Alatar and Mira roll across the stone floor and hit a wall. Alatar helps Mira up and then looks around. "Damnit!" He says, pissed. Mira rubs her head as she looks around. "This is insane," she says as Alatar starts moving. "Follow me. We need to clear this area out." He says, unsheathing his blade and handing it to Mira. "I'm fine; I don't need a blade." She says as Alatar twirls the blade, resheathing it. He flips a switch on his flintlock; its sigils glow white. "Use my eyes; we are in uncharted territories," Vorgrimm says in Alatar. "I already know," Alatar says as his eyes glow orange. Traces of unknown Mana flows through the air. It looks bubbly and sticky as it seems to stick to the air.
Chirping is heard straight ahead as they continue forward, seeing a set of stairs that lead upward. Alatar looks at Mira, and she nods. Clicking noises are heard as the movement gets closer. The chirp becomes a screech as it drops down and growls at them. It's a reptilian beast with red scales that shimmer like molten metal. It shoots a torrent of flame at them as they move out of the way. Alatar shoots his flintlock pistol at it as beams of wind hit it in the neck as it aims at the stairs, melting it. Mira dashes at it as she jumps, bringing down her heel. A crater enters the ground as she stands over its dented neck. "Hmm, impressive; I didn't know she was a fighter," Vorgrimm says as Alatar walks over and looks down at the beast.
"It's not a Demon, so we can eat it later. " Alatar says, looking at Mira, "Good job, let's clear the rest of this area out while figuring out where exactly we are at." Mira smiles. "Thank you~!" She says with a purr. They continue through the area, dispatching the same creatures until they end up piling them up in an area. "I have some ice spells; I can use them to keep the meat fresh. I also think these are fire salamanders," Mira says as Alatar nods. He jumps up the stairs as he looks around with his blade out. Checking the remaining area, Alatar found nothing but a door. He opens it to sheer chaos; chilling winds bite his skin, causing him to shake involuntarily. Looking around, the sky is a melange of swirling colors. The air seemed to crackle with arcane energy as lightning made of mana struck the ground, causing disturbances. As quickly as the storm appeared, it vanished into an eerie calm.
The land shifts and twists, denying the logic and physics around them. Mira catches up to Alatar, "I got the room nice and cold. We should-" She looks at everything around her. "By the Gods..." A blissful sigh is heard behind them. "It's beautiful, isn't it." Alatar shoots his gun as Alexander blocks it with a shield spell. "So impatient, young Shadow. Admire the beauty the masters have designed for us. I wasn't going to come and inform you of your castle...seeing how you decided to attack earlier and just now. But I've been told I am a generous man, so I'll forgive you just this once." He says, floating above them. "The creatures in your area can be tamed and used for this war, but you'll have to defeat their leader." He strokes his beard. "What else...Oh! Yes! Even though it is boring, you can also conquer the other Royals if you do not want to kill them. You will only have to subjugate them to your will."
Mira scoffs at him. "Slavery? We would never do such a thing. You may have scared the other Royals into playing this game, but they wouldn't dare to go down to such a primitive act." She says as Alexander's eyes look at her with amusement. "Oh really, Your Majesty?" He asks condescendingly. "Be my guest, get outnumbered, and die. It would be ironic that the first Royal from the Diamond Kingdom comes to the event, makes such a power play, and dies." He shakes his head. "Well! Be well, and I'll be on my way to tell the Bronze Kingdom the same thing. Toodles!" He says, heading straight down the mountain. Alatar looks over the edge. He sees a castle made of bronze nestled in the murky depths of a sprawling, tangled valley. Swallowed by dense forests and rugged landscapes. He looks far off into the distance but cannot see The Iron or Gold castle.
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
"Alatar, we must clear out the rest of this castle before we move." He looks at her, nodding. "Right, after that, we hunt whatever beast he's talking about. If we build our numbers, our chances of success will be higher." They head back inside as they look down the hallway past the stairs. They see more salamanders coming out of the multiple doorways. Moving slightly faster than Alatar, Mira sprinted towards the ground as her footsteps caused the ground to crack under her. Before the salamanders could react, Mira grabbed the one in the front by its throat as it breathed fire. She grunts as her veins begin to bulge. She turns the salamander's neck to shoot its flames at the others. They hiss as they shoot flames in retaliation. The two torrents of flames wrap around each other like a destructive dance.
Alatar swipes his finger across his sword. "Jumping Flames!" he says, running on the wall; flames erupt from his blade as he leaps over the flames, landing on the salamander's back. He stabs it in the head as the flames leap from his blade toward the salamander next to Alatar, causing its face to roast with flames. It swipes at its face, screaming in pain. Mira snapped the other salamander's neck and fixed her dress. Alatar steps off the salamander as he pulls out his flintlock pistol. He aims at the squirming beast and fires it until it stops moving.
They go from room to room, floor to floor, as they clear out the entire kingdom of these creatures. They reach a room with a table big enough to seat twelve people. They breathe heavily as they check the final room. Finding what looks to be the old map of the entire area. "This is useless," Mira says, tossing it to the side. She flips through a couple of books about the culture of the Diamond Kingdom. "Princess, I think I found something important." Mira looked around Alatar, seeing a picture of a massive beast with wings. Red scales with blue crystalized spikes, two horns extruding from its head as it roars at the world's top. "These aren't salamanders..." Mira says. "These are baby dragons." Alatar puts the paper away as he looks at Mira.
"It shows him atop the entire world, which only means one thing: I need to go higher," Alatar says to Mira as he holsters his gun. "What do you mean 'I'? We're both going together." Alatar shakes her head. "No, we're the only two people on this team. If both of us die, we will not complete our mission." Mira sighs, "Fine. Someone needs to get all these dead baby dragons cleaned up." She says, sitting in one of the chairs and taking a breather. "She can certainly fight, but she's not used to exhausting herself. Be careful not to make the Princess overwork herself." Vorgrimm says to Alatar as he walks outside of the castle. He looks past the frozen crystals and the hundreds of baby dragons crawling along it. "From fighting Demons to fighting Dragons? You really have your work cut out for you, kid. I'll be here watching to see how you do."
Alatar navigates past stone ledges and crystal walls; the landscape around him is otherwordly, with rock formations resembling the scales of a dragon as he nears the top. A few long and grueling hours later, the harsh winds slowly die as he nears the peak, and the environment transitions into an almost lunar expanse. Alatar rolls onto the top as he struggles to catch his breath. He gets up as the wind gently blows around him. He looks and sees the slumbering beast. "Ohh~ it's bigger in person!" Vorgrimm says while Alatar unsheaths his blade. The dragon slowly opens its eyes as it glows with an azure hue. It growls at Alatar as it stands. Standing as tall as a seven-story building makes Alatar look like an ant. "You've come to slay me, warrior? Then prepare to die..." it says, its voice booming and vibrating so loudly it makes Alatar's bones rattle.