The Fury of the Soul
Chapter 1: The Escape
"Damaso, why are there no stars here?"
"Quiet, Brux!"
"This is the only place with no stars… Mobius has stars, Fortipiet has lots of stars. This place—"
"Is that really important right now?! Hurry up and bring the taming rod!"
"Sure thing!"
Damaso the Dastardly took the large taming rod and tapped it against his other hand, activating the dark energy inside of it. The rod crackled and pulsed, bringing a grin to Damaso's face. As he strolled along, his head high and his nose outstretched like a beak, Brux the Brutal hobbled along behind him, admiring the rod's glow as if it were the first time he'd seen such a thing.
Brux chuckled low. "So, so, so the dragon is still in captivity, the second Fury is missing, and the master is very pleased with us! This must be a dream come true for us, eh Damaso? Eh?"
"Yes yes…" Damaso dismissed him. "But our work isn't over yet. Time to pay our shape-shifting Fury friend a visit."
Brux cheered and clapped his hands together. "Oohh~! I love visits! I love them!"
As the two yaurals made their way to the dungeons of the Myotann Gateway, Damaso glances up at the three massive gates, the only links between the three worlds. Each gate was brimmed with a different stone and light shone though them, except for the gate in the middle, which only darkness hazed over and oozed out of the entranceway. Damaso shuddered from looking at the darkness and pulled Brux along.
The trek down the three sets of stairs was sure worth it to view the so-called First Fury, the apparent savior of the three worlds. Damaso had waited for this day, where he could proclaim his triumph over the Fury once and for all – possibly inflict some pain. He loved pain.
Brux was still behind him, muttering nonsense to himself.
Damaso felt a burst of confidence upon approaching the silver bars of the prison. Something stirred in the deep shadows.
iHe's still holding onto his dragon form…/i Damaso thought, frowning. iI supposed that he might have given up by now. No matter…/i "Still wallowing in foolish hope, Fury?"
The brown weary dragon crept out of the shade of the dungeon, slightly emaciated from being held captive for three days with no food. His mahogany eyes stared into Damaso's unwavering. It snarled low and menacing at the yaural. Damaso didn't even blink.
"Don't waste your energy on useless threats." He sneered. Ego rising even more, he clasped his hands behind his back just as a general would and paced back in forth in front of the cage. "So, so, so many years have gone by since I first encountered you in the wastelands of Ephellium. You've always had the upper hand – you and that delusional old dragon you call a goddess. But here you are, finally trapped. By whom? By me!" He threw his head back and cackled triumphantly.
The dragon only rolled its eyes, settling itself down for another long monologue about evil dominates good, love is weakness, and blah blah blah. It's all been heard before.
"And what will you do now that you are trapped here… FOREVER? Ahahahahaha! Soon the master will come and finish you for good. Fortunately for you, your death will be slow and painful…!"
The dragon huffed, pretending to give its wings a thorough stretch. A small orb-shaped object rolls down from the place between its wing and skin. It had been holding the orb there for just this occasion. Luckily, Damaso was too self-absorbed to notice. The dragon thought as much.
iIt's time…/i
The dragon slammed its claws down and the orb exploded into a cloud of smoke.
Damaso recovered from his arrogance too late. "Wha—ACK!"
With one sweep of its paw, the dragon breaks the bars away and leaps over Damaso.
"Hey…" Brux pointed. "I think he's getting away, Damaso…"
Damaso coughed and waved the smoke away. "Of COURSE he is! Get him!"
"But it's just the two of us—"
"Just try, dammit!"
The dragon landed in front of them and roared. Damaso took out the taming rod and swung it at the dragon, hitting it in the jaw. A shock went through the dragon's system, but it refused to submit. It roared again and took off, feeling weak from the rod's blow.
"Oh no!" Brux agonized. "The master is gonna kill us. The Fury will escape back to Ephellium, and—and-!"
"Look… he's not going back to Ephellium…!"
Weak and growing dizzy, the brown dragon glided past the gate to Ephellium and tumbled into Mobius.
"Mobius…!" Brux gaped. "No dragon or yaural has…ever gone there before…!"
Damaso thought for a moment before answering. "So… he thinks the Second Fury is there, huh…?"
i…Ugh… my head…/i
He opened his eyes and looked around slowly. Above him was a blue sky, green trees. At first, he groaned from his aching head, but smiled when he heard the sound of chirping birds and chattering squirrels. When was the last time the First Fury heard chirping birds and chattering squirrels…? It had been years.
Returning to his original Mobian form, he stood slowly on two legs, his fur exposed to the cool breeze. Feeling naked, he ran for cover in a bush, although no one was around to see him. He took in a breath of clean fresh air and sighed. "It's good to be back in Mobius… my old home…"
Again, he fell faint and crawled into the shade of the bush. He groaned, eager to start his journey. iFirst I'll need some clothing… then a weapon… Oh…! I can't believe I made it here at last!/i He grinned. "This is gonna be great…! Now I can find the Second Fury…!"
"And I know where I can find him…"
iBut first… I need some sleep… It's been a long time since I last slept…