Helen had to be held back by Jon, otherwise, she would have run into the fire where her daughter disappeared. She screamed for Isabel at the top of her lungs. She couldn't understand what she had just witnessed. Her daughter willingly stepped on a land mine and let the explosion consume her. She was too distraught to think straight. All she wanted was confirmation that Isabel survived.
Everyone else looked just as scared and confused. Some were now worried that without Isabel, there was nothing standing between them and the Drake. Jess cupped her hand over her mouth and shook her head in defiance. She couldn't believe that Isabel would do such a thing. There had to something else going on. The Crew stared at each other in bewilderment. Pitt growled in frustration and turned to Cruise, expecting to hear his leader detail a back-up plan. However, he was surprised to find that the Viper leader was grinning wildly.
''Son of a gun…'' he cackled, slapping his knee in amusement. He ignored the glares from the rest of his Crew and the colony. ''That kid is something else.''
Ever since the explosion, Lacron never tore his eyes away from where Isabel was standing. His smile faded, soon replaced by an angry sneer. ''What the hell are you?'' he roared.
Helen, Jess and the rest of the colony looked back towards the mines and gasped when they saw Isabel emerge from the smoke cloud. Once again, her clothes had been burnt into nothingness, but she was unharmed. There wasn't a cut, burn or bruise that could be seen anywhere on her toned body. Helen gazed upon her daughter's face and saw a fire in her eyes that burned brighter than any explosion.
''You tried to burn me once before, so you're not shocked to see that I'm fireproof,'' Isabel stated. ''In fact, I actually think I thrive in the fire. Whenever I'm near it, even if it's just me feeling the heat from the sun, I heal faster and become stronger.''
''That's impossible!''
Isabel smirked. ''Just as I thought.''
Lacron glared at her more intensely. ''What's that supposed to mean?''
''Earlier in the tunnel you said to me that I had the qualities of a Dragon, not a Drake…a Dragon! This was after you discovered my kick hurt you after you tried to burn me. I was getting stronger before your very eyes. And your reaction now confirms my theory…we both may be able to survive in a fire, but I grow stronger in it.'' Isabel leapt back and landed on another land mine.
The explosion reverberated all around her. She could feel her skin become warm. It was like she was renewed into a new and better body. Her muscles bulged and her hair flowed in the gust of the fire. Her heart was beating so fast, it was like she was listening to music from within. She'd never heard real music before today. The energy that was fed to her made her believe that she could do anything.
Lacron growled and dug his heel into the ground. ''It doesn't matter how strong you say you are, you're not a Dragon. You're just a fucking human.''
He blitzed towards her in the blink of an eye. Everyone on the hill could only see the Drake as a blur that rocketed across the horizon. Lacron let out a frightful roar as he swiped his clawed hand directly for Isabel's head, ready to tear it from her shoulders. As his arm came around, Isabel ducked underneath to evade the attack. A few strands of her blonde hair were slashed off and blown away in the wind. When Lacron glanced down, he saw Isabel's fist coming towards him. She struck him under the chin, causing him to reel back and almost fall to the ground. He groaned and held his lower jaw.
Watching on from the hill, Helen's smile slowly returned. ''She hurt him.''
No one wanted to believe it, lest they are consumed by hope. But Helen's words triggered a chorus of support from everyone watching on. The colony and the Crew yelled out words of encouragement for Isabel.
Lacron was gasping for air as he locked eyes with Isabel. The pain was there, but it was easy enough to shrug off. However, he was overwhelmed, too shocked to make the next move. A human hit him! A human had made him experience pain. It sickened him to think that such a thing was possible. And the worst thing was that Isabel's grin widened.
''How dare you!'' He snarled, advancing towards her and baring his jagged teeth. ''I am your ruler. I am the superior race!''
Isabel scoffed. ''If that's true, then why are you the one with fear in your eyes?''
Lacron was caught between wanting to charge at the girl in anger and staying back to understand what was happening. He still couldn't believe this was happening to him. In his confusion, Isabel was already making a move towards the next closest landmine. ''No, you don't!'' He roared and ran to stop her.
