The wyvern in front of me crouching behind Omnikia was a lithe beast with small black scales over its body, four legs with talons and a pair of pitch black wings with little claws. Two curved horns on its long wide head just above its beady yellow eyes. It was at least fifteen feet tall on all fours, but its body was thin and long with its body almost looking like a snake with legs and wings. The summon stared down at me with its six inch teeth bared and its long tongue flicking out of its mouth.
I looked at the writhing mass of scales and teeth, then turned to Omnikia in disbelief. “You have had that-” I pointed at the ‘wyvern’ that was looking much more like a dragon than anything, “Inside you, this entire time?!” I asked faintly from the shock of seeing a huge dragon appear from the old man.
“Yes, Young Arnold.” Omnikia said with a smirk and a glint of amusement in his eyes at my reaction, then continued “This is one of my weaker summons but I believe it will help your training and give you some needed practice.” My eyebrows rose higher on my forehead as he said that this was one of his weaker summons. Then I tilted my head, “If you have had a dragon this entire time, you could have taken Lenard by yourself couldn’t you?”
“Yes.” Omnikai deadpanned.
I paused as he said that and looked at him with an unamused expression. “You let me fight him because you thought it would be funny, didn’t you?”
“Yes.” Omnikai deadpanned, but I could see a glimmer of amusement in his eyes as he said that. Then at the same time we chuckled and turned back to the wyvern.
“So, I guess I am fighting a dragon now?” I commented while sizing it up a bit then I turned back to Omnikia with a smile of anticipation. “What sort of rules are you thinking for the fight?” I asked my teacher to get some clarification on the type of training that he was thinking of.
“Only one rule for today's fight, I believe.” Omnikia said, slowly backing off a bit from my group and the wyvern as he flashed a smile. “Don't hold back.” He told me, then as if a signal was given the wyvern roared and took off into the sky.
My brain booted into high gear as the wyvern turned its long neck and head towards us, teeth bared. Right, so I have the wolf pack with me and this was meant as a test for just them so I dont think bringing in backup is an option. Though I doubt Omnikia would intervene if I summoned anyone else, it just seems that's what he was aiming for. We have no ranged weapons and the dragon can fly, so we are firmly at a disadvantage here.
I could probably go into my Summon Form though, level out the scales a bit with Jet's medium ranged paracid atack, Chargers horns and the increased physical ability from both Lenard and Grodd.
Then there came the wyverns fighting tactics and how I can counter them with me and my pack's limited ability. Fighting a flying dragon with wolves is not the most ideal situation, but maybe wyverns dont have fire breath here and they have to go in close? Dive bombing strategies? I don't know, but honestly if it starts breathing fire I don't think I can do anything without bringing in my other summons. Even then it would be a close fight as I don't have a single flying or long ranged summon. If only I had Pathways to give longer ranged abilities…
It seemed that my hopes about the lack of fire breath were not for nothing however, as the huge winged lizard suddenly dove towards our small group of six. But on the other hand my wish that I would have more time to figure out what to do and get ready went down the drain instantly.
I started giving mental messages instantly to the rest of my pack, giving commands while another part of my mind activated my Summon Form Pathway, pulling on the spirits of my remaining summons to empower me.
The wolves scattered to my left side, though Kera seemed to almost vanish from sight and I could only feel her moving to my right as the wyvern dove in closer, my mind almost seeing everything in slow motion as I could feel my body changing and twisting into something not quite human.
I could feel my body sprout fur that covered the entirety of my body, making the light reflect off my golden curls that matched the armour made from Lenards fur. My hands grew hard pads and claws as my skin grew tighter and thicker.
The claws of Lenard were then reinforced and elongated into the longer shape of a bear’s claws, though retaining the curve of a lion's claws, in the next instant and my entire body growing in size and making me much taller than before, maybe about a foot or two taller. Across my body, though mostly in my chest and arms my muscles tightened and expanded simultaneously and making my body feel lighter despite my new mass and form that made me seem to have the bulk of a bear with my muscles showing clearly even through my new golden fur.
Fangs sprouted from my mouth as it elongated into something resembling what a lizard person might have and my throat shifting imperceptibly to allow the glands that allowed for Jets' paracid atack. Though strangely as Jet's influence on my Summon Form made its change, my skin also seemed to grow miniscule scales that covered me like light armour which I didn't know would happen.
My new claws became covered by a green energy in the next change, followed by a pair of glowing green horns that started branching from my forehead. Another strange change that occurred as Chargers spirit was added to the mix of my Summon Form, making my legs seem to grow stronger and maybe even a little longer though not by much as they were strengthened considerably already.
That is where my transformation halted however, all the summons I had in my Soul Space being used in my transformation. While I did feel all these changes in what felt like slow motion to my brain, all of this happened extremely quickly as the wyvern bore down on me. I made the perfect target afterall. Just like I had planned.
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Of course I didn't plan to take the writhing mass of scales head on like some hulking brute, no matter how much my Summon Form empowered me beyond human capability I did not think I would be able to stand up against a dragon falling on my head or the teeth that preceded that. No, my plan was much smarter. Probably.
With my wolves in position and my transformation complete, things started speeding up in my head once again and the wyvern was bearing down on me in a flash, but I was ready as I moved quicker. I leaped up and over the dragons snapping jaws, though the head and neck was uncomfortably close to snapping me out of the air as it stared up at me from below my extremely powerful jump. I cleared the summons head and landed on its back, but my word was shaken as because of the timing of my jump the wyvern couldn't stop itself from crashing into the ground and nearly making me fly off, but I kept my balance somehow.
