Pauth stood on the second floor landing. He was still missing an arm.

But Pauth did have his wand, and he was standing between her and her enhancer.

Fleck knew what was going on. He was flying on the outside of the building, near the staircase. He wanted to help. He desperately wanted to help. Yet what could he do?

This always happened. He always wanted to help, and never could when it really counted! What was he supposed to do?! He couldn't breath fire, or anything else! And he couldn't get in!

"You know, Anvon doesn't want me dead," Wren tried.

"He also doesn't want you climbing the tower, and here you are," Pauth pointed out. "And he won't know about this, will he?"

Yes she had a feeling that wouldn't work. Even if she wasn't in the tower, she'd blown Pauth's arm off. He'd probably want revenge.

She took a step back, but she wouldn't be able to get around a corner before Pauth cast a spell. And there wasn't a lot of space to dodge here. She considered going over the railing and making quite the drop to the lower staircase.

Fleck lashed his tail in anger and it hit rubble. Not hard, he was still by the completely destroyed building. But the concrete slid from his strength, and that gave him an idea.

"Are you going to kill me?" Wren asked, trying desperately to stall.

Pauth didn't answer, really all the answer she needed.

But he'd let her ask, and that was enough to Fleck. While she'd been speaking, he grabbed a metal beam, using his front legs and teeth for clasping. He swung on the spot, getting some momentum, and released the beam into the nearest window.

Pauth turned in surprise to the see the beam crashing through. He was slammed in the shoulder with it, falling to the side and looking dazed.

Wren ran past him. She saw a bit of focus coming back into his eyes, but she'd reached the stone, and he sank into the shadows before she could use it.

Wren gasped for air. But it was fine. She was safe.

He'd done it! Fleck had helped out when it counted.

Then he heard a roar in the distance. A roar of anger, but also intense pain. And he knew that voice.

"Glow?"

Well, Aqua and Udo were here. Would it be that weird if one of his sisters was here too?

Fleck glanced between the stairwell where he knew Wren was moving again, and the flaming area a block over, blocked by buildings and smoke.

It was only a brief consideration. Everyone said he was too overprotective of Wren. Well, he'd helped her when she needed it. Now, he'd have to believe she could do it on her own, and go help his sister instead.

It helped that Wren was also urging him to make that choice. Assuring him she'd do better. That she'd be more on her guard after that.

So he flew a street over.

The area had a few buildings all facing each other, a grass circle in the center down on ground level below. Glow writhed on the roof of one building. A few tables that had been set up were on fire now. Glow kicked the door to the roof as hard as she could, leaving a dent in it. She stalked the roof and slammed chairs or potted plants against the door instead. She went to the edge of the roof and breathed fire across to the nearest roof. It scorched the door black and set fire to the fake turf grass that roof had. (Probably some dog park, according to Wren's knowledge.)

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Fleck slowed. Then he saw why Glow was raging. There was a body lying on the floor of her roof. One that was a rider shaped bundle, with horns poking out, and skin that was such a light pink, you might not realize it belonged to an imp without the horns. Was that. . .?

Glow's crazed, bugged eyes fell on him, as much as her eyes could fall on anything.

"You! Where the hell have you been?!"

It was a nonsensical question, but he couldn't blame her. Not when her rider was dead.

While she was focused on him, someone came out onto a third roof nearby (this one with a pool).

"Glow!" he tried to warn.

Then his limbs were bound tightly to him, and he was slammed to the roof. It was like someone had tied wires around him, and he was lucky the yank had knocked him onto the roof, instead of dropping him several stories to the ground below.

The same thing happened to Glow. She had enough time to whirl her head around, snapping at nothing, but she was likewise slammed into the concrete.

Fleck writhed on the ground, but the invisible wires didn't let up. Glow breathed more fire behind her. The elf stepped back into the pool. She didn't burn, but the feeling of invisible wires did go away.

Fleck ran towards the edge of the roof, and flung one of the burning tables across.

The elf looked surprised, going underwater entirely as a table came towards her.

Glow flew off the ledge and started breathing more fire at the pool. Obviously the pool couldn't set on fire, but that water was going to get hotter.

Fleck used the chance to cross. (No way he was risking that while the elf could tie him up and launch him towards the ground.)

Shards of water shot out of the pool. They weren't frozen per say. They still seemed like a liquid. But they were sharper and more cutting than water would normally be.

Worse yet, when they hit Glow, when they sliced ribbons into her shoulder and neck, she didn't seem to care. Didn't respond like she realized it happened at all.

One of the sharp streaks of water hit her wing, and she finally responded. Because she fell from the sky against her will. Luckily, she was already above the pool. She slammed into it, knocking a lot of water out, and staining it red.

That was a lot of red. Was it all from Glow? Or was some of it from the elf?

Fleck gritted his teeth in annoyance, with himself. One way to find out. He went in.

He saw Glow and the elf writhing in the water. The elf pointed her wand at him, and instantly he was sucking in water. He hadn't wanted to, hadn't needed to breath, but it was happening against his will. Spots swam in his vision.

He brought his tale over, and yanked when he felt soft flesh against it.

Fleck was pulled down, sucked down through water, his shoulder hit a rock, he was falling in open air. He wasn't sure what was happening until he hit the ground, creating cracks in it from the force.

He opened his eyes, still able to take in his surrounds even as he hacked up water.

They were inside the building now. From the looks of it, the elf had used magic to create a hole in the pool, and they'd all been pulled to the lower floor.

The elf fired another attack, this one looking like an orb of black liquid.

A wall of ice appeared between Fleck and the attack. The ice shattered when the orb hit, but Fleck was unharmed, and had time to recover. He'd be able to react.

He expected another attack, expected the fight to start again. But the elf stumbled, her eyes unfocused. Now that he had the time to look, her skin was starting to show signs of being boiled, and her clothes had dark red stains. Those stains were growing, especially on her back. She still tried one more time. Seemed if she died, she wanted to take them with her. But she was slow.

Glow lunged. Her teeth were chipped, she had a tear on one wing, and she was bleeding in places. But her eyes were still focused, blood dripping off her sharp claws, and she brought her jaw around the elf with a crunch.

Moon took that time to light down in the room. She grimaced at Glow, who was still attacking what was definitely, by now, a dead body.

"Moon," Fleck croaked. He wasn't particularly surprised to see her. She had to have been the one who'd sprayed ice. The only dragon on this planet who had that ability. But. . . "What are you doing here?"

"Helping you out," Moon answered, moving closer to him and avoiding Glow with what was clearly a bit of relief. Her silver scales had taken on the duller gray of the dust all around. She was lifting one leg when she stood, and Fleck was pretty sure he could see injuries on her belly, but she was doing good all things considered. "The rest of the fighting is over. Except in that one tower. We could go help with that."

Fleck shook his head, some of his earlier frustration coming back, even if he was tired and injured. "No we can't. The flames around it are some sort of magic, and we can't get in!"

"Are you sure? Because Cooper got in."

"What?!"