Just as Isabel was about to stamp her foot on the metallic plate, Lacron locked his arms around her body and hoisted her up into the air. He tightened his hold on her, trying to crush her bones into dust. As he carried her away from the mines, Isabel cried out and tried to pry herself free. She couldn't afford to get complacent. Lacron was still strong enough to do significant damage. All she had managed to do for now was even the playing field. Once she was able to pull one arm free, she slammed her elbow down onto Lacron's shoulder repeatedly. He tried to fight through the pain, but after Isabel hit the same spot over and over again, he was forced to let her go.
Isabel fell to the ground and then leapt towards Lacron to tackle him. She pinned him to the ground and started to pummel his face with a flurry of punches. She hit him until her knuckles began to bleed. His hard skin was tough to break through, but she persisted. Lacron's knee struck her in the stomach, knocking him off him and into the air. She was sent hurtling back down, but before she touched the ground, Lacron grabbed her head and slammed her into the ground. Cracks in the earth were formed upon impacted. Lacron cackled darkly as he pushed Isabel's head deeper into the earth, trying to suffocate her. Suddenly, Isabel kicked out, striking him in the face and knocking him away.
After managing to get on her hands and knees, Isabel coughed and spat up blood. A shadow loomed over her and she looked up to see Lacron about to stomp her back into the hole he tried to bury her in. She rolled out of the way, avoiding his kicks. Lacron was forced to move faster to catch her. Her speed had also increased since their last confrontation. He was caught off guard when Isabel jumped up and headbutt him in the chin. She then followed with a powerful punch to his gut, knocking the air out of him.
With some space between them, Isabel ran towards the landmines. She needed to dose herself in more fire to turn the tide. She reckoned that one more explosion would be enough. Her muscles burned as she ran and jumped onto one of the landmines. But, before she could land on it, she felt Lacron grab her ankle and throw her away. She bumped and bounced along the ground before coming to a stop. Lacron descended upon her instantly. Isabel threw a punch at him, but the Drake sidestepped her attack and grabbed her arm.
Isabel gasped and Lacron smiled. He brought her arm down onto his knee. With a sickening crack, Isabel's arm snapped in the other direction as a bloody bone popped out of her elbow. She screamed in agony, falling to the ground and clutching her broken arm. Blood trickled out of the open wound, forming a small pool between her and Lacron's feet.
''See,'' he spat on her. ''Only human.''
As he enjoyed the sound of Isabel's pain-stricken cries, he slowly turned to the hill where the other humans were watching. His grin became more sinister by the second. ''For causing me so much grief, I'm going to go up there and kill all those humans right before your very eyes.''
''No…'' Isabel groaned.
''I recognize those humans, they're the ones that saved you,'' he said, staring directly at Helen and Jess. ''I'll start with them.''
He didn't even bother to stay to listen to Isabel's pleas. His patience had been dried up completely. Furiously, he sprinted toward the hill and stood before the humans, extending his claws and opening his jaw. The Crew didn't even have time to reach for the rest of the weapons. Lacron lunged for Helen first. All she could see was teeth.
Helen blinked and saw Lacron being pulled back. Choked roars leaked out of his mouth as he flailed his arms around. It didn't take Helen long to see what had happened. She spotted Isabel's good arm locked around Lacron's neck as she tried to pull him away from the group. He continued to thrash his arms around, but he couldn't reach her. Isabel dragged him further away, moving back towards the landmines. However, once Lacron realized what was happening, he rooted himself and prevented Isabel from moving any further. If she had both arms, she might have been able to do it. She saw her Helen's eyes dart down to her bloody arm with the bone sticking out.
''Go!'' Isabel shouted. ''I'll hold him back. Get everyone away from here!''
Many in the colony listened to Isabel's words and started to run away. But Helen wasn't going anywhere. She knew that unless Isabel healed soon, Lacron would overpower her and he would have the advantage in the fight. They were too far away from the landmines. Isabel needed something else.
Helen looked to Cruise. ''Do you have any other weapons?''
''Bigelow!'' Cruise called out to a woman in his Crew. ''Bring the weapon bag!''
