[https://img.wattpad.com/story_parts/1256501197/images/173d4cfb4cdb645f895001924985.png]
The entire class had now made their way down to the underground area of the school. It had been a long trek to get there, with them going down countless staircases and hallways that all seemed to be built for giants to pass through. When they reached the bottom of the last staircase, they had to pass through an iron door that was more than a hundred feet tall. That was the entrance to the underground tunnels beneath the school.
Here in the underground, the walls of the tunnels were no longer made of brick like in the rest of the school. Instead, a rough rock wall created a winding path into the unknown. In some places small roots and branches poked through the wall.
The underground tunnels were very dark. None of the kids could see properly, but apparently Nimum had accounted for that. From her bag Mek drew a jar filled with fireflies. She opened the jar, and the flies all flew out to light up the way. Each of the students had also been handed their amulets of protection, which they were all now wearing.
Each of the students had also been handed their amulets of protection, which they were all now wearing [https://img.wattpad.com/7948c83f7eb5e4b29085a5e260d42adb3463a79a/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f6d585273546832556c655a796e413d3d2d313235363530313139372e313730633235623261363763313066373738373137323839333439392e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
Leading the pack was Elva, and behind her were Sophie and Fiff. Sophie was a bit disappointed that she hadn't met Nimum yet, but the excitement of exploring the underground and not knowing what came next kept her spirits high.
"What kind of being is Nimum anyway?" Sophie asked.
"I don't think there's a name for her race, actually. Her dad was an elf and her mother was a troll," Fiff explained.
"A bizarre pairing," Elva commented.
"What's so weird about that?" Sophie asked skeptically. "Is it 'not how things are supposed to be' or is it 'because they didn't know their place?'"
"Her dad was of royal blood and her mother was nothing but a common village doctor. Those don't go together. So no, it is definitely not how things are supposed to be."
"But if they hadn't gotten together, we wouldn't have had Nimum as a teacher. And isn't Nimum great the way she is?" Fiff asked.
"All that's great about her clearly comes from her royal ancestry. She could have been so much more if her parents hadn't decided to be a pair of weirdos!"
"No way! I think the weird part is exactly what makes her so amazing!" Fiff replied.
A sudden rumble went through the underground.
"That sounded like thunder!" Fiff exclaimed with surprise.
"Oh, praise the great troll mother! That means we're almost there," Trom said, letting out a sigh of relief.
"Nah, as far as my ears could tell, it's still a long ways off," said Varis, who had the best ears out of the entire class.
A bit further on, the underground tunnel split into three. The students all looked expectantly at Elva, who put her hand against the wall and closed her eyes.
"The path on the right will lead us to the lightning bird," she said, pointing to the right tunnel. The class started making their way in that direction.
Beto, who was walking in the middle of the pack, looked suspiciously at the walls. "I've read somewhere that the underground is full of traps, secret paths and dangerous creatures. Do you think that's true?"
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
"I hope so," Varis said excitedly.
"I h-hope not," Vix said nervously, casting frightened glances at the rock walls. Rok seemed to be getting nervous as well.
"Well, Nimum DID write that the underground could be dangerous, so maybe," Mek said, looking at the note in her hands.
Beto nervously stepped up next to her.
"I can keep an eye out for traps if that'd make you feel better, Mek?"
"No need, Beto. Elva should be able to sense any traps when she's communicating with the rocks," Mek answered absentmindedly, not even looking up from her letter. Beto looked a bit dejected and slunk back to walk with the other boys.
Again they heard a rumbling, but this was different than the first one. Unlike the first rumbling they'd heard, this one was calm and repetitive, almost like the sound of someone breathing. The further down the tunnel they went, the louder the rumbling got. And as they got closer to the source, they could feel the temperature rising.
Further on ahead the path made a sharp right. The students could see a bright light coming from around the corner. Filled with curiosity, Sophie, Fiff and Varis sped up, while the rest of the students approached more carefully. When Sophie, Fiff and Varis turned the corner, they were not disappointed.
When Sophie, Fiff and Varis turned the corner, they were not disappointed [https://img.wattpad.com/b5b4403352dcf089b738c506e7636e212b82c301/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f4c42676d6e6a7356392d564e50513d3d2d313235363530313139372e3137306332356261643239373037303538383535313632303130312e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
Curled up and sleeping on the ground was a dragon. Its scales were dark red and its lower half was covered by metal-like shells that went from its neck to its tail. It had small horns protruding from its head and down its back, and on its forehead and the top of its head were several thicker horns. Every time the dragon exhaled breath, the rumbling could be felt and flames escaped from its nostrils, hitting the rocks above it. The flames were so hot that the rocks had started to melt, dripping from the ceiling and pooling into a small river of lava which had formed right next to the dragon. The stream of lava flowed downhill, further down the tunnel, before disappearing down a hole in the earth.
The entire class was staring dumbfounded at the dragon that was lying in front of them. But no one was more shocked than Sophie. She was looking at a real live dragon!
"D-do you think that's the d-dragon that's making a volcano e-erupt?" Vix asked. You could hear the sound of his bones chattering as he trembled with fear.
"If it is, I'm gonna teach it a lesson," Fiff said, already raising a fist.
"Nooooo, you're not!" Trom said, grabbing Fiff by the wings to keep her from flying over to the dragon.
Beto looked thoughtfully at the stream of lava as it vanished deep into the hole up ahead.
"Hmm... Based on the direction the lava is flowing, it COULD be causing a volcano to erupt somewhere. Elva, would you be able to investigate?"
Elva put her hand against the wall and closed her eyes. She stood there concentrating for several seconds without saying anything.
She stood there concentrating for several seconds without saying anything [https://img.wattpad.com/750100c3476a5fa0b14fcdf8389ae99b9a36f584/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f314e562d79324f444a506c5333513d3d2d313235363530313139372e3137306332356331386136383233613835333730343035393631312e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
"No, the lava stream flows too far for me to see where it ends."
"We could also just walk past the dragon," Trom said. "I mean, it's sleeping, so it shouldn't notice us."
"But if that dragon's about to cause a volcano to erupt, we have to do something about it!" Fiff said resolutely.
"W-waking up a d-dragon seems p-pretty dangerous," Vix squeaked. Trom nodded in agreement.
"We're studying adventuring at the School of Wonders! We'll have to face danger eventually," Fiff argued.
"Well... Nimum did give us these amulets of protection," Beto added.
Trom sighed unhappily. "Then let's just hope that the amulets can protect us from a frickin' dragon, I guess. And do you guys even have any idea how you're going to stop the dragon?"
None of them did, but they knew they had to do something.
"What do you think Soph... Hey! Where did Sophie go!?" Fiff exclaimed, realizing that Sophie wasn't standing next to her anymore. The entire class looked around in confusion, before finally spotting her over by the dragon.
"What is she doing?" Elva whispered. "You don't just walk over to a sleeping dragon!"
Sophie was lying in her bed with the duvet pulled up over her head [https://img.wattpad.com/8c8906bfb2eff326a3f9cd52b86ce8ec6d8acc52/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f767862706948304a73664a7570673d3d2d313235333934313835302e313733663230616534623765333861363936343636313337343032322e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]