Adel stood in the very center of all the destruction that she had caused. How much more chaos she wished to create…Smiling at her self, clothing suddenly appeared over her naked body. A long black skirt covered over her legs, a cross of metal covering her chest. A pair of black spiny wing ornaments spread out from her back.
A strong source of magic was approaching her. Could she absorb it? She wondered. She could use the extra boost in power after so many years of another term of imprisonment. She waited in silence for the bearer to come.
Arick slid down the side of the wide hole, kicking down dust and rocks as he made his way into the center where he could see the eight-foot tall figure of Adel waiting for him.
He jumped before he hit the bottom, his wrist blades flashing in the sun. He ran in front of Adel, glaring up at her as he gathered his magical energy into his stones.
"Foolish boy," Adel said with a deep, gravely voice. "You shall die here."
A mass of fire flared around his hand, and was launched forward as a ball of flames. Adel deflected it with a simple shield, holding it their for a couple seconds before reaching out towards him. Her fingers became liquid like tentacles that rushed out and wrapped themselves around his body before he could even realize they had touched him.
She threw him up high into the air above their arena, and snapped her fingers. A long jagged bolt of lighting pierced through Arick, his whole body jerking before becoming paralyzed, and he fell through the sky. Adel watched with pleasure as he fell straight down, probably to his death. She didn't hear the rapid footsteps from behind her.
Kinno jumped as high as she could, boosting her height with her mental power. She held her sword blade-down between her hands. Her feet landed squarely on Adel's bulky shoulder blades, plunging the sword deep into her spine.
The Sorceress shrieked in agony, flailing her arms as the pain spread through her body. Kinno dropped to the ground, and threw a mental line at Arick to slow his fall. She felt it catch, and she stopped his rapid decent before he crashed, inches from the ground.
Kinno was suddenly knocked in the side of her head by a heavy force that slammed her to the ground and in a daze. Another blow sent her flying across the dirt.
Adel was smashing Kinno with her arms in a mad fury, beating her constantly with her claws. Arick stood up quickly, seeing Kinno become battered repeatedly.
"Leave her alone!" he yelled, sprinting at Adel, focusing his magic to junction with his blades, fists and feet. He leapt up to Adel's eye level, and started attacking her monstrous head and chest rapidly. Explosions ingnited on her body with every punch and kick that made her stumble backwards. Arick fell back to the ground, crouching like a leopard and ready to attack again.
Kinno opened her eyes, feeling her injuries pain her body. She slowly stood up, a cut from the corner of her left eye bleeding down her cheek. Slyph suddenly appeared in the air next to her.
The small pixie placed her hand on Kinno once again, and healed her rapidly. Kinno watched as Arick jumped twice, dodging the liquid tentacles that Adel whipped out towards him. An idea flashed through her mind. Summoning her sword back into her hands, she held it out into the air, concentrating her telekinetic power on the sword.
Arick threw another blast of inferno at Adel, enshrouding her in a dome of flames. Kinno let the sword float into the air, and using her hands to guide it, sent it flying into the shadowy form within the mass of fire.
An ear splitting shriek echoed within the crater as the flames died out. A burnt and angry sorceress stood their with the sword piercing through her neck and out her throat. Arick took a deep breath, gathering up another mass of fire with what little energy he had left, and incinerated Adel completely in what was left of his power. All that was left was a pile of ashes beneath a fallen sword.
Kinno ran over to Arick as he fell to his knees in the middle of the smoldering damage and clouds of smoke and dust. Slyph's wings buzzed next to her ear as the pixie felt the same concern for Arick. His breathing was heavy and labored, he began to cough as Kinno crouched down next to him. Slyph landed on his back, placing her hand on the top of his spine, healing him as fast as she could.
Arick sighed as the wave of relief and healing came over him. He wiped away the dirt from his face as he sat back on the ground.
"Are you okay?" he asked, turning to Kinno. She nodded, smiling at his automatic concern for her, putting her hand on his shoulder. She looked over at the pile of ash, sensing something. A small blue glow appeared in the middle of the grey powder. Arick saw it as well, staring at it as the small sphere floated into the air.
"Another summon," Slyph whispered, watching it in awe. The small sparkle flew towards them, pushed by an invisible force towards them. It slowed down as it got closer until it completely stopped in front of both of them.
With a flash, it lanced itself into Arick's heart, disappearing as it passed through his flesh. An image of a large, dark blue dragon flashed through his mind as a surge of power and magic swept through his body.
"I was unaware that you had summoners blood, Elements," Slyph said, floating into the air.
"That makes two of us," Arick replied, staring at the spot where the glow had sunk into his chest. "This is a summon?" he asked.
"Yes, only not in full form," Slyph replied, frowning a little. "He is Tiamat, the dragon that was poisoned by evil. He chose you as his summoner."
Arick sighed, and flopped onto his back, staring at the sky. He was tired and completely exhausted, too much so to question Slyph further on this summon that now seemed to occupy itself in his heart. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath to rest on the ground where he lay. Kinno felt the same, and layed down next to him, keeping her arm hugged around his chest to keep them close together.
The night passed over the clearing sky, allowing the moon to illuminate the sleeping children that lay still in the middle of the crater. Both slept easy, their breathing regular and deep.
Slyph appeared in the air next to Kinno, a small green glow surrounding her form allowed her to see perfectly in the dark. The pixie landed quietly on the ground, silencing her wings and gazed upon the mark that darkened the skin on Kinno's neck. Slyph had felt the disturbance within Kinno for quiet some time, but was forbidden to say a word about it.
Kinno hissed in her sleep as the attack began. Pain shot throughout her neck and back as the mark slowly began to spread. Slyph watched helplessly as her mistress struggled and writhed in agony. The pixie was the only one that kept them both deeply asleep so neither of them would know the pain that Kinno was going through.
The pain finally receded, and Kinno's body calmed. The bruise like mark had become larger on her neck, and grew downward towards her spine. Slyph closed her eyes as she linked telepathically with Kinno's mother.
"It is as you feared, Mistress. The Mark grows with the pain that it causes."
"Keep them asleep," came a response. "Return to her now."