A/N: BWAHAHA! You thought I forgot. You thought I didn't care. But I PROVED YOU ALL WRONG! 8D
FME: But you're never on to RP!
...so what?
Matthew: Wait... w-what?
Roy: Who knows?
Ed: And who really cares?
Link: Wow, NN1! You actually gave Eliwood a new outfit!
Eliwood: I know, huh? (poses in his new outfit) Check me OUT! (shine)
Roy: Ooooh... (puts on sunglasses)
Ed: Whoop-di-flippin-doo.
Oh, silence yourself. Here's the chappie!
Dragon Blood: Chapter 9: Clash of the Dragons
The West Coast soon approached on the horizon as their flight continued on. The flight was nice and smooth, so there was no more excited hollering from Link, who was in fact catching up on his rest and leaning on top of Marth, sleeping soundlessly. The prince did not disturb the elf, simply watching cities and plains go by as he yawned every so often to pop his ears. Thank goodness there were no people out to notice a dragon flying above them and freak out. That wouldn't go over so well.
"Hey, you guys alright back there?" Roy spoke up, snapping Marth out of his tired trance.
"Huh...? Oh, yeah, we're fine. Link's out like a light."
"Heh..."
"You're awfully quiet yourself."
"Yeah... just a little nervous..."
"Just give it your all, Roy. Vanuto doesn't deserve any mercy from you after all he's done to you."
"..." Roy went quiet again after that, and Marth silently questioned why.
But his thoughts were interrupted again by a screeching roar off in the distance. Roy stopped his flight abruptly, still flapping his wings to stay airborne.
"Zzrgh... ugh, are we there ye- WAH!" Link nearly lost his balance, wrapping his arms around Marth's waist while the cobalt grasped Roy's clothes like reins on a horse.
"What happened?"
"Up ahead!" The two riders looked past Roy to see the sight of the SSBM Mansion's front yard. Many Smashers laid injured in the grass, with others cowering and others still trying to combat the massive, silvery white beast, scaly body rippling with power and red eyes hungry for blood. Marth and Link gaped.
"Holy..." was all Marth could say.
"Whoa, you're right. He is big."
Roy let that comment slide past, thinking of how to approach the battle without harming anyone in the way, namely his two mutual buddies perched on his back. An idea reaching his mind, he turned his head and addressed his riders.
"Alright, I'm gonna swoop down on Vanuto before he notices me. When I say 'now,' you jump off, okay?"
Marth blinked. "You can't be serious."
Roy gave him an incredulous stare that seemed serious enough. "You'd rather get caught in the crossfire of a dragon fight?"
"...Touché."
"Get ready, I'm gonna go for it..."
----------
Yes, yes! It was all so wondrous! These ridiculous little Smashers attempting to bring him down, despite the fact that their attacks bounced off him like bullets off titanium, ha! Vanuto contained more power than he could ever comprehend, and brand new bestial instincts told him to attack these little aggressors and cause total chaos. And that's just what he did, and his soul rejoiced at every adversary knocked out of the air and every cry of pain.
But so distracted was he in this inhumane enjoyment, even when he heard his new opponent coming, it was too late.
"Now!" the new one bellowed, and two others appeared in the air and hit the ground with light thuds, rolling in the grass a bit as if they had jumped out of a moving car. And before he knew it, a dark blur slammed into Vanuto from the side with enough force to knock him over. A dust cloud flew up as the two crashed to the ground and shook the earth with a wild tremor. The darker beast then rolled off the pale one and skid across the slick grass, folding his wings and crouching as if ready to pounce again. A deep growl rumbled inside his throat and his sapphire orbs seemed to burn with fury under his raggedy red locks.
"Whoa, is that Roy?"
"Wow, he's a dragon too! How cool!"
"But how...?"
"Hey, back off!" Marth directed the Smashers away from the two dragons. "Don't get in their way if you want any chance of living!"
Surprised by such a demand, the other Smashers could do nothing but follow the orders of the prince, and wisely backed off to become spectators of the clash between Roy and Vanuto once again.
