect timing though.

The dragon seemed to like getting close. She wasn’t sure why, but if her theory was true, what she did next would work in her favor.

The dragon dove toward the ground and straight for her friends, its skin getting warmer by the second. She forced her eyes open the best she could despite the unforgiving winds and waited until the dragon’s feet cleared the trees.

She made her move.

She took in a deep breath and activated her armor form just as the dragon swooped in to incinerate Olivia and the others. The weight wasn’t much, but it was just enough to catch the dragon’s attention. Remi clutched the dragon’s toe with one artificial hand and summoned her eidolon with the other. She wouldn’t need strength. Just precision.

She stuck her eidolon right under the nail of one of the dragon’s toes, just above the muscle and flesh.

It couldn’t have felt comfortable.

The dragon roared and craned its neck toward her, trying to snap its jaws and bite her but Remi leapt off in the nick of time. She rolled into the snow and was quickly lost in one of the mounds. She could sense that the dragon had changed direction though. It landed on the ground as its feet caused the trees around it to vibrate, bringing more snow down upon her.

It huffed and growled, searching for her earnestly, but she waited patiently.

Olivia was getting closer to the creature, and with the dragon distracted, it didn’t notice that she was warming up her next attack. The dragon took a step closer, sniffing the ground for evidence when it suddenly roared in pain.

Remi burst from the snow with her eidolon held high. She saw Olivia on the dragon’s back with her blade piercing through its spine. Olivia sunk the blade in deeper as she began to sweat. But the dragon didn’t try to snap at her. It started taking flight, and Remi knew it was a bad idea for Olivia to hang on. She couldn’t summon an eidolon nor did she have artificial limbs to help break the fall.

Remi ran forward as fast as she could considering the environment, and when she was close enough, she threw a large amount of energy into her sword and threw it at the dragon. It barely pierced the skin, but it would have to do.

Remi leapt up and grabbed the hilt just as the dragon took flight. Down below, the boys yelled at them as they were taken up higher. In a few seconds, Remi couldn’t see them at all anymore. There were only the clouds and the icy winds.

She expected the dragon to renew its assault, but instead it kept flying forward, further and further away from the forest. Olivia crouched down low and kept her body behind her sword as much as possible. The wind was blowing so hard that her hair was whipping her in the face.

Remi felt the eidolon beginning to slip from its position, but the danger quickly passed as a structure came into view.

In the distance was a mountain, so high that its peak went beyond their vision and up into a second set of clouds. Remi braced herself as the dragon neared the mountain with breakneck speeds. It showed no signs of slowing.

But just when they were about to hit the rocks, Remi found herself free falling. She glanced up and saw that Olivia was in the same predicament. It was as if the dragon had disappeared completely.

Thankfully, they were close enough to the mountainside to reach the rocks and they weren’t going to just freefall to their death. Remi took her eidolon and stuck it out, piercing through the jagged rock surface. The eidolon sliced through and it was slowing her descent, but barely. She was still falling fast and she dared not look around for Olivia. She wasn’t even out of her own predicament yet.

The eidolon slowed as she poured as much strength into the blade as possible. Finally it stopped completely and she kept the soles of her feet up against the rocks, wondering what she could do next.

She heard a cry echo across the sky above her and she looked up to see Olivia performing the same action with her own sword. Except with her, she wasn’t able to slow her fall in time. Remi reached out and grabbed her hand just as she whizzed past and she could hear Olivia’s arm pop out of socket once their grip locked. Olivia screamed out in agony as she hung off the edge, with her other hand gripping her custom sword with everything she had.