Thane walked through the stadium with a million thoughts running through his mind. Outside was a living, breathing Dragon. He could scarcely believe the power that was coming from the mighty beast. It made his newfound power puny by comparison. Yet, for some reason, that knowledge didn't infuriate him. He felt almost proud to compare himself to the monster. The creature was like a living shrine…awe-inspiring and worthy of praise. Perhaps, if he continued to play to the Dragon's good side, he would find himself reaching new heights? Greater than any human that has ever walked the earth.
Greater than even Isabel.
Until he was as strong, if not stronger, than the mighty Dragons.
As he marched through the final corridor, he pushed down the door in front of him. He was amazed that the interior was still mostly intact after the Dragon's grand entrance. In the room, Gabriel yanked on his restraints once more but was unsuccessful in his attempts to escape. When he realized that someone had entered the room, he turned and rose to his feet frantically.
''What's going on out there?'' he gasped. ''I thought I heard a Dragon.''
''I don't know what else you can mistake it for,'' Thane replied gruffly. He approached Gabriel and with one swift tug, tore his restraints to pieces.
Gabriel looked down at the broken restraints before smiling at Thane. ''The formula worked. I knew you would be a more suitable participant than my daughter.''
Thane scowled before turning and leaving, not wanting on Gabriel. ''Speaking of your daughter, there's still work to be done.''
Despite Gabriel throwing one question after another at Thane as he followed him, the young man was silent until they walked back out onto the stadium field. Finally, Gabriel was silenced as he gazed in awe at the Dragon that was perched on one of the stands. It stared up into the sky with smoke billowing out of its mouth.
''Incredible,'' Gabriel whispered. ''They truly are magnificent gods.''
At long last, Rossula rose to its feet before jumping down onto the field, shaking the ground on impact. Gabriel almost stumbled under the massive quake, but Thane stood still like a statue as he looked up at the Dragon.
''The strange human is late,'' Rossula said. ''I knew she had overestimated her abilities.''
''She's not late!'' Thane called out, getting the Dragon's attention. ''She's not coming back.''
''What? Why would a human lie to a Dragon?''
Thane grit his teeth before stepping forward. ''I'll tell you why. Because they think they've found a weapon that can kill a Dragon. That's why we've been trekking across this shit land for weeks.''
Rossula lifted its head, staring down at Thane curiously. ''A weapon that can kill a Dragon? That is fantasy. No such weapon exists. And if so, how would you know about this?''
''Because I was with them on their journey,'' he paused when Rossula neared him, baring its large teeth. ''But, I'm no longer with them. I have the powers of a Dragon. I am now one of you.''
''Is that so? You are also a strange human.''
''I am no longer human…I am something more,'' he glanced over at Gabriel and noticed the proud look he was giving him, like a father watching his son become a man and take leadership for the first time. Thane locked eyes with the Dragon once again. ''I can help you stop them. I have read their map. I know where they are going. I can show you the way. There are only two things I ask of you. First, I wish for you to teach me the ways of the Dragon, so that I may become stronger. I can be the link between humans and Dragons. I can make humanity serve you as you wish.''
Next to him, Gabriel dropped onto one knee and bowed before the beast. ''We are your humble servants. You are the true kings of this world and beyond.''
Rossula scoffed. ''There is only one king. Our great Dragon King. He is the one above all Dragons.''
Gabriel's eyes shone brightly. ''May we meet this great one?''
''Perhaps, if you prove your loyalty,'' Rossula glared back down at Thane. ''You said there were two things you wanted to ask of me. What is your second request?''
Thane smirked and felt a primal inferno inside of him flickering. It grew brighter and brighter as he had one goal in mind.
XXX
Isabel reeled back as she almost became overwhelmed by an unseen force. Everyone standing around her, including Cruise, Helen, Jess, Giovanni, and Erika gazed at her as she tried to make sense of this horrible feeling of dread washing over her.
Before long, it became clear what was happening. ''Rossula is coming.''
''So, our time is up.'' Cruise sighed. He retrieved his walkie-talkie from his pocket and tried to get it working. After a few seconds of static, he was able to get a clear enough signal. ''Jon, tell me we've got everyone into the tunnels.''
On the other side of the device, Jon's voice could just barely be heard. ''Not yet. The tunnels here are deep but narrow. It's going to take some time before we get everyone down.''
''Damn it, and we still need to set up the remote,'' Cruise turned to Isabel. ''How much time do you think we have?''
''I don't know,'' Isabel said worriedly. ''This feeling is getting stronger really quickly. It's like it knows where to find us.''