Then in a flash I wasn't alone near the neck of the wyvern as Rocky leaped just before the wyvern's head and neck to try and keep its attention from the others alongside Steely, Flash ran and started biting at the dragons flailing wings in a burst of speed with Alpha just behind him. Kera wasn't visible still, but I could sense her bite marks appear on the wyvern's wings to my right.
My part isn't over yet though, as the wyvern reared its head to snap at Rocky. I sprinted, leaning into my run and pushing my new body to the neck of the summon in an instant. I started wrestling the head of the wyverns from its long neck and trying to push it into the ground as it flailed wildly, probably feeling its wings get more and more scratches and holes as my crew tore into the wings to level the playing field.
My claws skated across the hard scales of the wyverns neck, nearly causing me to go flying as it whipped its head around. But at the last second I swung both of my arms and gave it a firm whack to the top of its head to keep it disorientated while I got a grip on its two curved horns to keep me from flying off.
The strategy I had worked out seemed to be going beautifully. There were several small holes in the wyvern's gigantic wings because of Kera, Flash and Alpha. I was somehow managing to stay on top of the draconic beast. Steely and Rocky were both biting at its struggling limbs.
Then it reared its head up and its legs seemed to regain their strength as it rose onto all fours once again, causing the three wolves that were attacking its wings to fall to the ground. Before anyone could react, the wyvern whipped one of its front legs and its talons raked Rocky's body as it tossed him into Steely to its right side. Steely was uninjured from the atack, but Rocky was bleeding out from the lacerations the talons caused in his side and belly and he couldn't seem to be able to stand up on his own. Steely seemed shocked by the sudden event but I could see the rage appear in his eyes and he turned back to the wyvern with murder in his thoughts. He was only held back by me telling him in his mind not to attack and get himself killed.
“Alpha!” I called out loud for Alpha to help Rocky, sending mental commands while I hung onto the wyvern's thick neck and horns. Alpha ran over to Rocky as he charged up his new Pathway to administer a healing fireball. But it was too late for Rocky as almost the instant Alpha let loose his healing fireball, he disintegrated into particles and entered my Soul Space to recover. One man down.
I felt the same rage as the rest of The Pack as we saw the events unfold and my vision turned red as I started working on the last stage of my plan. With the wyvern grounded, it was now in range to the claws and teeth of the wolves for the rest of the fight. The only problem with that is that meant we were in range to the wyverns talons and teeth and as the wyverns actions proved, it was more geared towards fighting on the ground then I had hoped.
But I had the advantage of being able to attack without being exposed to its teeth and talons from my position on its neck just below its head. With my Summon Form I should be able to finish off the wyvern with enough time. Flash, Kera, Steely and Alpha just had to take the wyverns attention away from trying to buck me off or ramming itself into something or something equally likely to prevent me from killing it.
I just got to go crazy with my claws to try and dig through its hard scale armour while Alpha commanded the troops on the ground to keep the beast busy. So I got started instantly.
Everything started to blur as the hot emotions of The Pack overcame my body, fueling every swipe of my claws that scratched the scales below the wyvern's head. The scales were tough and I was sure that without the energy coating my claws I might be in a stalemate against them, but with my energy coated claws I was causing the scales to crack within seconds as they scored the surface of the black scales. My mind was almost turned off as my entire focus went into digging through the layers and layers of black scales. The wyvern tried its best to fling me off but the new strength in my legs tightening around its neck was enough to keep me on.
Then I saw the red of blood and felt the wetness on my hands from the wyvern and I plunged my claws deep inside the wound I had created, before a strange feeling overcame my body and I felt a path form somewhere in my mind and soul, connecting the still present energy horns on my forehead to my claws. I activated it without a second thought as my instincts commanded me to do. I could feel energy entering my forehead and it started traveling through my head and neck, through my chest before splitting into two separate streams that headed into my arms before reaching my claws.
It was then that a weird thing happened. I could feel the energy entering into my claws and they started expanding inside the wound in the wyverns neck and I could feel my hands become rooted into the wyvern's neck. I had a strange sense of my claws branching into the shape of Chargers horns through each of my claws and biting into the neck of the wyvern. Then I could hear a crack even through my focused state and I started falling down on top of the wyverns neck.
I landed lightly as the wyvern took the brunt of the impact and my head started to clear as the strange branches dissolved unexpectedly and making me slide off to the ground where I somehow managed to land on my feet.
I looked around me, quickly taking in my surroundings. Alpha was standing to the right of the wyverns limp body with Kera beside him, but besides them there was no sign of the other two. I could feel their forms recovering in my Soul Space, meaning that they must have died during the fight.
Then I turned back to the wyvern's body and I could feel my eyebrows raise in surprise. Where I had rolled from there was the neck of the wyvern, but it was just a stump and the head was severed and lying in the dirt a foot away. Both parts were quickly dissolving however so I didn't get much of a good look at the body. I sighed and sat down with a thud, my Summon Form dissolving and making me feel strangely weak. Though oddly I couldn't feel much pain or even much muscle burn. My idle mind thought that maybe the things that happened in Summon Form did not affect my main body as much as normal.
I raised my head as Omnikia stood beside me to get a good look at him. His expression was almost disapproving as he looked me over. “This routine is quickly becoming your go to strategy, Young Arnold.” He said, then he smiled. “Though I have to admit it is quite effective.” He chuckled. “Thanks.” I sighed with a small chuckle as I lay back a bit to recover from the experience.