Ingrid tucked her head as the branches whipped against her face. She held tightly to Albert’s tunic as they sped through the forest toward Viemen, trying to conserve her strength in case the worst should happen. Lyusya’s spell had done wonders for her, but the pain still lingered where her super-heated plate armor had seared her skin. It was not the first discomfort she had faced, though, and it was nothing compared to what would happen should they fail to kill the dragon. Beside her and Albert rode Lyusya and Mary, gripping similarly to their horses as they moved in sync and with incredible speed and precision through the tree cover. Ahead of them and still somehow gaining in speed was Ellis.
“Up ahead!” he called back to them. “The forest is thinning!”
The spacing between the tree trunks grew further apart and the underbrush became more sparse. At these great speeds, they passed even more swiftly between the foliage, and after a few moments they could see the rolling hills that lay just outside the western border of Viemen. As they finally burst through the tree line, an outline of the town became visible, punctuated against billowing clouds of black smoke.
Ellis felt a great worry well up within him as he thought of his uncle and what might have happened.
“Faster! Please!”
Ingrid watched as Ellis’ mount surged on at an ever greater clip.
“Ellis! Wait! Don’t go too far—!”
Just then, Lyusya’s voice rose up against the rushing wind.
“Above!”
Ingrid and Albert turned to the skies as a surging mass came toward them; a bombarding wind pressed down on them and their horses reared back in terror. Ellis was not so lucky. A forceful updraft surged at his back and lifted both him and his horse into the air, throwing them several dozen feet.
“Ellis!”
Mary and Lyusya rushed toward him on their horses, but their speed was decreasing.
Ahead of them, the dragon spun violently in the air and let out a piercing howl that was cut short as it impacted the ground, kicking up an explosion of dirt and dust. The earth shook violently beneath them.
Ingrid and Albert dismounted quickly and ran toward the dust cloud.
Meanwhile, Mary and Lyusya arrived at where Ellis had fallen. Lyusya had already begun her spell of healing when Ellis popped from the ground with surprising vigor.
“Are you alright!?” Mary asked as she held out an arm for support.
Ellis patted himself quickly all over.
“Y-yeah. I guess I got lucky.”
Lyusya released her spell. The boy was dusted in mud and grass but he was fine as best she could tell.
As Albert and Ingrid approach the cloud of dust, a figure rose upon from the ground— hunched over and panting.
“Telhari!” Ingrid called out as she ran over to him. “You’re alive!”
“For now…” he answered grimly.
“And what of the town?”
He gave her no answer.
Her heart began to ache as she asked her next question.
“And Sir Perry—?”
“Ingrid!”
The familiar voice was like a blessing to her. She turned toward the east as she saw Perry come into view on horseback. He dismounted quickly and ran the rest of the way; the horse refused to approach.
Perry stopped short as the scene came into view. Ellis was there, beside Mary and unharmed. Ingrid too was standing. He wanted nothing more than to shout in joy to the skies, but he begrudgingly held back his elation.
Their fight was not yet over.
Another tremor shook them as the great monstrosity churned in its crater. A leathery wing swept across the cloud of dust and cleared it instantly. Standing before them was a mangled creature, still no less terrifying than when first they had laid eyes on it.
One wing was contorted, broken and bleeding— sinew torn and with fresh white bone piercing through scaly armor. A struggling, clawed arm dug into the perimeter of the crater, while three others planted themselves beneath its great body and lifted upwards.
“How is that thing still breathing?” Perry asked as he stood beside Ingrid and Telhari.
“It is a most formidable foe,” Telhari admitted. “Perhaps more so than any I have ever encountered.”
An undulating growl came from within its throat— the beginnings of a laugh.
“Over seven-hundred years have I stalked the skies unbridled. To think I would be pushed so far by such szlag…”
Perry drew his sword and leveled it at the dragon.
“Ingrid, Master Telhari…Let us kill this thing once and for all.”
Ingrid drew her sword as well.
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“With pleasure, Sir Perry. Master Telhari?”
He gripped the handle of his blade tightly.
“I have enough strength left for one final attack. If it misses…we will have lost.”
“And what of this enchantment?” Perry asked as he flexed his fingers. “Can you give such a boon to Ingrid as well?”
“It takes little effort to maintain, but I do not have the strength for two such blessings.”
Perry clenched his jaw.
“Damn.”
“I am not so incapable as that, Sir Perry,” Ingrid announced as she stepped in front of them both. “You forget, this is not my first battle.”
“Right you are, Ingrid,” Perry said with a wry grin. “Forgive me.”
“I’ll consider it,” she said with a smile.
Ingrid then felt a hand at her back and her muscles convulsed terribly for a moment, before settling; her body now hummed and buzzed with strength.
“What happened?”
“I cannot cast the spell a second time,” Telhari said as he removed his hand from her back, “But I can move it between you with relative ease.”
“I see,” Perry said. “I feel heavier already.”
“You two will form the vanguard,” Telhari started. “Coordinate your attacks until we can find an opening. I will move the enchantment between you, so be careful.”
“Understood.”
“And what about us?”
Behind them, Albert, Lyusya, Ellis and Mary stood at the ready.