''But how?'' Jess asked. ''Surely it couldn't have heard us from this distance. Unless it knew we'd be here…''
Suddenly, it became clear to all of them how the Dragon was able to locate them so quickly. It had someone who knew about their plan. Everyone stared at each other, afraid of what was going to happen.
Erika gulped. ''Did Thane see the map? Can he read it?''
''Unfortunately,'' Helen groaned. ''The council never liked to make it public to the colony that they taught themselves to read before everyone else. Thane was next in line to lead. I have no doubt he was able to read the map the whole time.''
The hangar was awoken by the sound of a loud thud. The group turned and saw it was Giovanni who had punched the wall in frustration, hard enough to leave a tiny dent and make his knuckles bleed. ''After everything I've done for that boy…he…he betrays us like this.''
''Now's not the time to think about that,'' Helen countered. ''Cruise and I are almost finished setting up the remote detonator. Once it's ready, the rest of us need to get to the tunnel, bolt the door behind us and turn on the bomb.''
Isabel stared at her with concern. ''It sounds like we don't have much time between each step. Will the door be strong enough to hold?''
''This place was built for nuclear testing. It will have some resistance, but we still need to make sure that we get far enough away from it so that we don't get caught in the radioactive fallout.''
''That still doesn't tell us how we're going to deal with our Dragon problem,'' Giovanni barked. ''It'll be here any minute now. It'll burn the place down before you two finish setting up the detonator.''
Isabel lifted her head. ''Not if there's someone out there to distract it.''
The room fell silent. All eyes were on Isabel. She glanced around at everyone and could see their doubt and worry. Yet, no one tried to stop her, not even her mother. At this point, Helen was usually trying to stop Isabel from going through with her plan, however, this time was different. They were facing impossible odds and they had no answer other than to hold out for as long as possible and hope that luck was on their side. Although, Isabel was counting on something else to work in her favor.
''I think I can distract it until mom and Cruise have finished what they need to do.''
''Will you survive for that long?'' Cruise questioned.
''I will,'' Isabel said confidently. ''I know a way to drag out the fight for as long as possible.''
Jess then stepped forward. ''And we can give you more time. I can go out with you and use small bombs like before to give you more firepower. I know you're going to say that it's dangerous, but every choice we make here is dangerous. This way, you'll have a fighting chance.''
''And she won't be alone,'' Erika said. ''I'll help too. My daughters are with the others escaping into the tunnel, so I can stay and fight without worrying about their safety.''
Giovanni nodded. ''I can come too. With the three of us aiding you, you should be able to stand a fighting chance.''
A smile tugged on Isabel's lips as she nodded in agreement. ''Okay, it's settled. We'll stall the fight for as long as we can. When I hear the signal from mom, I'm going to rush us all back down into the tunnel and get us as far away from the blast as possible. Everyone else should be safely away by then, so it'll be just a matter of us outrunning the explosion.''
''You mean you outrunning the explosion,'' Giovanni replied. ''You'll be carrying us along the way.''
Cruise chuckled. ''What are you talking about? She's been carrying you all ever since we started this damn adventure.''
Isabel wanted to laugh, but she was hit by another invisible wave. It was as if she was feeling the storm beneath the Dragon's winds right above. ''They're almost here. We better get ready.''
''I mean it, kid,'' Cruise said, as if he didn't hear or ignored Isabel's last statement. He approached her and held out his hand. ''We wouldn't have got this far without you. Whatever happens today, the world will know that you gave it a fighting chance. It's been an honor fighting alongside you.''
''Don't say it like that,'' Isabel said. After a moment to think about his words, she grinned slightly and then accepted his hand.
She glanced to the side and saw her mother gazing at her, trying to be as hopeful as possible. Without a second thought, she came forward and they hugged tightly. Cruise took a step back to give them space before returning his attention towards the bomb, making sure that everything was in place. Behind them, Erika grabbed Giovanni's arm and guided him away so that they could find weapons to use to help Isabel. Jess was about to join them before she was pulled into the hug by the mother and daughter duo. The three of them didn't want to let go, too scared of what might happen.
''Both of you need to come back to me,'' Helen whispered to them.
''We will,'' Isabel said.
Jess smiled. ''We're going to save the world together.''
XXX
Isabel opened the door and stepped back out into the world. She thought she would be greeted by blinding sunlight. Instead, she saw that the area was cast in shadow as something large descended from the sky. Trying to not let her fear get the better of her, she continued to walk forward as Jess, Giovanni and Erika followed after her. In their hands were grenades, ready to be unclipped and used on Isabel to give her power the much-needed boost.
