Nugget ran through the empty streets of Ashenstone City. Seeing his feet underneath him as he ran gave him a thrill. He was finally visible. When Clemiticus added the Queen to the party, that somehow changed everything. Meaning that the bard and his friends, according to the spell no longer existed. The threat had been neutralised therefore the spell wore off.

Thank the gods, he thought then reprimanded himself. Thank some gods?

It was such a shock to find out that the gods were not as high and mighty as what he first had thought. Apparently, some of them were not so fond of the mortals. Especially ones who had encountered players.

There must have been some sort of history between the players and the gods, wondered Nugget.

He shook his head. He needed to focus.

Currently, Nugget had an important job and couldn’t afford to lose his concentration. She would never forgive him if he failed now.

Running up the stairs of the outer walls, ignoring the sounds of battle, he searched for his Queen.

Explosions ripped through the ranks of molten dogs before the walls, while two furious women fought overhead, riding monsters from legend. A blazing inferno shot from one while a barrage of water the other.

Nugget's eyes fell on his Queen. She was stretched out on an ornate chair while a stone servant gently wafted a large fan over her.

“Your Majesty!” Nugget said, bowing low with the tray outstretched. His mission was now complete.

“Great timing!” she said, grabbing an empty glass. Red liquid splashed as she poured the wine, eager for the drink.

Derrick popped his head up from under a second chair, smiling. He thanked the servant and grabbed the second glass for himself.

“Now this is what I call service,” said Derrick. The dwarf looked very pleased as he took a sip of the local vintage and looked back at the mayhem before him.

“Um, your majesty?” Nugget said tentatively.

She looked over at her servant with a surprisingly calm expression.

“Why did you request me to gather three glasses?” he asked.

The Queen laughed. “The last one is for you, silly!” she said. “You’ve done a great job. Even when I thought otherwise, your understanding and calm composure has brought us good fortune!”

She gestured to the explosive battle before them. Nugget wasn’t sure why the Queen was so calm and confident. Her knights were currently defending the wall by knocking away the molten dogs like a game, while many other semi-broken soldiers were on the ground throwing spears at the oncoming horde.

“You old hag!” Melly shouted far above.

“Little shit!” her mother replied.

Nugget searched the battlefield.

Clemiticus was barely visible far into the distance still balancing on the water god’s head. The water god’s bout with the fire god had devolved into a loose sparing match with cosmically powered fists. It was then that Nugget understood where the explosions came from.

Dylan flexed a giant watery bicep then spun his fist. The fire god readied himself for the blow, protecting his head only to be punched in the gut.

The god of fire roared, revealing his face. It was filled with large sections of cooled rock, places where Dylan had landed a few mighty blows. Dylan alternatively showed signs of damage with small sections of his body filled with grilled fish. Unphased, Clemiticus sung strange songs atop the god.

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“What the hell is that racket?” asked the Queen.

Derrick pointed towards the bard, “I think Clem is singing magical spells to aid the god!”

“It sounds like a cheap eighties theme tune,” she replied.

Nugget cleared his throat.

“Are we winning?” Nugget asked, concerned.

The dwarf looked unsure as he took a sip of the red wine and pointed towards the two mounted combatants above.

“I bet Melly wins that fight. Her odds are three to one in her favour,” he said with pride, then pointed towards the gods. “That fight’s a wild card so I’m thinking the bets about equal.”

Nugget looked down at the thousands of molten dogs who were currently failing at breaching the walls. “And them?”

Derrick sighed. “Not sure about those. The bushfire the big fella is making looks like it births those rabid things over and over. So, for the time being I do not know.”

Nugget shook his head. Deciding it was too much, he gulped down his glass of wine then turned to his Queen.

“I’m going to grab some more wine!” he said.

“Good idea!”

For some strange reason, Dog was having the time of his life. Never had there been such a fun game of tag in the entire existence of Fanswald. The magically empower whale performed a perfect barrel roll, dodging a pillar of molten fire from the mouth of the dragon.

According to Dog’s game, the angry lizard was currently it.

Moments before, he had used a splash of water to tag the scaly monster, causing Melly’s mother to scream indignantly. The incensed woman nearly fell off her mount.

Melly is such a better flyer than her, thought Dog. Feeling proud of his human friend.

Dog chuckled, forgetting his game for a split second as a wave of fire washed over his protective barrier.

“Ooh! Now I’m it!” Dog yelled.

“Hey!” Melly shouted towards her mother. “I’m your daughter!”

“You’re my bloody disappointment!”

“You bitch!”

Potty mouths, Dog thought. He flipped through the air and aimed a magically powered jet of water towards Tanwen. The dragon saw the attack coming and dodged just intime. Dog knew however how the dragon dodges attacks so he sent a second spray after the first, smacking not the dragon but its rider in the face.

“Nice one bud,” Melly said. “Keep at it!”

Dog then spun in place and shot into the sky. He needed a bit of height to gather some cooling water from the clouds. The dragon, enraged by Dog’s little trick and subsequent detour flapped its wings and shot up. The dragon snarled as it pursued.

Melly gripped Dog’s back tighter. The temperature had cooled almost instantly.

A jet of fire flew past, missing them entirely.

“Hey!” Dog said indignantly. “I’m still it!”

Another jet of fire flew by, striking a nearby cloud that dissipated instantly. This mattered little to Dog. His eyes were on a much bigger prize.

With a flick of his tail, the magical whale flew faster and opened his mouth, breathing in as much as he could. The giant cloud disappeared down the whale’s enormous gullet.

“What are you doing?” Melly asked, chattering her teeth. The air was not just freezing but also significantly thinner.

“I’m hungry!” said Dog. “But these fluffy things don’t taste good!”

Melly moved her hand to touch the clouds, feeling the air outside the magical barrier.

“Ouch that’s freezing!” Melly said.

The dragon below flapped two more times to get level with them.

“Go down your stupid git,” Tanwen commanded, but it was no use.

Without a similar magical barrier, her mount looked as if it couldn’t hear anything. A second later the dragon's wings paused mid-flight and its eyes rolled to the back of its head.

Nap time? Wondered Dog.

“Ah!” Tanwen screamed as she held the unconscious and now plummeting beast.

“Does this mean we won?” asked Dog.

Melly sighed.

“I guess we have to save her. Maybe?” She replied.

“I think that would be the right thing to do. Maybe.” Dog answered.

The magical whale darted down while flapping his fins and wobbling his tail. The magical booster he had received from the god of the sea empowered his descent. This allowed him to match the dragon's speed and within a heartbeat, they had overtaken them.

“Help me!” Tanwen shouted.

“Why should we?” Melly replied.

“Because I’m your mother and we’re family!”

“I’m still waiting for a reason! Ugh, Dog just do it!” Melly said.

A split-second later, Dog flew under the sleeping dragon and shot a jet directly in its face. Its eyes darted open and focused on the rapidly approaching ground. Its wings flapped out, griping the air currents underneath. Muscles strained within the dragons’ limbs as the creature gradually slowed its descent.

“Now are you going to listen to us?” Melly asked.

Tanwen looked at her daughter with eyes of disgust, then shouted, “Never! Attack!”

Before the dragon could move a muscle, a giant hand of water swatted the lizard from the sky.

“Out of the way!” Clemiticus shouted. “We’re duelling here!”

Melly watched as her mother and dragon fell the last few dozen feet to the floor in a crumpled unconscious pile.