Bigelow rushed to the leader without hesitation, despite the pissed-off Drake standing only a few feet away. She passed a small bag to Cruise and he quickly searched through it, hoping to find something to either help Isabel or distract Lacron. After searching, he then pulled out a small oval-shaped weapon with a ring attached at the top. Cruise hesitated, unsure if a grenade would be an effective weapon to use.
Helen recognized the weapon and snatched it from Cruise's hand. ''That will do!''
''Wait!'' Cruise yelled. It was too late. Helen pulled the ring off the grenade and ran towards Lacron.
Thankfully for the historian, Lacron was too distracted with trying to throw Isabel off his back. He didn't notice her coming until she was right in front of him. Once she too close to miss, Helen threw the grenade into the Drake's wide-open mouth, watching it become lodged in his throat.
''Mom, get back!'' Isabel screamed.
As Lacron gagged on the weapon, he jerked his arm awkwardly and swung at Helen. Before she even saw his claws coming towards her, someone tackled Helen from behind and pushed her to the ground, under Lacron's arm. The next thing Helen saw was blood flying above her head, followed by a painful scream. Landing on the ground, she felt someone light fall on top of her. She rolled over and gasped when she saw Jess clutching her hip tightly as blood oozed through her clothes and between her fingers.
Lacron couldn't spit the grenade out in time. Fire and shrapnel spewed out of the Drake's mouth. He hardly felt it, but the feeling of the explosion in his mouth and Isabel's arm still constricting around his neck caused him to let out a furious roar. However, the fury he was experiencing was nothing compared to Isabel's when she saw the damage he had caused. She stared wide-eyed at the ground as her mother rushed to help Jess. Her friend was crying out and bleeding heavily from three claw marks across her hip. She welcomed the heat coming from the grenade. She felt ignited once more.
She slammed her broken arm against Lacron's tough skin, pushing her bone back into her elbow. She hissed through the pain. Before she even gave the scar time to heal, she moved her once broken arm up and grabbed Lacron's head.
''When you get to hell,'' she growled close to his ear. ''I want you to remember a fucking human sent you there!''
Using all of her strength, she twisted his head sharply to the side and heard a loud snap. Immediately, Lacron stopped struggling. His body slouched against hers, and when she let go, he collapsed to the ground without another word. Isabel stood above a dead Drake.
Her arm was still throbbing violently, but she didn't want to focus on that. She turned to see her mother dabbing Jess's wound with a ripped piece of clothing. Isabel rushed to her side, fearing the worst. ''Jess, is she going to be okay?'' she asked her mother.
''I don't know,'' Helen said, trying desperately to stop the bleeding. ''I don't think it's hit her internal organs, but I don't have a way to stop the bleeding.''
By now, most of the colony who were slow to run away had returned to see what had happened. Some of them knelt down to where Helen was holding Jess, inspecting her wound. Others were unable to look away from Lacron's dead body. There may have been some that feared he wasn't really dead, but the lifeless look in his eyes and the lump in his neck gave them enough confidence to presume that he was actually dead. They turned to Isabel. There were some in the colony who had seen her grow from a small child. And today, she killed a Drake with her own hands. It didn't feel real.
''We need fire to cauterize the wound!'' Helen said, looking to anyone for help.
Isabel raised her hands and stared at her palms. She remembered when Lacron tried to burn her. Could she do the same thing?
''Let me.''
Helen didn't have time to question her daughter. She watched as Isabel moved in and placed her hands on her friend's wound. Jess whimpered. Tears rained down her face as Isabel pressed her hands harder against her skin. Isabel wasn't sure what she was doing. All that mattered was helping Jess. She tried to imagine fire inside of her fingers, warming her flesh.
The heat that she would feel expelled from the tips of her fingers as her skin started to glow. It wasn't as bright as Lacron, but then again, Isabel didn't want to make it too hot. She moved her arms away and everyone stared in amazement as Jess's wounds started to close. Jess screamed louder. Trying to help, Helen grabbed the young woman's hand and let her squeeze tightly as she fought through the pain. She stroked Jess's hair, soothing her in any way she could as Isabel kept the growing heat focused on the wounds until they were sealed shut. She pulled her arms away but the heat wouldn't evaporate instantly. She tried to will the fire in her hands away. Pitt could see the trouble that Isabel was having, so he and some of the Crew grabbed a few water bottles and poured them onto her hands. Steam billowed up from her palms. A short while later, the heat died down and Isabel's hands were restored to their normal temperature. She would need more practice with her abilities.
