Author's Notes: I'm free of my English OAC summer school course!!! I did decent enough that my parents would not restrict my internet access!! Things for me have been slowing down, including the writing. I could really use some reviews.
Disclaimers: Card Captors belong to CLAMP, all 'Invasion' dragon legends, all 'Legends' elder dragon legends, Tevesh Szat, 'Weatherlight' characters, non-Clow cards that are still represented as spells, some quotes and lots of other stuff belong to Wizards of the Coast. Some ideas belong to Terry Pratchett. Don't sue. I only own Strider.
Chronicles of the Ur-Dragon - Episode Six
Chapter 11
Darigaaz unleashed his deadly flame-thrower at the Necravolver. It saw the attack and deflected the attack just in time. The volver sniffed Darigaaz's scent and gave a confused look. "Your aura is allied with both an enemy power and an ally power of the Necra faction! I don't understand!" Darigaaz smirked. "Really? I expected you to know the basic ally-enemy system that had been universal until the war."
The being took a bit of time to think. "Nature...Fire...Death...you can tap directly into the Thunderscape and its allies!!" The dragon's smirk widened. "Ding ding ding!!! What do we have for him, Johnny?" "Aren't you supposed to be dead, Darigaaz? From the reports shown around in the Nightscape, you were hit by a Terminate spell," murmured the volver.
"Things have changed quite a bit around here. I suggest you take some time to look around." It pondered what the next course of action should be and came up with a reasonable solution. "I'll deal with the two of you later." Moments later, the volver had disappeared. Li recovered from his dizziness.
"What just happened?" Darigaaz started to examine the Dragon Arch and found the problem. "A part of the gate is damaged, probably from taking punishment during the war. I'm not sure what new surprises that will be sprung upon while we use this...but we have to go through with it."
"Are you crazy?!? A...something surprised me and caught me off guard!! I don't think I will be going back in there until I have my weapons back!" Darigaaz scratched his chin before coming up with a solution. "I will accompany you when you enter the Dragon Arch. Treva will watch us from outside the gate and Crosis will be on perimeter guard. Do you think you will feel safe then?" Li glared at the smug dragon. "Whatever. Just watch my back...and no funny tricks!!!" Darigaaz held up his right claw. "No tricks."
He found himself back in that void except this time, there was a dragon following him like a bodyguard. Before Li could start searching again, a blue streak came at him. Darigaaz batted it away and deflected it to the Dragon Arch opening. "A Cetavolver...it's been a while since I seen that."
"So these are old fragments of the Apocalypse war." The dragon nodded. "That's right. There are bits and pieces from all three phases." A puzzled look made its way onto the boy's face. "Would you care to further explain these phases?" Another volver whirled by the two and headed towards the gate.
"I classified the war into three phases. I was still able to watch since I could not cross over into the afterlife yet. Each phase represented a significant plan or event. The first phase was the actual invasion of the enemy. The Phyrexians swarmed the land with its air and ground troops. The second phase was the ultimate plan of the planeswalkers: to journey over to the Phyrexian and Yawgmoth planes and destroy them. The plan was called 'Operation: Planeshift', I believe. Last but not least, phase three: ultimate chaos. I'll explain it a little later. Right now, it is a good idea to avoid those charging Spiritmongers."
Chapter 12
"I...can't go on...so muggy..." Strider snorted before placing the small guardian on his shoulder. "I expected that you would be able to handle the sharp increase in temperature." Kero lifted his head to reply. "As I recall, you stated that this area was as hot as Yavimaya! From what I saw back in that forest, Yavimaya seemed to be pretty cool!!"
A smirk made its way underneath the entity's mask. "You haven't seen all of Yavimaya. The heat generated by its fire is an inspiration for creatures to increase their speed in combat." Kero wiped some sweat off of his head. "By inspiring, it means if they're too slow, they get roasted, right?"
"No. The Nature element of Yavimaya prevents the fire from going overboard. That fire represents the inner flame all creatures possess. When any creature looks at the fire, they can feel the adrenaline boil in their blood. That's why Fire and Nature are an excellent combination. Mages can tap into the power of the fire and create an advantage for himself in combat." A small 'shhhhh' noise was made. The two looked at Sakura, who had obviously found something to be of great importance. Then a familiar aura hit Strider's senses. Crosis was nearby...as well as another aura.
The trio watched silently as the two combatants battled in the air. Crosis tried to fire his specialty beam but the other being dodged it. The dragon still retained his calm look. "You can not win. I'm stronger than you in attack and defensive power!!! Even with the power of Light and Nature to guide you, defeat is inevitable!!"