Rossula landed on the ground about a hundred feet away from the base's entrance. They almost lost their footing as the ground groaned beneath them. Isabel watched as two figures jumped from the Dragon's back. She noticed her father was with them. He fell and landed awkwardly from the height before rolling and disappearing into a thick shrub. This time, Isabel wasn't going to let her anger towards her father cloud her judgement. She had a plan, and she needed to see it through so that her friends wouldn't be in any more danger than they already were.
Thane landed on the ground with grace, rising to his feet and staring down Isabel.
''So, where is this weapon of yours?'' Thane called out.
''There is no weapon,'' Isabel shouted back. ''We came all this way for nothing. So, we might as well make our final stand here.''
Thane shifted his gaze towards the others. He noticed Jess, Giovanni and Erika taking some shelter behind a set of large rocks nearby. He also noticed the small weapons in their hands. He chortled. ''Instead of a mighty dragon-killing weapon, you're going to resort to grenades? You really are on your last legs.''
Before Isabel could fire back a retort, Rossula reared its head forward, letting out a puff of smoke from between its jaw. ''Human, you lied about bringing me your people. Do you still intend to fight me?''
''No…'' Isabel looked back at Thane. ''I want to fight him.''
Rossula hummed. ''What a coincidence. This human told me he wants the pleasure of killing you himself.''
''Oh, good, we're on the same page,'' Isabel replied, surprising Rossula and Thane. ''I guess I'll just cut straight to my proposal. Thane and I will fight. But, it'll be in two stages. First, we'll fight as we are. No assistance from anyone on the outside. After that, my friends will use the grenades on both of us to make us stronger.''
Jess, Giovanni and Erika stared at each other in confusion. Jess jumped to her feet. ''Isabel, are you crazy?''
''It's the only way to prove who is stronger,'' Isabel said, never taking her eyes off Thane. ''Isn't that what you really want? Do you want to know for certain if you're stronger than me? There's never going to be a better time to find out. This way, there'll be no doubt if we do things like this.''
Thane didn't know what to say. This was exactly what he wanted. That's why it didn't feel right.
Rossula lowered itself until it was resting on its arms and legs. ''This should be interesting.''
''See, the Dragon likes the idea.'' Isabel taunted.
Thane could feel anger building up inside of him. Even with his new power and a Dragon by his side, Isabel still found a way to make a fool of him. She'd even got Rossula to go along with her idea. It sickened him to play second fiddle to someone of a lower class. He couldn't stand for it anymore. Any rational thought or strategy he had were gone as he let primal rage and instinct take hold.
''Alright,'' he growled. ''I've been looking forward to this.''
''Not as much as I have,'' Isabel smirked. ''Now, nothing is holding me back from knocking your teeth out.''
That was the last thing the two of them said before charging at each other like wild animals.
A fight that had been long in the making was about to begin.
XXX
HELLO MY SWEET SUPERSTARS! I HOPE THAT YOU ENJOYED THIS CHAPTER. THE EXCITEMENT AND TENSION ARE REALLY STARTING TO BUILD UP. DO YOU THINK THE PLAN WILL WORK? WILL THE BOMB BE ABLE TO STOP ROSSULA AND WILL THE OTHERS BE ABLE TO ESCAPE IN TIME? AND WHO DO YOU THINK WILL WIN IN A FIGHT TO THE DEATH BETWEEN ISABEL AND THANE? THE NEXT CHAPTER IS GOING TO BE QUITE THE SIGNIFICANT ONE. THERE'S GOING TO BE A LOT OF TENSE MOMENTS, AND WITHOUT GIVING TOO MUCH AWAY, PREPARE YOURSELVES. THE NEXT CHAPTER HAD ME IN TEARS WHILE WRITING IT. I HOPE THAT YOU'RE READY FOR IT.
IN OTHER NEWS, MY JOB HAS TEMPORARILY CLOSED BECAUSE OF RESTRICTIONS AND LOCKDOWN, SO I HAVE THE TIME TO WRITE, EVEN IF I AM WORRYING ABOUT STAYING EMPLOYED. BUT I DON'T WANT TO MAKE THINGS DEPRESSING. I'M GOING TO KEEP MOVING FORWARD AND KEEP WRITING FOR YOU ALL. YOU HAVE ALL BEEN THE MOST AMAZING AND SUPPORTIVE READERS EVER. I CAN'T THANK YOU ALL ENOUGH. EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU IS A SUPERSTAR, AND I HOPE THAT YOU ALL STAY SAFE AND WELL. TA-TA FOR NOW.
A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO MY MILKY WAY GALAXIES & UNIVERSE BUILDERS:
KASONGO PEMBAMOTO
ANONPERS
CASEY INSCOE
AMANDA LEWIS
