An uneasy silence gripped the stadium. When the dust settled, everyone gazed up and were petrified with fear as they saw a Dragon staring down at them. Its giant, slit-eyes shifted from one area to the other. An unbearable heat swept through every opening and every corridor, threatening to melt the steel beams that held the structure together. It didn't help that the top of the stadium was beginning to crumble as the Dragon remained perched at the top.

''Peculiar,'' the Dragon's booming voice echoed with enough force to make every man, woman and child tremble. It scratched underneath its scaly chin with one of its talons. ''I could have sworn this place was guarded by two Drakes? Where have they run off to?''

There was an almost sweet and curious tone to the beast's words. It was like a child trying to make sense of the situation it had found itself in.

Isabel forced herself to move, turning back to her group. ''Run! Get out of here!''

The Dragon tilted its head, staring at Isabel with great intrigue. It sniffed the air twice before humming. ''You smell funny,'' it then glanced over in Thane's direction. ''You both smell funny. What are you?''

Isabel didn't have time to deal with Thane. He seemed just as shocked by the appearance of a Dragon as she was. Despite his newfound power, he was terrified like the rest and couldn't move. Isabel was scared beyond comprehension, but she couldn't allow anyone else to get hurt. Forcing her feet to move, she ran to the side of the ring and jumped onto the wall. The metal cracked as she propelled herself into the air directly towards the Dragon's face. It watched Isabel without any sign of worry. Isabel spun her body around in mid-air and stuck out her leg, striking the Dragon's jaw. Her leg exploded with pain, but all Isabel cared about was hurting the Dragon as well. She fell to the ground, just managing to land safely at the last second. When she glanced up, she hoped that she had done enough to distract it while everyone else ran.

The Dragon's head had moved. Isabel smiled triumphantly. However, that smile disappeared as the Dragon rubbed its jaw slowly. ''That was strange. How did you do that, human? Are you human? You look like one, but you don't smell like one.''

Isabel gasped. ''I put all my power into that kick. It didn't even flinch.''

After a moment of staring directly at Isabel, the Dragon then turned its attention to the still stunned crowd. ''Can other humans do the same thing?''

It reached out its hand towards the group. That was when they finally started to run. Led by Cruise and Helen, the large group tried to scurry through the stadium doors just as the Dragon's massive claw was about to grab them.

Isabel leapt into action, rushing towards the Dragon's hand and grabbed one if its elongated fingers. She pulled until her bones felt like they were going to snap. The Dragon's claw moved very slowly, but Isabel knew that the Dragon was making no attempt to fight back. It was toying with her. Testing her to see how strong she was. At least it was no longer interested in going after the others. However, she still had no idea how she was going to escape.

''Thane!'' She called out. ''I need your help. I can't do this alone.''

Thane flinched, surprised to hear Isabel call out to him for assistance. But, his focus shifted when he saw the Dragon glance at him. The monster narrowed its eyes. ''Oh? Are you two the same?''

Isabel grunted as she felt the Dragon begin to tug its hand back. ''Damn it, I can't do this alone. Help me.''

Sweat rained down Thane's face as he was swallowed up by the shadow of the Dragon. He had become a hundred times more powerful in the blink of an eye. Yet, he felt like an insect in the presence of such a creature. The legends of the Dragons were very true. Their power was horrifying. As it moved closer, Thane did the first thing that came to mind. He dropped to his knees and bowed before the mighty creature. ''No, we are not the same. I live to serve you.''

The Dragon inclined its head. ''Really? That I did not expect to hear.''

''But, she…'' he pointed to Isabel, who was still clutching the Dragon's claw to keep it away from going after the survivors. ''She is an enemy. She killed the Drakes that ruled here. She plans to kill you too.''

''Thane, you bastard!'' Isabel roared. Unable to hold on for much longer, she released her grip on the Dragon's claw and stumbled back. Thankfully, the others were safe. But, she now had to worry about her own life.

''Kill a Dragon? That is absurd.'' the beast said mockingly. It looked down at Isabel. ''But, I am curious? How do you plan to kill me?''

''Fight fire with fire,'' Isabel replied.

There was no way she could simply run away now. She needed to bide more time for her group to get far enough away to find safety. Isabel let her rage fuel her desire to live. Her body ignited with a burning will to fight the impossible that towered over her. She was thankful that this Dragon was the curious-type. Letting her anger take control, her screams transformed into roars as she faced off against the Dragon in a primal state, much like she had done before when confronting Albatox and Baerock.

''Not human…'' the Dragon said in a surprisingly soft manner. ''Not Drake. Not Dragon. What are you?''

Isabel smiled and bared her teeth as her pupils became slits and her fists were consumed by flames. ''I'm the Dragon Slayer.''

