Chapter 14

A big thank you to fellow author Bloodrayne666 for her help and input on this chapter. I really appreciate it, my friend. :)

A little later, in the medical room, Pandora had started to toss and turn, being haunted by a night terror as she tired to recover. She was no stranger to nightmares, and while they might be bad at the moment, they weren't real.

This one, however, was different, as it was a memory, and a recent one at that.

The memory of her encounter with the golden dragon.

Pandora gripped Mr Swinger as she looked up at Vulstrun who squared his shoulders and held up his claws.

"You've got nerves of steel girl!" the golden dragon growled. "Either that, or you're so naive you think you can take me on!"

Pandora glared up at Vulstrun.

"I might be naive, but I'm no coward! And if you think you can pick on a bunch of kids just to get to Uncle Tyroth, you're lower than dirt!"

Sonia closed her eyes and clenched her fists, she wanted to step in and help her cousin but she knew she risked Freya and Loki's lives if she tried.

"Shut up Pandora!" She muttered. "Please! Just stop it!"

Freya gripped Loki's hands as tears fell from her eyes.

"Leave her alone!" She whispered.

"Dad…please hurry!" Loki wept softly.

Vulstrun smirked and stepped towards Pandora who flinched slightly, she didn't show it on the surface, but inside she was terrified, and after that reality check Uncle Tyroth had given her, she knew she was facing certain death, but like every loyal warrior she was determined to protect her friends and family.

"So?" Vulstrun growled. "Are you ready to die?"

Pandora sucked in a breath.

"Come on! Quit chatting and lets fucking go!" She spat.

"Very well!" Vulstrun licked his lips.

Vulstrun swept his claws against Pandora, but the attack was slow and sluggish compared to what she was used to, so she easily avoided it and countered with a quick swing with Mr. Swinger, hitting Vulstrun on the shoulder.

She then quickly darted around her foe, doing a quick pirouette, which caused her meteor hammer to spin around and strike the dragon several times across his back.

Stopping her spin, she withdrew Mr. Swinger before it could get tangled, but kept its momentum, which she let continue into a great overhand swing, culminating with a powerful hit on the back of Vulstrun's neck.

Pandora moved to withdraw her weapon once again, but this time, Vulstrun turned around and grabbed the chain in a grip like a steel trap.

Despite the blows he had taken, he barely seemed bothered by them, then he cracked an evil smirk.

He chuckled darkly, and pulled on the chain with such force that Pandora was pulled along before she could properly react.

But she quickly turned the event to her advantage. Letting go of her favourite weapon, she fell into a dash towards Vulstrun, clawing her hands as she were to use her metal claws instead.

Befitting of her nickname, she slashed and slashed at the dragon like a feral Tigress, scoring a few glancing hits, but Vulstrun managed to sidestep most of them, and what few cuts he got quickly healed.

A quick palm strike to her chest sent Pandora backwards a few metres, and she needed a brief second to catch her breath again. Glaring at Vulstrun, she gritted her teeth at the fact that she hadn't dealt any lasting damage.

But she aimed to change that. Tyroth had said that even though he was strong, he wasn't invulnerable, and that had to apply to his golden alternate self as well.

Crouching down, she leaped at her foe with all the speed she could muster, roaring in anger as she did, yet Vulstrun stood perfectly still, as if he allowed her to strike him.

She plunged all her metal claws into his chest, driving them as deep as she could, and quickly followed up by stabbing her tail blade into his side.

Then Vulstrun laughed.

He laughed in dark amusement at her attempts, and all of Pandora's confidence was all but shattered.

But she had to keep trying, the lives of her cousins depended on it.

She tried to disengage, but she wasn't fast enough, and Vulstrun caught her by the neck. He lifted her up to eye level and locked eyes with her.

"My turn." he growled with a malicious smile.

Pandora's heart sank like a stone, then she was thrown like one against the cave floor, her back hitting it with enough force to knock the wind out of her.

Nothing was broken, but she was in pain, yet she forced herself back onto her feet.

Or she would have, if Vulstrun hadn't struck her again, this time digging his claws into her upper arm, causing her to cry out in pain, and blood began to flow from the wounds. Then she was punched across the face, forcing her back onto the floor, and before she could try to get up again, a large foot stomped down on her already bruised back.

Still, nothing was broken, but that wasn't a miracle, it was Vulstrun showing restraint, for his own sick pleasure, and Pandora quickly figured that out as she remembered Tyroth's words.

'This is no ordinary foe. Fight him, and you would only live as long as he allow you.'

He was only toying with her.

She tried to crawl away, only to be picked up again, this time being held by the back of her neck. Sharp pain shot across her back as Vulstrun slashed her with his claws several times and then jabbed them into her other arm, leaving another set of deep holes, and all Pandora could do was squirm and scream.

Getting thrown back onto the floor, Pandora was kicked in the side so she rolled over, only to receive several punches to her face and torso, and her arms took several hits too as she tried to shield herself.

All this time, Sonia, Freya and Loki could only sit in silence and watch, as they didn't dare make a sound, in case Vulstrun would take offence and stop playing around.

After a short while, Pandora had stopped resisting, and while Vulstrun kept hitting her for a while longer, eventually he stopped and looked at his latest victim.

"So much for your boasts, girl." he snarled and picked her up by the neck.

Pandora was bordering on unconsciousness, but she had to keep trying, she wouldn't let him hurt the others. She tried to lash out with her claws, but her arms could barely move, all she managed was to make her fingers twitch.

Though her eyes were swollen from the beating she had gotten, she tried to give Vulstrun a defiant glare, but darkness started to overtake her as she drifted off, her surroundings becoming little but distant noises.

Save for two.

"Vulstrun!"