“In this state, the dragon’s ability to use magic should be lowered. But even without that, its armor is extraordinarily tough. Remain in the back line and aim for its weak points with your arrows. It may not do much, but even a bit of distraction will serve us well.”
“What about me?” Ellis asked eagerly.
“Are you deaf?” Perry asked, “You are to remain with Albert and Mary and use your bow to—”
“That’s not fair! I can fight!”
Perry lowered his sword and turned to reprimand Ellis.
“Do you see that thing!?” he yelled as he pointed at the dragon. “You will only be in the way. Do as Telhari says.”
“But—”
“Come on, kid,” Albert said as he gripped his arm, “Your uncle is right. You would only be a liability up there with them.”
“But two won’t be enough!”
Ellis watched in desperation as Telhari, Ingrid and Perry walked ahead in formation, approaching the dragon.
“Trust me, Ellis,” Albert said reassuringly, “When you see it, you’ll realize.”
Mary and Albert drew their bows from their backs and each notched their arrows.
“See what?”
Albert pulled back his bow string and leveled his arm at the dragon.
“The strength of Sir Perry Mannigold and Dame Ingrid Helvenin.”
The dragon rose tall above the clearing cloud of dust, peering down at the enemies before it.
“What precious zeal,” the dragon purred deeply, “A pleasure it will be to watch such spirit die.”
Ingrid moved to the left while Perry stepped to the right; Telhari stood between them and back a few paces.
“Are you ready?” he asked them.
A brandishing of their steel was the only answer Telhari needed. The dragon tightened the muscles along its back and lowered itself in preparation.
Ancient, intemperate wrath met by resounding tenacity— the final battle for the fate of Viemen was about to begin.
“I shall suffer your opposition no more!”
Striking like a serpent, the dragon moved with an open jaw to attack them. Ingrid darted toward the dragon, aiming to intercept before it could strike; her body responded with frightening speed and agility. Her blade arced through the air and found its mark.
Clang!
But it still was not deep enough.
So this is a dragon’s scale, she thought to herself.
A motion caught her attention and she ducked on instinct. A gust of wind surged past her as the dragon’s tail swept through the space where her head had been. She doubled back several paces to put distance between herself and the dragon. As she took another step, she felt her body suddenly grow heavy— returning to its normal weight.
Two piercing red eyes rolled in their sockets toward the new target. Perry jumped through the air and rotated several times to build momentum; then he chopped down on the dragon’s body. His blade sank in a few inches and Perry felt a change in resistance as he cut from scale to flesh. He then withdrew his blade quickly and maneuvered himself away as the dragon lashed at him in retaliation.
“Telhari!”
Perry braced himself as his body grew heavy again. Realizing the change in approach, the dragon turned from Perry to search for Ingrid, but she was nowhere to be found. Then, with a forceful thrust from below, Ingrid sent her blade between the softer scale of the dragon’s underbelly and into its torso— spilling thick blood onto the dirt below.
Ingrid dove from underneath the dragon as it collapsed down, trying to crush her with its body.
Telhari watched from a distance as the two of them alternated strikes flawlessly, with even more synchrony than he and Perry had. But if there was any doubt in their movements, it was surely due to the unprecedented nature of their struggle. Though they were skilled in combat, and knew each other well, this foe was one that they had never before encountered. And it wasn’t long before Ingrid was caught in a bad position— within striking range of the dragon and with no time to flee.
“Now!”
From behind Telhari, Albert, Mary and Ellis loosed their bows toward the dragon. Carrying them forward was the unmistakable sensation of spell-work. Lyusya had enchanted their arrows, and so they flew at twice their normal speed toward their enemy. Each of the arrows sank into the dragon, giving Ingrid time to clear its range and retreat a safe distance. Their coordinated effort continued: Ingrid and Perry striking true; volleying arrows finding their mark; Telhari managing to move his enchantment between both of them, in perfect tune with their strikes.
But there was a problem.
Despite holding their own, these opposing forces were at a stalemate. None of these attacks were strong nor deep enough to disable the dragon’s movement so that Telhari could land his attack. And, unknown to any of them, the dragon was not simply avoiding— it was studying.
Frustrated with their stagnation, Ingrid resigned to end things once and for all, aiming for a perfect opening on the dragon’s neck. She had adjusted already to Telhari’s bodily enhancement; and when she felt herself grow lithe and strong again, she dashed forward and poised her blade. With assuredness she leapt into the air and cut at the dragon; her blade sank into the meat of its neck and cast an arc of blood into the air.
Before her attack had even landed, Perry had positioned himself in the dragon’s blind spot, sunk low and ready to strike at the underbelly. With Ingrid’s attack having landed, Telhari moved his enchantment to Perry.
But they realized only too late that they had fallen for the dragon’s bait.
After feinting toward Perry, a skeletal appendage tore through the air toward Ingrid. Telhari hadn’t the time to transfer his enchantment back to her before the impact, and without it, she had neither the speed to dodge nor the strength to withstand. The appendage of the dragon’s wing had on its end a hardened spine that was sharp as a blade; and it was this spine that crushed her plate armor, punctured her chain shirt, and cut into her body, sending her flying through the air.