The ground turned to rubble as Isabel launched herself into the air towards the Dragon. With a powerful uppercut, she punched the underside of the Dragon's chin with enough force to make it rear its head back. Falling back down, Isabel reached out and was able to latch herself onto its shoulder. She could feel her hands burning the moment she touched the Dragon's scales. She used that fire to empower her. Throwing all her strength into her arms, she pulled the Dragon down until it was crashing through the upper-tier of the stadium. It crashed through floor-by-floor until it landed in a heap on the ground. Isabel jumped back to give herself some room. The Dragon was slow to rise. For a fleeting moment, Isabel believed that she could win.

''A Dragon Slayer?'' it replied, a clear lack of worry evident in its booming voice. ''I have never heard of such a thing.''

Isabel stood back as the Dragon lifted itself up from the rubble, effortlessly tearing through the metal and debris that had landed on its body. Isabel's punch and all that damage had done nothing to injure the creature. It planted its large feet into the ground, turning stone into magma with its heat, forcing Isabel to retreat to the edge of the ring.

''We were bestowed with the power of stars. We have conquered worlds. We have destroyed billions. No being in the cosmos can stand against the might of a Dragon. Little one, who claims to be a slayer of Dragons, let me show you real fire.''

Before Isabel could think of a new strategy, the Dragon threw its head back so that it was looking up at the sky. It opened its mouth and from its glowing neck, a fountain of fire burst forth and erupted into the night sky. Clouds were blasted out of existence and the night turned red. Isabel could only watch the fountain of flames. The fire within her disappeared. She was completely outclassed. Even her rage was nothing compared to the power demonstrated by this Dragon. She had no hope of winning. The only reason she was still alive was because of this Dragon's curious nature.

That might be her only chance of escape.

The fire ceased and the Dragon turned back down to Isabel. ''Do you see? Dragons are superior to all…''

The Dragon was silenced by the sight before it. Further away, Thane was just as stunned to see Isabel bowing before the Dragon.

''I was wrong to go against you, o' great one,'' Isabel said. ''Clearly, you are the almighty.''

With an arrogant shrug, the Dragon stepped closer. ''Even the weak can be intelligent.''

''Please, allow me to repay you.''

''And how will you do that?''

Isabel rose to her feet and pointed to the stadium exit. ''Allow me to hunt down the humans that I let escape. You will not even have to lift a finger. I can bring them all to you by the next night. It will also give you a better idea of my own abilities that you're so curious about.''

''You can catch all those humans in one day?''

Isabel tried not to grin in satisfaction. She couldn't believe this plan was actually working. ''Yes, I will bring them all back to this spot where you are waiting, great one…''

''My name is Rossulatoraker,'' the Dragon replied. ''And I shall be waiting. However, if you have not returned by the time you have set, I shall hunt down those humans myself, along with any other human in my path. After that, you will burn until you are nothing but ashes. Do I make myself clear?''

It was much time. But, Isabel was thankful for any time that she had. She bowed once more before rushing to the exit. ''You will not be disappointed. You will get what you deserve.''

Before Isabel left the arena, she looked over her shoulder and glared at Thane once more. He wasn't going to follow her. He looked away as she kept running. Isabel didn't know why she looked back or stalled. He had become a monster, just like the ones they were fighting against. He had murdered and would have killed her mother if she hadn't intervened. There was no redeeming him. Without another word, she sprinted out of the stadium to hurry after the group. She hoped that they had gotten far enough away to be out of reach of the Dragon's sensory field.

She only had a day to come up with a plan to kill a creature that had never been killed on this planet before...again. This time, she a feeling it was going to take more than a few flares and guns to succeed.

Killing Drakes was difficult enough. Now, she was truly going to have to live up to her title as the Dragon Slayer.

XXX

HELLO MY SWEET SUPERSTARS! DID YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER? I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE APPEARANCE AND PERSONALITY OF ROSSULA. IN THE NEXT CHAPTER, WE'LL BE BACK WITH ISABEL AND THE GROUP AS THEY FINALLY COME TO DISCOVER WHAT THE WEAPON IS THAT CRUISE HAS BEEN SEARCHING FOR. WILL IT BE ENOUGH TO DEFEAT THIS IMPOSING THREAT? THERE'S PLENTY MORE EXCITEMENT AND ACTION TO COME. THIS ALSO WON'T BE THE LAST WE'LL SEE OF THANE, AND GABRIEL ISN'T GONE EITHER. THE UPCOMING CHAPTERS ARE GOING TO BE QUITE SPECTACULAR. I CAN'T WAIT FOR YOU ALL TO SEE. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING AND STICKING WITH THIS STORY FOR SO LONG. YOU ARE ALL AMAZING. I ALSO HAVE SOME GOOD NEWS ABOUT MYSELF. THE OTHER DAY I TOOK A COVID TEST AND THE RESULT CAME BACK NEGATIVE. I WAS MOST LIKELY JUST SUFFERING FROM A COLD OR FLU. I AM FEELING BETTER AND WILL DO MY BEST TO KEEP MY UPDATES ON SCHEDULE. THANK YOU. STAY SAFE. WEAR YOUR MASKS. TA-TA FOR NOW.