Even in spite of the monsters, they began to catch up to Alex eventually, closing the barren black and red gap that lay between them, leaping over narrower lava flows and feeling the heat from them on their legs, trying to avoid their clothes from being singed.

When they were within shouting distance, Horatio, at the head of the pursuit, called out ‘Alex! Alexander! Stop! We’ve come to help you!’

The white-haired figure did not stop, or slow the pace of his approach to the tower, or even acknowledge that he had heard anything. Horatio tried calling again.

‘Why won’t he stop?’ he asked breathlessly when Alex again failed to acknowledge his call.

‘He doesn’t want our help,’ said Ross, running at his side. ‘That’s why he ran off while we were distracted fighting monsters when we first landed here. This is a bad idea. We should turn back.’

‘No,’ said Horatio. ‘We’re well past that. We’ve defended him from death once. We can do it again.’ And maybe he won’t be the one to defeat Brax…this time.

He redoubled his pace, legs aching as they pounded the stone.

Another group of monsters blindsided them, jumping out as they crested a ridge in the rock from a hidden gorge that lay beyond.

Battle 4

The latest monsters had slowed them down again, but Alex had got caught up fighting a group of fire spirits himself, and Horatio, Ross and Helen, the quickest runners at the front of the group, were still faster than him, and began to gain on him once more.

They had come into the tower’s shadow now, and had long since been unable to see the top of it without tilting their heads up and craning their necks. But they kept their heads forwards and their eyes firmly fixed on their white-robed, red-sashed quarry.

And at last they reached him.

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‘ALEX!’ Horatio yelled furiously as he finally got to the man and caught him by the hand, forcing him to halt and turn and acknowledge his presence now.

‘What?!’ said Alex, matching his fury. He had been well aware that the party were just behind him then, but choosing to ignore them. ‘I told you this was my Quest. I told you to leave me alone. I didn’t want to endanger any of you any more than you had already endangered yourselves.’

‘But we want to help you,’ said Ceres, arriving and panting. ‘We want to assist you in your fight against Brax.’

‘You don’t know what you are talking about,’ Alex retorted. ‘You don’t know how powerful he is–what I must go through each time in order to defeat him.’

‘Maybe not, said Ceres, ‘but we still want to help. We’re here–we’re with you.’

Just then a terrible roar split the air from somewhere above them, and the stones glowed redder and brighter for a moment.

Horatio looked up, and felt prickling heat on his face.

A gigantic green dragon had leapt from somewhere at the top of the tower, breathing a plume of flame into the air. It roared again, and swooped down and around on its huge, pale orange wings, soaring down to meet the party.

‘Alright!’ Alex said suddenly. ‘If you want to help me, take care of that dragon for me! I can’t afford to waste any more time fighting monsters–I need to get to the Sword!’

He darted off towards the tower, breaking Horatio’s grip on his hand, and the mercenary would have followed him, were it not for the dragon rapidly descending through the sky to meet them.

The dragon hit the ground a ways in front of Alex, blocking his path to the tower, landing with a crunch as the rock cracked underneath its axe-blade claws. It was at least four times the size of a regular drake, with four devilish red horns protruding from its bestial head, and malevolent pupiled eyes that stared at Alex and the party with a human-like intelligence.

It reared up on its hind legs, reaching a height twice the size of a house, and lashed its huge spike-ridged tail lashed behind it.

‘Where do you think you are going?’ the dragon boomed in a voice deep as the blackest abyss. ‘My master has urgent business to attend to–he does not need little insects like you disturbing him. You will make for a tasty supper.’

The dragon inhaled, its chest expanding to a noise like a supersized bellows being pulled open.

‘Take care of this for me!’ Alex yelled, sprining to one side, out of the firing line.

There as no time to think. The only thing they could do was defend themselves against the dragon.

Boss: Dragon