''Isabel…''
Isabel spun around and hurried to Jess's side the second she heard her friend's soft voice. ''Jess?''
Jess smiled as she rested her head on Helen's lap. ''You did it.''
''I did?''
Helen nodded. ''You did.''
The magnitude of what Isabel had accomplished had struck her yet. She looked over her shoulder and saw Lord Lacron lying dead on the ground. She had killed a Drake. She had achieved what was believed to be impossible.
''Hail Isabel!'' Sir Lucan and the rest of the colony cried out as they raised their fists in the air.
''Hail Isabel!'' Others in the colony followed their leadership.
They chanted Isabel's name over and over again. Their voice rose in strength and belief each time. Within the crowd, Thane watched on silently. He looked at his father and then over to Isabel as she soaked up the glory and the attention. His heart sank into his stomach as she smiled alongside her mother.
Even some of the Crew joined in the cheers for the fun of it. Pitt turned to see if Cruise was enjoying himself as well, but he couldn't find the charismatic individual anywhere. He spotted footprints leading away from the hill and decided to follow them. As the cheers slowly faded in the distance, Pitt waked around a tall rock and saw Cruise kneeling over a radio that he had retrieved from the bag. He fiddled with a few switches before he was nearly deafened by the static.
''What are you doing?'' Pitt asked.
Cruise turned to him and smirked. ''Sending a message.''
He grabbed the speaker and moved it close to his mouth.
''This is Cruise. For anyone listening to this frequency, listen well. I am the leader of a group of Vipers on the eastern outskirts of what was once known as the United States of America. Many of you will not know that name because it belonged to a world that we believed was long gone. Ever since the Dragons forced us to live like bugs, many thought we would never go back to the world we once knew. But I am here to tell you today that there is hope. Lord Lacron, a Drake, has been slain by human hands. With me is a human with the power to fight back. Together, we are going to take the fight to the Dragons. We are going to take back our world. If you wish to fight with us, know that future generations will write your names in the history books. Stand with us. Stand with…the Dragon Slayer!''
XXX
HELLO ALL YOU AMAZING AND SWEET SUPERSTARS! THIS WAS A BIG CHAPTER AND I HOPE THAT I DID A GOOD JOB. ISABEL HAS TAKEN HER FIRST STEPS TO BECOME THE DRAGON SLAYER. DID YOU ENJOY THIS CHAPTER? I'M STILL TRYING TO GET THE HANG OF WRITING FIGHT SCENES LIKE THIS SO I HOPE THAT I DIDN'T DISAPPOINT. I DID NOTICE A FEW COMMENTERS HAD GUESSED CORRECTLY WHAT ISABEL'S PLAN WOULD BE WITH USING HEAT TO STRENGTHEN HERSELF. SHE STILL HAS A LONG WAY TO GO AND THERE'S PLENTY MORE DANGERS ALONG THE WAY. THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE THE CALM AFTER THE STORM. BUT IT'S ONE YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS. TRUST ME. I LOVE HEARING ALL YOUR THEORIES AND PREDICTIONS. PLEASE DO KEEP THEM COMING.
THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING THE MOST INCREIBLE PEOPLE EVER. I KNOW I SAY THIS OVER AND OVER AGAIN, BUT IT'S TRUE. I NEVER WOULD HAVE GUESSED THAT AN ORIGINAL STORY OF MINE WOULD TAKE OFF AND BECOME ONE OF MY MOST POPULAR AND TALKED ABOUT. I WANT TO DO MY BEST FOR ALL OF YOU. I AM GOING TO KEEP WRITING AND KEEP IMPROVING FOR YOU ALL. THANK YOU.
STAY SAFE. WASH YOUR HANDS. WEAR YOUR MASKS. AND STAY EXCELLENT. TA-TA FOR NOW.