"Pandora!"

Awaking with a jolt and a gasp, Pandora sat bolt upright in the bed, breathing heavily and groaning as the pain of her injuries washed over her.

"Pandora!" she heard her mother exclaim to her side, and soon the voices of Sonia, Kemeko and the Geckolings joined in.

Blinking a few times to clear her blurry vision, Pandora soon recognised where she was.

"Welcome back to the land of the living." she heard James say as the chimpanzee gently moved the other children aside so he could reach the hybrid.

"Where's Vulstrun?!" Pandora asked agitatedly. "Where is he?! Where did-" she was cut off by her own body complaining from her sudden movements.

"Hush, girl. It's alright." James said, helping Pandora lay back down in the bed. "Vulstrun is gone for now. He left after he attacked Sephie."

"Aunt Sephie?" Pandora asked with wide eyes, sitting up again and let her eyes quickly dart around until she found the unconscious gecko in the neighbouring bed. "Is she…?"

"She will be fine. She just need to get some rest, but it was far too close for her. We almost lost her."

Hearing that, Pandora paled.

"He almost… he almost killed Aunt Sephie?" Then her face darkened. "That bastard!"

"Pandora! Language!" Monalisa exclaimed.

"I don't care! He is a bastard! And he should die like one! If I ever get the chance, I'll give one shell of a rematch! I'm not afraid of him!"

"Are you crazy, Pandora?!" Sonia exclaimed. "He only toyed with you when you fought! You could have been killed!"

Pandora glared at the chameleon with an almost murderous gaze.

"Then what was I supposed to do, huh?!" she yelled. "Just let him hurt Kemeko?! Or kill her?! And what did you do during all this?! You just sat down in a corner and watched!"

"I had no choice! He would have killed everyone if I didn't do as he said!" Sonia countered.

"And I had no choice either!" Pandora kept yelling. "I couldn't let him hurt Kemeko! I just couldn't! I won't let anyone hurt her, or any of you! I'd rather be the one hurt, or even killed, than all of you!"

Sonia didn't know what to say. Pandora had a point, and a good one at that.

"That's enough, young lady." James said calmly, yet sternly. "You are in dire need of rest to recover, and you're not the only one." he pointed his thumb towards Sephie. "So if you're not going to calm down, I will have to sedate you for you own sake."

Reluctantly, Pandora calmed down and lay back down in the bed, pouting as she did. Monalisa sighed and shook her head, placing her hand on her daughter's. Her fiery temper was something she had inherited from her father, and it really shone through at some times.

As Pandora laid there, she thought back on her fight with Vulstrun.

She had claimed that she wasn't afraid of him, and she would never let anyone think that. She would never show fear. Never admit that she was afraid, not even to herself.

But try as she might, no matter how hard she denied or hid it, back then, she couldn't remember a time when she had been so scared. Everything else paled compared to facing such an opponent.

However, despite her fear, she would never back down should she face Vulstrun again. Not if her friends and family were in danger.

She couldn't afford to do otherwise.

As her anger started to subside, she looked over to the unconscious form of Sephie, and thought of everyone else that had been hurt by Vulstrun.

'Kill him, Uncle T. Make sure that he doesn't live another day.' she thought to herself. 'And come back home safely.'

Meanwhile, Tyroth and the others were still walking through the dark tunnels, illuminated only by their flash-lights, as Jack led the way, tracking Vulstrun by scent.

It had all been in nearly completely silence, with only the occasional words of directions from Jack.

But eventually, there was one that just couldn't keep quiet any longer.

"Hey, T?" Michelangelo asked a bit hesitantly.

"What?" Tyroth replied, annoyance could be heard in his voice, as he clearly wasn't in the mood for small talk.

"Well, I've been thinking…"

"This oughta be good." said Raphael.

"Quiet!" Tyroth snapped before turning back to Michelangelo. "Go on."

"It's just… all of this reminds me of Highlander. The whole 'there can only be one' thing, you know?"

"And your point is?"

"Well, that got me thinking about that other dragon you fought. The, what's-his-name… Looky-drugyill?"

"Lokdrogyol."

"That's him, yeah!"

"What about him?"

"After you killed him, you swallowed his soul. Against your will, sure, but still. Do you think the same will happen now?"

Tyroth stopped, causing the rest of the group to stop as well.

"Honestly…" Tyroth began after a moment's silence. "I have no idea. According the history left by the dragons, they rarely fought each other, and never to the death. They were guardians, not monsters."

"I know, dude. I'd just want to know what to expect from the upcoming fight."

"You're not the only one, Mikey." said Leonardo. "I think we'd all feel a little better if we knew more about what's about to happen. Sadly, though, there's not much we can do either way."

"I'm sure we'll know at the end of this." said Tyroth. "Let's continue."

It took nearly half an hour before they reached the end of the tunnel, emerging on one of the larger islands in Lake Michigan.

This island was completely barren, with only the peak with the tunnel and large rocks breaking up its otherwise smooth features.

That, and the lone figure standing in the middle of the island, waiting.

Narrowing his eyes, Tyroth silently motioned for the others to go back, deeper into the tunnel. He did not want them in harms way.

Once he was certain that they were safe, at least for the moment, he started walking towards Vulstrun.

It didn't take long for the two dragons to lock eyes, and even across the distance, they could both see the other felt behind those eyes.

Behind Vulstrun's, viciousness and excitement for a worthy foe.

Behind Tyroth's, rage and hate for the one that hurt his family.

This would be their hardest battle ever, and they both knew it.

Pandora maybe a very tough cookie, but as we saw in her memory based dream, even the toughest cookie can crumble.
Credit where it's due, though, she put up a good fight.

But an even greater fight, both in importance and in scale, is about to take place.