A small chuckle came from the dragon's opponent. "You are overestimating yourself, Crosis. So far, you have not been able to land a single shot on me and you're well aware that I can combine Death magic with either Nature or Light and create rather interesting effects."
"Excuse me but the Stormscape practices Water magic which can counter everything you throw!! Since they are one of the Nightscape allies, I'm sure they wouldn't mind sparing some counter magic for you!!" Another cold chuckle came from the being. "I can hear that small quiver of fear when you spoke those words."
A ball of energy formed in the palm of the creature's hand. Before Crosis could react, the creature tossed the ball. "Vindicate, destroy this pathetic excuse for a dragon!!" Strider quickly took out his staff and sealed the dragon into a card form. Without the target, the creature's spell fizzled.
The entity turned to get a good look at the creature. "I never knew volvers had the ability to use magic." The Necravolver grinned. "When you're the champion of a rebellious movement, you need to be flexible." Before Strider could shoot back a reply, the volver vanished through a teleportation spell.
"Just what the hell was that?" The entity kept his gaze on where the Necravolver vanished. "A Necravolver, a warlord from the Apocalypse war." Kero just gave a groan. "War. All wars practically come from politics. As far as I'm concerned, nobody should meddle with political affairs. Magic and politics just don't mix well together."
Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Where did you learn that, Kero?" The guardian beast crossed his tiny arms. "Clow Reed lived by that philosophy ever since he witnessed the disaster that started a war which lasted for two decades."
"With Treva and Darigaaz still alive and the unexpected appearance of the Necravolver, other elements of the old war may appear. With all these old elements, another war may be inevitable. We may have to get involved," stated Strider. "So the original plan to rescue the kid and scram is cancelled? What about the rule about not meddling? Don't you live by it, Strider?" asked Kero.
"Kerberus, as you progress up to the state of total magical balance, you learn that there is another rule. I've learned this particular rule during my stay on Discworld and I've obeyed it ever since that day." The curious guardian leaned closer. "And that would be?"
"When you break rules, break them good and hard," said the entity with a mischievous tone.
TO BE CONTINUED...
I've been reading some Discworld books by Terry Pratchett. They combine fantasy with humour. Some of my favourite parts have been with Death consoling King Verence and the witch trio talking to a demon named WxrtHltl-jwlpklz (how you pronounce that, I have no idea).
Next episode: Li is thrust into the Phyrexian Arena and forced to battle a mysterious warrior to obtain one of the charms while Sakura, Kero and Strider are stuck in the middle of a battle between the battlemages and the volvers...
Disclaimers: Card Captors belong to CLAMP, all 'Invasion' dragon legends, all 'Legends' elder dragon legends, Tevesh Szat, 'Weatherlight' characters, non-Clow cards that are still represented as spells, some quotes and lots of other stuff belong to Wizards of the Coast. Some ideas belong to Terry Pratchett. Don't sue. I only own Strider.
Chronicles of the Ur-Dragon - Episode Six
Chapter 11
Darigaaz unleashed his deadly flame-thrower at the Necravolver. It saw the attack and deflected the attack just in time. The volver sniffed Darigaaz's scent and gave a confused look. "Your aura is allied with both an enemy power and an ally power of the Necra faction! I don't understand!" Darigaaz smirked. "Really? I expected you to know the basic ally-enemy system that had been universal until the war."
The being took a bit of time to think. "Nature...Fire...Death...you can tap directly into the Thunderscape and its allies!!" The dragon's smirk widened. "Ding ding ding!!! What do we have for him, Johnny?" "Aren't you supposed to be dead, Darigaaz? From the reports shown around in the Nightscape, you were hit by a Terminate spell," murmured the volver.
"Things have changed quite a bit around here. I suggest you take some time to look around." It pondered what the next course of action should be and came up with a reasonable solution. "I'll deal with the two of you later." Moments later, the volver had disappeared. Li recovered from his dizziness.
"What just happened?" Darigaaz started to examine the Dragon Arch and found the problem. "A part of the gate is damaged, probably from taking punishment during the war. I'm not sure what new surprises that will be sprung upon while we use this...but we have to go through with it."
"Are you crazy?!? A...something surprised me and caught me off guard!! I don't think I will be going back in there until I have my weapons back!" Darigaaz scratched his chin before coming up with a solution. "I will accompany you when you enter the Dragon Arch. Treva will watch us from outside the gate and Crosis will be on perimeter guard. Do you think you will feel safe then?" Li glared at the smug dragon. "Whatever. Just watch my back...and no funny tricks!!!" Darigaaz held up his right claw. "No tricks."
He found himself back in that void except this time, there was a dragon following him like a bodyguard. Before Li could start searching again, a blue streak came at him. Darigaaz batted it away and deflected it to the Dragon Arch opening. "A Cetavolver...it's been a while since I seen that."