Vanuto got to his feet, talons digging five-foot-deep holes into the ground with sheer anger. Roy glanced into those hateful crimson eyes that somehow resembled Vanuto, but it wasn't like him in the slightest. Whenever Roy got caught in the human Vanuto's gaze, there had always been devious and mysterious thoughts behind those eyes, something these eyes lacked. These eyes had no sly plans, no hidden agendas, just one thing: Kill. Hurt. Destroy. Before, Roy wouldn't think it to be possible to fear Vanuto anymore than he already did, but here he was instantly proven wrong.
Somehow Vanuto knew his opponent was wide open, and lunged at Roy, brandishing razor-sharp claws and elonged fangs. Though surprised, Roy caught him and allowed his weight to push him down, then used the momentum to kick him away, then swiveled to whip him with his tail for good measure. Vanuto hit the ground with another wild tremor, and after it wore off, the Smashers below cheered their dragon friend on.
Vanuto recovered quickly, incensed beyond belief. He firmly planted all four claws on the ground, then threw back his head and blew out his flame breath at his opponent. Roy blocked the blast with a well-maneuvered wing, then felt the heat within him wanting to get out, and he willingly released it at Vanuto. The foe let out another round of flames himself, and the blasts met each other fiercely in midair, pushing against each other. It seemed that Roy struggled to keep his flame breath going, whereas Vanuto showed no strain. At last, Vanuto's attacked prevailed, and Roy was struck with fire, falling to the ground. Though it seemed to have no effect on his exterior, his remaining clothes turned to ash and he coughed as if the breath was knocked out of him.
"What's going on...?" one of the Smashers randomly asked.
Though still in slight shock of the whole situation, Fox tried to explain as best as he could. "Um... I, uh, don't think Roy's quite yet used to breathing fire... and in that case, Vanuto's got the advantage this time!"
The Smashers mostly began to panic, not knowing what would happen if their last stand against Vanuto the Dragon would fall. But Marth was determined not to lose hope in Roy, thinking about what Fox had said.
Not used to breathing fire... He can't control it too well... But he can with his sword... That's it!
"Marth..." Link urged subtly, eyes glued to the fight. "...What do we do now...?"
"Just make sure Roy doesn't die," Marth answered hastily, taking off towards the Mansion. "I'll be right back!"
"...Right..." Link blinked, then did a double take once the prince's words fully processed through his brain. "HUH?" He turned away briefly to question Marth, but his friend was already long gone.
Before Roy had a chance to fully recover he felt his opponent roughly tackle him from the side, and he grunted in pain as he hit the ground again. Tumbling onto his back, he glanced up in horror to find Vanuto on top of him, out for his blood. Scared witlessly, Roy was left hopeless as the evil dragon slashed into him with claws and teeth that were strong enough to break through dragon skin and drain out jade blood...
"Oh, no! Roy!"
"He's getting ripped apart!"
"What's he doing?"
"COME ON, ROY!" Link hollered loud enough for his friend to hear. "DON'T LET HIM BULLY YOU AROUND! FIGHT BACK! YOU CAN DO IT!" He turned to the others. "Come on, you guys! ROY'S OUR BOY! ROY'S OUR BOY!"
Knowing what to do, the Smashers joined Link in his chanting, their voices dimming into one dull roar of encouragement directed at their friend. Of course, the sound reached Roy's ears, as well as Vanuto's. Annoyed, the evil dragon turned his attention to the crowded Smashers, long face contorted as he was about to unleash another fire blast to exterminate the pests. As Roy noticed this, his fear was instantly replaced by anger.
"You leave them alone!" he snarled, then pushed Vanuto off with a newly-awakened strength. This motion sent Vanuto back to the ground, his embers shooting harmlessly into the sky. As Roy regained his strong battle stance, the Smashers cheered once more.
"ROY!" A voice called out to him and before he could fully turn around, a familiar sword planted itself in the earth by his clawed hand. Roy blinked in surprise at the sight of his beloved Sword of Seals, looking up to find Marth a safe distance away, an aura of determination radiating from his stance. With an equal amount of perseverance, Roy nodded and took the sword with a mangled hand, but a righteous spirit.
Recovering, Vanuto's temper heated and flared, his wings stretching in bestial agitation. Roy crouched down to prepare for any advancement his opponent made, blue eyes attentive to a certain spot on the white dragon's belly...
To his wishes, Vanuto snapped and dove with claws outstretched. Roy swept to the side to dodge the initial attack, then swung his arm in a wide arc and thrust his sword right into the sweet spot; through the membrane cover and into the gut of Vanuto.
There was a drastic change of expression on Vanuto's face, his red eyes bulging as the steel blade dug into his innards and drained chartreuse blood. Roy glared and pushed the sword in further until the hilt touched scaly skin, blood leaking between his fingers.
And then he felt the hot feeling in his throat again, but with much strain, he pushed it back down where he could control it. With the familiar glow of energy inhibiting his body, he shut his eyes and silently commanded it all to move through his arms and into the hilt of the Sword of Seals, its hilt sparking and crackling with power. And as Vanuto realized what was about to happen, it was far too late.
And at last, Roy released the power, radiating across the earth like a round of shockwaves and creating billowing winds that made the grass flatten and the watching Smashers get knocked to the ground. The white-hot energy scorched every fiber in Vanuto's unstable body, and he screeched in immense pain, thrashing about less and less the more it went on. Roy held a stiff pose, ignoring his billowing hair and focusing nearly all his strength into his blade. As he reached the peak, a soft thought brushed through his mind, and for a moment, he felt genuinely sorry for having to do this to his opponent.
Finally, the energy fabricating the air vanished as the last bit of energy he was offered was spent. Roy slipped the green-coated sword out of the grievous wound and stiffly watched as Vanuto staggered, then tipped over and crashed to the ground, a sound of thunder rocking the earth for the last time. The pale dragon's body twitched a few times, then laid still, not slain, but surely defeated.
A unique kind of silence filled the air as Roy sighed deeply and released the tension. The sword slipped away from his hand as he laxed his grip on it. He subconscious took control, feeding the last of his current energy into one sole purpose.
Roy groaned in inner pain, swaying dizzily and wings and tail falling limp and shrinking as a transformation took place. A soft glow enveloped his features, slowly growing smaller in size. When the light faded, where Dragon Roy once stood was Human Roy, buck naked. He fell forward to his knees, then collapsed limply into the grass.
The silence was broken at last as the Smashers began an uproar of voices in shock. Link and Marth darted out to their unconscious friend, checking him over without revealing any private parts. His body was covered in battle scars, but his blood was rust red again and the wounds were already beginning to heal.
Link looked back and forth between Roy and the dragon, and all he could do was run his hand through his locks and breath out one word. "...Wow..."
As Marth took a grip on his young friend's shoulders, he felt Roy give off a slight shiver. Noting for the first time the chilly night air, the cobalt unbuttoned his cloak and wrapped it around the redhead's body to protect him from the cold. Placing his hands under the boy's back and knees, Marth lifted Roy into his arms, tucking in the cloak further. He gazed out as the Smashers gathered around Vanuto and sighed inwardly.
What a fiasco...
A/N: WOO! ONLY ONE CHAPPIE LEFT! 8D
Eliwood: Who cares? Check me OUT! (poses, shine)
Matthew: Shhiiiiiiinnnnyyy... (steals Eliwood)
Eliwood: O.O I'M BEING STOLEN! ;o;
Roy: ...how can you steal a person?
Ed: I DON'T KNOW ANYMOOOORE! (spazz)
FME: POOR EDWARD! (cries a river)
Link: Wait... what's going on?
Eliwood: (crying cause he's being stolen)
Ed: (crying because he's so confused)
FME: (crying over Ed's confusion)
Roy: (crying because everyone else is crying)
Link: Um... yeah... I am SO glad this'll be over soon.
Heehee... 8D REVIEW PEEPS!