"So these are old fragments of the Apocalypse war." The dragon nodded. "That's right. There are bits and pieces from all three phases." A puzzled look made its way onto the boy's face. "Would you care to further explain these phases?" Another volver whirled by the two and headed towards the gate.
"I classified the war into three phases. I was still able to watch since I could not cross over into the afterlife yet. Each phase represented a significant plan or event. The first phase was the actual invasion of the enemy. The Phyrexians swarmed the land with its air and ground troops. The second phase was the ultimate plan of the planeswalkers: to journey over to the Phyrexian and Yawgmoth planes and destroy them. The plan was called 'Operation: Planeshift', I believe. Last but not least, phase three: ultimate chaos. I'll explain it a little later. Right now, it is a good idea to avoid those charging Spiritmongers."
Chapter 12
"I...can't go on...so muggy..." Strider snorted before placing the small guardian on his shoulder. "I expected that you would be able to handle the sharp increase in temperature." Kero lifted his head to reply. "As I recall, you stated that this area was as hot as Yavimaya! From what I saw back in that forest, Yavimaya seemed to be pretty cool!!"
A smirk made its way underneath the entity's mask. "You haven't seen all of Yavimaya. The heat generated by its fire is an inspiration for creatures to increase their speed in combat." Kero wiped some sweat off of his head. "By inspiring, it means if they're too slow, they get roasted, right?"
"No. The Nature element of Yavimaya prevents the fire from going overboard. That fire represents the inner flame all creatures possess. When any creature looks at the fire, they can feel the adrenaline boil in their blood. That's why Fire and Nature are an excellent combination. Mages can tap into the power of the fire and create an advantage for himself in combat." A small 'shhhhh' noise was made. The two looked at Sakura, who had obviously found something to be of great importance. Then a familiar aura hit Strider's senses. Crosis was nearby...as well as another aura.
The trio watched silently as the two combatants battled in the air. Crosis tried to fire his specialty beam but the other being dodged it. The dragon still retained his calm look. "You can not win. I'm stronger than you in attack and defensive power!!! Even with the power of Light and Nature to guide you, defeat is inevitable!!"
A small chuckle came from the dragon's opponent. "You are overestimating yourself, Crosis. So far, you have not been able to land a single shot on me and you're well aware that I can combine Death magic with either Nature or Light and create rather interesting effects."
"Excuse me but the Stormscape practices Water magic which can counter everything you throw!! Since they are one of the Nightscape allies, I'm sure they wouldn't mind sparing some counter magic for you!!" Another cold chuckle came from the being. "I can hear that small quiver of fear when you spoke those words."
A ball of energy formed in the palm of the creature's hand. Before Crosis could react, the creature tossed the ball. "Vindicate, destroy this pathetic excuse for a dragon!!" Strider quickly took out his staff and sealed the dragon into a card form. Without the target, the creature's spell fizzled.
The entity turned to get a good look at the creature. "I never knew volvers had the ability to use magic." The Necravolver grinned. "When you're the champion of a rebellious movement, you need to be flexible." Before Strider could shoot back a reply, the volver vanished through a teleportation spell.
"Just what the hell was that?" The entity kept his gaze on where the Necravolver vanished. "A Necravolver, a warlord from the Apocalypse war." Kero just gave a groan. "War. All wars practically come from politics. As far as I'm concerned, nobody should meddle with political affairs. Magic and politics just don't mix well together."
Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Where did you learn that, Kero?" The guardian beast crossed his tiny arms. "Clow Reed lived by that philosophy ever since he witnessed the disaster that started a war which lasted for two decades."
"With Treva and Darigaaz still alive and the unexpected appearance of the Necravolver, other elements of the old war may appear. With all these old elements, another war may be inevitable. We may have to get involved," stated Strider. "So the original plan to rescue the kid and scram is cancelled? What about the rule about not meddling? Don't you live by it, Strider?" asked Kero.
"Kerberus, as you progress up to the state of total magical balance, you learn that there is another rule. I've learned this particular rule during my stay on Discworld and I've obeyed it ever since that day." The curious guardian leaned closer. "And that would be?"
"When you break rules, break them good and hard," said the entity with a mischievous tone.
TO BE CONTINUED...
I've been reading some Discworld books by Terry Pratchett. They combine fantasy with humour. Some of my favourite parts have been with Death consoling King Verence and the witch trio talking to a demon named WxrtHltl-jwlpklz (how you pronounce that, I have no idea).
Next episode: Li is thrust into the Phyrexian Arena and forced to battle a mysterious warrior to obtain one of the charms while Sakura, Kero and Strider are stuck in the middle of a battle between the battlemages and the volvers...